Jeweled high heeled shoes on lavender tulle at Brooklyn City Hall NY DAG Images

Unique wedding rings displayed on jeweled high heeled shoe on lavender tulle at Brooklyn City Hall NY DAG Images

Black metallic wedding band displayed on bright purple suede loafer in Brooklyn City Hall New York DAG Images

Brides smiling facing each other during City Hall wedding ceremony in Brooklyn New York DAG Images

Brides smiling together with officiant during City Hall wedding ceremony Brooklyn NY DAG Images

Black brides getting married by officiant at Brooklyn City Hall New York DAG Images

Brides exchanging rings at wedding ceremony in Brooklyn City Hall New York City DAG Images

Bride with raised fist smiling during wedding ceremony at Brooklyn City Hall NY DAG Images

Brides exchanging vows at city hall wedding in Brooklyn New York DAG Images

Bride in white two piece suit with magenta bow tie reading vows during City Hall Wedding Brooklyn NY DAG Images

Brides leaning in to kiss before the officiant at City Hall wedding in Brooklyn New York DAG Images

Portrait of newlywed brides in white and lavender at Brooklyn City Hall New York DAG Images

Brides kissing before officiant podium at Brooklyn City Hall New York DAG Images

Black and white portrait of brides kissing in a hallway at Brooklyn City Hall NY DAG Images

Brides with their eyes closed and holding hands around the corner of a building at Brooklyn City Hall NYC DAG Images

Brides smiling at each other and holding hands around the corner of a building at Brooklyn City Hall New York DAG Images

Brides in purple and white holding hands outside Brooklyn City Hall New York City DAG Images

Brides in white and lavender posing together outside City Hall in Brooklyn New York DAG Images

Same sex newlywed couple kissing outside Brooklyn City Hall New York DAG Images

Newlywed brides laughing together outside Brooklyn City Hall NYC DAG Images

Newlywed couple laughing and holding each other outside City Hall in Brooklyn New York DAG Images

Close up portrait of newlywed brides sharing an intimate moment outside Brooklyn City Hall NY DAG Images

Black newlywed brides posing together outside in Brooklyn New York DAG Images

Newlywed brides holding each other and laughing outside Brooklyn City Hall New York DAG Images

Newlywed brides holding hands and walking past a brightly colored mural in New York City DAG Images

Brides in white and lavender holding each other in front of a colorful mural in Brooklyn NY DAG Images

Newlywed brides looking into each other eyes before a bright blue painted brick wall in Brooklyn NYC DAG Images

Newlywed brides holding each other in front of a colorful brick wall in Brooklyn New York City DAG Images

Portrait of brides holding each other and smiling in Brooklyn New York DAG Images

Black brides hands with matching wedding bands and an engagement ring over lavender fabric in NYC DAG Images

Brides sitting together on a street bench after wedding ceremony in Brooklyn New York DAG Images

Bride kissing their bride’s cheek outside in Brooklyn NYC DAG Images

Bride twirling her bride outside in front of a tall brick wall in Brooklyn NYC DAG Images

Brides embracing with their foreheads together outside in Brooklyn New York DAG Images

Newlywed couples shoes jeweled and purple suede outside in Brooklyn NY DAG Images

Brides sharing an intimate moment showing off their white and lavender wedding attire in New York City Brooklyn DAG Images

Photos by DAG Images. Words by Liang.

Number of Wedding Guests:

Four — Us, the officiant, and our photographer

Wedding Date:

8/8/2018

How did you meet?

Technically speaking, Bella and I met on Facebook. Funny story, actually, because before that we attended the same Jr. High School but probably only interacted once, if at all. To be honest, I’m not sure anymore if I imagined an interaction or if it actually happened.

I reached out to Bella to find out whether or not she actually knew who I was and we basically hit it off from there. We spoke every single day and since I was away at school in North Carolina at the time, the bulk of our courting phase (about two years) was via ooVoo and Skype. I visited maybe five or six times before I decided to transfer schools and move back to NYC.

Tell us about the proposal!

Bella proposed on HER birthday because she can’t take a break from being awesome, not even to celebrate the day she was born! We’d gone out to a local Jazz club to celebrate her birthday and when we got back the entire living room was decorated with yellow rose petals, photos, and yellow balloons. Yellow is my favorite color. We’d just moved into our first apartment together a few months prior, so we didn’t have any furniture yet. For a while, I was completely speechless (that’s rare) because I was trying to process how she’d pulled this off while I was talking to her all day. She used photos from our first months together AND wrote the dates in. She even had screenshots of our very first conversations. Everything was so well thought out and incredible, absolutely one of the happiest days of my life.

Bella's thoughts on the proposal: I actually thought about how I would propose for a while. I chose my birthday because I knew Liang wouldn’t be thinking about it. It was my birthday so although we were getting pampered, I knew it would be the furthest thing from her mind because she was focused on me. Originally, I’d planned to do it the day before, but since she was at work and I was off I had the day to put everything together. It worked out so well. Since I picked her up from work and we went out directly after she couldn’t have seen inside before I was ready for her to. It was perfect.

What did you wear? Were any of the accessories or jewelry significant? Were you conflicted about wearing or not wearing certain things?

I wore a jeweled strapless lavender high-low mermaid dress with a jeweled sheer capelet and jeweled shoes. I was 100% sure I didn’t want to wear white, so I chose lavender because it promotes peace, majesty, femininity, youth and vitality. My headpiece and earrings did an amazing job at keeping my sparkle consistent from head to toe.

Bella wore a Custom Arjona Collection off-white two piece with a purple and boysenberry damask bow tie and coordinating Franco Sarto loafer. Hair and makeup was by me.

What special elements did you include in your wedding day?

We included our photographer and very dear friend, Debbie, in our wedding day. She was our only witness. Our wedding date, 8.8.18, was also symbolic. Eight is our favorite number, it’s included in both our birthdays. It is the largest feminine number in numerology and also, ironically, resembles the infinity sign.

What was totally worth the time or money invested in it?

The Photos! Debbie was amazing at letting us know exactly where we needed to be and what we needed to do to get amazing shots. We appreciate her so much! Definitely invest in a great photographer that you have amazing chemistry with and that your trust.

What is your best planning advice for other couples?

Don’t stress, hire a planner.
If you DIY, make sure it’s catered to you not anyone else.
Remember why you’re getting married. Guests are great, but it isn’t about them. Don’t let others project their expectations on to you about YOUR nuptials.

Vendors

Photographer | DAG IMAGES

Celebration/Reception | Andy Fortune

Florist | My Lovely Stems

Clothing

Dress and Romper | Nathaniel White

Gown | Anita Rivers

Suits | Alexis Arjona

DAG IMAGES

My name is Debbie. I am a Wedding and Portrait Photographer who happens to also be a romantic at heart. I’ve been a photographer for over 10 years and specializing in weddings for 5 of those years. In addition to being a photographer, I’m also a content creator and avid traveler. When I’m not working on a gorgeous wedding or writing a new blog post, I’m stuffing my face with food while reading an interesting book. My work has been featured on NBC News, Vanity Fair, Teen Vogue, The Cut, Refinery29, BuzzFeed, Huffington Post, DapperQ, to name a few.

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