Tired of the changing rules yet again? You probably aren’t the only one. If you are looking for a sign if you should just get married still, this is it.
It was love at first sight when we saw snippets of Chen Wei and Wei Qi’s intimate wedding held at their very own home. Their celebration was simple, yet it called to us in a way that made our hearts swell. It reminded us once again that no celebration is too small so long as you’re happily married by the end of the day. Through their wedding journey, Chen Wei and Wei Qi learnt to dance in the rain and made the best out of what they’ve got. And they did it in a way that speaks the most to them. Read on to hear their story.
Chen Wei and Wei Qi signed the papers on 8 March 2021 in the presence of 5 guests in their home. This was the complete opposite to what they had envisioned for themselves pre-COVID.
We initially planned to have the wedding at an intimate setting of ~30-50 pax. Fairy lights, outdoor space, good music, food and alcohol. Very Pinterest-y. There were also discussions about having the wedding at a Tse Char place so that the food and drinks are well taken care of. But we quickly dropped the idea due to logistical issues and consideration for attendees.
Chen Wei & Wei Qi
As you can tell, the idea was a wedding filled with fun activities and plenty of good cheer. With the pandemic, things had to change. They were led to a wedding concept that Wei Qi termed as the “Covid happened. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯” concept and the approach to execute it as Chen Wei had shared was to “Improve, Adapt, Overcome”. Like any couple planning for one of the most important moments in their lives, it wasn’t easy for them to come to terms with this.
Thalassophobia – that was what I felt when the pandemic struck. I actually googled “the feeling you have when you suddenly sink to the bottom of the pool while swimming. This is pretty close.
Chen Wei
We were hoping to hold off the wedding till the COVID situation gets better and when cross country travelling is allowed. Back then, we naively thought this might be possible near the tail end of 2020. As reality sets in, we had to accept that things will not get any better any time soon and proceed with the wedding ceremony. Seeing that Wei Qi’s family could not be here, we decided to go ahead with a simple ceremony at home with people who are important to us video calling in.
Not having her family physically with her to celebrate the milestone was the worst thing that Wei Qi had to accept. The physical presence of her family and close friends was probably the only thing she wished she could have; because to Wei Qi, everything else is white noise.
I remember just kind of crying, like bawling my eyes out, on a zoom call with my parents when they said to go ahead with the wedding without them being physically here, and my mum was like “hello we’re not dead, we’ll still be there on video”. So yeah that was that.
Wei Qi
They started rolling with the wedding plans again. Even if their family couldn’t be with them in person, everyone was kept very involved in the days leading up to the ceremony.
Our families helped us a lot – my brothers and my sister-in-law; especially with the setting up of the video on their end and just running through multiple tests with us to ensure the zoom call would go smoothly. And just you know with the usual “oh I’m a bride what do i do, what do I wear, oh no”, it was really nice having my sister-in-law and both my mums there to give me constructive advice.
Wei Qi
I think between the 2 of us we also worked quite well with setting it up and planning. Chen Wei even made a whole presentation deck with the flow so his parents would be aware of what the process is like.
The wedding day was as simple as it could get, and it unfolded in the most heart-warming of ways. Perhaps it was having the ceremony at home that had made the couple felt completely at ease – from getting ready to the actual ceremony to eventually ending the day with a great meal of Peking Duck, the couple was able to soak in all the happenings that day including all the nitty-gritty!
The lovely thing about holding such a ceremony from home is you just feel comfortable and for me at least, it’s when I’m in my element. Also, our dog pooped, so after the ceremony before we went out for our photoshoot, Chen Wei had to clean up the poo and mop it all~ real nitty gritty stuff for a wedding day.
Wei Qi
Couples can really consider holding the ceremony at home. The setting is very intimate and given less distractions (what will the heng dai or groomsmen be doing, are the guests well taken care of etc.), we are more in tune with our emotions and feeling at the moment. I will always remember when I saw Wei Qi in her wedding dress – the bride, the lighting, the dress at that moment was perfect.
Chen Wei
The intimate setting gave the couple and their family the perfect avenue to share heartfelt words that would otherwise have been skipped over in a larger celebration.
The speeches, from our families and also from us to them, was definitely a very memorable aspect of the wedding. There was a lot of emotion, and it is probably something that I would not have experienced if we had a full on wedding, because we would likely be more restrained.
Wei Qi
What we thought was most precious were the memories the couple had shared the night before the wedding.
I really loved the night before the wedding when we were lying in bed and we couldn’t sleep because of the excitement, and it was just us talking and laughing about how silly all this was.
Wei Qi
The night before the wedding when we had our “this is it moment”. We spoke about how we felt and looking back, how much we have grown since we first met.
Chen Wei
Moments like these are hard to come by. On the night before the wedding, most couples are either going through endless checklists or still running errands or writing their speeches! The simplicity of Chen Wei and Wei Qi’s celebration might have helped them go through the wedding planning process with much more ease. But of course, having a team of supportive vendors help too! And the couple has many they are extremely grateful towards –
Each of the vendor we engaged helped us in their own special way –
Lindt from 85 flowers really came through with providing me with peonies for my wedding day even when they were not in season, and I really appreciated that because wedding detail-wise, peonies were always number 1 on that list. She’s a real one.Ling was also super amazing when it came to helping me with doing my makeup and hair; I wanted just a simple hair do with a peony at the side, and she said it’s not easy to pin an actual flower but boy she did it anyway and it was amazing! Her makeup also lasted me throughout the hot weather which was great; because I was melting on the inside but on the outside, it was like steady.
Kai!!!! Best photographer ever!!! We loveeedddd the way he made all our family members feel so comfortable, the way he made us feel comfortable and to not be too anxious of being in front of the camera. He was so warm and really helped us open up with questions that made us reflect and laugh about our relationship.
Wei Qi
Remember how we said it was love at first sight when we saw snippets of Chen Wei and Wei Qi’s wedding? Those snippets were photos taken by Kai! So we got to ask the MVP how he had felt being able to capture such a beautiful wedding and what advice he would give to couples planning their wedding this season –
As a wedding photographer who has been married for close to 10 years now, I could really resonate with the way Wei Qi and Chen Wei celebrated their wedding; simple but heartfelt. A home-based wedding during the pandemic is also a very smart move as it keeps the gathering to the core group of their life.
For couples planning their wedding during this time, I would suggest that they try not to be overly ambitious — you don’t want to plan for a big wedding that attempts to accommodate a lot of pax, and eventually (touch wood) have to scale down because of new COVID restrictions. Instead, consider a small and intimate wedding that you invite only the closest people in your life. The pandemic also reminded us of who and what truly matters to us. Think about that, and you will have a good perimeter to start with.
Kai, Kai Pictures
Lastly, if we could leave you with these two pieces of advice from the very lovely Chen Wei and Wei Qi, it is to remember that things will come to pass and perhaps consider documenting the day with more visuals that you can look back on.
A good friend told me the wedding is just the easy part of a marriage; so don’t stress too much. Just enjoy, drink more, laugh more, don’t sweat the small wedding details. At the end of the day, it’s just a day.
Wei Qi
I would pay more attention to videography. Though Kai is around for the pictures, it would certainly be more memorable if there are more videos being taken.
Chen Wei
To Chen Wei and Wei Qi, congratulations! Thank you so much for sharing your journey with us. We sure hope borders would open sooner so you can drink more and laugh more with your families~
Professionals engaged for the wedding:
- Photography: KAI Picture | @kai_picture
- Venue: Home
- Wedding Gown: ASOS
- Masks: Etsy
- Groom’s suit: Coloc the Tailor | @colocthetailor
- Makeup Artist: Ling’s Palette | @lingspalette
- Wedding Cake: Cupplets | @cupplets
- Floral and Décor: 85 Flowers | @85flowers_sg
- Emcee: Chen Wei & Wei Qi