Real Wedding QandA With Laura and Iain

Laura and Iain were married in what was a magical experience for everyone at Spicers Clovelly Estate. It was a pleasure to photograph their wedding, a special thank you to Laura and Iain for sharing some of their experiences and thoughts about their wedding day.

Tell us about the proposal…did it go as planned? 

Iain took me away to Ruffles Retreat in the Gold Coast hinterland under the guise of it being my birthday celebration as it was the eve of my birthday. We were the only guests there and we were having a drink before dinner overlooking the Gold Coast city lights when Iain dropped to one and proposed. We stayed the night and the next day (my birthday) we surprised his parents and some of our friends by visiting and sharing our news before dinner with both families at 1889 Enoteca that Iain arranged for my birthday/to celebration our engagement. It was a really exciting 24 hours!!

OK, let’s chat about your wedding…

How did you chose your wedding and reception venues? What was important?

Choosing our venue was the hardest part of the whole planning process. We wanted somewhere beautiful where we could be married at and also have the reception, food and wine was incredibly important to us and we wanted somewhere intimate and stylish that didn’t feel like a function centre. We tossed up places like Ravello in Italy, Kauri Cliffs in New Zealand and Saffire in Tasmania, but I was always concerned that having our wedding somewhere that wasn’t within driving distance to Brisbane would prove to be more difficult. We researched some options in QLD then visited Spicers Clovelly Estate for lunch and fell in love with it. It definitely ticked all of our boxes and there wasn’t actually anywhere else we looked at in person. In terms of organisation I’m so glad we could use local suppliers.

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How long did you spend planning your wedding?

We were engaged for 16 months, however after Iain proposed we had our huge engagement party and then went to Europe for 6 weeks, so although we were always thinking of ideas and venues we didn’t actually start planning it until December 2011. We spent 10 months planning the wedding however  it felt longer!!

What moment stands out from your wedding day?

It’s so hard to choose just one. I actually really loved the time we had at Spicers Clovelly Estate on Friday afternoon; it set the mood for the whole weekend…. Most of our guests who were staying on onsite had arrived (immediate family and close friends) and we spent the afternoon doing a few decorative jobs and sitting around chatting and catching up on the lawn before having dinner at Spicers Tamarind Retreat.

The whole wedding day was amazing, the ceremony was definitely a stand out. We didn’t have a bridal party but included our sisters, some friends and our Mums in the ceremony and it was so personal. Iain’s sister sang “The Wedding Song” which was so beautiful. I also loved going off for photos with Iain, it was lovely to have an hour together to catch up and regroup before the reception started.

Describe what it was like to be surrounded by so many special people on your wedding day.

It was incredibly humbling to see the people we love so dearly all in a room together celebrating us and our relationship.

Laura, what was it like seeing Iain for the first time on your wedding day?

It was actually very overwhelming. I walked out with Dad and was okay looking at our all guests but when I glanced at Iain and saw him looking at me I almost burst into tears. I ended up stopping, putting the bouquet in front of my face and having a little moment where I wasn’t sure if I’d end up blubbering or laughing with excitement, it ended up being a combination of both.

Iain, what were you thinking as Laura walked down the aisle?

I thought I am the luckiest man in the world!

What did you love about your wedding reception?

EVERYTHING! It just felt like one giant dinner party with fantastic food, wine & service. We kept the speeches to a minimum (just Iain and I and our parents)…. Everyone spoke from the heart and there were a lot of tears in the room. I loved having the opportunity to tell all our loved ones how much Iain means to me.

We particularly loved the songs my uncles sang for us and also dancing with all our mates – it was so fun; we did not want the night to end!

What was on the menu at the reception? What comments did your guests make about the meal?

We started with antipasti platters and then had prawns with minted peas and pork belly with peanut sauce for entrée; duck à l’orange and black Angus sirloin for mains followed by the most incredible desserts…. Violet crumble and individual bombe alaskas. So many of our guests commented that it was the best wedding food they’ve eaten. Based on the comments the pork belly and bombe alaska were the stand out meals!

Tell us about your wedding photos. What were you looking for and what was it like being photographed by John Reyment?

We were looking for a photographer that would capture our day candidly and creatively. Spicers Clovelly Estate actually recommended John Reyment as he does their advertorial work and we were pleased to pick someone who was familiar with Spicers Clovelly Estate, especially because we didn’t want to leave the property and miss out on our wedding day!

John was fantastic on the day – totally unobtrusive and he seemed be everywhere all the time. He understood that we wanted beautiful photos but didn’t want to be gone for hours so he picked the time when the light was perfect and we left the canapés and drinks and went off for a walk around the property for photos. John managed to get very varied photos from the one venue. It was lovely to just be with Iain and having our photos done was actually quite relaxing and peaceful. John captured so many candid moments throughout the reception, when we looked at them they bought back so many memories from the night.

Where did you go for your honeymoon? What was it like?

We went to the Maldives for two weeks and came home via Singapore for a few nights. The Maldives completely exceeded every expectation we both had of a tropical paradise. It was the most relaxing and amazing holiday – just what we need to unwind following the wedding.

 
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 We like to share the quality suppliers our couples have used for their wedding. Laura and Iain’s wedding vendors were:

Jeweller – Jon Crosbie Jewellery

Invitations – Urban Weddings

Florist – Nanette Gower from Making Arrangements

Wedding gown – Hilde Heim

Men’s attire – The Cloak Room

Marriage Celebrant – Dee Hamson

Wedding reception function manager – Michelle Jarrat & Sam (Spicers Clovelly Estate)

Music – Karma Duo

Travel agent – Main Beach Travel

Hairdresser – Jordan Craig

Make up – Monique Deveney