Kirsty Grant and Justin Bain were married on 25 February 2012 at Pukerangi Homestead, near Middlemarch. Kirsty is a Tax Administrator at Price waterhouse Coopers and Justin works underground at Macraes Gold Mine for Oceana Gold.
When and where did you meet: Justin and I first met when we both started at South Otago High School in1999. We had the same group of friends and were good friends all through school.
The proposal: Justin proposed while we were walking our dog along Brighton Beach on Labour weekend 2010. It was a complete surprise, didn't see it coming at all. Justin was playing around with seaweed and being silly as usual. He then mentioned "I've got something for you" and it wasn't until I turned and saw him on one knee with the ring in his hand that I realised what was going on.
Where was the wedding: Pukerangi Homestead, near Middlemarch www.pukerangihomestead.co.nz Our ceremony was held on the front lawn of the homestead and we had a marquee in the neighboring paddock for the reception.
Why did you choose the venue: The homestead and the area have ties with Justin's family history. Justin and I have always loved the area for its stunning landscape and when we first discussed wedding venues we both agreed we wanted somewhere different but special - Pukerangi Homestead was the perfect choice.
Describe your wedding day: The morning for the girls was relaxing and stress free as we got ready inthe homestead behind pulled curtains as the guys were rushing around outside with last minute set up. It had rained heavily the whole week prior to our wedding so we had to wait until the day to see if our ceremony was able to be in our outdoor location or if we had to gowith plan B. Also things like the interior marquee silks and extension cords and sound systems still had to be set up.
I was told I was to sleep in till 10 am , but as soon as I heard voices at around 8 I was up to firstly check that it was not raining and then to visit my sisters room to remind them that "I'm getting married today".
From the moment I put on my dress to the moment the buses came to pick upthe guests the day flashed by so quickly! The entire day was filled with love, laughter and great company. And despite the wind and rain that later developed the whole day was perfect in every way.
The dress: I got my dress from Robyn Cliffe Couturiere in Christchurch. It was a silk and organza ivory gown with a beaded lace bodice. I searched Dunedin, Christchurch and Auckland for my dress and to be honest I think I could have kept looking forever. I dragged my two sisters and my mother on all of these trips and after the second trip to Robyn Cliffe they were all convinced that it was "the one". I needed constant reassuring right up to the day but when I put it on on the day it was absolutely perfect.
The bridesmaid dresses: I originally wanted to purchase my bridesmaid dresses but after getting an idea in my head of what I wanted, I could not find anything in the shops similar. Jane McAuley from Entity, Balclutha had made bridesmaid dresses for my sister's wedding the previous February and had done a fabulous job. So I took in a dress of my sisters that was a similar shape to what we wanted, but not really. As I described the dress I had in my head Jane drew a picture and did the rest from that. The gorgeous ivory silk fabric was purchased from Anne's sewing room and there was exactly the right amount left on the roll, so it was meant to be. The dresses turned out absolutely perfect! Jane did an amazing job and all three of my bridesmaids looked absolutely beautiful.
The flowers: Carley Jones Florist, St Clair, www.carleyjones.co.nz
Carley was fantastic! She understood exactly what I wanted, has great ideas and vision and was so lovely to work with. My bridesmaids and I had vintage posies containing old dutch roses, anemones, peonies, freesias, lambs ear, dahlias and succulents in pastel, romantic colours. The steams where wrapped in hessian and twine to add to the rustic vintage look and I had a strand of pearls wrapped around mine also. I liked the idea of having vintage looking bird cages filledwith flowers as centre pieces but wasn't sure if this would work. Carley loved the idea and specially hired the bird cages in for me. The look was perfect!
The Caterers: Our caterers were Mash Catering Ltd. www.mashcatering.co.nz. As our venue was literally in the middle of no where, and we also had issues with the old homestead having its original wiring and therefore limited power, we really needed a caterer who was fully mobile. I found Mash Catering by chance while googling caterers and after looking through their sample menus and many impressive references on their website we went for it. We are still to this day hearing how delicious the food was from our guests. And have also heard from a few that the canapés were the best they have ever tasted.
Highlight of the day: The whole entire day! From the beginning to the end, the only down point was that it all had to come to an end.
However one moment that did stand out was when the bridal party went down tothe Pukerangi train station for some photos. The station had a number of people waiting to get on the train. They were quite embarrassed when they soon became part of our wedding photos but soon came round. Then when the Taieri Gorge train pulled up we all got on board for some more photos. I felt like a total movie star as all the passengers from the train got off and also started to take photos of us, cheering and congratulating us.
Your photographer and favourite photo: Shelley Povey Photography. Shelley was such fun to work with and made our photo shoots easy and relaxed. We had an engagement shoot two weeks before the wedding to get a bit of practice in as Justin and I both hated getting our photo taking. We are so happy with our photos, we cannot stop looking at them but have not yet decided on a favourite. We love them all!!
