ChocoTaco7568

Congrats, Its been great planning with you on BDW... I know your special day will be beautiful and full of love. Travel safely.

Ali, wishing you a day filled w/ love and happiness.

Posting this planning thread is a bit more involved than I anticipate... More to come!

Hair Flower After hours of searching for the perfect hair accessory I stumbled upon this lace, flower and rhinestone fascinator. This was hand made by etsy seller: Brenda’s Bridal Veils. I love this accessory and it really catches light and sparkles like crazy. Veil The topic came up casually with Justin one day that he actually assumed I was and wanted me to where a veil. I was quite surprised that he had an opinion about this… who knew?!?!? I had no intention of wearing a veil, I never even tried one on with my original dress. As it turns, out, I actually like the look and it made me feel more like a bride. Hmmm, maybe I should have tried a veil on with my AV9105…Oh well. I had this veil custom made for me by the same esty seller who created my fascinator. It’s very similar to the image shown but the alencon lace appliques are different and also have crystal and pearl embellishment. Shoes From the moment we finalized our wedding colors I knew I wanted to wear a chartreuse/lime green shoe. Surprisingly this was the most difficult component of my wedding look to find; it was quite the undertaking. Jewelry This was easy. I knew I wanted jewelry with huge sparkle factor, but nothing that would promote a vintage feel. I wanted to by a modern lace bride. Items on the wish list: Drop earrings and a bracelet. Nadri bracelet from Nordstroms USA Bride Tear Drop earrings from amazon.com

COLOR SCHEME My favorite flower is a green cymbidium orchid and my favorite color is chartreuse; which came first, I honeslty don’t know. Chartreuse and sangria and the cymbidium orchid was used in every DIY paper based project and set the scheme for our wedding. In hind sight, these were not the easiest colors to find and coordinate. But by the time I owned up to this reality I was too vested and had to ride it out. Fingers crossed that when it’s all said and done that it looks good. BRIDAL ATTIRE Dress I purchased my original dress 16 months prior to my wedding. I am among the minority of brides who actually found a dress that met my initial search criteria and vision: mermaid, no or minimal bling, button with a real loop closure (the more the merrier), ivory, sweetheart neckline, and a fun/dramatic bottom. The dress… Alvina Valenta 9105. And then there was dress #2… Long story short I was watching an episode of SYTTD with my Fi and my dress happened to be featured (no he didn’t know). He tends to freely voice his opinions about the dresses in the show and my dress was no exception… “That’s an interesting dress, but it doesn’t look suitable for a wedding. If it wasn’t white you wouldn’t know it was a wedding dressâ€. You know what, he was right. While I loved every detail of that dress and think it reflects my personality to a ‘T’ it never gave me a bridal feeling which is a pretty important factor to overlook. During my first round of trying on dresses I never had a "bride" feeling, and I thought it was something that most women experience but not all. And i was okay with that since I never considered myself the type of person to get emotional over a wedding dress. So I went with the dress that I loved and felt fantastic in and thought that was sufficient. But after the SYTTD moment, I had mental disconnect with my dress...I realized I wanted Justin to see me as his bride and if I don't feel like one then then there's a problem. Honestly, if it weren't for this moment, I don't think there would have been a dress #2. Any-who, the dress that stole my heart and made me get a bit choked up is my San Patrick Rivoli. It met my original criteria the only surprise was that I went for head-to-toe lace , which was something I didn’t think I wanted. I didn’t try on a single lace dress during my first four bridal appointments. I also think most mermaids look best with a sash. I wasn’t crazy about the one that came with the dress, so I didn’t even order it. But I decided to jazz it up a bit with some bling!

RESORT/VENUE We didn’t start planning until we were about 18 months out (6 months post engagement); I guess we didn’t see much urgency since we had so much time. And a small guest list of +/-30 Plan A - Initially I had my heart set on renting out Hacienda Caracol in Soliman Bay. I still dream about this place… one day <sigh>. Unfortunately, understanding our family and friends financial limitations, we couldn’t proceed with these plans. The cost breakdown per room would have been too spendy, nor could we afford to pay down the cost for our guests. We also understood very early on that some of our guest only intended on staying for 3, 5 or 7 nights and the villa required a 7 night minimum stay. Yes there are plenty of villas in the Riviera Maya, but I wasn’t interested in those for various reasons. Plan B - Find hotel accommodations for our guest and have our wedding and reception at a small private beach club. Our top choices were: the Grand Coral Beach club in Playa del Carmen, Zama Beach Club in Isla Mujeres, and Akiin Beach Club in Tulum. If it weren’t for the cost of hiring a private WC and the costly site fees for a Saturday wedding, these might have been viable options. These were quickly vetoed by Justin. This is when I hit the peak of my frustration and signed up for BDW and stumbled upon Plan C, All Inclusive Wedding Packages. I’m sure this seems obvious to most of you, but we never stayed at an AI and frankly we were never interested in doing so. An AI wedding was a hard sell when I proposed this to Justin. But after doing a bit of research, we began to feel more comfortable and happy with the idea. We ended up with to deposits reserving our date at Dreams Riviera Cancun and Now Jade (not normal, but our wedding date is our anniversary so it was pretty important to secure). From the time of my deposit it took a month to decide between the two resorts. In the end Now Jade covered 25 guests for the same package price and amenities and Dreams only covered 20 guests. And prior to 2013 group rates being published NOW Jade offered promo pricing which made the per person rate about $25/night cheaper which seems minor but it adds up quick. That promo on the 2012 group rates sealed the deal. TRAVEL AGENT Teresa Stauring – Vacation4less I found Teresa through BDW and love her! I'd probably invite her to the wedding if it wasn't weird. There are so many friends and family members that have added stress and frustration to my wedding plans and Teresa is one of the few that has been a positive constant that I never had to worry about. I first contacted Teresa in Jan 2012, and signed our contract Mar 2012 after asking question after question, clarification ontop of clarification and posed every hypothetical scenario; I'm sure I was annoying. Her friendly demeanor and responsiveness never wavered. And I've received great feedback from my guests who have booked through her. Without question, one of my best wedding planning decisions.

WEDDING BANDS We wanted to go custom with our rings, but due to cost for what we want, we decided to wait until our 3rd anniversary. However, when you know exactly want you want and have to buy from stocked inventory, it makes matters a bit more complicated. I never knew how much Justin actually paid attention to detail until it came to time to find his wedding band. After 8 jewelry stores (3 of them twice), he scrutinized over every detail and found one My ring it a full eternity of vertical channel set baguettes. Both of our rings are cast from platinum. DESTINATION WEDDING. Having a destination wedding was an easy decision. We live in OR, and most of our family and friends live out of state in AZ, VA, MD, MT, PA and WA. Regardless of where we get married, most guests would incur travel expenses. Our location was also any easy choice. Since we celebrated our 2nd and 4th anniversary in the Riviera Maya, why not get married there for the 6th year anniversary of our first date, May 18, 2013. We considered getting married in 2012, but there were other financial priorities and we wanted to pay for our wedding with 100% cash. This also gave our guests ample time to save (although in the end this didn’t seem to matter).

CHOCOTACO7568’s PLANNING THREAD… I can be verbose so feel free to just look at the pics! I have been a member since January 2012 and have loved all the fantastic women that I have met along the way especially in the ‘Official NOW Jade’ and ‘May 2013 Brides’ threads. I’m very sad to see this journey come to an end but without hesitation can say that I’ve enjoyed the process. I want to thank all of the past and current BDW brides who were willing to share their ideas, how-to’s, inspirations and support. Without BDW and its many contributors, my upcoming wedding and planning experience would have not been the same. So where to start… maybe with a bit of history. My Fiancé Justin and I went on our first date on May 18th 2007. We are both transplants to the Pacific Northwest (Portland OR). I’m from Pennsylvania and he’s from Montana. We both moved to Portland in pursuit of relationships years prior to meeting. Long story short, both of these relationships failed us within months of relocating, but they are the reason we are together now. We met thru mutual friends (but not a set-up), and it must have been perfect timing because neither of us associates with those people anymore. We didn’t anticipate that this relationship would evolve into anything. I was supposed to be his rebound since he just ended a relationship 2 months prior and I was actually planning on moving back home to Philly at the end of the summer. After 3 short months, instead of moving back home, I moved in with Justin and we’ve been inseparable ever since. Justin proposed shortly after our 4 year anniversary on my birthday. Most of my friends and family forgot it was my birthday, work sucked, the dinner plans that Justin made got ruined. Around 10pm, I finally called it a night and went upstairs to shower with the thought that this was the worse birthday ever. I open the bathroom door to find my Justin on bended knee with a ring in hand. Happy Birthday to Me! E-RING Justin is traditional and there was no way that he would propose without a ring. But he did so knowing that it would be a placeholder until I found something that I liked. I don’t consider myself traditional and knew that I didn’t want the typical round brilliant or a princess cut and when I first saw an Asscher, I fell in love. The ring that my Fi proposed with is now my right-hand ring.

Quote: Originally Posted by MissyBee We get two bags each, plus one carry on and we are already there, with lots of stuff still unpacked on our sofa. Plus my brothers are already taking two bags for us! I think we need to re-pack using larger suitcases. I heard on this forum once that a bride used a plastic rubbermaid tote like you would use for storage. Anyone know if that is allowed?? Also, I read on here once that there was a monetary limit as to how much stuff should be packed per bag. Could that be true? Completely overwhelmed! Hey Missy, Just to provide a couple points of clarification... Yes, you can pack items in rubbermaid bins, but you'll want to ensure there durability and confirm cost as they may not be the same price for standard luggage since the dimensions will vary. Also, I have heard that TSA is more apt to check these bins since they look a bit suspect. I know that Mexico's Customs has a $300 per person limit on items brought in that are not for personal use. Anything above this is susceptible to tax. I'm not sure if this applies to the Dominican Republic.

Quote: Originally Posted by KristieT Tova! Great memory! Yes Mikaella 1508 (which has a tiered ruffle back) I did take KDoyles advise and made an appt for saturday at another seamstess just incase. I have an appointment with the bridal salon tonight again to speak with the manager so we will see how that goes. You are right, it will only take a day to fix once I find a capable seamstress! Thanks for the kind words and for easing my stress! On a happier note I will have my toes in the sand in 8 days! I cannot be happier and more excited! ( I will keep you all posted on the dress sitch before I leave) -KT Hey Kristie, I'm happy to hear that your 'Plan B' is in place for Saturday. Definitely keep us posted on the progress/status. I’m always surprised by the things that I remember, but I’m sure it helps that your Mikaella was one of my dress consideration when I first got started. There are close to two dozen Brides on BDW that I can do this with. 8 days and counting… heck yeah! The closer I get that happier I am even regarding things that would typically put me in a bummed mood. I walked into work this morning with the biggest smile on my face greeting everyone with a “Happy Friday!†and my superintendent asks “well aren’t you chipper, you know your on-call tomorrow right?†my reply “it doesn’t matter, I still leave in 12 days and get married in 15!â€

Ugh, I’m so sorry Kristie. A Bride should never cry in her dress unless they’re tears of happiness. You’re wearing a Mikaella right (tiered ruffled back?)? I make things up sometimes so correct me if I’m wrong. That dress is structured enough to give the support you need. I’m not large up top, I actually have the opposite problem, but any reputable seamstress should be able to make the alterations required and specific to your needs. It really frustrates me that she’s pinning her incompetency’s on your body; it was a red flag when they gave you ‘B’ cups. Like you said If it were truly an issue it should have been raised initially, and not mid-way through the alterations process. Regardless, I agree 100% with KDoyle and you need to find a back-up seamstress pronto. Also look into anyone who makes custom dresses/special occasions wear. If time permits today, I would even try and setup an appt for Saturday. Hopefully you won’t need it, but at least you’ll be ahead of the curve if you do, and won’t lose any more time especially. It’s a bump in the road, but it will work itself out I promise. 9 days it plenty of time to get your dress altered to perfection. My seamstress proved this by completing my alterations within 24 hours and scheduling a final fitting within 72 hours. Just breath XOXO

Quote: Originally Posted by heather1214 OMG you were totally justified in bridezilla here!! Prom season? Have they ever heard of WEDDING SEASON!? I hope both of you ladies get this straightened out tonight! Good luck!! Quote: Originally Posted by KristieT Tova! Omg the same thing happened to me! I am so sorry to hear about this. I completely agree that a wedding dress should TRUMP all! Obviously this is the most important dress a girl will ever wear! Hopefully everything goes well tonight and you will forget about this kerfuffle. This is what happened to me: I showed up for my second fitting and she wasn't there. I called and she "forgot" Same thing, so busy with prom/grad dresses! Omg i almost lost my mind. I held back a little knowing that she still has my dress and I don't want her to do bad things! So I reschedule, and I try on the dress and it still wont stay up. She is saying bc i have boobs, that its hard to keep the dress up. It is a strapless silk dress, so no boning to help support. I am shocked that I can pay $1800 for a designer dress and it doesn't have the capability to stay up bc i have boobs? She put the sewn in cups in, size B cups. I was just measured at Victoria secret as a 32DD. I don't understand how she thinks the size B cups are going to hold me up. Needless to say I go back tonight, and I am beyond stressed, I leave in 10 days and I don't have a dress that will stay up! Let's check in tomorrow and hopefully we both have a happy ending to this ordeal. And I'm back on Track! While it wasn't my last fitting, all seems good in the world again. All of my alterations for the bodice of my dress are complete and fit perfectly but my bustle needs some work since the hem is uneven when bustled. I have another fitting (hopefully my last) this Saturday to do one last check on fit and to check the bustle. To be honest, I think I almost liked the way the dress fit when I tried it on as a sample and before I toned up and lost weight. With the weight loss I also lost my curves a bit. I feel sweet and romantic which isn’t a bad thing, but I felt sexy/sultry before. But I also think the sample was cinched pretty tight with the clips that it wasn’t a realistic view of how the dress would actually end up. Granted, I could have had the alterations taken in more, but I would struggle to walk, and sitting in any form would not have been an option. Kristie – Any updates?