1. Real Weddings

Thao & Donny: A Colorful, Cultural Wedding in Lansing, MI

After meeting and exchanging numbers at a bar where Thao was celebrating her birthday with friends, Donny called Thao to ask her out for dinner on a f

After meeting and exchanging numbers at a bar where Thao was celebrating her birthday with friends, Donny called Thao to ask her out for dinner on a first date. The Bride Thao Lai, 25, product design engineer The Groom Donny Nguyen, 28, pharmaceutical sales representative The Date June 27 Two years later, Donny took Thao out for a birthday dinner at the restaurant where they had had their first date. Afterward, he brought her to the bar where they had first met. When they arrived, Thao was surprised to find a table decorated with purple orchids (her favorite) in the center of the dance floor. Donny proposed, and later, Thao’s birthday party turned into a surprise engagement party with all of their friends.

After searching forever for the right escort card holders, Donny had the idea of using Buddha figurines. Thao figured she’d have to move people around at the last minute, so she worked around it by putting guests’ names on little envelopes and the table numbers inside. She hand-wrote everyone’s name on the envelopes and decorated them with tiny pink, lavender, or purple rhinestones.
Because Thao designed the menu cards, Donny worked on the napkin fold. He came up with a clean asymmetrical pattern to wrap around all the menus.
Thao and Donny love to go out and dance (it’s how they met, after all), so they decided to set up their reception like a dance club with a lounge area. Thao painted orchids on fabric panels to separate VIP seating areas and their florist Corinne filled white boxes with branches and twisted orchids.
When florist Corinne from Sebesta Design showed Thao black-painted coral, Thao loved the idea. For the cocktail hour centerpieces, Corinne filled square boxes with black river rocks to fit the wedding’s Asian Zen, lounge vibe; Thao bought votive candles from IKEA to accent the centerpieces.
Thao loves lots of colors, so instead of choosing just one hue for her bridesmaids to wear, she asked them to pick their own knee-length dresses in the pink to purple color range. Once the party really started, Thao changed into a knee-length Melissa Sweet dress and fuchsia pumps.
Thao loves to scrapbook, so she bought a blank scrapbook and dressed it up with satin fabric. She filled the inside with colored pages and pictures of her and Donny and created lots of little pockets. At the reception, guests wrote memories and bits of advice, or just doodled onto slips of paper for the book.
Thao made the menu cards using a logo she had designed of a dragon and phoenix tail and printed them on card stock. Donny helped out by hole-punching the card corners. Instead of renting silver chargers, Thao and Donny saved money by buying 12” x 12” tiles at Home Depot! They plan to use the tiles to remodel their kitchen.
The groomsmen wore chocolate-brown tuxedos with white shoes for a pop of color. Each guy wore a boutonniere that matched the dress of the bridesmaid he was paired with. Donny stood out from the guys in a tuxedo, custom-made in Vietnam, and a lavender orchid boutonniere.
Donny’s mom volunteered to arrange Thao’s bouquet using flowers from her garden. The result was a hand-tied cluster of yellow flowers.
Vietnamese brides typically wear hats, but Thao switched things up and wore a red feather fascinator.
After the tea ceremony at Donny’s family’s home, the couple asked a judge to officiate a quick justice of the peace ceremony, so that they were legally married before heading off to the reception!
Thao and Donny decided to have Chinese and Vietnamese tea ceremonies to honor their cultures. They borrowed a tea tray from a family friend, and the best man held the tray while the couple offered blessings for their families.
Thao designed her own Vietnamese ao dai (long shirt), using traditional red and gold colors. She drew a sketch of what she wanted and sent it to her aunt in Vietnam, who chose the right fabrics and had the dress made for Thao. Traditionally an ao dai has a high neckline, but Thao updated it with a boat-neck style.
Thao and Donny’s wedding party were part of the tea ceremonies and the groomsmen wore gold ao dais designed by Donny’s mom and custom-made during her trip to Vietnam.