brownsugarbride

I know! I have been meaning to start my planning thread but things are so busy!

I'm getting down to the wire (less than three weeks) and I'm leaning toward not doing a cake topper at all (just flowers). Nothing is really thrilling me and I don't want to have a cake topper 'just because'. (We're also paying for the wedding out of pocket and all of these expenses are killing me! LOL)

Great! It doesn't make much sense to spend again when we're spending so much for the wedding the next day! LOL Thanks so much!

I would really appreciate some clarification here. My TA emailed the resort about reserving the buffet for our welcome dinner, but the wedding coordinator emailed back with a price of $22+ per person for one of the gourmet restaurants! The buffet is FREE for a group reservation, yes?

I was thinking about doing these little birds in our color scheme (maybe a purple and silver), but $60 seems like a lot of money for something I'll never use again. LOL

Planning is going well, but I wish I had another month! LOL Basically, I'm just filling in small details (picture frames, OOT bags, etc.). I know it sounds silly, but I simply cannot find the right wedding cake topper and the wedding is in three weeks! Maybe I should just have fresh flowers on top? LOL

I LOVE it!!!!! It's really personal, moving and well done. If you wanted to add a soft instrumental during the sand ceremony, you could. But honestly, you really don't need to make any changes.

I love Etsy! However, I was hoping to buy something here on the boards from a bride that had some things to unload from her wedding.

I'm looking for a few more things for my upcoming wedding, including a pretty hanger for my dress such as the one here (but I'm open to other ideas): https://www.etsy.com/listing/164539104/wedding-dress-hanger-bride-hanger?ref=shop_home_active_9 I'm also looking for a large shell similar to the ones that the bride and groom are holding in this picture: http://galleries.weddingchannel.com/ODB/themes/weddingchannel/detailview.aspx?STOPREDIRECTING=TRUE&id=66050&type=19&Seasons=Fall,Spring,Summer,Winter,Tropical&pageIndex=12&MsdVisit=1

24 days to go (yikes!!). I will look through my emails and send you a PM, but it's important to consider that I'm getting married in May vs. your November date, so there may be some differences there. I also have about half of my guests coming that I thought would be coming, so I'm not sure how my quote will be affected.

Lydia-I totally understand your frustration! My strong suggestion would be to get a planner on board to help you execute your vision. I love mine (Joyce of Dream Weddings) but there are some great ones on here. I am using Joyce's trusted transportation service (Rutas Prehispanicas) to transport my guests from the all-inclusive (Now Jade) to the Blue Venado on my wedding day. I know that Joyce also has done some beautiful villa weddings as well.

These are awesome suggestions! lcboyko-I hope you don't mind if I borrow a few of yours! (The FH is planning the honeymoon, but I will definitely shoot him these suggestions.)

This is extremely helpful. I have a few questions if you don't mind. 1) Are these the lights you used from Target? If so, how long are they? (I'm trying to figure out how far they'll stretch across the palapa. 2) Did you have electric lights inside the Chinese lanterns or LED lights? If so, could you link to where you purchased the lighting sources for your lanterns?

I haven't read through the entire thread, but lightinthebox.com has excellent prices on many wedding-related items, including veils.

Well, I kind of dropped the ball on the entertainment (LOL). So far, I'm still doing the mariachi band for cocktail hour, and we have a churro cart coming as well as a pinata. If we have enough time/budget, there is the possibility of getting an acrobat, although I have NO idea what that would look like! LOL Another fun thing might be a caricature artist, depending on your crowd.

It depends on how important this is to you, and whether you feel comfortable cutting in other areas to make up the difference. I would sit and look at your budget and find other ways to trip (maybe less expensive shoes, borrow the veil). If not, I would keep looking, or perhaps look online for sample sales or Ebay or preowned wedding dresses to help you save. Another option: selling the dress after the wedding. I'm planning to sell mine online or consign it, which will help with some of the wedding costs. I hope this is helpful!

Answer: as little as I can! LOL I'm getting married at the Blue Venado in Playa del Carmen, and they provide the basics (chairs, linens, etc.) so I'm going to go with those. Given the location, I'm keeping my decor fairly simple, and relying on my vendors (florist, candle artist, DJ) to make it work. I'm also trying to rent a few things from Mrs HK, one of our BDW alums who rents out wedding decor to brides in Riviera Maya. That said, I'm planning to bring down the following: 1) Star lanterns (although my MOH is trying to source these for me from India and may be bringing them) 2) LED lights for lanterns (if I don't end up using bulbs) 3) Escort cards 4) Frames for any signage needed 5) String and clips to hang up pictures

Does anyone have a document or template with lists of things to do for their guests? I just emailed my travel agent about the NJ schedule of activities, but it would be nice to get some ideas from brides here.

I'm getting married in a couple of weeks (yikes!!!) at a private beach club in Playa del Carmen (Blue Venado), but my guests and I are staying about 45 minutes away at the Now Jade in Puerto Morelos. It is highly likely that people will stick to the all-inclusive resort, but just in case, can anyone give me suggestions on the following: 1) Great restaurants 2) Excursions 3) Other things to do?

Heidi- You look adorable and those colors are STUNNING! I too, would be curious about how much lighting you used. What are the yellow lights you have posted above? ETA: I can see that the yellow lights are the Chinese lanterns. Fabulous! I'm not sure how I missed this, but congratulations Beee! I feel all over the place and my wedding is less than a month away! (Thank goodness for my planner.)

Examples of Brazilian Batucada (starting at 4:40) and water drums from Party Planet productions. The first video has some other dance entertainment options as well.

MTM-that second sand photo is AH-MAZING. The colors and action are everything!

I am getting married offsite but staying at the Now Jade. I really wanted to have the fire dancers at my wedding, but they are pretty much banned at the beach clubs--so I've had to come up with other options. If you feel like spending the money, you can opt for a Brazilian batucada (which is supposed to be really cool!) or water drums. If the NJ doesn't offer the services, you might have to pay an outside vendor fee, but both of those options are pretty fun, IMHO!

My thoughts: 1) A good planner can help you pull all of this together in short order. Joyce from Dream Weddings is my planner and she is outstanding (and is more than reasonably priced). Please PM me for more details. 2) Wedding arch: I am using Jardin Floreria, and I have been happy with their prices and wedding arches from the photos that I have seen (they may charge a bit extra to come to Tulum, but Joyce will be able to give you more details): http://www.jardinfloreria.com/ 3) Musical trio: I wanted Camilo Nu as well, but he is really hard to track down. It ended up being that he wouldn't be able to commit to my wedding until late in the game, so we decided not to go with him. I am using a mariachi band for the cocktail hour and I would be happy to look up the details for you (the company also has musical trios). 4) Seating: I know planner 1 has seating, but I would ask Joyce if she knows about other companies that might be able to provide this service. 5)Officiant: One of our friends is going to officiate, so I haven't really investigated officiants in the area. I hope this is helpful!

I wanted a fire dancer sooo badly, but they've basically banned them in most places in Playa! My wedding planner is arranging for the churro cart--they're pretty easy to get from what I understand.