Erin and Blake's Burnt Orange and Sage Green Wedding in Thailand by Azure Weddings

Thailand seems to be a super popular place at the moment for weddings, I have been lucky enough to feature quite a few weddings from various parts of Thalian recently. As a family we are currently looking at it for a holiday next year, so every time I get a wedding in Thailand sent to me I am even more interested, as I am scoping out the perfect location to visit. Today it’s the turn of Erin and Blake who were married on 9th of March 2024 at Koh Samui, Thailand. Villa Ban Suriya. They had 60 guests and it took 11 months to plan and what a stunning wedding it is. I especially like the use of colour in this wedding. The burnt orange really pops against the Thailnd backdrop and the sage green really complements the brightness of the colours. Azure Weddings and Vitalii Nikonorov did a fantastic job on this wedding, what a delight of a day.

I can describe our wedding day in one word, bliss. Our planner/coordinator, Petra, had everything choreographed to perfection, all we had to do was get hitched and have fun!

How they met
We met 7 years ago on a small island in Thailand. I was backpacking and Blake was travelling while working remotely. We started spending more and more time together, and eventually I landed a remote job too. So in the early stages of our relationship, we were travelling the world together.

The proposal
We were living in Phuket at the time, Blake suggested we go to one of the nicer restaurants for dinner. We usually go for dinner with a few friends, but when I asked if I should text them, Blake said “Let’s go just us, when was the last time we had a date night”. He told me he was going to take the dog for a
walk so that I would have more time to get ready. I was just finishing up when he called out from the yard. I walked out and saw our dog, Alfie, holding a rose in his mouth. He was parading around like he’d just found a shiny new toy, and my first instinct was that he had stolen from somebody’s garden! I rushed out to rescue the rose, but when I turned Blake was there on one knee. And the rest is history!

How did you allocate your budget?
We knew how much we wanted to spend in total, and Petra helped us understand where we could save on certain things. But our main priority was that our guests had an amazing time. For many of our family members, it was their first time to Thailand—and their first time meeting each other! So venue,
entertainment, food and beverage is where we really didn’t want to skimp.

How did you choose your photographer?
Through the recommendation of our wedding planner.

The dress
I rented the ceremony dress from The Classic Boutique in Bangkok. At the time we didn’t have a permanent address, or anywhere to store a gown that probably won’t be worn again. But for the reception I wore a Shona Joy slip dress that I bought second hand from Depop. My shell earrings are from Grecmuse on Etsy, and my necklace was borrowed from one of my bridesmaids.

The suit and bridesmaids
Blake wore a shirt he had made specially for the big day, and he and all the groomsmen wore pants from Zara. He gifted his groomsmen their loafers, which are from Bangkok Bootery.
The bridesmaids all wore different sage green Shona Joy dresses purchased second hand from Vinted or Depop. We saved over $1000 by buying these dresses second hand, and they had all only been worn once!

Theme or colour scheme
Burnt orange and sage green with touches of nude/red and also gold accents.

Flowers
We went with boho style, roses, lysanthus, eucalyptus, green foliage and pampa grass

Decoration
Ceremony: triangle arch with flowers matching the colour theme. To add to the theme of boho style, we had a couple of Persian style carpet and gold lanterns. We also added heartshaped sunglasses display for all guests in orange colour to further add to the colour theme.
Reception: Wooden long tables with eucalyptus runner and roses in our colour scheme and cylinder pillar glasses, gold cutlery and burned orange napkins.

Food
An amazing Thai buffet.

Entertainment
Yes, we had a saxophonist to join the DJ during the party and surprised Thai fire dance on the beach.
Who supplied the stationery?

Where are you going on your honeymoon?
We haven’t booked anything yet, but we have just started looking at hotels in the Maldives!

Personal touches

The whole day felt very “us”. Besides the his and hers favourite cocktails (which were a big hit) we also added some small touches, like:
We put out heart shaped sunglasses when people arrived (they looked amazing in the photos!)
Rather than entering unceremoniously from the side, Blake also got a chance to be celebrated while he walked down the aisle with his mum before the bridesmaids entered.
We did a “blessing of the rings” during the ceremony, which is where the rings are passed around and everyone makes a wish or projects some good vibes for the couple. It was a really special way to include all our guests in the ceremony, and it also bought us some time to breathe and check in with each other quietly while the rings were being passed around.

Special moments

Having a quiet breakfast together before we separated for rest of the day
The ceremony, which was the most nerve wracking part for us both, was actually a major highlight in the end. There was so much love and warmth in the air, it was a really special moment.
Seeing our families blend and get along so well
After the sun went down and we finished taking photos before dinner, Petra suggested we go take 20 minutes for ourselves. We shut the door behind us and both just started buzzing excitedly about everything that had just happened. We were so full of oxytocin, it felt like we were on ecstasy!

Advice for other couples

Definitely take that 20 minutes to yourselves between the ceremony and dinner! And if you can, maybe even take a little video on your phone so you can look back and remember that excitement.
If you have disposable cameras, you need to have someone turn ALL the flashes on before placing them down or you’ll end up with a stack of blacked out images. (Ask me how I know).
Hire a planner, or at least a coordinator! We didn’t need to lift a finger the entire day. It was totally zen. No freak outs, no sweating. Just peace.
And also, there’s no need to be nervous. I have a total phobia of public speaking, and leading up to the big day I was freaking out big time about reciting my vows in front of everyone. But when it came to it, I was surrounded by people who love me and are there to celebrate what I had to say. As soon as it was over I wished I could do it all again.