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Selinia & Paul met through mutual friends attending a birthday party at a pub and were together four years before Paul was on one knee asking Selinia to be his wife. Their Wedding one year later at the beautiful property of Riverwood Weddings on the Gold Coast and turned into an awesome party to celebrate their love under the stars and shelter of a gorgeous tipi marquee. The couple also thought of a magical way for guests to be entertained whilst they had their portraits taken after the ceremony. (You'll see what we did there when you continue to read on....)
Tell us about the proposal:
Paul had organised to take me out on our boat for the day, we had packed a picnic and our swimmers to head over to South Stradbroke Island to one of our favourite spots for the day. We had climbed up the top of the sand dune to look out over the ocean, we could see several whales from where we were. As we were about to leave Paul asked me say goodbye to the whales, I thought this was strange but I turned and waved and when I turned back around he was on one knee and I was left a little speechless.
Tell us about the proposal:
Paul had organised to take me out on our boat for the day, we had packed a picnic and our swimmers to head over to South Stradbroke Island to one of our favourite spots for the day. We had climbed up the top of the sand dune to look out over the ocean, we could see several whales from where we were. As we were about to leave Paul asked me say goodbye to the whales, I thought this was strange but I turned and waved and when I turned back around he was on one knee and I was left a little speechless.
What led you to decide on your Wedding venue?
As soon as we saw the venue, we loved it. All of the photos from previous Weddings looked absolutely amazing and we were pretty well sold on it before even looking at any other venues, we actually never bothered looking anywhere else. We knew right away we wanted to get married there.
What was the inspiration behind your Wedding theme?
We had seen some of the other Weddings that had been previously held there and took little bits that we liked from each one. We liked that it wasn’t such a formal affair and our ceremony and reception could be at the same place. The property itself is beautiful so really set the scene for the atmosphere we wanted to create.
What was your favourite detail about the day?
We loved nearly every aspect of the day. Our guests weren’t expecting us to have a magician in our cocktail hour though so while we were busy getting photos after our ceremony, we had a lot of great feedback that people enjoyed having a bit of entertainment during that time.
As soon as we saw the venue, we loved it. All of the photos from previous Weddings looked absolutely amazing and we were pretty well sold on it before even looking at any other venues, we actually never bothered looking anywhere else. We knew right away we wanted to get married there.
What was the inspiration behind your Wedding theme?
We had seen some of the other Weddings that had been previously held there and took little bits that we liked from each one. We liked that it wasn’t such a formal affair and our ceremony and reception could be at the same place. The property itself is beautiful so really set the scene for the atmosphere we wanted to create.
What was your favourite detail about the day?
We loved nearly every aspect of the day. Our guests weren’t expecting us to have a magician in our cocktail hour though so while we were busy getting photos after our ceremony, we had a lot of great feedback that people enjoyed having a bit of entertainment during that time.
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Tell us about your dress – How long did it take for you to find and how was your dress shopping experience overall?
My dress was from White Lily Couture in Brisbane. It was only the second shop I went into to have a look, not really knowing what I wanted or expecting to find anything straight away. In fact I was dead set that I didn’t want the style of dress that I eventually chose. It surprised me how different it looked on, Paul really liked it because he was expecting me to choose something very different to what I wore on the day.
What resources helped you the most during your Wedding planning?
We hired a wedding planner -Natalia Qleibo. Between Natalia and Carmen from Riverwood, both ladies gave us some really great advice and sent through vendors and links to websites to help us decide on some of the details we were stuck on.
What does marriage mean to you?
A lifetime commitment of love and adventures together. It is another stepping stone in our lives together. I couldn’t imagine being with anybody else. It’s the best feeling knowing we have each other to enjoy all of the wonderful things in life and also to have someone that supports you through the hard times.
My dress was from White Lily Couture in Brisbane. It was only the second shop I went into to have a look, not really knowing what I wanted or expecting to find anything straight away. In fact I was dead set that I didn’t want the style of dress that I eventually chose. It surprised me how different it looked on, Paul really liked it because he was expecting me to choose something very different to what I wore on the day.
What resources helped you the most during your Wedding planning?
We hired a wedding planner -Natalia Qleibo. Between Natalia and Carmen from Riverwood, both ladies gave us some really great advice and sent through vendors and links to websites to help us decide on some of the details we were stuck on.
What does marriage mean to you?
A lifetime commitment of love and adventures together. It is another stepping stone in our lives together. I couldn’t imagine being with anybody else. It’s the best feeling knowing we have each other to enjoy all of the wonderful things in life and also to have someone that supports you through the hard times.
To be honest, everything went pretty smoothly on the day. I think our celebrant (a close family friend) surprised some of our family members with our cheeky vows. Later in the night some of the speeches were a little questionable. It had been decided prior to the reception we would not be hosting an open mic night (the ones who were making speeches were planned) on the night Paul decided to extend the speech invite to anybody who wanted to say a few words... a few naughty things that probably shouldn’t be mentioned again were announced to all of our family and friends. Cringe worthy at the time but something funny to look back on now.
Make sure everything is organised before the day, you don’t want to be trying to sort things out on the day when you are full of nerves. Don’t get hung up on the things that don’t work out exactly how you had planned because chances are you won’t be able to do anything to change the situation anyway. At the end of the day what matters is that you get to marry your other half and the small things that didn’t go to plan... well your guests probably don’t know any different anyway!
All of our vendors were so amazing and the day just came together so beautifully and magically. Everything worked just how we envisioned it!
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Wedding songs:
Aisle: Ed Sheeran - Tenerife sea
Recessional: we completely forgot to organise this song! Somebody decided to play an Elvis song (I can’t remember which one) - I definitely cringed at the time because I’m not an Elvis fan. But again, I don’t think anybody was paying much attention anyway!
First dance: Jasmine Thompson - Like I’m gonna lose you
Styling & Furniture: Style Le Aisle
On The Day Coordination: Lavish Occasions by Natalia &
Riverwood Weddings - Carmen
Double Giant Kata Tipi & Lights: Gold Coast Tipis
Canape Music: Benny Nelson Music (acoustic guitar)
Reception Music: Gold Coast DJ Entertainment
Photography: Andrew - Foy & Co Weddings, Brisbane
Celebrant: Married By Ash; Ashley Hobbs
Mobile Catering: Osteria; Northern NSW
Bar: My Vintage Lane Flowers: Daisy & Co, Brisbane
Macrame Arbour: Eden Eve Macrame, Gold Coast
MUA + Hair: Pure Envy Makeup and Beauty
Groom & Groomsmen Suits: MJ Bale
Bridal Gown & Veil: White Lily Couture in Brisbane
Brides Shoes: Badgley Mischka Bridal Shoes
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