Chloe & Mike

When we talk about doing your wedding your way, sometimes the misconception is that you have to go completely alternative, that to honour anything traditional, or classic is giving in to some kind of crazy wedding overload. That sense of marrying all things classic, with your own personal decisions is why Chloe and Mike’s wedding is such a joy to share. There’s a traditional white dress there’s a traditional suit, a veil and a bouquet. But the rest?  Chloe and Mike did it their way. They shopped for Chloe’s wedding gown together, they dressed together, they greeted their guests together as they arrived at the wedding and they ditched cocktail hour portraits – instead choosing to head straight to the reception to celebrate. The pair invited  Kevin Lue along to capture their day, and it’s with thanks to him that we get to share every moment with you.

It was definitely not love at first sight for these two, Chloe explaining “Michael and I met while volunteering at uni, but initially didn’t hit it off – as we now fondly recall, Michael thought I was cold and unapproachable, while I didn’t appreciate all the “advice” that he seemed to enjoy giving! It wasn’t until a few years later when we started dating, but since then, we’ve been inseparable.” Mike popping the question on the couple’s annual weekend trip to Terrigal while cooking lamp chops together.

Chloe and Mike rented an oceanside apartment for their wedding morning, Chloe telling “We got ready for the wedding together – this actually helped a lot with the wedding jitters! We rented an apartment near the wedding venue, had a leisurely breakfast in Avalon, and returned in time to greet my hair and makeup artist.
Michael was supposed to have been practising putting on his bowtie in the weeks leading up to the big day. Suspecting that this might not have been the case, I also learnt the technique as a fallback option (and ended up using these newfound skills).”

While the groom chose a midnight blue tuxedo from InStitchu, the bride choosing her gown at Perfect Day Bridal , with the groom beside her! She shares “We were only in the first month or so of wedding planning when I passed a wedding dress store which was advertising a sample sale (Perfect Day Bridal). We had been scouting out potential wedding venues and had a vague idea of the time of year we wanted to get married in, so I decided to book an appointment with them. I needed Michael to drive me there, so he also lent moral support by accompanying me to try on the dresses!

The experience was so easy and straightforward – the ladies at Perfect Day Bridal guided me through the whole process and gave me helpful advice regarding the styles that would suit my petite frame. I tried on a few dresses and knew when I found ‘the one’ – a trumpet style gown with floral beading.

Of their photographer, Chloe can’t speak more highly. “Kevin has a gift of capturing pure emotion, creatively using light and unusual angles to set the scene. Each time I look at our wedding photos, I can recall the love and joy embracing us that day.

The fantastic part of working with Kevin has been his ability to set us at ease with his candid style. His chilled-out nature meshed well with the way he subtly guided us through the process.”

Chloe and Mike worked with Lime Tree Bower on floral arrangements of “Native flowers (to match the bush setting), paired with white anemones for their simple elegance”.

Chloe and Mike held their ceremony and reception at Moby Dicks, sharing “We picked Moby Dicks for its gorgeous views overlooking Whale Beach. It was also remote enough that the location felt intimate, but not too far that people would need to stay overnight. Anna and Rosie from Moby Dicks were incredible from start to finish! They took so much stress out of planning, basically taking on the role of our wedding planners and day-off coordinators.

I also appreciated how many details we could leave to them to sort out – arranging and setting up the ceremony, liaising with the DJ and our emcee, herding the guests around (no easy feat!), even organising the wedding cake!”

After greeting guests with Mike, Chloe walked down the aisle with her father to Pachelbel’s Canon in D.

 

Chloe and Mike enlisted the help of Pastor Dean Caldwell to officiate their ceremony in two languages, Chloe explaining “A number of Michael’s relatives were visiting from China and are unable to speak English, so we wanted our ceremony to evoke genuine, heartfelt emotions.

Pastor Dean, who officiated the wedding, alongside his wife (affectionately known as Auntie Nell), have been dear family friends for as long as I can remember. They feature in some of my earliest childhood memories (such as being tipped upside down as a 5-year-old!) I was grateful that they could make the drive from Wollongong to celebrate with us.”

 

Chloe and Mike skipped cocktail hour portraits, instead inviting guests to join them for a shared, family style feast in the waterside restaurant.

The speeches remain one of Chloe and Mike’s most special parts of the day “Each speech was delivered with heart – for instance, my mother-in-law was so nervous she forgot what she originally intended to say, but she promised to treat me like her own daughter” tells the bride.

Chloe and Mike hit the dance floor to “Nothing Else Matters” by Apocalyptica.”It’s slightly embarrassing to admit, but although neither Michael nor I are huge dancers, we would playfully sway from side to side before we ended our dates” explains Chloe. “The swaying motions of our first dance was a farewell of sorts to our courting chapter.”

A big congratulations to you both Chloe and Mike! Thank you for sharing the stories of your day with us. Thank you also to Kevin Lue for sharing today’s celebration!