jd0922

Thanks! Northern also

Thank you! I'd love to get in touch with that bride

He's 2 and a half years older than me

My wedding colors are similar - blues and pale yellow. I decided to incorporate them in different places throughout the wedding - for example, the invites were while linen with pale yellow flowers and no blue at all. But the bridesmaid dresses are all different shades of blue. I actually think 3 is the perfect number for different shades of the same color - like an ombre effect. Check out the J Crew bridesmaid collection - my girls are wearing different cuts of the silk dresses, all in different shades of blue. Dark cove and rich peacock are beautiful in real life. Dusty shale is nice too, but it's very pale. Or you could go with the yellow color. I think either would look beautiful with khaki. https://www.jcrew.com/wedding/Wedding_Bridesmaid.jsp I also wanted my girls to pick their dresses, but I will say they may actually prefer direct instructions. I left it very pen ended at first and they ended up asking me to be more specific. I ended up offering the four shades of blue, in any style they want from the silk J Crew collection - and they each chose something different. Worked out perfectly. However, if they had all chosen the same color, then we would have done that. Maybe you can have the girls wear the same color, but let them pick different styles. That way they are still sort of unique, and the girls can pick the necklines that fit them best. If you're not into J Crew I know David's bridal has nice dresses too - their colors are just really different in person than online, so definitely go in person and ask to see the color samples. Good luck! And honestly don't stress - it will be beautiful no matter what

Hi everyone! This is my first new topic, and I'm hoping this community can help me out. I was planning to make standard OOT bags for my wedding in Mexico this summer, with the typical items. My mom has been insisting that she thinks it would be better to instead create a gift box with local favors from Mexico - sort of as a nod to the area, and because, she says "people will bring their own crap from home, give them stuff you know they won't bring." Fair point. So, I'm wondering if any brides have done this before, or if anyone is planning to try. My inspiration comes from this wedding's beautiful welcome boxes -- incidentally, I also stole that wedding's centerpiece and gazebo decor. http://www.jetfeteblog.com/destination-weddings/beautiful-beach-wedding-isla-mujeres I wish I knew how to insert photos in here, so it'd be easier to see. Anyway, I like this idea but how do you actually do it?? It seems insane to buy stuff online from home, pack it up, and bring it down to Mexico since it will have come from Mexico in the first place, but I'm nervous about arriving in Mexico empty-handed and relying on my ability to put something together down there. Any ideas? Thanks!

I have the same question! I love this idea but have no idea how to actually accomplish it. I'd love to hear ideas

That's wonderful! you get a nice long time to get comfy before the wedding Just make sure you wear lots of sunscreen! MY biggest fear at this moment is being sunburnt in a wedding gown!

How are you doing your place cards? They need to somehow indicate the different menu choices, right? I can't think of a cute way to do it!

I bought the Pearl Wedding package, which includes a basic bouquet. Do you have the pearl package too? Here's what my initial email from Lynda said: Flowers: Your bridal bouquet and groom’s matching boutonniere is included in your Pearl package. I have attached a photo of the bridal bouquet if you would like a different one you will get a credit for $60 USD. In the photo, the larger bouquet is for brides and is included, the smaller one is for bridesmaids and it’s an additional $55 USD. Here is a link of all the flowers from our vendor: Bouquets & Floral Decoration

Thank you!! Those measurements are so helpful. I think we get a $60 credit towards our bouquets if we don't use the included bouquet - check with your WC. I didn't love their photographers and I thought their prices were nutso, so I went with Blue Lens Caribe. They took the $800 vendor fee out of their fee for my photography/videography package, so it ended up not even mattering. I would suggest you look into it. I love the look of Elizabeth Medina's work, but she was booked for the date I am getting married. And yes, you can send pics in for quotes for EVERYTHING! Not even just flowers - cake, decorations, anything! I sent in a pic of a cake I love and it turns out to be the same price as their normal cakes. Yay!

Bath & Body Works just had a sale for 20% the entire store, and they are having another one that starts I THINK on March 31st. I will double check. I got a bunch of tropical hand sanitzers, and they came out to 80 cents each. I really wanted to get lip balm with SPF because I also forget it when I travel, and my lips always end up burnt! I found some at Dollar Tree in two packs - so they are only 50 cents each! Score! They still have them at my Dollar Tree so if you have one nearby you can check. While there I also bought mini Kleenex at 3 for $1 and Sudoku and crosswork puzzle books for $1 each. I got little aloe bottles in the Target dollar bins months ago. They have had them a few times since, so it's worth checking once in a while. I'm on the look out for cheap sunscreen and cheap cosmetic bags. Maybe luggage tags or passport holders too. Let me know if anyone sees any!

I am having so much fun figuring out my bridesmaid gifts! I decided early on I want to get them a nice bag they can use to travel, and pack it with fun stuff. I also don't want to give them anything cheesy or too linked to my wedding, because I want them to really use the stuff again. Here's what I have so far: 1) J Crew canvas weekender bag. I got this on SUPER sale at the J Crew outlet - only $40 each. I figure they can use them as their carry on, or just use them in the future for weekend getaways. I would attach pics of mine but I have no idea how to do that, so here's the link. http://factory.jcrew.com/womens-clothing/bags_accessories/bags/PRDOVR~A3639/99103345746/ENE~1+2+218+22+4294967294+216+205~~~0~15~all~mode+matchallany~~~~~weekender/A3639.jsp?isSaleItem=false&isFromSearch=true 2) Mini make up bag from Bath & Body Works. I love that these are so bright and fun! They could even work as clutches. I got one in each color. http://www.bathandbodyworks.com/product/index.jsp?productId=30547326&cm_vc=200 3) Stuff to go in the mini make up bags -- Pure Paradise mini lotion and hand sanitizer, also from BBW -- mini Stila make up pallete from Nordstrom Rack -- CO Bigelow lip treatments - 1 Mentha lip tint, 1 My favorite lip balm. I love love love these and they were on sale! 4) Other stuff to go in the J Crew bags -- Havaina flip flops from Nordstrom Rack -- travel pillow/iPad holder from Bed Bath & Beyond So far, believe it or not, I've only spent $90 per bag! I want to spend about $120 - $150 each, so I'm trying to figure out what else to add. I'm considering either a passport holder, like this adorbs one from Kate Spade, or necklaces, like Dogeared or the Kate Spade initial necklace. I also could use the extra $ to pay for their hair or makeup, but I don't know how I feel about that. It's definitely less fun than buying more presents, but maybe more practical. What does everyone think?? I'm so eager for feedback, but the people I'd normally ask are the girls I'm buying for! Help!

Hi everyone! I just wanted to introduce myself and jump in on this thread. I am getting married on August 10, 2014 at the Azul Beach. I am deep into planning and almost done, so if anyone has questions and/or suggestions for me, I'm all ears! I already visited the property last summer so I can also maybe answer questions about that. If you want to change planners, I've been happy with mine so far. Her name is Lynda Gomez. She is a bit slow at responding to emails, but so far I haven't had any pressing concerns so it hasn't bothered me. She answers everything I ask directly in the email I send in a different color font, which has been amazing. Makes communication clear and easy. She also helped me think of ways to save money on decorations.

Thank you! It went by so fast I can't even believe it - yours will be here before you know it! I'm not really picking colors. I don't love the look of the monochromatic, matchy-matchy wedding especially not in the tropics where everything is so colorful and beautiful! That said, I've taken most of my inspiration for the flowers from this stunning wedding I found on Jet Fete blog. I highly encourage you to look through it - it is so stunning I almost wanted to cancel my wedding at Azul Beach and head to Isla Mujeres! http://www.jetfeteblog.com/destination-weddings/beautiful-beach-wedding-isla-mujeres I'm pretty much copying the gazebo decorations directly from that wedding - the florist said it would be $55 each, which is cheaper than the large gazebo decor they sell on Lomas. For centerpieces, I asked them to split up BB26 which is a set of 3 vases and just put one at each table. I only had to buy 2 centerpieces then for 6 tables! My WC put in a request with the florist to mimic the style and colors of the gazebo decor in the centerpieces, so they actually will end up looking totally different from the sample on the Lomas website. Basically I'm hoping they look something like this: http://www.pinterest.com/pin/534661786983700306/ but in these vases: http://www.pinterest.com/pin/534661786984176662/ I also will be getting married at the gazebo and bringing my own sheers. I used this post from BDW to help me figure out what to bring: http://www.pinterest.com/pin/534661786983734529/. I figure if it doesn't work, I will suck it up and pay to rent their sheers. These are my bridesmaid dresses: http://www.pinterest.com/pin/534661786983739366/ Everyone is wearing a different cut and color, but all are shades of blue and silk J Crew. For my invitations, I used Vistaprint's soft floral template but without the weird grey bar. http://www.vistaprint.com/search/soft-floral.aspx?rt=5 So I suppose there is sort of a pattern of blues and yellows, but as I said, I didn't want to pick like tiffany blue, and painstakingly assemble every detail to match. I think this will end up making the wedding look nicer and more elegant, but we shall see! Fingers crossed! Thank you! I know I can hardly believe it - less than 5 months! We are using the regular florist from the hotel. I think the prices are so good because I didn't select the regular options from the Lomas website. You gotta know they want to trick you into planning this crazy elaborate function, complete with nutso huge centerpieces and all that. I noticed that at the Brides' dress rehearsal - they played us this video of what they called the "best" wedding anyone ever hosted at a Karisma property, and it was INSANE! Literally every single over the top option you could have, this bride had. I hated it lol. Not my style - I'm more for simple and elegant than showy and over the top. That said, here are the details -- I am using the BB26 centerpiece, which is actually three small vases that they group at each table. However, I asked them to break it up and just put one vase per table. Voila - pay for one centerpiece, get three tables! They are going to make each flower arrangment a little different, but all using the same types of flowers and color family. I love that idea and hope they pull it off. I'm going to supplement with some votive candles that I'm going to bring down with me. I got some at KMart the other day for super cheap. I am also considering buying Mexican tiles in Playa del Carmen to act as table numbers. Sort of like this - http://www.pinterest.com/pin/534661786983384301/ My gazebo decor is also simple - I asked them to match this picture http://www.pinterest.com/pin/534661786984006556/. Cheaper than their standard decor, and in my opinion more elegant. We will see how it looks down there though - fingers crossed my image comes to life! I'm also bringing my own sheers down, since their price to rent is highway robbery. Bridesmaids are just going to hold two white lilies that we will tie a pretty ribbon around. They are charging $10 per lily. I specifically asked what would be the cheapest bouquet option, and that's what my WC came up with. This photo inspired me, or else I may have been scared to try it. we will see how this actually ends up looking! My own bouquet is the bane of my existence right now. Every time I send them a picture, my WC tells me it will be $225 or up because it has imported flowers. Insanity. I can't believe they are claiming dahlias are imported, since they are Mexico's national flower, but whatever. Anyway, I refuse to pay a premium for flowers when I am in the tropics, so I'm going to keep trying until I come up with something that is inexpensive and pretty. I'm not really in love with any of the Lomas designs. I didn't realize I had so much planned until I wrote all this! Wow! Hope I didn't bore you all. Let me know if you have any questions Enjoy planning! Any please don't let them trick you into paying lots of money for silly things no one will notice anyway. We are already paying to go down there and enjoy the gorgeous tropical scenery - we really don't need much more to make it beautiful! That's the advantage of a destination wedding!

So I'm wondering about this too! My fiance and the groomsmen will be wearing tan, linen suits. Is it weird if my dad wears the same thing? He was asking about black - I think it's a little intense for the beach, esp cuz the groom will be in tan. I don't want to micromanage though, so I guess it's not a big deal.

I'm trying to figure out what to put, and my mom keeps saying that the bags are a huge waste of time and money and they "will all end up in a landfill anyway." Is she just being her crazy hippy self, or is there maybe some truth to it? Also, are there alternative ways to say thanks to your guests? I want to show that I appreciate them traveling so far. Good question! Did you assemble your little baggies that go inside the OOT bags ahead of time, or do that at the resort? And did you carry on or check? I'm scared the baggage will get squished and all my little aloe bottles will explode!

I watched a legal ceremony in Mexico last summer and I thought it was beautiful. I wish I could offer more details, but I remember thinking the vows were lovely. Also, you need to be in the country for 3 business days before the wedding, but your TA will probably advise 4 just in case of a travel delay.

Hi everyone! I am getting married at Azul Beach on August 10th. I went down for the Bride's dress rehearsal in July, and at the same time visited about 10 area resorts. Azul Beach is absolutely beautiful, and was far and away my fiance and my favorite resort. We wanted a hotel that was intimate and small enough that we wouldn't be running all over the property to spend time with everyone, but we also wanted the hotel to be very high quality. We have some picky people coming down with us, and we wanted to make sure the food, booze and service was top notch so no one has anything to complain about. I think all the area hotels nickel and dime you, so as long as you are prepared for that up front I think you are fine. If you want a REALLY basic wedding it can be done fairly inexpensively, but the thing is they offer SO many upgrades that it's very hard to stick to your guns and keep it simple. I can't tell you how many times I've gone back and forth about whether to stick to my original notion of as basic as possible, or to upgrade and get some fabulous sounding add on. In the end, we've arrived at what I think is a compromise. We are likely going to spend around 15K on a wedding for about 50 - 60 people. Still much better than NJ prices, but more than I expected to pay in Mexico. I say cut your costs on the little things - for example, we are only paying $220 for our 6 centerpieces and $110 for flowers on the gazebo - but don't scrimp on the important stuff. For us, that is photography and entertainment. We are paying the outside vendor fee to bring in Blue Len Caribe (hoping they are good!), though they did offer to split the cost with us, which was nice. Try to find a photographer that also has videographers so you can pitch it as one vendor and only pay the fee once. We are going with the Lomas DJ for $1500 for four hours, and our big splurge is a cellist to play at the ceremony for $750. The cellist is absolutely not an essential expense, but I just love the idea of beautiful live music as I walk down the sand to my hubby. That is worth the expense to me more than, say, orchids in my bouquet. Don't forget -- YOGMO --- You only get married once! (hopefully! haha) If anyone has any questions about the resort or the planning process, let me know! I haven't gotten married yet, but I am almost done planning and I already stayed at the resort, so I may be able to offer some info to you 2015 brides

My girls are wearing silk dresses from J Crew. We got them 40% off on the black Friday sale. Came to $175 each. It's really hard to find 100% silk, but I worry that chiffon will be too hot also.

http://www.pinterest.com/pin/534661786984521352/ Love this idea -- key/tip holder with spanish essentials on the back! I can see my guests actually trying these out during the day if they are right there on their key holder/

I was just wondering about the same thing! I was thinking about getting a nice frame and putting a print of the entire family from the wedding. Then, I was going to include the Philosophy Thank You gift set for the moms. As for the dads, I'm a little bit more stuck. http://www1.macys.com/shop/product/philosophy-thank-you-set?ID=823281 A friend told me she's going to get everyone personalized handkerchiefs - it's not really my style, but it's a sweet idea and probably less expensive even than my suggestion. Good luck!

So I am just starting to think about my bags, even though my wedding isn't until next August. I'm a teacher, so I am hoping to get as much planning done this summer as possible, and bags seem like the kind of thing I may be able to take care of in advance. I was wondering, how much do you girls think I should budget to spend per bag?