Meant to be: Denise and Josh’s modern classic wedding

Denise Werny and Josh McTaggart hit it off when they first met at a 21st – so much so that Josh told his mates he was “going to marry that girl.”

Seven years later he got his wish!

But not before he prepared breakfast in bed for his teacher girlfriend, with a proposal poem he’d penned himself. “Being an English teacher I was a bit concerned,” laughs Denise. “But he never ceases to amaze me. It was heart-warming and hilarious at the same time.”

The Toowoomba-based pair headed to Brisbane for their classic wedding, held on April 18, 2015. The ceremony was held in grand style at St Stephen’s Cathedral in front of 83 friends and family and the celebrations continued at Moda Portside, overlooking the Brisbane River.

Denise, 27, enlisted the help of Amini Concepts with her vision for decorating the venue – hints of gold with plenty of ferns and foliage. “It was a magical space for our perfect night,” she says.

When it came to music, Denise and Josh, 28, opted for acoustic guitar during the canapes, before the four-piece Press Club Band got everyone up and dancing. “My dad carved up the dance floor and the girls were lining up to be twirled around,” remembers Denise fondly.

“It honestly could have been that wedding where everything went wrong and it still would have been the happiest day of our lives,” she says.

“The fact that it was so perfect on the day just proves that it was meant to be.”

Photos courtesy of Salt Studios.

Denise arrived in style in a white Jaguar from Kenz Classic.

“From the start it felt magnetic – it was an instant attraction,” Josh says of his love for Denise.

Rather than a veil, Denise chose an elegant headpiece, similar to the one her mum had worn at her own wedding. She teamed the custom-made piece with a classic up-do hairstyle.

“What I love about Josh is his zest for life and the fact that he is always the life of the party,” Denise says.