long overdue wedding updates!

note: long entry ahead. 

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now that i have the time to sit down, i'm going to write a long entry on our wedding preps progress so far.

to be honest, i was a bit apprehensive on publishing about our updates lest i might jinx it, and second, malu because my wedding will be remotely far from being the grandeur of malaysian weddings. hehe. seriously, when i see other fellow brides' weddings, i couldn't help but feel so small as compared to them. on top of that, i don't have the luxury of time to update as much.

but after some deep thoughts, i decided to do so, because i feel compelled to document my wedding preps every step of the way, if possible, in hopes that one day, my kids (Amin) will get to read how their parents prepared for their wedding, no matter how small it was. plus, this blog can serve as my checklist, in such a way that it can help me to check what are other pending task i need to attend to etc etc. in addition, who knows, it might be able to help other bride-to-bes who are in the same boat with me? :) hence, in that spirit, i arrived at the decision that i will blog on my wedding updates at every chance i get.

• legal procedures - pre-marriage course (checked). 
• status: pending - 
• HIV test 
• release forms (why must getting married be so tedious?) 

• venue(s) - KL (checked).
• status: deposit paid!

• catering - went to see Suri a few weeks ago but we haven't received any quotation yet. 
• status: 
• to follow-up with Suri.
• check other caterers (any suggestions? seriously drawing a blank here)

• wedding dais/deco -  met one potential vendor 2 weeks ago, showed them what we like and how we envision the deco to be (brought along my storyboard. hahaha. see, that's just how practical i am!). still on the lookout for other vendors to do comparison.
• status: 
• pending quotation from vendor.
• google and meet other vendors.

•  photographers - ever since i came across this photographer yonks ago (let's call her P1), i knew i wanted her to cover my wedding (at that time, i was single haha). however, i chanced upon another photographer (P2), whose work i believed took precedence over P1. i contacted P2, booked him but he had to cancel on me in the 11th hour because this 1 couple who booked him earlier, decided to change the date that sadly, coincided with our initial date. Then, we changed ours, and i thought to myself, maybe, just maybe, i will get lucky. so, i emailed him and he replied that he couldn't confirm. to say i'm not upset would be an understatement but i didn't want to wait around, thus, made peace with the fact that perhaps, we're just not meant to be. come to think of it, maybe P1 is THE photographer i am fated to have all along. plus, everytime i see P1's work, i can't help but be convinced that i  am making the right decision, and it does help that we are on the same wavelength - by which i mean, we are both crazy and talkative! hehe.
• status: deposit paid! :)

•  videographer - frankly speaking, i love Shutterspeak and CST (AND in that order). Shutterspeak has just everything i wanted in a wedding video but the price is pretty detrimental to our pockets. CST was slightly cheaper but still, we really had to consider whether it was worth it for us to invest that much money on this. as lady luck would have it, CST had this promotion (RM1499 for Fresh Motion) for the first 10 clients and yours truly is one of them! Does that not give me the right to be so over the moon? I know it's not going to be shot by the senior filmmaker but i'm sure their proteges will still do justice.
• status: deposit paid!

• wedding dresses - i love Syomir Izwa. period. but as much as i love his designs, i don't think i can afford to have him do all three outfit for me. :( moving on. the other half and i went to see him a couple of weeks ago. at the moment of writing, i have not received the quotation from him just yet but i understand he's pretty tight (gotta give him the benefit of a doubt, considering it's a 1-man show). might check out Qudyn and Nurita Harith. i've been told they are great. can't wait!
• status:
• to follow-up with Syomir.
• hunt for other designers/tailors. any recommendation?

•  makeup - this is quite a long story. honestly, i don't wear makeup at all. ok, perhaps just the lipgloss but that doesn't count. but, if you ask me whose makeup i love best in malaysia, it's Khir Khalid. at the time, i assumed his price must be steep considering his incredibly credible portfolio. obviously, i'd have to strike him out. and then, thanks to the world of bride-to-bes' blogs (thank you girls!), i was introduced to a plethora of MUAs in malaysia. judging from the reviews/photos, i'd say i love Sue Cantik and Lova. called them up but Sue is booked. On the other hand, Lova is also booked but she'll be free at night. i was thrilled and was thisclose to booking her, but then, i was advised to hire someone who can do my makeup from the start to the end of the day. sigh. eventually, i gave in to this advice and checked out Najeeb. fell in love with his work there and then, called him up but he was overseas. upon his return, he called me back but i couldn't confirm due to the price. once i got the green light though, he told me he will be off to Aussie on my wedding. i was about to lose my mind but it wasn't his fault at all. i then asked him to suggest me who should i best ask to do my makeup and he suggested.. Khir Khalid. i didn't know whether to laugh or cry. nonetheless, i nervously rang Khir (starstruck a bit la, but i believe i have every right to be nervous) and asked how much he will charge. memang i patut menangis. hahaha. against my better judgment, i did the unthinkable..(to be continued)
• status: will reveal who i end up hiring right after the wedding. :D oh btw, all four of them are friendly!

• rings - (checked).

•  favours - the other half and i have a few in mind, but we're still stuck.
• status: still pending. hmm..

•  hantaran - we have decided on the relatively small numbers and that we will defy the unwritten laws of traditions to a T. the items, some purchased, some KIV. but i can tell you this much, we won't spend so much on them. in our defense, these items mostly will succumb to time, hence they will perish. if i could have it my way, i would want a Chanel but our meager salaries can only entitle me to lesser brands. maybe next time, Insha Allah :)
• status: finalise on the items and purchase them soon!

• cards - haven't finalise the concept just yet. yes i know, gila right?
• status: to finalise soon.

•  wedding cake - the best friend said he will settle this. thank you, love. :)

beautiful!

• hand bouquet - might ask our vendor (whoever they will be) to do one for reception. but for the solemnisation, i'm all for pureseed. i absolutely love this bouquet by them (refer photo on the right).

• guest list - nearly final.
• status: to finalise soon.

• entertainment - still scratching our heads on this one. can you sweethearts suggest any good bands in KL ranging around 1-2k (cheapskate much? :D)?  if possible, we'd like a 3-piece band that plays easy on the ears type of music (to respect the "senior citizens")? thanks!

• MOH(s) - i've long decided that once and when i do get married, i would like my sister to be given the honour to be my MOH. as for his reception, it'd be either one of his sisters. honestly, i've grown to love them both just like my own. not saying this to kiss ass but really, they have been nothing but wonderful, in the truest sense of the word. 
• status - to buy the material for their dresses. 

• flowergirls and boy - identified and confirmed (checked!).
• status - to find cute clothes for them.

• honeymoon - haven't reached our mutual decision yet. :D 
• status - pending but not urgent. 

• others - what else do i miss? a little help pls?

busy months ahead. sigh.

guys, so sorry for the silence but i've never been busier. ever since i got back from my hometown for the merisik/engagement affair, i  have been tasked to handle nationwide roadshows. to top it off, my workload is mountainous and i need to settle them all before i leave for japan this november. the senior officers have been asking for so many things, as if i don't have anything better to do. thank god, my boss came to my defense and told them straight to their face that this budak kecik has too much on her plate already and just can't afford to take in other assignments.

as for my other workload, the wedding of course (hehe), it is quite safe to say that the other half and i have picked up the momentum where wedding preparations are concerned. the other half insisted that, like my office workload, we need to settle them at least 80% of the preps before i leave for japan. i have pretty much briefed him on what he needs to follow up during my absence. i'll be gone for a month so hopefully, he won't turn into a groomzilla. hahaha. to be honest, i find it cute and sweet of him (thank you sayang) to want to be updated and do all the followups on my behalf. seriously, i feel bad for burdening him but i couldn't miss this training and there is no way for me to back out because the name has been final. the worst part is, it had to happen during the critical months -  nov & dec, at least according to our timeline. by right, come january we should only tend to the itty bitty matters such as decorating the wedding favours (oh shoot! that reminds me, haven't settled this one yet!), plus i might have to go to japan & korea sometime early feb, which is just a teeny meeny few weeks shy of the big day. i know, this is pretty much bordering on crazy. funny i haven't lost my mind yet. maybe soon.

that said, i will try to update at every chance i get and please please wish me luck. because if anything, i would need that the most. thank you in advance!

ps: 131 days left! matiiiii la mcm ni!

a surprise engagement.

i did tell you my other half decided to get married in 6 months' right?  i (and everyone else for that matter) thought that THAT would be the last crazy stunt pulled by my man. until he called me up last week and made another decision that we get engaged next friday.

-_________-

initially, it was just supposed to a discussion among both families. but somehow, it has become more than that. hehe. obviously, i didn't prepare anything. luckily i found 1 tailor who was willing to do my dress overnight. of course, the cut was ok but it wasn't exactly jawbreakingly beautiful. it was simple and it didn't help that the tailor refused to do the dress the way i desired. that said, i  called up the ever so sweet zaza, who is kind enough to take up the challenge of beautifying an otherwise ugly plain dress within 5-6 days. i can't wait to see how the dress turns out but i trust that zaza will work her magic, just like what she did to my mum's baju kurung.

on another great note, we picked up my wedding ring yesterday. it was beautiful (to me at least) and it was exactly how i envisioned my wedding ring to be - a classic round solitaire in a 4-prong setting. something like this, but not this huge definitely (image courtesy of google). mine is only slightly over half a carat. takpe, ada rezeki, we can always upgrade, insha Allah. in the mean time, this is already good enough, if not great. Alhamdulillah.

on the downside, haven't found a ring for the other half. still looking around for slightly affordable custom made platinum rings. the thing is, he is a size 24 (and i'm 8. triple!). clearly, it would be rather detrimental to my pocket but he put his foot down that he wants platinum. grrr. any ideas where to get competitive price for platinum rings? 

til then!

ps: i have no idea how my engagement ring looks like. the other half bought it himself and insisted that i see it only on the engagement day for that element of surprise. stubborn much?

unreluctant venue-hunting / venue checked!

yes, this sure as heaven has been such a long delay.

so sorry but i just came back from work last monday (yes, i had 1 long leave!) & already my darling of a boss swamped us with a mountain of workload. gee, thanks Boss!

anyway, wedding update. at the risk of having only 5 months or so to prepare for our wedding, both of us decided that by hook or by crook, we must at least, look out for potential venues before eid.

after a lot of rescheduling and taking god-knows-how-many raincheck, on the saturday before raya, the other half & i finally managed to steal some time to hunt for venues. in a span of 3 hours, we had the opportunity to check out Dewan Tun Rahah, KL and Laman Penchala. 

before i dish out the deets on both venues, let me tell you what my dream wedding was. honestly, i've always wanted a beach wedding. a small, private one, with only 100 guests tops. but we couldn't materialise that due to some issues, and the fact that one ustaz from the pre-marriage course we attended mentioned that weddings should be done in a closed area or if you insist on having it outside, then your dais must be covered on the sides. something like that. failure to do so will see your majlis be one yang tidak diberkati oleh Allah swt. so, there goes my dream wedding setting.

which leaves us to these options (which are still available on our initially-proposed wedding date) as follows:

1. Dewan Tun Rahah

- liaised with Mr Herry. excellent customer service and i love the fact that he's excited about my wedding. yes, i know it's part of his job, but even if he does that on a pretense, i highly appreciate people, strangers to boot, who are keen on making your dream wedding a reality. however, i have a few concerns. first being the colour of the carpet and the wall deco. if you guys must know, i am a perfectionist by nature so i'm a bit particular with these things. i have my mind set on yellow + blue, so i'm not exactly thrilled with the red/yellow carpet adorning the floors of tun rahah. we can definitely cover the walls, i've seen a number of blogs where they cover the whole place with kain or whatnot, but for the carpet, i was told, there's nothing i can do about it. it might not be an issue to other people, but it is to me. i don't want my wedding to look like, how do i say this in the nicest way possible, colours of rangoli?

- package: buffet starts from RM68. not sure about the quality of the food (apparently, their resident caterer is seri melayu restaurant) but been getting reviews from friends alike that the food isn't as good as a few years ago. another downer.

2. Laman Penchala

- a friend of mine suggested this place since it's owned by his aunt. so, out of curiosity and courtesy to a dear friend, we decided to have a look at the venue. the place is quite ok and ili, the cute lady who attended to us, mentioned something about renovating the place, sometime november, specifically the roof, since the rust and dirt have started to show up. however, the other half is a bit apprehensive and isn't really feeling this place. and one more thing, parking will be an issue since guests would have to park by the roadside. ili told us that it's not a concern among the residents around the vicinity but it is to my other half. as for me, i quite liked the place (due to the chiavari chairs hahaha) but i wasn't exactly smitten. numsaying?

- package: buffet starts from RM50. have no idea if their food are nice though. has anyone attended any wedding here?

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so, after much thought and consideration, we finally decided on our venue and that'd be Bukit Damansara Community Hall. haha i know it's not in the list above, but we both mutually love the place for the convenience in terms of carpark, mosque, ambience etc AND the fact that we have the liberty to choose our caterer. my other half & i are avid food lovers and we both want our guests to only have good food on that day. insha Allah. of course, the date we wanted wasn't available so we asked Encik Samad/Encik Shidi the next available one and we booked right away. i must say, i'm a bit upset i didn't get to have my wedding on my mum's birthday but now, it's no longer about having the date you desire, it's the availability. saya redha. i can't always get what i want right? anyway, placed our booking deposit yesterday and basically, i can check the venue off my wedding preps! 

:)

selamat hari raya.

since it's the raya season week and all, i won't be able to update as much.

having said that, i'd like to take this opportunity to wish everyone a blessed eid mubarak and may Allah grace us with bliss, peace and rizq. Insha Allah..

drive safe and here's to a joyous eid ul-fitr! :)

first entry of the unreluctant bride.

so you may wonder, why must i name my blog as the unreluctant bride?

like any other girls, face it, we all love weddings.  but truth be told, i fear the idea of preparing for a wedding. who doesn't? the nerve-wrecking, hair-raising, patience-testing preparations. it takes a lioness to muddle through all that! and may i add, i have a short time span simply because my lunatic of a boyfriend decided to get married in about 6 months (does that  not give me the right to strangle him? hehe). yes, i was that reluctant to plan for my own wedding  and in fact, was considering a WP but..

through it all, when you get to do the preps with your loved ones (esp when you see how hard they work in making  your day a success), and best of all, to see your dream wedding materialises,  all the tears, blood and sweat shed from day 1 leading up to your big day, will all be worth it. that i'm sure of.

and due to that fact, i decided to take charge of my own wedding, hence, the unreluctant bride - however short notice it is.

that said, watch this space because i'm going to unleash the lioness in me. 

to all other brides, happy preparing.  :)