Designer Experience BRIDE, SARAH & JAMES

When our designer Anna heard of the engagement of her friend Sarah, she couldn’t wait to create her custom wedding dress. From intricate embellishments to the perfectly fitted silhouette, Sarah’s strapless gown was the dress of her dreams. We are so excited to share Sarah and James’ Sorrento Wedding Celebration with you.

Wedding Location | Sorrento, Victoria Wedding Date| 22nd February 2020

Meet Sarah and James | I work in corporate events for a legal firm and James is a Project Supervisor. Both James and I love hiking, traveling and spending time outdoors.

Our wedding date, 22nd February 2020 marked our 10th anniversary together!

The Love Story | We met through a mutual friend more than ten years ago and within three weeks James was attending my Mums 50th birthday dinner. We got along so well instantly and bonded over our love of life and exploring as much as we can.

The Proposal |We are incredibly fortunate that our families get along so well. My parents booked a house in Daylesford for the Easter weekend and invited James' parents to join us. We caught up with Anna (Campbell) and her husband Murray on Easter Saturday and James mentioned he was going to propose the next day – Murray was the only person he told! The next morning we all went for a walk around the lake at Daylesford and James asked his parents to take a photo of us (he had also worded my Dad up to film!) He proposed with his grandmas ring for us to then go get one made together. Unfortunately he had looked at the date and decided proposing on Easter Sunday was ok however hadn't realised the date was actually April first. I was just glad it wasn't an April fools joke!

Finding ‘The One’ | My girlfriend wore an Anna Campbell dress for her 21st 8 years ago (when Anna was doing bridesmaid dresses) and I still remember thinking how incredible it was and the detail that went into it was phenomenal. This was a few years before I met Anna but I have always been amazed by her incredible talent. Anyone who knows me knows I love a bit of sparkle and the opportunity to make my dress with Anna, the fabric and beading designs were everything I could have ever hoped for.

The Designer Experience | I was probably a little hard to work with at first as I never pictured myself as a bride. I am the person who always wears black and never see myself as the typical soft whimsical bride that you often see.

When Anna showed me some beading she had designed I was instantly sold, that was the direction we were going with! It was elegant, just the right amount of sparkle and it felt like me.

The Anna Campbell Experience | I absolutely loved my wedding dress but the moment I tried on my second dress at Anna Campbell felt amazing! The dress symbolised the end of the night where I would be able to dance with all my friends and family. Finding something that was perfect and seeing it on was a moment that made me look forward to our wedding even more.

Memorable Moments | James and I organised to have fireworks  as a surprise for all of our guests. We and our mums all love fireworks and it was one of the things that we checked when choosing our wedding venue. We managed to keep it a surprise and it was a really lovely thing to share with all of our friends and family.

How I felt wearing my custom Anna Campbell Dress | Incredible! My Mum always said be careful with strapless dresses as you end up spending the whole night pulling it up and I don’t recall doing that at all. It just felt so right and comfortable and I even made the last minute call before we left the house to not wear any spanx as it just felt perfectly designed to my body.

My Favourite Element of my Dress | The sparkle! I remember saying to my bridesmaids I just hope the sun is out to give my beautiful dress the added sparkle it deserves. Looking back at footage it absolutely glistened in the sunshine and made me so happy.                              

Unexpected Moments | When we were on the cliffs getting photos taken my veil kept being pulled by the wind and I think a lot of the photos will probably be of me grabbing my head. The wind had finally died down and I had relaxed from holding it when one big gust of wind ripped it from my head and the veil went about 15m up into the air and flew towards the cliffs (luckily not to the water). Our photographer Christian chased after it and got an applause from our bridal party who were in the distance and saw him when he got it.

Words of Wisdom | Take people with you who will be honest and who you trust. You want to feel relaxed and enjoy every moment and don’t want people there who will stress you out. If that is one person or just yourself rather than the whole team that is fine, it is about you and not what anyone else is doing. I only had my Mum and one girlfriend who saw me in my dress prior to the wedding so it was a really nice surprise to show everyone on the day.

Wedding Dress: Anna Campbell Designer Experience

Cocktail Dress : The Florence Mini, coming soon with our 2020 collection

Photographer: Be Here Be Now Photos & Films | Instagram

Venue: Sorrento Park | The Baths, Sorrento | Instagram

We chose these spots because James grew up on the Mornington Peninsular and it was a spot that he knew would make him feel calm on an emotional day. I also really wanted greenery as our background for our ceremony rather than the beach which is why we chose the close proximity of Sorrento Park.

Celebrant: Married by Lucy, Lucy Gransbury | Instagram

Rings: Janai Jewellery

Catering: Three Foxes Distillery bottled cocktails for place settings

Florist: Joelie Younger | Instagram

Cake: The Buttercream Mumma

Entertainment: James Mack from Rutherford Entertainment | Instagram

Peninsular Fireworks | Website