Wedding price tag: About $160,600
Who: Mark Foo, 35, managing director of gourmet meat provider Swiss Butchery, and Stephanie Sim, 30, brand manager of the same company
When: June this year
Where: Church of St Teresa and W Singapore - Sentosa Cove
Venue & food: $87,000
Alcoholic beverages: $5,000, including champagne
Clothing: $20,000, including a gown from The Atelier Bridal, suits from Dior Homme and Digio Bridal, shoes from Jimmy Choo and Prada, and handmade origami paper cranes by bridal studio Olive Suite
Decor & floral arrangements: $27,000, by Mirage Flowers
Photography: $4,000, by Revelation Creative House
Videography: $10,000, by Substance Films
Make-up & hair: From $1,100 by Kenneth Lee
Others: $6,500, including live butterflies, wedding stationery, musicians and dancers
True to the garden theme they wanted, lush arches and bouquets of flowers formed centrepieces at the church wedding and wedding dinner of Mr Mark Foo and Ms Stephanie Sim.
The couple even released 50 live butterflies, bought from a local butterfly farm at $5 each, on the steps of the church after their solemnisation.
Ms Sim says: "I wanted butterflies because they represent the evolution of our relationship and of ourselves as people."
"On top of that, they're very pretty," she adds with a laugh.
She discovered a little too late that butterflies could be caught only at night. They had initially wanted to release 500 butterflies, but ended up with 50 because they could not be caught in time.
She wore a gown from American bridalwear designer Romona Keveza, which cost about $7,500, and had plastic butterfly replicas woven into her hair. Her 3m-long veil was laced with origami cranes and fans.
She says: "I love origami for its structure."
A staunch Catholic, she felt that the most important and meaningful wedding traditions were those pertaining to her faith, such as exchanging her vows in a church. In fact, Mr Foo had proposed to her outside Saint Peter's Basilica in Vatican City, a sacred place for Catholics around the world.
The couple started proper planning for the wedding about three months before the actual day. They chose to host a banquet at the W in Sentosa as it was one of the newer venues in Singapore.
Ms Sim says: "My husband is probably one of the last of his friends to get married, so everyone has already been everywhere. We wanted somewhere new so it wouldn't be boring for them."
They also liked the W's "quirky" feel, and had an after-party at one of its bars after the dinner, which was attended by about 420 people and held two days after the church reception.
Ms Sim approached florist Mirage Flowers to create an "enchanted garden" setting for the ballroom and the church using flowers such as peonies, calla lilies and proteas.
Mirage also put together a "wishing tree", a small tree-like structure on which guests could leave congratulatory notes.
Mr Foo foot the bill for most of the items and events, save for some of the decorations and the church buffet, for which Ms Sim's mother helped to pay.
The bride says, tongue firmly in cheek: "I think he's broke now."
She adds: "He very kindly said, 'Don't worry, I'll settle it.' But as the receipts grew, he would say, 'Are you sure you need to have this? Are you very sure we can't make do with something else?'"
But they both agreed that it was a oncein- a-lifetime event and that they should indulge their desires.
Ms Sim gushes: "He is very, very, very flexible and very kind and generous." They have had to delay their honeymoon because of work commitments, but are considering either a visit to Iceland to see the Northern Lights or a trip to South Africa.
Mr Foo says he was able to plan ahead and set aside money for the wedding and so did not break the bank. Together, the couple draw a six-figure annual salary.
He adds: "To me, a wedding is about sharing your joy with your close friends and family, to let them have an enjoyable time and to be happy - just as you are."
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