BRYCE X LAUREN

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We have admired their photography style for so long and now we can admire the gorgeous outdoor tipi wedding of talented photographers Bryce + Lauren of Common Studios on a private property in Bonogin after a change of plans due to travel restrictions. "We actually met at school! We were friends through other friends during highschool but we became closer in year 12 in the lead up the school formal. Bryce’s cousin Kelsey also went to school with us and is one of Lauren’s best friends. She suggested to Lauren to go to their formal with Bryce so Lauren worked up the courage to ask Bryce and he said yes! From then we became great friends and started dating a year after we finished highschool when Bryce asked Lauren to be his girlfriend on a hawaiian night of a cruise!" The couple share.

how long were you together before your engagement? We were together for 6 and a half years before we got engaged (Bryce never heard the end of it!). We are coming up to 8 years together next month!

the proposal: We were in America in April 2019 doing a road trip around the South West. We both love travelling and always try to find cool Airbnbs and hotels to stay at when we travel. We found an amazing secluded cabin at Joshua Tree National Park in California that we booked for two nights. Bryce had planned to propose to Lauren at the cabin the first night.

The morning we arrived at Joshua Tree we drove about 4 hours from Page in Arizona. When we arrived at Joshua Tree we got emergency alerts on our phone for severe wind warnings. Bryce started to panic as he had planned a picnic outside for Sunset and started to scope out spots inside the cabin to propose because he couldn’t wait any longer. We ended up sitting outside for sunset and Bryce got down on one knee and asked Lauren to marry him. It was just the two of us and it was perfect.

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what led you to decide on your Wedding venue? The government actually had this one covered for us! 3 days before we were due to get married the Queensland Government announced border closures with NSW meaning we could no longer travel to our Byron Bay wedding venue. Everything was set to go with flowers and catering all already ordered given the closeness to the date - it was literally too late to cancel. We reached out to Bryce’s Uncle and Aunty who have a property in Bonogin and they were so accommodating (even excited) and allowed us to have our wedding there. Everything worked out perfectly and so many of our guests couldn’t believe this was our back-up plan!

what was the inspiration behind your Wedding theme? We didn’t want a traditional wedding with a drop menu and formalities. Although that’s beautiful in its own right, that wasn’t really us and what we enjoy about weddings. We wanted a fun, cocktail set up and sort of just based all our decisions around the idea we were having one massive party with our closest family and friends. We went with bright vibrant florals, relaxing lounge furniture and a food truck to make it casual so everyone could feel as relaxed as possible.

your most favourite moments: Bryce: As everyone always says… the day really does go by so fast and given the stress we both went through in the days leading up to the wedding, there really was nothing better than being surrounded by all our family and friends, enjoying ourselves and partying. One thing I will never forget is the nerves and excitement just before I saw Lauren appear from behind the car as she walked down the aisle. Seeing her smile (and cry) as she walked towards me in her dress was such a surreal moment that I’ll never forget.

Lauren: Everything was so incredibly special! I don’t think I will ever forget the moment driving into the property looking out the window of the car to the ceremony area and seeing what we had pulled off. I just started bawling my eyes out as it was so surreal after the hell we had been through and the changes we made so close to our day. I just couldn’t believe we finally made it and that nothing could get in the way of us getting married. When I walked down the aisle (sobbing might I add) I looked over to my Dad and he was shedding a tear too which was pretty special. Then looking up and seeing Bryce, cool and calm as always, who gave me a little wave and that smile that I love just instantly put me at ease. It was special knowing that (almost) all our family and friends were in the one place for us. I always wanted a big wedding with all our family and friends there as I value family and friends so highly so it was really special having everyone together.

bryce and lauren | to the aisle australia wedding feature

what was your favourite details: We loved everything so much + it all came together so well with each aspect complimenting each other! We still get so many compliments on the flowers as well as the tipi which was a last minute plan due to the venue change and us having no undercover area!

how was your dress/suit shopping experience overall? Bryce: Being wedding photographers ourselves, I’ve been lucky to be able to see so many different suit options before having to make a decision myself. With our original plan being Byron Bay, I knew I was looking for something a bit more casual than the traditional “black tie” tuxedo style suit. I went into M.J. Bale with an idea of what I was after but managed to walk away with my suit after about 45 mins of trying. The guys in there were super helpful and I would recommend them to everyone!

Lauren: I was really unsure of the style I wanted so I reached out to Kate from Kate Willa. Kate is Byron Bay based and makes the most beautiful custom wedding gowns. I had seen her work before and loved everything and I hoped she could make something just as special as what I had seen her create before for me. I think I sent through around 10 different ideas and pretty much just said “Help!”. I met with Kate a year before our wedding and discussed all the things I liked about the dresses I had saved and what suited me and she drew my dream dress up right in front of me! I knew immediately it was the one. By the end of the fitting process Kate was like a friend. I loved going to see her and catch up and watch her work her magic. I kept the dress a secret except from my Mum so it was such a special thing that we shared together. Kate and the dress she made for me just made me feel so confident and I will forever love the perfectly, classic and unique gown she created for our special day.

what does marriage mean to you? Getting to spend everyday and share every milestone with your best friend.

any classic stories from the day? As if we hadn’t had enough bad luck in the lead up there was around 50mm of rainfall at our venue the day prior! Thankfully the weather cleared up for our wedding day and it was clear and sunny but the ground was still super wet underfoot! There was a small hill that everyone was advised prior to Lauren arriving to avoid as it was super muddy! At cocktail hour (with huge confidence) Lauren walked directly down that bit of hill and slipped! Thankfully she caught herself with her hands and somehow managed to keep the dress pristine for a little while longer! As the night went on it’s safe to say everyone’s shoes, dresses and bags were covered in mud and the dry cleaners would have had a tough time trying to get the mud out of the white wedding dress!

advice: No matter how many challenges you face along the way, you will get to marry the love of your life, even if it wasn’t how you originally pictured it.

stand out vendors: Honestly every last one of our vendors was amazing and everyone was so flexible and accommodating with our last minute changes.

Mandi from Ivy & Bleu helped us so much the 3 days prior with moving our whole wedding from NSW to QLD organising every last detail we needed. She was on the phone to all our vendors organising the move as well as arranging the last minute extras we needed due to the move. If we can give one piece of advice, an on the day coordinator or event planner is a MUST for your wedding. You literally never know what you might need organised in the lead up and it is best to leave some things to the professionals!

Also a shout out to Lei-ahna, our incredible celebrant, who we contacted 3 days out when our original celebrant was stuck in NSW due to the border closure. We only met her 3 weeks prior at a wedding we were all working on and we instantly were attracted to her warm and kind personality. She literally saved our day and was such a pleasure to work with. Our guests still comment on how beautiful the ceremony was.

wedding songs

Aisle: Our aisle song was Sea of Love by Cat Power. This song was special to me (Lauren) as my cousin also walked down the aisle to that song. At her wedding one of my uncle’s went up to her and told her that was also the song played at my Grandma’s funeral. It meant a lot to me to use that song and made me feel like my Grandma was a part of our day as well. I wore her engagement ring during the ceremony too.

Recessional: Our recessional song was Daiquiri by Mako Road. We chose this for no other reason except it makes us happy when we hear it.

First Dance: We chose to opt out of the traditional ‘first dance’. It wasn’t really us! But we walked back into our reception to September by Earth Wind and Fire because what better song is there to get the party started!