Real Wedding: Leah & Phil - Photography by It's Beautiful Here - Together Journal

Tell us a little about yourselves, what you do, what you love, what is unique about you and your relationship…

We met on a dating app called Happn which only shows you peoples profiles you pass by. We both worked across the river from each other and that’s how we matched.

Our relationship actually started with Phil being put in the friendzone. We went on a couple of great dates however Leah was training boxing at the time and there wasn’t enough time in the day for both. As a result when we decided to remain friends it was easy for us to regularly meet for lunch. This turned into brunch on weekends. And soon enough, we were falling in love. Our hashtag for the wedding was #StartedInTheFriendzoneNowWe’reHere. The rest is blissful history!

We love food. We’ve been fortunate enough to have visited some of Victoria’s finest restaurants. Our honeymoon in June to Europe (Italy, France, London) is basically a foodie tour. We plan on returning to Tasmania to continue to discover everything they have to offer. Leah even made the leap early last year and moved from office to kitchen (Pastry Chef) to pursue her passions professionally.

Tell us about your special day, was there a specific theme or style? Tell us a little about the setting, the styling and some of your favourite details…

The idea was to be minimalist, modern and elegant. We only viewed two venues, both by Damm Fine Foods, and we knew immediately when we saw the Alto Event Space that it was the ideal venue for our wedding. It had an elegant industrial feel to it, which is exactly what we were looking for. The venue styling pretty much speaks for itself which we loved because we didn’t want to feel like the space needed to be improved on for our day. One of our favourite details are the huge windows, which at night let the city lights shine in. It made for an epic dance floor backdrop. The other feature was the venue being framed by beautiful old buildings and natural light.

We’re both pretty big fans of black which was reflected in the bridal parties style, however we wanted to accentuate it with pops of colour (plums, purples and pinks). Our florist Babylon Flowers did any amazing job to provide us with an amazing array of flowers which nailed this brief.

Tell us about your main outfits:

Leah: Fabrics and textures were essential and for me it meant being in something sexy, sleek, modern and simple. The dress came from the Chosen collection at One Day Bridal. It was everything I wanted and on the day I felt confident and beautiful. On the morning of the wedding we each had presents to open from one another. Phil surprised me with my dream wedding shoes by Saint Laurent.

Phil: The experience with head fitter Lachie Watson at Oscar Hunt Tailors gave me everything I was looking for in a classic black dinner suit and impeccable service. I paired the suit with a velvet bow tie by Lanvin and black shoes from Charles Tyrwhitt.

Lachie actually gave me a call a week later to ask about the day. We talked for over 10 minutes. It made the whole experience amazing.

What were some of the most memorable/unique moments from the day?

Leah: One of my favourite moments was having both of my parents walk me down the aisle and turning the corner to see Phils beaming face. I couldn’t take my eyes away; it was a beautiful moment.

Phil: Seeing Leah coming down the aisle, it was the first time I’d seen her in a her dress, I couldn’t believe it was finally happening. She smiled all the way down the aisle and through the ceremony. It was amazing.

Any advice for other couples planning to spend the rest of their lives together?

From a wedding perspective:

Take your time to ensure that you enjoy the process of organising the wedding. Being able to take our time in decision making, planning and saving money made the entry into marriage a whole lot easier and without stress. It also made the wedding far more enjoyable. The love in the room on the day was overwhelming.

Don’t skimp on brides dress, grooms suit, or photographers. Looking back at our photos we cannot stress this enough. We’ll be enjoying this day forever.

From a life perspective:

Take time to enjoy each other. Life gets busy, but there should always be time for each other. We still go on dates and it’s so much fun.

Don’t be petty. Sometimes let some shit slide.