The Wedding Day!

The day before the wedding, we checked in at The Legend Villas. The morning of the wedding, everyone start preparing after having breakfast. I actually didn't know what happened in the other room. But for our room, we have 3 sets of stylists. We had Lystra and Mhira for the secondary sponsors and for the Maid of honor. Then we have my sisters friends for the bridesmaids and for my relatives. Of course, for me, I have the ever awesome Azhyl Gobe. I specifically requested her from Awesome Events because I really loved her works. At noon time, the coordinators together with the photographer & videographer arrived (of course, I also requested for Leo Pacalda). The boys had their photo shoot first while we are still not done preparing. Afterwards, it was then our turn. We did not have too much time for shoot as it is getting late. Worse of it, the bridal car arrived at the hotel late. I will never forget that experience. Our wedding is at 4pm. The bridal car arrived at the hotel at 3:50pm. I was really stressed already. Good thing Ms. Azhyl was there to somehow try to calm me down. It was indeed a miracle as well that there is not much traffic along Boni Avenue that we are able to get to church at around 4:10pm. Still, we are late >_<.

So this is it. I walked down the aisle to meet the person that I want to spend the rest of my life with. The ceremony is very solemn and magical. After the ceremony, there are tons of picture-taking that happened. haha! We had a short photo shoot before finally going to the reception venue.

When we arrived at the Secret Garden, we are given a few minutes to rest. My hairs was changed to a different look and my make up was re-touched. When we are about to have our grand entrance as a couple, I got another set of stress from the coordinators. They are insisting of another route different from the one I requested. I wanted the we will come from the stairs. I am sure that Suzette understood my request when we had our final meeting because the stairs are carpeted beautifully. After getting mad at the coordinators, they finally understood what we wanted and made a way for it. Honestly speaking, I really did not like the service rendered by the coordinators.

But the show has to go one. Let go of the stress and enjoy the night. We did have the grand entrance that I wanted. We had our song number. The emcee was quite good. I am happy as well when I saw all the people who took time to witness our wedding. The program went well and our relatives gave a good feedback of the reception.

One of the highlights of the reception is when Marlo performed his surprised number. I was really surprised and happy. He sang my favorite song. When I was younger, I only dream that some one will sing that for me. And yes, dreams do come true!

To cap of the night, we thanked all those who became a part of this wonderful life event. We are very thankful that you've shared some time for us. Overall, I would still say that it was indeed a magical evening for the two of us



A week later, we went to Awesome Events office to get a copy of photos and videos. Also, they gave us a gift since there are a lot of not-so-good things that happened during the event.

Bouquets & Boutonnieres

Hooray! I was hesitant to post the work in progress photos of the bouquets and the boutonnieres as I am worried if I can really finish these on time. But hooray! I finished them all! I really thank everyone who helped me in finishing all of this.

Token for Principal Sponsors

I almost forgot about the tokens for the Principal Sponsors!!! Good thing, I came across Tiffany Novelty Wedding Invite and Souvenirs Shop. They have variety of elegant items for souvenirs, invitations, etc. Their items are all hand-crafted. I contacted them and they have been very responsive. I'd give 5 stars for customer service. When we placed our orders, they only required 50% down payment. The remaining 50% will be upon pick up of items. When I saw the item, I was amazed on how beautifully crafted they are. I definitely recommend this shop should you need souvenirs or invitation. Check their site here: http://www.tiffanynovelty.com/

I find it really nice to have our names and wedding date at the back of each clock. Also, each of these comes with complete packaging. The box, ribbon and tags are already included when the items are picked up. 

Meeting with Awesome

Around 2 weeks before the wedding, we meet up with Suzette of Awesome Events Ph. We discussed details of the wedding. We checked items if ever there are any thing else that we haven't done. We talked about several details including the colors of the table tops and the stage design. I also discussed with her how I want our grand entrance to be. I wanted that we will come from the stairs. She told me that I have nothing to worry because they do not have other events on that day and she can bring as many carpets as needed. 

Also, she told us that they will do an AVP for us. So we have to send photos. As the big day approaches, I believe that we are almost set for it.

Of course, this meeting includes paying the remaining balance to them. :) :) :)

The Wedding Dress

After a long discussions and alterations from the dressmaker, I finally got my wedding dress!! <3 

I did not expect the dress to look extravagant as I did not pay an extravagant amount. I just had some preferences that I want to see on it. I want it to be off-shoulder with a bit low neckline (but not too revealing). I also wanted it to be a ball gown. I did get what I wanted, I should say. It is just not puffy enough for my taste so I will just buy petticoat and add it under the skirt. Sorry, I won't post pictures. hehehe!

However, for my husband-to-be's suit & pants, he is not happy. Therefore, we went out and find s tuxedo set that will fit him. Good thing that these tuxedos and pants come in different sizes and we did finally found the perfect one for him. All he needs now is a nice bow tie and nice pair of shoes. 

Little Girls' Dresses

It is now less than a month before the big day. I think it's now ok to buy the dresses for the little boys & girls. For the boys, i did not have much problem since two of them already have formal wears. I just provided them with the bow ties. The other one, my sister paid for his clothes and shoes so it's all taken care of. But for the girls, I looked for the best dress for them according to my taste. Before I went to Divisoria again for the dresses, I asked the girls' parents for their measurements. Then, I gave those measurement to those in the dress shop and they are already able to determine which dress size would fit for each of the girls. 

The dress I chose was really simple. But I really like the color combination. Each of it only costs php 600. So I am really happy about it. Hahaha! 

Aside from the girls' dresses, we also bought my mom's dress and some of the symbols to be used for the wedding (Arrhae & Cord). I also got some bare baskets. I decided to design these myself as I am not happy with those that are already decorated. 

The Rings

We are indeed very busy with all the preparations. But we should not forget one of the most important item for the wedding; The Rings!

It was an early Saturday morning when we started our journey in finding the best ring for us. We took had a ferry ride from Mandaluyong to Escolta. It is my first time to ride in that ferry. It was a good 45-minute ride without the hassle of traffic and air pollution. 

From Escolta we walked to the jewelry capital, Ongpin Street. We checked different stores. There are a lot of options. You may choose from either 14K or 18K gold rings. There are also silvers and white gold. There are also a variety of designs. I already have a design in mind, while Marlo wants something simple. Thus, all we have to do is haggle to get the rings we want for the price we can. 

Food Tasting

A few weeks prior our wedding, Suzette from Awesome Events Ph scheduled us for food tasting. I was a little disappointed about it. What we did was attend another couple's wedding before their actual reception starts. When we got there, other couples are waiting for same purpose. There are 3 pairs including us. we are served a small portion of each dish present in the event where we "gate-crashed". 

I think this is being convenient for caterer as they don't need to prepare food exclusively for food tasting. But for the couples, you won't be able to try all those in their menu on a single visit. You may want to "gate-crash" more events to try the other dishes. 

Here is what is served for the 2 of us to share.

The Bridal Shower

Oh Yeah!! My beautiful girlfriends do love me a lot!!  As I am already on the stage where stress is in high levels, they organized a surprised bridal shower for me!!

I won't give to much details about what happened here. HAHA! I just want to thank all that has been part of this very memorable party. I never new that I am this special for you, gals. I love you all <3

Souvenirs

Since our reception venue is outdoor (thus, non air-conditioned), my sister thought of giving away fans as a souvenir. We simply have a hundred fans embroidered with our names. Half of it is purple and the other half is black. I really really loved the way it looks. We only got the embroidered fans for php 45 each. Then we just bought special abaca bag for each fan. Each of it costs only php10. I just designed the bag to make it look special. 

This is just a simple souvenir but I hope this will be useful for the guests.

The Marriage License

One of the most important requirement in getting married is of course the marriage license. Each municipality have different requirements in applying for this. Definitely, you would need CENOMAR for this. I got mine online using e-census which is every convenient for me.

Another requirement is the Family Planning Seminar. Fortunately, a certificate was issued by the church for us to use for this purpose.

We went to apply for the marriage license at Mandaluyong City hall. The application process did not take long, just around 30 minutes. We are asked to go back after a few days to get the actual license. After having the license, we then submitted these documents to the Parish Office.

Invitations

After finalizing the whole entourage, it's now time to work on the invitation. the whole process of working on the invitation, from the design layout to the printing is really fast. just a few days after I approved the layout, Suzette already texted me that the invitations are ready for pick up. We went to their office to pick up the invitations (and pay for the half of the remaining balance). I was really amazed with how the invitation looked like. For me, it is just perfect! I loved it a lot!

The Prenup Session

We are now 3months down before the big day. Our agenda now is the Prenup Session. The place where we had the photo shoot was at Pan de Amerikana in Marikina City. I called them and set a schedule for the shoot. They do not allow any photo shoot on weekends. Thus, we scheduled ours on a Monday. They will only charge php500 for the use of the dressing room and will require your whole team to dine in their restaurant.

After having the schedule set with the placed, we then coordinated with Awesome Events Ph for the photographer's schedule. Also, requested to have a hair & makeup artist which is not a part of the package we availed.

The morning of the prenup day, I was both excited and nervous. We arrived early in the venue. We stayed at the dressing room as we wait for the artist and the photographer. The makeup artist, Ms. Azhyl Gobe is very amazing. She was able to finish my hair and make up in just around 15 minutes. I loved how she made me look. Our photographer, Sir Leo Pacalda, is also good and very easy to work with. He guides us well on what to do and how to pose. We finished everything in less than 2 hours. This includes to outfits with different hair & makeup.

After the shoot, we dined at Pan de Amerikana. The food is good and relatively affordable. I was a good lunch indeed. We then went to Awesome Event's office. We need to pay the next 10,000 and an additional php 2500 for the hair and makeup. On this same day, we are already given a copy of all the prenup pictures on our flash drive.

As we go home and check the pictures, we are so amazed! I really loved how the pictures look. I also love what was done on my hair and make up. If I will rate Azhyl and Leo for this day, it will definitely be 5 stars!!!

Here are some of the really great photos.

The Dresses

I definitely want to skip the step of gathering my bridesmaids and secondary sponsors for body measurements for their dresses. Thus, I chose to buy the dresses over the shelf. My sister and my niece went with me to Divisoria to score some great dresses for a good price.


Before we actually started hunting down some dresses, we first bought the neckties for the groomsmen and bow ties for the little boys.

Then, we started exploring the stores in 168. There are tons of dresses there. The bridal sections are B1, 4th flr and 6th flr. We got the dresses for the secondary sponsors and for the maid of honor on the 6th flr. Afterwards, we headed to Tutuban Mall. We got the dresses for the bridesmaids there.

Here are the photos for the 3 different designs of the dresses.

for the Maid of Honor

For the Bridesmaids

For the secondary sponsors

I was really happy, I spent less than php6000 for all the dresses. :) :) :)

Seminars

Since we are to be married in a Catholic Church, one of the requirements is to attend seminars. There are 3 seminars in total. Each are to be taken on separate days. Here's a brief description of each:

NFP - Natural Family Planning

Of course we all know that the Catholic Church is no in favor of the artificial ones. Thus, they do give a seminar on the natural way. We had this seminar together with other couples who are also about to be married. It was interesting indeed. They will also educate you on how to have a baby girl or baby boy. The method that was discussed to us is known as BOM or Billings Ovulation Method.

MEI - Marriage Expectation Inventory

For this one, it will be just the two of you together with the one who presides. Both of you will be asked to answer a questionnaire. Most of the questions are about your expectations after the wedding. Both your answers will then be discussed to you. This will help you compromise if there are items that you might disagree about in the future. This will also prepare you on a lot of things that you might face in the future as married couple. (ex. living with relative/parents).

Pre-Cana

This is a longer seminar. We had it from 8am to 5pm. There are quite a few other couples aside from us. This seminar will remind you of your Catholic faith. At the same time, this will prepare you as you enter married life more in a spiritual aspect. This is named after Jesus' first miracle in the wedding in Cana. 

There you have it. Aside from this 3, we will be having Canonical interview with the Priest when the wedding date is already close. 

The Church

We did not think twice when deciding which church we would like to get married. Definitely, it will be where we first had mass together. This is also the church where we go every Sunday. We will be married at San Felipe Neri Parish.

This church is located at the corner of Boni Avenue and Aglipay St. Mandaluyong City. We believed that this will be very accessible for both our relatives.

We inquired for the requirements for wedding in this church. Please see below picture for the guidelines from this church.

Just a tip: be mindful of the validity of Baptismal and Confirmation certificates. You can only request once for these certificate for "marriage purposes". Technically, you should only be married once. 

Also, if you want your wedding to fall on a weekend, you should book at least a year before. Weekend schedules are mostly booked. That is one of the reason we scheduled our wedding on a friday, September 30, 2016.

Awesome Events Ph

Now that we have a church and a reception venue, we need to look for suppliers. We opted for those who offer packages. Simpy because I do not have enough time (and patience) to talk to different suppliers/vendors. My sister gave me options that she found over the internet. Some of options she gave are as follows:

1. Events Magic
2. Awesome Event Ph
3. Pink Genius

I tried sending SMS/PMs on these three to see which of them replies first. I was kinda interested with Pink Genius as they are recommended by Sir Tony of secret garden. I asked if we can meet up with them. Of course I would like to see their portfolio as well. However, they responded to me that they only do meet ups if we are to pay the reservation fee already. Therefore, I removed them from our options.

Next, I got a call from Awesome Events Ph as a response to the messages I sent them. They gave us directions on how we can get to their office. I find it good that they do have an office. At one point, I don't need to worry about the legitimacy of their company. When we arrived at their office, we are welcomed by Ms. Suzette Osias. She showed as the different packages they offer. We found the HOPE package to fit what we need and fit our budget. Also, I found the photos and videos of their previous events to be really good. However, when we started looking at the schedules, they fully booked on weekends. Since I already felt that I wanted this supplier, I asked Ms. Suzette to give us time to think over our schedule.

After Awesome Ph, I tried to contact Events Magic. The prices on their packages seems cheaper. I asked about their partner in photo/vid. I looked at their portfolio on facebook and I wasn't really happy. Also, when I asked them to pencil book a our desired schedule until the time I can go to their office, they told me that they don't do pencil booking. It was a Monday and I am planning to go to their office on Friday of same week. With that, I felt that I won't get a good service from them. So I marked them out of my list.

After making sure that the schedule is available on church and on the reception venue, we finally decided to go with Awesome Events Ph. We went back to their place in Marikina to sign the contract and talk about terms and conditions.

Here is the link on their facebook page and you may browse other packages that they have.

We chose to avail the HOPE package (worth 100k) as this seems fit for us. They only required php 10,000 for reservation. The next php 10,000 to be paid on Prenup session. The remaining php 80,000 will be split into 2 payment. First will be once the invitations are released and the next will be 2 weeks before the event.

The Secret Garden

After choosing the best church for us, we need to find a good venue for the reception. We wanted the venue to be within Mandaluyong only so that it won't be hard for the guest to go there after the wedding ceremony.

I browse the internet and found Secret Garden in Mandaluyong. Don't be confused as there is also another Secret Garden somewhere in Novaliches, Quezon City. We went to check out the place (and the price). We set an appointment with Sir Tony for site visit and to check the schedule as well.

We got there around 7 in the evening. Just perfect time for us to see how the place would look like at night since the reception would definitely be in the evening.

Here are some pictures of the place when there are no decors yet.

We are fortunate enough that they allowed us to rent the venue alone. Moving forward, if you want to rent the place, you also have to get other services from them (catering, stage design, lights and sounds, etc).

The rates that we got from them are as follow:

php 30,000 for the place

php 5,000 for corkage and garbage collection

TOTAL: 35,000

They only required us to pay for 5,000 as reservation fee. The remaining balance can be paid 2 weeks before the event.

Engagement Session w/ Carlo

As there are a lot of people who are happy for us when we got engage, there is this one guy who stood out. He is so happy for us that he offered to do a photo shoot for us for free!!!

Our good friend Carlo captured really awesome photos of us. Whenever I look at his works, I am in awe. Here are some of the photos that he took for us. We are indeed very thankful for all the efforts that he placed on these wonderful work of art.

You can browse more of his work on this link: Click here

Pamamanhikan

Being us both from traditional families, we believed in the importance of "pamamanhikan". It is when the guy formally asks the parents of the girl for her hand in marriage. At first I was the one who is really nervous. However, Marlo is really sure that he wants to marry me ♥. He did not show any signs of nervousness.

Everything went well. Sorry I did not have any pictures. He and his parents went to our house and brought something that we can feast over. My sister and brother are also present together with our mom. Marlo did literally asked for my mother's blessing. I can't believe that he did have the guts to do everything he did just for me ^_^

From there on, we have told them our plans. This includes the church where we want to get married. For the reception, they also suggested some places that we can check.