Katherine & Torren

21 January 2017
The Refectory Werribee Park, Werribee South, VIC
Photography by S imon L. King

A relaxed approach

"Torren and I decided we were in no rush to get married. We gave ourselves plenty of time to enjoy the amazing feeling of being engaged and plan exactly what we wanted for our wedding day. Having a 2 year engagement meant that we had time to search for talented suppliers and, as we booked everything so far in advance, it gave us first choice of who wanted to work with. Luckily I am also a very organised person, so the planning all came down to Pinterest boards, spreadsheets, budget forecasting and documenting everything!"

Love is in the air

"Torren and I are two people who just LOVE love! Our wedding day was so special because there was so much happiness and love in the air. Our day was surprisingly relaxed and easy. Torren and I chose to do a ‘first look’ before the ceremony. It was such an incredible moment. It was just the two of us along with our photographer and videographer who captured it all. We cried, laughed and were so excited for the rest of the day."

Our ceremony

"What I loved about our ceremony was that we decided to write our own vows. We felt that such an important exchange of words should come from within. We spent so much time on them and we both cried so much because they were so beautiful!" Katherine and Torren held their ceremony on the grounds of Werribee Park and held their reception inside The Refectory. "The Refectory is the most beautiful venue. It really speaks for itself so it needed minimal styling. The gardens around Werribee Park are stunning and it was the perfect location for our summer garden wedding. We were so lucky to find the amazing team at Bursaria. It was important to us to have our wedding ceremony and reception at the same location. We felt it was much easier for guests and ourselves to stay in one place for the whole day."

Gowns, suits & blooms

Katherine wore a high neck, Suzanne Harward gown made from Swiss Guipure lace and a cathedral length veil also from Suzanne Harward. "My gown was just stunning! I never really had any specific ideas about what I wanted my dress to look like, I just knew it needed to be unique. I searched for 8 months before I finally found the Suzanne Harward gown. It is the most beautiful thing I own!"

Torren wore a navy tux with black lapels from Joe Black. "We chose navy instead of black because we felt it was young and modern. Torren also wore a white shirt with gold and black detailed buttons and a hand tied bow tie paired with black patent leather shoes."

Katherine's bridesmaids wore burgundy gowns by Shona Joy. "I felt that the dresses really popped against the green backdrop of Werribee Park gardens. The dresses suited all the bridesmaids and they wore nude coloured heels. I thought it was important for the girls to be comfortable on the day in a heel height that they could easily walk in."

"I’m really not a ‘flower person’ and don’t have much of a clue about flower types, I wouldn’t even be able to tell you what type of flowers were in our bouquets and table centrepieces but all I know is I loved what our florist did! As it was a summer wedding we wanted everything to be bright, colourful and fun. We chose a colour palette or burgundy, deep reds, pink, white and navy."

Cut the cake

"I wasn't fussy about our wedding cake. I sent our supplier Bella Sweets some images of the styles I liked and she took the lead creating a beautiful, single tier drip cake. It was decorated with macarons and fresh flowers matching our colour scheme. Torren and I were so busy dancing all night we forgot to have a slice! Luckily we saved a big piece and it's in our freezer ready to eat on our first anniversary!"

Bride's advice

"What I know now that I didn’t know before our wedding is just how amazing the day really is. It was the best day of our lives so far! It was very surreal and so meaningful that we had the chance to declare our love to each other in front of all our family and friends. It still feels strange saying, 'This is my husband' but it’s a great feeling!"

"When you first get engaged you picture your wedding in your head, create inspiration boards and dream and think about what the day will be like. I can guarantee you, your wedding will be nothing like you first thought! Our vision completely changed over the two years because our style and tastes changed as we matured. Don’t book the first supplier you see. Give yourselves time to look around and choose things that represent you as a couple. We never had a particular style in mind, we just went with what we loved. Enjoy the process. It can be really overwhelming at times but it will be the best day of your life!"

Let's dance

"I have Greek heritage so we decided we wanted to pay hommage to my Greek culture and what better way than Greek dancing! We spent part of the night dancing to traditional Greek songs from the region my father is from. The dancing was definitely a highlight and every single guest got up and joined in even though they didn’t know the steps!"