Kirby and Mitch

Winter in the Southern Highlands of NSW might just be the most beautiful time of year to have a beautiful, cosy wedding! Kirby and Mitch were the first couple to marry at brand new Southern Highlands venue Mali Brae Farm so I am particularly excited to share today’s celebration with you!

Kirby tells their story. “We met at a mutual friend’s 21st birthday party in June 2009, a match made by my best friend.”

Magnus Agren Photography shot today’s wedding with golden, beautiful captures of light.

Kirby’s bridesmaids wore gowns from Forcast  while Kirby chose a Maggie Sottero gown. Each girl wore a faux fur wrap to keep the cold out.

Kirby walked down the aisle to ‘We Don’t Eat’ by James Vincent McMorrow.

Kirby and Mitch were married at St Aidan’s Exeter. Kirby explaining, “St Aidans Church in Exeter is a sandstone brick small country church seating just over 110 people. It is set amongst beautifully maintained lawns and impressive trees which gives a beautiful backdrop. Since I was a little girl I had dreamt of being married in a cute country town church. I discovered the adorable sand stone church in Exeter early on in our dating years and couldn’t help but set my heart on getting married there.”

“My dad organised a videographer from Turbo Productions who was able to LIVE stream the entire wedding online for my relatives in Melbourne who were unable to make the wedding. I was especially happy to know my grandparents could still be a part of my special day from the comfort of their living room.”

“My grandma gave me ‘something old’ to wear. A family heirloom being a brooch which had the letter ‘L’ for Lawrence on it – my new surname.”

Of their photographer Kirby says, “Magnus Agren is a professional wedding photographer and also happens to be Mitch’s brother in law. He is very relaxed and friendly. Magnus gives great direction and is highly creative. He captured the country feel and our personalities perfectly. The feedback from the owners of Mali Brae and the caterers was incredibly positive with remarks that Magnus was one of the most approachable and professional photographers they had encountered.”

Mali Brae Farm hosted the reception, Kirby remarking “Mali Brae Farm is a brand new wedding venue at Fitzroy Falls situated on 90 acres of lush green pasture with two fully restored heritage cottages for accommodation and a rustic barn seating 100 people with a large open fire place and chandeliers and all modern facilities.

It just so happened that a new wedding venue 15 minutes down the road from our church was being constructed and was near completion when Mitch proposed. It was meant to be. Everything fell into place and since we were the first couple to enquire about the wedding venue being ‘Mali Brae Farm’ we could choose any date we wanted. I decided on an autumn wedding as I love the colours of the trees in the Southern Highlands during this season. We invited our close family and friends, many traveling from far distances to be a part of our day. Mali Brae Farm is a gorgeous country setting for weddings and I knew I had stumbled across something very special. The day was perfect and everything I had ever wanted – especially as I was marrying the man of my dreams.”

Paper and Poppies created the wedding cake and macaron favors for each guest.

“I did not employ an official wedding planner and was therefore involved in all aspects of the wedding planning. For example, one of the jobs I enjoyed was organising the table decorations. As Mali Brae Farm is an old heritage dairy I bought small coloured glass milk bottles for the tables. I wrapped garden twine around a set of four and had two sets on each table filled with baby’s breath and pink roses to match the colour theme of the wedding.”

Amanda May Papier Couture styled the bride’s hairpiece as well as the invitations and stationery for the day, Kirby telling, “I also organised through Amanda May Papier Couture table ‘names’ instead of table numbers. These names were places in the Southern Highlands e.g. Tallong, Fitzroy Falls, Moss Vale, Bundanoon.”

“I would like to thank Greg and Shelley Dark who own Mali Brae Farm. They went above and beyond to ensure my wedding was everything I wanted. There was nothing that seemed to hard for them to do and the accommodation and all aspects of the wedding celebration was outstanding. All the guests were so impressed and some young couples remarked that they too would love to have their wedding there.”

For their first dance, the couple had a bit of fun, Kirby explaining, “We surprised everyone with a dance off. Mitch and I picked a song each that we loved – Mitch chose Kings of Leon’s ‘Taper Jean Girl’ and I chose Beyonce’s ‘Crazy in Love’. We started with a slow waltz to ‘Tonight’ by JJ Heller. Then abruptly the song changed to Mitch’s pick. The dance off had started. To finish, the song jumped back to ‘Tonight’ and we went back to a slow waltz.”

That incredible dancing led to a minor casualty, Kirby remembering, “A memorable moment was the energetically entertaining dance display by Mitch, Mitch’s dad and Mitch’s uncle. They busted out to a family favourite ‘Bow River’ by Cold Chisel. Mitch’s uncle ended up taking out my aunty during one of his moves; bring her crashing to the floor. She was a great sport about it and laughed it off.”

Congratulations Kirby & Mitch! Thank you for sharing your day with us! Thank you also to Magnus Agren Photography for sharing today’s wedding with us!