On a dreamy summer day, Julia and Theodore vowed to spend the rest of their lives in front of all their loved ones. Photos of the day capture the couple in picturesque sceneries and enjoying the day with friends and family.
Julia stunned in Alana by Forget Me Knot - a sparkling glittery ball gown with exposed boning and a sweeping circle skirt. This romantic fairytale look perfectly complimented the lush greenery of the park landscape. Julia also paired her gown with heart shaped sunglasses for the reception, a fun addition for a lively atmosphere.
Keep reading for some inspo and an insight into Julia's dress shopping journey.
What was it that made this particular wedding dress catch your eye and fall in love?
One word: sparkles. I've never really been a glittery person, but for some reason I was just obsessed with it when it came to trying on wedding dresses. The details of this dress are stunning with the exposed boning and gorgeous A-line fit. I opted in for a slight alteration to have the bodice also lined and it was great having options for alterations easily available.
Tell us about your search for the dress and the experience at Astra Bridal.
Before I was even engaged I had the Astra Bridal website as a saved tab, I loved the designers they carried and every dress looked stunning. Having the online consultation as well as the saved wishlist made it feel like I wasn't going in blindly and made it a much more relaxed experience. The stylist who was helping me was so lovely and clearly just wanted to help me find the wedding dress of my dreams. Trying on the very first dress was magic and each one I tried was stunning. The dress I chose ended up being the very last dress that I tried on. I still don't understand how, but I just knew she was the one!
Tell us your story, how you both met, and the proposal.
Theodore moved up to Auckland to study and came to board at my family home. After three years of living in the same house, we realised we had feelings for each other after going out with a group of friends one night! One week later, we were at a dinner together with his sister. She had to leave at the start due to 'unforeseen circumstances' (pretty sure she left on purpose...Without either of us knowing it, we had both gone to her to talk about how we liked the other!) After a beautiful dinner, we went for a walk around the area when Theodore let me know that he was interested and I told him the same. We attribute our relationship going as smoothly as it has to those years of being really good friends, looking back, slowly getting to know each other was so special! Fast forward about two years, we went for a day trip to Tauranga. I had inklings that he may propose, but he was way too calm on the day and didn't seem like he had any major plans for us, so I didn't think he would. Turns out he had a location picked by the beach with a photographer at dusk, ready to capture the moment he went down on one knee!
What was your favourite part of the day?
How am I meant to answer this?! It was all amazing! But if I had to choose a favourite, I would say it was seeing Theodore as I walked down the aisle and giving him a big hug once I made it to the front of the church.
Tell us about your wedding day as a whole.
Waking up on our wedding day meant heading to the ceremony venue to finish the arch florals! I grew and designed the wedding flowers except for the bouquets and buttonholes (shoutout to our incredible florist, Gemma!). To be sure they wouldn't wilt, this meant arranging the flowers for the arch the morning of. Getting ready with my beautiful bridesmaids was so much fun, our makeup artist was amazing and we had so much fun. It felt really relaxed, since our ceremony was at 2:30pm. Our ceremony was so special, it was very oriented around our faith as we are both Christians. Again, walking down that aisle towards Theodore felt like a perfect dream! The weather was warm but cloudy all day, which was actually really nice, although we were hoping for a bit of a sunset! We took our bridal photos at Cornwall Park and had lots of fun wandering around before heading to our reception. We both have big families, so the reception was more just a massive family dinner where we could catch up with those who made the journey from around NZ as well as Australia, America and the Netherlands. Every speech was so beautiful as well as hilarious. We danced into the night with all the best people in our lives around us.
Finally, what is your biggest piece of advice for brides to be?
This is a tough question! But I would have to say remember that your wedding is (in most cases) one day, but your marriage is for life! You should absolutely make your wedding day beautiful and enjoy it because it only happens once, but remember to focus on making your marriage even more beautiful! We attended some pre-marriage counselling and I would absolutely recommend it. Having your gorgeous wedding day to reflect on is so wonderful and it helps remind me of the choice we have made to build our lives together. This advice also means don't sweat the small stuff when it comes to the day itself, it will be beautiful no matter what, you can just simply enjoy it.
