Clare & Cam

When it came to doing their day their way, I’ve gotta say, I think Clare and Cam completely nailed it. The pair, who wanted to plan their wedding as a last celebration before they headed off to America with their children, chose their favourite bar, a spot where they’d spent many a moment playing Uno over a few drinks, to finally make it official.

They chose photographer Daniel Brannan to join the celebration, described by the bride as “Casual yet refined & elegant”.

“We met at work…..” remembers Clare. “And one night, after a mutual friend’s farewell party, we got talking – and we didn’t stop. We covered all the important things: books, travel, cocktails… you name it. We both lived in South Yarra at the time and worked in South Melbourne so Cam used this as a way into suggesting we walk to work together. The rest is history, really….”

The proposal happened on Christmas day, with wedding plans turning into somewhat of a last-minute rush. “We got engaged on Christmas Day, 2014 – nothing fancy – just a low key engagement at home with our one-year-old daughter there with us. Getting married wasn’t a huge priority for us – but when we decided to move to the US in late 2017, we decided to have a last-minute wedding before we left – so we arranged it within a month!”

That drop-dead gorgeous red pleated wedding gown? Clare found it at Le Louvre. She shares “The dress is the iconic pleated model from Le Louvre in South Yarra. I loved that it wasn’t bridal. It was exactly what I was looking for – uncomplicated and simple yet timeless and stylish. I chose red as I didn’t want to wear white – because feminist! Also white was never going to look good on me. I love red. It’s bold and bright!”

Clare and Cam chose their photographer for the relaxed documentary vibe he creates. “I was searching for photographers online once we set a date and it was all very last minute – most photographers had this really generic feel to what they did – like photos you see everywhere – very posed and very traditional. I stumbled on Dan’s website and immediately loved his work. His work was artistic and natural and it just struck a chord with us. Also, he had kids and I loved that about him – because it gave me comfort he’d not find the girls too hard work on the day! Then we chatted to him on Skype and he was super lovely and he was available – so all the stars aligned and we booked him and couldn’t have been happier with our choice!”

Clare and Cam chose one of their favourite city spots for their morning wedding – Melbourne Supper Club. Tells Clare “We had just one venue. The Melbourne Supper Club. We got married there at 11 am and followed it with an informal stand-up lunch. We chose the venue as it is one of our favourite venues – somewhere we love to go to drink port and play Uno. The dark warmth and cosiness were exactly what we wanted.”

Kate Hill Flowers styled the lush floral details for the day. “I have always loved Kate Hill as a florist and so I had to choose her to do the flowers” explains the bride. “I wanted a huge arch to make the most of the gorgeous circular window in the Supper Club. But I gave full creative license to Kate and her team. I didn’t want to mandate what to do – she’s the expert, not me! So it was good to tell her a bit about the wedding (the venue, my dress etc) and she took control and made it fabulous. I could not have been happier with the flowers!”

As a nod to that aforementioned Uno and drink moments the pair have shared, guests each took home a box of Uno cards as a wedding favour.

The processional was all about family, remembers Clare. “Both Cam and I walked down the aisle with both sets of parents and our three daughters (at the time aged 1, 2 and 3). We didn’t want talk of giving away or anything sexist like that. We walked down the aisle to ‘All I Want Is You’ by Barry Louis Polisar because it’s fun and the lyrics are cute and also sincere.”

The couple worked with celebrant Mike Larkan to create a completely relaxed ceremony, explains the bride. “We wanted it to feel intimate and truly convey our personalities. We didn’t want traditional readings that everyone hears over and over again. Or unnecessary fluff from the celebrant. So we kept it simple. We personalised our vows. We had my brothers read/attempt to sing Islands in the Stream as a Dolly/Kenny duet. And we had Cam’s brother read an excerpt from American Psycho, our first book we read together.”

“My wedding ring was the Trinity de Cartier ring – 3 different bands together as one” shares Clare. “I have the name of each of my daughters on a different band and the whole band itself represents me and Cam together. But we honestly didn’t over plan the wedding or details. We wanted simple. The ring was just an idea that came to me one day!”

The couple made sure to involve their children in the day. “We wanted our girls to be a part of the big day but we also wanted a child-free wedding – so we had the girls there for the ceremony and then they went home.”

And then it was time for a celebration! “I loved my dress. And the flowers. And our speeches and our vows. It was all very heartfelt and true to ourselves” remarks the bride.

A big congratulations to you both Clare and Cam! Thank you for sharing your beautiful day with us! Thank you also to Daniel Brannan for sharing today’s beauty of a wedding!