Ditching Tradition and Embracing the Tropics at Four Seasons Oahu

Lauren Megerdichian
November 5, 2024
Categories: The Blog

[section title=”The Planning”]

[field title=”Wedding Colors”][/field]

[field title=”Design / Vibe / Vision”]

The vision for my wedding was very clear from the beginning- ever since I was a little girl, I always told people that I wanted my wedding to be the most exciting party that I would ever attend. So the goal was to make it enjoyable not only for the guests but for us too. That’s why we spent a lot of time on programming and did many things that were different from normal “traditional” weddings. Regarding the vibe, when I first knew that I was going to get married in Hawaii, my biggest fear was that my wedding was going to look “basic”, for lack of a better word. The first design direction I had was European elegance with lots of candles, white flowers, and silk draperies… I wanted to recreate that majestic ambiance that I had experienced at Firenze, Italy. However, I quickly realized that that was unfortunately not going to be the best option for us, especially for an outdoor beach wedding in Hawaii. After re-strategizing, I completely shifted my plan and decided to embrace the natural beauty of the island. I was able to come up with a mood board that infused the tropical vibes with fun & trendy colors, while remaining thoughtful to keep the overall aesthetic very chic.

[/field]

[field title=”Proposal Story”]

I told my fiance that when we got engaged, I wanted my engagement to be a biggg party (I love parties as you can tell!) Our dating anniversary is on Jan 13th and it was our 4th anniversary in 2023 when he planned a staycation to celebrate our big milestone and surprised me with a stay at Nobu Ryokan in Malibu. On the 3rd night of our stay, he said we had a complimentary dinner at Nobu Malibu that was part of the stay, so I didn’t think much of it and went in thinking it would be a cute romantic dinner celebrating us. However, as our host was walking us to our table, she led us to the back of the restaurant and opened the doors to this back patio area which was filled with candles and flowers. I was so shocked and that’s where he got down on one knee and proposed. After we had our moment, they told us that dinner was ready in the room right next to us and when they opened the doors to the dining room, my entire family, my dog, and all my best friends from not only LA, but NY were there to surprise me!!! But there’s more- I was already crying at this point but as we got settled and the food was coming out, these two waiters came to serve my food and they were my other best friends from Korea! They flew out for 11 hours just for that weekend to be there for my proposal. There were so many layers of surprises this night. And after dinner, my sister surprised me with a whole closet of dresses to choose from for our after-party where we went out to a club with more of my friends. It was without a doubt the proposal of my dreams!

[/field]

[/section]

[board_carousel title=”Getting Ready”]

[/board_carousel]

[board_carousel title=”Bridal Portraits”]

[/board_carousel]

[board_carousel title=”Flat Lays”]

[/board_carousel]

[section title=”The Fashion”]

[field title=”Wedding Gown”]

I wore an Oscar De La Renta gown and veil. I loved my veil, the floral embroideries were especially perfect for Hawaii but something felt missing. So I semi-customized the veil myself. I wanted more flowers on the edge of the veil so it would look fuller, so we ordered more of the flower embroideries and during one of my fittings, I placed them individually at the atelier. That was an experience in itself and I had so much fun!

[/field]

[field title=”Bridesmaid Dresses”][/field]

[field title=”Groomsman Attire”]The groom wore a full Ralph Lauren Purple Label Tuxedo.

[/field]

[/section]

[board_carousel title=”Ceremony”]

[/board_carousel]

[board_carousel title=”Cocktail Hour”]

[/board_carousel]

[section title=”The Details”]

[field title=”Food & Drink”]

The food at the Four Seasons Oahu was amazing. We were lucky enough to visit before our wedding to check out the venue’s tasting menu and choose everything from the food to desserts to the wine. GG’s Signature Cocktail: Lilikoi Margarita with tequila, orange curacao, and lilikoi. JJ’s Signature Cocktail: Kona Coffee Martini with vodka, Kahlua, and Kona coffee

[/field]

[field title=”Florals & Decor”]

Huge shout out to our incredible wedding planners and florist Drawing Moment & Annie Lee Floral. We kept the decor and florals in theme with our color palette, but we made sure to not overdo it. Annie Lee Floral truly made magic! For the aisle, we opted to plant the stems into the ground rather than having ground pieces. We also went for a pop of colors in my bouquet, it was stunning! For the decor, we decided to do most things DIY. With the help of our wedding planners and countless late-night calls, we ordered essentially all things for the tablescapes on Amazon or Etsy… from the glass plate chargers to the candles, to the stationery and so much more – I honestly don’t know how we did it but we did it! Most importantly, I initially wanted the dining area to be fully covered with hanging flowers from above but decided on a more budget-friendly option. So that’s when we opted for the colorful drapings, and it was the best decision ever! The day of, the wind was a paid actor, and the way the drapes were flowing created the most dreamy ambiance and it was perfect – I couldn’t have asked for more! On top of that, the mirrored tables, the disco balls on the dance floor, and the B&W tiled dance floor brought everything together to create that fun, trendy, chic modern vibe I was going for.

[/field]

[field title=”Wedding Cake”]

We opted for a 3 tier ivory cake with baroque-style piping and our florist Annie Lee Floral added flowers and decorated the cake for us. We had 2 flavors – one was banana bread with chocolate frosting and one was vanilla with cream and fresh strawberries.

[/field]

[field title=”Readings, Ceremony Music, Reception Songs”]

We did our vows in both Korean and English. We had speeches from both of our younger sisters and they did amazing as well! It was so touching everyone was in tears. My best friend since high school who was the 1st violin of our high school orchestra, played my entrance song for me – Can’t Help Falling In Love with You- while I walked down the aisle. It was so special that I had to try hard to hold back the tears while walking down the aisle. There were so many more musical performances at this wedding… My dad and I waltzed to Waltz No. 2 by Shostakovich as our father-and-daughter dance. My husband and I sang a duet song as we made an entrance to the reception for dinner. And lastly, during the dance party, my dad and my husband went up on the stage where the band was performing and they performed Wonderful Tonight by Eric Clapton. My dad played the guitar and my husband was the vocalist.

[/field]

[field title=”Special Detail #1″]

Wedding Shoes – Crocs x Simone Rocha as my wedding shoes was iconic! As soon as I saw those online I knew I had to get them for my wedding. My husband called the store every week for 3 months until the drop date and he got a pair reserved for me (they were instantly sold out when they dropped online)

[/field]

[field title=”Special Detail #2″]

Seating Chart Wall- We gave out different Sanrio character plushies along with custom FS initialed luggage tags for all guests.

[/field]

[field title=”Special Detail #3″]

Instead of a traditional bouquet toss we played the ribbon cutting game where the last person standing received the bouquet. Thanks to our wedding planner Drawing Moment for suggesting this brilliant idea. It was so much fun!

[/field]

[/section]

[board_carousel title=”Couple Portraits”]

[/board_carousel]

[board_carousel title=”Reception”]

[/board_carousel]