(photo by Rudy Liwanag)

Dubbed by local media as the “wedding of the year,” senator and vice-presidential hopeful Mar Roxas (52) married broadcast journalist Korina Sanchez (45) in a well-attended ceremony at the Sto. Domingo Church in Quezon City.

Their theme was appropriately Flipiniana.  The bride wore a serpentina-style piña gown by Pepito Albert sans the traditional bridal veil.  She walked down the aisle teary-eyed with her three brothers taking turns escorting her to the altar, as the groom awaited her.

The exchange of rings, the giving of the arrhae, and the exchange of vows were completely documented in this 10-minute video clip from ABS-CBN:

After the wedding ceremony, the newlyweds greeted hundreds of well-wishers who stayed and witnessed the entire proceedings on giant screens setup outside the church.  Afterwhich, the couple headed at the courtyard to partake of the simple merienda cena of local delicacies (pan de sal, puto, polvoron, etc) and refreshments.  Also seen was a white, flower-decked pedicab bearing the couple’s picture with the words “Bagong Kasal.”

The couple decided to call-off their grand reception banquet to be held at the Araneta Coliseum, and instead donated part of the P3-million budget to various charities and organizations which assist victims of the recent calamities that hit the country.

Here’s a visual narrative of what Mar-Korina’s reception would have been.

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Related Photos & Videos:

• The Roxas-Sanchez Nuptials (Market Manila | photos)
• Korina hands-on during wedding preps (YouTube | video)
• Preparations ongoing for Mar-Korina wedding (YouTube | video)
• Korina pays respects to deceased parents before wedding (YouTube | video)
• Guests arrive at church for Mar-Korina wedding (YouTube | video)
• Mar-Korina wedding ceremony begins (YouTube | video)
• An emotional Korina Sanchez walks down the aisle (YouTube | video)
• Mar, Korina now officially Mr. and Mrs. Roxas (YouTube | video)

’tis the season of Pinoy weddings.  With a number of weddings to attend to this month, what makes one different from the other? It’s the theme, baby!

Check this one out. It’s a Star Wars-themed wedding of Tiger Garrido and Issa Litton.

(photo by Pat Dy)

dThe bride’s unique bridal gown was designed by Michi Calica and the moon-shaped ‘Death Star’ wedding cake was delicately whipped by Bizu.

There was even a lightsaber duel between the bride & groom as they made their Grand Entrance. A squad of Stormtroopers were there to stand as guards to the newly-wedded jedis.

More photos from this wedding are posted in Pat Dy’s blog. Check out the onsite video here (utilizing the music from “Episode I - The Phantom Manace” soundtrack) by Jason Magbanua to see the details in this unique theme wedding.

We’re here in Boracay right now to witness the beach wedding of Mimi + Karl — destination wedding photographers.  Naaaaks! hehehe. We heard the ceremony later is going be short so there will be more time to party, party, party!

But this post is not about their wedding per se.  It’s about our little wedding gift to them. Please don’t get us wrong. We’re not the type who brags about what we give to others.  It’s just that the mini-M+K clay figurines are just to irresistible not to blog.  Here’s how they look…

Aren’t they cute?  These were custom-made for us by Clay Creations by Aileen.  But the coolness doesn’t stop there.  These aren’t just useless trinkets that would gather dust in time.  They are actually handy, his & hers, USB/thumbdrives.  Just pull their little heads out and wallah!

If you got friends and family who’s celebrating their birthdays or any other special occasion, this could be a gift idea worth considering.  Oh, and they can also make your personalized wedding caketoppers.  To see some of their work, visit their claycreations.multiply.com.

Tomorrow’s THE date. It’s gonna be 08-08-08! Just within our online community alone, there are 34 W@Wie brides set to wed tomorrow! That’s almost quadruple the number of W@Wies married on 07.07.07 despite the triple 7 date falling on a Saturday last year.

We doubt if 09.09.09 (Wednesday) would even be a bit as popular. But 10.10.10 (Sunday) is showing a lot of promise as the next wedding date of choice, at least for Filipino soon-to-weds, since it sounds like ‘ten-ten-te-ten’ — a local kiddie chant/phrase that practically represents a happy wedding. This early, we already have members who are set to marry on that date.

But nothing beats August 8, 2008. It’s the very first time that over 30 W@Wie brides are marrying on the same date in W@W’s nine-year history. Add to that the other Pinoy couples outside W@W who also chose that date and you’ll see how busy tomorrow is gonna be for a lot of wedding suppliers. And the date’s popularity is not just here in Manila or the rest of the Philippines.

In the U.S., thousands are set for an 8.8.8 date referring to it as “the date of a lifetime.” There’s also the “Olympic Wedding” surge in China where thousands of Chinese couples are expected to tie the knot as Beijing formally opens the games tomorrow. There are even officially-issued, Olympic-themed wedding rings available these couples. See the designs of the his & hers platinum Olympic rings here and here.

Our best wishes to all 08.08.08 couples!

An article entitled “A Wedding through the Arch of Sabers“ appeared in our PrepTalk column last Easter Sunday in the Lifestyle Section of Manila Bulletin. Written especially for us by a close member of the Rana family who’s married to an Army officer of the AFP, the feature enumerated the various elements that makes a military wedding truly unique. Read the article here.

For images of more military weddings, check out the blog pages of these photographers & videographers:

• The Long Grey Line | Fol Rana, Jr. (video by Jason Magbanua)
• Bryan & Cindy | Chug Cadiogan
• Deo & Janice - Wedding/General Santos City | Nelwin Uy