Singaporebrides | Fashion
September 2017
Jorina and Alan’s Romantic Fairytale Wedding at InterContinental Singapore
Brought together by sweet serendipity, Jorina and Alan celebrated their union in a beautiful ceremony at InterContinental Singapore.
Lawyer Jorina Chai, 29, and her husband’s, Alan Goh, 36, portfolio manager, love story is one straight out of a romance movie. Not only were the lovebirds next-door neighbours, they also worked in the same building. Fated to meet and fall in love, the pair tied the knot in a beautiful wedding inspired by their serendipitous meeting at the elegant InterContinental Singapore on 18 March 2017. But before that, the adventurous pair embarked on an exciting pre-wedding photoshoot in San Francisco, Las Vegas and Antelope Canyon in Arizona with Douglas Fun Photography that eventually became a fun-filled memorable roadtrip.
Tell us more about how you and Alan met.
Jorina: It was a chance encounter and pure serendipity – we were next door neighbours and met one weekday morning shortly after Alan had moved in next to my unit. We were both heading to work and Alan offered me a lift to the Central Business District. Only then did I realise that we were working in the same building! Alan told me he had seen me around the office building but didn’t realise we were neighbours. After that day, we kept in touch and went to work together a few days each week. The car ride conversations drew us closer and we became good friends!
What drew you to each other?
Jorina: We had a lot of similar interests in business and corporate finance, politics, music, musicals and it was always fun to talk to Alan. He is pretty humorous and always lightens up my mood!
Alan: Her chirpiness and inquisitive nature. We always seem to have endless topics to talk to each other!
What’s one of the things you love most about your partner?
Jorina: Alan has been my pillar of strength and support the past five years, always encouraging and supporting me.
Alan: Jorina’s caring nature and loving tenderness. She takes very good care of the people around her, always showering them with care and concern without fail.
How did Alan propose?
Jorina: I suspected that Alan would be proposing either on my birthday or our dating anniversary, but I wasn’t expecting him to do it on my birthday as he had many long nights at work during the weeks leading up to my birthday so he didn’t seem to have much time to plan anything! We were going to Melbourne for my birthday and were in Mount Buller’s ski resort on my birthday itself. It had been snowing heavily that day and we decided to have an early dinner as it was too cold outside to continue skiing. When we returned to the hotel room, I was checking work emails and discussing some work issues with my colleague online when suddenly Alan went down on one knee in front of me with a huge bouquet of 99 roses! I was stunned and because my colleague was asking me for advice for work, I had no choice but to tell Alan to wait for 5 minutes! I was so unromantic and even until today, I feel bad about spoiling the moment, but Alan is always so understanding and patient towards my work demands.
Immediately after I finished helping my colleague with her queries, I shut down my laptop and Alan proceeded to put the ring on my hand with a touching handwritten card, following which we took many photos of ourselves with the proposal ring and bouquet to send over to our family and close friends back in Singapore to share the good news. It was a really personal and intimate proposal, which was what we both wanted.
Alan: I had also secretly planned a surprise casual photoshoot the next day after the proposal to commemorate the special occasion. The Melbourne photographer, Genelle from Immerse Photography, was so hospitable and brought us to many locations in Melbourne to do the photoshoot, even recommending nice cafes and restaurants to us for our trip. The photos captured the iconic sights of Melbourne which was what I was looking for, to remember our proposal trip through the photos!
Share with us more about your pre-wedding photoshoot in San Francisco, Las Vegas and Antelope Canyon, Arizona.
Alan: We flew to San Francisco and took a domestic flight to Las Vegas before driving to Antelope Canyon in Arizona. We wanted to do our photoshoot somewhere with beautiful scenery and good weather (Europe would be too cold in December), and wanted it to be an enjoyable holiday at the same time, so we decided on the United States of America. It was my first time there and Jorina’s first time to Antelope Canyon, a place she and our photographer had always wanted to explore. We ended up going on a 12-day road trip with Douglas and his wife in the end!
Jorina: The photoshoot spanned a total of four full days with us engaging four different makeup artists in the various cities. It was quite a logistical challenge coordinating with the US makeup artists from Singapore and comparing various portfolios to choose the makeup artists which we felt would achieve the looks we wanted – natural but radiant. It was a lovely experience meeting the different makeup vendors over in US exchanging ideas and stories, and we still keep in touch with them!
We also had to wake up really early around 4am on average during the photoshoot days to capture the best morning sunlight and avoid the December holiday crowds. The early morning temperatures at Horseshoe Bend were the coldest amongst the different places we visited, dropping to below 5 degrees – we really wish to thank and praise Douglas and his wife, Grace, for their hard work in the cold weather, perfecting every shot and never giving up despite their fingers and faces freezing up!
Alan: The most challenging part of the photoshoot would have to be the photoshoot at Antelope Canyon. It was not easy climbing up and down the canyon crevices to capture the best lighting and angles, especially in the gown and suit! We also had to sit in a Hummer to get to the less crowded slot canyon but it was so much fun doing a 4-wheel drive in the Hummer!
We would highly recommend Douglas to couples who wish to do an overseas photoshoot as he is really good at capturing the right moments naturally and spontaneously yet showcasing the beautiful scenery in the same frame. His photo composition ability is brilliant and he did a great amount of detailed research to plan the photoshoot schedule and locations.
Share with us one funny/memorable story from your pre-wedding photoshoot.
Douglas wanted to take a series of shots of us crossing the road at one of the hilly slopes in San Francisco but the traffic was really heavy that morning. We ended up crossing that road more than 40 times for the various shots! It was made all the more memorable because many passers-by stopped to congratulate us and compliment the custom-made gown from Dang Bridal. The SF-ers are really a warm and enthusiastic bunch!
What was your wedding planning journey like?
We had about eight months to plan so time was tight. We set fortnightly milestones to ensure things moved along efficiently. Everything went smoothly as we found vendors who resonated with us and helped to execute our wedding just the way we envisioned it to be. The biggest challenge was finding time for wedding preparations as both of us have hectic work schedules, but we managed to pull it off with the help of our close friends and family.
There were a few disagreements along the way but we always listened to each other’s concerns and through accepting our differences and compromise, we bridged our differences. The wedding planning brought us closer as a couple as we were reminded of our love for each other and our readiness to move forward as a couple despite our differences.
Jorina: My morning gown, cheongsam and solemnisation ceremony gown were from Dang Bridal, as well as the gowns I wore for my pre-wedding photoshoot. My evening gown was from Ted Wu. All the gowns were made to measure. It was fun discussing ideas and designs with both Dang and Ted Wu. They were both responsive and open to my suggestions, yet gave their professional inputs to complement my preferences. I chose Dang Bridal and Ted Wu because their designs stood out as classic yet with their own unique elements, and both of them came across as really friendly and approachable. I would highly recommend them to all brides-to-be!
What was your wedding theme?
Our wedding theme was “Sweet Serendipity” to reflect our chance meeting that led to a strong friendship blossoming into love. We wanted to create a romantic fairytale-like ambience. Anna from Spellbound was instrumental in creating the lovely décor that all our guests praised. The colour theme was gold, pink, peach and champagne which created an elegant and romantic feel. We requested for a floral arch and staircase flowers for the solemnisation area, as well as a floral gazebo with fairylights for the stage, which Anna executed to perfection. She also created a customized monogram logo for us inspired by the monogram Ruby Lin and Wallace Huo had!
We highly recommend Anna to couples looking for wedding décor vendors as she is really good and passionate about her craft and very responsive, always responding to our messages and emails late at night without any complaints!
What was your wedding day like?
Jorina: It was the best day of our lives, because it was not just a celebration of our love, but also a celebration of all our family and friends who touched our lives in their own special ways. Some of our guests specially flew in from around the world to share our joy, and it was also heartwarming because of the love and dedication put in from our close friends who helped us a great deal along the way.
Alan: It was heartwarming to see the people that mean so much to us gathering to celebrate our union. A wedding isn’t about the good food or fancy décor but about the two persons making a decision to embark on the rest of their lives together, witnessed by their loved ones. We had a blast and our friends told us they had lots of fun too!
What did your family/friends have to say about your wedding day?
Jorina: Many of them said our pre-wedding photos were one of the most interesting and beautiful they have seen! As for the wedding day, many complimented the décor by Spellbound and commented that the décor created an ambience that was fairytale-like and romantic. They also liked the customised couple portraits done by Miraculove which adorned each banquet table as well as the main reception area. The quote on each couple portrait was specially crafted for our love story and our friends found it very apt – “You are my sweet serendipity”.
Alan: Many guests liked the idea of having Mad Lib cards allowing them to express their best wishes and love for us. They had lots of fun during the dinner filling in the Mad Lib cards and dedicating songs to us through the live band!
What was the most memorable moment of your wedding?
Jorina: For me, the most memorable moment was our exchange of vows. Alan’s vows were sweet and came straight from his heart – I was trying my best to hold back my tears. It was precious to me as I knew he meant every word he said.
Alan: The first walk-in was the most memorable moment for me. Seeing all our guests blowing bubbles of love and applauding us as we walked in was such a touching moment. It was beautiful as well watching all the bubbles float around the ballroom during the Korean song “Always” from Descendants of the Sun sung live by Jorina’s good friend.
What is one lesson you’ve learnt from your wedding planning that you’d like to share with other couples?
Start early and don’t procrastinate! Especially the guest lists and invitations – it would be good to start planning early and make changes along the way rather than wait till too late before starting on it.
The Size of Wedding: 380 guests
The Cost of Wedding: $90,000
The Venue: InterContinental Singapore
The Photographer: Douglas Fun Photography (Pre-Wedding) / Daniel Beh Photography (Wedding Day)
The Videographer: Melvin Cho from Renatus
The Wedding Gown: Dang Bridal (Solemnisation and Morning of Actual Day) / Ted Wu (Evening Gown)
The Wedding Shoes: Salvatore Ferragamo
The Bridal Robe: Bells and Birds
The Groom’s Suit: Dang Bridal
The Groom’s Shoes: Salvatore Ferragamo
The Engagement Ring and Wedding Bands: Les Precieux
The Bridal Jewellery: Lee Hwa Jewellery, Goldheart and Gioielli
The Bridesmaids’ Dresses: Thread Theory
The Groomsmen’s Outfits: Alibaba (Suspenders and bow ties)
Hair and Makeup: Eric Tan from Palette Inc.
The Caterer: Manna Pot
The Florist: Fleurlicious (bridal bouquet and corsages) / Gnomes (wedding dinner)
The Wedding Stylist: Spellbound
The Wedding Stationery: Dreamweavers (Invitations) / Miraculove (Mad Lib cards, song dedication cards, customised couple portrait)
The Photobooth: Cloud Booth
The Wedding Band: The Madhatter Project
The Solemniser: Mr Zenon Teh
The Wedding Props: Midnight Sparks (fairylights) / 1011 Production (Carousel Horses)
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