Carly and Mike
Carly Graham & Mike Lindley { 10 AUGUST }
Metropolis Events, Southbank, Victoria
photos captured by: White Vine Photography
It was a modern day ‘swipe right’ love story. Carly and Mike couldn’t have timed things more perfectly, meeting one another shortly after they both returned from their European adventures. “There was magic from the first date, and we fell into planning our life together almost immediately.” Mike completely caught Carly off guard when he proposed to her in Bali three and half years later. “We were away for a close friends wedding and my 30th birthday.” Mike gifted her diamond earrings as her 30th birthday hoping she would be none the wiser to his plans when he planned to propose with a ring two days later! “He knew I’d be onto him with suspicion if he planned a big hurrah, so instead he proposed beautifully and casually on the front of our villa’s verandah following dinner one night.”
THE GOWN | Carly works at Suzanne Harward, so her gown was an incredibly special experience. “Suzanne, the Studio and I custom designed it based on falling in love with the most divine embroidered Italian tulle. The silhouette and personality of the gown came to fruition so naturally and completely encapsulated my personality and love for gold and stars. I was most excited to see Mike’s reaction to my gown, and he was blown away! He loved it and said the gown was ‘so me’!
FORMALLY YOURS | Mike wore a custom designed Italian printed velvet jacket and suit by Arthur Galan "Mike felt like a million dollars in his suit, Arthur personally made him feel unique."
THE PLANNING | The initial planning process started a little slow, “…neither of us had ever dreamt about how our wedding day would be. Some think it’s ironic considering I have worked in the wedding industry for years not to know what you want, however, I knew I always wanted to plan our day together,” explained Carly. Luckily things were made easier when they started planning to discover they were on the same page. “We wanted to break traditions, we wanted the best party of our lives, and we wanted to remember the day with no regrets!”
THE DAY | The morning started calm and slow. I got ready with my parents, brother and his Girlfriend. We talked for hours with my hair and makeup artist Kylie O’Toole, who is hilarious! I felt very present, calm and excited. Mike got ready with his best friends and Dad. They had a toast with a bottle of Whisky he’d bought months prior in anticipation for the day. Mike and I had our first look in the early afternoon, and it was a very special way of slowing the day down and spending a couple of hours together walking through the city. This time also allowed us to have the majority of our photos done before the ceremony to enjoy the time with our guests at the reception. Mike and I each chose a special influential person in our lives to stand by our sides; my brother Riley and his best friend, Phill. We had no tasks or roles for anyone, and we wanted to ensure everyone had fun.
THIS IS IT! | Their team of suppliers were locked in before they had even chosen their venue; which included their photographer White Vine Photography, celebrant, and hair & makeup. “It was Mike that walked into Metropolis and said, ‘this is our wedding venue!’ It’s funny as he’s the indecisive one in our relationship and our roles completely reversed during the planning process,” laughed Carly.
LOVE STORY | Celebrant Jo Betz wrote a love story for Carly and Mike’s ceremony “We loved our ceremony. There was laughter and tears of joy!”
WINTER'S MOOD | Married in late winter, they chose dark, moody vibes of blacks, golds and soft pinks to compliment the venue and season. We wanted the light to come from the floor up with an array of candles. There was a large floral installation along the bar and in front of the windows leading out to the view of the city. We let the venue speak for itself and impress our guests with minimal styling.
CITY LIGHTS | We were channelling the vibes of a New York City loft. Carly and Mike chose to get married in the city at Metropolis Events. "We wanted to give our friends and family the taste of our lifestyle. Melbourne is such a beautiful city, and the floor to ceiling windows at Metropolis certainly show off the best Melbourne has to offer! We also positioned the dance floor in front of the windows, so everyone enjoyed the view of city lights".
MUSIC FROM THE HEART | Rather than a traditional first dance, DJ, and SAX player kicked-off the dance floor with Jubel 'Klingande' "It reminds us of when we first met one another. Our second favourite song is 'Sorrento Moon' by Tina Arena, which friends know how much we love this song. It was a massive sing-a-long.
“During the night, Mike and I sat down and had dessert together and watched on as our guests danced the night away. The buzz we could hear was amazing, and we were so happy to feel we’d pulled off the exact style of wedding we’d planned!”
CREDIT TO
gown: Suzanne Harward, suzanneharward.com
photographer: White Vine Photography, whitevinephotography.com
videographer: Popcorn Films, popcornfilms.com.au
ceremony & reception venue Metropolis Events, Southbank, Melbourne, metropolisevents.com.au
reception decorations: The Small Things Co, thesmallthings.co
floral styling: Clover Flower Co, cloverflowerco.com
stationery: Love Lenny Creative, lovelennycreative.com
groom’s & groomsmen’s attire: Arthur Galan, arthurgalan.com.au
bridal accessories: Suzanne Harward veil customised with swarwovski crystals, suzanneharward.com
engagement & wedding rings: Janai, janai.com.au & Bensimon, bensimon.com.au
music: Solution Entertainment, solutionentertainment.com.au
celebrant: Jo Betz, jobetz.com.au
hair & make-up: Kylie O’Toole @kylie_otoole_weddings
first night: The Langham Southbank, langhamhotels.com
honeymoon: France, Italy and Greece
