After meeting at a bar in Bulimba seven years ago, and a bad first date, Kate and Luke took another two years to come back to each other and really figure out that they were made for each other. And when they did? They were inseparable, lucky for us, their story unfolding in a picturesque Sunshine Coast wedding, captured beautifully by Cloud Catcher Studio filled with gorgeous moments, handmade details and plenty of stories – our favourite kind!

And it was equally as beautiful when Luke popped the question, Kate sharing “Luke tried to re-create our first date. We had just finished our first renovation so we went out to dinner to celebrate. We had dinner at Ecco Bistro in Brisbane, followed by a walk along the river (where we shared our first kiss). He got down on one knee and proposed in front of the Story Bridge.”

The day kicked off with a few special family heirlooms, Kate explains “I wore my Mum’s blue sapphire and diamond ring which was a present from my Grandad when she was younger. Luke’s Mum gave me a family heirloom – a brooch – which I pinned to my bouquet.”

The bride to be had an image in her mind for her gown inspired by different pieces. She worked with Darb Bridal Couture to bring it to life, sharing  “I knew I wanted something very simple and elegant. I saw a Rachel Gilbert skirt I loved online, but it was from the previous season and had sold out – it was very simple & a beautiful fitted cut with a fluted base. I had a weekend in Sydney with my girlfriends where I had a couple of appointments booked with Sydney designers. I wasn’t set on either designer so, at the end of the day, my girlfriend suggested we try David Jones bridal boutique and by chance, they had a suite available. We were scouring the racks and I happened to see the Rachel Gilbert skirt I originally fell in love with. It was a larger size but the sales assistant checked out the back and they had my size! I tried it on and knew instantly it was what I was looking for. When I got back to Brisbane I made an appointment with Darb Bridal and asked Brad if he would make it into a dress for me. He did – and created a beautiful bodice with french lace and lace detail onto the top of the skirt. The experience at Darb was amazing – I loved going in for my fittings and the dress fit me perfectly.”

Kate and Luke married under a flower-adorned wooden arbour – built by the groom himself.

Of her walk down the aisle, Kate shares “Luke chose Hey Ho, by the Lumineers – performed acoustically by our band, The Paper Flowers. My Dad walked me down the aisle which was a special moment – I was so nervous, I just kept talking to him! But I had to stop looking at him because he was welling up, which you can tell from the photos!”

Kate and Luke were married by I Heart Ceremonies, Kate remembering “Our ceremony was amazing and so memorable – I wish we could re-live it. To us, that was the most important part of the day. We definitely wanted a relaxed and very warm feel to it – this was a happy moment – we wanted it to be mostly fun but serious in the right places. Our celebrant Beth was great at achieving this – she is so warm and genuine. The ceremony had so many laughs and a few tears, mostly from me. Instead of traditional readings, we had two short speeches – from Luke’s sister Kate and my bridesmaid Charlotte. These were so special and something we’ll never forget. Luke & I wrote our own vows and shared them with each other for the first time so this was a nice surprise to hear what each other had written and promised.”

Kate tells “We made a statement that our celebrant read for us to say we felt very privileged to have the right to marry and wished all in this country had those same rights. When we first wrote that, we very much hoped gay marriage would be legal by the time we got married, but unfortunately it wasn’t.”

“I love the photo of Luke & I walking back up the aisle and getting hit with the petal toss” shares Kate.

Sunshine Coast venue Spicers Clovelly Estate hosted the special day, Kate shares “We really wanted everything in one place on the day which is why Spicers Clovelly Estate appealed to us. It was the only venue we looked at! It was perfect, but Luke also didn’t want to get dragged around to 10 different venues so we locked that in quick. We knew we wanted to get married up Sunshine Coast way – Noosa is special to us – but we didn’t really want a beach wedding so we decided to go hinterland. Spicers was great – we loved that we could get married on the lawn under the beautiful big tree; that drinks & canapes could be served right there while guests played lawn games and then we moved into the Library Deck for the reception. Our closest friends and family stayed at the venue that night and we all enjoyed a beautiful brunch the next day.”

Mondo Floral Designs created the beautiful floral arrangements for the day, Kate tells “With it being an autumn wedding, I knew I wanted a moody colour palette with lots of rich tones – deep burgundy, plum, magenta, deep pinks and reds, peach, berries and lots of greenery. Mondo Floral Designs did an amazing job on all of our flowers – the bouquets, the boy’s boutonnieres, arbour floral install, signs and reception. The reception area had three beautiful iron candelabras which were wrapped in greenery with pops of flowers and berries. The reception tables were lined with greenery garlands.”

Of their photographers, Kate shares “Cloud Catcher Studio were amazing. I think we were lucky with it being overcast/a bit drizzly because some of the photos are spectacular. Most importantly, they managed to capture all of the fun and laughter from the day – not just of us, but all of our guests. They were very relaxed and never in our faces – they don’t believe in forcing poses. They just captured us being natural with each other – which is what we wanted.”

A sit-down reception was styled with a few special handmade details. “We built the seating chart board out of recycled timber and my Mum made the hessian table runners which were under the greenery garlands. I also sourced all of the table decorations – vases, pillar candles and gold votives” tells Kate.

Of their first dance, the couple mixed it up. Kate telling “Our song together is Latch by Disclosure. It’s not really an appropriate first dance song but we also didn’t want to sway around to a sappy love song for too long! So we played the acoustic Sam Smith version first and then halfway through cut over to the dance version to get everyone up on the dance floor.”

Kate & Luke chose GoldBear Wedding Films to capture their beautiful day in motion.

Luke & Kate from GoldBear Wedding Films on Vimeo.

A big congratulations to the newlyweds! Thank you for sharing your beautiful day! Thank you also to Cloud Catcher Studio for today’s beautiful imagery.