tom and nicole's wedding

our lovely next door neighbours tom and nicole got married today! (yes we have already made the token tom cruise nicole kidman joke to them and i hope they have a much happier marriage than them!) it was such a gorgeous day for it and we loved being able to share their day with them.

they even invited madeline to come to the ceremony too, which was so sweet of them and she felt oh so special. the "bridesman" even handed her a bouquet to mind at one stage so we had to take a special photo of her with it under their arbor.

i really did feel bad for them as they had so many people who weren't able to attend from the uk (tom's family is from there) and from the eastern states (with covid cases running rampant over there they weren't able to get in) but they certainly made up for it with the most hilarious video presentation. they had everyone in fits.

i have to write down the funniest part so i can laugh about it in the future (because believe me, it was so not funny at the time!). when we arrived at the reception venue - the vines, later that afternoon - twe asked for the room the wedding was held in and were directed to go down the hall and to a lounge for pre-dinner drinks. we didn't think anything of it, because we knew no one other than tom and nicole, but as we sat and waited and waited and waited, we began to wonder how on earth they were running so late as it had been almost an hour. we had seen toms mum walk past twice and the best mans wife with her baby twice so we at least knew we were in the right place - only we weren't. gah. they eventually started showing people in the lounge into their room and it was not the cannon wedding. oh my word. we went and asked at the reception again and were shown to the right room, but i was mortified. especially since we had been early and were now waltzing in pretty much an hour late. thankfully nicole has a sense of humour and when i explained what happened she just laughed. honestly, it could only happen to me. turns out there had been a scheduling mishap at the resort and they've moved their drinks to another place and of course the one staff member who didn't know was the one we got. of course.

it was such a fun day with them though and honestly the best wedding speeches i've ever sat through. it was even better than nicole had kindly sat us with some people she new we would have fun with and as doug not so discretely checked the afl scores for the entire wedding, all the boys at our table were right there with him. for the record, the melbourne demons won the premiership cup, 57 years after they last took it home! it was a great night! congratulations to the bride and groom. 

mark & johanna's wedding

we had the greatest joy today of seeing our friend mark marry his sweetheart johanna. we have known mark for many years and have been by him throughout a very messy divorce and are so thrilled to see him smile again. he is a completely different person with her and is just so completely happy.

there was so many tears, and so much love in the room as they said i do in the little barn at the perth zoo. 

an absolute dream venue, expect for the fact it was pouring outside. but as they say, rain on your wedding day is lucky, so that's one more thing to be grateful for.

no matter the weather though, nothing was dampening the mood and it was a beautiful day.

the reception was at the guildford hotel and the building was gorgeous, the decorations were perfect and the food was amazing. marks girls looked like absolute dolls and his new bride jo was a picture of perfection with her (in her words) 90s vibes wedding dress complete with florals in her hair. we love her already.

the cutest couple out ❤

and i guess these guys are kind of cool too haha

what a beautiful day. we were so lucky to be a part of it. congraulations to mr and mrs vincent!

❤

introducing mr. and mrs. lagden-shepherd

it's been a hot minute since i've taken any photos - and here we are with family portraits and a wedding in less than two weeks. yesterday i had the absolute privilege of taking photos at the wedding of jack and kayla lagden-shepherd. my friend kelly knows them well and when asked to photograph their wedding, asked me to come and help as a second shooter, and i was only too happy to.

it was very warm and sunny, but it was the most beautiful day and we worked so well together. we've really managed to get some beautiful shots and i am loving them more and more as i go through them.

the wedding was held at brookleigh estate on great northern highway in the swan valley and oh was it beautiful. so many gorgeous buildings, tree lined drives and the most stunning courtyard for the reception, plus the sweetest lake side ceremony. it's actually the first time i have ever been into the estate, which is incredible, considering how close we live!

the most special moment of the day for me, was watching the bride, her mother and the bridesmaids quickly stop and have a prayer before walking down the aisle. what a beautiful thing to enter into a marriage, knowing god will guide your path. it was so meaningful to me.

kayla and jack were just so much fun! they giggled along with us and our directions as they snuck kisses and enjoyed every moment of newlywed bliss. i just loved them.

kayla and her ladies 

and the newly pronounced husband and wife... they really just couldn't get enough of each other

and were so happy to go along with all our suggestions for photos.

my favourite parts of the buildings were absolutely these gorgeous entrance doors, i had them over there quick smart for a shot and i am so glad i did. look at that!!

and i still can't stop giggling at this shot. i called out to a bunch of the guests for a shot and it's honestly like a shot from vogue. what a cracker.

we had the best day together and i felt so lucky to be included in such a fun day. i will second shoot for you any time kelly mandin. congratulations to jack and kayla! ❤

 

jae + jesse

this past saturday i had the amazing opportunity to take some photos for a friend on her wedding day. i was their temple photographer and it was such an honour. they are a beautiful couple and i loved being able to capture the beginning of their "happily ever after"

congratulations jae and jesse! ♥

guess the dress: a relief society additional meeting

this week we had our additional meeting for may, our first (of hopefully many combined with the young women):

guess the dress

oh my word... it was a hoot! our activities committee collected 18 wedding dresses from sisters of all ages in our ward to be used in a catwalk show. our young women and recently married YA modelled them, and the rest of the sisters attending were given a list of whose they might be, to guess as we went along.

the ward young women president (one of my closest friends - made organising the evening a piece of cake!) and i introduced the evening with the following:

The focus of our evening is to mostly have some fun, and as we the older generation remember our wedding days, we also allow the YW to look forward to theirs. As you know, when you attend a fashion show, you receive a gift bag, so you’ll each find a gift bag on your chair with a few little items to help you through your day.

One of my favourite fashion bloggers: Corinne Stokoe is a member of our faith and gave a beautiful quote when interviewed for a piece a few months back. She said: “Modesty is important to me, not because I feel like I need to be a prude or even just because it was a part of my culture growing up. Modesty is something I choose because to me, it feels classy and timeless. I feel strongly that every time I dress modestly it means I’ll never have to look back on that photo and wish I had exemplified something different for my children, or grandchildren. It might not always be popular or put you at the best chance of succeeding in today’s world, but I choose modesty because it feels most genuinely true to who I really am, and who I’m trying to be, for my family and for my own self worth. Being a lady means to feel confident, classy and comfortable in whatever you choose to wear. Because I’m a lady I choose to dress modestly.”

As you know, we encourage the women of our church to dress modestly, and I couldn’t agree with that statement more. Modesty is not only about respect for your body and your appearance, it’s respect for yourself! I know each of the dresses we will see tonight are a wonderful example of modesty. 

In 2009 the YW general presidency added an 8th value, virtue. Virtue is behaviour showing high moral standards. In Proverbs 31:10 it says: Who can find a virtuous woman? for her price is far above rubies. It also says in the 13th Article of Faith: if there is anything virtuous lovely or of good report or praiseworthy, we seek after these things. 

Temple marriage or marriage at ALL may not be a possibility for everyone, but it’s something we as members of the church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints strive for. A marriage that lasts beyond this life, and remains for time - and all eternity. If we keep the Temple in our sights, we will achieve great things. A wise man once said, “keep your eyes on the prize and your mind on your goal.” Don’t wait for the right one, BE the right one. 

Thank you all for attending tonight, for the gorgeous girls who will walk down the aisle in our dresses and for you amazing women entrusting your precious memories to be worn by another.

sisters arrived,had a glass of “bubbles” and took a seat by the catwalk, each receiving a gift bag on their chair. (free printable for bag can be found here)

 

each sister also received a wedding favour as she left at the end of the evening, a bag with caramel fudge

after each round we had a reveal via a slideshow on a projector, with wedding photos of each sister, then refreshments (a grazing platter after round one 

and wedding cake after round two - we had our presidency cut the cake then handed it out). 

we also had someone throw a bouquet into the young women and single sisters.

we received one dress which the owner preferred wasn't worn, this was displayed on a mannequin, with a chance to guess the owner and year of her wedding.

it was honestly one of the best activities i’ve ever been to. it was a laugh a minute (especially as we discovered some of our young women had quite the dramatic streak) with memories galore. well worth the effort.

pinker wedding pictures ♥

i'm love all over again... these pictures of the kids got sent to me on sunday afternoon from emily and theron and they are just so unbelievably cute!

i'm still amazed at their perfect behaviour, adorable outfits and just all round awesomeness that day.

madeline was so thrilled when emily asked her to be her flower girl and spent the months leading up to the wedding talking non stop about it and insisting that she try on her dress again... and joseph was just joseph and took it all in his stride.

this photo especially makes me laugh, everyone cheering in the background and the look on her face

and i just love this one of our little man, with the man of the day. adorable!

leading the bridal party in. what little superstars. i am sure they will love looking at these pictures when they are older ♥