Real Wedding // Megan & Ollie’s Fig Tree Wedding

Megan & Ollie’s wedding at The Fig Tree was an incredibly beautiful occasion that definitely lifted the game of tropical luxe styling. Coconuts, lush foliage and corals adorned empty spaces and their bespoke arbour crafted by Bower Botanicals with tall natural textures made their ceremony one we will never forget. To top it all off, Megan and Ollie were one of the most infectious and loving couples we’d ever met! Love Her Wild Photography captured the essence of this day right on-point. Read their love story below.

Tell us your story, how did you both meet?
We met 9 years ago, not far from The Fig Tree at a house on St Helena Rd. It was Ollie’s work Christmas party and I gate crashed the party with a friend. I remember asking this cute boy for directions to the bar and his charm got my attention. We hit it off straight away and have been inseparable since that day. 

How did the proposal happen?
Ollie proposed on a Fiji trip for my early 30^th  birthday. During the last few days of our holiday we stayed right near the boat launch to Cloudbreak. We both went out to the break and Ollie surfed for hours and hours whilst I hung out on the boat. Ollie tells me that he was so high on life after his surf and really wanted to go again but felt bad for leaving me another day. Anyhow I insisted he go (secretly looking forward to a bit of r&r around the pool), and apparently I was so cool about him going, no stress at all. That’s when Ollie knew I was the one and proposed that afternoon on the beach watching a beautiful sunset.   

What were the reasons for choosing the Fig Tree as the venue for your special day?
We were pretty set on having an overseas wedding as a lot of relatives live outside Australia but when we visited some venues in Bali there was something that didn’t feel perfect. We attended a function at The Fig Tree a year before the wedding and the service and food was so on point. Che and his team are so talented and friendly, it felt so right to have our family and friends experience this venue and have our wedding in our home town. Also the Fig Tree has the same beautiful view over Byron Bay and the lighthouse as did the place where we had met. The Fig Tree was special to us in so many ways.    

What style were you striving for with your table settings, florals and reception? Was there a certain look or vibe that you wanted to create?
We really wanted to stay true to our own home style and carry this through to our special day. Tropical foliage, natural textures and elements, orchids, shells and corals was our vibe… and COCONUTS everywhere! The guests were given young coconuts to drink on arrival, we used split old coconuts for table decoration and the cake was a coconut dream!

Were there any vendors that you particularly loved working with and why?
We were so lucky to know of and be recommended to a handful of amazing local vendors. The lovely Katrina Holt from Wonder Love Ceremonies gave us so many creative ideas for our ceremony and our guests just loved her. Jaala and Kellie Mills from Bower Botanicals are AMAZING and created the most dreamy arbour and floral arrangements for us. The talented Bradley Stone,  Amy Perkins from Heartfire Collective and Ash Perrie from The Boheme Dream were just a blessing and pleasure to work with. Finally our amazing photographer Lauren Phillips, Love Her Wild Photography, truly delivered the most heartfelt pictures.  

We were so lucky to have Carlie as our Byron Bay Weddings planner as she was so fitting for our fuss free and down to earth style. She was extremely helpful in so many ways and kept us organised and on track, which is just what we needed! The Fig Tree staff did an amazing job. Jimmy and his team were so professional and made sure all guests were well looked after. They also did an incredible job at making sure our day run so smoothly, despite the early rain and threatening clouds…they didn’t let it bother our day!  

What were your favourite parts of the wedding planning process with Byron Bay Weddings?
The best part of planning with BBW was definitely the calmness and ease throughout the whole journey. No request was too hard or too strange and BBW just have a natural way in making you feel organised for the big day! It was a pleasure to share our day with them and the staff at Fig Tree.

Overall, what was your most favourite part of your wedding day and why?
It is so hard to choose only one, so I am going to pick three! The crazy storm that rolled in at the end of the ceremony followed by beautiful rainbows, our close friends surprising us by singing our first dance song and dining with our friends and family under the stars in the perfect ambience of the fig tree.