Real Wedding: Amy & Hamlin
Chatham, New York
Photography: Robin Roemer and Elisabeth Millay, Cake & Catering: Carlucci Catering, Event Rentals: Columbia Tent Rentals, Floral Design: The Paper Source, Hair: Rebeka's Salon, Reception Site: Art Omi
Known for his whimsical tendencies, Hamlin Au woke Amy Yeh up one morning while she was visiting him in Seoul, South Korea, so they could watch the sun rise over the sleeping city. Amy had arrived the night before and planned to help Hamlin prepare for his move back to Connecticut before they toured Taiwan together. Once they had hiked to the peak of the Bugaksan, a mountain overlooking the presidential palace, Hamlin handed her a note with a proposal sweetly penned in his own words. As Amy realized what he was asking, tears of joy streamed down her face while Hamlin got down on one knee and asked her to be his wife.
The couple had originally met in New York City. Amy had just begun graduate studies at Columbia University and Hamlin had just returned to New York after completing the first year of his MBA and summer internship in Washington, D.C. Amy had started to attend a church in downtown Manhattan that Hamlin also happened to be a part of. His best friend encouraged him to call her, and it wasn’t long before they were a couple. Both Amy and Hamlin came from musical backgrounds, which had given them a lot in common from the beginning. Amy is a classically trained musician, and it was only natural that she got along so well with Hamlin, who had always been involved in music, whether it was through studio recording work, songwriting, or vocal performance. They had even both taken classes at Scratch DJ Academy in New York City.
When it came to wedding planning, Amy and Hamlin based much of their preparation on the concept of “combinations,” or, as Hamlin explains it with a quote by Jim Collins, “The genius of the ‘and’ and the tyranny of the ‘or.’” The result was a fun blend of their personalities, interests, and backgrounds. They began by choosing Art Omi in Chatham, New York, for their reception site because of its perfect combination of country charm and urban inspiration, which mirrored Amy’s rural upbringing throughout the Midwest and Pennsylvania and Hamlin’s urban Brooklyn childhood. They also liked its New York location, since so much of their history as a couple was based there. To honor their Chinese heritage, the couple planned a traditional Chinese tea ceremony the night before the wedding, but served gourmet lasagna to all in attendance. At the reception, they replaced the conventional green salad at dinner with a Korean rice dish called bi bim bop to pay homage to the country where they became engaged, and guests were served a mixture of Italian and other Mediterranean food during the cocktail hour to symbolize Hamlin’s prior schooling in Italy and the strong Italian influence in his hometown of Brooklyn.
Everyone was delighted when it snowed on the couple’s wedding day. Guests kept warm by dancing to a jazz band the bride and groom chose to have in lieu of a DJ or a more traditional form of entertainment. In the midst of the reception, Amy played Hamlin a song on her violin, showcasing her extensive musical training. Amy’s brother-in-law, Tim Ho, brought photography equipment to set up an impromptu photobooth for guests to take pictures, and there were also two huge whiteboards for everyone to write thoughts and well wishes to the newlyweds, a personal touch guests loved. All in all, the reception was a hit — a true celebration for all.
As the night was winding down, Amy and Hamlin managed to share a quiet moment together on the dance floor, holding each other in time to a soft jazz tune, no doubt remembering their sweet sunrise hike in Seoul and all the shared laughter, conversations, and quiet moments that had brought them there.