J-me

As the others have pointed out, it is your wedding so do as YOU envision it to be! We are splurging more for the DW itself and not doing an AHR at all - for us, we didn't want to plan TWO big events so we just invited all of our close friends & fam to our DW (we expect about 60-75 ppl). For the resorts, when we picked ours in the Riviera Maya, we did a site visit with several in the area (Grand Velas, which is breathtakingly beautiful, Aventura Cove/Spa Palace, Azul Sensatori, and Playacar Palace). All were truly wonderful, but we went with ACP (Aventura Spa has a GREAT spa for your girls to get ready together!) But, ACP/ASP is larger than what you may be looking for. Check out Playacar Palace, as it's smaller & Palace has a great promo right now for resort credits (to be used towards spa, golf, wedding package, excursions, etc.). A few others that are great to check out, but are adults only (we had kiddos in our group so couldn't) - Le Reve, The Royal, Secrets Maroma, & El Dorado Maroma. Hope this helps a bit - happy planning!

Too cool of a story!!! Thanks for sharing and CONGRATS!

These are beautiful!

We are expecting around 75 guests, and while our budget will definitely exceed 10K, it's still MUCH less than if we had the wedding of our dreams in the U.S.! We are taking care of 3 nights of our wedding party's stay as a way of saying thank you (just the wedding party, no other guests), we are splurging on photography (Del Sol), as well as our attire, the invites & save the dates, makeup/hair ppl, a DJ, etc.....but those are the things most important to us. We are saving in other ways - I'm making my own programs, menus, & escort cards as well as bringing most of our own decor (chair sashes, paper lanters, LED tea lights, bouquets/bouts etc.) relying on the beautiful surroundings around us to provide most of the scenery All in all, even DW's can add up! But a DW on a budget is most definitely possible if you're willing to cut in certain areas. It's just a matter of prioritizing what you want to splurge on & areas you can sacrifice...good luck!

Love your monograms!! Esp. the seahorse one I'm going to take a look at her shop...

No way! You want his jaw to drop when he sees you in it for the first time, walking down the aisle

I know what you mean! I went to 2 bridal salons & about 20 dresses later, found my dream dress that was NOTHING like I thought I had wanted lol! I was looking for a modern mermaid with little detail - ended up with fitted A-line with lots of detail so ladies, be open-minded when trying on dresses!

Thanks! I haven't priced it all out yet, but since I have some time, I'm trying to find some deals on things I can bring and purchase as little decor from the resort as possible.

Thanks ladies for the sweet feedback! And Bride2012, I love this idea! He'll love

I'm actually engraving a lil saying we've had since we started dating...ok....well, since we started saying 'I love you.' The first time he told me, it was before we went to bed one night and we had had a few drinks so I told him to tell me again in the morning if he meant it haha...so next morning comes and first thing out of his mouth was 'I love you more today.' SOOO though it's a bit cheesy, I thought it was fitting to have 'I love you more today' engraved! I might even get our date engraved as well, so he never has an excuse to forget our anniversary! Laptop sounds like a great idea! Practical, yet a nice splurge! Good luck w/whatever you decide...you definitely still have time!

I'm having his ring engraved (on the inside of it) and doing a boudoir shoot...giving him an album of the shoot on the day of the wedding. I've heard of others doing the golf club thing (though it sounds like your hubby-to-be doesn't need those!), nice cuff links, wallet, or other practical things he would use (if he's into hobbies, etc.). I'll post if I think of anything I'm sure he'll love anything from you!

Same here for the most part! The BM dresses will be coral, the guys will be in dark tan suits w/white collared shirts, the bouquets/bouts will be white calla lilies, white sheer chair sashes, and I'm envisioning a white, lounge-feel for the reception with lots of hurricane vases, tea lights, etc....here are a few pics from my inspiration file:

I'm doing mostly white with coral and brown accents! I think the look of primarily white is so simple, yet elegant. Plus, it lets the colors of our beautiful DW surroundings shine!

You're so lucky to have a hair dresser in the fam! Unfortunately, myself nor any of my bridesmaids/fam are talented in hair/makeup so we're going the pro route Our day pass is about $90 a person, so I definitely am having to factor it in the cost, but well worth it in my situation.

There are several seemingly great, reputable vendors on here! I'm leaning towards MVP - Melissa is so talented, has great reviews from past brides and they emailed me back within hours, which speaks volumes on their professionalism! But I haven't completely ruled out Fernando....decisions decisions

Wow - what a beautifully perfect wedding!!! Everything was so classy but fun Do you by chance have the template for the signature drink frame? We were wanting to do that as well and I love your sign! Thanks for sharing and congrats!

I debated this as well, but decided to hire someone to come to my room for hair and makeup. I'm looking at a few reputable vendors (on here) and their prices are comparable (if not better) than our resort's spa, not to mention the convenience of them coming to you!

Getting married at Aventura Cove Palace and still deciding where to honeymoon! If we stay in Riviera Maya, then either Le Reve or Secrets Maroma Beach. If we decide to fly elsewhere, we're going to St. Lucia! Decisions, decisions

Congrats on hitting the 4 month mark - you MUST be so excited!!! I don't blame you for feeling anxious - my group is full of procrastinators too, and even though mine isn't until April I'm worried I'll have the same issue. BUT....you have the right attitude - don't let it bother you because it'll be the best time of your life, regardless of how many ppl are there. The MOST important ones are - you and him

These are SOOO beautiful!! You are talented! Can I ask where you got the starfish charms? I'd love to add those to my OOT bag tags!

Hey Jess, thanks again for all you've helped me/us with!! Hope your reception goes well this weekend - yaaay!!!

Everything looks beautiful - I love your dress! Sarah did such a great job on the invites too! Thanks for sharing!!

I would love to wear a veil, but I don't think I'm going to because it is SO WINDY in the Riviera Maya (it was when I was there for my site visit and I've heard from other brides)....just going with an updo and hairpiece/flower.

I've never been but we're considering it for our honeymoon because I've heard such wonderful things! Congrats - I'm sure you'll love it!

So beautiful!! I love the detail