Couple reveals how their bridal party got stuck in a lift for 30 MINUTES
A newly-wed couple have revealed how their big day was almost ruined by a string of disasters including a damaged ring finger, Covid lockdowns and the entire bridal party becoming stuck in a lift on the way to the reception.
For Queenslanders Amy and Fabian Ring, both 30, these stories are now wedding highlights but they admit at the time they were feeling very emotional.
Speaking with FEMAIL Amy recalled the moment Perth went into a three-day lockdown, a week before her wedding which was held on May 1.
Amy and Fabian Ring, both 30, from Queensland were married in a fairytale ceremony but a string of disasters meant they were lucky to have their big day at all
Arriving to the ceremony in a chopper was the icing on the cake for the groom who thought the rain might ruin the adventure
The couple also revealed how Covid lockdowns meant many of the bridesmaids were in danger of missing the wedding
The guests from Perth, where Amy grew up, included her grandmother who she is very close to and most of her bridal party.
‘We thought our guests from Melbourne would be most likely to be locked down, because at this point NSW was against locking down and WA hadn’t needed to,’ she said.
Fabian said Amy is usually chilled out but he could see her anxiety at the shock announcement.
‘Amy’s key people were all in Perth, so we spent those days grieving and trying to work out how we could do a second wedding over there,’ he said.
The lockdown was the first of a string of disasters in what they describe as a very big two weeks.
After coming to terms with the lockdown the grieving couple decided to share a few glasses of red wine and ‘dance around the living room in an attempt to ‘find their vibe’.
Amy’s dad Wayne, pictured at the wedding, had a stroke on the second day of their honeymoon – forcing them to come home early. He made a full recovery
The couple are pinching themselves that they were able to get married exactly as planned and understand if their wedding was a weekend either side it wouldn’t have happened
Amy was devastated when Perth went into a snap lockdown the week before her wedding – because her grandmother lives there and is a huge part of her life
‘I caught my finger nail on the couch and the whole thing was ripped off the bed,’ Amy said.
And it wasn’t just ‘any nail’ it was the nail on the bride-to-be’s ring finger.
‘I couldn’t believe it I was wondering what kind of voodoo this all was,’ she laughed.
Luckily Fabian, who is a doctor, had some surgical glue and was able to stick the nail back on, binding it together with surgical tape as well.
His quick fix worked well and the nail lasted until the day after the wedding before coming off again, permanently.
The couple laugh at the disasters now but admit they were feeling the stress at the time
Amy felt like she had been cursed when the nail on her ring finger tore off after being caught on a couch days before the wedding
‘On my wedding day it was getting really itchy,’ Amy recalled.
‘When it came off after I was relieved but people kept asking to see my wedding rings and all I could think was how ugly my finger was.’
Just two days before the wedding the Perth lockdown was called off – sending a wave of relief all the way across the country to south-east Queensland.
‘I was refreshing the advice, hoping they would be able to come. I was at the hairdressers and just started crying,’ she said.
The groomsmen and bridesmaids all got stuck in the elevator for 30 minutes after ignoring capacity limits on the way to the reception
The wedding was saved, but the couple couldn’t know what was to come.
The morning of the big day they awoke to heavy rain, threatening their plans to arrive to their ceremony by helicopter.
‘But the weather cleared up within a half an hour window and it was able to go ahead,’ they said.
The wedding venue, The Valley Estate in Currumbin, had gifted them the helicopter trip as a thankyou – after they agreed to have their wedding there before it had even been built.
‘We said yes after seeing a paddock and buying into a dream,’ they laughed.
‘But it ended up being one of the most stunning venues either of us had ever been to.’
The ceremony went off without a hitch.
But when it was time to head to the reception their bridal party decided to ignore the signs on the elevator and all hopped in together.
‘The doors shut and then refused to open so they were all stuck on the ground floor,’ Fabian said.
Wedding pictures show a carefree couple, dreamlike ceremony and happy group of loved ones
Adding to the stress Fabian is a doctor which means he could have been plunged into isolation at anytime whilst planning the wedding
‘I was told about it but just tried to distract Amy – we had taken the stairs and were mingling with guests at this point.’
The wedding party was stuck in the elevator for about half an hour but one of them had some alcohol with him so they came out of the ordeal in high spirits.
The disasters followed the couple to their honey moon in Tasmania.
Two days into the trip – during the dinner which was to be one of the highlights of their time away Amy got a horrific phone call from home.
Her dad Wayne who is a fit and healthy 62-year-old had had a stroke whilst free diving off Heron Island.
‘He came up to point out a fish he had seen and his mate, who is a doctor, noticed his face was drooping and got him back in the boat,’ Fabian recalled.
Amy’s dad Wayne recovered fully from the stroke he had – and walked himself out of hospital two days after
The couple are looking free to a future plagued with a few less disasters
‘He had a massive stroke so we flew up as soon as we could to be by his side. A few days later he walked out of hospital with no ill-effects, it was amazing, actually his recovery is absolutely unheard of.’
The couple went back to Tasmania and finished their honeymoon and now look back at the chaotic time with fondness.
And surprise they were able to get married at all.
‘A weekend wither side and it wouldn’t have happened, and it was actually perfect,’ they said.
They hope to start a family soon and are trying to steer well clear of any future disasters.