- The most beautiful weddings are the ones that tell your love story, show your personality as a couple, and celebrated with an unforgettable party. All these make up Jeian and Maika De Jesus’ ‘The Grand Budapest Hotel’-inspired wedding that was devoid of the usual template we see at every wedding: a room where every inch is filled with flowers, a towering wedding cake, bridesmaid dresses complying to a single Pantone, and the list goes on.
Jeian and Maika chose the theme based on who they are as a couple: fun, quirky, and relaxed. So when the couple went to Bar Luce in Milan, which was designed by Wes Anderson, their hearts definitely skipped a beat–that was the moment they both knew they’ve chosen a theme for their wedding.
Let’s begin with the wedding invitations by Adworks Manila, which happens to be the family business of Maika’s family. So you can only imagine the attention to detail for this one!
The couple actually prepared two versions of their wedding invitation: a multi-layered, hardbound, die-cut invite decked in gold stamping and enclosed in a hardbound sleeve designed like a vintage suitcase for their principal sponsors and their special guests from abroad.
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The main invites, on the other hand, consisted of three hardbound, die-cut inserts that were also decked in gold.
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Adworks Manila did everything from graphic design to printing. With this outcome, the guests would surely be keeping your invites as a souvenir!
But if you think that was amazing, check out their super cute e-vite complete with the soundtrack from the movie ‘The Grand Budapest Hotel’!
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Now let’s go into the details of the venue styling by Gideon Hermosa. The chosen reception venue was at White Space Manila where colors, a prime consideration to really make the whole theme come to life, were strategically chosen.
The dinner setup was a mixture of couches and ghost chairs with just the right amount of colorful flowers on the table.
Our favorite details would probably be the vintage cobalt blue chandeliers and the palm trees installed around the room.
It was a wedding full of character, personality, and storytelling!
The bride wore a dress by Monique Lhuillier.
“I went with a RTW, Monique Lhuillier gown that I bought in Hong Kong. I realized that I wanted something classic but not out of character. I still wanted it young and modern, but timeless. It had nothing to do with our theme, though, but it had everything to do with how confident and happy it made me feel.”
“I told my then fiance when he picked me up from the airport that the stress of picking the right dress was just the same as picking the right man -thankfully, I picked the right ones”
A pro-tip from the bride on picking the dress: “It was also news to me that even if you buy gowns off the rack, they’ll have a new dress custom made in your size which is why the process takes at least 6 months to complete.”
The dashing groom went for an all-white ensemble by Ziggy Savella that was tailored away from the body, minus the buttoned-up shirt inside. Small details like this definitely kept the whole theme intact!
If you look closely at the dresses of the adorable flower girls, you’ll see the fabric is printed with quirky kids’ drawings.
And how cute are the little boys in flat top hats?
For the entourage, the ladies wore different shades of pastel by designer Esme Palaganas while the men wore cornflower blue suits on top of playfully printed shirts.
Even the wedding guests and principal sponsors got the memo.
Of course, the only appropriate thing to do is to make a grand entrance on a luggage trolley!
Wait a minute–do those boxes look familiar to you? We’re guessing it’s the wedding souvenirs decorated just like Mendl’s Courtesan au Chocolat from the movie!
The cake was the definition of understated elegance that perfectly contrasted the surrounding theme.
If you’re wondering how the De Jesus couple pulled off a wedding with so much attention to detail, they confessed that they really did ‘sweat the small stuff’, but all of it proved to be worth it.
“The little things added up and made the whole experience extra special for everyone. We invested and poured so much of ourselves in planning our wedding that our guests felt Jeian and I everywhere in the church and the reception. It was the most satisfying thing and we could not be happier.”
