Courtney and Shane's Palm Beach Wedding

30 June

Written By Prea James

-07.03.2023-

Courtney wears the Tyler Bodice and Eden Skirt

Captured by Hayley Rafton

TELL US ABOUT YOUR SPECIAL DAY…

Our reception was held at Dunes Restaurant in Palm Beach. We actually chose this venue first! We had 3 criteria for picking our dream venue:

1) Vacay vibes.

2) Good food and wine.

3) A special energy that complimented our intimate wedding.

Dunes is an absolute DREAM venue that ticked all of these boxes!

We had our ceremony at McKay reserve in Palm Beach. We were on the hunt for a nearby ceremony spot, as we didn’t want our guests to have to travel too far in between. As soon as we walked into the reserve, we both got tingles and just knew! We love spending time together hiking and being in the outdoors, so the big trees and natural scenery was just perfect!

We didn’t have a particular theme, we just wanted it to feel like we were on holidays. Because let’s face it, that’s when we are at our happiest! We aimed for a minimalist/coastal vibe that matched our venues, so it all flowed together nicely. Our biggest thing was that we had our day the way we wanted it, not how others thought we should. For instance, we are not huge cake eaters, so instead we had a champagne tower! Our wedding just consisted of all of our favourite things.

Our wedding was held on our 5-year anniversary, so the day was an extra celebration for us. We kept our wedding intimate, around 55 people. Just our closest friends and immediate families, there was so much love and warmth having all of our favourite people together.

A lot of our wedding was also done by us. All of the stationary, signage and styling was created by me and my closest girlfriends. Bride tip: this is a great excuse for a bottle of wine and girls’ night It helped us save some money toward the bigger things and it also gave our wedding a real personal touch.

what is your proposal story?

We go on a hike every Christmas eve, as it is a kind of special day for us. In 2021, I was eager to do one of our favourites in Stanwell Tops. On our drive down there, Shane faked a knee injury and said, “babe I don’t think I can do the walk!”, and instead, he suggested an easier walk near Seacliff Bridge. This is actually the first walk we ever did together on our first Valentine’s Day. So, we did the walk up to our spot at the top of the cliff and Shane set up his drone. He flew it out and gave me his phone as the remote so I could have a go. With the camera pointing back at us, I could see Shane bend down on one knee. I thought he was tying his shoe... then I realised he was proposing!

WHY DID YOU CHOOSE THE Tyler Bodice and Eden skirt?

I loved the minimalist style of the Tyler, yet still had a bit of a modern twist with the cut outs. The fabric was just so dreamy and made me feel like I was glowing! I also loved how it was a two piece. This took a lot of the weight off my shoulder straps, as my waist held all of the weight from the skirt. I was also then able to switch into a cute silk mini skirt to dance the night away at the reception.

WHERE DID YOU PURCHASE YOUR PREA JAMES LOOK?

Paddington store in Sydney. Maddie looked after me and was so lovely!

“I loved the minimalist style of the Tyler, yet still had a bit of a modern twist with the cut outs. The fabric was just so dreamy and made me feel like I was glowing!”

WHAT ADVICE DO YOU HAVE FOR BRIDES TO BE?

The best advice that we got, was to do it your way. Don’t worry about what others think you should do or try to make others happy before yourself. Just make your day is unique and special to you and your partner and everyone you love will get to share that with you too!

We found that sorting out the important aspects to splurge on, and the ones that we could save on, really helped to stick to our budget. On the day, all the little things you were stressing over having perfect you won’t even notice!

Also, be selective where you choose to get ready. Make sure it is somewhere that is comfortable and has a really positive energy for you, it sets the whole vibe of the day! We stayed in the Amalfi Villa with Palm Beach Holiday Rentals and it was an absolute dream.