W@W's 2013 Christmas Party

Tweet

More than two weeks ago, we attended another party of WeddingsAtWork. This time, it's the annual Christmas party which is usually sponsored by the different suppliers in the wedding industry. It was held at the newly opened Blue Leaf Filipinas and was catered by Josiah's Catering.

This year's theme is Backyard Party and everyone was asked to dress in pastel colors. We left the office fairly early to avoid the terrible Friday rush hour and arrived at the venue pretty much on time. Our w@w friends were already there when we arrived and they've already arranged our table decor/centerpiece.

The party took a while to commence and so we whiled our time checking out the different stations all over the place.

We also took some pictures and had ourselves photographed by the official photographers of the event --Pictratto and Mezarc Buslon Fotografie.

To the delight of the w@wies, lots of wedding items have been spontaneously given away by the suppliers who are in attendance. This consumed a great time of the program, but we didn't mind much since the free items makes our co-w@wies truly loco! Even our good friend Nat was able to win herself a pair of custom shoes c/o Jazel Sy. Woohoo!

As for me and Adrin, we took home a turbo broiler which I've been eyeing even before the program started. It also came with a fruit cake and a g-string as minor giveaways. Haha.

One of the most awaited highlights of the party is the awarding of the community's Top 10 suppliers of the year, and the most coveted Supplier of the Year award. We were so proud that four of our trusted suppliers are nominated this year. In the end, K by Cunanan emerged victorious among the lot.

What a fun party it was! I sure hope to take part in the next one even if we're already married by then. =)

Quoted in The W@W Wedding Primer 2013-2014

Tweet

Thursday last week, before heading to work, a delivery arrived at home. I wasn't expecting anything so it did not cross my mind that it's for me. I was quite puzzled when the courier delivery man asked for me. And so I went out to receive the parcel which was sent by an unfamiliar name. I inspected it as I walked back into the house and I was surprised to see the outlines of W@W's newest Wedding Primer! Woohoo! I got a free copy -- meaning, at least 1 of my responses to the questionnaire sent to the entire community was featured in this book.

The W@W Wedding Primer 2013-2014

Let me backtrack a bit. The W@W Wedding Primer is one of the publications released by WeddingsAtWork (W@W). This is a good read for soon-to-weds because it contains checklists and must-know-facts for couples planning their wedding. It also features articles from different wedding suppliers outlining planning tips and supplier interaction etiquette. I have read the last 2 editions of this book and it sure helped Adrin and I kick start our preparations back then.

When Ms. Benz of W@W sent the questionnaire this year for the 2013-2014 Wedding Primer, I was more than happy to send my response because I want to share all our learnings and realizations in our wedding planning journey. Take it as a way of giving back to the community who gave me so much. =)

KILIG. That is the best word to describe how I felt when I saw my responses in print!!! Never did I once imagine that I will see my name in any form of official publication. Well, I guess not only dreams have the power to become a reality. Even those you haven’t even dreamt of as well. =)

For all you soon-to-weds out there, do grab a copy of the latest The W@W Wedding Primer. It’s the best wedding handbook that you can possibly get. Let me give you a glimpse of what I'm talking about by sharing my favorite contributions to this book. 

I learned that a wedding...

I wish...

Advice to DIY brides

Advice to a fellow bride...

My top moment during wedding prepartion.

Still on a high,

Love Is In The Air at W@W Red Party

Tweet

Last Sunday, WeddingsAtWork’s Grand EB was finally held at Le Parc, Pasay City. It was Adrin and I’s first time to attend a W@W event and we're not sure what to expect. We just know that this event was organized mainly by us w@wies, and with the help of Ms. Benz of course for the supplier sponsorships.

Photo by Manny and April Photography

As part of the Décor Committee, I was expected to be at the venue at 7am for the ingress and setup. I know I cannot will myself and Adrin to show up that early so I excused myself from the preps and just promised to drop the my DIYs in the morning because I still had a fitting appointment to attend to right before the party.  When we got there at 10:30am, I was surprised to see that almost all of the photocorners have already been put up.  I just quickly handed my decors to Rizza and Khitin (leads of the 2 pinwheels group) and left.

The event starts at 2pm, but when we got there at 1:30pm, the venue is jam packed and most of the tables have already been filled up. On top of that, there’s still a long line at the registration. I was surprised to see some of our pictures from the official photographers as we waited for our turn to register.

Photos by CamZar Photography (L) and She&Him Photography (R)

Upon registering, we were given our matching button pins, cupcake (c/o Hearts and Bells) and chocolate treats (c/o Knotville Favors), Pond’s skin care products, W@W Primer 2012, and Bride’s Yellow Pages 2013 (both under W@W publication). 

Photo by She&Him Photography

It was an effort to find empty seats; luckily there were a couple more at the table near the photo corners. Before the program started, we passed our time taking pictures and accomplishing the task for the raffle. I was also able to meet and say hello to some w@wies that I talk to via email/Facebook. I even had pictures with some of them.

Pictures with w@wies: (L) w/ Nat and Cris; (T) w/ our photographer and ex-w@wie April;
(B) w/ co-HST bride Jenel  

When the program started, we just couldn’t contain our laughter from the smooth banter of our emcees -- Sir Abet Rana of W@W, and Sir Bong Sare of Threelogy. 

Photo by CamZar Photography

As we played the Human Bingo, I was surprised that a lot of w@wies came up to me, some I haven’t talked to ever, to have their card signed. They just seem to know me. Probably they’ve read my blog at one point, saw my pictures there, and they have good memory to recognize me. Haha.

Greeting Cyndee, Jemjem, and Bessie during the Human Bingo game | Photo by CamZar Photography

After that, each table was tasked to find out a unique commonality amongst them. We did manage to list a few but they were not very unique. As Sir Abet nears our table, a groom in our table suggested that if we want a sure win, we should answer that all of us are good dancers of “Gentleman”. That answer catapulted us to the dance floor to give the audience some sample moves. I can’t decide if we're shameless, desperate to win, or just genuinely game – but one thing is for sure, the crowd did enjoy our impromptu performance despite the fact that not all of are good dancers.  =)

Photos by She&Him Photography (Top) and CamZar Photography (Bottom)

The games that followed suit turned the stifled laughs on the group into rambunctious cheers and hoots!  Charge that to the very naughty Program Committee who prepared very naughty and mature games for all of us. Kudos to you guys and gals! Thanks for giving everyone a mini bridal shower. =)

Photo by me (L) and CamZar Photography (R)

Scandalized w@wies during the Guess the Position game | Photo by CamZar Photography

During the course of the program, winners of the W@W Peer Awards were also announced. I was happy to see some of my bets bag the award. The raffle followed suit and we got lucky again by winning our very own set of Unity Coins. We were already settled to use our international coin collection for our arrhae but I just can’t take not putting into good use those shiny and freshly minted coins.

Photo by CamZar Photography

Amidst all happenings, the part of the program I appreciated the most was Ms. Benz’s short talk on married life FAQs. She told us that each day is not as rosy and romantic as what we picture it to be at this point, and so she felt responsible to throw some splash of reality to our current idealistic state. As she went through her list, I realized that at one point or another, Adrin and I have managed to talk about those things already. We’ve gone through endless random what-ifs in our daily conversations and most, if not all, of those potential issues have been touched already. This made me appreciate more how open Adrin and I to each other is. And it makes me feel more secure that we’re really ready to take our relationship to the next level. =)  

Thank you to everyone who made this event possible. Adrin and I really had a good time on our 1^st w@w event and we look forward to the next one. =)


Cheers!

Morning Surprise from Boudoir Le Blanc

Tweet

Today I woke up to another good news. As soon  as I opened my eyes and turned off my alarm, my attention was caught by a message from Heather of Boudoir Le Blanc. She was telling me how she and Tooney ran across our blog posts (mine's, Aiza's, Nat's and Cris') about our boudoir soiree with them a couple of months back. They were so touched with our good words for their team and were overwhelmed also with the influx of w@wies wanting to go under their lenses for another fun fun fun group boudoir. Because of that, they decided to give all four of us a 30% discount on ANY of the boudoir sessions that we will have in the future (no expiry!) -- we can use it for any of the following: solo boudoir, couples boudoir, and maternity boudoir! Wow! Just wow!

It was over the weekend when I finally mustered the courage to share to the W@W community my boudoir soiree experience with w@wie friends. A lot of the ladies in the forum really liked the teaser photo I shared and took interest in Boudoir Le Blanc. Realizing that they don't have to undergo boudoir shoots on their own, they were really happy that ours was a group shoot and that they too can avail of it. Not long after I started the thread when a w@wie started rallying other interested girls to do another w@wies boudoir sesh! Haha. They must have inquired with BLB the past days and shared that they learned about the soiree package through us. 

Honestly I wasn't expecting for anything like this from BLB. I just really wanted to share the experience in the community as my way of giving back to them and inspiring them to pursue an experience such as that. Just as I have been inspired and convinced by fellow w@wies who've done it before me. I didn't know that such good intentions would warrant me and my friends a prized reward. =)

Kudos also to the lovely ladies of Boudoir Le Blanc -- Heather, Tooney, and Tina -- for their kind gesture of appreciation towards us. We were really grateful for your offer and we'd love to work with all of you again in the future! 

To end this post, I'm sharing with you some of my favorite photos from my boudoir session. :)

Grateful!

The Hotel Choices

Tweet

For me, preparation venue is just as important as the reception venue. As early as last year, I was already on the lookout for the best hotel that will suit our needs. It was only recently though that I turned the research into an active and serious hunt.

Our ceremony will be at Intramuros so naturally my shortlist comprises of the hotels nearby (Intramuros and Roxas Boulevard area). I checked their rooms and published rates online for initial comparison and even went as far as placing a dummy booking online (I'd cancel before the payment part) to get more accurate figures. Some would clearly standout from the rest in terms of aesthetics, but they were equally matched with skyrocketing rates.

Not one for a compulsive booking, I then consulted our coordinator for some feedback. I also turned to the ever reliable W@W to read on reviews. Here's what my list looked like after.

So you see, booking Sofitel will not only make a huge dent on our budget, it will also be more difficult for us to bring in lunch for the family and suppliers. Lest we resort to sneaky tactics, which are not fool-proof by the way, we run the risk of getting hungry and surly even before the ceremony. Handing out supplier allowance is not a good option since we don't want the suppliers to still think of how to get their food when they should be focused on doing their best for our big day. And of course another major minus point is for the outrageous fee you have to pay just to be allowed for some snapshots around the hotel! No way will I shell out that amount just for that. Thus, even if I like Sofitel best, I had to let it go.

Manila Hotel is a good contender except for the same concern of bringing food up the hotel rooms. Plus, I'm not really into its Filipiniana aesthetics. Its interior looks too old fashioned for my liking so it's scrapped off the list. Pan Pacific Manila got average feedback so I took it out also knowing the Diamond and Hyatt Hotels have a better standing.

Seriously considering Hyatt and Diamond, I had an extensive inquiry with their respective reservations specialists. I inquired about room sizes, late check-out policy, maximum guests allowed inside the room, and the like. I learned that Hyatt only has 1 or 2 renovated rooms for each room type. I asked if they can give it to me, but I was told that they can't commit on that and they'll just learn of room assignments days leading up to the actual reserved dates. That is a blow to my scoreboard so I decided not to do an ocular with them anymore. 

For Diamond Hotel on the other hand, I explored the Diamond Indulgence membership and looked into the possibility of getting that to save up some bucks for our stay. I was sent the list of privileges and when I computed, it really resulted to some savings for us. Interesting right? After learning that I asked if we can visit the hotel and do an ocular of the rooms. I was told that I can inquire a day before my prospected visit to check if the rooms we'd like to see are available. Now, this we have to squeeze in our schedule real soon. Can't wait!

Cheers!

DIYs for W@W Grand EB

Tweet

Okay, let me start by saying that W@W is not limited within the confines our desktop, laptops, tablets or mobile phones. It is an actual community! And a testament to that would be the occasional gathering of its members or what is usually called an EB (stands for "eyeball" - a colloquial term used when friends or acquaintances from the cyberspace meet in person). In my 1.5yrs of stay in the group, I have never attended these so called EBs due to several reasons. This year, aside from the "summer lakwacha" they had in Quezon, a Grand EB is poised to happen at Le Parc on July 7.

I'm sure an EB of this scale has already happened before, but not in past 18 months. The event will be delivered by w@wies or its so called members with the help of suppliers who were generous enough to sponsor the event. There's an appointed w@wie lead coordinator, and there are several committees under her. Each committee also has an identified lead. 

During the registration, we were asked which committee we'd like to be part of. Not one to eagerly pick out a designation, I just chose "Any". After several days, I learned that I was assigned to the Decor Committee. Our group was tasked to decorate 4 photo corners and 1 message board. Initial brainstorming of the members led to the high level design of each photo corner. Since we do not have readily available design pieces, the idea they came up with is to DIY our way to decorating those little stations.

When the DIY items were already identified, I signed up for items. The circular pinwheels and the windmill pinwheels. Last Saturday I met up with the leads of these decors to talk about our assigned tasks. We bought the materials and had snacks together while talking about each other's wedding preparations.  

As soon as I got home, I started with my loot. Here's what I have accomplished so far. Aren't they the cutest? Imagine if it's an entire wall of those lovely paper wheels. Oh I can't wait to see the fruits of our labor!

Circular Pinwheel Tutorial: Here

Will share to you our dressed up photo corners after the EB. =)

Cheers!

Finally, We Have An Emcee!

Tweet

Thinking that we can just get one of our friends for the job, emcee is one of the items that Adrin and I deprioritized when we started planning last year. We even listed our prospects and dropped hints to them regarding our plan. Turns out, no one is exactly up for it.

With the half-hearted YES’ and a couple of NO’s that we got, I felt that it would be best for us and our friends if we just hire a professional emcee for our wedding. I broached this to Adrin and he’s seemingly toying with the idea too.

My first choice is the w@w well-loved Missy Ferrer-Litao. I have listened to her w@w chat episode and I can say that I was amused by her candor. Back in early January I’ve already inquired for her availability and she confirmed that the date is still open (yes!) but I did not book her then because I haven’t gotten approval from Adrin yet. Since it has already been 4 weeks since our initial correspondence, there is the need to re-check if she’s still available on our date. Sadly, in that short of a time, she already got booked so I have to look for other emcees.

Just like before, I turned to w@w to check for other well recommended ones that I can shortlist. I was able to note four candidates, Missy’s 2 sisters Mallory Cosio and Marjorie Dizon, Thea Ocana, and Darlene Tan-Salazar. One of them is already booked, one never replied to my inquiry, one is available but replied very late, and one is available and replied promptly. Since first impressions last, I pursued my inquiry with the prompt supplier and requested for a pre-booking meeting.

It was a morning meeting right after our trip from Japan so we were not exactly prepared when we went there. Good thing this lady is easy to talk to and explains her services quite well. I must say, I’m impressed by her unusual scope of work for an emceeing service, and also her good attention to detail. Adrin seemed to like her pleasing aura and personality as well so we decided to already confirm our booking.

Now can you guess who she is? Well, it’s none other than the former wedding coordinator Darlene Tan-Salazar. =)

Darlene Tan-Salazar

View Site

Cheers!

EA Casedo's Embroidery for Adrin's Attire - Booked!

Tweet

Okay, I need some catching up on this blog. Work has taken an uphill climb again and I'm finding my way once more to the life path of working on multiple projects. Believe me, it takes some getting used to after treading the single project path for more than a year. Oh well, so much for my work life.

I just want to share that I'm on track with my to-do list for the next six months. We were able to tick off another major item from our list last month. And this time, it's for Adrin! Yey! 

Parallel to my research for other suppliers we booked last year, I also kept a watchful eye for recommended suppliers for barongs. Yes, barong. This is Adrin’s preferred attire on our wedding day.

Our initial scouting trips were within the confines of a mall. We would check out shops from time to time and look at the barongs on the rack. Adrin would look around and take note of his likes and dislikes. He made firm that he doesn’t want the super raw looking ones which consequently are rough to the skin.

As we attended the bridal fairs last month, we also included in our agenda to canvass for barongs. Carefully scrutinizing the designs showcased during the fair broadens our knowledge on the classic formal wear for Filipino men. Thanks also to the very accommodating suppliers there who patiently answered our questions. Being acquainted with pitchera, raya, and calado helped us picture what will look best on Adrin and also our entourage. Haha. Without any intention to book for his attire in that fair, noting down the rates for each item is the best that we can do.

Since last year, I already have a supplier in mind for Adrin’s barong. Rey Casedo is a well-recommended supplier in w@w, and brides are raving about the quality output they got from him for a relatively cheaper price compared to the market’s average. I’m not surprised though since he’s from Lumban Laguna, the barong capital of the Philippines! J

And so, after talking to Rey over the phone on the first week of January, I finally decided to schedule a meeting with him. I also invited my friend Aiza since they are also interested to book Rey for the father’s and entourage’s attire.

It was an early morning meeting in a fast food chain some weeks ago. Rey and his driver got there way earlier than our meeting and we also got there before Aiz and Ron so we immediately discussed with Rey our orders. He had with him barong fabrics in different types (pina, pina cocoon, jusi) and various embroidery designs as well. He first showed us some sample outputs in his car which are for delivery that day. After that, we went through the pile of pina fabrics to diligently examine and appreciate the designs of each one. And finally Adrin was able to decide on the fabric for his barong. Indeed, the actual fabric that will be cut and sewn to be his attire on our wedding day. J

After deciding on the fabric for him, we also chose the fabrics and designs for his father, best man, groomsman, and our secondary sponsors and bearers. Since we forgot to bring our check book, we excused ourselves first so we can withdraw some money for the down payment. Next we handed him our partial payment for the items ordered and had some comforting breakfast. J

If you're also interested of Rey's services, drop me a message so I can link you up with him. J

UPDATE (they now have a Facebook page!):
Facebook Name: EA's Casedo's Embroidery
View Site


Cheers!

Bridal Fair Shindigs

Tweet

After scouring the fair a week before, we again attended the Getting Married bridal fair at SMX just this weekend. Our agenda:

• Finalize our list of drinks for our mobile bar
• Meet-up with my w@wie friends from cyberspace

Upon arrival at SMX, we immediately looked for GQ’s booth. Again, Michelle was manning their station and she instantly remembered us from last week’s fair. We told her that we’ll finalize our drinks list already and so she asked the bartenders to attend to us.

To start off, a copy of the drinks list was handed to us together with their components. This is quite a daunting task as we are only social drinkers. Only a small dose of alcohol can already cause me some dizziness. We started with the household names (in other words, those which we are familiar with. haha!) like tequila and pinacolada. Then we asked for their hit drinks so we can try them also. Some of it we liked, some we just let pass. I did not forget to try on their shooters too, which by the way are just freebies in our package. And boy were they oh so yummy! One of the shooters even tastes like my favourite melon milk. I can barely trace the alcohol in it.  Adrin, on the other hand, tried their jello shots contained in syringes. I wouldn’t let it pass of course so I asked for some. Those were really good too and quite fun to consume. =)

As we were doing our drinks tasting, Nat went back to the booth with Mox in tow. At that point they are also decided to get GQ after trying out some drinks earlier, so while they completed the paperworks, she also took the chance to try different drinks with us. Not long after, Aiz and Jeron arrived. They were already at the fair the previous day so they just went there to meet us. With all the small talk going on between Aiz, Nat, and I, Adrin was left finalizing the rest of the drinks. Haha.

Cris is still nowhere to be found and we’re already done with GQ so we decided to have a quick bio-break to flush out all that alcohol. While waiting for the rest of the gang near the restrooms, Cris and Kim finally arrived. After some very long months of chatting online, I finally was able to meet all of them! They are no longer mere names and pictures that I talk to. Haha. As soon as we’re done with the introductions and pleasantries, Cris passed on to Aiz the w@w tags which we got for her as a surprise. And yes, she really did look surprised with what she was just handed with. Mission accomplished Cris and Nat! =)

After a few chit chats with the girls, we immediately prepared for the main agenda of the meet up, which is to decide on who goes first for our secret project. Really, it's a secret, so I'm not telling. :P As with other situations where I dread picking out a specific item or number, luck is always there to ensure that it comes to me. Yes, I’ll go first. No matter how anxious I get about it, there’s no turning back. I need to do it. It was a fair way of deciding our order anyway, so I can’t complain.

After our small game in the middle of a packed fair, we parted ways and headed out for the rest of our agenda for what’s left of that day. Pretty interesting bridal fair experience right? Not the usual drama of scouting and talking to suppliers. Let’s see what our story will be for the next one. =)

Cheers!

Countdown: 12 months!

Tweet

Reality check, it’s year 2013 and next is our wedding year already. Actually exactly 1 year from today, Adrin and I will walk that nave and get hitched. Weeee!

Since I consider this whole wedding preparations a project, here’s another checkpoint. First, let’s revisit my to-do list 6 months ago and see what we were able to tick-off.

• Bridal Gown Designer > Hana Saab Tomacruz
• Groom’s Attire
• Blueprint for DIY Invitations
• Hair & Make-up Artist > Val Villarin
• Flowers Supplier > Scenta Creations
• Engagement Shoot Moodboard
• DIY Accessories (Wedding Cord-DONE, Prenup Accessories and Props)

Aside from the wedding cord, I was also able to finish some other DIYs  –

• Coins for our arrhae
• Wrist corsage for the Flower Girls
• Rosaries for our Principal Sponsors
• Bible makeover

And book several more suppliers:

• Prenup Venue: Jardin de Miramar (c/o W@W auction)
• Roving Photographer: Studio on Wheels (c/o W@W auction)
• Wedding Rings: Goldenhills Jewelry
• Auxiliary Photographer: Manny and April Photography
• Mobile Bar: GQ Mobile Bar

So, what can you say? Though we missed almost half of the planned list, it was replaced by quite a few other items, and more importantly, some of them are DIYs. Hooray! We're successful in injecting selected personalized elements into our wedding! And we plan to do MORE! Whew, another fruitful phase of our wedding planning. :)

For the next 6 months, this is our to-do list:

1. Groom’s Attire
2. Parents' and Entourage's Attire
3. DIY Invitations and Stationery
4. Engagement Shoot Moodboard
5. Actual Engagement Shoot
6. Initial Food Tasting and Detailing
7. More DIY Accessories

May we have the time and energy to accomplish them all. 'Til the next checkpoint!

Cheers!