In Bloom

The story of Alexandra Grima and Dominic McKinlay-Sullivan began with a passing moment outside a cafe in Byron Bay — one of those chance encounters that quietly changes everything. Dom, a filmmaker, was running late for a photoshoot with his friend Max, when Max recognised his former Sydney roommate, Alex. Their meeting was fleeting but electric, with both telling me that they were immediately curious, and each asking Max about the other before the day was done. From that first encounter, a modern courtship began, mostly digital at first, until a month later when they finally met for their first date.

"We’d never even met properly, but we had been messaging each other like old friends," Alex tells me. “It felt easy, like we were picking up where something left off.”

The connection was undeniable. Despite the fact that they lived in different cities, the distance only intensified their bond. And what started as a momentary encounter quickly evolved into something deeper. “I was enthralled by Alex’s beauty,” Dom admits. “We stayed casual for several months while we were living in different cities, and as hard as we tried not to fall in love, we kept landing in each other’s arms,” he laughs. “It was very much a sliding doors moment.” While apart, they talked on video every night, cooking dinner together through their screens and treasuring the stretches of time they managed to spend in the same place. “We became really good at being in love from afar,” says Dom. “Even in the distance, it felt like we were building something real.”

Then, when Alex planned a trip to New York, Dom decided to join. And before they knew it, a month in America morphed into a three-month jaunt around Europe, where Alex and Dom lived and worked together, cementing their connection on the road. “It was the honeymoon before the proposal,” Alex reflects. “That trip made it clear, we were in this for the long run.”

Years later, the pair were about to embark on a family holiday to New Zealand when Dom caught Alex off guard with a lowkey proposal. “I woke up very sleepily one morning and saw Dom next to me wide awake and grinning, “Alex tells me, “and he then proposed with a beautiful placeholder ring from Agmes NYC.” She continues. “We went for an early swim together in the ocean and just kept it to ourselves that day to soak in. We told his parents a few days later and my parents on the other side when we landed, there was a lot of hugging and excitement at the airport!”

For Alex and Dom, a big wedding was never on the cards. “We didn’t want a spectacle,” Dom explains. “We wanted it to feel like us, calm, simple and full of love.” Alex jumps in, “we decided to do it in New Zealand at my Grandmother’s house which holds my fondest memories.” She pauses. “It felt really natural and symbolic.”

And so, on a moody afternoon under an unexpectedly stormy sky, Alex and Dom and 42 of their nearest and dearest piled into Alex’s grandmother’s enchanting house, surrounded by her incredible garden, a setting that carried the echos of Alex’s childhood.

But as rain continued to fall steadily, plans had to shift. While they had initially intended on having the ceremony outside, the couple were forced to move into the living room, reciting their vows on a landing that acted like a Juliet balcony, the glowing faces of their guests gazing up from below. “We had no choice but to lean into it,” says Dom, laughing. “In the end, it felt even more magical. Like the house wrapped its arms around us.” Alex continues, “everyone managed to fit perfectly into the space with a large window looking out onto the garden. It felt so intimate, romantic and close that now, I couldn’t imagine having done it any other way! They say rain brings good luck, after all.”

“We decided to do it in New Zealand at my Grandmother’s house which holds my fondest memories. It felt really natural and symbolic.”

Every element of the wedding bore a personal touch. The couple drew their own invitations. Dom’s mother knitted a fine cashmere cardigan bolero for Alex. Her mother embroidered initials onto napkins sewn by a family friend. Guests helped arrange flowers in the garage the night before, wines in hand, and everyone pitched in when the weather changed the game plan. From polishing cutlery to pouring drinks, their close-knit community pulled together to make the wedding feel like it was truly bigger than just the bride and groom alone. “It was a collective labour of love,” Alex says. “That made it all the more special.”

This ethos extended to the bride’s dress, which Alex designed and commissioned her friend, designer Mimi Holvast, to make. The leftover fabric was transformed into three evening bags, one for Alex, one for her mother, and one for Dom’s mother. She wore her Mum’s pearl earrings and ballet flats to dance in. Dom wore a hand-me-down Dolce & Gabbana suit paired with R.M. Williams boots. And while the overall effect still carried the kind of formality you might expect from a wedding, the underlying feeling was deeply, and intentionally personal. As Alex tells me, “I wanted to feel like myself, not like I was in costume.”

The menu, created by the talented Karl and Ophelia Bayly from Blue, was a highlight, comprising a beautifully curated lunch with oysters from Clevedon and a cake topped with fruit that had been sugared by Alex’s mother. Guests toasted with Bollinger champagne and nibbled on cucumber sandwiches cut into shapes of angels.

Of course, music played a central role. Grace Cuell (Baby Cool), a friend and musician, performed her unreleased song ‘Sacred’ as Alex ascended the stairs to her grandmother’s landing. After the kiss, she sang ‘Kiss Me’ by Sixpence None the Richer. The soundtrack for the rest of the day came from playlists Dom had carefully curated. Their first dance was a playful homage to Pulp Fiction, set to Sophie Ellis-Bextor's ‘Murder on the Dancefloor.’ “It was all silly and fun and a little chaotic, just like us,” Dom says.

The celebrations carried on at Snake Gully, a neighbouring house, and the following morning everyone gathered at the beach at the end of the road, a cherished family spot marked by colourful boatsheds. Alex’s grandmother made her famous date and orange scones. Croissants were brought in, children looked for crabs, guests took turns in the rowboat. It was a return to ritual, and a continuation of the love shared the day before.

The days that followed were spent up north at Alex’s family bach. A week of swimming, cooking and hiking gave space to decompress and deepen bonds. Their honeymoon began from there.

Looking back, the couple express how much they cherish the tiny moments from the day the most: an emotional ceremony, speeches from close friends and the comfort of shared, knowing glances across a crowded room. “I remember thinking, I’ve never felt more held in my life,” Alex tells me.

Now, the duo lives in Coopers Shoot in the Northern Rivers hinterland near Byron Bay, where they share a life rich in community, nature and creativity. For Dom, returning to the area where he was born and raised has brought a sense of groundedness. Frequent visits to his grandparents’ home weave threads of generational belonging into the fabric of their present.

When I ask Dom what it was that initially drew him to Alex, his answer is immediate. “The way Alex carries herself through the world.” He pauses. “Rebecca (Alex’s Mum) puts it so well ‘Alex was born sunny side up’ her optimism and enthusiasm is infectious. She is my dream maker.” For Alex, Dom brings warmth, creativity, and presence. “In Dom I have found a real sense of partnership, and someone who is willing to evolve with me, side by side.”

Their relationship thrives on communication, introspection, patience and the quiet tending of love. As Alex explains, “In my wedding speech I spoke about how my Grandmother tends to the garden every day, in small dedicated amounts, consistently, with love.” She stops, with a smile, “I really carry this approach with me when I think of my commitment to Dom. It feels so much easier, more sustainable and more enriching to take care of our relationship in this way.”

In the years ahead, the duo dreams of building a home on Alex’s parents’ land in Northland, starting a family, and continuing to create together. “Being with Alex makes the future feel expansive,” says Dom. “There’s nothing we can’t build together.”



This wedding was originally published in VEIL Issue One. Discover this celebration, along with many more inspiring weddings, editorials, and stories in the full issue. Purchase your copy here.