6 & 5 Days to the Wedding - Family Meeting and Pre-Wedding Shoots

I know I said I'll write every day, counting down the last 10 days before the wedding, but the weekend was too packed with activities, that I did not have time to sit and write...the problem with the home router did not help as well. So, what happenned on my LAST SINGLE WEEKEND?

Saturday, 7 Days to the Wedding

Family Meeting:

I think it is tradition, that a couple of weeks before the wedding, the host family will call for a meeting to brief close relatives on the wedding, delegate work, invite suggestions etc. So, my parents hosted a small family meeting last Saturday, over nasi lemak and coffee for breakfast. Basically, everything is already taken care of by Bapak. All we needed was a floor manager and ushers for family guests. Abang Imran, the uber-event-organiser was appointed as floor manager...I am so very grateful that he agreed because he is very organised and reliable! So THANKS!!

Pre-Wedding Photo Shoot:

As I have mentioned in an earlier post, I did not plan to have a pre-wedding photo shoot. But Aliff's uncle wanted to take casual photos of us prior to being married. He plans to make a little scrap book/journal for us. He likes taking photographs as a hobby, so we went along with it. After the meeting, went to Uncle Osman's place, took some pictures there, then we moved to my place and last destination was Aliff's grandma's place.

Other things accomplished:

We also went for fitting for the Groom's Reception attires. Everything looks good, but it is quite loose, so they'll need to do some alteration. After the photoshoot, we went to Ikea to get some stuff for the room, but was quite dissapointed because there was not much new stuff, and nothing really caught our interest. So, ended up only getting a carpet for the room and few other stuff which Bapak will call "sampah" hahahha... He doesn't like Ikea.

Sunday, 6 Days to the Wedding

Pre-Wedding Videoshoot

This was also an 11th hour decision...did not actually plan to do this, but suddenly decided to do it. We did it with the videographer appointed as the videographer for the wedding; Mimota Studio. They were highly recommended by a friend, and after viewing their work, I booked them. The team is a husband and wife team with a new additional member, the brother. The husband is the main videographer, he is only doing this part time, full time he is a banker with CIMB. So, he bonded well with Aliff. The wife is with PETRONAS. But they are very friendly and laid back and easy to work with.

The shoot started at about 9.30am. We had to do it early cause Aliff had to go in to office after. The shoot is for the video montage that will be played during the reception dinner. The shoot was done at the bridge infront of PICC, Putrajaya. Below it is a park, where people jog. We initially wanted to do it in a closed studio, but because it was quite last minute didn't manage to find any available studios. So, takpelah, malas fikir.

The plan is that the video montage will start off with a short interview of me and Aliff on how we met and how we got together. And then just random shots of us doing whatever. Hahah...the video montage will then continue with some pictures of us and then the Nikah highlights. Overall about 5-6 minutes of footage for the video montage.

Hopefully the video montage will turn out ok...tiba-tiba nervous pulak, re-thinking of what I said during the interview, I hope I don't make a fool of myself...I am VERY video-shy. Hahahah. So, can't wait for that! Tamimi, make me look good ok!

Then he shot our "Invitation Reminders" to our guests. A 35 seconds of footage reminding guests of THE dates...this was the videographer's very cute idea. He had posted it on FB and it looks really cute!

Other things accomplished:

We finished the video shoot close to 11.00am. Went back and had late breakfast at Sisters, a small chinese shop in USJ. It's halal, and very nice! Then Aliff sent me home and went to office. I took a looooooonggg nap because I was exhausted. Woke up at about 3pm, picked up Ibu at Empire and went to look for curtain and bedding set for the room. Didn't get both, but managed to get a Kaftan for me from Maisonnette, Subang Parade, for the Malam Berinai. Yeay! It is quite expensive, more than budgeted for, but I was tired of looking and there's really not much time left. So, closed my eyes and paid the tab. It is creme in color with elaborate multi-color beadworks at the neck line. It needed some alteration and will be ready on Tuesday. I also did a mock up of the centrepieces for tables to be set up at home under the canopies. I think I've gotten everything I need for that, save for the flowers.

Oh, my MOH has arrived from Aussieeee!!

TODAY -

Today I am in the office. Last day before the Cuti Kahwin. Plans to go to Floristika after work and order flowers. Ibu is already on leave so she'll get the MPSJ permit for the canopies to be set up infront of the house, get a tailor to do the curtains (hopefully someone can do it with such short notice) and look for the bedding set. Tonight I plan to set up the home pelamin.

Will write more tonight, I hope.

Feelings: Nervous as hell, No mood to work. Very thirsty...have gulped down 2 bottles of mineral water - is this wedding nerves related? hmmm

7 Days - Flow of Event & Last Minute Purchases

Today I am actually panicking a bit.

Reason :

(1) I was preparing the "To Do" list and it is still quite long.

(2) I also prepared the flow of the event for the reception dinner and that got me really nervous. I've prepared flow of events a couple of times before, but this time, the "Bride & Groom enters", "The Bride & Groom to the maintable", "The Bride & Groom exit" ... the "Bride" is ME! OMG. Can't believe its really happening.

OK. So enough with the freaking out. Calculated the balance of payments to be made. Cha chinggggg. Haih, can't believe all that money is going to these 2 nights. Tak pe. Once in a lifetime, have to make it count right?

I'm leaving the office for lunch break today to get some last minute purchases for the hantarans, bunga telur, kaftans....I'm thinking of getting a half day...boss tak ada! hahaha...

This weekend is really packed with things to do. Final fittings, Videoshoot, Photoshoot, Family Meeting, Seating Arrangements (I'm kind of annoyed to those yang quite berat nak RSVP..seriously, you should know by now whether you can attend or not right? sorry if I'm being rude, the stress is getting to me) .... lagi apa? Cleaning up the house and the room.

Monday is my last "official" working day until the wedding. I've finished all my outstanding work, except for 2 more bloody contracts, which I will do Monday. Then, bye bye office.

Nothing more to write, need to finish up a few stuff before I leave for lunch break.

Tomorrow's post might be longer :)

8 Days - Wedding Gifts: My Wish List :)

I always buy wedding gifts at the 11th hour, and it can be stressful to last minute people like me. Wedding Gifts that I have given in the past includes; a huge alarm clock, matching towels with the bride and groom's name embroidered onto the towels, cutlery set, cake mixer, duvet, lingeries and CASH. I usually resort to the latter if I really can not find the time to get gifts, but I am sure most often than not it is always preferred by the bride and groom :)

I have received a few wedding gifts already:

1. Cash - Thank You to my parents' friends who could not make it to the wedding but so thoughtfully slipped a few RMs :)
2. Crystal Vase - Also from a friend of the parents who could not make it. So thoughtful!
3. Bed - from Ibu :)
4. One night stay in Shangri La, Putrajaya (after the reception) - From Kakmira and Adri. YEAY!
5. Lingerie ;) - From my bestie Shyra
6. Victoria Secret perfume - From another bestie, Atun

Since the weekend is approaching I am sure (chehhhh) that some of my guests might go looking for my wedding gifts...hehehhehe perasan I know. But to those who read this blog and is looking for a wedding gift for me, let me make it easier; My Wish List:

1. Bedding Set - duvet, duvet cover, pillow case, bedsheet. Preferably in white. Sangat prefer egyption cotton :) The latter might be too much but that's why you call this a wish list kan?
2. SPA vouchers - I LOVE Spa :)
3. Home stuff - We're not moving to our own place anytime soon, but it will be nice to have home stuff in the event we do move out, such as:
4. - pots and pans
   - cooking utensils
   - cuttleries
   - dinner set
   - tea set
   - bed sets for the other rooms
   - electrical appliances (iron, vacuum, microwave, coffee maker, toaster, blender, rice cooker, cake mixer, and the likes lah - i'm not a kitchen person so I don't really know what I need eeeks)      CAUTION: if you intend to get these electrical appliances, preferably those with longer warranty periods because we'll only be using them when we move right?  
5. Mini Fridge - this I don't need to wait until we move out :)
6. LCD Flat Screen TV - yeah, I'm asking too much I know
7. DVD Player - this is ok right? I would LOVE this, because I can watch SATC/Gossip Girls/Greys Anatomy over and over again in the comfort of my room :)
8. Hair Dryer - the silent ones ... ok this is for me, cause I broke mine :)
9. Holiday Trips  - this might not be too practical because Aliff's work doesn't give him the luxury to have spontaneous holidays - so maybe u can contribute to our holiday fund via CASH :)
10. Any other Vouchers - preferably those near to home cause I seldom venture out of Subang :)
11. Pyjamas! - I will LOOOOOVEEEEEeeee this! cute and comfortable ones please!
12. CASH
13. and MORE CASH
14. and maybe CASH some more. You can give more than one Ang Pow, no worries :)

That said, the presence of my guests and your prayers are enough....guests bearing gifts is a BONUS, and I'll appreciate any gifts that you will be giving me :)

See y'all tomorrow :)

9 Days - Wedding Themes

Most weddings nowadays has themes...I think the trend started with colors, where the whole wedding (color of tent, flowers, decorations, bunga telur, family members attire etc) will be of a certain specific color. Then there is this trend of family members wearing the same material ( a trend that never catched on me). Now, you have elaborate themes, like fairy tale-cinderella, under the sea, alice in the wonderland, arabian night, angkasawan ... and the most famous, the garden wedding. Sometimes it tickles me when people come up with the themes they do. Don't get me wrong, I'm all aboard with planning your perfect wedding, the way you have always imagined it, but sometimes when you get too carried away it might turn your wedding into a circus. This is just my opinion and I'm not thinking of any wedding in particular.

But some do turn out really beautiful, case in point:

you would think that having a cinderella carriage as too much, but it works for this pelamin - wedding of Putri Azalea of PU3. I think the pelamin was by Pak Abu

So, ok, MY wedding theme? Heheh ada jugakkkk...but the application of the theme is minimal lah and I prefer to have more than one color theme, just to brigthen up the event, like my engagement, where the family wore blue and brown.

NIKAH

I don't actually remember how or why, probably because of the influence from SATC2...the theme is "moroccan".

The theme will influence the home pelamin, the tent, home decorations and the ladies wear - ladies are encouraged to wear moroccan-inspired-kaftans.

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Decorations will consist of tassels, drapings, lanterns, red flowers, among others.

 

What will not be influenced by theme are the guys' wear - they will still be wearing the traditional baju melayu, the bride's dress - still the traditional baju kurung and the bridal room.

As mentioned in this entry, the color palette is pastel; the family will be wearing pastel blue/purple/pink, while the bridesmaids will be wearing pastel yellow/peach/pink. Bride and Groom in traditional white.

I am trying to find some arabic/moroccan songs to be played, hahaha...if I can find the time lah.

RECEPTION

I've always wanted a black-tie wedding, where the guys will be handsome in their tuxedos and ladies elegant in evening dresses...


the stylish Obamas
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...... but Bapak said no one will come to my wedding if I set that dress code. Hahahah...Biasalah si party-pooper tu. Hahahahah. Reason because, it's too modern and "mat saleh" and relatives from outside KL may not fancy that kind of wedding. And because majority of my parents friends are government officers, they may be a tad more appreciative of traditional wear. So, we did away with mandatory dress code, BUT it remains an option - family members (other than my dad) will be wearing black suits and evening dresses. Guests can choose to follow or don the traditional outfits. Color palette for the family are; men in black, and ladies in maroon or royal purple. 

The overall theme is basically formal. People close to me knows I love the city of Paris, but since Paris Hilton had ruined "A Night in Paris", that theme is out of the window and also because it will be too hard to decorate since it's really specific and too thematic for my taste. I thought of just incorporating some of Parisian elements like; lace, the colors of black and white, feathers (ala moulin rouge), elaborate lightings and jazz music.

But, elaborate lightings will cost a bomb and Bapak veto-ed my doorgifts idea (box wrapped with strips of lace decorated with feather and a bud of white flower). Luckily, he had no qualms about the lace on my invitation card, although he veto-ed my initial plan of having a black ribbon. So, what is left are the feathers and music. I INSISTED to have feathers, which, at my victory, will be part of the pelamin (yes pelamin tetap ada sebab nanti orang tua marah), walkway and maintable deco. Music, i am still trying to control that, with resistance ofcourse, but I hope there will be no "Cinta Seratus Persen" in the song list!

Groom's Reception

The theme is traditional - so me and Aliff will be donning traditional attires complete with traditional accesories as written here. Although I like the whole black-tie shananigans, I LOVE the fact that I will be having a traditional reception as well. I would be dissapointed if we didn't get to have the whole silat-kompang-songket experience. That's the bonus of having 2 wedding receptions (malays get 2 receptions :))

cover of Harmoni magazine

So, yeah. I mean all these are plans, we'll see on the day how it looks. I don't want to pay too much attention on the theme, although there is always a tendency to get carried away. But as long as everyone is happy and everything looks beautiful, I will be contented. Having a theme is just to add some fun, so I hope everyone, especially ME, will enjoy the wedding.

Till tomorrow :)

10 Days - The Cake and The Bed

Woohooo...see how close the Bride has gotten to the Groom?

Can't believe I am now counting down the last 10 days...

The Cake.

Went to Madaboutcake last Sunday with Syida and Aishah. Booked the hantaran cake and the reception cake.

For the hantaran cake, I am going with a one tier white fondant cake with chocolate filling. The design of the cake is something like this:

For the reception cake, I am going with a three tier white fondant cake, with some black detailings, and chocolate filling as well. The design of the cake is something like this:

Although I would love to have a bigger cake for the reception (like the picture on the far left), I have overspent on some other things and thus I will have to settle with a smaller cake ...

At first I thought of having monogram topper of me and Aliff's first name intial to be placed on top of the cake, like so:

source and source

... but then I changed my mind and requested for a bride & groom topper ...

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I have not seen any cake nowadays with these dolls anymore...I know it's quite cheesy, but I like it :)

Price: Affordable kot. I've checked once with Man Kwan and he's a little more expensive.

The Bed.

Because I share my room with Syida, the room has twin beds. So, as me and Aliff will be staying at the house for a while until we get a place of our own, Syida will have to move out and I need to get a bed for me and Aliff. Getting a bed will cost me a fortune because the mattress itself costs thousands. I have been looking for a while and the nice ones would cost me my salary or more. So...I am utterly thankful that Ibu volunteered to get it for me as a wedding gift! Remember they got me this mirror as my engagement present?

At that time I was also looking for a new mirror for my dressing table, but fell short on the $$. So, one day, before the engagement, they brought home this beautiful mirror. I have the BEST parents!

So, anyway, my bed set arrived yesterday! And it's pretty! It's queen size, with white wooden bed frame with poles at each side of the head of the bed and it comes with two matching side tables. Forgot to get a picture of it, but it looks something like this:

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We rearranged the room last night and I'm aching all over. I've cleared certain stuff last night and made room for Aliff...I gave him one drawer for the dressing table and one drawer for the side table. Hahahahha...He doesn't need a lot of space. I'll need to clear the wardrobe and make some space for his clothes. Syida is not officially moved out yet, maybe we'll have to do that this weekend. It's going to be bittersweet! Me and Syida argue A LOT on a daily basis (the whole house can testament to that) because I am a neat freak and I basically control everything in the room. And that annoys her. She annoys me with her OCD (obsessive compulsive disorder) eg; all the doors must be shut real tight, the curtains must be shut a certain way and etc. So, we drive each other crazy, but she has been my roomate all my life, and I will miss her!

So, until the wedding, she is still the occupant of the room, and we have officially rasmikan the bed last night :)

Next: To get new curtains for the room and lampshades for the side tables.

I'm planning to write everyday from now until the big day. The last 10 days...

Feelings: Excited + Nervous + Annoyed that I still have to go to work and that I have this big fat opinion that I have to finish by this week.

The Invitation

Ok, so The Invitation. The drama behind this goes something like this:

1. The Family went to Jakarta, one of the important item on the itinerary; getting the Invitation Cards. Read here on the part of the trip about the Invitation Card.

2. So, we left for home VERY happy because we got a really good bargain on the cards. As discussed with the vendor in Jakarta (the guy who attended to us is Dharnoto) the wordings will be finalised via email. (I also had a secret agenda to change the color of the ribbon from maroon to white, which was to be done via email as well).

3. The emailing started quite late, about 1 month after the trip. Reason: WORK. and I got a little comfortable with the fact that it's still about 4 months away from the date. Dharnoto even texted me reminding me that I have not sent him the wordings...

4. We emailed back and forth for about 5-6 times and exchanged numerous text messages. And took about another month to finalise the whole design of the card. I dont know if this is normal, I was actually expecting maybe exchanging emails twice and everything could be finalised in a week or two? Reason for the long period for the card to be finalised: Partly, MY fault. Hahah. The first time Dharnoto came back with the draft of the card, there were quite a lot of spelling mistakes - which was not my fault, because the draft I emailed him had perfect spelling. What was my fault was the fact that I changed the wordings/design quite a few times, i.e; getting the name of the hall right, the dates for the RSVP, the floral motives of the inside of the card. Ofcourse Bapak also intervened quite a few times changing the dresscode and the MAP.

5. Oh my, the Map. The first map we got was from the hall itself. Bapak was not satisfied, he said the map was not accurate. So I contacted a friend who had his wedding at the same hall and asked for the map they used in their card. Ibu also dug up invitation cards they received where the wedding was held at the same hall. Bapak was NOT satisfied with any maps used. So, he asked his officer to design the map from scratch.

These are some of the Maps that were rejected:

This is the Map that was FINALLY approved by him:

 6. So, the FINAL draft of the card was finalised about 2 months before the date. Dharnoto said they needed 1 month to get the cards ready. (Something that we forgot to ask - TIP: Please REMEMBER to ask about the TIMELINE!) So, we will be getting the cards about 1 month before the date, which is just in time, so we can start circulating all the invites 3-4 weeks before the date.

7. The LACE. I've always wanted a laced card for my wedding card. Something like these:

I found one shop which had a full-laced wedding card, but tooooo expensive. So, (anticipating that the price would be beyond the budget for a full-laced card) I settled with just a strip of white lace to be placed below the ribbon at the middle of the card's cover, like so:

I brought a piece of white lace from Malaysia and gave it to Dharnoto as sample. At the time the order was made; i.e at Jakarta, Dharnoto said he knows where to get the lace. Fine.

Then he emailed me this picture:

YIKES. NOT the lace I gave him and definitely NOT the right substitute. The material of the lace is totally off. It looks like cotton doesn't it? He said he didn't find the lace that I wanted. WHAT? Then I told him that I didn't want that lace and told him I saw the lace that I gave him at Mangga Dua while I was there and asked him to find it there. OMG. Nasib baik he emailed me the lace before sticking it on to my card! Then he emailed me another picture, which was a HUGE relief to me...he got the RIGHT lace this time! I was almost prepared to let go of the lace from the card if he didn't find the lace that I liked.

8.  POSTAGE. This was the REAL DRAMA. Another TIP I can give to those who plans to get their cards from Indonesia, don't get too excited (like me) when you get a hard-covered card which is quite big in size for a really good price. You can definitely get it real cheap, compared than the ones here, because their labour charges are quite low, BUT PLEASE discuss on the postage and the delivery period. TIMELINE is very important! Something I FORGOT to discuss with the vendor! The plan was either; my dad's friend who is working in Jakarta bring it back for us when he comes back for holiday, or my mum and dad come back to Jakarta and bring them home (this only if we needed to get additional things from Indon la) or, they post it to us. The third alternative was actually the first plan. At that time I thought the cost would be a few hundreds and the timeline of the delivery did not occur to me. Guess how shocked I was when I was told that my cards weighed 87kgs and the postage fees is twice the total amount of the cards. WHAT? so now the cost of card has tripled? So, why is it so expensive? Because of the weight (87kgs) and we wanted it to arrive ASAP, like the next day, as we were behind schedule. It was about 1 month before the date. You can actually get a cheaper fare if you can wait atleast 10 days or really cheap if you can wait for 30 days. After much deliberation with the calculator, my parents decided to go for a day trip to Jakarta to bring home the cards. Air Asia tickets was quite reasonable and we pre-booked 60kgs of check-in luggage and the balance of 27kg will be carried as carry on. 27kg is quite heavy, didn't know how my parents managed to get away with it. I OWE them big time!

My card FINALLY arrived at my doorstep on the 7th of May 2011, 40 days before the date.

And I ABSOLUTELY LOVED the final product!

9. That's not the end of the Drama. Because the envelope had a window, cards that need to be posted had to be covered with a plastic envelope AND a bigger-fully-covered envelope so that the lace and ribbon would not get dirty. This was actually something I had warned Bapak while ordering the cards at Jakarta, but he insisted to have the window... so, the cost of getting the bigger envelopes was on Bapak :) Then, we found that the RSVP card was toooo small, and I checked with POS Malaysia, it is smaller than the minimum size for a postcard. So, we got small envelopes which we slipped in the card. More extra costs!

Although the cost of the card has now almost more than doubled to what it actually cost, my personal SATISFACTION and all the COMPLIMENTS made it worth it! Hahaha. And, to make me feel better, the cost for the same card if done here is still more expensive. So double YEAY!

TIP of getting cards from Jakarta/anywhere else where the cards will posted -

Make sure you get all these information to save you from sudden heart attacks later :

1. the time they need to complete the cards
2. the total weight of the cards and the estimate number of boxes needed for packaging
3. the postage - the couriers, the cost, the delivery period
4. make sure the size of the RSVP card is the standard postcard size or atleast the minimum size set by POS Malaysia (can check their website).

Then, discuss on the timeline taking into account the finalisation of the wordings, their labor and the postage. It will be better if you already have the wordings (including the doa etc), lay out and map - this will save you a lot of emailing back and forth.

So, I started to get everyone's addresses few weeks ago....which was quite a challenge. I changed phones and lost everyone's number. So, I did everything through FB. I missed out a couple of friends who are not in my Friend's List (should add them now!) and also those who did not have FB (ada orang tak ada FB!).Have been distributing the cards for the past 3 weeks and the last cards have been posted out today (2 weeks before the date - I know, I procrastinated a bit).

Thank you those who had RSVP-ed, attending or not. BELIEVE me, RSVP is VERY handy and actually very crucial for a seated event. People, PLEASE PLEASE RSVP if requested. And if you RSVP "attending", please attend. And if you RSVP "not attending", please do not attend....boleh tak? Hahahhahahaha...the latter can still be kautim lah. But seriously, RSVP is very important for the host.

Everyone I invited have played some role in my life, be it for the shortest time. My guestlist comprised of childhood and highschool friends, varsity friends and office mates. Some, although I have not kept in touch with for a long time, I invite because they were, some time in my life, a significant part of it. Some because they invited me to their wedding, some because they've made nice comments about my engagement :) , and some, well just because I just like them...ahahhaha...Everyone has their own criterias right? I hope I didn't miss out anyone.

11 more days baby!

Feelings: No mood to work but files are still piling, eventhough I have put in extra hours since the past 3 weeks to finish them off...arghhhhh...work never stops, not even for Brides-To-Be.... Feel like going home and do all the wedding stuff. My mind is not at work anymore!

2 Weekends to the Big Day

2 more weekends left before the Big Day. How do I feel? FREAKING NERVOUS. Not particularly on the part of being married and the marriage after (for now atleast) because I dont foresee a HUGE change, other than the fact that I will be living in 2 houses, one of which is the Parents-in-Law's house (which also gets me nervous at times). Me and Aliff will be staying at our parents' houses first until we get a place on our own. So, anyway, what gets me nervous is the ENDLESS things that still need to be done. This is when a Wedding Planner will come in handy. Oh Well.

Recap of last week:

1. Grooms Wear for Nikah & Bride's Reception- Aliff had picked up his baju melayu for the nikah and the suit for the reception dinner. Next: butang baju melayu for his nikah baju melayu.

2. Hantaran - I think me and Aliff have finished getting all the things to be placed on the hantaran dulang. Aliff got his shoes from Jakarta. We also got his ring, which needs to be refitted, scheduled to be ready sometime next week I think. We also got the tie and the shirt for the hantaran (which he will be wearing for the reception). Next: cufflinks and the perishables, like the sireh junjung, fruits, cake and chocolates.

3. Baju Pengantin for Groom's Reception -  We will be going traditional, adorning silverish creme songkets. The MIL got the songkets from Indonesia and we have sent them to a tailor in Subang. It is quite last minute, but they said they can do it within the time we wanted. Mine will be ready on the 11th of June and Aliff's probably the week after. The look we're going for:

Next: Getting accesories for the Bride's ensemble; the headpiece, the ankle bracelet, the three tier necklace etc. Since I'm wearing a baju kurung, don't know whether the belt is suitable or not. Either way, I'm so excited to be wearing all these traditional accessories! Bila lagi? :)

L: source  R: source
Because my attire would be a simple kurung, I think the left one might be a tad to simple, but the the one in right might be too overwhelming. The one in right is called the "Sanggul Lintang" - something I have just learned :)

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I think this piece might be what I'm looking for.



The three-tier-necklace which is called the "Dokoh"
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The ankle bracelet a.k.a gelang kaki

4. Bridal Shower! My lovely varsity friends threw me a beautiful tea-party-bridal-shower at the most perfect place; Carcosa Seri Negara, the place I've always dreamt of having my wedding...oh well, anyway, it was so much fun and beautiful. Unexpectedly cried while giving the coerced-bridal speech. Will talk about this in a seperate post :)

Ok, so what I am planning to do this week:

1. Managing the Guestlist. Everyday we will receive the RSVP cards in our mail (which is so exciting), and even more exciting when the boxes "hadir" is ticked. But, having people RSVP-ing as not attending is actually a slight relief because the number of cards issued out are more than the seats allocated, BUT even so, I get a tinge of sadness when I see the box "tidak dapat hadir" is ticked even if I dont even know the person (eg; friends of the parents). Hahaha. Anyway, will have to sort out the actual numbers and arrange seatings this weekend. Thank you to those who have RSVP-ed. Tho those yang belum RSVP, pleaseeee do so, it will be really helpful so we can know the actual numbers and not waste or worse, have short of seats. We've provided the stamps and the envelope, all you have to do is fill in your name, tick and post it ............

2. Song List. So, I have been compiling the song list since 2 weeks ago, and this is one of the MOST fun thing to do. Listening to beautiful songs is just the best! My song list consist of classic-jazzy love songs from Eric Clapton to Tony Bennet to Frank Sinatra to P Ramlee. Classics are the best! I am also very fortunate to have my friend, Maria to sing me a few tunes. Her voice is to die for! First time I heard her sang was at a karaoke birthday party where she sang "Listen" by Beyonce. Ya Allah, sedapnyaaaaaaa. If the song wasn't such a sad song I would want her to sing it at my wedding. But I found the perfect song she can sing, "At Last", sang by Etta James and covered again by Beyonce. A compulsory song for my wedding! Maria will also be singing 2 more songs, yet to be finalised; either "A Moment Like This" by Kelly Clarkson, "Wonderful Tonight" by Eric Clapton, "The Way You Look Tonight" by Tony Bennet, "Aku Cinta Padamu" by Sheila Majid and "Smoke Gets in Your Eyes" by the Platters. And tentatively, Kakmira will be singing a duet with Adri "Sudah Kahwin Ke Belum" by Saloma and Ahmad Daud. They sang this once while were karaoke-ing one time and I was like, you two MUST sing this song at my wedding. The song's really cute! And a special peformance by a special someone (don't get too excited, its not an artist) but lets keep this a surprise :) All this are just plans, kita hanya merancang, so HOPEFULLY by next week we can finalise all the wedding singers :) Other than that, we are going to have a band play at my wedding. The band that was booked was Bapak's choice - it's his office's band, I've actually never seen them perform and I dont know what kind of songs they can play. But according to Ibu, they are quite good. Bapak has asked (and repeatedly reminded) me to send them the list of songs that I want them to play so they can rehearse. So that I MUST do this week, or I'm going to get an earful from Bapak.

3. Cake. Yummmmsssss. I will be ordering 2 cakes; one for the hantaran and one for the reception dinner. I've actually already have the designs, which needs finalising this week. Aishah recommended me Madaboutcake. I've actually known about them and had asked for a quotation once. Their price seem reasonable and their designs are quite impressive. Thought of meeting them this weekend, but Aishah will not be free, so maybe somewhere this week on a weekday kot?

4. Hantaran. Fuhhhhhh. this is a toughie. I already have the concept that I want, but I've realised that I might need more stuff than expected and the materials that I need is quite hard to find. I bought some things weeks ago, for the prototype, but when I went to get them last week, they're out of stock. It's always like that. When you don't need them, they'll be everywhere you turn, but when you need them, they're not there. Haih. So, I have planned to get all the materials weeks ago, but my weekends are always full with other events. So, I hope this weekend I will be able to settle the hantaran trays once and for all.

5. Home/Tent Deco. So, I'm also doing this myself. I've already gotten most of the decorative items. There are a few more left. I'm planning to get them this weekend too while I look for the hantaran stuff.

6. Flowers/Bouquet. Yes I LOVE flowers and i love shopping for them. I will  probably drop by Floristika to order the flowers and have them deliver to me one day before the wedding or I'll get someone to pick them up for me. I am planning to get red carnations and roses for the centrepieces and for the mini-pelamin. Some white chrysantemums, roses, orchids and hydrangeas for the sireh junjung. Some pastel colored flowers like eustoma, hydrangeas, carnations, sweet williams, and lavender for the bridal room. And ofcourse Casa Lilies for they bring the most beautiful ambience. I wonder if Floristika has peonies and gardenias. What else? My pelamin maker will be making my bridal bouquet for the reception. For the nikah, I'm not sure yet, whether to get him do it for me or do it myself. I'll probably have white orchids which is one of my favorite flowers, or a combination of pastel colored flowers to match my bridesmaids who will be wearing pastel pink, yellow and peach kaftans...come to think of it, a bouquet of yellow flowers may look really nice, no? hmmmm. Something I need to think about. Oh, I need to get flowers for the bridesmaids hand bouquet for the reception. I'll probably use lavenders cause they'll be wearing maroon/royal purple dresses. Wow, how much are these going to cost me? Yikes.

The things listed above (minus the guestlist part) are actually the best parts which I look forward to and enjoy in wedding planning.

To Do:

1. Bridal Wear - haish, tak settle-settle lagi. The most important part of the wedding. Hopefully, by this week I get to see it! Excited + Nervous + Anxious + Scared + Happy + Every other emotion you can think of.

2. Nikah Shoes - I'm looking for a white peep toe heels. Probably with white lace or flowers or ribbon ... something which is very .... bridal ....

have been looking high and low, but I've not found the perfect one yet. Or maybe should I get a hot pink heel?

Hmmm...

3. Flow of Event - to appoint a floor manager for both events.

4. Pre Wedding Photoshoot and Videoshoot - these are the two things I did not plan to do, cause I dont really like to do the props-acting stuff ...but I guess I am doing it...hahaha...because;

- the photoshoot was actually Aliff's uncle's request...he takes pictures as a hobby and he wanted to take our pre-wedding photos. His idea is just to take casual pictures of the both of us, in casual wear, he specifically said jeans and white shirts, no make up, no props whatsoever. I'm ok with that...as long as we dont have to do awkward poses...ahaha Uncle Osman is cool, so I'm sure it will be lovely and not cheesy.

- the videoshoot, is actually MY idea...ahahahha...I fell in love with Nicole Kidman's Omega advertisement, and thought of doing something similar...ahahhahahahhahahah...not sure if it will materialise though...will be meeting the videographer on the 5th of June to discuss the theme and idea of the shoot. Hopefully it will turn out well.

Both will be done on the last weekend before the wedding because of Aliff's "busy" schedule.

5. MOH and Bridesmaid kaftan - For the Nikah, family members will be wearing pastel pink/blue/purple while my Bridesmaids will be wearing pastel peach/pink/yellow kaftans.

color palette for the family

color palette for the Bridesmaids

My MOH has not gotten her kaftan for the nikah yet, as she will only be arriving in Malaysia from Australia on the 12th of June. So I'm thinking to go look for it with her. I also  need to get a yellow kaftan for one of my bridesmaid (Jihan!) who will be arriving in Malaysia on the 13th of June from the UK.

6. Spa, Mani-Padi and Brazilian - I have not gotten the chance to find time to go to a really relaxing spa! A MUST DO before the wedding. Will probably go with my MOH/Bridesmaids/Sisters the weekend before the wedding! Because I will be doing quite a bit of decorating/flower arranging for the wedding, I'll go for the mani padi the day before the wedding. Brazilian.....hmmmmmmm? Never done it before. Planned to do it once before the wedding so I'll know what to expect when I actually do it for the wedding...tapi....hmmmmm....see how...ahahahha...

7. Malam Berinai - Ooooohhhhh I need to get a white kaftan for the berinai! Shoots. Probably too late to get materials and send it for tailoring...which means I need to get a ready made...


something like this will be nice
source

 8. Inai - speaking of berinai, I also need to find someone to do the inai and henna. But I'm actually thinking of NOT doing the inai and henna at all, for the nikah and reception, but I'll do it for Aliff's reception...If I wont be wearing inai, than what is the Malam Berinai for? Hahahha...just for fun, get all the ladies to come the night before and have a small gathering, last touch ups, take pictures....hmmm....this needs to be revisited.

What else? Mesti banyak lagi ni...tak teringat je lagi....See why I'm nervous? Every morning for the past week, after I wake up while brushing my teeth I feel like throwing up. Boleh tak?

So many things to do this weekend. I hope time is on my side.

Toodles.