Real Wedding; Lucy and Matt @ Somerley House

About You Two;

Now, How did you two meet?

We went to high school together and had been friends for years. It wasn’t until after school when we started dating.

Who popped the Question and how did it happen?

Matt surprised Lucy during a holiday in Hawaii! We hired a car for the day, he had a vision of popping the question on some beautiful beach, but Lucy got tired and wanted to go back to our hotel room early. He ended up asking her on our hotel balcony with a beautiful sunset in the background.

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

We saw up to 18 venues!! We made use of the south coast wedding trail and saw as many as we could because we really didn’t know what we wanted in the early days. After viewing so many, we hit a wall and started to think we’d never find the perfect venue, until I stumbled across Somerley’s. I feel in love with the pics and we both hoped it lived up to it’s beauty in person. It absolutely did and we knew straight away it was on the one!

Quick Fire Questions;

How many wedding guests did you have?

Sit down or Cocktail Style?

Sit down, banquet style

What month?

March

Planning The Wedding;

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

It had its ups and downs. We had a long engagement (1 yr and 7 months) because we knew we wanted lots of time to plan and enjoy the process. This was a great decision as we were able to book in our vendors early and minimise stress in that department. Somerley’s is a mostly DIY venue so we had to organise everything from the food/alcohol to all the cutlery, glassware and plates. Lots of people thought we were crazy but Lucy really enjoyed it as it meant we could choose every detail for ourselves. The hardest part was finding the venue, but after that, everything else just fell into place.

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?

Lucy definitely took the lead but she was shocked at how much Matt was getting into it! He organised the band, food and alcohol and we never made a decision without consulting each other first.

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

We knew we wanted a live band with a sax to get the party going. This was a great addition. Lucy had seen our celebrant Aniella Batten on Instagram and we had to have her. She was absolutely fabulous. We wanted something a little different for our guests to take home instead of a traditional bonbonniere, and we found Studio Y Creative who makes stationary with daisy seeds in the paper. Lucy fell in love with the idea of guests taking home their menus and planting daisies as a way to remember the day.

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

I had no idea what I wanted prior to being engaged. I started looking online at popular dress shops in Sydney and finding designers that I loved. I found the Alena Leena Nolina dress at Love Marie Boutique and that became my inspo. Light, romantic, different dresses with a statement sleeve. I was absolutely sure that the particular style of Nolina wasn’t going to suit my shape, but I booked into Love Marie anyway. It was the first dress I tried on and we were all shocked at how beautiful it was!! I tried on a few different styles after that but nothing compared! I went to one other boutique after that, but kept thinking about Nolina. I can’t believe it was the first dress I tried on!

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

Somerley’s is such a garden-vibes venue that it was really easy to stick to that whimsical, garden party vibe.

On the Day;

How did you both feel wedding morning?

Lucy couldn’t sleep the night before but was super calm for the whole morning. It was such a lovely relaxed morning with my parents, sister and bestie.

Matt was nervous as he was on site and had to make the big decision about what to do if it rained.

What was the best part or moment of your day?

It’s so hard to think of just one! Lucy loved that first cocktail after the ceremony when we went to get photos just the two of us. All the nerves had gone and it was just a feeling of pure happiness. Matt’s favourite moment was seeing Lucy walk down the aisle.

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

Tiny things didn’t go to plan but in the grand scheme of things no one even noticed! We wouldn’t change a thing.

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

Lucy’s Nan made her an initialled ‘L’ out of pearls to put on her bouquet which is something she did for my mum’s wedding.

After the Wedding;

Describe newlywed life in a couple of words?

Same-same.. is that boring? Haha! Nothing much changed as we were living together already. But those few days after the wedding were great because the stress had gone, and we could sit back and relive the day over and over!

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

Having a coordinator (especially for our DIY venue!) Emily was amazing and ensured the day ran smoothly! Mrs Gibbons Flowers produced beautiful arrangements and Lucy clicked with Amber straight away. She brought the vision together perfectly.

Budget-over, under or what you estimated?

It ended up over. I feel like every couple reaches a point in planning were they just say ‘F it!’ and they just book in that extra little thing. Everyone had such a fun day so it’s all worth it in the end.