I pretty much knew who I wanted my bridesmaids to be by the time I got engaged. It just took me a few months to ask them because I wanted a creative way to do so! With the help of my sister, I finally got around to it. Back in middle, my friends and I would create unique ways of writing each other letters. I wanted to mimic that those middle school days. You know with the “K.I.T” and “L.Y.L.A.R.S.”, before the “LOL” days. I wrote personalized letters to each of the eight explaining why I asked them and how much they meant to me. I wanted to get an Envelopments portable pocket but didn’t want to delay my asking further so decided just to make them myself. I got gray cardstock as the backing to the main card:

I then made a “portable pocket” with teal/turquoise cardstock:

The letters went inside the pocket:

And in the front was a picture of me along with the bridesmaid the letter was addressed to. In this case, it’s my sister who I asked to be my Maid-of-Honor. She already knew what it was going to look like since she sat by me making it, but she didn’t read the letter til the finished product:

Of course, I had to ask April who I’ve known since middle school and my best friend for over 12 years:

Here’s a bigger picture of my sister Marj/MOH:

And then the rest of my bridesmaids:

My second-cousin Jona who I grew up with:

My second-cousin Jasmine who’s my older sister figure:

My cousin-in-law Rowena who I’ve grown really close to (Marj, Jas, Ro, & I are a foursome):

A bigger picture of April and I:

Celeste has been my best friend as long as April has. Together, we make up GinApesCel. Here’s the both of us at our trip to Europe (Spanish Steps in Rome):

One of my best friends since college, fellow ABCer & Gossip Girl lover Liezel:

Another best friend since college & one half of The CoCos (I being the other) Sheryl:

Aren’t they all beautiful? Lucky for me, they all said yes! I’m looking forward to sharing my big day with these ladies. Have you asked your wedding party in any particular way? If so, how?

I always knew I wanted to get married at a church. Growing up, I never envisioned having an outdoor ceremony or anywhere else outside the church. I want a traditional Catholic ceremony. There are a lot of beautiful and historic churches in San Francisco. I had a couple in mind but Saints Peter and Paul Church had always been at the top. On our first trip to the Bay Area after we got engaged, we decided to attend the 7:30am mass there. There weren’t lot of people and most at that attendees were tourists. We later found out that there’s a strong Chinese and Italian presence at the church. The priest gave a really good sermon and we knew that we definitely wanted to get married there.

Saints Peter and Paul Church was completed in 1924 with a Neo-Gothic design. The twin lofty spires and rose window make the exterior distinguishable. The interior is equally amazing – pictures and a description just don’t do it justice.

After my last visit to the church with our families, we discovered that Joe DiMaggio was married to Dorothy Arnold there. There’s a book on the side entrance next to the office displaying a picture of their wedding. Joe DiMaggio’s funeral was also taken place at the church.

This is where I’ll be walking down the aisle:

It’s a beautiful church and I’m glad our families were able to see and get excited about the church! I’m even more excited to be getting married there!!