Janek and Jess

Janek and I decided to get married in August 2008 but a beautiful house in the Blue Mountains came on the market which I had to have. Have it I did and the wedding was postponed until we had more cash to splash around. Then we booked our wedding for June 2009 but as we were planning the invites I discovered I was pregnant, and not wanting to be a lactating bride I decided to postpone the wedding once again. Others might see this as a sign things weren’t meant to be, but Janek and I saw it as a sign we were sure to be together forever. Having bought a house together and had endured those first years of a new baby we knew we were a stronger team than ever.

We found the perfect date, October the 1st 2011, as it was a long weekend and most guests would be travelling to Adelaide, although it was also the weekend of the AFL and NRL grand finals so some blokes thought the timing was a little off. Janek then handed me total control of the wedding, except one thing, but I won’t reveal what that is just yet. We had the wedding at 11am and so we had a leisurely 6 hours to drive around the Adelaide hills and have photos done. We even had time to stop off at a little bakery for lunch and a pub to watch the grand final. It also meant people could take babies home for naps (including Maple) and watch the AFL grand final.

I had so many ideas for this wedding. The 2009 wedding was planned to be a Marie Antoinette style wedding. However having had a baby, Maple, I decided simple was better at this stage in my life. Loving the 50s I thought a 50s style wedding would be perfect. Janek was less sure as he imagined jukeboxes and milkshakes, but I asked him to trust me and he did.

After deciding on a theme and colour scheme (brown and raspberry pink) I went about figuring out what this wedding was about. Having been together 5 years already we were well on our way, but what had helped us get here was all the people we knew and loved. I decided this wedding was to be a community wedding, full of the people we love, sharing their talents to make it really special. Many of the main ingredients for this wedding were done by people we love; my earrings, my dress, flowers, hair, makeup, photos, invites, place settings, sound system and projector, Maple’s dress and my fascinator. Janek even got to make our own cake topper (his only request) out of lego.

The reception was extraordinary. The lights and my aunties floral arrangements looked amazing. Everyone loved that instead of bonbonniere, inside their place card was a special memory we had of them. My friend Bek who was the MC explained all the games we would play. On each table was a sheet with photos of us and people had to figure out where we were. A great ice breaker. We also played balderdash and pictionary. Speeches were beautiful and everyone felt the love. I lost my voice that night but it made no difference. We had no first dance as that wasn’t “us” but the whole wedding party shook their thangs to “Hey Ya”. Everyone had so much fun dancing the night away especially us as we made the play list and just got a friend to press play for us. We even picked a song just for Maple.

The day was perfect. I can’t explain it but even weeks later I am floating on cloud nine. When we were indoors it rained but when we stepped outside the sun would shine. Maybe it was that even when getting ready, I wasn’t nervous as all the people around were my friends. The driver who was the only person I didn’t know personally soon became like an old friend as I found out his name was Jan (which is Janek’s official name). The church with the choir was magical, I truly felt like someone was watching over us that day. It was a perfect day because it reflected us perfectly. I might have started off married life as a mute (the best wedding gift I could give Janek) but I wouldn’t change any of it because I got to spend it with my soul mate, my daughter who is the greatest gift of all and all our family and friends from far and wide.

Photos by Mary Canning

Ms Gingham says: Third time was definitely lucky for Jess, Janek and little Maple. You can just feel the mood of this beautiful wedding in the images. Thanks to Jess and Janek for sharing your day with us. By the way… love the lego cake topper!

Jess says: “My wedding was 50s inspired, all hand made. From my dress to my earrings. Everyone involved I knew personally except the car drivers. It made for a very relaxed and beautiful day. The photos by Mary Canning (a dear friend) are stunning and I think it proves that handmade doesn’t have to mean cheap.”