Emma & Richard's Wedding Day

We had the absolute pleasure of working with Emma and Richard, a newlywed couple who entrusted us with creating their custom engagement ring and wedding bands. It was a privilege to be a part of their love story and witness their unique vision come to life. From their unforgettable wedding day in Maleny to the intimate details of their rings, their journey was nothing short of beautiful. In this interview, they share their wedding day memories, the process of creating their rings, and the joy of beginning their forever together.

 

 

The Big Day

How did you feel waking up on the morning of your wedding?

Emma — "Very excited, and a little bit nervous. It felt a bit surreal that the day had finally arrived!"

Rich — "I was nervous! Not about things going wrong as we had planned everything pretty well but more that I would mess up my lines or forget something! In the end saying “I do” was the easiest thing in the world."

What was the first thing you did on your wedding day?

Emma — 'I had spent the night before with my bridesmaids and grandmother and mother staying at our place, so the first thing I did was sneak into the spare room and jump on the bed in excitement with my two best friends, Alex and Carly."

Rich — "Checked to make sure I had the rings for the 700th time and checked to make sure my tux was clean for the 500th!"

What was the most emotional moment of the day for each of you?

Emma — "The speeches. Hearing our friends and family congratulate us and express their love to us was definitely emotional for me, being surrounded by our nearest and dearest and feeling the love was something I'll never forget."

Rich — "The happiest moment was the ceremony for me. It was so exciting and incredible to finally tie the knot and I still cannot get over how stunning Em looked on the day, I didn’t think she could get more beautiful than she already is. 

Another emotional moment was giving my speech. I struggled through it and I think it really hit me while I was saying it to realise just how grateful I was to be in that room with those people. It hit me all at once and I was overwhelmed with love."

 

 

Was there a moment that took your breath away?

Emma - "When Rich turned around at the end of the aisle and saw me for the first time in my dress."

Rich - "I don’t know if there was one moment exactly, seeing how perfectly everything had come together and the beautiful day we had, watching Em walk down the aisle, dancing together for the first time as husband and wife, celebrating with our family and friends. I only took a breath for the first time late into the night!"

Wedding Vendors and Experience

Which vendors did you choose for your wedding (venue, photographer, florist, etc) and how did you find them?

Venue — Maleny Manor: We had visited the venue and loved it as well as the stylists and florists they use (Lovebirds Weddings and Mondo Florals).

Photographer — Lillie Hamblin Photography: Em had seen some of Lillies work on instagram and loved that she shot in both digital and film, this was something that we really wanted for our images of the day and she was absolutely incredible. 

Videography — Joel and Courtney Videography: Our friends Keeghan and Tilli used Joel and Courtney at their wedding last year and we loved the video they did, as well as the fact they shot in Super 8 film. 

Celebrant — Hayley Hart Celebrant: Sunshine Coast Wedding Expo

Rings — Morgan & Co: Sunshine Coast Wedding Expo 

Did any vendor exceed your expectations? How did they make your day special?

"Honestly all of them, we were very picky with who we wanted to choose and did a lot of research into each one to make sure they understood our vision and we liked their vibe. We cannot express how perfect every single vendor was and how much fun we had planning our special day with them." 

Is there any advice you would give other couples when choosing their vendors?

"Take your time getting to know the vendors before making a decision, it is so important to have a relationship with them as they will be the ones organising what may be the biggest day of your life. Make sure their work matches your vision, there are so many unique and special aspects of a wedding that we envision and sometimes our style might be different to a vendors, just because they're the “best” or recommended by someone doesn't mean they will execute that vision as well for you as they have other couples."

 

 

The Dress

Tell us about the moment you found the dress. How did you know it was the one?

Em — "I found my dress at a sample sale that Sphere Bridal was holding. I got there early with my best friend and tried to not have any expectations. We had a maximum of 15 minutes to go through all the dresses and try them on, my dress was the second dress that I tried on, it fit me perfectly, needed no alterations and I absolutely fell in love."

What was your partner’s reaction when they saw you in your dress for the first time?

"I’ll be honest it was a bit of a blur because I was so overcome with emotion but: perfection."

Rich — "Just how perfect the dress was for Em. I had an idea of what kind of style she might go for as I know her taste pretty well but it absolutely blew me away how perfect it was for her, she looked so beautiful and I couldn't have felt luckier to be about to marry her."

The Rings

Can you share the story behind your engagement ring and wedding bands?

Rich — "Originally I had proposed to Em with her grandmother's ring, she had always wanted this and I had to ask her parents for it as well. And though she loved her grandmothers ring it wasn't quite her style so as I was designing my own wedding band we also decided to design a new engagement ring for Em. Morgan and Laura had a stone that we loved but we just couldn't quite decide on the setting, Em was indecisive as she really wanted the stone to be north/south facing in a bezel seating but we felt the stone perhaps deserved to be a bit more solitary as it was so beautiful. We had it on a little ring clamp to play around with and Laura said “Let me just try something…” and she flipped the stone to east/west. Em was immediately in love with it. It is so unique and special to her and she couldn't stop looking at pictures of it on her hand while we waited for it to be made! 

Similarly I had some rough ideas about my ring but needed Morgan and Laura's guidance to make it perfect. I wanted a signet ring that was a bit unique and I wanted to feature a diamond that belonged to my late grandmother in it. I had a few designs that I liked but we struggled with the placement of the stone, they did up a few sketches and we refined it until finally I was happy. I even wore it often before the wedding day!"

View Richard's Ring and Emma's Ring.

 

 

How did you choose your wedding bands? 

Rich — "Em wanted a band that would stylistically not take away from the engagement ring so she went with a classic cigar band that compliments it perfectly."

Memorable Moments

What was the most memorable moment of your wedding day?

Em - "The first thing that comes to mind is the last dance, we had already said our goodbyes to everyone and for our last dance everyone wrapped us in crepe paper (an Italian tradition) before we left. It just felt so intimate and special."

Did anything unexpected happen that made the day even more memorable?

Rich - "We met our nephew for the first time! My sister had been due two days before the wedding so for a lot of months we had no idea if her and her family would be able to make it or not but little Ollie arrived a week early and we got to meet him and celebrate together."

The Funniest Moments

What was the funniest thing that happened during your wedding day?

Em — "Maybe not something that was individually funny but something that provided a lot of entertainment and laughs afterwards was the phonebook we had. A company called Glad you Called supplies vintage style phones for guests to leave a short message and then they compile it and send you the audio. It was great hearing heartfelt messages from everyone but also hearing how they got sillier as the night went on!"

Rich - "My sisters wrote a very funny poem about Em and I and our relationship revolving around the fact that I as a chef love butter and Em as a dietician has to limit our consumption."

Did any of your guests surprise you with a funny or touching moment?

Rich - "My sisters and I have matching jumpers that we made when we were teenagers, when Steph got married Kim and I made one for her husband, and Kim and Steph did the same for Em in her favourite colour!"

 

 

Looking Back

Now that the wedding is over, what’s the one thing you would do all over again?

Rich — "Saying I do."

Is there anything you would change if you could do it over?

Both — "Absolutely nothing!"

The Honeymoon

Where did you go for your honeymoon, and how was it?

Rich — "Tasmania! Em got COVID on the first day but it was organised as a very cosy and relaxing honeymoon so it didn't dampen the spirits too much!"

How did it feel to finally relax and reflect on your wedding day?

Rich — "Incredible! It was so nice to 1. Finally be married and 2. Not have the stress of the wedding. I am so grateful to be able to look back on the day and feel nothing but love, gratitude and fond memories."

The Future

How does it feel to be married? Has anything changed in your relationship?

Rich — "We both love being married, it’s all the same but just feels deeper. We can’t quite articulate it because it doesn't feel like anything has really changed, but we are both just so so happy."

What are you most excited about as you begin this new chapter together?

Em — "I am just excited to do everything together, just being together, travelling, working, hanging out at home, all of life's big ups and downs, I am excited to see Rich become a father."

Rich - "I don't necessarily see it as a new chapter because in my mind Em and I have been bound to each other for so long already, for me it is just the joy and appreciation of continuing our lives together."

Tell us about your new surname! 

"Richard Costa and Emma Lavelle both became Lavelles! We had a lot of trouble with this actually, not knowing what to do. Originally we had wanted to combine our two names as we both like our names and wanted to honour them so we had toyed with changing to “LaCosta” but unfortunately that would not have been possible if we both wanted Portuguese passports (Richards family is Portuguese) so it would have been almost impossible to get all legal documentation changed unless it was for some very specific reasons that we did not meet. The workaround was just that Richard could add Lavelle as a last name and Em would still be eligible to get citizenship through marriage, and we will give future children Costa as a middle name and Lavelle as a last name (typically a child will take on their mothers maiden name as a middle name and their fathers name as a surname so we are just flipping the tradition!)"

Thank you, it was a true honour

It was truly an honour and a pleasure to spend time with Emma and Richard throughout their journey, getting to know them as we worked together to create their custom rings. Witnessing their love story unfold and being a small part of their big day is one of the greatest joys of what we do. Thank you, Emma and Richard, for allowing us to share in your beautiful journey. We wish you a lifetime of love and happiness!