We were honoured to be asked to document the New Zealand Weddings Magazine Win Your Dream Wedding 2013.
You can view the gorgeous spread in the latest issue of New Zealand Weddings Magazine (Summer 2014) on sale now.
Lucky winners Michael & Amanda from Palmerston North were over the moon to win the Dream Wedding valued at over $70,000! Wow! How would you feel?!
They won wedding day coverage by the team at The Lauren + Delwyn Project, including a USB of high resolution, colour balanced photographs, a hand-made proof box with 200 Kodak Endura Archival prints, and an 11×14″ Kodak Endura enlargement of their favourite photograph from the wedding, as well as a private online gallery to share their photos with friends and family.
They thoroughly enjoyed the lead up to the big day, being chauffeured to all of the vendors for various trials, fittings and decision making by the fabulous wedding planner Gayle Garmaz from Exquisite Weddings.
Gayle ensured the lead up to the big day was well planned and organised, co-ordinating all of the vendors, so the day ran smoothly. If you are considering hiring a wedding planner, we could not recommend Gayle highly enough!
We visited the boys first, where they were getting ready at a hotel, and we had a blast photographing them as they prepared for the day ahead. They looked dashing in their suits from Frank Casey Suits, along with their beautiful buttonholes crafted by The Blossom Room.
The girls had their hair and makeup done on site by the fabulous team at Bobbi Brown in Britomart, accentuated by amazing lashes from Lash Worx applied by Lisa from Lashworx Hawkes Bay.
The girls got ready at the stunning Hotel DeBrett in central Auckland – what a beautiful venue to get ready! It is pure luxury, and I personally LOVE the carpet – it is so soft, I would book a night there based on that fact alone!
It was the perfect backdrop as the girls got ready, with the bridesmaids wearing their stunning dresses from ViCTOR – the dresses were made from measurements supplied to the talented Kelly, and they fit perfectly!
Amanda was a show stopper in her wedding gown by Anna Schimmel, European Bridal Designer. It fit like a glove and was nothing short of incredible, Anna is so talented, no doubt Amanda will confirm that you will feel like a million dollars in an Anna Schimmel gown.
The girls finished their outfits with their gorgeous shoes from Trousseau Shoes, which were really comfortable and looked amazing.
The smell of the gorgeous flowers created by The Blossom Room were with us all day – from the beautiful brides & bridesmaids bouquets, the buttonholes adorning the parents, the flowers decorating the ceremony, to the exquisite array at the reception, it was the perfect display, and complemented the classic, clean lines of the Auckland Art Gallery.
Amanda and Michael met in the foyer of Hotel DeBrett for their First Look, which was so emotional, it had EVERYONE in tears – such a beautiful sight to see a couple so in love, and excited to be married. The bridal party were picked up by the immaculately presented First Class Classics cars, and whisked off to the location shoot.
The weather was not on our side to say the least, and the bridal party toughed out the freezing wind and rain with their warm and sunny smiles to create gorgeous photos for Michael and Amanda to treasure. Our first stop was Albert Park, followed by The Northern Club, with the bare, twisted branches creating an amazing backdrop to complement the beautiful colours in the bouquets, bridesmaid dresses and Amanda’s stunning gown.
Finally we stopped in Britomart for photos with the fairy lights, as Amanda loves all things sparkly so we knew this was just the place for them. The wind created amazing movement in the girls dresses!
We arrived at the wedding venue, the Auckland Art Gallery – how magnificent is this venue?! The wedding guests were arriving, directed to the venue via the gorgeous wedding stationery designed and printed by the talented team at Cocoa Berry.
Craig at Creative Video was there, capturing the anticipation and excitement, as Michael and the groomsmen nervously waited for the arrival of Amanda and her bridesmaids. Craig is fabulous to work with and ensures he is there to capture your day, without blocking the view of the guests, a sign of an experienced videographer.
The Black Quartet from Findaband added to the ambience, with beautiful music prior to the ceremony and during the congratulations – it sent shivers down your spine listening to them play, and added to the elegance of the room in which they were married.
The guests were seated on beautiful white chairs supplied by Insphire, decorated with gold sashes tied into bows.
Amanda walked down the aisle to ‘I’ll Never Let You Go’ by Evermore.
Celebrant Melanie Kerr welcomed the guests and I don’t think there was a dry eye in the house – her warmth and excitement for Michael and Amanda made the ceremony so meaningful, along with a beautiful reading by Amanda’s sister.
They exchanged their beautifully crafted rings made by Carats Design Jewellery, who had created timeless wedding bands for the couple, including matching Amanda’s wedding band to her engagement ring.
The couple chose to recessionally rock down the aisle to their favourite song ‘Classic’ by MKTO, and enjoyed a glass of Deutz Prestige Cuvee to celebrate their first moments as husband and wife. Their friends and family congratulated them with hugs and tears, and also enjoyed delicious Deutz bubbles, and canapes hand-made by the team at Urban Gourmet. Seriously, this food is AMAZING – if you are looking for delicious, fine food, immaculately presented, look no further – it smelt absolutely amazing and Amanda and Michael told us that the food was incredible.
The reception room looked regal. The team at Insphire had supplied all of the tables, linen, table decorations and vases for the flowers, and had set it up in record time! The Art Gallery closes at 4pm, so the team had under two hours to transform the room from an empty space into what you see in the photos – incredible!
The Great Hiring Company supplied the ‘ghost chairs’ (see through chairs) in the reception room.
The Blossom Room had placed all of the flowers on the tables next to the tealight candles, in the vases, and along the wall below the photo projection display. With the low lighting in the room it looked absolutely magical, and was breathtaking to behold.
The stunning wedding cake was crafted by the amazing ladies at Sweet Bites Cakes. If memory serves me correct there was a chocolate layer, a white chocolate and raspberry, and (my favourite) lime & coconut – YUM! It smelt divine, and it made me want to order a wedding cake to take home just to eat for fun! Not to mention how beautifully it had been decorated, with the colours matching the rest of the wedding decor.
The guests were seated and congratulated Michael and Amanda as they made their grand entrance and enjoyed listening to the speeches.
They were served an amazing three course meal, accompanied by a range of wine and beer, all provided by the team at Urban Gourmet.
The Amazing Travelling Photobooth arrived and set up their photo booth, along with a book for guests to stick in their photos and write personalised messages to the wedding couple – check out the photos of them using the booth, they had a great time!
Finally it was time for their first dance, with Bring in the Band from Findaband rocking out some rocking tunes (check out their page to see what they can do for you), and had Michael, Amanda and their guests craving up the dance floor.
We left them partying into the night with their friends and family, enjoying their first evening as husband and wife, before they retired to their stunning room at Hotel DeBrett.
A huge thank you from The Lauren + Delwyn Project to all of the vendors who worked so hard and tirelessly, gifting their time, energy and products, with Gayle Garmaz from Exquisite Weddings co-ordinating the vendors to create such an amazing wedding.
Thank you to the team at New Zealand Weddings Magazine, especially Melissa, Cathy, and Ashleigh who we worked in closely with, to ensure we captured all of the amazing prizes from the generous suppliers.
Finally, thank you to Michael and Amanda, who were absolutely fabulous to photograph, and made the day so much fun! Congratulations to the both of you, and we wish you all the best in your married life together.
Lauren, Delwyn + Rachel xo
NZ WEDDINGS MAGAZINE DREAM WEDDING PHOTOGRAPHERS 2013 :: Lauren Indrisie & Delwyn Wood (NZIPP Qualified Wedding Photographers) & Rachel Walker.
