For context- I don’t usually travel this far for weddings but I couldn’t say no to this one and boy, i’m glad I didn’t!

Abbey and Sean put together an absolutely ripper crew for their big day, included all my fave tips for a proper party vibe and had a big, rowdy knees up with their faves. their guests were made up of city mates, country crew and ‘The Irish’.

I arrived on a scorching hot day to a stunning ceremony space set out on the river bank. In the foreground, trays of cold beers being circulated on silver trays. In the background, boats on the water and kids swinging out into the water on ropes. I couldn’t imagine a more ‘Australian’ experience for Sean’s Irish guests.

For Abbey, Yarrawonga is nostalgic. It’s where she grew up. It was a no brainer. Small towns are so funny. At the pub the night before I was asked by the waitress what we were in town for. 'Oh, is that Abbey’s wedding?’ she asked. The following day I went on a frantic smash and grab mission for a dress that I would not die in (ie not made of polyester). A little boutique offered me up the perfect linen dress and asked the same question- ‘Oh, you’re doing Abbey’s wedding?!’. BEST.

It was hot as Hades on the day, that’s for sure. Never been so glad not to be wearing a suit! The drinks flowed as guests tried to cool down. I said to my friend and photographer Anna, ‘If someone doesn’t end up either in the lake tonight- or hijacking a houseboat I’ll be very surprised’. Vibes were loose! Read on for whether I predicted correctly..

Anyway, it turned out to be one of the best weddings I’ve ever been part of. Gorgeous venue and styling, amazingly responsive, up for it crowd, lots of laughs as well as cheers, tears and beers. It was perfect. Catch Abbey and Sean’s tips for pulling this kind of wedding together below. And enjoy some incredible images of the day, which truly capture the ‘feel’ of it from start to finish.

“If your wedding has a lot of moving parts, you need a planner. Money well spent”

— Nat

What was the best decision you made?

Having a wedding planner/coordinator. We had Emily from Whitetop Venues as our wedding coordinator for the lead up and day of our wedding. Having her took soooo much pressure off of us, especially when we had family arrive from overseas. We had time to entertain them rather than focusing all our time on the wedding. Emily and her team had everything under control and were liaising with all of our vendors for us. There was literally nothing for us to do or worry about!

“I was already sweating bullets inside the house where it was cool so there was no way I could get in that car! ”

Did anything not go to plan/ what would you do differently?

Honestly, everything did go to plan. The only thing I think caught us off guard was the heat on the day. We had organised an old school car to take myself and dad to the ceremony but as we were heading outside to get in the cars we realised there was no aircon in it so there was a last minute scramble to switch cars and go in a car with aircon. I was already sweating bullets inside the house where it was cool so there was no way I could get in that car!

In regards to the heat I think a few umbrellas wouldn't have gone astray during the ceremony!

What was your fave part of the day?

Oh gosh this one is hard because we loved every single part of the day but I would say that the ceremony was a stand out. I'd do that over and over again if I could! You made it so us and you told our story so perfectly. Seeing all our friends and family during the ceremony just made my heart explode.

A few other stand outs for us were hijacking a barbie boat to get us to the most beautiful location for photos before we lost the good lighting and definitely the dance floor. Our band from The White Tree were bloody epic! We didn't leave the dance floor once!

In a few words- what advice would you give couples planning their wedding now?

Just relax, don't over think the little things and let everything fall into place. Most venues have a planner so utilise them as much as possible.

The best thing we did when planning and picking our vendors was using vendors that were recommended by our vendors. The first vendor I booked was a photographer and through insta stalking her I found our videographer and our celebrant so on the day everyone knew each other which was so fun!

For my tips on pulling off a Summer Wedding CLICK HERE.