TinkerSofi

lovely story . I think it's great if you can fly your own photog and have it still be cheaper. Double check with your hotel that they won't charge you an outside vendor fee anyway. Ours won't if the vendor stays for at least 3 nights at the hotel, but you never know. I'm not paying for my bridesmaid's hair and makeup because it would have been wayy to much money for us, but I am giving them the choice to do it themselves if they'd like. We bought the men's attire this month (3 months before the wedding) because we found the perfect clothes. We just got it at RW&Co. Juan got a made to measure suit about 4-5 months out and it took about 2-2 1/2 weeks to come in . Technically you could leave it until the last 3 months and you should be ok . I just like to have things done ahead of time, but it's just me and guys totally don't think that way. I can't speak for all the decor. We're not bringing much decor per say, most of the stuff is OOT bags stuff. We piled it all up the other day and I think it will take about 2 or 3 suitcases or one big suitcase and a couple of carry ons. I know other ladies have brought a lot more stuff than I am. There's a lady that rents out a lot of decor in Playa del Carmen. Her business name is Love & Lace decor on fb. I don't know if she has the style of stuff you want, but it's an idea so you don't have to bring absolutely everything. You can check out what she has on facebook . Another idea is asking your hotel how much the chair covers are etc. Sometimes when you factor in the extra luggage and the trouble, it's not worth it to bring them from home. I know the lady from Love & Lace has been able to get some stuff from Playa for brides so that's another idea if she can find things for you . We're bringing all of our flowers, quite a few lanterns and votives. Now that people are cancelling like crazy I probably could have saved a lot of money on decor but oh well. I will probably need 2/3 of what we were planning on bringing

thanks! I know I feel like I could have spent a fortune on the OOT bags if it wasn't for Juan saying no to basically everything haha. I can't wait to see the dress with the alterations in about 3 weeks!

I'd say stay away from ball gowns because of the height. Maybe A line dresses would be very flattering on her, but it's really just a matter of going and trying different types of dresses and narrowing it down to what looks best on her. I don't think there's a right or wrong answer to what you can wear for a DW. If you check out the forums you'll see that there's a huge variety as to what the ladies have worn, anywhere from simple, light and airy dresses to ball gowns. There's actually a thread where everyone has posted their wedding dresses so you can kind of get an idea for what most of us go with. At the end of the day she has to pick the dress she loves

@@yycbride2016 I think that's a good idea. I'd also feel bad for the person who needs a larger size, definitely not fair to them. They're still a really good price considering most of the bridesmaid dresses out there!

A couple of ladies here have bought the convertible dresses from etsy and they were super happy with them. They also very reasonably priced. I think they got it from a store called the daintyard on esty Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

@@calgarybride2015 that makes total sense. You can always tell when someone is trying way too hard and it doesn't sound real. Besides, the tears in my eyes probably won't allow me to read so I better have these semi-memorized hahah. Hopefully you guys get used to the noise, maybe it was a bad night. I'm guessing it's worse during the weekend but it may be ok during weekdays. I do like this neighbourhood and there's so many kids, I'm sure your kids will make friends . I go to these fitness classes once a week at a park around here. I go once a week because I want to also take advantage of the gym, but they have classes 3-4 times a week. There's a playground there and there's always plenty of kids. If you live across the street from the catholic school, go left on the main road, make the first left and go to the end of that cul de sac, it's right there @@acw271011 I agree, at first I was a bit more bummed about the drop outs, but now it's ok. We will have a blast regardless and I'll get to spend more time with each person. As I mentioned, some of these are still maybes, so they're not total drop outs yet. I just don't have much hope for people that are still maybes 4 days before the deadline. I agree with you 100%, when you translate things, so much gets lost in translation. I bet if I wrote different ones in English they would sound wayy better. As I was writing them I also got a lot of ideas in English and they were great, but when I translated them to Spanish they sounded so bad hahah. I soon realized I couldn't translate, and they had to straight up be made in either one language or the other The resort can be so frustrating. Sometimes I do wish I had gone with a beach club instead. They are lucky that their venues are so beautiful. I don't know, maybe most resorts are like this. I just feel like they treat people like they're idiots and that we will pay whatever for something we want. There's definitely a limit to everything. @snswedding2016 @perianjay thank you ladies. I might tweak them a bit, but I don't think they'll change much

Congrats on getting your date! now the fun begins . My wedding hasn't happened yet but from all the ladies before they were all really satisfied with how things came together. There's always the odd bride here and there who was disappointed but I think that's bound to happen anywhere. You're lucky that you get to visit the hotel first! I think it will make planning a lot easier

@@calgarybride2015 I think the vows aren't the greatest I've read but I'm also definitely not a poet hahah. I think they reflect who I am and they would sound weird if they were sooo good haha. Yay!! I was wondering the other day whether you had moved. I was just walking back home from these fitness classes I take around there

@@yycbride2016 absolutely! That's kind of what happened with us too. We got an extremely good quote considering it was Azul Fives and we booked. The trips went up about $200-300 afterwards when the dollar sort of plummeted. I guess it was a good thing that we booked when we did, otherwise we wouldn't have been able to either. I think the prices have gone down now again. I'm trying to see if they'll drop some more before we can claim the difference

@calgarybride2015 @barcelobride2016 the chafing is always the worst, otherwise: no thigh gap, no problem. That's my motto

Another Calgary bride yay!! Your story is so cute. I also love your save the dates PS: we're also working with a Tier One travel and she's been amazing . She had actually suggested the Grand Sirenis, but we ended up choosing Azul Fives because it was closer to Playa del Carmen. Grand Sirenis does look like a beautiful resort though and I've only heard good things about it.

I really like the bridesmaid dresses and I agree that the Vera wang one looks amazing . At least she'll get to wear it twice! [emoji4] Don't feel bad about slacking. I've had many weeks like that and still feel that I'm in pretty good shape planning-wise. That's the beauty of having so much time to plan haha. Talking about time slipping through, this last month has flown by for me! Today I caught myself thinking "yeah, next year when we get married" and then I was like "hold on, it's only in 2 months and a half away!" this was my inside face [emoji33] hahah I'm happy that you had a good chat with a WC . I find I might be always on the defensive when I call because I always call when there's a problem lol. They probably think I'm the psycho bride, which I'm really not haha. I should try and call just to chat [emoji14]. I really liked my first WC but for some reason I don't seem to have the same connection with the new one. I always have to tell her about mistakes on my summary sheet, etc. the old WC was so on too of everything. Oh well, at the end of the day things are still getting done and that's all that matters. What did she tell you about the venues? Did she tempt you to change your mind about any of them? [emoji4] Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I'm on the same boat, I would have loved to stay for even 3 days more but unfortunately it wasn't an option for us, either financially or time-wise. We decided we will go somewhere else during the year [emoji4]. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I love handwritten cards. I think nowadays that we do everything we computers it means the world to me that someone took the time to write something for me, even if it just says my name and thank you [emoji4]. Kind of along the lines of what Calgarybride mentioned, for those that attend and didn't bring a gift, or those that did (could work for both groups), How about mentioning a special moment during the wedding week? Since technically that was their gift [emoji6] Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

@ I was just thinking the same yesterday!

Yeah I am slightly getting to that point but I feel like my type A personality won't let me haha. I was the person editing her thesis until 4am the night before it was due because I couldn't just let it go, sigh. I'm attaching the itineraries again, hopefully they work this time The Vows: I translated them. I still think they sound more "me" in Spanish, so I'm posting both for those that can understand them. I'd appreciate any feedback. I don't really want to read them to my family members because I want them to be a surprise, even for them. En estos siete años he aprendido muchas cosas a tu lado, a decir que no aunque a veces me cueste, a defender mi opinión sin importar lo que piensen los demás. Lo mas importante, me has enseñado que con esfuerzo todo es posible y que nunca hay excusa valida para abandonar nuestros sueños. Junto a vos he aprendido que la vida es mas divertida cuando se disfruta de a dos. Juan, Prometo siempre ser tu compañera incondicional. Prometo festejar los logros juntos y también apoyarte en los momentos duros Prometo estar ahí para alentarte cuando quieras darte por vencido Prometo dejar de dudar mis propias decisiones y volverte loco con las opciones Prometo que nunca voy a dejar de reírme de tus ocurrencias Y prometo siempre recordar la fortuna de un día mas junto a vos _____________________________________________________________________ In these seven years I have learned so many things by your side. I have learned to say no, even if sometimes it’s hard. I’ve learned to defend my opinion, no matter what others think. Most importantly, you have taught me that anything is possible with hard work and that there is no valid excuse to give up on our dreams. Along with you I have learned that life is a lot more fun when you enjoy it with someone else by your side. Juan, I promise to be your unconditional partner and companion I promise to celebrate our achievements together and be there for you in tough times I promise to be there to cheer you on when you feel like giving up I promise to stop driving you crazy with my indecision I promise to never stop laughing at your strange occurrences And I promise to always remember the gift that another day with you is bridal party itinerary.pdf

I'm glad that the change in flight kind of worked out. I love arriving to the resort early. I'm the type who just cannot hit the ground running, I need a day to adapt to a new place. I actually had a dream last night that I was packing and when I woke up I thought I had two days to go before the wedding. I woke up with butterflies in my stomach haha. You're getting so close!!! I'm sure things will work out with the officiant, even if you guys have to move it to a weekday (that are probably less requested), at the end of the day the legal ceremony isn't the most part for us DW . We ended up with a friday but at noon haha.

Alright. Update! I had the day off yesterday so I got a few things off my list, and some that weren't on the list (I swear, I need to stop finding things that need to get done haha) - Write vows (after some discussion Juan insisted that he wanted to do this) - Finish up playlist for the party - Make playlist for dinner - Get kids' menu choices - as we stand we might not even have any kids at the wedding anymore. - finish up photo booth - finish putting tags to all the fans - assemble emergency kits - Pre-assemble welcome bags - Send welcome brochures to vistaprint - Get groomsmen gifts - start tanning - finalize the hair and makeup ideas - First dance - our lessons start next thursday. yay!! - Call hotel to finalize details (booking of hair and makeup appts, etc) - Get wedding license and contact officiant for a meeting before the wedding - Find a nice lipstick and fake eyelashes to wear on the day of the wedding - Create a wedding party itinerary for the rehearsals and timeline for the wedding - send rings to get cleaned Vows: Ok, so last night I had some sudden inspiration and decided to write this baby up. The first part was easy, but when it came down to the actual vows, it was the hardest part. I think maybe because I'm not great with saying my feelings, I'm better showing them. I have no clue how i'm going to get through these because I was bawling as I was writing them. We decided to do them in Spanish, even though the rest of the ceremony will be in English. Do you guys want to read them or are they going to be a sap party? I can always translate them hahah. I feel like they're a bit cliche, but at the end of the day that's how I feel . Hair and Makeup. I can't believe I forgot to show you guys what I decided. My makeup will look something like this: but I want the eyeliner to look more like this: As for the hair, it will be something along these lines: Bridal Party Itinerary I wanted to make something a bit more detailed than what's on the brochures and include the rehearsal dinner and a more detailed itinerary of the wedding day. I don't expect to keep the times as written in stone (aside from the start of the ceremony and the reception) but it's just to keep track of things. They're not as great as some of the designs you guys have created, but I'm pretty happy with how they turned out! I made slightly different ones for guys vs. girls, since their getting ready portion is much simpler than ours I also don't have the times and locations for the rehearsal and rehearsal dinner so I left it with blanks to fill out once we get there and get those sorted out. The plan is to just make a reservation at a restaurant for the rehearsal dinner. It will just be our families, bridal party and their dates. Funny story, which I won't tell Juan because I'll drive him loco . I downloaded some new fonts off the internet and oh man, why didn't I think of this before! I'm reconsidering printing the reception signs again with a new font lol. I really do need to stop changing my mind about everything haha but I really like some of the new fonts I downloaded. I loved a bunch but for some reason they looked awful when spelling Sofia & Juan, they looked amazing when spelling anything else. It was a tad frustrating haha. bridal party itinerary.pdf

yeah I think it read it on your thread lol. They were probably considering putting those maracas through an x-ray lol

I'd get the TA on it. She has been able to get me better deals

I agree, we had some cases like that as well. Mostly Juan's friends, who by the time we reserved the hotel, had just finished a year paid internship, their school is paid for, they live at home rent-free, but somehow also couldn't afford to come. On the other hand, they go out and blow $500 easily on one night. What are you gonna do right? Like I told Juan, they'd all be there if it was a local wedding and all they had to do was show up and eat for free haha. I guess in a way it's better to do a DW because then only your really close friends are there

you have so much done! see, sometimes it totally feels like "Oh my, I'm slacking" but when you put it all together in your mind it's not so bad Have you tried calling your WC? sometimes I find that helps to make things clearer rather than e-mail.

@@calgarybride2015 that's such a great idea! I always watch that show where they show border security and what happens haha and people always get in trouble for not saying what's in the bag! haha I guess when you have so many it's hard to keep track. I'll have to do that @@beckys98 you didn't go to the gym, but it seems that you were running around anyway getting all these things done! That counts @@veryvalentine I need to start my binder as well. I started it when we first booked everything but since I don't have a printer hooked up to my computer it's just too much of a hassle. I need to always use my dad's computer. Maybe I can give Juan the job hahah. Poor guy, gets stuck with the worst tasks

hahah that's an excellent idea, and they can easily be hidden by the dress . You could make an ice pack garter lol. I thought the same thing about it being airier, I find tighter dresses actually get hotter because they keep your legs together, creating more and more heat and don't let it escape. This is coming from someone whose legs will always rub together, it gets rather hot.

I think it's beautiful. It looks a lot like my dress but this one is more ball gown and mine is more a-line . I think you should wear whatever makes you feel beautiful. I tried on many classic DW gowns but when I tried mine on I fell in love. Now I'm happy I didn't buy a traditional DW gown because it wasn't what I envisioned my whole life, I just needed to be honest with myself. Don't get me wrong, I expect to be hot and sweat buckets with it, but the point is to enjoy the dress and feel great in it, so I think it will be worth it . Those are my two scents. I think a lot of it also has to do with your venue. I usually see girls getting married on the sand with simpler gowns but the beauty about a DW is that there are no rules!