Ashleigh & Kristian

I do love a wedding that is beautiful in it’s simplicity, beautiful in its elegance and beautiful in the story that it tells. Ashleigh and Kristian’s day has no fireworks, it has no circus performers, or chalk boards. It has a beautiful love story, a beautiful bouquet, beautiful photographs and moments to show.

Ashleigh tells their story. “In keeping with the early months of our courtship, and engagement, the planning of our wedding certainly was an international affair. Kristian and I met in Melbourne one evening, and at the time I was living in Dubai working as an international flight attendant so my stay in Melbourne was for just one night. We were definitely up against the odds! Following a nine-month long distance courtship I moved to be with Kristian in Melbourne for a year, after which we then relocated to Singapore, which is where Kristian proposed just over three years after we first met.”

Stewart Leishman captured today’s photographs with his trademark classic, elegant captures.

Miss Fox styled the girl’s hair and nails while Fotini Hatzis styled their makeup.

Bouquets of Ascha Jolie created the bridal party floral arrangements.

Ashleigh wore a gown from Time Taken To Make A Dress, Singapore . She says, “I had many generous compliments on the day about my dress, and I must say it was a real joy to wear as well. I first spied the dress on a blog not long after getting engaged and approached an artisan dress-maker in Singapore (Time Taken To Make A Dress) who did a fantastic job at creating a customized dress from a handful of online images. Just like our wedding venue, this boutique was not a wedding specific supplier and their vision to create ‘bespoke pieces crafted with soul’, instantly struck a chord with me.”

Raspberry red bridesmaid gowns were found at House Of Brides.

Ashleigh and Kristian married at St Kilda Botanical Gardens.

“It was a really humbling experience to have so many family and friends in the one venue, for such a great reason. I shed a small tear in the quiet of the car back to our hotel at the end of the night, overwhelmed with such love. I completely recommend getting married, it was more than I’d ever dared to imagine.”

Studio Pounce created the bloom covered invitations and stationery for the day.

Mountain Goat Brewery hosted the reception, Ashleigh explaining, “The moving circus chewed up a lot of our attention for the next few months, thankfully Kristian’s creative sister, Melissa, was a treasured source of motivation and regularly sent us ideas for sprucing up the Melbourne venue, Mountain Goat Brewery. We chose the brewery for its quintessentially Melbourne look, feel and aroma! It wasn’t a wedding specific venue and provided a raw shell on which to build – exactly what we were looking for. ”

“The generous height of Mountain Goat’s ceiling was just begging to be showcased, and the two large ribbon chandeliers conceived by my sister-in-law was a labor of love, requiring several very patient worker bees to assemble and then another set of hands to install (this is when having a fireman for a brother-in-law really came in handy!).”

“The photo table delicately presented wedding photos that our families had scooped off the shelf at home, featuring all sets grandparents, parents, some cousins and my uncle on his wedding day to aunty Margaret who had recently passed away. It was a touching tribute to have both sides ‘united’ in one venue, in every sense.”

Kiss My Cakes created the wedding cake.

“Our tables featured an eclectic mix of frosted and mercury votives, alongside a gorgeous palette of pastel colored flowers showcased in vintage swan and rabbit ceramic planters that had all been individually sourced online (thanks Etsy!). Mountain Goat’s gleaming brewing vats were a perfect frame to the large projector screen we set up, onto which we looped images of romantic black and white film stills from old movies, during the first part of the evening, and then landscape photographs taken by Kristian’s cousin of their motherland in Samoa towards the end of the night. It was a case of love interests, Grace Kelly and Carey Grant, meets the Pacific, and proved to be a real talking point with the guests. Aside from imprinting each of our personalities into the venue we felt it was also really important for us to pay homage to our families and the histories of both.” Mr Lincoln styled the reception floral arrangements.

Ashleigh remembers, “Kristian’s Samoan heritage from his mother’s side was a really unique and exciting element for us to incorporate. I performed the Siva, which is traditionally performed at Samoan weddings, with the bride gracefully dancing using subtle and delicate hand and arm movements (I practiced many times!). It was a treasured moment when Kristian’s mum and Aunties adorned me with garlands of flowers around my neck during the dance, and another touching moment again when the ladies sang acappella in Samoan at the end of the night as they followed us out to the getaway car surrounded by the other guests.”

Thank you to Ashleigh and Kristian for sharing your stories with us! Thank you also Stewart Leishman for sharing today’s images with us!

Check back soon, we have Ashleigh and Kristian’s stunning wedding film by The White Tree coming right up!