Journey To Forever
I will start with Jun and Carol's boyfriend-girlfriend journey. Jun is my friend since high school. That's about 15 years ago. So I pretty much know about him, while Carol came in sometime later but I have known her quite a while too.
I first thought they were an odd couple. Odd in a sense that they were not the mushy type. Jun was a physically strong man and Carol was a willfully strong woman. I was amazed with their chemistry. I would have never known they'd click.
Fast forward 9 years later, in the year of our Lord 2016, they were convinced to the idea that indeed it is the right time to settle down, tie the knot and start a family. In fact, Jun made his intention to marry Carol so clear that he gave her three (3) engagement rings at different months of the year. (If that isn't Love, I don't know what is!)
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| Love, Friendship, Commitment Engagement Rings |
The Unique Wedding Details
Carol has been working in the corporate events and from time to time she handles wedding events too. So I was complacent that she already knew what to do with the planning of her own wedding. Needless to say, she started to dedicate all her time and attention to her wedding just 2 weeks before the intended date, and that was all uphill climb from there.
It is true what the elders say that brides-to-be are prone to a lot of hurdles and challenges because the envious evil spirits are preying on them. She had a LOT of challenges along the way and even at the very last hour before she marched down the aisle. Thankfully, the grace of God triumphed over everything. True Love endures all things indeed.
Location of Wedding Ceremony: St. Michael Chapel, Brgy. Eden, Toril, Davao City
Location of Reception: Eden Meadows Vacation House
Guest List - 50 Persons
Jun and Carol specifically reiterated about their guest list. They wanted to have 50 persons in the list including the wedding suppliers who happen to be their close friends too. Children were not allowed so the ring bearers, flower maidens were all adults. The target number of guests was however defied a little bit, the guests count was about 58 the least. Not bad at all.
I can say this wedding is truly one of a kind. In a country where family matters, most events would entail a big number of guests from families and relatives and friends attending. An average of about 100-150 guests would attend but Jun and Carol's wedding proved that an intimate wedding of 50 guests or so can be achieved.
The Wedding Ceremony - 4:00 in the Morning
Most wedding preparations start at 4 in the morning but never a wedding ceremony at 4:00 am! This was really first of its kind. Good thing the 2 priests (yes, there were two priests) who presided the ceremony were our friends too. This goal was partially achieved. The wedding ceremony started about 45 minutes after the intended time due to another big hurdle that came along.
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| The Groom is getting ready to walk down the aisle |
Theme of the Wedding - Denim
Usually it is the bride who decides for the theme of the wedding. True enough, Carol did all the choosing of the theme and motif of the wedding. Denim is the theme. Green and blue are the wedding colors. These colors represent Life and Friendship which is the couple's mantra for their relationship throughout the years. The guests were wearing denim, and denim rocks indeed!
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| The All-adult Entourage |
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| Newlyweds with the Principal Sponsors |
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| From left to right: Ring bearer, maid of honor, Carol, Jun, Arrhae bearer, Best Man |
Flowers and Decor - Green Live Plants
Carol was an extraordinary bride. She wanted her wedding to showcase greeneries starting from the tablescapes to the aisle to everything around her. Green is life. And since she is going to start a new chapter of her life, green is the symbolism of growth. She wanted green live plants in flower pots to line the aisle. The day before the wedding, we transferred the live plant to the planters and enhanced it using green leaves of different kinds. She also wanted her bouquet to be all green, and the boutonnieres as well. She requested all green, so we give her all green as requested.
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| The aisle to forever in lush greeneries |
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| The Newlyweds - Mr. and Mrs. Roberto Sanchez, Jr. |
DIY Favors
Since the event was going to be among close friends of the bride and groom only, the souvenirs were personalized. Each mug had a specific name and personal message from the newlyweds. The bride was truly Queen of Do-It-Yourself.
The bride even made the cushions for the ring and arrhae. She used old denim pants and sowed them to make a small pillow.
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| DIY Ring Cushion Denim Pillow |
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| DIY Arrhae and Coin Denim Pillow |
Unplugged
If you are not yet blown away by the dawn ceremony, wait until you walk into the church entrance and notice a BIG SIGN reminding you that mobile phones are not allowed and must be surrendered to the staff. The bride wanted all eyes and ears to the ceremony and to let the photographers do their jobs. So instead of hands holding gadgets, all you can see in the photos are the true happy expressions of what witnessing a wedding is all about.
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| The reminders for all guests to surrender their phones to the coordinators. |
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| The Bridal March. The witnesses are not holding any gadget. |
The Wedding Reception
The wedding reception was held at Eden Meadows Vacation House, a 20-minute ride away from the chapel. The location itself is a landscaped garden perfect for Carol's dream outdoor garden breakfast wedding reception.
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| Breakfast wedding reception |
There were a lot of laughter, happy tears and a whole lot of love that sparkled throughout the entire week and probably the whole year after! I heard that the lady who caught the bouquet and gentleman who caught the garter are brewing a sweet friendship between them.
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| A possible new love on its way |
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| Happy tears |
Truly, this is the wedding of the year 2016 for me. The details were extremely specific and I was on my toe to deliver what the bride wanted. Me and my team were part of the event as event coordinators. We were a team of three (3) and we were adamant on delivering nothing but only the best we could possibly can despite our number.
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| From Left to Right: Dante (Best Man), Maribel (event coordinator/stylist), Me (Lead event coordinator/stylist), Carol (Bride), Jun (Groom), Fr. Lauro, Joan (event coordinator/stylist) |
The photos will immortalize the overflowing happiness of this beautiful event. I never knew that a very intimate wedding could be that fun and memorable. The people were very close to each other and everyone had a great time. That's all that really matters to me. The bride was all smiles. The groom was eccentric. After a very long and exhausting two weeks of my life as a wedding planner, coordinator, stylist and friend, there were mistakes along the way but I must say it was a job well done for me and my team! (tap on the shoulders! shout out to Maribel and Joan!)
Thank you Carol and Jun for choosing us to assist you on your wedding. I'm sure with your line of occupation you know a lot of event planners and stylists probably more experienced than us but you still chose us. To my good friends Jun and Carol, may your tribe increase! Go forth and multiply! Congratulations and Best Wishes to both of you!
Photos used in this post are credited to different owners.
Thanks to all the Wedding Suppliers who happen to be Carol's best buddies too:
Coordination and Event Styling: Leah Jacobe Weddings
Photography: JC Bob Torres and Rhon Delos Santos
Video Coverage:Visual Mirage
Makeup: Kim Dela Pena
