Friends-turned-lovers Bernice and Cyril tied the knot with a modern Filipino Fiesta theme. The fun-loving couple gave their green and white affair a warm touch and a festive flair with DIY projects, unique program twists, and one sumptuous lechon.
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• Read about their love story.
• Find out about their wedding preparations.
  

LOVE STORY

When Bernice and Cyril met through a common friend back in 2000, there weren’t any sparks between them since they were both in long time relationships.

Fate probably had a different plan for them, and in 2005, they bumped into each other again--this time they were both single. They would randomly see each other in different places, too.

One time, Bernice and Cyril both arrived late at their common friend's surprise party, where they sat beside each other and exchanged stories. Their friendship blossomed into romance, and they dated for five months before they became a couple. Three years into the relationship, they got engaged.

In January 2010, Cyril proposed to Bernice by conniving with her friend. Bernice received a text from a friend asking her to meet up at Westgate, Abalone because she needed advice. Bernice agreed and brought Cyril with her, as her friend requested--little did Bernice know that it was all part of Cyril's plan.

When Cyril picked her up, she noticed that he was wearing a shirt with the word "Me" printed on the lower right side, but she didn't pay much attention to it. "[On] our way to Alabang, he suddenly pops this song by Goo Goo Dolls, “Better Days.” [I didn’t] realize the song [was part of the] buildup, and we pulled up the rotunda of Westgate parking, our friends suddenly ran out of the bushes and the sides of the restos with balloons and three cardboard banners saying, "WILL YOU MARRY.”  So Cy [went out of the car], [headed] to the passenger's side, with me all shocked and caught [off-guard], opened my door, knelt and pulled out the ring out of his pocket. The "Me" on his shirt completed the whole picture," the bride gushingly shares.

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Find out about their wedding preparations

Wedding Preparations

"Our wedding was a nod to the past. We had a Filipino fiesta theme but [we incorporated] contemporary ideas and materials," says Bernice of her wedding.

To channel festive theme, banderitas, bamboo poles, pabitin, and palayok were incorporated in the wedding décor for the ceremony and reception. Aside from these, the couple also treated their guests to a sumptuous feast of Filipino dishes with twists, such as sinigang na salmon, spicy tuyo in angel hair pasta, chicken inasal skewers with pickled eggplant, calamansi crème brulee, and pandan iced tea. And instead of having a traditional wedding cake, the couple served a wedding lechon.

The couple also engaged themselves in DIY projects. They bought their invites’ template in the US and customized them according to their wedding's theme. Their gifts for their sponsors were also a labor of love, as they carefully packaged chocolate tableas from Davao and kapeng Barako from Battings in nifty pandan leaf boxes. Of course, all their hardwork perfectly paid off when their entourage surprised them with song and dance numbers, in which they rendered Francis M.'s Mga Kababayan Ko and Donna Cruz' Kapag Tumibok ang Puso.

Being hands-on with all the preparations, the bride advises brides-to-be to "just do everything out of love. Always remember the reason why you both have decided to come together. It's much simpler and easier that way."