Ailsa & Phillip's country wedding with some amazing DIY decor… {On Three Photography}

A wedding arch, chalkboard signage and sweeping landscape backdrops (oh and an upside down cake!) are among our favourite things from today’s real wedding with photography by On Three Photography. Coming to us from Australia, Ailsa and Phillip got married on December 19, 2015 in a vibrant country wedding with lots of quirky decor for us to swoon over. Joelle is a little excited about this one as the bride was a DIY buff and a lot of the décor elements were sourced from vintage shops or were DIY projects, and we love getting tips from brides who know how to make every penny count!
Despite getting caught in the rain with the clouds rolling in, the couple had a beautiful day and the wedding took place on a famous war site and in the town’s own cinema…pretty cool huh? Very retro, we love it. It looked a little something like this…







Ailsa, being the creative individual that she is, couldn’t wait to create the elements and décor in the wedding. All of the décor featured at the reception was actually sourced from department stores such as Myer including the vases and hanging geometric shapes. Ailsa actually painted the materials in copper. She also sourced small jars where the flowers from the ceremony were then moved to the reception. Her and Phil hand crafted the table numbers by cutting marble slabs in half and hand painting numbers onto them.

What advice would you give to brides and grooms planning their day?
Ailsa: Honestly to the other brides out there – the best advice that I can give would be to really focus on saving and cutting costs where you can! All it takes is a little bit of effort but it makes the world of difference. For example, a lot of the décor elements I actually found or created myself. This saved us a ton of money that could be better spent on other elements (such as the dress!) Our rug for the ceremony and seat covers we actually hired from a vintage shop for $1.50 per cover where normally seat covers would have cost us $8.00 and the ceramic plates for our wedding favours were stunning designs from Royal Daulton that I managed to find on ebay. The plates were originally $400 each in store and I found them all for under $100! Also, we made sure to reuse our ceremony flowers from the arch and reuse them on our bridal table at the reception. Even after reception – my sisters and I bottled them up in tiny jars to use as décor at our own places. Although these things may seem small, they really do add up!
Your favorite part of the day?
Ailsa: Can I say the whole day? If I can’t – I’d have to say the photoshoot in the old town. It was so fun being with our good friends and getting such fantastic shots! We were just having a laugh the whole time.
Wedding Dress : Mariana Hardwick 
Shoes : Shoes of Prey 
Reception Bolero : Hayley Paige Bridal
Stationary : Adorn Invitations 
Photography : OnThree Photography 
Ceremony : Flagstaff Hill – Maritime Museum
Reception Venue: Lighthouse Theatre Warnambool
Entertainment : Andrew Vedulla Melbourne
MC : Dean Sindoni
Flowers : Functions 2 Flowers
Cake : Maria’s Creative Cakes
Hair and Makeup : Megan Everett and Anna at Purple Haze
Groomsmen Attire : Mens Suit Warehouse 
Bridesmaid Attire : Chi Chi London
Jewellery : Just Me Jewellery 
Bags : Olga Berg

Wedding favours : Royal Daulton
As always, thank you to the bride and groom for sharing their lovely wedding day with us and to On Three Photography for sharing this one with us!
Back tomorrow lovelies,