Aleesha: We live in Lorne, Australia, where Tobias is a civil construction project manager and I’m a secondary school teacher. We’ve been together for 10 years and complement each other in many ways while pretending not to notice each other’s bad habits…
Ours is a true friendship in which we can be ourselves, and appreciate and inspire one another.
We both wanted our ceremony to be private, so we could say our vows and have them be really meaningful to us before heading elsewhere to celebrate with our friends and family. We originally wanted to elope to Portugal, but couldn’t find the right spot, and then one day, while looking for homeware, I stumbled across a rug shop in Morocco, Les Nomades de Marrakech. It’s the largest carpet shop in Marrakech and also where Men in Black: International was filmed, and I was drawn in by the mystery, romance and adventure. We both felt so happy when we looked at the various elements of Morocco – the markets, the architecture, the desert, the old-world charm and the beautiful colours – and knew we’d found our special place. Organising our day was an amazingly laid-back experience. We enjoyed every moment, from strolling through the market to map photo locations, to getting a local craftsman to make Tobias’s ring, to buying inexpensive bunches of flowers at the market to use as bouquets.
In contrast, finding my dress was a bit of a journey. I started out with the idea of something that looks great on a 6ft Brazilian, but I’m a 5’4’’ blonde, so I just couldn’t find ‘the one’. When I finally saw my outfit, I thought, ‘I must have it!’, but wanting it and acquiring it were two different things. Hours of googling eventually led me to the designers – Acler for my top and Lillian Khallouf for my pants. I nervously emailed them and they were both so nice to deal with. Acler was doing one last release of my top, and put me on an email alert list, so I was lucky enough to buy it before it sold out in less than five minutes!
There were so many memorable moments from our day. In the morning, we all had breakfast together on the rooftop of our accommodation, then to get to the wedding, we zipped through the alleyways of the old medina on the back of Vespas. Tobias makes timber furniture; I’m the creative and he’s the creator. As a couple, we have a passion for handmade items that incorporate time, love, sweat and tears, so walking into the rug shop and seeing each another surrounded by such beautiful handcrafted rugs was really special. On our walk through the streets after our ceremony, some local kids stopped their soccer match to come and join us, and our reception dinner at eco-lodge La Pause was the chef ’s surprise and saw us enjoying the yummiest flavours.
Photography: Joel Alston of Barefoot & Bearded | Ceremony venue: Les Nomades de Marrakech | Reception Venue & Catering: La Pause | Bride’s attire: Acler top & Lillian Khallouf pants | Groom’s & Groomsmen’s attire: Jeff Gibson | Bride’s shoes: Tony Bianco | Bridesmaids’ dresses: Manning Cartell | Accommodation: Riad Be Marrakech | Celebrant: Moh Elkbabty | Rings: Etsy | Hair: La Mamounia | Flora: The local market
