Singaporebrides | Real Weddings
September 2013
Romantically Inked!
Dramatic proposals. Guest list nightmares. Venue-searching horror. This couple didn’t have any of those. What Jana and Samuel have are initiative, a shared love for art, a sense of humour, and straightforward but tender affections for each other. Because love really can be this simple.
Jana Zilcayova, 28, Photographer, and Samuel Yar (Mudohori 木道彫), 34, Tattoo Artist wed in simple, carefree affair on 29 July 2013 that required almost no planning at all.
How did the two of you meet?
Jana: Sam had a tattoo studio just next to my apartment. After some time, we started acknowledging each other’s existence. Then one day, I asked him out and didn’t really let him go from that moment on. He was always very romantic, leaving me ham and cheese croissants on my door handle on his way to work. He never told me he was at my door; he just texted me from work to “open the door”. We always had very funny personal jokes going on, and could spend hours chatting and laughing. I had lots of fun through the whole “courtship” period.
Sam: I had been watching her from afar from the shelter of my workplace, stealing glances as she walked by every day after her classes ended, then when we finally started dating I would drop off packages of croissants and lemons with “pusu“, which means “kisses”, written on them. Those were her favourite at the time.
That was so sweet. Was the proposal just as romantic?
Jana: It was so funny. I’m very hard to surprise and I have difficult taste, so Sam was too scared to pick the ring by himself. I had to! After they were ready, we picked them up and had to go home because our friend was visiting us from India. Sam proposed when we were in the bedroom and as much as the whole story sounds lame, it was actually very romantic.
Sam: Yes, she had to pick the ring. Every, and I repeat, EVERY surprise I had tried, I failed terribly. Yes, I agree proposing in the bedroom was lame, but the greatest thing about her is that it does not matter when, what or how, she’ll just go with the flow. That’s what I love about her. Every day is a new day with her.
Tell us about your wedding then.
Jana: Our wedding required almost zero planning. We wanted to have it really simple, just with our witnesses and the closest friends because I knew that if I told all my friends, I would just feel super nervous about it, and I really just wanted to enjoy the whole thing. My mom is in Slovakia and she couldn’t make it so we have to have one more wedding when we go back home.
Sam: We love simple. Why complicate matters when everyone gets so uptight and stressed, which destroys the mood? I mean, just take a look at our photos, nuff’ said. However, when my mother-in-law comes to Singapore in December, we will do the traditional tea ceremony together with our moms and my sisters.
Was your wedding really as simple as you wanted it to be?
Jana: I didn’t sleep the night before. The make-up artist came so early, so I was tired but excited. It was all really cute to see my boyfriend prepping up and all. We laughed a lot and it all happened very quickly. Some of my friends actually gatecrashed the wedding because my mom ratted me out on Facebook!
Sam: We, I mean I, woke up a little stressed and tired because I had to wake up earlier than usual, since I work ungodly hours, but we just cracked a couple of jokes and all was back to normal. There was the usual “OH MY GOD I’M SO FAT I CAN’T FIT INTO MY DRESS!” proclamation from the bride, because you just can’t have a matrimonial ceremony without that.
What did your friends have to say about your wedding?
Jana: The majority of my friends really didn’t have a clue I was getting married. Half of them were rather pissed off that we never told them, but were, of course, very happy for us. The other half were just saying “finally!”. We were together for more than four years before we got married, so they were very happy for us.
Sam: Everyone I knew was like, and I quote, “#^@* Why didn’t you tell me?! But congratulations! It’s about #^@*-ing time!” My phone wouldn’t stop beeping from the influx of text messages. Our friends either can’t wait to see our kids, or have already “called dibs” on my daughter. That is just wrong.
Jana: We keep being reblogged on Tumblr or Facebook as a cool tattooed couple and a lot of people we don’t even know keep writing to us and commenting on our pictures. I think it’s very sweet.
Sam: Yeah, I was so surprised with the number of comments on the photos. I’ve not gotten so “viral” in such a short time, that was like, wow for me. I’d like to thank everyone once again for the well wishes!
So how has being husband and wife been for you so far?
Jana: My husband now calls me the “26 Dollar Mail Order Bride”.
Sam: No, I just call you “$26”! Well, for me, I think it’s very touching that she has learnt to say “老公” perfectly in such a short time. It matters a lot because she doesn’t take to new languages easily.
Her Dress: Made by BezooeHis Outfit: Armani, and bowtie from H&MThe Flowers: D’PetalsThe Venue: Registry of MarriagesThe Photographer: Ensof Singapore
Credits: Images by Ensof Singapore
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