Where did you meet? We met at Elim Christian Centre's youth-group back in 2002. Over the years, hearts were warmed and flames kindled as we conveniently, both morning people, started going to the gym and hanging out together. Then slowly but surely, over many cups of tea and Signal Hill outings, organising Easter camps and over countless cardio and weights sessions, this was the beginning of an adventure of a lifetime.
The proposal: Ange: Josh proposed on Bob's Peak in Queenstown on 30th June 2012. We had ordered the ring from Michael Hill's. Josh was very good at concealing the fact that the ring had arrived and so I was left, naïve and unsuspecting, as we headed up the Gondola for a mocha and pictures.
Josh pointed to an untouched snowy spot and as he clicked away on the camera, my heart stopped when he reached into his pocket and took out a pink box, undid a ribbon, revealed another pink box, with another ribbon attached. All this time, I was getting more and more conscious of the people around us! He then revealed a sparkly channel-set diamond ring and asked the question "Will you marry me?" I said "Yes!" This was then followed by a delightful degustation at Wai Restaurant and a spa session at Onsen Hot Pools!
Where was your wedding? The wedding ceremony was held at Elim Christian Centre. Elim is our home church in Dunedin and we have both grown to love Elim as home. The wedding reception was held at the gorgeous Glenfalloch gardens. A beautiful warm day, with the temperature hovering around 24 deg C. I fell in love with the gardens after attending Alice's (one of my bridesmaids!) wedding in 2006 and just knew that if I were to get married in Dunedin, Glenfalloch would be IT!
The drive there was a chance to showcase Otago harbour to friends from out of town, the drive way up elegant, and the romantic gardens and modern chalet to host the event for the evening. Though we were indoors, the large windows created an illusion of being outside at the same time. The chalet has character interwoven with a modern ambience. Just what we wanted! Plus Vanessa (Assistant Manager at Glenfalloch) was just superb!
Where did you find your dress? Mum (my wedding buddy) and I had almost exhausted the bridal places in town and there was one place left: Dal Vivo Bridal Couture on Princes St. The staff were excellent and very helpful. I fell in love with 2 dresses and by a strategic process of elimination and following my heart, I decided on the off-white Benjamin Roberts oyster dress. It was a stunning A-line satin gown with a bead encrusted bodice.
The bridesmaid dresses: The bridesmaid dresses were from Ezibuy. I wanted to get dresses that the bridesmaids could choose to wear again and I couldn't find anything that shouted "Pick me!" in town. I was browsing through the Ezibuy catalogue online and one dress stood out and as I still had months to spare in wedding prep, I ordered 2 pink studded mesh dresses and when they arrived a month later, my sister (the maid of honour) and Alice found it a perfect fit!
The flowers: The flowers were from Nichols. They were simple and tied in all the colours we wanted at the wedding.
Who did you use for your catering? At the ceremony, we had the professional and classy Cilantros catering canapés and a good friend, Josie McFarlane, prepared gorgeous platters for the guests. There was so much going on that we hardly had time for a bite to eat but the feedback from the guests was all we needed to know that the food was amazing. Glenfalloch provided a half buffet-half served banquet. It was delicious, entertaining and fun! Here's cheers, to good food!
What was the highlight of your day? Highlight of the day was having close friends and family celebrate the day with us. We love you guys very much!
Who was your photographer? The one and only Rachel Callander (Callander Girl Photography). She was amazing, so cheerful and personal. We loved her and are so blessed that we could have her on our wedding day. Josh knew that I was a huge fan of her work and had booked her in advance for the wedding date 2 months before he proposed! Our favourite picture was taken with the harbour in the background.
