Inside: A Picturesque Wedding In Perth

How we met

We’ve known of each other for a long time, since we were kids but we had never met in person. We’re both from the same city, Perth, Australia. We met for the first time in 2019 while Yux was on student exchange in Hong Kong and Reuben was there for a few days to visit friends before traveling to Tokyo for his exchange semester. We made plans to meet up in Hong Kong, but things didn’t end up lining up and we made plans to catch up when both were back in Australia. But we ended up bumping into each other by accident in a queue in central Hong Kong. We chatted and parted ways, Yux staying in Hong Kong and Reuben to Tokyo. A year later, when we were both back in Australia, we met again at a mutual friend’s birthday. That was the start of us… and our soon-to-be, wedding in Perth.

Wedding in Perth — Photographer: @theroadwest_

Engagement Story

Yux moved to Switzerland for her Master’s degree in the fall of 2021 with Reuben making plans to join later in the year. Before he left Australia, he asked Yux’s parents and his own parents for their blessing. They both said yes. Reuben moved to Europe in December. The ring came after months of waiting for the right preloved ring to show up on @belleheirlooms. Finally, one popped up and it was bought 3 seconds after its release. The ring features 5 round cut diamonds in an angled bar setting, to reflect the waves of WA’s coastline. About a year later, we were splitting our time between London and Geneva doing long-distance. Reuben was living and working in London. Yux was living and studying in Geneva. Reuben proposed while we were on a hike in Switzerland. After a few failed attempts at finding a quiet-but-beautiful spot, Reuben found an isolated rock lookout, overlooking a small village with the Matterhorn ahead.

Venue

We got married on Sullivan Rock just outside of our hometown of Perth in Western Australia. We loved the venue because it wasn’t really a venue at all. It was a huge rock in the middle of the Australian bush. At the summit, you could feel the breeze from the coast and see the landscape shift from the coast to the interior. There is no shade on the rock, only lichen that was a strange blue – coincidentally matching the blue of Yux’s shoes. The day before we did a location scout and found a naturally formed rock altar near the summit.

Nature and the outdoors, specifically Australian nature, has always been very special to us. We both grew up in Western Australia and experienced a lot of time outdoors as kids. We both spent our summers in the south-west camping, hiking and swimming. These experiences became integral to us as a couple too. Our first date was a hike (which is where we took our wedding photographs the day after the ceremony, also at a rock, called Moses Rock). Getting married at Sullivan Rock made it all feel full circle. Reuben proposed on a rock in Switzerland and we got married on a rock in Australia. Our very dear friend Heritier was our celebrant and guided us as we shared our personal vows. Nearly everyone cried.

Fashion

I wanted a modern dress with beautiful fabric. I found Clover’s dresses on Pinterest and looked them up and was blown away by the simplicity and beauty of the designs. My something old was a jade pendant from my great-grandmother which I wore around my ankle. My something blue were my heels. My something new was a watch that my father got for me. My something borrowed was the hairclip I wore in some of the photos which a friend lent me because of the strong breeze that followed the ceremony on Sullivan. For the evening portion of the event, I wore an old ivory dress from Bec & Bridge. Because we got married in January at the height of summer in Australia, Reuben wanted linen suit to help with the heat. It was 34 degrees on our wedding day! We bought his suit a week before the wedding. Reuben wore his RM William boots on the day.

Jewellery

Yux wore earrings that Reuben gifted her for one of their anniversaries from @acomposition_
Our wedding bands were made and designed by Preyada Jewellery, a Melbourne based artist.
Reuben wore his great-grandmother’s pearls.
Our Seiko watches were a wedding gift from Yux’s father.

Bridal Party

Our whole wedding was a micro-wedding, we didn’t have bridesmaids or groomsmen in the traditional sense. Everyone wore colour.

Transportation

Again, very lowkey, but it was a coordinated car-pool situation.

Tablescape

We had our reception in the private dining area of one of our favourite restaurants, Coogee Common.

Food & Drink

The chefs at Coogee Common designed a custom seasonal menu of 8 courses for us. The produce featured on our dining table that night came directly from the garden surrounding Coogee. We drank wine from Australia and ended our night with spicy margaritas.

Entertainment

Our first dance song was “What a Wonderful Thing Love Is” by Al Green. Yux also walked down the aisle to this song.
Because we got married in the middle of nowhere, we had to bring the speakers with us. Yux’s brother controlled the music at Sullivan with an aux-cord and a homemade boombox.

Beauty & Wellness

A very good friend of ours, Rose at StudioChaii, did Yux’s makeup. We had spoken a few months before and had begun brainstorming a natural, sunkissed look.