Singaporebrides | Real Weddings
September 2024
Erlina and Bryan’s Cosy Garden Wedding at Siri House
Erlina and Bryan’s dream came true as they said “I do” to the love of their lives in a beautiful and cosy garden wedding.
Erlina Marie Calubayan, 24, Copywriter, and Bryan Ravi Nambiar, 27, Business Analyst met eight years ago while working part-time at a bookstore during the Christmas season. The two experienced an immediate connection with each other and it wasn’t long before they fell in love. After a touching proposal on what was supposed to be an epic climb up Mount Kinabalu, Erlina and Bryan embarked on their wedding planning journey and found the perfect venue in Siri House for the cosy, garden wedding they had always wanted, surrounded by their closest and dearest.
What attracted you to your partner?
Erlina: His guilelessness. He was an open book and rolled with every joke or conversation topic I threw at him. He became my best friend, and I was already deeply in love with him when we started dating on 6 July 2017.
Bryan: I felt an immediate, soul mate-level connection with Erlina that I had never felt before. Even shortly after getting to know each other, I found myself being able to talk to her about anything and everything under the sun for hours on end – and that’s coming from somebody who’s usually more reserved in nature. How comfortable I felt in her presence made it all the more easy to fall in love with her.
What is it about your partner that you love the most?
Erlina: It’s hard to choose just one but I’d have to say I love his unabashed honesty the most. I grew to trust him so quickly, because I knew I could always rely on him to be honest about his feelings and it helped us become closer as partners.
Bryan: Her emotional maturity is something that I admire so much. I credit her with teaching me how to be more in touch with my emotions, which is something not many traditionally masculine men are able to ever come to grips with in their lifetimes. Her wicked sense of humour comes in a close second.
What was the proposal like?
Both: We love telling our proposal story because it’s truly quite mad, mainly because we had no experience in mountain climbing so we had no idea what we were in for.
Climbing Mount Kinabalu was on Bryan’s bucket list and I thought it’d be a great idea to kill two birds with one stone by summitting the mountain and having the proposal there. It was approaching the time Bryan wanted to propose and we loved going on hikes together so it was a no-brainer.
Fast forward about one year and we were on a two-day trek up Mount Kinabalu. The plan was to spend Day One climbing to base camp, which was roughly 3,200 metres above sea level, and sleep, then wake up early on Day Two to catch the sunrise at the summit, which sits at 4,000 metres above sea level. Afterwards, we would go on Via Ferrata, a protected mountain pathway consisting of a series of rungs, rails, cables and bridges embracing the rock face, before starting our descent.
Bryan and I had to reach base camp by a certain time for the Via Ferrata safety briefing or else we wouldn’t be allowed to do it, so we were in a rush from the beginning. However, despite going to the gym frequently to train, being 1.5 metres and overweight, the climb of 6 kilometes straight with large, uneven steps destroyed my knees and slowed our progress. Bryan, 1.9 metres and athletic, barely broke a sweat and was an angel and my cheerleader throughout. We were advised to rest and acclimate to the altitude at the 4-kilometre and 5-kilometre mark but, because we were rushing to catch the briefing, we kept going. Because of this, Bryan got altitude sickness, which only got worse as we reached base camp. By the end of the night, he had thrown up four times and could hardly eat. We were advised against summitting as the altitude sickness would be worse the higher we go.
Despite his altitude sickness, Bryan was determined to propose to me. We got up on Day Two and went to the helicopter landing pad in front of base camp, which had a marvellous view of the surrounding mountains. All the other climbers had left to summit, so there was no one around except for a few mountain guides. Bryan got down on one knee, proposed, and I said yes. The guides cheered when they saw, which we thought was very sweet. Bryan slid my engagement ring on my finger and I presented him with an engagement watch (because I thought it was unfair that I got a ring and he didn’t get anything). After basking in the joy for a few minutes, we began our descent.
Tell us about your wedding. Did you have a wedding theme?
Both: We chose Siri House as the venue for our wedding. I’ve always dreamed of a garden wedding but had given up on the idea as none of the garden venues we’d researched were within our budget. We came across Siri House online by chance and were intrigued because we thought we’d already seen all the possible garden wedding venues. We were prepared to DIY our floral arch, table accents and more, but the wedding package offered by Siri House at the time included everything we wanted, so we went down for a site visit and dinner. It was a mix of the delicious food, Art Deco interiors, attentive staff and a comprehensive wedding package that endeared us to the venue.
Theme-wise, we wanted something that showcased our love for the outdoors and the arts. We were already in love with Siri House’s interior and backyard, which perfectly matched my favourite floral combination of warm hues, so we leaned into the Art Deco theme quite a bit.
Take us back to your wedding day. What was the day like and how were you feeling?
Erlina: I was so calm and I thank my bridesmaids endlessly because we truly could not have pulled it off without their help. I just felt so ready and excited to finally marry my best friend and start the next chapter of our lives together. Having everyone closest to my heart in one room to celebrate our marriage was such a gift and I couldn’t have been happier.
Bryan: We were so lucky that the day could not have gone smoother. I wasn’t nervous per se, I just felt an immense feeling of anticipation, like one would for an event that had been meticulously planned for months and even years in advance. Besides that, I made sure to keep a calm and collected air about me, as I refused to let anything or anyone make me feel flustered on my big day. I made sure to savour every second, and took mental snapshots of everything as often as I could. Core memories, as they say!
What did your family/friends have to say about your wedding day?
Both: All of our family and friends loved it. They thought the venue was beautiful, the food was delicious, and some even said it was the best wedding they’d attended. They may be a little biased on that front, but it made Bryan and I proud to know we achieved the short, simple and sweet wedding we worked for.
Share with us the most memorable moment of your wedding?
Both: For both of us, it was when Erlina’s father sang “Slipping Through My Fingers” by ABBA. While we and most of the guests were in tears, my father suddenly said, “I will never cry,” and continued singing. It was simply iconic and we will cherish that memory forever.
What is one lesson you’ve learned from your wedding planning that you’d like to share with other couples?
Both: Be practical but don’t deprive yourself of things that would make you happy.
The Wedding Venue: Siri House
Cost of Wedding: Under $10,000
Size of Wedding: 50 persons
The Bride’s Gown: Love to Love
The Bride’s Shoes: Charles & Keith
The Groom’s Suit: Assemble
The Groom’s Shoes: Mason & Smith
The Wedding Bands: Poh Kong
The Wedding Photographer and Videographer: Mavericks Wedding
The Bridesmaids’ Dresses: Their own
The Groomsmen’s Suits: Suspenders and bow ties from Amazon
The Hairstylist and Makeup Artist: Bridal by Tiffany
The Caterer: Siri House
The Wedding Cake: Gifted by groom’s aunt
The Florist: Anndol Floral (bridal bouquet and groom’s boutonniere)
The Event Stylist: Siri House
The Wedding Invitations and Stationery: DIY by Bride, Groom, Bride’s Brother and his Wife
The Wedding Favours: Deanna Creations
The Band: Bride’s friends
The Solemniser: Ms. Dolly Koh
The Wedding Resource: SingaporeBrides
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