ashleigh and gordon - sunshine coast - beach wedding

The Meeting: Gordon and I met in 2002 when I was 15 years old and he was 17 yrs.

It started like every great love story, my sister and Gordon's brother introduced us. It was an instant friendship which was soon cut short by the fact that we lived hours apart. We stayed in contact through email & sms for over a year and in August of 2003 Gordon unexpectedly turned up at my door step. We spent the next year travelling three hours each way to see each other and even as teenagers we were inseparable. Having a long distance relationship was hard but its was absolutely worth every trip to get there. As they say "absents makes the heart grow fonder" and it certainly did.
The Proposal: Since I can remember I have always loved the Beach. It is my favourite place in the whole world because there is something magical about the endless water and open skies. It was April 15th 2005 and Gordon had organised a weekend away for us to the Sunshine Coast. That evening he walked me along the beach and onto the rocks, where he waited for the sun to set and he proposed. He was so nervous he put the ring on the wrong finger. It was the most amazing, romantic, loving and memorable day. Every Girls Dream.

The Ceremony: Our wedding took place at the Sunshine Coast in the same spot where Gordon proposed. We wanted a small intimate ceremony with family and close friends. It was a gorgeous autumn day and despite all the storm warnings it was a sunny, windy and absolutely breathtaking afternoon. Everyone gathered on a grassed area that looks over the water and rocks, it was picture perfect.

The Reception: For our reception we decided to bring the Beach to us. We booked a room that over looked the water, with a deck and candles. For entertainment our Photographer Shaun Murray displayed a slide show of the day's events. It was truly amazing. The guests loved that they could see how our magical day started and share all the smiles, fun and excitement whilst we got ready.

My Dad made a beautiful speech followed by a highly entertaining Best Man to top off the night. For thankyou gifts we gave out guests a "Beach in a Bottle" so they could take a piece of our special day home with them.

The Gown & Suit: Organising the Gown was easy! My wedding dress was actually my school formal dress I wore in 2005 where Gordon was my partner. My mum picked the dress and I was so in love with it that I couldn't wait to wear it again. It was Ivory with glitter splashes and a row of diamontes across the lining. Organising the groom was a lot harder. We went to suit stores and nothing looked right. Gordon being 6 ft 7 made it difficult to find a shirt with long sleeves and long legs. Luckily we found a perfect little store which dressed him in all black attire with a sliver buckle belt to break the colouring, smart but casual, he looked Gorgeous!

The Flowers: Being a Beach themed wedding and my favourite colour being pink I couldn't go past the pink stargazer lilies surrounded in Singapore orchids to match my hair. The bouquet was stunning and because the flowers were fresh they smelt and looked beautiful.

The Photographer: Our photographer was Shaun Murray. We found Shaun on the internet and the minute we saw his photos we knew he would be absolutely perfect. Gordon and I both agreed that we wanted to have the most amazing photos. My mum has always told me to make sure you pick the right photographer as she was disappointed with her wedding photos. Shaun was not only professional, patient and talented he's was also entertaining. Our photos were absolutely stunning. He was with us every step of the way and did not miss a thing. Our wedding album is something we will have forever and the pictures taken were captured every moment of our special day.

Brides Highlight: Our day was unforgettable. It was filled with fun, excitement, love and laughs. Our family & friends made the day even more special and enjoyed every second of the day.

It is amazing how quick the day goes after all the hours you put in organising the event. Thanks to Shaun we have photos to last a life time and we can look back on every minute of the day.