A WEDDING FEATURE WITH AUTUMN ’15

IMAGE COURTESY OF ALANA BLOWFIELD, ALANABLOWFIELD.COM.AU

68 KEEPING IT REAL Kimberley Meek knew from the moment Rhys Liverton proposed that she wanted to be married in the lush Sunshine Coast hinterland. 74 FOR BETTER OR FOR WORSE Edna and Maurie Richards were married in 1949, but fate had been nudging them together for many years. 76 TO HAVE AND TO HOLD Fashionable, must-haves for the loved up. 78 MAGIC MAKER Stephanie Patey’s handmade veils and hairpieces have fans all over the globe.

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KEEPING IT REAL

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Like minds, perfect placeKimberley Meek

& Rhys Liverton

2 MAY 2014

WORDS FRANCES GILLIES

IMAGES COURTESY ORIN LUCKE BLINKPHOTOGRAPHY.COM.AU

Kimberley enjoyed the favourite part of her wedding day as soon as the ceremony had finished.

“Rhys loved the moment I walked down the aisle towards him, but I felt so happy when we walked back down the aisle as husband and wife. I saw everyone smiling at us and felt the nerve-wracking part was over.”

Parting with tradition, Kimberley and Rhys chose to have their wedding photos taken on their own in the estate grounds to catch their breath together as newlyweds.

But when she married her beau of seven years, Rhys, in the lush Sunshine Coast hinterland last autumn it was more than she could ever have imagined: Spicers Clovelly Estate had captured both their hearts with its grand figs, colourful maples, lush manicured lawns and elegant French provincial design and décor.

“As soon as we arrived, Rhys saw it was very much my style and said, ‘We’re not looking anywhere else, are we?’ The venue is visually stunning just as it is so we didn’t need to bother with much decorating,” she says.

“There was honestly nothing for us to do on the morning of our wedding. It was so relaxing,” Kimberley adds of having no preparations to worry about on their big day.

AS A CHILD, Kimberley had holidayed with her family on the Sunshine Coast every year and had always dreamed of a graceful hinterland wedding.

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The Long Apron continues to deliver European-inspired menus with

flair and élan. Friendly, personal service adds to the relaxed atmosphere

and there’s even the opportunity to get together and share a delicious

meal as a group over our French Table.

Spend a day in foodie heaven at The Long Apron cooking school at

Spicers Clovelly Estate. Whether you choose the French, Italian or Thai

cooking class, you will be under the expert tutelage of the two-hatted

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A TASTE OF EUROPE

in the hinterland

68 Balmoral Road, Montville

spicersretreats.com

For bookings call 1300 252 380 Weekend classes 10am-3pm

AWARD WINNING CU IS INE

Awarded 2014

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Family owned and operated by Anthony and Aletta Lauriston

11 HARRY’S L ANE BUDERIM (OFF L INDSAY ROAD) | P 5445 6661 | www.harrysonbuderim.com

AVAIL ABLE FOR WEDDINGS & FUNCTIONS

OPENING HOURS

LUNCH WED - SUN • DINNER WED - SAT

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Meanwhile, their bridal party and guests enjoyed sunset canapés and drinks on the lawn, entertained by the angelic voice of local emerging songstress, Sahara Beck.

After a delicious seated reception dinner – the table elegantly decorated with fresh white orchids and soft yellow roses placed on runners of natural linen – Kimberley and Rhys enjoyed their first dance under fairy-lit trees.

“I loved this moment together. I’ll never forget it,” Kimberley says.

Another simple yet memorable moment for the gentle couple was their engagement. Rhys proposed to Kimberley on their >

WEDDING DAY ROLL CALL

CEREMONY & RECEPTION Spicers Clovelly Estate, 68 Balmoral Road,

Montville. 1300 252 380 or spicersretreats.com/spicers-clovelly-estate

DRESS The Babushka Ballerina

thebabushkaballerina.com.au

FLORIST Mondo Floral Designs

mondofloraldesigns.com.au

EVENT STYLIST Lovebird Weddings

lovebirdweddings.com.au

HAIR & MAKEUP Allure Bridal Stylists

allurehairandbeauty.com

SHOES Nine West

ninewest.com.au

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WEDDING DAY ROLL CALL

CATERING Spicers Clovelly Estate

TABLE DECORATION Lovebird Weddings

lovebirdweddings.com.au Mondo Floral Designs

mondofloraldesigns.com.au

PLAYLISTS Ceremony

Singer/Songwriter Sahara Beck played: Angels - The XX

Bright Eyes - First Day of My Life Alabama Shakes - I Found You

First Dance I Got You - Jack Johnson

ABOUT THE VENUE Spicers Clovelly Estate Montville has a reputation as one of the top wedding venues on the Sunshine Coast with its charming brand of service and style, delivered by a dedicated team.

From its award-winning restaurant through to its boutique accommodation, this beautiful, French-inspired Sunshine Coast hinterland retreat instills in its guests a true sense of relaxed luxury.

Couples have the opportunity to claim exclusive use of the entire property on their wedding day, as well as the ability to have their guests stay overnight in 10 luxurious suites.

Kimberley and Rhys stayed at Spicers for a weekend before booking their wedding and knew instantly it was the perfect elegant venue they were seeking.

fifth anniversary while the couple was island-hopping in Thailand with friends.

“The proposal wasn’t anything fancy. We had a beautiful day visiting different beaches. And then as we were going to bed that night Rhys got out of bed and on one knee. It was very relaxed, very ‘us’. But of course then I was too excited to sleep! I wanted to ring my parents but it would have been 3am at home.”

The couple’s honeymoon was spent in beachside bliss at Byron Bay for a week following their wedding weekend.

“I wish we could do it again,” Kimberley reminisces of their wedding day.

“We woke up the next day and were having breakfast when I suddenly got a bit emotional. I couldn’t believe it was all over so quickly. The flower petals were still on the lawn.”

For more information on Spicers Clovelly Estate, visit spicersretreats.com/spicers-clovelly-estate

FOR BETTER OR FOR WORSE

“It was beautiful!” says Edna.

The next day, Edna walked down the aisle towards Maurie, followed by a modest reception at Buderim Hall.

“She was 20 minutes late because all the relations turned up to the house and wanted cups of tea when they arrived,” Maurie says.

The following year, they began building their first home together on Burnett Street in Buderim. They say that such an undertaking can test a relationship, but for the then-newlyweds it helped lay a strong foundation for their 65-year marriage.

“If there was trouble, we’d sit there and talk about it,” Edna says. “There’s no good arguing.”

With no loans available in those days, their home was built from the income Maurie made working as an engineer at The Ginger Factory.

“A builder put up the frame but that’s as much as we could afford, so we built the rest ourselves,” Maurie says. “I would cramp the floorboards down and nail every so many and then go to work. And then Edna would nail the floor during the day.”

“I was used to making pineapple cases but this was a lot harder,” Edna says.

Living only two doors away from each other in Palmwoods on a dairy and a citrus farm respectively, the pair would occasionally cross each other’s paths as teenagers.

“Our families were pretty religious and would go to church every Sunday. We wouldn’t sit with the rest of them,” Maurie says as Edna chuckles softly. “We mainly used to sit in the back seat of the church, and get to know each other a bit better.”

Although they were acquaintances, nothing eventuated until fate took another well-placed step when, unknowingly to both families, each sold their property in Palmwoods and relocated to Buderim. Edna and Maurie moved with them.

“We came up to Buderim as single people,” Maurie says. “And I said one day, ‘if you’re going to follow me around we might as well get married’.”

They were married in 1949 in the old Methodist church in Buderim and the night before the wedding Maurie had to head into work. Having Maurie away gave Buderim residents a chance to do something special for the young couple.

“Unbeknown to us, the locals had gone up to the church that night and made a big arch full of flowers with a big bell,” Maurie says.

BUILT ONLove

WORDS AND PHOTOS CLAIRE PLUSH

SOME WOULD CALL IT luck, others serendipity, but when Edna and Maurie Richards finally started dating, it was as though something had been pushing them together all along.

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The house, that has since become Tiffany Jones Art Gallery, was sketched by Maurie on a piece of paper when Buderim only consisted of gravel roads, three shops and rolling farmland.

“It was a little country town,” Maurie says.

Life was different back then, and so while Maurie worked all hours, Edna looked after the home, cooked all the meals and kept an eye on her parents who were getting on in age. That was until a new venture “dropped in their laps”.

The man who ran the Buderim Picture Theatre fell ill and needed someone to step in for a Saturday night. After that one eventful evening, Maurie and Edna decided to buy the theatre in fear of it being closed down, and ended up running the show each week for over five years.

“Every Saturday night all the locals turned up with their kids and that was their night out, there was nothing else on,” Maurie says. “I was with the projectors upstairs and Edna was in the ticket office.”

“Oh, it was fun!” Edna says with a glint in her eye.

But out of all their grand adventures, the one that has given them the most joy is their daughter, Pam.

“We were married nearly nine years before Pam came along,” says Edna. “Maurie is an excellent father. He had a lot of patience.”

Flicking through a memory book made for Edna, 88, and Maurie, 87, by their granddaughter for their recent wedding anniversary, it’s moving to see how far they’ve come.

“I wanted somebody with a bit of life,” Edna says mischievously referring to the slight age difference between the pair. From honeymoon photographs in Byron Bay to images of baby Pam and now their great-grandchildren, it documents two lives well lived, side-by-side.

BUILT ONLove

So, what’s the secret to a lasting relationship?

“We don’t tolerate each other, we get along with each other, and you back out of situations you know nothing about,” Maurice says. “We’ve always been that way. You go your own way a little bit but you’re always together.”

Nowadays, Edna can be found in the kitchen cooking her famous lemon-cheese tart while Maurie potters in the garden or tinkers in his toolshed fixing this and that.

Sixty-five years with one person may seem like an eternity for some, but not for a man in love.

“It doesn’t seem long,” Maurie says looking at Edna in the seat next to him. “I still remember you coming out of the church.”

“WE DON’T TOLERATE EACH OTHER, WE GET ALONG WITH EACH OTHER.”

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If the beach isn’t calling but a wedding-by-the-water is, then The Lakehouse Sunshine Coast may be the one. With hints of the Hamptons, this lakeside setting is a classy experience, darling. Guests are romanced on arrival by gentle lakeside breezes to the sounds of a classical string trio while the weatherproof deck offers a stunning area for pre-ceremony canapés. The reception area is stylishly understated to blend with bridal colour palettes and custom-styling is welcome. Reception packages start from $105pp.thelakehousesunshinecoast.com.au

DOWN BY THE LAKE

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TO HAVE AND TO HOLD

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COOL, CALM AND GLOWING Dear busy bride-to-be, mother of the bride and bridal party, please meet beauty heaven. The Aqua Day Spa is a perfect remedy to tame any pre-wedding stress-levels. Spare an hour (or a day) to lift spirits with beautifying products of delicate textures applied with butterfly fingertips. The Pre-wedding Perfection Package includes a one hour full body massage, an intensive one hour facial and on completion, a well-earned glass of sparkling. The spa team will have you feeling all nurtured, calm, centred and glowing in time for your big day. Pre-wedding Perfection Package $260. aquadayspanoosa.com

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SAVOUR THE SPARKLEMost women are bowerbirds for sparkly things, yet the task of choosing the prettiest cut, best clarity and right carat is a daunting task. As for sticking to budget ... what budget? The jewellers at NY2K will listen and guide you through the whole design process. This exquisite NY2K duo-set is made to love for a lifetime. Appointments recommended.

Engagement ring (18ct white gold, cushion cut diamond, 0.70ct) $8300. Wedding ring (18ct white gold, claw set with eleven 0.03ct round brilliant cut diamonds) $1950 ny2k.com.au

Here’s our pick of fashionable, must-haves for that loved up occasion. WORDS BRISEIS ONFRAY

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LET GEORGE WU YOUWow! In a most splendidly flirtatious and ethereal way, George Wu’s latest collection of pagan influence is absolutely breathtaking. There is something so very poetic about his style. Wu’s feminine designs are of primal, yet gentle character. Corset foundations accentuate the female form. Opulent fabrics, delicate hand-sewn embellishments and high-fashion, couture finishes create silhouettes of effortless movement, fluid energy and dreamy romance. With a soft contrast between rustic, organic lace and delicate textiles the eclectic inspiration behind this collection truly defies traditional styles to bring out the most beautiful, contemporary and goddess-like bride. By appointment only. georgewu.com.au

Elven Star Dress & Elven Star Skirt (mini dress) $1496, (removeable skirt) $1749, (belt, made by the same miller of Chanel, France) $1000

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Secrets on the LakeCelebrate your special occasion

at Secrets on the Lake Cafe, Montville Winners of Montville Chamber of Commerce Range Restaurant Awards’ Best Cafe 2012 & 2014

Cafe - Birthdays - Weddings - Honeymoons - AccommodationPh 5478 5888 www.secretsonthelake.com.au

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STEMS FROM THE HEARTWorking alongside the majestic abundance of Mother Nature’s own colours, forms, textures and scents is Heavenly Blooms’ trademark. Getting to know the bride, her passions and love story inspire bridal bouquets that bloom with honesty. And, with a preference for local, organic and fresh flowers, Heavenly Blooms grow their own. Their floristry flair stems from the heart and each season provides bespoke bunches of joy. This change of season brings berries, ferns, moss, leaves and warmth with an enchanted feel. Autumn feels all rustic and regal inspiring green bouquets presented in old brass, silver and copper wares. Earthy floral combined with metallics are on trend. heavenlyblooms.com.au

BIG IS BETTERIf wedding bells are looming fast and your guest list is getting longer than your wedding dress, it’s ok to panic. Luckily, The Sunshine Coast Function Centre provides a wedding venue, reception area and chef-driven catering service to host up to 150 guests. It’s also a roomy indoor setting, so you can rest assured knowing that all will run as planned despite a balmy weather forecast. The wedding co-ordinator will take care of things from the initial booking right through to the cutting of the cake. Wedding packages are available at reasonable rates and they will happily host your ceremony as part of your reception package. sunshinecoastfunctioncentre.com.au

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MAGIC MAKER

CROWNING GLORY

IT WAS QUITE a moment: the veil Stephanie Patey had designed and stitched with her own hands was there in all its glory on the world’s go-to wedding fashion website The Lane.

For the 30-year-old Sunshine Coast designer, seeing this and other distinctive pieces featured from a bridal photo shoot in Mexico was the moment she realised her small business gamble had paid off.

“It felt quite strange, seeing my pieces on The Lane and knowing I made them right here,” Stephanie says. “When I see my pieces online or in magazines it is a funny feeling I cannot quite describe.”

Stephanie is a specialist wedding hairpiece designer. Through her company Ivie White, she imagines, designs and creates flowers, hairclips, bands and veils – those much-photographed but mostly unheralded finishing touches to a bride’s ensemble.

Every piece is handmade. A beaded hairpiece can take six to eight hours of meticulous work; a flower may take two. Each stitch, each bead, each decorative touch builds until a piece comes to life … all in Stephanie’s Maroochydore workroom.

Stephanie’s materials are pure silk fabrics, tulle, Swarovski crystals, vintage and French laces, pearls, beads and the finest-quality finishers. She weaves magic with them to make beautiful accessories that add vintage flair to the look of modern, stylish brides.

Stephanie says being able to make beautiful things is the stuff of her little-girl dreams.

“I am one of those people who has always made things,” she says. “Even when I was very little, I would stitch things. I must have been five or six and I had a little nightie with a pocket and the pocket had a hole in it. My mum threaded the needle and I remember stitching it up. My mum then bought me a little brown and cream sewing machine with this tiny foot pedal. I taught myself and from then on I really loved making things.”

But even though Stephanie was a sewer and a maker, securing a job in the clothing industry seemed obvious to everyone but her. She started a graphic design course and found it was not for her, nor a fashion design course, and interior design wasn’t her thing either. The creative desire still burned, but nothing seemed to fit until an innocuous advertisement in a newspaper caught her eye.

“The job was to assist in the design room of Brisbane bridal designer Elizabeth de Varga,” Stephanie says. “It was like a dream come true to work there, even though the job itself was just hand sewing. I just loved the designs; I loved being part of making such elegant gowns.

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WORDS JANE FYNES-CLINTON PHOTOS ANASTASIA KARIOFYLLIDIS

“A wedding dress nearly always has a huge amount of hand work – far more of that is involved than in making the actual dress itself. Hand sewing is involved in the lining, the buttons, the lace, the beading.”

Stephanie says working under Elizabeth de Varga’s award-winning designer Tammie Nitschke was stimulating and could not have set a higher bar for her professionally. She was eventually promoted to supervisor and stayed with the business for a decade.

For many years, she had stretched her creative legs by making items for herself and friends at home. >

“I made a flower for a friend of a friend for a wedding and she told somebody and so it went,” Stephanie says. “I guess I started making what I could make, did some research and it got a life of its own.”

It was important to Stephanie ethically to differentiate herself and do something completely separate from the work she did with Elizabeth de Varga. Flowers and hairpieces also offered the chance to make something bridal that was unattached to the wedding dress, and almost every bride wears something in their hair.

She finds her materials in all sorts of places.

“I look in antique shops for trims,” she says. “A family friend, Norma, who taught me a lot about sewing, had a lot of vintage laces and trims and she sold me all her beads. She was a big part of my growth in what I do. I have a lot of fabrics and beads and little things that I pick up. When a bride wants something made, I look at what I have and what I can do with them.”

After eight years of working with Elizabeth de Varga, Stephanie scaled back her work there to part time and started getting serious about building Ivie White. At the start of last year, Stephanie went completely solo.

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As well as flowers, hairbands, veils and clips, she also now makes belts and garters. And while her first year was hard work and the hours were long, Stephanie says she loves every work day because she is investing in helping to build someone else’s dream.

“I believe there is a little bit in every girl that wants the fairytale – even those who say they don’t,” she says. “I have seen it happen. I have been best friends with Haley for almost all our lives. First, she was that girl who said she would never get married. Then she met the guy and fell in love and she talked about eloping – said she did not want the big wedding with bridesmaids. Now they are engaged and she is having four bridesmaids and I am one of them.

BEHIND THE VEIL • There is no definitive reason or meaning for a wedding veil, nor biblical instruction that brides should wear one. Veils are as common in non religious ceremonies as religious ones• The veil came to Europe from the Silk Road during the Crusades. A father would bargain off his daughter and she would be revealed to her husband after the ceremony, meaning he could not back out after viewing her for the first time• In the medieval period, married women covered their hair as a sign of modesty• A flowing white veil is a sign of virginity and purity and thus traditionally, only first-time brides wear them• In more superstitious times, the veil and the wedding bouquet were tools for a bride to ward off evil spirits.

“I think some people just say they do not want it all, they don’t want the whole wedding deal. But every little girl deep down wants to be a bride.”

Stephanie has lived her own version of the fairytale. She married Christian, a boy she had gone to school with, four years ago. He is a renderer and a musician and theirs is a creative, stimulating household.

Stephanie says Christian has been particularly good at helping her build Ivie White’s social media presence to complement the all-important online store.

“I enjoy working at home, but I miss the interaction with others so I would love to get to the point where I have people working with me,” Stephanie says. “My ultimate goal is to have a bridal store that has the best Australian and overseas designers. But the central part of it is that we would have a creative hub where brides could come for ideas: mood boards, style concepts, magazines. I picture more of a style and inspiration centre. Nothing like that exists at the moment.

“I guess, when you look at it, I just love being around pretty things.”

iviewhite.com.au

FOR EXTRA SALT visit saltmagazine.com.au to see more photos of Stephanie Patey.