Photography Nikole Ramsay
It’s been a bit busy around here over the last few days… zipping here, zipping there….. I just found out that our wedding is appearing in this coming months’ Country Style Magazine….. can’t wait to see it….. incase you missed our wedding on the blog a while back… ten months ago, wow, that has gone fast… you can see part one here and part two here … and if you are super keen our honeymoon here.…
Enjoy.
Kara x
Here it is… Honeymoon in Pictures! After finally arriving into beautiful Queenstown en route from Christchurch …long story…due to poor visibility we had to be redirected into Christchurch mid flight, which then entailed an eight hour coach ride from Christchurch to Queenstown… yes eight hours on a coach with literally a whole plane load of people… apparently this happens a lot …and here we were thinking that we would just ‘pop’ over to NZ for our honeymoon and not worry about losing time on a long haul flight… let’s just say we could of gone to New York…..we were greeted with the most incredible view. Everything looked like glass. The mountains, the air, the lake… couldn’t believe the beauty and perfection of it all. We picked up our hire car Corolla and hit the icy tracks to Glenorchy to our first destination Blanket Bay.
So much beauty everywhere; even the wild grasses captivated me.
The lodge at Blanket Bay encompasses the most breathtaking views of the area.
If only it was summertime to indulge in a swim on the lake and jump off the pier into the depths.
Timothy O caught a cold so he tuckered in to the lemon and honey with hot water… which meant I did too…. I didn’t want to miss out on the delicious looking concoction.
After staying at Blanket Bay for three days we drove to Moeraki, with the single purpose…. to dine at Fleur’s Place.
Tile detail out the front of Fleur’s,
The perfect front door at Fleur’s Place. Loved it all.
As the day turned overcast and the sea winds bellowed, our table upstairs felt very low fi and comforting; Timothy O and I arrived early and left late. After reading Fleur’s book it was so special to be able to share her special restaurant and be in her space.
After Moeraki we drove up to Kaikoura to stay at Hapuku Lodge in one of their tree houses. I didn’t realise at the time though Hapuku Lodge is also a deer farm!
If you look carefully you can see Timothy O waving… silliness.
The tree houses at Hapuku would have to be the most considered environment we have ever stayed. On one side of the tree house there was the sprawling deer farm with snow capped mountains and on the other was an olive grove with views of the South Pacific Ocean. The level of comfort was extraordinary. The pillows, the mattress, the mattress topper, the sheets, the duvet… I could keep going… I pulled that bed apart after the first nights sleep to find out who could make such delicious bedding!
Whenever I am staying for an extended length of time anywhere I like to personalise the room. Timothy O and I foraged around the area and came back with lots of foliage on a morning walk.
Picnics by the sea.
Picnics in the olive grove.
And then there was Annie the deer…. the most heart melting animal you could ever cross. She greeted us with her long batting eyelashes and lots of licks…. and in return we gave her little apples, pats and cuddles.
Some of the local mobile industries… Frankie would fit right in!
After four days at Hapuku Lodge we were so sad to leave….we drove up to Picton and caught a ferry over to The Bay of Many Coves deep in the Marlborough Sounds.
By the time we arrived at The Bay of Many Coves the weather had taken a bit of a turn which set in for our entire stay. We tried bush walking… it got dangerously slippery… we kayaked…. until it rained… we read…. we looked at the sea…. then we discovered Hannes…. Hannes Bareiter, the German chef at The Bay of Many Coves. For the whole duration of our stay we literally counted down the minutes until we could experience Hannes’ cuisine. Each night we would just let him decide what we would have, complete free reign! Timothy O and I have wined and dined ourselves all over the world and with out doubt Hannes’ sensibility and approach to food was so refreshing and striking.
Then we said goodbye to New Zealand….
And arrived home just in time to celebrate Timothy O’s birthday.
That was it.. that was our Honeymoon in Pictures!
Go to New Zealand!
K x
Here is part two of our recent wedding. If you missed part one here it is. If you would like to hear a bit more about our wedding you can visit wedding photographer Nikole Ramsay’s blog post or have a look at Nikole’s Facebook page here.
We decided upon a long European style lunch for our reception. I’m such a sucker for a long table filled with friends and family, so having our reception like this was an absolute priority.
To decorate the table we decided upon fresh lemons and limes on branches. The fragrance so fresh. My mother and I collected buckets and buckets of lemons and limes from the little local church community garden at the end of our street, while Timothy O gathered more citrus from our ‘super farmer friend’ Mr Scott – thank you Mr Scott.
The amazing Rick who has a sign writing business called Frank Creates painted the lunch menu and wine selection for our long lunch. Rick also did the sign writing on Frankie our caravan last year (click here for a refresher). Rick always seems to know exactly what I’m after… and he is a very cool guy with great taste.
Our lunch was accompanied by Logan Wines of course. Many of you may know how much I love Logan Wines; everything from the tasting notes all the way down to the wine label is done with such craftsmanship and quality. Having Logan Wines there was like having old friends at the table.
We found this wonderful drinks dispenser from Dunlin Home and thought that a little ‘refresher’ would be a good idea to welcome guests into the reception area. The restaurant manager Mitch Jones from Spicers Peak Lodge came up with an absolute pearl of a cocktail for our guests.
Being a winter wedding outdoors we were afraid people would feel the chill, so I came up with the idea to give guests a wool lap blankets to keep themselves warm and to take home. I really should not have worried as it was a sparkling winters day, I think sunscreen was more in order!
Again, my girlfriend Sally Ogilvie from Studio Sixty came to the rescue and lovingly blanket stitched all the lap blankets for us, extremely time consuming and repetitive, what dedication…look at those stitches! - thank you so much Sally and apologies for the finger sprains!
Our huge wreath filled to the brim with beauty from Hacienda Flowers.
It was so emotional looking around the table watching our friends and family enjoying themselves with one another.
The lunch (and all the food for that matter) which chef Ash Martin and his team at Spicers Peak Lodge prepared for our guests was outrageously perfect and completely complimented the surroundings. Leading up to the wedding we met with Ash to talk about the lunch concept. Timothy O and I are big supporters of fresh and local produce and when we told Ash this he was completely on board, sourced such a high standard of produce and took it to another level. It was such a relief to be able to collaborate with Ash and his wife Andrea about this concept and for them to both be such avid supporters themselves.
For our ‘wedding bomboniere’ for our guests we created a fresh produce table to pick a bag to take home with them. Again, chef Ash was behind this concept 100% and found some great local produce for us. Some of the produce he sourced was actually the first crop from some of the flood affected farmers who endured the devastating 2011 Queensland floods which occured 18 months ago.
We included wedding photographs of our parents and grandparents.
I decorated the lodge with bundles and bundles of shed deer antler.
Our wedding cake made by Flour and Chocolate . I found this 1950′s wedding ornament about 12 years ago (when hardly no one was doing so called ‘vintage’, let alone ‘vintage weddings’) and I never had the heart to get rid of it.
Special blanket embroidery from Sally O
The blue grass band The Company.
Everybody singing along to ‘Sea of Love‘, our bridal dance.
The End. xx
Is this what you have been waiting for….. I think it is….
Here are our wedding photographs…. Timothy O and I were married on Friday the 20th of July at Spicers Peak Lodge on the Scenic Rim in Queensland in the most idyllic of locations. There is so much I want to say and people who I wish to thank, I’m not sure if I will be able to fit it into just one post. I may have to split it up… this way we can go on the journey together and not miss any of the little details… you know I love the details!
We asked our dear friend photographer Nikole Ramsay to shoot our wedding for us. Nikole and I met many years ago in London. As many of you know Nikole and I collaborate regularly as a photographer and props stylist team, so it felt like a natural choice to ask Nikole. You can see more of her work here and here… for now don’t go anywhere, make yourself comfortable and enjoy our wedding. For us it was the most incredible day brimmed with love, joy and pure ecstatic happiness.
We invited 30 of our closest friends to our lunch time wedding at Spicers Peak Lodge two hours out of Brisbane. We chose Spicers Peak Lodge as it was where Timothy O proposed to me and also because Spicers Peak Lodge offered such flexibility in hosting our unique wedding. They never said ‘no’ once to any of our requests… and there were many many requests. Nothing was ever a problem, not even me redecorating the lodge the day before with two ute loads, a trailer and two cars’ worth of propping. The staff shared the journey with us like it was there own. Incredible.
We came up with three options for our guests; stay for two nights – being the night before the wedding and the night of the wedding or stay for the night of the wedding and party into the evening or just come for the day.
I designed our invitations with much thought and love, incorporating the dusty pinks and faded browns of the landscape of the Scenic Rim region. Just before I sent them to print I thought they needed a little ‘lift’, a bit of ‘perk’. I asked Sydney handwriting connoisseur Aleksandra Schutz to write our names in her trademark flirty font. Instant ‘perk’!
Being a destination wedding there was a little travel involved, so we sent out a playlist in the mail in advance to all of our guests with some of our favourite music to listen to on the drive out.
We also asked those staying for the night of the wedding to learn the words to ‘Sea of Love’ sung by Phil Phillips included in the playlist…. our guests didn’t know it at the time, however it was to be our bridal song and they were going to have to sing all the words out loud! Nothing like an activity to do while road tripping! As we drove past sun faded pastures and clusters of iconic silver gum trees we listened to The Rolling Stones, Andrew Bird, Nick Cave, The Dirty Three, Evenings, Johnny Cash and more. It was such a great way to get the show on the road and to wash the city off.
Once we arrived there was plenty of set up work. I’ll share the ‘behind the scenes’ shots later. Fast forward to the morning of the wedding!
Pin holes for the family, with our girls feathers.
I asked Anneliese Gomez of Hacienda Flowers to do our flowers which were absolutely perfect. (I loved them so much I didn’t want to leave them to go on our honeymoon!) The pin holes were made from our girls chicken feathers – of course, thank you Bettina, Gigi and Coco (Nigella’s black feathers didn’t work). We had the most bursting extra large wreath imaginable, as well as some beautiful vase arrangements. Dusty pink and blush roses, parrot tulips, pepperberry, wax and pink blushing brides… the whole gang were there. So beautiful.
Our rings in a birds nest which Timothy O found a few months back.
Something borrowed… from my very thoughtful friend Sally Ogilvie from Studio Sixty. This was a gift from Sally’s sister to Sally on her wedding day. I felt very special and honoured when Sally offered it to me to wear.
Something Blue…. I teamed Sally’s pin with my Country Women’s Association pin… not that I’m part of the CWA… maybe one day if I get better at making scones.
The fabulous makeup artist Jacqlyn Nelson from Mecca Cosmetica doing my make up.
A gift to my father from Timothy O; his wedding tie and monogrammed pocket square from The Cloakroom.
My girlfriend and hairdresser Sonya Alexander helping me do my veil.
Getting very excited with my Mum and Dad.
Timothy O getting ready. Suit and shoes from The Cloakroom.
The trellis that our friends and family ingeniously helped erect the afternoon before.
The old piano we found and made into a sound system and signing table.
Jo Betz our endearing marriage celebrant who guided us through so much preparation work with such positivity! Love your work Jo!
We decided to have a ‘Ring Blessing’; it was a great opportunity to take some time to look around and really take in the moment. Our rings were in a little nest which our gorgeous friend Catherine passed around to each of our guests to hold and to take a moment.
The best part… walking down the aisle as husband and wife to ‘Aux Champs-Elysees’ by Joe Dassin… hilarious.
Chapter one of two. More to come…. very soon, I promise!
K xx
Hello, hello! How have you been? Did you miss me while I was gone? It felt like forever didn’t it….
Here is a sneak peek of our wedding shot by our wonderful friend and wedding photographer Nikole Ramsay. More coming soon I promise.
Instead of ‘Weekend in Pictures’ I have decided that tomorrow I might do ‘Honeymoon in Pictures’, how about that… New Zealand truly is amazing.
Wow… back to reality… Market this Saturday! haha… the show goes on…
K x
©Kara Rosenlund
That’s right… Timothy O and I are getting married at the end of the week. Ohmygoodness! Apologies for not doing a ‘Weekend in Pictures’ post yesterday… it was more like a ‘Weekend in Blur’… so much happening …. all very exciting!
I will be uploading on to instagram and my facebook page (click here) if you are interested in following our journey.
K x Soon to be Kara O
Morning! Today’s post is a quick one as I’m about to dash out the door!
Thought I would share with your some shots from my ‘Wedding Vibe’ folder – yes, I created a ‘Wedding Vibe’ folder on my computer. I think the success to any event is in the strength of the vibe; people coming together, relaxing, enjoying the company and most importantly having a great time. A great time = A great vibe!
K x
P. S. Apologies to all the very talented photographers who captured these stunning images; I don’t know your names to credit you. Though I’m sure I gathered all the shots from Snippet & Ink.
Car people…. are you out there? I need your help!
This is my absolute alway always will be dream car. Always. The Mercedes Pagoda in the models 230SL, 250SL or the 280SL and I need to find one fast to hire for our pending wedding!
Does anyone know someone with one…… in the South East Queensland area…… or does someone know where one lives, I’m up a random door knock…chat…plead…. letter writing.
Would you believe that my father almost bought one a few years back. I was super excited, as in my head it was actually going to be mine, not Dad’s at all. Then would you believe the woman who was selling it changed her mind! She changed her mind…. who does that! I didn’t handle that well at all… there were tears.
There will be more tears if I don’t find a car to hire. Spread the word!
K x
Where has the week gone? Hello? I can’t believe it is Friday! I’m off to a wedding dress fitting first thing this morning, then I have what feels like a marathon of beauty trial appointments…..I know, sounds terrible doesn’t it.
Have a wonderful weekend!
K x
Handpainted sign for local handmade preserves.
The cute little stand with the homemade jams and more.
The best Raspberry Jam!
Hot on the trail for new bits!
Still on the trail…
Classic Australiana!
Local Produce
Perfect for the wood oven downstairs.
On our way to the wedding walk through.
Bush lemons, just out of reach of my hands… next time.
Loving this dusty pink weed!
Dancing grasses.
Scottish Highland Cows – in Queensland.
Sunday addressing the wedding invitations.
John Nollet for Louis Vuitton
Celebrating after speed suit shopping with my family.
Timothy O hanging out with Coco,
A ruffled looking Coco – she is molting.
I don’t know about you though my weekend just flew past! Timothy O and I hit the bitumen and got out of the city early Saturday morning to go visit our beautiful rural wedding location.
The drive was rainy, cold and foggy and I loved it all! One of my super skills is knowing where all the secondhand shops are in all directions, (just like rockstars who have girls in every city!) so the trip meandered along all day. Apart from some new treasures we also picked up local produce, firewood and sweet homemade jam… I’m sure made by some lovely aproned lady somewhere in a gorgeous country kitchen who loves listening to talkback radio!
We then ascended up the mountain trail to our wedding location, passing wild lemon trees, highland cows, dusty pink foliage and classic wintery landscapes.
Sunday morning was a little crazy! Timothy O and I met up with my family in the city to hunt down a suit and bits for my father for the wedding. I think it only took about 30 mins. Us Rosenlund’s tend to know what we like and what we don’t like. Bamm, Bamm, Bamm, Done. We then had a rather informative conversation with the helpful French Antoine at Louis Vuitton about hairdresser John Nollet and the history of the classic LV trunks. Random! Thanks Antoine!
We then came home and celebrated the suit success and I moved onto battling the printer to address our exciting wedding envelopes going out this week, while Timothy O and Coco hung out.
That was it!… Not a paint brush in sight!
K x