“What is REAL?” asked the Rabbit one day, when they were lying side by side near the nursery fender, before Nana came to tidy the room. “Does it mean having things that buzz inside you and a stick-out handle?”

“Real isn’t how you are made,” said the Skin Horse. “It’s a thing that happens to you. When a child loves you for a long, long time, not just to play with, but REALLY loves you, then you become Real.”

“Does it hurt?” asked the Rabbit.

“Sometimes,” said the Skin Horse, for he was always truthful. “When you are Real you don’t mind being hurt.”

“Does it happen all at once, like being wound up,” he asked, “or bit by bit?”

“It doesn’t happen all at once,” said the Skin Horse. “You become. It takes a long time. That’s why it doesn’t happen often to people who break easily, or have sharp edges, or who have to be carefully kept. Generally, by the time you are Real, most of your hair has been loved off, and your eyes drop out and you get loose in the joints and very shabby.

But these things don’t matter at all, because once you are Real you can’t be ugly, except to people who don’t understand.”

- The Velveteen Rabbit by Margery Williams

…………………………………………………………………..

I was just going to leave today’s entry with this passage, but I simply cannot without telling you why I chose it for today.
When my husband and I were married almost seven years ago, this was one of the readings we chose for our ceremony.
It meant so much then, and now when I read it and gaze with such love at these beautiful creatures we created, it’s taken a new life.
Beautiful little people who love us – even after our hair has been pulled out, one too many raspberries have been blown on soft bellies, and backs have been jumped on.
They make us real.
We have become real.
They give us purpose.
They are the true beauty of my tomorrow.

For Mia
x

His interest in her had begun thirteen months before in a Florida library. Taking a book off the shelf he found himself intrigued, not with the words of the book, but with the notes penciled in the margin. The soft handwriting reflected a thoughtful soul and insightful mind. In the front of the book, he discovered the previous owner’s name, Miss Hollis Maynell. With time and effort he located her address. She lived in New York City. He wrote her a letter introducing himself and inviting her to correspond. The next day he was shipped overseas for service in World War II. During the next year and one month the two grew to know each other through the mail. Each letter was a seed falling on a fertile heart. A romance was budding.

Blanchard requested a photograph, but she refused. She felt that if he really cared, it wouldn’t matter what she looked like. When the day finally came for him to return from Europe, they scheduled their first meeting – 7:00 PM at the Grand Central Station in New York. “You’ll recognize me,” she wrote, “by the red rose I’ll be wearing on my lapel.”

So at 7:00 he was in the station looking for a girl whose heart he loved, but whose face he’d never seen. A young woman was coming toward him, her figure long and slim. Her blonde hair lay back in curls from her delicate ears; her eyes were blue as flowers. Her lips and chin had a gentle firmness, and in her pale green suit she was like springtime come alive. He started toward her, entirely forgetting to notice that she was not wearing a rose. As he moved, a small, provocative smile curved her lips. “Going my way, sailor?” she murmured. Almost uncontrollably he made one step closer to her, and then he saw Hollis Maynell. She was standing almost directly behind the girl. A woman well past 40, she had graying hair tucked under a worn hat. She was more than plump, her thick-ankled feet thrust into low-heeled shoes.

The girl in the green suit was walking quickly away. He felt as though he were being split in two, so keen was he desire to follow the girl, yet so deep was his longing for the woman whose spirit had truly companioned and upheld his own. And there she stood. Her pale, plump face was gentle and sensible, her gray eyes had a warm and kindly twinkle. He did not hesitate. His fingers gripped the small worn blue leather copy of the book that was to identify him to her. This would not be love, but it would be something precious, something perhaps even better than love, a friendship for which he had been and must ever be grateful. He squared his shoulders and saluted and held out the book to the woman, even though while he spoke he felt choked by the bitterness of his disappointment. “I’m Lieutenant John Blanchard, and you must by Miss Maynell. I am so glad you could meet me; may I take you to dinner?”

The woman’s face broadened into a tolerant smile. “I don’t know what this is about, son,” she answered, “but the young lady in the green suit who just went by, she begged me to wear this rose on my coat. And she said if you were to ask me out to dinner, I should go and tell you that she is waiting for you in the big restaurant across the street. She said it was some kind of test!”

It’s not difficult to understand and admire Miss Maynell’s wisdom. The true nature of a heart is seen in its response to the unattractive. “Tell me whom you love,” Houssaye wrote, “and I will tell you who you are.”

These beautiful words were spoken during Kim and Donny’s ceremony, and if it weren’t for the fact that I had a job to do, it would have taken the whole bridal party to pick me up off the floor. It was so touching, and so fitting for this amazing couple who made a promise to one another for a lifetime of love.

I was fortunate enough to go to school with Kim way back in the day, and so for me, to be asked to be there to document this momentous stage in her life was truly a most touching request. When I first met Donny, I knew instantly he was a wonderful match for Kim. He smiled with his eyes and his heart.

Theirs is a beautiful love.

It’s really not fair, but she just keeps getting more and more divine every time I see her. Miss Kimberley, you couldn’t be more perfect if you tried and that beautiful heart of yours is echoed in the outward beauty you embrace so easily.

Knees…weak….tears… what person wouldn’t want to be looked upon with such love? Oh how I love love.

Kim and Donny’s Dream Team:
Ceremony Location: The Scots Church, Melbourne
Reception Location: The Terrace, Royal Botanical Gardens
Bridal Gown: Ravish
Groom’s and Groomsmen’s attire: Prinzi Collections
Bridesmaids: Myer 
Hair/Makeup: Napoleon | Seta Hair and Makeup
Jewellery: Vintage
Flowers: Bouquet Melbourne
Cake: Arnolds

My heart skipped a beat.

You mean, my Mansion? The same place that I was married? I was so giddy with excitement I could barely contain it.

I remember closing the door after our first meeting with a huge smile on my face. These two made my heart sing a beautiful song. They were genuine, they were in love, and coincidentally they had chosen the best venue (of course!) in Victoria to share that moment of love. As their wedding drew closer, even I was counting down the sleeps. All I could think about were these two gorgeous people ready to make the most honest and important promise they could ever make, in such wonderful meaningful surroundings.

As expected, the whole day was beyond beautiful.

The details were delicious…

This is what love’s pure joy looks like…

And this is what my heart looks like…

The staff at the hotel are wonderful (and a huge shout out to Toni who was not only my wedding coordinator back when I was married here, but is still doing an amazing job giving nothing less than 110% effort in everything she does. This lady is fabulous and I cannot speak more highly of her to anyone). Plus they put on a gorgeous spread…

Yep, this is why I love the place too…

Catherine + Alister’s Dream Team:
Ceremony Location: Sofitel Mansion Hotel & Spa, Werribee
Reception Location: Sofitel Mansion Hotel & Spa, Werribee (The Pavilion)
Ceremony Officiant: Rev. David Withers
Bridal Gown: Deborah Selleck
Groom’s attire: Walter Withers
Bridesmaid: Lisa Ho
Groomsmen’s attire: Walter Withers
Hair/Makeup: Abi Leilani
Shoes: Novat
Jewellery: Charles Rose
Flowers: Kylie Cornwall
Cars: Melbourne Classic Cars
Bonbonniere: Springhill Chocolates 

She was so right.

I told her it was one of the most honest statements a bride has ever said to me on their wedding day.

Family was paramount to them – to be surrounded by those who loved them was far more important than anything else at their wedding. These two have amazing hearts. They even arranged for all of their guests to stay a couple of nights at the Langham Hotel as part of their wedding experience – no detail was left out. The sincere and heartfelt gratitude that their guests felt as a result was amazing. There were tears, laughs – but most of all, there was joy. Joy for these two amazing souls who in the words of James’ mum “were meant to be together”.  For a couple who love each other’s family as their own, it was only fitting to have an intimate affair catered just to their needs (38 people in total… completely gorgeous) and desires.

Heartfelt. Connected. Thoughful. Perfect.

Sheila kept saying how she wasn’t used to having her photo taken in public (who does!) but I tell you… these two worked it like you wouldn’t believe. I love, love, love post-ceremony love buzz.

Have so many more I would love to share, but I will leave those for the gorgeous Sheila and James to savour in their own time.

My gorgeous friend Lana flew in from Brisbane to join me for this wedding, has also blogged some images so please have a peek at those too (and for those in Brisbane looking for a wedding photographer… contact this girl!)

Sheila + James’ Dream Team
Ceremony Location: Langham Hotel
Reception Location: Langham Hotel
Celebrant: Denise Martin 
Bridal Gown: Karen Willis Holmes
Groom’s attire: Simon Carter
Shoes: Tony Bianco
Jewellery:  Tiffany & Co
Flowers: Flower Temple
Bonbonniere: Hermes and MOR
Videographers: Living Lens

There was lots of this going on with the boys that afternoon (loved hearing that laughter)…

And much fun drinking this…

All while full of style…

Things were just as gorgeous with Tina and her bridesmaids before the ceremony also. There were 12 in the bridal party, including Tina and Duncan, and three of Tina’s bridesmaids were male. LOVED that.

I couldn’t have asked for a more gorgeous image of Tina than the one below if I tried. Actually, I did try. After I snapped this and she moved her head back a second later, I asked her to turn her head again in a vain attempt to capture the same shot again. I couldn’t. You can’t ask for moments like this. They just are. She looks so incredibly beautiful here and it’s one of my personal favourites of her from the day taken just at the right moment, in the right light. Bliss!

As I said to Tina’s mum when she was lauhing at me lying on the floor taking photos of Tina’s shoes, ”They’re Manolos Barb – they need their own space to be admired properly”. Oh yes… they do! Thank you Mr Blahnik from women everywhere

Did I say Tina was stunning…? STUNNING. Another two of my favourite images with her before the ceremony. In fact, the one of her girls helping her into her dress is one of my favourites full stop.

Another image I can’t help but make happy noises about. Love, adore, love, adore – detail on these beautiful nicolangëla bridesmaids dresses. They were honestly the most divine bridesmaids dresses I’ve ever seen.

Their beautiful ceremony was held at St Pauls Cathedral right in the heart of the CBD and was nothing short of magnificent. They connected so beautifully with each other. The images we took after the ceremony make me realise how much I love living here in Melbourne too.

 Tina + Duncan’s Dream Team
Ceremony Location: St Paul’s Cathedral, Melbourne
Reception Location: Zinc at Federation Square
Bridal Gown: Brides of Armadale
Groom’s attire: Lavin
Bridesmaids: nicolangëla
Shoes: Manolo Blahnik
Jewellery: Vintage
Makeup/Hair: Anaka
Flowers: Kate Hill
Stationery: Chapel Press
Cake: La Tropezienne 

I knew I would love them. The way they spoke of one another meant I knew they would be special. Chloe calls Andrew her favourite person in the world, and Andrew said that he adores the love that Chloe has for everyone.

Yep, these two are special.

They were married on a beautiful sunny Saturday at Mansfield in country Victoria. They wanted a location that was special to them, and that meant something. “I am at my happiest when I’m at Mansfield” Chloe said, and it’s easy to see why. “The ceremony in the garden will be very special because we’ve said all along that we want to get married in a place that our children will be able to run around over in the future. Imagine sitting on the balcony in 20 years time, looking at that spot, and remembering back to such a wonderful day that we were able to share with all of our friends and family.”

Don’t you just want to cry?!

We started first with the very handsome groom-to-be and the rest of the boys preparing for the afternoon…

See, handsome! And he does a pretty mean Roger David impersonation (just ask him…)

The girls were just as gorgeous – and Chloe was absolutely born to be a bride. She was stunning.

As Chloe’s mum gave her a beautiful ring that her late grandmother had left to her for her wedding, I lost it. Chloe had tears, her mum had tears, I had tears – it was one of the most beautiful moments I have witnessed between mother and daughter at a wedding. This family is truly special.

Chloe sourced this amazing pin from overseas to add to her dress…

Love this image so much…

The ceremony and reception were held at Chloe’s parents farm in Mansfield overlooking the absolutely gorgeous rolling country Victorian hills in the distance. The sun was slowing setting as the day wore on and made for some absolutely glorious light for the couples shots afterwards.

There was such a wonderful attention to detail for this wedding – bottles of water for the ceremony, personalised vows during the ceremony that made me cry (although, that’s not hard… I cry at everything!) and even buses were arranged for the guests to ferry them to/from the reception and their hotels in town. Just loved this wedding so much.

Probably my favourite from the day…

Seriously…. could this reception have been any more gorgeous?! I think I could have just sat there staring in amazement at this beautiful tent all evening. One of these most elegant marquees I have ever seen.

Chloe and Andrew’s Dream Team:
Ceremony Location: Mansfield, Victoria
Reception Location: Mansfield, Victoria
Ceremony Officiant: Pat Lane
Bridal Gown: Alfred Angelo
Groom’s attire: Formal Red
Groomsmen: Formal Red
Bridesmaids: Monsoon
Shoes: Pink London
Makeup/Hair: Cinamonstix Mansfield
Flowers: Blooms on Bridge, Benalla
Catering: Magnolia Tree Mansfield
Cake: Gwen Grey

I had been checking the weather forecast randomly all week to try and gauge what we would be faced with for the wedding. Knowing how much they wanted to have photos taken around this beautiful property, I wanted so badly for their sake for it not to rain. That’s when, naturally, the forecast predicted rain… not just rain, mind you, but thunderstorms. Even the morning of the wedding just before the drive up there, they were still predicting thunderstorms (and how ironic that Cherie works for the Bureau of Meteorology!). The reality though? Nothing but sunshine! In fact, it was so hot that my pale ‘fluroescent white’ skin even got burnt, so go figure! It wasn’t until just before the reception began that the clouds started to form and later that night that the storms began (and boy were they storms…. and great lightning too!)

This beautiful lake below sits just beside the house on the farm with the most amazing wooden deck allowing you to take in the magnificent surroundings. I swear all we needed was a string quartet to serenade us as we walked around and I would have felt like I was in a beautiful movie.

What I think I enjoyed most though about these two was witnessing their beautiful love and connection and being able to capture that for them. Sure, I might have ushered them to a pretty location, but these two were so into each other that there was hardly any direction at all. They danced, they kissed, they snuggled, they laughed – beautiful, tender, love. What made it so lovely is that they concentrated on them, and made those moments theirs.

So much fun, so much love… some of my favourite shots from the entire wedding we taken in the paddocks that lead into the farm from the road. How lucky we were that we had so much rain prior to the wedding – the grass was lush…

The rocking buick was provided by a friend of theirs – handy guy to know!

The reception venue of Glen Erin Retreat was amazing – the timing couldn’t have been more perfect as the sun was just starting to go down behind the vineyard as the reception began. Hazel from Gisborne Cottage Flowers organised all of the floral arrangements for the wedding, and I love that they bouquet theme of the girls carried over into the reception as well for the table arrangements and cake flowers. See – I told you, attention to detail these two!

A big shout out also goes to the beautiful Lana Bell who flew all of the way from Brisbane to join me for this wedding (thanks gorge!) - we had an absolute ball playing together, and she captured some gorgeous images so make sure you head over to her blog to check them out.

Cherie and Simon’s Dream Team
Ceremony: Private property
Reception: Glen Erin, Lancefield
Celebrant: Celia Dann
Bridal Gown: Deborah Selleck
Shoes: Novat
Makeup/Hair: Allure Hair and Body
Flowers: Gisborne Cottage Flowers
Jewellery: Timothy Sethna for rings
Accessories: Jeeba for earings and Linda Gorringe for other
Groom’s attire: Trevor West Formal Hire, South Yarra
Cars:  Friend
Music: Pat McKernan, Live Irish Folk Musician
Invitations: Rebecca Powers

When I first met with Cherie and Simon earlier this year, it was more than obvious that these words were true. Such a beautiful, loving couple and their infectious energy made it very easy to care for them. They told me how they wanted to marry at a location that was dear to them, and beautiful at that, being Simon’s parents farm just outside of Lancefield and they showed me images of potential sites around the property that they thought would work. That’s one of the things that I loved about these two – their attention to detail. It was amazing. I knew their wedding would be nothing short of beautiful, and I was right. Cherie put it best when she said “Simon is simply a beautiful man… he has a wonderful strength that should be admired”.

Cherie’s Deborah Selleck bridal gown was divine – beautiful embroidery detail and lacework around the body, with tiny little pearl embellishments which carried over into her hairpiece, jewellery and accessories. Cherie knew how to style it all in. Allure Hair and Body did an amazing job with her hair and makeup (still loving those lashes Cherie!), with Cherie opting for a beautiful low chignon under her gorgeous full length veil. She bought her beautiful shoes from Novat (who also made my wedding shoes… loved them, super comfy) and sported some stylish Jeeba pearl earrings with her ensemble. She was radiant.

She was so calm when I arrived too, just a beautiful peaceful feeling around her like she just knew it was going to be the best day of her life. Her family was also all there to help her get ready so it made it into a beautiful family affair. She wore her two engagement rings on her right hand (yep, two – one from Simon’s initial proposal at Zion Canyon National Park in the US, on a large grassed picnic area backed by towering mountains (um… can someone say romantic?!), and the second was the one she chose after their engagement was official – lucky girl!)

Meanwhile, groom-to-be Simon was busy getting ready at the farm before the ceremony was due to begin. He and his groomsmen opted for traditional Morning Suit with a slight colour scheme twist, keeping in theme with their beautiful romantic feel for the day. The boys were a riot, I had such a ball with them. Cherie only had one request of me as I made my way from her to see Simon that morning – “tell him just to relax”, she said. I told him, but I think Simon, at least on the outside, was looking pretty calm, cool and collected. 

We went off and had some shots with the boys (see… handsome!) and then made our way into the house and waited for Cherie to make her grand entrance and for the beautiful ceremony to begin.

See – so much love around… it was everywhere we looked!

Stay tuned for Part II to follow , with some more gorgeous images to share from after the ceremony…