Doreen and Stephen wed in a gorgeous garden tea party wedding blooming with vibrant flowers and whimsical tea cups at The Fullerton Hotel’s Roof Garden. From their delicious woodland-themed breakfast table spread to their delicate wedding arches of trailing vines, their wedding is full of pretty inspiration in a sweet palette of mint and lilac.
The Couple
Doreen Chew, 34 &
Stephen Poon, 37
Date of Wedding
28 Dec 2013
The Story
How did the two of you meet?
Doreen: Although Stephen and I are from the cosmopolitan cities of Hong Kong and Singapore respectively, fate has its own way of letting us meet while working as expatriates in the desert. We met during the summer of 2008 in Doha when we attended a Thai dinner gathering organised by a mutual friend. Stephen was the last to arrive because he had lost his way and I thought to myself, “Who is this good looking guy?” Seeing that he was so late and there was not much food left, I passed him a plate of leftover fish to eat and that was when we first exchanged looks.
We did not interact much during dinner and it was until when he drove me home that we began talking more. We had a pleasant chat in the car and exchanged numbers to keep in touch. We went on a first date shortly after and simply could not resist pairing up with all the sparks flying between us.
What was the proposal like?
Doreen: The proposal happened when we were on holiday at Jeju Island, South Korea in October 2012. We did a hike up to Seongsan Ilchulbong (Sunrise Peak) and Stephen proposed when we reached the top where it was just the two of us. It came as a total surprise to me because a proposal was the last thing on my mind after sweating and panting breathlessly from a mountain hike. It was certainly a top of the world feeling as nothing else mattered at that moment except that the two of us were going to be together forever after I said, “Yes.”
Tell us about your wedding preparations, and how that gorgeous breakfast spread came about!
Doreen: We did not want a cookie-cutter wedding package, hence we did it a la carte style. Choosing the right vendors took a bit of luck, lots of instinct and most importantly, having the right chemistry with the right people especially when we were not in Singapore to attend to details and would have to trust them to work magic on our wedding day. I would say that once you find the right vendors then half the battle is won.
Stephen and I also started a regular exercise regime to tone up our physique and ate a healthier diet to get that natural radiant glow. The only indulgence was a bit of wine and dine during our weekend dates but we have the perfect excuse – we needed to collect wine bottles to decorate our wedding venue!
Our wedding day began with a fantastic ‘Berry Merry’ breakfast feast. A magical woodland theme in warm, vibrant hues of berry red, wood brown, forest green, fuchsia and gold was used for a bright start to our wedding day. The morning was everything I hoped for – a relaxed and intimate moment with my wonderful girlfriends all of whom came to have breakfast with me before I got married. We treated ourselves to a sumptuous breakfast spread, and I also gifted each of my girlfriends with a macaron trinket box that I got from the United States as a memento to our years of friendship. I would definitely recommend this idea to couples who wish to skip the gate crashing and prefer something more chilled out. It beats having a ragged groom in diapers and eating wasabi biscuits anytime!
How would you describe your wedding? Did you choose a theme?
Doreen: I wanted our wedding to feel like an elegant, romantic and lively garden tea party because we enjoy spending time in cafes and tearooms tasting delicious desserts and tea. I also have an absolute soft spot for pretty tea cups and pots, paper napkins and glass bottles. A lively colour palette consisting of my favourite shades of green and purple accented by touches of ivory, pink and red was used to bring together various elements of our wedding.
We welcomed guests to our wedding at The Fullerton Hotel with an early afternoon cocktail reception at the Roof Garden which is a bright and airy area filled with the most natural daylight. Guests were treated to afternoon tea style canapés of cupcakes, cake pops, macarons and tartlets nestled among my personal treasures of mint and purple tea sets.
We were instantly charmed by the Straits Room with its breathtakingly beautiful chandeliers, barrel vault ceiling and wall motifs. I decided to enhance the room’s vintage elegance by infusing the space with an abundance of blooms and foliage for our ceremony and celebration.
The tables were decorated with high and low centerpieces to create depth and contrast, and glitter confetti strewn around for an added touch of sparkle. The aisle was lined with candelabras filled softly with flowers and ivy leaves. Glass bottles which we had collected over a year were filled with sweet little flower bunches and placed along the window ledge to catch the inviting daylight.
The stage backdrop was dressed up with lush clusters of purple and ivory flowers and cascading vines against sheer white drapery to create a secret garden wall vibe. The ceremony table decorated with petite crystal cups brimming with purple flowers and ivy leaves was one of my favourite floral details because it looked absolutely gorgeous!
The bride and groom chair signs were made to look like one of my favourite things – tea cups. The tables were named according to the variety of tea that I enjoy drinking. It worked out better than simply numbers because everyone found it easy to remember that table of ‘lemon’ or ‘mint.’
I did away with boring white cloth napkins and sourced for dainty floral paper napkins in shades of green and purple for the cocktail and lunch reception.
As soon as the formalities were over it was party time! The after party was held at the Post Bar where we let loose and reveled the evening away with drinks, music, and merry making with close friends.
Simply put, on our wedding day we wore stunning outfits and declared our love for each other with blessings from people that mean the world to us, promised to ride together the waves of adventure that life throws at us and celebrated our new beginning as husband and wife with delicious food and wine, live music and gorgeous surroundings that made for the most lively, romantic and intimate atmosphere filled with love, fun and laughter.
It was truly our best day ever.
Were there any moments on your wedding day that were particularly special to you?
Doreen: Our first march-in was truly one of the best moments. That moment when the doors to the Straits Room opened, I was totally blown away seeing all the details come alive together so beautifully for the first time. I remember trying to take it all in, for that moment in time to become forever etched in my memory. That moment was made more touching when family and friends began cheering as we walked down the aisle. My heart was absolutely overwhelmed with emotions and I was so close to bursting into tears of joy but I held it all back to remain picture perfect and not ruin my makeup. However as I stood on stage hearing the vows that my beloved groom had personally written to me, I simply could not – for the sake of sanity – hold back my tears anymore.
Our first dance as husband and wife was to ‘Love’ by Nat King Cole. Although we were surrounded by family and friends, dancing in each other’s arms at that moment felt like we were the only ones present in the room. Those few minutes of being completely engrossed in our own world was romantic, intimate and truly unforgettable.
Stephen was looking forward to a loud and boisterous ‘yam seng’ (toast) during the celebration as this was not practiced in Hong Kong. I gathered the help of my male friends to pump up the volume during our toast on stage. His expression at that moment says it all – he had a blast being the centre of attention!
The Details
The Venue: The Fullerton Hotel, Singapore
The Photography: Kelvin Koh, Lightedpixels Photography assisted by Bernice Wong, iwwi
The Videography: Yang, Substance Films
The Wedding Dress and Cheongsam: Letitia, Time Taken To Make A Dress
The Lunch Reception Dress: Emanuel B. Couture
The After Party Dress: Jessciacindy
The Groom’s Tuxedo: Cheung Hing Tailor, Central, Hong Kong
The Hair and Makeup: Alycia Tan
The Engagement Ring: Tiffany & Co.
The Hair Piece: Twigs and Honey
The Wedding Rings: Lee Hwa Jewellery
The Cake: Teo Pau Lin, Crummb
The Wine: The Straits Wine Company
The Flowers: Mirage Flowers
The Invitations and Paper Goods: Jaime, The Paper Bunny
The Breakfast Table Décor: MerryLove Wedding Things, Souldeelight (Calligraphy)
The Cocktail Reception Décor at Fullerton Roof Garden: Party Perfect
The Ceremony and Lunch Reception Décor at Fullerton Straits Room: Mirage Flowers
The Bridal Party Gift: Macaron trinket box, The Tomkat Studio
The String Quartet: Vetta Quartet
The Wedding Band: Rebecca Burch
The Emcee: Junxiong, A Little Dream
The Solemniser: Alex Tan Yan Boon
Credits: Photography by iwwi.
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