Ben and I met through uni. We were starting out at Massey, in Albany vying for a spot in the veterinary programme, and Ben came up to our group of girls in the library and asked to sit with us. I was in my ‘boy’s are a distraction’ phase and so I was listening to a song on my Ipod, and Ben asked me “Is that Pearl Jam?”, to which I replied, “no, it’s Kings of Leon”… and the rest is history…! We both are very driven people, with a passion for learning! Ben has his PhD in Physiology, and is now studying to become a medical doctor, while I,  after a few years of being a high school biology teacher, also decided to go back to uni and study medicine as well. We both LOVE food, and Ben is a great chef! We also love going on adventures together and hiking through beautiful NZ.

When I came to Hera, I had been to a few other wedding gown boutiques in Auckland, but my friend, who had recently gotten married, recommended Hera. I wanted a gown that was versatile- my thinking was, if you are spending all this effort on picking the right gown, then why not be able to wear it for the entire night? I also wanted something that incorporated the typical ‘princess’ vibes with a modern twist. So, my amazing stylist Jackie, came up with a custom design, incorporating the Von Maria gown together with the Lavant over skirt. I was able to take off the skirt after the first dance, and then have the Von Maria underneath. We also made some adjustments to the satin off-the-shoulder strips, and swapped these out for a tulle to make the look a bit softer whilst still giving coverage. We also added some pearls to the centre of some of the flowers on the skirt to link in with the pearls I had down the back of the dress and my pearl necklace I wore. My dress came together so completely perfectly, and I truly felt like a princess! I had never felt more beautiful in my life and I felt I exuded the confidence every bride should feel on their wedding day in that dress!