HIV TEST

One of the requirements for marriage approval is for the future bride and groom to take the HIV test. There seems to be a misconception that the requirement is for you to pass the test. NO. You only have to take the test. The result will not affect the marriage approval as far as the authorities are concerned. It's purpose is so that you will be aware of your partner's result. If it is positive, then it is up to you whether or not you will proceed with the marriage. Marriage in Islam is all about consent and the agreement of both parties to marry. And if you choose to proceed, the authorities will advice you on how the marriage can work and what precautions you will need to take. Read here.

You can ONLY take the test in government clinics. So I made an appointment with Klinik Kesihatan Kerajaan at Shah Alam because it is the nearest to Subang. It is in Seksyen 7, Persiaran Kayangan. It is near Shah Alam's I-City and UITM back entrance and is right next to JAKEL.

I think most clinics require you to make an appointment first. No walk-ins. And the time for the tests starts at 2.30pm until 3.30pm. But I heard that the one in Klang allows walk-in. I think it depends on the traffic that day. If there are not many, then probably they'll accept walk-ins. But I think it is advisable to just make an appointment. For Shah Alam, the number to call is 03-55186531. For other places, numbers can be found from JAIS's website.

Anyway, me and Aliff took leave yesterday (Tuesday, 15th March 2011) to test for HIV. You can actually just take time off or half day because the test does not take long, but Aliff wanted to do some medical check ups at SJMC in the morning and I, well, cuti je lah. Hahah. Woke up at 8.00am, had our breakfast at SJMC, and by 12 noon Aliff settled his check ups. We drove to Shah Alam at about 1.30pm (time allocated for getting lost and our stop to get some bubble tea). We reached there at about 2.30pm. Parking there was limited so we parked outside, at the side of the road, illegal ofcourse, but there were no where else to park.

Once you reach, you have to fill in some form which you have to get from the 1st floor. Then submit it to counter 4 downstairs. Wait till they call your name. You'll have to pay RM1 for the test. Then submit your form to room 13 where you'll have to wait again for your name to be called for them to take a specimen of your blood. They'll prick your finger with this small device to take a drop of your blood. Then wait some more. They'll then call your name and give you a yellow copy of the form that you filled in earlier.

 

That's about it.

No questions were asked, no explanations whatsoever. I remembered watching one of the SATC episodes when Samantha went for HIV test, she was interviewed and asked a lot of personal questions. Anyway, none of that here. Just going from one counter to the other submitting your forms and waiting, with minimal conversation with the nurses, or none at all. They only speak when asked. Well, what more can you ask for from government hospitals? Them not giving sarcasm remarks or giving daring looks at you is a plus already. Anyway, much to our surprise and delight, the several 'waiting' did not take long. Everything was done in about 45 minutes or so.

The yellow form will say that the named officer has tested you for HIV. It does not state the result.

So to make sure, we asked the nurse whether there is anything else that we should do upon receiving the yellow form. She said there's nothing else to be done. If there is no problem with the result it means we've passed. Not that there was anything to be worried of, we just wanted to make sure that we've met with all the procedures to avoid having to do the test again.

So, I guessed we passed the test.

Ok, so next will be for the validation from the Qariah and the approval from JAIS.

The Make Up Artist Part II - The Nikah & Groom's Reception Dinner

For the Nikah, I am going with Kak Faizah, the one who did my make up for my engagement. This post comes a little late because it was quite hard to get a hold of her. Anyway, booking has been finalised.

There's a story on how we found her.She is actually my cousins' boyfriend's aunt. She owns a bridal boutique, and her services range from pelamin, bridal wears, catering and make up.

This was how we met - For Kakmira's Nikah in 2007, she wanted a simple white mini pelamin which we decided to just DIY. The idea was to get the canopy people to set up a platform. Then I bought white sheer fabrics for the back drop and white satin to cover the platform. We also asked the canopy guy to install fairy lights behind the sheer white drapes for the backdrop. Then we would "sprinkle" the satin covered platform with rose petals and on each side we would place the bunga telur stands. So, all we needed was a white pelamin chair. Adam (my cousin's boyfriend) introduced his aunt to us and we went to her boutique. She said she has the pelamin chair that we wanted and would rent it to us for the day.

This was how Kakmira's Pelamin turned out

When we were at her boutique, we saw she had ready-made bridal wears and one that caught our eye was this javanese inspired ensemble. Kakmira tried it on and then we decided she can wear it for her Berinai the night before the nikah. That was also the moment we suddenly decided there was going to be a Berinai. Hahah.

So, on the morning of the day before the Nikah, Kak Faizah brought the javanese ensemble and the pelamin chair. While she was there, she saw me struggling to prepare the flower decoration for the stairs. *There were buckets and buckets of fresh flowers delivered that morning but I was absolutely clueless of how I was supposed to arrange the flowers at the head of the stairs* Ahah. I guess she kesian, so she offered her help. She asked for the oasis and the filler leaves. What? Ahahah. What's an oasis? And ooops we didn't get filler leaves. She then told me there's a florist in Sunway which she usually frequent and we can get the stuff there. So I drove her to the florist and she got what she needed. Then she just took charge. She did the flowers for the stairs as well as the flowers for the bed.

Flowers at the stairs

Flowers on the bed

I don't know what I would have done without her. By the time she was finished, Kakmira was getting ready for her Berinai. She helped Kakmira got into the javanese ensemble. Then we realised, hmmm...we didn't get anyone to do her make up. So she volunteered and did Kakmira's hair and make up .... beautifully!

And the best part was she didn't charge us at all for all that she did for us that day. We only had to pay her for the pelamin chair and the javanese ensemble rental. 

So, when I was looking for a reasonable make up artist for my engagment 3 years after, we thought of her. We called her up, did a test make up with her, and we booked her. I told her the kind of make up I want, light blue eye shadow, natural foundation and nude-pink lips. Most important: Not looking "tepung" - like the olden days brides. There's going to be a lot of cameras other than the OP, so I must not only look good in the OP's camera but also to those other little cameras clicking away with their flashes. Ahahah. That is one of my top priority. So, anyway. I think she did a great job for my engagement.

Before and After (OMG Horrid picture of the "Before")

So, when searching for a MUA for my Nikah, I was confident to book her.
 ..... And book her I did... I hope everything will turn out beautiful.

Her price is very reasonable and affordable, and Aliff being Aliff did not want to spend so much on make up for the Groom's Reception Dinner, so we booked her for that night as well.
She is really nice. She can be reached at : 0123905902 Her name is Faizah.

So, make up for all three events checked!

STRESS Part Deux (censored)

STRESS.

I remembered saying "I know preparing for a wedding can be a nightmare for some people, but I am so looking forward to planning mine."

Now I find myself saying I can't wait to get it over with? That is something that I NEVER thought I would ever feel or ever wanted to feel.

So, thank you, to you who have made me the person I am not.

-- Portions of this entry has been removed because a wise person told me writing in anger will only result in an emotional outburst which are usually feelings at the spur of the moment that will just last at the heat of that moment. That I know, but I chose to write anyway because I was just so pissed off. Now that it has passed I choose to remove it to avoid possible future conflicts, as pointed out by the same wise ass. Ahaha. So, thanks wise ass. Love you. --

Groom's Attire

 source

So last-last Saturday I finally managed to get Aliff's time to settle his baju melayu for the nikah and his suit for the bride's reception dinner.

We went to this shop called Baron Gentlemen which is run by ex-Sparkmanshop suitmakers. Aliff knew one of them, who had made him a pair of pants and shirt once and Aliff was comfortable with his workmanship. The plan (Aliff's plan) was to go there first and then to another tailor at The Curve where Aliff had also made pants and shirts with and maybe a couple of other places to survey the price and such for his suit.

We arrived at Baron Gentlemen, which is situated at Klang, at about 1.00pm. First Aliff settled his baju melayu. The material for the baju melayu is white linen, which i bought for him as one of the engagement hantaran.

He had already decided to make his baju melayu there. They took his measurements and basically that's it lah because, well, unlike the baju kurung, baju melayu is pretty standard. The only designs out there is I guess whether you want a cekak musang or the johor collar. So, we went with the 5 buttonned - cekak musang.

Then they started talking about the suit. I've followed Aliff to men's tailors a couple of times and it takes about 2 hours for him to finalise everything, from the fabric, to the cut, to the collar, to the sleeve and what nots. Aliff is VERY particular, and men's tailoring is not actually my area of interest so I was prepared to be bored. I guess this is what he feels when he (very rarely) accompany me to Cindy. So, while the men talked, I snapped a few pictures.

There were a few times when Aliff looked at me and asked my opinion. Aww so sweet. I don't really care actually, as long as he looks like the McDreamy poster they had on their wall :) -

Aliff ended up making his suit with them as well, cause he liked them and well he just did not want to survey anymore. We were there for almost 2 hours.

So, YEAY! Our wedding attires for my side has been settled. Next are just fittings.  Tak sabarnyaaaa!

Aliff decided to wear a black thin tie with his suit. I was watching the Oscars the other day and saw Robert  Downey Jr. donning a white tie with his suit, looked so handsome...

source

hmmm...emailed the picture to Aliff...I think he still wants to go with the black tie. Oh well.

On the subject, I must say that this year's Oscars Red Carpet saw so many BEAUTIFUL dresses! And my eyes popped out when I saw a sneak peak of what I have been envisioning my reception dress to be - Mandy Moore in Monique Lhuillier at the Oscars...except that mine would be in ivory and a slightly longer train -

                                        

source

HOPEFULLY it turns out just as beautiful.

So now we have to concentrate on the wedding attires for the groom's reception, which is under his mom's purview... it'll be malay traditional, using songket as the main fabric. I think she said she's sending it to a tailor in Jakarta. Will have to update on that.

Toodles.

Wedding Diet

Wedding Ticker : 3 Months, 2 Weeks and 2 Days.

Today is the 1st of March 2011 which marks the first day of the Wedding Diet. I have been postponing the Wedding Diet for 2 months now. It should have and I did start the Wedding Diet in January, but succumbed somewhere in the middle. Then it was postponed to February, which was again a failure. So, March is 'THE' month.

MAIN OBJECTIVE:

Losing the tummy bulge, trimming the thighs and erasing the double chin. I don't care about weight, i don't see the point if the physical is the same.

THE PLAN:

1. Eat waaayyyyy less - Eliminating junk foods while working which means no more Rocky, I'm not going to cut rice from the diet just yet, probably in May? Just lesser portion for starters. Dinner before 8pm. And it is also a good time to ganti puasa.
2. Exercise - ahahahah. Jogging lah dulu. Probably some sit ups to eliminate the tummy.

Just 3 months away, I can't afford to fail anymore.

First fitting is end of March, so we'll see how I do.

The Designer - Bridal Attires

monique lhuillier

This is one of the most exciting, fun and rigorous part of planning a wedding.

I have been dreaming of the perfect wedding dress ever since I can remember.

So, I wanted to make sure that I do justice to this once in a lifetime opportunity to live out my little girl fantasy.

From my previous blogs (here and here), I've written on my meetings with Syomir Izwa, Qudyn and Alin Anuar. All three were very professional and delightful to meet with. All this I did in December last year. At this point of time, I was concentrating on the reception dress. All three gave similar quotations, and the one that suited my specifications the most was Syomir Izwa.

So, I set an appointment with him to finalise the design. First I had to postpone it because something came up. Then he postponed it because he was busy dressing up Yuna for Anugerah Juara Lagu.

In the mean time, I found out about this guy, XYZ. Nice workmanship and creative. So, I got in contact with him and set an appointment to see him. I brought my MOH with me. His place is in Shah Alam, his living room downstairs is converted to a mini-studio/boutique. He listened to my ideas and sketched me a design. He's very pleasant and accomodating. So at the end of the meeting I told him I would call him back to confirm. In the car I was so excited because I think I wanted to go with him and MOH liked him also.

Then Kakmira suggested for me to see Nurita Harith because she said Nurita made the dresses for her friend's wedding, one that she recently went. So, she made me the appointment and I went to see her at her boutique in Bangsar (Jalan Telawi). She was also nice. She took down notes while I was blabbering about my ideas, similar to Alin Anuar's style. She told me that she'll give me a rough quote and if I'm interested, we'll proceed with the sketchings and the measurements etc.

So, now I've got an additional 2 designers for me to consider. I weighed ALL the pros and cons. I googled each and everyone meticulously to see their products. And finally decided to go with ...

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XYZ.

Called him to confirm and paid the deposit. By then it was already end of January. Because I was going to Jakarta from 1st - 4th February, and he was going to Bangkok that weekend, we scheduled for a meeting on the 15th of February, which was a public holiday (Maulidurrasul). Finalised on the design for the reception dress and he took my measurements. Then I told him I wanted him to do my nikah kurung as well. We discussed on that and I gave him my lace and the other materials I bought in Jakarta. (designs basically like what I've written here)

I transferred the deposit for my nikah kurung that night and felt so RELIEVED!

So, my 2 wedding attires have been confirmed. I'm due for my first fitting around the end of March.

*nervous-nya*

Next:  Aliff's reception suit, nikah baju melayu and our traditional wear for Aliff's side.

Ahhhh banyak lagi ni.

JAKARTA-BANDUNG: LAST DAY

Last day. Woke up at 8.00am. For breakfast, we missed Ibu, Mama Ina and the cousins who had theirs at Burger King, they woke up really early! So they packed us burgers (BK here didn't have breakfast meals). Because we did not want to waste time, since we planned to leave for the airport at about 3.00pm (foreseeing Macet) the initial plan was that at 9.30am one van which consist of the ladies would leave for Mangga Dua first, while the other two vans, the guys, and the grandmother and her maid and the luggages would follow later. This was because Bapak, Syazwan and Haris had to wait for their suits to come at 10.00am.

Suddenly we got to know that Haris was not well, vomitting and shivering. We called the doctor to come to check on him. Probably food poisoning, of what, no one was sure because everyone had the same thing the day before. Haris followed us to have the Sunda lunch, so although my family was fine, we thought probably his stomach couldn't take Sunda food. Then the suits came early, and by the time everything was settled, the plan changed. 2 vans left at about 10.30am. Only the van for the luggage stayed at the hotel to bring Haris and Papa M to the airport. We thought it would be better that Haris stayed and rested at the hotel. After all, Mangga Dua would be no fun for the guys pun.

So, off we went to Mangga Dua in search of the wedding doorgifts/favors for the reception dinner. Cut the story short, we were dissapointed. The choices available were quite off season, nothing that really caught my eyes, what more the Father-of-the-Bride-zilla. Mangga Dua is reviewed to have a lot of nice selections for doorgifts/favors. We probably went to the wrong place, as Mangga Dua is the name of the place and there were a lot of buildings there. FAIL. We didn't have time to move to anywhere else because it would take quite a while to reach due to the Macet. And we did not want to risk moving later that 3pm to the airport because of ... yes, the Macet. So, we went to the top floor and found shops which sold beads and borders which you can use to enhance your materials. Spent most of the time there, there were quite a lot of choices, and cheap. So, atleast something on our last day.

We got a call that our flight was delayed from 6.30pm to 7.20pm. But we decided to leave at about 2.30pm because we were already tired and didn't have anything else to do. We decided to eat at the airport. We reached the airport at about 4.00pm like that. Checked in our bags, ate, shopped around at the airport, mostly of cigarettes for those who kirim.

me snapping pictures keeping myself busy while enduring the macet which was made worse by the rain

one of the initiatives to combat the terrible traffic congestion

 

Boarded at about 7.00pm and reached Malaysia at about 10.30pm Malaysian time. Our flight was delayed because there were problems with the initial plane, so they substituted the plane with an international plane - bigger and had in-flight entertainment. YEAY!

Overall this is my conclusion of the trip:

1. One thing I noticed, Indonesians, atleast the one I encountered during my whole trip, are VERY POLITE! Their language and the way they talk, sooo polite. Compared to the rudeness of "some" Malaysian people that we had the unpleasant experience with exactly prior to our departure to Indonesia.
2. Their textile shops were quite similar to the ones we have in Malaysia - prices slightly cheaper, tapi tak adalah murah gila. But if you're skillful in haggling, you can probably get a lot of discounts. I heard some people were able to get 50% discount. So it depends on your haggling skills. I'm not that skillful in that area. 
3. Try to speak the language and not look like a first-timer or a tourist sangat - some of them tend to open their prices quite high when they notice that you might look clueless and constantly converting. One advice, don't convert infront of them and then make the "murahnyaaa" face. Keep a straight face and look non-interested. They'll lower the prices. Again, it depends on your haggling skills.
4. Pasar Tebet is great for invitation cards. I can't say it is the best because that was the only place I went for cards. And I have yet to see the results. But, for now, I was satisfied.
5. Try to find the right place in Mangga Dua!
6. Taman Sari Spa is the best!
7. We had the BEST Supir ever! Roni was so accomodating and very protective of us. He took care of my grandmother and held her hands when we walked. He made sure that the card person took notes of everything I wanted. He even worked for us on CNY (he's a chinese BTW). He made it soooo much easier for us.

The trip was not a total success, but we had fun. The company was great but probably a little hard to handle because it was such a big group and everybody had different agendas. But it was definitely a great experience.

JAKARTA-BANDUNG : DAY TWO AND THREE

The plan for the second day was Bandung. We chartered a bus which seated about 20 people. We started the day early and moved from the hotel at about 8.00am.

BREAKFAST

Me and Syida woke up late and missed the hotel breakfast, so we asked to stop for breakfast. We stopped at this R&R on the way. We had meehoon soup/bakso. One thing that threw me off was that they know we were Malaysian, they jacked up the price. For a small bowl, they charged us, I think about RP18,0000 which is equivalent to about RM6. According to Kak Su, it was expensive for the size of the bowl. And when we asked how much the Teh Botol was, at first it was RP7000, but then suddenly it was RP8000. So an advice would be, don't look like tourist sangat, and don't calculate the conversion infront of them. Aahah. The bus had a karaoke set, so the 'elderly' karaoke-d all the way to Bandung, while we slept. It was about 2 hours drive, and we reached at about 11am.

 

BANDUNG

First destination was Pasar Baru which had textile shops and telekung and many other things. We went to the third floor I think. There were rows of textile shops. We settled down at this shop called New Angel. Ibu and Syida bought their materials for the reception dinner - beaded lace, chiffon silk and satin. I think the laces-with full beadings were about RP400,000 - 600,000 (RM150++). This shop offered the cheapest price for beaded lace on that floor. Then we went to this shop called Glamour. Ibu bought A-LOT of chiffon here, mostly for her tudungs. She also bought dark blue lace for fun. We also bought materials for the Nikah and reception dinner for Kakmyra and Lulu - chiffon silk and satin. I bought pastel colors of chiffon silk and satin for my Nikah bridesmaids here also. The chiffon ranges from RP20,000/RM6 - 40,000/RM13 according to quality (refer this entry). Satin for lining was RP15,000/RM5 per meter. I also bought white english cotton from King's Textile for RP50,0000/RM16.50 per meter. Then we stopped at this shop, can't remember the name where Ibu bought some telekungs. And a few minutes before the bus came we picked up a few big traditional brooches which we got for RP100,000/RM33 per piece.

at New Angel

it's surprising that Bapak was also into material shopping. this is him looking at materials for his suits

Roni patiently waiting for us

the mess we made at Glamour

while waiting for our bus

At about 1.30pm, our bus picked us up for lunch - again, Nasi Padang. We later went to outlets selling branded apparels. Among the shops that we went were Toko Tiga, Central Fashion and Rumah Mode. All these places were chosen by Kakmira' PIL, since they've been to Bandung quite a few times. Kakmira's MIL was excited for this part of the day. She even texted us at Pasar Baru to wrap up so we can move to these places, especially Rumah Mode. Syazwan did serious shopping. I got a shirt for Aliff and a couple of items for me - non-wedding-related.

lunch

at Rumah Mode

We left Bandung at about 7.30pm. On the way back, we stopped for dinner - burgers for a change. Tired of Nasi Padang two days in a row.

THIRD DAY

Third day was supposed to be for Invitation Cards and  Doorgifts for the reception dinner. This was the MAIN AGENDA of the trip, for me atleast.

First destination: Pasar Tebet

This place is like Wedding Card heaven. There were rows and rows of shops providing card services. Because it was just cards, we split the group to two. Me and my family stayed at Pasar Tebet, and the aunts and cousins took the other van to Pasar Mayestik and Grand Indonesia. Haris had to stay with us because there was not enough room in the second van. He didn't mind cause he had Syazwan to hang out with.

at Pasar Tebet

So, we hopped from one shop to the other to compare the prices. I brought samples of the cards that I wanted. Eventhough they have ready-made designs, most did not mind modifying and customizing their cards according to your design. This is something I noticed: there were a few shops which had airconditioning - these shops will quote higher price than shops without air conditioning, for the same design. There was one card fully covered with white lace. Cantik sangat. Tapi, RP40,000/RM13 per piece for 500 pieces. Urkkk. Pass

After circling the place for about an hour or so, we sat somewhere and compared the prices. After the short deliberation, we decided to go with Mahkota Print. The first shop we went. The guy who attended to us was Dharnoto. Very helpful and accomodating. The price quoted also very reasonable - you wouldn't get this price in Malaysia. About RP8500 per card (which is about RM2.50): size - about 1' by 1', hardcover, with ribbon. I wanted them to add a piece of lace under the ribbon, so the price per card for 500 pieces was RP9000 (about RM3). Right below than budgeted, so YEAY. Took about an hour to discuss with him the specifics and details of the cards. The card is going to be off white, with black and silver fonts. Initially, I wanted a black ribbon....Father-of-the-Bride-zilla's eyes popped out. NO black. *frust*. Then we settled on maroon, cause that would be one of the theme colors for the reception dinner. I wasn't sure with the color, I was thinking off-white, but i just let it go at the time, cause they thought the card would look dull and I realised everyone were already quite tired by then for me to argue my case. Paid RP300,000/RM99 for deposit. I will be emailing him the contents and map and will probably revisit the color of the ribbon - silently (the email will come from me ahahha). Then he'll prepare the mock-up. After that has been finalised, I'll have to pay another half. And the last half upon collection.

with Dharnoto

We went there with my dad's friend who was working with the Malaysian embassy in Jakarta, and he said they would be going back to Malaysia once a month or two months, so they volunteered to pick them up and bring them back for us. Awww. We'll see how the arrangement would be when the time comes. Overall, I was satisfied with the card. YEAY. *hopefully everything turns out perfect* After almost 3 hours at Pasar Tebet, Bapak's friend treated us to a Sunda restaurant for lunch. Nice.

yummy-licious deserts

tapai goreng

pisang goreng and chocolate

Second  destination: Pasar Mayestik (again)

Initially it was supposed to be Mangga Dua. But it was Imlek (Indonesian for CNY), and we were told 90% of the shops were closed. So, we changed the plan to go to Mangga Dua the next day, which is the last day. Last day was planned for free activity, ie, re-visiting any shops that we've been to the past few days, in case there were stuff that we haven't gotten/missed. We still have not gotten some materials that Kakmira had pesan. Can't go back to Bandung, so it was either Tanah Abang or Pasar Mayestik. We chose Pasar Mayestik . We went to Sanggar Textile. Bought a lot of cotton materials, price about RP55,000/RM18 per meter. I bought another 2 pieces of chiffon silk + satin for the Nikah Bridesmaids, found the color that I didn't find in Bandung. This time the price for the chiffon was RP8000/RM3 per meter. Murahhh gila. I see quality about the same je... haih. Whateverlah. I'll have to research about the quality of chiffon silk to see whether we got duped or not. Ahaha.

the boys tired. kesian

Third destination: SPA

We finished at about 5.30pm and headed to our Spa appointment. Looked forward sangat  for spa session after 3 days of shopping non-stop. OMG. THE BEST SPA EXPERIENCE EVER. The massage was soooooooooooo good! I took the 1 and a half hour massage + lulur package for RP 435,000/RM 145. Highlight of the day.  They had sauna, in-house swimming pool and saloon. We were rushing for time, so didn't get to enjoy all the facilitieso. Had to go back to the hotel and see the damage done after 3 days in Indonesia and shove everything in our suitcases. The place is called Taman Sari Spa. Totally recommended.

We had burger king for dinner.