Intimate & Minimal Countryside Wedding

We are so aware here at Polka Dot Wedding that bigger is not always better when it comes to weddings. For some, the all-out glorious event is what they’ve always dreamed of, but for others, it’s a smaller, simpler affair that speaks to them. And this was the case for the lovely couple Alannah & Kyle. Their intimate & elegantly minimal countryside wedding, captured by K3 Photography, was a surprise for their nearest and dearest and was kept very relaxed & light on anything too formal. Surrounded by their beautiful family, the pair could not have asked for a more perfect day. Alannah remembers how they became engaged and tells us about their stunning, simple wedding day…

We met in Forster NSW through mutual friends. We had been together for 9 years and getting married was spoken about but not something either of us was desperate to do. We had a family member become unwell and we decided we would do it while he was still able to be there and enjoy the day so that was our reason behind getting married.

I chose dried palms and mostly natives. Basically, anything that could be dried. I made all of the flower arrangements myself except my bouquet, which was mine from my sister’s wedding and I just added a few palms to it to bulk it up.

We were married at a beautiful little place called Dungog. The venue is Dungog Weddings, a stunning property owned by the two most beautiful people Rod and Joy.

We had no wedding party. We had a surprise elopement with just our immediate family. I walked down the aisle to “Loving You Is Easy” by Zac Brown Band. Walking down the aisle with my dad, father-in-law and my eldest son (he was our aisle crasher as he refused to walk in front with his siblings ) was one of my favourite moments of the day.

We went for a quick and fun ceremony – nothing fancy just simple and straight to the point.

I actually brought my dress from another beautiful bride who got married at the same place a few months before. I saw the photo the venue posted of her on Instagram and it was exactly the dress I was after. After getting in touch with her I soon found out the dress was sold out online and I couldn’t get it so I asked and she so kindly sold it to me. It’s a dress from Dissh. It’s an open-back, simple linen dress, everything I was looking for.

Kyle chose simple tan colour pants and a deep forest green shirt from Tarocash. Simple tones that suited a bush wedding.

Our photographer, the wonderful Kathy at K3 Photography, has been my neighbour since I was a child. We have grown up with her and I wouldn’t have chosen anyone else to capture our day. Kathy knew we wanted just a few family photos and everything else was up to her. She truly produced the most amazing and perfect wedding photos for us. The photo where Kyle is spinning me around just after the ceremony and it’s a shot of the back of my dress is probaby my favourite photo from the day.

Dungog Weddings is an amazing property nestled in the bush just near Dungog. The property has a huge barn fully fitted with festoon and fairy lighting, a dance floor, a kitchen, a cool room and all the extras you could ever need. There are multiple ceremony spots to choose from throughout the property including the lush bush, by the pond, on top of a gorgeous hill and more. It even comes complete with cows and some sweet horses. Its owners Rod and Joy are the most wonderful people who truly made it such a fun and stress-free experience. They went above and beyond for us, our guests and especially our kiddies who loved meeting their special pet cow, Albert.

All the floral arrangements were DIY. The grazing board was purchased in boxes and my family put it together on the day as our caterer got Covid 2 days prior. I used both of my bridesmaid bouquets from my sister’s bouquet in my floral arrangements.

They were all absolutely amazing, shout out to Dungog Weddings, K3 Photography, Glamma Artistry, Handmade by Alexie and Poppi & Seed Caravan Bar. We could not have chosen better. We planned it in 6 weeks so it was a whirlwind but I enjoyed using local businesses for our wedding. My aim was to try and keep it as local as I could.