Dallas Bride – Michelle & Julian

August 17, 2021

Dallas Bride – Michelle & Julian

Michelle and Julian were wed under the vines of Black Barn Vineyard, New Zealand, during the bride’s favourite time of the year; Autumn. The weather remained neutral and every other aspect and colour reflected that of a rustic and bohemian aesthetic.

The couple originally met at a party and a few years later, when Michelle landed a new job, it just so happened to be at the same company that Julian worked at. They became great friends and started their office romance five years later. One quiet evening, Julian surprised Michelle by popping the question while sharing a bottle of wine in the comfort of their home,

“It was completely unexpected and of course I said yes!” said Michelle.

COUPLE’S NAMES

Julian & Michelle

WEDDING DATE

8 May 2021

GUEST TOTAL

MARRIAGE TO US MEANS

We feel marriage seals the bond of our relationship and is a reflection of the complete love and respect we feel for each other. It represents commitment as one now and into our future together.

WEDDING DAY SCENT

Chanel No5

WEDDING DAY ACCESSORIES

Bo & Luca BEAU earrings and ROSALIE crown.

PHOTOGRAPHY

Meredith Lord Photography. Meredith came highly recommended to us. I took one look at her portfolio and knew instantly she was who we would have as our photographer. Her style capturing the best light, settings, mood and all the emotions of our day was just amazing. Meredith made us all feel at ease through every minute of our day and we had loads of laughs which was important to us.

FINDING YOUR DREAM WEDDING GOWN

Michelle said that she knew from day one that she wanted to wear a Bo & Luca wedding dress as her and our Founder and Creative Director, Shannon Pittman, have been close friends since school, “So I have followed and been a mad fan of Bo & Luca forever. Shannon’s dress designs are just so elegant and timeless.”

The bride chose our DALLAS gown for her wedding day and said,

“I loved all Bo & Luca dresses so it was a hard decision but the DALLAS gown was the one. It suited my figure the best and made me feel so comfortable and happy. I felt special, and it was very sentimental to me to be wearing Bo & Luca on my big day.”

BRIDESMAIDS DRESSES

Celine Dresses from Baltic Born.

I had a vision of my bridesmaids in rust coloured dresses with sleeves to pop amongst the autumn backdrop. I went on the hunt for this and found the perfect dresses from Baltic Born to suit and to complement my wedding dress.

WEDDING RINGS

Julian and I picked our wedding rings together which was a very special moment. I fell in love with a stunning princess cut diamond and diamond bands from Walker & Hall Jewellery.

HAIR & MAKEUP

My close friend and amazing makeup artist, Kristy, did my makeup from Kristy Leigh Makeup Artistry. My two daughters were part of my bridal party and Kristy did amazing makeup on both of them whilst making each feel so comfortable, especially my youngest daughter who didn’t really wear makeup at all.

Rochelle from White Fox Bridal came recommended to me for our hair stylist. I asked my bridesmaids to pick their own style that they felt most comfortable with and Rochelle worked her amazing magic on the day, discussing and creating their preferred styles. They all looked just gorgeous!

FAVOURS

No favours.

FLOWERS & BOUQUETS

I was very lucky to have one of Hawkes Bay’s most sought after florists, Magdalen Hill Florist, to do all the wedding flowers. I just loved dried flowers!

The flowers for me were everything and I wanted them to be one of the main stand out features on our day. Toni certainly delivered this- wow is what I felt when I first saw them on the day.

The arrangements were everything I had wanted and complemented every other aspect perfectly. Just stunning!

WEDDING CAKE

Jacinda from Pretty Little Details designed and made the most delicious cake. We had a mix of all our favourite flavours being chocolate and caramel, raspberry cheesecake, and banana. It had the most beautiful textured raw edge finish and connected perfectly with our wedding style. Florals were added by Magdalen Hill Florals as well.

FOOD & DRINKS

Our venue, Black Barn Vineyard, served the most delicious plated menu. We had so many compliments on the food. And of course, we had Black Barn Wine. They have an amazing selection of wines and most of these were available to all our guests. Our favourite being their Pinot Gris.

SPECIAL WEDDING SONGS

I walked down the aisle to Pearl Jams ‘Just Breathe’, but we had it stripped back to a slow version and played live by guitarist, Carl Webley.

Our first dance was very special to me as it was played by my very talented brother and pianist, Shaun Preston. He played the song ‘500 miles’ for us- also in a slowed down acoustic ballad version of the original.

CEREMONY & RECEPTION DECOR

Our ceremony was held under the vines in a courtyard style area on the venue grounds. A lot of planning and time went into the reception decor from my Wedding Planners Kate and Suzanne, from Miss FrouFrou. The detail they put into piecing everything together to match with the flowers, colours and background! I am so grateful. We also had crystal glassware, paired with gold cutlery and loads of candles for that romantic feel.

HONEYMOON

Our honeymoon was very relaxed and spent just out of Queenstown in New Zealand at a lodge called Minaret Statio. What a beautiful slice of paradise it was.

SOURCES OF INSPIRATION

I have my wedding planner to thank for all that made our wedding day. Kate was by my side every step of the way. She had so much attention to detail and her calmness made the whole process of planning easy, the day ran perfectly.

MOST TREASURED MOMENT OF MY WEDDING DAY

This was when Julian and I escaped to walk the trek up to the top of Te Mata Peak for some special photos. We had a few laughs doing this as it was like a goat track part of the way up and I was in my Jimmy Choo stilettos, holding my dress up.

It was cold so I borrowed the photographer’s leather jacket- gosh it was a laugh.

It was well worth it, the views from that peak and the photos were just magical.

ADVICE FOR BRIDES-TO-BE

Trust your vendor to do what they do best on the day. And more importantly, remember to just enjoy your day. Make sure you take many moments to slow down and enjoy it. Make it everything you dreamed it would be and don’t worry about small things that may not be exactly how you wanted them or of any minor problems that may arise. The day is about you and your husband getting married and that’s all that matters.