Images by Black Tie Photography
Chloe and Mitch knew they needed to minimise their footprint, as their wedding was held on a friend’s property in Colo. As all rubbish needed to be taken away, they were mindful of what they brought in from the get-go. Stripping back all the layers of a traditional wedding to what mattered most to them, Chloe and Mitch created their day with the contributions of their tribe. They look back fondly at sitting under the gums with their crew and having a sacred quiet moment together to thank them for being in their lives, and how their doggie Frankie came to sit at their feet during the ceremony.
Celebrant Victoria from All We Need is Love describes the joy of Chloe and Mitch’s day;
“From the moment I met Chloe and Mitch, I knew their day was going to be something else. They started their meeting with me by talking about how important the role of the ceremony was to them, which made my heart sing, and when Mitch pointed out how ridiculous he thought it was that the expectation was on women still to change their name despite our apparent equality in today’s society I could have paid them to let me marry them!
Turns out I didn’t have to, as we bonded very quickly and I was so excited to be able to make these two officially official. Their story was everything I expected it to be – a love that came out of nowhere but was meant to be all along, a relationship full of adventure and personal growth and tender care for one another, and a gloriously goofy wolfhound cross – Frankie – to complete their family!
On the day their loved ones where incredibly connected to what was happening around them, helped by the fact that it was in such a personal and relaxed location. Everyone had a job to do, or was happy to lend a hand if needed. The guests and I gathered in a small clearing surrounded by gum trees, Mitch and then Chloe arrived, preceded (or in Mitch’s case, alongside) their massive support crews who then sat on rugs up the front. There were kids and dogs and tears and laughter. Not a phone was in sight!
A stand out moment was when Mitch and Chloe had their siblings come up and tie a ribbon around their wrists as they held hands, in an interpretation of a traditional hand-fasting, and each of their siblings shared some quiet words of love as they did so. With their ribbons around their wrists Mitch and Chloe then shared their vows, and everyone watching them was encouraged to reach out and hold the hand of someone close to them to enhance the feeling of love that was alive in the space. Watching the emotion flow through Chloe and Mitch during each interaction, and then turning to see their loved ones completely caught up in the moment, was the embodiment of why I love what I do so damn much – human connection is everything.
Once they were married it was near impossible to tear myself away, but I left them to their glorious long banquet table set up under the trees with their mis-matched glasses and their live music and their overflowing happiness. It was wonderful and a day that will not be forgotten any time soon, that is for certain.”
The way Chloe and Mitch speak about each other warms the heart. We asked about the moments they feel most loved by each other;
Chloe – “He gets this look on his face and radiates love, its powerful and something I’d never known. He rescues me when I run out of fuel on my scooter and brings me petrol and runs me a bath when he knows I’m coming home exhausted.”
Mitch – “Chloe surprises me all the time with how she cares for me. Her love glows from her eyes when we connect. I feel like a child frolicking around when we spend time together, she is just so much fun. Chloe also is an independent and strong woman, and seeing her being her true self makes me happy to know I have such an amazing woman in my life.”
How was the Less Stuff – More Meaning website of benefit to you?
“I guess it encompassed what we were wanting for our wedding day. It was so easy to feel intimidated and overwhelmed looking at other wedding sites and pages, and all the ads you suddenly had on instagram and facebook! But reading the LSMM website made it easy to strip it back to what really mattered to us, and I guess give the reassurance that what we wanted and needed, not what the ‘Wedding Industry’ says, was right!”
Thank-you so much Chloe and Mitch for sharing your story. x
