r/AusWeddingPlanning

Ahead of my dress fitting, I’m curious if the shoes I wear with my wedding dress matter if there’s no way to see them.

I have issues with my knee and think any form of heel will be painful, and my dress will make it impossible to see what I’m wearing.

So I’d like to make sure when I have my dress fitted, it works well for the shoe I plan to wear, but I guess I wanted to see if there’s any rationale for opting for heels, other than the conventional expectation

After being engaged for a hot minute and going to a few weddings, we've decided to elope as planning an engagement party was enough for me 😮‍💨

I'm torn on whether to go to the registry office to sign papers then go to Taronga/wild life park/aquarium for pictures or simply just get a celebrant to be married at one of those places (or nearby) instead.

Cost is a tiny factor but overall, would prefer low stress and just enjoy ourselves.

My partner and I are getting married next year and looking for an officiant (or celebrant?) for an entirely secular wedding.

Does anyone have any recommendations for someone who can keep it secular and let the couple have a lot of input into the vows/ceremony?

Has anyone any recommendations for an online wishing well? We have a lot of guests from Europe that want to leave a gift in lieu of not attending.

Does anyone have any recommendations for where to buy a budget friendly wedding in or around the perth area? Id really like to spend under $1000 for a dress if possible.

Thank you all in advance 🫶🏻

My partner and I have been engaged for 3ish years. We had kids first and already own a home and are now thinking about what kind of wedding we want. EVERYONE we know that has planned or is planning a wedding has told us to elope and we are struggling to make a decision.

Our initial plan was always a reception only at a community hall with around 100 guests. So lots for us to organise but lowkey. We are not traditional at all and I wouldn’t wear a wedding dress- instead an outfit that I can wear again. (Sounds so daggy but dw it will be styled!)

But we have recently been thinking we just go to the registry office and then have dinner in a private dining room at a restaurant with immediate family (15 people).

I’m scared I’m going to either hate being the centre of attention or regret not having a party with extended family and friends. We also don’t have any financial support from parents so this is all on us. Was anyone scared about either of these two things and was happy with their choice- or do you wish you did something else? We have no pressure from parents/grandparents to actually have a wedding.

Hi all,

Yes I have asked my photographer this, but just wanted to run it a few more people because I have wedding brain decision fatigue. Please be kind, I've not done this before!

Our ceremony is at 4:00pm on a day next month, ie August, in Sydney. In an ideal world we would have done it at 3:00 but for various reasons didn't and it's too late to change it now (probably). Additional info if it helps: Ceremony and reception are at the same place, and the ceremony itself is short and sweet, no readings, simple vows.

In an ideal world we would have not seen each other until the ceremony, but that would mean the schedule was 4:00 ceremony, 4:30 photos, 5:30 reception. I have been warned that things can often run late, and kept stressing out at the idea that we'd only get around to photos at 4:45 and would have to rush before "golden hour" turned into "yeah it's too dark for photos".

So the proposed schedule now is 3:00 couple photos, 4:00 ceremony, 4:30-5:30 get the family photos in and maybe some nice bonus sunset ones if we have time. Is this the smarter option?

If we were keen on a first look from the start it would have been a no-brainer, but we've actually both surprised ourselves with how much store we've put into traditions eg not seeing each other until the ceremony. Traditions are nice, but every time I think about doing it that way, I imagine myself walking down the aisle with the thought at the top of my mind being "Fuck it's getting dark already shit shit shit" instead of "Yay :) We're getting married yay :)"

Could any photogs or winter evening weddeds etc put me out of my misery and tell me that either 3pm pre-ceremony couple photos are for sure the practical option, tradition be damned, OR that I'm overthinking it and a 4pm ceremony gives us plenty of time?

Thank you sorry this was so long, I am an overthinker who hates event planning which means my brains are scrambled eggs rn.

Hi all, we’re looking to have our ceremony at the Tarpeian Lawn in the Royal Botanical Gardens next August, but need some advice on how the wedding party will arrive.

We were advised that they will only provide access to vendors via the road that leads to the lawn itself and that the bridal party and guests will need to arrive on foot. That’s all well and good for the majority of our guests, however, I (the bride) obviously don’t want to trek it down from the main entrance through the gardens and be seen by guests before the actual ceremony.

Does anyone have any advice on how to navigate the arrival?

Thanks in advance!!

Hi All,

I'm getting married in April next year and am looking to book in a photographer and videographer.

I've been researching but feeling overwhelmed with the choices, so I'm after some recommendations.

Wondering if anyone has any feedback on https://www.luminaryweddings.com/.

Other recommendations also welcome ☺️

Has anyone ordered their wedding dress from China (aliexpress, taobao etc)? How was your experience?

I know this may ruffle some feathers but all the dresses I like have been quoted at $8,000 - $30,000 and I can’t afford that. A Chinese colleague suggested to just get a custom made dress from China. I am open to this idea, just looking for experiences and recommendations!!

Hey everyone!

Did anyone in Sydney find it particularly difficult to hear back from florists? Every other vendor, from hair and makeup to venues and photographers etc have been so quick, but trying to organise a florist has been a nightmare. I don’t even want anything that complicated, but I’m assuming my numbers are holding me up here (30 person lunch wedding).

Am I going crazy or is this a known phenomenon? Anyone have any florists you loved speaking with for a CBD wedding?!

ETA: I have a huge budget for florals equivalent to a normal size wedding as well!

I keep seeing multiple Facebook ads for online wedding planners (wedding sage etc).

They have an excel component for budgets, but also sections for absolutely everything else (guest list, table settings, dress info, vendor info etc).

I like the idea of these, as i am very organised and like everything in one place, and was just wondering if anyone has used any or can recommend any?

I would like to be able to use it on my iPad.

My Fiancé and I have just gotten engaged recently, so I am on the lookout for wedding venues (mainly for reception only, we will have a ceremony elsewhere). Our budget is probably between 20k-30k for the entire wedding, for around 90 guests.

We are ideally looking for somewhere down the NSW south coast (Wollongong - Kiama area), and the Southern Highlands. I have done research on a few places already, but wanted to see if there is anyone who has gotten married in these areas, and can offer some advice/recommendations?

I am also open to hearing about venues that are not in these areas, but aren't too far from Sydney (Max would be an hour and a half away).

I was particularly interested in Panorama House in Bulli Tops, but from what I've seen/heard, it seems like they expect the Bride and Groom to clean up after the reception (and they also seem very strict with timing etc, maybe not very flexible? If someone here has had experience with them, I'd love to hear).

"I am writing this review to share our deeply disappointing experience with Adrian Wise Adrian J Wise Designs for my daughter's wedding. Despite being given a full year's notice, the design and construction process were heavily delayed, resulting in complaints from the designer about running out of time.
Ultimately, the bridesmaids' dresses were left unfinished. On the wedding day, the designer departed before assisting the bride into her gown, and the dress fit poorly for photography. Most concerning was the mother-of-the-bride dress; despite being provided with a reference photo, the final garment was nothing like the requested design and lacked the required structural skills. Consequently, we had to source an emergency replacement just 48 hours before the wedding.
Due to the unreliability, lack of communication, and unprofessionalism we experienced, I would strongly advise future brides to look elsewhere for their bridal party attire."

What website is everyone using?

I would like one to track the RSVPs, and that also gives guests information for the day (Timeline, dress code etc).

I see a lot of recommendations for American websites but are not sure if they would work fully in Australia.

I’m doing BYO at a venue for about 60 drinking guests. I’ve seen other posts about estimating quantities, I think I’ll never get it spot on- but wondering if there were any surprises those that have had their weddings experienced as far as alcohol consumption was concerned?
For context 40% British and 40% Portuguese guests - I understand the latter means more red than white wine consumption so planning for that.
Planning on wines, beers and a couple of spirits. Thanks!

I’m excited to be having an elopement wedding in Melbourne on 24/12 - we’re coming from across the ditch so no local knowledge, looking to do this very lowkey, low stress and on a budget, so I’m gratefully hoping for a couple of recommendations, especially given it’ll be Xmas Eve and we have no idea what will be open!

- can anyone recommend a photographer who’d likely be available in Melbourne CBD and willing to shoot for just an hour or so late morning? We are both pretty shy people, so we’d just like a few nice photos during the 15 minute ceremony and then maybe a few more outdoors afterwards , but that’s really all we’d be looking for, and all the photographers I’ve found so far tend to have prices only for full-day weddings

- are there likely to be any hair salons/blow dry bars with MUAs open that morning? I’d love to get my hair styled curly/wavy, and maybe someone who knows what they’re doing to pop some basic makeup on me :)

- we apparently need two witnesses - are we likely to be able to grab a couple of passers by or do we need to organise in advance? And if so, is anyone free late morning on December 24 in the CBD lol

Thank you for any advice/recs, from a clueless kiwi bride-to-be!!

I’m having my wedding later this year. We are having professional photography but we don’t have the budget to spend on videography.

We want the ceremony recorded, and then short videos of key moments like speeches, cake cutting etc.

I’m not sure if I’m better off getting one decent camcorder, a mirrorless camera that has video recording (cause maybe I can use this in the future more often), or just use my iPhone 14 Pro?

I plan on buying a Bluetooth mic to capture the audio at the ceremony as well!