With Celebrant Jamie Eastgate of Brisbane City Celebrants
The Riverlife wedding venue is situated perfectly on the Brisbane river overlooking the city making it such a great location for an urban wedding, so we were thrilled when the Event Manager contacted us to ask us if we would like to be the Celebrant for the winners of their Win an Ultimate Dream Wedding at Riverlife competition.
Riverlife Wedding Ceremony with Celebrant Jamie Eastgate. Image: Milque Photography
In Australia it is a requirement that all couples have a choice of Celebrant which also applies to the ‘win a wedding’ competitions occasionally held by venues or bridal publications. So with this in mind the venue pulled together a number of excellent reputable Celebrants so the winners could proceed having that choice.
The competition was advertised in the ‘U On Sunday’ magazine from the Sunday Mail with the prize being an entire luxury wedding held at Riverlife including Bride and Bridesmaids Dresses from Hills in Hollywood, an abundance of florals from Julie Vine Flowers, a Firework display by Fireworx and many more talented suppliers that came together to make this wedding super special.
Riverlife Wedding Ceremony with Celebrant Jamie Eastgate. Image: Kindly provided by Milque Photography
Applicants were invited to share their story and tell Riverlife why they think they should be the Ultimate Dream Wedding Winner.
Riverlife Wedding Ceremony with Celebrant Jamie Eastgate. Image: Kindly provided by Milque Photography
When Riverlife announced the winners Katrina and Nat and shared their heartfelt story, we couldn’t be happier hearing the prize was going to such a deserving couple. Katrina and Nat had worked and saved hard to purchase their first property based in Ipswich. When news of the expected 2010 floods became apparent with their home being in a flood area, they followed advice and worked tirelessly to move all their belongings to the top floor of their house out of the way of flood ways, then hastily evacuated.
After the floods subsided, they returned to their house only to find the flooding had been much higher than any of their neighbourhood had anticipated, completely saturating the entire top floor containing all their possessions with that stinky muddy water that we all unfortunately became accustomed to during this time. Needless to say they lost everything, worst of all they were even more devastated when their home and contents insurer refused to pay up.
Shortly after the floods while Katrina and Nat were working hard to rebuild their lives, their neighbour entered them in to the Riverlife Ultimate Dream Wedding competition, and fortunately for them their luck completely changed for the better when they won!
Soon after the Riverlife Events Manager got in touch to tell us that the couple had picked Jamie Eastgate to be their Celebrant. So sharing in their excitement, Jamie got in touch and met with the couple where he explained the legal paperwork and discussed the kind of ceremony they would like. Jamie found Katrina and Nat a true pleasure to work with and be around, they were incredibly easy going and expressed their love for the idea of a simple and meaningful ceremony with a family member performing a reading.
QLD Brides magazine feature on the Riverlife Ultimate Dream Wedding: Images Milque Photography
When the special day arrived the glowing bride Katrina arrived on the CityCat boat at The Thornton Street ferry terminal, just a short stroll from Riverlife, where she was walked down the aisle by her father to her eagerly awaiting groom.
U on Sunday Magazine Feature of the Riverlife Ultimate Dream Wedding
The ceremony looked stunning and went perfectly, there were even a few onlookers who had been following Katrinas weekly journal on the ‘U on Sunday’ magazine leading up the wedding that came along for a squizzy at this lavish wedding and gorgeous bride and groom.
Shortly after the wedding Katrina and Nat submitted this absolutely lovely ‘Real Wedding’ testimonial to us. Their wedding was also featured in the QLD Brides magazine and U on Sunday. They have since restored their damaged home and are enjoying being madly in love and happily married.
Bride and Groom: Katrina & Nat
Wedding Date: 20th August 2011
Wedding Ceremony Location: Riverlife, Kangaroo Point, Brisbane
Tell us about your ceremony:
As we were lucky to be the winners of the Riverlife dream wedding giveaway, we were so grateful to be able to hold both our Ceremony and Reception at Riverlife. The ceremony was held outdoors on the deck overlooking the river on a beautiful afternoon. With all of our friends and family around to witness us announced as husband and wife, it couldn’t have been more perfect.
Reception Location:
Also at Riverlife, in the Sunset Marquee.
Tell us about your reception:
Themed as a soft winter romance, the reception was so beautifully designed with endless amounts of flowers, candles and of course a lolly buffet. We had great music, great food and danced the night away with all of our loved ones. The most fantastic day imaginable.
What we loved:
The beautiful venue and spending the day celebrating with all of those closest to us.
Describe your experience with Jamie from Brisbane City Celebrants:
Jamie was so fantastic to work with and from day one made the entire process so simple and easy. With only 2 months’ notice after winning our wedding prize, time was no problem for Jamie and he was more than happy to meet up with us and work around our busy schedule. The ceremony was such a wonderful success, exactly as we had always imagined and it was all thanks to Jamie. We would have no hesitation in recommending him to all of our friends in the future.
Your advice to bride and grooms to be:
Don’t stress about the little things, everything will work out on the day, just treasure every minute as it goes by so quickly.
If you enjoyed hearing about this dream wedding at Riverlife and are looking for a Celebrant for your Brisbane wedding, Jamie would love to hear from you. Contact Brisbane City Celebrants for more information and to confirm availability for your special day.