Singaporebrides | Real Weddings
December 2016
Yan and Mark’s Idyllic Wedding at Sofitel Singapore Sentosa Resort & Spa
Sweethearts Yan and Mark tied the knot in a lovely celebration at the elegant and modern Sofitel Singapore Sentosa Resort & Spa earlier in June this year.
When Ouyang Yan, 33, Marketing, met Mark Chang, 35, Civil Service, at a friend’s birthday celebration seven years ago, they realised they already knew each other. As it turns out, Mark was Yan’s sister’s Junior College classmate. Destined to be with each other, the pair of lovebirds wed in an intimate and elegant celebration surrounded by their loved ones at the picturesque Sofitel Singapore Sentosa Resort & Spa on 25 June 2016.
How did Mark propose?
Yan: It was a simple proposal at home. He had asked for my parents’ approval the day before, and when Mark asked me the next day, it was in my house, just the two of us. By then, we already knew that we wanted to spend the rest of our lives together. So, of course I said “Yes!”.
Walk us through your wedding planning.
I originally wanted an outdoor wedding, but given Mark’s nature, he would not want to risk getting all our guests wet given the high chance of rain in our tropical climate. As a compromise, we decided to hold our ROM at The White Rabbit about 6 months before the wedding dinner, which allowed us to do a simple solemnisation, while also fulfilling my dream of having an outdoor wedding (sort of).
For our wedding dinner, we knew that we wanted to keep it intimate and not have too many tables. From there, we managed to narrow down on a few venues that could fit both our budget and the size of our wedding. We looked at a few venues in Sentosa as well as those in the city, but we both ended up loving the ambience that Sofitel Singapore Sentosa Resort & Spa was able to provide for our guests. It gave a very tranquil yet modern touch to our wedding, which was something we felt the moment we saw the hotel.
Mark (like most grooms) is not really into décor and detailing, so he left most of the decision making on that front to me. I’m glad that we choose Sofitel Singapore Sentosa Resort & Spa, as we were pretty happy with the selection of items such as the ballroom and hotel decorations, flowers, wedding favours. They provided a wide range of designs for us to choose, so we didn’t need to do much.
As Mark and I have very different music preferences, we had differing views over our march-in songs and music for the dinner. But after much discussion, I’m glad we managed to select the songs that we both agreed on.
Did you have a wedding theme?
We didn’t have a specific theme, but I already knew the colour theme that I wanted – green, white and pink. The ballroom overlooked the sea, so we wanted to create an atmosphere that was able to project an outdoor feel despite being indoors. Thankfully, the hotel had a theme which was very close to the look that I was going for, so we chose that. Since fresh flowers are very costly, we decided to add some balloons to make the reception area more cheery instead.
What was your actual day like?
It was tiring but thankfully it went smoothly. As the weather was quite erratic two weeks before our wedding, we were worried it would rain, especially for the morning games and tea ceremony. Luckily, the weather held up, and the we didn’t have any delays in terms of timing. We are both very thankful for the support from our parents and family members, as they helped with most of the preps for the morning ceremony.
For the dinner, we had lots of help from our brothers and sisters in terms of coordination so we didn’t need to worry about the little details and could enjoy the dinner and mingling with our guests. We were nervous at first about whether we could start on time, how would the food be or if there would be any delays. Luckily, everything turned out smoothly.
What did your family and friends have to say about your wedding?
Everyone loved our wedding venue, which was beautifully set up. It was a simple and intimate event with our closest friends and relatives attending. The reception area was beautifully done up and our guests were able to enjoy a drink overlooking the sea before the start of our wedding. We also had many compliments on the dessert table provided by the hotel as well, which was good for our hungry guests since wedding dinners usually only start at around 8pm.
As we only had 21 tables, we had time to mingle and chat with our guests at every table which was important as our friends and family took the time to come all the way down to Sentosa to attend our wedding.
What was the most memorable moment of the day?
During our wedding dinner, Mark surprised me by singing a song just after our speech. He even changed some of the lyrics to fit the theme of our wedding, and was rehearsing in the afternoon when I was having my make up done in the room. It was a memorable experience for both of us (though more for Mark I guess, having to sing in front of so many people).
Size of Wedding: 210 guests
Cost of Wedding: Approximately $50, 000 – $55,000
The Venue: Sofitel Singapore Sentosa Resort & Spa
The Photographer: Gabriel Mendes Photography
The Wedding Gown: Dang Bridal
The Wedding Shoes: L.K. Bennett
The Groom’s Suit: PIMABS
The Groom’s Shoes: Geox
The Wedding Bands: Bvlgari
Hair and Makeup: Iheartblooms by Jennifer Koh
The Wedding Florist: Fleurlicious
The Wedding Stylist: Yan’s friend (reception table)
The Wedding Cake: Sofitel Singapore Sentosa Resort & Spa
The Wedding Favours: Sofitel Singapore Sentosa Resort & Spa
The Videographer: Ichiro Films
Wedding Planning: SingaporeBrides
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