Singaporebrides | Photography
June 2014
Charming Solemnisation in Old Chapel Garden
The venue is lovely, the flowers are sweet, the wedding finery is sharp, but what really charms us in this solemnisation is Eileen’s and Julius’ fun personalities, beautifully captured by AndroidsinBoots in photographs full of character, love, and laughter. Don’t miss this gorgeous inspiration on holding an intimate reception, perfect for an ROM solemnisation ceremony or a sweet, close-knit wedding.
How did the two of you meet?
Eileen: I first got to know Julius through my good friend, Candy, who’s in the same clique as him back in first year. I never actually paid much attention to him, maybe because he looked so geeky then but we did exchanged the occasional hellos and byes! Well, we were each also seeing someone else then. So it all started when Candy secretly matchmade us during third year finals.
It started with Candy persistently inviting me over to study with her in the library, which I agreed to without knowing she had other agendas up her sleeve. She would make me sit at the same table as Julius and we would exchange awkward smiles. The days went pass, the awkward smiles became random small talk, and later continuous Whatsapp conversation. Little did I realize, I was also beginning to notice him more, like how his trousers were always so badly shrunk in the wash, they looked so silly on him!
That year, my exams ended first, so I baked some cookies for Candy and brought them to the library. Candy shared the cookies with Julius and I guess that’s when it all started for us! We went on a date shortly after Julius completed his exams. So thank you Candy and the cookies that sealed the deal for us or else we wouldn’t be here sharing our stories!
Julius: We met while studying in Melbourne. See, Eileen had a very unique dress sense. The first time I met her, her jeans had so many holes in them you really wonder why she’d even bother. That was the first time we met. Mixed impressions at first, but we only got to know each other better three years later during the dreaded year end exam period. I’d see her walking around in hot pink trackies and carrying a big environmental friendly bag. Really couldn’t help but notice her. Took up an opportunity to fix her computer for her and the effort paid off, the rest is history.
So either Julius’ techie know-how or Eileen’s mugging munchies sealed the deal. Do you have the same versions of the story of your proposal?
Eileen: Julius totally caught me off guard with the proposal! All I could remember was me screaming followed by me crying and finally saying the big YES before dancing like a maniac. I can’t even recall what he said to me or whether he was kneeling down when proposing! I wish I had paid more attention to him at that point of time instead of just screaming and crying!
Picture petals on the floor leading to a big bouquet of peonies in the middle of a room overlooking Melbourne’s sleepy city, with a hand typed letter and a box of macaroons on the bed. Everything was perfect, but with Julius around, there’s always room for bloopers even with the proposal! One of the funniest bloopers from that night was me asking him innocently if he’d gotten me a hair dryer as he revealed the last location of my present. What happened was, the hair dryer was in this black bag next to the safe where the ring was kept and when Julius pointed to the safe, I thought he meant the black bag!
Julius: I had to fly to Melbourne and set up a surprise proposal for her. She was already surprised to see me and even more so when I brought her to Sofitel that evening (we always loved walking there at night) and surprised her with a night’s stay. I had a wonderful friend to help sort logistics in Melbourne for me and the room was perfect. The ring was in the safe and I had her open it. Her expression of utter disbelief made it all worthwhile… and luckily she said yes. I don’t really remember her actually saying yes, but her dancing around in circles with the ring was good enough.
That is so adorable! Were you just as excited about preparing for your charming ROM solemnization?
Eileen: The ROM preparation was very easy going as we wanted to take it slow, since it’s only the first part of our three-part wedding event. Plus, I am not the most hardworking bride out there! My sister did a big portion of coordinating for me while I was still away in Melbourne, whereas Julius’ friends helped with last minute decorations.
I didn’t want any extra decorations for The White Rabbit initially as I thought it was already beautiful as is, but Julius thought it would be too bland with my white dress against white walls, white table cloths, and white chairs, and the restaurant name is also white! I wanted minimalist and he wanted colourful balloons, fine. Turns out, the balloons were a nice touch!
The balloons did add a great pop of colour and fun. In fact, everyone looked like they were having a great time! Tell us how everything went.
Eileen: I was such a nervous bride and everyone kept telling me, before you know it, it will be over. Exactly what I felt as just when I was having fun and letting loose, The White Rabbit wound up our party and started cleaning up the place!
The car ride to White Rabbit felt like forever and man, I was so nervous when I was waiting with my dad at the entrance to walk in. The moment we started walking in, time just went past so quickly. BAM-my dad handed me over to Julius, BAM-we proceeded with the registration, BAM-we had a little photo taking session, BAM-dinner was served, BAM-we were mingling with guests and before we knew it, BAM! We left The White Rabbit that night as a married couple!
Many of our relatives and friends said the registration felt like a full fledge intimate wedding and I did too! It was indeed a beautiful night that took place in a beautiful place filled with beautiful people.
Julius: Everything happened so quickly. I was so tense waiting for the walk in but once Eileen was by my side and we exchanged vows, the entire night seemed to be on fast forward. A few beers and many smiling faces later, the night came to an end. We had a chill out session in the garden with my close friends after the guests left – that was really rewarding and enjoyable.
Did the night slow down for any special moments?
Eileen: There were two moments which were particularly special to me and I still think about them today. The first one would be Julius surprising me with his personal vows which made me tear. Such a cheeky sneak as we agreed beforehand that we were not sharing our personal vows during our registration!
The other was just before the ceremony started. My ingenious brother ran to us with a small wine bottle. I think he felt equally nervous as I was at that point of time. I quickly took a gulp, then passed it to my dad who was a little nervous too. We high five-ed and I said to him, ‘Let’s do this!’ and hand in hand we walked in. It remained such a hilarious memory up until today! Today that small wine bottle contains our personal vows we shared in private after the registration.
Julius: The walk in was during sunset and the setting could not have been better. That walk probably took 1 minute to complete, but it felt like eternity ,and I enjoyed every moment of it. If something could make time seem to stop, it’s got to be really amazing… And it was.
Her gown: Sass & Bide
Her heels: ASOS
His suit: Paul Smith
His shoes: Florsheim
The venue: The White Rabbit
The florist: Magic Flower
The hair and makeup artist: Yanti Huang
The photographer: AndroidsinBoots (Still + Motion)
The macaroons: Confecti
The wine: Merchants Wine Cellar & Store
Credits: Photography by AndroidsinBoots (Still + Motion)
Want to see your love story featured on SingaporeBrides too? Submit your wedding here!
All content from this article, including images, cannot be reproduced without credits or written permission from SingaporeBrides.
Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, and Telegram for the latest article and promotion updates!