The suggested mode of travel was a 4×4. Raindrops still sparkled in the trees, and the air was filled with the freshness that comes only after a light shower in the forest. Mind you, it also meant the odd mud puddle along the wooded trail. But guests simply smiled or laughed out loud as they donned rubber boots for the five-minute walk that would take them from the end of a dirt road in Midway, two hours from Kelowna, past rocky outcroppings decorated by Mother Nature’s own hand, and finally to an historic railway tunnel now long abandoned and overgrown.

The tunnel’s cave-like entry was aglow with candles set into mason jars, elegantly simple, simply romantic. Then, as Paige Block and Kelvin Nicholls exchanged wedding vows at the tunnel’s entry, a rainbow appeared in the sky.

“We wanted a very natural, wildflower look, which was why we picked this location and chose daisies and sunflowers,” Paige says, adding she and Kelvin had also spent many hours hiking and camping in the surrounding area, property that’s long been owned by her family. “We also wanted getting there to be part of the experience. It’s about a two-hour drive from Kelowna, and at the end you’re on a dirt road probably thinking you’ve gone too far, but if you followed the signs we made you’d get there.”

In fact, almost everything used for decoration was handcrafted – including the benches, which were built specially for the occasion by family and friends. The same group had also happily pitched in to carry them to the secluded site earlier that morning. “We’d just set a date for building them, and told people to come over to Paige’s parent’s place if they wanted to help,” Kelvin says. “Twenty people showed up. It was amazing.”

Following a tradition from their first date, a date that had included a Mediterranean-style picnic by the lake, the couple served picnic bags filled with a few gourmet treats before everyone headed back to Kelowna for the evening party. The outdoor menu featured such summer standards as granola bars, apples, and lemonade plus truffle popcorn for a twist and, as Kelvin is quick to mention “champagne of course.”

The couple’s penchant for inspired food, often served with a touch of elegant whimsy, is hardly surprising considering Paige and Kelvin originally met at the Manteo’s Resort where both were servers in the hotel’s Wild Apple Restaurant and Lounge. “I had absolutely no interest in a relationship at the time,” Paige admits, laughing at the memory. “I had plans to go get a degree in Foreign Politics from the University of San Diego and take a trip to Uganda.”

But Kelvin never gave up asking, and finally Paige accepted the invitation to go out with the persistent bartender who she found so charming and respectful.

Soon it was clear to everyone this was a match from heaven. “My heart just always kept going back to her,” Kelvin says. “I knew this felt different.” Still, it was October 21, 2009, over two months after their first summer picnic, before Paige considered them “boyfriend and girlfriend.” The turning point was a coincidence so unlikely, she says she had no question it was the sign she’d been waiting for.

“We were visiting my parents so Kelvin could get to know them,” she explains. “My dad was talking about the day he’d been moving some lumber earlier in August, right in the heat of the summer. He has a heart problem, and when the load shifted, he became stuck. Suddenly a red pickup pulled over, and in no time the driver had dad’s lumber reloaded safely. But he was back in his truck and gone so fast, dad couldn’t even say thank you. Kelvin thought that was just the kind of thing his father would do, his dad’s always believed in random acts of kindness, so he phoned to ask him. Sure enough, it was Kelvin’s father who’d been driving the pickup and stopped.”

A month and a half later, Paige did make her trip to Africa, 39 days that was the first test of their relationship. “Telephone contact and even Internet was sketchy, so we had minimal contact,” Kelvin says. Three terms at the University of San Diego plus an unexpected opportunity to study for a month in Turkey followed in quick succession, but at least email and phone was more readily available. “Plus we got really, really good at finding cheap flights,” Kelvin says.

Then, on August 11th, one year to the day after their first lakeside date, Kelvin suggested getting dressed up for a fancy dinner out. “I blindfolded her first (she was not impressed), then I drove around for a while to get her disoriented,” he says while Paige rolls her eyes and gives a good-natured shrug. They arrived at Okanagan Mountain Park just as the sun set to discover a “fine dining experience.” It had been prepared by friends from the restaurant and left for Kelvin to cook al fresco. That night they dined on wild green salad with goat cheese, salmon with risotto and roast baby squash plus wine pairing with each course. As the light faded completely, Kelvin proposed.

The following day was a whirlwind of activity. “I have a lot of family in Kelowna, and we didn’t want to just call,” Kelvin says. “So we spent the entire day visiting everyone who was important to us. Paige and her mom started planning the next day.”

Finally, on May 28, 2011, the couple married. Their reception, held at Paige’s parents’ home overlooking the lake, was a lighthearted, fun-loving celebration with a casual lounge theme, a big dance floor, and a photobooth. “We had tents set up and decorated with vintage furniture, some borrowed, some found along the way, and some made just for the reception,” Paige says. “Kelvin’s dad being a carpenter built the tables, and my mom’s friend reupholstered all the couches and made 40 vintage-style pillows.”

Food included oysters on a plank, seafood, and Roy Rogers with rum, chosen as the event’signature cocktail because the original, non-spiked version was Paige’s after work favourite while she hung out with Kelvin after her shift at the restaurant was over but his wasn’t. Amid the dancing, socializing, and celebration, there was also time for one wedding game. The newlyweds and both sets of parent sat back to back with their spouses raising a red or blue flag to indicate their responses to such all-important questions as who controls the remote or who takes longer to do their hair in the morning. “Naturally, a great cheer went up when all six people got it right,” Kelvin says.

But it was the witty, roast-style speech delivered by Andrew, the best man, and Dan, one of two groomsmen, that both Kelvin and Paige say was one of their favourite highlights of the evening. “They had five pages of material, a back and forth comedy routine that was the absolutely funniest thing we’d ever heard,” Kelvin says. “People are still talking about it.”

“The whole evening was so much fun, we really didn’t want to leave,” Paige says. “There were so many people who helped make it happen, family, friends from the restaurant and guests who made decorations. We still don’t know how to thank everyone.”

How They Did It

1. Paige chose a natural look for her bouquet, with an assortment of bright gerber daisies, sunflowers and roses. The bouquet was arranged by Art Knapp.

2. Tables at the wedding reception were decorated with antique tea cups from the couple’s aunts and grandparents. “We thought they looked neat and matched with the vintage theme of our décor,” Paige says.

3. Manteo Resort’s Wild Apple Restaurant and Lounge catered the delicious food for the evening.

4. The reception, held on the grounds of Paige’s family home, was casual and low-key, with dinner served cocktail- and seating lounge-style. The tent and some of the tables, chairs and sofas were by All Occasions Rentals. Other unique pieces of furniture were gathered from family and friends, and some were created especially for the wedding.

5. Kelvin wore a slim fit, grey, Calvin Klein tuxedo from Tip Top Tailor, accented with a yellow gerber daisy and a thistle.

6. Paige grew up around horses, and loved her red cowboy boots the moment she set eyes on them. “They were something different that I wouldn’t normally buy for myself,” she says. “They also made more sense than wearing high heels.”

Paige and Kelvin’s Wedding Vendors

Venue – Reception | Runaway Ranch, Kelowna, BC

Photographer | Glen Durrell

Bridal Consultant & Planner | Kezia Addison, kezia@addison.ca

Bride’s Dress | Priscilla of Boston, Blush Bridal

Bridesmaid Dresses | Jim Hjelm, After Five

Groom & Groomsmen | Calvin Klein, Tip Top Tailors

Stationery | Tina Prichard, Ily Creative

Flowers | Art Knapps

Catering | Chef Bernard Cassavant, Manteo Resort

Cake | P.J.’s Cakes

Disc Jockey | Jeff Hay aka DJ Haymaker

There are two kinds of weddings, according to Tara Thorp, principal planner with Forever True Wedding Planning and Design. There are local weddings, which are about the couple, and then there are destination weddings, which are about the guests. “Destination weddings are more about the romance of the location, not necessarily about the location itself,” says Tara.

When Vancouver bride Amber Maivs was looking for a location for her destination wedding to Tyler Pratt, location wasn’t the primary factor. “I wanted elegance and the high-end look of a Vancouver or LA-style wedding, but on a beach with crystal clear water,” she says. Mexico was an easy choice, especially when she considered the cost and logistics of travel for her guests. “The most important thing was to be able to have my family there,” Amber says. “Mexico gave us the opportunity to have more than just a simple Mexican wedding; we could have an elegant, gorgeous, upscale wedding in a beautiful setting. I really wanted that ‘Wow’ factor.”

From the outset, Amber and Tyler knew they would recruit the services of a planner to help organize their destination wedding. They’d met with a couple other planners, but things clicked on their first meeting with Tara. “I saw right away that we had the same sense of style, the same personality,” Amber recalls. This was confirmed over the course of their meetings as Tara’s ideas and suggestions complemented Amber’s tastes and flair.

Amber and Tyler confirmed Mexico as their general destination, and when Tara was in Mexico for another destination wedding, she scouted out The Dreams Riviera Cancun Resort. “Amber wanted an elegant and glamorous wedding with a Mexican backdrop,” Tara says. “The Dreams Riviera Resort fit the bill perfectly.”

Next came the details. Amber loved the work of renowned wedding designer Preston Bailey. “I love the way he’s so over-the-top and extravagant,” she says. “We used his boldness as inspiration. We started with yellow, lavender and soft aqua as my colours, but Tara suggested we scratch the aqua since we were on the beach and had the blue of the ocean in the background. She suggested we go with mauve instead. This worked perfectly with the girls’ dresses, their tanned skin, and it really complemented the lavender.”

One challenge with getting the elegance and glam that Amber wanted was the uncertainty of vendors in Mexico. To get around that, Tara brought everything she could from Vancouver. “I brought the paper and stationery, even the linens. Basically, if I could get it in a tote-bag, it came with me,” says Tara.

“At customs I always try to be up-front and honest. They always stop me because I have all this stuff. I have to assure them that I’m not planning to sell it and that I’ll be bringing it back,” she says. “But last year, the customs agent at Puerto Vallarta was a bride-to-be planning her own wedding. She went through all my stuff asking questions about how to use it, getting ideas for her own wedding.”

Customs was one challenge for Tara. Other hurdles included the language barrier and the work ethic in Mexico. “I went through a lot with the resort explaining things several times to make sure everything was clear. It’s a process of constant communication with the resort around specific details. This is very important,” Tara says. “As a planner, you have to be ready to put out a few fires. With this wedding, I lost six pounds from running around in the heat in that first week.”

The heat was certainly a factor in this May wedding, where daily temperatures topped 37 degrees and humidity was high. To give guests a chance to acclimatize, Tara included a couple of low-key days in the itinerary before the wedding. “I made sure everyone took it easy and stayed hydrated,” she says. The heat was especially an issue with the ceremony flowers, which had been flown in from Amsterdam. “We were putting them out at the last minute to keep them as fresh as we could. The florals were important to Amber; we had 12 different types of flowers in the arrangements. The Mexican florist I worked with did his best to ensure everything would be fine.”

Despite these challenges, the wedding day flowed with grace and elegance. “I loved being close to the beach for the ceremony,” Amber recalls.“Tara had used flowers to decorate the bamboo arch beneath which we were married. It was so Caribbean but had that elegant West Coast feel.”

After the ceremony, guests gathered in the resort’s Jacuzzi area for cocktails and appetizers. Amber had wanted to make a grand entrance, so Tara suggested they use cold sparks—a type of fireworks that don’t produce high heat. “Because of the fire hazard, regulations prohibit fireworks in the area unless it’s recently rained,” she explains. “Plus the local waters are a spawning ground for turtles so it’s necessary to minimize the environmental impact.” As Amber and Tyler entered the cocktail area, six fireworks went off, followed by a performance by fire dancers, giving guests a taste of excitement and entertainment before the reception.

Amber recalls walking into the resort’s El Patio restaurant for the reception. “I loved the feel and warmth of the room when I walked in; the high ceiling, the way everything was put together, the purple highlighting. I loved the look of the gorgeous well-stitched linens and the Chivari chairs – these were something I had to have.”

Behind the scenes, however, things moved a little less gracefully. “The day started a bit chaotically,” Tara recalls. “In Mexico it seems they feel they don’t have to set up until the last minute. The restaurant where we were to have the reception was full of people all day. The furniture had to be cleared out. I had to go up the chain of command until I found the right manager to get the Chivari chairs I’d ordered put in.” “We worked hard to get it all set up. We had to place linens and overlays on the tables. Then there were the settings, the flowers, placecards, menus and candles.” By the time the ceremony took place, there was no sign of the mayhem. “I was impressed with how easy Tara made it all seem, and how well she nailed it,” Amber says.

For wedding favours, guests received fabric beach bags in the wedding colours. Each bag contained a bottle of tequila, lip balm, a reusable plastic cup, “floaties” to help people stay up in the water, and an assortment of goodies handy for fun in the sun. Tara included her contact information in the bags so guests could reach her anytime if they needed anything.

In the days following the ceremony, guests went on local excursions, a shopping day for the moms and the girls, and a trash-the-dress day. Tara had rented a SUV and a couple vans, “and we went in an entourage to this pristine beach where there are fresh water pools, caves and rock walls. Amber bought a second dress similar to the bridesmaids’, dressed and got into the water with it on.”

“They had a couple of nights out, so I arranged transportation into town and back for a night of clubbing,” Tara continues. “It’s important to acquaint destination wedding parties with the local customs.”

In the end, it was everything Amber wanted—and more. “I was so happy with the way it all turned out. I wouldn’t change a thing. We still watch videos of the wedding and every time we do, I say ‘Let’s do it again!’”

Amber & Tyler’s Wedding Vendors

Venue – Ceremony & Reception |  Dreams Riviera Cancun

Bridal Planner | Forever True Wedding Planning and Design

Photographer | JLS Photography

Videographer | RF Productions

Bride’s Jewellery | Elsa Corsi

Bride’s Dress | Bisou Bridal

The first time Ray Leung laid eyes on Jinny Chiu, he couldn’t help but notice her height.

“Yes, Jinny’s a little bit taller than me,” laughs 36-year-old Ray. He thanks mutual friends for making that first, fateful introduction to Jinny eight years ago at a Greek restaurant on downtown Vancouver’s Denman Street. Though he noticed her height, he also noticed something about her. “The more I got to know her, the more I knew it was just….right,” he says.

So right, in fact, that when Ray left to work overseas in Tokyo and Shanghai several years later, he and Jinny promised to do whatever it took to make their long-distance relationship last. And though she describes the four years that ensued as tough, with phone calls often consisting of one saying good night while the other said good morning, Jinny, now 28, agrees it was worth it.

Knowing, too, that practical, level-headed Jinny was the yin to his yang, Ray could hardly contain his excitement when he finally returned home for good and started making plans to pop the question. “It’s hard to keep a secret from Jinny,” he says, “but I was determined to make this one a surprise.”

A self-professed prankster, Ray figured the best place to ambush his bride-to-be was where she’d least expect it. And ambush her he did. Waiting for just the right moment, after a romantic dinner out when Jinny made a trip to the ladies’ room, he barged his way into her bathroom stall, got down on one knee and asked her to marry him.

“She looked at me and said, ‘Now? You’re really doing this now?’” he recalls, laughing. “Then she asked me to wait until she washed her hands and warned me that I was going to have to make this up to her. But that’s why this works. We can joke around with each other and just be ourselves and be silly. She’s the love of my life … my lifelong play pal.”

Shortly thereafter a date was set. Not only was 2011’s May long weekend lucky by Chinese astrological standards, it was also far enough out that family and friends from Asia could make plans to attend. Preparations for the big day began almost immediately. And, far from letting his fiancée run the show, Ray was about as handson when it came to wedding planning as a groom can be.

“Oh, I was very involved,” he says matter-of-factly, adding that Jinny, a designated chartered accountant by trade, kept a careful eye on the budget. “We wanted something that really reflected our relationship and let people know who we are, as individuals and as a couple. But we also wanted to give our guests a great time; our motto was that there would be no ‘B-listers’ at this party.”

True to their word, Jinny and Ray planned an event designed to blow their guests away; nearly every aspect of the wedding—held in its entirety at the Vancouver Convention Centre’s spectacular West expansion—was infused with the couple’s unique joie de vivre.

For starters, a San Francisco-style trolley bus rented from the Vancouver Trolley Company shuttled the wedding party around the city for pre-ceremony fun and photos. With both bridesmaids and groomsmen donning custom-tailored dresses and suits—the latter lined with electric blue, pink, orange and green satin—not even the rain could put a damper on the day. “The weather couldn’t get us down, we were so excited,” Jinny confirms. Adds Ray: “It was nice and misty, and our photographer, Erin Gilmore, was able to get some really fantastic shots before the wedding started.”

Back at the Convention Centre, Jinny, a vision in Vera Wang, glided down the aisle on her brother’ s arm past 226 onlookers. “I felt like I was marrying a supermodel,” Ray remembers of the moment he realized he was about to wed his best friend. “I knew I’d be emotional, but I didn’t think I’d cry so much!” adds Jinny, who later changed into a second gown, as is customary in Chinese weddings.

Once the vows were exchanged and the couple was declared husband and wife, the party kicked off on the Convention Centre’s Summit Level, which had been decked out in a lime-green and fuchsia theme—colours which Ray says “wouldn’t normally go together, but do, just like Jinny and I.” Guests dined on succulent roast pig and nibbled on personal cupcakes rather than a traditional tiered wedding cake.

Just when everyone thought the night couldn’t get better, Ray pulled one more trick from his sleeve. “I always had it in the back of my mind that I owed Jinny the romantic proposal she had dreamed of,” he says. “I really wanted to make it up to her, so I connected with Celebration Fireworks and asked if they would do a personal fireworks show for us on the water.”

When the right moment arrived, Ray asked Jinny to join him on the balcony. As they gazed over the dark harbour, he dropped to his knee, took her hand and asked her to marry him all over again. “As soon as she said yes the guys sent a couple of shells up for us into the night sky,” says Ray. “It was like an exclamation point on our wedding—a beautiful ending to a perfect day and a perfect beginning to the rest of our lives.”

How They Did It

1. Jeanette Kornelson of Delovely Creative used cymbidium orchids to decorate Jinny’s bouquets and boutonnieres, accenting them with tiny crystals and white feathers. The crystals represented Jinny’s gown, while the white feathers tied in with the ostrich feathers that decorated the hall. The fuchsia flowers matched Jinny’s wedding colours of fuchsia and lime green.

2. Dessert at the wedding was tapas style, with lemon macaroons, chocolate truffle cups, crème brûlée and cupcakes. “They offered more variety for our guests and a better presentation than a traditional wedding cake,” Jinny says.

3. “The inspiration for our wedding was a Chinese luxury brand called Shanghai Tang, which is famous for using many vibrant colours, like the ones reflected in the groomsmen’s jackets,” says Ray. His groomsmen wore jackets lined with a different colour, custom made by Ray’s tailor in Shanghai.

4. The table centrepieces consisted of green and fuchsia cymbidium orchids, equisetums and green mums. A collaborative effort by Jinny, Ray, Delovely Creative and Donald Yim, the couple’s emcee, the centepieces were deliberately low, so that they would not block anyone’s view.

Jinny & Ray’s Wedding Vendors

Venue – Ceremony & Reception| Vancouver Convention Centre (West)

Photographer | Erin Gilmore Photography

Videographer | Love Story Media

Bride’s Dress | Vera Wang, Blush Bridal & Special Occasions

Hair & Makeup |  Jayna Marie Makeup + Hair

Décor & Flowers |  Delovely Creative

Cake | The Clever Cupcakes

Disc Jockey, Media and Lighting |  Skylines Mobile

Live Music | Vancouver Harp

Fireworks |  Celebration Fireworks

Transportation | The Vancouver Trolley Company

When Geneve McNally, principal planner at DreamGroup Productions, first received a call from bride-to-be Erin MacKinnon in November 2009, she could hear right away there wasn’t a waver of doubt in Erin’s voice. “She and Burke were hiring a planner for all the right reasons,” she reflects. “They knew they were too busy to take on the wedding organization themselves, but both wanted their wedding to be of a certain calibre. They hired me because they knew my work and trusted me, but they also knew what they wanted and were able to articulate it. That made the planning experience all the more fun.”

In many ways, Erin, 29, was a dream client: decisive, practical and with a great sense of humour. “I knew it was best to get experts involved when it came to planning my wedding,” says Erin, who married Burke Telfer, 27, in June 2010. “Having never planned a wedding before, I had no idea about all the logistics that would go into it.”

Erin is a marketing specialist at a gold mining company, while Burke owns a real estate investment firm. Each of them easily works 50-to-60 hours a week, and while they knew they wanted a romantic, classic, elegant event with a fun and inviting atmosphere, they had no idea how to create it from scratch. McNally was pregnant with her second child at the time but was nevertheless excited to take on the wedding planning.

As she got to know the couple, McNally learned that Burke and Erin had met through a mutual acquaintance at a Rod Stewart concert. Erin, learning Burke was looking for work, offered him a position as a contract promotional rep for her company. Within days their relationship deepened and became more serious, at which point Erin informed him they would no longer be working together. “I loved being his boss, because I got to spend time with him at work, but I much preferred being his girlfriend,” she says with a laugh.

A year later, as the couple was in Portugal at the tail end of a 12-month trip, Burke proposed at Peneda Geres, a spectacular national park, and Erin enthusiastically accepted. Back in Vancouver, after hiring McNally, they chose the Terminal City Club as their ceremony and reception venue. With its location in central downtown and its hotel on site, the Terminal City Club was a convenient and easy choice that made sense for in-town and out-of-town guests.

From the get-go, McNally knew she had to make a strong impression at the MacKinnon-Telfer wedding. “Erin’s mother Deb MacKinnon is a well-known artist and painter in Vancouver and Burke’s mother, Nancy, has organized a lot of charitable events for the BC Children’s Hospital,” she says. “Nancy could have planned the wedding but she didn’t have time. Still, she wanted her voice heard, and I wanted to make sure she was impressed. I knew she had high expectations and I had a lot to prove.”

Some brides are forced by budgetary restrictions to pinch their pennies,but for Erin and Burke’s wedding the budget was fairly generous. “They have good taste and high expectations, but they don’t throw their money away,” McNally says. “Making smart decisions was important to the couple but it didn’t come before creating a fabulous end result. Their priority was to do it right and have an impressive look.”

The look they wanted for their wedding was elegant and chic, full of playfulness and reflections of themselves, but also with a feel that was modern yet timeless. McNally says she was thrilled when Erin chose a colour scheme of peach, white and black to complement the heritage, classic feel of the club’s ballroom. “Initially she had talked about peach and orange, but after seeing the colours together in a palate, she changed her mind,” McNally says. “I was glad, because the peach and orange scheme didn’t have the clean, crisp, elegant look I’d envisioned.”

But of course the colour peach can mean different things to different people, as they all experienced at the first ‘showing’ with the florist. “The flower arrangement was more of a flesh-pink than a peach in tone,” McNally says. “After the showing we selected a larger, higher floral arrangement and I contacted the florists with a more specific shade of peach.”

The job of a good wedding planner is to lift stress and pressure from the shoulders of the bride, and McNally simply excelled at that, Erin says. “Geneve introduced me to fabulous vendors and was wonderfully organized, which meant I didn’t have to worry about anything,” she says. The two spoke daily on the telephone, and exchanged some 237 emails over the course of the seven months they worked together. “That’s actually less than usual,” McNally confides. “I’ve exchanged as many as 400 emails with brides over the course of a year of wedding planning.”

One of those vendors was Upright Décor, a company that helped McNally pull off an event that would be elegant, chic and full of playful touches, but not in the least ostentatious. While McNally honed in on the details, Erin and Burke enjoyed dance classes at Broadway Ballroom in preparation for the wedding reception.

As their June 12th wedding approached, McNally had the event fine-tuned with a schedule that defined what would occur every 15-to-30 minutes. Still, as she knows from years of experience there were surprises no-one could have predicted.

One was that the vintage car that was supposed to escort Erin and her father from West Vancouver to the Terminal City Club would break down before it got there. “We sat in a broken car on the Lion’s Gate Bridge until the driver told us we should probably get out,” Erin says with a laugh.

“So we stood on the side of the highway with people driving by and waving, asking us if we were doing a photo shoot. Then a nice little Toyota full of hikers pulled over and asked if we needed a ride,” she recalls. “My dad and I piled into the backseat and they whipped us downtown to the ceremony, me trying desperately not to let my dress touch the muddy hiking boots. It made for an amazing story at the wedding later that day, and we all got to laugh about it!”

The monogrammed aisle runner at the wedding reception, which was laid down just before the ceremony, was another example. “Nancy, Burke’s mother, had come upstairs with me to inspect the room before the ceremony, and just before she walked in I noticed that the monogram we’d ordered for the aisle runner had Burke’s name spelled wrong,” McNally groans. “I ripped it away just before she entered the room, then discretely trimmed the carpet back so no-one would see the misspelled name. Thankfully, when I later told Erin about it she thought it was hilarious.”

Every wedding planner wants their bride to feel like she spent her money well when she hired organizational help for her big day. Looking back on her wedding, Erin says hiring DreamGroup Productions was the best decision she made. Small fiascoes like the broken vintage car and the misspelled aisle runner did nothing to colour her impressions. What she does remember is McNally’s recommendation that she and Burke spend some time together before the wedding, to give their day a special start. “It was a wonderful, intimate moment of our day that I will cherish forever,” she says.

“Geneve listened to exactly what I wanted and took it to the next level by making everything more spectacular than I could ever have imagined,” she continues. “She never let one detail of the wedding slide by and she was always five steps ahead of me.” Erin felt a real bond with McNally and the two became close friends as they planned the wedding. “I always felt like I was the special one to whom she was giving all her attention,” Erin says. “Geneve was incredible and I simply could not have done it without her.”

Erin & Burke’s Wedding Vendors

Venue – Ceremony & Reception| Terminal City Club

Bridal Consultant & Planner| DreamGroup Productions

Photographer | Josh Bowie

Bride’s Dress | Lillen Collection, Bisou Bridal

Bridesmaid Dresses | Frock’s Modern Bridal

Groom’s Outfit | Calvin Klein Tuxedo, The Tux Store

Décor | Upright Décor

Stationery | InspirAsian Creations

Music | Musical Occasions

Entertainment | Photobooth Vancouver

Makeup Artist | Hayley Miller

Florist | Granville Island Florsits

How They Did It

1. Kavita carried a bouquet composed of white and pink peonies, lavender freesia, mini-cymbidium orchids, blue delphinium and purple lisianthus, made by Fiorire Designer Florals by Rosalba. “We liked it because of the beautiful soft colours and textures as well as the romantic feel of the bouquet,” she says.

2. Dallas and his groomsmen donned grey tuxedos from The Tux Store.

3 . For her invitations, Kavita wanted a design that fit with her intimate, simple, romantic theme, yet still contained “a little bit of an eastern feel to it.” The invitations were designed and made by Colleen Winton at Flourish.

4.  “We wanted an outdoor wedding but we knew the weather in June might not cooperate,” Kavita says. “Cecil Green offered an amazing outdoor location for the ceremony with a great backup location on the patio. It’s an absolutely beautiful heritage home with an amazing garden and a view of the ocean. It was perfect for the intimate, romantic feel we wanted for the wedding.”

5. Sandy Godfree from Art of the Party decorated the iron archway for the ceremony, using florals on either side that wound down the front of the arch.

6. Kavita wore Touch Up shoes purchased on amazon.com. “I wanted lavender coloured shoes but could not find them anywhere,” she says. “After months of looking I decided to get dyeable shoes, and then had them dyed at Lansdowne Shoe Renew in Lansdowne Centre, Richmond. So I had the exact colour I wanted.”

Kavita & Dallas’ Wedding Vendors

Venue – Ceremony & Reception | Cecil Green Park House

Bridal Planner | Lori L. Fraser Signature Events

Photographer |  Jasalyn Thorne Photography

Videographer | RF Productions

Bride’s Dress |  Romona Keveza

Bridesmaid Dresses | Alfred Angelo

Groom’s Outfit | Calvin Klein, The Tux Store

Stationery |  Flourish by Colleen Winton, colleenwinton@shaw.ca

Flowers |  Fiorire Designer Florals by Rosalba

Cake | Cakes by Meg

Decor |  Art of the Party

Transportation |  Prestige Luxury Car Rentals

Planning a destination wedding in a country you’ve never visited can present its share of challenges. But for Rebecca Lam and Derek Lai, the exotic locale of Bali infused their celebration with an aura of magic.
Derek first noticed Rebecca at the University of British Columbia’s Chinese Collegiate Society. It was September 1996 and both were first-year commerce students.
“Rebecca was always busy,” Derek recalls of those first encounters at UBC. Their paths crossed often, as they volunteered with the Collegiate Society and shared several commerce classes. They were soon studying and working on assignments together. “Over time, we grew closer and it developed naturally from that,” Rebecca says.
Derek recalls a student dance where he realized not only how beautiful Rebecca was, but also how he felt about her. “It was kind of a turning point where I acknowledged my romantic feelings and attraction to her,” he says.
After graduation, their careers led them back to Hong Kong, where they had both been born. With the move came a new depth to their relationship. “We were working and still together,” says Derek. “I began to think of her as my soulmate. I could turn to her, whatever happened in my work, in my life, anything. I realized that I wanted her in my life, always.”
In February 2009 the couple was back in Vancouver and celebrated Valentine’s Day at a downtown restaurant. Rebecca recalls Derek being particularly nervous that evening. After their meal, he suggested driving to Stanley Park to look at the stars.
But as they drove to the park, the overcast sky made stargazing unlikely, and it was cold out. Still, once on the forested park drive, Derek pulled over and parked. “Then,” says Rebecca, “he got out and walked around to my side, opened the door, got down on one knee and proposed.”
“I began to think of her as my soulmate.” Derek recalls his nerves as that moment approached. “I’d had a script all worked out, but that moment I’m not sure what came out of my mouth. I just improvised.”
Once back home, they began planning a destination wedding and spent a couple of months looking at different locales. Eventually they decided on Bali—a new destination for both.
The exotic tropical island had a magical allure. Bali is beautiful,” says Rebecca. “It has such a strong culture and would be a wonderful experience for our guests.”
Rebecca and Derek booked the five-star Bulgari Resort, located on the Bukit peninsula southern Bali. The resort is steeped in traditional Balinese details and high Italian style.
Rebecca took the lead organizing their wedding. “It was definitely harder than planning a local ceremony. Language was an issue and selection is limited by season, climate and weather.”
“We had 80 guests. Many came from Canada and overseas, so some of our long-haul travellers spent a week in Bali, making a vacation out of it.”
There was no shortage of activities for guests, given the exotic locale. There were excursions to famous temples and terraced rice paddies, yoga classes, surfing, or afternoons taking in life in the local village. Others chose to just hang out at the resort and relax on the beach or at the pools.
The couple’s wedding mantra was to keep things simple. Fuchsia, the theme colour, was carried through in Derek’s tie, the invitations, the flowers and the cake. “We brought a lot of
fuchsia ribbons from Hong Kong. We kept the decor simple and decorated the chapel with the ribbons,” says Rebecca who recruited her bridesmaids to tie ribbons onto the chapel chairs.
On the afternoon of April 10, 2010, guests gathered in the Tirtha Uluwatu chapel, about 10 minutes from the Bulgari Resort. Rebecca, in her strapless A-line Vera Wang gown, entered on her father’s arm. She and Derek were married in simple Christian ceremony. Then guests made their way to the Bulgari’s Sangkar Restaurant for the reception. Dinner featured a three-course Italian meal with a selection of beef, duck or fish. One of the highlights was a video their friends put together. “In the video, our friends imitated us doing the things that we usually do,” says Rebecca. “It was very silly, but also very touching and meaningful.”
Following the reception, the newlyweds and their friends went back to their villa and continued their celebration around the pool. “Having all our friends there made our wedding magical,” says Derek, “especially being with them in a relaxed environment. No-one was in a rush to go home or needing to rush away between the ceremony and the reception.”
The magic of Bali will live on for Rebecca and Derek, in memory, and as a destination to which they can return one day and share with their children.

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For more images from Rebecca and Derek`s wedding, click here.

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It was not love at first sight. Nor was it love at second sight. In fact, it was three dates before Astrid Alsemgeest decided she actually liked fireman Dustin Bourdeaudhuy. Then there was the minor detail that she was in the midst of planning a year-long trip around the world. Oh yes, she’d also sworn off dating firemen.
They met through a dating website in what was Astrid’s first foray into online dating. Dustin admits he was skeptical at first. “I’d been on a few bad dates through this internet dating site but she seemed so nice, so together.” On the third date he came to the point. “I asked her, ‘What’s wrong with you?’ I couldn’t believe she could possibly be so great.” They both burst out laughing at the memory.
Astrid’s trip abroad was “cut back” to a week in New York. Dustin sold the house he’d shared with friends and bought a new one. Barely six months after their first date, the couple moved in together—a transition both describe as “unbelievably easy in spite of what everyone told us to expect.”
One day, a year and a half later, Dustin asked Astrid to go for a walk along Vancouver’s Kits Beach. “I had champagne in a cooler and the ring in my back pocket,” Dustin says. After claiming a sore back, he suggested sitting for a few minutes before surprising Astrid by proposing.
“We’d talked about it, so Dustin knew I didn’t like solitaires—I wanted more bling,” she confesses. “In the end, my engagement ring became my wedding band—we’re both pretty non-traditional, so that worked for us.”
And it was this non-traditional outlook that set the tone for their entire wedding. They both envisioned an easy-going and “super laid back” wedding. A ceremony for family and close friends at the Burnaby Village Museum Chapel followed by a celebration to include an extended circle of friends at New Westminster’s Roma Hall were perfect choices. “Let’s face it: most of the guys I play rugby with aren’t really into weddings,” Dustin says with a disarming grin.
From start to finish, the day was filled with understated elegance combined with a sense of playful, effortless flow. Their November 27th wedding date meant the already charming chapel was decorated for Christmas, but even Mother Nature chipped in by donating a light dusting of snow over the exterior. Astrid’s brother Damon, an accomplished guitarist, played her down the aisle to the lyrical notes of Pachelbel’s Canon in D, and as the couple left the chapel, Dustin’s close friend Lee enthusiastically embraced his responsibility of Official Bell Ringer—a tradition steeped in forgotten history.

After the ceremony, it was unanimously agreed that a celebratory ride on the Village’s vintage 1912 carousel was in order for the entire wedding party. Then, photos taken, hugs and kisses exchanged, it was time for the party to begin.
At Roma Hall, Astrid’s creative side permeated the festivities. “She made all the decorative wreaths herself,” Dustin says proudly. Rather than a guest book, Astrid designed gift tags that people could use to pen their personal wishes for happiness and hang on the Wish Tree. She made tabletop centrepieces from shiny Christmas decorations found on sale at The Bay and Army & Navy, and even transformed three store-bought round cakes into a magical confection.
Spontaneity filled the night. “We love the movie, The Wedding Singer,” Astrid says. “The theme song is so funny and quirky that I’d written the words out, in very small print, on the back of the program. When my friend Chelsea saw it, she came over and told us she wanted to sing it for us.” Yet another musical moment occurred when 30 members of Dustin’s rugby team exuberantly serenaded his new wife, despite not being “into weddings.”
Scoring a big hit with guests was an intriguing black-and-white photo display. “Everyone does a slide show—we wanted to be different,” Dustin explains. “We scanned a bunch of images of us as kids and pinned them onto a wall. That way, people could look at them, or not.”
“So many of my friends said if it had been them, they’d never have gone back for a second date,” Astrid says. She looks at Dustin across the coffee shop table, and suddenly there’s no-one else in the world. “But I knew. I knew I’d found the love of my life. You light up my life every day, and I am your biggest fan.”
For their honeymoon, the couple spent eight weeks on a mini-version of the world tour Astrid had dreamed of, touring Hong Kong, Vietnam, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, and Bali.

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Astrid and Dustin’s Wedding Vendors:

Photographer
Generation Photography
www.generationphotography.ca

Decorator
Timeless Wedding & Event Decor
www.timelesswedding.ca

Wedding Venue – Ceremony
Burnaby Village Museum Chapel
www.burnaby.ca
Wedding Venue – Reception
Roma Hall
www.romahall.com

Wedding Dress
Isabelle’s Bridal
www.isabellesbridal.com

Hair
Design Tech Studio, Tricia Vandenberg
www.designtechhairstudio.ca
Makeup
Charrisse Mae
www.charrissemae.com
Groom Attire
Leading Man Tuxedos
604 540-1968
Flowers
Flower Factory
www.flowerfactory.ca
Stationery
Wedding Paper Divas
www.weddingpaperdivas.com

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For Michelle Theam and Winston Ying, studying really does pay off. It was 2005 and the two were medical students at the University of Calgary. Thrown together as two members of a five-person study group, they became fast friends. “We always got along really well and liked the same things,” explains Winston. But love wasn’t in the cards quite yet. Romance entered the picture a year later, a natural turn of events for the pair who had spent countless hours studying, walking their dogs, laughing and enjoying good food together.
Of course, working hard also meant playing hard. Over the next few years, Michelle and Winston indulged in their shared love of travel with trips to South East Asia and Hawaii during school breaks. After they graduated in 2008, Michelle was accepted into a residency program in Calgary while Winston moved to Edmonton for his. For the next year-and-a-half, the two became well-acquainted with the 300-kilometre stretch of road between them.
Winston knew in 2008 that he wanted to propose, but it took him a year to find the right ring and the perfect time. On November 27, 2009, the couple set up their first Christmas tree together at their Edmonton home, stringing the last of the twinkly lights in place. Then a nervous Winston got down on one knee, proposed… and placed the ring on the wrong hand. They laugh at the memory. “I whispered, ‘it’s the left hand,’” says Michelle. “It was very sweet, very nice, low-key.”
Vancouver has always been a favourite haunt so it was an easy choice for a destination wedding locale. The couple envisioned a modern, yet vintage-style garden party that was casual but also had a feeling of old-world formality. Vancouver’s Hycroft fit the bill, its stately charm and wide veranda would work perfectly for their long table reception of 90 guests. They opted for family-style food service, a communal set up in which heaping platters and bowls of food are placed on the table for guests to pass along. “The goal of our wedding was for our friends and family to come together and enjoy a good meal with us,” explains Michelle.
With the help of Jordan Maxey of Fairy Godmother Weddings, Winston and Michelle found planning from a distance a relatively easy experience. “People ask us if it was stressful planning in Vancouver from Edmonton,” says Michelle, “but we found that planning from afar and then going to visit meant we just had to make decisions then and there and couldn’t linger over them.”
September 10, 2010 arrived. The bride and her entourage prepared for the wedding at a private Kitsilano house, a vacation rental found on www.suiteliving.ca. The groom and his groomsmen prepared at the Sheraton in downtown Vancouver. That morning, a delivery of a dozen roses arrived at the house, a surprise wedding day gift from groom to bride. “It was so sweet. That really started the day for me,” Michelle reminisces.
At Hycroft, Winston and Michelle first served tea to their elders in a traditional Chinese tea ceremony. Then it was time for the garden service. The weather was overcast as a Musical Occasions string trio serenaded the bridesmaids along. Then, gloriously, the sun came out just as Michelle walked down the aisle. The ceremony was appropriately solemn, that is until Officiant Brent Sheppard noticed Winston sweating profusely after the vows. Reaching out to wipe the groom’s forehead with a tissue, he commented, “Winston, you can relax now!” The couple laugh as they recall the moment.
The kiss that sealed the couple as husband and wife marked another comic moment. As they leaned in, they realized Winston hadn’t lifted Michelle’s veil. “We had a good laugh over that,” says Michelle. “It’s very much a Winston and I move, very dorky!”
Friends and family milled about in the garden during cocktail hour, nibbling canapes and sharing congratulatory hugs and well-wishes. At the reception, they sat at one long table laid with cornflower blue linen and set with vintage-style silver vases of pink, coral and cream florals. Platters of lobster mac’n’cheese, bocconcini-crusted wild salmon and rosemary-and-garlic rubbed lamb were shared; guests ate heartily, talked and laughed. As the sun set, Michelle remembers looking out at everyone, “Despite it being a chilly late summer evening, I felt so warm and loved. It was surreal and a feeling I will never forget.”

How They Did It:

Michelle’s wedding dress started as a sleek Vera Wang gown found on the website Once Wed. “Initially, I wanted a very modern wedding dress, but I also wanted one with sleeves,” she said. The gown wasn’t perfect but she was able to try it on before buying it, as the seller lived in Calgary. “The more I planned the wedding, the more my vision changed and I wanted something more timeless and classic.” So, at the last minute, she found dressmaker Kathleen Todoruk in Edmonton who was able to add lace sleeves and convert the dress into a V-back. “When I put it on I knew without a doubt that it was the perfect dress.”
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The bridesmaids wore dresses in various shades of blue from Narcissist, Obakki, and Club Monaco.
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The long dining table overlooked Hycroft’s gardens. A jazz band from Musical Occasions played just inside the drawing room, with the doors wide open so that the music wafted onto the terrace.
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Winston and Michelle did an improvised swing dance for their first dance. Michelle changed into a short A-line dress it that was was custom made by Etsy seller Little White Dress.
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The bouquets, from Proline Florists, included roses, variegated foliage and a succulent.
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The first course was a charcuterie board with assorted cured meats and cheeses. “Our caterers were excellent,” said Michelle. “Our friends still rave about the amount and deliciousness of the food!”

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Michelle and Winston’s Wedding Vendors:

Wedding Photographer:
Bebb Studios
www.bebbstudios.com

Wedding Planner:
Fairy Godmother Weddings
www.fairygodmotherweddings.ca

Wedding Venue – Ceremony & Reception:
The University Women’s Club of Vancouver – Hycroft
www.uwcvancouver.ca

Bridal Hair and Makeup:
Yuki Lam
yukilam.webs.com

Groom & Groomsmen Attire:
The Tux Store
www.thetuxstore.com

Wedding Flowers:
Proline Florists
www.prolinetrading.com

Catering:
The Lazy Gourmet
www.lazygourmet.ca

Wedding Music:
Musical Occasions
www.musicaloccasions.ca

Bridal Jewellery:
Earrings – Brinkhaus Jewelers
www.brinkhaus.com

Bracelet – Jeweliette
www.jeweliette.com

Wedding Stationery:
Wedding Paper Divas
www.weddingpaperdivas.com

Officiant:
Brent Sheppard
www.heyrev.com

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It took a bit of faith to bring Pearl Sin and Angus Fu together, especially since time and distance seemed determined to keep them apart.
Angus, who is now a construction manager, and Pearl, an advertising agency project manager, both came to Canada from Hong Kong when they were young. The Richmond couple were in their teens when they first met at their Chinese Baptist church, but it wasn’t until seven or eight years later that they caught each other’s eye.
By then they were in the same church fellowship and studying at university, he at the University of British Columbia and she at Simon Fraser University. They became study partners and then friends, and they were still just friends when Angus moved to Chilliwack after graduation. Being away from Pearl made him realize that something was missing from his life. “And then I found the piece of the puzzle,” he says. “Something just clicked.”
Finally, in 2003, he and Pearl went on their first date, dinner in the romantic seaside village of Steveston. But just as their romance was about to begin, Angus was offered a job in China.
“So we dated for one month and then he left with a one-way ticket. We started with a long-distance relationship,” Pearl says.
Just over a year later, Angus came home from Shanghai to visit his family for Chinese New Year. Being home and with Pearl made him realize he wanted to stay, so he cancelled his return ticket.

It was only then, a decade after they first met and two years after their first date, that they started to date “officially.”
Three years later, they were traveling in Asia, visiting friends who were getting married. With all that romance in the air, they, too, started to think about the next stage of their lives.
“We decided to look at wedding rings,” Pearl starts. “Just browsing. Because he was best man and I was bridesmaid . . .”
“And something triggered,” Angus says, finishing her sentence.
On that trip, Pearl fell in love with a beautiful ring by Bulgari, a platinum swirl of curves that swept up into a crown holding a diamond. Unfortunately, upon returning home they discovered the ring wasn’t available in Canada and right then Angus decided he’d go to Las Vegas to get it.
“But not until after we did marriage counseling,” he says. Angus and Pearl look at each other and laugh. “Most people do marriage counseling after they propose,” she explains, “but we did it before to be sure we were ready for the next stage of life. ”
Angus couldn’t take time off work, so he flew to Las Vegas on a 16 hour round trip and came back with the ring in his pocket.
“And I’m afraid of flying,” Angus says. “I risked my life!”

Then after all those years of stops, starts and unexpected delays, the schedule suddenly sped up.
“After all the counseling, and after I bought the ring, I asked her parents for permission—it’s very traditional,” Angus says. Of course, her parents gave him their blessing. But someone from their church overheard what was going on, and Angus panicked, certain that their friends would tell Pearl before he could. Worse, he had only one hour to prepare before she was scheduled to meet him.
So, working quickly, he filled his condo with candles and roses, put her favourite music on the stereo and dimmed the lights. As she entered, he knelt down, with the ring in his hand and tears in his eyes.
“He got so emotional,” Pearl exclaims, though she was crying, too, as he put the ring on her finger. Then they prayed together.
They set the date for June 26, 2010, and started planning.

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The Sheraton Wall Centre courtyard, with St. Andrew’s-Wesley United Church across the street as the backdrop was the perfect venue. It was both urban and outdoors, formal yet casual, and it had the religious element that was so important to both of them.
“We liked that it was urban and contemporary,” says Pearl, who didn’t want the setting and décor to be too traditional.
She chose a theme of pink and silver: pink peonies, a pink aisle runner, a pink logo designed by a friend and a pink pedi-cab for the photographs. The décor in the Wall Centre’s Pavilion Ballroom even featured the same deep pink she’d chosen for the bridesmaid’s dresses.
“It’s a good thing Angus likes pink,” Pearl says.
For the big day, friends and family flew in from all over the world, including Pearl’s grandmother from Toronto and Angus’ groomsmen from Hong Kong and Shanghai.
The day started with the “open doors” game, a lighthearted Chinese tradition in which the groom and his friends try to gain access to the bride. Her attendants attempt to block them with playful challenges, such as making the men put on makeup and wear flowers in their hair. “They torture them,” Pearl says, laughing.
Then they held a traditional tea ceremony with the family, Pearl in an ornate red-and-gold-embroidered Chinese dress, her grandmother beaming proudly.
Finally, they were ready to walk down the aisle in the Sheraton Wall Centre’s Court Yard Fountain Square, accompanied by a brass band and by passers-by who were swept up in the romance.
Between the ceremony and the reception, Pearl changed into the second of her two wedding dresses, going from an elegant mermaid gown to a one-shouldered, crystal-embellished
chiffon gown. The highlight of the evening was when the ABBA band they’d hired broke into “I Do, I Do, I Do” as the newlyweds entered the ballroom.
As they swept across the dance floor, the couple knew there was one thing that got them there, and that would keep them together no matter what. “It was just faith,” Pearl says.
Faith, and love.

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How They Did It:

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In addition to her red tea ceremony tunic, Pearl wore two wedding dresses—a strapless mermaid gown during the ceremony, and an asymmetrical gown that belted at the waist for the reception and photo shoot.

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“It’s difficult to find a brass band in Vancouver,” said Pearl, who was looking for “festive, fun and loud.” She found The Bessborough Brass through a family friend. “They played for the royal family when they visited Canada. That is how good they are,” she said.

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The Sheraton Wall Centre provided the outdoor fountain garden for the ceremony, an indoor ballroom for the  reception, catering and help with setup. Chairs were from A&B party rentals.

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.At the reception, guests were entertained by ABBA Again, an ABBA
cover band.

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Guests dined on appetizers of corn soup topped with a mini potato pancake.

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Angus and Pearl had an aisle runner custom-printed for their wedding by Original Aisle Runner in New York.

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Angus looked dapper in a tuxedo with a black bow tie, while his groomsmen
wore suits with pink ties.

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Pearl and Angus’ Wedding Vendors:

Wedding Photographer:
Hong Photography
www.hong-photography.com

Decorator and Chair Covers:
Lavish Design Group
www.lavishdesigngroup.com

Wedding Venue – Ceremony & Reception:
Sheraton Wall Centre
www.sheratonvancouver.com

Wedding Dresses:
Bello Wedding World
www.ebello.com

Lisa’s Bridal
www.lisasbridal.com

Groom’s Attire:
Hugo Boss
www.hugoboss.com

Groomsmen Attire:
Lisa’s Bridal
www.lisasbridal.com

Wedding Florist:
Balconi Floral Design Studio
www.balconi.ca

Wedding Cake:
Ganache Patisserie
www.ganacheyaletown.com

Transportation:
Cruise Cab
www.cruisecab.net

Ceremony Music:
The Bessborough Brass
www.bessboroughbrass.ca

Reception Music:
ABBA Again
www.abbaagain.com

Party Rentals:
A&B Party Rental
www.abpartytime.com

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They were two Vancouverites who had moved far from the city of their birth, only to meet by pure chance in Las Vegas. When friends introduced Andrew Hungerford to Stephanie Biela at Vegas’ Hard Rock Hotel and Casino, Andrew remembers feeling a bolt of lightning through his body. He knew instinctively his life was about to change.
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Andrew, 36, had flown to Las Vegas from London, England in October 2007, to spend a few days with his brother, cousin and some friends coming from Vancouver. He needed a quick reprieve from his 100-hour work weeks at Deutsche Bank. Stephanie, 30, was working in Los Angeles at the time as a media executive for 20th Century Fox. She, too, had flown into the City of Sin to reunite with some friends from Vancouver.
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As luck would have it, Stephanie and Andrew’s friends had already become acquainted on the flight from Vancouver to Las Vegas, and since their respective itineraries were fairly similar, had arranged to get together. This was the catalyst for Andrew and Stephanie’s first meeting.
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Stephanie fondly recalls Andrew’s tortoiseshell glasses and remembers finding him charmingly European in his behaviour. She was hobbling about on a cane with a broken foot that night, but even in her ‘granny shoes,’ Andrew says he was instantly smitten. Stephanie and Andrew, who now shared mutual friends, also discovered that they’d both grown up in the same Kerrisdale neighbourhood. They were both returning to Vancouver for Christmas, so, before they parted company, they planned an official first date for December 22.
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As he drove to the airport to fly to London, Andrew told his cousin: “I’m going to marry that girl.” So for the next two months he did everything he could to keep in touch. The two corresponded daily through email, Skype, text and Facebook. “There was definitely something between us,” Andrew says.
Stephanie left Vegas not knowing what to expect. “I loved that we were from the same neighbourhood,” she reflects. “In LA, no-one understood Canada—they thought we lived way up north in igloos. But Andrew knew exactly what I was talking about.”
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Their first date at the Shore Club, a steakhouse in downtown Vancouver, went well, and that Christmas Andrew introduced Stephanie to other members of his family. By the time their Christmas break was over, the two were officially dating, and over the next six months they arranged reunions in San Francisco, Los Angeles, London and New York City.
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They knew they wanted to live together in the same city; a move back home to Vancouver just made sense. “We were pretty much ready to start our lives together,” Stephanie says.  “We’d met at the right time and we were ready for a commitment.”
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By summer 2008, both had relocated back to Vancouver, where Andrew joined the family business, Hungerford Properties.

As Stephanie’s 29th birthday approached, Andrew asked her to name any place in the world she’d like to go. “Ireland,” she answered immediately.
It was there, in Killarney, as they sat overlooking a lake with a beautiful castle behind them, that he asked for her hand in marriage. “I’d been waiting for the rain to stop for almost a week,” he confesses. “It stopped for a half-hour and that’s when I proposed. Then, it started raining again!”
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Stephanie says she half-expected the proposal and wasn’t taken by surprise. She could tell that he was nervous all through the trip, and she knew this was no ordinary trip he’d arranged. She responded with an exuberant “Yes!”
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When she returned home and started planning the wedding, Stephanie recruited the help of DreamGroup Productions to organize the ceremony at St. Andrew’s-Wesley United Church in Vancouver, and booked the Vancouver Club for the reception. “Andrew’s family has been members of the club for five generations, so we thought it was a nice tribute to his lineage,” she explains.
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Stephanie’s friend models for designer Romona Keveza in New York, and because of this connection, Keveza agreed to custom-design Stephanie’s gown, with measurements supplied by a Vancouver seamstress. Stephanie selected a champagne, silk shantung gown with a sweetheart neckline. Swarovski crystals adorned the back and the gown was reminiscent of Old Hollywood, which became the theme of the wedding.
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The couple’s invitations featured a movie poster from the film An Affair to Remember and the programs for the ceremony were designed like a Playbill. “It’s a classic, romantic movie and like Andrew and I, the main characters met on vacation,” Stephanie explains. “I thought it was the perfect theme to our wedding.” Meanwhile, at the Vancouver Club, Colin Upright of Upright Décor created an elegant, sophisticated reception in Stephanie’s chosen colours of black, silver, purple and white.
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The day of the wedding, Stephanie and her bridal party had their hair and makeup done at the Richard Jeha Salon, returning to her and Andrew’s townhome to get dressed for the wedding. Andrew played tennis that morning, then donned his morning coat for the first look at each other they had planned at his parents’ Kerrisdale house. “He wanted to feel “British” that day because he was living in London, England at the time we met,” Stephanie says.
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The couple followed photographer Melia Sorenson to Jericho Beach and downtown Vancouver for photographs and then headed to the church for the ceremony. Stephanie had hired an opera singer to sing Puccini, and she recalls this moment as the most powerful in her day. “The music was so moving and it fit our whole whirlwind romance like a soundtrack. It just spoke perfectly to our relationship,” she says nostalgically.
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Later, after more photographs at the Museum of Anthropology in honour of Andrew’s Metis heritage, the couple met their 220 guests at the Vancouver Club for a reception defined by fun. “We’d designed the reception with lots of things for guests to do,” Andrew says.
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In one room, An Affair to Remember played on a big screen; in another, guests carved a luge in the ice bar from which they later downed shots. There was a candy bar, a photo booth with bowlers and top hats, and a chocolate fountain. Guests danced to music by Vancouver’s DJ Leanne.
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With the wedding behind them, the couple left to pursue one of their chief passions: travel. The honeymoon spanned Hong Kong, Singapore, Thailand and Bali. But the four locales have
barely skimmed the surface of their plans. “We want to travel as much as we can before we have kids,” Stephanie says with a smile. “We both get pretty serious in our careers, and sometimes we have to remind ourselves to have fun.”
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How They Did It:

Stephanie’s up-do was inspired by a 1940s perfume advertisement. It was secured with beaded pins.
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The ice bar, carved by Cool Creations, featured Oscar statues carved into either side. Guests later carved a luge for drinking shots.

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The Casablanca table featured a photo centerpiece and tea lights.

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Stephanie wanted the bridesmaids’ dresses to embody “Old Hollywood.” After much searching, she tried on a sample of this keyhole dress by Jenny Woo from Frocks.ca. “I knew when I wanted to buy the dress for myself that this was the dress for my lovely bridesmaids.” A colour sample of the silk shantung had to be mailed from New York, and she tried a few colours before settling on the sugar plum. “It embodies class and glamour.”

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Stephanie’s bridal bouquet was an elegant arrangement of white orchids and pink roses, created by Kits Flower Market.

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Stephanie wore Gucci heels, purchased at Holt Renfrew.

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Stephanie & Andrew’s Wedding Vendors:

Wedding Photographer
Lucida Photography
www.lucida-photography.com

Wedding Planner
DreamGroup Productions
www.dreamgroup.ca

Wedding Decorator
Upright Décor
www.uprightdecor.com

Wedding Venue – Ceremony
St. Andrew’s-Wesley United Church
www.standrewswesleychurch.bc.ca

Wedding Venue – Reception
The Vancouver Club
www.vancouverclub.ca

Wedding Dress
Blush Bridal
www.blushoccasions.com

Bridesmaid and Flower Girl Dresses
Frocks
www.frocks.ca

Bridal Hair
Richard Jeha Hair Company
604 266-2377

Bridal Makeup
Hayley Miller
www.hayleymiller.com

Groom and Groomsmen Attire
The Tux Store
www.thetuxstore.com

Wedding Florist
Kits Flower Market
604 731-1441

Wedding Cake
Max’s Deli
www.maxsdeli.ca

Wedding Music Entertainment
DJ Leanne
www.idoluv.com

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