Mira and Ka Wai’s Wedding at Ping Tom Park and MingHin Restaurant, Chicago, Illinois

Our water taxi ride from the Magnificent Mile to Ping Tom Park was picture perfect — the weather reports had forecasted potential rain all week long, so we were relieved that it held up for the ride down the Chicago River.

 

Seeing the chairs and altar being set up on the open lawn as the boat made its way toward the park was exciting. It finally felt real at that point.

 

We also really enjoyed all of our dinner — which was a traditional Chinese banquet dinner of about 12 courses. Lots of our guests got to try new foods for the first time. What made it more fun was having so many babies and kids at the wedding. It gave the entire night the levity and joy that we were shooting for.

 

Mira received a beautiful and elaborate gold necklace from her sister-in-law from Shanghai, who couldn’t attend the wedding. She wore it during dinner when she changed into her red qípáo (a traditional Chinese gown).

 

We wanted to keep the themes very simple and comfortable, while striking a balance between the traditional and contemporary. Red is a color of luck and is often used in weddings. We balanced it with grays and white instead of other traditional Chinese colors like jade or gold.

 

We chose Ping Tom Park because the environment also had this wonderful balance between nature and industry. The old drawbridge and Chicago skyline juxtaposed the greenery and water perfectly. It meant we really didn’t need much in terms of extra decor for the actual ceremony.  Our coordinator Chyrel did a wonderful job of setting up the ceremony to let the backdrop of the skyline shine through.

 

There are many traditions in Chinese weddings, but we wanted to only sprinkle in a few of them during the wedding. The tea ceremony — where we offer tea to our elders in exchange of wise words and gifts — was something we decided to do in front of everyone in the middle of dinner, even though its traditionally done privately and before the dinner.  It’s also tradition for the bride to change dresses during the evening — Mira  changed into the qípáo, and then into another dress afterward.

 

We focused the day on our family and friends, so having just a few traditions rolled into the event was what we wanted. Otherwise, it was all about the food, dancing, and catching up with people from near and far.

 

There were lots of funny moments — not all of which we got to see! We had a table with 6 children, and the combination of a 12-course meal meant that a few unlucky parents had some food spilled on them (all in good fun). We also go to see our flower girl dance with Ka Wai’s teenage cousin who in turn was dancing with one of our friends (who is our age). That probably won’t happen again!

 

We were once given advice that there are always one or two things that go wrong during a wedding. So, get over it while your planning for it — focus on making the wedding a great time for everyone rather than trying to get it perfect. It also helps so much to hire talented people – book a professional photographer like Victoria, who will capture your wedding in ways you can’t see while you’re experiencing it all, and get a wedding coordinator that complements your strengths and let them do what they do best!

 

 

2nd Photographer: Nicoletta R

Lighting/Gear Assistant: Sam Lare

Chyrel Banias (Day-Of-Coordinator) – Lil Epic Event Design

Getting ready Hotel: Hard Rock Hotel

Ceremony: Ping Tom Park

Reception: MingHin Restaurant
Emily Grissom (Hair Stylist)
Kelly Bush (Makeup Artist)
Cage & Aquarium (DJ)
Ian Carswell (Officiant)
Chiu Quon Bakery (Cake Designer)