LAURA + ROB - BLACK BARN RIVERSIDE

Hawke's Bay native, Laura, describes herself and new hubby, Rob, as 'truly laid back humans' and so it went without saying that was the vibe they wanted on their wedding day. Under the stars and beside the slow-moving Tukituki at Black Barn Winery's riverside wedding venue, roving canapés replaced a formal sit-down dinner and guests gathered on large vintage rugs strewn amid lanterns and flowers to enjoy the speeches.

"We did everything just as we wanted, completely untraditional. We had our photographs taken before the wedding as we wanted to maximise time with our guests during the evening when Ben Throp and his band were playing, which completely set the atmosphere. It couldn't have been more perfect," explains Laura.

She describes the look of the day as boho, but it took more than one go to get the centrepiece exactly right. With a dress impulsively bought and put away early while the couple were working the super yacht circuit together in Europe, Laura had plenty of time to wonder 'what if' until she had that love-at-first-sight feeling all brides should have for their dress after seeing her Made With Love Bridal gown on Instragram. Following her instincts, she bravely contacted the Australian designer and had it made sight-unseen. Like love, from big risks come the big rewards. See for yourself...

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Laura and Rob's wedding was uniquely their own and that made it a pretty cool day for us, creatively. We also loved the random backstory about how they came to have Michelle Fey documenting the day. From Laura: "When I lived in Hawke's Bay my favourite past time was walking up Te Mata Peak. I remember seeing the Eva Bradley Photography car parked up the top, and then seeing the most beautiful photos of bride and groom in my favourite little haven. It seemed fitting that we used them for our wedding. Michelle was such a pleasure. She's very down to earth and we loved her sense of humour. She knew what we wanted and how we were feeling on the day. She was the perfect fit for us! "

THE DREAM TEAM:

Photographer: Michelle Fey

Venue: Black Barn Riverside

Makeup and bride's hair - Seb Makeup

Bridesmaids hair - Urban Retreat

Band: Ben Throp

Cake - The Caker

Celebrant - Jo Smith

Tent: The Flagship Events Company

Styling hire: Miss Frou Frou

Flowers - Le Bella Rosa Florist (Laura's very clever mum) & The Floraliste

Videographer - Mayer Wedding Cinema