Christchurch - Being engaged to Dan Carter may have felt like she was forever destined to be the bridesmaid but, last Friday, former Black Sticks beauty Honor Dillon was very much the star at her and Carter's idyllic wedding.
According to the NZ Herald website, the bride wore a flowing ivory dress with a plunging front, a cutaway back, a two metre train behind her and a veil over her face.
The 100 guests gathered at a secluded lakeside spot at the exclusive Lake Timara Lodge.
Carter and his four groomsmen, including All Blacks scrumhalf Jimmy Cowan, all wearing grey suits with long black tails, waited for Dillon as Hayley Westenra serenaded seated family and friends.
The couple exchanged traditional wedding vows and several hymns were sung during the 30-minute ceremony.
Teams of security guards with heat-seeking equipment scoured the forest surrounds for any uninvited interlopers.
Gentried landowners of Marlborough - the well-to-do family friends of the Dillons - mingled with All Blacks past and present, including a hobbling Richie McCaw and coach Graham Henry.
Ali Williams, who weds fiancee Casey Green in a few weeks, was a keen observer of proceedings.
The bridal party sat in front of a "blaze of peonies and oriental lilies a metre deep".
At 10pm, the party moved outside to take in a huge fireworks display that lit up the sky.
Guests began leaving soon after, while others partied on until 01:00.
Those who were talking said the couple scored a perfect 10...
According to the NZ Herald website, the bride wore a flowing ivory dress with a plunging front, a cutaway back, a two metre train behind her and a veil over her face.
The 100 guests gathered at a secluded lakeside spot at the exclusive Lake Timara Lodge.
Carter and his four groomsmen, including All Blacks scrumhalf Jimmy Cowan, all wearing grey suits with long black tails, waited for Dillon as Hayley Westenra serenaded seated family and friends.
The couple exchanged traditional wedding vows and several hymns were sung during the 30-minute ceremony.
Teams of security guards with heat-seeking equipment scoured the forest surrounds for any uninvited interlopers.
Gentried landowners of Marlborough - the well-to-do family friends of the Dillons - mingled with All Blacks past and present, including a hobbling Richie McCaw and coach Graham Henry.
Ali Williams, who weds fiancee Casey Green in a few weeks, was a keen observer of proceedings.
The bridal party sat in front of a "blaze of peonies and oriental lilies a metre deep".
At 10pm, the party moved outside to take in a huge fireworks display that lit up the sky.
Guests began leaving soon after, while others partied on until 01:00.
Those who were talking said the couple scored a perfect 10...