The Opera House. Doesn’t it take your breath away? And its Opera Point Marquee is simply stunning… and definitely the perfect place to hold the Ultimate Wedding Planning Party. The night was filled with lots of excited brides-to-be (and a few grooms-to-be too!), sussing out what the wedding pros there had to offer. There was also a fab bridal fashion runway featuring gowns by Collette Dinnigan, Lisa Gowing, Velani by Nicky, Sarah Janks and Nat-Sui shoes. Drool!

Another treat was to hear words of wisdom from the wedding pros themselves! But don’t worry, Dotties… luckily I scribbled down their hottest tips to keep those of you who weren’t there in the loop…

Alicia Richardson – The Knot

* Weddings are a delicate balance of new and old. Keep it modern without throwing out tradition.

* The Royal Wedding back in April has been a big influence, with resurgence in sleeves and shoulder details. Also, royal purple is the ‘it’ colour this season.

* Let your bridesmaids have personality – give them the colour but let them choose the dress, so it really will be something they can wear again.

* For flowers, bouquets that look like they’re picked fresh from the meadow are popular. Think Kate Moss’ wedding.

* Food is central to whether or not the event goes off. Go with seasonal and regional produce if you can.

* Music is also important as it sets the tone and shows your personality as a couple.

Runway looks from Camilla

Anthony del Col – Staging Connections

* Create a wedding scrapbook, with a section for things you DO like and a section for things you DON’T.

* Don’t stress too much about a theme – one should organically evolve.

* A well-planned wedding should run itself. Crucial to this is making sure your suppliers have access and time to set up and get organised.

* Fashion wise, gold is making a big comeback and gone are the days of not wearing white to a wedding (for guests).

* Make sure you get your lighting right as it creates the atmosphere.

* Get creative with your table names. For example, you could call them after your favourite travel destinations.

Anthony del Col with models, canapes from Opera Point Events

Lisa Gowing runway looks, music provided by Sweethearts Music

Graham Monro – GM Photographics

* It’s good to have pre-wedding shoots with your photographer so you get comfortable. You could even use these photos on your invitations, guest book etc.

* Before the big day, practise posing and walking in your dress. Look at different angles – you can type ‘posing for photography’ into Google for some tips.

* Photographer should arrive 1.5 hours before you leave for the ceremony. Hair and makeup should be done by then and the bridesmaids should be dressed. This is also a good time to get a full-length shot of the bride.

* After your ceremony, get a group shot with the guests and with your families. Allow about 30 minutes before going off to have your other photos taken.

Cupcakes from Sparkle Cupcakery

Abraham Joffe – Untitled Films

* Wedding videos shouldn’t be about the technical – they should have a great story, great characters and make people feel a connection to the story.

* Videographer should blend in to the day and not be intrusive.

* The best way to get the sense of story is for the videographer to get to know you. Everything else will evolve from there.

Sweet treats from Planet Cake

Paris Cutler – Planet Cake

* Planet Cake will give you an A-list experience and are experts in managing bridezillas, groomzillas and mumzillas!

* All good cake decorators should have a book of their work to show you.

* When you’re talking with cake decorators, make sure you ask the hard questions and also get references. There are phonies out there.

Paris Cutler of Planet Cake addresses the guests

Dancing With The Stars champion Carmello entertained guests

Ms Floral attended The Ultimate Wedding Planning Party as a guest of Magnet PR