Kristie + Slater - Mayfield Vineyard

Hosted at the ever-beautiful Mayfield Vineyard in Orange, this relaxed and joy-filled NSW wedding would never have happened if it wasn't for an exchange on Instagram during Kristie and Slater's final year of school. "We met at school... and we were in the same class but didn’t have a proper conversation until year 12 where it all started from an Instagram message!" said Kristie.

Years on, their everlasting love was officially celebrated with a wedding that was all about intentional details and time to properly enjoy the company of their nearest and dearest over an entire weekend. Think a welcome dinner, pre-ceremony Maccas nuggets, a timeless colour palette, a vintage-style photo booth (a nod to their engagement) and a reception that absolutely stole the show.

How did you and Slater meet? We met at school. Slater had moved schools in year nine and we were in the same class but didn’t have a proper conversation until year 12 where it all started from an Instagram message!

Wedding venue: We chose Mayfield Vineyard because of the stunning homestead garden, we loved the greenery of the area! We also were drawn to Mayfield as it is an exclusive hire meaning we were able to host an intimate welcome dinner with our family, wedding party and close friends before the big day. It was so nice having our nearest and dearest staying onsite. Mayfield is such a big venue and you are not limited with what you can do which was what sold us.

Wedding vibe: When wedding planning, our main goal was to make sure we had fun with our guests and have intentional details. We are pretty laid back people so we wanted our wedding to feel relaxed and not strict with timelines etc. We also loved our colour palette of pink, green and brown which we used in different aspects of the day.

Best wedding planning resources? The best resource was the advice from other brides. I was fortunate to have a number of friends who got married around the same time so we were able to share plans and ideas, and also share frustrations with each other. Other great resources were the Wedshed We Do Crew articles , Tik Tok and the Wedchat Facebook page.

Expectations vs. reality? I loveeeedddd wedding planning (so much that I'm asking newly engaged friends if I can plan everything for them) it was so much fun to give so much love, energy and time into such a memorable day. Something I unexpected was how DIY the venue was which added more planning.

Best thing you did? Getting on the day coordinators (specifically through Wedshed) we were able to have someone onsite to help with all the background stuff on the day and we didn't have to think about anything the day of. They allowed everyone to relax and enjoy the entire day without having to stress or lift a finger. I cannot thank them enough!

Hit (or near) miss: Hit - speeches and video (my siblings put a video together instead of a long speech!), and the set up done by our lovely florist Renelle.

No misses! We had the perfect day and thankfully nothing went wrong.

If we had our time again... (anything you'd change in retrospect) Hired a videographer on top of a content creator (if we had the budget!).

Rapid Fire Questions

Wedding splurge?

Photographer and vintage style photo booth – pictures were put into our guestbook, vintage style photo booth is reminiscent of when we got engaged – save the dates were photo strips!

Wedding save?

Styling – we did heaps of DIY.

First look?

No.

Best thing you ate or drank on the day?

Pre ceremony Maccas nuggets and chips to calm the nerves, lamb kofta meatballs and Mayfield Pinot Noir.

Aisle song?

Groom: "Walking Away", by Justin Bieber.

Bride: "If I Could Fly", by One Direction.

Party starter track?

Dancing Queen by ABBA (obv!!)

Ceremony or reception (which won)?

Reception!! Our amazing friend was the MC who did a great job setting the mood, speeches and videos that made us emotional, and sharing a meal with our nearest and dearest. We didn't have a bridal table so it allowed us to talk to people who were seated around us.

On-budget or over-budget?

On budget. We cut down on some things like a videographer and did a lot of DIY to save on costs.

Honeymoon destination?

Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, Egypt and Jordan – we love travelling so had to go big for our honeymoon!

CREDITS: Photos Luna & Sol // Venue Mayfield Vineyard // Celebrant Celebrations by Suzanne // Coordination Wedshed Managed // Content creation By Clara Rose // Florist Eternity Blooms Co Florist // Catering Groundstone // Cake The Little Sugar Shoppe // Bridal gown Vera Wang // Bride's shoes Miu Miu // Veil Meshki // Bridesmaid dresses Amei // Suits Lupo Bianco // Rings Mitu Baci // Hair Parlour O // Makeup Makeup by Donna Maree // Music Oberon Lane and Silk Pyjamas // Transport Cookes Buses // Bar staff Wonderbar // Photo booth Photoautomat Australia // Robes/PJs Kat The Label and Forever New