ELLE X BRAD

adelaide wedding oh wild photography and videography

images by oh wild photography + videography

wedding date 28th october 2022

adelaide

3 ceremony guests + 60 reception party guests

Spending a few years as friends after meeting in the Air Force in Adelaide, Elle had no idea the proposal was coming. Together for eight years, Elle and Brad had talked about getting married... but on the day Brad proposed - absolutely no idea!

the proposal.

It was Christmas Day 2020, we were spending the morning chilling out, opening presents together in our pj’s and having a coffee. Brad said he had one more present for me and sent me out on to the deck to wait.. Next thing I hear is two of our dogs trotting down the hallway and they pop on to the deck with a little box tied between them with string. Brad popped out just after them and as I was opening the little box, he said “You wanna get married baby?” and there was my beautiful sapphire ring and of course I said “yes!”

ceremony + reception venue.

For the ceremony, we wanted something with character and a beautiful landscape, as well as privacy. Emily (The Modern Approach) showed us a few options on AirBnB and we picked the one we liked the most based on the photos.

For the reception, we actually had a bit of difficulty with our original venue and had to change it about 8 weeks before the date. We wanted something in the city that had a cool, modern/industrial vibe with great drinks, food and an intimate atmosphere. Prohibition Liquor Co. were so amazing from the get-go! They were so accommodating to our requests and on board with whatever styling Emily wanted to do!

the most important requirement.

Our number one was fun! Which meant bright colours and personality. Outside of this, we had zero specific requests. We said to Emily “if there’s anything you’ve wanted to do that you haven’t had the chance to do, try it on us!” and she delivered!

fave moment.

Our entrance to the reception! Seeing all our family and friends with their faces lit up, just ready to celebrate with us, was something we’ll never forget. There was so much love in the room!

fave detail.

The disco balls! What says fun more than disco balls?!

gown + suit shopping.

For both of us it was the easiest part of the planning process! Both of us went with the first place/style we tried. For Elle, designing a dress with Cristina from Couture+Love+Madness was more like hanging out with a friend every weekend than working. Her attention to detail and eye for beautiful fabrics and designs is unmatched. I went with the first style I tried on and having a dress made for me was the best thing I ever did! For Brad, he knew what he wanted from the start, a baby blue suit with shorts. This was impossible to find, so when we found custom suiting by InStitchu, we knew it was worth it!

what does marriage mean to you?

Marriage to us is no change to the way we are as a couple but a way to celebrate our relationship over the past 9+ years and into the future.

classic story you want to share...

We’d planned our afternoon with Miranda and Max from Oh Wild to be a chill adventure, just travelling back to the city and finding cool spots for photos. Since Brad loves golf, we knew we had to have some fun golf-themed photos as part of the day. Stirling Golf Course is absolutely beautiful and since we were so close, we decided it would be a great spot for some photos. The lovely gentleman from the golf club was so accommodating! Without us even asking, he searched through the shed for the cleanest golf cart, drove and set it up in a beautiful spot for us and gave us all the time we needed to get some epic shots! Miranda’s vision for some cool golf-themed photos came to life and it’s such a fun memory.

advice that helped you the most when planning...

It wasn’t direct advice but seeing so many amazing wedding businesses talk about doing your wedding your way helped us realise that we didn’t need to follow a set blueprint of a wedding, if that wasn’t what we wanted. We didn’t even know an elopement was an option until we came across Oh Wild’s Instagram!

wedding songs...

We used an RSVP website and when each guest RSVP’d to the reception, we asked them to pick a song to include in the playlist. We had such a great mix of music, and it was so fun to see people’s faces when they realised their song was on!

stand out vendor/s for the day...

Where to even start! Can we say all of them? We hit the jackpot with each and every vendor. They all worked together so well and having them all there was like having our family tagging along using their special talents. Haha.

Emily from The Modern Approach Emily was a dream to work with from the moment we met. I’d been following her Instagram for a while and was so impressed with how special and unique each of her events were. She made the process so easy and so much fun. We loved giving her the freedom to do what she does best, and the outcome was something we’d never be able to come up with by ourselves! It was like she knew us better than we knew ourselves and captured that in the styling.

Miranda & Max from Oh Wild: Like I said, Oh Wild’s Instagram page was the first place I realised an elopement was even an option. Their style of photography is so cool and unique. Working with them on the day was so much fun! For two people that hate having photos taken, they made us feel so comfortable and gave us all the direction we needed without the photos looking unnatural. The final album captured everything we wanted from the day – fun!

Alix the Celebrant: Do you ever meet someone who is just so born to do the job they do? Well, Alix was born to be a celebrant. Her fun-loving, sincere, and genuine nature made her the perfect celebrant for us. She made the process, from paperwork to vow-writing to ceremony time, so easy and relaxed. The ceremony she put together captured us as a couple like she’d known us for years, despite only meeting a few times!

Georgia from Ethereal Botanica: The talent! As soon as Emily suggested Ethereal Botanica, I knew Georgia would be the one. Her creativity and ability to work with the rest of the styling was impeccable. Seeing my bouquet for the first time was a memory I’ll never forget! The colours, the flower choices, the arrangements, the unique accents – wow!

Prohibition Liquor Co.: Shannon from Prohibition Liquor Co. was so easy to work with. She was so responsive to requests, so accommodating of our styling and genuinely excited to have our event at the venue! She spent time to be there while Emily and her team set up, answering any questions, and providing guidance. On the night, the staff were absolutely amazing. They made every guest feel special and made sure our donut wall was constantly topped up! The food was out of this world (and just kept coming and coming) and the drinks were absolutely delicious! Couldn’t recommend them enough.

Cristina from couture+love+madness: Not only is Cristina an incredibly talented designer and dressmaker, but she’s also a beautiful soul. Designing and fitting days with her were so fun and relaxing, it was like hanging out with a friend. I think as a bride, we can be overly critical of ourselves and our bodies during dress shopping/fitting, but Cristina made me feel beautiful as myself at every meeting. The final dress was more than I could have ever dreamed of – so beautiful and so comfortable (enough to wear all day and dance all night)!

InStitchu Custom Suits: Brad’s vision of a baby blue suit with shorts was impossible to find in retail! InStitchu were so amazing to work with, they made Brad’s vision a reality with zero fuss. We had so much fun picking the fabric, lining, buttons, and tailoring. The outcome was exactly what he envisioned and is such great quality that it will be worn time and time again.

Chloé Ellouise: I’ve known Chloé for years and having her do my makeup was so special. After a brief consultation, she knew exactly what I wanted and executed it perfectly! The makeup trial was so helpful to not only see the look she had in mind, but also to learn how the makeup wore throughout the day (it stayed flawless all day!). I felt so comfortable and beautiful in the look she gave me, and she matched my foundation like no one has ever done before! I looked just like myself with a little extra glam.

Gemma from Mane Lab: Gemma is my usual hairstylist, so she knows me well! We discussed a few styles leading up to the day and she was so helpful in giving me options and ideas for what to choose. On the day, she did my hair so perfectly that the style fit so well with the rest of my styling and it stayed in place all day, even in the wind!