Meeting on Tinder, Amy and Joel’s first date was not long after Joel had made the big move from Beechworth to Melbourne – it didn’t take long for these to get serious, and now every single morning, Joel makes Amy a coffee.

On February 20th, 2020, as Amy was rushing around to get ready for a weekend of glamping, Joel made her a coffee that was something a little different. “Joel had got me a coffee but turns out that cup of coffee had a special message on it!” she remembers. “It was very romantic, down on one knee and all. Funnily enough, it was in our dining room on a concrete slab as we were relaying our floors – our house was in chaos (which is not me at all!) but the moment was perfect! This daily gesture of him making me coffee, makes me love him even more!!!”

The chaos of the year that was 2020, made the celebration of Joel and Amy’s story and all their family and friends even more special. “We were super grateful that we never had to reschedule our wedding and that we could bring everyone together – it had been so long since we could get to a wedding so all our guests were in for a party!” Mel Badsey joined the celebration, one that was rich with stunning autumnal hues, and set in the couple’s local pub (complete with pizza on the menu!).

“The groom wore a tux. He lives in fluros on the building site, so we figure why not go all out fancy!” laughs Amy, of Joel’s decision to wear a classic tuxedo from Suit Shop by P Johnson. “His suit was custom made – being 6 foot 6, off the rack can be quite challenging. The jacket was midnight blue and black trousers, just to be a little different. I made sure the groom was on theme with the wedding – the socks had a touch of plum!”

Amy worked with My Perfect Fit to design her gown – also something completely custom! She tells “I wore a simple white gown, the goal was to have something classic and elegant. The dress was made by Aggie Mamakis from My Perfect Fit, located in Brunswick.

I actually go to know Aggie when she did some alterations on a bridesmaids dress for me about two years ago. At the time she was so kind and detailed. I had my heart set on getting my dress made from the beginning and my first point of call was to contact Aggie – I knew I would be in safe hands – she takes such pride in her work and really listens and wants you to be happy. I was thrilled with the final product! The idea came from me taking some photos of different elements of different dresses and Aggie’s colleague Michelle took these to design them into one gown.”

Amy finished her look with a few personal touches. “I wore my sister’s veil from her wedding 18 months ago. My sister also had my Nana Bridgie’s hanky for me.”

The flowers? Just the autumn tones we all love around here. Amy and Joel’s were thanks to Babylon Flowers. “Our day featured a touch of plum and with a simple plain white dress” remembers Amy, ” I really wanted the flowers to pop and tie everything together. I sent Kylie at Babylon Flowers an inspo photo and she took it from there. I could not have loved my bouquet more!”

Says Amy “A shout out to Jordan from Mr Almeda to who travelled from Geelong for my hair & makeup!”

Amy walked down the aisle with her father to an acoustic version of Tina Turner’s “Simply The Best”.

Relaxed in nature was the name of the game for this wedding and the couple’s choice of celebrant Charis White, made it so. “We wanted our ceremony to be romantic, relaxed and light-hearted. Charis White told our love story so beautifully. We wanted it to be the chance to really celebrate our love with our family and friends. My younger brother Peter and Joel’s younger sister Georgia both did a reading – 1 Corinthians 13:4-8 and Key to Love.”

“It was quite an emotional day, much more emotion than we expected! There was so much love in the room and everyone was so happy for us – it was really lovely!”

Amy and Joel included plenty of family and loved ones in their day. “We had Joel’s nephews Henry and Oliver bring our rings up – they did such a great job and were so cute! Oliver was full of fist bumps all around and Henry was so excited everyone at his school knew about his special job!

Also, our very dear friend Sage is in London and couldn’t get out due to the border closures, she joined us via facetime which was better than nothing! Our grandma’s also lit a candle for us! My grandma Viv for our grandparents who have passed and Joel’s Nan Jean to bless our marriage.”

Love the venue? It’s Amy and Joel’s local pub The Post Office Hotel! Amy says “Our venue was actually a local pub to us, that in our venue search we learnt did weddings. It appealed to us for so many reasons – ceremony and reception in the one spot, separate venue section with soooo much character (terrazzo floor, exposed roof beams, brick walls, plants everywhere), awesome food options including canapes and affordable!

Jen Rawlings was our contact at the Post Office – she was amazing, across everything and made sure our day ran smoothly. The wedding reflected us – relaxed and fun – no stuffy sit down set tables – our venue does cocktail weddings sooooo well!”

These two have no regrets over their choice of photographer. “Where do we even begin with Mel! She is an absolute gem” raves Amy. “We somehow found each other by fate as our original photographer had to cancel and Mel was one of her available recommendations. I am so glad that we connected! Mel goes above and beyond and is so dedicated to making sure that her couples have a great day and she gets some awesome shots.

Mel is so full of helpful suggestions, wise advice and shares all of this via regular catch-ups – this means you really get to know her and you are not meeting a stranger on the day. We were delighted to have Mel photograph our day and hope to stay in touch and have her photograph other special life events in the future.”

Special shout to Amy’s sister! “My sister Chloe (who was in our wedding party) was 39 weeks pregnant and only had 10 days till her due date! She made it through and didn’t end up giving birth until 17 days later on the 7th of April! to the cutest little boy Leo James! At one stage we thought that she might go into early labour and not be there, the day wouldn’t have been the same without her.”

Advice from Amy to you? “All our vendors were amazing, we were truly spoilt. Everyone was so committed to making sure we had the most amazing wedding. After the year that was 2020, especially for events, they are all crazy resilient!”

Soak it all in – it goes by so fast – and it’s one of the most amazing days you will want to remember. Your celebrant and photographer are so important – have some who will tell your story beautifully and eloquently and someone who will capture the day and make sure the memories last forever. x

“Our favourite part was celebrating with our nearest and dearest. It all goes by so quickly and it really pays to take a moment out and enjoy it – during our golden hour pics we practised our dance in the laneways of Brunswick and soaked in all that the day was.”

The first dance? A classic choice! “Our first dance was Elvis Presley, Can’t Help Falling in love – Joel has always loved a bit of Elvis and this seemed like the perfect fit!”

Congratulations to you Amy and Joel! May your life together be merry and full of love. Thank you both and thank you to Mel Badsey for sharing today’s beautiful images.