Love is Love
Love is Love in all it's different ways, custom illustrated sign by ELK Prints. Photo by Angus Porter Photography
On Tuesday, September 12, 2017, The Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) started sending out a postal survey asking Australians whether they believe in same- sex marriage. The survey is a single question answerable by "Yes" or "No". That question is:
Do you support a change in the law to allow same-sex couples to marry?
That very same morning, members of The Wedding Experts Network across Australia gathered together to host a morning tea. There was no doubt as to how our votes will lean, we were all in support of marriage equality.
I joined our local Sydney gathering and also provided a custom illustrated sign based around the saying “love is love in all it’s different ways”. They are my words and the heart of how I feel about this issue - love is simply that, love, and it does take shape in many different ways and all love is equal and should be respected.
The Sydney TWE community gathered together in support of Marriage Equality. Photo by Angus Porter Photography
It was a fabulous day spent in the spring sunshine as a community of creatives sharing our support for the "YES" vote for marriage equality.
Acrylic welcome and thank you signage by Nikki Design Co. Photo by Angus Porter Photography
The concept for the Morning Tea was "Wedding Cake for All" was initiated by Jennie Keogh the founder of The Wedding Experts Community and a full creative team collaborated and contributed to make the local Sydney event special.
Lilac Zhang from Upside Down Events working hard at styling our event. Photo by Angus Porter Photography
Our creative output was led by Lilac from Upside Down Events who styled the morning tea setup and did a fabulous job of bringing a splash of rainbow colours to the garden to create this celebration of love and marriage equality.
The Wedding Experts Community Founder Jennie Keogh. Photo by Angus Porter Photography
That's Jennie Keogh "keeping an eye" on the dessert bar. She looks like she can't wait to try all the delicious desserts and we certainly were all keen to enjoy the beautiful array of sweets on offer. There were large rainbow cakes from Baked by Gemma and The Cake Edit and a marshmallow tower by Priya from Sugar Pot. I was on strict instructions from my son to bring back some of the delicious raspberry lemonade and coconut marshmallows for him to enjoy also. Smaller dessert cups were by All Pretty Desserts and salted caramel macarons came from MakMak.
The Superintendents Residence in Centennial Park provided the perfect backdrop for our event. Photo by Angus Porter Photography
The venue for our event was the beautiful Superintendents Residence in Centennial Park.
It was lovely to meet the team at The Residences CP and be introduced to the house that is available to book for events or just for a nice family getaway. The residence has been beautifully restored and I would certainly love to spend a night in the park and wake up slowly to the sun rising across the grassy hills and birdsong.
There was much to cheer in agreement with during the speeches. Photo by Angus Porter Photography
Behind the scenes as I hang strings of watercolour heart bunting to add a splash of colour and love to the garden setting. Photo by Angus Porter Photography
Aside from creating the custom watercolour illustrated sign, I also created strings of watercolour bunting of hearts in rainbow pastel hues. These are one of my signature-style hand-painted designs.
Artistic expression in unison - hand-painted watercolour heart placecards by ELK Prints alongside custom-painted tableware by Upside Down Events. Photo by Angus Porter Photography
As a creative it's always fabulous to see when your work has inspired new creative expressions. Lilac took my small watercolour hearts as the inspiration for creating some custom-painted tableware. They made for a vibrant and artistic addition to the event and we could all choose the colour of the rainbow we love the most or mix it up.
Photo by Angus Porter Photography
Here's a closer look at one of the the mini watercolour hearts I designed that were used as place cards for the table setting. That yummy statement macaron however, is from Makmak. There's no doubt about which way we'll all vote.
Yes to yummy macarons. Yes to marraige equality.
A full spectrum of refreshments were available at the My Little Peony Caravan Bar. Photo by Angus Porter Photography
Signage in support of Marriage Equality. Photo by Angus Porter Photography
Standing up for something you believe in makes it more meaningful and some people (as you can see by that cute little sign) have been supporting same -sex love since forever.
A rainbow of hearts grace the My Little Peony Caravan Bar. Photo, and bunting, by ELK Prints.
With so many delicious desserts available we all staggered away in a full sugar coma!
The rainbow layer cake by Baked by Gemma had the most amazingly delicious fresh strawberries and cream icing I've tasted! Photo by Angus Porter Photography
Josephine Ison from Event Entertainers provided beautiful music for us to enjoy. Photo by Angus Porter Photography
Sandwiches from Two Chaps provided a good savoury balance against all those desserts! Photo by Angus Porter Photography
Foliage backdrop by Wild Dahlia Florals and Upside Down Events. Photo by Angus Porter Photography
It was really nice to see many familiar faces at the event, Dalia from Wild Dahlia Florals is one of my beautiful corporate clients and it was fabulous to see her at work creating the foliage photo backdrop. Daniel from Angus Porter was our photographer and his friendly energy is always a welcome addition to an event.
It was also good to finally meet some other familiar names whose work I had seen and admired but hadn't had a chance to meet before - Belinda from Communicake It who created the amazing layered rainbow cake topper was just one of those creatives I enjoyed meeting.
Henry Weinreich Roth live-streaming at the event. Photo by Angus Porter Photography
A surprise guest was Henry Weinreich Roth whose energy enlivened the event. Through a Facebook live stream we were able to share our thoughts on the issue to a wider audience. Henry's dad Reggie who also attended humbled us with his gentle sentiments on the issue "Everybody is alive as equals - when you love one another it doesn't matter what you are, it is all about love and affection".
One guest shares that he thinks this vote is about human rights and the right to feel secure. He's on to something. I think if we just go by this: "love over hate, understanding before fear" then we should be good.
In that same interview, I shared my thoughts on marriage equality and the significant meaning that lay within the illustration I created for the event:
Love is Love in all it's different ways.
Just like flowers we are all different people, special in our own way. We come in an infinite variety of specimens and we are all beautiful in our own unique manner.
Love is Love in all it's different ways - custom watercolour illustrated poster by ELK Prints.
When my ballot paper arrives I will be proud to vote YES. Everyone has a right to enjoy and experience happiness, love and family and I think it is very selfish of anyone who would want to deny that to another person.
Photo and watercolour heart bunting by ELK Prints.
After all, love is love.
Concept Styling & Props: Upside Down Events
Photography: Angus Porter
Venue: The Residences CP
Caravan Bar: My Little Peony
Video: Top Chois Productions
Live Music: Event Entertainers
Bunting and Watercolour Illustrated Sign: ELK Prints
Acrylic Signage: Nikki Design Co
Foliage: Wild Dahlia Florals
Mesh Panels and Stools: Timbermill
Cake: The Cake Edit
Cake: Baked by Gemma
Dessert Cups: All Pretty Desserts
Macarons: Makmak
Marshmallow Tower: Sugarpot
Cake Toppers: Communicake it
Food: Two Chaps
