Glittering Urban Melbourne Wedding

Eugenia & Nick

Eugenia and Nick’s glittering urban Melbourne wedding was a fabulous take on urban industrial, with a touch of old school glamour, holding their ceremony at the State Library of Victoria, Queens Hall, with a reception at Wick Studios. The pair’s focus was on good food and a terrific party for their family and friends, and while they say it might sound extravagant, choosing to enlist the help of a wedding planner, in their case the wonderful team at will&jac, to assist, support and guide them in creating their dream day was amazing, as they didn’t have to worry about a thing! It’s Beautiful Here captured all of the amazing moments!

“We met at the races years ago, and then we bumped into each other again about 6 months later, and started seeing each other about 18 months after that – a slow burn, but a good one!” the bride remembers. “Since we have been together we have been inseparable! Nick proposed when we were up in Canberra visiting family. He had put his back out the week before and could barely walk, however was determined that this would be the weekend he would propose, despite barely being able to stand! We walked to the top of Red Hill with my family’s two boisterous labradors in tow, and then Nick got down on one knee, struggled to get up when I said “yes!” and was then pulled over by one of the dogs. It was perfect, understated and laid-back. We rushed home to share the good news, kicking off a weekend of celebrating!”

Eugenia wore a sequin Vivienne Westwood gown, and veil from Le Louvre in South Yarra. She said it felt feminine and edgy, the cut was classic Westwood and the sequins underneath had a hint of faint pink, only seen at some angles and in certain light. “I absolutely loved wearing it, as it was both classic femininity and bold at the same time!” Her shoes were custom designed from Shoes of Prey, her bridesmaids wore gowns from Zambesi, and the bridal party were adorned with earrings from GMS Silver. Their wedding day hair was by Q on Brunswick and the makeup styling was created by Nathalie Prince.

Nick and his groomsmen wore nayv suits and ties from Travellers Apparel in Collingwood, and shoes from Julius Marlow.

The couple wanted a Melbournian landmark with a touch of shabby chic. “We stumbled across our ceremony venue, The Queens Hall at the State Library of Victoria, and instantly knew it was the perfect place before we even visited – full of history, grand, central and iconic all at once, with its beautiful amber pink ceilings and arches – absolute perfection,” tells the bride, who walked down the aisle with my dad and stepdad to “Lay me Down” by Sam Smith. The ceremony was officiated by Jane Clifton, who the pair say was absolutely perfect and engaging, made them feel comfortable and their ceremony feel very special.

“As we signed the register, my brother who is a musician strolled down the aisle, mic in hand, and sang “Crusin”!” the bride remembers fondly. “This was a surprise and such a delight to all our guests! He was excellent and had everyone laughing and smiling, while the formal part of the ceremony was concluding. Nick and I even had a little dance when we got back to the front while he was serenading my bridesmaids. It was truly special, and unlike anything we had seen at a wedding before.”

The couple chose the team of photographers, It’s Beautiful Here, to capture all the perfect moments of their day. “They made us feel really relaxed during the photos, and their candid photography style is truly beautiful and not too cliche, which really suited us as we are very casual and didn’t want to take posed photos,” says Eugenia. “It was a really stress free way to enjoy some downtime prior to the reception. It was a lot of fun, and I would definitely recommend this way of doing photos to everybody.”

Straight after the ceremony, the bridal party headed to the Brunswick Mess Hall and had drinks and food in The Atrium – a beautiful space with hanging plants and exposed brickwork – and this made for absolutely stunning photos in a relaxed setting. “We really didn’t want to drag the bridal party all over Melbourne, instead we wanted to enjoy quality time while having the photos and spend time with our closest friends, particularly as three members of the bridal party had travelled from overseas to be part of our day,” explain the couple.

When guests arrived, they were treated to a cocktail party under the festoon lights in the open area of Wick Studios, and sipped on welcome cocktails and enjoyed roaming canapés, with the highlight being a decadent 6 metre cheese grazing table from the wonderful Cassie at Firecracker, the bride gushing that it was one of the most talked of elements of the whole evening. Guests mingled while the Milk Crate Jazz Band played, and The Melburnian Caravan Bar kept the drinks flowing in the beautiful outside space. “Our guests loved that they could order cocktails throughout the evening, including Margaritas and late night Espresso Martinis from 11pm until 2.45am!”

The bride’s friend, Sasha Lewis of Babka in Fitzroy, made their beautiful wedding cake – a caramel croquembouche, which the couple say was delicious, and a truly special element of their day to have a friend make their cake for them. Catering was provided by Firecracker, and guests were treated to a locally sourced organic shared menu, along with roaming dessert canapés, and late night snacks of mini toasties!

“Our reception venue proved slightly harder to find than our ceremony venue, however we heard from a friend about a recording studio tucked away in Brunswick and went to check it out ourselves,” says the bride. “From the first time we walked through the outside courtyard of Wick Studios and into the main recording space, we knew we had found our party venue. Rough edges, vintage iron awnings outside (perfect for hanging festoon lights!) – all in all, a blank canvas space to create our dream day. Coupled with being able to have a late night reception and party until 3am, we were sold!” Their friends helped them style the venue. Liam Murphy ID designed festoon lighting, the table layout and the reception furniture. Liam Rayner designed the amazing ‘E 4 N’ motif which was used on all the stationary and throughout the day, including on all the signage and place cards, making the pink colour the overall tying style element of the day. “This wasn’t chosen by accident, the pink colour being evident in the Queens Hall paintwork and the Wick Studios logo, but also in the subtle pink sheen of the sequins in my gown. The pink colour was carried throughout the day, sneaking in to my bouquet, the lighting inside the reception venue, the stationery and my shoes!” Inside, making use of the high ceilings, the focus was on the decadent hanging floral garlands created by Wattle and Eye, that hung above the three long tables.

The couple shared their first dance to “Can’t Get Enough of Your Love” by Barry White, that they say is a timeless classic that makes them both feel good and want to dance the night away. The pair said their favourite things about their wedding day were most definitely the reception, where they shared good food and wine, and an epic party, with their nearest and dearest.