Of
Cross Cultures and Butterflies by
Jett Pe Benito
Charlie
and Carina
at The Enterprise Center
October
29, 2005 marked the most memorable moment in Charlie’s
life. For instead of releasing butterflies at a clients’
wedding, on that fateful day, he released these auspicious
creatures on his very own wedding.
From Classmates to Lifemates
Charlie
Gaw, the person behind Acclaim Butterflies, met Carina
(nee Tuazon) in July 1999. They were classmates in
one of their finance subjects in the Ateneo Graduate
School of Business.
Charlie
remembers, "We became group mates in one of our
case studies which led us to know each other better.”
Theirs
is a merging of two cultures – Chinese and Filipino.
Without disregarding traditions, they took a modern
approach in preparing for their wedding. They
were very involved in the wedding planning, and
they
even built a website (www.flower.com.ph)
to inform friends/relatives abroad of their wedding
details.
Highlights
“Our
wedding motifs are green and red, representing
the cross culture between a Chinese and a Filipina.”
Among
the surprising details of their wedding include:
a. Atypical of Chinese wedding, they had their
reception at The Enterprise Center, a non-hotel/restaurant
venue. They chose it because of its majestic granite
interior-exterior, very high ceiling, convenient
location, ample parking, and good security.
b. The entourage, especially the 8 flower girls,
had different cultures - Filipino, Chinese, Malaysian,
Japanese.
Charlie
and Carina's flower girls of
different cultures--Filipino, Chinese,
Malaysian, and Japanese
c. They had 3 floral and event stylists - one
for the church, one for the bride's bouquet and
entourage, and the other one for the Enterprise,
the venue.
d. They had 2 wedding cakes – one with a
Chinese motif and the other cake was an 8 layer
of 300 pure chocolate mini cakes and fresh roses.
e. They had a chocolate fountain which served
pure white Belgian chocolate and fresh fruits
for its dipping.
f. They showed a 12-minute, MTV-style video covering
the
pre-wedding
preparations and church
ceremony which were immediately shown during
the reception/dinner.
They even prepared 200 VCD
copies of the coverage which were distributed
to theguests after the video was
shown.
And of course, what is Charlie’s wedding
without Acclaim’s butterflies?
“During
my wedding, we released live butterflies at
our grand entrance in the reception. Our flower
girls and ring bearers held butterfly-inspired
baskets and scepters. We also gave butterfly
unity candles to our godfathers and godmothers.”
Charlie
and Carina's wedding cakes:
(right: with a Chinese motif,
left: with an 8 layer of 300 pure chocolate
mini cakes and fresh roses
Constraints
Charlie
and Carina, due to ther busy schedule, only had 3 months to
prepare for their wedding. It did not help that it took them
more than a month to get a final booking date in the church.
It
is a good thing that Acclaim Butterflies, being in the wedding
industry for 5 years, is part of a supplier network. He already
knows which suppliers to tap. For other wedding needs, he
turned to wedding resource portals like www.kasal.com to get
information.
From a wedding supplier who has also walked down the
aisle, Charlie only has the following to share:
“Try to get a good wedding provider that has a
good track record. Do not be deceived by wedding providers
who offer low prices but no track record to prove their
service capabilities. Do take time in canvassing wedding
suppliers.”
“Last but not the least, attention to details
is a key factor in having your dream wedding. It is
through the details that your family and friends would
see the effort you put to make your wedding truly special
and meaningful.”
