Samford Lakes April Wedding

The world shut down around Nicole + Callan on their 2020 wedding date and only allowed themselves, her mom, and sister on their planned wedding day. It was a sweet day but missing what was promised, a day surrounded by family and friends. They chose to wait a year for the world to recover to have the real wedding…which brings us to this past weekend. Nicole says it was torture to be given another full year on Pinterest. She changed her colour scheme and her already filled garage of wedding décor became even more packed. But an extra year of planning and clever friends/family, brought to life a celebration of perfection and thoughtful touches. …but most important, their friends and family.

If there is one thing you could tell about Nicole from just looking at the wedding photos – she LOVES flowers. Apparently she was part of a mad dash at the flower markets at 4am! I learned how to “fold” rose pedals. Who knew a regular rose could be so magnificent! Her bridesmaids folded each pedal and put together all the bouquets with ease right in front of my eyes. Her maid of honour was with us on facetime (stuck in the USA!) all morning. The girls included her in every fun moment…. champagne toast, hair and make up, seeing the dress reveal. Life becomes doable with closed borders with the added benefits of Facetime.

Callan was grinning ear to ear all day and throughout the ENTIRE ceremony. He has to be the smiliest groom ever! …and the reception. The best man’s roasting of Callan will not ever be forgotten. It was a proper roast. Thank you both for spending soooo much time with us in the covid roller coaster! We loved every minute… you both are such lovely humans!

ALL PHOTOS FROM THE DAY ARE AVAILABLE TO VIEW. Log-in to Nicole + Callans’s photo gallery by CLICKING HERE.

Tell us about your lives together …

We live in Brisbane with our two Rough Collies, Lady and Gracie. We love the countryside, the outdoors, and we are running a half marathon together in July. We have very different careers but we love to spend time together on the weekends doing the things we love.

What does marriage mean to you?

Marriage to us is a committment to love and respect each other, also a responsibility to continually put the effort into our relationship, and support each other through the ups and downs of life.

Make us laugh, make us cry: who proposed to who, and how?

Callan proposed. We love to go for hikes so we went to Binna Burra National Park. We found a beautiful clearing overlooking the range and as I turned around, Callan was down on one knee! He messed up my middle name (which I swear he has known for years), and I was so shocked I forgot to answer the question. Callan said “so is that a yes?” Whoops! It was a very easy question, I knew I wanted to spend my life with him.

How and why did you choose your venues?

We loved that we could get ready, have the ceremony and reception all at the one site, and the venue was available for 3 days. Our interstate family could stay onsite in the cottages. It is such a beautiful country property with a stunning lake for photos.

What was the inspiration behind your wedding style?

Mainly Pinterest! I was originally going for rustic, but a lot of adaptation was involved.

Did you incorporate any traditions or perhaps do something a little different?

Due to covid we had our wedding and celebrations over two days to keep guest numbers under 40 people.

Were there any standout suppliers?

Samford Lakes were so accommodating over the weekend, Jamie from Brisbane Celebrants was so professional and everything flowed so well during the ceremony, Dallas Love Photography went above and beyond, Rooster entertainment (and our musician Peko) were fantastic, Bella Brides did a lovely job on hair and makeup, and Standing Room Catering were a great food service.

Do you have any words of wisdom to offer other couples?

The day goes so fast, take a moment with each other to look into your wedding at everyone laughing and having a good time.

Funniest Moment Of The Day

The best man gave a beautifully constructed and extremely well written roast of Callan, in the form of a best man speech. It got a lot of laughs!

Most Special Memory Of The Day

The rose petal toss, hands down! We were finally married, and walking back down the aisle as husband and wife with a sea of colour and our friends and family cheering us on!

Favourite Details From The Day

We did our wedding flowers ourselves, so we were so happy with the result (all thanks to my amazing wedding party who worked so hard and late into the night on Friday doing flower arrangements). The hanging wisteria was also a main feature of the wedding reception.

Anything you are really glad you did

We went through multiple iterations of our wedding, which we originally planned in April 2020, then postponed to 2021. Although we had to split our wedding over two days, it meant we could spend more time with our friends and family rather than rushing around to try and see everyone. It made the weekend very special for us. In the end, we were just happy to finally say our vows and get married!

Did you (or will you) enjoy a honeymoon? If so, how and why did you choose your destination?

We had a beautiful honeymoon planned in the Victorian High Country, including some horse riding, hot air balloons and winery tours, but due to Brisbane being declared a covid hotspot, we had to replan it all in the two weeks prior and ended up spending the time instead in the Sunshine Coast Hinterland and Noosa. It still worked out well for us!

Photography // Dallas & Glennn for Dallas Love photography

Catering // Standing Room Catering

Furniture Hire // Abbey Rents

Entertainment // Rooster Entertainment (Paco) and DJ Brento s

Desserts/Cakes // Cake My Day by Jo

Hair and Makeup // Bella Brides

Venue // Samford Lakes

Celebrant // Brisbane City Celebrants

Samford Lakes April Wedding | Nicole + Callan