JayBee

It looks like my FI and I are going to kauai in February for his cousin's wedding at the Hanalei colony resort. Sweet! We're getting married at a private location in August, but I can't wait to meet our WC and check everything out. I hope we'll have enough time at least for cake testing or something like that, lol!

I'm so obsessed I almost lost my job- for real... My boss thinks i've been distracted lately, and the only thing I've been focused on is this election. (we hired a wc so I have barely thought about the wedding lately!) I've tried to keep my obsession out of the workplace, but it's just not possible! We received a bottle of expensive champagne for our engagement party, and we plan to pop the cork on tuesday nite, or wednesday morning- whenever they finally call it!

Honestly, once I get the main deposits paid (site, food, wc) I'd love not to think about this wedding for a few months...lol!

My WC is hoping that the applications that have already been submitted will be allowed a set up. I'm already paying the site fee for the reception, and we can have the ceremony there. But still, it's not the beach... I was thinking about doing our vows on the beach (legal) and then doing a symbolic ceremony at the house. Or just doing photos on the beach. But still...

Alright, so I've spoken with 4 different WCs on Kauai, plus a rental agent and 2 vacation rental owners who recommended Wedding coordinators. It's been crazy, and we were about to move our wedding to a resort on Maui. We were looking for a private estate for around 40 guests, and we didn't want a resort wedding. Here are my impressions: 1. Paradise Services seemed very knowledgeable especially regarding locations. 2. i do weddings kauai takes forever to get back to you, even when you tell them you're anxious to put down $$ on a location. They'll also only do weddings w/ 50+ people. 3. Keala Huffman is awesome, but I felt like she'd be better for a more casual event. 4. Diana Gardner (alohana weddings) is awesome and got back to me really quickly. She knows the site & the owner of the property that I want. And she's really making it happen. I may actually have something in writing by the end of the week. Yay! Good luck w/ the planning and finding a wc! -jess

So I was speaking to my WC and she told me that the state of Hawaii is banning all set-ups on the beaches for weddings, including chairs, altars, aisles, etc. I was wondering if anyone else had heard about this or has other info. I thought I had seen a thread, but I can't find it now. We're getting married on Kauai but she said it applies to all the islands...

Quote: Originally Posted by Sherry I'm so glad to hear this! We're going to Lanai and Molokai for our honeymoon, and we're so excited about both islands. The best part is that we won't be running into our guests all over the place. I'm looking forward to spending the week before the wedding with them on Maui, and I'd rather not be running into a bunch of people we know constantly while we're on our honeymoon! sherry that sounds awesome!! It's the perfect way to recoup after Maui (ha!). I looked for some of the underwater pics we took there but I think they're on my other computer. I'll post a few if I find them! (We got an underwater case for our digital camera. Wasn't exactly cheap, but well worth it if you do a lot of snorkeling!) I hope you'll post some of the details of the Lana'i/Molokai honeymoon

I luv the dress! Personally, I'm also thinking about how I'm going to travel with my wedding gown. I actually read a suggestion that was buying an extra seat on the plane for your dress! How do you pack a hoop skirt? It can be flattened, right? If so, I'd probably opt for the hoop skirt, and just practice walking in it.

Aw man, I wish I found this thread a little earlier just so I could've wished Susan good luck! I think we're going back to Maui for our HM, but we've been having trouble with arrangements on Kauai, so Maui's a possibility for the whole shin-dig. The best thing we did on Maui was taking a day trip to Lana'i for snorkeling. (My fh got all into underwater photography, so snorkeling was big on that trip.) It was better than an excursion because we set our own pace, and because there's a beach and all. You can walk to the beach from the ferry docks. I didn't see any other part of Lana'i, but I didn't have to. The snorkeling was fantastic, and less crowded than the excursions to Molokini. Lana'i was just so intimate- I would definitely suggest it for anyone on their honeymoon. Also about Molokini- there was a charter boat that sank there in 2006, and did some major damage to the crater. I wonder if that's hurt the wildlife and how it's changed the regulations for excursion tours...? ...gosh, I wish I was there right now!!

Hooray for Maui beach wedding pics! They make me feel like planning a wedding in Hawaii will totally be worth it. Thanks for sharing!

M'kay, now i have another lead. This time I spoke directly to the owner of a property, and she was really awesome and i think we're on to something. I'm so relieved! Also I'm looking into a different WC since the one I was speaking with was not so responsive. She didn't even get back to me about my request for a phone meeting! Maybe Now we can actually get this ball rolling in the right direction

Actually, it doesn't look like either place is going to work. I am having so many issues w/ planning this wedding in Kauai... I think it's time for a new direction.

I've finally got 2 houses for possible locations for our reception... and we're going to stay there with our wedding party, too. They're both in Kalihiwai, one faces the ocean, and the other faces the mountains. Also I decided to go with Deanna Schafer from idoweddingskauai.com for my wc. And we're working w/ Christine at Anini Aloha properties to book accommodations & the house. Here are the links to the houses: Kalihiwai Vacation Rental: Mia Huna - Anini Aloha Properties Anini Beach Vacation Rental: Mauka Lani- Anini Aloha Properties There are so many great places that allow weddings, but a lot of them are too small. It feels so good to have the ball rolling!

OMG! Capt. Howie's is awesome! You're right about the photography, it's beautiful. I wish he did weddings in Kauai... I could almost reconsider and move it to Oahu after viewing that website. I did google "capt. howie" and "reviews" and found this link:The Reluctant Critic Blog Archive Hawaiian Wedding / Honeymoon it definitely gives a different perspective

I haven't booked w/ either company, yet, but I've looked into both of them. Paradise Services has impressed me with the knowledge and experience, especially when it comes to locations. I've also spoken to Keala at Tropical Dream Wedding, and I like her a lot. (these places all have such silly names, right?) Have you spoken to any of these planners yet? I'm curious to get your opinion.

Quote: Originally Posted by Maura you ought to go to your corporate HR immediately and tell them you feel discriminated against because youre planning a wedding... That'd be great, except my boss IS the HR dept. Yeah, that's probably why he's such an arse! IT's a really small company, so we don't have all that fabulous infrastructure that most company's offer. Less red tape for the most part, but If you have a gripe w/ ur boss, not alot of options. I'm pretty lucky, actually. My FH is totally chill. He's not worried about the wedding, at least. And just yesterday another manager just gave her 2 weeks notice, So now the company's shorthanded. It also motivated me to have my resume written professionally, and I can take my time (sort of) to find a job I want instead of taking what I can find. One good thing about living in NYC is that there are always retail jobs, even in this economy. It's good to know that I'm not the first to face this issue, and I'm not gonna be the last. Thanks for listening

Alright, I am totally crushed right now, and I'm having trouble getting over it. I left work on Friday thinking I had a nice secure job, that all my paid vacations would be there when we go get married, and that most importantly, I was doing a good job. I had no reason to think otherwise. Apparently my boss was freaking out about business and is deciding it's my fault that it's not good right now! Geez, I suppose IndyMac customers can blame me too! I've worked for these ppl. for 6 years, and now my boss actually tried to say that I must be distracted b/c I'm planning a wedding!!! Instead of searching for a WC, i'm searching for a new job (I still have a job "for now," but I've lost my store "for now")... I'm the first to admit when I make a mistake, but I don't think I deserve this. On top of everything, I don't want to go ahead w/ wedding plans b/c I'm afraid I'll have no income soon! This truly sucks...

If you used a credit card, you should put in a dispute w/ your credit card company. They'll also help you fight a breach of contract/ failure to refund kind of thing, but you have to be VERY specific and demonstrate how the TA is at fault. they'll also stop payment on the amount you're disputing, but only dispute what's justified.

Boy am I glad this thread exists! Now here's a half-hypothetical question: if you're having a co-ed shower before the wedding, would you still have a local reception after your DW? If you were only going to do one or the other, which do you think is more important?

That looks sooooo delicious.... NOM!!!

#3 (maybe no sash?)...I think the first looks like it has too much material and might be too many layers for water pics... I love the train on the 3rd one.

Congratulations, Amanda! An imtimate Maui wedding sounds amazing- I'm sure you're going to love it!

That's what i'm looking to do too, w/ the condos. I'm supposed to call some wc's in kauai tomorrow but my landline is down (not too worried i'll get it working again!) ohmigosh, chiquita, oskar and zoey look exactly like my 2 cats! too cute!

I'm searching for a wedding coordinator too, and that in and of itself is daunting. I've emailed a couple of WC's on the island where we want to get married (Kauai) after looking at dozens of their websites and searching all over for recommendations. I checked to make sure the ones I'm contacting have good standing w/ the BBB, and set up phone interviews w/ them- for tomorrow! Hopefully I'll have a better sense as to what an independent WC will cost and what they'll offer. I don't know if it's better to book the place ourselves or have the WC do it for us...

Thanks for sharing your pics. Everything looks lovely, and I LUV your dress! but why are your hubby's pants wet around the ankles? Everyone else looks pretty dry! lol!