Fireworks, acrobats, 8m chandeliers: Qld’s most lavish society weddings
From fireworks and acrobats to extravagant floral displays and personalised blessings from the Pope. We take you inside Queensland’s most elaborate society weddings of 2022. SEE THE PICTURES.
Lifestyle
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From fireworks to personalised blessings from Pope Francis, acrobats to 8m chandeliers, choral serenades to cultural ceremonies overseas, love is being celebrated in spectacular abundance across south-east Queensland.
While Ipswich tennis darling Ash Barty and golfer Garry Kissick wed quietly on Makepeace Island in Noosa, other romantic Queensland identities and socialites were also professing their love in style – from lavish extravagance to understated elegance and fresh country chic.
And it was love which buoyed and comforted one Brisbane couple when unexpected tragedy struck on the eve of their special day.
Damien Anthony Rossi and Jason Avery
Two years after media personality Damien Anthony Rossi, 57, surprised partner Jason Avery, 49, with a poolside proposal, the couple wed in a glamorous affair at the Hyatt Regency Brisbane.
The July 31 ceremony was facilitated by Channel 9 newsreader Melissa Downes, while Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk was the ring bearer and country music star Lee Kernaghan and wife Robby performed his ballad Where I Wanna Be.
The happy couple, now known as Mr and Mr Avery-Rossi, were attended by a ‘Groomal’ party, including Jason’s brother Simon and Michael, Palaszczuk and partner Dr Reza Adib, Downes, Kelly Nahama, DJ Wendt, Jill Mitchell, Andrew Hamadanian, Marilyn Van der Valk, Kellie Alderman, Leah Desborough, Mildred Ellwood and Mark McSkimming.
Guests at the black, white and silver themed event included Brisbane Mayor Adrian Schrinner and wife Nina; Queensland Minister for Education, Industrial Relations and Racing Grace Grace and husband Michael; Channel 7 newsreader Sharyn Ghidella; TV/Radio personality Sofie Formica and husband Scott Wilkie; Real Housewives of Melbourne star Janet Roach and partner Sam Gance; hairdressing and boating legend Stefan with partner Rose King; and celebrity hairdresser Oscar Cullinan, of Oscar Oscar salons fame.
Damien says it was “challenging and stressful” planning the wedding in a mere seven weeks due to a family member’s ill-health but he and Jason, an event planner, were very pleased with how the day unfolded.
“Looking back there were so many memorable and magical moments but I think the most touching for us was when our little spoodle Baci jumped up on my leg and wanted to be part of the vows,” Damien says.
“It gave me a bit of a start but then she settled for holding my hand through the rest of the ceremony. Our guests couldn’t stop smiling and taking photos.”
The Ferny Grove couple, who have been together for 14 years, enjoyed a relaxing post-wedding getaway at Burleigh Heads with the official honeymoon planned for Thailand later in the year.
Jack Hutchinson and Fatya Junissa Azlika
Jack Hutchinson will have no excuse for forgetting his wedding anniversary.
It’s also new wife Fatya Junissa Azlika’s birthday.
Jack, 30, director of Hutchinson Builders, and Indonesian-born Fatya, 31, were the first couple to wed on the GOMA Rooftop Terrace before 150 guests, later partying the night away with 240 local, national and international guests at family-owned The Fortitude Music Hall on June 4.
Mandailing cultural ceremonies were held in Bali a month later to represent Fatya’s North Sumatran heritage, followed by a reception for 120 people at beachfront Villa Phalosa.
It was a very different occasion to the small intimate ceremony originally planned for March 26 at the Hutchinson family’s New Zealand winery Craggy Range, derailed by continuing Covid-related border closures and quarantine rules.
“In December 2021, we decided to change the venue to Brisbane. It was tough but turned out great because we could invite more people to celebrate with us,” says Fatya, the chief-of-staff to the CEO of Gojek, the Indonesian on-demand multi-service platform and digital payment technology group.
“For Jack, it felt right to have the wedding in his hometown and we ended up having the best time possible.’’
Fatya wore mother-in-law Mary-Jeanne Hutchinson’s veil and vintage Carolina Herrera wedding gown for the ceremony, before changing into a Pronovias Atelier gown for the reception.
The couple, who met four years ago while studying for their Master of Business Administration (MBA) at the London Business School, honeymooned in Greece and Italy before making their home in Toowong.
Lindsay Collins and Kaylah Farrugia
Queensland State of Origin players and Roosters prop Lindsay Collins, 26, might be tough on the field but at home with new wife Kaylah, he’s a real softie.
Lindsay was so excited after picking up the engagement ring last year, he proposed to Kaylah as soon as she arrived home from work, dripping wet after getting caught in the rain.
“We’d just come out of lockdowns and Lindsay had been texting me throughout the day, telling me he’d done a spot of shopping and kept exclaiming how excited he was to show me when I got home,” says Kaylah, 24, a publicist.
“I was only half paying attention as he showed me his purchases, then when I looked up he was holding a ring. He got down on one knee and had a beautiful speech prepared.’’
“I was so overwhelmed and half-expected him to say, Jokes! because it was so unexpected and casual. He was too excited to wait to plan something romantic for the weekend, which I thought was very sweet.’’
The Padua and Mt Alvernia colleges’ high school sweethearts wed on January 28, 2022, at the Christine’s Church of Two Grandfathers in Rous Mill, followed by canapes and reception for 90 guests at a rose-and-greenery-filled Tides Byron Estate.
Kaylah wore a beautiful Hope x Page gown – “the first and only dress I tried on” – while Lindsay wore a suit by P Johnson Tailors.
“The whole day was truly amazing but the speeches were a standout for us, especially Lindsay’s,” Kaylah recalls.
“He had handwritten a letter to me which he read aloud to everyone, which was one of the sweetest things. There wasn’t a dry-eye in the house.’’
The couple, who have been together nine years, enjoyed a break at Byron Bay with an official honeymoon planned for later this year.
Julian Grima and Danielle Pallone
There were acrobats, fire twirlers, musicians and a spectacular fireworks display at this two-day wedding celebration — but the breathtaking abundance of flowers stole the show.
Perhaps not surprising since groom Julian Grima, 23, is the son of internationally renowned luxury wedding florist John Emmanuel, known for creating exquisite grand-scale floral installations.
It was a similar story when Sydney-based Grima proposed to Daniella, whom he’d met in 2020 through family.
“I was all dressed up as he’d convinced me we were just going to a menu-tasting at Sydney’s beautiful Curzon Hall. Instead I walked into a magical castle full of red roses,” says Daniella, 24.
The Sydney couple enlisted leading Brisbane wedding planner Alysia Bridger Events – who also co-ordinated the Hutchinson and Collins’ nuptials, as well as those of Erin Holland and Ben Cutting and Birmingham Commonwealth Games’ gold medal netballer Gretel Tippett – to create the perfect destination wedding at the International Sanctuary Cove on April 21, 2022, for 200 guests.
Delayed six months due to Covid, guests were invited to a white-themed beach welcome party the night before Pallone walked down the aisle in a custom-made Steven Khalil gown to wed Grima, dressed by Alex Goodman custom suits.
“The standout moment of the day was seeing each other at the altar, but it was all beyond perfect. Every single detail,’’ says Daniella, a new car sales consultant.
Her advice for other couples?
“Have fun with it and go wild! It’s the best day of your life!”
The new Mr and Mrs Grima honeymooned in the Whitsundays before returning home to Sydney.
Natasha Chipman and Kieran Ruddock
Brisbane-based
jeweller to the stars Natasha Chipman, 29, married her childhood sweetheart Kieran Ruddock, 29, in an understated, glamorous ceremony in Byron Bay.
, 29, married her childhood sweetheart Kieran Ruddock, 29, in an understated, glamorous ceremony in Byron Bay.
Guests were essentially whisked off to France for the day, greeted by French champagne and margaritas upon arrival at breathtaking venue Deux Belettes, with its magnificent trees and vine-covered walls.
“The ceremony was truly the standout moment of the day. I feel this is truly the most important part of the wedding and it was honestly so perfect,” says Chipman, who founded fine jewellery design company Natasha Schweitzer with sister Alexandra in 2015.
“Held in a relatively small open-aired stone courtyard with vines and roses and chandeliers spilling from the beams and arches, with our family and friends, it felt intimate and magical.”
Chipman worked with Jessica Andreatta to create her custom wedding gown, inspired by Cher’s 1974 feathered Met Gala look, before changing into another J Andreatta gown for the reception.
The bridesmaids were also dressed by J Andreatta.
Included in the Forbes 30 under 30: 2022 list, the sisters’ designs have been featured in French and Australian Vogue, stocked globally and been worn by celebrities including Miranda Kerr, Kylie Jenner, Aimee Song and Cate Blanchett.
Chipman and Ruddock, a detective, who met aged 17 at a Parkway Drive concert, honeymooned at the ultra-luxurious conservation-based One&Only Wolgan Valley resort in the Blue Mountains before returning home to Bulimba.
Katerina Charalambous and Manoli George
It was not a case of love at first sight for Katerina and Manoli when they were taken on a coffee date by mutual friends.
Brought together a few years later when Kat was running a charity fashion parade which Manoli modelled in, it was a different story.
Fast forward a few years to when their planned European holiday was cancelled due to Covid, Katerina had no idea Manoli’s birthday celebrations on Daydream Island included a sunset proposal and photo shoot.
“I didn’t suspect a thing. We were walking to sunset drinks and saw a tent set-up that looked like a proposal,” says Katerina, 27, an early childhood educator.
“I would have walked straight past it but Manoli grabbed my hand and started walking me up there. I was in shock! He got down on one knee and I started crying straight away.’’
Katerina wore a George Wu gown when she walked down the aisle of The Greek Orthodox Church, West End, to wed Manoli, 25, Bank of Queensland business development manager, before 400 guests on June 4.
The monochrome theme, considered unusual for a Greek wedding, included covering reception venue The Greek Club’s timber flooring with black, black draping and a massive square chandelier.
Groomsman Mihali Georgeou sang an acoustic version of Lonestar’s Amazed for the couple’s first dance.
“Our guests really showed us how loved we were and filled the dance floor from the start until the end of the night. We are still being told how special the whole day was,” says Katerina.
The couple, who have been together six years, have planned a honeymoon at Qualia, Hamilton Island, for later in the year.
Adelaide Hayes and Roberto Bran Hernandez
Boomerang artist Ai Weiwei’s opulent seven-tier, 8m-high crystal chandelier hanging in the Queensland Art Gallery’s Watermall, was the stunning backdrop for the wedding reception of solicitor Adelaide Hayes, 28, and engineer Roberto ‘Bobby’ Bran Hernandez, 35.
With original plans for a 2020 Hawaii wedding derailed by the pandemic, the couple planned a celebration in their hometown, which included El Salvadorian traditions of Ceremonia de lazo (wedding lasso) and Las arras matrimoniales (wedding coins).
As a special and sentimental wedding gift to Bobby, Adelaide organised a blessing from Pope Francis for their May 8, 2021, ceremony at St Brigid’s Church, Red Hill, where they were serenaded by the Brisbane Gospel Choir.
Adelaide wore a Booming Moda gown and engagement ring by Blue Nile, while Bobby wore a Wil Valour suit and Tiffany &Co wedding band.
Wedding planners had only three hours to transform the public gallery space into the luxurious reception space for 122 guests, including an assortment of mirrors used to hide the escalators behind the bridal table.
“We hesitated about the cost of live music initially but the Brisbane Gospel Choir and Baker Boys Band at the reception were major highlights of the day, and all our guests raved about the performances,’’ says Adelaide.
“Other relatively expensive items we’re so glad we invested in included premium photography and videography, our wedding planner and designer, premium drinks and plentiful flowers.’’
The couple, who met at a wedding five years earlier, honeymooned on Hamilton Island and Noosa before returning home to Macgregor.
Sophie Zoricic and Nathan Scicluna
Queensland ballerina Sophie Zoricic shocked her guests with a bold move halfway through her Whitsunday wedding to trainer Nathan Scicluna.
Sophie got a dramatic haircut between the intimate ceremony and reception for just 25 guests at Villa Botanica, Airlie Beach, on August 5.
There was also surprise fireworks after the cake cutting thanks to a local festival.
The Toowong couple met when Sophie, 27, joined the Queensland Ballet in 2013 where Nathan, 37, was also a dancer at the time, now founder and trainer at Crew Fitness Hub. Nathan proposed during a Daydream Island holiday in January 2021, replicating their first holiday together the year they met.
“We spent New Year’s Eve on the island and on our last day, Nathan planned a surprise helicopter flight to Whitehaven Beach where we spent an hour alone with a picnic and a bottle of champagne. As Nathan started taking photos of the scenery, he pointed to something in the champagne glass. I realised I was looking at my dream ring. I burst into tears, sculled the bubbles and, of course, said yes, Nathan capturing the whole moment,’’ says Sophie.
It was only natural for the couple to whisk their guests off to the Whitsundays for their dream destination wedding, Sophie choosing to walk down the aisle in a Karen Willis Holmes gown and her mother’s veil while Nathan wore a Reiss suit.
“The first moment we locked eyes on each other down the aisle would have to be the most special and surreal moment, but the highlight was watching the whole wedding party – including the youngest and oldest – kick their shoes off and get on the dance floor for hours on end after all the formalities were over,’’ says Sophie.
“We still feel like [the day] was a dream come true and wouldn’t change a thing.’’
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