It’s been some time since we’ve featured a beach wedding and what better way to break the hiatus with this New Zealand surf beach wedding by WE ARE WILDWOOD. With a blank canvas offering them the freedom to add their own touches, the location also served to reflect the couples love of the sea and the outdoors. They went about transforming the local surf club into a beautiful venue ééò all with the help of some local school children who helped them move things around. Sarah’s easy to wear gown by GRACE LOVES LACE was the perfect relaxed option, and flowers from ROSIES WILDFLOWER CO. finished it off.
HOW DID YOU MEET? I moved to New Zealand from Germany 6 years ago for my job. Cameron worked in the same company and I met him on my first day I arrived in New Zealand while I was getting introduced to all the employees in the company. We started having after work drinks on Fridays and he was very charming and funny and the rest is history.
TELL US ABOUT YOUR PROPOSAL? We wanted to get out of Auckland for a weekend so we went away and stayed at Cameron’s family bach in Whiritoa. It was a beautiful, sunny day in November 2013. Cam went for a surf in the morning and came back and asked if we wanted to walk our dog Max at the beach. He packed a bag with some beers and we went on our walk along the beach. Cam wanted to go over to the next bay, so we went up the walking track. He proposed up on the hill overlooking the ocean and Whiritoa beach. I couldn’t have asked for anything more romantic. We celebrated with a beer and went back to the bach to call our family and friends and share our amazing news.
TELL US ABOUT FINDING YOUR WEDDING DRESS: I knew that I really wanted a dress with a low back but just couldn’t quite envision what it would look like. My mum, who was here in New Zealand for a holiday, and I went to a few wedding boutiques around Auckland but I just couldn’t find the perfect dress. I also looked online and stumbled across “Grace loves Lace” who are located at the Gold Coast. I instantly fell in love with all their dresses and style. The designs totally matched my idea of having a relaxed, laid-back beach wedding. Luckily my husband’s brother and family live very close by so I visited them last year and went to the GLL showroom to try on some of their beautiful dresses. The dress I loved online was the one I ended up falling in love with at their showroom and the one I chose for our wedding day. The team at GLL are amazing and very helpful. The quality of the fabric and design is amazing – I can highly recommend them.
WHAT ADVISE WOULD YOU GIVE OUT TO A COUPLE PLANNING THEIR WEDDING? Choosing the right venue is important. Make sure that you know if you are prepared to plan every little detail yourself or if you may prefer to book a venue where almost everything is set up for you. If you choose to do it yourself, be prepared for a lot of work and try and book your favourite vendors early so that you can lay back and relax closer to the time. Make sure you have weekends where you don’t organize anything as it can get stressful. It is your day and should reflect your personality. If it’s important for you to walk down the aisle barefoot but your mum may want you to wear her favourite shoes – find a compromise and wear them at the reception.
MOST MEMORABLE MOMENT? From spending time with our family and friends who have travelled from so far away to walking down the aisle with my dad on my side and seeing Cameron waiting for me and seeing our family and friends relaxed and enjoying themselves – it was just overall the most magical day.
Photographer WE ARE WILDWOOD / Cake SPONGEDROP / Florals ROSIES WILDFLOWER CO. / Stationery SIMPLY FETCHING PAPER and LOST & SOUND / Venue WHIRITOA BEACH and SURF CLUB / Dress Designer GRACE LOVES LACE / Jewellery engagement WEDDING RINGS / Hair AIMEE RENNER from BEAUTY ON DEMAND / Make up CHAY ROBERTS / Bridesmaids dresses MINT & BERRY and MINK PINK / Grooms Attire REMBRANDT / Caterer GLOBAL CUISINE
