Weddingbee Blog

Rhea & Tim
Los Coyotes Country Club, Buena Park, CA.
November 12, 2006

The Story

To hear our love story and to see clips from the same-day edit that our amazing videographer Daniel Boswell put together, please visit: http://samedayedits.com and scroll down to Tim and Rhea. Click on our picture to view the clip.

As you’ll hear from watching our love story, Tim and I have known each other since we were 5 years old when both our families lived in Santa Monica, CA. Though my family and I moved away when I was 10, first to Vancouver, Canada and then 5 years later, to the Philippines, Tim and I always managed to stay friends and keep in touch despite the distance that separated us. We started officially dating when I moved back to Los Angeles on my own in 2001. Tim proposed on our 4^th year anniversary and almost exactly one year later, we were married.

With so much history between us and our families, our wedding day was incredibly emotional. We set out to plan an event that was simple and elegant, but most of all heartfelt and meaningful.

Wedding Details…

Our wedding colors were sage green, chocolate brown and blush pink.

For the ceremony d��cor, we focused mainly on using whites and greens. Two tall chocolate brown wood boxes flanked each side of the altar. On top was a glass cylinder vase lined with lily grass, and filled with tall white calla lilies, white dendrobium orchids, monkey tails and a cuff of green hydrangea around the lip of the vase. White phalenopsis orchid stems spilled out over the front of the vase. Along the aisle we had alternating glass cylinder vases holding either medium height white calla lilies and lily grass or one white pillar candle and lily grass.

Presenting our parents with appreciation white roses

My bouquet

Our flowergirl

For the reception we brought chocolate brown into the mix with pinks and greens. Chocolate brown satin linens covered each round table. We had alternating centerpieces with either pink or green submerged orchids in vases lined at the bottom with a green ti leaf.

Three small glass squares were lined with green lily grass and held a floating green or pink cymbidium bloom.Nine chocolate satin wrapped votive candles were used as accents and each place setting had a mini cymbidium orchid bloom (pink or green to match the centerpiece) resting on the flat napkin fold with a menu tucked into it.

We also had a candy bar station where our guests were able to fill mini Chinese take out boxes with a variety of sweets on their way out.

Some of the most meaningful moments of the day were …

• Seeing Tim at the “First Look” moment that our photographer and videographer set up.

• When my parents came into the bridal room just a few minutes before I was about to walk down the aisle so that we could spend a few moments together in prayer.

• Presenting our parents each with a single white rose during the ceremony as my sister sang a song in the background. Just a small way for us to honor them and show our appreciation for their unconditional love and support.

• Dedicating my bouquet to my mother instead of doing a bouquet toss.

• Sharing our love story and same-day edit footage with our guests during the reception.

Some additional touches…

Because I spent many years of my life in Vancouver, we decided to take the opportunity to do our E-pics there when we flew up to visit my family a few months before the wedding. Our photographers Chris and Lynn Jaksa took amazing photos that also captured the gorgeous scenery that Vancouver is known for.

We also did a day after/trash the dress session with our awesome wedding photographer Leigh Miller, where we had the opportunity to take some really creative pictures that we didn’t have time for on our wedding day.

The Vendors

Tim and I felt very blessed to have worked with the amazing vendors that we did. Surrounding ourselves with people who were down to earth, calm, and just extraordinarily talented helped to make our day that much more successful. From our coordinator, to our photographer, videographer, makeup artist, florist and DJ, each and every one of them went far above and beyond, exceeding our expectations in every way, and we’re just really thankful to have found them.

Wedding Coordinator: Shannon Berg (shannonleeberg@hotmail.com)
Wedding Photographer: Leigh Miller
Engagement Photographer: Chris and Lynn Jaksa
Videographer: Daniel Boswell of DvArtistry
Makeup: Marge Enrique
Florist: Carissa Jones of jl.designs
DJ: Eric at So-Cal DJ
Cake: Rossmoor Pastries
Bridal Gown Designer: Jasmine Couture
Bridesmaid Dresses: Nicole Miller (on sale from Nordstrom for $68 each!)
Honeymoon: Maui

The Conclusion

Our wedding day was such an amazing and emotional journey for us. We tried our very best to be present in each and every moment, but as everyone says, the day just flew by. It unfolded pretty seamlessly and if there were any issues that day, I wasn’t aware of them thanks to my great coordinator. All in all, it was all that we had hoped it would be and more. If there was one small thing that I regretted that day, it was not setting aside even more time for us to be able to get cool photos with our photographer Leigh. Luckily, we did a “day after” shoot with her which gave us the opportunity to take some amazing pictures in a relaxed and casual atmosphere without any time pressure. After running around all over the city and the beach with Leigh, my dress was a little dirty and sandy but it’s nothing a good dry cleaning can’t fix. We absolutely loved our photos and had a great experience, so for any of you who are considering a “day after” or “trash the dress” session, I would definitely recommend one!