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MARCH - JUNE 2012

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ROMANCING BALIPRESTONBAILEY

SOULOF TIRTHA

44

DREAMWEDDING

UEENOF HEARTS

DEBORAH AND JONATHAN’S

THREE DAY WEDDING WAS AN

EXTRAVAGANT FESTIVAL FILLED

WITH VIBRANT COLOURS, EXOTIC

BALINESE DANCERS AND LAVISH

BANQUETS CULMINATING IN

AN EMOTIONAL CEREMONY

ATOP A FLOATING ALTAR.

Written by Alison Blake

Photography by Emily Scannell

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DREAMWEDDING

DESCRIBE YOUR MEETING?We met at my brother’s birthday party in Shanghai, and instantly hit it off as we had both studied film at USC. We are both total film buffs and love to spend our spare time watching DVDs.

HOW DID JONATHAN PROPOSE?I came home to find our dogs, Pookie and Lucky, in doggy-tuxedoes, and Jonathan in a matching suit. He had put rose petals and candles all over the room, along with everything that we had exchanged and collected during our courtship, such as cards, letters, ticket stubs and photos. The actual proposal was delivered classic style – on bended knee. WHY DID YOU CHOOSE

BALI FOR YOUR WEDDING?I’ve always dreamed of a destination wedding. I was born in Indonesia; Bali was the perfect amalgamation of a romantic location that also reflected my nationality. We didn’t want a huge wedding with thousands of people, we just wanted to invite those closest to us, and have a blast over a few days!

HOW DID YOU SELECT THE VENUE? Of all the resorts we scouted Alila Soori was the most attentive, personalised and eager to

have our wedding. They invited us to spend a night to experience their villas, arranged for us

to meet the GM and the executive chef, and staged a food tasting based on our culinary preferences. We loved their flexibility with

all our events and the fact that we could do a buy-out so the hotel staff could concentrate solely on our wedding.

WHAT WERE THE

HIGHLIGHTS?After reciting our own vows – mine, in tears – the pastor said “You may

now kiss the bride,” our wedding planner Donna surprised us with the release of 200 pink and white balloons into the air as Jonathan

and I kissed as husband and wife.

WHEN DID YOU REALISE THAT

YOU WERE ACTUALLY MARRIED?When we came back to our villa from the after-after-

party, and saw the roses strewn all over our room, with petals that spelled out “Just Married” on our bed!

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DREAMWEDDING

The theme was family and respect for our traditions and cultures, but we added a modern twist by personalising the venue, with framed photographs of our family on display. After the ceremony we had what’s called “gate crashing” games, where the bridesmaids play tricks on the groomsmen.

CHINESE TEA CEREMONY

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DREAMWEDDING

We wanted to welcome our guests in a grand way, and planned this dinner like a festival, with brightly coloured stilt walkers, acro-balance waiters, (who seemed like waiters serving food until they suddenly broke out into acrobats,) and fire dancers. Jonathan and I built up the anticipation with a royal entrance as we were carried in on a gold carriage by muscle men, led by exotic belly dancers.

Once we arrived at our “thrones,” the belly dancers surrounded the groom and his ‘best men’ while the muscle men surrounded me and my harem of bridesmaids. Our attendants proceeded to fan us with peacock feathers (which I brought from Shanghai) and fed us grapes! A lot of tropical fruits were used in the floral arrangements to conjure feelings of royalty and grandeur, such as grapes, apples, pineapples and gold painted fruits. We also used a lot of lanterns hanging from the tent ceilings.

KINGS & QUEENS WELCOME DINNER

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DREAMWEDDING

PRE-WEDDING BRUNCH

I love a white and yellow colour palette set against a beach backdrop, so we created the entire setting in these colours, and gave out yellow sarongs to the ladies and white linen shirts to the men. We chose comfort food like eggs, waffles, hot dogs, French fries, and cupcakes to ease any hangovers.

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DREAMWEDDING

We chose white for the ceremony, with a splash of soft pink and green. The serene floating altar and gazebo were custom-built on top of the swimming pool with the ocean as a backdrop creating an “infinity” effect. Jonathan walked in with both our mothers, then the processional, with each bridesmaid holding a white lace parasol – I thought this would be a romantic touch, different from the usual bouquet, it also helped keep my bridesmaids shaded under the Bali sun. I picked the billowing fabric and mint-teal colour of the bridesmaids’ dresses to evoke a cool romantic feeling. I was very nervous but everything looked so dreamy through my veil that it helped calm my nerves.

THE WEDDING CEREMONY

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ALILA

DREAMWEDDING

I wanted the night to be romantic, elegant and sophisticated, and I loved the idea of chandeliers and candles with lots of crystals and mirrored surfaces. The theme was lavender, pink and white, the inside of the tent was covered in white fabric, with pink and purple LED lights creating the vibrant colours. I surprised Jonathan by working with singer/songwriter Tariq to sing “Deb & Jon’s Story” on the guitar. The after party continued in the same tent; we served supper at midnight to keep guests dancing into the morning hours. The after-after party continued at the villa. .

RECEPTION DINNER

Photographer: Emily Scannell/Borrowed Blue Old New

Wedding Planner: Chic Events Venue: Alila Villas Soori

Veil: Erica KoeslerWedding Gown: Customized Vera Wang

Dinner Gown: Oscar De Le Renta, Monique Lhuiller, Temperley London

Shoes: Jimmy ChooJewellery: Family heirloomsFloral Decorations: Bloomz,

Heliconia, Bunga AyuCelebrant: Pastor Donald Butera

Caterer: Alila Villas Soori; Bali Catering CompanyStationery: Siem Offset

Cake: Ixora

CREDITS

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ALILA

1. Pre-wedding brunch cupcakes 2. Thank you stationery with Deb+Jon shortbread treat 3. Personalised mint tins: "Deborah & Jonathan. Mint to be!" 4. Our invitations were designed as an aquarium box with starfish and seashells. 5. We designed a “Passport to Love” book containing information on the bride, groom, attendants and the schedule of events. 6. Perfectly Sweet - Deb & Jon's jar of honey 7. Personalised amenities were part of the welcome basket. 8. When guests arrived in Bali we set up ‘Welcome’ road signs ‘This way to happily ever after’ and posted them along the route to Alila Soori. 9. Our “Passport to Love” included pages filled with personalised visa stamps illustrating our life’s moments. 10. Fans printed with wedding ceremony schedule on one side and ceremony participants on the other side. Bonus: Deborah, realizing her passion for the creative planning process leading up to her wedding, recently launched her own Shanghai based wedding consultancy: www.djweddings.com

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Thank you card featuring Deb & Jon holding thank you sign (taken in Shanghai)

MYSTYLE