Take one look at the outfits below & you know Erskineville lesbian couple Corinne & Amara do things in style. They also own & run a gorgeous organic tea business called The Rabbit Hole & chose New York City as the destination for the latest chapter of their commitment to one another. Awesome.
Read on below to find out how keeping it simple in a city of excess worked a treat for them & what made their wedding so damn wonderful (apart from their love, of course).
Tell us a bit about your day:
We decided to take advantage of the change in same sex marriage laws in New York. We’d always wanted to visit and so we thought “what better excuse”. Getting married wasn’t spur of the moment though, Amara had popped the question about 12 months earlier.
Best moment of the day?
Seeing all our friends and family as we walked in together to “Cop Cot” in Central Park. You know people really love you when they’re willing to lay cold hard cash on the line and travel half way around the world to share a moment with you.
What did you splurge on?
Trips to New York!
Where did you save a penny?
All the other “bits”. We didn’t do flowers and I made my own headpiece from a piece of old curtain fabric from Lincraft and a brooch left to me by my grandmother. We even went basic on table decorations and had apples as our centerpieces. We also managed to get better rates on all the services for the day because we had our wedding on a Monday morning with a lunch reception. It didn’t matter to us, we were all on holidays but it saved us at least 50% (once I did a little bargaining). It then meant we could have a little time in the afternoon to take it all in and meet up with everyone in the evening for cocktails and more celebrating in NYC.
Any mis-haps / difficulties on the day or before?
Amara and I both got incredibly sick with a flu while we were away, so we both sniffled through the wedding day. Nothing a glass of champagne of two didn’t fix though.
Keeping it small & intimate
Having been to a few other weddings since ours, I continue to reflect on how amazing it was to have such a small, close group of people to share it with. I’d highly recommend keeping it small if you can. We had 20 people at our wedding and everyone sat down around a big table to celebrate with a gorgeous meal after the ceremony. It made it particularly special.
Any DIY tips and pass on?
Have your wedding overseas!!! It stops you stressing about the little things and ensures a really small number of guests which is an awesome way to experience the day.
Any Businesses that stood out to you and what made them ace?
Holly Chalmers in Newtown was fantastic. I begged her to make our outfits even though she doesn’t do custom made gear. Riverpark restaurant in New York were spectacular the whole way through from the international planning through to perfection in both food and service on the day. Last but certainly not least our Celebrant Rev Annie Lawrence who delivered the most amazing ceremony.
All photos by the couple’s friend Gareth Costello
