Today’s wedding? It’s all about family. The groom’s mother is a wedding planner, the groom’s sister a wedding florist and the venue? The very same place the bride’s parents married almost 25 years ago. If a wedding for you is as much about your little community, your very favourite people coming together as it is for Genevieve and Mitchell, then read on – because this celebration is about the joy of family as it is about two people in love.

Captured y the wonderfully talented Joel of Ava Me Photography, Genevieve and Mitchell planned a day that was full of rustic, romantic style. The bride, who has always adored pastel tones, allowed the pretty colours to set the tone for a day that was as beautiful as it was story-filled.

Self-proclaimed high school sweethearts, it seems this marriage was always on the cards, Mitchell popping the question with a romantic picnic. Genevieve shares the story.  “Mitchell took me for a picnic to Nepean River, one of our favourite date spots and where we had a lot of our first dates. He disguised it as a picnic to celebrate my birthday then proposed.”

Kicking off the romance, the bride found a dreamy floral embroidered gown at Penrith Bridal Centre, telling  “It was the first and only shop I went to. It was the 4th dress I tried on. I loved the champagne colour underneath the ivory lace. There was another dress similar however, this was my favourite as it created an ethereal vibe with the floral lace detailing and a long flowing train.”

Sweet country Breakfast Point Community Hall set the scene for the ceremony, Genevieve remembering “Breakfast Point Community Hall was the first venue for the ceremony we visited. We wanted somewhere nice and white indoors with a blank canvas for decorating. ”

Mitchell’s mum is a wedding planner and that expertise? It was something the bride describes as invaluable. “Picking colour palates to form the bridal party was fun and Pinterest was a big help. Sharon, Mitchell’s mother, from One Weddings took a lot of the stress away in regards to the organisation aspects of the wedding. Exploring different venues was also fun and comparing how much Settlers had changed since my parents got married was interesting.”

The bride walked down the aisle, arm in arm with her mother to Elvis Presley’s “Love Me Tender”. She shares “My father passed away when I was 15 and he always used to sing Elvis songs around the house so it was special to still have him involved in that moment.”

Genevieve and Mitchell were married by Tim Ferris. “We wanted our wedding to be an intimate way to share our promise of marriage before our loved ones and before God. We wanted it to feel like a formal yet joyful occasion to celebrate and declare the commitment we made to each other. Readings that we had at our wedding centred around trusting in God that he will take care of our future and any worries ahead of us.”

The couple worked with Willow Flowers By Design to create the romantic floral details for the day. “I  have always loved soft pastels incorporating pinks and creams. Sam, my now sister in law was able to create the perfect arrangements for the wedding, based on my favourite Pinterest photos.”

The couple made sure they allowed enough time for photographs, a decision they don’t regret! Just like their choice of photographer, the bride raving  “Joel was very helpful in giving us ideas of good photo locations. He also made us all feel relaxed and able to have fun whilst getting photos taken. We loved how all our photos turned out and how every detail of the day was captured.”

Genevieve and Mitchell held their reception at Settlers Mulgoa. The very same venue where Genevieve’s parents were married almost 25 years ago! “We loved the intimate rustic vibe. It was also particularly special for me!” she tells. “We loved getting to have a mix of a beautiful white hall, ocean views, country scenery and a cozy rustic venue all in one day.

Styling your reception is easy when your sister in law is a florist! Genevieve and Mitchell brought their rustic, romantic vision to life with the help of Willow Flowers By Design. Genevieve telling “We both love the modern rustic theme. I’ve always loved soft pastel colours. Sam, our florist and Mitchell’s sister was a big help with the floral styling of the event incorporating the rustic theme and pastel colours.”

Input from family and friends? SO important to these two- right down to the wedding favours, which were custom cookies handmade and decorated by Genevieve’s bridesmaid Rachel. Alongside an afternoon tea catered by friends and family, and desserts for the dessert table, their family and friends all pitched in to make the day magical.

Genevieve remembers the speeches as some of her favourite parts of the day, recalling “Our parents, ourselves, the maid of honour and the groomsmen all made speeches. We had the speeches occur at different points during the reception. A friend of ours videoed the speeches and it was nice to have that video to look back on.”

The newlyweds had a little help for their first dance. “My maid of honour Sophie, who is a professional dancer, gave Mitch and I dance lessons. We came up with code names for the moves we learnt and would discuss whilst dancing our first dance which moves we were going to do next. It worked out quite well! We danced to ‘I won’t give up’ by Jason Mraz. Mitch made a slideshow to celebrate our first anniversary together as a couple with that song playing in the background. Fast forward five years and we made it our first dance song.”

There was plenty of live music throughout the night, thanks to the much-raved-about musician the couple chose – Kris McIntyre. Genevieve telling “We were impressed with Kris McIntyre Music who created a beautiful music atmosphere at the reception. He had dislocated his elbow at work and his friend who was going to play the guitar on the day for him called in sick, so Kris still played for us with a sore arm on the night.”

A big congratulations to you both Genevieve and Mitchell! Thank you for sharing the stores of our day with us! Thank you also to Joel of Ava Me Photography for sharing today’s beautiful day!