Kate & Tim

Utterly dreamy, today’s outdoor garden wedding was held in the country sunshine at Narmbool Estate. The bride and groom got crafty with some wedding DIY, the sunset was sublime and an ice cream cart arrived for dessert! Smith + Archer captured the day.

A meet, cute worthy of the movies, Kate and Tim met in 2009 at Melbourne University Football Club. Kate remembers, ”Tim was in career best form out on the football field, until a sprained ankle saw him sidelined to the bench where I – the new sports trainer – was there to bandage him up. There was an instant attraction that day, and the two of us haven’t looked back.” The groom proposed in the Maldives, under the guise of birthday celebrations. Best birthday ever!

Looking for a gown that was gorgeous and full, but also suitable for a garden wedding, the bride wore a custom Amaline Vitale dress. Kate tells, ”The floral lace overlay on the skirt was the perfect piece to merge the princess style gown with the beautiful gardens surrounding the wedding. I didn’t want to waste a moment of the day worrying about my hair coming out of place, or retiring from the dance floor early with sore feet, so I went for a simple ponytail up-style, with beautiful hair combs from Amaline Vitale either side. Flat sandals allowed for unwavering dance floor stamina and a custom embroidered jacket was brought out in the evening as the sun started to set.” The groom and groomsmen wore MJ Bale.

Making the most of the groom’s building skills, Tim designed and built the arch that became the stunning focal point for the outdoor ceremony. Kate shares, ”All the timber greeting and wedding signs were handmade by Tim, as well as the oversized ‘Mr & Mrs Schaefer’ ceremony ring. At the venue, Tim strung festival lights throughout the garden which gave it a fairyland feel once the sun had set. The wishing well was from Ikea whilst the menus, seating chart and personalised sugar cookie bonbonniere were created and printed by myself.”

Narmbool Estate let the country shine for Kate and Tim’s sunny, outdoor ceremony. Kate tells, ”The ceremony was light hearted and joyful. We wanted it to be a true representation of us as a couple, so it was simple and fun. Paul Bonadio had our guests laughing in joy as he recounted our ten year relationship from university ball days to home renovation mishaps. The ceremony ended with a literal bang with rose petal flower cannons released that made for an epic photo!” The bride walked down the aisle to a string rendition of Ed Sheeran’s ‘Perfect’ with her father.

Panicle hydrangeas were the feature bloom, with oak leaves in the brides bouquet to keep the flowers clean and simple, but beautifully romantic. The bride shares, ”Natasha Morgan is a family friend, and was given free reign over the flowers. I knew I wanted lots of greenery within the flowers to suit the beautiful surrounds and from that brief, what Natasha created was just incredible. Pale pink and white conical hydrangeas were the flowers featured on the day. They were beautifully arranged over the ceremony arch, within the girls’ bouquets and down the table centre pieces.”

With plenty of beautiful countryside to wander through, lush gardens and an epic sunset, photographer Smith + Archer captured every detail. Kate tells, ”Our photographer, Ali, and the girls from Annette & Dani were amazing. From the first moment we met, they had both Tim and I in tears of laughter, and on the big day this was just what we needed to calm the nerves. It was the little things that made Ali so great. Ali took the time to secretly contact our dance teacher, and had speaker and music ready for us on the day, allowing us an extra last minute dance rehearsal during our portrait photos session on our wedding day. These candid dance rehearsal photos ended up being some of our favourite pictures from the whole day.”

Previously owned by the bride’s extended family, Narmbool Estate was the perfect choice for Kate and Tim’s relaxed, garden party style wedding. Kate recalls, ”I fell in love with the beautiful gardens and homestead. The property had previously been a beautiful setting for my aunt’s wedding 20 years earlier. After deciding on Narmbool for the ceremony and reception, the added bonus of accommodation on site ticked the box of allowing the guests to party long into the night and stumble down to bed, shoes in hand.”

Finding it difficult to choose any favourite moments as the day was lovely all round, Kate and Tim did very much enjoy dessert! They remember, ”An ice-cream cart was one of the surprise highlights of the day for the guests. We had decided against a sit down dessert as we wanted to maximise time for dance floor activities. We decided last minute to have an ice cream cart available to our guests and this was a huge hit. There was a line ten people deep for a while at the cart, and many a guest went back for round two.”

The newlyweds also loved their first dance, and first dance prep. They tell, ”We danced to ‘Something Just Like This’ by the Chainsmokers and Coldplay. We wanted something upbeat and fun, and didn’t want to awkwardly sway on the spot. We had lessons with Roshin from The Next Step Co who was amazing. She choreographed us a routine that had us spinning around the dance floor like professionals. With all the stress that comes with the planning and decision making around a wedding, having time to just reconnect as a couple during our lessons was a really enjoyable experience. It was also so nice to not have to make decisions about one aspect of the wedding and to just be told what to do and where to stand.”

And the best part? We get to share their stunning wedding film captured by Annette & Dani.

Thank you to our stunning bride and groom for sharing your beautiful wedding day with us, and congratulations! Thank you also to Smith + Archer and Annette & Dani for sharing your incredible imagery and video.