Sneak Peek: Prenup Shots

We had our engagement shoot on November 12, 2012 in Clark International Speedway. Dennis and I are not used to posing in front of the camera and it was a little awkward at first. Good thing we had a great team of suppliers who helped us look nice and decent for the shoot. :p

Credits
Photographer: Al Avellana
Stylist: Mithi Lacaba of Tipping Point Collective
Make-up: Xeng Zulueta
Hair: Felicity Son
Venue: Clark International Speedway
Cars: c/o Tuason Racing School

Marriage License - Check!

Dennis and I took a leave from work to apply for our marriage license on October 29. It was a toss between going to Paranaque City Hall or to Navotas. We chose the former. :)

Paranaque City Hall is located in San Antonio Valley 1. I've been there once when I got my voter's ID waaay back when. The location is pretty convenient, the only concern was the parking. We had to park a few blocks away from the city hall since the parking inside the compound was already full.

We went to the Office of the Civil Registry located on the ground floor, right wing. We submitted the following documents:

• 1 original copy each of our Birth Certificates from NSO issued at least 6 months before the wedding date
• 1 original copy each of the Certificate of No Marriage (CENOMAR) issued at least 6 months before the wedding date
• My Barangay Clearance (which I got from the bgy hall of San Isidro, just outside our village, for Php100) 

We were then asked to fill out 3 copies of the Marriage License Application Form, which was pretty tiring. lol. 

After submitting the application form, we paid for the application fee of Php200. The cashier is located on the ground floor at the center of the city hall building. I was glad that it was pretty organized. We got a number, waited for 10 -15 minutes or so for our number to be called, paid the fee and was issued an Official Receipt. We had it photocopied too.

Next stop, we went to the DSWD office for the Family Planning certificate. It is located on the 2nd floor at the center of the city hall building, with the blue door. Since we are already of age, we were just asked to fill out some forms in their logbook and the gave us the certificate of attendance. We submitted both the OR and the certificate, paid another Php50 for the notary and we were told that our license will be released on November 9.

10 days later, exactly 3 months before our wedding, we now have our official marriage license! :)

Kudos to all the employees of Paranaque City Hall! I love how the staff are very friendly and efficient. It also helped that they were ma-chika, willing to help and they serve with a smile. Proud to be a resident of Paranaque! :)

Update: Official Monogram

When my sister saw the monogram that I made last week, she volunteered to pimp it up! She photoshop-ed it, made some tweaks here and there and voila! Here's our Official Monogram! :)

Since we're having a Fashion + Formula 1 Fusion themed-wedding, she made the background checkered (just like F1's checkered flag) and made it with champagne and gold lace textures. She also included our wedding date and had our initials overlap each other. :)

Update: My not-so finished DIY bouquets

Last week, I shared a sneak peek of my DIY entourage bouquets. Today, my mom and I were able to finish the pink Dior roses and we tried assembling it together with the crystals and feathers. Here's what we have so far:

Each bouquet is made up of 10 roses. Half of the bouquets have 4 pink and 6 orange roses while the other half have 4 orange and 6 pink roses. The beads are the left-overs I had from making our wedding cord; and the feathers are goose feathers that I bought in Divisoria. Technically, we're still not done with it. We're planning to add lace and other embellishments on the handle.

I'm really happy how it turned out to be. I hope my girls will like it too! :)

DIY Monogram

Here's our Official Monogram! I've been contemplating for months now how to go about designing it but in the end, I chose to make it as simple and elegant as possible. Mind you, I don't know anything about Photoshop! I made this using my trusted 2010 MS Powerpoint. lol. 

The background is a picture of a champagne-colored fabric I found here. I edited it and I just added our initials, D and M. The letter in the middle contains the initials of our last names, C and L.

Not bad, eh?! :p

Sneak Peek: DIY entourage bouquet

Last year, I enrolled in a Sewing class and our teacher, Pidge Reyes, taught us how to make a Dior Couture Rose. Making the rose was not easy. It'll require you to individually cut and sew 9 pieces of petals (shaped like a football) together just to make 1 rose. When I made my first rose, I thought it was pretty and nice, but that's just about it. Pidge loved my rose and said it was perfect. He told me that I should make more to embellish my clothes and other stuff. He even gave me more satin and organza fabric to use. I just smiled at him and politely got the fabrics. During that time, I was just glad I was able to pass his class. ;p

Fast forward to the wedding preps. I wanted to really personalize our wedding and I thought of incorporating my love for fashion. I suddenly remembered the Dior rose that I made and had this crazy idea of making a lot of couture roses for my entourage. This crazy idea started in April; I went to Divisoria to buy fabrics in May; I made my first rose in June; and lo and behold come October, I was finally able to finish 30 roses (thanks to my mom for helping me)! Here's a glimpse of what we've done so far...

Excited as I am, there are still A LOT of work to do. I'm currently doing another 30 pieces of roses in pink. I'm hoping to add more embellishments to it like feathers, crystals and beads and other stuff that I could think of and eventually assemble it to fashionable fabric bouquets. I'm keeping my hopes high that I can finish it by November. :)

You might be wondering what a Dior Couture Rose is. I got this definition from  this article.

A couture touch, a designer detail, a signature:  designers since the dawn of haute couture have made flowers and trims from ribbons and fabric, but none is as famous as the Dior rose.  Dior allowed his roses to cascade down ball-gown backs; he used them to call attention to the nipped waists on suit jackets and evening dresses…

DIY: Wedding Cord

I went to Wellmanson Quiapo with my parents on September 1 to buy the materials I needed for our wedding cord. I honestly don't have any idea how to do it. I kinda know how it's supposed to look like but I've never seen one up-close.

So with only a slight idea on how to DIY a wedding cord, I bought some crystal beads (clear pink and orange-y and smaller silver opaque crystals), 2 moonstone bracelets, a nice-looking brooch, a cross pendant, our D & M initials with rhinestones, wire pins (1.25-inch long), o-ring/connectors, round nose pliers and a wire cutter.

I started experimenting with it and with some luck, I was able to connect each bead to form 2 sets of rosaries with approx 46 inches diameter. I joined them using the brooch. I also attached the remaining rosary strand with the cross on the other side of the brooch.Finally, I attached our D & M initials.

It took me around 4-5 hours to finish it. My right fingers were slightly swollen because of the "force" i exerted connecting each wrire pins. But despite that, It's so worth it! I showed Dennis the picture and he said he super likes it! lol. :)

Prenup Update

Mithi, our prenup stylist, has finally provided us with 8 concepts for our prenup. She told us to choose 3 concepts and she'll make a lookbook for us. I immediately emailed Dennis so he can choose too. After a day or so, Dennis emailed me back and said he liked all except the one with the pink car kasi he might be mistaken for a becky daw. lol. I was so happy kasi he's game for almost all the concepts. Incidentally, we have the same top 2 concepts. I asked Mithi na lang to suggest the last concept for us, parang wild card lang ang peg. lol.

Let me share the concepts that we didn't choose but were really well-made and well-thought of by Mithi. Kung pwede lang gawin lahat, we would! :)

Wedding Gown Update!

I finally found the time to update my blog! Hooray! :)

July was a busy month at work since I was handling a training class for the whole month. Pretty stressful, physically and emotionally. Sigh. Nuff said. Let's just talk about wedding kwentos! :)

After weeks of delaying tactics, I finally mustered the courage to schedule my measurement-taking with Veejay before the end of July. Since we have already decided on my gown's design, Veejay and I officially signed the contract and he went on with taking my body measurements. I really wanted to wear my corset pero sabi nya no na muna. oh well, i trust Veejay 100%! We scheduled my 1st fitting 2 weeks later, August 10.

The first fitting is just the prototype of my gown. It's just made of katsa (mueslin cloth) so that we can pretty know how the silhouette will look on me. The fit is perfect but I'm still hoping to lose more weight! lol. We just need to make a minor adjustment in the bust area. Here's a sneak peak of how it went. :)

The length of the gown is still long since I was not wearing any heels pa at that time. I was overwhelmed and kinikilig at the same time. Talagang this is it! lol. Ms. Annie, Veejay's secretary scheduled my second fitting on Friday next week. This time around, I will be wearing the lining of my actual wedding gown. Yikes. Really need to lose weight asap! lol.

D+M Color Palette

Supplier Update: Photobooth

We're getting Flipbooks! I really wanted to get them but they were crazy expensive. Good thing that we got the Deal Grocer promo.  :)

view their website

Supplier Update: Groom's Suit Designer

Dennis is one of those men who does not really care about what he wears or who he wears just as long as he looks decent. It's sometimes frustrating to dress him up especially since I'm maarte with clothes. I remember when we were starting with our wedding preps, he told me that he'll just wear his existing off the rack suit, which in my opinion is too big for him. I just nervously smiled at him and said ok pero deep inside I was already panicking and I vowed to force him to wear a nice suit on our wedding day. Nakakaloka! 


When I booked Veejay for my wedding gown, I asked him to recommend a designer who can make Dennis' suit. He referred me to Jerome Lorico. His name rings a bell and I immediately googled him online. He is a young designer who is recognized internationally as his works are seen in Singapore and London Fashion Week. He's currently creating impeccable designs for Folded and Hung as well. I like him the moment he replied to my email pa lang. Actually when Veejay recommended him and told me that he made Ryan Agoncillo's suit, sold na ako. lol. It was also nice of Jerome to adjust to my budget. :)


Dennis and I went to Jerome's place last Saturday. I told Jerome not to tell Dennis the price kasi baka mabigla. lol. It was Dennis' birthday din naman the following day so it'll be my birthday gift to him as well. :p We didn't have any pegs and we just let Jerome decide and do his magic. I trust that he'll make Dennis the dashing groom that I imagine come our wedding day. :) 


Oh, and Dennis likes him too! At least I don't have to force him to wear a designer suit. :)

Jerome Lorico. photo credit

Supplier Update: Church and Reception Stylist

Since I want a Fashion + F1 Fusion theme for our wedding, I need someone who could execute my ideas during our reception. A fellow w@wie recommended Amante Fleurs and I immediately sent Mader Julius Villamante, the owner and president of Amante Fleurs, an FB friend request. 


I was hesitant to inquire at first because I'm scared that his services might be expensive. But when a lot of w@wies started sharing how nice he was and how he was willing to adjust according to the budget, I finally decided to send him an email. A few hours after, I was surprise when he called me and said the we could meet up the following weekend in ATC. Grabe, after the call ended, I have already decided on getting him!


When I told Mader Julius my theme and motif during our meeting, he seemed a little lost and confused at first. Feeling yata nya sobrang weird ng concept ko! hehe.. pero good thing that after some deep thoughts, he shared some ideas that I liked! Sabi nya challenging daw yung theme namin kasi mejo extreme sya but he likes that it's somehow connected to our personalities and to the things that we like. When I gave him our budget, sabi nya pasok daw ang gusto ko sa budget namin. He also gave me huge discounts on the drapings! Hay, happy lang! :)

view FB account

W@W, it's here!

Look what I got from the mail the other day! :)

Yes, we're officially a w@w couple with a w@w tag! lol.

Weddings at Work or w@w, is an online community for soon to be married couples. It's pretty similar to any other yahoo group, except that your inbox will be flooded with gazillion emails about wedding preparations and what-nots. When Ms Benz, the creator of w@w, sent me a welcome email some time in January, she stated that this is a VERY active group and that I should expect to receive at least 150 messages per day. And she's really not exaggerating! Good thing i opted for a digested subscription. :)

As overwhelming as it is, I find the community really helpful. From supplier's review and recommendations to sharing wedding ideas and DIYs, having a sneak peak of STDs and prenup photos and videos to even sharing rants and raves on everything wedding-related; fellow w@wies are really there with you. I am thankful for this group because they're making our preparations enjoyable and worthwhile. :)

Let's talk about RINGs...

So I've discovered that my engagement ring has an asscher cut diamond at the center and 10 brilliantly cut round diamonds on the sides (5 on each side). I'm still clueless as to how many carat(s) it is. I guess it's better that way. lol. I'm just happy that Dennis gave me an engagement ring that I love and that fits my personality! :) 

Dennis and I met JJ Jiao-Hemedes last month to discuss our wedding rings. She's actually an org-mate in UP (Junior Marketing Association) whose family has been in the jewelry business for 3 generations now. Right after college graduation, JJ went to California to study in GIA. I haven't really seen her since then. It was just a coincidence that Dennis asked her to make my engagement ring. He knew JJ from his friends who have been her clients as well. When Dennis sent my picture to JJ to 'guess-timate' my ring size, she told Dennis that she knew me from college. JJ told me that Dennis was not easy to please daw kasi he wanted the best for my e-ring. *super kilig and haba ng hair ko!*

Anyhoo, we didn't have pegs for our wedding rings. I just want something that will go well with my engagement ring. Dennis on the other hand, doesn't want any stones on it. So JJ showed us different ring samples and pictures. She suggested a milgrain ring for Dennis and half or 3/4 eternity ring with alternate  round and emerald-cut diamonds for me. 

I'm actually liking it. :)  After our meeting, I immediately went to the Tiffany website and found some inspirations for our rings, which we already sent to JJ. I want both our rings to have milgrains so that they somehow complement each other too. :)

Supplier Update: THE Wedding Gown Designer

Since I am maarte and clothes are really important to me, naturally I want my wedding gown to be bongga! lol. I remember looking at Veluz' creations circa 2008-2009 (Dennis and I already had plans to get married back then) and I was simply in awe by her gowns' uniqueness and intricate details. I longed to be a Veluz bride. :)

Although our wedding plans were postponed, I still continued to browse at Veluz' blog for inspiration. But as time goes by, I noticed that I was becoming less and less interested with her gowns. I guess it's because I feel that I can easily recognize a Veluz creation from afar and it has somehow lost its uniqueness. Don't get me wrong, her gowns are still exquisitely beautiful and undoubtedly one of the best. She's like the Louis Vuitton of wedding gown designers. I like Louis Vuitton but if given a choice, I'll go for a Mulberry or a Tod's. lol. It's still high fashion but less mainstream. :)

I've considered a lot of talented Filipino young designers but I was always drawn to one: Veejay Floresca. He was a finalist in the first-ever Project Runway Philippines and is now fast becoming one of the favorite go-to designers of brides to be. Despite his popularity, his creations are still haute couture and high fashion. I also like the modern and feminine twist in his designs.


I initially had a meeting with him and as star-struck as I was, I still managed to act cool around him. It also helped that he's really nice and down-to-earth. He sketched me his design based on my pegs and it was the same as the one I had in mind. I was really tempted to book him on the spot but decided to wait just after he comes back from his trip so that I won't look like an eager beaver. lol.


Lo and behold, a few days after our meeting, Deal Grocer had a bridal promo which offers a 30k discount for Veejay's gown. I was ecstatic and I emailed Veejay right away. He was nice enough to immediately reply and he gave me a go-signal that I can buy the promo! *kilig*

So there! I'm proud to say that I'm officially a VF bride! :)

Save the Date!

As I look at the wedding ticker on my blog, I can't help but feel pressured by the single-digit number of months that we have left to prepare. I intend to do a LOT of DIYs and I do hope that I'll be able to finish all of them on time. *fingers-crossed*


First on my list is the Save the Date. Uhmm... it's not entirely a DIY from scratch...I commissioned Chichi Romero aka little miss paintbrush to do a cartoon version of us with our Fahion + F1 Fusion wedding theme. I like Chichi because she's so patient and she was able to translate my ideas into reality! She 's undoubtedly talented hands-down! :)


Once Chichi was finished with our cartoon, I excitedly designed our save the dates! It's not yet 100% done though and I have yet to decide if we should make it as magnets or something else. But here's what I'm toying with so far...

See the bar code?! One of the brides at w@w shared this cool application about QR Codes and I decided to try it out and include it as well. We intend to give it to our guests in August. :)


Whatchathink? :)

Supplier Update: Lights and Sounds

After more than two months of scouting and researching for a lights and sounds supplier, we finally settled for Stohnenky! Yipppeee! :)

Check out their FB page as well! :)

Dennis has finally been confirmed! :)

A couple of weeks ago, I called Binondo Church to ask for their confirmation schedules. We were lucky because they informed me that there's one happening on May 19. I was told that Dennis should personally go to the Church to submit his baptismal certificate and to fill out the form. I was quite alarmed because Dennis doesn't really have the time to personally appear at the Church. He's in Davao most of the time - he flies to Davao on Monday mornings then flies back to Manila on Friday nights - he's only in Manila on weekends. Good thing that the people from the parish informed me that Dennis can also come on Saturdays as early as 8:30am.


On May 19, he was asked to attend the seminar at 1pm which was followed by the  confirmation rites at 3pm. There were around 22 confirmation participants, each with 2 witnesses. Dennis asked his college friends, Candy and Milton, to stand as his witnesses. It was done within half an hour and the certificates can be claimed a week after. So there, we can finally breathe and move on with the rest of the wedding preps. :)

Supplier Update: Musician

website

We booked SJT Strings during the bridal fair at NBC Tent on May 5. We got the Quintet package for the ceremony and reception. What we like about them is that they have a vast repertoire to choose from. :)

Whom to invite

Making a guest list can be pretty challenging. You may have tons of friends, acquaintances and relatives whom you want to share your wedding celebration with, but unless you have the budget and a venue to fit all of them you really have to make the important decision of trimming it to only those deserving. 


This may be helpful when we're faced with the dilemma of "should we?" or "shouldn't we?" and we need to be objective about it. :)

Wedding Etiquette: The Do's and Don'ts of Being a Guest

A fellow w@wie shared this to us and I find it interesting and mostly true. :)

Here's the link: huffington post - wedding etiquette for guests


I'm  posting the article too for your convenience:


Maybe you think of wedding etiquette as pertaining only to the bride, but there is, in fact, a long list of do's and don'ts you should abide by as a guest, from the moment the invitation arrives in the mail until after the happy event has occurred.

Some rules of conduct are obvious: do not to get embarrassingly drunk, plant one on the groom or write a check at the reception that corresponds to how much you estimate the wedding cost per head (yes, according to our experts, people actually do this). Others are less intuitive but still essential to being a stellar guest.

To guide us, we enlisted the help of Sharon Naylor, who has written over 35 books about weddings, and Anna Post, who hails from the etiquette empire that bears her great-great-grandmother's name, the Emily Post Institute.

Without further ado, here is HuffPost Women's Guide to Weddi-quette:

Do's:

1. RSVP.

If there's anything that gets on brides and grooms' nerves before the wedding, it's guests failing to RSVP in a timely manner. "RSVP as soon as humanly possible," Naylor advised. "Within a couple of weeks, send it back, even if the deadline is far off. It's just good manners," and it's essential to determining how much the wedding will cost. "There is so much expense to planning, and most of that expense is dictated by the numbers on the guest list," Post added.

2. If you were invited to the ceremony, don't just show up for the reception.

"The ceremony is the most important part," said Naylor, adding that guests should make all efforts to attend. Even when the invitation bears those three little words, "full Catholic Mass," it’s in poor taste to show up to the open bar without first attending the main event.

3. Dress as the style of the invitation suggests.

"If it’s a causal invite with sea shells and sand dollars, we're probably not talking long silk dresses," Post said. And on the flipside, "If it is gilt-engraved and scripted and formal, we're probably not talking cotton sundresses."

If you're unsure of the dress code, ask someone familiar with the wedding, perhaps a bridesmaid or member of the bride's family, but not the bride herself. She has her own dress to worry about.

4. Arrive at the ceremony on time.

Leave plenty of time to get to the wedding itself -- even enough time to get lost on the way.

If you must be late, there's protocol for that, too. Don't think, "I'll slip in while the bride is coming up the aisle. No," Post said. "If you're really late, stand in the back or slip quietly into a back pew or row once the processional is completely finished."

5. Send a gift, even if you can't attend.

Etiquette dictates that if you were invited, you owe the couple a gift, even if you can't make it to the wedding. "People lose friends over this," Post said. "I wouldn't be doing my job if I didn't remind people to take care of this: one invitation to a wedding ceremony equals a wedding gift."

6. While we're on the topic of gifts, shop from the registry.

If you don't, "It comes off as 'I knew what you wanted but I didn’t care,'" Naylor explained. "Or it comes off as 'I had this laying around and I'm re-gifting,'" even if you actually purchased a new gift specifically for this couple.

7. Sit at your assigned table

"There's a lot of thought that goes into these seating arrangements," Post said. Yes, the bride and groom actually spent time thinking about the various relationships their guests have to one another, and there could be a very good reason the cute guy you want to sit next to is at the other end of the room. Maybe his crazy ex-girlfriend will cause a scene and take you out for flirting with him. Who knows? Only the bride and groom, so don't mess with the seating.

8. Bring an appropriate guest (if you have actually been invited with a guest, that is -- but we'll get to that in the Don'ts).

If you have a sulky boyfriend who will keep you in the corner all night, or one with an unpredictable temper after too many Jack and Cokes, leave him at home.

Don'ts:

1. If you weren't invited with a guest, don't show up with one.

Do not pencil your significant other's name onto the RSVP card, and do not call and ask the bride for a +1. "It is just beyond not okay," Post said, adding that it's one of the top ten complaints she gets from couples. "Once the bride and groom have come to their decision, it is what it is. Asking them to change is disrespectful, and it puts them in an awkward position."

The only exceptions, according to Post, are if you're married, engaged or cohabitating. In that case, modern day etiquette says the bride should have included your romantic other in the first place, and you can very diplomatically and politely broach the conversation with her.

2. Yes, the "no bringing uninvited guests" rule includes your kids.

"People think 'Oh this wedding would be great chance for everyone to meet my new baby! Or to see my kids!' No, just don’t bring an uninvited child." Naylor said. The couple may not have the space and the budget, or they may just prefer not to have children present; they are allowed to have an adults-only wedding.

3. Don't dress to compete.

Even if you worked out all spring, look better than you ever have before, and are dying to show off your beach-ready bod, a wedding is not the time. If your personal style tends toward the revealing, "Tone it down," Naylor said. And don't, don't, don't wear white.

4. Don't be disrespectful of the couple's religious or cultural traditions.

That might mean covering your shoulders in church or temple, or being quiet during a ritual you don't quite understand. "When those kinds of things are going on, you be quiet and you pay attention," said Naylor.

5. Don't be all about your own wedding.

If you're getting married soon after the wedding you're attending, congratulations! Today, however, belongs to the bride of the moment. "Consider your own wedding to be off topic," Naylor said.

6. Don't use your phone.

Don't Facebook, Tweet or text, and certainly don't make a phone call during the wedding or the reception. "Who are you Facebooking? Who are you texting? People who didn’t get invited?" asked Post. "That’s lovely but you're job is to be at the wedding, not reporting on the wedding.”

7. Don't leave before the cake is cut.

It's an old rule, but Post says there's a good reason for it: "It's considered a quiet sign to elderly guests that it's okay to leave," she explained. That’s when it's acceptable for you to depart as well.

8. Don’t share wedding photos -- yet.

While the barrage of day-after wedding photo postings are inevitable, Post explains that brides are very sensitive about their image. It’s best to wait until either the bride or the groom have publicly posted pictures before you post your own. Otherwise, said Post, "You’re kind of Facebook scooping them … on their own big day."