David and Janelle's Wedding at The Perth Bell Tower- Komodo Music

On the 1^st June 2014, I, David Green (owner of Komodo Music), married my best friend Janelle Johnson at the Perth Bell Tower. Over the course of last year (and catch up this year) I have been recording my experiences in the “OMGIGM Diaries” which you can read here. Now that the wedding is over, it is time to give my thoughts on how the process went, where the most stress was and which suppliers performed and who did not!

Photographer- Dave and Charlotte Photography

Let’s start with the amazing photographer Dave who took all the photos you are about to see here. He is worth every penny we paid. He was so much fun to deal with and as you will see, the photos turned out great! As you may remember, we decided to do photos before tying the knot, that way we would get through a large amount of locations. Well we had 4.5 hours and it almost wasn’t enough. In fact we had to cut down some locations! Since we live in Ellenbrook, we took photos at Sandalford Winery, then King Street in the CBD, then a quick (and I do mean quick) photo at The Greenhouse (where Janelle and I met) and finally onto Stirling Gardens (Supreme Court Gardens) for the family photos. I would suggest to allow yourself plenty of time for your photos because this what you will physically have to remember the day by (besides the pretty rings) ;-) 

Rings- Mastusik Jewellers

Speaking of rings, I had Janelle’s custom made. I went through so many jewellers and this small company is the only one who not only listened to my needs, but didn’t treat me like an idiot! Many of the companies wanted to charge me to make a concept drawing of what I was after without giving any input, the Mastusik team not only gave active input, but made a 3D drawing of what it would look like and offered to make a wax mold for free. They came up with a ring concept and let me select which diamonds I wanted in it. Not just what type, but physically got a variety of the same diamonds for me to look, compare and select. I cannot recommend these guys enough! 

Dress- Collezione Bridal Couture

I had 100% NOTHING to do with the dress so I can only speak on how beautiful my wife looked in it. That said, according to Janelle, she thought they were the nicest people ever. Everything was included- Alterations to the dress, the multiple fittings she booked, internal bras (what in the world is that?!?!) but most of all a friendly and professional staff which made her feel welcome. She was very happy with the dress and from a pure aesthetics point of view so was I(Although holy baloney is it a difficult thing to take off! ;-) ) 

Makeup- Lyndal Evans

I thought my wife looked beautiful in her makeup, so I have nothing really to say on that front. She thought Lyndal was professional and for the quality of work it was very reasonably priced. I have been informed she did 'airbrushing' makeup on her and that she was on time. Nothing but good praises to say about the makeup 

Hair- Sunflower Hair and Beauty

Again I had no say on hair and I think she looked great. Surprisingly though, it was only afterwards I found out Janelle wasn't happy with the stylist. She was happy with how the hair looked but not with the work ethic of the person themselves. When she went for the trial, Janelle told her to come at 9am. The stylist said it would only take half an hour to do each persons hair, but Janelle insisted that she come early to be done earlier so it wouldn't interfere with the makeup. They discussed and agreed. On the morning of the wedding, the stylist sent a text saying she was coming half an hour later because it wouldn't take that long (despite what was agreed prior) and then she showed up even later than that because she got lost getting to our house. This of course put everything back and because of the lateness it was crossing over with the makeup and caused Janelle to be late (in fairness not by much but late enough to not make a planned location)Again I knew NOTHING of any of this until after the wedding and I thought it all looked nice (and Janelle agrees the hair itself was good), but since this is the story I got, it is only fair I share it as told from the Brides eyes.  

Car- Wicked Limos

A very classy car at a very reasonable price. I had other companies trying to charge at least an extra $300 for a Chrysler (some even more). Rick at Wicked Limousines was very helpful, his drivers were flexible, and it looks beautiful in the photos. Inside it was party, party, PARTY! With drinks flowing and music going! At the end of the night we were meant to be picked up in a Sedan to take us to the hotel, but Rick went one step further and picked us up in a Hummer Limo (it was just a pity it was less than a 5 minute drive from the venue). These guys are awesome and if looking for a limo you should check them out!  

Venue- Perth Bell Tower

Most people were not aware you could hold a function here. Well after our wedding, I can see more people choosing this place. We selected it prior to all the construction so when it all started we were a little devastated…but it wasn’t as bad as I thought it was going to be. In fact you just couldn't look out towards Fremantle because of the construction but every other direction was fine. Inside the venue looked AMAZING. The staffs at the Bell Tower were very helpful with the setup and pack down of the venue. They were very attentive and really lovely people. When you hire the venue, you get all access so Janelle and I were able to go to the Viewing Level, take 5 minutes out just for us and watch the rain run down the window. Very romantic and one of my favorite memories of the day.  

Celebrant- Pastel Blue Ceremonies- Danica Dultry

As you may remember in my OMGIGM Diaries, we had a lot of trouble finding a celebrant that we were both comfortable with. After much searching we found the one and she did not disappoint us. She was both professional and personable with our ceremony. I have often seen celebrants make it about them, but she made it about US! From our first meeting all the way to the final proclamation of Husband and Wife, I could not ask for a more wonderful person to marry us.  

Food- Ryan John, Private Chef

The food was a huge success. Every single person raved how great it all tasted and the best part, it was all gluten free! Every item was personally chosen (and tasted) by Janelle and myself. Ryan brought us into his headquarters prior to the wedding to try everything and on the day it tasted even better! Our menu consisted of:

• Honey and Mustard Lamb Skewers with Mint Yoghurt
• Pancetta Wrapped Scallops served Simply with Lemon
• Natural Oysters with Lime and Chipotle Dressing
• Asparagus and Roast Capsicum wrapped in Proscuitto
• Roasted Sweet Potato and Persian Fetta Frittata with Pesto
• Prawn and Avocado Rice Paper Rolls with Lime and Hickory Dressing
• Harvey Beef Rump Skewers with Chimichurri Sauce
• Jerk Chicken Skewers
• Grilled Tiger Prawn Skewers with Mango and Coriander Salsa
• Pepper Crusted Barramundi with Roasted Potatoes and Salsa Verde
• Sweet Items: Assorted French Macarons, Chocolate Dipped Strawberries

The only problem was everything tasted so good most of it was gone before the photographer had a chance to take photos of it! That said though, no images can ever truly capture the taste and look that was prepared for our wedding ;-) Cocktail menus are one of those things where I am always worried there would not be enough food to go around. Well by the end of the service everyone was so filled they had to dance to work it all off. If you are wanting a caterer for any kind of event, you MUST use Ryan John. 

Cake- Alternative Bites

After a long struggle trying to find a wedding cake person, we decided to try Janelle’s favorite Gluten Free Bakery. After trying some treats, we placed an order for 30 fruit flans and 30 chocolate cakes (we only had 50 at the reception). EVERYBODY, and I mean everyone, could not get over how delicious the cakes were. Obviously there were a big hit because there was nothing left at the end of the night. The chocolate was moist and the flans were divine. When people also found out it was gluten free and cost the same of normal cakes, there were many disbelieving looks given. Take a trip down there and taste some of the delights. (UPDATE: as of May 2017 they are no longer operating) 

Drinks- Shaker Bar Hire

Now I am not a big drinker, and the stuff I do drink tends to be more on the sweeter side, however I know that is not what others like- so the question was what to have to drink? The team at Shakers did an amazing job. We decided to have a few beers, a few ciders, some wines, but most importantly…4 varieties of cocktails. Janelle wanted one to be our “Signature Drink” which was green since that was our theme and so the menu was devised:

• Beers: Peroni, Corona and Cascade
• Cider: Rekorderlig, Strongbow sweet/dry
• White Wine: Brown Brothers (Moscato) and Deep Woods SSB
• Red Wine: Cow Bombie Cab Merlot and Shiraz
• Sparkling: Fleur de Lys
• Cocktails: Flirtini, Highland Cuddy, Strawberry Daiquiri, Apple Martini

Our guest tried every variety of cocktail (to decide which one was best) and then tried them all again (you know, in the interest of science) and kept coming up to me saying how yummy they all were. Towards the end of the night, a few guests even asked them to make some ‘custom’ cocktails which they gladly did (as long as they had the ingredients) and the bar itself looked beautiful. As an added bonus, rather than Janelle and I buying all the drinks and them serving them, Shakers bought everything and only charged us on consumption. This was the best way as we knew if every drop was drunk how much it would cost and anything under that we were refunded. Such a professional team. (UPDATE: as of December 2018 they are no longer operating)  

Music- Komodo Music

Was there any doubt that I was going to be using one of my DJs?! ;-) Ironically, most of my team didn't want to do our wedding because of the vast amount of pressure for ensuring everything went smoothly! In the end I choose DJ Danny who did an awesome job mixing the music. Unfortunately due to personal circumstances he is no longer at Komodo Music but even today everyone was raving how much fun the music was  SaveSave