Ciara & Drew

Today’s wedding is so completely fun. Retro inspired, filled with polka dots- what’s not to love? The sweet handmade details and vintage twists make today’s wedding all the better to kick off a Tuesday!’

Photos today are by Debs Ivelja Photography

Ciara carried a purple and red felt flower bouquet created by muscariwhitesflorist on Etsy.

Rebecca Price from Weddingesque was hired to coordinate and plan the wedding, Ciara recalls, “The lovely Rebecca Price from Weddingesque helped me build an amazing amount of special detail into our day. We specifically set out to have a vintage retro feel to the whole day. When I saw red and white polka dots one day I knew it was going to be central in creating a retro style but more importantly a relaxed, fun feel to the bridal party. Luckily my handsome groom agreed to come along on the polka dot ride and we used it in all of our special details from the dresses, cake, to the invites and decorations.”

For her wedding gown, Ciara chose the ‘Isadora Ann’ by Maggie Sottero. Ciara’s bridesmaid and Drew’s groom’s women wore polka dot frocks from Vivien of Holloway .

Ciara and Drew were married at Brisbane’sSt Stephen’s Chapel. Ciara explains, “St Stephen’s Chapel was chosen because it as a exquisite chapel that holds a lot of significance for me. This is one of my favourite churches in Brisbane because of its history and because I have attended many services there. We agreed on this chapel because its small size also helped create a feeling of intimacy amongst the small gathering of family and friends.

For her walk down the aisle Ciara remarks, “It wasn’t important what was playing. Both of us have talked many times since about the fact that it was the one part of the day where everything slowed down and we couldn’t see anything but each other. I knew as I walked down the aisle to join my husband to be that there were so many people I loved there, but I did not see anything but him.”

Ciara remembers, “Not being able to stop looking at each other during the ceremony, it was the most joyful time in my life.”

Of the day, Ciara says “It was a more beautiful and joyful that we ever imagined!”

Of their photographer, Ciara says, “Our photographer was the beautiful Debs Ivelja who not only put up with our endless questions before we booked her but also made the whole process easy and enjoyable. Debs has a soft nature that puts everyone at ease straight away. Just like her style of photography she is not intrusive or pushy but gently organises everything to the advantage of everyone. Debs was an absolute joy to work with.”

Ciara and Drew celebrated with guests at Fix Restaurant and Bar . Ciara remembers “Fix Restaurant was chosen because of its warmth and cosiness. It helped continue the feeling of intimacy and of course the food was to die for!”

There were plenty of handmade details to tie everything together and help guests get into the spirit of the day. Ciara recalls, “I wanted our guests to feel like they were in the middle of our celebration and not observing from the outside on the day. As a result I made felt rose brooches for every guest. These tied into the handmade flowers that Paula and Peter my generous in-laws made for our tables and the flowers the girls in the bridal party carried.

We also made cootie catchers or chatterboxes instead of ceremony programs. We simply wanted to acknowledge our families, our loved ones who could not be present and allow all our guests to pay attention during the ceremony.”

Guests received miniature gumball machines from Pink Frosting which were filled with gumballs.

For their first dance, Ciara says, “As a surprise for our guests who know our inability to dance we went a learnt something special. We took lessons and danced a jive to ‘The boy does nothing’ by Alesha Dixon. It was cheeky, fun and a great way to celebrate our new status as a married couple.”

Congratulations on your marriage Ciara and Drew! Thank you to Debs Ivelja Photography  for sharing today’s wedding with us!