I think every bride and groom come to a point in their planning where they want to just whisk everyone away to a tropical locale and tie the knot with the sound of the water nearby, but, let’s face it, it doesn’t happen as often as the ballroom soiree. So when it does happen, holy moly do we get excited. A beautiful wedding and a fab vacation all in one (and those just so happen to be two of our favorite things). It doesn’t get any better, especially when Ethan Yang Photography and his camera come along for the ride. Click here for more!
From the beautiful bride … We all knew that Danny had it in his blood to conjure up an over-the-top proposal. But I warned him ahead of time that due to my introverted nature, I would be mortified and would not respond to his proposal if he were to propose in a grandios way. However, he managed to turn our proposal into an incredible production, but making it perfectly fit for me! Danny knows that I am adventurous and enjoy being outdoors. So he devised a plan to have us meet in Los Angeles and stay with his older brother Paul and his wife Joann. I’ve never really been to LA before so this was the perfect setting for Danny to throw a curve ball at me and catch me off guard. His brother and sister in law were asked to be a part of the grand plan and of course I was clueless because Danny filled our itinerary there with sightseeing, hanging out with friends, and Disneyland as distractions. On the second day of our trip, his brother and sister in law sit us down and handed over an envelope with a voucher in it for a HELICOPTER TOUR of LA. They said that they had won this package at a company function but because of their kids they never had the time to enjoy it. But I noticed that Joann seemed super disappointed that they were giving this package to us. She didn’t even look our way. So I insisted that they go on the tour and that Danny and I would stay home to babysit. Little did I know that this was part of the proposal. After going back and forth for a bit, we finally agreed to take the voucher, but I felt bad because it still seemed as though Joann really wanted to go. I found out later that she couldn’t look our way because she’s a bad liar and that she was avoiding eye contact to prevent herself from giving it away! Anyway, long story short, we were on this amazing tour of LA getting a bird’s eye view of incredible homes and famous landmarks as well as the beautiful western coast. The tour also stopped on a peak overlooking Malibu and it was on this peak that Danny asked me to marry him! After the tour, he brought me to a nail shop, made reservations at a salon for me to get my hair done, and prepared a nice formal dress, complete with shoes and a bag, for me to change into. My older sister Jeanie helped him choose those items when he stopped over my parents place in Baltimore to ask for permission to marry me. He brought them to LA and had it all set up strategically after the helicopter tour. After both of us were all readied up and changed into our evening attire, he brought us back to his brother’s place in Torrance and there we were surprised by all of our friends and family in the LA area for a surprise engagement party! It couldn’t have been more perfect for me.
Danny and I always knew we wanted to have a destination wedding, mainly because we wanted our families to get together to celebrate our wedding over an extended period of time. It’s nearly impossible for all of our relatives to spend time with one another being that we are all separated throughout the states and in Korea. Also, my parents being immigrant parents had never had a proper vacation for 30 years! So, I wanted to give them a great excuse to finally reward themselves with some tropical sun and of course to witness their youngest daughter get married! We knew this would be an exceptionally emotional occasion, as Danny and I were planning to relocate back to Seoul where we had met. Thus, we definitely didn’t want an ordinary local wedding, rather an intimate celebration of two families joining together on the Caribbean islands!
Destination wedding, yes, but where?! We wanted a specific look. We did what most people would have done and “googled” some key words that best described our look. And after a perusing through a few pages and over a few days, Danny shouted “I think I found it!” but I of course was a bit skeptical because we had been looking for a while and it was looking like we had to settle. It seemed too good to be true, but one picture led to another and sure enough it was as though this resort and destination was EVERYTHING we’ve wanted and more! The instant draw was the spanish inspired architecture as well as the bright beautiful colors on some of the walls of the venue. The water was incredibly blue and it was a beautiful mix of rustic tones and pretty chic to say the least. We recognized that our wedding photos are what will remain even after our memory fades, so we wanted to look for a venue that would take the best photos and have the best photographer shoot it. I am not sure if this is the best way to narrow down your choices, but it really helped in our decision making process.
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Photography: Ethan Yang Photography | Venue: Sanctuary Cap Cana | Dress Designer: “Amaranth” by Monique Lhuillier, from Betsy Robinson Bridal Boutique | Bridesmaid Dress Designer: Monique Lhuillier | Shoes: Jimmy Choo & Vince Camuto | Veil: Etsy | Boutonnieres: Etsy | Invitations & favors: Bride’s DIY | Jewelry: Vintage Ben Sherman earrings | Hair Stylist: Linda Chae