David — We matched on Tinder, but it took us a while to organise our first date. Viv cancelled on me twice! We eventually met on a street corner in Melbourne…
I looked around and saw Viv and her beautiful red hair walking towards me, then we headed up to the Grace Darling Hotel, where we talked for six hours. I’m an engineer and Viv is a florist with her own studio. We live above the shop. One of the things that’s important to our relationship is communication.
We’re always on the same team and regularly check in to make sure we’re both getting to do the things we want to do. For the proposal, I ordered a bucket of Viv’s favourite flowers (‘Hot Chocolate’ roses) and asked one of her friends to take her out of the house while I hung a single rose in the door of the shop and laid a trail of petals leading upstairs to our lounge, where I arranged a pool of flowers on the floor and a bunch in a vase on the table. I had a whole speech planned, but all I managed was, “I love you. You make me so happy. Will you marry me?” Viv lovingly replied, “Are you sure?” then, after what felt like 500,000,000,000 hours, said yes!
That night we went out to dinner and must have looked disturbingly in love all evening. We wanted our wedding to be straightforward and a reflection of us, so we decided to get ready at home, stay the night at home and keep everything within walking distance. These firm parameters really helped in the decision-making process.
Ours was always going to be a flower-focused wedding. They were one of the reasons why we decided to get married in Viv’s studio – so she could create the installation in the space the day before – and even the wedding date was chosen with the flowers in mind. We paired them with simple styling elements, including floral napkins and lots of candles. I love to read, so we had monogrammed leather bookmarks as place cards and gifts for our guests. I also love ice-cream, so Vivien surprised me with an ice-cream cart, which was a really fun way to kick off the dance floor.
Our ceremony was incredible. We even had a singalong instead of a reading – everyone sang Frankie Valli’s ‘Can’t Take My Eyes Off You’ with the words changed to ‘I love you, Vivey’. We planned to spend as much of the day together as possible and are so glad we did. We carved out time for a coffee just the two of us in the morning, photos before the ceremony, and a quiet drink at our local before we walked down the aisle together.
Photography by It’s Beautiful Here | Bride’s gown, Ellen Stanistreet | Groom’s tie & pocket square, Jay Dillon | Flora & Ceremony venue, Flos Botanical Studio assisted by Cecilia Fox | Groom’s suit & shirt, In Stitchu Bride’s shoes, Christian Di Riccio from Zomp | Tiara, Anna Marguerite | Earrings, Mamoru | Reception venue, South of Johnston | Chair hire, Harry the Hirer | Makeup, Evie Lowe | Groom’s belt & shoe, Aquilla | Hair, The Distinctive Dame | Celebrant, Dee Brinsmead | Bride’s additional ring, Seb Brown |Invitations and graphic design, Kern Studio | Entertainment, Alex Watts at Astound DJs | Wedding rings, Jasmine Fraser & Lott Studio | Engagement ring—David’s mother’s | Napkin hire, Simmons Linen Hire | Bride’s fragrance—Costume National So Nude
