Moody Urban Wedding at The Bethnal

Give us a beautiful inner-city venue, a thoughtfully curated guest list and a couple who know exactly what matters to them – and we’re obsessed. Brad and David’s wedding at The Bethnal had all of that and more, blending classic style with plenty of personality and a wonderfully relaxed energy that carried right through the day. Thankfully, Erin from Black & Co. Photo was there to capture every moment, because this is one celebration you’ll want to soak up from beginning to end!

While Brad and David are technically a Tinderella success story, their dating app story was a little bit more unconventional and less straightforward. “We first connected on Tinder and chatted a few times, but one day I decided to delete the app to focus on my studies, only to realise I’d deleted my only way of contacting David. I was genuinely disappointed, but I took it as a sign to let it go,” Brad shared.

“A few weeks later, our paths almost crossed at a mutual friend’s birthday party. I was working night shifts and didn’t even know David would be there until I saw him in my friend’s Snapchat stories. When I asked who the guy was, my heart sank a little when I realised who it was. A few weeks later, we both ended up at the same party at Fluffy in Fortitude Valley. David bumped into our mutual friend again, and she told him one thing: “Brad is here”. David immediately responded with, “Take me to him”. We were officially introduced and spent the rest of the night together, and from that moment on, everything just felt right!”

Pretty early on in their relationship, David made it clear that he wanted to be the one who was proposed to and left the ball entirely in Brad’s court! “It wasn’t until seven years into our relationship that I felt the moment was right. I reached out to his twin sister and told her I was ready to propose, but that I needed her help choosing the ring. It took a while, but eventually we found the perfect one,” he explained.

“Once the plan was set, I told her I was going to propose at their joint birthday celebration. On the night, surrounded by our closest friends, David and his sister were blowing out the candles on their cake when I approached David from behind and got down on one knee. David noticed his sister had burst into tears, and when he asked her why, she simply pointed behind him to find me on one knee waiting to propose… and of course, David said yes.”

For his wedding look, Brad picked a double-breasted suit from Institchu. Paired with a timeless bow tie, he chose the colour of the actual suit to match some of the finer embroidery from David’s suit. “I knew I wanted to keep things classic – that’s always been my style,” he shared.

“I had my best friend standing by my side as my best man, and he wore a black velvet suit with a matching bow tie.”

David chose a beautiful navy suit from an Indian brand that specialises in embroidery and beading, the perfect addition to their moody, urban wedding. “This suit really called out to me when I stumbled upon the brand on IG. I wanted something that stood out but still managed not to be too much at the same time,” he shared.

“I had my twin sister as my best woman, and she wore a floor-length black satin dress with a small train. This was paired with pointed black heels with a gold heel.”

Nestled in Brisbane’s inner suburbs, The Bethnal was the home base for all of David and Brad’s wedding festivities. “We chose to have both our ceremony and reception at the same venue to keep things simple and convenient for our guests and us,” Brad explained.

“We looked at a few venues, some within our budget and some very much outside it, but the moment we walked into The Bethnal, we knew it was the one. It was the bar with the green tiles that truly sold us (we both love green), and from that point on, we couldn’t imagine getting married anywhere else.”

Both Brad and David walked down the aisle separately, with their mums on their arms.

With their celebrant, Venita Manning, leading the program, Brad and David’s ceremony was simple and classic. “Nothing over the top, as it was just a small ceremony. We ensured we had our custom vows to really speak for us and to each other,” Brad shared.

One of the best parts of their moody, urban wedding for Brad was simply being surrounded by their guests and feeling their love radiating throughout the space. “Being around the 37 people we selected to be there and have them show up and show out for us.”

For David, the best part of their wedding planning was getting his twin sister on board to help! “She’s a wedding makeup artist, and helped to make decisions and bring things together. Having her insight in the wedding industry really made the planning process so much easier,” he explained.

Not only did David’s sister help with the broader planning, but she also led Brad and David to their photographer: Erin from Black & Co. Photo! “From our very first meeting, we felt completely at ease with her. Erin instantly understood our vibe and exactly what we were looking for, and on top of that, we had great banter and so much fun together,” Brad shared.

“Black & Co really stood out as they were so easy to work with and also a lot of fun. All of our guests loved both Erin and Sophie. We cannot recommend them enough!”

Of all the details sprinkled throughout their moody wedding, these are the five things that stood out as the most special:

“1. The people

2. The celebrant

3. Each other

4. The vibe

5. The food (from Cremeble Brisbane Cakes and The Bethnal)”

Though David and Brad love all the moments captured by Black & Co., this shot here of their wedding party stands out. “Our favourite photo is of us standing in front of the main bar with both the best man and best woman behind the bar with a bottle and a cocktail shaker. It really depicts the time we had so perfectly,” Brad shared.

Brad and David left all the floral design in the capable hands of their florist, Demavi. “We decided that it was best to let the experts do what they do best. We provided some simple instructions, including no roses and a focus on green and white. The only exception to this was for Brad’s buttonhole; these flowers were to be inspired by the embroidery on David’s suit. Tanya chose the perfect preserved flowers to represent this synergy!”

A lot of thought and love went into the little details scattered throughout their wedding. From the DIY’d signage, invitations and other stationery, to the cute little tissue packs for guests. The most love and time went into putting their vendor dream together.

The piece of advice David and Brad want to share with couples planning their own dreamy weddings is this: “Don’t invite people out of obligation or to manage their feelings. Your wedding should be filled with the people you genuinely want beside you, celebrating you and your love.”

“Stand By Me” by Florence and the Machine was their first dance song choice. “We are both lovers of gaming, so we came across this song as it was a theme song for one of our favourite games. When we thought about which song we should have our first dance to, we both immediately thought of this, as it is just a beautiful song within its own right,” Brad shared.