Fun fact  #1: I was a bridesmaids for one of my closest and oldest friend, Serene, at 21.

Fun fact #2: June 22nd, 2019 was one of the most fun and happiest days that I’ll cherish forever.

In today’s post I’ll be sharing my experience of how being a bridesmaids at Serene and Nathan’s wedding was through a chronological manner.

 

6:00 AM – 8:10 AM

My alarm goes off and I start getting ready for the big day. Giving myself ample time before getting picked up at 8:10, I do the majority of my makeup at home. And no, calling me out on how long I take to do my makeup is not necessary. Because I already know I take long. Hence, why I woke up at 6am LOL.

My makeup look consisted of foundation primer, foundation, eyebrows, bronzer, blush, highlighter and eyeshadow primer. (I decided to do my eyeshadow look and lips at Serene’s house).

 

8:10 AM – 11:00 AM

We drive to Serene’s house to start/finish our makeup and get our hair professionally styled. I went for a smokey eye (and for only practicing it once on myself prior to the day of and for almost never experimenting with eyeshadows before, I say I did a fine job.) I tend to tell myself that what looks dramatic in person will only look, at best, half dramatic in pictures. So, I made sure to pack a lot of eyeshadow on and blend blend blend. (Repeat this multiple times!).

I was the first bridesmaid to get my hair styled and I really liked how it turned out. The hair stylist curled my hair and did a half up half down look where she braided and twisted/crossed sections of my hair side to side to make an elegant and intricate look. The most important thing was that it felt secured and it was because it stayed like that for the entire day.

After our hair and makeup was done we all headed to a park to take the first look wedding photos.

 

11:15 AM –  12:00 PM

Although we were a bit strapped for time as we were scheduled to leave the park at noon to get to church before the ceremony, I think we did a great job at getting several different pictures taken… all thanks to Steve, our photographer! Steve was efficient at delegating who should stand where and how we should pose; it felt like a professional photoshoot!

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  Pic 1

This was my favourite photo! L to R: Clara, Serene, Ali, Nicole.

 

Can you believe that Serene MADE our bridesmaid’s skirts?! Yep, that’s right. My best friend is hella talented. And might I also add how aesthetically beautiful and complimentary our bouquet of flowers matched our outfits? Pastel purple is the way to go.

 

Serene also made the groomsmen’s ties! L to R: Loren, Hilton, Douglas, Nathan, Serene, Clara, Nicole and Ali.

 

12:oo PM – 3:30 PM

We left the park shortly after noon and arrived at Lord’s Grace Church, where the ceremony took place, at quarter past twelve. We had a little bit of time to recharge, touch up and refuel before the ceremony started at 1pm. We were provided Bánh mì for lunch which was deeelicious! To be honest, that was the first thing I had eaten all day. I was starving but allowed myself to eat just half because I didn’t want to be extremely full or bloated during the ceremony… especially since I would be standing the entire time!

Post lunch, the bridesmaids and I, along with Serene, headed into the nursery room (our private room to hide in) to get ready. Clasping Serene’s elegant wedding dress signified the exact moment when everything hit me. She was going to get married and that this was really happening! All of us shared a heartfelt moment together minutes before the ceremony began and were ushered outside of the room to get into formation.

The ceremony itself went by pretty fast, definitely faster than I had expected. It took less than an hour and then there was time afterwards to mingle and enjoy light refreshments.

 

3:30 PM – 10:00 PM

We made our way to the banquet which was located at River Rock. We had our own private dinner room and it was so cute! Serene decorated the tables with a floral centrepiece and cut out/handmade the guest lists.

The banquet was very fun. I think our table (groomsmen and bridesmaids) was the loudest LOL but only because we were having a BLAST getting to know each other. None of us had met the groomsmen until the day before the wedding at the dress rehearsal and we definitely all bonded during the banquet. It was a great evening with good food and even better company.

After dinner, Serene and Nathan had their first dance and before you knew it, the banquet was slowly wrapping up! I feel like the other bridesmaids and I would now agree that after experiencing being a bridesmaids for the first time, we were/felt more stressed leading up to the actual day than the day itself. And I think that is a good thing. The day went by so smoothly, every transition and speech was sharp and clear and no major speed bumps were encountered.

I’m so thankful and grateful to have been a part of Serene and Nathan’s special day. To know that my Kindergarten friend that I hold dear to my heart is married makes my heart so full because I know how happy she is and proud I am to be her friend. 

This signifies a new chapter in both Serene and Nathan’s life as they take on a journey of their own hand in hand. I wish them all the best and here’s to making more amazing memories with each other!

Photo Credits

Cover Photo: @iamstevekim

Pic 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5: @iamstevekim