Chicago Wedding with Korean Paebaek
Today we are happy to share Alissa and Tom’s wedding story! They not only had a traditional American wedding ceremony but they incorporated a Korean ceremony called Paebaek. We are so excited to share more about how they incorporated so many things in their wedding day that are uniquely “them” including their adorable puppy Charlotte. Check out the full post to learn more about their proposal and wedding planning process. Thank you both for sharing your story with us and our followers! xo
Tell us a little about your proposal story:
Tom proposed on Christmas Day 2020. It was just the 2 of us on Christmas and I had initially had the hunch he was going to propose (because he is very bad at being secretive haha) but when I looked under the Christmas tree, there was a big shoebox and there was something big and heavy in the box so I thought maybe not. When I opened it, there was a baseball mitten??? and I was really confused but then afterwards, I read the card and it said to look behind the Christmas tree and there was a little hidden ornament that said "Will you marry me?". Then my family joined us right afterwards and we spent a wonderful holiday all together!
OMG your puppy! Tell us about your puppy and why/how you were able to incorporate him/her in the wedding!
Initially, we had wanted our dog to be in the wedding but our baby girl has a lot of separation anxiety and we thought that if she would come to the wedding and be in the ceremony and then have to leave us for the reception (due to food being served, she would not be permitted onsite for the reception), she would be very anxious. We ultimately decided on not having her in the wedding but we made sure we got a lot of pictures with her beforehand during formals and also named a signature drink after her. Our neighbors were kind enough to watch us on our wedding day and she had a great time at their house with their dog.
How long were you planning your wedding? Did you have the assistance of a planner or did you tackle the planning yourself?
I started planning my wedding almost immediately because I knew that weddings were getting postponed due to COVID and vendors were filling up. I knew it was going to be too much planning for 2021 so I just started to plan ahead for 2022. I booked the big vendors such as venue, photographer, florist, catering and DJ right away and then I took some time off from wedding planning because I had a lot of time left and eventually started to plan all the small things again about 6 months after I had booked the big vendors. I think that planning ahead kept my stress level relatively low and helped me enjoy the planning process. I did end up hiring a Day of Coordinator and it was the best decision I had ever made. I highly recommend all brides hire at least a day of coordinator to help you run things smoothly and not have to have any stress on your wedding day.
It looks like you have a beautiful cultural ceremony happening in your images - Can you explain that to us a little more?
The Korean ceremony is called Paebaek. It is a traditional Korean wedding ritual that celebrates the union of families and culture. A traditional Korean outfit is worn and it is called hanbok. Ours was a rental from a vendor. There are several steps to partake during paebaek but we chose a relatively short version since we knew we were going to be tired and didn't want it to last too long for our guests. We had our niece and nephew enter with us and they were holding a lantern. The lantern symbolizes a guiding light for only bright days ahead and eternal happiness. Then we bowed to the elderly members of our families (grandparents, aunts, uncles, parents) which symbolizes reverence and devotion to our new family. Then we served them tea/alcohol and they gave us words of wisdom/blessings for a long lasting marriage. Then the elderly members of the family throw dates and chestnuts at Tom and I to catch in an apron (we are holding both ends) and the chestnuts symbolizes the # of daughters and dates symbolize the # of sons we will have. Then it ends with Tom giving me a piggyback ride as this shows strength and love he will devote throughout our lives.
What was your vision for your wedding (as you were planning)?
I didn't really have a vision or a theme or anything for my wedding. I knew I wanted it to be relatively minimal with bright florals for spring and I wanted to make sure I could incorporate our dog into the wedding pictures and make her be a part of my wedding day. I also wanted to make sure that the Korean wedding ceremony was a part of the wedding day as I am from Korea and spent my childhood years there. I had some family come from Korea to be with us on our wedding day and wanted our guests to experience Korean culture and tradition as I am very proud of my roots!
What was your favorite memory/moment from the wedding day?
The wedding day honestly felt like such a rush as there were so many things happening and so many things that we had to do one after the other. But overall, the best memory was being reunited with my friends and family who I haven't seen in a while due to COVID. I made the effort to talk to every guest that came to our wedding (granted there were only 95) and to make sure they were having a good time. I also really enjoyed finally getting to sit and eat some food haha. But honestly, the entire day felt like such a dream and it is one of my best memories of my life.
Wedding Pro’s:
Venue: Loft Lucia
Photographer: Krista Scarlavai
Florist: Studio Poppy
DJ: Green Line Talent
Day of Coordinator: Sarah Kathleen Events
Cake and sweets table: Bittersweet
Hair and makeup: Appease Inc
Catering: Cocina Fusion
Alcohol: Prestige Liquors
Shoes: Soludos
Wedding Gown: Maggie Sottero
Wedding Gown Shop: Mimi's Bridal Boutique
Tuxedo rental: Formally Modern
Wedding party transportation: Signature Transportation Group
Bridesmaid dresses: Birdy Grey
Hotel: Hampton Inn West Loop
Korean wedding ceremony (paebaek): Goongjoong Paebaek
Officiant: Reverend Bruce Otto
Wedding insurance: Eventsured
Table numbers, cocktail sign: DIY
Sketch: Christina Vanko
Escort cards: Minted