[Wedding series 9] - Alternative venues

Wow, Friday’s here and one week has passed yet again! I barely blinked ;p Well, this brings us to another installment of the wedding series!

You know, I’ve always lamented the lack of interesting and “characterful” venues for weddings here in Singapore. With envy, I droll over the gorgeous images of overseas weddings held in farmhouses, in the open fields, by the hills. Like I mentioned in my previous post, weddings here are typically held in hotel ballrooms. This is primarily because hotels dangle attractive packages. This translates into great convenience for couples as most things such as food, décor, set up are covered.

Oh, and I must add that one of the reasons is also that we have huge guests lists. Guess what? I have a guest list of 300! How in the world did the list stretch to such a length? My memory tells me I’ve never won Miss Popularity in school or anything of that sort (nope, neither did my fiancé). The last I did a count, my personal guest list came up to no more than 30. Well, the reason for this is that Asian weddings are family affairs. One’s entire extended family (paternal and maternal) are involved. Additionally, your parents would want to invite their business contacts, some colleagues, some friends etc (you get the drift). I would love for a small intimate wedding dinner with close friends and family, like this image here (which I just can’t get out of my mind.) We can all be ourselves, be relaxed and laugh a lot.

[image from Tec Petaja Photography]

But well, a huge wedding dinner is part of my culture which I must accept. Afterall, it’s your parents chance to share their joy with everyone else, surely you can help them with that?

But, if your guest list is not that huge, there are beautiful venues (other than hotels) in Singapore where couples can hold their weddings. Here are a few:

Sentosa – One of the benefits of living on an island-- no need to head to Bali or some exotic beach for your dream beach wedding.

Halia Resturant – Singapore is also known as a garden city. So, have your wedding in the beautiful Halia Resturant nestled in the lush Singapore Botanical Garden.

Flutes at the Fort – A wedding in a charming black and white colonial bungalow built in 1908. Nice!



The White Rabbit – A beautifully-restored former chapel. I was considering this place but it would mean shrinking my guest list.




The Arts House – An arts and heritage venue in Singapore, this was built in 1827 and was Singapore’s first Court House and former Parliament house. I particularly love the Blue Room and Chamber shown here. It would be a stately wedding! Your guest would have a thrill sitting in the chamber as they witness your solemnisation!

By the way, a number of these are resturants/bars, so you can check them out if you visit too!

[click on images to enlarge]

[images accordingly from: Sentosa, Halia Resturant, Flutes at the Fort, The White Rabbit, The Arts House]

Wallpaper Obsession

Since perusing my copy of June’s Living etc, I’ve been obsessing over wallpaper. So pray thee, indulge me just a little. I seek but an outlet.

For the longest time, wallpaper is all fuddy duddy to me. That was until I stumbled into the world of interior decor/design here on the web a couple of years ago. And then, my entire concept of wallpaper was revolutionized. See, before that, holed up me was trapped with the image of peeling yellowish dull wallpaper. Since then, I have been dying to have wallpaper in the apartment and even resorted to painting on the walls when faced with budget constraints.

And now, onto the range of wall papers which are my current objects of obsession:

If you think bright and colourful screams “gaudy” and worse still, can’t in the world imagine these on an entire slab of wall, these wallpapers below from Brian Yates will totally change your mind. They are bright, cheerful and oh so cute! Similar designs in different colours create such different moods and effects. I really really *heart* the one with vintage-looking postcards (if I had it in the apartment, I would be starring at my gorgeous wall all day)! These are happy wallpapers!

[click on images to enlarge]

These wallpaper panels designed and handprinted by Deborah Bowness really caught my eye for being truly unique. Doing away with what are traditionally associated with wallpaper- floral designs, repeated patterns- Deborah integrates photography with wallpaper. Think images of everyday objects like clothing, books, chairs.



Thank you for indulging.

[images from top, left to right: 1-9 all from Brian Yates, 10 inspire*inspire, 11-14 all from Deborah Bowness]

Simplicity Rules - jackson, johnson & roe

Do you dress according to your moods? I do and this means that I sometimes am quirky with my dressing, but at other times I totally blend into the crowd (blaah…). I sometimes accessorise like a school girl who just discovered fashion, but at other times, simplicity rules. I love it this way! It means variety and it’s exciting too! Of course, it’s also a fantastic excuse to shop for clothes (I need them in all styles!).

Today, I’m into the simple and classic look. Have you heard of jackson, johnson & roe? It’s a womenswear line by 3 talented childhood friends, Sara Moffat, Teo Griscom, and Riley Salyards. Their brand name is inspired by their mothers' maiden names. I’m loving their simple, feminine and vintage style!

[images from jackson, johnson & roe]

Vintage Sewing Patterns

I don’t know how or when exactly I got so fond of all things vintage. But isn’t it fun to look at something old and think of whose hands it has passed through, what it meant to its previous owners, how things were like back then... It’s like attempting to peer into the past. And if you own something old, it’s like owning a little piece of history.

Today, I’m obsessing over these vintage sewing patterns from SelvedgeShop which I found randomly on etsy.

It’s not like I’m going to make cool dresses from them but owning them because of these beautiful prints on them would make me so happy! Don’t laugh but the second image reminds me of the vintage series of Archie comics (I said no laughing).


[images from SelvedgeShop]

Chocolate Love

I love chocolates. No, you’re not getting it. I LOOOVE chocolates. The act of taking a bite and having the flavour explode in your mouth, the velvety texture, the sweet sensation... followed by sheer warm, fuzzy happiness that fills your being from head to toe.

Perhaps feasting visually on some gorgeous chocolates will release some endorphins for me, minus the calories! How great is that? Here we go, chocolates galore!

Divine Chocolate – made with cocoa from farmers in Ghana who co-own the company. Because the cocoa is Fairtrade, the farmers are guaranteed an income. So everyone’s sweeter! I love it whenever I discover that there are more to companies than money-making. Read about the Divine story here.

[image from Divine Chocolate]

100% Chocolate Café - Ahh, Japan never fails to impress. These are 56 different types of chocolate. Am also loving their 365 days chocolate.
[images from Nekori via Lovely Package]

Mast Brothers Chocolate - Packaging papers to die for! Artisan-made chocolate bars wrapped in imported Italian papers. Breath-taking. They have a cool website too.
[images via from Cool Hunting via The Dieline]

Chocolove - The package design resembles a love letter and inside each wrapper you’ll find a classic romantic poem! Sweet!

[image from Chocolove]

Coco Chocolate – Isn’t the typography beautiful? Designed by Ruth Pearson.
[image from Ruth Pearson via The Dieline]

Chocolate Research Facility – This is right here in Singapore! Many have walked past the chocolate boutique wondering what exactly was being sold. Journals? Shoes?
[images from Chocolate Research Facility]

Milkman Chocolate – Aren’t these chocolates resembling old-fashion milk bottle caps lovely? Designed by Charita Patamikakorn and Nao Tamura.
[image from Box Vox]

Don’t forget about the wonderful Askinosie Chocolates which I wrote about here!

Back on!

Thank you for bearing with my absence the past week and thank you for the comforting words you left behind in the comments section. It's really nice to know that I can find support here in the blogsphere and that everyday as I blog, I am communicating with real and wonderful people like you out there. I'm back and hopefully the daily routine will help with the adjusting. Two things things:

First off, the lovely Karen from For Your Inspiration did an interview with me on things that inspire me, how I organise inspiration etc. You can read about it here. Thanks, Karen for the opportunity and I had great fun working with you!

Secondly, I've resumed posting, beginning with the 8th installment of the wedding series (see post below) which I put up every Friday. Do let me know if you have any feedback on this series or if there's anything you'll like to see appear.

Have a good weekend, everyone. Spend time with your loved ones, with your creative side, with nature. I'll see you on Monday!

[Wedding Series 8] - A favor for you

I have been asking a few people around me what they think of wedding favors. You see, traditionally in Singapore, favors haven’t really been given much attention. There are 999 other things a couple has to see to in the planning process and favors simply don’t feature prominently in the list of priorities. They are usually more than glad that favors are part of the wedding packages offered by hotels when they hold their reception in the hotel ballrooms. And because the hotels generally obtain their wedding favors from the same few suppliers, wedding favors here hold no surprises at all—luggage tags, chocolates, miniature photo frames, key rings…(yawn). You attend a few weddings and chances are you’ll have a few of the same items lying around your house.

In recent years though, with greater exposure and awareness (credit goes to all the wonderful wedding blogs out here), couples are now paying more attention to details (favors included) of a wedding dinner/reception, instead of just going through it like a ritual. Here are some wedding favor ideas:

Cakes and pastries

Candies

Cookies

Marshmellows and sugar coated almonds. I guess it’s obvious now that I have a sweet tooth.

Homemade goodness

I never thought of these but aren't fresh fruits a great idea? Healthy!

Cute miniature plants

Matches and sketchbooks

And now, to the crux of the matter: what should I prepare for MY wedding favors? A few friends have told me that I can never go wrong with chocolates while other lament that it’s oh so boring. What do you think? Any interesting suggestions that wouldn’t blow my budget?

[images from top, left to right: all from Martha Stewart Weddings, except 10 Miss Pickles Press via Ritzy Bee, 12 photography by Corbin Gurkin via Ritzy Bee, 13 Succulent Love Designs via 100 Layer Cake]