Ring glitch leads to getting hitched at garden wedding: Hannah & Nathan

When Nathan Smith was interviewing Hannah Gundersen for a job, he didn’t realise he was face to face with his future wife.

“Luckily for me – I got the job!” says Hannah, 32. Eighteen months later they began dating and were married on February 15, 2014. But it wasn’t as simple as that. Nathan, 39, had planned to propose during a Queenstown holiday, using one of the rings Hannah always wore, as the “placeholder”.

“He was already down on his knees, buried in snow, after taking a fall on the ski slopes,” explains Hannah. “I came over to make sure that he wasn’t injured…Nathan took my ski gloves off, expecting to use my Aunty Maxine’s ring to propose with, but there was no ring to be seen. I had forgotten to put it on that day!”

Nathan put the proposal on hold until a week later, back home in Melbourne, at their favourite restaurant. Seeing the ring was now on Hannah’s right hand, Nathan removed it and, while asking her to be his wife, placed it on her ring finger. “It was such a romantic and intimate proposal,” recalls Hannah.

Their garden wedding at Ascot House Receptions was focused on the guests having a good time. “We wanted our reception to involve plenty of good music and dancing throughout the night,” says Hannah. “My nanna, who is 86, is a fantastic dancer and she showed the guests a thing or two on the dance floor – and also took a strong liking to one of our groomsmen who she danced with for most of the night!”

“I was after a vintage, elegant but relaxed style of dress,” Hannah says of her Bluebell Bridal gown.

The bridesmaid dresses were by Review. “Beautiful red lace dresses with a stunning scalloped neckline,” describes Hannah.

Cake Passion put together a gorgeous ivory wedding cake, scattered with pink and coral roses, in a rich Cherry Ripe flavour.

Says the groom, “My beautiful bride Hannah was welled up with tears for the majority of the evening. These were tears of fear, love and, not least of all, relief that all the planning paid off!”

Photos courtesy of Tori and Sal.