Liz hasn’t had a weekend to herself for over a decade. She has committed each Saturday and Sunday to her work. But it’s more than just work, it’s the satisfaction she receives knowing that she’s just made someone’s day that little bit more special. Liz is in the wedding and christening business. A business that is filled with love, joy, happiness and plenty of tulle.
But what people don’t realise is what goes on in the background and how Liz, and her team of staff, are trained to orchestrate this illustrious performance to ensure the bride, koumbara and nouna, are able to sit back and enjoy. It was during a sojourn in Greece that Liz was exposed to an alternative for the common boumbounieres. When she christened her godchild back in Australia, she decided to import everything from Greece.
The reception she received assured her she had discovered an untapped market. Eleven years later in an industry that has seen her help christen and marry many Greek people in Victoria, the passion for what she does is still there; if anything, it’s stronger than ever. “I love working on functions; weddings and christenings. I love decorating and wrapping. I love making everyone’s day special,” says a gushing Liz.
“I love how excited everyone gets, when they first bring their babies in to get measured. And all the little touches, like how you are going to decorate the kalathakia that get me excited,” says Liz. It’s this keen eye for detail that sees her at the church and reception centre busily decorating to make sure that everything matches perfectly. Her bright and bubbly personality suits this industry perfectly, but it’s her ability to keep the guest of honour out of harm’s way and absorb some of the pressure herself, that makes her invaluable.
In this industry, she believes, you need to have a tough stomach in order to handle any problems that can be thrown at you. “There is a lot going on in the background that people don’t know about,” she says. Liz reminisces about a time she was waiting on an order for a fast approaching wedding, only to receive the wrong items. She managed to get the right goods delivered moments before the wedding and made certain the bride wasn’t privy to the anxiety.
“I check the weather forecast for the days my clients are getting married hoping that they don’t get rain or hail,” says Liz going above and beyond for all her clients. Liz at times has to put on the hat of a counsellor too. Brides can throw a hissy fit, disagreeing with the mother-in-law or koumbara. Back in day, the koumbara would pick everything, but now brides are becoming more particular and more involved in all aspects of the wedding, proving to cause more stress for Liz. But she takes it in her stride, laughs it off and says it’s, “part of the job.” Sourcing most of her products from overseas allows Liz to have a variety of stock and gives customers a diverse array of products. She goes as far as changing her range every two weeks in order to keep things fresh.
“We aim to be different than everybody else in the industry,” explains Liz. “For weddings we have very modern wedding candles, all types of stephana from the old traditional to the modern Swarovski Crystal. A lot of modern type bombounieres, not your old school salt and pepper shakers. Our flower girl range is beautiful, we use four different companies.” Now with Greek customs creeping into the mainstream, Liz has noticed her clientele has developed and include many other nationalities. “Favours is what they are calling boumbounieres,” says Liz of other cultures now taking on something the Greeks have done for years. And that is to give gifts to the people who have chosen to celebrate their special occasion with them.
But what better gift than having the experienced hands of Liz to guide you through your special day? Princess Elle is located at 667 High Street, Thornbury, Victoria. Contact Liz Aravanis on (03) 9484 2528. princesselle.com.au
