‘Chainsaw to get through’: Couple’s wedding descends into chaos
When their first wedding venue burnt down, this Brisbane couple thought that was the end of their bad luck. They were wrong.
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A fire, then a cyclone threatened to derail their wedding but Ashlee Fleming and Cameron Stevenson overcame them both to finally become husband and wife.
First, their original venue, The Lussh in Woolloongabba, burned down months before their big day only to then have Cyclone Alfred arrive the weekend of their wedding.
Despite weather warnings, dangerous conditions and flooding, the Chermside West couple pushed through and tied the knot on March 10 this year at Gabbinbar Homestead in Toowoomba in front of 60 guests.
The conditions were horrific with so many of their suppliers cancelling or unable to get through, with the couple telling epic stories of how their guests managed to get there.
“One friend had a chainsaw and was cutting clear the road in order to get through,” says Ash, who has been with Cameron for six years.
“Others flew to Sydney instead of Brisbane and drove for 10-12 hours to get there, some got turned around on buses, or borrowed 4WDs if their cars weren’t suitable. I really felt like our loved ones, and the local community in Toowoomba rallied to make our day happen which is beautiful.”
How did you meet? Ash: We met in February 2019 at a dog park and hit it off straight away. Cam had just returned from Iraq and initially I was confused about this buff, good looking army dude who owned two tiny chihuahuas ... (I had a similar-sized pomeranian). Cam will say that it was love at first sight! We moved in together 6(ish) weeks later.
Proposal? Cam proposed during a family photo shoot (which he had planned with the photographer), which was perfect as we captured the moment to remember forever.
What were your original wedding plans? We were booked in to host our wedding at The Lussh in Woolloongabba on March 9.
Can you describe the moment you found out your first venue had burned down? We had sent out our invitations the week prior. The night it happened, we were busy putting the kids to bed with phones out of sight for a few hours. As soon as they were asleep, I saw I had several missed calls. Before I responded I checked the news and the first story that popped up was about The Lussh, which was still in flames at that time. We felt in limbo for a few weeks while we waited to hear from the venue (of course they were flat out reorganising more immediate weddings, so it did understandably take a few weeks). We were set on keeping the date similar as we had family members who had already eagerly booked flights.
You then found a new venue only to have it disrupted by Cyclone Alfred? The week prior, the cyclone was all over the news and landfall kept getting delayed. Our florist was having trouble sourcing the flowers, I even had to find an automated tanning booth and hoped for the best as my wedding prep appointments had all been cancelled. We drove to Toowoomba on the Sunday. Several guests arrived on the same day, just to ensure they would get there. We started to feel more relaxed and confident that it would go ahead. There was a group chat with all of the guests communicating about road closures etc which I had to mute as it was all a bit too overwhelming at the time.
At any point did you consider eloping? I do remember thinking on the day, that if this doesn’t happen today, I’m done, we are going to the registry office to sign the paperwork.
What kept you going through the chaos? We just took everything in our stride and accepted that we had done all we could, so we let go of what we couldn’t control and let the day play out (we were in great hands with Gabbinbar).
Were there any unexpected silver linings? Had the fire not happened, we would have almost certainly have had to postpone the wedding. Brisbane Airport did not reopen until Sunday, meaning all of my family (who live in New Zealand), as well as many other guests would not have been able to make it. Sunday was the worst day of the cyclone. Our booking at Gabbinbar was set for Monday the 10th which gave us one extra day which proved to be our saving grace with some family catching the last flight in on Sunday. I would never wish such a catastrophic event on any business, but had the fire not happened, we would not have found Gabbinbar! We loved The Lussh … but we were in love with Gabbinbar.
What were your reasons for choosing your new venue? After hearing our story, the manager had a bottle of Champagne and a hand-written letter waiting for us on that first viewing. I felt as though they truly cared about our situation.
Budget? We had $50k in mind but I feel like it was more than this.
Were there any unique details? I surprised Cam with a voice recording of the kids which played over the speakers before the aisle song.
Were there funny moments during the day? Our pomeranian, Ollie, was suited up as best man and caught a ride on the train of my dress as we were walking back down the aisle.
The Bride
Ashlee Fleming, 37
Profession Owner of Clique Social (Social media agency) and BukiBaby Sunglasses
Parents Kaye Fleming, Peter Fleming
Dress Temple by Bo & Luca, custom dress by Shannon Pittman (Studio in New Farm)
Hair Gabbinbar kindly organised a local hair stylist Sarah Courtney at 9pm the night prior
Make-up artist Amy Mylrea
Flowers Wildplay Flora
Engagement ring Xennox Diamonds
The Groom
Cameron Stevenson, 41
Profession Veteran
Parents Tracey Lee Matchut and Alexander Stevenson
Children Harlen, 5, and Eden, 2
Suit details Black Jacket Suiting
Celebrant Gabbinbar and Danielle organised local celebrant Laura Ryan to kindly step in
Caterer Gabbinbar
Cake Sweet Philosophy Toowoomba vanilla and white chocolate and raspberry with blooms by Wildplay Flora
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