Whimsical Party Wedding in Melbourne

Whimsical at heart and vintage in feel, Matthew and Sophie’s celebration was anything but ordinary! With a leaf-filled first look, a fairy bread unity ceremony, and a party that leaned all the way into music, mischief and memory-making, their wedding danced to its own rhythm – literally. It was one part garden romance, one part dance-floor chaos, and all parts joy. We’re so grateful to Kat and Scout from It’s Beautiful Here for capturing it all with such warmth, creativity and care.

Matthew and Sophie’s story began with a graduate program at a market research agency. Sophie joined two years after Matt, but at this point in time, the two couldn’t have had worse opinions of each other. The turning point was when the two of them were forced to interact on a night out as everyone else left. To Matthew’s horror, he learnt that Sophie had never experienced a HSP before! This moment kick-started their friendship, which soon blossomed. “We were all a really close group during this period, although perhaps not so secretly, we had started wanting a little bit more,” Matthew shared.

Their engagement began with a very adult conversation, talking through what they valued in marriage and if it was the right path for them. Once Matthew knew they were on the same page, the secret planning began! He decided her 30th birthday was the perfect day for that all-important question. They began the day with brunch, then moved on to ice skating, where Matthew spent the whole time trying not to stack it with a ring in his pocket.

“After successfully avoiding complete failure, the third activity was the Lume Van Gogh experience. Soph was confused as she thought we were heading to Lune for a mean Croissant. I planned to find a quiet spot while going through the experience, but it turned out to be quite a bit busier and more open than I expected. After walking around, I found some stairs that led to a quiet corner where we found a seat. I presented Sophie with the ring, where I was met with “Are you sure?”. I was indeed sure.”

For Matt, the top five things that made their whimsical party wedding so special included:

“1. The first look. Hearing Soph’s dress come up the path as she collected every leaf imaginable will never not be funny.

2. Having one of our best mates as the celebrant made the ceremony even more special. Helps that he is a very good storyteller.

3. Walking back down the aisle and realising we hadn’t actually planned where we would go. So we kinda just awkwardly exited stage left into the bar next door that we had come out of. It was pretty funny.

4. The different levels of music throughout the night. We started with 2, 1-hour sets from The Scrims, which I would describe as fun covers + originals of folk/blues/swing. Then, once the DJ started, it went from classic dance songs to the metal/punk portion of the night.

5. Photo quick round. Having lots of silly photos in the boiling heat with our closest friends and family is something I will treasure.”

Their day started with a first look just before their private ceremony in Fitzroy Gardens. And their theme for the day? A celebration of love with a whimsical, vintage flair! “We kind of had two weddings with very different styles. We had our first look and signed documents in Fitzroy Gardens, having only the wedding party and direct family there to keep it as intimate as possible. It was only our siblings (and photographers) who actually witnessed our legal vows and signing of the documents. We went back to a picnic after this was completed to celebrate with parents and wedding party together,” Shared Sophie.

The first part of their whimsical party wedding (their private ceremony) included just their siblings, Celebrant John and photographers. “While I love celebrating with my friends, the really important things I like to do with as few people as possible. We also wanted to make sure we got the impact of surprise, but also could spend a lot of the day together. That’s why Matthew and I decided to do a first look at Fitzroy Gardens, before getting officially married with as few people around us as possible,” she explained.

“It made the moment so so special, knowing it was only us for those giggly first few minutes (given we did the first look in the leafy area of the gardens, Matthew couldn’t stop laughing at how loud my dress was as it collected every leaf on the ground), and then just our siblings there to sign and be out witnesses for the official part. In terms of the rest of our family that we went back to cheers with – my bridesmaid said it best when she said ‘it was actually really nice – because everyone missed out, it really meant that no one did’.”

Sophie’s favourite shot from the day was when she and Matthew were walking back from the ceremony with their siblings, laughing and smiling the whole way. “As much as I loved having all my dearest around me later that evening, the pure joy that I can see in the four of us, walking away from the most intimate of ceremonies – I will always love that photo.”

As it was a 40+ degree day, it was for the best that Sophie and Matthew didn’t plan elaborate florals. Instead, Sophie and her friend popped into Petal Pop on a whim and asked Ange if she could throw together a few bouquets for the day – and wow, did she deliver! “Ange was an absolute champ, and watching her create some amazing works of art in the moment was a gift in itself. She mentioned that it was the first time she had a bride watch her make the bouquets, but if you get the opportunity, do it. I’m always in awe of the skill and creativity involved in floristry.”

Kat and Scout from It’s Beautiful Here ticked every box Sophie and Matt needed for this whimsical wedding! Their artsy, vintage style was the perfect lens to capture the amazing vibes of the day. “When we started planning, the number one thing that I wanted was amazing photos (as that’s what you’re left with at the end – plus the bloke, I suppose). The issue is that I suuuck at posing, and most (all) of the photos I like of myself are caught candid. So, we focused on finding someone for this, who was also super fun to work with and would “yes and” all of the odd little ideas that we had!” Sophie shared.

Sophie’s gown from Miss Bella Bridal perfectly matched the vintage wedding boots she wore, which were handed down by her mother. “I wore the wedding boots my mother wore on her wedding day. The day prior my grandmother also gifted me with a Sapphire ring that she had made in the very early days of her marriage. Both of these women are so very family-oriented, so having these little things really helped bring to life the best that marriage can represent.”

To kick off the ceremony at The Hall in Brunswick, Sophie walked down the aisle with her dad on her arm. “I originally wanted to walk the aisle myself, but my dad had mentioned some excitement to his friends about being able to walk his only daughter down the aisle. It was in this moment that I really got the complexity of a wedding, not really about the couple, but more the opportunity it is to bring a family together and for the parents to show off the people they’ve helped bring into this world.”

Knowing Melbourne’s unpredictable weather, especially in transitional seasons, Sophie ordered these adorable heart-shaped fans. And although she didn’t know if it was going to be sweltering hot or ice cold, they were still a nice touch to the day. Luckily, she ordered these as the day was over 40 degrees! “When I told my colleague that I had ordered them, he was confused because ‘isn’t March usually cold here?’ (he’s a kiwi.) I figured it’s a bit of a mixed bag, but they’re heart-shaped fans, so they would go with the day,” she explained.

“Given that we planned to be outside for a large portion of the day, I was concerned (like most Melbourne brides are) about potential rain. But then, every day we got closer, the temperature on Sunday increased by a degree. Until we hit Friday, my family is making their way in from interstate, I’m sitting with my extremely pregnant bridesmaid, and we saw that Sunday was now an estimated 42. My ordering of those fans was vindicated, and when people asked when we got married, we just said, “You remember that heatwave in March,” and people knew the exact time. We were all big sweaty messes at the end of the night, but some things always going to happen.”

Since they’d already had their private ceremony earlier in the day, Sophie and Matthew got to leave out the legal jargon and create a ceremony that felt more them. “We were able to have one of our very good friends act as a celebrant as he has been there for our story from the beginning. It also turns out that cutting out all the legal portions of the ceremony makes the ceremony pretty short. This got us thinking about unique unity ceremonies we could add to the ceremony…”

The unique unity ceremony they decided on included fairy bread! “We were researching ideas, and nothing was really appealing to us until we saw “make a unity sandwich”. I laughed and said, “Wouldn’t it be funny if we did like unity fairy bread or something?”. After thinking about it, it turned out this was actually the perfect idea. Soph works at a dairy company, and one of her good butter science friends designed special bespoke butter for us, while I just love sprinkles,” Matthew shared.

Without a wedding planner/coordinator, Matthew and Sophie leaned on their other vendors for advice and guidance. Their photographers, Kat and Scout, helped the couple find the perfect location for their private ceremony. “We couldn’t recommend these girls more highly as they felt more like cheerleaders and part of the day.”

Their celebrant, John, was the king of all things ceremony, extending his expertise into the night as the MC. “He pulled the venue and band together to make sure everyone had what they had when they needed it, and gave us some fantastic suggestions to make the night flow the way that it did.”

Originally, they had decided to forgo a videographer, but randomly stumbled across Tae from Made Media Marketing and knew they had to hire her! “This was the perfect addition and exactly what we were after. Tae created some beautiful shorts, which were the perfect thing to share on social media. For anyone not wanting a full-length video, having a content creator was absolutely perfect.”

Their first dance was beautifully choreographed by Matthew himself and perfectly highlighted each of their strengths. “Where he has competed and taught ballroom dancing since he was 14, I struggle to find the beat in a clap. But Matthew was an absolute champ and created something that showed off his skill, and hid my lack of it,” Sophie shared.

“In retrospect, all the weeks we spent going to studios to practice and choreograph together made the whole thing even more special. The only miss in this was that we didn’t actually practice to the live version! So there was an entire verse of the song that we didn’t get to perform.”

Having sweated long enough in her gown, Sophie decided it was time to cut the length so she could finally cool down! “I had a slight idea to do this earlier, knowing I wouldn’t likely wear it again, and if I did cut it, I wouldn’t need a specific reception dress. But the temperature just made that decision for me.”

Her top five things that made their whimsical party wedding so special were:

“1. Enjoying the best of both worlds with a very private ceremony earlier that day, followed by the whole big bash that evening.

2. The weeks and months leading up to the wedding were when Matt choreographed our first dance.

3. Our fairy bread ceremony – including the butter and butter container that my friend oh so generously made and decorated.

4. Scandalising many, many people by cutting my dress to a tea length that evening. The look on my in-laws’ faces.

5. Having one of our favourite bands perform.”

Not only did Celebrant John run the party reception with ease, but he also had the incredible idea to have rapid-fire photos! Essentially, everyone got in a line and had 10 seconds to take a picture with us and then run off. This resulted in some of the best crazy photos as everyone dove in to get a photo and also ensured we were able to get a photo with everyone there.” Matthew explained.

The advice Sophie and Matthew want to leave for future couples is this: “Identify your must-haves in terms that don’t cost anything and then figure out how to fit them into your budget. i.e. We were sure we wanted greenery and live music, but didn’t have the budget to decorate and hire a band. So we found a venue that essentially had the decorations built in.”