When choosing to elope, marrying couples can throw out the figurative wedding rule book; the stifling traditions and potential excesses, and really focus in on what makes them unique.

This was the case for two amazing couples, who decided to elope in Tasmania; one couple getting hitched while enjoying an activity they had done many times before, and one couple getting hitched in a fashion they had never experienced before.

Both of these couples shared some very important things in common. Each wedding was authentic and honest, each was an intimate ceremony in a public place, and each went on to celebrate with family and friends with a post-wedding party. Having two ceremonies; an elopement followed by a loved-up party with family and friends, is an awesome and effective way to have the best of all worlds. To have your wedding cake and eat it too!

One lucky Tasmanian love hustler worked with both of these couples, to make their unconventional weddings a reality. That love hustler was me - huzzah! I’m excited to share some of their stories.

More details on both of these stories can be found on the blog at Less Stuff, More Meaning and in Issue Two of Unholy Matrimony Magazine.

Wilderness Walking Wedding

When first meeting Brodie and Madeleine, they shared their idea of a wedding, surrounded by their family and friends, in one of their favourite places in the world, Mount Field National Park. It was such an awesome idea! I was excited by the prospect and we began discussing the details. As we chatted, I could tell that while the idea of celebrating their love for each other with their family and many friends filled Brodie and Madeleine with excitement; but the thought of being the centre of attention, being stood there with everyone watching, made them a little bit nervous.

The sneaky suggestion that they could have two separate ceremonies; one very private wedding, followed by a joyful love party, quickly gained momentum. What? You could have TWO ceremonies?

Brodie and Madeleine reflect “We spend a lot of time in the outdoors and Tasmania's landscape has been the source of many of our best memories together, so the idea of having a simple ceremony in nature was really appealing.”

And so when the day came, on a beautiful sunny February morning, a car load of intrepid elopees made their way to Lake Dobson. Just Madeleine and Brodie, two close friends (who are also gun photogs) and me, their Hitcher.

As we pulled up, the heavens opened with buckets of rain and wisps of hail. Yelp!

But this didn’t dampen anyone’s spirits as we all headed deep into the pandani grove to share some laughs, take some photos and most importantly, get married in the most care-free yet conscious way, amongst the landscape they love and will come back to many times.

The smiles on their faces tell the whole story.

Heading back to Hobart, it was then time to celebrate their marriage with their people in the afternoon.

The original idea of a larger celebration at Mount Field had evolved somewhat.

“We tried to balance the idea of a private, nature based ceremony with including a small group of our friends and family, so conscious of the impact on nature by having a large group of people, combined with the logistics, we decided that a small DIY zero-waste reception in Madeleine's parent’s backyard (in Hobart) later that afternoon would be a wonderful way to celebrate.”

The backyard post-wedding celebration started with a short, light-hearted ceremony. Guests were treated to all the entertaining parts of a wedding, but our bride and groom could simply enjoy it, without any of the pressure. And because there were no legal shmeagle parts to worry about, I kept the contents of the ceremony secret. Normally, I share a copy of a couple’s ceremony with them before the weddings. In these instances though; when a couple has already been hitched and we are riding that love buzz, I like to keep it a surprise.

And then came the amazing party.

“Everyone had a job to do - whether cooking a homemade feast, picking native flowers from backyards, baking the vegan chocolate wedding cake, or lending a spare gas bottle for the barbecue. In addition to that, we borrowed a bunch of decorations from friends who have had their weddings over the last couple of years so it was really nice to bring everyone together in that way and share a part in making the day special.”

Bloody brilliant!

It was such a privilege to work with Brodie and Madeleine. There is so much value in drilling down to the essence of who you are as a couple, who your community is; and how best to celebrate your love.

The Nudie Nuptials

The other unconventional Tassie elopement was also in a public place, with just the bride and groom, two close friends as witnesses and their celebrant. But this wedding was among 2000 naked strangers about to dash into the freezing waters of the Derwent River at sunrise on winter solstice.

Simone and Aaron are mainlanders, but in the past they had spent a beautiful winter in Tasmania, house sitting and enjoying all that Hobart had to offer. One of their favourite experiences was the Dark Mofo arts festival. The festival that famously hosts the winter solstice nude swim.

Simone and Aaron had missed the swim during their house-sitting time in Tasmania, but vowed to come back and take the plunge.

When becoming engaged in December 2018, the concept of eloping to Tasmania was one of their first ideas. Then there was the suggestion to go during Dark Mofo so they could also do the swim. Then the crazy idea to get hitched AT the nude swim came about. A far flung idea, but surely there wouldn’t be a celebrant silly enough to go along with it.

Once the decision was made to get married in such an unconventional way, Simone and Aaron were able to relax into the reality that their wedding day would be something exciting and authentic, but also something for which they had limited control. This was unchartered territory and anything could happen. That took the focus off planning the “perfect” day, and shifted it to having the “best” day.

"Our wedding is going to be full of surprises for us because we really don't know what to expect and that is more exciting for the two of us than having planned everything to the tee," the couple reflected before the big day.

The wedding itself was surreal. Making their way onto the beach, wearing nothing but a red cap and a white towel, the wedding party, which included their two best friends Shannon and Jacob, blended into the goose-pimpled masses. Gathering together, deep within the crowd, very few around them even noticed what was occurring. A perfect love bubble surrounded by the best vibe.

Aaron and Simone were able to share their vows to each other directly and meaningfully. If they had found someone crazy enough to get married to them, naked in the middle of winter, they had found a keeper.

Once the rings were on the finger, the crowd of nudie dippers caught onto what had occurred and a wave of applause filled the beach. And then the realisation that they STILL had to strip off completely and dash into freezing water hit them. What a rush!

“Just being at the event with our two best friends and participating in a freezing nude swim was incredibly fun and exhilarating, but to also get married right before the dash added so much to the day. The applause from 1000 people in white towels and red swim caps is something that will always stay with us.”

(I’d love to share some actual photos of the wedding ceremony here, but …. yeah, I’m not allowed to. But here is a comic strip of the proceedings. Thanks to Scott Fraser for this great momento).

One thing that was not initially part of the plan, but had come together gradually in the lead up to the wedding, was a small family gathering over lunch later that day. While they wanted to get married in an epic way, Simone and Aaron also wanted to share the day with their family and closest friends.

After coming down from the exhilaration of the swim, this group of friends got dolled up and made their way into the city. After a super fun photo session around Battery Point with Omar from By The Wilde, it was time to celebrate.

Their post-wedding party, at Battery Point Community Hall, featured all the best non-legal parts commonly associated with weddings. Stories and reflections. A whole lot of laughter and a handful of tears. A little surprise for the bride and groom, and some personal, heartfelt promises. Being winter solstice, the couple were gifted a Yule Log, to be burnt on the day of their first anniversary.

As this wasn’t a legal wedding (that had happened on the beach), we could really get down to the meaning of what their marriage, their relationship, their commitment was. Wow it was a roller-coaster, but oh so good.

And then to finish, a feast prepared by amazing grazing artists HONEYFIG!

The highlight of this day for me though was not the nude swim, was not the beautiful ceremonies. Not even the amazing brie with honeycomb served with lunch. No, it was receiving an adorable cross-stitched thank you gift from the bride, Simone. This heartfelt gift sits proudly on my writing desk. A reminder that I have the best side-hustle in the world.

Elope or kickass love party ... why not do both?

Wilderness Walking Wedding

The Nudie Nuptials