From cat in the hat socks to a feather boa adorned celebrant dancing down the aisle, when Andy and Katelyn tied the knot, they were committed to doing it their way – and it even involved saying their vows on a tree-lined driveway they stumbled upon! It was a little enchanted, a little whimsical, and very much about what matters most to them. As every beautiful photography by  Smile Darling Photography captures, the result was utterly perfect.

After meeting through mutual friends, the pair connected on social media, before Andy started hinting that Katelyn join his gym – she relented, and as the pair worked out and got to know one another, the rest soon became history.

The proposal, is the real gem of a story here though. It involves a complete surprise for Katelyn, and as is always the way, somewhat of a bad mood, she admits. “This guy; how can I fault his proposal? As most of the guests know and were present for the moment it was perfect, emotional and simply perfect. He organised the most important people in my life to be waiting on the hill at sunset. He organised Mary our wonderful family lifetime photographer to capture the moment.

It all started on July 11th 2020. He said he had organised a “breastfeeding shoot” for successfully smashing 17 months of nourishing our baby girl. Little did I know behind the scenes he was organising a surprise proposal. He told me to get ready and just had to nick over to his sisters (I forgot the reason why) but he promised me he would be back to pick me up in the afternoon so we both could travel up Tamborine Mountain for this special shoot. Cutting it fine for the time, he never arrived home – I was furious. I got a message saying, “Look, he had a flat tyre he will be running late – he’s so sorry”.

Little did I know he was already up on Tamborine Mountain organising EVERYTHING. I drove up furious muttering words of anger and disappointment. I got a message from Mary saying meet at the “winery” so here I was totally upset and distressed with our 17-month-old daughter waiting at the Winery with Mary. Mary then said something along the lines of “I need to drive your car to the location and you need to be blindfolded because there is this special flower wall and the florist wants to capture the moment you see it”.

After a blindfolded trip with Mary driving (who knows what she hit or if she ran over anyone haha NO SPEEDING FINES so that’s a bonus) we got to the “spot”. She gets me out of the car and carrying Georgia in one hand trying to navigate me through cars, rough terrain safely, we finally got to “the spot”. I had no idea what was happening. She let go of me and started to do her thing. I had no clue and then I hear my brother singing and just broke down in tears thinking what the hell’s happened, who’s died, what have I forgotten.

As I took my blindfold off I saw an aisle of petals and my family, the ones I cherish standing on one side of the aisle. Tears began to stream down my face. I looked down the aisle and saw the man of my dreams standing there in his suit. I saw the lightbox and I just knew this was the moment, my life was about to change for the better. My baby’s daddy is about to ask the question and I will finally share their last name. As I cried walking down and got to the end we just held each other. He got down on one knee and asked the question.

Our beautiful son then gave us a bunch of flowers that were created by my brother-in-law Adam. Hidden in the flowers was a picture of one of the most amazing women that means the world to me; my passed grandmother. That was the sign, that was the moment I just knew he thought of absolutely everything. At that moment everything was perfect, I was truly happy and I just knew he was the one. I saw a few tears from family so I just knew that I had their support, love and guidance. I am really sure Mary may have sustained a few grey hairs because man, this guy organised an amazing proposal.”

Katelyn found her wedding gown at Exquisite Gowns by Yvonne. She tells “I wanted a whimsical dress that was a little classic and when I found it, I just knew that was the one for me, on the day I felt amazing and it didn’t pick up too many sticks along the way.”

Andy’s look? A classic three-piece suit with a grey blazer from Politix.  “I wanted to feel dapper and old school” he notes.

Katelyn and Andy’s wedding ceremony spot is somewhat unexpected. The pair walked past a Mount Tambourine tree-lined driveway and immediately fell in love. Katelyn remembers “We wanted an enchanted feel and when we walked past a private property it just said that’s it, so we did a social post to see if anyone knew the owners, someone did and we made contact.  As we walked past and saw it; it felt magic and the fact it is all hidden behind gates meant there was a bit of an experience for our guests too.”

Nirvana Weddings and Events styled the enchanted wonderland space, with Katelyn’s brother doing arrangements of vivid orange flowers as a wedding gift to the couple. Says Katelyn “We loved all of our three vendors – from photographer Mary to celebrant Jay and the team behind the decor, they all supported us and ensured we were guided along the way. Nothing was ever a problem.”

The couple’s celebrant acted as the “flower celebrant” donning sparkly glasses and a feather boa as he walked down the aisle. Photographer Mary noting “They asked their celebrant if he would walk down the aisle to “my milkshakes” and throw confetti from a bumbag!”

Katelyn walked down the aisle with her father Rodney. “My dad Rodney, had the honour of walking his daughter down the aisle. He was first love, my hero, my whole world and I am daddy’s little girl.”

The couple chose just twenty guests to join them on the day, and that in itself forms one of Katelyn’s favourite parts of the day. Her ‘favourites’ list reads; “It was intimate (20 people), the setting was beyond words, the first look, the moment I got to see the space for the first time all decorated and being in the bubble during our vows and ceremony.”

The whimsy continued through to the couple’s ceremony, officiated by Married By Jay. Says Katelyn “Jay nailed it, we wanted our story told and for it be romantic, funny and just us and when we found Jay the fact he printed and read from children’s books was one element, but then he had us have some alone time in a lounge room picnic where it was that we got to tell him all about us, then there was a personal secret section where we told him all about each other. He took it all and created magic. Plus he was our flower celebrant all dressed up as he entered.”

The couple skipped bridesmaids and groomsmen, instead having their children play a special role in the day. “Our children after the ring exchange received gifts, our little girl a necklace and our little man a pocket watch, because every time something amazing happens, time stops. Just like it did on the day and at that moment.”

 

It wasn’t the first time Katelyn and Andy had worked with their photographer, so of course, she was a natural choice! “Mary has done all of our family shoots for years, so she was a no brainer” explains Katelyn. “Every time she just captures all of the magic, all of the candid moments even the video she did was amazing.”

The newlyweds celebrated with a private dinner – complete with cake smash. Much like the rest of their day, they did it their way, Katelyn giving you this advice  “Don’t overthink it, book the bones in and the rest will follow and let things happen naturally.”

Congratulations Katelyn and Andy! How fun it was to be able to share your stories today. Thank you both and thank you to Smile Darling Photography for sharing today’s celebration with us.