Real Wedding; Charmaine and Clinton @ The Woods Farm

About You Two;

Now, How did you two meet?

Clinton & I started chatting over Skype, I met his best friend at the snow so we all became friends!

The first time we met face to face, I was 16 and went on excursion with my school to Nan Tien Temple(Clinton lived right near it)- Clinton ditched school to meet me on the train so we could finally meet each other. He pretended to be my cousin infront of the teacher which quickly turned into a lie as the teacher caught us having our first kiss! And 10 years later here we are.

Who popped the Question and how did it happen?

Clinton asked me to be his wife after 8.5 years together. We were in Thailand, one of our favourite places to go together. He took me on a private long boat island hopping and got down on one knee as the boat was crossing to another island. It was such a beautiful surprise.

Why did you choose your venue and how was the venue choosing process?

We slowly began looking at some places just through Google- Clinton wanted a beach wedding and I wanted a modern farm/barn wedding and we soon stumbled upon The Woods Farm in Jervis Bay. We both were taken aback by the venue and couldn’t imagine getting married anywhere else. We definitely fell in love with it. We were worried about a budget but in the end the benefits outweighed any doubts we had with going ahead. It was the perfect venue for us- laid back outdoor venue nestled by the ocean with loads of animals, glamping and a place our whole family could stay together! Right in between both of our home towns too.

Quick Fire Questions;

How many wedding guests did you have?

110? I think..

Sit down of Cocktail Style?

Cocktail pre drinks- Sit down reception

What month?

February – the month of love! (after postponing our August wedding but it was meant to be).

Planning The Wedding;

Was planning the wedding stressful or did you enjoy the journey?

Half, half! Budget wise it was quite stressful as we never could’ve imagined how much a big wedding could cost. We loved the journey of planning it was such an exciting time however we did get knocked back by a postponement which was a difficult time. Although after our postponement it gave us the opportunity to revise our plans and add some extra things including a DJ which made the night extra fun. I did alot of DIY signage which I absolutely enjoyed so much and ofcourse finding my dream dress.

How involved were you both in the wedding planning, did one of you take more of the lead on certain aspects than others or were you both equally involved?

I definitely did most things- I ran most things by Clinton but he trusted my taste and wanted me to create the wedding of our dreams that we had spoken about having since we were 16 & 17 years old. We wanted to show our love of our culture and our history now combined and create a day of celebration to represent the 10 years of love we had together. I feel like Clinton did things like picking music, alcohol and the order of things, and I did everything else. With the help of family and my maids of course.

What was the top couple of non-negotiables or important must-have’s at the wedding for you both?

We both absolutely needed to have a video grapher to watch the day and night back, and show it to our kids one day so we made sure to spend money ensuring we had amazing photography (Thanks Bello Weddings!) We also knew we definitely had to be able to say our own vows- something we have both talked about doing for years.

Tell us about your dress and that dress-finding process?

Well actually, I thought I had found my dress however had small doubts that it looked like a curtain. I kept dreaming about it, and soon forgot what it actually looked like (this is during peak of covid). I went back, tried it on and was almost convinced I had to have it. My besties took a sneaky picture for me as they weren’t convinced and as we went to the next dress shop that day, they showed me the picture.

I was shocked I actually hated it! And as it turned out, it was meant to be. The last dress I tried on that my friends and Connie at Accapella Bridal chose for me was the one. I wasn’t entirely sure at first but I am a very sentimental person- and as I had the dress on a song that my husband and I love began playing and the tears rolled and I knew it was the dress! It was the perfect mix of modern, vintage and lace that I wanted.

What sort of theme, vibe or style did you go for?

We went for the wedstival vibes- vintage, rustic modern outdoor wedding.

On the Day;

How did you both feel wedding morning?

I felt too relaxed when I woke at 4.30am for my makeup but that soon changed as the time to walk approached. I think I had about 4 mamosas and a vodka shot just before I left for the aisle! I was nervous and had a mini freak out when I heard the groom had “lost his suit” an hour before the ceremony! I thought haha thats so typical! Luckily it was found of course!

Clinton was slightly hungover from the previous night, but very excited and I heard from Straney The Celebrant, Clinton calmed the nerves by dancing around half dressed 30 mins before the ceremony up at his room with the boys!

What was the best part or moment of your day?

There are too many moments to just pick one, but our vows to each other were definitely one of the best moments, so raw and emotional. Walking down the aisle ofcourse, with a beautiful smoking ceremony and didgeridoo playing beforehand. Also our entrance to reception, dancing to the drums and of course our first dance.

Anything you would change about your wedding or anything that didn’t go to plan?

I definitely wouldn’t have changed a thing!! It was a beautiful sunny day even though it was supposed to rain and lots of little things didn’t go to plan but literally nobody knew except us! We had a slideshow of us we wanted to play but had projector issues which we thought may have happened anyway, and our sparkler exit was hilarious everyone was so drunk they didn’t know what to do! And we accidentally used 40cm sparklers instead of 70cm but literally who cares.

Are there any rituals, sentiments or traditions you incorporated into the day?

Yes! We definitely did a half modern, half traditional wedding. We did of course the flower and garter toss and our own vows.

We also incorporated Clinton and my own cultures and had an indigenous smoking ceremony and didgeridoo and the guests came to the chapel and a welcome to country. We also had the traditional Syrian drums and flute as we entered the reception. It was amazing!

After the Wedding;

Describe newlywed life in a couple of words?

We definitely were on a high for a whole month after being married- especially having our wedding, my sister inlaws wedding then going on our honeymoon it was just an amazing month. Then seeing our photos we just relived the day over and over and couldn’t stop looking at all of our pictures! Overall though for us not alot has changed but we do love calling each other husband and wife!

Best investment or money well spent on the wedding that you made?

Definitely photo/video grapher, the venue, celebrant and most of all the wedding & event creators who made the day so smooth and easy! You guys truly did an amazing job with all components of our wedding.

Budget-over, under or what you estimated?

Definitely over!! We could never have imagined we would spend so much on a wedding, although we always did want a big wedding and are quite traditional in that aspect.