Oggham.com | Wedding

Aubrey, a graphics designer from Jim's company, helped us design the card. I drew the cat and dog (yes, that's what they are, not mice).

We had two weddings - the first in Malacca, Malaysia on the 24th of July. About eighty people came for a chinese dinner, family from Jim's dad's side. I had a cheongsam and we were late because we realized an hour before Jim hadn't bought any shirts! Mad dash to the nearest shopping mall where we still had to try 20 variations.

It was still a great dinner. The food was yummy, we thankfully didn't have to do yam sengs, and instead took oodles of photos. It was a long noisy family dinner, and I got to meet more of Jim's relatives including his grandmother who was very cool.

Our second wedding with the civil ceremony performed by a JP, was attended by the Singapore sie of Jim's family, our friends and colleagues and representing my side, my sister, Lucy, from England and my mother from New Zealand.

We almost didn't manage to register our wedding for July 1st. You have to register at least 21 days in advance and my legal documents came through at the last possible moment - 4pm on the very last day. We literally ran from the lawyer's office in Shenton Way, trying desperately for a cab. We were the last people in the ROM and had to beg to be allowed to go in. The officials tried to pursuade us to postpone because of the hassle on their side, but we gritted our teeth, smiled and went ahead.

Of course, getting a JP ahead of time would've been intelligent. Jim went through a long list and we were fortunate that Mr. Chan Kai Yau was willing. We had to be 'interviewed' by him which was way more nerve-wrecking than meeting Jim's parents for the first time.

We started off with twenty people and a quiet lunch, did our guest list and ended up with about a hundred - still a small wedding in Singapore - and booked the entire restuarant for lunch.

Jim got his first 'real' suit and this time, didn't look like a Hong Kong gangster. He borrowed the tie from Kelly, his GQ-reading brother, so he looked very stylo. Kelly's girlfriend, Elenor, remembered to buy flowers too, thankfully.

I bought my dress about two months before. I started out positive I wouldn't give into the dress-hype and ended up spending an ungodly sum on it anyway. It was from Kenzo and the only size in champagne available left me unable to bend over. I did Tae-bo for six weeks for that dress. What we do for love. I call it the patchwork princess dress - the skirt is large squares of different materials. My sister unpicked the straps and knotted them halter-neck the night before. She also did my hair, threading my 21-birthday pearls through. I had lovely wedding shoes for $20 on sale that I was going to keep with the dress, but my dogs ate them the next week. Oh well.

Indochine is at a restored family house near the Art Museum. The restaurant opens out onto a balinese style garden. It shares the space with a theatre company, so there were several stages. We held the actual civil service on the small one to the back (with extra witnesses in the actors rehearsing that day).

We hadn't thought about music - Kelly, Jim's brother, ending up at HMV just before picking up "Best Classical Wedding Hits".

His other brother, Danny, shepharded people around, kept track of the ang-pows and most of all, calmed the numerous children. Kelly inroduced us, and blushing furiously, we stumbled onto the stage.

It was the perfect ceremony, simple and short. My mother read a passage from the Bible, Ruth 1:15-1:17.

We repeated our vows, Jim looking incredibly solomn. Then we exchanged rings - Jim's had been bought at last minute, a rush-job again. Mine was custom-made, a knot in gold which looks a little like a knitting stitch.

My sister Lucy and Jim's father signed as witnesses and we were married. A long time coming, and alright, sentimental schmoop as it is, incredibly wonderful.

We had to kiss three times before our audience was satisfied. Then Mr Chan Kai Yau introduced as as "Mr and Mrs Jimmy Yap." My very first words as a married woman were "That's Ms Dale Edmonds." Then I thanked everyone for coming and elbowed Jim. He was terribly nervous as we hadn't thought far ahead to plan a thank-you speech and a few off-the-cuff remarks went into thanking everyone over and over. It was funny and sweet.

Then lunch - lots and lots of food. Spring rolls, beef kebabs, noodles, salad and desert. Red wine for everyone. You can track Jim's progress in the wedding photos as he slowly turned red. Some of his friends tried to get him to scull a glass but I grabbed it and sculled it for him. First wifely save of the day. I was fairly drunk by the end of the lunch, although not the only one.

We ended up going for cheesecake with Jim's friend, Sharaad. I was starving after a month of dieting and just scarfed everything in sight. That night, we went for dinner with my family.

Two hundred thank you cards later, the dress dry-cleaned and folded away, the photos tucked in an album, not much has changed. New rings, and I have at last a supplementary Visa (tai-tai status, here I come).