Ara and Jorge - A Festive South American Inspired Wedding with Alpacas

We just LOVE the color and vibrance of Ara and Jorge’s best day ever at The Grounds, a trendy coffee shop in Alexandria, Australia. The bride is a graphic designer and you could definitely tell with her attention to detail and unique and contemporary style! Gold Hat Photography takes us back to this fun-filled day through bright and energetic photos!

What sort of style did you envision for your wedding day?
We wanted our wedding day to be a celebration, rather than a formal setting. Jorge is from Peru and I wanted to infuse a South American flavour into the mix. I saw a photo of the wedding arch we had on the day which became the inspiration for everything else. Our wedding was a very colourful, fun but elegant event. There were even alpacas! I know alpacas are becoming more and more popular to have at weddings these days, but it actually made sense for us to have them.

Tell us about your wedding gown and how you chose it:
I initially didn’t want a wedding gown… a white dress, yes, but I didn’t know exactly what. My family convinced me to just take a look around and even try some dresses on. I chose my Oleg Cassini dress at the first bridal fitting I went to. It was the only gown I tried on that put a smile on my face and that I felt myself in. It was a simple but elegant style, mermaid cut, with a big bow on the back which I thought was kinda quirky and reflected my personality.

What was your favorite moment from the day?
Walking down the aisle, seeing all the decorations come to life, our loved ones, and Jorge waiting for me at the end. It was also a lot of fun running up and down the laneway for our send off with the sparklers.

Any DIY décor elements?
I designed the wedding signs which we got printed and placed into some Kmart frames which was a cheap hack. The table numbers, place cards, etc… were designed by myself and printed by Moo. We went to Peru to source Peruvian textiles for the napkins. We chose the fabrics and got them sewn down. We also purchased our small pin giveaways from the markets there.

Any tips that you can give to future brides?
Don’t sweat the small stuff. Of course, we want every little detail to be perfect, but at the end of the day, your guests are there for both of you and they’re going to love it all. They’re not going to remember the small details so if something hasn’t gone quite to plan, it’s ok! Also, try and have a theme and centre your wedding look and feel around that central theme – it can make choosing a lot easier.