The classic met-through-friends never gets old. Laura and Jotham have a love story that made us ‘nawwww’ the whole time at their beautiful love story. Married at the same church as Lauras parents over 35 years later and celebrating the night away at Crown Casino city scape views in the River room. Laura looked stunning in her Demetrios Platinum fit and flare gown in 333. The perfect combination of sexy and sophisticated found in this fit and flare gown. Photography: Ashley K Wedding Photographer THE FIRST SIGHT Jotham and I met through Jotham’s best friend John (one of our groomsmen). I went to university with John. Jotham and John have been best friends since High School. We owe John big time for introducing us! Jotham and I started off as really great friends and overtime it progressed to more. Jotham is such a fun, caring and gentle person and so respectful so I knew he was a keeper from early on. He was really shy and a bit nervous on our first date which was very cute! THE PROPOSAL Jotham proposed to me during a weekend away in Daylesford after being together for 6 years. I did not expect it at all! He made me feel like I had organised the weekend away but it was his idea all along! Jotham made me a photo book with photos from our relationship and when it came to the last page (a photo of us looking out into the distance) he started making a speech about us looking into the future. It was so overwhelming, emotional and so memorable. It was just very us. Not over the top and just very sentimental. THE VENUE We got married at St Monica’s church in Moonee Ponds which is so pretty. My parents got married there too so it was really special. Our reception was at the River Room at Crown Casino which we absolutely loved. The service we received from Crown was so amazing and our wedding planner made life easy for us! The room itself had an amazing city view and looked so beautiful at night. We wanted a modern wedding with a city vibe. We went to a few wedding venues but the River Room was by far our favourite and it was an easy decision to book there. FAVOURITE MOMENT I really loved everything about our wedding and it was exactly what we both dreamt it would be. My favourite part of the day was seeing Jotham as I walked down the aisle. I was nervous on the way to the church but as soon as I saw him my nerves went away. He was very emotional and it was just a really beautiful moment I will never forget. I also loved getting photos with our bridal party between the church and reception. It was so much fun and everyone was just laughing and having a great time. The reception was also a lot of fun but went so quickly! THE DRESS I loved and still do love my wedding dress. I still felt like myself on my wedding day which I think is important (but a more glamorous version!) I tried on so many dresses at many shops and had a few meetings with wedding dress designers but I felt the best in my dress that I found at Raffaele Ciuca. Going into wedding dress shopping I had an idea of what I wanted to wear but wasn’t completely sure. It’s true when people say you know when you’ve found the one! I knew right away it was for me and exactly the style I felt best in. I loved that it was backless, had long sleeves and the beaded detail was so pretty. I felt great in it and it was very comfortable. FINDING THE ONE I had a very positive experience with RC. Louana at the alterations department particularly stood out as she was so helpful and just knew what to do to make the dress fit perfectly. She listened and offered her opinions too which was so helpful. Nothing was an issue and everything went so smoothly. ADVICE FOR OTHER BRIDES I think it’s important for brides to be super organized in the lead up to the wedding day. If you’re organized you can relax and enjoy the wedding planning process. It’s important to remember your wedding is a special day with your loved ones so just enjoy the moment and don’t let little things stress you out. Someone also told me to make sure I took time at the reception to look around at everyone and everything that was set up and just take it all in. I made sure I did this on the night. To keep a happy relationship, I think you should never forget to laugh with each other and be silly!! VENDORS Photographer : Instagram @ashleykweddingphotographer Venue : Crown Casino River Room Flowers: Instagram: @bouquetmelbourne Hair : Instagram @thomaikyris