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love.

“Planning a wedding from afar felt a little daunting at first,” they said. individually dreamed about, (same-sex marriage hadn’t become legal
“But when we found our celebrant Anna Soltwedel online, her radiant until 2017), but being able to share quality time with twenty of our
smile stopped us both in our tracks. You could feel her warmth and beautiful family and lifelong friends on The Lagoon terrace enjoying
beauty protruding from the page. She put so much time and energy dinner and some speeches will be forever locked in our memories.”
into handcrafting a very personal ceremony, encouraging and guiding After 10pm the party moved into the cocktail lounge to sample some
us at every step. An absolute highlight was writing our own vows
too. It was a magical moment, standing there together as we entered of their favourite cocktails and of course some dancing, including
the next chapter as wives.” The girls reminisce, “There wasn’t a dry two fabulously choreographed dances that Alex’s friends surprised
eye in Little Cove that day!” them with!
“We LOVED having an afterparty after the reception, the vibe was
“A few days before the wedding we enjoyed a meeting we will always
remember too,” said Em. “A nearby woman, Fran, overheard us all relaxed and it was definitely fun. It meant we got to enjoy our perfect
discussing our upcoming wedding plans with Anna in the Cove. She day for just that little bit longer too,” the couple said.
shared with us that she had never had the opportunity to marry her “The following days after the wedding we explored and enjoyed
life partner - she had sadly passed before the laws had changed, activities with our guests around the region. A relaxing river cruise
allowing same sex marriage. This touching story was so bittersweet. aboard the Lady Douglas River Cruise, followed by some yummy
Such a personal insight, yet genuinely excited for us and our wedding. Thai food at Star of Siam. The next day, we took a dreamtime walk
We will always cherish this impromptu and intimate moment. Thank at Mossman Gorge (and definite highlight for all our family), followed
you Fran!” by more croc spotting with the Daintree River Cruise Centre, all so
exciting!
Next, to capture the memories. “We engaged photographer Kate
Robinson. Alex knew her as she had photographed her sister’s “We do also have to recommend a tour from our previous trip, sailing
wedding,” added Em. ”Her style was timeless elegance and the out to a Great Barrier Reef coral sand cay with Sailaway was a must
intimate and candid moments she captured were divine. She do too. We felt very lucky and were fortunate enough to still have a
travelled with her videographer Emma and they had clearly done honeymoon in Hawaii to look forward to.
their homework, finding some stunning locations to capture our day
on film.” Port Douglas Magazine: If you had to give someone advice for getting
married in Far North Queensland what would it be?
“Deciding on a reception venue was the easy part, “said Alex, “We
couldn’t go past the beautiful Sea Temple Resort from our earlier If you aren’t from Far North Queensland, listen to the locals. It can
travels. We had already fallen in love with their hero ‘wedding shot’ be overwhelming trying to collate all the info yourself about vendors,
online. A long table setting for the reception with stunning poolside locations and venues but it’s best to just get on the phone and have
views and chandeliers for that touch of wow, we couldn’t imagine a nice chat with someone. Far North Queensland is so picturesque
anywhere else we would rather be. The service from the team was that you can’t really go wrong with the styling as it already looks
nothing short of outstanding. Our Wedding coordinators Michela beautiful. As we had planned everything ahead of time and had such
and Laura were both incredible. Sharing our journey, they gave us amazing support from our venue, our day went off without a hitch.
so much assistance and reassurance helping us to bring together our And finally, enjoy the time you have with your family and friends
amazing team. and create a wedding that feels right for you and your partner. Trust
each other and know that you’re going to have the best day simply by
Recommendations such as Carly for our make-up, flowers by Floral being there together.
Edge, and a divine cake from The Hungry Hummingbird. You could
tell these vendors all loved working together and there was a strong
connection within the Port Douglas wedding community. Perfect T HE DR E A M T E A M
for any bride, it instilled confidence in you. A bonus too, Em’s sister
was a hairdresser and stylist and so our talented team of women, all WEDDING CEREMONY: Little Cove
experts in their fields, was now complete.” CELEBRANT: Anna Soltwedel
In terms of styling, they opted for natural colours, with plenty of PHOTOGRAPHY: Kate Robinson
whites and greens which they felt were simple but effective. They FLOWERS: Floral Edge
also both loved a touch of gold, so this was incorporated in the table RECEPTION & CATERING: Pullman Port Douglas Sea Temple Resort,
settings and with the champagne bridesmaid dresses. They hoped Aluco Restaurant
their style would support elegant and timeless but most importantly WEDDING PLANNER: Michela Scacchi
they just wanted to create memories that were filled with love and STYLING: Port Douglas Wedding & Hire and Pullman Port Douglas
laughter. CAKE: The Hungry Hummingbird
“The night before the wedding, though a little overwhelmed, we BRIDES DRESSED BY: Twelve South Bridal
decided to stay in separate rooms, so we could both experience our MAKE UP: Makeup by Carly
first sight of seeing each other as brides-to-be walking down the HAIR: @stylingwithsamm
aisle,” they said. “We wanted our day to be an intimate celebration ENGAGEMENT & WEDDING RINGS: Meg Maskell Fine Jewellery
of our love for each other. Marriage wasn’t something we had

38 Port Douglas Travel Planner PORT DOUGLAS MAGAZINE 39