Wedding Extra Extra

DIY or Do-it-yourself is the "in thing". Brides do it for so many reasons.

1) Budget: some items are cheaper than what is available in the market or the quote given to you by a supplier. But like in business math, the materials cost is not the only thing you have to consider in computing your actual price, you have to include your fare, fuel (if you went via car), time you allotted for buying and your own labor. So plan ahead before going to the wholesale haven so that you can maximize your time once you are on your buying spree. If you want to save more, you might consider using recycled items. I did by using the extra wedding invitation cards of my sister's wedding instead of buying cardboard for the letter buntings, table numbers and others.

2) Personal touch: you have a specific theme perhaps or you just simply want to personalize your event.

3) The item is not available in the market.

4) Artistic flair. You are simply creative and you are into craft-making, and it's your hobby.

5) Free time. Yes, you have all the time in the world to be creative and do all the things you want to create and make.

Others may have other reasons, but what I mentioned are my own reasons, and here are my own DIY's.

Kissing bells with tags as wedding favors

Name plate

Embellishment on the sole

Tag for the bubble wands. The monogram was designed by my friend.

Recycled pomander by dyeing it in yellow and lilac

Handwritten notes for the moms

Embellishments on the Secondary candles

Embellishments on the Offertory Candles

Embellishments on the hand-me-down cord

Perfect Match for each other

Bible garter

Bangladesh handicraft, I requested a friend to sew it as the new cover of the ring pillow

Both pillows are hand-me-down from my sister, we changed the cover using a Bangladeshi pillowcase

Letter buntings

Table numbers are names of places we've been as a couple

I made our growing up avp too. Here's the link . 
*All photographs are by Bryan Yap.

Wedding Moments to Remember

“I will not remember what my wedding looked like. I will remember how it felt. Because at the end of the day, even really cool stuff is just that: stuff. It’s the love you share, the people who hold you up, and those precious moments of bliss and joy that you will remember for the rest of your life. And none of that is for sale.”

There are lots of moments but some are starting to fade. The wedding day was stress-free, thanks for my A-Class suppliers and the love of friends and families.  There are moments that I will forever remember, just want to share it here too. Honestly, I can’t remember the set-up, decors, or even the taste of the food anymore but until now I can still remember the smiling faces, unusual moments, and funny moments. True enough, it’s not the cool stuff that will stick to your mind but those precious moments of bliss and joy, and how I wish it's the same with my guests too. Here are the precious moments:

•  15 absentees out of my total 100 guest list. That's almost perfect anyway because all the most important people in my life are present. It's like a Family reunion. Special thanks to friends who came home from australia, hongkong and saudi just to attend my wedding, and friends who travelled from ilocos just to be with me also.
• When honey was playing/fidgeting with the arrhae and ring box while we were on our knees, facing the altar.
• When honey was making faces at me, trying to make me laugh while i was saying my wedding vow! Mischievous husband!
• When I was standing outside the church, waiting for my cue to enter, my friend's dad, Tito Willy, approached me, gave me a peck and his wedding wish. One of the sweetest gesture that day! 

Photo by Bryan Yap

• Our couple’s first dance, even without the mood lights, I find it romantic because honey was singing the song to me while we were dancing. Brings me back to our dating days, when he swayed me to dance in the privacy of our home while singing acapella of our love song.
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Photo by my bro-in-law

• The father-daughter’s dance to the tune of "Butterfly Kisses" that suddenly became a “family dance”. My papa who hates wearing barong, took off his barong as soon as he reach the reception venue, so he was feeling shy when we were dancing with his in-shirt on and no barong, so he decided to call my mom, and then my sisters to join the dance. If only the quartet played “sasara ang bulaklak, bubuka ang bulaklak, darating ang reyna, pakembot-kembot.”

• The prosperity dance because I want my husband and my in-laws to experience and witness one of the Filipino traditions. It was fun, and I actually advice my friends about it beforehand, and my friends are really cool, they pinned their money shaped into heart, sash and crown.
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Photo by Bryan Yap

•  I want my honey and his mom to have their moment too, so we added a mother-son dance.      

• W@W love was present that day too and I even heard from one supplier “having Benz as a guest means the w@wie couple are big time”. hahah! It’s just so happened that we became friends :-)

My husband's cousin got the garter, while my cousin lost the female's game.

• The single’s game. My wedding is the third in our family, but it’s a first time that we had the “single’s game” added in the program. It was fun and all my female cousins were game, too bad my male cousins went home with my grandfather before the game, thus we only had two bachelors left as all my friends are married too. It was an extra-ordinary experience for my husband's cousin, even if he was aware of this game, it is really his first time to be part of the game.

My High School friends with their respective families. I will have my own baby next time we see each other again.

• It’s like a highschool reunion with all my friends around and a family gathering will all my relatives around too. I’m glad that my family enjoyed the event too. Nakakataba ng puso when my sister said “it’s the best and most relaxing wedding she attended so far”.

• The night before, my in-laws surprised me with their traditional bengali way of "pamamanhikan" by giving me slippers in a tray with a lighted candle, gold jewelries - that i'm supposed to wear everyday, especially the bracelet as this is the symbol that you are a married woman, I can't be "bare" as the jewelries are symbol of abundance & prosperity in marriage, and things that I'm supposed to wear/use on the first night like toiletries, perfume and nightgown. Too bad, the bengali sweets were confiscated at KL Airport.

• And the wonderful speeches, from the best man, maid of honor, parents and friends. Awesome, witty, inspiring and very heartfelt :-)

       my mom's message: Peachy & Alvin, we are very happy for both of you. Alvin, welcome to our family. You have married a very unique girl - resourceful, cheerful, kind, creative & always willing to lend a hand. Peachy you are now a wife, a part of a unit & half of a couple. As a married couple you will have good days & bad days. Always celebrate the good days, and because you can't avoid the bad, learn from them. Find happiness in the simplest things & joy in being together. Respect each other & every now & then, give each other space. But always start & end your day with a kiss, a hug, & those three important words I LOVE YOU. We wish you all the happiness in the world. Congratulations!

Bride's friend's message:

Peach, Alvin, Congratulations again. 

For those of you who don’t know me, my name is Mika. Peach and I have been friends for 16 years now. We’ve been through thick and thin together, or in our case, fat and thin. Sexy na kami ngayon!  

We passed college, thesis, practicum and the board exam together. We’ve even survived the floods of UST. One time, we got stuck in the car because of the rising flood, and someone stole my side mirrors. Peach freaked out on my behalf. If it weren’t gross and insanely dangerous to wade out, Peachy might have run out to catch the guy. She epitomizes the expression small but terrible. So Alvin, always stay on Peachy’s good side! 

Peach brought me to Vigan, my first out of town trip, ever. We got stuck in the bus for 13 hours . But Peach was there to liven things up. We even had a theme song for that trip. This guy’s in love with you pare. There is no one I’d rather be stuck with that long than Peach. (Pause) And then there was Cebu, Puerto Galera. We conquered the Angkor Wat! Peach, I hope your adventures with Alvin will be as fun and exciting as ours, and I look forward to hearing lots of kwentos from you. 

I have a huge library of stories, but I feel we might not have enough time and will just be repeating what others have or will share - that Peach is a wonderful friend. 

Even though distance made it difficult for us to remain involved in each other’s lives, Peach constantly makes an effort to keep in touch. She always takes the time to meet up whenever she’s here in Manila. 

So when I learned that Peachy and Alvin were getting married, I gave her the best advice I could think of: DON’T. Obviously, she didn’t listen to me. But kidding aside, I was very happy for my friend. I was even happier to have finally met Alvin when he was here last year to meet the family. 

Marriage and weddings were things we talked about before. To see her now, happy and be with someone she deeply loves, and loves her in return, I am truly blessed to be part of this celebration. 

Peach brought me to Vigan, my first out of town trip, ever. We got stuck in the bus for 13 hours . But Peach was there to liven things up. We even had a theme song for that trip. This guy’s in love with you pare. There is no one I’d rather be stuck with that long than Peach. (Pause) And then there was Cebu, Puerto Galera. We conquered the Angkor Wat! Peach, I hope your adventures with Alvin will be as fun and exciting as ours, and I look forward to hearing lots of kwentos from you. 

I have a huge library of stories, but I feel we might not have enough time and will just be repeating what others have or will share - that Peach is a wonderful friend. Even though distance made it difficult for us to remain involved in each other’s lives, Peach constantly makes an effort to keep in touch. She always takes the time to meet up whenever she’s here in Manila. So when I learned that Peachy and Alvin were getting married, I gave her the best advice I could think of: DON’T. Obviously, she didn’t listen to me. But kidding aside, I was very happy for my friend. I was even happier to have finally met Alvin when he was here last year to meet the family. Marriage and weddings were things we talked about before. To see her now, happy and be with someone she deeply loves, and loves her in return, I am truly blessed to be part of this celebration. Peach, good luck to you and Alvin. I hope your party never ends and wish you both all the best. 

Supplier's Review: Videographer: Aisle 1401

VIDEOGRAPHER: Aisle 1401

Peso Power: Php 18,000 Introductory Rate of Package 1: The Essentials

Highly Recommended

While writing my suppliers review, there were times that I think I am a “rebellious bride”. Between photography and videography, I prefer photography, thus why videography was not a priority for me. Maybe my friend somehow influenced me when I was scouting suppliers. She was not pro-videography too since not everyone wants to watch a video and it’s a hassle to insert the cd/dvd and play unlike with photographs, you can easily browse thru albums, she actually advice me to just hire the service of a street-side videography shop just to have some moments captured, and for keepsakes too.

Because I’m just in the look-out for someone affordable with good videography skills, I’ve checked Aisle 1401 after reading a lot about them in W@W and after Krystle referred them to me also. Their works are good, and their introductory price was really a steal! I instantly emailed Aisle 1401 and happy that I got them before the end of their Introductory Price and change to their new regular price.

With The Aisle 1401 guys and Krystle at the W@W Christmas Party

I never got the chance to meet them and interact with them prior to the wedding day. We were so busy already with the last minute preparations that I wasn’t able to squeeze them in our schedule or maybe vice versa. So, technically, I don’t know them all by face and name. I met them once in a brief introduction during the W@W Christmas party but I ‘m not sure if I registered in their minds.

 

Drei instructing us what to do

PRO:

• It was an easy transaction thru exchanges of email. Anna replies promptly and explains things in layman’s terms and answers my “stupid” questions hehehe.
• The SDE is great! I love it and so with honey. We still have to receive the highlights which they said it will be ready after 3 months. I hope it will be ready because after listening to their podcast, I’m not sure if I hear them right but they said its 6 months.
• They can do magic. They were able to include someone in the SDE even if they are not really present during the mass.
• They are good. Mico and Drei arrived on time during the wedding day. They introduced themselves happily instantly before proceeding to their work; at the same time I introduced them to whoever is present in the room too. I find the duo funny, serious with their work but fun, opposite of what I felt with Anna and John – dead serious.
• They are all good-looking.
• I emailed Anna recently to inquire when is our wedding highlights ready for delivery and she replied quickly telling me this coming september - that's 3-4 months production :-)

CON

I don’t have any negative thing to say regarding their craft and their work as a team because they are really good in what they do even if they are still considered “neophyte”. But let me just share my experience or what I felt that day.

I believe that any suppliers should introduce themselves to the bride and/or groom when you enter their preps room. We maybe too busy but we still prefer people coming in our room to introduce themselves properly. With all the people coming in and out, and surrounding us, we can’t recall or remember everyone’s name in an instant, so it will be of great help if you will introduce yourself or even just to say “Hi! We are here!”

If Mico and Drei were so jolly in introducing themselves when they arrived, it’s different with Anna and John. They came later than Drei and MIco, I’m not sure if this is their usual set-up. I’m done with my make-up when they came to my room. I can’t remember them introducing themselves but I did remember saying “Hi” to them (since I know them by face) when I saw them standing there and watching the make-up session. They did say “Hi” after that. I don’t know if they knew that I was the bride until I said “hi” because I was just standing near Anna when they entered. She asked for the coordinator, so I pointed at Charisse. Anna asked her what’s the time for the bride to leave for the church, and before Charisse could answer, Anna walked towards the wall where the schedule is posted, checked it and then face again Charisse  and said “I suggest we leave earlier than the schedule instead of 230pm. That area is traffic sometimes. We had a wedding their last week and the bride was late the church didn’t allow her to march anymore. You don’t want that to happen to your bride and put the blame on you, do you”

I understand she has a good intention here, but the tone and the body language has an effect in a good communication. The room just felt silent when she was talking and as soon as they left the room, everyone went back to their jolly mood. And whoever was around that time felt that she is “bossy”, and as the bride, I was a bit turn off. Honey had a similar experience with Anna and john. He is a foreigner and he really doesn’t know all our suppliers except of course for Charisse and Bryan whom he met days before the wedding. So, when he saw Anna and John standing inside his preps room, he asked them “And you are?”, and their reply was “we are with them “, pointing at Drei and Mico who were in his room that time. As for Honey, he still doesn't know them, and even now, he can just recall the name and face of Mico and Drei. After hearing their podcast interview at W@W Chat, it came into my mind: maybe they have their wife-husband misunderstanding that day.

I know this incident doesn’t affect their work and creativity. It maybe just a misunderstanding. It’s so minor that anyone will just ignore it. It’s not their intention, but I still think and believe that every supplier should be at their best mood and putting their best foot forward when they are on-duty. Again, this is not to bad-mouth them as they are really good with their work and craft , as a matter of fact, I'm highly recommending them - but, I'm just sharing my experience as a client too. And it's a common knowledge that people have different experiences.

Sharing our SDE by Aisle 1401

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DWRMqExkpgg&feature=youtu.be

Sharing our SDE by Aisle 1401

Alvin and Peachy from Aisle 1401 on Vimeo.