Elissa  & Tim

04.06.22

Highschool sweethearts, Tim and Elissa Pearson, celebrated their wedding at Lowe Family Wine Co. in Mudgee, Wiradjury country, on the 4th of June 2022. Overlooking the rolling hills splashed with vineyards, with 120 of their nearest and dearest, the day flew by in a whirlwind of laughter, love, and sparkles – and a little bit of mud. 

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Tim and Lize’s fairytale romance began on the 6th of November 2010. She remembers it clearly. They were both attending the eighteenth birthday party of a mutual friend. Tim dressed as Winnie the Pooh and Lize dressed as Minnie Mouse, they got chatting around the campfire. They chatted until the sun rose, and spent the rest of their year 12 year toing and froing between Armidale and Tamworth to sneak in an hour or so together, and racking up phone bills so they could enjoy a phone call on the daily. 

“In a paddock full of Woodys, Buzz Lightyears, and Aladins, here was a bloke that comes as a teddy bear with a big mop of blondish hair. He’d written ‘Pooh’ on a red T-shirt and stolen his dad’s firefighter pants – he clearly loved a dress-up party, but ultimately [I loved] the fact that we talked for hours about every aspect of our lives.”

Following school, the pair moved to Sydney, attended their respective universities, and continued life as a couple – both still just as much enthused about a dress-up as when they first met. Elissa, now the head of podcasts at Mamamia, Tim, general manager and licensee of The Angel Hotel in Sydney, and their perfect pooch, Reggie, are enjoying married life in the city – while taking every opportunity they get to return home to the country.

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Exactly 10 years after their first encounter – this time not in a paddock full of Disney characters but under a gum tree at Pepper Tree Hill in Mudgee – Tim asked Lize to marry him. Choosing the destination for their 120 guests was easy: Lize knew from the day Tim proposed that Lowe Family Wine Co. was where they’d tie the knot.

“We were doing a wine tasting, and I said aloud, ‘bloody hell this would be a nice place to get married’ – Tim went red, and I kind of hoped it was because this would be the weekend we got engaged. An hour later, he bent the knee. He said some really lovely things, but I was so happy and overwhelmed I can’t remember what they were.”

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Tim and Lize’s country chic wedding was held in June of 2022 in the beautiful Pavilion at Lowe Family Wine Co. Originally planned for December 2021, the wedding date adjustment, in hindsight, was a welcome change, Lize says, since her stunning dress was both high neck and long sleeved. 
 
“I wore my grandma, Rae Johnston’s dress, which was also worn by my mum. Rhonda Hemmingway redesigned it for me, added a different skirt and honestly it was so special. I changed into a sparkly Rixo dress for the reception as I didn’t want to risk ruining the wedding dress.”
 
Ruin the dress, Lize didn’t. However, she does recall a small footprint left on her veil after it was accidentally trodden on after the ceremony. A detail, Lize giggles, that didn’t matter at all. They were on cloud nine, and no amount of mud-laced bridalwear could have brought them down. 
 
As for the bridesmaids, Lize had known from a young age that she wanted the dresses to closely resemble those of her grandma Ann’s. 
“When my other grandmother, Ann Ratliff, got married in the 50s, her bridesmaids wore four different shades of pastel – I had always loved this about her wedding photos, and knew I wanted to do the same. Pastel blue, green, pink, and yellow, the dresses were custom made by Rosa Bridesmaids in Perth.”
 
Tim and Lize arrived at the ceremony separately, both in Kombi vans supplied by Country Kombi in Mudgee. Upon arriving to the gorgeous venue, the pair didn’t wipe the smiles off their faces for the rest of the ceremony. 
“Walking down the aisle was extremely surreal. Seeing Tim up there looking very dapper was of course amazing. My godfather yelled a funny joke as I was walking down the aisle and I just couldn’t stop laughing – I laughed my way down the aisle. It was an extremely happy ceremony.
“Scarlett Arthur from Happily Ever Arthur is one of Tim’s mates, and she made the ceremony so unique. We had so many of our guests saying they’d never seen a celebrant like her. She told our story and made it very personal.” 
 
For the reception, Tim and Lize decided on old-school music, and the night before the wedding was well spent preparing their entrance dances. The whole party danced into the reception to Good Times by INXS and Jimmy Barnes, which had people in the mood to boogie through the night. Following the advice of some of their friends who had already got married, Tim and Lize managed to steal one another away a few times throughout the night to take in the view.
 
In terms of advice for future bridal couples, Tim and Lize say not to sweat the small stuff (and provide drinks and snacks throughout the photos). 
 
“Don’t stress on the small details like favours and intricate styling. As long as the music is loud and the food and wine are delicious, people will have a good time.”