Kristy & Mike
A garden wedding in one of Australia’s most loved holiday destinations sounds like the recipe for a gorgeous wedding day and Kristy and Mike certainly ticked all the boxes when it came to their classic Byron Bay garden wedding. From an outdoor ceremony to a reception under the stars, all captured by Déus Photography.
The newlyweds met at work, Kristy remembering, “We had been working at the same company for around two years when a friend suggested Mike take me to lunch. A side bet on the Melbourne Cup was arranged that if Mike won, he would take me out to dinner. Mike still mentions his winnings didn’t cover the cost of dinner because I told him MacDonald’s wasn’t an option. We had a lovely dinner and the rest is history!”
For her walk down the aisle, the bride remembers “Mike picked “Waiting for a Girl Like You” by Foreigner for me.”
With the help of planners Byron Bay Weddings, the couple chose Fig Tree Restaurant for their wedding, noting “The ceremony and reception were held at the stunning Fig Tree Restaurant in Ewingsdale. We had eaten dinner there before we were engaged and had both made the comment it would make an amazing wedding venue. Upon our first meeting with Che the owner, our mind was made up, it was just what we were looking for, a complete package with a relaxed feel and exceptional food/service. Che was open to our suggestions for what we’d like included in our wedding, including our dog Ruby, who we wanted to be part of our day.
With myself being an overly organised person it was really important that I could trust the people managing our special day, and Byron Bay Weddings did an amazing job, they allowed me to completely switch off and enjoy every moment. We had a number of guests that commented it was the best wedding they had ever been to, Che and his team did an exceptional job and we couldn’t have asked for more!”
Michelle Shannon officiated the wedding, with the bride recalling “We wanted our ceremony to be relaxed and reflect us. Michelle Shannon did an amazing job, the ceremony was light-hearted and relaxed, with a few laughs, especially when Mike’s ring wouldn’t go on easily! My sister was my maid of honour and my gorgeous nieces our flower girls. My best friend conducted a reading during the ceremony and our dog, Ruby, was our ring bearer running down the aisle to hand over the rings.”
Of their photographer, Kristy remarks “Our photographer Matt Osborne from Deus Photography was outstanding. Matt was the only photographer we met with, he was easy to get along with and made us feel so comfortable. His photography style suited exactly what we were after and we were absolutely thrilled with our photos. Mike and I loved the time to ourselves for the photos to reflect on our special day. We could not believe we received our photos so quickly following the wedding and the storybook he created to music was exceptional and a great snapshot of our special day to share with people who couldn’t attend. The photos perfectly captured our amazing day and we will cherish them for the rest of our lives.”
Family was important to the couple who made sure to include tokens of loved ones unable to be present. Kristy notes “As my grandparents and Mike’s Parents were unable to attend the wedding it was important to include them in the day. I had some of my Grandmother’s jewellery incorporated into my bouquet and I arranged Mike’s Dad to write a few words to be read out during the speeches as a surprise for him.”
“We were so lucky with the weather – that time of year in Byron can be fickle, to say the least. On our day, it was perfection – sunny, light breezes off the ocean and plenty of shade available courtesy of the enormous fig tree.”
Gillian Bell created the beautiful wedding cake. “We made a point of picking individual vendors rather than larger companies, this meant that we were dealing with the same person all the time and received an exceptionally high quality of service from all our vendors. It was important to have people we trusted so we wouldn’t have to worry about any details on the day.”
Of their first dance, Kristy remembers “Our first dance was to “Just the Way You Are” by Billy Joel. We had secretly been having dance lessons to choreograph our first dance for a couple of months prior. It was a really special experience learning the dance together, with plenty of laughs along the way!”
Congratulations on tying the knot Kristy and Mike! Thank you for sharing your wedding with us! Thank you to Déus Photography for sending today’s celebration our way!
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