On the day of their 21st anniversary, Casey and Anthony “finally” tied the knot. We say “finally” as that was the running theme of their day. To celebrate this milestone, they threw the rule book out the window and created a very “them” wedding. And to compliment the breezy vibes of the day, they had Merge Photography shooting the whole event.

Casey and Anthony met at a car show when she was 17 – with the sole goal of meeting a boy. And we couldn’t be more glad it worked! Fast forward 21 years, and they’re celebrating their 21st anniversary with a relaxed, trailblazing wedding at Perth City Farm.

For their 20th anniversary celebrations, Anthony hijacked Casey’s plans for a staycation at a Perth inner-city hotel. It was a complete surprise for Casey, especially when Anthony proposed while they were preparing for dinner!

To get ready, Casey had her mum, sisters and nieces with her. “It was just a good bonding time, especially as my sisters flew over from the Eastern states.” They had Mon Hunter artfully styling hair and Elicia Rose expertly applying Casey’s makeup to ensure she looked as good as she felt.

Casey looked stunning in her Aje dress, complete with their signature puff sleeves, but with a twist! The sleeves had a gorgeous flower design, and it was the perfect fit after some alterations at Ilka Studio. “I wore an Aje dress that I had first seen on Zoe Foster Blake on Instagram. I loved it/was obsessed with it immediately, so I tracked it down. There were none in my size left in Australia, so I ordered it from Liberty London, then had some alterations by Ilka Studio locally.”

Keeping her look simple, the only jewellery Casey wore was a pair of pearl earrings Anthony had bought her the first time they were apart for a business trip. There also had to be some last-minute dress alterations done as their beloved ragdoll Harry chewed a hole in the hem on the dress, “We just snipped off the chewed bit, and because of all the pleats, you couldn’t even notice it!”

Anthony wore a simple dark navy suit from MJ Bale, paired with a white pocket square and matching navy tie. “He hates shopping, so he left it quite late, then bought the first one he tried on! Luckily, it was clearly ‘the one’!”

Before the ceremony, the couple spent some time together for photos – not a formal first look, but a casual coming together. “I was quite nervous and Jodie, our photographer, put the focus back on us as a couple and it was really special. That photo time alone really centred what the day was about for us.”

Jodie from Merge Photography nailed these photos, and the glowing review from Casey speaks volumes. “Jodie was absolutely bloody amazing. I could not recommend her highly enough. She was so helpful in the lead-up to the wedding, checking in regularly because she knew I was anxious offering recommendations for other vendors when I was stuck. Jodie had complete control of the day (not in a strict way; more things happened on time without you even noticing there was a schedule way). She is just a lovely person, too, and her photos are better than I could have ever hoped for (especially given my photo awkwardness :)).”

The venue of the day was the perfect fit for the modern, relaxed vibes they wanted. The Art Room at Perth City Farm is an industrial-look space, that hosted both their ceremony and reception, allowing guests to flow from vows straight into dancing and drinks. They also had the cheeky detail of the floor vinyl that said “finally” – since Ant took 20 years to propose.

They had Alicia, from The Wildflower Perth, create these amazing floral installations for the ceremony and the arrangements for the bar tables in their reception section. “The florals exactly matched my somewhat vague brief – modern, green foliage and pops of white. It was exactly what I didn’t know I wanted.” And this stunning green cake was made by Nicole Novak, perfectly complementing the venue and floral styling.

Instead of walking down the aisle alone, Casey and Anthony walked together with “Better Together” by Jack Johnston playing. “It seemed a little redundant after 21 years for me to be given away by my parents haha.”

The ceremony was sweet, cute and lots of fun. Their celebrant, Megan Knox, captured the essence of their relationship and shared their journey with all the guests. “Our celebrant delivered the exact feeling we wanted. She was also really helpful during the pre-wedding process, and just DELIVERED on the day! All our guests commented on how lovely her ceremony was.” Casey’s sisters, Berns and Nita, did a reading of “A Lovely Love Story” by Edward Monkton, with some creative freedom – giving one dinosaur a cricket obsession and the other an undying love for shoes.

They chose Ant’s dad and Casey’s mum as the witnesses for the marriage certificate, as they’re both incredibly important to their family. Ant said, “It was an emotional day as my Mum had passed away recently and wasn’t there, but I felt the love and support from all our guests.”

When asked about her favourite photo from the day, Casey recalled “Ant and I’s kiss at the end of the ceremony – not our first kiss, as I completely forgot that I should probably wait and kissed him while we were signing the marriage certificate! I also love the photos that were taken during the receiving line afterwards, everyone just looks so happy and full of love.”

Since the rule book had been thrown out the window years ago, most traditions were skipped, including the formal wedding party, first dance and guest speeches. Instead, Casey and Anthony gave a thank you speech and toast to celebrate their guests.

Because Anthony and Casey live in Perth, a lot of their friends and family had to travel to celebrate, and the newlyweds couldn’t have been more thankful. “It’s quite rare for us to have our family and friends all together for a drink and a dance these days, so that was really fun and special.”

Congratulations, Casey and Anthony, on [finally] celebrating your gorgeous wedding! And thanks to Jodie from Merge Photography for capturing and submitting it.