The Special Couple: Emma + Ryan

THE FIRST SIGHT

Ryan and I first met at a mutual friend's 21st costume party. I was dressed head-to-toe in a sailor moon costume, but he was dressed entirely normal. Ironically, neither of us were meant to be at the party as I had work the following day but decided to go anyway while Ryan was pretty much forced to go by his cousin and was only there for the free alcohol. I was chatting to friends on a couch when one of my friends came over to let me know that the guy behind me thought I was 'cute'. Ryan somehow mustered up the courage to sit there for a good 45 minutes while I cold-shouldered him until I could no longer pretend he wasn't there. We ended up talking for hours, which led us to exchange numbers and then the rest is history!

THE PROPOSAL

I am a massive Disney fan, and Ryan knew that there would be no better place to propose than at Disneyworld in Florida. It is by far one of the best days of my life. We had spent the day exploring different parts of Disney World. A last-minute snap decision led us to Animal Kingdom for our final stop. We walked into the park and saw the most magnificent tree in which I proceeded to take lots of photos of, giving Ryan enough time to get the ring off his parents and stash it in his back pocket. He eventually caught up to me, for us to take a couple's photo with both Ryan's mum and sister waiting for the big moment. When I thought we had our photo taken, I started to walk away only to have Ryan throw his arm over my shoulder and spin me around to face the tree.

At this point, I still had no clue and only thought he was trying to get a candid photo of us staring at this tree. I turned back and saw Ryan's family still holding their phones up and then looked back at Ryan. I saw the look in his eyes, and deep down, I thought, "could this be it"? I got caught up in the moment, and everything Ryan said was a blur. The next thing I remember is Ryan on one knee asking me to marry him. He said something along the lines of "You know how this is the place where dreams come true? Well, it would be my dream come true if you would be my wife". I remember staring at him on his knee and then at the ring and then looking at Ryan again; I asked him, "are you sure?". Of course, my answer was "yes!". Ryan had asked my parents for their blessing a couple of days before we flew over to America. To our surprise, my parents decided last minute to join in the festivities a day after he proposed, which made everything more exciting.

THE INSPIRATION & VENUE

We wanted our day to look "timeless and authentic". I never want to look back at my photos and think, "what was I thinking?". I didn't want to get caught up in a trend or fad for the wrong reasons; our day had to mean something to both of us. I didn't want to copy anyone else because that's not what I wanted our day to be about - I wanted it to be authentic to us and went with whatever Ryan and I liked. I always knew that I wanted to get married outside and be surrounded by beautiful greenery. I kept all colours timeless with black and white but with touches of green. I was extremely fortunate enough to get married at Jaspers in Berry, where the grounds are so picturesque that I didn't need to do anything to change the look or feel of the day.

THE INSPIRATION BEHIND THE BRIDAL LOOK

My look was inspired by me being myself. I knew I wanted to be a more glammed up version of my everyday self. I had a very general idea of what I wanted the dress to look like but thankfully stumbled across Eternal Bridal on Instagram and saw that they had a trunk show on a designer I loved, and the rest is history! I knew that I wanted straps and some detail but was flexible on the shape and fabric. I just wanted it to look nice and for the dress to make me feel special.

THE DRESS & THE SAYING "YES" TO THE DRESS MOMENT

I found my dress online, and I immediately knew I wanted to try it on. I tried on about seven dresses in total. All of them were exquisitely beautiful. I was a little nervous trying on the dress I saw online as I worried it wouldn't suit me and we would be back to square one. Thankfully my wedding dress was everything I hoped it to be and more. The moment I had it on, it felt so special, and I could picture myself in the dress on the day. It stood out because of the quality and just how beautiful the craftsmanship was. I brought my mum and two closest girlfriends to my Eternal Bridal wedding dress styling appointment, and when they started to get emotional seeing me all dressed up. My wedding dress all but sold itself.

THE BEST THING ABOUT OUR DAY

My wedding day highlight was seeing Ryan at the end of the aisle. There was so much anticipation all morning, and all I wanted to do was see him. When I did, it was so special. Ryan was a blubbering mess as I walked towards him, and seeing him that way was very emotional.

EMMA'S ADVICE

Enjoy the moment more! It's such a special time, but it goes by so quickly! I wish I slowed down and enjoyed the process more. You honestly blink, and it's gone, so I wish I could tell myself to slow down and take in each moment more.

EMMA'S ETERNAL BRIDAL EXPERIENCE

My experience at Eternal Bridal was exceptional. The team genuinely listened to what I was looking for and encouraged me to get out of my comfort zone and try on a few different styles to be sure of what I wanted. I tried on a few dresses, all varying to one another, and it was such a fantastic experience as it opened my eyes to different styles which I hadn't even considered.

Emma wore Leah from Hayley Paige. See more gowns from Hayley Paige Collection here.

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