It was a stunning country day when Angus and Telisha married in front of their very favourite people. With four-legged friend Barney at their feet and a vibe that bride Telisha describes as “romantic with a touch of rustic,” we barely know where to start with the beauty of this one.

The photographer by Kirsten Cunningham tells the story of this day. A day filled with incredible floral details (including our favourite autumn leaves!) plenty of sentimental details (wait until you see the car Telisha’s dad restored just for the wedding) and a sense of classic, understated elegance.  There is a reason we adore a good country wedding!

It was at age 20 that Telisha and Angus first crossed paths, in the bride’s own words “My friend was dating Angus’ roommate and we were introduced to each other at the Randwick Races. I recall he kept staring at me and my girlfriends all picked up on it.

Like everyone else in 2020, plans were changed and Angus’ original dream to ask Telisha to marry him in Greece soon changed. “Romantic with a touch of rustic. Angus had a plan in place to propose to me in Greece in 2020, however, a world pandemic got in the way so he had to rethink and come up with a new plan,” explains Telisha.

“While working away in Parkes, Angus popped into Nangar Gems every afternoon after work to talk about rings with the jeweller. He settled on a diamond and setting, designing the ring completely on his own. It was just a matter of finding the right time and place to drop the knee. I said I didn’t want anything for my birthday so he organised to take me to Mudgee for a birthday weekend. He kept where we were staying a secret and just kept saying “keep an open mind”, so I knew I was in for something different.

We arrived at our accommodation, a little caravan nestled up on the side of a hill on an Alpaca farm about 30kms out of Mudgee with a deck and hot tub attached. Just before dinner on the second night, Angus suggested going up to the top of the hill to get a picture of the sunset as we had missed it the night before. We were up there for 5 minutes or so when he pulled out an envelope. Inside was a belated birthday card with a picture of me, Angus and our dog, Barney, on the front. When I opened the card the only words that were written inside were “Will You Marry Me”, and as I looked back up he was down on one knee. Hard to say no! We then celebrated at The Zin House for dinner in Mudgee.”

Angus wanted to look dressed up but not too formal, so he headed to Institchu for his look. “I chose a suit that was semi-formal but also could be worn to any event. I went to Institchu in Woollahra and chose a blue suit with a subtle blue check as the pattern. I went rustic with a beige linen long necktie for my groomsmen and a bow tie for myself.”

Telisha wanted an elegant look for the day, and opted for a strapless ballgown from Kyha Studios. She shares “I decided to choose a simple but elegant dress that would stand the test of time, but I also wanted something a little bit fun as I wanted to feel like myself on the day. I ended up choosing a dress from Kyha Studios in Surry Hills. The dress had a split in it that I thought added an element of fun. The dress also originally had straps but I had this altered by removing the straps and making the dress strapless. I knew when I tried the dress on that it was the one for me as I felt comfortable but also felt like myself. My experience at the store was amazing. They were super helpful and enthusiastic.”

Telisha also wore a very special ring. “I received a sapphire ring with diamonds from my mum that she was gifted from her mother on her 21st birthday.”

Country winery Lowe Wines set the picture-perfect vibes for the day says Telisha. “We always knew we wanted to get married in Mudgee as it is a place that we absolutely cannot get enough of as it holds special memories for us. Coincidently it is also home to where we celebrated our engagement dinner. When we were searching for a venue in Mudgee, Lowes was our second appointment and we knew it was perfect and locked it in that day.”

Even Telisha’s arrival was made sentimental! “My dad, Robert, had been working on working on getting his 52 C1 Corvette ready for the wedding so he could drive me to the ceremony in it. The car was registered the week of the wedding (phew) and turned out to be an absolute hit and made amazing photos!”

The incredible floral details of the day were styled by The Meadow Floral Design and gave a nod to Angus’ farming heritage, “I provided our florist with a brief that we wanted a romantic feel so roses with blushes and sandy colours was a must” explains the bride. “Angus is also from a farming family in Walgett NSW and they crop wheat. So we foraged wheat from the Harvest in November and asked her to include this element. From there I gave her completely free reign, after all, she is the professional! I absolutely loved what she came up with as she hit the brief perfectly. She included lots and lots of roses, orchards in white and pink, gum leaves, wheat, autumn leaves for an installation”

Telisha walked down the aisle with her dad to John Legend’s “All of Me”. “Looking back on the photos dad  is grinning from ear to ear!”

The family was important to honour for these two. “We made sure that we included our grandparents on the day in some shape or form. We had Angus’ sister read an extract from their late grandfather’s poem and I included my granny’s jewellery box to be used for the wishing well and my poppy’s Akubra for photo props. We also HAD to make sure our dog Barney was included!”

Much like the rest of the day, Telisha and Angus’ wedding ceremony, officiated by Rebecca Hinks,  was emotional and heartfelt.  “Our ceremony was very relaxed and filled with lots of laughs and also happy tears. Angus and I wrote our own vows which were very special and somehow he had all of our guests crying! We had two readings. One reading from Angus’ sister. The reading was an excerpt from a song their late grandfather wrote. My brothers Blake and Dylan shared an excerpt from Winnie the Pooh by A. A Milne.”

The beautiful photography on the day? Kirsten Cunningham delivered! Says Telisha “Kirsten was a pleasure to deal with and was professional in every aspect. She made Angus and I feel completely comfortable despite only meeting her the day of our wedding. We were extremely happy with our photos and received them not long after our wedding. We would recommend Kirsten to anyone who is thinking of getting married.”

A sit down dinner reception in the clear marquee was just the most perfect conclusion to the day, preceded by drinks and canapés in the sunshine. Remembers the bride  “The sun was shining and everyone was enjoying their Aperol spritz and listening to our band (Kylie Jane Music) on the lounge chairs.”

The reception had Telisha’s own special touches. “I purchased the candles from Southern Lights Candle Co and hired the candle holders from Bespoke Country Weddings in Orange. My mum also had her heart set on making a photo booth station. She had my brother make an arch board and had it sign written with our names and the date. She then sat the board up against haybales with polaroid cameras next to it and props. One of the props was my late Poppy’s Akubra so he could also be a part of the day!”

The couple chose “She Burns” by Foy Vance for their first dance. “We danced to ‘She Burns’ by Foy Vance. We had not practised our first dance at all but just went with the flow. However, we must have fooled our guests as they thought we had practised it because Angus picked me up and swung me from hip to hip! Close to the end of our dance, our dog Barney joined us which was very cute (he is a golden retriever). Barney jumped up and put his paws on us because he wanted to be included!

 

And if you want even more of these two, we’ve got you. Bryce Gage captured this beautiful film for Telisha and Angus.

A big congratulations to the happy newlyweds! Thank you for taking the time to share your stories with us. Thank you also to Kirsten Cunningham Photography for sharing today’s beautiful images!