Weekends are for dancing, so could there be any better way to end the week than a wedding that is absolutely packed to the brim with smooth moves? Julia and Kevin, who planned a joyful, kid-friendly day, wove Kenyan details through every part of their day – right down to the traditional dance down the aisle and the dance into the reception!

With Bec Matheson behind the camera and endless stories to be told, tell us there is a better way to end the week!

Voting their love story beginning as a complete Hinge success story – “After chatting for a week we met for dinner” remembers Julia. Kevin asked Jules to marry him this way, he tells “I printed out photos of our story together – from our very first text. I asked Jules to choose a selection, and I hung them with fairy lights on the verandah. We looked over the photos together, I did a little speech, and then got down on one knee!”

The day was captured on film by Stu Art Video Productions.

The day began with a church service at St John’s Anglican Church, Diamond Creek.

Even the morning of the wedding was filled with tradition, remembers Jules. “Before Jules left for the church, Kevin and Jules’ parents came together in a tradition where the bride is received by the groom’s parents. They lay beautiful material on the ground all the way from the house to the car.”

The dancing began with the ceremony. “Some people were confused when they didn’t see Kevin up the front of the church. It’s a Kenyan tradition for the groom to dance down the aisle, so he made a grand entrance, and the whole wedding party followed him.”

As Julia walked down the aisle, a choir made up of family and friends sang “Yours” by Ella Henderson.

The couple were lucky enough to have friends marry them. “One special thing was that one of our closest friends, Brittany, married us. The reading was from the Bible, John 15: 5-17. As it was the lead-up to Christmas we sang a favourite Christmas carol, O Holy Night, and Hakuna Mungu which is a worship song in Swahili. We said our vows in English and Swahili (Jules had to practice this a lot!). We wanted it to feel like a celebration, and also the weightiness of the vows we were making.”

Julia and Kevin have these words of wisdom to share. “Take time to think about what is important to you and remain focussed on that. If possible, create a moment where you have time as a couple on the day. We drove from the church to the reception alone, and it was great having a moment to take it all in.”

Julia dressed in an elegant white gown with lace back from Karen Willis Holmes – a gown she picked up secondhand from Still White. “I was a little nervous about buying a dress from interstate, but it fit perfectly. I chose this dress as it was a heavy material and covered in sequins – I love that style and felt super comfortable.” While Kevin donned a classic blue suit from MJ Bale. “I’ve always thought blue suits look really nice and classy. It’s versatile and I can wear it again!”

The wedding party wore outfits that included Kenyan fabrics. “Kevin and I went to Kenya a couple of months before the wedding and picked up the fabric for the bridesmaid’s skirts there” explains Julia. “Megan made them into high-waisted wrap skirts which were worn with a simple white top. Peter & Wambui (the groomsmen) has clothes tailored in Kenya that used the same material as the bridesmaids.”

The flowers, filled with Australian natives, were styled by Petal & Vine Botanicals. Says Julia  “We didn’t have any particular preference with flowers, so we sent a photo of the fabric that we were using for the wedding party attire and said the florist could do whatever she liked. We don’t know what type of flowers they were but they look so good!”

Julia and Kevin have no regrets about their choice of photographer. “Wow. We love our wedding photos so much. Bec captured it beautifully, the formal photos as well as many candid ones. She was a very peaceful presence, relaxed but directive when she needed to be. She’s very talented and just a dream to have there on the day.”

Jules and Kevin danced their way into the reception. “We had a Kenyan dance procession as we and the wedding party arrived at the reception. A couple of people lead the dance moves and all the wedding guests file in behind the newlyweds who dance their way in.”

The couple were thrilled with their choice of reception venue – the beautiful Farm Vigano. “It was the only reception place we visited, we were sold immediately. This farm overlooks Plenty Gorge and is surrounded by orchards. It has a homely feel, genuinely warm staff and a big lawn and bocce area. Not to mention the food! We didn’t DIY anything, instead, we had Friends and family that contributed through singing, cake, flowers, invites etc”.

The Kenyan traditions extended to the reception, with a very special gift. “During Kevin’s parent’s speech, they gave Jules a necklace and Kevin a traditional sceptre which are given to people once they are married. It was so special having Kevin’s family there from Kenya. Many people at the wedding were excited to see Kevin’s parents – having had many video chats and now finally meeting them in person.”

And of course, once the formalities were complete, you’d expect nothing less than a fabulous dance floor, right? Julia and Kevin kicked it off with their first dance. “We did a medley – starting with some ballroom with Tchaikovsky and then into Joyful, Joyful and Jerusalema.”

A big beautiful congratulations to you both Julia and Kevin! Thank you for taking the time to share your stories with us! Thank you also to Bec Matheson for sharing this beauty of a day with us.