A terrible tale we’ve heard too many times these past couple of years, sadly. 

Unwilling to wait any longer to become Best Friends Forever and Ever, instead of giving up and rescheduling, this couple of teachers put their thinking caps on and got right to problem solving.

Noosa has always held a place in their hearts. Their Noosa Heads wedding ended up being even better than their original plan. After all, there’s no place quite like Noosa. 

Bride, Gabriella, tells us all about it below… 

Vendors

Photographer | BECK ROCCHI PHOTOGRAPHY

Venue | NOOSA WATERFRONT RESTAURANT & BAR

Stylist | SPLASH EVENTS

Florist | WILLOW BUD

Cake | SWEET P CAKES AND COOKIES

Favours | Sake cups, DAISO

Makeup Artist | DOLLY MAY ARTISTRY

Hair Stylist | HAIR BY LACEY

Videographer | SUNSHINE COAST VIDEOGRAPHY

Celebrant | JEANETTE MCDONALD

Accommodation | ON THE BEACH NOOSA RESORT

The Proposal

We had our ring made together, but I didn’t know when it would happen. Nathan planned a very special summer solstice/eclipse sunset proposal by the waterfront with all of my favourite girls, my mum and grandma (and grandad) to be apart of the proposal. He learned and proposed to me in Japanese, as our lives are heavily influenced by Japan.

How We Met

We met when I began my career as a high school teacher at the same school. We clicked instantly and spent a year getting to know each other. Now, all the people who were around us said they could see our chemistry, even before we saw it ourselves. We spent a lot of time laughing and joking around, and built such a strong foundation for a long lasting marriage, without even knowing it!

Why I Married Him

Nathan and I have so much fun with each other, every single day. We can go a whole day sitting on the couch being silly together and it can feel like the best day. We just want to be around each other all the time and support each other through everything, we really are best friends.

Our Top Wedding Priority

One of our main priorities was to make sure that all of our family and close friends were with us on the day. We also had to be by the beach (a must for me!). We wanted the day to feel completely relaxed and very intimate. I have been mega obsessed with weddings since I was very little and Nathan knew this, so he made sure that I could have everything that was important to me for our special day.

Biggest Wedding-Planning Challenge

We originally spent a year planning our wedding in Byron Bay and had to do a quick 3 week turnaround when we couldn’t get through the borders. We didn’t want to postpone being married so we decided to do what we could to create a new wedding with the resources and time we had. We were so fortunate to have incredible and supportive suppliers who were flexible and generous throughout the (short) process and made our day happen! Our second planned wedding was even better and more aligned with what we wanted anyway, so we are so thankful! I highly recommend reassessing a second time around after the decisions have been made and the pressure is off, I made a lot better choices this time!

The Location

Noosa was always a special place to me, with lots of memories of childhood family holidays. The boardwalk and beach along Noosa Heads Main Beach has always been the epitome of coastal luxury to me. I couldn’t have imagined being anywhere else on my wedding day now. Even Byron Bay can’t offer a backdrop as beautiful as that.

Noosa Waterfront Restaurant was incredible at making sure we had everything we wanted, genuine staff with amazing service and everyone went out of their way to create a special event for us.

Wedding Secrets

Biggest splurge: Photographer, Beck is THE BEST. Accommodation, it was such a good decision to splash out on a beautiful place to get ready with views and space as well as it was a nice place to come back to and wake up the next day at with our post wedding glow.

Best money-saving decision: Using as much from the restaurant for styling as possible to save money so you can spend on a couple of extras like charger plates and pillar candles to style venue. Don’t feel bad to splash out on the few things you know will elevate the day and make you happy when you look back on it.

Bride’s dress: Ella Moda

Accessories: Ella Moda veil, Luisa Luxe jewellery

Bride’s shoes: Bared Footwear

Groom’s attire + shoes: Tarocash

Bridesmaids’ dresses: Esther & Co., Forever New

DIY: Created our own signage for ceremony and reception, bridal jewellery.

Honeymoon: Waiting to return to Japan for a long adventure, so a week in Hamilton Island before Christmas was the next best thing.

Number of guests: 50

Wedding budget: $25,000

Actual cost of wedding: $40,000 (after we paid for two weddings!) Not including first wedding costs we didn’t get back Wedding 2.0 probably costed about $30,000.

The post Gabriella loves Nathan | Noosa Heads Wedding appeared first on The Bride's Tree.

Noosa is Gabrielle and Daniel’s happy place. When they went looking for a Noosa wedding venue, they fell in love with what became their Noosa River ceremony and reception location, Noosa Waterfront Restaurant & Bar. 

Gabrielle told us all about her wedding planning and the choices she made that made her day so special… 

Why I Married Him

“I love who I am when I am with Dan. He has the kindest most loving and loyal soul I know. He is the type of person that when he loves, he loves completely and wholeheartedly. He is my greatest adventure, my perfectly imperfect and my once in a life time love.”

#1 Wedding Day Priority

“Our highest priority was to be in our happy place surrounded by our tribe. They are the people who at some point entered our lives and made us who we are today. They are the ones that have been there for the ups and the downs, taught us lessons, made us laugh and encouraged us to be more. It was so important for us to share our day with those we love so dearly.”

Images by This Is Life Photography

Most emotional wedding day moments

“There would have to be two. The first was when I surprised my sisters with my dress. I had kept it a secret from everyone as my siblings all live away. Only my mum knew what it looked like. The morning of the wedding we hid them in a room while mum got me ready. Once I was ready we let them out, Jaime captured the reveal and their reactions are the best. The second was seeing Dan at the end of the aisle. I had bet money with family he wouldn’t cry. He isn’t an emotional person so I thought it was going to be a sure win. Well I was wrong tears were spotted and my heart burst with happiness.” 

Smooth Planning

“We were lucky and the planning just all fell into place. It was like it all was just meant to be. I think if anything, it was trying to figure out a way to ensure everyone made our special day. With family and friends living overseas, interstate or in the defence forces there was some bumps in the road but the universe looked after us.” 

The Venue

“Noosa Waterfront Restaurant & Bar are in a league of their own. From the wait staff, to the chefs, from Amy the wedding coordinator to their venue we can not fault them. They were everything we wanted plus so much more.

“Noosa is a special place for us. It Is where Dan’s Nanna and Grandfather spent holidays with his mother, who then carried on the tradition with him and his sister. One day we hope to do the same. It is our happy place – when the weight of reality is getting the better of us, a day there seems to take it all away. It was the only place we could ever imagine starting our next chapter. Noosa Waterfront Restaurant was the first and only venue we looked at. The second we saw it and met Amy it felt so right to us and knew it was our place. It was perfectly situated on the river, semi secluded so we had privacy but also open to enjoy the amazing Noosa weather.”

Wedding Secrets

Biggest splurge: Dan and I love our food it isn’t a good party without it. So we made it a priority spent that little bit more to ensure no one left our day hungry. We had canapés, entree’s, mains, desert and of course cake. The food was incredible and our guests still rave about it so it was definitely worth it. 

Best money-saver: Doing our wedding invites through Vistaprint. They looked beautiful and matched our vision without burning holes in our budget.

Bride’s gown: Casar Elegance Bridal

Bride’s accessories: Veil – Made with Love Bridal, earrings – Trent Nathan, clutch – The Daily Edited

Bride’s shoes: Novo Shoes 

Bridesmaids’ dresses: Goddess by Nature

Bridesmaids’ accessories: Earrings – Samantha Wills, hair piece – Lovisa, clutch – The Daily Edited

Bridesmaids’ shoes: Novo Shoes

Groom’s and groomsmen’s attire: Connor

Honeymoon: Hawaii

Number of guests: 64

Wedding budget: $25,000 

Photography: This Is Life Photography | Venue + catering: Noosa Waterfront Restaurant & Bar | Flowers + styling: First Class Functions | Cake: FLOURISH Cakes & Sweets | Bombonnieres: Candy Addictions | Hair + makeup: Sarah Harrington | Entertainment: Benny Hanna Music | Wedding Signs and Guest Place Cards: Love and Brush | Celebrant: Michelle Bailey – Shellibrant | Wedding night accommodation: Lazy Days Noosaville 

The post Gabrielle loves Daniel | Noosa River Ceremony + Reception appeared first on The Bride's Tree.

Kate says she married Ricky because, “He is the most genuine, caring person I have ever met and he makes me smile everyday.”

Of his bride, Ricky says, “Kate’s the smartest and most unselfish person I’ve ever met with a beautiful smile.”

Altogether now, “Awwww!” We can see the love is real in this Noosa River wedding, and bride Kate has shared some words about her day… 

Our biggest wedding wants

“Noosa is our favourite place in the world and we wanted our guests to experience everything it has to offer as well as make it fun and relaxing for us and our guests, so the entertainment was a huge priority.

“It is the most beautiful place in the world. We holiday here with our family each year and often eat at the Noosa Waterfront Restaurant & Bar. Even being the busiest weekend in Noosa, It is a private and intimate location right on the waters edge. It is such a special location.”

Standout Vendors 

“Willow Bud and Splash Events. Both were so accommodating and went over and above to make sure our setup was perfect. Of course Sally and Niki with the hair and makeup were incredible in the lead up to the wedding. They were heaps fun and so calming to have around!” 

Images by White Images

Kate wore a couture bridal gown by Noosa designer, Erin Clare Couture

The Proposal 

“Ricky convinced me to go for a walk along the triathlon course to loosen up before the race. After 3km of walking along the Warrnambool foreshore, Ricky decided it would be the perfect moment to propose. He stopped on the path, got down on one knee and asked me to spend the rest of my life with him. Of course I said… yes!”

Unforgettable Memories 

“For me, the most emotional moment was walking over the bridge to marry the man of my dreams with my two biggest supports and the most influential people by my side, mum and dad.

“We will never forget how sore our cheeks and feet were were from smiling and dancing so much. It was just the best day of our lives.”

Wedding Secrets

Biggest splurge: The Catalina to entertain the guests between the ceremony and the reception, while the photos. Being a destination wedding we wanted to make sure our guests got to experience some of the best parts of Noosa and to us that was the Noosa river.

Best bargain: Our invitations. We used Canva to create out invited and printed them ourselves. We also created a website with more detailed information about Noosa that guests could access and RSVP to all digitally.

Bridal gown: Erin Clare Couture

Bride’s accessories: Pearls for Girls

Bride’s shoes: ALIAS MAE 

Bridesmaids’ dresses: Keepsake the Label

Bridesmaids’ shoes: ALIAS MAE 

Groom’s and groomsmen’s attire: Country Road

DIY: Our invitations, signs, table decorations. 

Honeymoon: Byron Bay + Hawaii

Number of guests: 115

Wedding budget: $35,000

Actual cost of wedding: $39,000 

The cake was an impressive five tiers, complete with cutting cake and delicious donuts by the dozens, created by Chocolate2Chilli. 

The Music 

Walking down the aisle – Feels like Home (Matt Johnson Version)

Introduced as Mr and Mrs – Best day of my life – American Authors

First dance – Ho Hey by the Lumineers.

Advice: Bride to Bride…

“Your day is what you make it, so soak up every second of the day! Don’t stress if your run sheet doesn’t go to plan because it all works out in the end. What will be, will be!”

Photography: White Images | Venue: Noosa Waterfront Restaurant & Bar | Videography: Storyteller Films | Styling: Splash Events | Flowers: Willow Bud | Cake: Chocolate2Chilli | Makeup: Sally Townsend Makeup Artistry | Hair: Sass & Niki’s Wedding Hair | Transport: Our Family’s Barbie Boat and M.V. Catalina Noosa | Entertainment: The White Tree | Celebrant: Ann Edgar | Wedding night accommodation: The Sebel, Noosa 

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Redcliffe couple Courtney and Martin grew up living in their family homes only two minutes apart. However it was a chance meeting in the city that brought them together. Four years later they were engaged and spend 15 months planning their destination wedding in Noosa. 

They planned their wedding for a Friday, so all their 100 guests could join them to enjoy a long weekend of celebrating in the beachside location. 

Location + Style

It was all about the location and spending as much quality time as possible with their 100 guests. Most travelled to be part of their Noosa Waterfront wedding. Their wedding theme had coastal and Hamptons vibes with coconuts and macrame elements. Pretty Little Lane stamped their unique decorative style on the ceremony and reception at Noosa Waterfront Restaurant + Bar. To complement the decor and natural surroundings, the stylists used plenty of greenery and various natural textiles.

Flowers

Courtney’s bouquet was a posy with a relaxed undone feel featuring my absolute favourite – stunning white fluffy peonies! To die for! Magnolia Grove constructed an asymmetrical arrangement for the ceremony utilising dense greenery ranging from delicate fern leaves to large deep leaves. The ceremony arrangement and styling together created a distinctly tropical feel. 

Dress

The bride was stunning in a white Mori Lee & MGNY design from Brisbane bridal boutique, White Lily Couture. ‘Greta’ is a sparkly tulle ballgown finished with cascading crystal beads. The V-neck bodice is complete with sheer straps which continue onto the the low back. The beaded belt is a pretty touch, which highlighted the bride’s waist.

Photography

Mallory Sparkles Photography took some particularly stunning images of the couple and their bridal party on Noosa beach. And of course was there to capture every special moment of their Noosa Waterfront wedding from morning till night.  “I gave my bridal party Samantha wills rings, and a few other goodies. My husband got me a purse as a wedding gift, and I got him personalised cufflinks.”

“We chose to have our wedding ceremony and reception in the same place as we wanted our guests to relax and not have to go from venue to venue.”  “We had a candle lighting ceremony to remember our loved ones who have passed. We also got our immediate family to stand when asked ‘who gives who away'” “We wanted to get married in an area that guests would love, we wanted people to stay the weekend so we chose to have our wedding on a Friday. And then we also organised casual drinks and lunch the next day.” 

 “We have the same values, we can communicate openly, and we are both quite open-minded and both willing to learn new things and improve ourselves.”

 “My bridesmaids and Maid of Honour were involved in most of the planning stages, but other than that we didn’t really involve others.”

Wedding Secrets

 “Our reception catering was Italian canapés, but also rissoto and pizza.”

 “It was really special having all our family and friends in the same place for the weekend, most of all feeling the love from everyone!”

Thank you for supporting our A-list Vendors who helped make this Noosa Waterfront wedding so perfect… 

The post Courtney loves Martin | A Noosa Waterfront Wedding appeared first on The Bride's Tree.

Oh how we adore this romantic, whimsical wedding styling inspiration. The location for this styled shoot was Noosa Waterfront Restaurant & Bar, and what we find most delightful about this Noosa wedding venue is that it’s entirely possible to have a pretty garden wedding and an absolute waterfront wedding in one. 

The soft pastel florals by Buderim Floral Art perfectly complement the location and the amazing concept styling by Sunshine Coast boutique wedding styling and planning agency, Lovebird Weddings. 

It’s no secret we are big fans of Karen Buckle Photography here at The Bride’s Tree, and with these amazing images, the lovely Karen has done nothing towards changing that anytime soon. 

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The post Styled Shoot: Flowers by the Waterfront appeared first on The Bride's Tree.

Ah, this wedding is like a breath of fresh air. It’s swimming with sweetness, especially lots of involvement from family and friends. Kylie and Ryan’s wedding ceremony was held at Ryan’s grandparents’ Sunshine Coast range property. Their 70 guests then joined them for a fine dining experience at Noosa Waterfront Restaurant & Bar.

We Are Twine captured the beauty and effortless elegance of this Noosa wedding day. 

“I didn’t really have a theme in mind straight away. After doing some research (mostly with The Bride’s Tree), and working with what I had at Ryan’s grandmother’s, the theme just developed from them. I think we ended up with Modern Vintage Country (if there is such a thing).”

“One of my favourite things was that I arrived in my mums old Datsun 260z. My dad and brother had restored the car for the day, and then driven it up and back from Victoria, it was perfect arriving in mum’s first car and Ryan and I loved driving up the highway in it after the ceremony!”

“As most of the guests had travelled from Melbourne, Sydney, Europe and the US, we wanted them to be able to stay somewhere lovely and enjoy their time away from home.”

“We wanted to get married somewhere that was special to us, the whole family enjoys gathering at Ryan’s grandparents house, and it is a place with fond memories for Ryan growing up, especially with his grandfather who has passed and was greatly missed on the day.”

“I was a very relaxed bride, which was great, but I was maybe too relaxed. I left a little too much for the family to do without much instruction, to the point where, Ryan thought I wanted the signing table under the deck at the end of the isle because I had asked him to put it there when we were setting up, but I only told him to put it there because it was raining, and I just assumed everyone would know to put it beside the wedding arbour! So I think giving family some drawings of where I wanted everything would have helped a lot.”

“We keep each other grounded and in line. We both can have big ideas and strong personalities, so we are there to keep the other level headed. We also both want the same things out of life, we’re driven and want to make to most of what we can achieve together.”

“I had my best friend Rebecca as my bridesmaid. Her and her partner travelled from San Diego for the wedding, which was really special for us. Ryan’s best man was his cousin Brendan. Family is really important to Ryan and Brendan was his first ‘partner in crime’.”

“Being from Melbourne it was important for me to have excellent food at my wedding, and we definitely had that!”

Wedding Secrets

Bridal gown: The Babushka Ballerina – Modified Josephine dress – $1800

Accessories: Borrowed hair clip from my sister in law that she wore at her wedding

Shoes: Zu – $80

Bridesmaid dresses: Bridesmaid’s own

Groom’s suit and shoes: Roger David $380

Groomsmens’ suits and shoes: Groomsman’s own suit and shoes

DIY: We had a lot of DIY at our ceremony; we made the arbour from some recycled timber and we hired or bought everything else. We made our own seating plan and seating cards. I also made my own invitations.

Number of guests: 70

Wedding budget: $25,000

A-List Vendors

Reception venue: Noosa Waterfront Restaurant & Bar

Videographer: Sunshine Coast Videography 

Florist: Willow Bud

Hair Stylist: Coastal Style Mobile Hairdressing

Photographer: We Are Twine / Ceremony Caterer: The Timber Hut, Sweetness Contained / Cake: Kylie’s mum / Transport: Kylie’s mum’s Datsun 260z / Makeup Artist: Makeup 4 Brides / Rentals: Beautiful Weddings / Entertainment: Ayla Scanlon & Network DJs / Dance instruction: Ballroom Moves Sunshine Coast / Gift registry: Wishing well / Celebrant: Dave Vaughn / Wedding Night Accommodation: On the Beach, Noosa 

Take a peek through Kylie and Ryan’s full wedding album. 

The post Real Wedding: Kylie & Ryan at Noosa Waterfront appeared first on The Bride's Tree.

Emily and Jordan had an amazing time the day they became husband and wife in a Noosa wedding at the gorgeous Noosa Waterfront Restaurant & Bar. 150 of their closest family and friends, including a 45-strong contingent that flew in from Melbourne for the joyous occasion enjoyed a beautifully styled ceremony. Oh, it sure was styled up good and proper, by none other than the delightful team at Lovebird Weddings. 

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While the happy couple and the bridal party took to Hastings street in search of trees lit up with fairy lights, and just the right spot a little ways up from Noosa Main Beach, the rest of the guests stayed on at Noosa Waterfront for a special afternoon tea. This was followed up with a festive cocktail reception, where yummy mini gourmet burgers, pork belly nibbles, noodle boxes and mini gourmet pizzas were served. Delish! 

I found my getting ready for my wedding day more relaxing than I do getting ready for work sometimes. Surround yourself with people who are good problem solvers and who will take control if something goes wrong so that you don’t have to.

I hired a back up venue; it meant we could tell everyone to stop stressing about the idea of an outdoor wedding because if it does rain we will just take the indoor option. 

My grandmother was our wedding celebrant and it was her last wedding before she retired. She knew our whole story and has been part of it since we first started dating, loved us so much. She was able to take such joy in sharing it and joining us together as husband and wife.

Grandma was the celebrant, the videographer and musicians were all good friends from Melbourne, and our parents joined us up the front to pray with us during the ceremony.

We had 180 guests for the ceremony and 150 for the reception. 45 of those guests flew up from Melbourne for the wedding. 

Our Hand-picked Team That Made It All Happen

Photographer: Anya Maria Photograpy

Decorators: Lovebird Weddings

Hair Stylist:  Evalyn Parsons Hair 

Florist: Buderim Floral Art / Makeup Artist: Shima and Gloss / Entertainment: DJ Ryan Anderson / Wedding Night Accommodation: RACV Resort Noosa

The things that were most important to us were that people saw the love we share together, that we had enough food and drinks for everyone, and thanks to Noosa Waterfront, that was no problem at all!

Prior to our wedding day Jordan and I lived separately and had saved ourselves for each other. So the wedding day was super special and a day of many firsts. All our guests knew about it too so everyone was really excited for us and there was an amazing energy because of it it.

Our Wedding Secrets Revealed

Best money saver: Using friends to help us out with driving/hiring the wedding car, the filming of the wedding and serving/organising an afternoon tea for the guests after the wedding before entering the reception.

Bridal gown: Maggie Sottero – Presca

Groom’s and groomsmens’ suits and shoes: Roger David

DIY: We made wooden signs and chalk boards that directed people to the ceremony venue and had quotes and information on them, and we made all the invitations to the wedding/engagement party. We also had an Instagram hash tag which worked really well. 

Number of guests: 150

Wedding Budget: $18,000

It was raining in the morning so both mums were stressing but I had no doubt it would stop and clear in time for the wedding, plus my sister’s bridesmaid dress’ zip completely broke. I dropped the ring during the ceremony as I tried to put it on Jordan’s finger, so we had no REAL disasters at all. We were very blessed. 

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