This wedding seems almost as if it was taken from the pages of a whimsical story book. Deborah and Rob wanted their day to have a rustic feel to it, while still having an aspect of elegance, as well quite a large amount of DIY. The result is their romantic Montsalvat wedding, perfectly captured by Love is Sweet Photography.

Deborah and Rob are high school sweethearts, and the bride tells the story of how she and her groom met, "We originally didn't notice each other in our first year of high school, until a mutual friend introduced us. I would say it began like any other 14 year old relationship. The boy teasing the girl, too afraid to say he liked her, and the girl thinking, "Why doesn't he leave me alone??". Rob was pretty persistent, and I'm glad he never gave up, because since then we have been inseparable. We are fortunate to say that we have shared many milestones growing up together, as individuals and as a unit. We are both very lucky to be able to say that we not only fell in love with our best friend, but have our happily ever after."

Deborah chose her wedding gown from Raffaele Ciuca, and she remembers her experience finding the perfect dress. "I thought wedding dress shopping was going to be harder than what it actually was. It only took two days, and it was the first shop I went to, and the second dress I tried on. The gown was just stunning, the style was like a Great Gatsby dress with a sheer, high neck line, flowing skirt and sparkles all over when the light hit it. It was perfect for the style I was going for."

"All stationery and invitations were collaborated by myself with a friend. I was lucky enough that my friend had a machine that could burn print onto the wood pieces that we sourced for our invitations. I was so in love with our invitations - they turned out amazingly!! All our family and friends were constantly telling us that they didn't even want to open them because of how beautifully they were wrapped and presented!"

Rob's attire, and his groomsmen's outfits, were from Menz Club. The men wore sharp navy suits, brown leather shoes and suspenders with elegant, black velvet bow ties.

Deborah chose to walk down the aisle to the original mix of "Jubel" by Klingande. Deborah remembers, "Our ceremony was everything we could have asked for - very intimate and warm. To have our closest family and friends attending was so special to Rob and I, and for them to witness and share this moment with us was incredible. When we began to plan our ceremony it was very important to me to be able to include my El Salvadorian background, with having traditional nuptial blessings such as the Lasso and Las Arras ceremony."

The amazing pastel bouquets and florals were created by Strathmore Flowers.

The couple chose Montsalvat in Eltham for their wedding ceremony. "When Rob and I went looking for venues we had a set criteria that we were looking for, one for the ceremony and another for the reception. With both it was hard not to fall in love with what each venue offered. For the ceremony, Montsalvat, with its incredible buildings, gardens and peacocks roaming the grounds, it provided the prefect place to have our nuptials ,and backdrop for our wedding photos."

The photographer you choose to capture your day is an incredibly important decision, and Deborah gushes about Nada, their photographer. "Choosing a photographer is very important, and we chose Love is Sweet Photography and I couldn't have asked for anyone better. Nada is amazing!! She is very calm and very experienced. When I look back at our wedding photos, it views as a story book of images from the day, leaving nothing un-captured."

"We chose to DIY a number of items at our weddings. For our wedding favours we made the cement planters and painted them, but also months before the wedding we went around to Rob's grandparent's and picked different types of succulents that we could grow to later plant in the planters we made. We also made a few more for our reception decorations. We made our place cards for the tables, and our seating chart."

Deborah and Rob chose Roomba's at Mt Aitken for their reception - a stunning venue, hidden away in the country side, that perfectly correlated with their ceremony venue and theme.

"Our first dance as husband and wife was definitely something to remember. We chose John Legend's "All Of Me". It is just a beautiful song, and speaks volumes to Rob and I about becoming a unit, and of love for one another."

"Our wedding day was really relaxed, really fun and totally unforgettable! Looking back on our day, we wouldn't have changed anything. It was everything we dreamed of and more. It was amazing to be able to celebrate our relationship with our closest family and friends."

Congratulations Deborah and Rob, and thank you for sharing your beautiful wedding with us! Thank you to Love is Sweet Photography for today's lovely wedding!