Gemma & Basil

How much do we love all things cosy? It’s all the snuggly, warm vibes that drew us to love this engagement story of Gemma & Basil. The pair choosing Alex Jack Photography to capture this moment in all of its romantic glory. Gemma and Basil kickstarted the day with Alex at their home (with their favourite feathered friends Effy & Eggy, before the trio headed to the beautiful Watagans National Park for an utterly romantic campfire photo session.

The pair have known each other for many years, even dabbling in a little romance as high schoolers! Gemma sharing “We met when I relocated to NSW from Manchester UK for school. Although we had a fleeting romance in high school, we rekindled at university in the haze of 21st birthdays and have been together since.”

Clearly these two love nature, as evident not just by their choice of engagement photo location, but also their proposal! Gemma explaining “We went on a driving trip in a van (who we named Michelle – as in ‘my shell’ like a tortoise) around Tasmania. After a failed attempt, Basil proposed down at the far secluded end of Wineglass Bay after a long hike down to the water! Lucky we went early as after we hiked back to the lookout, a huge cruise liner moored which would have really killed the mood.”

On what she loves about Basil, Gemma remarks “I love the fact I know I can rely on him always. He’s so supportive and I’d trust him with my life.”

On what he loves about his future wife, Basil tells “I love the fact that Gemma is able to find so much joy in little things like finding a frugal score at the op-shop or discovering a tasty dish at a restaurant.”

These two are known for their love for life, but also some more unusual things, explains Gemma. “We’re known in our friendship group for having had the same tiny car since high school (Gemma’s green Toyota Echo which is too reliable to get rid of) and living in a building site whilst Basil (architect) takes his sweet time designing our dream home.”

The actual proposal? Turns out it wasn’t the first time Basil had tried to pop the question! “Basil had a funny first attempt at proposing in Tasmania. We went over to Maria Island to do the Bishop & Clerk hike, which ended up being a lot longer and harder than either of us had anticipated. To reach the summit, you have to actually rock climb at the final stage so not for the faint-hearted. After not seeing a soul for hours, as soon as we were about to summit, a huge school group came into view waiting to scale the final rock face… quite the dampener on our secluded getaway! They let us pass first and, being totally oblivious to Bas’ impending proposal plans, I made the climb and was waiting for him at the top.”