wedding recap: best day ever

Looking back, I realized that I haven't written about my experience as a bride! Here's a recap for posterity's sake:


As I mentioned before, the week leading up to our wedding was hectic. Mom and Tim got into town on Monday to spend some quality time. We ate delicious food, saw the Lion King on Broadway, walked the High Line, and went on a cruise around Manhattan. My mom was happy having our little family together, and seeing her smile made all the running around (I had to sneak in errands and work at night) worth it! Poor Tim got sick, and there was a string of unfortunate events -- but it all turned out fine in the end. At our pre-wedding dinner at M Shanghai, surrounded by our families and out-of-town friends, it hit me: This is happening. Chalk it up to seven years together, but we didn't feel nervous...just excited!


On the morning of the big day, we slept in. Heaven! We lingered in bed, chatted about our excitement, and laughed with Monkey. Around noon, Sarah and Heather picked me up to cart over stuff, and we grabbed burgers for lunch. Because Heather worked her incredible pro set-up magic, all I had to do was get ready with my mom, aunt, and friends. Pre-wedding, we drove around Greenpoint with Mous and Sara to take pictures; it felt so calm and joyful. I chuckled at the people slyly taking pictures of us on their iPhones as we posed in front of the Manhattan skyline; it was payback for all the times I've done that.

The ceremony itself was one of the best experiences of my entire life. It's surreal to see all of your loved ones smiling at you; I kept thinking, "hey, what are they doing here?" Mous did a beautiful job officiating. Since Erik and I wrote the script, we knew what he was going to say -- so I found myself laughing before the words came out of his mouth. My favorite parts were remembering my sweet dad and exchanging looks with Erik. At one point, my cheeks ached from grinning so much. As we walked down the aisle to our friends spinning their hand drums, I felt pure happiness, untouched by any other emotion.

We took the elevator straight up to the reception and kicked off the party. It's true what they say: It goes by in a flash. I loaded up on delicious drinks, apps, tacos, and ice cream sandwiches (I definitely wasn't one of those brides that forgets to eat!), jumped in the photo booth, and laughed with my dear friends. At one point, I remember looking around the rooftop and seeing so many happy faces, and just feeling...proud. Above all, Erik and I's main goal was to make sure that everyone had a fun time (haven't we all been to a boring wedding?!), and I think we managed to pull it off! It was truly one of the best days of my life, and I'm so incredibly grateful to have such the most amazing partner, family, and friends.

wedding recap: our vendors

Now that I'm back from all my travels, I finally have a moment to blog about our wedding! Since I Googled the heavens out of "budget Brooklyn wedding" and "should I have a wedding?", I thought I'd write up a few posts for my fellow level-headed, non-wedding-obsessed brides out there. First piece of advice: Don't freak out! You can have a lovely wedding without going insane, sacrificing your social life, or going into debt. For my first entry, here's a round-up of the vendors that we used:

1. Venue: King & Grove Hotel, Williamsburg: Much to our surprise, this swanky-ish hotel was one of our most affordable options. Even piecing together a budget soup-to-nuts wedding (think: barebones venue, barbecue catering) was pricier! That's because we kept our guest list low (64 people). It worked out beautifully: I had plenty time to chat with everyone at the reception; the food was insanely delicious (sliders, croquettes, tacos and ice cream sandwiches!!!); and the drinks were amazing. And who needs decor when you have lush greenery and the NYC skyline? Plus, everything was taken care of, from catering to our hotel room, which made planning an absolute dream. One-stop shop!

2. Photo booth: Podpix. I was obsessed with photo booths long before the wedding craze, and really wanted one, but didn't think we could afford it. Luckily enough, I got roped into going to a wedding fair early on, got on PodPix's email list, and jumped at the opportunity when they sent out a sale blast. Erik and I didn't have anything traditional (speeches, etc.) planned for the reception. We figured a photobooth would give our guests something fun to do -- and we were so glad we splurged! It was such a blast, and I adore all of the keepsake photo strips.

3. Photographer: Sara Luckey. Full disclosure: Sara is one of my friends, but her incredible work speaks for itself! She was clutch in making the wedding day run smoothly and kept us on timeline. She's also a miracle worker in getting people in the right place and making them smile. Erik is a tough one to crack -- he always opts for cool instead of mushy in front of the camera -- but Sara somehow got him to let down his guard!

4. Wedding coordinator and florist: Heather Lee. Heather is another dear homie and a genius to boot. My bouquet was perfection, and she ran everything behind the scenes so I could just enjoy the getting-ready process.

5. Make-up artist: Jennifer Nam. This was another case where I was really glad that I didn't cheap out. Originally, I was thinking of just going to Drybar, but opted to go with Jen so I could stay in Brooklyn. Because we've worked together before on TV segments, I skipped the trials, which cut down the cost. She's amazing, and I couldn't be happier with how my hair and makeup turned out. I didn't even need to do any touchups, because she worked her magic and everything stayed put until 3 a.m.

...And that's it! Because our poor deejay got in an accident, we did our music ourselves through an iPod. That turned out to be fun, because we played songs from both of our cultures, like cumbia and Chinese jams. Our friend Mous married us, which was so dear and personal, and he doubled as our driver during the picture session. Oh, and Osa designed my engagement set and wedding bands. He's a genius! (Come to think of it, we have some talented friends.)

I highly, highly recommend all of of these vendors! My wedding day was a true dream, and I can't think of anything I would have done differently.

wedding recap: was it worth it?

So remember right after our engagement, when Erik and I were struggling whether or not to have a wedding? We couldn't be happier that we did the dang thing! Besides that initial what-are-we-doing-how-much-are-we-spending stage, the entire process was so super fun (well, minus few silly spats). Planning brought Erik and I even closer together: There were so many meaningful moments, like writing our ceremony script and reminiscing while putting together our music playlist. And then the wedding, and week leading up to it, was simply magical. It was one of those rare moments in life when everything is sparkly and perfect -- and I actually realized it. Throughout the night, I kept taking little mental pictures with my eyes so that the moment would stay with me always. Looking back, the thing I'm most proud of is that we stayed true to ourselves. It can be tricky, but I'm here to say that is possible to have the day of your dreams without spending an insane amount or going crazy!

married!

We did it! I'm overjoyed to say that our wedding was everything we wanted it to be and more -- thanks to a lot of help from our friends and a really good sense of humor. (Teaser: our wedding week included one falling-into-the-train-tracks disaster, a shooting, a hit-and-run cab accident, a serious cold, and a stroke...no joke!) But the night itself was absolutely magical! More to come...

wedding countdown!

Whoa, whoa, whoa, our wedding is less than two weeks away! One week till the Liaos come to town. I'm so not ready; yesterday I went on a bridal accessory buying spree online. Somehow I forgot that I would need earrings and hair adornments and the like (insert mug: world's worst bride). But all that stuff is gravy -- what I'm really looking forward to is seeing our friends and family, and, above all, marrying Erik. So I'm going to devote this post as a shout-out to him, because he's been incredible. Even though wedding planning is ridiculous, I have to say that I've enjoyed most of it because we've worked so well together. Erik's been there every single step of the way, from designing our invites to planning our music and even helping me choose my wedding dress. Not that I had any doubts before, but this all reinforces the fact that Erik is my perfect match. I love him!

wedding planning

So I'm only a few weeks into the engaged life and already I'm getting the wedding questions. Eek! Although I adore going to other people's weddings, I've never dreamed about my own affair. And now that the time has come, I've realized that I definitely don't want to throw a traditional one. After all, both of our families are pretty laid-back and hands-off. Plus, we'll be footing the bill, so we get final say! We're still deciding between a City Hall/park ceremony and big party; small Brooklyn affair; or plain old elopement. Right now, all we know for sure is that the dress code will be "no suits" and the menu will be Chino-Latino. :)