Is this Real?!
Samantha & Matthew Wilson
16 . 09 . 2022
When remembering their big days, many brides recall not feeling like it was THE day until something hit them in a special moment. For some brides, that moment is putting on their wedding gown; for other brides, it’s having their father shed a tear en route to their ceremony.
For our beautiful bride Samantha, that moment came when she saw her hubby-to-be, Matt, at the end of the aisle. She recalled feeling very casual and relaxed all morning and said she was waiting for the “oh em gee, this is real” feeling to hit her. Walking straight towards the love of her life to promise forever was her first stand-out moment of the day - her “this is real” moment!
Image Credit: Meka Weddings
Her second was sitting at the bridal table at their reception, taking a moment to scan the room and being so thrilled that, with all the ups and downs of planning and the setbacks COVID-19 could have served, the happy couple were with all their family and friends, watching them all have a fantastic time and celebrate their love.
Buuuut, let’s rewind, shall we? A glorious wedding day always starts with meeting “the one” and, for Samantha and Matt, that happened at The Ivy in Sydney, way back in November 2014. She says they hit it off right from the very beginning and, because Matt actually went to school with her older sister, there was a nice sense of familiarity there already. When it came to their first date, Samantha’s sister reassured her Matt was an A-grade guy by saying if she could handpick any of the boys from her grade for her little sister, it would be him. Well, it looks like big sisters know a thing or two, with the two lovebirds getting engaged seven years later and tying the knot in September 2022.
Image Credit: Meka Weddings
When planning their wedding day, Samantha’s vision was classic and elegant and she stuck to the mantra “less is more”. Luckily for Samantha, Curzon Hall was the perfect fit for her classic, vintage, romantic vibe and fulfilled her one key must-have for the night - good food, and lots of it! She said food was so important to them because, coming from Italian and Spanish backgrounds, food was so embedded in their culture. The newlyweds wanted their guests to “go home with full bellies…and Curzon Hall delivered, it was hands-down the best wedding food I’ve ever had”.
While Samantha says all the vendors they worked with to bring their day to life were incredible, there was one special highlight - entertainment group, The Black Ties. Samantha said it was a goal of theirs to have guests walk away after their event with the lasting memories of something they hadn’t seen or experienced before. So, she surprised guests (even her sister, who was her maid of honour!) with magicians and mentalists, who sprinkled a little magic at all guest tables and performed an interactive show. Samantha said the entertainment became the topic of conversation for the whole night and helped guests, as well as Samantha and Matt, remember their day as magic.
Image Credit: Meka Weddings
Some snippets from our Bride Samantha, -
Who was your favourite vendor to work with?
The Black Ties (entertainment)How would you describe your wedding day?
Calm, magical.How many wedding dresses did you try before you found ‘the one’?
Five - I loved the top half of the first dress and the bottom half of the third dress, so Brides In Love offered to custom-make the dress based on my references.Did you incorporate any cultural wedding traditions into your day?
Our traditional church wedding and Italian and Spanish music played at the receptionDid you deal with any disasters on the day?
I had oil from the car engine leak on the driveway and stain my dress before even leaving home. I was calm about it all and asked my parents to take a pin out of each floral bouquet and pin a pleat to cover it up closer to the church!
Image Credit: Meka Weddings
Image Credit: Meka Weddings
Our bride and groom chose to have their very own custom illustration created after Samantha said she had been following Adrienne on Instagram for years, just waiting for her opportunity - “I have seen my friends with her artworks hanging in their homes and have always been mesmerised”.
Samantha selected a few of her favourite wedding photos and sent them across to Adrienne, allowing her to take the lead when deciding what would look best in the illustration - “I trusted her guidance and expertise [to] capture my vision”. And while the illustration itself is pure magic, thanks to its stunning subjects, Samantha’s review is our very own “oh em gee” moment -
“Adrienne made the entire process feel so seamless. I am blown away by her attention to detail and how beautifully she captured this in art. Something truly unique that I knew I could never find anywhere else, and I wouldn’t want to!”
Custom Wedding Painting by Adrienne Monteverde
Custom Wedding Painting by Adrienne Monteverde
A Note From The Artist:
Samantha reached out in 2021 during her wedding planning process after discovering my work via Wedded Wonderland. She was eager to pre-book her artwork for her wedding in late 2022. But, as we had a bit of time until her big day arrived, we signed her up to our ‘Wedding Registry’ service, so we could get in touch with her when it was the best time to place an order.
Once it was finally time to work on Samantha and Matt’s order in 2023, they provided so many incredible options that it was impossible to choose just one. However, Samantha communicated she wanted to the ensure the length and volume of her beautiful gown by elysianbridal was a feature of the piece. This direction made choosing the final reference image easier and I have to say this quickly became one of my favourite commissions of the year!
A tip for my artists reading this - don’t be afraid to remove or alter aspects of a reference photo to ensure you are creating the best final product possible (with approval from the couple of course). For example, in the original wedding photo the Bride has her left hand placed on the groom’s shoulder, an element that did not make it’s way into the final artwork. Whilst this was a compromise as it meant not featuring the bride’s engagement ring, the hand felt like a distraction and interfered with the flow between the bride and groom’s gaze.
Don’t be afraid to chat to your clients about these modifications and trust your gut as an artist!
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Vendors:
Photographer: Meka Weddings | Stylist: By Navarra | Gown Designer: Elysian Bridal + Brides in love | Suit Designer: Politix Menswear | Rings: Jacque Fine Jewellery | Florist: Say it with roses | Hair: Dodie Jay Hair | Make-up: Maria Efthy Makeup | Celebrant: Glenn Millanta | Cake Designer: Sweet Treats Cakery | Venue: By Navarra | Stationary Designer: The Luxx Co + Custom Collective | MC: Phillip Franc
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