Real Essense of Australia Bride Julia + Alex

Real Essense of Australia bride Julia’s DIY wedding feels like a warm hug. From a very sweet proposal to the sentimental touches at her wedding, we love how this couple stayed true to themselves in every aspect of their ‘I do.’ Julia’s incredible vintage-inspired lace wedding dress looking amazing on her and was really the centerpiece to her dusty gray bridal party. Get ready to obsess!

From the bride: We truly have had an incredible love story. The groom (Alex) is my brother’s college roommate and best friend, so when Alex realized he liked me, he asked my brother’s permission just to ask me on a date (truly such a gentleman!) When he proposed, Alex took me on top of an abandoned building overlooking downtown Fort Worth. He had painted love letters to me on each side of the building, and my best friend (who is a professional photographer) was hiding to take a million gorgeous photos.

When the wedding came, it was definitely DIYer with no wedding planner! I hand-painted all the wooden signs myself, and hand-addressed every invitation in calligraphy. The cake was baked by friends’ of ours out of their home, and the photographers worked in the same coffee shop as the groom. It was truly one of those weddings where the entire community came forth to donate time and skills to celebrate us, making the days and weeks leading up to the wedding some of the most joyful in my entire life.

We had a last dance together as husband and wife in the venue while all the guests lined the outside path with sparklers. It was this surreal moment of being uninterrupted and so enraptured with each other as we spun around the dance floor and reminisced about how beautiful the day had been. It truly felt like heaven was touching earth in that moment. And then just a few seconds later, we ran outside to see all the faces of our closest friends and family one last time.

Photography by Grant Daniels Photography