No two bridal journeys are the same, and that's exactly how it should be. ✨ While many brides bring family and friends along to their appointments, others choose to trust their own instincts and make the experience a more personal one. This bride arrived on her own, focused on finding a gown that felt right for her, rather than following expectations or trends. It's a lovely reminder that what suits one bride may not suit another, and that staying true to yourself is often the best way to find the dress you'll never want to take off. 💕
Let's hear all about it...
Tara, firstly tell us about your dress?
My Dress was the Ivory Grazia from Pearls and Lace.
I had gone to other local bridal shops with a different idea in my head and knew after trying on a few dresses what I thought I initially wanted, didn’t suit my body shape at all.
I had the Grazia dress saved in my camera roll for a while. I knew I wanted a dress with sleeves and not a busy design. I had asked ahead of my visit to Pearls and Lace back in November 2024 if I could try this on that day.
The square neck, bone structure around the waist and shoulder pads sold it for me. Straight away I could Invision myself on my wedding day walking up the isle and I knew it was the one. I had gone by myself to this appointment as it was last minute and went with my gut instinct on this, Catherina and the staff in Pearls and Lace were incredible and made me feel so comfortable and welcoming as soon as I stepped in the door.
As the dress was quite fitted, I looked through the right underwear options, we found the perfect pair. This also helped me feel confident on the day.
How did you style your dress?
I love a vintage wedding, so I used this as my template when looking through Pinterest/Instagram and magazines. I knew I wanted old Hollywood waves for my hair, so I let the hair do the talking, I got tape extensions in prior to help with the volume. From here I then opted for an ivory cathedral length veil with a small lace detail at the end.
For accessories I went with classic earrings , my tiffany bracelet, my mothers Rolex watch that was handed down to me. This was very special as it was my something old.
My flowers were a white roses, baby’s breath and green eucalyptus theme. These were bought from my local florist Willow and Wisp. We used a small bit of my wedding dress cut offs to tie my bouquet together. My something Blue was my Pearls and Lace pin attached to the bouquet. My sister had lent me her chain bracelet in which I wrapped around my bouquet pin, this was my something borrowed.
Tell us about your bridal party?
My Maid of honour and two bridesmaids were styled in black satin floor length gowns, a high neck dress with an open back. The three girls had a French twist, burgundy heels and wore the Pearls and Lace earrings.
The Groom, his groomsmen and the two fathers all wore matching three-piece tuxes from McKenna Man.
What would your advice be for other brides to be?
Have a delegated person doing specific jobs for the big day, my maid of honour was fantastic for time management on the hens and wedding day, helping fluff the veil and dress when photo opportunities were needed. My bridesmaids helped with my makeup/perfume touch ups, disposable camera duties, even down to the perfect playlist the morning off. My brother was great for rounding up the necessary family members in drinks reception for family photos. All these little things helped make my day easier.
I would say plan as much as you can, my partner and I would take time out most nights a week and talk finance, guests, suppliers etc. The wedding prep can be overwhelming so planning like a project (excel, sticky notes, budgets, joining calendars) and breaking into jobs, splitting up work helped feel less stressful.
My husband and I had very little to no alcohol on the day, it was brilliant as we remember the day so vividly and conversations with everyone. It also helped being fresh for the day two, by day three we were running off adrenal in the airport to our honeymoon, hahaha !!
Vinted!! Its brilliant for getting a good bargain on hen outfits, wedding day décor, honeymoon outfits. The cost of a wedding can be expensive, so getting a deal is always a win. I also found it helpful when selling some items I didn’t need anymore.
What was your most memorable moment of your special day?
Wow, there was so many special moments from an incredible day. I loved turning the corner of the isle with my dad and seeing my husband Dylans reaction. In a moment were everyone was looking at me; I felt a very special connection with just us.
The few minutes with my dad in the vintage wedding car was special, I am the first of the siblings to get married and could feel how proud he was of me. I felt like I was in a 90s romcom in the big white dress and bouquet on my lap.
The band Spring Breakers had everyone on their feet, dancing and singing. They had dressed up in 80s attire and brought the fun vibes. I’ve never seen a bigger conga line in my life. Everyone was talking about them for weeks!
