As soon as bride-to-be, Hayley, got in touch with me from her home-town of Wellington and said the words ‘Kairakau Beach’ and ‘colourful’ I just KNEW (a bit like her groom, Mason did) that we were meant to be together. This Hawke’s Bay summer wedding at the family Bach had a joyful theme the couple dubbed ‘Whimsical Garden Festival’ and their words about the whole day and the relationship that led up to it are so perfect I’m just going to hand it over to them…and let our pictures do the rest of the talking.

Hayley “The most important aspect for our wedding was having it at Kairakau Beach in rural Central Hawke’s Bay. We wanted the wedding to take place in a location that meant something to both of us. We also wanted to have the wedding close to guest accommodation so that people could enjoy themselves and walk a short distance home whenever they wanted to. We decided that the rustic charm of my family bach was the way to go. We wanted guests to be able to experience the remote beach location and unwind from city life.

As we only had six months to plan the wedding, we had to get our thoughts together very quickly. We wanted lots of bright colours that were thoughtfully placed on the day and to include special touches and people we loved wherever could.

Mason’s sister, (a graphic designer), created all of the stationary to reflect our bright, floral theme and my dear school friend, Kelly, made our delicious cakes (all 5 of them!). Our family friend, Sandy Phillips, has a farm nestled in the Hawkes Bay hills with an amazing garden. She wanted the flower displays to look like mini flower gardens and she blew us away with the ideas and execution. Another long-time family friend and neighbour at the beach, Bev Kerr, is a well-known Hawke’s Bay celebrant and she gave us so much guidance and added a personal touch given our history with her. While Design Cuisine in Napier did an outstanding job of showcasing New Zealand produce for the three-course dinner, we had friends and family gather crayfish and paua at the beach for the hors d’erves. We were so grateful to have such amazing people in our lives willing to do so much to make our wedding day special.

hawkes bay wedding photographers Eva Bradley

Mason and I are a Tinderella story. After both moving to Wellington in 2017 and swiping right, we met at a cosy café for a coffee and hit it off.

One morning a few years later, Mason then suggested we go for a walk around the Botanical Gardens. He was acting a little strange, and it was rather unlike him to suggest going for a walk… I knew something was up!

We had a lovely walk for quite some time (Mason later told me he got lost!). Eventually we made our way to a secluded little grotto, with a stream and native bush all around. Mason was so nervous that he initially forgot to get down on one knee. He quickly realised and dropped to the ground, before taking out a ring, and asking “Will you marry me?” When we got home Mason explained that I should pack my swimsuit and an overnight bag, and we got in the car and headed to a mystery destination. Mason had booked a local Airbnb with an outdoor spa, where we spent the rest of the night relaxing with a few more glasses of bubbly and stargazing.

Other aspects that were special to us was having loads of fun picking out all the colourful and charming table decorations with Miss Frou-Frou. She just ‘got us’ right from the moment we met. The festival-style tents from Flagship completed the scene and it worked so well having the larger tent connect to a smaller one for the band. We are huge fans of live music and we were so happy we found Hawke’s Bay covers band, Stolen Records, who had an amazing sound and repertoire and even learned a Spice Girls number for us and played it twice. I’ll never forget dancing with my husband to Wannabe on the D-floor!

It was really important to us that we chose a photographer that would capture the emotion and romance of the day, and who wouldn’t over-edit the photos. We had seen Eva’s photography before and didn’t even search for any others as we knew we thats who we wanted. On the day, we found Eva and Andrew super enjoyable to be around. They oozed positive energy, were very professional, respectful and fun! They also have mastered the art of taking photos in a non-invasive way. They captured some stellar pictures and made us look so good!

Our advice to other couples beginning their wedding planning journey is to visualise what you imagine the day to be like, from the moment you wake up to the moment your last guest goes home. Then break the day down into segments and work through the detail of executing each one. Don’t take on all of the planning yourself - I was fortunate to have my mother help out a lot, plus our many friends and family in the lead up and pack down of the wedding. And finally, don’t sweat the small stuff. Know that everyone is there to celebrate your declaration of love. Everything else is a bonus!

A huge thanks to Hayley & Mason for allowing me to share their beautiful day. Thanks also to all the other vendors and family friends who helped make this such a gorgeous wedding to shoot….here are what I hope is all of them!

VENUE: Kairakau Beach, Hawke’s Bay

PHOTO + VIDEO: Eva Bradley & Andrew Caldwell

DRESS: ‘Sia’ by Rue De Siene from Paperswan Bride, Wellington.

HIRE: Miss Frou Frou + Flock Events

TENTS: Flagship Events

FLORALS: Sandy Phillips

STATIONARY: Emily Longdill

BAND: Stolen Records

MAKEUP: Anna Scott

CATERING: Design Cuisine

CELEBRANT: Bev Kerr

Florals, stationery, cakes and so many other personal touches are thanks to Hayley & Mason’s amazing community of loving family + friends.