Stuff's wedding of the week

Not many people manage to get SOL3 MIO and the Seven Sharp team involved in their proposal but that's exactly what Joe did when he popped the question to Josephine.

She clearly said yes, and they chose the stunning Stoneridge Estate in Central Otago for their big day - which went off without a hitch.

But we'll let Joe and Josephine fill you in on all the details...

How did you meet? Our long story short is that Joe arrived from the UK in 2010 on a working holiday visa and after 8 months of living in NZ we met at a bar Joe was working at in Nelson.

From there, we got to know each other through meeting at the bar and work friends. Joe always holds that it was love at first sight and spent many months trying to woo Josephine, who initially seemed a little oblivious to the attention. The attention obviously worked though, as it wasn't soon after meeting that we began to hang out as more than friends.

Tell us about the proposal: (Joe) I arranged the proposal almost unknowingly. I saw an advert on the Seven Sharp Facebook page inviting people who had been thinking about popping the question for a wee while but weren't quite sure how to do it or what to do. They invited you to send a brief email detailing how you met and why you would like to win - apparently there was a big surprise in store!

So as I lay in bed on a Saturday while Josephine was at an appointment, I decided what the heck and scripted up a brief tongue-in-cheek email. I didn't think anything of it again until the next Monday when I got a call from Seven Sharp saying I had made it to the shortlist and could I get to Auckland the next day if I was to win? I quickly said, yes, and that I would make arrangements later. Within half an hour, I had a phone call back congratulating me and telling me I had won!

The next day we flew to Auckland. At this point, I had managed to arrange for Josephine to have the day off work and had convinced her we were heading up there as I had won a competition for a nice lunch and a night in Auckland. A pretty convincing tale, apparently. We arrived in Auckland and I had to sneak Josephine into our taxi without her seeing me text the TV crew to give them the heads up that we were on our way. Upon arrival, we were sat at a table and I had to make a quick dash to the toilet to get my mic on.

After returning and sitting down, the "surprise" started. SOL3 MIO were pretending to dine and one of the members was disguised as a waiter. He brought over a bottle of wine and asked if we would like a glass - of course we said yes. He then notified us that the wine came with a song, and at this stage he started singing and the other members stood up and joined him. They sang the most amazing song for about a minute. Upon finishing the song, the TV crews all came out from their hiding space and Tim Wilson slid in next to us at the table. He popped the microphone in my face and said "Joe, I hear there is something you would like to ask Jo...."

I nervously asked the question and received back what I think could go down as the quickest yes in history!

The couple was attracted to the beauty of Central Otago for their big day.

Source: wedding dresses adelaide

The couple was attracted to the beauty of Central Otago for their big day.

Location of wedding: Stoneridge Estate, Lake Hayes. We chose this venue as we think Central Otago is an absolutely stunning area of NZ and Stoneridge Estate encapsulates all of the best features of Central Otago. Stoneridge Estate is a boutique winery which looks out onto the lake and surrounding mountains and includes its own stone chapel and beautiful stone rustic reception area.

These breathtaking views are only added to by the immaculate grounds and areas perfect for wedding photos. Joe's family is all from UK so we were able to show them how amazing our country is.

Describe your wedding day: (Josephine) Fourth of January and we wake to 4 degrees and snow on the hills!! It was the most crisp fresh morning, and the skies were the deepest blue, promising the weather to be sunny and warm. As the ceremony wasn't til 4pm, we both had all morning to spend with our friends and family.

Well, Joe had all morning - us girls started hair and makeup at 9am! The whole day just went in such a flash, it is crazy looking back on it now. The boys got ready in an apartment we rented in Arrowtown, and us girls finished getting ready in the The Cottage at Stoneridge Estate, a standalone cottage perfect in keeping with the beautiful rustic theme Stoneridge has and adding a surreal atmosphere.

Walking into the small chapel framed with climbing roses to a very nervous Joe was just the most incredible feeling. The ceremony flew by and then we were outside taking photos on the grounds.

The sun was absolutely scorching so I am so pleased our photographer managed well with the light. We had the reception at Stoneridge also, and it went without a hitch. The indoor and outdoor flow suited our style perfectly and we finished the night off with our choreographed dance routine.

The dress: (Josephine) Choosing my dress with my mum is a memory I will never forget. She and I flew to Wellington for the day and we went to two different bridal shops. As soon as I tried my dress on, I knew it was the one.

My dress has a beautiful champagne colour lining which looked amazing on my skin and is covered with the most beautiful lace and sequins. I didn't really like the princess cut, so my dress is fitted and slowly angles out towards the ankles with a beautiful detailed train. The neck is covered with see through mesh and buttoned at the nape of my neck then it has an open back with continued detail of lace and sequins. It fit beautifully and I felt truly beautiful.

The flowers: The flowers were a natural looking mix with some pink, purples and really soft tones of colour to highlight the theme of our wedding perfectly.

Highlight of the wedding: Celebrating our love with a lot of Joe's family over from the UK, some of which have never visited the country before and seeing Joe and Josephine's family together for the first and probably only time together.

Was there any drama? The only little hitch was when the mother of the bride was stitching a bridesmaid's dress while Josephine was getting into her dress so there was no photos of her doing up her daughter's dress, but that wasn't drama as such. Everything else went without a hitch, thanks to a great team of organisers.

The honeymoon: To be confirmed but we are currently looking at packages to Tahiti.

Your photographer and favourite photo? Our photographer was Mandy Caldwell Photography and our favourite photo was taken below the Chapel standing our on a rock path into the middle of the pond, with the most beautiful garden and scenery behind us.

Also see: wedding dresses 2016

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