Bride: Cassandra | Groom: Brendan

How did you meet your husband?

Brendan and I met in Finland in 2011 when he was competing in the World Rally Championship and I was working at the event. We then met again in Sardinia, Italy under the same circumstances. It wasn’t until 2013 at Rally Australia that Brendan and I were both in the same place at the same time and everything just worked! We have been inseparable ever since!

How did your partner propose to you?

Funny story – It was the day before valentines day (because I’d always said never propose on valentines day) and we went up to the lookout on tower hill in our town. When we got there, there was a worker up there doing maintenance on the telecom tower. It was sunset and I was trying to hug Brendan and he wouldn’t let me (little did I know he had a ring box in his pocket)We then drove back down the hill and Brendan said we should go out on the jetty at the town reservoir. He tied our beloved puppy, Indy, to the railing and I asked “don’t you want to hold on to the dog?” to which he replied “No, because I have a question to ask you”. He dropped to one knee and tears followed from me!

What was your favourite part of your wedding day?

Everything! Brendan and I eloped in Glenorchy, Queenstown NZ. We had only our best friends with us as our witnesses. It was in the most romantic place and was perfectly intimate with absolutely no stress! We then got a helicopter up into the snow capped mountains for photos. It was truly a dream come true!

Did you have a theme or concept for your wedding day? What was your inspiration?

I’ve always dreamed of getting married in the snow. It was a fairytale for me! I wanted our day to be as stress free as possible and to be 100% enjoyable!

How did you find the experience of shopping for a wedding gown?

It was incredibly daunting in the beginning, because we were eloping, I would have to find a dress off the rack very quickly! Upon entering Bendigo Bridal Collections (the first store I went to) I was made to feel very special, I was incredibly surprised by the huge range of dresses and I was over the moon to fall in love with my gown and be able to purchase the floor stock model so that I could have it in time. Having an in-house alteration specialist made it even easier to. I had a stress free shopping experience and a stress free wedding!

What did you love about your wedding gown?

It flowed perfectly in the wind! I wanted something that would flow in the wind up on a mountain top, but also look beautiful for the ceremony. I never expected to find a dress so perfect and it was so far from what was expected for me and I think I loved that part the most! I was shown so many beautiful dresses and made to feel so great in everyone but my dress was perfect. I didn’t want to take it off.

Any words of wisdom for future brides?

Do exactly what you want to do! Don’t be persuaded into something you don’t want. Don’t be afraid to speak up for yourself. Only bring a couple of girlfriends with you when you try on dresses, listen to their opinions but at the end of the day, go with your gut! And most importantly, enjoy every second because it goes so fast and then before you know it, you have a husband who will tell you how beautiful you looked on your wedding day!