April 27th, 2019 | Lauren Fletcher Photography
Melissa & Chris
The Meet Cute: It all started when Chris, an Aussie, added Mel, a U.S.
native, as a friend on Facebook after seeing her comment on a mutual
friend’s page. Soon after, they added each other on Snapchat. “We
sent normal, friendly stuff back and forth for a while, which eventually
led us to trade numbers and make plans to meet in person,” says Mel.
Unfortunately, the trip never came to fruition. But then, four months
later, Chris was granted a Canadian work/travel visa, settling on Toronto
because it was close to the states — and Mel. “We decided to meet for
the first time in New York on December 30th, 2017,” she recalls. “Traveling
a total of thirty hours, he left summer behind in Melbourne to meet
me at the snowy front door of our Airbnb in Brooklyn. Our first date
was three weeks long.”
The Engagement: Following seven months of long-distance dating, the
couple filed for a fiance visa. “We had celebration champagne at the
dining room table after that!” Mel recalls. “I wasn’t expecting too much
else really, not even a ring.” Chris, however, already had something in
the works with her best friends, Lori and Paul. But when Mel was invited
to one of their regular Sunday BBQ nights that July, she almost didn’t
go. “Chris was back in Toronto and I was tired from work and tired of
attending things without him,” she admits. Little did she know, he had
sneakily flown down the day before. “At the BBQ, I all of a sudden heard
someone strumming a guitar down the driveway — it was Chris playing
our song,” Mel says. “He asked me to marry him with the perfect ring.”
The Setting: “Lori had offered her home for our ceremony very early on,
but I was tentative to take the offer because it’s a lot to ask!” Mel admits. But
she couldn’t have been happier with, nor more grateful, for the end result.
“I would recommend a backyard wedding, given the right circumstances,”
Mel says. “We had a very small, intimate wedding, around thirty-five people,
and the set up and thoughtfulness of their home fit our needs perfectly.”
The Last Dance: Because the couple went for more of a cocktail party vibe
over a traditional reception, they had no real intention of doing a first dance.
But then Taylor Swift’s “New Year’s Day” started playing. “Chris and I met the
day before New Year’s Eve in New York, and this album was in heavy rotation
at the time,” Mel explains. “We had chosen it for the last song of the night,
and we ended up trying to sneak a little dance in without anyone noticing!”
The Treats: As a manager of PVDonuts, Mel couldn’t wed without the
iconic sweets making an appearance. “I’ve been in the kitchen since day
one, and naturally Chris loves doughnuts, too,” she says. “I knew exactly
what flavors I wanted: dunkaroo and peach creme brulee.”
The Highlights: “100% the moment after we kissed, when the song
started playing and we walked back down the aisle. It’s an unmatched
happiness of the day, knowing you did it, and that it was time to
celebrate.” — Mel
“The first moment I saw Mel looking so beautiful in her dress walking
down the aisle (it was really hard not to kiss her then and there). My
second favorite moment was during my vows. Whilst talking about all of
the flights and goodbyes we’ve had to endure, a loud passenger jet flew
over our ceremony. Much like Mel and I, the timing was perfect.” — Chris
110 | ENGAGED IN SOUTHERN NEW ENGLAND 2020