Real Wedding | Jackie + Jacob

Tell us a little about yourselves!

We met online in 2014 via an online dating app. After reading on my profile about my appreciation for whiskey, Jacob suggested we go to the wonderful Canon for our first date. Since then, we’ve continued to share an affection for food, libations, and adventure. Whether it’s mysterious street food in a Oaxacan market or a souffle, there’s nothing we won’t taste together. Except maybe uni – Jacob, most regrettably, hates uni.

Why did you decide to get married where you did?

The beauty of the Kingston House largely speaks for itself, but in a couple of ways it spoke to us personally. Early on, we’d set our hearts on having dinner with our family and friends at one long table, which is not the most common or practical request for a venue. When we stumbled upon Kingston House’s ability to accommodate this, we were thrilled. Additionally, the placement of the long dinner table was to be in their gorgeous field of lavender. In our current (and first) home, we have lots of lavender in the yard, so the whole thing felt serendipitous and special. The East Asian influence of the mid-century house on the property was another breath-taking artifact that called to us.

How many guests did you have?

About 115.

What was your budget?

45k.

Tell us about your outfits.

Both of our outfits combined old with the new, with a touch of sentimental. My dress was Alexandra Grecco from The Dress Theory. I knew early on that I wanted something so minimalist and sleek that it would, on the contrary, feel almost bold for a wedding. No lace, no beading, no pizzazz – like if Ralph Lauren in the 90s made wedding dresses. For contrast, I wore large gold-coloured vintage Givenchy earrings, purchased from the unequalled Rhinestone Rosie’s vintage earring shop. I finished the look with a thin gold necklace from my mother and a gold bracelet from Jacob, which was the first piece of jewellery he gifted to me. For Jacob, a tux felt too formal for the lavender fields but classic was key. He opted for a custom-made black suit from Indochino, who produces great quality suits at a hard to beat price. He wore black cap toes with a beautiful dark brown wooden sole, which gave some nice modernity to the look. What really made his outfit special was his wrist watch – a WWII-era Rolex gifted to him from his late father, who passed away shortly after we started dating. The dial of the watch is cream and the strap is a dark, chocolate brown alligator skin – it was the perfect accent for his sharp and understated look.

What was the most important aspect for you, in terms of planning your wedding?

Creating a feeling of warmth and joviality for our guests. Forcing everyone to take a ferry, and then a shuttle, and then hang out in that abrasive late July heat was definitely asking a lot from people. Jacob and I knew we’d be happy with any outcome for the wedding, but we wanted to make sure our gratitude for our guests was conveyed through and through.

Were there any elements that were important for you to incorporate?

Jacob and I are both these sort of cultural mutts – he’s half-Jewish and I’m half-Korean, and both of those halves are dear to us and our sense of self. That being said, we didn’t want to force anything unnatural either. Having my mom walk me down the aisle in her hanbok and then doing the Hora with everyone was just the right amount of cultural expression and symbolism for us. Also our dog, Sheena. It was important to us that the Kingston House allowed her to be there with us on our special day (she was a Bridesmaid!). We also commemorated her with our last song of the evening: 'Sheena is a Punk Rocker' by the Ramones.

Any tips for couples getting married?

I’ll keep my advice focused on the wedding planning process in particular – share the planning with your partner as much as possible. Don’t let 70% of planning to fall to one person. There’s no better occasion for both people to step up to the plate and stumble outside of their comfort zone. The effort put forth by both people during this time is what sets the tone for the day, and all of the memories henceforth. Also, don’t stress over or overthink your big day. Know that things will go wrong but that no one other than you will notice and it will still all feel perfect in the end.

Are there any vendors that you would like to tell us a little more about?

Our photographers, Juliette and Liz of J + L Photography, were the gift that kept on giving. Although I tried my best in the beginning, I didn’t have to explain my vision or “aesthetic” to them. Their ability to pick up on the style we wanted while also challenging us to try new things, produced results that were greater than we could’ve expected from a collection of photos. We spent more time with them than anyone else on our wedding day, and their demeanour and personalities provided much-needed calm and cheerfulness. We could not have asked for more talented, creative, professional, and down-to-earth wedding day pals, and are still regularly gushing over our photos now.