Real Weddings: Story of Sam & Bernie, Thompson Baptist Church & Fullerton Hotel

Sam & Bernie came to us brimming with ideas to decorate and make their special day a memorable one for their family and friends.

After our initial meeting, they decided to go with Rosette Two: Design & Coordination because they wanted their friends to enjoy their special day instead of them feeling stressed on planning or having duties on the wedding day.

Through the planning process, we learnt a lot about Sam & Bernie. They are really receptive towards our ideas and our meetings usually took 2 hours filled with Bernie’s updates and detailed stories about how she feels about certain aspects of the decor and how her family and friends helped her along the way.

Sam is a Liverpool fan and he initially wanted the quote on the wall of Thomson Baptist Church to read “You’ll Never Walk Alone”. It was definitely appropriate but they decided in the end that his Man United supporting pals might not be too receptive of the quote and used “Two is better than one” instead. These are just tiny things the couple thought of to make this day special for everyone.

They are a pair who are really thoughtful and they must have had the longest Thank-You-and-Farewell line we’ve ever witnessed at the end of the wedding. With everything ending past midnight, Sam & Bernie were so thankful towards everyone and Bernie was saying how she wished this day wouldn’t end.

We really do miss our meetings with this blessed couple and we believe they will have a blessed marriage. (Updates: We’ll meet again at one of their emcee’s wedding later in July!)

P/s: We did meet them for ice-cream & waffles after the wedding and got to know that they will be staying in Utah for six months. Have a safe trip!

Here is their story:

1. How you two met?

We met in National Junior College as schoolmates when we both landed up in Math remedial after a poorly-done common test. Sam started helping Bernie with her problem sums and very soon they started talking about everything under the sun (except maybe Math)!

2. How was the proposal like?

Sam proposed to Bernie on her 26th birthday at Changi Airport Terminal 1’s viewing gallery, where they had their first date 8 years ago. Sam decorated the viewing gallery with balloons and pictures of her friends and family and got her friends to hide in the toilet till they arrived at the airport. Bernie was totally caught off-guard and even thought the balloons were meant for someone else’s birthday party! Hanging under each balloon was a picture of a close friend and his/her personal message to Bernie. After she had read all 26 balloons, her friends popped out of their hiding places to surprise Bernie. Sam then showed Bernie a video he had personally prepared of their journey together, before singing one of their favourite songs on his guitar. He then popped the question at the end of the song!

3. Why you chose the theme/style/color?

For the day, we wanted to keep things lighthearted, so it was important that the colours used were soft and cheery, and we decided on a palette of pink and ivory. However, we still wanted to achieve a smart look and thought navy blue would help to create that balance, hence the colours of navy blue and pink were chosen for the church ceremony. For the night, we decided rather quickly on a travel theme to represent the 8 years of long distance relationship we experienced and the frequent traveling we had to undertake as a result of being so far apart.

4. Which was the best part of your:

a. wedding day

Exchanging our vows was the best part of our wedding day as the words summed up our feelings and emotions, and reaffirmed why we were standing there celebrating the occasion. A wedding really isn’t about the good food or the fancy decor, it’s about two persons making a decision to embark on the journey of life together, for better and for worse.

b. decor

This is a tough question! We were especially impressed with the decor at the church reception as it was really so much better than we imagined it to be. We had ideas of what we would like, but seeing Rosette put them all together on the wedding day, and making it even better than we had expected, was really the bomb! All our guests had nothing but praise for how beautifully everything was done!

5. Any wedding planning tips or wedding advice?

Never ever forget the “why” behind all that you’re doing for the wedding, because at the end of the day, the small things don’t matter. Keep in mind that the wedding is just for a day, but marriage is for a lifetime.

6. Any tips or advice to what makes a strong marriage?

For us, communication is key! Since the start of our relationship, we’ve always made it a point to be honest and frank with one another about how we feel and are not afraid to keep talking things through till a compromise is met. Hiding things from your partner just because you’re afraid of the consequences only makes things worse in the long run (we feel)!

7. Why did you chose Rosette Designs & Co?

We really enjoyed talking to Hellen and Grace when we first met them, and found them to be very down-to-earth and humble people. They weren’t pushy and were attentive when listening to us share about our ideas for the wedding and what we hoped to achieve. We also liked that they were prompt in their replies and flexible to changes. When we later met Eunice, we found her to be a very calming presence, as she always knew what to do and we knew we were in good hands with her executing our wedding day!

Love,

Sam & Bernie

Photo credits to Bryan of Antelope Studios