Tell us about the unicorn theme. How did it come about?
It started completely by accident. The original theme was “Gothic Glam with a wee splodge of Boho” to compromise both our styles. However; with the discovery of my pastel dress and with unicorns being so in-style, it morphed into more of a Pastel Goth / Fairytale theme. A happy accident!
Was it your plan to have a thrifty big day right from the start? If so, why?
Absolutely! Ivan and I are not the richest on the block by any stretch of the imagination and I am a DIY-er at heart so it was a simple decision to make – either go thrift, or get married in another decade haha. We didn’t intend to wait that long so thrift it was! We are firm believers in the op-shop bargain buy! And the stores nearby didn’t disappoint! Most of our stuff was sourced locally in the op-shops or our favourite: Kmart!
What were your top bargain buys and how much did you spend on them?
I think the biggest bargain was my dress! I scored it online and including postage and a few adjustments cost less than $300. I’m about to cut it off cocktail length to continue wearing it!
All our outfits were either online or at cheapie shops…. I think Ivan spent the most on a $50 pair of black skinnies from Cotton On!
Tell us about your dress and how you realised it was the perfect one for you.
I found the dress late one night scrolling through one of those online Chinese dress shops. The colour made me stop dead in my tracks as I fantasised about dying my hair that colour! Then the sewn on flowers made me really know it was for me – I’m a florist, so literally having flowers on my dress made so much sense! It was so unique and quirky – no way was I ever going to be a “classic” or “elegant” bride! It was so cheap so I just bought it right then and there and it turned up perfect! The flowers had only been glued on so I spent many a happy afternoon covered in tulle and sewing them on by hand so they wouldn’t fall off mid aisle!
There's a photo of you both enjoying a $1 coke from a local shop. Tell us about what inspired that pic.
Hahahaah this is straight up my scary addiction to coke! We have a video/tobacco store here in town that sells cans for $1. Coming from the city to a small country town, I became obsessed with how cheap it was for a can of my beloved coke!
So, we would basically go there every day for our $1 drinks – why should our wedding day be any different?! Lol! So once the ceremony was over and everyone had either gone to get a snack or was waiting for the bus out to our reception, Ivan and I wandered down the street to get our drinks.
We also wanted to involve the wonderful staff and say Hello in our pretty outfits! I was so exhausted so once that cool, refreshing liquid hit my throat, I think I went straight to my happy place! What’s even more awesome is that the local Coke rep caught wind of our addiction and we’ve been blessed with some awesome limited edition, or promotional coke stuff!
We couldn’t help but notice one of your bridesmaids was on crutches! What happened there? We hope she’s ok!
My darling sister-in-law had spent the 3 months prior in Mozambique on a Missions Training Course.
She had survived the entire time in a 3rd world country injury free – until her last day when she jumped off of her bunk bed and landed wrong – ouch! She felt a little sore and sorry for herself but it healed well and she is fine now! But, no more bunk beds for her! She’s lucky I’m a florist so I could wire some silk flowers to her crutches instead of a bouquet.
Tell us everything but the DIY elements of your big day.
So much DIY! All the invitations were made by me, I don’t think it actually saved money but it was fun and made me feel important. I also made little “threat” signs that were poked into each slice of cake that said; “Go ahead eat it, I dare you”. I did all the flowers, and decorated the venue.
I made hilarious programs for the ceremony and also made the arbour out of old ladders and a cheap, eBay chandelier. I made the unicorn horn for the cake and the horse; I had some animal skulls I used as decorations that I’d spray painted and blinged with rhinestones. Gosh, I did so much cutting and pasting and getting glue stuck to my hair it’s hard to remember everything that was DIY!
Was there a shop you sourced a lot of stuff from?
My favourite stores were Kmart, eBay and Spotlight.
What was the ring like?
My biggest fear is having a ring that a lot of other girls have too. There’s nothing wrong with that – but it strikes fear in my heart for whatever reason. So for my engagement ring, Ivan found me a hand-made ring using guitar strings as the band. It’s so awesome and I know no one else has one! At least not around here, that’s for sure!
For our wedding rings, we booked a dear friend of mine who is a tattoo artist to come along and ink us at the reception so everyone could watch. It was so fun and a few other people got some work done too! My friend has done most of my tattoos so it made sense for him to be there to do this for us too.
You had a unicorn cake too? Who made it and what flavour was it?
Oh I still have drool-dreams about that cake!! A lovely lady here in Glen Innes has a from-home cake business called Cakes By Cara and she worked with us to create that heavenly morsel of deliciousness! She went above and beyond on that cake!
Outside was a marbled, pastel effect and inside was 5 layers of choc-mint sponge delight with a layer of mint crème and crumbled mint patties between each sponge. I decorated it with some plaster ears and a horn and silk flowers for a mane. Dang it was good! I’m drooling just thinking about it! We wanted to save a chunk for our 1 year anniversary, but that wasn’t going to happen. That cake called to us from the fridge and it was gone within the week! ….. I should get one as a just because….. mmmm….
How did you source a real unicorn for the photos too?
We were so blessed with our gorgeous unicorn! I posted on one of the local Buy Swap Sell sites asking for a pretty horse to turn into a unicorn. I was shocked by the amazing response of people sending me pics of their horses and saying; “go for it!”
In the end, I chose the most beautiful, silk black lady who fit my original Goth Glam theme perfectly. The incredible family who owned her let me come and meet her a few weeks prior and I just loved how sassy she was! She walked around me like a genuine supermodel, showing off all her good angles so I could see how glamorous she is. That was it – love at first sashay! I made the horn myself and left it with them to get her used to it. She was sublime!
What was your favourite memory of the day?
Oh gosh there were so many! I loved seeing the look of awe on our guest’s faces as they drove past us shooting with the live unicorn – everyone was squished against the bus windows staring, gape-mouthed as they passed us.
That was cool. Also just seeing how much everyone enjoyed our surprises – like the venue on top of a waterfall, the tattoo artist, the fire-twirlers showing off their skills, and then polishing the evening off with an impromptu set from a friend who is an ex-pro rapper entertaining people on the bus home.
What is your top tip for brides on a budget?
Buy Swap Sell sites are your best friend. Ask people in your region what they can do or offer – you’d be surprised what is out there! Also – op-shop to your heart’s content!