Tuesday 28 August 2012

My 'Classic-Moroccan' Wedding

I can't believe we just celebrated our first wedding anniversary! Looking back on these photos one year on - I love the colourful Moroccan styling that made the day so vibrant and happy. We also had classic elements throughout so it wasn't too 'themed' and gave the day an overall fun yet timeless look. I'm excited to share our photos and hope to inspire others to break out of the 'white wedding' box!

Hope you enjoy, Kimmy




The rose petals made beautiful confetti and looked great in photos. We had bowls of white paper umbrellas so our guests could shield themselves from the sun. The paper umbrellas were just cheap off eBay!


Our wedding venue was the beautiful African-inspired Elandra Resort in Mission Beach which lent itself to our wedding-style perfectly. And it was great that all our guests could feel like they were on holiday with us!


The table centrepieces consisted of silver Moroccan lanterns, colourful flowers, different size vases and loads of candles. The round mirror bounced all the colour and light up at night which looked so beautiful.


I designed the name place cards and menu along with all the wedding stationery in lilac, soft pink, cream and grey. I also designed a photo collage that was a tribute to the five years Nick and I had spent together!


The reception was held in a marquee on the deck of the resort - overlooking the pool, ocean and Dunk Island. It was a VERY windy afternoon and luckily we could close the sides of the marquee so our decorations (and guests!) didn't blow away!


The bridal table and cake table had these beautiful tablecloths that injected colour into the wedding and made it a little more special. The tablecloths were about $20ea off eBay! The silver frames I sourced and gave to our wedding decorator to arrange on the table with the centrepieces.


Our cake was classic but sat upon an intricate silver plate that went with the theme. It was half chocolate mud cake (which was served with berry coulis) and half date cake (which was served with caramel sauce) and it was absolutely delicious! 
The wedding photo of my beloved grandmother and late grandfather sat next to our cake.


Something Old: My Great-Grandmother's earrings (Maltese Crosses), my Grandfather's wedding band and my Great-Great-Grandmother's wedding band (which is 150 years old!) were stitched to my bouquet.
Something New: My Dress
Something Borrowed: I wore my mother's engagement ring on my right hand.
Something Blue: Also stitched to my bouquet my mother-in-law's sapphire ring.


The resort was so lush and tropical - an incredible bounce-back after it was hit by devastating category five Cyclone Yasi only five months earlier. We were very lucky we didn't have to change venues.



Rich colours, patterns and textures around the resort made for beautiful photos.


I had four bridesmaids - Lucie was seven months pregnant and Heidi had just had her first baby one month earlier! For this reason I went with these empire-waist flowy dresses that looked lovely with bellies or not. We were lucky that they could all be there considering the timing! 
Lucie had a beautiful baby girl Bella and Heidi had a gorgeous boy Rico who celebrated their first birthdays this year.


We had a few classic-style photos done with Nick wearing his late Grandfather's hat and me wearing a faux fur stole and sister's lace gloves.


The marquee looked amazing lit up at night with all the lights, candles and colour.


Giant silver Moroccan pendants hung in the middle of the marquee.


I had fun with the stationery on the tables!



We took some dance lessons and had our first dance to 'Real Love' covered by Regina Spektor (originally by John Lennon). We had a fantastic funk band that had everyone dancing the night away. Fun, fun, fun!

What an amazing day. Looking back on these photos makes me smile - I'm still so in love with him - my beautiful, sweet, funny husband.

Special thank you to our photographers Janelle Struss of Moments in Life Photography and Andrew Rankin Photography.

(PS: We were very lucky to spend our first wedding anniversary at the ancient Machu Pichu site in Peru - you must check out the photos if you haven't already!)

Tuesday 21 August 2012

What I see: New York, New York

New York was beyond my wildest dreams - so much art, fashion, things to do and sites to see - it was a playground for all the senses. We were lucky to stay 11 nights with friends in Brooklyn and spent our time exploring this amazing city - I could live here in a heartbeat!

I still can't believe how beautiful it was. I. Must. Return.







I was in love with the stoops! To me, it was so "New York"


My favourite building - the Chrysler

View from the top of the Rockerfella building

Next to the Boat House in Central Park


The New York City Library was one of the highlights

I loved the hairstyles in Harlem!






Me and my friend Jessie in Central Park - I had just landed a few hours earlier! SO excited to see her and finally be in this big beautiful city.






The September 11 Memorial was very touching. Two giant water features traced the footprints of where the two towers once stood.
One of the highlights of New York for me was seeing this Frida Kahlo painting at the MOMA. It was my first time seeing a Frida! I love her.


Van Gogh self portrait at the Metropolitan Museum of Art - it was amazing seeing the brush strokes up close. We spent five hours at The Met and I could have easily spent another day there!

Weeping Woman by Picasso - also at The Met

It was amazing to see Andy Warhol originals - this one of Jackie O was at The Met