Amber & Jack

Their fairytale began 7 years ago and in six short months, they exchanged vows at Jack’s home town of Castlemaine. Choosing to show off everything local, they enlisted the help of Will & Jac to plan their dream day. From the rustic, Australiana colour palette to going against the norm and choosing a gold, glittering dress, Amber and Jack enjoyed an unforgettable day with their family and friends. On hand to capture the sparkle and the meaningful moments was photographer Leo Farrell. Amber details their incredible day…

Earlier this year we were away camping up the Sapphire Coast in NSW. From Jervis Bay we drove to this town called Gerroa. Jack was faffing around googling the best beaches to visit and I was starting to get annoyed at him because I was hungry and he couldn’t make up his mind on where we’d go! As per usual, he found me a snack and I calmed down. We went for a swim in this beautiful and very cold ocean rock pool at a beach in the town over called Gerringong.

Whilst there we met a lovely older couple and Jack ignited a friendship with them instantly. After going for a swim, we took our esky down to the beach and sat for an hour or so and chatted. I didn’t realise at the time, but Jack was getting me to reflect on all the beaches we’d ever visited and weigh them up against each other. After confirming that Gerringong was by far the loveliest beach we’d ever been to, Jack suddenly got very serious and a bit misty eyed. Then it all clicked! The next thing I knew he was on one knee with a ring box.

I honestly didn’t really hear what he said as I was hysterically, ugly crying! However, I remember he had to confirm my answer was yes! Once I stopped crying, we asked two ladies walking past if they would take a photo of us.

I also found out after that he had wanted to do it in Jervis Bay originally, however he panicked and changed his mind because our campsite was terrible and smelt like a bin for the whole time!!! He also wanted to do it at the rock pool but we had befriended the older couple and he couldn’t. Ever the perfectionist, Jack got there in the end!

Jack and I are both very sentimental. The house and Castlemaine has been a place of many happy memories for us. As our day was about us becoming each others’ family, it just made sense to have it at Jack’s family home and the space and landscape served us perfectly for such a big party!

Jack’s dad dropped off a present from Jack in the morning to the house where I was getting ready. The present was a wooden box of “memories” and Jack had written down special memories from our 7 years together. In there was a beautiful note to me on my wedding day. It meant so much and was a very special memento to start the day with.

We were initially going to have the ceremony at the house too however we love Castlemaine and wanted to showcase the town as well. The gardens seemed like the perfect place to do this and they are always beautiful at this time of year. We also wanted to stage the event and the house just seemed like the perfect backdrop for the reception.

Our vibe for the wedding was rustic Australian bush, which was really a no brainer for us due to the house already being all of these things! We both love Australian native flowers and the bush and our reception venue really came pre-decorated with the natural landscape. It just seemed to make sense and fit perfectly.

My amazing dress was made by Elly Louise and took about 4 months. I had an image in my mind so my Dad sketched up what I wanted and even did a visual.
I always knew that I did not want to wear white as I like wearing colour in my everyday life. I wanted to make my wedding dress the best dress I will ever wear and that to me was a gold dress! I also thought that the gold colour would look excellent against the green and rustic backdrops.

I spent some time on Pinterest and Hello May and found a image of bridesmaids in a certain theme however with different dresses. This really appealed to me as my bridesmaids have really beautiful and different styles from each other and I wanted them to feel comfortable on the day and show their own personalities. I also wanted them to be able to wear them again. I gave them the colour palette and theme and they bought their own dresses and wore similar shoes. It worked out really well and looked fun and bright on the day which was great!

Marriage to us as a couple is absolute commitment to one another as partners but also as family. To be there for each other, have each others back and stand by each other through the highs and lows of life.

We tried wherever possible to go with local Castlemaine or central Victorian vendors for our wedding as we really wanted our wedding to paint a picture of the area and everything it has to offer. We also wanted the food and wine to be local and sustainable and support the local businesses where possible.

To choose a favourite vendor is a tough one as every vendor we worked with was amazing and we would highly recommend to anyone planning their big day! However, Will and Jac were up there with the best. Working with these lovely ladies was literally the best decision we made in regards to planning the day. Not only were they so lovely and made us feel at ease throughout the whole process, the girls at Will and Jac were very professional and managed the whole day seamlessly so neither ourselves or our families had to worry about a thing on the day.

Clare and Catherine supported us in the lead up to the wedding and were there for every question or concern we had – and also made sure that our guests and ourselves could enjoy the day. We could not recommend the girls highly enough!
And, Leo Farrell – Leo is an incredibly talented photographer and we instantly hit it off with Leo on a personal level and in regards to the sort of photos we wanted to tell the story of our day.

We had so many highlights, however despite the stress at times and the work involved, we are so glad we had the wedding at the house. It just made it so much more special and meaningful and the house looked amazing.
We don’t regret anything! Everything was absolutely perfect for us. We wouldn’t change a thing.

Our favourite detail of the day was our handmade cake topper of Jack and myself that my dad who is a an artist made for us! It was fun and made our cake feel extra special. The setting at the house was also a favourite of ours. All our hard work paid off and the house made for an amazing and warm venue!

Jack’s brother and best man dragged us away half way through the night and got us some food. We had a moment away together, sitting and looking over the party. It was a nice chance to catch up and just watch the reception in motion together. It all goes so quickly so it was really nice to have a moment to be present and take everything in.

Jack and I both love music and chose ‘Stand By Me’ which is a song we’ve always loved and the words resonated with us and what we want from our marriage!

The sandwich bar at the end of the reception is a long standing tradition at Jack’s family events so of course we had to include it on our day too!

Advice we got from another friend was pick the top 3 things you want to make really special and spend money on them! Plus if you’re having a wedding or party on a large property, hire Will & Jac immediately. Seriously, anyone doing a large at home property celebration, hiring an event coordinator to be there on the day to bring it all together and ensure that you and your family/friends will have a great stress free day is the best thing you can do.

Ms Zebra Says: We couldn’t be happier for you two – the biggest congratulations on starting this new chapter of your lives together!