Glam bride stuns in unconventional wedding dress
Brisbane bride Prudence Richardson wowed guests and her husband-to-be Tom Sweep in her daring, gorgeous gown.
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After a Covid delay last year, this Brisbane couple managed to make their wedding day one of “love, emotion and laughter”.
Queenslanders Prudence Richardson and Tom Sweep – who have been together for nine years – were due to marry in August 2020 at Nightcap National Park at Nightcap Ridge in northern NSW.
But when the pandemic border closures ruined plans for their guests from both states, they decided to postpone.
The couple tied the knot on April 24 this year in front of 90 guests at the same venue.
They held the ceremony in the rainforest and the reception by a fireplace inside.
“The weekend festivities were all held in the beautiful Nightcap National Park at Nightcap Ridge – a completely secluded rainforest with no phone reception,” Prue says.
“We had to make sure both NSW and Queensland restrictions covered us. I’m so glad we postponed it, as we got to have the wedding exactly as we wanted.
“We were pretty lucky and were able to rebook most things. Same venue, same set up, same everything.”
The couple met at Brisbane’s “very romantic” Bowler Bar, and Sweep proposed at The Standard in New York.
They danced their first dance to Lovely Day by Bill Withers, before honeymooning for a week in Byron.
“We will be doing Adelaide and Kangaroo Island later this year,” Prue says.
“The SA borders were closed a few weeks earlier to the lockdown, so we played it safe with our honeymoon.”
What was the standout moment of the day?
The whole day was a dream, but the absolute standout was the ceremony. It was such a surreal feeling – so much love, emotion and laughter.
Our best friend was our celebrant, which made it extra special. We both said our own vows too, which was something we will remember forever.
What would you do differently?
Literally, nothing.
What would you spend more or less on?
Wouldn’t change a thing.
When we started planning we first decided what was important to us and what wasn’t, this helped us put money into the things we knew would make our day extra special and forgo the things that we didn’t really care about, like a cake.
One thing you wish people told you about planning a wedding?
Everyone gives you all of the advice, but the best I got was: focus on the things that are important to you, enjoy every moment, don’t sweat the small stuff on the day, take time out with your partner on the day (photos were a great time for this), and have tissues on hand and good music.
Best advice for other couples planning a wedding?
Have fun and celebrate the milestones along the way.
Make it personal and special for you two, it’s all of those little details on the day that made it so special.
Everyone’s days are so different and personal – don’t feel like you need to follow the same checklist as your second cousin.
Emotions around changing plans?
We stopped planning as soon as things became uncertain, so I think we knew it was most likely not going to happen.
It’s a weird feeling not having any control over such a big moment in your life, but we are definitely so grateful we made that call early.
What helped you get through the stress of changing plans?
We just worked through all of our rebookings with Byron Bay Weddings and then any vendors we booked ourselves.
We also planned a little celebration with our close friends and each other to celebrate that we weren’t able to be “just married”.
Advice for other couples whose weddings are impacted by coronavirus?
Stay excited and have fun planning.
Don’t let the stress and uncertainty overshadow that you’re planning the most incredible day of your life.
Have the best time planning with your partner, whatever happens, happens. You’ll get your dream day.
Hens Night?
A boat, party bus and dinner down the coast.
Bucks Night?
Skirmish and poker night.
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