Maple & Federico's Wedding Part 1 : Bridal Blurb

I'm sure you've heard (or even know) of brides-to-be who planned their once-in-a-lifetime event a year or sometimes more, ahead of time. Me, a neurotic bride I am not. Some women would also make such a big fuss about everything - from the size of her rock, the gown, the photo shoot to the table setting - which many times turn out to look distastefully ah-lien-ish anyway. That is a sissy-fied woman I am definitely not.


Well, first of all I didn't even start 'planning' until 3 months before my wedding. Indeed playing with fire because the only available venue big enough to house 300 heads on the only auspicious day in the month our monk had picked for us - April 8, 2007 that is - was Renaissance Hotel. So, that was pretty lucky...

Then there's the story of my 3 dresses - the white dress, the qi pao and the oriental glam number - which miraculously became my wardrobe! What seemed like 'a well-thought-out plan with the designers' was in fact 'last minute shopping one week before, stumbling upon what may not have been designed specially for me but were indeed made to fit me' type situation. Not to mention my white dress was finally ready only 2 days before. A miracle really, it all started when I simply decided a week before the wedding that perhaps I really should display a change of outfit during the gala.Hence the quest for an Oriental Glam number began. Not that it was easy though, modern miracles do require lots of legwork, look-sees and lousy dresses before revealing Albert King's shop in KL Plaza. He's an old friend and forever a darling. I wanted to try on practically all his pieces.
And of course I did. Finally some real fun.

But what i will not forget is how blown away I was the moment he held up this qi pao to me. Look at it. Perfect colors, beautiful workmanship on the embroidery, perfect fit, perfect cut. Just exquisite. No qi pao I've seen in my life could beat this. Well, none ever made me look and feel more beautiful than this. So, sold it was. Even before it touched my skin. There couldn't have been a more perfect dress for the tea ceremony. Meant to be, my destiny, Albert's qi pao. Price tag : only RM1200






The last thing I tried on was Albert's show piece, which was tailored for the catwalk which now became MY OWN Oriental Glam show piece. It was as if he had indeed designed it specifically for my wedding, just waiting for me to pick up! I mean the red corsette with embroided details of contemporary Chinese motif matched by a mermaid-cut skirt also embroided with extraordinary floral motifs and volumized by a can-can underneath, put together to dramatize the avant-garde contemporary oriental fashion that is so unbelievably perfect even as far as the color theme of my wedding goes. Now if I had any doubts at all about whether Federico & I are truly meant to be, those doubts would've evaporated instantly at Albert's shop that moment when his masterpiece moulded my every curve like it was made for me. Isn't fate a beauty that never ceases to amaze? At that point, it was scary. Sold at only RM3200.

Maybe I'm a nut bride after all or to be more accurate, a masochist-neurotic. I always get these fancy ideas towards the end. First, my sudden urge to do a, of course not the usual ah-lien type pre-wedding shoot but in some deep jungle with a river, one week before THE day and just in time to make big prints for display that night.





Then 3 days before THE day, after toying with the idea of a booklet, I was too adamant by then to not do something with those damn beautiful pictures, I surrendered to the inspiration. But time was really my enemy because I needed 300 of those printed and then put into 300 organza pouches each strung with crystals, tagged with 'memories in a pouch'. For a task like that, you need slaves ok. Oh, not forgetting the poem which i still had to write!


Damn.... but knowing me, by hook or by crook, when things gotta be done, they will get done. Besides, great ideas should NEVER be ignored or you'll forever live with 'should haves'. So there you go, see how I just masochisted myself?

But hey, I pulled it off thank god! Printer finished & delivered the night before, all crystals & tags strung in 2 days and poem was perfectly written in only 2 amazing hours! If I'm not a nutcase, I'm quite a nightmare la....this much i admit.

Now my white dress (as well as mini white silk dress in pic above used in pre-wedding shoot) was designed by gal pal Fang. Laid back enough to start stitching only 3 weeks before THE day followed by fittings right till the last 3 days, I went with her flow, with faith. Most brides would probably had gone berserk and lost sleep over this, but instead I was losing sleep over the radio ad & scripts I had to write for Il Tempio, our new restaurant. Time management i call it - You see, since I managed to finish my work (instead of spending sleepless nights going psycho about the unfinished dress...) I spent the next couple of working days on a treasure hunt for bridal jewels, tiaras & diamonte shoes! They don't call shopping retail therapy for nothing you know.

Oh shoesssss..... when it comes to shoes, I'm definitely nuts. I can't believe I bought 4 pairs of expensive shoes!!! 3 for the wedding plus one bonus pair (which i HAD TO by the way...) for being the sane bride.... yes....retail therapy.

If you haven't heard already, one of those pairs (the sparkling red jeweled wedding shoes I wore to match my Oriental Glam number) was later given to one of my best girlfriends, Sasha Bashir as a special gift.