Homebodii Bride of the Month: Melissa McFadyen

We knew we wanted to spend the rest of our lives together when…

we first started living together. David invited me to move in with him and at first I felt content being at home with my family but we quickly realised we could not spend a night apart. Our relationship blossomed so naturally and we became inseparable. I knew from the moment I met David that there was something special. 

Our approach to planning the wedding was…

to try to focus on what was really important to us. We wanted to maximise the weekend with our friends and family and ensure we got some quality time with our loved ones. We worked together to plan and style our wedding and although stressful at times, we had a lot of fun.

Our approach to planning the wedding was…

My wedding dress journey felt like…

such a special experience. I knew from the start that I wanted something sleek, elegant, and timeless, where the focus was all on the craftsmanship and luxurious materials. Of course, it was a little stressful at times (so many decisions!), but the best part was getting to share the whole process with my beautiful Mum and sisters. All those fittings and little moments together made it so much more meaningful, and in the end, I found a dress that felt absolutely perfect for me. 

Looking back on the day we are so glad that we…

focused on being together and staying close throughout the day. We really tried to enjoy the little moments and savour our day together. We prioritised time with our family and friends and made sure that we had a lot of time for the dance floor!

The styling details that I loved were…

the incredible flowers, which added such a romantic and elegant touch, and the beautiful cake which was simple yet so stunning in its design. Every detail, from the soft candlelight to the carefully chosen table settings, created an effortlessly beautiful and intimate atmosphere. A huge highlight for us was having my beautiful sister from Studio Gia create and style all of our bespoke stationery, from the invites and save-the-dates to the signage, menus, table settings, guest book, wishing well and more. Every detail felt so thoughtfully curated, adding such a personal touch to the day.

The most unexpected part of the day was…

when my twin sister’s dress ripped and everyone remained so calm. It completely distracted us all from the anticipated pre-ceremony nerves and instead I was surrounded by my bridesmaids laughter and got the opportunity to have some beautiful moments with my Dad whilst my sisters dress was sewed up!

My inspiration for my hair and makeup…

was all about feeling fresh, glowy, and like the best version of myself. I wanted a natural look that enhanced my features rather than masking them. For my hair, I chose to wear it up so I could fully enjoy the day without worrying about strands going astray. I had originally planned for a hair change later in the night, but with the dress dilemma, we ran out of time and honestly, I’m so glad! It meant I could truly let loose on the dance floor without a second thought about ruining my hair, and it was the best feeling.

When I look back on the day now I feel…

so grateful and happy with everything. We took a moment to sit back and look around the venue and see all of our family and friends having an amazing time and feel very lucky to have been surrounded by so much love. We loved that our photos and videos were captured in such detail that we can relive our day and each beautiful moment. We are so grateful for our incredible photographer and content creator Lost In Love and videographer Moon and Back Co.

The stand out vendors were…

our beautiful photographer and content creator, Lost in Love. From the moment they arrived they made us feel so comfortable and relaxed. Alongside them, we had a beautiful videographer from Moon and Back Co. We had so much fun with them all and they captured all of the magical memories so beautifully. Ashley James on Sax was a VIBE and we felt incredibly lucky to have him and our DJ Brennan create the best atmosphere. Paris, the most incredible MC- our guests could not have spoke more highly of him. Allie our beautiful florist,  we were overwhelmed with how amazing our flowers looked. She completely transformed the venue. My beautiful hair stylist Harlen Hair. Sharah put so much time and effort into making us all look perfect. Our makeup artists Tahlia Liapis Makeup and Katie Makeup artistry. Finally, our venue Stone of the Yarra Valley. We got engaged in Italy and knew we wanted an Italian inspired wedding. We can’t thank Stones enough for our beautiful day.

We were so happy we chose the venue because…

it’s the most beautiful venue and on the day it looked so amazing. We looked at so many venues throughout the wedding planning process and nothing compared. We always wanted an Italian inspired venue after getting engaged in Italy and this felt like the perfect venue for us. 

A word of advice to new brides would be…

 to trust yourself with the planning process. It is so easy to be influenced by trends and it was important to us to plan the day together and reflect our style and personalities through the details. We had non-negotiables that we focused on and that helped us to prioritise what was important to us. We chose vendors who we completely trusted to make our vision come to life and this helped us to truly enjoy our day and have confidence to relax and enjoy each moment without worrying about the finer details.

My Homebodii moment was special because…

 I felt so confident from the moment I put my robe on. My getting ready outfits were one of the last to arrange and my experience with Homebodii was amazing. I had been eyeing off the Helena Robe which had been out of stock online prior to my wedding. The store contacted me to arrange a delivery from the warehouse and I felt so grateful to the staff who went above and beyond to deliver a robe to me the week of my wedding. The moment I tried it on I knew it was what I was going to wear before the big moment of putting on my custom VP couture gown. I loved the lace detail and the sleeves and the incredible feel of the material, it was just perfect.