Today, I'm thankful for many things. Family, friends, good food and this Vancouver loft wedding from Tunde & Tamara that takes simple + pretty to a whole new level. After a civil ceremony a few months prior, this bride and groom planned an informal gathering for their nearest and dearest filled with sweet DIY details and personal touches. Click here to see it all!
Vancouver Loft Wedding from Tunde & Tamara
Click here for the FULL wedding!
From the Bride... Brian proposed in February 2012, and we were married June 15, 2012. My mom helped us set the date, which seemed a bit soon, but she was in the late stages of stomach cancer. Sadly, she passed away in late April and our wedding plans were up in the air. We finally decided to be married on the chosen date, but we scaled it back to a very private and simple civil ceremony, followed by an informal gathering of our closest friends.
Brian and I had been in a long-distance relationship for almost three years, so we had the additional challenge of planning a wedding from a distance. He from Raleigh, North Carolina, and I am from the interior of British Columbia. Vancouver is where we now live together and it was important for us to have it here. Our dear friend Yvonne volunteered to cook for many days straight to feed everyone at the wedding, making efforts to create authentic North Carolina BBQ dishes (for him) and lots of mushrooms and cheese (for me). We couldn't decide on one cake, so she baked three! A gluten-free chocolate cake, a layered vanilla cake and a fresh fruit cheesecake. We had many wonderful contributions from friends and family, with personal touches ranging from our handmade wooden ring box to freshly-brewed lavender lemonade.
It was considered inauspicious to perform many of the Chinese wedding traditions so soon after the passing of my mom, including the tea ceremony. When a younger sibling gets hitched before an older one, they are supposed to duck under a pair of their sibling's pants on their wedding day! That is one thing we did do. And ever since we were young, my older brother had threatened to crash my wedding in a "bear costume." I was not expecting him to go through with it, but he did. We got the keys to our venue just the day before our wedding and spent the evening there cutting and arranging flower stems and hanging garlands. Everything came together beautifully, and we were able to be relaxed, hang out and eat good food on our wedding day. It was the one sunny Vancouver day that entire week.
Wedding Photography: Tunde & Tamara / Wedding Venue: A Private Residence in Gastown, Vancouver, British Columbia / Flowers: Blooms from Celsia Florist + Arranged by the Bride & A Friend / Lunch Catering: A Friend of the Bride & Groom / Dinner Catering: Vij's / Wedding Cakes + Dessert Catering: A Friend of the Bride & Groom / Macarons: Faubourg / Typographic Print + Menu Labels: Abi Huynh (Brother of the Bride) / Mini Succulent Favours: Art Knapp / Wedding Dress: Free People / Bride's Shoes: Diane von Furstenberg / Bride's Necklace: Inherited from the Her Mother / Bride's Hair: Leo Tran of Nick International Hair Studio / Bride's Makeup: Vicki Luu (vickiluu11@gmail.com) / Groom's Suit: Lee's Tailors / Groom's Tie: Good Heavens / Groom's Shoes: John Fluevog / Rings: Bario-Neal