When Dino Ocampo, a friend & colleague back from when I worked in the industry, mentioned that he was to settle down with fellow creative Pia Roxas, I knew their wedding was going to be anything but cookie cutter. With the help of stylist Candy Reyes, they managed to infuse their wedding with elements that reflected their personal fancies – a shared love for travel, diving, photography, curios, and of course, writing. What struck me most about the decor is the predominance of paper elements – quite appropriate for a marriage between two people who weave words for a living, yes? – so that’s what I chose to feature here:

Dino Ocampo & Pia Roxas' wedding

Clockwise from left:
1/2. Custom postcards featuring their photography were handed out for guests to write messages on (what a great idea!)
3. Instead of bouquets, the bride her entourage carried bags with a “paper flower” on top.
4. Huge paper flowers made by hand by an urban poor community.

Dino Ocampo & Pia Roxas's wedding

Clockwise from left:
1. Paper flowers abloom all over the tables in the reception area.
2. Paper bag luminaries light the path to and from the garden.
3. Another shot of the guest postcards.
4. Folded paper hats & stars printed with the couple’s writings for guests to take home.

Read more about their wedding in an upcoming issue of Wedding Essentials magazine. They also have a wedding blog filled with comprehensive wedding preparation step-by-step photos and tips [here].

Related posts:

1. Inviting Invites
3. James Reyes: The Drama of Wedding Gowns

It feels good to be back =)

After 6 long months, the next issue of Wedding Essentials will hit book stores and magazine stands in a week. WE`re all excited to share with you what WE`ve been busy with- the more we look at the black book (same book in Ugly Betty containing print-outs of the pages of the magazine), the more WE think it`s a wonderful issue (ok, ok, we`re a bit biased =P).

In 7 days, you`ll be able to

a. know what WE mean and hopefully, agree that it`s a beautiful issue

b. check out wonderful wedding discoveries of WE

c. win in our online contest

d. all of the above

***c. – will post mechanics in the next few days, so pls come back to our blog to check for updates. WE assure you it will be a nice prize. Maybe even prizes (keeping our fingers crossed!)

In the meantime, here`s a little preview to whet your wedding planning appetite a bit.

1. Do you really need that mile- long cathedral train? Or the same fully beaded Inno Sotto gown Ruffa wore when she walked down the aisle with Yilmaz? Kit Kwe, a real bride-to-be (and award-winning fictionist), gives the lowdown on how to recession-proof your wedding (translation: How to have a great wedding without busting your budget). After all, Kit says in her story, `no one ever got arrested for skipping the garter toss`…

2. Guess where this is? =) It`s not in Tagaytay, nor in Baguio. This place in B_t_n_a_ is one of our WE Discoveries in the issue.

3. Pls trust us when we say that you don`t have to be a model to look strikingly beautiful in your wedding pictures. Years in advertising taught us that (and Mica Tuanio, the writer of this piece is still in advertising)

But. You have to know your angle and practice, practice, practice. Personally, I think my best photos of myself were during my wedding years ago.

4. One of the 4 dream themes for this issue is this beautiful set-up by Jing Tanada at the Conservatory of The Manila Peninsula, in collaboration with planners Nenita Zagala and Ruby Ines. It was our first time to work with Manila Peninsula, but it definitely won`t be the last. This is quite memorable because it took our photographer Terry Uy, less than 3 hours to finish the entire photo shoot (which usually takes about half a day)- thank you Nenita and Ruby for orchestrating this well-planned photo shoot. Because we finished early, we also err, finished most of the desserts on the buffet table set up by the chef. Oops!

Some chocolate related- aha!- moments

Terry Uy, photographer

Dr. Michael Young, saxophonist

Sorry guys, don`t have pics of the girls eating chocolate- wink =P

Related posts:

1. Here WE are, =)
2. And the winner is…
3. Wedding Essentials Beautiful Weddings 2009

Will post a little of each of the places we went to with the Havaianas Busuanga team (composed of Mar, one of the winners of the Havaianas Flippin` for the Beach contest (with his sister Cecile), Anton Diaz (with wife Rache) of the popular Our Awesome Planet blog, photographer Jake Verzosa, Havaianas` brand manager Ammiel, writer Annabs, Creative Juice`s Ria and Studio 23 news manager Vince Rodriguez with his team) over the next few days.

1. Kayangan Lake, Coron

I know this photo I took is a common postcard shot but I still love it because it`s as real as I remember it to be.

According to our guide Alexine of El Rio Y Mar- Kayangan Lake is the cleanest lake in the Philippines twice or thrice over- depending on which site you check. I believe her. Regardless of where you check, seeing in a way, is believing- who wants to swim with this school of needle fish?

Here`s Annabs- who was initially afraid of the water- braving it to experience the bliss of it after

but to get to this…

you have to go through this…

I`d like to say it`s not as tiring as it looks to climb up to where the picture perfect scenery is-but it is. But it`s worth it. The awe will last a lifetime.

Till tomorrow`s post!
Cheers!

Related posts:

1. Taiwan
2. DoT explores the Japanese wedding market
3. Keep Calm and Rock On