Modern Summer Wedding in the Yarra Valley

Aussie weddings, we’re a little bit obsessed with you. Today’s wedding from Love Katie + Sarah, Dot Dot Dash, and Fleur Florist continues the stylish Australian wedding trend with impeccable fashion, beautiful reception vignettes, and even St. Germain elderflower popsicles frozen with flowers. One of our absolute favorite details has to be the bride’s bouquet topped off with kumquats, and of course the confetti cannons at the end of the night!

From the bride, Rebecca: We chose Stones of the Yarra Valley for our venue which is a stunning property in a wine region of Victoria, nearby where I grew up. As we were still living in NYC during the planning stage, we were very lucky and thankful to have the creative brilliance of Dot Dot Dash at the helm – my best friend and Maid of Honor Diba being one of the key constituents of this incredibly talented event management company. The ceremony was held in a stone chapel which is nestled under century-old oak trees and the reception was held in a beautiful restored barn which looks out to the vineyard and Great Divide mountain ranges, so we wanted the style to echo these lush surroundings.

Flower recipe:We had gorgeous full-blown apricot peonies, tea and David Austin roses combined with a pop of green foliage and small sprigs of kumquats. Our fabulous florist Fleur sourced flesh colored ribbons to hang down from our bouquets – we loved how this added to the feminine, romantic feel.

We wanted the feel to be ultra-glamorous, romantic and sophisticated, yet not be overly stuffy – at the end of the day, it had to be a giant party where the smiles and laughter didn’t stop, the drinks flowed and the dancefloor was packed all night. We didn’t specifically plan for this, but it was the Summer Solstice – the longest day of the year – and so being at the height of the Aussie summer, Dot Dot Dash designed features that encouraged guests to mingle outdoors amongst the gorgeous surroundings and to make the most of the infinite sunlight. We utilized a cocktail cart which served Negroni and Gin cocktails and custom-made Pansy Pops (ice pops made from St. Germain elderflower liquer with edible flowers), had an outdoor lounge setting, lawn games such as quoits and strung up festoon lighting amongst the trees.

I would describe our wedding as a lush, romantic and glamorous summer fiesta. My Mum Linda and I both LOVE flowers and hence they were a huge part of the styling. We had gorgeous garlands of greenery with flowers overflowing from giant urns and hanging between the wooden beams in the ceiling; the tables were set with tall glass candlesticks that weaved together big canopies of flowers to add to this magical atmosphere. Dot Dot Dash also designed a beautiful ‘Mr & Mrs’ love seat for Christopher and I to sit on which again, was adorned with a lush floral garland. The color theme was blending soft, romantic colors like apricot, peach and blush pink tones with a pop of metallic to show our party side. The softer colors shone through in the flowers, watercolor stationary and signage and ombre napkins and the metallic in features such as the tea lights, glitter cannons on the dancefloor and a sparkler farewell. The glitter cannons were an amazing surprise for us which my mum co-conspired with the event planner to make happen and the dance floor went crazy when these went off! At the end of the night we had planned a sparkler farewell and it was hilarious trying to stop everyone midst full party mode to pull this off, however it was really such a perfect ending and made for some fabulous photos. Some key DIY projects included 130 little soaps which we gave as our bonbonniere, which Mum painstakingly wrapped by hand with our watercolor wedding logo and our wedding cake which was made by Christopher’s 90-year old grandpa Jack.

Any advice for couples planning their weddings now? There will almost certainly be some stressful times but try to enjoy it as you will only have this journey once! There are so many resources available on the internet to help you plan and get excited along the way – I ‘followed’ just about every bridal resource I could find on Facebook, Instagram and Pinterest and found it a great source for inspiration to help you narrow down what you like and / or don’t like for the big day. I created a Pinterest board which my Mum, best friend Diba and I could all pin to – it was a fantastic way for us to all be part of and enjoy the planning together, despite living in different locations around the world.

View all images from this wedding in the gallery

Wedding Music:
Processional: “Can’t Help Falling in Love With You,” Elvis Presley
Recessional: “Best Day of My Life,” American Authors
Registry Signing: “Hey Ho,” The Lumineers
Bridal Party Entrance: “Empire State of Mind,” Jay Z and Alicia Keys
First Dance: “Grow Old with Me,” Tom Odell

Wedding Location: Yarra Valley, VIC, Australia / Photographer: Love Katie + Sarah / Event Styling and Planning: Dot Dot Dash / Flowers: Fleur Florist in Armadale / Venue: Stones of the Yarra Valley / Wedding Dress: Jenny Packham “Willow” / Wedding Shoes: Jimmy Choo / Wedding Veil: Saks Fifth Avenue Bridal / Bridal Makeup: Kate Fletcher / Bridesmaids’ Attire: Whistles / Groom’s Attire: Hugo Boss / Groom’s Shoes: Salvatore Ferragamo / Groomsmen Suits: Rembrandt / Wedding Cake: made by the groom’s Grandpa Jack / Ice Pops: Pansy pops (St Germain elderflower liquor with edible flower ice pops) by Phil & Andrea’s Handmade Ice Pops / Music: The Baker Boys Band / Wedding Invitations and Signage: Santiago Sunbird / Videographer: C2 Video