Real Wedding; Georgia and James @ Worrowing

About You Two;

Now, How did you two meet?

We actually first ‘met’ in primary school – James was the School Captain when he was in year 6 and Georgia was in year 4, and G think’s she fell in love with him then and there. It wasn’t until 15 years later that we went on our first date and have been inseparable ever since. We pretty quickly knew it was something different and serious.

Who popped the Question and how did it happen?

James popped the question in South Australia at Down the Rabbit Hole Winery, a bucket list venue for Georgia. G thought James was bored because he kept sneaking off to the bathroom and checking his phone, but it turns out he had planned for a photographer to surprise us as he proposed, so was making sure she was there and trying to get the right time –G was completely shocked. It was such a special day.

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

We knew we wanted to get married on the South Coast so picked a few to inspect that weekend. Worrowing was the first one we visited, and it was like love at first sight, we both were a bit teary walking through and could picture our wedding day there so easily. We tried to play it coy but pretty much signed then and there.

Quick Fire Questions;

How many wedding guests did you have?

We had about 115 guests and were lucky enough that almost everyone was able to make it.

Sit down or Cocktail Style?

We had a cocktail lawn game-style wedding and wouldn’t change a thing (although we wish we took the time to actually play some of the games!) 

What month?

March 2024

Planning The Wedding;

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

We opted for a DIY wedding because we were both quite clear on what we wanted and for it to be authentically us, and we felt at all-inclusive venues that authenticity wasn’t as much of an option. DIY brings its own stresses and challenges, and as organised as we thought we were, you aren’t really able to switch off you’re walking down that aisle. Georgia has planned large-scale events before and was all over it from an ‘event’ perspective, so stress probably isn’t the right word, but the emotions/opinions/anxiety (oh, the anxiety!) was something neither of us were prepared for.

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?

We’d like to say it was 50/50, but Georgia definitely took on a lot of the leg work. We divided up what we were each in charge of organising but made sure we never booked anything without making sure we were both excited about the choice.

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

Must-have’s were lawn games and a fun, relaxed reception. We wanted to choose the wine and food we loved and reflected us both, so a venue that allowed this was a non-negotiable for us. It was important to us that we wrote our own vows and the ceremony was an opportunity for our friends and family to hear our love story – we wanted the ceremony to feel romantic, and the reception to feel like more of a party. Live music was a non-negotiable for James, but we hardly remember hearing the band play. Our advice for married-couples-to-be is to not put too much energy into one thing, see it holistically –  don’t get too bogged down on a few things because in the grand scheme, they might not make a difference in the end.

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

Georgia knew early on what she wanted in a dress – something timeless, understated, and made of silk. She tried on a few that felt good, but nothing felt right. Her grandma was a dressmaker back in her day, so when she offered to make Georgia’s dress it was a no-brainer. After a few stressful months neither Georgia or her grandma were sure it would come together, the final fitting gave Georgia the feeling she’d been hoping for- that she had found ‘the one, made even more special by the fact it was made by her grandma. 

On the Day;

How did you both feel wedding morning?

Georgia was (surprisingly!) cool, calm & collected. She had a pretty early start but spent the morning with her bridal party, mum & grandma drinking mimosa’s and listening to music to keep things light. Georgia let close family members visit her throughout the morning which was a special way to see them before the ceremony and eased some nerves. It wasn’t until she was walking down the aisle that it all hit her. James, on the other hand, had more of a nervous morning than he anticipated – he was also the ‘on-call’ person for the wedding coordinator, so he wasn’t able to switch off as much. We think Georgia had over-prepared and really thought her nerves and anxiety would carry over into the wedding day, but by that point she knew it was all in the Universe’s hands.

What was the best part or moment of your day?

Absolutely our vows, G stills gets butterflies when she thinks about them.

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

We would make more time to enjoy the entertainment – to sit back and just take a moment with each other to walk around and enjoy what we created, play a few lawn games, sing along to some live music; but really, we were so lucky with how everything turned out. It rained a bit and we hardly noticed – we on cloud 9 with all our favourite people and that’s all what mattered – we were in a total love bubble all day.

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

Georgia is quite spiritual so her vows were more like manifestations, and we chose 3 stones to go on the inside of each of our wedding bands to represent what we wanted out of our marriage – Ruby, Emerald and Sapphire for Love, Loyalty & Longevity. We shared this during the ceremony with our guests as a special way to have them involved in the affirmations. We spent the night before the wedding together and hugged and kissed as soon as we saw each other at the aisle, it was so natural we didn’t even think about it, but it was a great way to keep grounded. Georgia’s Uncle was the celebrant as we never felt called to have a stranger marry us, so her Uncle got his license just for us- it was very sweet. Georgia’s grandma hand sewed crystals onto her dress from her (other) grandma’s wedding dress that were also on her mums, so it was full-circle moment and a special way to honour them all.

After the Wedding;

Describe newlywed life in a couple of words?

Closer, connected, family. We didn’t think anything would change, but it really has. It’s a whole new level of love – something deeper.

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

DJ and Videographer – we were just going to use a phone and Spotify as we struggled justifying the cost of a DJ, but we are SO glad we got one. The dancefloor didn’t stop all night. If you’re wondering about a videographer, DO IT! We have watched our wedding video so many times now, it’s brilliant for filling in those gaps and reliving the best day of your lives. We would probably pick this over professional photography if we had to pick one.

Budget-over, under or what you estimated?

Our budget doubled in size very quickly once we stated realised much a wedding actually costs – so once that happened, we kept it pretty well within budget.

Credits:

Coordination/Set Up/Hire; The Wedding and Event Creators
Celebrant; Uncle
Venue; Worrowing
Florist; Taylor Made Bouquets
Photographer and Videographer; Dreams Collective
Photobooth; Classic Captures
Catering; Wandering Woodfired Oven
Bar Staff; Henry Clive Caravan Bar
DJ; Tillee Music
Makeup; Hayley McIver
Hair; Chelsea Taylor