TeNeil

Comparing details: Age: 28 Children: none yet Sign: Scorpio Favorite color: Yellow Favorite food: Pizza, sushi, cake, ice cream (ok...I've never ate anything I don't like) Favorite drink: water, wine Car: Acura RDX Pets: Macy-Mae (2yr old Yorkie.....cutest dog ever....even my macho FI thinks so!) Career: Nurse/teacher Status: engaged Music: country, rock Favorite shows: Rich Bride Poor Bride, Bachelor, Ellen DeGeneres Siblings: 1 older sister (thanks to her....1 niece and 1 nephew!!!) REGISTERY:We aren't doing a registery because we don't want anyone to bring gifts. Obviously we can't control this, but I don't know what to do STAGETTE: I want nothing to do with blow up dolls, suckers on my shirt, or phallic straws. I have suggested a "panty party" where all my gfriends get together for wine and bring a pair of panties for the bride.

Hey ladies! I went dress shopping in Calgary and had so much fun! Started at the Bridal Center and worked with Carma. She was extremely helpful but they didn't end up having "THE" dress. Went to Ethos, but sorry to say.......the worst service ever (sales assts were stealing dresses from each other and arguing in front of us....it was a mad house). I bought my dress at S2 Bridal on 11th ave (Sonia's Bridal 2nd store) and can't say enough positives about the help that I received. Ava was great...very professional yet fun and relaxed. My dress is a Pronovias and they had a lot of knowledge about the dresses in their store. Does anyone have shoe store suggestions?? I love shoes and would like to treat myself to something special for the wedding!!

Those will be a HIT!

Yikes! I must admit that I'm a little scared now about our restaurant choice. We chose Tortuga for our reception as our only options were Tequila or Tortuga. The rodizio style seemed like a unique experience.......and we thought the food would be good. Has anyone else ate at Tortuga?? Maybe they just had an off night??

WOW! These are so fun, unique, and classy!

Welcome to the forum! You will find a ton of information and some pics on the "Gran Bahia Principe Akumal/Tulum/Coba- Post here!" thread. Just search Bahia Principe Tulum and it will show up!

GREAT review! Thanks for sharing all of the info and pictures.....makes me feel so happy with our decision of BP.

Pick #1! It is very chic, yet beachy. I also think that your guests will be more up to sitting for a while and then getting up and dancing. #2 is nice, but people might get too comfy and never get up.

Raykel....you should be able to find a Merle Norman store somewhere in Edmonton. They are in most Canadian malls. They are definitely in Calgary malls, so if you are ever in cowtown

Just figured out how to attach our monogram to my siggy, so I had to post here....haha! Great job....I love the purple!!

No formal entrance for us......we are greeting everyone as they come in so that there isn't as much pressure to mingle during the dance. We want to party and dance all night, but have a chance to talk with everyone. We are calling our AHR a celebration rather than a reception....no dinner, just dancing and a midnight lunch. Even though it is informal, I am definitely wearing my dress agian.....why not......i LOVE my dress...haha!

For all you Canadian brides (and maybe they deliver to US too...not sure), check out Wedding Star for decoration and favor ideas. I ordered hand fans for our ceremony today: Contemporary Hearts Hand Fans - Weddingstar United States I also ordered monogram stickers for our favors. I wanted to turn the monogram that I made (which I still haven't figured out how to attach to my siggy) into stickers, but this costs too much money. The ones that I found are pretty nice and much more affordable.

While talking about make-up, I have to let you know about a product by Merle Norman.....it is called Model in a Bottle. My photographer told me about it and said that it will help your make-up stay put ALL day without feeling like a mask. She recommends it to all of her brides....she even had a bride go in the pool for her TTD and her make-up still looked amazing! For mascara.....i have tried 100 brands and still go back to Maybelline Full n Soft waterproof. I too love Sephora and Mac make-up but have found that Lancome (foundation) and Merle Norman (lip stick pencils...liner and color in one) are winning me over.

HereFishie.....I see your point, but IMO they are charging more for the staff, set-up and clean-up than anything. We are planning on going to the Hacienda because there will only be about 15 of us......but now I'm wondering if this is possible. Someone mentioned that you can do this only after midnight?? Oh well, I'm sure we will find somewhere to get our groove on!

Thanks for the review.....glad to hear that you and your hubby are happy regardless of the unexpected that occured. Congrats.....and we can't wait to see more pics!!!

I agree......don't waste money or time on gifts that suck! For our DW: OOT bags with mugs and other random items for the trip For our AHR: homemade carmel popcorn balls with our monogram sticker on the bag The ONLY gift that I have ever used from a wedding was food. Great thread by the way!

Sorry dewiggy.......I think it could be near impossible. Now that their new policy is in effect, I don't see them making exceptions for anyone. We had booked Claudia PRIOR to their new policy and it was a BATTLE to keep her. Not many resorts allow outside photoraphers anymore. You could always consider hiring Claudia to take photos off the resort somewhere (she just wouldn't be able to photograph the ceremony or reception). Just a thought! Good luck.

WHAT A RELIEF!! I too received an email today......clearly stating that we can use Claudia. I am so happy that we can finally relax and feel confident that someone will take pictures on our wedding day. Thanks for the support ladies.......and way to stand your ground!

I say do whatever fits your situation best......BUT, I would have no problem having 3 girls stand up for me and my FI only have 1 guy. We aren't having wedding parties, but asked 2 friends each to be witnesses on our marriage licence. My girlfriends were great with that.....and super excited that they can wear whatever they want!

They turned out great! My favorite is #3. I made a monogram for us and plan to use it as a sticker on our favors.

I've made a few different tanks for bachelorette parties...... My favorite was "Bride Security" with a hot chick holding a gun. I also liked a sports theme that I did. We had a team name on the front. On the back was our sports number and the names on top were "Bride" "Bridesmaid" etc.

Sorry to scare everyone with the photography drama.......hopefully I will have good news to share soon! The resort has been replying to my emails, but with very vague responses. I am just waiting on some clarification.

I think #2 is best for that venue (sleek). Chair #1 is beautiful, but I think all of the different lines will really distract from the gorgeous pillars in your venue. Good luck and let us know what you choose!

Quote: Originally Posted by Joss Hey Ladies, it's been a while since i've logged on. Hello to all the new Bahia brides. I can't believe the drama going on with the photographer situation! We put down a deposit with Claudia back in June, and this is the first i've heard anything about the change in outside vendors. I hope it works out for us! Here's a site I found that lists restaurants at the Gran Bahia Complex. We were given our choice of 2 restaurants, since we were the first wedding booked that day. If you're only given one option, it might be because another bride had booked before you. Our travel agent told us there are maximum 2 weddings per resort / day. BAHIA-GOURMET.COM :::: If the resort photographer hasn't contacted you then you will be fine with Claudia. (Which will be awesome!) This just further shows how unprofessional and inconsistent they are being with their new policy. They are strictly enforcing it with some and then not even mentioning it to others.

I just wanted to update you on the photography situation. I spoke with Claudia about my situation and the resort photographer is definitely taking advantage of brides. The resort told me that my ONLY option was to use Arrecife Studio........they told Claudia that I had changed my mind and wanted to use the resort photographer. NOT THE CASE! I have sent them an email stating that I want to keep my booking with Claudia Rodriguez or else I will be looking for a new resort. It is very unfortunate that the photo studio is giving Bahia Principe a bad image. I feel betrayed and upset that they aren't being honest.