SCORE.

I scored TWO Polaroid Cameras (circa 80's-90's) for about $4 from one of my favorite thrift stores. Luckily one still had film inside, so it functioned as soon as I repositioned the film cartridge. Another camera had an empty cartridge but it still had power left to operate the thing. I switched it around cameras and found a second functioning camera in the same model as the first. Total purchase for two Polaroid Cameras (to be used for the wedding guestbook and future personal use) $7.50.

Sadly I wasted a whole lot of money by purchasing a Polaroid package from a newlywed knottie who only needed the camera for her wedding guestbook, it was fairly new camera (purchased only for her wedding purposes) with two unopened packages of film. I paid $50 for the package, which seems like a good deal because she bought it for $75, plus I gave up on trying to find them in thrift shops! I think I'll try to sell it back to someone for $30+shipping, then at least I get to keep the polaroid packs which makes it worthwhile.

I had such a great find, its too bad Polaroid won't make the film very longer. SADFACE.

Darn.

Already been done....

I wanted to do Thriller at the wedding. Check out the groom in this video, you know it was totally his idea.... hahaha

I have decided....

To FORGO the following:

_ NO garter toss, I don't even want to buy/wear a garter
_ NO bouquet toss, I want to keep parts of it (not ordering bridesmaid bouquets)
_ We are also on the fence about the money dance, it takes up too much time

I feel these are all obligatory time crushers, if your reception is super long--then by all means have at it. Our reception has to end at 9:30pm, so we're cutting things we don't really care for.

Absolutely Necessary:

_ Complete wedding party introduction
_ First dance
_ Father-Daughter/Mother-Son dances (same time, can't waste!)
_ Toasts/speeches from the 2 moh's and 2 best men
_ Slideshow
_ Cake cut-cupcake feed
_ At least a full hour of dancing time, if not more

I got the shoes...

SO I have been searching sporadically for shoes. It can't hurt to already have them in my possession right?

Well lo and behold a pair I have had my eye on was on sale on Overstock.com, in my color, and only ONE left in my size. So I jumped on 'em. They were practically half off at $54, msrp at other retailers is still $105, plus shipping was only a dollar. They were made for me, it was too good of a coincidence.

Problem is... they're stilettos! They're currently the highest heels I own, but they fit perfectly! Do I need to remind everyone that my whole ceremony and reception is on grass?!?

In all their glory, The Charles David "Tux" in teal:

Since they are stilettos I am going to have to get a pair of these as well, with out girls from theKnot I would have never known these existed:

Sole Mates High Heelers

Feather Fascinators!

Thats what they're called.

I love you internet.

Feathers?

I absolutely hate feathers. I have a great fear of birds, partially due to their feathers. BUT, after watching Project Runway and seeing vintage inspired feather hair pieces I think I will try to overcome my fear for the wedding day. Haha. [Semi-spoiler alert] You know how SJP wore a crazy bird-feather piece on her head on her (first) wedding day? [End spoiler-alert] Well the bird was a little much but I thought the presence was awesome, and super stylish.

I am currently working a custom hair flower with birdcage veil with Etsy seller: Myrakim. I'm thinking I might ask for big feathers. DID YOU SEE THE PROJECT RUNWAY FINALE? That's my rationale, despite my fear--I'm going to over come it for fashion. Myra's work is beautiful by the way, check it out:

Definitely NO brown or colored feathers for me, the one above is still too much too look at, its giving me goose bumps. I would go with a safe plume-like white.

And in case you missed the PJ finale, the look used by Kenley.

Hello China!

So due to my influx of downtime and because I am wedding crazy I have ventured past the Hawaii board on theKnot.com and occasionally lurk on the NorCal board. Because of this I am introduced to a completely different set of brides with resources I've never heard of. I love it, its awesome.

I stumbled upon one girls post who was showing everyone the progress of the dress she was having constructed, based on her custom design, in CHINA! She is paying about $400 for it and its super freaking complicated. It has also come to my attention that many famous designers outsource their dresses to China anyway. So that Melissa Sweet 3k "Nell" dress I originally wanted? Yeah... its only really worth about $300, easy. So I contacted the bride and she told me she's done TONS of research, checked multiple possible vendors and they had the best reputation and reviews.

So, I took a chance and contacted them too. I sent them photos and a detailed description of my hearts desire. They sent me back a quote...

DRUMROLL FOR THE GRAND TOTAL: $140 for the dress (materials & labor), $50 for the shipping, $190 done deal.

I feel like I want to run into the streets and tell the first person I see that my custom wedding dress is only going to cost me a little less than $200. I also feel like calling every female I know, just to hear some kind of crazy congratulations, followed by a few concerned questions on if I really trust the company/process (of course, I expect this).

This finding has come at the most appropriate time as well, its almost serendipitous. BECAUSE... I have been using my FMIL as my middle-man to have my dress done by the same designer who created her 25th anniversary gown last year in the Philippines. He seemed to think that he knew exactly what I needed, a couture flowy gown for my garden/beach wedding. I don't know why Filipino gay men are such divos. He has no clue who I am, he wanted me to "leave it up to him" based on a recent photo and my measurements. Insert my "HELL NO" right now. Did I mention he wanted $550 for the dress he was going to make with HIS IDEAS? It still gives me a headache to think that someone would want me to trust them with their own perception of MY wedding dress. AHH HEADACHE! I have such a huge opinion on just about every damn thing I can't even think someone in this world expects me NOT to have an opinion on wth I wear on my wedding day. He's crazy, I can't thank the other bride enough for announcing her custom dress at the right time.

In case anyone needs to hear my prepared justifications...
My TOP 10 REASONS as to why I am willing to go through this process, in an instant:
_ My parent's were going to have this dress created for me in the Philippines, my mom absolutely has no sense of fashion sometimes, I am her biggest critic but I love her intensely, she has NO CLUE on how to direct a dress for me
_ Do I need to mention the divo dressmaker who wanted me to "leave it to him?"
_ I was quoted for $1400 from SF dressmakers, for the same dress with the same exact descriptions
_ The company has raving reviews from US brides
_ They are great with communication and there is no language barrier, no "lost in translation"
_ They create a dress pattern first and then a "test dress" to make sure the real dress is accurate and what you want, they adjust the "test dress" at least three times if they need to
_ They send you updates and photos throughout the whole process
_ It only takes 60 days
_ Its $190!
_ I can spend $$ on other things...

I envisioned the dress to be a beautiful combination of the two following dresses:

Contacts!

For my own personal sanity I have vowed not to be in contact with wedding vendors this week. I don't mind planning but I've just been overwhelmed with the number of people I have been in contact with lately. Lets count shall we?

Kate:
_ Wedding coordinator
_ Potential florists, THREE separate (still trying to see who fits the bill best, LITERALLY!)
_ Cupcake maker
_ Potential bartenders, THREE separate
_ Full-service wedding company for rentals & waitstaff
_ Custom bridal hairpiece maker
_ Custom cake topper artist
_ Hawaiian Airlines for an airfare discount
_ American Airlines for an airfare discount
_ Vacation rental companies
_ Hotel chains for group discounts
_ ETC, ETC...

Jeff:
_ Officiant (I of course started the leg-work for this, he hasn't even personally contacted the company yet)

The other day I was PISSSSSED at Jeff for making our save the date mailing more labor intensive than it needed to be. I thought I gave him such an easy task, to set up the mailing labels. The next day I blew up when I realized not everyone on our list was printed on the labels, and our list didn't denote whose was mailed out and whose addresses we still needed. BLEW UP.

With my list... you can see why. All is forgiven though, haha.

P.S. I really do love wedding planning though. I have a natural knack for planning in general, I got this from my dad. Plus, its pointless to try to use Jeff as a middle man, honestly--he'll just f-up, and we both know this. If you want it done right, you do it yourself.

ROSS... I got it at ROSS..

I think I will definitely be making a trip to ROSS when we get to Oahu in July. I went in today to look for some cheap candles and found all sorts of stuff to be dolled up for a wedding. First off they had huge apothecary jars for $9.99 each, and a smaller set of three for $11.99. While I don't expect to have a candy buffet (other than the mere fact that it makes a great photo) it is tempting to think of something to fill those beautiful jars with. I also went around looking for wicker baskets because we'll be needing one to house parasols, check, they had wicker laundry baskets starting at $5.99. I thought we'd have to go to Cost Plus or Michael's but NOPE, no more, I will just go straight to Ross when we get off the plane.

Its great to shop savvy.

Ohh and they also had ridiculously cheap cake cutting sets, not fancy-fancy-wedding-types but WHO REALLY CARES? Another check on the list.

Wedding Day - FAIL

Wedding Ring Exchange -FAIL

Aaaaaaaaaahahahahaha. How mortifying, luckily I'm not getting married on top of a swimming pool.

Note* I think Jeff and I have the worst sense of humor because I sent it him the link and he responded with pure laughter. I laughed so hard the first time I saw it.

Did you hear the girl who was laughing though? It was a "oooOoohhhh hhoo hoo Nooo.. hah ahha ha" laugh. Now that's messed up.

"Thought for the Day"

My dad sends mass emails called "Thought for the Day" a few times a week. Today it said:

"Don't marry the person you think you can live with. Marry the one you can't live without." -Unknown

Cake Topper

I'm currently in contact with a great artist to have a custom cake topper created.

My Guys by Meredith Dittmar

First Dance, FINAL.

Not corny, good beat, and meaningful words.

Happy 7 years 3 months to the future husband.

The Cutest Wedding Ever

Tulips, Barong Tagalog, the bride is in Vera Wang, AND its at a vineyard. This was my California wedding. Documented by Leigh Miller.