Today’s featured wedding comes to us from Hong Kong, the city where Grace + Jack met and fell in love! With an intimate and relaxed ceremony and reception at the iconic Peninsula Hotel and a breathtaking bridal shoot that took place in Bali, this bride and groom look picture perfect wherever they are. Grace’s Monique Lhuillier gown called ‘Meriah’ is stunning and I love that Grace changed into a sleek, ruby red satin dress for the reception (the bow detail at the waist is delightful). Cheers to the happy couple!
Grace + Jack | March 3, 2012 | Peninsula Hotel, Hong Kong
The Ceremony
Our ceremony was pretty relaxed and intimate. We wanted just our family and closest friends to witness us exchanging our vows, which we wrote ourselves. The ceremony was at the outdoor garden suite of the Peninsula Hotel, Hong Kong, which is perhaps the most iconic and historical hotel in this city. Because of the elaborate decor of the venue we felt at ease about not having to decorate further and kept colors and flowers simple. Our ceremony started with a poem reading by a dear friend who was also our celebrant, followed by us reading our vows — all with the brilliant backdrop of Hong Kong’s famous Victoria Harbor. This is the city where we met and fell in love so the setting could not have been more meaningful to us. A buffet lunch was served afterwards with casual seating (no seating plan) as we wanted guests to move around, mingle, and choose if they wanted to sit in or outdoors to enjoy the view.
The Reception
Reception was held in the grand ballroom of the hotel; food and seating was traditional Chinese style banquet. Instead of traditional cake cutting we opted to have cupcakes made that represented us. The result was cupcakes decorated with fondant poker chips, domino, dice (groom got his casino theme) and ones decorated to look like my Meriah gown (shredded coconut, pearlized beads, tiny fondant flowers). We hired a pianist who played our favorite tunes during cocktail hour and throughout the evening – which served the groom well as he surprise serenaded me with “The Way You Look Tonight”.
Grace’s Dress Search
I started my search looking only at mermaid cuts. Because I am petite and somewhat curvy I thought the mermaid would flatter me most. I was afraid of ‘drowning’ in a dress that was princess or too poofy. In the end, I went in a completely different direction. When I tried on the Meriah I knew it was the one. I didn’t want to take it off!
How Grace Felt in Her Wedding Dress
Stunning, Stand-out, Unique
Why Grace Decided to Sell Her Wedding Dress
It took me a long time to come to terms with selling the dress. Reality is, I will not wear it again. I hope it will make someone else a stunning bride and give them beautiful photos — this dress is photogenic at any angle.
