Melody & Dave
I love the dreamy, relaxed vibe of Melody and Dave’s modern Bondi Iceberges wedding. The couple chose a Monday for their day, giving it a sense of relaxed, cheeky escapes from work – the end result with plenty of dancing and plenty of romance all captured by Tealily Photography.
Melody tells the story of how she and Dave met. “Dave and I met at work originally. We were friends as part of a bigger group that would meet up regularly for dinner and drinks. After some time, we started communicating and catching up on our own and then one thing led to another and here we are!
When we were just friends however, I had always thought what a great guy Dave was, and in fact when my girl friends asked if I knew any nice single guys, Dave would always be the first person that came to mind. A very smart, good looking, genuine, kind, and caring gentleman. Definitely the kind of guy you’d recommend to a friend! Not that he’d admit it, but thankfully I think he quietly had his eye on me instead, and was just waiting for the right time… so I’d say patience and persistence are another two of his great qualities! Funny how things work out!”
Melody chose a wedding gown designed by Grace Loves Lace, telling, “I wanted a dress that was romantic, and classic with a twist. I had stumbled across Grace Loves Lace prior to getting engaged for some of their non-bridal lace staples and one day saw the new Lily dress flash up somewhere on Instagram. I loved it immediately!!
My sister lives in Brisbane and she drove to the Gold Coast showroom to try the dress on for me, and we Facetimed while she was there so I could see all angles. She LOVED it and knew I would too! So I decided I’d head up myself to try it on. I tried on the Lily dress at GLL and knew it was the one. I paid there and then, and then didn’t look at any other dresses! ! The service was was fantastic, the dress fitted perfectly, and it was oh so comfortable! No fuss, just pure romance and comfort.”
Melody remembers, “We both loved our ‘First look’. Seeing each other for the first time and enjoying time together having our photos taken before the ceremony is one of our favourite memories.”
Of their photographer, Melody remarks, “Trish from Tealily is such a talent. I loved her portfolio of work for the light filled and natural style of photography that she is so very good at. So it wasn’t a difficult choice to choose her for our wedding. She is such a beautiful person (inside and out) as well, and so the photo shoot which we did before the ceremony, after our ‘first look’ was fun and light-hearted, and we are so thrilled with the pictures. Candid, romantic, natural. Just what we wanted.”
Melody and Dave held their ceremony and reception at Icebergs Dining Room & Bar, Melody explains, “I was living in Bondi when Dave and I first got together, and we spent loads of time enjoying the great restaurants & bars, the beach, the coastal walk and the surrounding areas as we were getting to know each other during those fun and fabulous first few months of dating. Later we moved in together in the area and the good times in Bondi continued. Icebergs is such an iconic venue, with the most amazing view, and we’d often take visitors from overseas there when they came to Sydney. Numerous times we’d comment on what an amazing place it would be to get married. That view! The food, the wine, the amazing service.. it would be epic.
Dave and I were surprised then when we got engaged and inquired about their exclusive hire costs that they don’t actually have many weddings there! (Bonus!) Given we wanted to get married in Summer close to Christmas/NY to ensure as many of our overseas family and friends could attend, and this is also peak season for Icebergs so were a bit more limited in the days they could offer us, we went for a Monday wedding.
The ceremony was on the Icebergs Terrace which IDRB have quite recently opened up as their more casual breakfast and lunch spot. Then we moved on to a champagne reception with the most amazing canapes in the Icebergs Bar, and a dinner reception in the Dining room. I’m absolutely thrilled with our choice in venue. It was incredible. Even better than I could have hoped.”
Of the processional, Melody remembers, “We wanted something upbeat, but still romantic, so chose ‘Can’t Take My Eyes Off You’ by The Four Seasons.”
Scott Duncombe officiated the ceremony, Melody recalling, “We liked Scott instantly, and with each interaction we had in the lead up to the wedding felt more and more comfort that he would officiate a wonderful ceremony for us. He had everything so under control, there were no stresses whatsoever, and it was a truly joyful ceremony. My grandmother did a reading, which was a nice way to acknowledge her. Scott asked us to send him our vows separately, so neither Dave or I knew what each other’s vows were until the day. Interestingly they were very similar! It was so beautiful to hear for the first time the words Dave had chosen to declare for our marriage that day in front of our family and friends.”
Sugar Bee Cakes created a modern aqua and white printed cake that fit in with the modern styling of the day.
“The day was even better than we had imagined. My bridesmaids did a joint speech and as is customary in NZ Maori culture (my family moved to NZ from South Africa when I was young, and my bridesmaid Nicki is part Maori), they song a short waiata (song) at the end of their speech. They’re great singers, and it was such a beautiful surprise.
All of the speeches were fantastic, however Dave’s best man Matt’s speech was a standout. Absolutely epic. He’s a very intelligent and funny guy, and has been friends with Dave since they were 3. He was able to skate the thin line between acceptable and not acceptable material in the most clever way, telling some hilarious stories about Dave in a way which even those that didn’t know Dave very well would find entertaining.”
Of their first dance, the bride remembers, “Our first dance was…… hilarious! Dave chose the song ‘Thinking out loud’ by Ed Sheeran because he knew I loved it. We had spent 20 minutes one evening a few nights before the wedding practicing a few basic steps, and on that night Dave was the one struggling to put together the moves, however on the actual day, I was the one that had no idea!! We didn’t care though. We shuffled our way through with some fun dips and spins and we had a great laugh.”
Congratulations on your marriage Melody and Dave! Thank you for sharing your day with us! Thank you also to Tealily Photography for sharing today’s celebration with us!
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