This is a beautiful wedding filled with DIY details! Captured by Viera Photographics, Lan and Alvin were married on a gorgeous October day at a private residence near San Francisco, California. The couple spent much time bonding during bike rides, so they used bicycles as theme throughout their event. The bicycles made an appearance on the DIY programs and escort cards, as well as on custom water bottles that were given to guests as party favors. After the couple sliced their wedding cake with a giant samurai sword, the reception continued with tons of dancing. Such a fun event!
A few words from the bride:
Alvin and I got engaged at the end of May, and decided to have the wedding in October because it’s the most beautiful month in the bay area, and autumn happens to be my favorite season.
We wanted to have an intimate venue so we chose to have our ceremony and reception at a private residence in Hillsborough, in the hills about 20 miles south of San Francisco where we live. We chose this location because we loved the California Mission design of the house inspired by Spanish architecture. There was an outdoor balcony that perfectly seated our 120 guests, and the rooms in the house were perfect for the bridal party to get ready in. Going up the stairs outside there was a patio where we chose to set up our cocktail hour, so our guests could enjoy the view of the bay. The grassy lawn also held 12 tables and the dance floor. We made a lot of the decorations ourselves, including the centerpieces, seating card holder, the wooden arch behind us for the ceremony, menus, and programs. We knew we had to add more lighting since it was an outdoor reception, so we bought tiny LED lights to put into the call lily bulbs. Votive candles also added some ambient lighting and lovely scents (vanilla and lavender). Our friends wrote mad libs which we printed for our guests to fill out during the reception. We also bought some Fujifilm Instax Cameras and film for our guests to take mini polaroid shots during cocktail hour. Those turned out to be very popular! We wanted to have an intimate and romantic environment for the evening where we could spend this special event with our closest family and friends, and we were delighted to be able to achieve that in this setting.
Photographer: Viera Photographics // Videographer: IQ Videography // Ceremony + Reception Venue: Private Residence, Hillsborough, CA // Catering: Becker Crowley Catering // Rentals: Classic Party Rentals // Bridal Gown Designer: Coan Couture // Bridal Gown Store: Bridal Image // Bridal Shoes: Jimmy Choo // Bridal Veil/Headpiece: Coan Couture via Bridal Image // Jewelry Designer: Leon Mege // Bridesmaid Dress Designer: Coan Couture // Bridesmaid Dress Store: Bridal Image // Tuxedo + Mens Attire: Danny’s Fashion Custom-made Suits // Groom’s Shoes: Salvatore Ferragamo // Cake Designer: Los Higas de Gallo // Floral Designer: Joann Cai // Makeup Artist + Hair Stylist: Beauty by Maile Hair and Makeup Design // Invitation Designer: KatBlu Art & Design Studio // Wedding Planner: Elaine Lan Events // DJ: Alantheselector // In lieu of Photobooth: Fujifilm Instax Mini // Officiant: Kevin Won and Aaron Young, friends // Lighting: Got Light? // Submitted via Two Bright Lights