Raya and Abbo's friendship started in the year 2010. As fate took its course, the two started dating the year after and decided to get married after five years. "We took the relationship seriously from the very beginning. So after I finished college, the proposal took place and we got married last April," Raya said. At first, the plan was to get married in the capital city, Jakarta; but Raya decided that she wanted to get married in Bali. With just a little over 100 guests, the intimate celebration turned out even more wonderful than the couple had expected.
"Originally, we wanted the wedding to have a rustic theme, thanks to a lot of Pinterest browsing," said Raya. She continued, "Yet to maintain a balance with our parents' tastes and expectations, we added an elegance touch to the whole concept. I asked Butterfly Event Styling to experiment with flowers to make things a little less rugged and more romantic." As both Raya and Abbo like neutral palettes, they chose muted colors like white, green, and bronze with some wood textures here and there. They even asked all their guests to wear white so they can blend in perfectly in the wedding pictures.
Raya herself looked irresistible. Inspired by Bertha Bridal dresses, she asked Anggi Asmara to make her a figure-hugging dress with lace and mixed appliqués. The long-sleeved off shoulder dress wrapped her body so beautifully, making her look like a goddess. Her flawless complexion, brushed by celebrated makeup artist Bubah Alfian, only enchanted her look even more. As for Abbo, his bespoke beige suit transformed him to his most dapper self.
When asked about their favorite wedding element, Raya and Abbo were very specific. "The ocean and decoration. We love how the decoration blended so well with the ocean in the background. Every time I see my wedding pictures, my heart swells all over again," said Raya. She then added that on top of everything else, they both loved the fact that the wedding was so intimate. "That way, we were able to really interact and have fun with all our guests."
Raya also shared one fun fact about her wedding: that it happened exactly one day after her birthday. "It was the best birthday gift ever and I was really really excited about the whole thing," she said. So scroll right down for beautiful pictures finely captured by Gusde Photography, watch their wedding video and read more as Raya talks about her wedding vendors.
From the bride:
One of the most useful advice I can give to brides-to-be planning their wedding is to ask for vendor recommendations from other married couples as well as other vendors. When it comes to picking vendors, just take your time and don't rush it. After it was decided that we were going to have a Bali wedding, only then did I start picking my vendors. I chose Bali-based ones with the help of my wedding planner. All of them became my personal favorites. They were all very professional and they managed to executed our vision very well. Another tip when planning an outdoor wedding is to think of precautions in case of bad weather. Also, having an intimate destination wedding sometimes means a limited number of guests. So make sure you know exactly how many guests are coming to the party.
