With two and a half years of postponements, by the time Steph and Justin arrived on their wedding day, they were well and truly ready to party. As early adoption of Tinder “We kept this a secret from our families as we were unsure how they would react with how we met each other through a ‘dating’ app” laughs Steph, the couple is thankful they both took a chance on the “brand new dating app”.  “We are so lucky we met because Justin is from the western suburbs and I’m from the north-eastern suburbs and it if wasn’t for Tinder, our paths wouldn’t have crossed.”

With a vision in mind for an urban chic wedding that embraced every bit of Melbourne’s city streets, Steph and Justin planned a wedding that could well be mistaken for a giant party. A packed dance floor and plenty of live music melding with Greek Orthodox traditions (right down to an evil eye charm on Steph’s bouquet) to culminate in an occasion that was not only overdue but an epic celebration.

With a dream team of amazing Melbourne vendors (from photographer Aleksandar Jason Weddings and cinematographer Yaya Films on documentation right down to the beautiful warehouse venue of Showtime Events for the reception) this is one you’re going to want to settle in for.

The wedding story begins with the tale of how Justin proposed – again, quintessentially Melbourne in style! Steph shared “Justin proposed to me at Parliament Gardens in-between acts of Harry Potter and The Cursed Child.  He surprised me with a picnic catered by Spring Street Grocers. We took the basket over to the garden where he began to pop open a bottle of expensive champagne.

He then proceeded to take out something from his pants, which happened to be a box that contained a gorgeous engagement ring. He nailed the proposal and it was the most special day. Fun fact, a dog ate one of our cheese wheels!”

To get you in the spirit, settle in for Steph & Justin’s wedding film. Captured beautifully today by Yaya Films. Share the newlyweds “Our photographer, videographer and band were all standout vendors. Honestly, we loved everything and everyone that was involved in our day.”

Justin wore pieces in navy and cream for the day all found at Menswear Warehouse. Says Steph  “Justin wore navy pants and a beige linen jacket. We coordinated this with a navy bow tie and brown accessories. The owner of Menswear Warehouse also gifted us with some personalised cuff links, one was an S and the other was a J and Justin wore these on the day.”

Steph wore is an elegant fitted lace gown by Essense of Australia. She shares  “It was ivory and full of lace details and embellishments which was the opposite of what I thought I would like but those were the details that made it feel like a wedding gown when I tried it on. My shoes were from Bared Footwear, these were the comfiest heels possible and I lasted all night in them.”

The couple made sure to honour Greek traditions throughout the day. “There were a few Greek traditions that were carried out by Steph’s family.
On the morning of the wedding, dad placed money in my shoes. We also wrote the names of the single bridesmaids underneath the shoe of the bride, the most rubbed-off name determines who gets married next. We had Greek traditional dancing in the morning at the bride’s house and the reception. The traditional crowns used during the wedding ceremony were a gift from Steph’s grandparents who live overseas. The evil eye pendant on the bride’s bouquet for ‘something blue’.”

The couple chose the Holy Monastery of Axion Estin for their ceremony.

Steph walked down the aisle with her father, kicking off a ceremony filled with tradition. “The ceremony consisted of a traditional Greek Orthodox Ceremony, presented in half English and half Greek. It was a very light-hearted ceremony. The priest made me, Justin and the guests laugh and feel very comfortable. Our traditional crowns (Stefana) were given to us by Steph’s grandparents in Greece, which was very sentimental to us.”

“Cater to your own needs” advises Steph. “Don’t think or worry about your guests and don’t overthink minor details. Just do it for yourselves and make sure you will enjoy the day because it is over so quickly!”

The flowers on the day honoured Steph and Justin’s chosen colour scheme and were styled by Chromata Florals. “I wanted colour tones that would feel timeless. I chose a combination of toffee, blush and white coloured roses for the bouquets with an orchid in the bridal bouquet. We chose to keep the same colour theme with our centrepieces at the reception as well.”

Steph and Justin loved working with photographer Aleksander, “Aleks is an incredible photographer. He loves a bit of banter but on the wedding day it was obvious how experienced he is and he also knows exactly what he wants to capture. Aleks is so professional and he honestly doubled up as our wedding day coordinator, he kept us running on schedule but also allowed us to have fun and enjoy the day. Paul was Aleks’ assistant photographer for the day and he was also so lovely and easy to spend the day with.”

The couple even returned to a very special spot, explaining  “We returned to the Spring Street Grocer on our wedding day, this is where Justin originally purchased all of the picnic food he organised on the day that he proposed. We shared an ice cream which was a bit of fun.

We got to sit down with our wedding party after that, just us with no photos or video being taken, we laughed, we had a bev, enjoyed the nice weather and soaked up the experience before heading to our reception venue.”

Riverside warehouse venue Showtime Events was the perfect spot for the glam, sit-down reception. Says Steph  “This brilliantly placed events warehouse is alongside the waterfront of the Yarra River, which is surrounded by bars/restaurants and breathtaking scenery of the city. This was an ideal vibe for summer. We love Showtime Events, for hosting the best party of our lives.”

As favours, each guest took home coffee from the couple’s favourite local cafe packaged into a sweet hessian bag. The DIY charm was abundant in everything Steph and Justin designed; everything from the invitations themselves to enlisting their friends to create the rest of their stationery for the day.

“We loved personalising an event to our style and to suit us as a couple. Our favourite part was seeing everything come together and seeing the result and knowing that it was all worth it.”

The newly weds honoured their love of music with a first dance to one of their all-time favourites, Steph sharing “Justin and I love to go to gigs and concerts. The song that we chose for our first dance is written by one of our shared favourite musicians which we have seen play live multiple times. “Still Together” by Mac DeMarco is something we always envisioned us dancing to on our special day and we always imagined this song being played by a live band for us only. Our band Groove Junction did the song justice.”

Dancing is a big part of any Greek wedding so Steph and Justin made sure they took the time and care with finding vendors that would make for a packed dance floor. They explain “We wanted our night to have the right combination of Greek music and songs that reflected myself and Justin. Our night was heavily influenced by making our guests dance like they are at a concert.

We curated a playlist of funk, disco, pop, jazz, indie rock and greek songs that were played throughout the night by our band Groove Junction Entertainment and Chris from Cypriot Style Entertainment. These songs made our night so special and everyone commented on how good the music and dance floor were.”

Congratulations on finally tying the knot Justin and Steph! So glad you got there and that we got to share your story, Thank you also go to Aleksandar Jason Weddings and cinematographer Yaya Films for sharing today’s beautiful day with us.