Carmelina + Nikolas - Pronovias Tibet Wedding Dress

There is something special about couples who meet at University. You are starting your life as an adult and taking a big step in the direction of developing a huge aspect of many peoples lives, their career. While at a local pub Carmelina + Nik bumped into one another and the rest was history…

#RCREALBRIDE Carmelina wore the stunning Tibet by Pronovias. Spectacular mermaid wedding dress that flares out at the bottom. It has 3/4 sleeves with gorgeous floral lace and guipure motifs all over the body of this romantic dress.

Photographer: Leah Ladson Photography

Carmelina + Nikolas | Real Bride Real Wedding | Melbourne Wedding | Raffaele Ciuca | Tibet by Pronovias

THE FIRST SIGHT

We were both studying at University at the time. During a night out at a local pub, we met up and had a dance and a laugh together. Nik seemed like a fun and humourous person straight from the get go. He was keen to get my phone number to meet up again. I wasn’t sure about this but took the chance anyway. Nik then took me out for dinner not long after this. That night we spoke endlessly about our families and friends and begun to get to know each other. From here on, we saw each other more and more and just loved being around each other.

THE PROPOSAL

After a long term relationship with each other, we had decided that we wanted to get married so we designed the engagement ring together and had this made. I knew Nik had the ring but wasn’t sure how he was going to propose or when. Nik was well aware that I love surprises so one weekend in early December, we attended a friend’s wedding in Bright on the Friday. We also had Nik’s Christmas Party planned for the Saturday night so we had to pack up early Saturday morning and drive back to Bendigo in time for Nik’s Christmas party. Little did I know, as I was getting ready for the so-called ‘Christmas Party’, that Nik was about to propose. When I was ready and set to leave the house to go to the party, Nik got down on one knee and propsed. Nik had then asked me to pack a bag as he had planned a night away at a surprise location. Being absolutely beside myself with shock, you can imagine how much happier I was when we arrived at the Langham in Melbourne for a beautiful dinner and night away!

THE VENUE

Being a Catholic, getting married at the Sacred Heart Cathedral had always been a dream of mine as the building is so overwhleming grand and beautiful and I knew this would add to the significance of our big day. We had previously attended a friend’s wedding at Sutton Grange Winery and were absolutely taken back by how stunning the venue was, being set upon a lake and in amongst the vineyards. It was appealing as it is a 30 minute drive from Bendigo and was unlike any venue we’d ever seen before. Straight away the staff were so dedicated and helpful and were committed to squeezing 200 guests into their venue. Quality of wine, food and service was apparent straight from our initial meeting with the venue.

FAVOURITE MOMENT

It is hard to pinpoint one exact favourite part of our wedding but celebrating our important day with so many family members and friends surrounding us was indescribable. Our family and friends couldn’t be happier for us and showed this in so many ways. Feeling the love and how proud our families were was a feeling that really can’t be beaten.

THE DRESS

Finding the dress was a surprisngly easy and pleasant experience. Having a solid frame, I really didn’t expect this. My mum and sister came with me to Melbourne over the summer holidays as we were just going to suss out dresses and start to get an idea of brand and style. The first day we went to Raffaele Ciuca in Armadale where I was surprised that there were so many dresses that I loved. There was one particular dress that my sister pointed out that was there but the sample wasn’t big enough. Luckliy enough I was booked in to Raffaele Ciuca Brunswick the following day and ironically they had the dress in my size. As soon as I put it on we all knew that this was ‘the one’. It was stunning, flattering, sexy and above all elegant (which was so important to me).

FINDING THE ONE

I was lucky enough to get Francesca at the Brunswick store. She was very straight down the line and knew her craft perfectly. We laughed a lot and enjoyed the experience immensely as Francesca didn’t mess around and spoke honestly from her many years of experience.

ADVICE FOR OTHER BRIDES

Being organised is the key! Getting as much as you can done early on kept me sane! Avoid having too many people in your bridal party and try and choose people who love you and will want to support you as best as possible!

Also, can you give us a tip on how to keep a happy relationship?

Know each others’ strengths and weaknesses and be aware of these as this awareness will make life a lot easier for you.