cherany

Quote:

Originally Posted by bncandi 

 

I love these! I would be so interested in paying you for your template, I've been trying to created something similar I saw on etsy but can't afford the high cost:( my email is [email protected] that's not rude of me lol

Thanks!  No, not rude, but unfortunately, I designed these in Photoshop element by element (no template).  However, I can send you the photoshop design files if you have the program and are able to make use of them.  Just PM me or let me know here. 

Quote:

Originally Posted by NRI-Jamaica 

Hello Ladies,

 

I just wanted to let you know that I was so inspired by these and decided to use this as my save the date as well.  I did find another place to buy the magnet sheets.  Please see the link below.  http://www.custom-magnets.com/ink-jet-magnet-sheets.htm

 

Enjoy! 

Thanks!  I'm sure a lot of brides will appreciate the link.  I knew I could get supplies cheaper, but I was ready to get them done ASAP.  It took me a long time to perfect the design (I'm realizing as time goes on that other people know how to use super easy publishing programs, while I only know how to go the hard/long way by designing in Photoshop!), so by the time I had it ready to print, I was super close to my self-imposed deadline, wanting to give these out a year in advance from the wedding. 

Quote:

Originally Posted by NRI-Jamaica 

 

These are amazing!  What size are the actual luggage tags?

They're about 3" x 4.5".  I can't recall what made me go for that exact size, except it seemed close to real luggage tags.

Sorry, everyone!  I didn't realize this thread had messages/questions for me; I lost track of it after the thread moved down and off the first page of my subscriptions. 

I really appreciate all the great feedback! 

Originally Posted by PuntaBride 

 

 

THANKS!!! I'm really proud and love doing arts and crafts lol

 

I never had seen anything like this until Pinterest.  I've always been a beader so I thought I would give it a go.  Maybe I will start an etsy account lol

You could definitely sell them! How kind did it take you for one pair?

A lot of my projects prompt people to suggest selling on etsy to me, which is a great compliment, but I am such a perfectionist, I find it impossible to complete anything in a reasonable amount of time I could comfortably charge for. My items would seem overpriced if I wanted to make even a few bucks an hour, which is a much lesser amount than I'm willing to work for. I guess on the bright side, it reminds me why things cost what they do when made by hand. I'm quite frugal and don't usually want to pay the prices I see on etsy. 

I am so excited!  I finished my barefoot sandals. Eeeek!  Now that I know how to do them I am going to help the rest of my girls do them.  So fun!!!

I think the budget is fine and the timeframe is doable, but I agree with everyone recommending you choose your location ASAP and get the word out to friends and family. If you don't have enough details for a proper invitation in short time, at least send Save the Date cards or make a mass announcement via email/web that there is a wedding happening in whatever country in whichever month and that more info is coming soon. This at least tells people they need a passport and to start filling a piggy bank, if they plan to attend.

Since it is such short notice, I would lean towards a smaller crowd of close loved ones, but it's a really personal decision. Your desire to elope gives the impression you would rather keep things intimate, which is what we decided to do. I haven't regretted it at all and feel good knowing only people I really love will be there. No obligatory invites, old acquaintances, distant family, etc.

I don't have any suggestions on Aruba venues, but I think you're on the right site to find one in a hurry. Good luck!

I'm a 2013 bride, but I started planning in 2011. In some ways, it's great to have the extra time, but for me, I felt the need to plan everything before we even announced our engagement and dove in too deep, too soon. I burnt myself out on planning, feeling like there was nothing left to do for a while, and then felt overwhelmed when I later returned to planning and realized just how much was left in the "closer to the wedding" pile of tasks. I think the best thing would be to pace yourself and to have a drawn out timeline for planning that you can refer to. I wasn't very organized in the beginning, because it seemed like I had all the time in the world, and now I am wondering what happened to my carefree, no stress wedding?

DIY projects are especially time consuming, so it helps if you can pace those out, working on just 1 or 2 projects at a time. Don't follow my lead by starting several projects when you have a long time to go, then failing to finish them up in a timely manner. Now that I'm close to my date, I am rushing to get all this half-done stuff completed. So wish I had completed one project at a time, with a timeline to keep me starting new ones as I finished previous jobs. 

I haven't seen any posts talking about Martina, but we're really excited to have booked her! She's the airbrush make-up artist for The Best Moments and was highly recommended to us by our photographers at del Sol. She's bringing a stylist for hair, of course, I think the same person mentioned in their vendor info.

I've never had airbrush make-up, but after seeing pictures of how flawless it looks, I knew I wanted it! Although I love makeup and tend to play around with color a lot, I don't feel comfortable doing my own for the wedding. Too many things I'm not great at (eyeshadow & liner, I sometimes have to do a few times over before I feel it looks perfect; don't want that extra stress on the wedding day!) and one thing I'm the worst in the world at (incapable of properly applying eyelashes) convinced me I needed to bring in a pro. Now that we have her booked, I feel confident I'll look better than I ever have on the wedding day, which is exactly what I want. 

We booked with certainty for my fiancé and me (2-bride wedding), and we'll most likely have them do our bridesmaids, as well. I'd love to hear from other brides who used/are using her! 

Unfortunately, El Taj no longer allows ceremonies to take place during the day, so we were not able to have a late afternoon/early evening ceremony there and made the difficult decision to switch venues. I don't feel comfortable sharing all the details, since we are still booked at that hotel for a few days, but I would not recommend the wedding planner there. I will happily provide more information once we are back from our trip.

Just wanted to give other brides a heads-up about the time issue. You will need to be ok with darkness in your cocktail hour portraits and reception photos if considering a wedding there.

Originally Posted by mairelys 

 

Wow we are no closer to choosing a place. I don't even know the country. I don't know how you guys decided. I'm just completely overwhelmed.

Hi, mairelys! I felt that way at first, too; I think most of us did. I started with no idea which country to choose and just started by considering various places in/around the Caribbean, since there seemed to be more info regarding that area. Still, it felt like I was just browsing the web with little direction for a while. At some point, I figured out looking through wedding slideshows was more helpful in many ways, because I wasn't just looking at hotel info geared towards everyday vacationers. It really helps to see what a wedding can look like at a particular venue or in a particular region.

This might sound unconventional, but one thing that really pulled us towards the area we decided on and took us from dreaming of "a wedding abroad somewhere" to "a wedding in Riveria Maya, Mexico" was discovering del Sol Photography's blog:

http://delsolphotography.com/blog/

Not only did we fall in love with their work to the point of wanting our wedding anywhere they would be, we were able to check out venues through the eyes of a wedding guest with their photos. They have a ton of slideshows posted on the forum, which I think are super helpful when considering the Riviera Maya:

http://www.bestdestinationwedding.com/a/del-sol-photography-slideshows-riviera-maya

You mentioned wanting to go somewhere you've never been, but as a bride who has never been to the country her wedding is in, I can tell you that adds some stress to the planning process. If you think about how many things you learn about a place when you vacation somewhere, that knowledge is really helpful when planning such a major event and when giving info to your guests. I've found myself wishing I had firsthand knowledge of our location.

You can always pick somewhere completely new to you both for your honeymoon, when it'll be easier to roll with things, versus it being your wedding day when you need everything to go smoothly. Good luck narrowing the choices! 

We're following pretty closely along with the timeline given to us by our photographers at del Sol - they say not to let anyone talk you out of having your ceremony 1.5 hours prior to sunset, a suggestion turned gospel for us. We feel so strongly about ensuring perfect lighting, we switched ceremony venues after our original decided to offer evening/night ceremonies only (a painfully harsh lesson that hotels can change the rules on you at will).    The photos are what we get to take away from a day that will surely pass way too quickly, so getting that part of the wedding just right is one of the most important things to us.    Photo timeline from del Sol: 4:30 PM - 5:30 PM | Getting Ready 5:30 PM - 6:00 PM | Ceremony 6:00 PM - 7:00 PM | Cocktails + Sunset Portraits 7:00 PM - 8:30 PM | Dinner + Toasts 8:30 PM - 9:30 PM | Dancing + Reception Fun   Since we are traveling to our ceremony site, we'll be making an adjustment for that, and we'll likely be done with hair and make-up when the photographers arrive, since we want to do a First Look at our hotel. I'm thinking it will go more like this for us...  

We have 5 bridesmaids & 2 brides, so whatever amount of time the make-up/hair team says, I'm going with. In my everyday life, I'm the queen of starting the getting ready process too late, and that is not an option on my wedding day. It may sound crazy to start in the morning, but I know we'll need every bit of the day to ensure everyone looks fantastic.

Originally Posted by JA2012 

 

What is the name of this restaurant?? I feel like I ate there...more than once because I enjoyed the food. 

Does it have an area that is up high overlooking the strip?  It's in Playa Del Carmen?

Look on Party Packagers website....they have some lighting options that you could set up in the corner and it would be like a strobe light effect with the colour of your choice.

Also, you could do something simple like string some lanterns with bulbs in them overhead or ask them about uplighting.

If it's the same place I think it is, I recall that it was dim at night but not too dim. It's a nice ambience. I had both lunch and dinner there on different occasions. 

Thanks! It's La Casa del Agua, suggested to us by our coordinator, Leanne Marie. She knew we were looking for a place that was welcoming to DIY brides, had excellent food, and had an upscale look & feel. They have no problem with us bringing along an iPod and speaker rental system and were actually quite excited about it, a very welcome change from our original venue, where they were appalled by the idea. (One of several reasons we chose to switch just 6 months before the wedding.)

They do have a terrace overlooking the strip, which is our private area for the evening. They also have a rooftop garden, but it's not large enough for our group to have dinner and dancing, although we are heading up there at the end of the night to release paper lanterns. 

After emailing my coordinator about lighting, she had a positive reaction and said she'd check on price for me, so I'm feeling better about it. I tend to worry about things not being just right before I've had a chance to find a solution (e.g. feeling disappointed that the place isn't colorful and worrying it will ruin the experience before considering some simple uplighting). I really ought to bounce these thoughts off you guys more, because the reality check that everything really will work out fine is often what I need! 

I'm just not a fan of hands-off planning and not being able to control everything myself, despite those traits not gelling well with a destination wedding. I've never regretted our decision to have a DW (don't think I would want to go through all this planning if it weren't one!), but it seems harder in as many ways as it is easier. 

Originally Posted by MrsHK 

 

As far as I know there's not really seasonal flowers down here as the temperature doesn't vary a huge amount year round. The only season we have a rainy season, hurricane season, mosquito season and holy moly it is really hot and humid season.

 

The ones she suggested for me are roses, freesias and lisianthus. I haven't been able to find the last two in the flower shops though, only roses. She suggested silk flowers for the ones that I want that would require her to import them from Holland. She also has all kind of tropical flowers such as lilies, cala lilies, gerber daisies, orchids, snapdragons, birds of paradise and a few others. Her prices are of course higher than the flower shops but she will arrange them for you, deliver them and you are guaranteed good quality.

 

If you pick tropical flowers you'll have a better chance of finding them at a reasonable price since we are in the topics, either on your own or from a wedding florist.  Most of the tropical ones I listed are availble at the flower shops in town.

 

I went to a flower shop last night and their prices were a bit higher than Walmart although the quality is probably higher too. You can also pre-order with them via email with the shop I went into. It is called Floreria Sac-Nah and it is on the corner of 30th Ave and Calle 16, right across the street from the Walmart. Their email address is [email protected]. They don't speak English so I reccomend using Google translate if you want to email them to pre order your flowers. I would say you're having a gathering of friends and don't need them arranged, and don't mention they are for a wedding!! I wouldn't do it too far in advance either since "gatherings of friends" aren't usually planned months ahead of time.

 

I took a photo of their price list (all in Spanish and pesos but I translated it) and here it is:

 

Carnation (Clavel): 12 for 60 pesos or $4.70

Daisy (Margarita): 12 for 80 pesos or $6.30

Pom Pom: 12 for 80 pesos or $6.30

Gladiola: 12 for 80 pesos or $6.30

Spider (Spaider): 12 for 80 pesos or $6.30

Alstroemeria: 12 for 150 pesos or $11.76

Roses: 12 for 220 pesos or $17.24

Gerber Daisy: 12 for 220 pesos or $17.24

Cala Lilies (Alcatraz): 12 for 220 pesos or $17.24

Hibiscus (Hawaianas): 12 for 220 pesos or $17.24

Birds of Paradise (Aves de Parasio): 12 for 220 pesos or $17.24

Heliconia (similar to BoP): 12 for 220 pesos or $17.24

 

Iris: 1 for 25 pesos ($2), price for 12 was blocked by a shelf... why they put a shelf in front of their price list, I don't know... the rest of the prices will be per 1 stem since that's the only price I could see

They had a bunch listed that all seem to be coming up in Google as lilies...

Lily (Lili): 1 for 25 pesos ($2)

Tiger Lily (Acapulco): 1 for 45 pesos ($3.53)

White Lily (Casa Blancas): 1 for 45 pesos ($3.53)

Lily (Azucenas): 1 for 45 pesos ($3.53)

Tulipanes (Tulips): 1 for 45 pesos ($3.53)

 

Hope that helps for those of you doing DIY bouquets! Again, I think the prices at Walmart are better than the florerias but you're risking not being able to pre-order and having a limited selection. I'm going to Walmart today so I'll have a look at what the other prices are.

Thank you so much for this info! When I started planning, I had in mind simple bouquets made by bunching up 1-2 types of flowers, done at a low cost. I like bouquets consisting only of spider mums or only of gladiolas, for instance, something that seems so easy to me, but seems to baffle florists wanting me to choose bouquets full of varying flowers. 

I'm not comfortable spending hundreds on elaborate bouquets that, while beautiful, will be tossed in the trash a day or two later, but I do want fresh flowers. I really just want to order stems of what I like and not spend a fortune. I'm not sure what happened to the simple idea of tying a ribbon around a flower bunch, but that's my idea of a bouquet: beautiful and still cost effective.

I'll have a friend help with translation and email this shop closer to my date, because I would feel more comfortable knowing I have a say in color selection versus going to Walmart and perhaps only finding red roses, which I don't want.

Originally Posted by MrsHK 

 

 

 

 

These look really nice!  We considering something like this, but decided it wasn't in the budget.

Thanks for sharing the flower info here, too!  I should've just asked here, instead of a PM.  I can't be the only bride appalled by the prices of a few bouquets from a wedding florist! 

Originally Posted by ChocoTaco7568 

 

BINGO!  Try not to stress over factors that you haven't even inquired about.  You are not the first wedding that they’ve hosted, and considering that they’ve been accommodating thus far, I would be extremely surprised if they were offended by any of your décor request considering the occasion.  The only thing that I would worry about is potential added cost dependent on how much stuff you bring and how labor intensive the set-up is for them.  If you’re still working with a wedding coordinator, then I would bounce these ideas off of him/her, that’s what they are there for. 

 

Final note... Nice venue, and based on my previous visit to PDC in 2011, I can vouch for the food.  

Thank you!  I have heard only good things about the food, which is really important to Amy.  It's important to me that the guests like the food, but I'm such a picky eater, I'm not qualified to judge good food.  I'm happy to hear good things!

I'm trying not to bring down too much, but I do have a few table decorations and hope to do chair sashes.  If the restaurant does not charge us a set up fee, we will definitely add one to their tip!

I searched online a bit more and think we may consider these lights, if the restaurant doesn't have any ideas for us (or we don't like the cost):

https://www.diyuplighting.com/

I e-mailed the wedding coordinator, too, although we only hired her for the ceremony.  We may end up asking her to help with the reception, too, if I get the feeling the restaurant will be overwhelmed.  So far, though, I don't think there's a need.

I have days where I know everything is going to be fine, having read stories here from so many brides who made many decisions just a day or two before their wedding, but I also have days where I feel panicked and lost, fearing the whole thing will be a mess! 

Welcome, MrsHK!

Nice to see the plans coming along for everyone.  I feel like so much has happened since I last updated, yet not nearly enough is done.  I'm feeling the pressure of being behind and getting scared whenever I look at the calendar and see how soon it's all coming!

I'm really embarrassed to say this, but I don't even have our invitations out yet!  A couple of my bridesmaids came over to help me with them a few weekends ago, but we didn't finish them.  I was really ambitious with a DIY message in a bottle invite/boarding pass reply card/passport travel booklet combo.  I don't regret my choice, but finding time to finish them has been a challenge.  My idea was to get them out in January, since the RSVP date is March 1, but it seems people will pretty much have to return the card as soon as they get it, because I'll be lucky to get them done and mailed out this week.  I did send STDs a year in advance from the wedding date, so I remind myself that everyone has had time now to make a decision.  Still, I wanted to give them more time with the invite in their hands, as people tend to forget about things they received notice of nearly a year ago.  Luckily, we know what's going on with most guests, but I still feel weird and awful about it, like I've messed up an important part of the wedding.

There are many other things I'm concerned about, but I think my biggest worry at the moment is that our reception venue is rather lackluster in terms of lighting and color.  It's a restaurant with terrific reviews on food, and they've been really helpful and great to work with, but I don't like the neutral decor at all and don't know how to word questions about it without insulting them or sounding like I don't like the place. It's just that we're having a colorful event, and I feel like colored lighting would jazz the place up.  If there's something easily packed in a suitcase that can be plugged in and then used to spread colored light over a wall, that's the kind of thing I'm looking for.  Or, if anyone has other ideas, I'm open.  Some photos of our venue:

We're probably bringing down colored table runners and chair sashes (another thing I'm way behind on and haven't done), but because we're asking the staff to put out everything we bring down, I worry about asking too much of them.  Of course, now that I"m typing all of this out, it makes me realize I should just e-mail them and ask for suggestions for bringing colored lighting into the room.  Surely that is not an offensive question?

Add me to the list of brides super pleased with Amols!

http://www.amols.com/browse/search?search=maracas

I ordered maracas from them and got them in 3 days!  No special shipping, just the regular option.  They look fantastic, all with different designs (some flowers, some sea turtles, some chili peppers with sombreros).  Of the 24 I ordered, 1 was broken, but I e-mailed them a photo this morning and heard back within 5 minutes that a replacement would be sent out.  Very friendly customer service!

Originally Posted by chrystine888 

 

 

The price was for each, I bought 2 :-)

Oh, wow, thank you so much for pointing that out!  A bridesmaid is wearing these in our wedding, and I have a feeling she may have ordered just one... 

Originally Posted by Laura2013 

 

Oops these are the ones I am wondering what Ebay seller has.

Here is the listing for you:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/280881137698

They come in gold, silver, red, & black.  I went with gold since my dress is a warm color.

Originally Posted by chrystine888 

 

 

GREAT!  I just ordered them!  Thank you SOOOO much!!!!!  :-D  I think that was the last thing I needed for the finishing touch on my wedding day attire!!!

YAY, glad to be of help! 

Originally Posted by chrystine888 

 

 

Cherany!!!  That last pair of foot jewelry is absolutely STUNNING!!!!!  Do you know what the seller info is for these?  These would go with my dress PERFECTLY!!!

Sure!  Here is the link to the pair she bought, with more available (great price, too!):

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Slave-Ring-Anklet-Fashion-Anklet-Rhinestone-LC0670-/271130780434?pt=Fashion_Jewelry&hash=item3f20a76312

Assuming I love these when they arrive (ordered off ebay), these are my shoes for beach portion of the night:

Originally Posted by jnitschke 

 

 

I'm new to this thread and I'm getting married on 5/25 at El Dorado Royale in Riviera Maya Mexico.   Here's what I got to wear on the beach.  It's from Call It Spring, which is actually an Aldo company too.  and they're really cheap right now since It's out of season.

http://www.callitspring.com/us/clearance/womens-sandals/wedges/87981461-rolen/81

only 14.99 since clearance sandals are all an extra 50% off right now... they have other really cute silver and rhinestone sandals too.  and free return shipping, so I just ordered I think 9 different pairs of sandals, 3-4 styles in 2 sizes.. and then returned all the others when I settled on these.

Great price!  I ended up buying off ebay:

I considering looking for something more elaborate, but I'm reaching the point where I'm just happy to knock things off the list.  I do love these, and the heel isn't so high that I'll have to worry about walking in the sand with them.  They're just a departure for me, possibly the most casual and low heeled shoes I've ever bought!  I'm just hoping I'm happy with them when they arrive.

Everyone else in the wedding will have barefoot sandals or nothing at all.  One bridesmaid bought this pair on ebay:

Love this trend!  Have always wondered why brides who don't really love the idea of white dress end up doing it just because they think they should.

I went all out & chose a bright orange dress!  There's been some trouble getting it, and I have a back-up dress that's yellow and pink, but either way, I'll be in COLOR on my day!