Singaporebrides | Photography

September 2022

Grace and David’s Dreamy Wedding at The Clifford Pier

By Michelle Tay

Share this article on:
Facebook

Grace and David ambitiously gave themselves a three-month timeline to put together their wedding at The Clifford Pier, and although it wasn’t free from stress, it did turn out exactly how they wanted it!

Grace and David met in 2012 while in Australia and hit it off immediately. They shared many happy memories, sad moments, and heartfelt thoughts on life. Even though they eventually ended up working in different countries, they found ways to make sure their friendship and closeness didn’t fade from the distance. Then one day, something that was apparent in the air finally hit them. 10 years after the day they met, they were married surrounded by family and friends at The Clifford Pier at The Fullerton Bay Hotel.

Tell us about how the two of you met and started dating.

Grace: I’ve never thought that the friends-to-lovers story was something for me. We met 10 years ago in 2012, in college in Australia, and hit it off immediately as friends. It was just somehow really easy for us to click and we spent a lot of time together with mutual friends. Laughter was a constant in the friendship and there was never a boring moment when we hung out. I saw him as a good friend—a friend to share happy and sad moments with, a friend to share my heartfelt thoughts and views on life with. Little did I know that he would turn out to be the love of my life!

We were working in different countries for a while, him in Australia and myself in Singapore. Despite that, it was always easy to keep in touch and chat about everything and anything. I had the best chemistry with him. One fine day in 2016, things decidedly took on a different spin. Conversations slowly grew from random texts, to regular texts, and then calls and then a video call. It became suspiciously clear that he rather quite enjoyed talking to me. I remember thinking to myself that it would be crazy, and absolutely impossible, in fact almost horrific, that we would date. Just because we were such good friends. And have always been.

After many nights of calls, however, he surprised me by flying back to Singapore and then confessing his feelings, albeit sheepishly. Our friendship of five years was now left behind as we started a relationship, a possibly long overdue one at that. I have this theory that he might’ve liked me since 2012… but who knows! That was the start of our long-distance relationship until he relocated back to Singapore for good two years later. And here we are, a good 10 years later, married!

What do you love most about your partner?

Grace: I love that he’s a great thinker and smart. I like the structured way he thinks and how he communicates his thoughts. I like how he livens up any atmosphere just by his very presence. I fell in love with him for many reasons, so I don’t think I can just pick one! I liked how smiley he is, how comfortable I feel around him, and how much he makes me laugh. I enjoy being in his company more than anyone else I’ve ever met. He simply gets me.

David: I love that she’s warm and friendly, pretty, and funny. She also gets very animated and excited when she talks about things that she likes or is passionate about. She’s kind and sweet as well and does little things for me just because she knows I love them. I laugh a lot with her and there are times where I find myself somehow missing her even when she’s next to me.

Did COVID-19 affect your wedding plans?

Grace: Yes, definitely! Our wedding was to celebrate our union, our love for each other, but also to celebrate self-expression. Where we chose to get married, what we wore, what our dearest guests ate, what flowers and colours they saw—everything was part of how we expressed ourselves. What we and our family and guests experienced would speak louder than any picture and video could capture. It was only right that we chose a venue that could best meet all of the above.

It started in December 2021 where we decided that we would like to get married in March 2022. This was when our family could fly back assuming some restrictions were lifted and we didn’t think we would be all that hard planning one within three months.

We originally wanted a wedding in Melbourne, Australia—this was Plan A. Melbourne was where we both first met, but borders were not really open and there were too many uncertainties around whether loved ones would be able to fly in and out. We then thought about having two weddings—one in Melbourne and one in Singapore, but that wasn’t feasible as well. We then went ahead with Plan C which was to have just one wedding in Singapore, but there were so many permutations of how it could turn out. Outdoor or indoor solemnisation venues? Restaurant or banquet? How many guests to estimate for both solemnisation and banquet, how many could each venue fit based on restrictions now versus three months later, what seating configurations could we have based on current restrictions… The list was endless.

Throw in the fact that it started to dawn on us that there were a lot more moving parts that didn’t occur to us, and that three months was actually an extremely tight timeline, near impossible, and you have a rather stressed-out couple! It was a pretty strenuous exercise to settle all wedding-related things in such a short span of time, but we did end up surprising ourselves somewhat and couldn’t be more pleased at how it all turned out. A big shout-out to our extremely good friend who helped significantly ease the burden.

Pro tip: Definitely get a good and trustworthy friend to help coordinate the actual wedding day! Also, three months of execution is probably not the best timeline.

What was your wedding theme?

Grace: Our venue was The Clifford Pier, Fullerton Bay hotel, as we felt it was a classy yet cosy venue. From the tall floor-to-ceiling glass doors that our guests first walked through at the entrance, to the high ceiling where a massive glittery chandelier greets guests (the kind a girl dreams of walking under), to the sparkling clean marble flooring, grand white archways and warm candle-light yellow lights scattered all around and gently framing the venue. Fullerton Bay was love at first sight for us. We loved it!

I wanted our florals to be in theme with the elegant character of Clifford Pier and definitely not overwhelm it with an entirely different feel, and decided that the white and dreamy theme would be the best out of the other colour options I considered. In my mind, the combination of the refined venue and classy white florals was my perfect dream wedding. I wanted the florals to be all white, but with some texture to sustain visual interest. Our talented florists used a combination of various flowers such as baby’s breath, but mixed it up with white and cream roses, hydrangeas, specially painted fern to get the dreamy look we wanted. We went down to the hotel on several occasions to picture the aisle florals, floral arches, candles, photo table design and how it would all fall in place. It was important that the overall styling did not distract from the stunning venue, but instead perfectly complement it and meld into it. I wanted the florals to look like they belonged.

Good warm lighting was also key to illuminate the look and feel, and so hundreds of candles in glasses were scattered on tables, across the stage and the aisle to provide a warm and cosy look. I loved it! The jazz music (we love jazz music) helped set the guests in a relaxing mood and we also had some decent red and white wines to accompany guests throughout the night. To give guests the best experience, we had tried 15 different bottles of red wine before finding our first choice. (Yes, we also rather like wine!)

What was your wedding day like?

Grace: Time really flies by when you’re having fun! We only started in the afternoon, starting with hair and make-up at 1 p.m., and then a photoshoot with family and the bridal party, followed by the solemnisation ceremony, the tea ceremony, and then dinner banquet. It was an incredibly tight schedule, with us ending up running far behind schedule, but nobody seemed to mind! Nevertheless, it was all very lovely to be surrounded by our family and best friends on this most special occasion to us, in a cosy intimate setting, with good food and a beautiful fuss-free venue. Our wedding went about as smoothly as it could during pandemic times and with a three-months execution timeline. If I had to change one thing though, I would have buffered more time for photoshoots with everyone!

It was very useful to learn about other couples’ journeys on SingaporeBrides, such as what to avoid, what to look out for, as well as the vendors they used and their feedback. Going through the site, it helps to know that so many other couples have done various types of wedding events successfully and that nothing is too difficult. Planning schedules, to-do-lists, and timeline advice on SingaporeBrides were incredibly helpful. These documents can sometimes be overlooked as additional administrative burdens to update, but checklists and schedules help keep you on track and help you manage stress, pretty much a must-have for every bride-to-be.

What was the most memorable moment of your wedding?

Grace: walking down the aisle for the first time with my dad, and seeing David there waiting for me. It still brings tears to my eyes because of how surreal it all felt.

David: Seeing her walk down the aisle with her dad. She looked stunning and happy, and I felt like the luckiest man on earth. I know it’s a cliche, but when you experience it, there are no words for it!

The Size of the Wedding: 160 guests
The Cost of the Wedding: Below $100,000
The Venue: The Clifford Pier, The Fullerton Bay Hotel
The Wedding Day Photographer: Aura Studio
The Gown: The Ivory Bridal
The Bride’s Shoes: Jimmy Choo
The Suit: Suit Yourself
The Groom’s Shoes: Ardenteal
The Engagement Ring: Chaumet
The Wedding Bands: Chaumet
The Bridesmaids’ Dresses: Claude
The Groomsmen’s Suits: Individual’s own suits
The Hairstylist and Makeup Artist: Queenie Cong Makeover
The Nail Artist: Chisaki
The Caterer: The Fullerton Bay Hotel
The Wedding Cake: The Fullerton Bay Hotel
The Florist: The Lily Field, Mirage Flowers
Wall partition: Furniche
The Pre-Wedding Photographer: Antelope Studios
The Videographer: Ppairs Collective
The Wedding Invitations and Stationery: Papypress
The Wedding Favours: The Fullerton Bay Hotel
The Solemniser: Church pastor

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!