Jessica & Nathan
Wedding Date: 23rd April 2025
Ceremony Location: Heart Garden
Reception Location: Chester’s
How did you and your partner meet?
We met in 2014 while on a Contiki tour in America; I was 19 years old, and Nathan was 23. Nathan was already on the tour for two weeks prior and I joined the tour with my sister, Rachel halfway through which started for us in New Orleans, Louisiana. We spent two weeks together on the bus which took us to New York.
How did you or partner propose?
We were travelling around France and Italy for 5 weeks, having the most magical time. We had already spoken about marriage and the next stages of our relationship, so we knew a proposal was coming. We had a day in Milan and decided to go shopping, only to find ourselves looking at rings. And surprisingly Jess fell in love with one! I promised her I would not propose while in Europe. I also have a great poker face when I need to. Being the super slick guy that I am, I bided my time and picked my moment. Knowing that Jess loved the Trevi fountain in Rome, we rose early to take photos at sunrise. While she was staring off into the distance, admiring the sunrise over the Trevi fountain. I got down on one knee and waited for her to turn back so I could ask her the big question. She said yes before I could even ask the question. To her she said she got her Lizzie McGuire “This is what dreams are made of moment.”
What was your favourite part of your ceremony?
N: My favourite part was where I saw Jess walk down the aisle. She looked so beautiful, and I really had to stop myself from tearing up.
J: My favourite part was also walking down the aisle. Being able to see not only Nathan standing there waiting for me, but see our whole vision come to life. It was truly something special.
What did you love about your reception?
We both loved the intimacy of Chester’s. We had 45 people, so it felt nice to be able to see everyone’s faces and really take it all in. The highlight of reception was definitely our first dance!
What is your advice for any future couples planning their wedding?
I think one of the biggest things I noticed planning a wedding is how important your vendors are. We really picked every single one of our vendors having full trust in bringing our vision to life – and picked each other them because they helped personalise every aspect of our day. Everything will not always go as planned, and for us this was definitely the case but because we had faith in every single person pulling this day together we were able to not sweat the small stuff and focus on what truly matters.
DETAILS:
Photographer: Matt Ashton Photography / @mattashton_photo
Videographer: Timothy Blacketer / @timothyblacketerfilms
Celebrant: Tayla Made Ceremonies / @taylamadeceremonies
Hair & Makeup: Ella Jean Hair and Make Up / @ellajeanhairandmakeup
Florist: Rain Floral Design / @rainfloraldesign
Catering: Season & Savour / @season_and_savour
Cake: Cakes by Adrienne / @cakesbyadrienne
Planner: We planned it ourselves
Stylist: Rain Floral Design / @rainfloraldesign
Entertainment: Tillee Music / @tilleemusic