Singaporebrides | Photography
August 2021
Lynnette and Kelvin’s Intimate and Colourful Wedding at Candlenut
Lynnette and Kelvin celebrated their love with their nearest and dearest in an intimate celebration at Candlenut.
Lynnette and Kelvin got to know each other at work and discovered that they shared many things in common. Over time, love blossomed and after a simple and private proposal, the lovebirds decided to tie the knot, until COVID-19 came along and derailed their plans. However, they were undeterred and celebrated their love in an intimate and colourful wedding at Candlenut, where Lynnette and her bridesmaids dressed up in beautiful and colourful Peranakan kebayas, surrounded by their nearest and dearest.
How did the two of you meet?
We were introduced by a colleague at work and coincidentally had to work together to prepare for a pitch. As a result, we spent many hours together and got to know each other in the process.
What drew you to each other?
As we spent more time together, we found that we have a lot in common. For instance, we both enjoy cooking, and would often cook for our families and close friends. We would literally spend hours shopping for groceries and cooking together. While we both also like the outdoors very much and would take the chance to cycle and work out as often as time permits, we could also spend hours chilling at a café or at home just having a simple, home-cooked meal while enjoying each other’s company. Just being together makes us happy and contented. Last but not least, we are both Roman Catholics and place God at the centre of our lives.
What is it about your partner that you love the most?
Lynnette: I love the fact that he is very family oriented. He spends most of his available time with family and close friends. He is very generous by nature with a great sense of humour. We are always poking fun at each other! Despite his hectic schedule, he will always find time to reply my texts and turn up when I need him.
Kelvin: Gregarious and lively, there’s hardly a dull moment with Lynnette. She’s always surprising me with fun activities. She’s a very dedicated wife and takes very good care of the family. She makes us feel very loved and cared for.
Tell us about the wedding. Where was your wedding venue and why did you choose it as the place to wed?
Our solemnisation ceremony was conducted by Father Ambrose Richards at St Bernadette’s Catholic church on a lovely Saturday morning. We had requested for Father Ambrose Richards to bless our Holy Matrimony as he was Kelvin’s baptism priest. We didn’t have much of a choice in terms of the church venue as our wedding was a week after Easter and that period is where churches are very busy with infant and adult baptism ceremonies. St Bernadette’s church was one of the few available on that day.
The church wedding was followed by lunch at Candlenut at Como Dempsey. We both wanted to have a small, intimate wedding for our family and close friends, bearing in mind the Covid-19 restrictions of not more than 50 persons. Candlenut was perfect for us as our families like Peranakan food and we both really like the décor; it was cosy and warm with soft undertones. Plus, the food was excellent.
What was it like planning your wedding during the COVID-19 pandemic? How did it affect your plans and why did you decide to go ahead with the wedding?
The challenges were largely on the logistics. For instance, we had to provide the church with all the mobile phone numbers of our guests and the license plate numbers of our guests who were driving to church. We also had to spend a lot of time with the seating arrangements for our luncheon as we wanted to make sure the room had a good layout while adhering to the social distancing restrictions.
Our original plans were to get married in Penang in June 2020 as Lynnette is from Penang and most of her extended family is there. Unfortunately, Covid-19 derailed those plans. With the outlook rather uncertain and the situation in Malaysia not looking like it will improve any time soon (and hence the border controls unlikely to be lifted), we decided to go ahead with the wedding rather than wait indefinitely. We were very fortunate as a month after our wedding, there were new restrictions in place due to the increased level of infections.
Was there a wedding theme?
There wasn’t a specific theme, but we didn’t want it to look like a typical wedding with lots of flowers, pastels, and so on. We simply went with what we felt would look nice and reflect us as a couple where our tastes are concerned. We just wanted it to be simple and intimate. Nothing over the top and fanciful.
As for Candlenut, we felt an understated tropical, botanical scenery would complement the aesthetics in the restaurant very well. We loved the overall look created by The Humid House.
Take us back to your wedding day. What was the day like and how were you feeling?
Lynette: My girlfriends spent the night before the big day with me at The St Regis Singapore. We woke up early the next day, ordered room service, and got our make-up done. We had connecting rooms and there was a lot of fun and laughter. I got them convertible dresses so they were helping each other tie their dresses in various styles. The photographers came at 8.30am to shoot us in the room.
Overall, we enjoyed ourselves very much as having a small wedding allowed us to interact with our family and guests more. We also really enjoyed the food as it was not typical hotel fare, and we both appreciate good Peranakan food very much. In fact, Kelvin and I were joking that we actually had the time to sit down and eat, as at most of the weddings I’ve attended, the wedding couple usually gets no chance to eat.
You and your bridesmaids dressed in traditional peranakan kebaya. Was there a reason behind the outfits? Was it difficult to rent/buy the kebayas?
It was a last-minute decision with my girlfriends. I felt that it was a no-brainer to don kebayas at the lunch, given the Peranakan cuisine. How often do we get the chance to all dress up together? Less than two weeks before the wedding, we went to Arab Street after work to shop for our outfits. We spent so much time in the store and ended up only having dinner at 10pm. Of course, I did not manage to customise a bridal kebaya (that requires at least 3 months advance planning) but the shop was kind enough to make the alterations on the spot! Some of my guy friends decided to wear batik shirts too, which made it even more fun and colourful.
What did your family and friends have to say about your wedding day?
Lynnette: They really enjoyed the wedding, even the Holy Matrimony in church as Father Ambrose Richards was his usual charismatic best, peppering the Mass with his trademark wit and advice. Father Richards also cheekily played a joke on Kelvin just before the Mass started. There had been a slight delay, and Father Richards went up to Kelvin, who was already waiting at the altar, and told him that I was having second thoughts about proceeding with the wedding and needed a moment. Apparently Kelvin went pale!
Our family and friends enjoyed lunch very much. For that we must thank Candlenut for the excellent food and our good friend Stephen, who gave us some really good wine and champagne to pair with the food.
We really enjoyed ourselves as we didn’t pack too much into the day itself. We even had the energy to go out for dinner with our friends that evening.
Share with us the most memorable moment of your wedding
Kelvin: It was seeing Lynnette and her five bridesmaids walk down the aisle to “Beautiful in White” by Shane Filan and then hearing the church bells toll.
Lynnette: During our exchange of vows, Kelvin made several mistakes and it was absolutely hilarious. Thankfully, Father Richards had a great sense of humour. I will always remember how real our church ceremony was.
What is one lesson you’ve learned from your wedding planning that you’d like to share with other couples?
One lesson that we’ve learned is that you can plan a wedding on a small budget. You don’t need to have a big budget to have a really nice wedding. It really can be done, even in “Crazy, Rich Asian” Singapore. You don’t need to have all the bells and whistles to make your wedding memorable. Keep it simple and intimate.
Keeping it simple also means you will get to enjoy your big day (and eat your lunch/dinner) as you will not be stressed with too many issues or have too many people to entertain. Be spontaneous and have fun! It’s your day after all!
The Venue: The St. Regis Singapore (morning prep), Church of St. Bernadette (Solemnisation), Candlenut (Wedding Luncheon)
Size of Wedding: 50 pax
The Bride’s Gown: NEWHITE Bridal from Truly Enamoured
The Bride’s Shoes: Jimmy Choo
The Groom’s Suit: Dior
The Groom’s Shoes: Saint Laurent
The Wedding Photographer and Videographer: Darren and Jade Photography
The Bridesmaids’ Dresses: My Little Bow
The Hairstylist and Makeup Artist: Candy T. Makeup Artistry
The Florist: Regina Mae Florals (Church), This Humid House (Wedding Car and Luncheon)
The Wedding Invitations and Stationery: Nineteen Design Studio
The Wedding Favours: Homemade sambal belacan by Candlenut
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