Chloe & Matthew

Between storm clouds and cyclones, Chloe and Matt threw their dream wedding day! Colourful, boho and with loads of fun touches, they celebrated in Byron Bay, where Van Middleton Photography captured the day.

Having met on their first day at a new job, it was 5 months before things sparked. A while later, Matt proposed to Chloe in Switzerland. She remembers, ”I booked a trip to Switzerland with him and two of his friends for his 30th birthday. On our first full day, we went up to the top of Mt Pilatus on a giant cable car to the top of the mountain. The views from the top are SPECTACULAR and look out over the alps! AMAZING. We were at the top of this building looking out and Matt said let go back downstairs so I followed. His friends didn’t come. We were back on the lower platform and we just looking out over the alps and taking in the breathtaking views. Matt was hugging me from behind and said, ‘There is only one thing that would make today better’, then he turned me around and got down on one knee in the snow. I don’t really remember what he said after this as I was in so much shock. I  said, ‘really? Is this a joke? Are you joking? Really?!’ By that stage I was a blubbering mess. He said, “Soooo is that a yes” and I said, ‘yes…of course yes!’ It was all so romantic and special and the ring! AMAZING! HOW DID HE GET IT OH SO RIGHT!”

The bride’s glam, boho gown which was covered in sequins was breathtakingly gorgeous. She tells, ”I saw this dress on Instagram and fell in love! In the picture, the girl was wearing it on the beach and it just looked magical. It was a dream, but I thought it was out of reach in terms of cost. Mum and I went on a trip to Melbourne to visit the One Day Bridal store to have a look at a few of their dresses. As soon as I put on the ‘Toby’ gown I was IN LOVE! I spent the next two months trying to talk myself out of it as it was too expensive, but couldn’t find anything that compared. This was ‘The One’. I went to a little boutique in Sydney’s west called Love Marie Bridal Boutique where I tried the dress on again and ordered on the spot! As the dress was so different to a traditional gown and already had the wow factor I thought, why not be comfy and pair with some white converse. All together this was me! Relaxed with a little/big bit of wow!” Chloe also wore her mother’s garter which Chloe’s Nana had made, a locket from her aunties wedding and a pendant her grandfather gave to her grandmother when they met, tied around her bouquet. The groom wore cream chinos with a navy jacket, flamingo bow tie and white sneakers.

The Secret Garden, Byron Bay, fit the bride and groom’s vibe perfectly. They share, ”We chose it as it was the perfect canvas for our style wedding. It was relaxed and low key, and the owners were so chilled which instantly put us at ease when exploring venues. Perfect outdoor setting for our ceremony between the palms. We were able to hold the reception and ceremony in the one location which providing our guests the opportunity to just relax, eat, drink and soak in the Byron vibe.”

As the storm lulled, Chloe and Matthew said their vows outdoors, under palm trees covered in peach and orange blooms. They tell, ”We wanted our ceremony to be fun and full of love. Our celebrant, Michelle Shannon, was the best in the biz! It was fun, funny and expressed our feelings and connection between each other. In the beginning, we put our wedding rings in a bag as passed them around the guests during the ceremony to add their blessing onto the rings. We also both shared a secret with one another that only we could hear. It was perfect!” The bride walked down the aisle with her dad to a live cover version of ‘Tenerife Sea’ by Ed Sheeran.

Bringing colour to the day, Wilderness Flowers added pops of peach, orange and olive green tones. The bride says, ”We chose them after seeing their arrangements at the Byron Bay wedding fair. These flowers were incredible! We looked them up on Instagram and there was no looking back. We are so glad we choose them as the girls were incredible on the day and the flowers were AMAZING!!! We chose a bright and colourful mix of flowers to match our theme.”

Remembering their boho, beachside day, Chloe and Matthew remember the storm – well! They share, ”There was a cyclone off the coast of Byron that week and all we wanted was an outdoor ceremony. The boys were doing everything in their power to get the ceremony outside. I remember looking outside (as we were staying next door) and just seeing the top of the neon sign thinking, ‘there is no way that will stay up there!’, it was blowing a gale! About 20 minutes before we were meant to start we got the green light to just go go go and so we started early and it was like the heavens parted, the rain stopped, the wind died down, it was perfect. About 30 minutes after the ceremony when we were leaving to get photos it absolutely poured down! And when we got to the place for pictures it stopped. It was like clock work, someone was watching over us that day!”

Thrilled with their ceremony, Chloe tells, ”Michelle Shannon, our celebrate was just incredible!! She made our day even better than we could ever imagine! From the moment we met her we knew she had to be the one! She just has this energy that is so grounding and warming! I cannot recommend her enough to anyone getting married in Byron! Everyone has been complimenting her ever since, all of our friends just want her for their weddings!! AMAZING!”

Van Middleton Photography captured the day in the sun, the rain and throughout all the fun that was had. Chloe and Matthew remember, ”He was legit amazing. You never knew he was there and apart from a few shots we requested like family shots, you wouldn’t even know he was there! He is like a ninja and his photos are incredible. We really struggle to pick just one that we love as they are all incredible, he is an artist! He makes you feel so comfortable, it was so nice getting pictures as it allowed Matt and I time together.”

Creating a very special moment, Chloe surprised Matt by arriving in a VW beetle. She shares, ”It symbolises his father who passed away from cancer a few years ago. This was one of the reasons we had the kombi keg but it just would not have been the same without a beetle!”

The decor was put together by the bride and groom, with handmade and fun touches throughout the day. They share, ”We did almost all of the styling from picking the furniture to hanging all of the fairy lights. We also blew up loads of colourful balloons including flamingos to add something fun, bright and a little less traditional. We filled an old store cabinet with rainbow balloons to use as a cake table, hung a neon light at the end of our aisle, we hired from Neon Republic. We did all of our own music and set up a candy bar with bright candy as our wedding favours! We choose ‘Bloom’ by The Paper Kites for our first dance, it felt like it was just the two of us in the room, it was magical!”

Thank you so much to our gorgeous bride and groom for sharing your wedding day with us, and congratulations! Thank you also to Van Middleton Photography for your beautiful images.