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 :)

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



The three-tier-necklace which is called the "Dokoh"
source

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.

The Story of the Royal Wedding

Such a beautiful picture kan? This post comes a little bit too late and I know the Royal Wedding dah basi, but I still want to write about it, as a personal keepsake for me. I've actually started writing about this the day after the wedding, but had not gotten the chance to finish it.

So, here it is. 

It was 1.30pm on Friday, the 29th of April 2011. I was finishing the last contract I had scheduled to issue out that day. Packed up my things, and left the office. Rushed to SJMC to see the newborn. Then rushed home just in time to see the prelude to the fairytale that was about to take place.The countdown began. Many were speculating on the designer of the dress. It was 99% confirmed to be British designer, Sarah Burton due to the pictures that were taken of a woman resembling the designer covered in a big hooded jacket entering the hotel where the bride-to-be was getting prepared. They called her bigfoot because the jacket was huge and it had a fur hood.

  



Then they started showing the arrival of guests. You see famous faces now and then, I absolutely LOVED seeing the fashion and styles worn that day, so simple yet very elegant, well maybe minus the Royal Cousins who wore some odd looking...fascinators, they call them. And then bammm, the camera focused on David Beckham! Ya Allah handsomenya! I didn't even notice Victoria. Oooops.

Then, the camera showed the Groom and his bestman leaving Clarence House. I was screaming (in my head) entah kenapa, because they looked so cute kot, and ofcourse I think it was also due to the excitement that the wedding is about to start!

So, what I really want to talk about is....THE BRIDE and THE DRESS.

Sarah Burton's last touch-ups to make the dress camera-perfect

How beautiful did she looked? Her laced and satin ivory gown was just breathtaking. And just as she stepped out of the car, it was confirmed that the speculation of Sarah Burton as the designer was on the dot. The dress was perfection with lace detailings on top and at the trims of the dress. It was reminiscent of Princess Grace Kelly's wedding dress more than 50 years ago. Although, I was actually expecting to be wow-ed by a more modern-sleek design, nonetheless, Kate was a vision of a princess floating all the way to the altar. The dress was classic and timeless, just as Grace Kelly's dress and would live in eternity as one of the most celebrated dresses of all times. Loved her small bouquet of flowers. Understated, but yet elegant. Also loved the Maid of Honor's dress. It looked so soft and creamy.

The wedding procession was quite lenghty though, with prayers and the hymns...but I didn't move an inch from the TV...ahahaha. That was how dedicated I was, takut terlepas any special moments. Hahaha. So, after the ceremony, we saw William and his new princess left on the same royal carriage that transported Charles and Diana 30 years ago to Buckingham Palace after becoming man and wife.
The crowd waited outside the palace for the Newly-Weds appearance at the balcony. The joyous occassion was sealed with 2 kisses from the Bride and Groom. They then drove off to Clarence House in the royal aston martin-wedding car.


What the TV did not show was THIS BEAUTIFUL DRESS that the new princess wore at the wedding dinner hosted by the Father-in-Law. BEAUTIFUL! Kate looked yet again deliciously perfect in her second Sarah Burton white gown. Loved the be-jewelled cinched waist and the fur-like-shrug. This gown is more of a  modern take compared to the wedding gown. But, I guess the two dresses suited the respective occasions they were worn. And more importantly the Bride looked ever so gorgeous in both.

........ And they lived happily ever after.

Hahaha...watching the wedding and looking back at the photos, makes you think about Diana's wedding don't you? If she is still alive, she'll be 50 this year... Lets make some comparison, just for the fun of it:

The Engagement Announcement



The Post-Engagement Photo

Future princesses on the way to their respective churches. Diana was transported via a carriage, while Kate chose to arrive in car - the reason I heard was because she wanted to arrive low key, as a commoner that she was

Moments before they entered the church

The Bridesmaids

Stealing glances and short conversations at the altar



Leaving the church as man and wife. Kate opted for a more shorter train, convenient for the bridesmaid. Diana's bridesmaid was said to have had a "nigthmare" handling her loooong train.

On the way  to Buckingham Palace

Beautiful Brides

Arrival at Buckigham Palace

The Official Wedding Picture - both looked like Ken and Barbie, tho, William looked like a handsomer Ken.

First Appearance of the Newly-Weds at the Balcony

The First Kiss

Kate and William drove off in this Aston Martin after their balcony appearance - which Charles and Diana didn't, but this car was actually Charles' car, which was a birthday present from the Queen. Picture on the right is a picture of Charles and Diana in the same car. It was William's idea to drive his new bride as a married couple to his family home.

The Morning After. The Ladies in their Going-Away Dresses.

The Wedding Cake. Left is Diana's and Charles'. Right is William's and Kate's.

Quite a few similarities eh?

But, hopefully, history would not repeat itself. It was so tragic and sad for how his parents story turned out.

Some big shoes that Kate will need to fill...Diana was a people's princess. But it would be cruel to expect Kate to be exactly like Diana. Am sure she will handle being the future Queen gracefully. Let us all hope for the best.

And let us also pray that I would look as pretty and graceful as both brides on my day...so many things have happened, which I will write about later, that is making me freak out! The nerves are definitely settling in now.

3 more weeks baby!

Toodles.