AllieH

hey Carrie - I used the orange ones from luna bazaar - here's the color (same as the parasol): and here's how they looked hanging up (at EDR). I also had various sizes. love all of your colors!!! on the DIY throws - many of mine had the paper slip out and they "turned on" in transit to Mexico. so several of them had dead batteries for our wedding. not a huge deal as I made plenty extra. you may want to hold off on making those until much closer to your date, or if you can wait until you get there even.

congrats on your engagement & welcome to BDW!! definitely check out the Jamaica & DR forums, and get yourself a travel agent who is a destinations wedding expert. They will help you with the resort choices and finding the one that's the best fit for you & your wedding party.

Hang in there Kim!! just wanted to send some encouragement your way. you're in the home stretch now.

I uhm, bought like 4 pairs of shoes for my wedding. It was definitely the most difficult decision for me - and I LOVE shoes. serious shoe addict here... I ended up wearing a Stuart Weitzman wedge for the ceremony and sequin TOMS for my reception/dancing. worked out just fine.

I love the story! and love how WDW made it so special for you. I have a friend who got married at WDW. she had Cinderella's carriage, and a ceremony at the wedding pavilion, and that was it. no reception, no cocktails, no dinner offsite, nothing. I can't imagine blowing all the money on a wedding and not having a party with my friends! (but hey, it was her dream, not mine - good thing)

love it!!!! thanks for sharing your experiences.

@@rachelia160 - good point. between the planning threads and freakin pinterest, there are so many ideas out there. I found myself thinking "ALL THE THINGS". which would have been great with an unlimited budget and plenty of crafty friends! dang it, didn't have either of those...

WOOHOO!! I hope all goes well - can't wait to hear all about it.

welcome to BDW and congrats on finishing school! check out the Riviera Maya section for tons of info on the resorts in the area and wedding specifics.

it will!! the planning part is the hardest. just don't let it get to you too much.

@khmclver - Kelly these are GORGEOUS!!! congratulations again to you.

hi @@Surfingsara! a friend of mine designed them for us - she has an etsy shop as well and is really reasonable. the link is in the original post - Little Bean Shop.

Kim you are SO close!!! I'm so excited for you. Your guests won't notice if one thing doesn't perfectly match another - trust me. Just go with it, and enjoy the celebration.

hi @@Surfingsara! another idea is to go through the planning threads and photo threads and comment. I find the pictures pretty hard to resist, especially when I was planning my own wedding! welcome to BDW - just keep chatting.

yay for finding your dress!!!

Hi Lauren! welcome to BDW. With EDR & Generations - you'd have your ceremony at Generations (children aren't allowed on the EDR side at all). It's a great option for those that prefer an adults only stay and some with families. Both resorts (well, 3 really - EDR, EDCR and Generations) are amazing. There are other family friendly resorts that have adults only sections within them like Hard Rock. Azul Sensatori is one that I'm familiar with. here are some links to the Karisma resort threads here on BDW: Official EDR/EDCR thread - lots of details about EDR/EDCR & wedding planning there El Dorado Brides - info from past & current EDR/EDCR brides Generations RM brides - info from GRM brides Official Azul Sensatori Thread - lots of details about AS & planning a wedding there Azul Sensatori Brides - info from past & current AS brides The quality of your wedding isn't sacrificed by family friendly vs. adults only resort. Either way it'll be beautiful. The main difference is whether or not there are kids around. Are you working with a travel agent? If not, I'd highly recommend it. They can help you understand your choices and narrow them down based on what you need for your wedding. The ladies at Wright Travel are experts in destination weddings, and they know the RM resorts very well. Highly recommend them! There's a link to their reviews in my signature, and you can easily contact them for help. HTH! Let me know if I can answer any questions for you. I know EDR/EDCR very well.

yes - what she said! you were one BEAUTIFUL bride. congratulations!!

@@CurlyKristen - all common (and reasonable) questions! the $300 limit is the max dollar amount of gifts such as your wedding favors and OOT bags. note that's $300 per person - so you & your fiancé could take $600 total. add in a couple of friends who can take $300 each, and your total goes way up. decor counts as personal property like your clothes and other belongings, unless you're planning to leave it behind. I would make sure you have your receipts with you for decor & gifts (separated), on the unlikely chance that Mexican custom's agents want to inspect your items further. It's rare, but it does happen. and no need to have it translated into Spanish. Most of those working in the airport speak English. enjoy the holidays!

YAY Congratulations Mrs! can't wait to hear all about it.

Hi Susan - check out Lomas' planning website. It isn't a spreadsheet, but it has all the prices. each Bride's spreadsheet is created based on what she chooses, not a laundry list of all the prices & availability. The banquet guide (also available under the Food & Beverage section of the planning website) has the prices for private events - cocktails, receptions, dinners, lunches or breakfasts. Hope this helps!

welcome to BDW!!! as KMK said definitely check out the AS threads. there's tons of information on Lomas in there too. happy planning!!

welcome to BDW! do you have a TA yet? If not, check out Wright Travel - they own this site and have great relationships with amazing resorts in RM including Karisma (El Dorado & Azul resorts), Palace Resorts, RIU, etc. they can help you narrow down your options and choose the resort that is best for you & your wedding. They are great because they get the wedding part, not just the travel/resort part too. the Karisma resorts do it based on the price of the entrees, and it includes 4 hours of open bar, the venue and staff. you can then add a DJ or sound system to run from an iPod (or bring your own). Our wedding at EDR was $500 pp for 3 nights, not including airfare (our guests came in from all over the country, so they had to get their own airfare vs. a group buy). EDR is adults only, and typically at the higher end of the price range (but so worth it!!! I'd highly recommend as a honeymoon spot if you're looking to splurge). One thing to keep in mind with your timeframe - August/September are the peak of hurricane season. While RM hasn't been hit by many hurricanes in the last few years, it could happen. so definitely get trip insurance, and encourage your guests to do the same.

welcome to BDW!!!

yes - that's what they do! I wish I could figure out how to get pics back on here. see if this link works to my google drive.

there are threads in the Mexico Wedding sections on DRC with many brides - definitely check those out!