Elisa & Josh - Cliff’s Edge at Tirtha Uluwatu, Bali

November 5, 2026

Elisa Bonomi & Joshua Lefers
Tirtha Uluwatu, Bali · 15 March 2025
Photography by Gusmank
As featured in the everAFTER Summer Issue

“From the moment we met, there was both electricity and familiarity – like recognition – not new, just remembered. Our wedding echoed that feeling: expansive, intimate, and deeply personal, set against one of the most breathtaking landscapes in the world.”

There are weddings that are beautiful – and then there are weddings that feel inevitable. Elisa and Josh’s celebration on the cliffs of Uluwatu was unquestionably the latter, a day that didn’t so much arrive as it unfolded, as though the universe had been quietly arranging the pieces all along. The two met in Melbourne at a moment when everything felt open again – expansive, full of possibility.

“When we met there was the exhilarating feeling of discovering someone wonderfully familiar,” Elisa recalls. The very next day they went on a long, unplanned date and spoke openly about the lives they wanted, the values they held, the futures they could see. It was the kind of conversation most couples arrive at years in. They had it immediately.

Elisa's gown is bustled and set in the morning light — The morning at Tirtha: Berta Bridal lace and a cream Dyonsu tuxedo

Elisa in her Berta Bridal gown — The morning at Tirtha: Berta Bridal lace and a cream Dyonsu tuxedo

Josh proposed in Ubud, at Bambu, a natural amphitheatre carved from stone, surrounded by ancient rock pools and crystals, the entire valley unfolding below. “I was completely surprised,” says Elisa, “and completely certain.”

Elisa and their son with her father before the ceremony — Before the aisle, with Elisa’s father and their son, and with her NONNA

Elisa with her mother before the ceremony — Before the aisle, with Elisa’s father and their son, and with her NONNA

Elisa with her bridesmaids before the ceremony — Silk robes, last touches and a little ring bearer in the making

A last moment with the bridesmaids before the aisle — Silk robes, last touches and a little ring bearer in the making

A Place With Soul

For their wedding, Bali was never really a question. The island’s spiritual presence – grounding, unhurried, something deeper than just beautiful – reflected something essential in both of them. And when they found Tirtha Uluwatu, perched above the Indian Ocean on Bali’s southern cliffs, they knew.

“From the moment we experienced Tirtha, it felt calm and grounding,” Elisa says. “It felt like a place where the focus could remain on the experience and the people, rather than the setting trying to speak too loudly.”

Before the celebrations began, the couple spent five days in Canggu at COMO Uma, ocean swims, long conversations, a deliberate slowing down. They chose to arrive fully before being surrounded by everyone they loved.

The ceremony set on the clifftop at Tirtha Uluwatu — The clifftop ceremony set at Tirtha Uluwatu, above the Indian Ocean

Ecuadorian roses, peonies and hydrangeas line the aisle — Ecuadorian roses, peonies and hydrangeas, and vow cards for him and her

The Ceremony

Guests arrived to an acoustic guitarist and an opera singer, the music settling over the glass chapel like something reverent. The ceremony was held on a glass platform suspended above the Indian Ocean, the palette kept to whites, ivories and soft champagne, everything restrained, everything intentional, allowing the breathtaking landscape to do what it does best.

Elisa and Josh exchange vows on the glass platform — Vows on the glass platform, with guests gathered along the cliff

Guests gather on the cliffs above the Indian Ocean — Vows on the glass platform, with guests gathered along the cliff

The glass platform suspended above the Indian Ocean — Whites, ivories and soft champagne against an endless horizon

Elisa walked down the aisle with her father, wearing a customised Berta Bridal gown, a fitted silhouette, intricate lace detailing and a sheer corseted bodice. Custom straps were added for ease, balancing structure with softness. Josh waited in a custom double-breasted cream tuxedo by Dyonsu Men’s Suits, finished with fine black piping, cream trousers and an oversized black bow tie. Timeless, yet perfectly relaxed for the setting.

The bridesmaids wore strapless black silk gowns with a thigh-high slit, each carrying a single long-stem white rose, quietly striking against the ceremony’s ivory palette.

Elisa with her bridesmaids in black silk — Black silk, crisp tuxedos and a single long-stem white rose each

Josh and his groomsmen — Black silk, crisp tuxedos and a single long-stem white rose each

They wrote their own vows. And just before they exchanged them, their son, not yet two, walked down the aisle carrying the rings. “It felt simple, honest, and deeply moving,” Elisa says. “He wasn’t just present. He was part of the ceremony itself.”

Their son, not yet two, brings the rings — The smallest guest of honour, and the most important delivery of the day

Elisa's parents in the front row at the ceremony — In the front row, Elisa’s parents and Josh’s parents

Josh's parents in the front row at the ceremony — In the front row, Elisa’s parents and Josh’s parents

Their son finds his way to the front row — Their son finds his seat, and a flower girl under her paper parasol

A flower girl under a paper parasol — Their son finds his seat, and a flower girl under her paper parasol

The first kiss on the glass platform — The first kiss on the glass, then straight into the clifftop grasses

Just married — The first kiss on the glass, then straight into the clifftop grasses

Elisa, Josh and their son look out over the ocean — Three of them, looking out over the ocean that brought them here

At the glass chapel — Three of them, looking out over the ocean that brought them here

Elisa, Josh and their son above the Indian Ocean — A family of three above the Indian Ocean, and Elisa in Berta lace

Elisa in her Berta Bridal gown and veil at Tirtha — A family of three above the Indian Ocean, and Elisa in Berta lace

The whole wedding at the glass chapel — Everyone they love, together at Tirtha’s glass chapel

The Reception

As the sun began its descent, guests spilled into the clifftop garden for cocktail hour, drinks in hand, the horizon stretching endlessly before them. Then, as evening settled warm and balmy, everyone was transported to Tirtha’s renowned Glass House, and the mood shifted beautifully.

Crystal chandeliers cast a warm glow over long tables dressed in textured ivory linens and single-stem white roses in glass vessels, white drapery moving gently in the breeze. Ceremony florals, sculptural arrangements of Ecuadorian roses, peonies and hydrangeas, were repurposed throughout the space to maintain continuity and atmosphere.

The Glass House, dressed for dinner — The Glass House: chandeliers, ivory linen and white roses in glass

Crystal chandeliers and single-stem white roses — The Glass House: chandeliers, ivory linen and white roses in glass

Dinner was abundant and unhurried, designed around what Elisa and Josh genuinely love to eat: fresh, produce-driven dishes served in a shared, generous style. A live saxophonist lifted the energy as the evening found its feet. The dance floor filled and stayed full.

Elisa and Josh share a kiss at the candlelit table — A candlelit kiss at the table, speeches and stolen glances

Speeches under the chandeliers — A candlelit kiss at the table, speeches and stolen glances

Late in the night, the celebration tipped completely. Music up, shots poured, a spontaneous conga line that evolved into a full flash-mob moment with the entire wedding dancing to ‘Ain’t No Mountain High Enough’. Late-night pizza arrived in custom-designed boxes. Nobody wanted it to end.

Napkins in the air as the night lifts — Napkins in the air, and a dip worthy of the dance floor

Josh dips Elisa for a kiss on the dance floor — Napkins in the air, and a dip worthy of the dance floor

The cake, for those wondering, was an 80-centimetre love-heart-shaped tiramisu topped with fresh berries. Indulgent, playful, and very much them.

The 80-centimetre love-heart tiramisu — The love-heart tiramisu, a second look for dancing and the garter

Elisa changes into her second look for the dance floor — The love-heart tiramisu, a second look for dancing and the garter

What Remains

“From the opening walk, to our vows, to dinner and dancing and speeches,” Josh reflects, “it was clear we were both exactly where our souls should be.”

Their first dance was ‘Can’t Help Falling in Love’. Their honeymoon: a long European summer, followed by time in Marrakech.

When asked what she knows now that she didn’t before: slow down. Stay present. Trust your instincts. And wear comfortable shoes.