Hanbi + Josh by Studio Thao - Together Journal

We envisioned a day that felt effortlessly chic, a celebration where nothing felt overly orchestrated.

Tell us a little about yourselves, what you do, what you love…

We are a Korean American couple that found ourselves at home with each other in New York City.

I moved around a lot growing up but lived mostly in sunny California. I found myself in love with building creative worlds for brands and telling stories through form and visuals, which led me to pursue industrial design. Currently, I’m a senior designer at Tom Ford. While my head is in the clouds, Josh is more rooted in reality. He has lived in New York his whole life and has worked in healthcare since the heat of the pandemic. In many ways, we are polar opposites, but we are united by laughter, a love for trying new things, our hope for community, and our dream to build a strong, loving family in faith.

How/where/when did you meet – and what were your first impressions?

It all started with a DM.

I was finishing my final year of design school in 2019, and I never imagined an Instagram message would lead me to the life we are building together now. We had zero mutual friends as we were on opposite sides of the coast, but something about his message held intention and caught my attention. Curious, I responded, and soon, we were sharing our passions and values on an impromptu FaceTime call. That first call turned into weekly conversations—five hours or more each time.

The pandemic added challenges to the long-distance relationship as we only saw each other in person once in the first year of dating. Josh was also working on the frontlines as a nurse, and we were separated by various time zones—first between New York and Los Angeles and then even farther when I briefly moved to Korea.

I finally moved to NYC for a job and moved to the Upper East Side, where our relationship blossomed for the next 3 years. Trying new foods and uncovering hidden gems became the backdrop of our dates. But at the core of everything was our shared faith, which anchored us and drew us closer to each other and to Christ.

When did you first realise that this was someone you’d like to spend the rest of your life with?

For Josh, it was pretty immediate, but it required a leap of faith from the start! His friends tell me that he was never the type to make such a bold move for a girl, but now I know the whole process was backed by lots of prayer.

For myself, food is the way to my heart and sharing a slow journey of many meals together truly opened me up. During our long distance, he would send thoughtful notes and meals to both me and my younger sister who was living with me at the time. I could see that he had a big heart, and his generous actions spoke for himself.

We are each other’s firsts, and we are grateful to share all our firsts (and lasts) together!

Tell us about the vision you had for the mood and style of your wedding.

I had the privilege of celebrating two weddings, each distinct yet deeply meaningful. The first took place in Korea, at my father’s church in Daejeon. It was a grand affair, steeped in tradition and cultural significance.

For our second wedding, however, I longed for something that felt more honest to us— simple, pure, and natural, yet imbued with quiet sophistication. We envisioned a day that felt effortlessly chic, a celebration where nothing felt overly orchestrated.

My birthday fell on Thanksgiving, and our wedding took place the very next day. In many ways, the theme of our wedding was an extension of the warmth and intimacy of the season—a seamless continuation of autumn’s glow and the joy of gathering with cherished friends and family.

I love cooking, and the colour palette was inspired by the ingredients that infuse my everyday cooking with comfort: the deep, earthy tones of warm olive and rich chocolate, the softness of cream and butter, and the gentle freshness of leafy greens. These hues harmonized effortlessly with the late fall foliage and the natural textures of the Hudson Valley, creating a setting that felt both grounded and natural. Luscious fabrics like silk and satin brought a luminous quality to the overall vision, adding layers of richness and depth.

What styling and visual elements worked best for you?

We really wanted nature to be the backdrop, to have our guests turn their eyes to the pure glory of the landscape—as we don’t usually like being the centre of all attention.

From the naturally flowing baby’s breath installation to the intimate round tables and candle-lit dinner, we looked to bring in details that would minimally complement the venue, which had these incredible large windows that brought in so much light and almost framed the mountainscape. It really fit our vision as we wanted the ceremony to evoke a sense of reverence—as we believe marriage is not only between us but also with God.

What did you enjoy most about the planning process and do you have any tips for couples starting their wedding planning journey?

As a designer, I could easily get carried away making mood boards and spreadsheets—but the moments I enjoyed the most were in the moments we could be involved together. Naturally, there is so much to consider and cater to when two families come together. But whether it was taking engagement photos around our favourite spots in the Upper East Side with the talented Thao or planning our honeymoon in Bali, finding moments to focus on just us as two was important.

Communicate! Set up a moment every couple of weeks to touch base to be aligned on what is most important to you as a couple. For us, we were clear that we wanted this day to not just be a one-day party but a season of worship where even our process of planning was honouring God.

Tell us about your main outfits, what was unique, is there a story?

Calla lilies are my favourite for their simplicity and organic curvature. I love that my Mikado silk dress embodies the clean lines and structure of the flower. I also wanted to wear one dress for both of my Korea & NY ceremonies, and the dress was a perfect blank canvas for both a church and mountain setting.

For my reception outfit, comfort was key. The Doen silk dress with beautiful embroidered details felt so soft I could find myself going to sleep in it, and the Aeyde Mary Jane heels were also so buttery to dance in. Our parents never had a chance to really leave us a story of their wedding outfits, so I could see these pieces as future heirlooms to pass down for generations to come.

What was one, or two elements that were most important to you both that you were happy to spend a little more on?

Photo & food! I can’t stress my gratitude towards our photographer, Thao– I trust her eye more than anything. We have big extended families that drove and flew in from far away so capturing their presence and feeding them well was a big priority.

Did anything happen on your wedding day that you laugh about in hindsight (even if it was stressful at the time)?

We like to think that we have a classy vibe as a couple–we wanted soft and jazzy background music, but we hired a DJ at the last minute, and some things got lost in communication. There were moments through the reception where we had legit house music. I didn’t think we would dance much but the beats really loosened us up even though we didn’t expect ourselves to dance and have so much fun jumping around with our guests.

Another thing was the weather. I think we witnessed all four seasons in one day. It was sunny, then it got ridiculously cold and windy, and during our vows, it started snowing and hailing. Thankfully, we had everything inside, but I was shivering so much that I didn’t know if I was nervous or just cold. But it reminds me that if there’s anyone I want to go through all seasons with, I want to walk every season with Josh.