W@W Christmas Party 2012

It was our first time to attend a W@W christmas party and super curious ko lang kasi everyone is so excited to attend tas dami pa nagpopost na pa-raffle prizes daw will be drawn during the event.

An Unfortunate Turn of Events

I am writing today with sad news. My brother passed away last week and this brought my family great sorrow because he is too young to no longer be in this world. Because of this unfortunate event, I have talked to Athan to cancel our wedding next year and instead have a civil wedding instead in my hometown, Zamboanga, this coming December or January in which he has agreed. I don't feel like celebrating a wedding is appropriate at all as we are all still in mourning. And to think dalawa lang kame
magkapatid. So sad lang talaga.

Our First Prenup =)

The day has finally come where we will be having our very first prenup experience. And it's free! Well.. not really free but it's almost free since we only had to pay php1000 for it. hehehe It was the 2nd prenup marathon held by Imagine Nation in cooperation with Weddings at Work and also other wedding suppliers as their sponsor. Read on to find out how we went through with our prenup day. =D

The Manhikan

After months of planning, the day where both of our families meet finally came. Athan's family arranged to go to Zamboanga to meet with my parents and formally discuss about our wedding. I'm so touched din kasi ang dami nila pumunta Zambo to be at the manhikan. I am thankful din to those na hindi nakapunta pero had extended their intentions to join sana =)

Purpledish Catering Cocktail Night

Our caterer, Purpledish, has yet set another food tasting but this time Chef only served appetizers. This way we can select soup, canapes and other appetizers that we want to be served on our wedding day. Sadly, wala masyadong Filipino appetizers only the amuse-bouche na Caldereta Risotto lang. Pero ayos lang kasi masarap naman halos lahat ng naserved. They even served pizza and makis. Yum yum yum... Hindi pa kaya nalulugi si Chef sa amin? Panay free food na kami sa kanya hehehe

Wala kame dalang cameras so this pictures are from Zalby. Thanks Zalby for taking a picture of us! Miss you girls already =)

Gorgeous W@W brides

My First Boudoir Shoot

Dream ko ang magboudoir shoot when I get thin again. But I never expected that that dream will happen anytime soon.

Another Batch of DIY Flowers

Once you start doing it, you just can't stop! Hehehe In just one night, I was able to make 2-3 kinds of flowers. Obvious na hindi excited nu? hehehe Here's pics of what I have done.

Felt Mums and Roses

Felt Roses

Wedding Preparation Update

It's been already six months since we have started doing our wedding preparations and so proud to say that we are nearing the completion of our dream team!

Weddings at Work EB at Cucina ni Chef Soft Opening

We finally were able to attend one of W@W's EB. Weeee... And so happy we did because it sure was fun to see the faces behind the group and was able to meet some suppliers din (Osep+Mimi and Alt-X, Archie). Thanks w@w for holding such fun events. Sali kami ulit sa next EB. hehehe

W@Wies together with suppliers (pic courtesy of Alt-X)

When: September 2, 2012 4PM onwards

Where: Cucina ni Chef, Ermita, Manila

My First DIY Chrysanthemum Flower

Nakapunta din kami ni Athan sa divisoria at nakabili materials para sa flowers. Nahirapan kame sobra sa paghanap ng felt cloth, usually sinasabi ng tindero meron kame niyan lahat ng colors tas aalis sila tas pagbalik wala na daw pala sila stock. Buti na lang meron mga honest at mabait na tinderos/tinderas na nag-inform sa amin na dun daw sa Manco ang bilihan ng mga felt cloth. Nahanap din naman ang Manco kaso closed siya kasi holiday.

Couture Booked!

We are so happy to have finally found our couture, Jun Pimentel. We are so grateful to have him kasi super bait niya and it was fate that we met him.

Do It Yourself and Inspirations

Our wedding crew is almost complete and we have only a year na lang before our wedding. hahaha ang tagal pa pero feeling ko mabilis lang yan one year. Shocks! We still don't have a motif yet. =( Initially it was red or maroon pero since my mom doesn't like it saka one of our friend who's a soon-to-be din are having red as their motif - I guess having red as our motif is out. We are now thinking of having pastel colors. Below are inspiration pics and also list of DIYs we plan to do for our wedding.

Lights and Sounds Booked!

We have come to meet our Lights and Sounds supplier through the Weddings and Beyond expo at NBC Tent. I don't usually ask around Lights and Sounds suppliers during expos because last time I did that I would normally be blown away by their prices. They were way too expensive because my budget range for them was only Php 8,000 to 10,000 and that's it. But boy am I lucky to have noticed one particular booth that I have not encountered yet from any other expos.

Purpledish W@Wies EB =D

It was a rainy Wednesday evening but we still pushed through with going to Cucina ni Chef at Manila to attend Chef Velmor's dinner invite to be able to meet our event stylist, Gideon Hermosa.

Officially a W@Wie

We are now official w@wies! Weeee... We have just received our w@w tags. So happy to hold them. This will serve as our remembrance during our wedding preparation days. (",) Special thanks to Abet and Benz for creating the W@W group. Looking forward to be able to get exclusive discounts from sought after suppliers hihihi

Caterer Booked!

Weeee... We have just booked our caterer yesterday! And it's the caterer that we both love ever since we started our suppliers hunt. We are so proud to have Purpledish Catering as our official caterer! hehehe

Suggested Hotels for our Guests

Listed below are hotels that are affordable and are nearby the ceremony and reception venue. Please do take note that price may change so do contact them directly for more updated prices.

Help us win our honeymoon (",)

We have just joined a Love Story contest in Kasal.com and we would like to ask for you to help us win the contest.


Here's the steps on how you can help:
1. Go to http://www.kasal.com.ph/mykasal/love_story/25625
2. Click on the Like button.


That's it! Thank you for helping, we really appreciate it!

Church and Reception Venue Booked!

I just had the best birthday weekend ever - thanks to my ever loving and sweet fiance. (",)

We both decided to take leave from office on my birthday, July 20, to be able to go to Marikina and finally book our church and reception!

Food Tasting: Ma Del's Cuisine

We went to Intramuros yesterday afternoon to visit one of Ma Del's actual weddings. The event was held at Casa Blanca - a great venue for Filipiniana themed weddings. However, it was kind of small, siguro mga 100-150 guests lang (in my opinion). And medyo drawback sa akin ung mga cement pillars kasi other unfortunate tables won't be able to see the couples.

Food Tasting: Purple Mint Catering

We just had our food tasting with Purple Mint Catering early this morning. Their venue was in East Tulips Garden, Pasig City. First time namin na encounter tong venue, the place is good for intimate events siguro it can accommodate 50-80 guests.

Cartoon 101

Wedding invites nowadays usually includes a caricature or cartoon of the couple but having someone do the job for you would cost 1000 pesos or more. So I turn on to google to find me a tutorial on how to create our own cartoon and I have found this easy to follow guide:
http://cartoonized.net/tutorial-turning-photograph-into-cartoon-part1.php

Second Look at U.P. Balay Kalinaw

We have already booked several suppliers but we still have not decided the most important detail to the wedding yet - which is the church and the reception.

I'd love to have the reception in Kapitan Moy and the ceremony in San Roque Church (a.k.a. Our Lady of the Abandoned Parish). Both venues are just too divine and perfect for our theme. But the location is way too far for most our guests =( 

Food Tasting: Julio's Catering

We finally had our food tasting with Julio's last Sunday. Finding their office was not that hard. They were located along Taft Ave. corner Nakpil St., bumaba lang kame LRT Pedro Gil station then walked lang until we reach Nakpil.

Food Tasting: Quido's Grill

We finally had our food tasting with Quido's Grill kanina in Ramon Magsaysay Center, Pasay. They were setting up for a wedding so we had the chance to see how the place looks like. It was simple but elegant. Ang ganda naman and to think napaka-affordable ng rates nila. Below are some pics Athan took while I was talking to Ms. Jaja.

Grand Food Tasting: Avengoza

Me and Athan went to Fernwoods last Sunday to attend Avengoza's Grand Food Tasting. I was expecting to see other suppliers there because it was a "Grand" food tasting, but was disappointed kasi sila lang talaga ung nandun.

The venue was beautiful (as expected, Fernwoods e hehehe) but it was quite hot in the morning kahit na may mga mists and fans. We went there around 12 noon na. The table settings are so-so lang, parang hindi nga sila masyado nagprepare e. Maybe sa food talaga sila nagconcentrate (I thought).

Wedding Expo June 2012 by Themes and Motif

Me and Athan went to World Trade Center during the weekend to attend the Philippine Wedding Summit organized by Themes and Motif. What's great about events organized by Themes and Motif is that they always have loot bags for all their attendees. =) I'm so happy that I have another bridal magazine to browse through weee

Quezon City Hotels

Listed below are accommodations found in Quezon City. Rates mentioned are as of date of writing. It may be possible that rates will increase by 2013. 
Important tip: Book your hotel accommodations two to three months before the event. Sometimes hotels give out special rates for early bookings. (",)

Ongoing Wedding-Related Deals 6.20.2012

I have listed below ongoing deals that bride-to-be's can avail for their weddings. Before purchasing a deal, please always read their fine prints most especially the validity period of vouchers. We wouldn't want to buy something that we can't use, right? =)
Enjoy!

Food Tasting: Royalty Catering

We had our food tasting with Royalty Services at Cuisine Centrale Restaurant sa Quezon City nung weekend. It was not free though, we had to pay for the per pax price of our selected menu. But I must say it was all worth it. We had a very sumptuous meal kahit na 1 pax lang ang pina-serve namin. Miss Marie was very friendly and accommodating with our questions and requests. They are also willing to source out for our other suppliers like venues, sounds and lights, etc. 

Hair and Make-Up Booked!

I have just booked our very first supplier! And what's funny about it is it's for hair and make-up! hahaha

Venue Hunting: Trip to U.P. Campus, Diliman, Quezon City

Since Athan is an alumni of U.P., he suggested to have our wedding within the campus. He then brought me to the campus and we checked out the church and some venues there. Below are pics and information regarding the venues.

Venue Hunting: Trip to Marikina

Ang hirap maghanap ng venue, ang mahal naman kasi ng mga magagandang venues =(

Our first priority is to be able to decide on a reception venue then decide on a church nearby para hindi mahirapan mga guests to commute.

My Personal Schedule and Budget

Our working budget for the wedding is php300,000 for 150 guests. Can we actually make it? Abangan... hahaha Anyways, below is a very rough draft of our budget.

Shortlist Caterers

It's so hard to decide on a caterer especially if on a very tight budget. huhuhuh...

Below are our shortlisted caterers that fits our budget. We need to try the food out first before making any decisions though.. Will be posting pics and reviews on our next food tastings with them (para hindi rin naman ma-forget ang experience) =D

Schedule of Grand Food Tasting

Get to know your caterers and taste their food first-hand before deciding on booking.

For updated listing, please visit: http://themakingofadreamwedding.blogspot.com/2012/06/schedule-of-grand-food-tasting.html

Schedule of Wedding Expos

Great way to find suppliers is by attending wedding expos plus we even get the chance to book them at big discounts and sometimes with freebies. =D

For updated listing, please visit http://themakingofadreamwedding.blogspot.com/2012/06/schedule-of-wedding-expo.html