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Rings: My engagement ring was custom designed by my fiancée with a tanzanite stone. We then had the wedding band custom fit to the engagement ring. His ring is a style known as Mokume Gane. It was custom made by Heidi in Toronto. http://www.heidischnabel.com/ Other: Sorry, just a few things I forgot. Luggage tag photo ( I made 65 of these little puppies! And the best part...all the guests used them) Pens- One of my bridesmaids made these following instructions from DIY thread on making your own custom pens. OOT bag label template Well, the wedding planning is done. And I do have to apologize since I am writing this after we got married. I had planned on doing it before we left, but then DH and I bought a house (6 days before we left for Mexico!), and needless to say I got a little busy with that. If there is anything I forgot, or you would like to know more, please PM me. Thank you again to everyone that I borrowed and used ideas from! The wedding was truly a success and everyone had a lot of fun J OOT bag sticker.doc

Decorations: We ordered paper laterns from Asian Ideas in white, green and turquoise. There were a couple hanging during the wedding ceremony, and then more decorated the wedding gazebo at dinner time. We used the instructions from DIY LED lights to make LED throwies to light up the laterns at night! They were super easy and worked great. We ordered the batteries and LEDs from dealextreme.com Our centerpieces (again we like simple): Tall round vases (about 10”tall, 7”diameter), filled with limes and water. We bought the vases in a party supply store in Cancun, just outside of local Market 23. They cost us $12 US for all 8, add the limes and I think our total was about $20! On a side table we had a seating chart. The tables were named for some of our favourite places we have visited. On each table was a picture of us in that location. (sorry no pictures!) Each place had a name card, some in black (to indicate their meal choice of pork), the others in white (to indicate their meal choice of mahi-mahi). I printed these out on cardstock and then folded them into tent cards (templates below) The napkin and menu card were placed on top of the plate, and held together with a paper wrap. (my sister in law made these for us!) I totally borrowed this kids activity booklet from another bride to put onto the kids table to entertain them during dinner. We also put out some small toys and crayons! We also ordered one of those lawnsigns from Vistaprint. This came in really handy to mark our reception areas! Plus it looked super cute J Guest book: We sort of have 2 things. The first is my FI and his family are super musical, so we actually had Valeria from Lomas pick up 3 acoustic guitars before we arrived! (I am so grateful for her help) Our guests played all week long! But on our wedding night we had two guitars lying on a side table at dinner, and had the guests sign their names. We will then be hanging these on the wall of our lounge area at home. The second thing: We had guests write their well wishes/comments on a white board and then have someone take of picture of them with the whiteboard. Once we get a chance we will put all the photos together into one of those picture books. More to come.... Namecardwhite.doc Namecardsblack.doc coloring_book.ppt

Bouquet charm and jewellery I ordered this great charm from etsy artist DesignsbyTami. She was great to work with, and I got the charm super fast! I wore one of my Mom’s necklaces (sorry no picture), silver and turquoise bangles, and turquoise earrings. The dress: A Pronovias gown.http://72.232.198.18/manufcols/pronovias/pronovias2008spring/zoom/Deseo_B.jpg (sorry this is a horrible picture...) The suit: White linen Hugo Boss suit, bought at Harry Rosen. The shirt was custom made through the website iTailor . They had great customer service and the shirt is really nice. The shoes: Groom got custom made Converse sneakers with our initals on the back heel. Special thanks to Wendy for helping me with this! I found my shoes just in the nick of time on ebay. Gifts: I gave DH the watch he had been drooling over for almost a year (but he knew it was coming!) But totally surprised him with a Boudoir album. For more info read the thread http://www.bestdestinationwedding.com/forum/thread/63563/toronto-boudoir-photoshoot DH gave me a set of tanzanite earrings custom designed to match my ring. (sorry no photo) Clutches: One of my lovely bridesmaids found a lady who custom made these clutches for us. They are so nice! And it will always be a treasured item…especially with the date and our names inside! Bridesmaids: I found these great summer dresses at Smart Set in the summer. The girls loved them and they had the casual flair we wanted. As gifts for the bridesmaids we bought them Mexican silver jewellery. They all received the same earrings, chains, but the pendants varied. I also got them beautiful crafted Indian shawls, which were mostly white with a silver pattern along the edge. Groomsmen: They wore a Volcom shirt and dress shorts. We ordered these online through dogfunk.com . We totally lucked into the fact that the shirts pinstripes are our wedding colors! As gifts we bought them Russian Poljot watches (FI is a huge watch fan!). More to come....

Photographer: We found a local photographer whose style we loved and flew him down with us! His name is Taylor Jackson, and we can’t wait to see the photos when he’s done. He also was kind enough to shoot our welcome cocktail party and a TTD session! For the kids: Knowing we had a number of children joining us (8), I took a little time to make them an activity book for the flight down. These got mailed to them a few weeks before departure with a small pack of crayons. OOT bags I cannot thank this site enough for introducing me to this idea, and then helping me complete mine! We made sure to get all the travel details of our guests (flight arrival times and dates), then made a chart, so that we could meet everyone as they arrived. I think everyone really liked that we made the effort to greet them and then hand them the OOT bag as a little welcome gift. First thing, I made the OOT beach bags for our guests. Most guests received the black ones with the wedding color stripes in front. My bridesmaids got turquoise bags, and the kids got green and white bags. My MOH helped me iron in the custom made tags. Bought iron on fabric printer paper at Michael’s and then used our inkjet printer at home to create these. The contents of the OOT bags: Hangover kit (lip balm, band-aids, alcohol swipe, safety pins, 2 Motrin packs, 2 Immodium packs, 2 Emergen-C, nail file, hair elastic) Welcome booklet Custom pen Hand sanitzer Local Mexican treats (candy coated nuts, spicy chips, chocolates, gum and cookies) Kids bags: (same as adult bags with the following exceptions)* First Aid kits (same as above, but without medications) Playing cards (old maid, crazy eights, etc.) Sand and water toys Candy Welcome booklet: I used cardstock for the cover, then punched two holes into the booklet and tied together with ribbon. Hangover kit and First Aid kit templates: I have borrowed these both from other girls on the forum, just changed the colors! I got the hangover kit from bahiabride; but I have to admit I can’t remember who the other one was. Thank you! More to come..... kidplanebook.doc Welcomebook1.doc cover.doc Hangover Kit Labels.doc first aid bunny template.ppt

First of all, Thank you, bestdestinationwedding.com! Thank you toTammy and all the other admins who do such an amazing job! I could not have done everything, or planned my wedding if it were not for this website and all the wonderful, helpful people who run and post on this site! I got so much support and inspiration J I can only hope this planning journal helps inspire other brides! Please feel free to use any and all the ideas/templates. I know I have borrowed so many, and am so gratefully to those who have shared before me! The beginning I met my fiancée at work about 6 years ago. About a year later we started seeing each other and the rest is history. He proposed to me in Chicago on May 15, 2009. We started planning the wedding in January 2010. STD We wanted to make sure our family and friends had enough time to book vacation leave and start saving if they were able to join us. Both my FI and I like very clean, modern lines. We found a great stationary style on Vistaprint and were able to use it for almost everything. Wedding website We created our own wedding website using ewedding.com Our guests found this really useful to check prices, get information and see some pictures/stories of us. Wedding invitations Again, we used Vistaprint for the invites and RSVP cards. I also included a letter with all the travel details and our travel agents contact information. We used Weddings By Oceans, based in Toronto, Canada. They are very nice people, however I was truly disappointed at their services. When we started working with them, they were quick to return calls, emails and seemed to understand what was going on. By the time our guests were booking with them, and literally until the day I was on our plane ride down, I was calling them constantly to correct things or make sure they were getting things done. I felt like I was babysitting them! I had hired them because I didn’t want to have to deal with the travel details…and then I had too anyway! (rant over) Pre-travel brochure We had many guests joining us that have never been outside Canada or the US. So we thought it would be very important to send out some information. (sorry no picture, but templates below) Also included in the package we mailed out were custom made fabric luggage tags. You can view the DIY instructions: http://www.bestdestinationwedding.com/forum/thread/65040/diy-fabric-luggage-tags-photos-and-instructions It was a lot of work, but our guests loved them and used them! We also sent out dinner choice cards at the same time. More to come.... pretravel1.doc dinnercard1.doc

LOL! Not at all. But the LED DIY project was easy We had the symbolic and our minister spoke really great english. She did a wonderful ceremony. I know nv+gm had the legal ceremony, and they asked for an english speaking judge and got one. We had 2 cocktail parties. Our guests arrived on Saturday, so we had a welcome party on Sunday. It was held at the Zavas Terrace (I posted a picture a few pages back). And the wedding was Monday, and directly after the ceremony we had a cocktail party on the beach right beside the wedding gazebo. There is a picture posted in my hotel review.

You have to have 150 posts to view attachments. But send me your email address and I will send you the document

I had to pay for my bouquet (we did the Free Sweetheart), but it was $60. It was beautiful.

There are a couple of things you can do. There are tons of electrical outlets in the gazebo, so you could just run the Christmas lights into the laterns. The DIY LED lights. Quite simple-there is a forum on here where I got the instructions. It was super easy. We bought the batteries and LED lights from dealextreme.com . We bought 40 batteries and 120 LED for about $30. The basics are tape the LED lights and battery together with electric tape..stick a piece of plastic between the battery and contacts for travel. Once you get to the resort, remove the plastic piece and use a small alligator clip to keep the battery and contacts tight. http://www.bestdestinationwedding.com/forum/thread/37079/diy-led-lights-for-paper-lanterns

I don't know how big your wedding is, but Zocalo was likely my favourite spot for a reception. (it's the back patio of the Mexican restaurant) Private, beautiful view, nice wicker chairs. We wanted to use this area, but the maximum number was 40 guests, we ended up with 63! Pictures of Zocalo Al Fresco Not the best pictures, but hopefully it gives you an idea. They had huge star pinatas hanging when we where there the end of January.

Include some of the ideas from my brochure above if you like. Send me your email and I will send you the brochure! Ideas: weather conditions for when your trip is, currency, electrical currency, passport, packing list, etc..

I think we were told at Zavas plaza the latest it could go was 11pm. But there were a few parties that went later...so not quite sure. Quote: Originally Posted by mmc1105 Hey ladies, I need some advice!!! I'm having some doubts about having my reception on the beach (Palapa Yoga). I guess I'm worried about sand fleas and that the beach is so narrow. I wonder of the space will feel crowded if we use the palapa as a dance floor, with the tables directly between it and the ocean. What do you guys think? Most reveiws and pics I've seen have the receptions at The Zavaz Plaza or Terrace. Zavaz Plaza is no longer available, so that leaves Zavaz Terrace for my reception. Uggh I feel so indecisive! What should I do? This is the Zavas Terrace area. It would likely be a nice spot for dinner reception for about 15-20 people. We did a cocktail party there. As for Yoga Palapa, I don't think it will feel crowded. They did some huge receptions down there, and the palapa as the dance floor seems to work great!

Looks great!

Thanks ladies! My guess where to post would be under the resort section. Since you are reviewing the resort...to me that makes sense. Maybe message one of the moderators to be sure???

Hi Natasha! We were about 2 hours late...could have been much worse....although another day in Mexico would have been nice! Best part our neighbours shovelled our driveway after that major storm, so our surprise and best wedding gift-arriving home to a clean driveway LOL! Mwise17: I also went with the Free Sweetheart wedding. Like most of the girls I looked at the packages side by side, and then decided what I really wanted, and what I had to pay for extra anyway. It didn't make sense for us to buy a package when it did nothing for us.

I packed my in a suit bag and carried in onboard the plane. Mind you my dress did not require any steaming! Mostly because it was lace. The resort offers steaming for dresses (I wish I really remembered how much but I think about $25-30). Suit was $15? to be pressed! ****IMPORTANT: The laundry is closed on SUNDAYS. So if your wedding is on Monday (like ours) make sure to send it out early). They made an exception for DH suit to be pressed, but it did not get back to our room til about 1pm Monday. Quote: Originally Posted by MaggieandJay Does anyone have a templete for a tri fold bouchure? I am getting ready to start putting together something to send to everyone that booked Thanks for any help in advance! I posted my brochure a while ago. Hopefully this link works. I used Word to create mine. http://www.bestdestinationwedding.com/forum/thread/65791/pre-travel-brochure-for-mayan-riveria-cancun-using-word Originally Posted by JaimeCF2BR Did you walk down the ramp in your heels too? If so, did you need to hold onto the railing? I did walk down the ramp. Did not hold onto the railing. I was fine, but my sister who was walking me down the aisle started to slip a little. Likely a good thing, since I was near tears, and that moment made me laugh! I managed to hold onto before she slid completely. I would maybe ask if they could sweep the sand off...but it really wasn't to bad. Mind you I think my heels were only about 3 1/2". Quote: Originally Posted by 1106wedding A couple hotel-related questions for the recent brides: * Did you end up going to the Teen Club any of the nights you were there? Is there dancing and a DJ like they say? * Is there poolside food/beverage service? * What pool had the most space to hang out at/best swim up bar? I'm just trying to envision where everyone can meet... * Room service...can you order alcohol to your room? * One more alcohol related question (sorry!!) - was there Grey Goose? I still have NOT received an actual answer. Claudia said there was when we were there on our site but Angie was never able to confirm. I'll stop bragging about it if it's not available. Thanks guys! -walked by the Teen club, and yes there was a DJ. I know some of our guests would go there late at night to party. -poolside service: for drinks there is usually someone around taking orders. Food, I have only seen on the premium side, and only a snack about noon-ish. -you can order a bottle of wine, but not regular drinks. Although I ordered Clamato many times! (I love beer with a bit of Clamato in it....it's an east coast Canada thing!) -did not see Grey Goose. But then again I was happy with Stoli vodka, so didn't ask. But there is a 'back bar'...ie. the high end stuff they don't show, but if you ask for it, it appears! I wouldn't brag about it....easier for guests to be surprised, than disappointed. Quote: Originally Posted by Less is more mumel Thanks for that awesome review. I just read it to my hubby and we are so excited. I hope you don't mind if I use your critics to inform our guest about the different restaurants. I am trying to put that last little details on my welcome letter so your info was perfect. I am getting calls about the pants for men. Can they wear jeans to dinner? Men can wear jeans! No problems. My DH did than almost every second day. Just make sure they are not trashy, ripped up jeans. But most guests wore khakis or jeans, with golf shirts, hawaiian shirts, etc. Quote: Originally Posted by Less is more hey ladies, I love the paper lanterns. Where did you buy them? I know you all have said this before so i do apologize for the reduntant question. Second thing di dthe resort have them down there as an option to buy or use? If so how much? Last question did you leave them or carry them back home with you. I bought our laterns from Asian Ideas. We bough 40...which was way too many! I would suggest about 15 for Zavas Plaza. The resort does not offer them as far as I know, although they do offer Christmas lights. We carried them down with us, and took most of them home. Only 30...they misplaced the rest somehow. Not a big deal, but I know another girl wanted to buy them from me...so hopefully that still enough for her.

We are using kodakgallery.ca Not sure if it's similar for the US. But it's quite easy to use, and you can order prints, make photobooks directly from the site. Also they will ship photos, or you can pick them up locally at Futureshop or Best Buy. But I'm not sure if you can download the shots your guests add.

Sorry this is long overdue, but here is a photo and the template. Depending on your version of Word the font might look strange. My home version has a font called Papyrus, yet the version at work does not. I bought Blistex in different flavours. We left the original label on, placed the sticker over top, and then put clear packing tape over it to protect the sticker. The template: And to Sharlie and Christmasincuba, I just emailed you the templates. Chapstick Template1.doc

I had no problems in the sand! Only thing might have been getting some sand in around my toes. I think all the girls and our guests had no problems. The sand is so hard packed there! Just don't stand on your heels LOL...then you might sink a little!

All of our guests! Also I have (hopefully) managed to post my resort review. Here's the link: http://www.bestdestinationwedding.com/products/azul-sensatori-hotel-by-karisma-all-inclusive/reviews#4221 If that does not work, it's under Resorts/Villas, Azul Sensatori.

So I have posted my review under the Resort section: Azul Sensatori. Thank you to everyone for all their support!

Thanks Maggie! The shoes were a last minute purchase off ebay! I had been looking for almost a year...and then literally 2 weeks before the wedding I found them

So our photographer has posted a few shots on his blog: http://www.taylorjacksonphoto.com/blog/destination-wedding-at-azul-sensatori/ I can't wait to see the rest, and the TTD session!

Beautiful pictures! Thanks for sharing.

Thanks everyone! Lisa...I'm working on it. I am surprised at my lack of photos....trying to get some from friends to post in the resort review. And working on the planning journal right now. Should be up in the next few days!