Creating Your Dream Wedding Guest List: Who Should Make the Cut?

So, you’re having the big wedding?
Planning your wedding is such an exciting time, filled with love, laughter, and, let's be honest, a fair share of decisions to make.
One of the biggest? Figuring out who gets a front-row seat to witness your special day.
Your guest list is more than just names on paper - it's about surrounding yourself with the people who mean the most to you and creating unforgettable memories. In this blog post, I’ll dive into some helpful tips and considerations for narrowing down your dream wedding guest list.

Immediate Family:

Let's start with the obvious - your immediate family. These are the folks who have been there since day one, through thick and thin.

Embrace those who've been by your side, whether it's your parents, siblings, grandparents, or chosen family - the ones who have shaped you into the incredible person you are today. Including them in your wedding celebration is a no-brainer because it's all about joining two families together!

Extended Family:

Ah, the tricky part: deciding which extended family members to invite. I totally get it - it's impossible to accommodate everyone. But here's the deal - think about those cousins, aunts, and uncles with whom you've shared some fantastic memories. If they've been a significant part of your life and you'd genuinely miss their presence, add them to the list. And remember, it's all about venue capacity and the atmosphere you envision for your big day.

Close Friends:

Your best friends deserve a special place at your wedding. These are the friends who have seen you at your best and worst, who have been your rock through thick and thin. Whether they're your childhood buddies or your uni crew, including them in your wedding celebration will only amplify the joy and love in the room.

Mutual Friends:

Your love story didn't happen in isolation - there were friends who witnessed the sparks fly and cheered you on throughout your journey. These mutual friends are the ones who have become an important part of your relationship, and having them there on your wedding day will make it all the more special. They're the ones who will be thrilled to see you take this next step and will continue to be your biggest cheerleaders.

Work Buddies:

Let's not forget about those awesome colleagues who have become an extended family of sorts. If you have a close-knit work environment, you might consider inviting a few select work buddies who have become friends. They've witnessed your personal and professional growth. Including them in your wedding can be a fantastic way to honour those friendships that have grown beyond the work space.
If you’re trying to get numbers down - it’s very common to not invite anyone from work.

Common Interest Mates:

Celebrate your shared passions on your big day! Including friends from your sports team, running group, who you surf with or members of your creative collective adds an extra layer of joy and camaraderie to your wedding.
These like-minded individuals have been by your side through victories and challenges, and having them witness your special moments makes the celebration even more meaningful. Surround yourself with those who understand and appreciate your hobbies, interests and sporting pursuits, making your wedding a true reflection of your unique connection and shared experiences.

Plus-Ones and Special Considerations:

Ah, the plus-one conundrum. It's essential to consider your budget, venue capacity, and the overall vibe of your wedding. While it's customary to extend plus-ones to guests in committed relationships or married, you may need to be mindful of your constraints.
Pick a rule for friends with new partners - and stick to it so it’s fair. It's okay to set some boundaries and communicate your intentions kindly to avoid any misunderstandings.
Just remember, it's your day, and the focus should be on you and your partner.

Kids:

It is completely up to you if you have kids as guests at your wedding, but just keep in mind that some of your friends who are new parents, might not be willing to leave their kids in someone else’s care, so you need to be ok with them choosing to not attend.

Dogs:

Do it if you can! Cause I want to tell them I love them.

Conclusion:

Creating your dream wedding guest list is a delicate balancing act.
Remember that it's about sharing this special day with the people who have played significant roles in your lives and who will continue to be there as you embark on your journey as a married couple.

Your guests are witnessing you make some pretty incredible promises to one another, and through witnessing that, they are helping you remain true to those promises. 

Surround yourself with love, laughter, and those who genuinely care about your happiness. With a well-curated guest list, your wedding will be an unforgettable celebration for both you and your loved ones.

Brent and Tiana’s wedding was at the incredible Deux Belettes in Dalwood, just west of Ballina and it it was all expertly managed by Hayley Cravigan and these gorgeous images were captured by Joe and Roo Wedding Photography.

Weekday Wedded Bliss: Weekday Elopement Packages in Byron Bay

Elope in Mullumbimby and the Byron Shire with Weekday Wedded Bliss

Imagine this: a picturesque setting in the heart of Byron Shire, surrounded by the natural beauty of Mullumbimby, where love knows no bounds, and simple elopement dreams come true.
Allow me to introduce Weekday Wedded Bliss, the epitome of weekday wedding magic, offering couples a chance to say "I do" in an intimate and heartfelt celebration.

Weekday Wedding Bliss helps couples elope with ease and grace, embracing the magic of intimate weekday ceremonies. With no-nonsense packages like the The Sit and Sign and The Short and Sweet, lovebirds can exchange vows in the most meaningful and hassle-free way.

Mei and Sam’s Commitment Ceremony

Kat Rollings is the creative force behind this enchanting styled elopement shoot for Weekday Wedded Bliss.
What started as a photo shoot blossomed into a heartfelt commitment ceremony, allowing Mei and Sam to celebrate their marriage with Mei’s parents who weren’t able to travel to South Africa last year when they originally made their vows to one another.

The Enchanting Mullumbimby Vendors

Partnering with talented vendors is key to creating an unforgettable elopement experience. Meet the extraordinary talents who played a role in Mei and Sam's love-filled day:

1. The visionary behind the magic, Kat Rollings, brings creativity and passion to capture the essence of love in every frame.

2. Gypsy from Byron Bay Makeup Co enhances natural beauty, making every bride radiate with confidence and grace.

3. Jen from Haven Botanical weaves floral artistry into stunning bouquets, adding an extra touch of elegance and beauty to the celebration.

4. Cara from Modern Love Ceremonies. Me!
I will get you legally wed and it will be full of meaning and fun.

If you’re dreaming of running away and getting married without any fuss, book us in!

Scroll to the bottom to to see the charming matchy-matchy moment when Kat, Gypsy, Jen and I all accidentally wore the same colours to the shoot. Talk about synchronicity!

The Styled Shoot
After the commitment ceremony, Mei’s folks headed off, and Mei and Sam stayed on at Kat’s property to take some photos in the other ceremony spaces.

15 Questions to Consider When Rehearsing Your Ceremony

Rehearsals can do wonders for helping soothe nerves, as you are able to physically understand everything that is going to happen during the ceremony; to feel it in your body.
This process can even help to empty the well of emotions that are building up as your wedding day approaches. 

If for any reason, you can’t schedule a rehearsal with me before your ceremony, here are 15 questions to consider when planning how your ceremony will flow.

All of the amazing images from Brianna and Sean’s wedding were taken by the wonderful Tennille Fink.

(Note: I will always prioritise a cuppa tea or phone call to go over these points in the week leading up to your wedding.)

Not all weddings feature a bride and a groom, so to be inclusive of all couples, I’m referring to the parties of the couple as Party 1 and Party 2.

1. Is Party 1 or Party 2, (or both), making an entrance? Where will they enter from?

Bri entering the ceremony space with her mother and father as her escorts.

Sean waiting for Bri to arrive.

2. Are you having attendants (bridesmaid, bridesmate, groomsmen, grooms gal, I Do Crew)?
Is there a particular row, tree or landmark that the 1st attendant will reach which will prompt the next attendant to walk?

3. Will there be a pause before Party 1 or Party 2 begin their entrance once all the attendants have walked down the aisle? 

4. If you are having children with roles as attendants, where would you like them to sit/stand after they have walked down aisle? Will their parent or carer be close by?

5. Is your entrance song long enough for all of you to reach the ceremony space?

6. Is there someone escorting you down the aisle, confirm what they will do once you reach the ceremony space. i.e. greet Party 1 if they are already there, with a hug or a kiss? and then give Party 2 kiss before sitting down etc…

7. What side will you and your attendants stand on?
This can be which ever side you want - all the traditions that suggest the groom should be on the right (his left) are extremely outdated. The groom is traditionally on the right so his sword arm is free and he can draw his sword to fight off marauders who are coming to steal the bride - and bridesmaids were decoys - dressed the same as the bride - so that the bride didn’t get kidnapped!
These ideas were in place because marriages were generally land deals.
So… super sexist and not really relevant to 2023.

Bri and Sean chose to buck tradition and have Bri stand on the right, and her parents sat on the left so they could have a better view of her face during the vows.

8. Would you like to repeat vows after me or have them written down on cards?
Vow cards are best and I can hold on to them and hand them to you at the right time - I will prepare these for you once you have sent me your vows.

9. How will you get the rings?
Be sure the ring bearer delivers both rings before the ring exchange.
Best to have both rings in one box and the ring bearer displays the rings to both parties.
Don’t grab your own ring - take your fiancé’s ring as you will then gift it to them.
For example, Party 1 takes Party 2’s ring, and vice versa. 

10. Do you have a family member or friend performing a reading?
Confirm if they will have a print out or if I have the reading material to print for you.

11. Where will your signing table be?
Don’t arrange it so you have to cross your guests to get to it, as they will all want to congratulate you before it’s all finished.

12. Have you confirmed who your two witnesses are? They need to be over 18, understand English and be human. Sorry - no doggie witnesses. :)

13. Will your attendants follow you back down the aisle after your ceremony concludes?

14. What directions do you want to give your guests for straight after the ceremony? Photos or straight to the party?
This will be covered in the planning process, but good to consider again during the rehearsal time. 

15. Live music or device? Have you prepared all of the songs you would like played?
If saved on a phone, please download the playlist and put the phone on airplane mode for the ceremony so it can’t receive calls or texts.

Bri and Sean didn’t need to worry about music on a device as they had the incredible Hamilton Band.

If you take the time to think through all the items that are relevant to you on this checklist, you’re covering off all the moments that could trip you up on the day.

Big love and good luck, 

Cara

Sarah and Kym’s intimate BackYard wedding

One year ago, on the first day of Spring, Sarah and Kym invited a very select few of their family and friends to see them get married during a mid-morning ceremony, and it was a bit of a happy-cry fest.

It was also hilariously funny, thanks to the edits they made to my script.

For example:
“After their first date, Sarah was driving Kym home and she was so nervous and in a bit of shock about how cool and comfortable Kym was with herself, so much so, that she got verbal diarrhoea and proceeded to tell Kym the stories of every single ex she had ever had.

Kym says with a laugh, that it was RELENTLESS.

Not one for time wasters, Kym bluntly asked Sarah if she was into her, and if she was, then she should stop talking about her ex's and kiss her.
Sarah quickly got the message, pulled over in front of an amazing church with Jesus all over it and they shared the world's most awkward first kiss.”

Sarah and Kym walked down the aisle after the ceremony as the band played Two Strong Hearts, and it was beyond joyful.

As the owners of the very popular, Flock Espresso, food was a very important part of their day, and an incredible lunch was prepped for them by Sarah and Jeremy from 100 Mile Table.

Lunch was served on Frank and Joy’s lovely furniture while the lovely Lauren from Love Her Wild Photography captured it all (including all the beautiful shots featured in this post - the one of Sarah and Kym with me was captured by Lauren on my phone and recently edited with her new Gloria Presets).

Kym and her minions arranged the flowers and styled the table - and how epic is Kym’s sequinned gown which she bought from an op-shop years ago for $7!!!???

What a morning!

While this amazing wedding happened last year - pre-corona craziness, with a COVID Safe Plan in action by a caterer or wedding planner, a celebration very similar to this could still go ahead in some states at the moment.
It was such a beautiful day, and a wonderful way to get married and share it with your favourite people.

Happy anniversary Sarah and Kym!

Our 10 Year Vow Renewal - One Year On

Today is Phil and my 11 year wedding anniversary.

Which means for a whole year I have procrastinated about blogging our 10 year vow renewal. Oops.

And more importantly it means I get to celebrate 11 years of marriage with the love of my life.
This year we’ll be doing so by hopefully eating lunch together while our toddler sleeps and then I’ll be helping a lovely couple get married.

Last year, I spent the afternoon having my hair and makeup done by one of my divine future brides, Phoebe Barrett (also known as Phoebe Fever), which was delightful because she is one of the sweetest people you’d be lucky enough to meet, and she helped me feel like a million dollars.

The weather was a bit iffy, and we only had the option of doing it at the beach - which I was hating because I felt so crappy for not having a wet weather back up and potentially making two of my vendor mates stand in the rain.

Luckily it didn’t rain, and the extremely talented Shane Shepherd and Annie Molenaar met us at Wategos Beach at about 5pm.
We had packed a whole basket of food for the kids to snack on, and some little beach toys for the baby, but in the rush of getting down to the beach, it got left in the car.
For someone who has so much experience with being around tired, hungry kids at weddings, I really blew it on this account.

We walked along the beach together as a family with Annie and Shane, and it was such a surreal feeling being the woman in the white dress holding flowers.
(Thanks to the lovely Jen and Jess from Haven Botanical in Mullumbimby for creating such a gorgeous bouquet incorporating my fav, paper flowers, to my friend Lizzy for helping me get hold of a sold out Spell gown and another clever friend, Krystle Knight, who I bought my jewels from).

Annie began the ceremony, and again it was very strange for me to be one of the people who was the centre of the ceremony.
I felt a little outside of myself listening to Annie tell our story, which she did so beautifully and with such care.

Apart from our oldest child, the kids pretty quickly got bored with us thinking that we could be the centre of things for a heartbeat, and our littlest started building a sandcastle on both Annie and my feet, the big one joined in and upscaled the project, our older girl climbed a tree, which was halfway up the cliff and she had to be rescued halfway through our vows.

Phil also told each of the kids how much we love them, and how great they are - although he had to yell it up a tree to one of them.

It was a beautiful celebration of how chaotic our life is and a true reflection of what our relationship is like right now.
We don’t have enough time for us, and we are always having to put “us” aside.
The moments where we do find each other and truly connect are always magical.
That was an amazing realisation, if not a little poignant and irritating.

After the ceremony, we had a few portraits taken, and then everyone except me jumped in the ocean, (there was no way I was getting my pretty hair wet), and a beautiful rainbow appeared.

Afterwards we went out for burgers in Byron Bay and then home for an early night.
We were sitting in bed, and I said, “can we say our vows to one another again?”.

So we did, in a space that wasn’t half as picturesque, but where we had no interruptions and could listen to and appreciate what the other person had written.
It was so nice, just us.

So my takeaway from this is as a professional wedding vendor is as follows:
If you’re going to have a vow renewal…

• If you have kids, think about having someone there to rescue your kids from cliffside trees so you don’t have to.
  (We didn’t want to invite anyone because who do you invite, and then do you have to feed them, is it now an event?… etc etc)

• Take snacks!

• Hire an amazing photographer who makes you feel comfortable. Vow renewals are super intimate and you want to feel at ease with who is capturing it.

• Now, this is a little controversial, as I am a celebrant, and I’m all for celebrants getting paid to do what they are good at, and I LOVED what Annie did for us, but at a vow renewal (vow renewal - NOT a wedding), a celebrant isn’t essential.
  From our experience, just saying nice things to each other alone later in the night was the best bit - so you can totally do that yourself.
  In fact - say nice things to your partner all the time. It’s good for you.

• If you want a celebrant to tell your story - totally pick Annie or me to do it. :)
  Again, as it’s a really intimate setting, it needs to be someone you like and feel comfortable with.

Note: I’d like to credit Kate O’Neill from the Northern Star who interviewed me for their Northern Rivers Style February Issue and asked me a bunch of questions about our vow renewal.
Some of the content from her article is paraphrased in this blog post - thanks for organising my thoughts for me, Kate!
You can find the whole article online here.

Michaela and Joel's Love Drenched Sunrise Elopement

Earlier this year, on Valentines Day, I had the pleasure of helping Michaela and Joel get married in front of two witnesses and their photographer friend, Nathan O’Donnell.
I asked Michaela to give me a little information about why they chose to elope, and the gorgeous woman practically wrote an entire blog post for me, so here it is, in Michaela’s words:

“Some girls dream about their wedding from a young age, collecting images of wedding dresses, writing guest lists, choosing their bridesmaids and all before meeting their Prince Charming - I was one of those girls...

But when I met Joel none of those things seem to matter to me anymore. I knew that just being his wife was going to be my dream come true and all the bells and whistles didn't seem so important.

We did talk of our wedding day and how we wanted it to be a big party on a property in the hills (with a pool of course), some food trucks and a DJ, but as it does, life goes by so fast and with a blink of an eye we went from being engaged, to our baby being due in only a matter of weeks.
Being somewhat traditional, we both wanted to be married before the arrival of our small human.

So through the power of instagram we met Cara, this energetic, love magician got the wheels in motion in a minutes notice.

Let the elopement begin!!!

Joel and I are absolutely hopeless with remembering dates so we chose Valentine's Day as a fool proof plan to never forget our wedding anniversary.

We then chose the Lennox headland as the backdrop to our ceremony as it's our home and I had hopes of a beautiful sunrise looking fab in our wedding photos.

And once again through the power of instagram I contacted my friend Nathan and asked him if he'd be interested in photographing our wedding. Luckily for me, he said yes with only two weeks notice and the expectation of being up at 5am to catch that sunrise.

But my hopes for that picturesque sunrise were soon to be drowned, literally.
After three months of no rain over summer, Mother Nature had decided to open up the heavens.
Bang on 6am as I walked up the hill of the Pat Moreton lookout, a black cloud rolled over my head and torrential rain began to pour.

My girlfriend Laura and I walked along the cliff face with inverted umbrellas to meet the boys who greeted us with see-through shirts and matching inverted umbrellas.

There, in the pouring rain, we laughed at the irony and said our vows.
It truly was our happily ever after, and six days later we met our beautiful son, Thomas Barry Saye.”

“On February 14th, 2019, I married the love of my life, witnessed by my beautiful friend, Laura, and Joel's brother Julian.

38 weeks pregnant in a beautiful custom made dress made by my girlfriend Celestial Campbell, and I did my own hair and makeup, and then the rain had a go too. 

Married by Cara Gallagher from Modern Love Ceremonies.

Photographed by Nathan O’Donnell - minus the sunrise. 

Clutching some beautiful blooms by NIKAU flower bar.”

Frock Your Wedding

 👗FROCKTOBER👗

My celebrant buddy, Hitched by Hannah has started a team for Frocktober this year - we are called Frock Your Wedding and we are a fabulous bunch of celebrants who get to officiate the big day for people who often wear particularly spectacular frocks (see my last photo😍) - while often wearing frocks ourselves!

I thought that posting a pic in front of this sign might be a bit inappropriate or insensitive when raising money for cancer research, but then I realised it's all about awareness.

The tagline on the Frocktober website reads, "Currently one woman dies every ten hours in Australia from ovarian cancer because there is no early detection test".

If you can make a donation, please go to our page at:

 https://frocktober2017.everydayhero.com/au/cara

Kimberley and Scott and their Fur Babies

Kimberley and Scott are very proud fur baby parents and their pets are a huge part of their lives.

When the Ballina based couple started planning their wedding, they knew their two staffies, Zak and Navy, needed to be there.

They also knew they wanted to have their ceremony on the beach, so they started looking around the local area for beautiful dog beaches.

They decided on Belongil Beach in Byron Bay, a dog beach they were familiar with and knew would be safe for both them and their dogs.

Belongil Beach is an off-leash area. Couples need to research what restrictions the location has around whether their dog needs to be tethered or not.

Kimberley and Scott made the decision to have their pets on a leash, as with all the distractions of other animals on the beach, they wanted to make sure that their pets would stay close.

Some dogs will become frustrated seeing other animals running around free, and untethered, while they are on a leash, so it is wise for owners to think through how their pet will feel and anticipate whether the location is a good match for them and their pets.

Zak was an honorary groomsmen complete with bow tie, who sat by his master, Scott, while he was waiting for his bride, and Navy shared the duty of walking Kimberley down the aisle, wearing an adorable floral collar.

They were such well behaved pups, and it really made the day complete for Kimberley and Scott, being able to share the day with ALL of their family members.

This blog post was inspired because I was asked to feature in an article by Bupa Pet Insurance about bringing together pets and weddings successfully. Their article 'How to Involve Cats and Dogs in Weddings' is full of great tips for pet lovers planning a wedding. You’re sure to be inspired with all the fantastic ideas from some of Australia’s leading pet and wedding experts.

All photos care of the lovely Meg from Love from Luff.

Noodle and Rikki

Earlier this year I had the immense pleasure of marrying Hendrika and Anthony, better known to all their loved ones as Rikki and Noodle.
They got married in the dunes at Evans Head and it was incredible DIY feast for the eyes. Rikki and Noodle were very generous with sharing their history and love story with me, so I was able to write a meaningful, funny and love-filled ceremony which I am still so proud of. I feel so honoured to have been the only wedding vendor there on the day, and whilst I'm not encouraging everyone to avoid engaging wedding vendors (I'm really not, I just spent the weekend at the Byron Bay Wedding Fair with such an amazing group of individuals and businesses), I was so impressed with what Rikki and Noodle and their family and friends were able to create.

It was magic.

I asked Rikki to tell me a little bit about what they did and who helped them out.

"When Noodle and I were planning our wedding we had a modest budget and a large guest list, so DIY and help from our amazing friends and families was the only way it was ever going to happen.
Absolutely everything at our wedding was done by ourselves or provided by a loved-one and in the end the only wedding vendor we used was the very gorgeous Cara herself.
We did everything from designing the invites, making the boutonniere's and bouquets, cutting our hundreds of glitter-card love hearts, baking biscuits and making chai tea for the wedding favours, painting signs, hand tye-dying 140 napkins, it was a definite labour of love and although it was a lot of hard work and at times very stressful, it was all worth for just how magical it felt on the day.
The theme for the day was, in no particular order, hippy-dippy, surfer-dude, chilled-out, tiki-cool, under-the-sea Mermaid... plus loooootttss of glitter!
My dad is a carpenter and was a massive help in creating the glitter backdrop, which was made out of Christmas decorations I found in a discount bin at Spotlight. 
My Mum bought potted flowers from Big W and Noodle made wooden flower boxes for the tables. 
My absolutely legendary fashion designer friends Luke and Anna from Romance Was Born made my wedding dress for me, it was the wedding dress of my dreams, I felt like a mermaid goddess in that thing!
Noodles amazing chef sister did all of the catering and if I was going to change anything it probably would of been hiring a caterer, not because Pip didn't do an amazing job, the food was awesome, but because it was a lot of extra stress to add on top of everything else.
My darling friend Fran did my make-up and Noodle's mum made the wedding cake. 
My brother and another friend took photos and a DJ mate Barney Kato did the music.

It was soooo personal and so special and everything we wanted without costing the earth."

Catering: Groom's sister, Pip
Wedding Cake & Dessert: Groom's Mum
Bride’s Dress: Romance Was Born
Bride's Shoes: Sophia Webster (gifted by amazing gal pals)
Bride’s Hair & Make-Up: Bride's friend, Franny
Bridesmaids Outfit: Romance Was Born
Styling & Decoration: Bride
Bridal Bouquet & Reception Flowers: Bride and her Mum
Flower Crown & Buttonholes: Bride
Celebrant: Cara Gallagher (ME!)
Arbour: Bride's Dad
Stationery: Hendrika Stekhoven-Smith (Bride)
Photographer: Bride's brother, Paul, and their friend, Leemac
Musician: DJ Kato

Festivities, Family and Floods - The Show Must Go On.

As Mother's Day approaches, I thought I'd reflect on being a mother myself and how grateful I am to live near my mum, and share the journey of mothering with my sister.
I often get asked what 'a day in the life' of a working mum celebrant looks like, so I thought I'd share my weekend with you.

May started with a bang! A few peals of thunder, a whole lot of rain, some flooding and then unexpectedly, a sunny Saturday in the Byron Shire. 
The first weekend of May was a big one for me, with three weddings and my husband working away. Thankfully we have a wonderful support team in my mum and sister, so our little kids had loving carers for the weekend while we were both working. 
The three weddings were so different and I was excited about all of them. 
Jennifer and Daniel's private elopement at Wategos, with no guests, Hannah and Dan's inmate and elegant wedding on the private property venue, Gurragawee, with only 40 guests and then Kit and Odie's 1970's Black Tie themed party of the year nuptials extravaganza with 150 guests!

I left my house in Mullumbimby very early on Friday morning. I was a bit anxious that I might forget something, with all the paperwork, audio equipment, outfits, clothes for the kids, nappies etc that I had to pack, but in the end all I forgot was the dog's food - sorry Frankie.
However, he was more than happy to eat left over lamb stew.

First stop (after dropping off the kids in Ballina) was a ceremony rehearsal at Kit and Odie's house in Bangalow.
Kit's mum, Margaret, first contacted me as she was doing most of the admin behind the scenes for the wedding. Margaret and Kit work together in Marg's Interior and Events Styling business, Alida and Miller. They do amazing work, and the wedding was the perfect example of what this great mother-daughter duo can produce. (Mums rule!)
The tipis for the wedding were all set up thanks to Samikata Tipi Events, and due to the rain, Kit and Odie had arranged an extra tipi for the ceremony.
It was a hilarious ceremony walk through with the bridal party. We also rehearsed the music and had a bit of a dance to Nelly's "Hot in Herre", their exit song. So fun.

Next stop, was just around the corner at Gurragawee in Brooklet, just 15 minutes away. The rain was pouring down, so we rehearsed Hannah and Dan's ceremony in the foyer of the main house at Gurragawee.
As Hannah and Dan were having a small wedding, it wasn't a worry at all, it was the perfect wet weather option, and would be intimate and so cosy in that gorgeous room.
Hannah discussed about how she would prefer the ceremony outside if there was some kind of miracle and the forecasted 350ml of rain didn't come. It didn't look likely though.

Hannah and Dan were the first couple to book me for May 2nd, and when I got Kit and Odie's enquiry, I emailed Hannah and asked if she would feel comfortable with me booking a second wedding so close to hers. She said she hadn't sent out her invitations yet, and that she would be happy to move her wedding forward by 30 minutes to allow me to book both jobs. Hannah said she had done the sums on how many weddings I could do in a year, and that she wanted me to be able to work as much as I could. How amazing is she!? During their ceremony Dan commented on how much he valued Hannah for her boundless love, how she gives herself fully and always puts others above herself. 
I am often pinching myself about the amazing couples I get to marry.

Hannah and Dan discussing logistic of the big day with the gorgeous Roxy from Frank and Joy.

I left Brooklet to go back to Ballina to have lunch with my mum and kids, (thanks for lunch, Mum) and to get ready for Jennifer and Daniel's wedding, but we still hadn't settled on a venue, and the rain just kept on coming down.

The logistics of where to have Jennifer and Daniel's elopement had me a little worried as it was planned as a Wategos Beach ceremony and we didn't really have a wet weather back up.
Overnight they had made plans to have it on the grounds of a stunning property in the shire, but then due to potential flooding, it seemed as if that wasn't going to work, and then last minute they were able to get the amazing penthouse at Rae's on Watego's.

I arrived at Rae's at 2:30pm on the Friday afternoon.
Elisa from Pineapple Images was there snapping away in one of the bedrooms, as Jennifer had just put on her dress, and Daniel was in the living area looking after their son, Corby, with the help of the photographers mum, Elizabeth. (Again, mums rule!)
Elisa and Elizabeth were the legal witnesses for their marriage as well.
I assisted Elisa in setting up a 'first look' moment, which she photographed, and I filmed on my iPhone, just so they could have a little record of it.
The ceremony was conducted on the balcony, while the rain poured down, it was very simple and sweet, and a bit raw and exciting due to their feelings and the weather. I spoke a little about how much they loved each other, and then they said some words to each other about how much they meant to each other, which also tied in their vows.
They exchanged rings, shared a kiss, and viola, they were married!
(All official after we signed the paperwork in the gorgeous dining room, of course).

(Professional images courtesy of Pineapple Images.)

Saturday morning, the rain stopped, the clouds parted and the sky was blue. Hannah's fine weather miracle came through!
We had a slow morning as we were flooded in and that was a little worrying, but the tide went down and I was able to drive out.
I spent about 30 minutes trying to put my hair up in a chic beehive (didn't quite nail it), while my daughter did the world's biggest poo in her nappy (didn't see an instagram post about that, did you?), and then dropped the kiddies off at my sister’s house and travelled out to Gurragawee for Hannah and Dan's wedding.

Hannah looked stunning in her Grace Loves Lace gown, just so feminine and beautiful. 
Hannah and Dan had chosen to walk down the aisle together, as they felt it marked a special beginning on their ongoing journey together.
This meant they also set up a 'first look' moment with their photographers, Josh and Joey from Ethereal Photography.
I was lucky enough to see that sweet moment as well.
Their ceremony was so heartfelt and intimate, their 40 guests were all seated in the garden, yes, they got their garden wedding, and the sun was shining.
Once the ceremony was finished, I packed up my gear, spent about 20 minutes saying goodbye to the other vendors, Hannah and Dan and their guests and then got in my van to head off to Kit and Odie's wedding.

Beautiful bouquet above by Estelle from The French Petal.

And then the big finish at Wizard Mountain for Kit and Odie's amazing 1970's Black Tie themed wedding.
This wedding is a whole blog post on it's own, or a link to which ever lucky bridal blog or magazine gets to use Amelia Fullarton's outstanding images.
Kit and Odie, with the help of Marg, pulled together a great team of vendors, and they did so much themselves. 
The themed wedding really took the event into a whole different realm. It really felt as if we were in another space and time that existed purely to celebrate (bow down and worship) Kit and Odie's deep deep deep love for one another.

Kit is a stylist, and she has her own little vintage styling empire over at Alida Buffalo, and she supplied that amazing spotty dress I wore. Got to love playing dress ups for work.

I was lucky that my sister needed me to get back to her place ASAP, otherwise I would have found myself in the awkward territory of being the party crashing celebrant. I really didn't want to leave that amazing celebration, but I couldn't leave my sister and her husband to do dinner and bedtime for four kids without me, so off I journeyed into the sunset.

My beautiful sister cooked dinner for us, and we got all the kiddies to bed, and I was still on a high from the amazing festivities and proceeded to talk her ear off for the rest of the evening.

It really does take a village to raise a child, and I feel so blessed to have such a supportive family. 
Happy Mothers Day the amazing women in my life.

Happy Mondays at home with my little ones. (Frank dog is depressed that there's no more lamb stew.)

Lynsey and Nath's Elopement

Lynsey and Nath are high school sweethearts and I had the pleasure of marrying them during an intimate ceremony in front of two witnesses and their 2 year old daughter on Wategos Beach.
They decided to get eloped for many reasons, as Lynsey eloquently writes below:

"Nathan and I are both romantics, (me especially!!) And the idea of marrying in secret was just incredibly exciting, magical, intimate and completely us. There were no expectations. And to both of us, when you get down to the roots of what marriage truly is, it is two people. Two people crazy in love, who wish to commit their entire being to the other. Two people sharing all their hopes and dreams and making private promises to each other. 

We also wanted to incorporate our wedding day with a holiday and Byron Bay is a place we had both wanted to travel to for many years, the energy there is very special and uplifting and we wanted to be a part of that. To be barefoot on the beach with the waves coming in, the sun going down and the love of my life standing before me, was pure joy. We didn't have to share it with anyone except our beautiful 2 year old daughter (and 2 legal witnesses) and that was the best bit! We took our time, we enjoyed getting ready, there was no stress and we just went with the flow. It was beyond special, it was the most beautiful day full of pure emotion and many tears and if we could do it all over again, we would, every single day for the rest of our lives."

Lynsey and Nath's ceremony was really special for me as well, their little girl was only a couple of weeks younger than my little girl.
I went to their accommodation and picked up Lynsey and Livvy, and took them to the beach so they could still have the 'first look' moment when Lynsey arrived at Wategos.
Livvy and I bonded when I picked them up, and she held my hand while her parents said their vows. My heart was melting. 

Lynsey and Nath arranged some great local vendors to help them out on their big day. See the small list at the bottom of blog post and under the amazing photos taken by Kristy from Figtree Pictures.
Lynsey looked stunning in her Spell Designs Sundancer Gown (sold out), which Julia from Flowers by Julia Rose was inspired by to create a perfectly matched floral crown and bouquet.

VENDORS:
Photographer: Kristy from Figtree Pictures
Ceremony Location: Wategos Beach
Bride’s Dress: Spell Designs
Bride’s Hair: Ron from Byron Hair
Bride's Make-Up: Pettina
Flowers: Flowers by Julia Rose
Celebrant: Cara Gallagher (ME!)

Jaemi and Chad

My good friends Jaemi and Chad got married at the end of last year.
They live over in Dunsborough, WA, so we couldn't catch up in person to plan their wedding ceremony. No problems there though, because, the internet! 
I wrote their ceremony after a chat on the phone and then polished it off with a few emails back and forth.

My family and I flew over to Western Australia to celebrate their wedding with them at Arimia Estate, and had a little holiday visiting family and friends whilst we were there.
There's nothing quite like having an insider's perspective on someone's wedding day, and I always feel so privileged to have that view.

Jaemi and Chad have already been blessed with a beautiful little boy, Albie, and he had the honour of escorting his mama down the aisle (read: be carried down the aisle by his mama.)
I remember as a child looking at photos of my mum and dad's wedding and being so confused and hurt that I wasn't invited. I didn't quite get that I didn't exist at that point. No fear of missing out for little Albie.

Jaemi is a full time mama to little Albie, and a part time wedding vendor, with her wedding planning and styling business Pixel and Heart Co. and Chad owns and operates a successful clothing label, Grand Flavour.
They are a fun, relaxed, creative, DIY kind of couple, and their wedding was a true reflection of that.
They pretty much DIY'd the whole wedding from Jaemi styling her own hair, making the cake, decorating the venue, including the floral installations and lighting in the dining area. They hand made the signage and Jaemi hand painted it all. The BAR succulent sign (which I adored, succulents telling me where I can get my beverage from. Genius!), the hand made C + J Marquee letter lights, photo booth props (including a Kimye jacket) and personalised disposable cameras directing guests to try and capture specific images.

It was so well organised, and often when people have a really DIY heavy wedding, they can get really stressed out and forget to enjoy the day, or they don't handover jobs very well, but this was not the case with Jaemi and Chad. They were both so relaxed and happy on the day, it really was such a joy to be with them. Jaemi said that the secret to her success was in the planning.
"Start all those little (& BIG!) projects early on, so in the lead up to your wedding you have time to relax and enjoy the lead up with your fiancé because once the day is here it goes by too fast! Find, make and do things with meaning and your wedding will be a fun-filled reflection and smile fest of you and your fiancé, and your loved ones will enjoy being a part of the first day of your new journey as husband and wife."

The one thing that was super important to Jaemi and Chad, and that they knew they couldn't do themselves, was for someone to beautifully capture all of their hard work and good times on the big day. They chose award winning Perth photographer, James Simmons, (known by his friends as Jimmons) for the job, and as you can see by the stunning images below, he completely nailed it.

If you are planning a wedding in the Margaret River region, be sure to contact Jaemi for all your wedding planning needs!

THE MEN

THE WOMEN

THE CEREMONY

PHOTO TIME

THE PARTY

Ceremony and Reception Venue and Catering: Arimia Estate Winery
Wedding Cake: Made by bride and groom, decorated by bride and bridesmaids.
Bride’s Dress: Loui Col Designs
Bride’s Hair: Bride
Bride's Make-Up: Brittany Lovell
Bridesmaid dresses: Picked by individual bridesmaids.
Groom's Clothing: Zara
Styling & Decoration: Bride and Groom - Pixel and Heart Co.
Ceremony & Reception Flowers: Bride
Bouquets & Buttonholes: Local florist
Celebrant: Cara Gallagher (ME!)
Celebrant's Dress: Mister Zimi
Letterpress Invitations: The Little Press 
Photographer: James Simmons Photography
Photo Booth: Merlina Lam

Can I Get a Witness? 7 things to consider when signing the marriage register.

1. Breathe
This will most likely be the first moment you haven't been slightly overwhelmed and emotional since you laid eyes on each other in the ceremony space.
Take a deep breath, squeeze each others hand and get ready to sign on that dotted line. Shit just got real.

Photo: James Simmons

2. Which Witness
Legally, you need to pick two witnesses who are 18 or older.
Traditionally, the role has been given to the chief bridesmaid and the best man, but you can pick whoever you want.
Mums often don't get an official role at weddings these days, so it can be nice to ask both of your mothers to witness. Dads would probably love to get a chance to sign as well.
It's also a great way to include a friend or relative who you are really close to, who didn't make the cut to be a part of the bridal party.

Sally and Blake had their grandmothers witness their marriage certificates.
Photo: Camilla Kirk

3. Don't Cross Your Guests
Whatever you do, don't set the signing table up on the other side of your guests. 
The signing is meant to happen as a part of the ceremony, and if you have to walk past your guests to sign the register and certificates, they will all want to hug and kiss you, and it's hard to get the official signing done.
Set the table up close to the ceremony space, off to one side, behind the ceremony space, or bring a table in to sign under your arbour, if you have one.
Save the congratulations for the end when you can give it your full attention.

The signing table set up at Byron Plantation - as the guests were going to stand either side of the pool, the signing table was set quite close to the ceremony space. Photo: Lara and Susie

4. Sign Your Own Name
If you are planning on changing your name, this happens well after the ceremony, once you've received the official certificate in the mail, at least 2 weeks after the wedding.
You must sign the marriage register and certificates with your maiden name.

Jaemi signed her own name like a boss. Photo: James Simmons

5. Signing Table Styling
This is totally up to you.
Flowers are awesome, but if you have a small table, think about making a low arrangement so you can still be seen. Also, if you are having a bouquet, you may want to rest that on the table.
If it's windy, don't put any water in the little vase, if it falls over, it's going to get the table wet.
Pens! 
I see pens getting a lot of talk time on celebrant forums, but I don't really have an opinion one way or another about pens - they just need to work!
I will provide you with a lovely silver Parker pen with a gel ink cartridge which is just a joy to sign with, but if you want something more festive, bring it along - just make sure it works.
Our celebrant had a big white feather pen, which my husband hated, but I didn't even notice it on the day.

Amy and Harvey eloped at Little Wategos and signed on a rock. Photo from Donatella Parisini. 

6. Music
You have to have music. Whether you have a live musician or are playing music from a playlist, consider what song you want playing during the signing. People will be milling around, taking pictures of you, and it will be super awkward if there is silence. The last wedding I was at they played Signed, Sealed, Delivered. 

Most wedding singers will learn one or two songs at your request for your ceremony.
Stephanie Grace is one of those. And local wedding singer, Ineka, will definitely learn some songs as a part of her package.

7. Take a Seat
It's totally ok to sign standing up, or leaning on a rock, but if you have a signing table and chairs, take a seat.
Especially if you are a woman wearing a low cut dress or top. 
EVERYONE is taking photos at this time.
My sister and I learnt this lesson the hard (read : funny) way at my wedding, because Phil and I didn't think to get up for her to sign sitting down.
I did try to protect her modesty, but probably just ended up drawing attention to it.

Photo from Grant Emerson Wedding Photography.