Emotional DIY Kawaii Wedding: Talia & Zac

Eric Ronald Photography

March 18, 2013

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Isn’t it funny when two of your worlds collide? I’ve been stalking following Talia on Instagram for ages (I love love love her cute kawaii style!) and so when I received their wedding photographs from Eric Ronald I literally jumped up and down with glee! I knew this wedding was going to be awesome from the few sneaks I’d seen on her feed but I was little prepared for this level of amazement…

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“As you will read below, I find this story so incredibly beautiful”, began Eric’s email to me. “Their strength, piece and love for one another is truly inspiring. I was literally wiping tears away during the speeches and the photos of Talia during Zac’s speech still make my eyes well up. Nowadays many couples have been together for quite some time before getting married which makes the wedding more of a milestone in the midst of their story rather than the beginning. They have been tested and overcome so much as individuals and as a couple which made their wedding day so special. I believe that there is something in Talia & Zac’s wedding that represents what modern day weddings are all about.”

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Prepare yourselves people, this is gonna be good…

“Talia and I first met 5 years ago when I was working at a sneaker store called HYPE DC,” began Zac. “I was into collecting sneakers so I couldn’t have thought of a better job! In Melbourne (at the time) there were two city stores and I was asked to leave my usual store to cover breaks at the other; and I’m pretty lucky I did. Talia came in with a friend, asked about a sneaker and that was it – pretty usual stuff. A few weeks later there was a book launch for ‘Curvy’, which celebrated female artists; I was there with my friends and Talia was with hers. Throughout the night we kept looking at each other from across the room both thinking to ourselves ‘who is this person, how do I know them?’. It was seriously doing my head in! Towards the end of the launch my friends and I were hanging near the exit and on her way out Talia busted through my friends, came up to me and said ‘how do I know you!?’. After a while we figured out the sneaker store connection I invited Talia to hang out with us for the rest of the night. We immediately had a connection and since then have spent literally every day with each other. The only time in the five years when we’ve been apart was when Talia had to go overseas for work for a week and that was tough! We’re always together and I love that.”

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“I had proposed to Talia early last year (Jan 25th to be exact) and we had our eyes set on what would be an amazing year of planning the wedding, holidaying in Japan and spending time with each other”, he continued. “We had our engagement party, went to Japan and it was suddenly mid-year with our wedding date only seven months away. Shortly after my birthday (June) I woke up one day with a massive pain in my ear and once I had gotten over the pain I realised I could only hear low frequencies. Having a background in sound engineering and being a music producer I freaked out and went to an Audiologist to unfortunately find out that my hearing had gone and would need to wear hearing aids the rest of my life. For a good month we lived in pretty much silence as my ears were too sensitive. I’d be at home all day whilst Talia was at work and when she’d come home she’d see me in pain but couldn’t talk to me. It was hell for me to go through but I can’t imagine what I’d be like on the other end to have your parter, friend and future husband to go through that. We spent so much time in tears holding each other. I questioned the importance of music – something that was so important to me and it was an emotional roller coaster. Talia’s commitment, love, understanding was amazing. Though it was such a tough time it really brought us together and made the wedding, as well as our commitment to each, other even more special. To me it showed even more how much of a beautiful person Talia is and the power of love.”

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SOB!

So what about the actual wedding then? Well the day was held at Boyd Baker House in Melbourne. The couple wanted to keep the day fun and informal and for their guests to have fun. Talia explained, “We didn’t look to a certain era or theme, we just did what we wanted. We didn’t want to have a formal, traditional white wedding as that’s just not us at all, we even had a no suit policy! Having taco truck and a ‘help yourself’ bar created the perfect afternoon party vibe that we wanted, everyone was really relaxed and themselves which was really important to us.”

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“Our whole wedding was pretty much DIY. My mum, who has a background in pottery, made the bowls that were given as wedding favours and they were wrapped using fabric that I individually stamped as well as handmade gift tags. It was really nice being able to give people a gift that truly was from us. I also made all the chandeliers that were hanging over the reception – they took ages! Many nights in front of the TV cutting out circles of fabric but it was definitely worth it as they looked amazing. The invitations and booklet were entirely designed by me and were printed at a local letterpress printer called The Hungry Workshop and the amazing signage on the day was constructed and painted by my brother. All the ladies in the family assisted in collecting tablecloths for the reception, my dad who has a coffee roasting company, The Chum Creek Coffee Co, provided the coffee and Zac’s parents made curry puffs and Kuih Ketayap – a Malaysian dessert. It was amazing having the whole family involved and it really paid off that we did basically everything ourselves, the whole day truly represented us as a couple.”

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“My favourite parts of the day were being walked down the aisle by my dad and seeing Zac up there waiting for me with the cutest smile”, Talia continued. “The speeches were amazing, particularly Zac’s which made me laugh then cry, laugh then cry again. But basically the whole day was amazing and I couldn’t of asked for it to have been any better.”

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“Seeing Talia for the first time as she walked down the aisle is a moment I will always cherish and never forget”, Zac concluded. “She looked so beautiful and it brings a tear to my eye when I think about it. I was so nervous before the ceremony mainly as everyone was there looking at me and all waiting for it to start but the moment I saw her I was transported to such a beautiful place. Like Talia said, the speeches were really special and everyone brought something different and insightful to the table. I had written a speech but the moment I got up I figured I’d scrap it and just speak my mind. Standing in front of everyone and seeing our family and friends – people who made us who we are being there to support us was amazing. Talking about my love for Talia and seeing her in tears and my dad offering her a handkerchief is something I’ll never forget as well. The whole day worked so well. It was a true testament to the effort we had put in and our journey together. To me, it was perfect.”

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Goddamn, what a perfect wedding. Thank you Talia & Zac for sharing your beautiful day, and story, with us today. It’s an honour to feature you.

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