Natalie & Josh’s Uluwatu Clifftop Bali Wedding

From the moment they were engaged, Natalie and Josh dreamt of hosting a fairytale wedding in beautiful Bali. The best way to describe their day? Pure magic!

Tying the knot oceanfront in Uluwatu, Natalie and Josh wanted to use their wedding as an opportunity to share one of their favourite locations with a close-knit crew of friends and family over a relaxed 2-week celebration.

Taking place at the Villa Bayuh Sabbha, the lush garden surroundings of the resort made it the perfect setting to bring this fairytale wedding to life. With a stunning ceremony taking place in the tropical courtyard of the villa, these guys were blessed with serene ocean views as their backdrop for the entire day.

A bohemian-chic vibe resonated throughout each element of the styling, from the woven macrame ceremony details to the bold floral arrangements in bright coral and fuschia tones. This continued through to a garden reception filled with beautiful details, as intimate tables were layered in textured linens, earthy wood slices and colourful blooms – all decked out by the amazing team at Bali Event Hire.

One of our favourite elements from the day: an epic bridal table framed by an arbour of tropical foliage overlooking the dance floor – just incredible! All of this combined with gorgeous strings of pendant lights, one seriously amazing 3-tiered naked cake by Ixora Cakes, and panoramic sunset views of Uluwatu made this reception truly something special.

We loved browsing through all of the stunning imagery from Natalie and Josh’s picturesque day, captured candidly in perfect detail by Evermotion Photography. Keep reading to see how this fairytale celebration unfolded, as we chat to Natalie and Josh about their top tips for staying organised when planning a Bali wedding!

How we met : Sunrise on the shoreline of Coogee Beach.
The proposal : It was on my Birthday. I came home from breakfast with my parents to find a wrapped box on our bed and a letter attached. In the box was a beautiful new dinner dress (from one of my fav designers – Amy Taylor Collection) with a note inside advising our pick-up time as we were going out for a nice day out. We got dropped off at the Opera Bar in Sydney for some Champagne and appetisers. In the meantime I was trying to guess what we were up to.

Josh was throwing ideas out like we are climbing the Harbour Bridge. Then we walked down to a Pier and every boat that went passed Josh was joking that it was our water taxi to go to the Bridge Climb. Then a beautiful 33ft handcrafted Italian style sports yacht (from I Do Luxury Charters) was cruising towards us and I started to realise that’s our boat! Once onboard there was a fabulous fruit and cheese platter and my fav champagne.

It was a beautiful afternoon on the Harbour, the sun was shining and right when Josh was about to propose at sunset, dolphins (my favourite animal) started to jump and follow our boat which is quite unusual in the Harbour. After the Dolphins had past Josh ducked downstairs and came up with a big box of long stem red roses and got down on one knee. My beautiful ring was inside the red roses which he got sent to the boat.

It was just perfect but the surprises were not over. We got dropped off at Otto Ristorante personal Wharf at Wooloomooloo. As they walked us to our table, my Mother and Father were sitting there and we had a fabulous dinner the four of us. It was very special that Josh included my Mum and Dad as I am the youngest in the family and the only daughter. I am very close with them so that meant the world to me. Safe to say that Birthday was the best birthday ever!

The Details…
Wedding date : 03 June 2017
Wedding Ceremony & Reception Venue : Villa Bayuh Sabbah Uluwatu
Total Guests : 78 guests

Our style/Inspiration : As soon as I got engaged I knew I wanted a Fairytale Wedding. Something that felt magical and our guests were able to feel that magic. Due to our personalities and both loving the ocean and the beach we decided to go with the Boho/Chic Theme. We got most of our inspiration from Pinterest and Instagram.
Who we couldn’t have done it without (Bali Supplier) : Veronika and Angel at Bali Vip were incredible – nothing was ever too hard for them.
Advice for future Bali Brides : I highly recommend you hire a good Wedding Planner, with good Bali and Industry knowledge, that you can have a good communication and bond with. Make sure you do your research from small things to big things. But most of all have fun and enjoy the moment of planning your Wedding.

Our Wedding Day…
Wedding Planner/Stylist : Veronika and Angel at Bali Vip – If you are looking at getting married in Bali with a professional service we more than highly recommend Veronika and the team at Bali Vip. From day one we dreamt of a fairytale wedding and this is what Bali Vip produced for us. They ticked every single box and exceeded our expectations. Choosing Bali for our destination wedding, being a bride with major attention to detail and being a massive micro manager we put our trust into Bali VIP. I found Veronika and Angel to be more than accommodating, patient, understanding, calm, friendly and always being available to answer questions. They went above and beyond to make our dream come true. Josh and I had to pinch ourselves on the day as the set up looked like something out of a movie scene. Our guests were amazed and are still talking about how wonderful the day went. Everything was perfect down to a fine detail.

Décor/Furniture : Bali Event Hire our main furniture provider – and they are awesome with so many great options! We kept our Décor elegant but simple as we added a lot of colours with our flowers. We used mainly washed timber and white furniture to suit the theme. To add fun we had big letters that spelt LOVE and a teepee for guests to use as a photobooth.

Flowers/Florist : BaliVip Flower – We used bright, vibrant flowers to match our personalities. I personally love bright, happy colours. Having bright colours can be risk taking but it can also really pay off, being in such a lush, tropical setting. We also added lots of greenery with the colours to suit the theme. The flowers we used were Peony Coral Season, Peony Red Sarah, Rose Bright Pink, Rose Coral, David Austin in Coral, White Roses, Monstera Leaves, Palm Leaves and Akasia Leaves.

Hair & Make-up : Kat O’hara from Dollface Darlings – Kat was so incredibly talented when it comes to Makeup and Hair. Our makeup looked fresh all day. And the braids in all of our hair were amazing. Kat even helped out with things she did not even need to help out with and was a perfect fit to our day. Professional and friendly we all enjoyed Kat being able to spend the day with us and being such a massive part our day.

Photography : Evermotion – The guys at Evermotion captured our Fairytale Wedding with perfection. They understood the look we were going for, we really wanted to capture the moment in natural pictures. They were friendly, professional and creative and did a brilliant job. They made us comfortable but also our guests.

Videography : Leura – Josh and I found the guys at Leura film to be amazing, professional and easy to work with not only again towards us but also again towards our guests. We find ourselves watching our movie over and over again. They definitely delivered something we will cherish for a lifetime.

Favours : Everyone making the journey to Bali to celebrate with us 🙂

Celebrant : We organised a legal Wedding in Bali which is also recognised in Australia, so because of this we were married by the Protestant Christian Church in Bali by Bishop I Nengah Suama. Veronika from Bali Vip organised this for us and all the paperwork for the Consulates before hand.

Catering : Amazing Bali Catering – Josh and I are quite big foodies. We wanted to make sure the food was amazing and something that everyone would really enjoy. Amazing Bali Catering did not disappoint! Many people commented on how amazing the food was. Even when we went to taste the menu originally they were so professional and even served us the way they would at the Wedding so we got the full experience. The staff gave full friendly Bali Hospitality. We did both Canapes and Cocktails over Sunset and a sit down alternate 3 course dinner.

Cake/Dessert : Ixora Cakes – It looked exactly how we wanted it. We met the guys at Ixora Cakes right after we got engaged and tasted all of their cakes. We had no idea what we wanted our cake to look like at that point. Through emails with Veronika we sent through how we wanted it to look and it came exactly how we wanted it and it tasted amazing.

Stationery/Invitations : Josh and I designed our own invites along with the help of Quick as a Flash Signs and Print who we would highly recommend.

Entertainment : We had an Acoustic Guitar Player and Wedding Singer, Athron, for the Cocktail Party and during dinner. I would highly recommend Athron, he was easily contacted through email and made time for us. He also sent us a song list and we chose our songs off that list before we even got to Bali. We tried to stick to the Boho, Beachy, Chill Vibe of the Wedding. We also had DJ Billy to dance the night away. I would also highly recommend DJ Billy. He really cared about our needs and was very helpful. He made himself available to us via Skype in the lead up the the Wedding. He had a really good vibe and was the perfect fit. We got so many comments on how great the music was and it was perfect for all ages.

Transport : As we were staying at the Villa we did not require transport and most people were staying in the Bingin area and quite close by. The villa did have a car which we used for local trips. We also love riding bikes in Bali so we decided to hire some amazing bikes (again to fit in with the theme) to have parked out the front of the Wedding and to use them in pictures. We hired the bikes used in our pictures from Island Motorcycles in Uluwatu.

Gift Registry : We believed that having our guests fly all the way to Bali to share our day was more than a gift to us. We are incredibly grateful as a lot of our guests still gave us gifts which we put towards doing fun activities on our honeymoon.

Wedding Songs : Walked down the aisle to – Somewhere Over the Rainbow by Israel Kamakawiwo’ole (they only thing I knew I wanted from before I was even engaged).
Signing the registry to – Better Together by Jack Johnson
Walked up the aisle to – You’ve got the Love (Dennis Kruissen Remix) by Florence and the Machine
Walked into Reception to – Show me Love by Steve Angello and Laidback Luke
First Dance to – All of Me by John Legend
Father / Daughter Dance to – My Girl by The Temptations
First song to kick off the party – Time of your Life by Bill Medley

The Bridal Party Details…
Bride’s Dress : I have quite a unique style, I love one off pieces and having something different. Every time I tried on a dress I would think I like this from this dress and that from that dress so I knew Couture was for me. So I had a custom made gown by Kel at Kel-Leigh Couture.
I wanted the best of both worlds, a princess wow dress and a let your hair down and party dress. We came up with the idea of having a slim line dress hidden underneath a big skirt (which with a belt sown in looked like one dress). Then my Bridesmaids would rip the skirt off on the dancefloor. So I basically got to shimmy out of my skirt, which everyone thought was a dress (including my hubby).
Nothing was too hard for Kel. Being someone who is quite particular and knows what I like, Kel was so easy to work with. She always listened and shared what would work. We worked so well together as a team and I was so involved with the whole process. I now a new friend in Kel. And my dress received amazing compliments.

Bride’s Shoe : Alan Pinkus Shoes from Myer Sydney City. Much later in the night I changed into some Barefoot Diamanté Sandals.

Bridesmaid’s Dresses : One of my fav Designers has always been Amy Taylor Collection (The Strand Arcade Sydney). She is also a dear friend so I had to have her dresses as a part of our Wedding. I did not want the standard Bridesmaid Dresses so we decided to also custom make the girls dresses. Once again I was very involved and even chose my fabric. Amy and her team are absolute stars. She has been in the fashion industry for a long time and only makes things to perfection. Her pieces are just gorgeous. My girls looked so pretty.

Bridesmaid’s Shoe : Wanted Shoes Sydney City

Groom and Groomsmen Attire & Shoes : Josh and the boys, including my Dad, got their suits from InStitchu (George St Sydney). We would highly recommend these guys. They custom make suits so they are the perfect fit. You can chose from many styles and colours and fabrics. Which is great for the hot Bali weather. We wanted the boys to look beachy but smart. Josh and the groomsmen wore navy chinos with a white shirt and Josh was the only one in a jacket which was light blue. You can also buy all your accessories from Institchu including ties and belts. My dad matched the boys but opted for navy suit pants. The staff at InStitchu know suits and are very helpful and professional. The boys wore Mere Footwear (Bondi Beach Sydney). They had their shoes also custom hand made. On the sole of Josh’s shoes he had Natalie and Josh I Do 3/6/17 which was a beautiful touch. The boys looked so handsome!

Page Boy : We had our gorgeous Page Boy dressed in Bardot Kids with his bow tie from Myer. We tried to get him to look as similar as Josh but had him in shorts with suspenders. He also carried a wooden sign which shared “Uncle Josh here comes your girl”.

Jewellery : Luckily for me Kel from Kel-Leigh Couture is super talented and hand made a lot of my Jewellery to match my dress colour out of Swarovski Crystals. I also wore a Tiffany and Co small anchor diamond white gold necklace, the necklace fitted the theme but also our past together, the beach and ocean is a massive part of our life and how we met.
I have always worn both my Grandmothers engagement rings (since they passed). Before our wedding I had our jeweller join them together to make them one ring so I could also wear on our wedding day. Josh and the boys wore cufflinks from David Jones. The Bridesmaids had Boho cuffs up their arms to match the theme.

The rings : Jules Sarno Jewelers Maroubra Junction Sydney. Jules made my Engagement ring, a beautiful Asscher cut halo ring and he matched my diamond wedding band to my engagement band. Jules also made Joshes ring. Josh wanted something that was easy to wear and smooth due to work reasons. Jules did an amazing job of all of our rings.

Honeymoon Details : So many family and friends had travelled all the way from Australia, NZ and New York City to Bali, that was really important to us so we spent an extra week in Bali after the wedding to be able to spend time with everyone. We went over to Nusa Lembongan for a few days with friends after that. After Bali we headed back to another one of our favourite spots Hawaii for 2 weeks.

The final part…
Where did you find your styling inspiration for your Bali wedding? Mainly from Pinterest and little bits from Instagram and Bridal Mags. We are super lucky we live in the times of getting so much inspo from apps such as Pinterest and social media. When it comes to planning a Wedding or big event Pinterest it is a must!

What was the hardest part about planning a destination wedding? Honestly for me, trying to explain what I wanted via email. Veronika was able to Skype and that made it easier (thank goodness) but you’re not going to have all your meetings with your suppliers face to face. Thankfully we did a lot of research, contacted everyone we were booking directly and skyped them also (technology these days)! Veronika and Angel were amazing and it turned out exactly how I had explained by emailing. Luckily I went to Bali twice that year too so if you can do that it helps.

Why did you choose Bali as your wedding destination? Why not? We love Bali and especially Ulus, we go to Bali every year, we had our first holiday as a couple in Bali. We wanted a summer wedding with semi guaranteed weather. Ulus is very much our vibe and what we were after. Also, we were hoping everyone would fall in love with Bali the way we do and be in Holiday mode. Why spend so much money on one day when you can have two weeks with your nearest and dearest. It just seemed right and we are super lucky that so many wanted to join us 🙂 It was perfect! We love the water, sand, people and food it was great to share what we love about Bali with family and friends.

How did you stay organised while planning a destination wedding? I printed out every email that I sent and received and made a folder. I would write my notes and changes and what I needed to reply back on the old email printed, then write my response back. Josh and I had regular meetings with my Mum and Dad to set goals and get though our to do list. We also had many skype meetings with Veronika and I went to Bali twice in the year of the wedding to do wedding things; once with Josh and once with Mum. Make sure you set goals and complete those goals. It is also important to know what you want and go for it. It’s important to have open communication and a good relationship with your wedding planner. I could even send Veronika a text if I had a quick question and she was great with responding quickly. Also having communication with your suppliers is a must.