I had a rather unsuccessful makeup and hair trial and that drove me insane. But the more annoying issue was the one I had with the wedding dress! I was against renting (usually in Indonesia, bridal salons rent the dresses too) because it often costs a lot to rent one ! And the ones for rental are generally too over-the-top to my liking. Plus, I thought I would like to reuse my wedding dress and wear it again on our wedding anniversary or other events. I went dress shopping for the first time in October 2008 right after our engagement. I found a dress that I really love in a small boutique in Kuala Lumpur. It was a simple off-white empire line and very inexpensive (RM 388 or around US$108). And then after many complains from the family about how the dress was probably too simple for weddings , I decided to get another one made.

I went to a seamstress in ITC Mangga Dua around March 2009 and told her the style that I want , etc.
Unfortunately, choosing her wasn’t the best decision I’ve ever made. She was so concerned about making money that she quickly did the measuring and wrote me the invoice. She was in such a hurried state on closing the deals as dozens other customers were lining up for their dresses ! Admittedly, she was quite good. But because of this, she didn’t do a proper check on what I really want and need. I forgot to inform her that I’ll be wearing high heeled shoes.

Around April 2009, I was notified that the dress is done, and surprise, the skirt was too short ! Not much can be done about this, so disappointedly, I took the one-shoulder bodice top and contacted another seamstress in ITC Mangga Dua that seemed more attentive and I told her that I want a skirt to be made. The result was much better however, albeit with careful choosing of color swatch, we didn’t get the color right because the material was different. The top was made of satin, while the skirt was Shandong silk. The skirt color was more cream than off-white. I was still not happy with this. The hoop-skirt (petticoat) wasn’t right, the color wasn’t right and I was devastated.

I returned to the seamstress the week after, by then, the calendar has shifted to June 2009. She tightened the bodice as apparently I lost quite a lot of weight during wedding planning (must be the stress), and then she removed one of the bone in the hoopskirt and fix the width, and then when I thought I looked much better in the dress, I went home.

Still, I was worried that ya know … maybe this wasn’t “THE DRESS”.

People kept telling me that if that was “THE DRESS”, I would have known, I’d get some sort of a divine signal , a tearful eyes as I saw my bride-self in the mirror! But I didn’t , I never had that kind of insight, epiphany or whatever you call it. I just sort of accepted the fact that I have not much time left to find another dress and that I’ve spent too much time and money on that dress anyway! Although my dress is still considerably cheap – after all the crazy alterations and such it still costs me only about US$ 150.. I was exhausted from the whole dress ordeal and I couldn’t bear the thought of having made dresses that I will never use. So I wholeheartedly decided to wear the dress to my wedding anyway.

A day before the wedding day, I got the hoop-skirt ironed and the dress re-ironed. And on the wedding day, somehow, it became the perfect dress ! I didn’t know how that happened , but it just happened ! I felt pretty and I felt like a bride! It dawned on me that the dress didn’t really matter after all. It still is about the commitment you made with your significant others. Imperfect dress shouldn’t really deter you from having a good time in your wedding day. I’m glad I didn’t go crazy and find another dress, the dress was absolutely right for me.

As for the simpler dress that I got from a boutique in KL? I decided to wear it for the reception ! Nobody complained about the dress being too simple and not pretty enough ! I love how I can move around in this dress easily, allowing me to mingle with my friends and other guests throughout the reception.

I shouldn’t have to worry too much about not having that one perfect dress, or about having that one perfect wedding. The perfection of your wedding day doesn’t necessarily translate to a perfect marriage anyway. And most importantly, I should learn how to avoid pushy seamstresses or salespeople.

My perfectly imperfect dress:

The one-shoulder bodice was one of the reason why I insisted on having my dress made, I don’t see such design that often in this world of strapless wedding gowns.

The reception dress:

Much thanks to Richard, Irene and Steven for the pictures.
ps: The nice seamstress’ name is Hanny from Hanny Fashion in ITC Mangga Dua, lantai 1 Blok B40 , Jakarta. A bit of extra information, my fabulous cream colored veil I wore in the morning was made by Theresia Vivi from Sekolah Menjahit Vivi near Pasimal, Jababeka! Who would’ve thought, eh?

Third Prize Winner – Dwi Permana (8 years old)

Second Prize Winner - Sinyo (7 years old)

FIRST PRIZE – Diwan Muhammad Thaif (7 years old)

Winners from Category 1 (3 to 5 years old)

Third Prize Winner – Alvin (5 years old)

Second Prize Winner - Stephanie (5 years old)

FIRST PRIZE – Diyana Safira Hanum (5 years old)

First prize winners will receive Caran Dache coloring set along with other gifts, while the other winners will receive goodie bags filled with Pentel/Faber Castle coloring sets!
Congratulations and thank you for joining our coloring competition !
Selamat ya untuk adik-adik yang telah menang!

We’d like to especially thank these people for making our wedding a success :

1. Our parents!
Tidak mudah membantu mengkoordinasikan segala sesuatunya , dan terimakasih karena telah memahami dan menerima segala ide-ide gila kami dengan besar hati hueuhueuehe.

2. Emile, Yanti, and Irene !
The crazy threes who stood by me through it all! Thank you for all your assistance and patience. Mereka adalah tiga orang tercapek setelah kami dan orangtua kami! Begitu tiba di Magelang, yang mereka lakukan adalah membantu Sandy mendekorasi dengan sabar membuka pompoms yang masih dalam keadaan terlipat dan memasang tali-tali. Kemudian masih harus membantu Sandy memasang nomor-nomor meja. Menyiapkan suvenir untuk anak-anak, menyiapkan snacks untuk meja tamu, membantu acara teh-pai, dan lain lain… ck ck ck … We won’t be able to make it without you !!

3. Family members and relatives that helped coordinating everything!
Our wedding was one of the “it takes a village” wedding. We didn’t hire any wedding planners/coordinator so everything has to be done by ourselves. There were so many people involved! One aunt was delivering the hand bouquets and corsages, another made sure everything was well prepared in the temple, more aunts and uncles acted as ushers, cousins as receptionists. And Erwin’s grandma prepared us the tangyuen(sweet round deserts) to be eaten the night before the wedding! We felt very touched by all the lovely gestures !

Ronde buatan Oma: Sandy makan sejumlah umur Erwin dan Erwin makan ronde sejumlah umur Sandy. Untung dibuatnya kecil-kecil…

4. Richard !
Hahaha like what he always said, I owed him a lot! He wasn’t just the toaster for the wedding, he also coordinates the transport for all of our friends, and … hmm …he was also a prank ?? Long story, we’ll tell you about this soon !

5. Jeff the Flower(Bubble) Boy !
This role clearly suits him ! Thank youuu !!

6. Michael James Edward
Our backup photographers hehhehe , thank you for helping documenting our day !!!

7. All of our friends and relatives

Jeff, Nelson and Ron – Thanks for traveling all the way from San Francisco. These three friends of ours had to survive the cultural shock, a ride on bajaj, Jakarta’s traffic jam, potentially dirty food and all that. Poor Ron didn’t survive that well, on our wedding day, he had a severe case of food poisoning =( .

Hari – Thank you for traveling from Malaysia for our wedding !!
Hope you had a great time in Indonesia. Thankfully, Malaysia and Indonesia’s cultural distance isn’t that bad. Indonesia has dirty food, Malaysia has dirty food too. Haha !

Hari is the one seen wearing batik here ! The hot Malaysian !

Kevin and Icha
Although they’re still in Indonesia, the distance travelled by Kevin and Icha actually exceeds that of Hari ! Kevin and Icha lives in Manado, east Indonesia. So yayyy for them !! Terimakasih banyak ya !!!!

Andre Albert aka Pong2
Yayy !!! Thanks for being there with us !! Haha kena jadi korban sulapannya erwin pula !

My friends from GABVEG – Vihara Ekayana Grha
Renting a car from Jakarta, they brave the 12 hours journey to Magelang. And they manage to arrive in the morning ceremony !! Thank youuuuuu !!!!

Pamela and family
Sahabat Sandy sejak SMP sampe sekarang, mereka dateng ke wedding kami dengan jalur darat dari Surabaya – Semarang hingga akhirnya Magelang ! Whoooaaa !!

Tan Thing Heng and her sister
Hihihi satu lagi yang harus jauh-jauh dateng dari Jakarta !! Thank youuu !!

Rekan-rekan dari President University
yang takterkira jumlahnya, hahaha untung bisnya masih cukup ! Terimakasih banyakkk !!
Oh ya, students yang telah membantu membuat pompom juga dateng semua ! wowww !!! Seru deh =), pasti hepi juga karena melihat pompoms warna warni ikut beraksi!

Siu Hwa Ah Yi
Yang telah menyumbangkan 3 lagu dan menghibur semua tamu dengan aksi panggungnya !

Semua keluarga yang sudah jauh-jauh datang
Erwin’s family made all effort to come from Jakarta, Bandung, Kudus, etc. While Sandy’s family braced the long journey from East Java.

8. Vihara Mendut
Special thanks to our officiant, Pandita Madya Sudharmi.

9. The Super Wedding Vendors

Catering -Restoran Pancoran , Magelang
Venue – Gedung Achmad Yani
Our videographer and photographer is super great! Sabar sekali menghadapi pengantin edan kayak kami haha.
Videographer – Gloria Video, Magelang (cp: Michael 0815 6701 132)
Photographer – Puri and Friends, Yogyakarta (cp: Puri 0815 9920 218)
Wedding ring – Armada Mas, Yogyakarta (cp : Pak Bambang 0812 2710 289)
Decor – Lip Tung, Magelang (cp: Oom Liptung 0812 294 2340 )
Gedung A.Yani yang tembok dan langit-langitnya lumayan jelek disulap jadi keren ! Thank you ! Tidak itu saja, Oom Liptung juga membuat bouquets, corsages, mendekor mobil pengantin dan kamar pengantin. Bener-bener all-rounder. Kalau tidak ada dia pasti sudah pusing kami. Staff beliau juga dengan sabar membantu kami memasang pompoms! yayy !!
Makeup – Sarinah Bridal (cp: Tante Sien Lan 0816 4226 229)
Setelah ketakutan kalo makeupnya bakal menor, haha ternyata tante Sien Lan tidak mengecewakan. Kuncinya emang kitanya harus bener2 berani bilang apa yang diinginkan. Waktu test makeup, memang saya ngga gitu suka hasilnya. Untungnya pas hari H, hasilnya ok banget.
Mobil Pengantin – Peng Hwat, Magelang ( 0293 558 7973)
Cake – Listy Cakes Yogyakarta
Souvenirs – Topeng dari Toko Laris Jaya- Pasar Pagi Mangga Dua.
Undangan – Media Sablon Cikarang, cetaknya di Kimlu, Jababeka .
Dress – Ceremony ~ dijahit oleh Ms Hanny dari Hanny Fashion (ITC Mangga Dua, lt 1 Blok B40), Teh Pai ~ dijahit oleh Tante Meilan Magelang , Resepsi ~ dari butik di Midvalley Megamall , Kuala Lumpur.
Erwin’s Suit – Mode Indonesia , Pasar Baru Jakarta.
Cupcakes – Sofia Ristanty , Mommy Cakes Yogyakarta
Cake topper – Ika Kurnia, Bekasi.
MC , singers , sound system – Legenda Entertainment, magelang (cp: Feby 0812 295 7256 )
Last but not least ….
Lion Dance – SEMBILAN NAGA, MAGELANG (cp: Ci Kuo Jien dan Ko Jimmy 0888 286 1222 )

Phew …. more about our wedding soon…

Ganteng kan ? ^^

11.00 am Fetching the bride
11.30 am Off to Ceremony site ( Vihara Mendut, Mungkid)
12.00 noon Marriage ceremony
13.00 pm Signing the register
13.15 pm Lunch at the temple
14.15 pm Photo sessions
17.30 pm Tea ceremony at reception site (A. Yani Building)
19.00 pm Food and Merriment (A. Yani Building)

The reception will end at the latest 22.00 pm.

Sneak peek to our invitation:

Our beloved wedding logo MUST be incorporated in the invitation ! Yes, we have sheep-themed wedding !

The wording, it looks long because it’s bilingual.

So this was the result of several days of fiddling with Adobe Photoshop, dozens time of proof-reading and measuring every single milimeter. Phewww …

Stay tuned …

Setelah selesai semua pun ngebut ke lokasi pemberkatan. Acara molor setengah jam. Kemudian selesainya pun mundur kurang lebih 1 jam dari yang diperkirakan.
Oya, waktu pemberkatan. Tiba-tiba saya melihat sesuatu yang salah. OhmyGawd !! Baju pengantin wanita kok jadi agak pink-pink gitu ??? Ternyata buket yang dibawa luntur ke baju +_+ . Ada-ada aja. Tapi ya sudah, the show must go on. Saat kembali ke bridal salon untungnya mereka tahu cara mengatasi noda pink di baju (Bayclin kuncinya!).

Kemudian, kembali acara kebut-kebutan berlangsung karena resepsi dimulai jam 6.30 pm. Keluarga lari-lari ke rumah untuk mengambil suvenir-suvenir dan buku tamu, dan phewww … 06.30 untungnya semua sudah siap di lokasi. Setelah segala macam kepanikan, ada lagi … tamu-tamunya ga dateng-dateng bo ! Ngaret abiisssss… pas pengantin memasuki ruang resepsi pada pukul 8 malam, masih sedikit tamu =(. Anehnya, tidak lama kemudian, ruang resepsi penuh nuh ! Semua hadir… pheww ..lega lagi deh. Setelah segala macam prosesi dll-dll-nya, makan malam pun dimulai pukul 8.30 pm. Ya ampuunn …lapernyya … untung resepsi ala Manado selalu ada Klappertaart(*)-nya. Haha, jadi tanpa pikir panjang lagi, langsung saya samber klappertaart sebelum makan nasi ato lauk lainnya.

Foto-foto:

Proses transformasi:
Sebelum:

Sesudah dimakeup berjam-jam

Pas pemberkatan:

Catatan sipil:

Resmi nih !

Memasuki tempat resepsi:

Dan tentunya kami selalu menyempatkan untuk berfoto-foto:

Congratulations to Kevin and Icha ! All’s well that ends well !

(*) Klappertaart : makanan pencuci mulut, seperti vla puding tapi lebih tebal dan diisi dengan kelapa muda, biasanya dipanggang sebentar di oven dengan almond, dan kismis. Disajikan dingin slurrppp…
Tingkat keenakan : sangat tinggi ^^.

Updates:

- Booked one “special” entertainment ! Yay ! Yay !

- Sandy and the pompom machines will begin their pompom making craze this Saturday 09.00 am.

- Cupcakes for tea ceremony snacks!

and still many other things to do.. hopefully everything can be done in time! Wish us luck !!