He says: R-E-N-O-V-A-T-E!!

It seems the change in lifestyle with Diary and Design Wedding has made it harder to blog regularly (which I see from other wedding associated vendors as well). In addition, my new toy (Xbox 360) is really taking up my time [Xbox Live Gamertag is 'Kiongster', add me!]. But stay tuned as we try to upload the photos of the weddings we have done recently: the colorful wedding at Batam, the romantic musical wedding in Fullerton, the deja-vu wedding in OMSQ and the dreamy wedding in Burkill Hall.

But while we are preparing for other people’s wedding, we are meeting different contractors and IDs for our dream home as well. It is renovation time!! As we await our keys to come from HDB (what’s taking them so long!), we are sourcing the right vendor. I am surfing around at the various forums such as Renotalk and Punggol.org to see what others are doing and the various tips available out there. One thing’s for sure, there is much MORE renovation blogs than wedding blogs out there. Guess a lot of Singaporeans like to share on the ideas they have of their humble abode.

Again, Hellen is not your typical Singaporean gal (well, she’s Indonesian for a start) and her ideas are different. That’s what I loved about her: not conforming and having the ability to dream and make the dream come to pass. She’s like the Asian version of Martha Stewart…. And of course you can find her Interior Design Board here.

And if you are a tru-blu Singaporean who is looking for a  renovation blog that is informative and useful, here’s one I want to recommend: “All you need to know about Renovation“. They really provide quite a lot of useful info (especially in the Popular Posts section) for transforming your little HDB flat into a space you absolutely adore!

We promise the next post to be full of pics!

He says: Wedding and the Social Media

After seeing how Hellen is helping the various couples who engage her, I do see a general desire for a couple to do something creative for their wedding. I guess it’s not about couples not wanting a special wedding, but couples generally have problems conceptualizing and executing their wedding. With the recent General Election in Singapore, it seems that social media is playing a huge part in the outcome. A recent website that was given to us by a couple gives me further ideas of how we can do wedding the ‘Social Media’ way. Using this website as an example, I will propose some ideas that couples can integrate in their own wedding!

[Some disclaimer here though: As this is a US wedding with overseas guests, some of the ideas here may not be applicable for all.]

Welcome to the Wedding of Adam and Kari Smith!

Welcome one and all!

 Idea #1: Webpage as your invite

Rather than paying for envelopes and printers for the official invite, why not make your webpage the invite itself? Of course the limiting factor will be the less tech-savvy relatives and friends you may have… The more traditional guests will definitely prefer something more solid, but I believed in a few years’ time, this will become more popular with (almost) everyone going online.

Idea #2: Programmes and Itinerary

This is especially useful for overseas guests, who may not be familiar with what to do in town when the wedding is not the focus anymore. In this example, the couple proposed different options for the accomodation, food, shopping, leisure activities and nightlife. Another suggestion will be putting the actual programme in there (if it is not too much of a surprise).

Idea #3: Directions

Thank God for Google Maps and all the other map websites out there! After going through a wedding myself, I know that other than hotels and famous landmarks, some outdoor wedding venues are quite hard to get to (ok, I admit… including mine). Having the online map such as in this example, makes it much easier for the guests to find how to get to the place.

Idea #4: RSVP

Having a form online to do your RSVP is both convenient and easy. Of course we cannot depend on just the online aspect for RSVP, as normally, a vast majority of the guests still need the phone to prompt them. Websites such as evite is popular in garnering online RSVP as well.

Idea #5: Well Wishes

It is also possible to provide a space on the webpage for the guests to send in their well-wishes. Contemporary ideas nowadays include the always-reliable guest scroll and wishing trees. We can make full use of the internet by letting the guests add in their comments of well-wishes and even video wishes. Well, we still have all these, don’t we…

The Whole Social Media Gang

A wedding is still one of the most beautiful day of your life, don’t let social media take away the intimacy!

 

He says: The Community

While Hellen links a lot of wedding-inspired websites and blogs in her posts, quite a few websites link to ours as well. In the course of looking through those websites, there are several cool sites out there that I believed will interest and inspire the BTB and GTB for the preparation of their wedding. I will like to share some of the interesting and quirky ones, so that YOU can be inspired and believed that the perfect dream wedding that you want is absolutely within your reach.

1. DIY Wedding | Craftgossip

Craftgossip is a wonderful network of sites that touches on different topics. DIY wedding is one of the newer sections and the sharing ranges from event decoration, invitation, cake toppers (my favourite!), table settings, guest books and wedding accessories. Very cool and in a way, quite minimalist as well. Highly recommended to check out!

2. The Urban Bride

This site is manned by a team of cool ‘urban’ ladies (well, seriously, there isn’t a lot of ‘rural’ gals in Singapore right?), showcasing cool, unconventional wedding, for gals that loved the ‘Sex and the City’ lifestyle. The only downside of this site is that, it has not been really updated for a few months… maybe it has been relocated?

3. Pinterest

Rather than a regular blog, this is more of a pin board for the entire internet community. See what you like from anywhere online and pin the picture and link on the wall! As simple as that, you can share your love out there. When you just need some inspiration, you can go there and check out the random stuff pinned. Hellen’s dollies envelopes are pinned!

And finally something that has nothing to do with wedding whatsoever…

4. Do Nothing for 2 Minutes

Are you panicking and your mind going all over the place with wedding preparation? Maybe you just need to calm down in this fast-paced world and the lead-up to the most important day of your life. Take 2 minutes of your life to take a deep breath and enjoy a moment of solitude and calm. One of the greatest joy in life is to enjoy doing nothing, don’t you think so?

He says: Diary and Design Inspiration Boards!

It has been quite some time after our wedding, and both Hellen and I are involved in different things. But one thing my wife is really going all out for is her Diary and Design wedding planning business. As a wedding designer, I see how she takes everything absorbed from the various resources (websites, books, other people’s weddings, etc) and create wedding theme or what she call “Inspiration Boards” for her couples. To me, that is the most impressive thing that comes from her for the wedding business and she is indeed talented in what she’s doing.

Here’s a couple of her Inspiration Boards and my commentary on it:

A sophisticated bluish theme that brings winter back to sunny Singapore!

In this inspiration board, different shades of blue are used, bringing about elegance and sophistication to the wedding. It is more recommended when the wedding is meant to be more formal and classy. The wish tree that is made of glass (or even ice if possible) will be a wonderful decoration and highlight of the wedding.

Beach weddings are always unique and fresh!

Beach weddings is something that can definitely be done in Singapore, in spite of the hot weather. The sea breeze and clear sky will definitely bring with it a special experience for the guest. The key in this theme is the abundance of flowers. The selection of flora brings with it an added element of ‘freshness’ when compared to other beach weddings.

Less ‘beachy’, but still casual, and taking the sea into your wedding

How about using some seashells in your wedding? A wedding based on the sea and the shells, near the sea and casual.. definitely a wedding I hope to be a part of. Best recommended for a couple that has some romantic story related to the sun, the sand and the sea!

Here’s just a small sampling of the work my wife did (and the source of the pics are from all the wedding websites out there, credit!). Do check out the works here for their contact and wedding planning packages!

He says: Thank You (Part 2) – Alvinadeline Videography

Our very Capable Videographers!

To me, a very important aspect of the wedding banquet or service are the videos shown. Through the couples’ creativity, we can find funny MTVs or life stories or even appreciation videos from friends all around. However, these videos can all be done way in advance. The wedding videographer that has to do the same-day-edits (SDEs) for the morning highlights in time for the evening banquet is the one with the really tough job. After watching the numerous wedding videos in preparation for our wedding and Hollywood movies for my own entertainment, camera shots and angles have become something quite fascinating to me. I am not going to research and be an expert in this, but I marvel when the videographer are able to capture that right moment that brings out the best of the couple in motion.

Recently our videographers, Alvinadeline updated their blog regularly again. Juggling between moving to their new office, shooting all the weddings and preparing themselves for the peak period of weddings coming at the end of 2010, I think it will not hurt to give them further endorsement of how well they have handled our weddings. Credit to Hellen of course for decorating and designing the wedding with the photographs and videos in mind.

Personally, I want to thank Adeline for being really nice in introducing their videos to us and ensuring us that they will be able to do a good job. Alvin and the assistant was real friendly and reassuring during the actual shooting, and it’s quite amazing how the 2-man team was able to produce the wonderful video with just 2 guys. A very sincere ‘thank-you’ to the wonderful team! After the wedding, several friends enquired about the possibility of engaging them as well, giving further testimonies that the video produced was well-received.

Dear readers, if you have time, check out their portfolio to see some of the amazing work they have done!

Special mentions to… our wedding!

And a rather unique pre-wedding video based on Alice in Wonderland…

I have always been a fan of their SDE, so I will highly recommend them for any weddings!

One last note, when we were collecting our final DVDs from Adeline, we got more chance to talk to her and listen to her as she told us how she juggled her full-time job and part-time videography work in the past. This is so similar to Hellen, who has a full-time job, a part-time business as a wedding designer and being a full-time wife to boot! I guess chasing the dream will always require sacrifices, so if you think you are cut out for a dream big and unusual, step out and grab it!

He says: Thank You (Part 1) – Serene Koong

Well, as I return to blogging here, I will like to dedicate my next few posts to the people who made our wedding possible. Some seems to think that the wedding is all about the couple, but forget to appreciate the people who dedicate their lives to making the dreams of couples come true.

The first person that I want to thank is someone that is already making waves in the Chinese Pop scene in Singapore, and she is Serene Koong (龔芝怡). She is one of the 3 musicians (along with Matthew and Boon Chye) that played during our banquet. The music (with the piano and saxophone) and the beautiful singing voice of Serene really enhances the evening, as compared to CDs. Several guests reflected to us on the soothing music and simply how awesome Serene’s voice is.

Prior to the wedding, we did not know about Serene, just that she was a backup singer for Stephanie Sun. So imagine my surprise when I saw her album being presented in newspaper articles! So even when we are in the midst of our wedding preparation, she was readying her album release!

Since she did such a good job for our wedding, here I will do my part to promote her CD: “55:38:7″

Check out her songs here:  http://www.myspace.com/serenekoong

.. and see more of her promotional stuff here: http://blog.omy.sg/serenekoong/#

Serene's Debut Album!

He says: Diary of a Married Man

I’m back!

…… hmm……

Ok.. so no one is really expecting anything interesting from me, but what the heck! It has been 3 weeks since our wedding, and we are still settling down into our married life routine. The wedding was surreal in a sense and I was glad everything went according to plan. I will leave the inspirations, photos, videos and decoration stuff to Hellen, she’s better at putting everything together. She’s not resting on her laurels too, as she has been hard at work doing something absolutely amazing at home. I’m sure she will be showcasing it when it’s done *wink*.

But surprisingly, everything seems to be going well in these initial weeks, and I look forward to seeing Hellen every night at the end of the day! I just want to dispel this myth once and for all: you do not need to take effort on a wedding, it is the marriage that matters.

Let me tell you this, spending time and effort working on a wedding is an incredible way for a couple to get closer together. As we spend more time working on this project of a wedding, we learn more about each other, how we handle finances, our ideas, our short-comings and our talents. Therefore, if you can afford the time and effort, take time from your busy schedule to plan a wedding together, you may learn to love wedding and each other even more! This is what we called a true-blue “DIY Wedding”!

Just don’t be like them…

Telepathy... Failed

He says: Out of Singlehood and into Married Life!

Well… I have been waiting for quite sometime to write this so here goes….

Countdown to Wedding Day (19-06-10): TODAY’S THE DAY!!!!!

This is it, the big day! I have done what I could for the preparation, I don’t know what else I can do, so let’s believe that this weekend will be great and wonderful!

Thanks in advance to all the helpers who has contributed in one way or another to this occasion, just be glad I am going to be married only once!!

And thank God for giving us this awesome opportunity to unite as one!

Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not puffed up; does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked, thinks no evil; does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

1 Cor 13:4-7

Hellen and I thank you all!

He says: Letter to my Wedding Guests

I am finally back… to writing one more entry… haha, will try to do a few more before the wedding. Here I am going to write a simple letter to my wedding guests. If you know you are one of the ‘fortunate’ ones, please read on.

“Dear Friend,

It is with my utmost personal pleasure to invite you to Hellen and my impending wedding on 19-20 Jun. As a guest for this wedding, there are a few things I hope you can do.

1. Get Ready to Receive the Invites!

As you can see from this post, our invitations are almost ready and we will be passing it to you in the coming weeks. In this other post, you can have a preview of what you are going to receive. We sincerely hope that you like it and will be excited for us as we get nearer to this important weekend!

2. Come Dressed for the Occasion!

We will be having our wedding in 2 days. Please read your invitation carefully. We have 2 invitations, so if you got a set of 2, you are invited to both event!

Day 1 (19 June 2010) is an outdoor wedding which will be romantic and possibly solemn. The dress code is Summer Chic, so come in your most colorful dressings! Don’t be too casual but at the same time, stay comfortable as the weather could be real hot (35 degrees celsius yesterday!!). We will be providing what we can to make you as comfortable and cool as possible, so do not worry. We are envisioning an outdoor garden atmosphere so let’s make it possible!

Very nice summer chic suggestions!

I know you will look great in this!!!... unless you are a dude...

Day 2 (Sunday 20 June 2010) is our banquet celebration in Conrad, so come in your formal dressings or smart casuals. (Hellen’s edit: Our banquet is inspired by Breakfast at Tiffany’s the movie, as well as the color theme: Black-White-Tiffany. So feel free to dress up in Little Black Dress or channel your Audrey Hepburn obsession here!) For the guys, formal wear is preferable. But nice looking jeans with shirt is acceptable too..

It will be a fun-filled evening for all as you walked down memory lane with us through the night.

3. Provide Your Well-Wishes through the RSVP Page!

In our blog, we have an RSVP page, so please provide your RSVP through the page by adding a comment. You can give your advance well-wishes too as we will truly appreciate that!

4. Don’t be in a Hurry to GO!!

For both days, especially on the first day, we have some surprises, so don’t be in a hurry to go!! So after our matrimony service, enjoy the sumptuous food but stick around as we have something special for you! Yes, that means YOU!

5. Smile in spite of Anything!

A lot of what we are doing is dependent on the weather so please keep us in prayers for awesome weather (no rain but not too scorching hot also!!!) In addition, no matter how much we plan, some hiccups may occur. But no worries, keep smiling! I really hope that you can enjoy yourself and keep yourself pumped up throughout the wedding for the photos and videos.

So all in all, my dear friend, I hope you can enjoy this wedding as it marks our union. When you received the invites from us, make yourself available and get ready to enjoy an atypical Singaporean wedding and have a whale of a time!

Finally a little song that I love as I prepare myself for the wedding:

Thanks and see you there!

Yours sincerely,

Winston aka Wee Kiong aka Weiqiang aka Xiao Qiang aka Ah Kiong ah….

PS: Happy Mommy Day to all!”

Countdown to Wedding Day (19-06-10): 43 days

He says: The Golden ‘Compass’

An interesting news that came out these few days in the papers for all couples planning their wedding will be on the COMPASS fee. I think I will just like to consolidate some of the details from the online news around and probably clarify a bit on what I understand about this new ruling. (Disclaimer: Neither am I representing the Authorities and Singaporean wedding couples here, all I am saying here are my personal take on the ruling)

Here’s some interesting links:

National Council of Social Service Website on COMPASS Fee

FAQ on COMPASS

TODAYonline Article on COMPASS

So what is happening here? In a nutshell, it’s this:

Let’s say I’m a musician-singer-songwriter. I have been writing romantic songs for years. However, less and less people are paying for music since it is so readily available in the internet out there, with the bittorrents, streaming websites and even Youtube. I am not earning the money I deserved so there has got to be a way to protect the interests of people like me.  So COMPASS (The Composers and Authors Society of Singapore) was formed to protect and promote the copyright interests of people like me. My songs are now under COMPASS, so COMPASS has the rights to collect royalties on behalf of me and it will be distributed back to me after it is collected. Now I feel that my work is appreciated, I have rights to my work. I know my songs are likely to be used in weddings, so I have every rights to obtain a piece of the pie because I wrote and sang the song.

Let’s say I am a wedding singer / photographer / videographer. Part of my job is to use romantic music. Whether it is in my songs sung, photo collages or wedding videos, I need music. I do not want a Charlie Chaplin video happening. But this COMPASS has just came out of nowhere and slapping a royalty fee upon me. No matter how much I love the wedding business, I have to make money to survive too, and I have never factor in this extra costs in my business model. So guess what? I need to channel this additional costs upon someone. Who? The consumers of course! But then this is a struggle. I need to remain competitive with a better package, but adding extra costs is not gonna help. Do I absorb it and cut down on my profits? Or let the wedding couples carry the burden?

Let’s say we are a couple planning for our wedding (which incidentally we are!). I need various things for my wedding and having wonderful wedding videos and music is part and parcel of creating the perfect romantic atmosphere in my wedding. I want music and I want classic music, those that my guests can immediately relate to and get immersed into the atmosphere. And I see this news about COMPASS. And I say to myself.. ain’t the music online free? Now I have to pay for them? Am I the scapegoat in this whole passing the buck incident? Now videographers are gonna costs more and I will have to pay? I don’t have the extra budget!! Who wants to pay extra money for something I could have gotten for free anyway!

Well, this is a chicken and egg problem when you come right down to it. One that involves copyright, business model, budget sheets and the ideal wedding setting. As a GTB waiting to get married, of course I will hate it for the buck to be pass to me. But I totally understand the burden of the wedding vendors, and the frustration of the song originators. How do you feel about this (especially if you are reading this, you should be planning your wedding)?

Countdown to Wedding Day (19-06-10): 77 days