{Love Birds} Leigh & Stuart and their happily ever after

“For you see, each day I love you more. Today more than yesterday and less than tomorrow. “ Rosemonde Gerard

There are some weddings that simply show true love. This wedding is one such example. A combination of impeccable taste, exquisite attention to detail and handmade touches make this honestly one of the most beautiful weddings I have seen. Leigh and Stuart show what love is and how simply beautiful a wedding can be. Happily ever after is not a term to be used lightly but sometimes it is just right. Here are Mr & Mrs McLean – Happily Ever After.

The Love birds: Stuart McLean, 27 year old diesel mechanic & Leigh Stapleton, 29 year old Teacher

Ceremony: In Carcoar at the Catholic Church of the Immaculate Conception. We wanted an intimate church with lots of character and beautiful light for our photographs.

Reception: Athol Gardens, Blayney. We looked at every venue in the district but when we walked in to Athol Gardens we both knew it was perfect for us. Stunning gardens and an outdoor terrace that suited our taste to a tee.

Theme: Just a mixture of our favourite things- black, white, beige with a touch of lace and a splash of electric blue

The Dress: Ivory, strapless, silk gown with a ruched bodice and flowing skirt from Wendy Makin Couture Leigh says she tried on so many dresses and loved them all! She made a top 5 and chose this one mainly for the gorgeous silk fabric. She added a flower from another dress she loved. Leigh says ‘I wore electric blue shoes for my something blue, my grandmother’s pearls for my something old and wore my sister’s veil as something borrowed’.

Groom & wedding party attire: The bridesmaids wore dresses floor length chiffon dresses from Seduce in a soft dusty pink.

Groom & Groomsmen wore light grey suits with white shirts and white silk ties.

Hair: Wavelength Bathurst

Makeup: Macquarie Skin & Day Spa

Decorations: Table centres- large 3 wick candles wrapped in black lace & ribbon

Bonbonnieres – Little jars of Rhubarb jam (made by the bride) & White violas in beige ceramic pots with custom labels made by the bride

Food:

Canapés: Prawns with chilli & lime salt; Arancini balls with spinach and buffalo mozzarella; Duck in crisp wonton cups; Chilli feta and crispy pancetta crostini

Mains: Herb crusted rack of lamb on a bed of creamy potato mash with roast vegetable salad or Spanish chicken breast with quince sauce, green beans, potato gallette and baked butternut pumpkin

Dessert: Vanilla Pannacotta and slow roasted rhubarb with a vanilla tuile or Chocolate Hazelnut praline with chocolate sauce

Cake: One tier tall round carrot cake with layers of cream cheese, covered in butter cream icing and topped with fresh roses the same as the bouquets. The Bride says she made the cake herself (even though everyone thought she was crazy – but really she says she is just too picky to trust anyone else) and the cake topper and bouquets were by Florabundance.

Drinks: Local Wines from Cumulus and Angullong and a selection of beers and spirits.

Photographer: Jennifer Stocks from Jennifer Stocks Photography– the most amazing photographer! Jen usually only photographs babies and families but we twisted her arm as an old friend to capture our day. We could be happier with our photos taken around beautiful Carcoar.

Rings: The wedding bands are Quorra purchased at WJ Coote and Sons. Leigh has a white gold diamond wedder and a plain band either side of my engagement ring and Stuart chose a thick white gold plain band.

Stationary: All stationary was handmade by the bride including the invitations, service booklets, escort cards and table numbers. The stationary supplies were purchased at Fantasia in Bathurst.

Music: The couple chose country music singer Kaylee Bell to perform at the church and she further entertained the guests in the garden at Athol afterwards during drinks and canapés.

Special moments: The bride says she started crying before she even pulled up at the church! Then she walked in and saw that half the church was crying including the groom & groomsmen! – She says as soon as she saw Stuart standing there she couldn’t help but smile.

Our beautiful guest book was a wedding gift from a very special friend. She drew a tree and our guests put their finger prints as the leaves and signed it. We have it hanging on the wall in our house as a reminder of our special day.

Our amazing honeymoon in France and Italy was definitely a highlight too – an experience we will never forget. The most special thing for us was having our favourite people together to help us celebrate!

Guests: 100

Cost: Approximately $27,000.00