[VDL - Part 6] The Wedding Venue

This, is going to be a heavy post.

Picture heavy I mean :)

Finally, I can gladly (and with great relief) declare that OUR VENUE IS CONFIRMED~!

This item took us such a long time to settle (relative to the other items), I have no idea where to start sharing with you guys what exactly happened.

Ok, let's start with my 'dream' wedding venue.

I've always wanted to have a wedding lunch. With sunlight, breeze and pretty flowers in a lovely backyard of sorts :) 

But backyard not possible, because  it either rains or it'll be so warm and humid in Sg wether. And the parents wanted dinner. And the relatives wanted convenience. And some pretty places are just too small or too expensive or too out of the way.

And when the date is finally set, we were more concerned about not being able to secure a wedding venue because we were less than 10 months away from the wedding date! So out of desperation, we emailed (almost) all the hotels listed on SgBrides to check on their availability.

It turns out, that we have 3 hotels still available on our date. And it so happens, that all of them are located on happy island - Sentosa. 

Honestly, it has never crossed my mind that we will be holding our wedding in Sentosa. It's not the most convenient, and it's not the most value-for-money places to hold a wedding. But seriously, we've got 'no choice'!

So over several weeks, we went for site visits at the various hotels. And I totally enjoyed them!

Rasa Sentosa

I liked the view from the ballroom, but didn't like the ballroom itself. There are pillars and the ceiling is relatively low. And the hotel is a tad old, so the deco is a little tacky for our liking...

And I think the solemnization area  is really gorgeous, but I'm looking more for a garden wedding than a beach wedding.

But their service, A-ma-zing :)

Capella

This place is pure sophistication and class - country club style. Their service is the best we've experienced and the place is such an architectural eye-candy. 

But this place cost a bomb, with a heap of additional costs which you have to take into serious consideration (you have to pay extra not just for the valet parking, but of the shuttle service as well!). And it felt... pretentious. Furthermore, we were (extremely unfortunately) greeted by numerous spoilt kids wailing their lungs out all over the hotel so it was quite an uncomfortable experience.

It's a lovely hotel for a luxurious staycation, but not on my list for a wedding banquet.

But honestly, their bridal room is to-die-for!!

Amara Sanctuary Resort Sentosa

And here's the hotel which we visited first because they were one of the first few hotels to get back to us on their availability. A place I've always found beautiful but it has never really crossed my mind that I will ever have my wedding there.

This place made me feel a lot more comfortable and relaxed, with all the sun shine flooding into the entire lobby while the air-con keeps it nice and cool.

And the lush greenery all the around the place!

The picturesque little lane leading to the solemnization area.

And the glass pavilion for the solemnization! When I first saw it, it was like a dream come true for me :) It felt like a garden wedding without the elements of the weather. I LOVE IT! 

Lined with Philippe Starck's Ghost Chairs! I'm already imagining the wedding florals :p

And a bell on top of the pavilion which we'll get to ring after the ceremony if the weather permits :) 

The sales manager drove us to look at the suite on a buggy, but we didn't take any photos of the suite. 

I like how the ballroom is located at a different building from the hotel lobby so the guests and the couple will have the entire lobby to themselves during the special day :)

And a nice toilet is important too~! Best that it came with diffuser rather than the normal air freshener to exude the resort feel :D

And the ballroom with high ceiling and big enough space to accommodate up to 44 tables. Not that we are looking at anything that goes beyond 40 :S

With the number of photos, I think you guys can very well guess which venue we went for :p We went to Amara for a total of 3 times and negotiated quite a bit before confirming the place. I almost freaked out when my VG told me that the place is super popular and doesn't have to worry about not being able to get a booking for my date -_-

We went to sign our contract for the banquet on 21 Apr and we brought mummy along so she can take a look at the place :)

And with that, we settled our venue~!!! Can't believe it, but when we look back... this venue is exactly how I envisioned the wedding to be. And I would have never thought about holding the wedding here, not until we had "no choice". Not until God swerved us back to His plans and opened up our eyes to see what He has in mind for us :) It's SO AMAZING! And did I mention? They are only available for wedding lunch :p

Next up, will be preparation for our pre-wed shoot and exciting things like wedding florals, invitation customization, actual gown selection and many more~!!! 

And I still thought we have more or less settled everything for the wedding -_-

Oh well, more VDL posts to come :)

Trust.

With all the media spotlight on cheating men and the 9pm local drama and 10pm Taiwanese serial both delving on men having affairs, it's tough keeping my mind off the word trust and the significance that it bears in a relationship.

To me, trust is like a huge piece of shiny flawless mirror. When 2 parties stand side by side facing the mirror, you see yourselves in the reflection, just as u are. But once shattered, the tiny pieces will only be able to reflect contorted images.

Piecing it tgt takes a long long time and tireless effort to do so. Even if you managed to do it, the cracks will never go away. It remains there. Cutting you up. What u see in the mirror will always come with a scar.

And you know what?

I always think that the sexiest men, are those who stay true and devoted to their partners, no matter how much temptation they are under ;)

[VDL - Part 5] Our Wedding Bands from B.

Our wedding bands are here! Or rather, our wedding tri-bands :D

Way before planning our wedding, in fact, not too long since we first got tgt, we have already set our mind on having the B. Zero 1 as our dream wedding bands. It's this mutual partiality towards it, right from the beginning, that made the B. Zero 1 very special to us :)

Fast forward 5 years from then, we felt truly blessed that we have the chance to make the rings our wedding bands :) 

We went to the boutique at RWS sometime in Feb to get the ring. But because my ring size is smaller than the standard, they didn't carry it in the boutique and had to order for it to be crafted and shipped over.

After a couple months' of wait, Pops received a call yesterday telling us that the rings have arrived so we excitedly went to collect them first thing after work!

:)

Be. my 0nly 1

♥

It's crazy how often we are going in and out of Sentosa during our wedding planning phase, Pops was commenting that we should just get the annual pass since we foresee quite a few more visits till the end of the year...

Ok, now I truly hope that Part 6 will be a post on the venue :p

Penning The Vow

Caught The Vow over the weekends with pops and I love this show to bits.

Just before we went in for the movie, pops went to buy drinks and as he passed me the cup for a sip, he stuffed a bunch of serviettes into my bag with a cheeky smile.

I thought the show will be a sweet little light-hearted chic-flick, but little did I know, I started trying to hold up my tears since the 1st time I hear the vows being made by the 2 lead characters.

Half-way through the show, I wasn't even trying anymore. I was close to weeping my eyes out without brawling out loud. It was so sad and unrealistically-hollywood sweet!!

Maybe it was because I'm in the midst of preparing for own wedding and when I try to imagine sth like that happening, I felt devastated in their shoes. Or maybe, it's just me, who weep and cry at every touching moments in every single movie.

And pops know.

Thus, the huge bunch of serviettes which I totally exhausted by the end of the show.

And what made it even more comforting, was the way he held me close and just smile at me when I wiped my tear on his shirt.

I'm so touched and inspired by the movie, I'm starting on my own vow too :)

[VDL - Part 4] Actual Day PG and VG

Yes yes, after a week's break, finally some progress in our wedding prep again!

Last weekend, we managed to confirm and sign the contracts with our actual day (AD) photographer and videographer (VG)!

We've actually pretty much confirmed Kent as our AD photog abt a mth ago, but did not sign with him yet because we wanted to be extremely confirmed of the date before we do so. I like Kent for the way he process his photos and the way he captures the special moments and emotions of the people at the wedding.

I can tell from his blog and facebook that he spends a lot of time and effort on the post-processing of the photos and treats them with great pride :)

Kent's Portfolio

We've originally wanted to get the VG that works with him for several projs but he was already engaged for the date :( And I was so disappointed I harped on it for like a mth or so (poor pops indeed :p ) until we found Renatus :)

As we plan our wedding, I really see how God works his amazing plan on us. 

For a good 1 mth or so, I was unable to find a good VG whose video style I like and is of appropriate budget. I was even at the verge of giving up the find and told Pops that if I can't find a VG I like, I rather do w/o one.
Until that day I met up with Gillian and knowing that I'm looking for a VG, she shared with me the contact of Renatus. In fact, she gave me the contact of quite a number of VGs (yes, she's a lot more hardworking than me :p) but Renatus just stood out for some reason.

When I went home and checked out their videos, I immediately emailed them to ask for their availability. There's sth about the way they capture the joy and love of Holy matrimonies that made me feel like they are so special. 

This was the 1st video that I watched on their website:

Their theme was "a land filled with milk and honey", how lovely~!!

Anyway, they are available on 30 Dec so we met up with Melvin on the package and he was such a great person to talk to :) He also gave a lot of advice on all things wedding and I can tell he understands and truly advocates for all wedding videos to be unique :)

And we realize (aft he added us on FB), that he's Christian too! It's like a practical lesson of the truth that when God says no, it doesn't mean He's not giving you what you think is good. He is just saying "Wait, I've got sth better."

And so, we've successfully decided on and confirmed everything that we need to confirm for our wedding EXCEPT the venue. Ta-dah....

But the past weekend has been a flurry of exciting hotel visiting ;) hopefully I can conclude our venue seeking adventure in the next VDL post! **P.S. I've got tons of photos for that one!

Permanence

Today, pops shared an extremely joyous news with me :)
I'm so so so happy for him and we are very thankful for this piece of wonderful news!
Thank God for His guidance and providence :) His blessings are abundant and His grace is beyond our comprehension!
I'm noting this down so that we can rmb this moment and never take a blessing like this for granted :)

[VDL - Part 3] Actual Day Gown Package

The past 2 weeks had been most exciting and fulfilling, jammed pack with wedding preparation :)

Today, we checked off another item on our wedding checklist - Bridal studio (BS) for actual day gown rental.

It's one thing checking out gowns virtually, and it's a whole different experience trying gowns physically!

You can't imagine the thrill that overwhelmed me when I first set foot at the edge of Tanjong Pagar Street, looking at a whole row of bridal shops in front of me :D

We did our first BS shopping last weekend. And I naively thought that I can conquer at least 2 or 3 BS and try some gowns in 2 hours before we rush off for another appointment. Man, I couldn't have been more wrong -_-

Pops stood at the start of the street and had no idea where to begin, so I walked straight ahead and halted right in front of Z' Wedding. I had a few of their gowns in mind when I saw their collection on their website. So when the guy at the door asked if we would like to go in and check out the gowns, I think I hopped in without giving pops a chance to react.

Allysa, one of the designers, attended to us. Before talking to us about the package, she asked me for some details and also the kind of gowns that I'm looking for, I showed her 1 picture. And she pulled out a gown that made me nod my head so excitedly I think I must have looked really silly. 

 She urged me to try it. Because if I don't find the gowns suitable, I should not have any reason to take up the package, no matter how good a deal it is. 

And so I tried my very first wedding gown.

The simplicity of the gown coupled with the lush volume and unique, asymmetrical layers were just what I'm looking for. And I'm surprised it fitted almost perfectly! It's like made-to-measure taken off-the-rack. 

Allysa later went through the package with me in great details, but a pity, we had rush off for the next appointment. And I realised we only went into one BS and tried 2 gowns out of the many many which I thought I could try!

So today, we went back to the stretch of BS again just to fulfill my wish of trying more wedding gowns :)

To avoid repeating what we did the previous week, the 2 of us briskly walked though the whole stretch of BS, including those at Tras Street, just to get a feel of the gowns they have. 

Only 1 other BS caught my eyes and we went in to speak with the sales consultant. The lady was really nice and I felt comfortable talking to her. She let me try on a few gowns. Actually, a lot of gowns. I tried a total of 6 gowns over there and all them looked pretty, but I didn't feel for any of them. She later showed me 4 storey of gown collection and I was pretty convinced that with the multitude of choices, I should not have a problem finding what I want.

And their package was pretty cheap compared to the one offered by Z. But I managed to wriggle my way out from signing the package with them on the spot as I really wanted to go back to Z and take a closer look at their gown collection before making a decision. 

Z was really packed today as they just launched a new collection of gowns. We tried to get Z to lower the price of their package but they were rather firm on it and chose to throw in more items for the package instead. They never lower their price, just as the forums say. 

They let me try another wedding gown. Which was sth I really like as well, because they now know my style and what I'm looking for. 

Allysa then brought a dusty purple evening gown to me and I was so surprised! It was the first evening gown that made me turn my head and stare at it when I walked past the racks. Allysa was walking in front of me so she won't have seen my exaggerated action. She told me that she designed this pc and wld really like to see me in it as she thought that it suits me. 

When she drew the curtain of the changing room open after I put it on, Pops nodded his head profusely in approval. The couple next to me stopped talking and the wife told her husband that she just realize how lovely the gown is. Allysa was staring at me excitedly with sparkle in her big eyes. I, personally, love that dress to bits. 

The feeling was awkwardly amazing. 

That was when I realize the difference between wearing a pretty gown and wearing a beautiful one which you fell in love with. Pops say he could totally tell from my face, without me saying anything, that I've found the one(s) at Z.

They then brought us to check out the guys' suit and pops tried a few which look really great on him :) Apparently he has "model built" too so he can wear anything there, even the new collection which came in 1 size only for the models to shoot the promo spread.  

And the deal is sealed. 

Next up, we aim to confirm our venue before the end of the month!

After wedding edit:
I had some problems with the zip of the gown on my actual day and ended up not wearing the main gown for my first march-in. Was pretty disappointed, but the hype at the wedding more than made up for the disappointment so I was fine that day. However, it was the attitude of the people at the bridal studio which got me really upset :( not only were they not empathetic about the situation, they made it sound like I was trying to get away with sth. HELLO. My big day, seriously?

So a lot of people asked me for reviews and to be honest, I went there because I think thought the quality is better, but oh well, I got nth much to say abt it now.

Those old words of gold

Recently, an ad presented by HPB on dementia caught my attention.

I thought it was extremely well done as it pricked my emotions and the old chinese song was left lingering on my mind. 

I googled and found out that it was a short film by Royston Tan.

It makes me want to run back home and sit at my grandma's feet just to listen to her reminiscing about her childhood, the Japanese occupation, when my dad was little... 

Those words that I've heard so many times that I can guess her next sentence when she says sth. But I realize I should never feel too tired of listening to them. 

When she speaks about all these memories, I imagined them playing in black and white. But I bet that they are playing in full technicolour in her mind. 

Those old words of gold. 

The most beautiful treasure one can ever find :)

[VDL - Part 2] Searching for THE Dress

Somewhere along the week, I randomly whipped out my phone and typed "wedding gown" in the little google search box on my way to work. 

Before I know it, I was prowling through images after images and websites after websites of white, fluffy, lacey, lovely wedding dresses. I had a tough time trying to stop thinking about them and immediately resumed this activity after I returned home from work. 

Why did no one tell me that this can be so addictive?!

Oh well, pleasure moments are always addictive, I guess that should have came with some common sense :)

I never really had any idea what my dream wedding dress will be. Tube, heart, halter, toga, mermaid, A-line, lace, crystals, sash? No idea. Till, well, after I opened the "pandora box of wedding dresses" :)

I figured I would really like to have something with minimal, if not understated, embellishments. Yet, I do not want something too plain and 'un-bridely', so I'd want the details to blend in, and at the same time stand out, from the fabric. Confusing? I know, I don't make a very good designer :X

But I found the key word to it - FLANGE.

And flange looks gorgeous on Vera Wang's White collection. *yums*

I hope I can find sth similar in Sg :)

And I totally fell in love, like head-over-heels-in-love, with this gorgeous evening gown below. 

It's a 2010 collection by Carlo Pignatelli, but there's just sth about this dress that makes its image linger in my head. Love it love it. 

I'm not carrying much hope in finding sth like this in Sg, but I bet I'll sign with any BS that has anything remotely similar to it. 

And..... after close to a week of virtual shopping, I made pops promise that he'll wake up early tmr so that we can go BS shopping at Tanjong Pagar :D

Seriously, I swear that 2 weeks ago, I was not even half as exited as I am right now about the wedding.

I foresee stressful and trying times ahead, as we juggle numerous things, get tied down by deadlines, be bogged down by lots of correspondences, learn to manage expectations, strive to preserve relationships and make important decisions along the way. 

But I believe that the thought of the wedding will be enough to conjure a smile :)

If I show any sign of becoming a bride-zilla, any signs at all, please give me a good shake and wake me up. And sometimes, when things get a little to crazy and exciting, I just need a pair of listening ears and a patient companion for me to download all my emotions. 

That said, I'm still anxious like mad about the venue!

[VDL - Part 1] Let the Journey Begin!

The whole wedding thing is moving soooo fast, I feel like I need to put the whole experience down in words and pictures before it all happens and ends in a wink! 

Both of us originally wanted our wedding to happen earliest in the first quarter of 2013. We would have preferred to settle for a convenient date but parents being parents, we were given an auspicious date to abide to.

And it's really really soon. Read: END OF 2012

So before we know it, the preparation for the wedding went into full swing.

Thankfully, we managed to settle a number of items over the past 2 mths. 

We booked out pre-wedding shoot with a Korea company whose style I really really love and has been dreaming of getting my wedding photos taken there since I first saw their work!

We've also bought our wedding bands and are waiting for them to be shipped over from their hometown :) While it's not customized, I love the fact that each of them are hand-crafted. I think we've been talking abt using the B.Zero1 for our wedding bands since a few years ago, so I'm very thankful that we finally got it :)

We've also somehow, very digressively, managed to get our wedding shoes :p 

Our cheap airtix to Korea has also been booked, at a super worthwhile price coz SQ is having some super deal right now :D

Have also shortlisted a photographer to cover the actual day event. A pity that the videographer is not available as well... 

Right now, the most important thing that is yet to be settled is....

THE WEDDING VENUE.

I know......... this should have been the first item on the list, but the date was only fixed recently and seriously, how many hotels are still available for a wedding at the end of the year?!

As desperate time calls for desperate measures, we emailed every single hotels over the weekend (Almost. Even St. Regis, just for the fun of it :p ) to ask for their availability on that 'special day'. 

A number of hotels got back to us the very next day and some of them are available!! I think we've both secretly set our eyes on 1 particular one, but we just need to check the ballroom out for the assurance.

Activities coming up:

- Meet with liaison person for pre-wedding shoot

- Book accom in Korea

- Site visit to wedding venue(s)

- Shopping for AD bridal package

- Meeting up with AD photographer (still pinning on some hopes that we can get the videographer toooo)

- other exciting things which have yet to come to my mind :)

I thank God for His amazing blessings thus far and pray that He will continue to guide us through this exciting Journey of Love and draw us closer to Him and closer to each other :) AMEN~!!