prettypigpig

Nice pics Ashley, the colors are so vibrant! I wish my photogs can give me a slideshow sneakpeek like that ;-) 2 more weeks of wait to go..then I should able to share them with you girls! sigh~~~

Roza, If I were you, I would just choose whatever u want from the checklist (they have a section on instrument/musicians), and then submit it when u pay ur bill. We are the client, we pay already a lot, we are bring guests to their resorts! Thus, WE SHOULD GET what WE WANT, not whoever who is available on that day!

thx and yes, I like everything to be a bit different and unique. I don't like things that are too common in general...and I assumed that wedding day is ...once in our life time...so why would I want it to be generic?!

Deniden, I scheduled the cake cutting right after the ceremony, so guests can sip on champagne and eat some cake as their afternoon snack. The reason is we already got a dessert with our 4 course reception, adding the cake...errrr...Plus, the light was much better for pics outside at 5-6pm than at night. I had 2 hours in between (due to the fact that I forced them to move everything from the beach to indoor), if not, I think the gap would be 1.5 hours. Nikki, I paid the vendors in USD cash. Also paid $350 for the photog to get in. The resort security staffs are pain in the bum bum and have photographic memories, but most of our non-resort guests did sneak in without problem for days...until they got caught.

I'm 110% agreed with Mexbride. I was 200% upset and still very angry toward my parents who didn't came to my wedding (long story short, my dad is a cheapa$$ in denial, and got extremely offended when I offered to pay for his trip, my mom was stuck with him). He is still very bitter because all my siblings went, my aunts (mom's sis), and my grandma (mom's mom) also flew in all the way from Hong Kong to Cancun...and everyone had a blast. My mom had a sad look when she saw the pics taken by my aunts and guests, but oh well...she picked my dad as her partner...so she can't blame anyone but herself. Again, I wouldn't change a thing, and I am pretty happy about the whole DW, and can't wait to see the pro pics and the video.

badgergirl, WOW, super nice pics! I love the one with the palm tree! it is so cute!!!

thx Mexbride, I know what u meant...I got a step by step serie of polaroid pics documentary on "how my baby bro got drunk and passout in the bathroom" followed by video taken with Blackberry and Iphone. LOL

thx everyone I am very happy that everything turned out nice. oh..I forgot that I got a mini-me cake topper from Ebay as well.

shishkabobbett, it does look a bit wierd, but I can't pin point what is wrong.

Subbi, Yes, I got them at Bowring. Just add water and let them soak for a few hours.

ok girls.. I finally put up my planning journal! http://www.bestdestinationwedding.com/forum/thread/74591/prettypigpig-s-belated-pics-loaded-wedding-planning-journal-saves-splurges-diy-etc#post_1637094

Finally, I put my planning thread up! http://www.bestdestinationwedding.com/forum/thread/74591/prettypigpig-s-belated-pics-loaded-wedding-planning-journal-saves-splurges-diy-etc#post_1637094 SBride, Glad to hear everything went well, and I can't wait for the reviews and pics!

Part 6-Misc items- I am sure I missed smth...oh well..I will add as I remember the details...Enjoy! OOT bags: I didn't bring any, but will send out thx packages to all the guests. Reasons: The Royal PDC offers all the common OOT items by default in every room, including chips, juices, anti-bacterian gel for hands. I also had a nurse, a translator, a lawyer and a doctor as my guests..so there was no need to give free Imodium or Spanish 4 dummies to every guest. Most of our guests hang out in our suite and played poker at night, shopping and tanned during the day. Thankyou package will include koozies, sand dollar, re-usable bag, printed pro pics of my wedding (older generation LOVES actual prints!) Kiss shakers: Nothing original, but guests loved it. Fireworks and DJ: Doremix My hubby is a music lover, and by hiring a DJ, it freed him from.."ipoding" the whole night! I wanted the cold fireworks. It worths every penny! Doremix is amazing and professional. Lucky lanterns: In lieu of bouquet tossing, I put a ring inside of a lantern and each "single/available" lady guest picks one, the one who picked the lantern with a ring inside is the next lucky lady. Ladies loved the idea, as it is passive, none aggressive, and pretty original...not to mention they can keep the little lantern after. I loved it, because I HATED bouquet snatching (some chicks look so...desperated), and I needed to keep my bouquet for TTD sessions. Polaroid camera for guestbook: My guestbook is a polaroid album. I bought a board so guests can write their msg/wishes and take a polaroid pics. It kept the guests busy between the ceremony and the reception. The boys loved it. The older generation also loved it, as they can take some pics home instead of waiting for the email...and as someone else to print them out! LOL

Part 5 Centrepieces I've done an un-scientific survey on centrepieces, I asked different people (race, gender, age) rather they remember the centrepiece composition of a reception that I previously attended with them...the result was pretty amazing. Some people remembers the food's portion was too small, the cake was too sweet, the location was too hot...etc...but none of them remember the centrepiece, except the bride who actually planned the whole reception. Thus, unless your budget is "unlimited", centrepieces, which can cost up to $200 each, can be a "save". No many people would remember it anyway. My centrepiece is a voltive vase from Bowring (like Crate & Barrel in USA) $12 each, water absorbing Jelly beans $2 (enough for 3 vases), water activated LED light ice cube $5 per dozen on Ebay, Seashells 2 for $1 from Dollarama, diamond confettis $4 on Ebay, Mirror base $4 each at Essence du Papier, starfish candle $10 for a box of 3 from Essence du Papier. Total comes to less than $25 each. I got a lot of compliments as it was pretty original and DW theme. This pic was take on the day after the wedding, I am sure my photog got better pics than this one. lol Gift/Favors- Shot glass with mini Tequila I ordered personalized shot glasses from Ebay, approx.$130 for 100 including taxes and duties. http://stores.ebay.ca/Factory-21-Promotional-Items?_trksid=p4340.l2563 Gift bags from Ebay too $5 for 50 http://stores.ebay.ca/vlovelife?_trksid=p4340.l2563 I also bought the LED icecube, diamond confettis, chair sashes, table runners, LED candle lights from this vendor on Ebay! Mini Tequilas, I bought them on 5th Ave at Playa Del Carmen, $14 for 6 bottles. The tag: I used the leftover monogram enveloppe seals, I also bought a huge hole puncher for the tag ($30), and a stamp that says Merci Beaucoup (thx very much in french) $8. Placecard Initially, I bought large sand dollars for placecards, but due to the postmen's strike, they didn't make it on time!!! Argh! I will send them as thx gift to the guest as a souvenir instead of placement card. To Canadian Bride, you girls can buy large sand dollars from Ebay, and order extra! They are super fragile!! So...my Plan B for placecard was a tag glued to a seashell (yes, I brought my glue gun to Mexico!)

Ok..after a lunch and a few beers...PART 4! The Boys outfits Since most of the boys are pretty hairy and July's weather is pretty humid and hot, I found suits and long pants are not very "human" for hairy boys when it is like 35C outside. I was planning to order linen shirts and pants from that $99/suit Indian site that most of the brides used on this forum, but they were too busy with their existing orders. Thus, I went to OLD NAVY, got the linen shirts $25 each and the shorts $23 each and silver flip flops $1 each pair (initially I planned a beach reception). It added up pretty quick because I got 6 boys + 1 man! My hubby's shirt was from OLD NAVY $25 also and the pants were from GAP $60. The boutonnieres OK, I had no problem of paying $20 per each rose boutonniere, but seriously, none of the boys really care, and pretty sure ...they would think..meh~ and it would be in the trash can the next day. I found these starfish bouts on Esty http://www.etsy.com/listing/69718483/your-custom-starfish-boutonniere Hubby, FIL, boys were super happy with these, and they all kept theirs as a souvenir. $2.50 each MIL's outfit Yes, I also plan her outfit too, she trusts my taste and was super nervous as my FIL was bringing his gf to the wedding as well (yes, my hubby's parents divorced 15 yrs ago, and it was very DRAMA). So, she wanted to look absolutely STUNNING!!! Her dress was from David's Bridal, empire waist chiffon dress in cornflower (very blue) to go with my color theme $99. Canadian brides, watch out for the duties and taxes when you order from Davids! Her black pearl necklace is a gift from me, it was given by my ex bf, more than 200+ carats natural black pearls, it was too heavy for me, so I weared it once for like 30 mins. LOL I love the art of re-gifting! Her previous surgeries (due to cancer) left some scars around her neck, and that fat necklace hide them perfectly! Plus she got plenty of compliments, and was MUCH hotter than my FIL's gf! LOL Another pics of the boys and girls

OK...Part 3...Sorry Girls..I am very detailed oriented..and afraid that there is a limit per post...so I chopped it in parts..LOL My Dresses & Shoes + Misc... Dress: I ordered my dress, a mermaid with A-line overlay with an ethereal feel from Babyonline at Dhgate, my own design and fully custom made (no need to alter) $175 Veil: My something borrowed, I borrowed it from a good friend who got married last year, she got it from Ebay (she paid $40) $0 Hair flower: yes, I refused to pay big bucks for a hairpiece! I bought it from Forever XXI $7 Necklace: It has an vintage feel, from Forever XXI $9 Earrings: Pear shape rhinestones from Winners (like Marshall in USA) $20 (I don't wear any blings except my rings when I work/ during normal days, so it is a bit unnecessary to splurge on blings just for 1 day, and not that the guests would care...anyway) Diamond gold bangle: a heirloom bling from my hubby's family (a gift from my FIL), I weared it as my something old. $0 Shoes: My weak spot! They were my first purchase during this whole planning process, ordered from Zappos, white sandals with charms around the ankles, Marc by Marc Jacob. $380 BM Dress I only have my 2 sisters as my BMs, they are also super skinny, also several trials...I found them the R&W dress for special occasions. nice cut, and they can re-wear the dress for other occasions. I initially bought one for my rehearsal dinner, then that turn into the BM dress. $98 Flowers I refused to have a plain rose bouquet, thus my bouquet has pink peonies, pink orchids, pink ranunculus, and green berries I ordered it from Marvin, I also got BM rose bouquets, rose corsages for my MIL and grannie, 3 large orchids for MIL's hair (those orchids lasted the whole week!). Price was very reasonable, and much better than the resort's price. This pic was taken on the day after my wedding and after a whole day of TTD, the bouquet was still in a decent shape!

OK…enough of BS..now let’s jump into the details. Location: The Royal Playa Del Carmen http://www.realresorts.com/The_Royal_Playa_Carmen/ One of the best in the area, and very nicely located (right off the 5th Ave)! Adult only resort with a sister hotel that can take kids and people with a constrained budget. The location is hard to beat as guests can go on 5th Avenue by foot everyday, so they don't need to pay cab or feel trap in the resort for days. There are also a Mega and a Walmart near the resort, so people don't have to get robbed by the resort when they need some medications and other essential items. The resort has 7 restos, again ...due to the fact that I am a picky eater, I need to pick a resort with very very good food and huge variety as well. I picked the free wedding package and got married on a Monday to avoid all the "extra" fees. I compared all the package available on an Excel spreadsheet, and came to the conclusion that...it is cheaper to go for a Mastersuite (a pricier and bigger room with perks)and get the free wedding (saved $400 of minister fees). The resort charges extra if you want to get married on the weekend days ($400 extra), but since none of our guests needed to work during the weekdays there anyway, it was ok to get married on a Monday...lol The resort Spa is also top notch, I did my mani, pedi, hair and makeup there. I was very pleased with the resort and glad that I didn't spend $350 on vendor fees + $400 on trial and makeup/hair on an external makeup artist. WC: Claudy Che (email), Zulma (on-site) I met Zulma during my site inspection, and she was very kind and helpful. I saw 2 brides thx her in her office! Claudy too, has been amazing, always fast email response, and answer all my questions. On my wedding day, I had a bridezilla moment, as I was afraid that it was going to rain...Zulma and Captain Joquin done the impossible, and moved the WHOLE thing indoor within 30 min. It didn't rain at the end, but it was a good decision...as no one wanted to have a nervous bride checking the sky every 30 seconds! Zulma followed my instructions on decor, music...etc, and everything went according to plan! Photog: Cecilia Dumas, Sascha Gluck, Ivan Luckie Ok…ok..why 3 different photog, initially I really like Cecilia’s romantic style, but my FI wants smth more sharp and journalistic. Therefore, we went with Cecilia for my e-session pics during our site inspection stay. She is super cool and easy going, very creative and reasonably priced. We booked Sascha for our big day plus next day TTD, and Ivan for underwater TTD. (I am still waiting for the pro pics, the pic below is what Sascha posted on his Facebook) Videographer: Alexandre Michaud He is a good friend of mine who makes indie movies. My hubby wanted do a "Reservoir Dogs" style shot with his boys, so..I asked my friend for help! Lucky me! Wedding website I picked ewedding.com, their templates are nice, easy to use, and fully customizable! Except my guests are not that tech oriented! oh well...at least I will get a dvd as a keepsake. Save the Date Paper airplane STD, I saw it in a Martha Stewart Wedding mag, and went download it from their website. I bought a pack of cardstock from Walmart, printed them on laser printer, add the little blue rhinestones...et voila! Invitation I always want passport/boarding passes invites! but the cost of ordering them is a bit too much, especially I needed them to be bilingual (in french and english). Therefore again...I went DIY. First, I got my monogram designed by Rebecca from Allurements by Rebecca. $10 then...downloaded free templates (both the passport and boarding pass) from Ashlee $0, edited them on Adobe photoshop. Ordered the aqua metallic cardstock papers and matching enveloppes from www.paper-garden.ca (for Canadian brides, this site is awesome) $80 I printed the boarding passes on glossy cardstock at Staples $20, and the passports with my own laser printer $0, the enveloppe seal stickers of our monogram at Vistaprint $20 I also bought some paper cutters, corner puncher...other crafty stuffs like ribbons $50 Under $200, 50 sets were made. It was way cheaper than ordering them online, and I had a lot of leftover materials for my DIY project later on.

Hi ladies, I got married on July 4th, so as the tradition of BDW, I post my planning thread. HUGE Thx to BDW! Without this website, I don’t think I would have so much inspiration and fun in my wedding planning process. Special thx to Nicola for her 2011 Brides thread, to Ginger1961 for being my wedding dress drama partner in crime and Jessica from the Royal PDC Brides thread! Merci Beaucoup! How we met?! We met in our GMAT prep class, I went to do my MBA after that, but he didn’t. However, he said that $300 tuition fee was the best investment he ever made, because now he can have a MBA CFA FRM wife! More details can be found on our wedding website: www.bonnieandjose.com The Proposal We have decided to have a kid in 2012, and of course we must get married before that! Therefore, as 2011 approaches… we started to look at rings..wedding ideas. As a chick who works in the financial industry (him too), the movie WALL ST (not the new one but the old one with Charlie Sheen and Michael Douglas) was one of the classic movies that we watched together. In the movie, the blonde chick said:â€There is nothing can make me happier than a 2 carat Canary diamond!†My FI asked..What is a canary diamond?! Oh well, I am sure that he wished he didn’t ask that question! LOL We were looking for a Fancy Vivid Yellow 2 carat diamond since 2007-2008…and it was always out of his price range, then the financial crisis came! And Voila! Thx to the crisis, we found the diamond at his price range and my specs, and I designed the ring. A 2 carat fancy vivid yellow SI with 1 carat of micro-paved halo ring. In return, I gave him a sapphire diamond ring as his "e-ring". We later on found our wedding bands in Hong Kong during our Asia trip, my wedding band is a semi-eternity curved band that hugs the pear of my e-ring, and his wedding band has a baguette cut yellow diamond to match my yellow pear. Even I knew I was getting my ring, I still insisted that ..he has to do a surprise proposal. (oh yes, I am difficult and demanding!) So he was hinting on and on..it will be xmas/new year proposal…then his b-day (in November) came..and he proposed on his b-day with a custom made cake. I had no clue that he would propose on his b-day…with his b-day cake! LOL Why Destination Wedding? Like I mentioned on another thread, there are several reasons. I always want to get married on a beach, and in Montreal, there isn’t any good ones. Cost control; I don’t want to share a big meal with a large group of strangers, plus a few of them would bring their whole family and give me a cheap toaster as a gift. I don’t like other people’s kids, so an Adult Only resort is a nice way to hint. We have family and friends from all the continents, so a DW is a nice way to compromise. I want smth different, a DW is very different from a traditional chinese wedding or a local wedding in a church or next to a lake.

Thx JHarris, I am so happy that our guests had a good time and really found my wedding a bit different than others'. I always aim at uniqueness of everything, and refused to have smth too common. I got the hair flower from Forever XXI for $7. The veil was my something borrowed, I borrowed it from a very good friend who got married last year. I splurged on my shoes (my soft spot), but tried to save on other things, like centrepiece, STD, Invites, favor, veil, dress, hairpiece, placecards...

MissKim, my pink organza dress with ruffle skirt is made by Babyonline, it turned out beautfiul, but not the same layering effect like Vera Wang's. Good luck! and keep us posted!

Hi Girls, I uploaded some pics taken by a photo loving guest, argh...I can't wait for my pro pics any longer...LOL http://s894.photobucket.com/albums/ac147/prettypigpig/PDC%202011/?albumview=slideshow

Misskim, The reason why I said u will be better off buy the original brand new or second hand is that...your dream dress 's skirt is made of handcut silk organza layers, every dress is slightly different and unique. it is hard to "replicate" and you will be probably disappointed (if you expect smth very similar to the original) ok girls, I finally got some pics from a friend who took pics at my wedding...here are the pics of the 2 dresses.

Denielle, I didn't use the resort's videographer, I invited my friend who is a movie maker, and he brought his pro equipment with him and filmed the whole day and the TTD. Initially, I didn't wanna splurge on video (people usually watched it 3-4 times + gaga over Facebook for another week, then the DVD will stay on a shelf and collect dust), but my hubby absolutely wants a shot like the one in Reservoir Dogs with his boys. Thus, I asked my movie maker friend for help, I only paid for his trip, so I got a very good deal. Girls, I am on the same boat...waiting for my pro pics...argh....why it takes so long!!!

Michelle, I love your beautiful pics!! Your photog captured the whole day perfectly and your kids are so lovely (your boy is going to be a handsome man! lol)!

oh and I almost fell face flat because my grannie was pulling my dress...so I walked like a car with a flat tire! lol and when the bestman pulled out the ring shell (my DIY ring pillow) there was no ring...as they fell into his pocket! hahaha