Sarah, one of our Dallas wedding planners reflected back on Garlic and Alvin’s wedding. “This was such an international affair with guests flying in from all over to their destination wedding in Bali. Both live in Dubai and they had friends and family from multiple countries fly in. Even their vendors weren’t local such as yours truly from Dallas, and their videographers from the Philippines”.
It is the biggest compliment when the work you do is held in this regard that they would be willing to entrust the planning process to a planner so far away.
They had initially planned for an outdoor affair but, the weather in Bali is a roller coaster at best. This sort of weather is typical and the forecasts (even on the hour of!) aren’t accurate. Fun fact: upon arrival, I was asked by a few local vendors if the couple had paid the Rain Man. If I recall correctly, the price to ward off rain was about $340 (USD), and according to the locals, it works 70% of the time. The couple did not make any sort of payment, and it did end up pouring on and off all day. Because of the uncertainty of the weather, a clear tent was erected over the reception tables in the Coconut Grove Garden.
However, the rain ended up being one of the parts that made the entire wedding a blast. After fun elements like fire dancers and a surprise dance for the groom from the bride + her bridesmaids, guests were ready to party! The night ended with the couple and their friends dancing in the rain, singing to the music, and enjoying the company of those closest to them all the way to the very last song (and even after the music was over!).
We had at least sixty people involved on this intimate wedding of 45 on the day of, from crew set up to coordination…and this is not including the 18 staffers at this private villa. It takes a village but the end result is always so worth it. Read more from the bride below.
This wedding was featured in Aisle Perfect.
Fun fact – I can speak Bahasa which made planning in Bali easier!
From the bride:
Alvin and I had lived in Dubai for years but never knew each other. We met completely by chance at a mutual friend’s house party. We chatted and instantly connected. We were taking things very tentatively since his work contract was almost up in Dubai and he had to leave soon. I almost broke it off at one point since things were so uncertain but, that’s when he said that he wanted a deeper relationship. He renegotiated with his company and stayed in Dubai so we could be together. The rest is history.
Our wedding day is one we loved every moment of. It’s difficult to pick out a favorite part of the day! We planned a destination wedding in Bali and had friends + family fly from various parts of the globe to join, from Dubai, Europe, the Philippines and Malaysia. We even had our wedding planner fly in from Texas! Seeing those closest to us make this effort was meaningful and it was even better seeing everyone glammed up ready to enjoy! I was laughing and crying all night with happiness!
We absolutely loved how the décor and overall aesthetic of the wedding turned out. We are fans of bright colors and seeing that in the flowers was lovely. It was just the right amount and not an overwhelming burst. What stood out to both of us was how the tables were set up and how the string lightbulbs were the focal point. It made everything look so romantic and just like how we dreamed!
Advice for other brides-to-be:
- Get a wedding planner! It will save you from stress and major drama.
- Set your budget and stick to it. Plan for extra as well for unexpected expenses
- Set priorities on things that you won’t compromise and care most about. Ask your partner to do the same.
- Delagate. Don’t be afraid to ask for help from your partner, bridal party and family. They will always help and would like to be a part of the planning.
- Take a break from planning as well. Enjoy your life and don’t forget that not everything is about the wedding.
- Don’t be a bridezilla. Enjoy every part of the planning and try not to stress.
- Things will not always be perfect on the wedding day. It’s easier to accept it now and move on from there to enjoy the day.
Below is the wonderful review Garlic left:
“She’s a blessing to us. That’s what she is!
Sarah is my husband’s friend from college and the first time he mentioned about Sarah, I immediately checked her wedding website and from then I knew straight away that I wanted her to be my wedding organizer.
Loved and followed her work. Funny part is that I waited 3yrs for the proposal before I even told Alvin how much I wanted Sarah to organize the whole wedding. Bride and groom that lives in Dubai, wants to have a wedding in Bali and wedding planner is from Texas! Great plan! ☺
Looking back 2 months after the wedding, I wouldn’t change anything. I get excited with the thoughts of that day. The sun and the rain, families and friends coming altogether, all the vendors who were involved and how everything fell into place. All the aspects of the wedding was carefully chosen and planned with so much excitement. Everyone was amazed!
Planning the whole thing was a breeze, fun and stress free! All because of amazing Sarah. She has this planning pod that tracks all the bits and pieces of the wedding. I used this mainly for the budget. Although we were over budget, it was nice to know where the money is going. So helpful! To some, weather would have been an issue because it rained at some points of the wedding day. But for us, it was perfect! That day was perfect.. Every little decision we made, we had Sarah’s advice and insight.
And we will forever be grateful. Sarah, you know we love you! Missing our meetings and chats.. Thank you so much and hope to see you soon.. ”
You can check out some of the other destination weddings I’ve planned for below, and the behind-the-scenes of a destination celebration here. Spoiler alert, it involves a category 5 hurricane and what we did to deal with the situation on hand!
From Dubai to Bali, a Destination Wedding for the Books!
