WEDDING
Meer-Castelar Endelman-Jarque
Luigi Meer and Daisy Castelar met because of their particularly insistent friends. “Common friends had already been trying to set us up in the past! We both agreed, eventually,” shares Daisy. They agreed to meet for a midweek date but before the actual date bumped into each other and were introduced by their friends. “So our blind date, which still took place, became a “pseudo” blind date the following Wednesday,” says Daisy.
Together for one and a half years, Luigi proposed after a Korean meal. “We went back to his place, and all of a sudden he proposed while I was mid- kwento. Pretty random proposal. He claims it was “calculated,” says the bride. The ring was used from a stone Luigi had sourced from Daisy’s jewelry business. “He had one of our ninangs, Tita Susan Quiros, pretend to be the “buyer” of the stone!” she says, laughing at the memory.
Having long desired an intimate, countryside wedding, the couple was on vacation at Napa Valley last year when they were struck by the scene of a garden wedding. Inspired by that moment, they decided to wed at Australia’s Hunter Valley, two and a half hours away from Sydney. “What is good about a destination wedding is that the celebrations last an entire week.” says Daisy.
Four days before the wedding, Luigi’s friends organized a “boatchelor” party for him, while Daisy’s arranged a “last sail before the veil” sunset cruise for her. Unbeknownst to Daisy, the boat that pulled up next to hers was her husband (then fiancé) and his friends. “Next thing I knew, I saw my husband jump off the boat and swim to ours. Fast forward a few seconds later, and we both jumped into the cold Sydney water to swim to his boat, then back again to my boat!” she says. “The water was freezing and apparently, the Sydney harbor is known for sharks. In short, we will never do that again.”
The next day, guests were welcomed to Hunter Valley for welcome drinks at Dark Horse. “On our wedding day, we had our wedding ceremony in Sacred Spaces, a beautiful former nun’s chapel with choir stalls on each side giving everyone an uninterrupted view of the ceremony,” says Daisy. “Our wedding reception was held in the historic Cricketer’s Pavilion in Wandin Valley Estate Winery and Vineyard.”
Despite the fact that it was a destination wedding, Daisy need not have worried, as When I Say I do, the Sydney-based events planning company she hired for coordination and styling also happened to be owned by her best friend. “It really helped that someone who truly knows my personality and my aesthetics, styled our wedding,” she says. “It truly made the planning stage a beautiful journey.” The Botanical Workshop provided the blooms, making use of gypsophila and accents of cascading amaranths and orchids. The reception venue was decked in a palette of neutrals and soft blush mixed with timber accents and ambient lighting for a refined country ambiance.
Daisy says that what made their wedding memorable and special was that it was truly a family affair. The decision to hold a two-day wedding program was to allow all their closest loved ones to give speeches. “A lot of speeches and a lot of crying were the only nonnegotiables of my husband,” says Daisy. “This 2-day wedding event also allowed us to have more time for dancing during the wedding day itself.”