JessMarie

Hey all:) Monica Mai- def let me know how your fam likes Stonefield- I think we are pretty sure that is where we want to get married. We still have Ladera on our list too because we like the pavillion there, but I think since it's just us we want to save the money and do Stonefield. We also like that we get our own private villa. We will be there for 10 days and the thought that we weren't in a big hotel seems appealing to us:) We are really (over the last two days) struggling with an AHR. It keeps getting bigger and bigger (guest list) and now my fiance is leaning more towards not doing it at his parents house because of how many people. But our total cost there is creeping up. I finally last night just got really frustrated and was like- we aren't doing it at all! Now that was a bit dramatic, and I am sure we will do something, but I want to save our $$ and tone it down. I am playing around with the idea of a bon voyage pre-DW thing, or even a small brunch afterwards.

Yes- I think so. My hair is really thin from having battled cancer and it never coming back in right. I have no idea what I'm going to do with it, but we are getting married in St. Lucia and not necc right on the beach (wind factor) so I think yes to a veil. There's something very romantic about it:)

MEve- I'm so sorry to hear about your fiance's cancer diagnosis- I myself am a cancer survivor- my fiance and I started dating during the last of my radiation treatment and after my last surgery. Unfortunately for us I cannot have any more children (I have two from a previous marriage when I was VERY young) but Matt loves them like his own:) I am very lucky. Best wishes for a speedy treatement and recovery! As for our AHR- the whole thing is really overwhelming to me. My fiance and his family are HUGE and they want to invite everyone and their friends. I really want something small and spectacular so I don't have to worry about money as much and everyone can have a great time. I am def not one for huge crowds. We haven't talked about a guest list, and I don't think I will have much trouble convincing Matt to narrow it down, I do worry about his family. They are footing the bill for the AHR- well, kind of...they have a set amount of money they would like to give to us to use as we see fit (house, savings, wedding, etc) so really, while they are paying for it, I do not want to spend more than is worth it to me. And having 100+ people seems just too much to me. My next step is to start researching whether we want our AHR at my fiance's parents house (large, nice grounds) and cater/bar there or whether we want to rent somewhere for an evening party. I'm not sure what will end up being more cost effective. I sent away for a TON of wedding invite ans STD samples so we have some options. I may try to make my own though too..I am crafty but not sure I have the time or energy.

Thanks! Yeah, the Carmella was gorgeous on the rack, and I didnt look awful in it...but I felt like I could've been pregnant and you wouldn't even know! I wear figure flattering clothes day to day, my wedding dress should be no exception:)

I just bought my dress yesterday! It is a Maggie Sottero dress- Caprice. It is made of chiffon and has crystal beaded straps and a t-back. I love it! We are getting married in St. Lucia next year and I wanted something that reflected my style (not princessy, figure flattering but still comfortable). That is my daughter in the picture with me:)

My DF and I custom made my ring through Gemvara. They do wonderful work and my picture doesn't do it justice. It is Iolite center surrounded by white sapphires. I love it! There is also a matching band of white sapphires to fit underneath the engagement ring.

We will be getting back from our weddingmoon (private- just the two of us) on May 1st (2012) and having our AHR on May 5th (Saturday). I know that is pretty rushed- but we are getting married on April 23rd and our photographer that we have talked to has promised a CD within 3 days of our wedding, before we even leave St. Lucia. So we will be able to share those. My DF parents are hosting the AHR so any catering details, rentals, etc they have promised to handle while we are away. I then will have 3 full days (not going back to work) to handle putting together our favors, and any follow up calls. It will be crazy but I wanted it to be the same week we got back.

Thanks everyone for the ideas! I am still trying to figure out all our AHR details. We have lots of time though:)

Hi there! I'm a newbie to this forum:) I got engaged over the holidays and we are planning to elope to St. Lucia for our "weddingmoon" in April 2012. We really wanted to get away from everything- and because I have two children we knew that if we had guests come we would always be concerned about entertaining them (esp my kids). And we never get time to ourselves as it is now. So eloping is the way to go for us. We will have a huge reception the week after we get back though to include everyone. As of right now, we plan on (haven't booked yet) staying in Soufriere- and want to stay at Stonefield estate villas http://www.stonefieldvillas.com/index.html The reviews on trip advisor are amazing, and we love the views from the private villas. Because it is just us, an AI resort isn't really appealing -there is a restaurant onsite and we have no problems going into town and getting groceries. I still am wondering though if I should utilize the free wedding through the estate or use a wedding planner. We plan on hiring a private photographer, and really dont care about the cake, music, etc. What does matter to us is location options, and communication (this is most key to me). Anyway, thought I would say hi here and see what everyone else is planning!

Hi there! I'm new to the forum:) I just bought my dress yesterday! I actually had tried on the Maggie dress "Carmella" and thought I might get it- but wasn't crazy about the empire waist. I have a decent body and usually wear clothing that flatters me so the "Carmella" didn't really fit my personality. Here is me in the Carmella So I went back in to the shop with two more in mind- the Caprice and also SD5220 (no name) to try and to make a decision between the three. I fell in love right away with the "Caprice" dress. It will be perfect for my St. Lucian wedding. That's my little girl in the pic with me:) I'm so glad I found my dress!