Rebecca and James
17 APRIL, 2021
James and I met at a Synlait Milk conference during the winter of 2018. We met in a photo booth and again on the dance floor. James asked for my number and the rest was history. ‘He proposed during a sunset walk at Lake Hood. James asked me to take a photo so I turned around and he was on one knee. I had uncontrollable laughter as I thought it was a practical joke and then I saw the ring and managed to finally stop laughing and say yes. I have the photo of James down on one knee!
‘Finding the perfect dress was actually super challenging. I was fortunate enough to travel back to the UK before the COVID-19 pandemic, where all my family and oldest friends live. I had a favourite but decided to go for a different dress as the material on my favourite was too thick for a summer wedding. Because of Covid, we had to postpone the wedding from summer to autumn, so I ended up buying the dress I loved – Josie by Rebecca Ingram.
‘We got married at Woodbury Church just outside of Geraldine. It’s a beautiful place that has all the old English charm, with beautiful stained-glass windows. We both wrote our own vows
‘We got married at Woodbury Church just outside of Geraldine. It’s a beautiful place that has all the old English charm, with beautiful stained-glass windows.’
and then combined some jointly. I loved doing the second part together as I think it was important to talk about what we were vowing to do for one another in our marriage going forward. It solidified the meaning of a marriage and removed the noise of the wedding day. I had been crafting my own vows since 2019 so I had plenty of time to get them right.
‘The reception was incredible. Stonebridge made the day very memorable and created so many thoughtful touches for us. As my family, friends and some of James’s family couldn’t be there because of travel restrictions, we used Zoom to connect them into the ceremony and the reception. We felt so connected to them and it removed the emotion of doing it without them. We had speeches in between courses, put candle paper boats James created out on the pond after dinner and enjoyed the band with an Espresso Martini Hour!
‘My favourite part of the day was just before I walked down the aisle. It was the anticipation of heading into the amazing church as my flower girl, ring bearer and bridesmaids went ahead of me. I also loved decorating my cake in the morning. I had about 45 minutes alone doing what I love for my little business The Sieve and Whisk and it was just perfect. For James, it was reading the vows. A moment in history that he will never forget.’
‘As my family, friends and some of James’s family couldn’t be there because of travel restrictions, we used Zoom to connect them into the ceremony and the reception.’