Blog
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...your day the Coromandel way...
Grab a cuppa or a glass of whatever takes your fancy and check out what our Coromandel wedding superstars are saying, doing & sharing ...
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(Click Play on the main image to view a slide show of all the images.) There's been a lot of talk over the past 18 months about businesses needing to pivot to survive in these trying times - Dooley Street Styling has pivoted with style! Now as well as wedding hire, styling & florals, Brooke has started offering dried floral arrangement workshops in Coromandel Town. The first workshop was held in September and sold out crazy fast. During the workshop, Brooke taught everyone some valuable tips and tricks for working with and caring for dried florals. She offered guidance individually to each attendee as they created their very own arrangement to take home, while everyone enjoyed a beverage and some yummy nibbles.
Lush Elopements will provide you both with an exquisite and memorable experience as you devote yourselves to each other on the beautiful Coromandel!
They will provide a full-service ceremony on your favourite Coromandel beach, complete with accommodation, celebrant, bouquet, photographer, and all of the other lush additions to create a super memorable occasion. Package One: Lush Special
Package Two: Lush Deluxe
Lush Elopements are absolutely able to design a bespoke package to suit more specific requirements, whether you wish to involve some friends or family as part of your celebration, or you wish to stay longer. There are also some amazing add on options too. Lush Elopements provide their elopement packages exclusively on the coastline around Hahei including: Front Beach, Flaxmill Bay, Lonely Bay, Cooks Beach, Purangi Estuary, Cathedral Cove, Cathedral Cove Lookout, Hahei, Hot Water Beach, Sailors Grave and Tairua Surf Beach. Find out more about Lush Elopements here. (Click Play on the main image to view a slide show of the 20 images.) Corbett House and their new American style barn is a versatile wedding venue for all budgets and visions.
One of the things that makes Corbett House different is that it can be hired as a bare venue if you are looking to arrange all the details of your special day yourself. If wedding planning isn't your thing, Corbett House has an in-house wedding planner to work with you to plan your big day, and arrange everything you may need to make your vision come to life. The base package includes:
Corbett House has the following available for your use if required:
The Corbett House team are happy to work with you to create a customised package depending on your requirements and they can help organise anything else you require for the day. They'd love to chat with you about making your dream wedding a reality. Liz and Ruth of Wildflowers Coromandel like to do things a little differently.
Their floristry business is based at Liz’s farm overlooking Hahei beach, a beautiful spot with an expansive, colourful garden. There, Liz grows the unique flowers, seed heads and foliage which form part of the bouquets, table centre pieces, arches and sprays they create for couples. It’s a model focused on sustainability and care for the environment. “We’re happy to source flowers from further afield of course, but we do grow a lot of our own flowers,” Liz says. “We try to keep our footprint as small as possible and love to upcycle items. All our floral waste is recycled on the farm.” Liz loves flowers. She’s been known to stop family road trips to pick a bouquet of wildflowers from the side of the road. Her garden is her joy and she’s thrilled to share what she’s grown with couples. Wildflowers Coromandel’s wedding flowers are inspired by the farm and its surrounds: The beach, the sea, the romanticism of the Coromandel. Liz and Ruth’s designs are in keeping with the area, ensuring wedding photos look natural and beautiful. Liz and Ruth like working with couples to get a sense of who they are and what they like. Book a free consultation with them here. When my two eldest children decided to get married, it somehow eventuated that the two weddings would only be a month apart- February 27th and March 27th! This could have been a bit of a nightmare, but instead, it was a special time my family and I will never forget.
Luckily for us, my new daughter in law, Rhiannon Walton, is a big fan of monochrome and contemporary design, and my daughter, Hayley Sullivan, had an idea to have quite a colourful palette, with some vintage styling. These two very different visions helped keep the weddings separate entities in the planning. When the weddings were first planned, I said I didn’t want to marry them, (I’m a celebrant) but my son convinced me I would have the best view of the ceremonies, and he was right. It was such a privilege to work through the ceremony planning with both couples, and knowing them so well meant that writing the script was both really emotional and really easy. I did cry through the delivery in a few places though- but I wasn’t the only one! Rhiannon and my son, Corey, tied the knot up the road on the lawn of the Kauaeranga Hall and held their reception at the Thames Racecourse. I have planned many events at the racecourse over the past seventeen years, but had always wanted to hold an event on the grandstand overlooking the beautiful Thames Firth. Rhiannon trusted in my ideas, and it turned out so much better than I dreamed. Hayley and Aaron chose to get married at our place up the Kauaeranga Valley, and we did about 10 years of landscaping in about 10 months, including mowing a paddock for guests to stay over in glamping tents. I learned how to upholster old furniture to make sitting areas in the colour schemes for both weddings, and most of these were sold to Peninsula Party Hire after the weddings, so that was great recycling! We also upcycled furniture we bought from Trade Me and marketplace for the bar and signing tables etc. The vendors for both weddings were a mix of local people I have worked with and trust, and people both bridal couples had chosen because they had a relationship with them, or they came from their own home town (Hamilton) or further afield. The weddings were Jennifer from Aroha Catering’s last events before handing over the reins after many years of catering in Thames to Kirstie, and the food was amazing. Both weddings had local Thames band, ‘ The Chunes’ play before the reception, and the lead singer, Tyla Pere, sang both brides down the aisle. If you’ve ever heard Tyla sing or the boys play, you’ll know why they played at both weddings. The band is outstanding. Hayley is quite talented at quite a few things- and we joke all the time that we would make a great wedding planning company together. She made both cakes- even though she was both a bridesmaid and a bride, and they were both beautiful and delicious. She also designed the invitations and websites for both herself and Rhiannon, and did all the calligraphy for her signage. The best advice I could give anyone planning their wedding, is to remember that almost everyone comes to your wedding prepared to have a great time, so they will ever notice if things aren’t perfect, they’re probably just too busy having fun. It also goes so fast. Faster than you can ever imagine, so just try to enjoy every moment. The best part, hands down, was welcoming my new daughter in law and son in law officially into the family. My children chose wonderful people to spend their lives with, and we couldn’t be happier. It was also wonderful to have both couples so incredibly happy with their wedding day, and say they smile every time they think of it. What could be better? Written by Kristina Walton - Well Wed With Kristina Vendors for Rhiannon and Corey's Wedding Hair: Bella Hair, Pauanui (Rhiannon’s Aunty) Make up: Make Up By Baillie Dress: Dylins Bridal Flowers: Aster And Bloom Ceremony Venue: Kauaeranga Valley Hall, Thames Reception Venue: Thames Race Course, Thames Celebrant: Well Wed With Kristina (Groom’s mum, Thames) Ceremony Music: Tyla Pere Pre Reception Band: The Chunes Reception Band: Tim Armstrong Photographer: Tiffany Curtis Photography Mobile Caravan Bar: Charlie Grace Caterers: Aroha Catering Cake: Hayley Grace Bakes (Groom's sister) Invitations: Hayley (Groom's sister) Vendors for Hayley and Aaron’s Wedding Hair: Lydia from Makawe Salon Make up: Jesse Seymour Dress: Bridal Brilliance Flowers: Vicki McWatt (Thames) Wedding Venue: Bride’s parents house (Kauaeranga Valley, Thames) Celebrant: Well Wed With Kristina (Bride’s mum, Thames) Marque: Peninsula Party Hire Honeymoon and Guest tents: Just Hitched Ceremony Music: Tyla Pere Cocktail Band: The Chunes Reception Band: Badly Stuffed Animals Photographer: Moira West Videographer: Weka Films Mobile Caravan Bar: Charlie Grace Caterers: Aroha Catering Cake: Hayley Grace Bakes (Bride) Invitations: Hayley (Bride)  Taryn Baines from Make Your Day Events shares her top tips for planning a wedding on the Coromandel or Hauraki Plains.
1. How to pick a venue? The number of guests you plan to have helps narrow this down. If you want it all sorted for you and you just choose the menu and drinks list, then an all inclusive venue is the way to go. If you’d rather choose your own caterers, provide your own beverages and are happy to organise the day itself, then a local hall or backyard wedding is a great option. 2. Looking for your vendors and not sure where to start? There is a great local directory of our amazing vendors online at Your Coromandel Wedding. 3. When choosing your photo locations, work out the travel time between each by hopping in the car and timing the trip, then add 5-10 minutes to allow for bathroom breaks and rounding up your bridal party. 4. When planning an outdoor ceremony, think about shade to protect from the sun if having a summer celebration, and also consider potential poor weather - do you have the option of using your reception space as backup? You may not need to use it but it takes away the stress if you have one sorted. Your backup location needs to be on your marriage license. 5. If you need some extra help on the day for a DIY option, consider hiring a local sports club or community group to do the clean up etc – this helps them with their fundraising and takes the pressure off you and your families. 6. Be sure to take time during the day itself to pause, take it all in and bank the moments into your memory because as they say “time flies when you are having fun”. Originally published in The Valley Profile (28th April 2021)
Aside from some legalities, your wedding ceremony can be as formal or casual as you please, and as a Celebrant I’ve seen loads of unique ideas. But no matter your style, theme or location, there are certainly things pertaining to all ceremonies which shouldn’t be over looked... You do you! There are no rules, if you want 200 guests, 4 camels, a sand ceremony, an Elvis tribute and sword juggling, then go right ahead, on the same note, if you want just the two of you at dawn with your parents and siblings in attendance that’s perfectly ok too. Remember, wedding trends are just suggestions, so do what makes you happy. Don’t be (too) late! In the Coromandel outdoor summer weddings are popular. And while it may be traditional for the bride to be late, do keep in mind how long your guests are waiting out in the hot sun for you to arrive. Guests often arrive half an hour before go time, so even if you are there right on the dot, they’ve had half an hour more rays than you’ve had, and lets face it, nobody wants to sit around in their wedding attire for the next eight hours feeling like they’ve been at the gym rather than a wedding! Wear in your shoes! Get those blisters sorted before the big day, and, if you are having a rehearsal, practice with your wedding shoes so you have an idea what it will be like under foot on the day. Sunscreen! A must no matter your skin tone, remember your feet (and bald patches) and don’t be fooled on cloudy days, they can get ya too! Hydrate hydrate hydrate! Fill a drink bottle in the morning and sip from it throughout the day, glasses are great but a drink bottle has a way of subliminally calling out ‘drink me’. Delegate! As a couple you have a big day ahead of you, don’t be afraid to delegate jobs to friends & whanau. Aunties in particular love having something to do, delivering your morning tea or coffees, entertaining little ones, or collecting your motel room key, are simple jobs other people will be happy to do and which save you time. Microphones and speakers! As a Celebrant, I can project my voice fairly confidently, but it is no match for thundering waves or road noise. For larger weddings where guests are several rows deep, having a decent sound system makes all the difference to whether or not your guests hear your ceremony or not. It also pays to have someone in charge of the music and who has been shown how to ‘press go’, in the scheme of things, hiring a speaker and microphone aren’t particularly expensive. Don’t sweat the small stuff! If something goes wrong, it’s ok, chances are only you and the Celebrant will even notice. Celebrants are masters of ‘improv’, we’ve got you! Insight from Jo: Jo Martin - Celebrant Photo credit : Flea from Felicity Jean Photography
Jess and Chase had been have been living & working on the Coromandel for 3 years, when they made plans to have an intimate wedding ceremony at the Purangi south end of Cooks beach just prior to lockdown last March. They were unable to get their families here from Canada & the UK due to lockdown so they decided Covid wouldn't stop them declaring their love for each other, and they shared their vows in an Auckland courthouse with a couple of friends after lockdown. This photoshoot was for the beautiful couple to have stunning romantic wedding images to remember their favourite local beaches and places around the gorgeous Coromandel. They returned to the UK at the end of last year, super happy to have their gorgeous photos as memories of their special time in Coromandel...
These amazing images were taken and submitted by the talented Jodi La Grouw from Lush Photography. (Click Play on the main image to view a slide show of the 20 images.) This inspirational styled shoot was created to celebrate golden Coromandel sunsets and the glow of summer. Otama Beach delivered all the Coromandel goodness for this shoot including a stunning sunset and even a pod of dolphins!
Local beach babe Helena Lucia looked absolutely gorgeous wearing both the gown and the incredible Asana jumpsuit by Elizabeth May Bridal. Makeup Master Jodie Elizabeth from Rouge Beauty created Helena's dreamy look in her signature style of glowing radiant skin and soft, smoky eyes. Jodie looks to Hollywood glamour icons such as Marilyn Monroe, Brigitte Bardot & Audrey Hepburn for her inspiration. Brooke from Dooley Street Styling created the concept for the shoot. She wanted to showcase the allure of a Coromandel summer, the golden sunsets and the glow of summer time. Her breathtaking florals in soft orange and warm peach reflect this so beautifully. Flea from Felicity Jean Photography captured this creative shoot flawlessly, featuring all the stunning aspects perfectly: Helena's sun kissed beauty, striking wedding fashion, amazing florals and the golden glow of a Coromandel dusk. Featuring these Superstar wedding vendors: Photography: Felicity Jean Photography Florals & Styling: Dooley Street Styling Hair & Make Up: Rouge Beauty NZ Model: Helena Lucia Jumpsuit & Gown: Elizabeth May Bridal |
