The Babbles of A Mother-To-Be

Shopping: One Baby World

2012-02-18T08:59:00.000+08:00

It's two weeks until my payday but still, I cannot stop myself from buying at least one item from the internet. I started to become addicted to online shopping during my study days. At that time, I can't get enough of the endless blogshops selling cheap clothes. Yeah, I got all my clothes mostly online. Until I was into marriage-phase, the addiction has finally subsided. Maybe because I was too busy working and preparing for the wedding, shopping was the last thing on my mind. Now that I'm expecting, the old habit has come to haunt me. I shop mostly for baby items now. It's true what my friends said. Once you're becoming a mother, all your priorities are centered to your child.

Well, this time around I was goggling on One Baby World. As usual, I won't leave empty-handed. The purchase is just nothing, and I hope my husband won't make a feat about me buying things behind his back again. Haha.

The parcel. What's inside?

2x receiving blankets and 4x black tights. Total damage: RM54

They messed up my order. I'm supposed to receive a different pattern of blanket, not the blue one. But it's okay. It's just a blanket anyway. And it's just RM10, so lets not make a fuss about it. :)

Early this week, I got a chance to go to Baby Twinkle in Puchong. They're located in Bandar Puteri, where Giant is located. The shop is just above Secret Recipe. Went there with my mom and sister, and the SA is very friendly. Her name is Ana. She's very helpful, and likes to talk. Haha. They're currently having a sale during this month of February. I just bought a pair of Mothercare pre-walker shoes for no reason, after being tempted by my mom.

Went to Carrefour afterwards and again, I was diverted to the baby section. Bought a few dailywear for the baby too.

Mothercare pre-walker shoes at RM24 from Baby Twinkle.

6x dailywear set (short sleeve + long pants) from Tollyjoy (RM18.80) and Pureen (RM10.90) at Carrefour.

Total damage: RM121

Baby Expo and Warehouse Sale 2012

2012-02-16T12:26:00.000+08:00

Motherhood Expo 2012

Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre

24th - 26th February 2012

10.30am - 9pm

Admission: FREE

3rd Maternity & Children Expo

Mid Valley Exhibition Centre

9th - 11th March 2012

10.00am - 9pm

Admission: FREE

Confirmed!

It's confirmed I'll be broke during this 2 months. Should start make a list of items that are important only. This time around, no more shopping for babywear. NO MORE!

THE LIST

Bottle warmer

Sterilizer

Storage bottles

Bottle drying rack

Tongs

Bottle cleaning brush

Disposable breast pads

Baby rocker

Baby bedding set

Please pray that I can stick to this checklist. Haha. Why I feel like I'm doubting myself? Tsskkkk!

Bunga Telur Foam

2012-02-14T07:14:00.020+08:00

Oh well, I just realized today is V-Day. Not that I care much, nor celebrate it. Haha. But on this very date, 3 years ago, I'm engaged to this man who has become my husband now. So it's kinda special for me in my own way.

Okay, that's not the key for this post. Let's move on to the real deal.

The other day, my SIL was talking about ordering bunga telur for her baby girl's majlis akikah. It got me thinking that you have to prepare for the bunga telur even before your baby was born. She did the same too, so yeah, I'm gonna followsuit (but not now, duh!).

I don't know how much you need for akikah's bunga telur, but I guess the safest bet is to consider it's just the same quantity as what you have during your wedding. Two pahar of those should be sufficient enough.

I was bloghopping and found these useful websites, each sells unique bunga telur. They were made of foam, colourful ones. Suitable for children's events.

This first one is from Sweet n Rosy. From what I observed, they have excellent workmanship. Very detailed with neat shapes and tiny bits. RM3 per piece.

And this is from Gift 4 Gifted. They made the cutest bunga telur everrrrrrr! Besides Hello Kitty, they can make you a ladybird, chicky or maybe something one of a kind. I love this!

The Latest Purchase

2012-02-11T00:16:00.013+08:00

I'm only at 17 weeks but it seems like I already bought most of the baby stuffs. I can safely say that I have completed almost 50% of my checklist (mostly babywear). There are reasons why I buy things much earlier. Firstly it's because I like to prepare well ahead. Yes. I cannot imagine having my husband to buy baby stuffs. He doesn't know much (me too!), well I can't blame him because this is his first time and typically, he's a guy. Never count on a man to do a woman's job. From what I observe, he's more into gadgets and toys, so I think strollers would be his forte. I have to teach him the importance of buying a good breastpump, having a sterilizer at home, the correct teats for bottles for breastfed babies and the list goes on. He's learning a thing or two, but I know I have to prepare everything by myself while I can, so as not to burden him.

Secondly, I know I will not feel good when I reach the third trimester, earliest at 6 month. I have low lying placenta which means, I cannot move or walk much. I have to rest most of the time and this restricts me from being active, out and about. I can't roam the malls searching for baby items when I'm constantly tired, with swollen feet and panting for air. No no, that's not a good sight. Thus, to play safe it's best if I just prepare earlier.

Third, it's the money matters. Yes, having a baby is not costly but the mindset makes it so. Sure you can just buy a bundle of clothes of 5 for RM20. Now, that's not expensive right? It's more to your personal view. If you want better stuffs for the baby, you have to fork out some money. As for me, I love everything pretty. Well, who doesn't? And I know my taste, so I have to do something to fulfill it. If I buy things bit by bit, it wouldn't be too costly. Just imagine if every month you spend about RM150 - RM200 for baby stuffs, by the 4th month you have everything completed without having to burn a hole in your pocket. Compared to if you buy whole lotta things in a month, complete but it costs you RM800, isn't it a headache? So it's better to start off early. Just my own humble opinion.

As usual, I always love good bargains. I went window shop at Sunway Pyramid with dear husband and being me, it's impossible to not buy something along the way. With a baby coming its way, I have more reasons to shop. Haha.

I know the colors are mundane. These are for baby's basic wear from Cotton On Kids. 4pcs leggings, 2 beanie hats and 2 pair of socks at RM154. The washcloth is in a pack of two (8pcs per pack), priced at RM20. From Mom's Care.

Cotton On Kids is having a promotion. If you spend RM150 and above in a single receipt, you're entitled for an RM80 voucher. Valid for redemption from 13th - 28th February 2012. Steal! I've been eyeing their grobags, y'know.

And last week, we went to Babyland SS2 just to have a look around. I managed to grab some items to complete my checklist.

Purchases from Babyland SS2. Nothing fancy, just the normal items. Grand total: RM145.

Tommee Tippee bottles in 5oz (RM33) and 9oz (RM35). In a box of two. I want to buy the tinted ones but they are quite expensive. I found cheaper options at One Baby World. Will go there one of these day.

Hand mitten and booties set. I love Tollyjoy mitten sets because they don't print their brand name on their products. Plus, their booties have fleece kinda material for the feet. Adorable. Plain set is RM5.90. Printed set is at RM6.90.

Baby Stuffs from UK

2012-02-09T18:50:00.002+08:00

I never knew shopping for baby clothes online could be this awesome. Haha.

But first, let me start this post with this story and how it led me to my newfound habit, which is kinda boring. The story it is, I mean. Hoho. You can skip this part and move to the pictures instead if you wish.

Ok, shall we start? Ok go.

My pregnancy was an easy one for the the first 2 months. I never had morning sickness, I feel fine and I was thinking, is this normal? Am I really pregnant? When my colleagues started questioning how I don't look pregnant at all then I began to worry. I had my first check-up at 7 week out of curiosity. When I went for scan and the doctor showed me the blurry image of the baby's heartbeat, I was relieved. Ok, so it's true I'm really pregnant and there is a real baby inside my tummy. Since then, I started to watch my diet and my food intake. All the best for my baby.

When the third month emerges, I knew I finally have the pregnancy bug and symptoms. This time, it's real. I vomitted, tho not that much and frequent but when it comes, it does come hard. I don't feel good especially during the evening. I don't have the mood to go to work, in fact I loathe everyone at work. I'm always on MC and I've become a frequent patient at the local clinic, they should award me with a Loyalty Badge or something for the record.

When I was about 4 month, I had trouble to walk. I've been having this terrible cough for 3 weeks it looks like it would lasts forever. So again, I went to see the doctor. She did the scan and said that the baby's head is pushing down my placenta, probably because everytime I coughed, the pressure went down and causes this. I just nod at whatever she explains on that blurry image of my baby because I was too worried. She even said the complications if we have low lying placenta. Bleeding can occur, problems for baby, etc.

I was given rest for 2 days and the next day, I really cannot walk because it was too painful just to move your legs. So there goes the neverending story of me going to the private hospital, private clinic and government hospital. I had some spotting but the doctor thought it wasn't so serious so I was given rest again. I cannot lift heavy objects, I must restrict excessive walking (means no more trips to malls!) and most importantly, I should just lie down and rest. I had 2 weeks rest and couldn't care less if people in the office talk about me because I'm the one who suffer from this, not them.

Bedrest and staying at home for 2 weeks is killing me because I cannot go out. So I started playing on the Ipad, browsing around the Internet and now I'm stuck at online shopping. This time, it's for the baby. I came across Saudagar UK, a Malaysian couple of husband and wife who become a team to deliver anything you'd like to buy from the UK. But of course, you have to bear the shipping charges.

This is a good news because UK has vast options of shopping for various types of people. And shopping for baby items in UK is heaven. Some items are cheap, especially if they are on sale or clearance, and choices are plentiful. Dealing with Saudagar UK is easy too. They reply your e-mails promptly and very helpful. I sent them tonnes of e-mail and each were replied courteously and quick. They use UPS to deliver your parcel too, which is very reliable. I got mine in 4 days, hassle free without any Customs charges imposed. Yes, that was quick!

When the parcel arrived. Wheeeeeeee!

Lets open it and see what's inside.

Hahaha!

The catch for the day. Mode: happy and ultimately broke!

I started off my purchase from George @ Asda and Debenhams. All are newborn clothes and accesories. From George @ Asda, I bought:
6x sleepsuits
3x long sleeve bodysuits
10x bibs (okay gila beli bib banyak-banyak, haruslah buat charity nanti)
2x hooded towel + mitt
1x boggle suit (kau ingat Malaysia ni sejuk ke nak beli baju tebal-tebal)
5x pair of socks
1x monster beanie hat

From Debenhams, I bought stuffs from their designer line. It is Ted Baker Baby. They are:
1x party dress
1x blanket
1x bear plush toy. The bear is soooooooooooo cuddly! Perfect for babies and toddlers.

Now, the damage? It's £151.81 only plus shipping via UPS. Looks cheap eh? Wait until you convert it to Ringgit Malaysia. Ok, shut up. I know.

My Newborn (and ehemmmm.... new mom) Checklist

2012-02-09T00:45:00.100+08:00

Since I'm pregnant, I started to become more informative by reading tips and whatnots about baby and pregnancy rigorously through Internet and books. Listening to experienced mothers is a good way to learn a thing or two (maybe more) too.

From what I heard, a baby checklist is essential for first time mothers as it guides us in getting the necessary items for baby without going overboard and overspent. I know, being a mother, we want the best for our baby and don't mind to spend some extra mile for the things we think are good for the baby. I truly understand this because the same thing happens to me too. Haha guilty as charged!

So, in order for me to save money and strap in some cash for later use (medical, hospital bills and unforeseen circumstances), I decided to make my own checklist based on my preferences. I know you can get a newborn checklist on the net but I think some items listed there are unnecessary and don't even suit our lifestyle. Thus, I came up with a new one for my ease. This list is free for you to copy, I have no problem.

BABY CLOTHES
5x short sleeve bodysuits - DONE
3x long sleeve bodysuits - DONE
6x sleepsuits - DONE
6x tights / long pants - DONE ( I bought extra 2pcs)
9x hand mittens and booties - DONE
5x socks - DONE ( I bought extra 2 pairs)
2x hats - DONE
15x baby binders
3x swaddle wraps
3x blankets / receiving blankets - DONE

BABY CARE
Baby bath
Baby shampoo
Baby lotion
Baby oil
Baby powder
Diapers (cheap ones as baby poos a lot!)
2x towels - DONE
A pack of small towel / handkerchief - DONE
5x bibs - DONE (I bought extra 5pcs, because they're too cute!)
Cotton buds
Cotton balls
Minyak yuyi
Minyak telon
2x wet tissue
Vicks
Nail clipper
Diaper rash cream
Nasal aspirator
Baby bedding set
Laundry detergent

BABY FEEDING
Bottle warmer
Sterilizer
Electric breastpump
2x 5oz milk bottle - DONE
2x 9oz milk bottle - DONE
6x storage bottle
Bottle drying rack
Bottle cleanser
Tongs
Bottle cleaning brush

OTHERS
Nipple cream
Disposable breast pad
Baby rocker
Stroller

Baby News!

2012-02-07T11:35:00.002+08:00

I've been missing in action for almost a year and now I'm back because I know, I've missed a lot in blogging! Life's taking a toll on me and for the past year, me and husband were super duper busy with our life but we managed to sneak away for some repeat honeymoons. Haha.

To start off my comeback into the blogging world, I'd like to share this good news with my blogger friends. Yes, I am currently 4 months pregnant. I am easily exhausted now but extremely happy and thrilled with this blessing. We've been waiting for a year for this miracle and finally Allah has granted our wish. I cannot be more than thankful to Him. Alhamdulillah.

I knew I was pregnant from week 7. But it was so hard to contain the feeling and urge of telling everybody that I am expecting. Because of the old folks tale that it is assumed jinx to reveal our pregnancy before it reaches 3 months old, we have to hold the butterflies in our stomach and only tell our moms about it. That's it.

People also said it is jinx to buy baby clothes / items so early in our pregnancy so I hold on to that as well. Until my pregnancy is 4 months old then I started buying baby clothes and items bit by bit.

I know having a baby is costly, depending on how you want the preparation to be. It's the same with wedding. So now, I'm gonna write on about the best deals that I found while scouting for baby items. I'm still a budget-friendly mom to be as the same when I was planning my wedding a year ago. Oh how I missed that moment.

Friends and family advised me not to buy clothes for newborn in large quantity because they will grow out of them sooner than you expected. This is what I read from Google tips as well. But I stick to my list of newborn checklist (which can be found all over the internet, just Google it) and hope it can help first time mothers, like me. I'll put on the list on the next entry kays.

I cannot resist cute baby rompers so last Saturday, I went out with my family to survey for some bargains and have a look at baby clothes. But the temptation is high and I finally grab a few items for my collection.

Sleepwear from Mothercare The Curve. Rm83 after 30% discount.

3 longsleeve bodysuits and 2 rompers from Debenhams. Rm120, these are on sale.

I bought these in size 0-3 months but still I think they're quite big for Asian babies. Good... so these will last longer than I thought. Hopefully. I know these are pricey but I love Mothercare because they have the softest cotton for baby clothes which I like the most! And I like fun prints and colors for baby clothes and so far, I can only find them at these stores.

I bought my newborn clothes from online UK stores. I think I bought quite a heap. Will post a review about it later when I receive the parcel. Hopefully by this week because I used the UPS tracker and currenly, it just reached KLIA. I can only worry about the Customs tax now. Wuuuuu...

Till we meet again, soon. I promise!

InTrend and Photographer

2011-02-22T20:34:00.000+08:00

Like many of you who are aware of this already, my blog was chosen to be listed in InTrend as '50 Blog Pilihan InTrend'. I wasn't aware of this until a fellow blogger alerted me this morning. I haven't bought the magazine yet haha! But I feel very honored for this compliment because I know there are many famous and talented bloggers out there but still, I was selected. This is quite an achievement for me. Congratulations to the other 49 blogs too! Woohooo!

Well, a brief news about me. I'm still living my life as usual. Nothing much changed even after I'm married. I'm not pregnant yet, if you're wondering. I'm not planning, and we're still trying. Hehe.

About last week, I finally got my wedding album from my OP. But it's not the whole set, just the custom album because we kept pushing him to send us the album ASAP. I know rite? 4 months after the wedding only I can get my hands on it. The delivery is a disappointment. I'm totally not happy over it. :(

But here's a sneak preview of some of the pictures. Credit goes to Characters Studio.

Verdict? Talented photographer for a newbie. He takes good pictures. Editing is nice, not OTT. He didn't force me to make certain pose which I'm not comfortable with during shooting. I like that very much. But when it comes to product delivery, everything went wrong. It took so long, I don't mind actually but at least he should let us know if it's going to be late. I literally pushed him everyday for the album after the third month (after our wedding in October) and finally got one, but still the other half is not completed yet. A bit frustrated actually. Haha. Guess, I'm not that lucky enough. ;p

You can contact Characters Studio at 019-2468082 and ask for Ali Hashimi Sulaiman.

Review: Entertainment

2010-12-06T08:34:00.011+08:00

We hired a band to perform during the whole time of the reception. My parents have this thing towards live band, and I knew they're gonna be happy to have someone to sing during my wedding day. I'm sorry but I just don't like karaoke session at wedding. It spoils the mood. I much preferred to leave the singing job to professionals. And I HATE babbling DJ who talks like they're promoting stuffs in supermarket. Please don't. That's why we asked 2 of our friends to be the emcee for the day. And I think they did an excellent job. Will review about it later.

I knew hiring a live band to sing for 4 hours gonna cost me a bomb. Everywhere I asked, they charged between 3k-4k. That's damn expensive! Eventho the price inclusive all; transportation, speakers, instruments etc. But still, I cannot afford that.

I went around and almost gave up when I stumbled upon Ezura Entertainment. I personally dealt with Zura, gave her what I need in a band and she gave me the quotation thru e-mail. I never met her until during the wedding day. Everything were discussed thru phone calls, e-mails and SMSes. 2 weeks before the actual event, I gave her a list of English and Malay songs for them to rehearse and perform for the reception.

During the day, I was too busy to monitor everything and as far as I knew, they are punctual, very professional and did their job on time. I never had the chance to hear them sing actually because I was too overwhelmed to meet friends and relatives. But people came up to us and complemented on the band. Good reviews okay. Especially among the youngsters. But some old-timers did say the band is not appropriate for the wedding. Oh wells, it's okay. Maybe you people need to see a change apart from people singing from some karaoke box rite? Haha.

Before it's time to wrap, the male singer sang poco-poco song and we all girls went nuts and danced together with Zura. The guys didn't know the steps so they accidentally hit each other when they do the dance. It was fun actually. Haha.

Poco-poco with bridesmaids and groomsmen.

Ezura Entertainment is very much recommended and very professional. Do contact them for a quotation. :)

Review: Slideshow

2010-12-02T20:32:00.002+08:00

Haha. Slideshow pun nak buat review. Well, it was my hardwork. 2 weeks before the wedding I finally realized I forgot to do the slideshow. This is to be shown during makan beradap. I made a compilation pictures from the school themed pre-wedding shots for the slideshow. The hardest part was choosing the appropriate song. Since this will be shown to my reception guests which consists of all ages, I know I should find the one that suits all.

The pictures are quirky and happy, and I think I made the right choice by choosing Travie McCoy's "We'll Be Alright" for the background music. I hardly watch the slideshow during the reception but from the feedbacks, I know they enjoyed the slideshow as much as I enjoyed making it.

I upload the video here, for those who missed the wedding and didn't get to watch it. :)

This is lotsa fun! I wanna do this all over again. Missed the school and the memories so much.

My Wedding Highlight from RFMediaworks

2010-12-01T23:27:00.000+08:00

I'm too tired to write up a review. All I can say is Rufi Latiff is highly recommended. Great price, great shots, friendly crew and they are fast. What else can you asked for. I'm too happy watching my wedding highlight I kept rewinding it few times. Seriously, I missed those moments during my wedding day and I thanked Rufi so much for capturing all those memorable scenes. Rufi sent me two videos through FB. The outdoor shooting, where we were too tired to pose for the camera and the wedding highlight, which I loveeeeeeeeeee so much. It's quite a funny clip actually. I laughed whenever I watch it.

Outdoor Shooting Clip

Wedding Highlight

Ask Rufi himself for the pricing and packages he offered. Very affordable! You should try him. I've been with him from the pre-wedding until the wedding day itself, and he did a good job on both occasion. Recommended!

Krabi: What To Do?

2010-12-01T12:14:00.001+08:00

Apart from the excellent beach and the sea activity, the one thing (or two!) that you can do in Krabi other than shopping is pampering yourself with a good massage.

Massage is very popular in this area and very cheap too. A standard 1-hour Thai massage will only cost you RM20-RM30 on average. How does that sound? Massage service is practically everywhere in Ao Nang. Most of them offer the same price, so you just have to choose, let them do their job and pay. We discovered massage service on our second day and went nuts. We pampered ourselves for the next 3-days, straight! Most parlours have happy hour from 10am until 2pm where everything becomes 50% less! Yeay! So choose wisely okay.

Based on my personal view, the best massage parlour is at Golden Beach Resort. They have this big hut where patrons have open massage facing the sea. Very relaxing, windy and I fell asleep listening to the sea wave. But if you're kinda shy, I think this place is not suitable for you.

The manicure and pedicure is real cheap too. I did manicure, pedicure and nail painting with blings, all at RM45. But I think it's just average, nothing to shout about. With that price, you can't complain much. But still, it's considerably cheap compared to KL.

My nail color is shite because I still have my henna color on my nails. I need to find color that resembles the henna thus the F-ugly choice. Haha!

If you want to head down to Krabi, please allocate some money to pamper yourself okay. Most probably you'll become a frequent patron at massage centres during your visit. :D

Review: Catering

2010-11-30T08:32:00.001+08:00

My caterer was Mutiara Catering. I always heard good reviews on them from their previous clients and thought I made the right choice by hiring them as my caterer. But boy... I was quite disappointed with them during my wedding day. Maybe I was just the unfortunate ones. How unlucky we were. Hehe.

Our previous meeting went well with Kimin. He jotted down every details that I requested. In between months to the wedding, I made some adjustments here and there and dealt with his wife, Amy. Eveything went well and every e-mails were replied promptly and very accurate and informative.

We took the custom package. Glass setting, custom-design cake from MAC, covers in our theme colors, alterations in menu, practically they prepared everything. The night before the wedding, we went to the hall to monitor them setting up the table according to the plan. Everything was perfect. I couldn't complained much.

And during the actual event, we have a flood of guests coming most probably during the same time at peak hours. They kinda short of staffs maybe, and halfway during the event, maybe around 2pm, I heard that we ran out of food. Horror! Our relatives rushed to the nearest mamak to buy extra food and later I learnt that they didn't fry the chickens until it was too late, took very long time to clear the tables and very slow to refill food at the buffet station. I know we have extra guests at that time but they should at least prepare the food, monitor the buffet station and don't wait until the queue becomes long. It was quite frustrating because we have paid full amount the morning of the event. Up until now, I still feel bad for our guests who didn't have proper food on my wedding day. I was too tired to complain to them afterwards so I just let it pass.

What I learnt from this incident are:

please appoint someone who you can trust to deal with the caterer during your wedding day
do have back-ups just in case your food is running out
make sure the tables are cleared as soon as possible to give way to other guests
ask the caterer how many staff will they allocate at your wedding and estimate whether it's enough or not
monitor the buffet station and food/drinks/utensils are replenished appropriately

I think, that's the only mishap during my wedding day. Many guests told me the food and table setting were excellent but the downside was the service. I couldn't agree more. I always know they have this good reputation, that's why I hired them. But as I said, maybe I was just unlucky. That's all. I still think Mutiara Catering is not too bad. :)

Review: Wedding Dancers

2010-11-29T22:03:00.000+08:00

Since the first day I planned my own wedding, I knew I always wanted a group of dancers to perform traditional dance, preferably kids. So as usual, I went online and found this group called Pesona Tari, and the best part is they are kids and located in Selangor. Yeay!

They're actually a bunch of primary school kids from SK Pandan Indah. One year before my wedding date I e-mailed En. Yahya, their teacher and so-called manager to book the date. Haha! I know I was a way too early to do booking but I was so eager and happy to finally know there will be kids dancing during my wedding so I immediately hired them. I know I can trust my instinct so there we go.

During the one year time, we exchanged e-mails a few times just to keep track of everything. One month before the actual event, we finalized everything. They will dance to four songs during the ceremony and I asked En. Yahya if they can accompany us too during the parade and yes, they can!

Here are pictures of the kids performing during the wedding:

The group consists of 6 kids. 3 girls and 3 boys. At first I wanted them to perform zapin, but they can't so we settled to etnik, joget and arab. I was so happy watching them dancing from the dais and I think they're kinda cute with the costume, make-up and all the fuss. They even changed costume during the second set of performance. The rate is affordable too, inclusive of transportation charges, 4 dances, costume and props. They are colorful. That's what I like! Pesona Tari can be contacted at 012-5568905 for booking and enquiries.

Review: Wedding Dress

2010-11-25T19:10:00.005+08:00

My wedding dress is actually a very cheap version from an infamous international bridal house, Pronovias. Here's the actual design...

Mermaid tube dress with 3/4 sleeve bolero. Lace patches, sequins and beads.

The actual dress costs thousands of dollars and of course I cannot afford such price. I don't really like the usual Malay wedding dress ala long kebaya and yes, I don't really like lace and heavy beadworks. It's just not me. The simpler the better without all the fuss but still stunning and stands out on its own. So I browsed online and found cheaper option for the dress in Ebay. I bought my wedding dress at Ebay ok! It was custom-made. I gave them my exact measurements, my choice of color and just pray that everything turns out ok.

3 weeks after that I received the parcel for my wedding dress. It's not exactly made based on the picture that I requested but similar. And I cannot complained much given the fact that I paid so very little for it. Everything was completely ok and I was satisfied. The beads are not too heavy but still adequate. The length is just like what I've imagined. Long and flowy and yes, the dress is heavy. Most importantly, it fits me well. But I did send it to Nik for a little alteration on the bolero and the hips area because I seemed to lost weight prior to the wedding. Hehe. And here's the actual dress that I wore during my wedding day...

Full view of the dress.

The close-up picture on lace patches for the bolero.

Veil is cheap too. RM30 only from Ebay. A total bargain! It's quite long sehingga menyapu lantai and Lova fold it into two for the tier which I heart so much!

Krabi: Shopping Review

2010-11-22T07:16:00.003+08:00

You will get bored reading my blog for the next whole month because I'll be updating about Krabi, where almost everybody went there already. Hehe.

The next thing I loved most about Krabi is shopping, apart from massage (will review about it later). Eventho the scene is practically nothing compared to Bangkok and people knew that Thailand is actually the cheapest and most affordable option for shopping, I still think Krabi is great. Maybe because of its ambience or you really have nowhere else to shop, so the only option that you have here is quite a bargain.

As mentioned, both hotels that we stayed in are situated in the heart of Ao Nang shopping strip so spending your money everyday is easy. Because Ao Nang is a beach area, so most of the shop sells almost the same thing and clothes are very beach-friendly, if you know what I mean. Singlets, bikinis, t-shirts, dresses, all those skimpy outfits are aplenty here. They are pretty and absolutely cheap. If you're good at bargaining, then you'll be happy here.

Just a quick example. A t-shirt should be around THB1500 or RM15 only. Please bargain until you can get that price. For dresses, the average price should be around THB2000-3500 or RM20-30 only. If they cannot lower their price tag to that extent, please pretend to walk out of their shop and they will eventually agreed to your price. Haha. Just bear in mind, bargain rightfully and sensible. A piece of clothes should not exceed RM50. Okay darlings?

I bought block magnets for colleagues at office, stuffs for my bridesmaids, t-shirts for family members and pashmina for female relatives. I bought a lot and totally forgot the total damage but I knew they are cheap. A pashmina only costs RM15 per piece. So does the t-shirt. Cheap aite?

Krabi is a small town. The biggest malls here are just Tesco Lotus and Big C which is practically nothing and shouldn't be bothered. By big I meant just as big as Tesco outlets here in Malaysia. That's all. They have a factory outlet too, about 6km from the airport. But the stuffs there are still expensive, and you can give it a pass. Nothing can beat those factory outlets in Bandung. The town is a little crowded tho, not my type. So it's best to stay put in Ao Nang for all the hype and scene.

My Doily Wedding Wishes

2010-11-18T07:32:00.003+08:00

For my wedding, we decided to have a wedding tree. We wanted something unique and to save time and energy, we just bought 2 packets of doily paper at SSF where guests can write on them. Each packet contains 100pcs of doily. So we only have 200pcs of it because I thought nobody bother to write for us. But I was wrong! The wedding tree was a hit and guests wrote wishes and thoughts in colorful magic pens. Very memorable and cute.

Ok. I don't have proper picture for the wedding tree from our own camera because everybody's like... too busy during the ceremony.

After the wedding, we made proper inspection on each doily. We kept everything nice in a sticky album for our keepsake. The sticky album is one of the wedding gift. Very useful. Yeay!

Thank you so much to those who wrote the wishes and compliments. We laughed our heart out while reading all your quirky and beautiful words. Some of you didn't leave your name with it so I couldn't recognize who wrote what. But after all, thanks for every wish. It's a beautiful memory and will be treasured. :)

Krabi: Hotel Review

2010-11-15T20:34:00.003+08:00

Hi there. So sorry for lack of updates. I promised posts on my wedding and honeymoon after I got back from Krabi but yeah, I couldn't find the time until now. Phewwwww!

Now back to the story.

We spend 6D5N in Krabi. Initially we planned to stay for 4D3N in Ao Nang and 3D2N in Phi Phi Island. But we were too lazy to go to the island (because we like Ao Nang so much!) and we soon realized we're tired of beaches so we forgo the idea and spent the whole 6 days in Krabi alone.

We stayed in 2 different hotels in Krabi, just to get the feeling of staying in a proper hotel and cheap inns. The first hotel was Ao Nang Princeville. We got the offer during MATTA fair in March, priced at RM600 for the whole 4D3N stay in a deluxe room. A total grab because Princeville is a great hotel in its own. There's nothing that I dislike about this hotel. I love everything about them. The breakfast, the staff, the room, the ambience and especially, the location! It is conveniently located in the smack of Ao Nang shopping area, in front of the beach strip and foods are very easy to find. Superb!

During our stay, the weather was perfectly fine. Not too hot and humid nor raining heavily, so it's perfect when you want to walk along the Ao Nang strip until the end or simply lay down on the beach. But only for the first day when we arrived and the last day when we want to go back home, it rained.

After we checked out from Ao Nang Princeville, we went to a cheaper hotel considering our budget for leisure (massage!) and food. It's still within Ao Nang strip and is actually next to our previous hotel so yeah, convenience is within reach. It's La Venice in the Ao Nang Walking Street. We chose different type of room during our 3D2N stay. For the first night, we stayed at their superior room. Priced at RM60 per night, it caters to all your basic needs. At such price, what more could you ask for? The room is spotlessly clean and welcoming. The only downside is the view from the window and their tap water tastes weird too. Haha!

The second night was the Halloween celebration and we changed to deluxe room, with balcony and view of the whole Ao Nang Walking Street, where we watched the Halloween party from our balcony. Yeay! It's slightly bigger than the superior room, with balcony and the best of all, it's only RM90 per night. To die for! Yes people. Everything in Krabi is cheap. Seriously cheap!

My honest opinion? Most hotels in Krabi are beautiful! Seriously. So choose your accomodation wisely. I strongly suggest hotels within Ao Nang, because of its lively atmosphere and shopping is easy. Haha! We ventured further up to Thup Aek beach and its surrounding areas, and thus the hotels here are amazing, they're quite isolated. If you wanted privacy and prefer to be away from the hustle and bustle of Ao Nang, these hotels are right for you. But we don't think we can survive in this area because everything is too far and not within walking distance. You must have a transport to get out from this place. Just my humble opinion.

Well... that's a long visual entry of Krabi hotel review. I hope this can help you in deciding your accomodation in Krabi soon. :)

Nurul Arbee: Pelamin Review

2010-10-28T22:16:00.001+08:00

I'm currently updating at Bristot, a cafe in Ao Nang Princeville. Yes, people! I'm on honeymoon. Haha. They give us free internet surfing for 30 minutes, so update is a quick one yeah.

Well, today I'm gonna do a review of my pelamin.

Nurul Arbee is a friend of my father and when I knew she's actually a pelamin maker, I decided to hire her for my wedding. The perks of having someone you know as your vendor is you've got discounts. But not much, since I know she's doing business and profit is a must.

I booked her like, 2 months after my engagement. She was very busy at that time and our first official discussion was around March, when she was heavily pregnant. We both brainstormed and had our own ideas and I was quite firm in my decision knowing that I've heard some not so good stories from previous clients aka bloggers.

The proper discussion was like a month before our wedding. I like everything she presented to me and with a very affordable price tag, I knew I should trust her as my wedding decorator for nikah and reception. On the actual day, she did an excellent job and I love every details she put in each of my pelamin. Best thing is, she even threw in a free hand bouquet for my nikah and reception ceremony. Yeay!

I don't have proper pictures of my nikah pelamin because I was too busy I forgot to snap a picture. Maybe we'll have one when I get the official pictures fom my OP. By the way, review of Krabi and honeymoon will be next, when I'm back on Monday. I'm enjoying myself here. Will definitely write one soon. Till the, toodles!

Lova: Make-Up Review

2010-10-27T08:04:00.001+08:00

My favourite part of my wedding is my make-up. It was flawless and for once, I never knew I could look this pretty (in my own eyes, of course!) on my wedding day. All thanks to Lova.

I booked her for both my nikah and reception, 10 months before my wedding day. In between those times, I've heard comments from her previous clients. Some are good while some are bad. I almost changed my MUA after I've heard some stories from others but I know I can trust Lova and now, I never regretted chosing her as my official MUA.

Lova is very punctual. She came early for my nikah. So does on my reception. She didn't take too much time to doll me up. She is fast, believe me and the result was not disappointing. It was marvellous. People commented on how much they love my make-up. My mom became friends with her and Lova even offered her a free hairdo for the reception which my mom loved to bits!

I'm not a person who used make-up. So I told Lova I want a simple make-up for nikah but emphasize on my eyes. And I don't want make-up that completely change my look. Plus, no thick foundation. I know my complexion is not that good but I don't intend to cover them up in a thick, cakey powder. She did comply to my request and I can say that she's done a good job.

As for my reception, Lova told me that the make-up would be little bit heavier than my nikah make-up. I'm okay with it as long as the foundation is not too thick. As usual, I requested Lova to concentrate on my eyes. The end result? I love, love, love my make-up! And I love what she did to my hair too. Wheeeeee!

My verdict? Lova is recommended. She is punctual, gives you good advice on beauty and health, friendly and pretty (does it count?). Haha! And the price is affordable too. She can be contacted at 016-6720445. Quick! Book her for your big day.

My Wedding

2010-10-26T16:33:00.002+08:00

All I can say is, everything went well and smoothly. Alhamdulillah. To bloggers who came to celebrate during the reception, thank you so much! I'm so sorry I was so distracted I didn't notice some of you in the crowd. But thanks a bunch for the wishes and gifts. Love you all!

To make up for it, here's a teaser on my nikah ceremony...

And some more during my reception...

Reviews on make-up, attire, hall, catering, pelamin and everything will follow soon. Stay tuned!

You Are Invited to My Wedding!

2010-10-22T17:57:00.003+08:00

{ This is a sticky post. Please scroll down for the latest entry }

Hi fellow B2B and bloggers. I'm getting married soon. How do I feel? Owwww... nervous! Haha.

Now that my wedding invitation clip is up and running, please have fun watching our kayu-ness in front of the camera and laughing out loud at our antics. Hehehe!

And by saying this, YES. You are cordially invited to my wedding reception on Sunday, 24th October 2010 in Putrajaya. If you wish to attend the reception and join in the celebration, which I really hope you do, please leave me your name and address to my e-mail at astronumb@yahoo.com so I will send out a formal invitation.

Hope we can meet and mingle on my wedding day. Can't wait to see you there, pretty people! Mwahhhhhxxxxx!

Have You Received My Wedding Passport?

2010-10-02T11:46:00.003+08:00

Hi all. Sorry for not updating for the whole month of September. I was down with illness and was too busy making cards, I couldn't find time to update this blog.

If you realized, time flies so fast. My wedding will be in 3 weeks time. I should not panic, but still, there are lots of tiny little things which need to be adjusted in time. Phewwww!

I'm in the midst of posting out my invitation card. I sent out the first batch on Tuesday, and I believe most of you have received it by now. Do let me know if you still haven't gotten any, I don't want to miss out anyone. As for the second batch, whom just sent me the address within this week, I will post out yours on next Tuesday. And as usual, do let me know if you don't receive it by next weekend, okay?

As you all know, this is a handmade card. We made all 800pcs of it manually. Thus, if the cuttings are uneven, the glue cannot stick properly on each page, the stamps are not clear and you have difficulty to understand its content, I apologize beforehand. Because wedding passport card is very new in Malaysia, I'm sure some people can't really understand its function. Especially the older ones. So here, let me just rephrase the contents for all so you'll get a clearer view.

My nikah ceremony will be on 23/10/10 and it's a private event, so guests are limited to family members only. Some people asked me when is the wedding because yeah, I have to admit the contents in the card are quite confusing itself so I have to tell them to read each page before jumping on conclusion. Hahaha! Okay, now to make up for the nikah ceremony which I'm so sorry I can't invite all my friends and colleagues, a reception will be held on 24/10/10 at Putrajaya. This time, friends are invited to join in the celebration. The theme is red and black and it's not compulsory for you to come and wear something in that color. It's optional actually, so don't burden yourself and start shopping for red or black outfit just because the content in the card mentioned the theme color.

I hope this clears things up a bit. To friends and bloggers who sent me messages and complimented the cards, thank you so much! You really made my day and I'm glad you like the card to bits. I hope to see you at the wedding reception, in a few weeks time. :D

Pre-Wedd at Petaling Street

2010-08-24T21:00:00.001+08:00

We had our second pre wedding photoshoot at the same day we did our video invitation videoshoot. Imagine how tired we were. We started shooting for the video at 9.30am and it ended at 1pm. Then we rushed for the photoshoot, with shiny and sweaty faces. The theme is laidback and just having fun, so we were a lil bit relaxed during the photoshoot.

We're gonna use some pictures from the school-themed pre wedding shoot and the Petaling Street photos for our welcome picture during the reception. Our photographer asks us to select a few of our favourite shots to be edited. Now, that's hard!

Well, let's have a look at some of the pictures taken for our second pre wedding photoshoot. Mind the tired faces yea. We were dead flat at that time. Huhuhu.

Ok. That should be enough for now. I should concentrate on preparing for the wedding.

DIY Wedding Card

2010-08-16T07:14:00.028+08:00

Johan and me, we make our own wedding invitation cards. It's in the size of passport and being me, who doesn't fancy ready made cards or those normal cards, decided to make a new one from scratch. I have zero knowledge in graphics. So when it comes to designing our own wedding card, I used MS Word as the draft.

Using MS Word, everything is a smooth because I'm so used to them and they gave me no problems. I wanted the cards to have certain Malay and Islamic influence too eventho the design is modern. So for every BM wording, I put Jawi wording behind it as translation.

Now the hardest part is the printing. There are certain pages that I print out manually. Manual means, I used my own lil printer to print out the cards in double sided for 600pcs. That's a lot, but I can save money because printing is free.

But, not everything is printed out using my home printer. For the cover and maps, I sent them out to this printing shop in Brickfields. We're used to the uncle so the thoughts of going to Pudu never existed. Haha. Here's the problem. Since my files are all in MS Word, they cannot read my Jawi translation. We've made 3 trips to discuss about the Jawi wording and on the last trip only he managed to get the Jawi coding in the right place after I successfully saved them in PDF files.

We sent the curly stickers to the uncle for printing too. Best thing is, they will do the cutting for the cards as well. See, double happiness.

Finally, the card matters are all resolved. What's left is for them to be stamped with our custom wedding stamps. For the past 2 days, I've been doing this job for Johan's card. But it's quite ugly. I don't like it. Blame my hands.

My cards are colorful, very informal. Haha! Sorry, pictures are a bit gloomy. Taken with my phone camera.

You'll think the stampings are all ok but if you have it in your hands, see it with your eyes, in real life, you can see the ugliness. :(

The stamps were ordered from Jasa Trading, Level 1, Kompleks PKNS. I gave them the print-out picture of my desired stamps, and they were ready the next day. For those 4 big stamps as mine, they costs me RM45. If they make any mistake, they'll redo everything for free and you can collect them the next day too.

Our DIY wedding cards are still slow in progress. I could say, about 40%. There are still lots of work to be done. The cutting, stamping, pasting and ribbon tying. Phewwwwww!

Stickers

2010-08-09T21:50:00.001+08:00

I haven't blog much lately. Why? Beacuse I'm so stressed out. It's 2 months to the wedding, and I know I didn't do much progress at all.

But.... I created my own stickers today. Haha. From scratch and heaps of 'copy & paste' from various choices. Here's the final product!

Now you know the exact date of my wedding. Haha! I'm gonna use them for my nikah and reception doorgift. I wonder, since when I'm so into swirly curly designs? Hmmm....

Now, pardon me for neglecting this blog and haven't replied your comments. I'm just tired. Yesterday was our second pre-wedding photoshoot. More laidback, casual and spontaneous shoot than the school-themed shoot before. Earlier in the morning, we did our video invitation shoot with Rufi. We seriously cannot act. I'm so nervous now, waiting for the outcome. Those who added me on facebook will get to see the video soon. And yes, you are invited to my wedding. :)

I can't wait to get the pre-wedd pictures from my OP. Wheeeeeeee!

Wedding Badge

2010-06-27T09:53:00.000+08:00

We're doing a combine wedding, so chances of guests get confused on recognizing our family members are high. I try to skip on the usage of traditional flowery corsage for wedding. Solution: a wedding badge. I ordered a bunch of badges from Whizarts for my family and Johan's family.

Each set of it comes with 5 badges. Priced at RM30 per set so roughly it's about RM6 per piece. I ordered 3 sets for our family members. The size is quite big so I don't care much. Expensive, yeah and I know I can get a cheaper option out there but I'm just too tired to have a trip back and forth to stationary supplies in KL.

Let's have a look of what is actually a wedding badge.

E-mails were replied promptly. Alishia, the owner, sent me the draft of the badges for my approval soon after the payment was received and knowing me, I've pointed a few suggestions and ammendments here and there. Hehe. Within 4 working days, I received the parcel and I'm happy with the outcome. It's just worth the money.

Designer: Bad Experience

2010-06-20T09:27:00.001+08:00

Seems like we have something to say about designers nowadays, eh? Haha! Serves you right, designer! I will let people know of your bad service, so others won't end up like me.

Ok, this has nothing to do with my wedding, but I would say, it is related in a way. And the best part is, yes, I will reveal the name of the designer. Seriously, I couldn't care less.

Some of you might already know that we've engaged Nik to do Johan's attire, my bolero and yeah, a little alteration on my wedding dress. Everything went well, tho at first when I met him, I know we don't have that chemistry. We can't click at all.

He's actually Johan's schoolmate way back in secondary school. So at the same time of doing business, he's also doing a favor for an old friend and kindly open a special slot for us. Marks: FRIENDS ONLY. Ok, that's good. I can't complain much.

The second time we went there for measurements session with Johan's groomsmen, I saw a nice flowy purple dress on the rack which was on sale. I asked him the price, tried it on and yeah, I like it a lot because everything fits me nicely. He even said he can mend whichever part that I feel should be altered. I knew the dress would be perfect for me to wear on my sister's engagement ceremony (which was held last week). So with a happy heart, I paid for the dress and told him to do some alterations. Mind you, this all happen somewhere in March or April.

Months went by, and in early June, which was 2 weeks before my sister's ceremony, I told Johan to ask Nik when he's free so we can drop by later at night and pick-up my purple dress. I seldom exchange messages with Nik ok. I told you I can't click with him so it's best for Johan to do all the contact because they are, after all, friends.

Johan texted him and to my horror, he replied saying that he totally forgot that I have bought the dress and sold it off to another customer. What the fuck??? Johan showed me the message:

'Ya Allah johan.. i betul2 lupe ur gf dah bli baju tu.. i dah jual kat org sabah ni.. sorry sgt k. nnt i ganti blk duit tu..'

You know, we were dead tired on that day running errands for wedding stuff. Imagine what I must have felt when at the end of the day, I received that shocking news? I have blisters at the back of my feet from walking all day, I was so exhausted and I felt like crying and shouting at him but I don't have the energy to do it. So I texted him and cold-heartedly told him I want to take back my wedding dress and send it off to another tailor and I don't need his service or favor anymore. I can't bear the thoughts of he ruining my wedding dress lak nanti. Guess what, he didn't reply, AT ALL. Fuckkkkk!

The next day, Johan told me that Nik is currently doing my bolero and wasn't sure whether my wedding dress has been altered or not. Aku pasrah je ok! Boleh lak ko SMS dgn bf aku tapi dgn aku haram ko nak reply. Dasar gedik!

From that moment, I know I'm not gonna be nice to him anymore. That's for sure. I'm a customer, I don't need his favor. I insist on paying his price for his service but he's giving me discounts. I paid full sum of the purple dress on the dot and later on, he was happily sell it off to another customer. Seriously, I can't accept his reasons. How can you forget someone has actually paid for the dress? And you don't even have the guts and courtesy to call or text me and say sorry for selling off my dress. If you did text me and apologize, I won't be so mean like this ok. I know the price of the dress is not much, but still, I PAID you and your service is OUT la. I should be an artiste or a VIP kut baru die nak layan I btol-btol. But no, I'm just a government servant, memang la die wat bodo je kan?

Some of you might have a good interaction with him, lucky you! I think I'm just unfortunate. I don't say I don't recommend him to you, but I just want you to be aware. It's up to you actually. Designers are human too, they all make mistakes. So do we. At least when you've heard good and bad stories on a particular designer from other people, you will be prepared and eventually, it'll help you to make the best decision.

So good luck in finding your designer! I hope my post won't dampened your mood in taking him as your dressmaker. But I know it makes you to be more careful next time.

Cheap Findings: Innerwear

2010-06-14T08:42:00.001+08:00

My wedding dress is actually a tube dress and it's paired with a lace bolero. I don't want to wear the convential bra with straps because a peek-a-boo beneath the bolero is definitely a NO-NO for the wedding. And I know I can't wear a bra without any straps. I just can't. I always know it has a tendency to slip. Haha.

I've been searching for a proper innerwear that can give me good support and at the same time, contours my body since my wedding dress is fitted around the curves. I went to all, if not most, lingerie boutiques to find something that suits my body-type. Be it expensive or cheap, famous or not. Still, I can't find one that can snug me at all the right places. Mind you, I'm not busty so finding the right size is a headache too.

After spending months of my precious time finding the right innerwear, I've finally found the right one! I was at Summit USJ one night for a movie and while waiting for the midnight show, I went around the mall checking their shops and was attracted to Point B! after noticing their range of lingerie from the window display. Haha. I'm a sucker of pretty shop display ok.

They carry a famous lingerie brand and a prominent one called Blush!. You know Blush! is like among the first fancy lingerie brand ever to hit Malaysia, me think so. And guess what? They have a selection of corset which are on sale, tho the collection is a bit limited but the good thing is, they do have smaller size in stock. Oh, heaven for people like me! Wheeeee!

The corset is priced at RM189.90 but I got it at 70% off the normal price. You do the math. It's cheap because it's from Blush!, it's lined and boned and it gives me the perfect curves I've ever had. Haha! Suitable for bridal innerwear, it comes in black and white. They do have the seamless-type corset too but I look hideous when I tried it on. That one comes in white and nude, with the same price tag and is on sale too.

And I bought a pair of 2-piece swimwear from Old Navy for my honeymoon too. Total damage? RM60 only. Mood? Happy! All thanks to Reject Shop.

The Search of Wedding Shoes

2010-06-10T21:13:00.005+08:00

First of all, I want to thank Mya from 4weddingku for writing a nice review and featuring my humble blog on her website for the Blog Review slot in June. I didn't realize this if not for fellow blogger friend Zara, who was kind enough to tell me. Now go give these ladies a big hug! Hehe.

Taken from 4weddingku

Now, back to the story.

I was totally inspired from Huda's post regarding custom made wedding shoes at Gavy. Upon reading her entry, I immediately went to its outlet in Maju Junction the next day, armed with 2 copies of my dream wedding shoes for reference. I dragged Johan along, because we'll be running errands the whole day and our first pit-stop was Gavy.

I didn't prepare much when I was there. I didn't call the guy who're we supposed to be dealing with beforehand and there were just a couple of SA at that time. I showed the girls the printed copy of the shoes that I'd like to have, the choice of color and material. Of course, they can make my dream shoes a reality and I was browsing their catalog for the material but none captured my eyes. I wanted red satin but they only have some kind of shiny PVC or glittery thingy material which is a NO-NO! Then they told me that I can bring my own material if I don't like those that they have in store.

Now, here comes my favourite part which I was dying to tell you, the price. They quoted me RM160 for the workmanship only! Ok, expensive. Belum tambah lagi my own material, those big brooch for blings and stuff, the cost of it might be amounted to almost RM200. So not worth it. Johan even said it's expensive. Ditambah lagi dengan penat, minyak and everything, so I guess I just forgo the idea.

Dengan perasaan hampa, we went to Pavillion and I finally found a cheap red heels at Vincci+ for my wedding. It's only RM127. Haha. You know, anything cheap and pretty always brighten up my day. Theehee!

I love the huge diamante brooch and the material. It's red hot suede baby! Sangat smooth, ok. Geram! Geram! And it adds inches to my height. Yeay-ness. Johan doesn't like the idea of having peep-toe heels for wedding sebab nampak jari kaki, tak cantik. But I was too in love with this baby to let it go, after my unfortunate event at Gavy. Cewahhh!

Owh yeah, have I mentioned that I bought my nikah shoes almost a year ago? Yeah, too early, I know, but I can't help it. I'm not a fan of pointed heels but since it's for nikah, I want it to be proper and covered. It's from Elo in Subang Parade, priced at RM129 (no discount, damn!). Owh, I love the fact that the color compliments my jubah too.

Okay, the color and everything look fugly in the pictures but in real life, it's pretty! Now I have scattered diamonds on my shoes and jubah. Wheeeee!

Selected Photos for Wedding Poster

2010-06-01T00:32:00.000+08:00

I'm listing down some of the pictures from my pre-wedding photoshoot to be featured on my wedding poster. Still have a lot of favourites saved in my lappy but I just upload a few for viewing pleasure on my blog. I really had a hard time sorting out a tonne of them as a final selection. Phewwwww!!!

Some of the shots that I think could make up as a part of the props during my reception nanti. Now, how on earth could I begin drafting my own wedding poster? Hard time!

Wedding Finds in Petaling Street

2010-05-30T17:16:00.001+08:00

The holiday was spent with me and Johan trying to find wedding items. It's four months left to the wedding and luckily, all the major things have been taken cared of.

We went to Petaling Street on one hot and sunny afternoon. Thinking that it's going to be a marathon from Petaling Street to Jln. TAR to PJ State. But we were so exhausted in the middle of Jln. TAR and decided to go to PJ next time. What's in PJ? Well, there's an art shop selling easels in various size and design at an affordable price range. I'll let you guys know the drill once I buy the easels from them yeah?

Okay, let's move on to the initial story. The reason we went to Petaling Street was to buy paper lanterns and decorations for my reception. I happen to know from an anonymous that there's a shop selling paper lanterns so cheap you feel like crying! Hahaha! So that afternoon, we just went there and were looking at the map by the roadside, felt like tourists, asked some directions from the locals and tried to find the shop. It is hidden, you must have missed it if you're not aware of the surroundings.

What did we bought?

13 (16-inch) plain paper lanterns in red, white and pink.
4 (14-inch) flower-cut paper lanterns in black.
2 kipas bulu (for bersanding).
70pcs white organza pouch.

Total damage? RM150!!!!

Omgggggggg!!!!! So cheap yes I feel like crying because money is so tight right now so anything cheap will make me drool. Haha!

They sell various types of lantern. The biggest paper lantern ever is cheap too, selling at RM19.90. Sooooo huge!!! They do have the famous kipas bulu but in limited colors tho, maybe kehabisan stok? When I was there, they only have it in red, white, orange and yellow. I thought of buying black and red fan but after some discussion with Johan, we settled for the white fan. Senang nak guna for other function later. Yes, you can unwrap it and check if there are any defects before you commit to buy the fans. They don't mind. I buat macam itu kedai I sendiri je, try itu ini without even asking them. Haha!

Kipas bulu sold at RM8.90 per piece. Fluffy and pretty!

Black flower-cut lantern at RM8.90 per piece. Cheap!

The shop owner, an old Chinese lady is very helpful. Do look out for her. And her Cambodian (i think!) assistant too, who cannot speak Malay and doesn't understand BM much. Hehe.

The location?

It's in Jalan Panggong. If you're coming from the market area in Petaling Street, walk just a bit further up to your right. Keep your eyes open and you'll see a McD signage across the road and there's a signage to Jalan Panggong. Enter the alley and walk straight up until you reach a row of shoplots. The shop is located next to a restaurant. From the outside you could see lanterns hanging inside the shop, you're at the right place then.

Or if you're still clueless, just ask any taxi drivers yang dok melepak tepi jalan tu. They'll help you. Owh I love Malaysians!

Happy hunting!

Pre Wedding: Back To School

2010-05-27T19:20:00.001+08:00

So last Saturday, Johan and I with a bunch of friends went for our pre wedding photoshoot, located at our previous school at SMK La Salle PJ. The weather wasn't forgiving at first. Cloudy and windy and yeah, rain started around 10am thus our shooting was at halt. At this point of time, all we can do was only take some shots inside the classroom.

Around 12pm, the weather started to get better. Sun shines and we went for outdoor photoshoot mainly around the football field and tarmac area. It was fun. Everybody gave their best for this photoshoot. I totally heart them!

As you can see, yeah, the theme was Back To School. We will arrange another photoshoot with the same theme again somewhere in July. This time around, it involves only me and Johan. :D

On to the pictures!

I'm too lazy to upload more pictures. A few would be just enough for a sneak peek. Hehe.

Save The Date Photo Collage

2010-05-19T18:47:00.001+08:00

Inspired from a post by Xora, I decided that we could make use of our pre-wedding photoshoot this Saturday to make a Save The Date picture collage. Sounds fun and practical.

Source from Google.

PP Casita

2010-05-19T16:03:00.000+08:00

I think some of you are already aware of my honeymoon destination. Haha. I am more excited for the holiday rather than the wedding for the time being. Hehe.

I've never been to Phi Phi Island. So I don't put too much hope for it. Much more after reading the reviews from TA (which isn't helping at all), I knew I shouldn't be expecting much for the trip. Just enough to keep me sane thinking it's just like some ordinary islands in Malaysia. Think Tioman and Perhentian, where things are laidback, the views and environment are enough to make me happy, rooms are basic and certain parts are remote.

The moment we secured the air tickets, I started googling to find accomodations in Phi Phi. It was a headache, but I had fun. We decided to book a room at PP Casita.

Source from Google.

They don't have any website so I have to trust my instinct and booked thru online agent. They don't require full payment and the deposit is paid via Paypal so if it's a fraud, at least I don't loose much. I cannot tell you much for the time being because it is, however, still a plan. Once I've been there and done that, will definitely share the tips with you guys. :)

I'm still a bit afraid thinking about the current situation in Thailand, hope it doesn't affect Krabi and Phi Phi Island much. I want to have a piece of mind for the honeymoon yo.

Wedding Poster

2010-05-17T18:22:00.001+08:00

Our wedding reception will be held in a building where it houses two halls. Since the time of the wedding is at noon, the possibility of having a double ceremony with a complete stranger is high. Lucky thing, our hall is situated at the ground floor, so chances of guests getting confused and ended up at a wrong ceremony is well, at least.... a bit lower compared to those at the upper floor.

The hall management will provide landmarks and directions placed at strategic spots so our guests are not at lost when they're in the building. But still, I think we need something personal to be put at the direction of our wedding hall because the ones they provide us are the same with the other party so you know, it might be confusing especially to older people.

Friends been suggesting bunting and banner but knowing me, I don't want anything typical for the wedding. I need something out of the norm but still acceptable for Malay wedding. Plus, I never like the idea of having our face printed on a big bunting. We aren't beautiful people, just ordinary. Haha. And I always have this thought of faces printed on banners or buntings will never look good even if they're pretty people. Just my two cents.. Heheh.

I've been thinking of having a poster-like announcement as a replacement of bunting and banner. Compact in size, just what I like. You know, the one like a movie poster with a subject picture, a title, a list of actors, production name and what-nots. It'll be exactly like that but this time, it's for a wedding.

Source from Flirty Guide

And if we aren't fancy of having our face on the print, maybe we could opt for a comical poster then.

Source from Google.

Wedding Shots With Groomsmen and Bridesmaids

2010-05-16T18:32:00.003+08:00

We'll be having four groomsmen and bridesmaids each for the wedding. It's too many but we know they'll make a perfect picture for our wedding shots.

I'm not a fan of romantic, lovey-dovey poses. I'm pretty much afraid thinking that my OP's wedding shots are more towards those typical poses. *sigh* I might have some of those 'compulsory' poses just for the sake of it but definitely not to be put in the wedding album.

My preferences for wedding poses are more to laidback, fun and spontaneous, without us trying too hard in front of the camera. Since the photoshoot will involve our crazy groomsmen and bridesmaids, so those romantic shots are a big NO-NO!

I absolutely heart these wedding shots which exude enjoyment and happiness. I need to have these shots taken for the group photo. Haruslah aku mengamuk kalau takde shots begini time wedding aku nanti. Grrrrrrr!

Beautiful pictures source from Google.

Wedding Bun

2010-05-09T10:56:00.000+08:00

I still haven't decided on my hairstyle for the wedding reception. Since I'll be wearing a dress with lace bolero, I think I'll opt for a simple hairdo. A simple bun would do, with a big flower to accessorise. That's a requirement. I should tell this to my MUA.

Photos from Google

One thing for sure, I'm not wearing any veil or crown for reception. I wanted everything to be as simple as possible and carefree.

But I still heart birdcage veil. And I'm still considering whether to wear it or not for the wedding. Let's see if I can make up my mind or not. It's 5 months left to the wedding. Hurrrrr!

My Nikah Attire

2010-05-08T19:21:00.001+08:00

As some of you might already know, I bought my nikah attire online. Heck, I literally bought most of my wedding stuffs online. Haha! My nikah attire is actually a jubah and was tailored to measure, without any extra charges. Yeay! I should be thankful for that.

After 3-week upon ordering, I received the jubah as what I have expected. Simple and flowy. Pretty, nonetheless, considering how cheap it was when I paid the bill.

Then I sent it over to Zaza for beadings around the hemline and neckline after I realized the jubah needs some blings to spice it up. There were dramas actually. I am fussy, I admit that. The first time I collect it from her and paid the amount, I complained so much. And I sent it back to her for alterations and specifically told her I wanted more blings compared to what she previously sewn on.

When it was time for me to collect the jubah for the second time, I felt so devastated. Again. It's not like what I have imagined. With the amount of money I paid to her, I think I should get a lot more than what I have gotten for the jubah. There were extra charges, obviously, because of my certain demands. And I still haven't pay her the extra charges because I felt cheated. But my mom said the beadings are okay, I can go for more blings on the tudung later on.

Ok. I am obviously very fussy because I cannot relate to whatever my mom said.

The beadings on the jubah.

One week later, I took out the jubah from the closet and have a look again. I felt like the jubah is missing something, but I finally come to my senses and think that what Zaza did for the beadings are not too bad after all. I should be thankful to her because she spent her time sewing and re-do the beads and coping with my ultimatum. Haha! Sure, I am not 100% satisfied with her work, but what can I do? Things have been done and there's nothing much I can do because I can't just think of any way to ammend it. So just let it be. I couldn't care much now because at the end of the day, what matters most is that the ceremony went well. Baju itu tidak penting. It's just a part of the event.

Bunga Telur / Bunga Pahar

2010-04-29T23:05:00.005+08:00

Is it necessary to have bunga telur on wedding day? I think it's a waste of money and expensive. I searched for vendors, asked the price and they quoated me normally around RM8 - RM10 for a stick of bunga telur. Crazy or what?

I don't really like bunga telur for personal reasons. Apart from expensive, I think they'll only collecting dusts.

But I know, my elder relatives would want this tradition to keep running through their modern generation, and for our wedding, it won't be excepted. Surely.

For the sake of pleasuring their wish, I did spent a few good hours finding online vendors for bunga telur. And I came across Wawa. Her design is simple. But what I like most is the price range, which is very reasonable and surely won't burn a hole in your pocket.

Some of her works. For more info, please go to her blog.

Now that I have found a cheaper option, I am still contemplating whether to still have bunga telur for our wedding day or not. I really can't wait for October to come. Managing your own wedding day is stressful!

Updates and A Dress

2010-04-25T00:14:00.001+08:00

Okay. Hi! Sorry for the lack of updates. I realized I haven't been blogging for almost a month now. I've been busy. Not much actually. But I could say things have fully-occupied my time.

So what I've been up to? Spent a few weekends back to help Johan buy materials for his attire and the groomsmen. Then met Nik to discuss the design for his baju melayu and I did ask him to help me with my wedding dress too. Yeay! One problem solved. And yep, I bought a long, flowy dress from him. Can't resist as it's a bargain. It'll be ready on June after some alterations done, just in time for me to wear it on my sister's engagement day.

The dress look a lot like this. It's pretty, flowy and Nik sewn some beads on the top part as well. I'll show you the proper pics once it's in my hands okay.

Hmmm...back to the initial story. There's not much progress for my wedding preparation tho. Most of the essential things are settled. I'm in the midst of printing out my invitation cards. I print 100pcs card during weekend. I know I start too early but I need to be prepared ahead of time. So then I can relax in the final months prior to my wedding.

Owh! How about bunga pahar/bunga telur? I strongly think they are unnecessary. It's simply adat, not even compulsory. This is the one thing that makes me think over and over again. Whether or not to have bunga pahar/bunga telur on my wedding day. I should have a reminder to alert me to make a post about this in the next entry. Heee!

Krabi for Honeymoon

2010-03-23T12:44:00.002+08:00

Ok. Ok. This is boring but we too, have been eyeing Krabi for our honeymoon destination. Haha. It looks like we'll be jumping on the bandwagon like Sha, Sab and Ashylla too.

Why Krabi? Good question.

First and foremost, I was influenced by the reviews from our newly-wed bloggers yang bertiga itu. They did a good job in writing a review about Krabi and I, being a sucker for anything beach, falls for it. See, I am easily influenced.

Second, budget. I like beach so much. I did survey local islands like Redang, Perhentian and those in Sabah too. They are heavenly, especially in Sabah. But they are insanely expensive. We don't have so much left after the wedding, and these places are waaayyyy beyond our budget. After considering the accomodation rates, transportation, expenses and all, we decided travelling abroad is cheaper than travelling to your own islands in Malaysia. No offense but I was surprised, mighty shocked you know, to find that the place has grown up to be expensive where once upon a time it was very laid-back and affordable.

Third, season. Yes. Our wedding is in October 24th. Two days after that we'll be leaving for honeymoon, insya-Allah. Most of the resorts and chalets on the islands will be closed during this time for monsoon period. Krabi saja la yang available because it's not an island. I love beach but not to the extent of spending the whole time diving and snorkeling aje. Or at least when it's raining in Krabi, we can go for massages and hibernating in the room.

I did some research on the accomodation at Krabi, mainly at the AoNang area. And then I fell in love with these two places.

AoNang Princeville. Sab stayed here for her honeymoon if I'm not mistaken. The main reason that attracted me to this resort is because they served HALAL food. But the reviews on TA is not much. So I have no high hopes for this place.

Krabi La Playa. TA reviews are helpful and photos are plentiful. Simply beautiful.

I personally prefer the latter but the first one should be my priority because of the HALAL food.

Psst!!! Are you coming to the gath this Saturday? I have to pass tho. Would love to meet you pretty ladies in person but time is constricting me from doing so. We'll meet next time then. Ah, aku jeles ni!

More on Henna

2010-03-20T06:40:00.003+08:00

About last week I received an e-mail from Amrina replying to my question for wedding henna. The price she quoted is fixed according to the package that she has. Here I attached some henna designs made by her.

Pictures are from Henna Ratu Sehari

For those of you who have been wondering how bling henna looks like, here are some pictures for your reference.

Click on the pictures to go to the respective website.

So who's gonna be my henna deisgner for my wedding day? Let's not spill the beans until after October yeah. It's still too early to give reviews and confirmation since I haven't tried her service yet. Haha.

Ivory Birdcage Veil

2010-03-19T18:06:00.000+08:00

I did write an entry or two about birdcage veil as a replacement of wedding veil in my blog. As mentioned before, I contacted Dramatic Bombshell regarding my dream wedding birdcage veil. We exchanged e-mails and I told her how much my budget is and which design that I'd like to have by sending her some example pictures. She's good, I mean she did listen to you and try to meet your requirements as best as she could be.

At first, she had trouble to find nets that suits the look that I want (oh, memang demand saya ini!). But she came up with something similar to the net that I wished for. And the best part of it is it's within my budget. It's very reasonable I think. *happy*

Oh, the net is something similar like the picture below, and I told her I want the birdcage veil to be the same, exactly like it (or almost would do too!) I wanted some feathers in it, big flower with pearls and most importantly, it must be in ivory. Haha. I hope it turns out pretty.

I already have my wedding veil. I'm contemplating whether to wear long veil or birdcage veil for my reception. Tetiba terfikir macam susah je kalau nak makan beradap nanti bila pakai birdcage veil. Atau rimas tahap melampau sebab ade benda cover muka. Begitukah? Haih.

Henna. Inai. Mahendi.

2010-03-08T21:24:00.002+08:00

For my wedding, I specifically wanted my hands and feet to be painted with pretty henna designs. I wear inai sometimes, on my fingers. I think it's quite common for me thus for my special day, I want the henna to be special too. I don't wear swirly henna designs on my hands on usual days. So I thought, hey, I'm getting married once in a lifetime, let's get crazy!

I e-mailed Dayu last month telling her how much is my budget and which design I'd like to have and how much she'll charge me. She gave a reply one week after that and yeah, she's flexible and can work within my budget. I wanted some blings on my hands too. Owh, just for the sake of pictures and pure fun actually. I haven't confirmed yet because while browsing, I found a cheaper option from Amrina. She makes pretty henna designs too. Check out her website for more info.

Of course, when I'm having my henna moment I don't want to go for fully intricated designs. I'm very much comfortable to opt for half-intricated designs on top of the hands only (together with a simple design on the palms would be good too!).

As for the feet, I wish to have simple design on top of them. At least nanti when I wear my shoes, nampak la jugak design henna yang sedikit itu.

All pictures are from Dayu

I much prefer to have the NAILS ONLY painted with inai rather than having a full cap inai on my fingers and toes.

As for Johan, I personally thought he shouldn't wear inai even on his 3 fingers after reading from JAKIM regarding the usage of henna on men and women. And I found this to be useful and informative. Let's share since I heard so many things mengenai hukum-hakam pemakaian henna ni.

Monogram Aisle Runner

2010-03-06T16:11:00.001+08:00

That's the hall for my reception. I think that's the best picture I could find to describe the hall. Thanks to Zamdee for the shot. I want to fully utilize every nook and corner so there'd be no empty spots.

Actually I want to talk about the aisle runner. My wedding's main colors are red and black, most probably red will dominate the scene (eventho I'm not too fond of having too many reds around). Being me, I'm just not too keen on having red carpet for my wedding aisle. Why? Beacuse my bridesmaids baju are in red, so when they walk on the aisle, they will blend with the carpet. I don't want that. They're not chameleon. And so does the family. And decoration. No no no.

So I came up with an idea of having white wedding aisle. And I secretly wish our monogram can be printed on it too. And with fake red and black flower petals on both sides of the runner along the aisle. Pretty but maybe a bit time consuming and expensive.

I'm having doubts actually in realizing this idea. Thinking that nanti kasut kotor ade tahi kucing ke kena kat karpet putih aku, habis la! Dah la karpet putih, kalau kotor, mesti obvious! Yes, I'm paranoid. But I'd like to try things that have never been done before. Do you think it works for Malaysian wedding? Especially for Malay weddings to have this white carpet?

Hall Layout

2010-02-27T23:06:00.001+08:00

Layout 1

Layout 2

Layout 3

These are what I have in mind for our hall layout. The hall isn't that big. It's just nice. With maximum capacity of 375pax in one time, I have to make do with whatever the space allows. But 375pax in a hall means everything will be so crammed, with no stage allocation and such. My pelamin decorator told me, 24 round tables (capacity of 240pax) will be more than enough to fill up the whole area, and it'll leave some space for buffet areas, stage and other misc stuffs.

Okay, the plans seem weird because these are just the rough ones. Once we've made a confirmed arrangement, I'll show you the proper layout. For the time being, just bare with the mock-ups yea.

My personal favorite is Layout 3. We decided that we're gonna spread the walkway around the hall, so it's fair for all guests to have a better view of us from every angle, nook and corner (since we are the center of attention!). That explains why the pelamin stage is quite a walk from the main entrance and meja makan beradap. The dancers will perform at the carpet area. Once they're done, it'll be transformed as a lepak place with pillows and all.

Well, these are just plans. Johan hasn't confirm anything about the layout yet. As usual, we'll sit down together and brainstorm whatever that we have in mind for the arrangement later.

Honeymoon Destination

2010-02-24T21:00:00.002+08:00

This is merely a plan. Since we're saving a lot (mostly it's more to spending a lot) for the wedding so the thought of going for honeymoon hasn't even made it to our priority list yet. Well, at least not right after the wedding. Few weeks after that or best, until we are financially stable to splurge would be much better.

However...

That doesn't stop me from finding the best deals, especially for beach escapade. The one place that is within our range of budget is Phuket and yes, Krabi, which seems to be the current favorite place for honeymoon among bloggers (or so I think..).

In this post, let's talk about Krabi alone, shall we?

I've made tedious research on these two island and found Krabi to be the most affordable among them. Well, for our budget at least. After hours and days spent on googling online and visited each respective websites, I have shortlisted these hotels as the best accomodation that meets the requirements and most importantly, BUDGET!

Aree Tara is modern and chic. The pool is shaded most of the time but it's still pretty. They have pool access room. Bonus!

Buri Tara have pool access room too. I think Sha stayed here on her honeymoon. They have two separate sinks in the bathroom. I loike!

Aonang Paradise Resort is beautiful! They are surrounded in greenery, which is very relaxing and laidback. Heaven!

These resorts are located in the Ao Nang area. I've always looked up for real reviews from travellers in Trip Advisor for the the real insights and honest opinions before I book on accomodation. Normally, pictures shown on the resorts' websites are perfect but Trip Advisor shows the real flaws and actual things. Those pictures above were taken from visitors on Trip Advisor who have visited the resorts. So I could assume that these places are actually almost the same as they depicted in their websites. Pretty, aren't they?

These resorts are affordable, considering the location, ammenities and room. Tapi untuk penjimatan terhebat, do book early. Direct booking with the hotel is cheap but I found cheaper option if you book with booking.com. They don't charge your credit card. It's only needed to guarantee your booking. All payment must be made directly to the hotel when you arrive. It means, they don't take your credit card details and simply charge you the total rate of your booking. Yeay!

I have set my eyes on one of these resorts. Can you guess which one would it be? Hehe.

On the next post, I shall write about Phuket and its heaven for honeymoon escapade.

Another Red Heels Post!

2010-02-22T20:45:00.000+08:00

Okay. Saya tahu. Sila muntah. Online shoes obsession lagi. I can't resist. It RM200 plus shipping. Ini lagi cantik! Uhuhuhu...

UPDATE! Gable Boxes

2010-02-22T18:08:00.001+08:00

Okay. So I finally found a local supplier for gable boxes while simultaneously searching online. It's from PPH, located in Penang. Finding this, I know I can finally save my time, energy and petrol. No need to go all the way to Jln. Pudu or Brickfields for paper printing.

I got an instant quotation from the sales admin. The box is priced at RM0.70/pc. The delivery fee is charged at RM50 (sape-sape balik kampung ke Penang I nak kirim this just to cut cost. Hehehe.. ;p). So the total price for 800pcs of this box including delivery is RM610. Cheap? No. But I think it is relatively reasonable considering the box is quite big and is made of hard paper. For sure it is sturdy and able to hold the weight of an apple.

I did ask them if they are able to custom made the boxes in certain color. It is possible but it must be in large quantity. For 800pcs, no, tak layan. You have to buy their ready-made white boxes jugak. It's ok then. We can play around with ribbons and stickers. Not a problem.

On the other hand, my mom is still undecided on the favors. Since both of our family has agreed to sponsor the favors, and there's a greenlight from the other side, so now I'm just waiting for my mom's. I'm annoyed whenever she suggested on giving out the 'expected' favors. I strictly told her I don't want those regular bekas mengkuang, handkerchief, candle, things that collecting dusts later on, etc. I'm demanding, I know. But it's our wedding, at least let us (mainly ME!) have it our way. Since the other side has decided to give out edible items as wedding favor (which I think is cool considering they won't be such a waste after all), I thought my mom should do the same. But she loathe the bahulu idea. Bleh! I know there's gonna be a HUGE row between me and my mom later on regarding this matter.

Back to the boxes, it's not confirmed yet. I haven't placed my order as I need to discuss further with the others. Budget, it is important!

Restricted

2010-02-21T19:50:00.000+08:00

Someone told me I shouldn't be too frank on my blog. That I shouldn't write everything in detail and post it online. Because what I wrote could be offended to some. Sometimes, it could backfires.

Oh wells...

From the bottom of my heart, I apologize if I've ever, in any way, caused harm and offend anyone of you.

But...

That doesn't mean that I'll stop blogging yo. I'll keep on writing my thoughts, but with extra cautious for the next coming entries. Cheers!

Red Wedding Shoes

2010-02-21T19:44:00.001+08:00

Remember my wish to buy the red diamonte peep-toe heels at Charles & Keith for my reception? I went to Pavilion last week to buy them. Can you believe that they don't have size 7 in stock? Arghhhh! And yesterday I went to their outlet in Pyramid. Again, same story. No size 7 in red but they have others in black and champagne. I just lost hope and never want to search again even in their MidValley or OU outlet.

As good as it can be, I resorted to online shopping. I now specifically want platform-type heels, so I don't have a bad backache after hours of standing, walking and running in heels.

A gem found on Ebay. Just what I've been looking for! Priced at RM175 including shipping.

Why I Insist On Wearing White for Wedding

2010-02-20T00:07:00.004+08:00

The title sounds a bit controversial. Ecehhhh... seeing that each bride has their own opinions regarding color, style and flow of her own wedding. The same goes to me. This is just merely my point of view. Hope it won't offend anyone out there.

I once have this vision of having my dream wedding in pink, where everyone wears pink. If possible, I want everything, EVERYTHING you know, from the scallop, dais, doorgift, deco and such to be in pink. And so it happens, I finally made my dream comes true by holding my engagement ceremony in yeah, you've guessed it, PINK. My whole family wears pink. Johan wears pink. My hantarans are in pink eventho they're for Johan. I even asked the caterer to prepare air bandung since it's in pink. Thank God he refused the idea seeing that it's not suitable for older people since they mix it with soda. Oh wells.

Anyway, I was happy, you know. Because finally, what I dreamed of has been realized. But not until I saw the photos from my OP. It's nice actually (ayat untuk sedapkan hati) but.... people often get confused when they look at my album. It was hard to acknowledge who's getting engaged because all of my family members were dressed in pink. To make matters worse, my older sister even wore her super sexy lace short pink kebaya with corset. Whilst me, the one who got engaged just wore a simple kurung pahang in songket with simple veil. So sekali pandang, macam my sister pulak yang bertunang dengan bajunya yang beriya-iya itu. Hahaha!

Mistake number one from my engagement ceremony. My lil sister, me & my older sister all in pink.

My boss' daughter during her wedding. See... everybody wore the same color combination. (but I do heart her dresses from Rizman Ruzaini though. Pretty!!!!)

Since then I make a pact of never want to wear my wedding dress in the same color as the family member does on my wedding. However, it's hard to please everybody. What's more with me having a combined wedding. My family would be okay since I knew them inside out, so a little persuading from a daughter should do the trick. But I know it's gonna be hard on Johan's family. He told me last week that his mom and aunt commented on our choice of color for nikah and reception. We're gonna wear ivory/off-white/cream color, whatever you calls it, for both event. I wanted white, but I know it's gonna make us both look fat so I opted for a bit yellowish color in it thus ivory comes to my mind. MIL said it makes no difference on Johan since he'll be wearing ivory baju melayu for both nikah and reception.

Okay, so this is what I suggested to Johan. For nikah, he should make baju melayu from ivory colored crepe (no satin please, I don't want him to look awful and shiny and bulging in the photos later on. It's for your own good, sayang...). To make things different, he can wear teal samping (or hints of blue) since my solemnization's theme color is teal.

This is just an example of baju melayu with blue samping. Of course Johan's would be just a simple baju melayu in ivory, minus the tanjak and overcoat.

A for reception, I advised him to make baju melayu from shantung or duchess in ivory. He can team it up with keris, tanjak, keris-shaped buttons (I saw one in Jedan at SACC Mall priced at RM55) and samping in the same shade or whichever suits best. There is a difference for your outfits dear eventho they are in the same color.

An example for complete outfit on reception. I hope Johan changed his mind and wears proper shoes rather than capal. Maybe I should wear super high heels just to intimidate him so he'd wear shoes to be at the same height with me. *evil grin*

I hope this clears you up, dear. I'm thinking about your outfits too okay.

White/off-white doesn't have to be boring. At least, people will immediately acknowledge who's the bride and groom because we are the only one who wears white. And it left me with no worries thinking that my sister and other people can wear french lace whichever way they want because for sure they aren't gonna be in the same color as us. I do think it's rude when you wear white/off-white while attending weddings because for once, let's just reserved the color to the bride and groom, yeah?

On the other hand, Johan and MIL have bought red colored materials for their whole family to be worn on our reception. It got me thinking to propose my family to wear black, you know, just to let people know the red team is Johan's and the black team is Elly's. Hahaha.

Gable Boxes for Reception

2010-02-18T20:43:00.001+08:00

Uhhhh pening! Pening! Johan told me this evening that his mom and sister wanted to sponsor favors of chocolates and red apples at our reception in Putrajaya. There goes our plan to give custom CDs as wedding favor.

Obviously, I was having my bad-mood-bridezilla moment right there and then!

A few moments later, I do realize it does us good anyway. Imagine, the favor department has been taken care of. It left us with no worries. Plus, my mom did say something about wanting to contribute something as part of the favor as well. So I guess it's just fair for both sides to give something since we have combined wedding. Deyyy...brape banyak something daaaaa! Huhu..

Then, I was thinking about boxes and bags to put all the stuff together. I loathe paper bags with 'SELAMAT DATANG / TERIMA KASIH' wordings/tags. PERIOD! No offense but I just don't fancy them. Sorry. I like brown lunch bag, but Johan hates it. Too simple and too cikai, maybe? I remembered Sarah's post regarding print shops in Jln. Brunei. Maybe we can custom design our boxes at one of the shops there? I sooooooooo heart gable boxes. Too cute and I think it's large enough to stash everything inside but still look pretty and appealing, right?

Pictures are from Manolo Brides, Coral Creations & Nichole

Okay. Okay. These are just too cute! With ribbons and stickers, they'll be pretty. And I bet they are expensive. Let's just think positive eyy. Hopefully it's within our budget.

Birdcage Veil & Heels

2010-02-14T09:18:00.005+08:00

We went to Pavilion yesterday in search of peep-toe heels for my reception event. I was influenced by Ami. Yes. Pointed kitten heels are so common. But since I've bought one already, let's not waste it. I'm gonna use it for my nikah then. Nikah pun ala-ala sopan, so I guess it'll be just alright for that ceremony. It matches my jubah as well, so no harm done. :)

Johan says it would be fun for me to wear heels that matches our reception theme. Certainly no black. So we opted for red then. I've thought about wearing colored heels for my wedding awhile back but I need a thumbs-up from Johan. Since he approved it, we went over to Charles & Keith searching for red peep-toe heels. I found one like in the picture in red. It's pretty and makes my feet look slimmer. Wheeeee! Priced at RM199, I'm gonna buy it soon since I have so many things pending this month.

On the other hand, I persuaded Johan to let me wear birdcage veil for the reception. I ni degil. Selagi tak dapat, selagi tu mintak. And finally he gave in sebab malas nak layan his bridezilla ni kut. Hehehe. So I contacted Dramatic Bombshell whether she can custom-made my birdcage veil. Let's wait for the reply and quotation then I'll share with you ladies.

All-time favourite! Hope she can meet my requirements and budget.

Happy Anniversary to my E-Day!

2010-02-14T00:02:00.004+08:00

Today, this date, on 2009, was my Engagement Day. Pejam celik, pejam celik, it's been exactly one year since I'm engaged to Johan. This coming October we'll be husband and wife. The title scares me sometimes. Being a wife means new responsibilities, new families and new experience. But I can't wait to explore it with him!

It was a quick decision though. I have roughly 2 months to prepare everything from scratch. Making calls, buying materials for the attire, frequent trips to Jln TAR, fighting, headache and more fighting. After all, it all went smoothly and accordingly. There were flaws, obviously. Since this was the first BIG ceremony ever for my family, we have no clue at all where to start. The weather was hot and sunny that day, I was sweating and we had a fight the day before. But I was overjoyed when the whole family wore PINK! Hehe. Memories.

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY SAYANG! I LOVE YOU FOREVER!
Can't wait to marry you and together we make beautiful babies yeah?
*Cheesy, I know..*

Feather Trees

2010-02-09T11:33:00.002+08:00

Pictures from Hostess Blog, Red Carpet Events & Jessica

I'm in love with these pretty table centerpieces! They are fluffy and resemble palm trees very much. For bolder look, you can change the color of the ostrich plumes to your liking. For fun addition, make it bright pink or electric blue! For weddings, it's appropriate to be in white. Cantikkkk!

So me, being a fickle-minded bridezilla, went online and search for wholesalers of ostrich plumes here in Malaysia. The result? Na-da! There are a lot in Ebay tho, and they are international sellers. The price is cheap but take into account of shipping charges to Malaysia. I did ask one of the sellers. They quoated USD$150 for 240pcs (medium size) ostrich plumes in black and red + express shipping. You do the math. Yes, RM500+ for feathers ONLY! So not worth it ok. I can do a lot with RM500 than just pay for feathers.

The solution? Just buy any color of your preferred bunga manggar. Thank God we bought these cheap bunga manggar earlier during last Christmas at Ikano (they were having SALE for christmas deco and I can't resist!). Paste the bunga manggar to a wire, make about 20 pcs per vase (depends on the size of your vase). Arrange and stick them together to form the leaves of palm tree. Then assemble them in your long vase. Haha. I know this is just merely an instruction. I haven't tried it out yet. Will do so in the future for your reference.

Oh wells, gotta hit the book. Got an important exam tomorrow.

Wedding Cake vs Pulut Kuning

2010-02-03T08:54:00.005+08:00

I'm still undecided. Whether we're gonna have cake or pulut kuning for the 'cutting' ceremony.

Here's my two cents:

CAKE
I like cakes. But I hate wedding cakes. They are pretty but they're just what they are, a display. Simply a dummy, for show. Not edible, not for tasting. Most of the wedding cakes that I ate are tasteless. After the cake-cutting ceremony, most people are already going back so there'll be a huge leftover of that tasteless cake. Who's gonna eat all the fondant, icing, creams and the hard cake? Plus, they are overpriced. A 2-tier cake is priced at RM300?! That's insane! *ok, I'm a cheapskate. ;p * But the best part is, they can be made custom according to your liking. You have choices of design, color, flavor and yes, tier.

PULUT KUNING
They're traditional, suit Malay weddings well and are a favourite among the elders. My mom's a huge fan of pulut kuning. Me myself would rather eat pulut kuning rather than a slice of wedding cake. Plus, you can put any type of gravy to your liking. Mutton, beef or chicken curry. They are all tasty. People won't think twice to pack it home, compared to cakes. But unlike cakes, you can't change the color to suit your wedding theme. Just imagine if your wedding's theme color is red and you wanted the pulut to be in that color as well? Horror! I pun takut nak makan pulut kaler merah. Bukan pulut kuning dah namanya tu.

SO
my vote goes to

PULUT KUNING! (obviously, duh!)
Let's see what Johan gotta say on this then. But, I'm still gonna have a cake anyway. For the candy table. Hahahaha!

Vendors

2010-02-01T21:21:00.005+08:00

I'm on leave today. So I spent most of my daytime googling for vendors and giving them a call. Let's start with videographer. I've contacted Avicenna Studio, Dina Wedding and Telaga Pictures. All of them have reasonable rate and package. I need to discuss further with my dad, buat muka kesian sikit for sponsor. Harap-harap berjaya.

Next, scouting for entertainment. You know I want a traditional performance for my reception. I wanted zapin. It'll be just awesome if I managed to get kids as dancers. I have this thing for kids who dance for zapin. My Johorian side would be proud. Hehehe. And yes, I finally got a very reasonable quotation for my request. As usual, mail me for more info.

Phewww! It's 8 months left. Times flew by so fast! But seeing that my checklist are half-completed, I felt so relieved. Boleh la rilek jap pasni. This coming 14th February would be the anniversary of our engagement. I'll post an entry for that, seeing that you ladies never saw my engagement pictures.

On the other hand, I'm jealous that Johan snatched Nik Erwan Roseli to do his entourage's attire. I nak jugak! Tu la Elly. Siapa suruh tempah baju awal sangat!

My fave from his collection! For nikah would be awesome added with some blings on waistline and hemline.

Nak menangis tahap gaban terasa seperti nak buat baju baru. Elly, please calm down. Don't simply waste your money.

Hall Entrance

2010-02-01T21:13:00.004+08:00

I want a simple wedding hall entrance just like that for my reception.

Next mission: buy easels, take professionally-photographed pictures and get 2 pillars with flowers as decoration.

Monthly Checklist

2010-02-01T00:00:00.001+08:00

Following Ainun, she made an entry of checklist each month to remind her what she'd do to keep her preparation in order. I think that's a brilliant idea. I have 8 months left, so that means I should post an entry of checklist every month to keep me going.

So here's my checklist for February:

Call up Zatul (one of my bridesmaids) and ask her to send me her measurements for tailoring.
Find white + blue lanterns for my nikah deco & black + red lanterns for my reception deco.
Finalized the card's draft with Johan.
Collect my nikah outfit from Zaza.
Start planning for our honeymoon destination.
Surveying potential videographer.
Finding bridesmaids for my reception. (still pening kepala ni...)

I think that's enough for the time being. I should stick to this checklist for the entire month of February.

Make-up Artist Booked!

2010-01-25T22:57:00.006+08:00

Credited from LOVA
Happy!

Lega!

Finally booked Lova for my nikah and reception. She's friendly, I like. Seperti ada chemistry di situ. Hehehe.

So that's one thing I can slash off my list. Phewww!

Sharing Information

2010-01-09T22:36:00.009+08:00

I just got back from OU and guess what I found? A corner punch! I've been to all three craft stores in the mall just to find the punch I've been looking for. And when I'm just about to give up, I finally found one within my budget at Craft Haven. Retails at RM28. The SA was so helpful she even tried the punch on my draft card just to make sure the curve fits the card. And it did fit nicely. I'm happy!

Corner punch from Craft Haven 1 Utama.

Oh. There's this other craft shop in OU called Scrap Book Memories (2nd floor, old wing) that sells corner rounders as well but they're a bit expensive. The smallest one is priced at RM40+. I'm not surprised because they are from Fiskars.

For your art and crafting needs, I suggest you these two outlets for supplies. They have various pre-made stamps which is fun and pretty (price varies according to the size), stamp pads in various colors, alphabet stickers and much more. Or if you prefer to shop online, I love Scrap n Crop. Otherwise, click on Sheerah for an extensive link of almost the up-to-date craft supplies in Malaysia.

Do you still remember my post about wanting to find popsicle sticks which are slightly bigger than the usual ones? Yes, I've found it too. After googling on the net, I found the supplier. They actually supply medical products. And the sticks are actually called tongue depressor, used by doctors. But nobody can tell they're actually medical products, right? I called up Zipper Marketing. They're located in Skudai, Johor. The sticks are priced at RM5 per box, which contains 100pcs sticks inside. If you need a courier service, they charged RM10 for it. You can either call or email them for payment details. I tried emailed them and the reply came within 6 hours, which is pretty quick for a supplier company. :)

The cheap wooden sticks for my wedding program project.

Last Sunday, I went to Jalan TAR with Hanis, my little sister, to buy some kain for my bridesmaids during nikah and stuffs for my DIY project. Jakel was having sale on that day so I bought 16 metres of greenish blue crepe for my bridesmaids. Total? RM96. Happy! Then went to Bunga Riben to buy some flowers for my DIY pomander balls project. Priced at RM15.90 per pack (fixed price!). You can get 2 pomander balls done with it. Mind you, these are small pomander balls. They are priced at RM1 per ball at Sin Yin Semua House but the lady sold it to me at RM9 altogether. Hehe.

The end result of my blue pomander balls.

Do let me know if you B2B out there need more info yeah? I'll be glad to help. :)

Religious Wedding Favors

2009-12-29T16:49:00.006+08:00

I still haven't decided on the solemnization favors. Apart from the custom-made bunga telur from Nani, the rest is still pending. The discussion for my bunga telur will start on April 2010, since my wedding is still a long way to go. I have to give way to others whose big days are coming up.

Went to Mydin with Johan today to get the quotation for some stuffs. Originally, we planned to give out Yassin and tasbih as favors to our guests for akad nikah. But I'm sure, people have received Yassin too many times now, it's quite common.

We did browse around the religious books area, and stumbled upon Manzil. I open it up and I like the wordings. They're clear and not too small eventho the size of the book is petite. The cover is great too. It's not the usual hardpaper cover like other books, but it's kinda made of thin plastic so it's doesn't quickly worn-out or torn-up. The price of Manzil at Mydin USJ varies according to the size. The cheapest comes at RM6 per pack. Each pack contains 10pcs of mini Manzil.

Pictures of Manzil books taken from Google Image.

The tasbih has a great variety and wider selection too. Whether it's long or short; small, medium or large size beads in multiple colors, it's all up to you. The one like in the picture below is RM8.40 per pack. Each pack contains 12pcs of green tasbih.

Green long tasbih taken from Google.

And I know this is expensive but I'm still considering giving out mini wooden rehal instead of tasbih as favors. Price, again, varies according to size. From RM3.90 to RM7.90 per piece.

Mini wooden rehal taken from Google.

Wedding Program

2009-12-29T08:42:00.006+08:00

Remember the other day when I bought the red card papers in Brickfields? Okay, there's a slight miscalculation. That's what I get for not bringing the actual draft when buying materials. *sigh* It happens that we actually need 300pcs of A4 size red paper only! We've bought about 600pcs, and now, I'm left with half of it. In red! What to do?

So the thought came in... since there's so many leftover, I'm gonna make my own wedding program. 300pcs is just enough because not many people are used to this kind of information for wedding. Here's the ideas:

They all look basically the same. I specifically want a fan-type wedding program.

And yes, this one is in RED! Woohoo! Images are all credited from Google.

So, what info can be put on the fan? Okay, here goes. There are two sides for information, right? For one side, I plan to write down the wedding itinerary, menu and candy table information. The other side pulak I want to list down the names of the people who are involved with the wedding. Example: The bride and groom's parents and grandparents' names, the bridesmaids and groomsmen' names, the maid of honour and bestman's names, etc. Get the idea?

The things I need to find now are a bunch of popsicle sticks (preferably yang lebar macam in the pictures, not the normal stick-thin ones) and a corner punch (might be available at craft stores).

Corner punch. Picture credited from here.

Popsicle sticks. I want that size or bigger! Photo credited from here.

Do let me know if you know where can I get my hands on these.

My Handmade Wedding Invitation Card

2009-12-26T20:06:00.010+08:00

We went to Brickfields this afternoon to find some paper and stationary supply. I told you I'm gonna make my own wedding invitation cards. So off we went and thank God they're open. I never knew they don't close on Saturdays. Heeee!

Since this was our second trip, we've made up our mind already on what to buy and what to expect. The first time we were there we just scouting and browsed around for bargains and paper types. This time, we went straight to the first store we hopped in and settled everything in prolly half an hour.

With an RM300 budget, and 600pcs cards in the making for the wedding, we managed to get through with just a total of RM220 after the lady gave us a discount of RM4. Cheap, right?

Many types of paper to choose from. 1st picture: Calculator is essential when we're dealing with numbers. I just went dizzy with numbers. 2nd picture: The chosen one. Red card as the cover and cream color paper as the inserts. 3rd picture: Okay, that's my most reliable, almost worn-out wedding diary. I'm lost without it. ;p

The red card paper is RM2.80/pc. You can get 10 A4 size paper after cutting. We asked to lady to potong siap-siap jadik A4 so it'd be easier for us. The red card would be the cover. For the insert, we chose cream color paper. It's RM5/pack. Each pack contains 100pcs A4 size paper. We need about 1200 pcs, so we bought 12 packs totaling up to RM60.

If you've been wondering what we've been up to, here's a peek:

That's a draft of our wedding invitation passport. I made it by myself. Yes...we've asked around and it costs too much for a card like this, even in Jakarta and Bandung. So what the heck, I have the time and ideas, let's just make some to cut cost. Initially, the wordings are in Bahasa Malaysia and English. But Johan is a bit traditionalist in heart, he wanted the wordings to be changed to Jawi instead of English. Lebih kemelayuan gitu. This card is just an outline. Will start finalizing the graphic, dates, wordings, itinerary and whatnots before I produce a hardcopy and start making the cards in bulk.

On a totally different story...my FMIL just returned from Hajj last Tuesday and I only got to visit her today morning. I love the red henna she gave me. The color is outstanding. My mom and sis went wild painting our nails and toenails with the henna. It's halal so fret not about removing it afterwards like the usual nail polish. Wheeeee!

Moroccan-themed Wedding

2009-12-26T00:41:00.008+08:00

I've never thought of Moroccan-themed wedding before. But the idea struck on me when I attended my cousin's solemnization ceremony. She set up her own mini dais ala tent with colourful shades of kain. When I came home, I went googling the ideas and pictures from Google Images. I was so in awe I know I need to have this theme for my akad nikah as well. It'll make good pictures for the album because of the colors, decors and whatnots. The guests must be decked in colorful attires. That's compulsory. The more colors, the merrier!

Need examples? Here's my inspiration:

I absolutely heart this one. Pretty shades of pink, deep purple and lilac. It's girly but who cares...

I observed, apart from colorful paper lanterns (source: IKEA or Shaja), the antique brass lantern too plays an important part in the Moroccan-themed wedding. I know Romantika in Plaza Alam Sentral sells these lanterns in various sizes at reasonable prices. Might go and have a look whenever I'm on my lunch break.

These are few pictures during my cousin's solemnization ceremony. The nikah tent was in purple. I love the combination. Pretty!

Sneak Peek!

2009-12-26T00:11:00.009+08:00

Okay kids, look at my ticker on your right hand side. It's 10 more months to my wedding day! *gulps*

I'm just glad I've sorted out almost 1/4 of the important part of the wedding. I've been pestering Johan to move his ass up. Most of the time, it resulted in me and him getting into a fight. Petty little things just gone haywire sometimes. He's been a slob regarding this wedding thingy. But I guess, any guy would be just like him right?

Honestly, I have to put up this picture because Johan looks just so cute over here. Okay, gediks. But I love to know how he has worked so hard to maintain the little house where we will be living few years after we get married. I love the old house but it just needs a lot of repairwork. The damage is beyond words. :(

Okay, let's move on.

Pardon the wrinkles. I was just too lazy to iron it up from packaging.

For the sneak peek: that's my jubah for the nikah ceremony. Remember the one I bought online all the way from UK at Al-Hijaab for only RM350 including delivery? So here's the one. Requested the color in ivory and custom made according to my measurements and likings with only extra 5 pounds. Cheapo! I've sent it over to Zaza to add some blings at the bottom of the dress and around the sleeves. The selendang (it comes free with the jubah as well!) will be touched up with some diamonds too, and it will be my veil. She promised it'll be done by end of February. Owh I can't wait! Will surely post pics on the completed jubah once it's in my hands.

Next task: to find mini tudung to match the dress and veil.

Overdue Entry

2009-12-25T23:57:00.023+08:00

I'll make this entry short and full of pics because this is actually quite outdated. But who cares..

It was our family holiday to Bandung and Jakarta. I've never fancied Jakarta. So I'm glad when we only spent 2 nights there. The first 4 nights were spent in Bandung. It was raining all evening when we were there, so shopping spree to FOs was not that fun anymore. Rumah Mode has really made me upset this time. The clothings weren't as fancy as before. :(

We were accompanied by two nice young fellas during our trip. It's three, actually. Dani was our guide in Bandung while in Jakarta, Andris and Puspo were our guide. They've become more like our friends than driver. Let me know if you want their service. I'll give you their contacts.

Now, let's move on to the pictures...

At KLIA and in the plane.

Upon checked in at Aston Jl.Braga.

At Ancol.

At Monas.

At Tangkuban Perahu.

While parents went shopping for helmet, we went camwhoring.

Dinner at PVJ.

At Pasar Baru.

Awesome rock show at Rock Cafe Jl.Braga.

Bridesmaids Attire

2009-12-25T23:21:00.005+08:00

Hi there! How you've been doing? I haven't blogged here for more than a month. That's long. I've been a silent reader all this while. No mood to update actually. A lot have been going on in this few weeks. I was on holiday to Indo with family last month. Been searching for wedding related stuffs and such up to now. I'll make a separate post regarding my trip, just because. And two cousins of mine have been married in a month's time. Owh, congrats to all brides of December, especially you bloggers out there. It's nice to know you had a beautiful wedding of your own. Can't wait for mine. :D

I just came back from IOI Mall for some material shopping. Kain for my bridesmaids actually. I planned to have 4 bridesmaids. They will be a perfect bunch for our photo session on my wedding day later. I've commenced Yan, my bestie and Aby, my cousin. They both have confirmed their availability. Now I need 2 more girls to complete the group. My two cousins in Belgium will be the potential bridesmaids. But they haven't confirmed their availability yet. My wedding date is clashed with their job and school. So I need a backup, just in case. Most of my cousins of my age have been married. This is tough. Will sort it out later.

Talking about kain, I didn't buy the expensive lace, chiffon, satin material, etc for my bridesmaids. It's just a cheap plain kain. Only at RM6.50 per metre at Tewah IOI Mall. The kains are all very cheap, me likey! I bought 16 metre of the red kain, at only RM104. I wanted to make a nice kurung moden with my tailor and once it's done, I'll ask Zaza to do some beadings and patch some lace. Each baju, tho they are the same design but each will have different beadings and lace patches, just to make sure everyone is not wearing the same outfit like everybody else. I know how sometimes we hate wearing the same. So my bridesmaids will have their own special works on the baju kurung.

I'll get my bridesmaids to send me their measurements asap because I'll start sending off the kain to my tailor latest by the end of January 2010. The design would be something like this:

I want fitted kurung top with kain kembang. The sleeves would be like the one Siti Nurhaliza is wearing. The color and beadings/lace patches would be exactly like the one Saida is wearing (I hate the sleeves tho!). Wheeeeee! Pictures are from CARI.

I'll send this sketch to my tailor, minus the bell-sleeves. My preference sleeves would be slim, fitted style. Need to tell the tailor to make some amendments on this picture. Credited to the talented designer. I've lost the link. Got it over Google, as usual.

Pameran Pengantin and Birthday

2009-11-14T23:38:00.005+08:00

Hari ni dengan harapan yang sangat tinggi, me and Johan went to PWTC for Pameran Pengantin, thinking of getting ourselves a good bargain or two in photography + videography services. But we were disappointed. Everything is just too expensive or not too my liking or is simply not worth it for the quality they produced. So we left with a broken heart and went to have lunch with friends instead. Been thinking of having Ali as our wedding photographer. I love the price and he's kinda flexible. I can ask for certain shots that I'd love too. Oh well, the perks of having a photographer friend. ;p

And it's my birthday today! I'm 25, have been together with Johan for 5 years already and Insya-Allah, we will get married next year. There's still a lot I need to learn to be a good wife. First and foremost, I need to know how to feed my husband well. In other words, I should learn how to cook.

Owh! He almost made me cry this morning by showing up at my house and surprised me with a big bouquet of 25 red + pink roses. It's easy to melt me. Hahaha!

Dessert Table

2009-10-21T10:05:00.007+08:00

It's not norm to have this kinda dessert table for Malay weddings. But it's fun. I hope I can set up one for my wedding too. It'll be a combination of cakes, cupcakes, popcakes, chocolates, candies and everything sweet.

Pictures from Google
If only the guests could appreciate this... Say if I were invited to this kinda wedding, I'll die in happiness. Seriously, I'm happy.

Wedding Passport Invitation

2009-10-20T10:18:00.005+08:00

I've always wanted my wedding to be unique and different, well, every bride wants the same for their wedding too. Sometimes, a very little detail plays an important part.

The same with invitation cards too. That's the first impression the guests will get once they receive your wedding invitations. You don't have to order expensive hardcover cards to impress them, which will be thrown away after the event. It's best if the cards left an impact on your guests.

So, taking into account of the costs (IMPORTANT!), I decided to make my own invitation cards. In the shape of passport! I've never seen any card like that in Malaysia, so I might as well start introducing it.

Pictures from Google

I've designed my own card already. I need to change the fonts and a little bit of the stamps. The card will be made in 2 languages, in Bahasa Melayu and Jawi. We want it to have a little bit of modern and traditional elements, so guests will get the best of both world. I need to take a day off to start buying papers in bulk in Brickfields. We've surveyed already, it is very very very very very cheap to make your own card.

Good luck!

Takeout Boxes

2009-10-19T19:03:00.005+08:00

Been thinking of giving favors in takeout boxes. I googled the ideas on the net, there are sooooooo many inspirations.

Great news is, I found a vendor that provides takeout boxes in our very own country. Yeay! It's just RM1 per box.

Just a quick update...I've sent my dress for fitting. Remember I bought it online? Everything is perfect, I just need to alter the length for another 2-inch shorter than the original length. Other than that, I can say I'm very much satisfied.

I'll be going to Bandung with my family for a holiday trip next month. I still have two siblings in school. So vacation during school holiday is an opportunity. Hehehe. I may not shop much, considering I have everything planned in my head already. I think I'll just buy a nice red kain for my bridesmaids. That's all.

I need to set an appointment with Nurul, the vendor for our pelamin. Need to ask for deco for the hall and table setting as well.

I need to start making invitation cards. But no green light (confirmation) from Johan yet. It's a bit troublesome.

I need to re-plan the bunga pahar ideas with Nani, once I'm done with the colors and design of the pelamin.

I need to start taking good care of my skin and hair. Hahaha.

Thank God I still got 1-year ahead to plan. I know it's tooooooooo early but I'm fussy like that I need to start scouting from now.

Puchong - Kulai - Melaka - Puchong

2009-10-19T18:50:00.007+08:00

This is a loooooong overdue post. My friend is engaged last 2 weeks. But the highlight is our lil escapade in Melaka. It was fun. Pictures are attached, obviously. Hehehe.

Office Pose!

2009-10-03T11:08:00.008+08:00

My department is in the midst of revamping/rearranging the office to make it presentable and comfortable for the staff and public. With 31 staffs in a small office, workdesks can be messy and cluttered with papers and everything unorganised. My boss came with plans and we just followed whatever she decides. At one time she wanted to make a bunting for our department. The bunting will feature the candids of all the staff and whatnots. It sounds fun so last Wednesday, Wawa came to office bringing the big cam to capture our antics to be part of the bunting.

The male staff are somewhere at the back, waiting for their turns. The females dominated the cam for the next one hour. We are camera-freaks!

Quick Update!

2009-10-03T10:12:00.006+08:00

It's now the second week of Raya. The weekend's schedule are usually packed with invitations to open houses and weddings.

Oh my...

I might as well put in some updates regarding my wedding prep.

My nikah dress from Al-Hijaab arrived sometime 3 weeks ago via airmail. I like it very much. I was afraid it couldn't fit me because the measurements I sent them was taken when I felt good about my body (in other words, KURUS! Hahaha!) But yeah, it fits me well and just what everything I imagine it would be, just like in the picture, if you could refer to my previous post here.
I know it's too early but I already bought my wedding shoes. Cheapo at RM129 (considering they have leather soles) at Elo in Subang Parade. Mind you, the size is BIG, it caters for big-sized feet. Usually I wear size 8/9 but in Elo, I have to admit that my size is 6. It's a pointed heels in cream color satin, with glittering crystals scattered all over the pointed part. It's simple yet pretty, I like!
Just last week on Saturday I went to Alamanda for a lil browsing with my mom and siblings. And we both saw this gold bangle at S.Wan Jewels. The design is just like the one in Habib. I came back on Tuesday and bought the bangle for my hantaran. Johan was a bit skeptical because he was in Kuantan and couldn't see the real thing so I just MMS-ed him the purchase. Mesti pening kepala sebab 4K die melayang macam tu je in one night. Hahaha!
My wedding dress is currently on it's way to my house. Remember the lacey dress that I kept persuading/forcing Johan to approve? Well, he did approved the dress and last night I checked, the parcel was in the process of sorting out somewhere in Shanghai. I should receive the dress within 2 weeks. Owh can't wait!
Last but not least, my mom has approved almost everything. I mean, our choice of reception (we decided to combine the wedding of both sides), the place, my online dresses, etc. But still persuading her to do akad nikah in masjid. She wanted the event to be held in our house. :( My dad? He's the banker so he doesn't really care. He agrees to everything as long as it doesn't interfere with his racing schedule.

I guess that's all. Will keep you updated with more news. I gotta get ready. Gonna visit Johan's family and beraya. Hihihi.

Wedding Badge

2009-09-09T11:08:00.009+08:00

Courtesy from One Tree.

An alternative to the usual, boring, normal-looking corsages for family. Most people opted for the flowery corsages to be adorned by the family members. But these badges would be a fun option on your wedding day. Each set comes in 5 badges. Price per set is RM30 (currently they are having an RM10 discount, normal price would be RM40/set!). Wordings can be customised according to your preferences. I'm not too sure about the fonts, colors and design, whether they could be customised as well or not. More info here.

They are based in Penang. Shipping cost would be RM10 to KL. Yes, I did ask them beforehand. But I'm sure Johan won't approve these as they are too modern looking. But I like 'em...

Kalau la Johan bagi, I nak order 3 sets. The first set would be:

Father of the Bride

Mother of the Bride

Father of the Groom

Mother of the Groom

Maid of Honour

The second set would be:

Bridesmaid (4 badges...I intend to have 4 of my friends who are willing to be my bridesmaids)

Wedding Fairy (this is for the cousins/friends who help to run the wedding smoothly)

And lastly, the third set would be:

Wedding Fairy (5 badges...sangka sangat comel la bagi nama wedding fairy. Kalau cousin lelaki aku, macam la diorang nak pakai badge yang tertulis "FAIRY". Hahaha!)

Berangan la Elly, selagi kau boleh berangan!!!

Bunga Telur

2009-09-09T10:49:00.004+08:00

I've never thought much about bunga telur as part of the custom and tradition of Malay weddings. Most of the time, I don't really care much about it. Until last Sunday, I accidentally stumbled upon Nani's website. She makes pretty bunga telur, and the best part of it, they are exactly what I dreamt my bunga telur would be. Hahaha. Why? Because:

She charges reasonably, with the product as pretty as that I won't mind as long as it won't burn a hole in my pocket.
She can custom made the bunga telur according to my preferences.
Plus, she's friendly too. That's important!

Sorry Nani, I curik your pic. Source from here.
I need the bunga telur in like, what? Months ahead kan? Since I'm not rushing, I gave her an ample time to come up with a sample before I approve anything. But with someone who's talented like her, I bet I'll just basically agree with anything that she presents me with. Hihihi. I've never discussed with Johan about this. I just hope he agrees with my choice. This is pretty, lebih-lebih lagi kalau kaler hitam dan merah itu kita matchkan skali. Boleh ek???

Wedding Cake

2009-09-01T21:21:00.006+08:00

For my wedding, I'd like to make everything looks good and most importantly, AFFORDABLE! My dresses are cheap, my decos are handmade (I made roses out of paper napkins) and I plan to make my own wedding card (hopefully...). It's time consuming but I've started bit by bit from now. Just wish me luck!

For the wedding cakes...I don't think it's compulsory for our culture to have them. But it's a trend, untuk Malay wedding pun harus ada kek 8 tingkat! But I never like those multi-tiered wedding cakes. Most of them are pretty on the outside but taste yucky in the inside.These happened on most occasions where I've attended the weddings. Frankly, I don't really like wedding cakes. They are a expensive, and I don't intend to spend RM400 on a cake.

So I came up with an idea. I can bake, not that good but people like my cakes. What the heck, I could use my baking skills and bake my very own wedding cake. I read somwhere in a blog where this woman baked 39 pieces cakes and she stacked them up, and she came up with 5 regular size cakes for his brother's wedding. Wooshhhh!

Instead of one-tiered or multi-tiered wedding cake, I came up with an idea of making 3-5 small/regular wedding cakes, in different flavors. So my guest have various cakes to bring home, not just the same one. I'm not that rajin as well, so I might just came up with 3 types of cakes only. They are moist chocolate cake, orange cake and Johan's favorite, cheesecake. My budget for these cakes is RM100 max! Hope they won't exceed my limit.

This is a sample of what my wedding cakes will look like. I mean, the assemble. Different types of cakes, different flavors, different colors. I hope our guests will be delighted.

As for the cakestand, I need to head down to SSF after reading WLT's suggestion. I have a cakestand from Ikano already. But in order to implement my dream of wedding cakes, I need to buy at least 2 more cakestand. Boleh mintak sponsor my dad kut?

Do you think I'll succeed? I mean, making the cakes. Not mintak sponsor my dad. Hukkk!

Petang Yang Sangat Menguji Kesabaran!

2009-08-28T20:40:00.012+08:00

Cerita ni terjadi kat office aku siang tadi. Macam hari-hari yang biasa, aku sampai ofis pukul 7.15 am, masuk keje pukul 7.30, kerja gomen, macam tu la. Aku memang WP1 dari awal masuk keje sampai sekarang. Hari yang dilalui sama je macam biasa, hari-hari deal dengan public yang macam-macam kerenah. Benda biasa je bagi aku. Ade yang baik, baik sangat, ade yang mean, mean sangat seperti yang aku alami petang tadi.

Aku ni bukanlah jenis yang cepat hot-temper punya orang. Satu ofis tau tu. Nak gelak gak aku dengar bila bos aku kata aku orang yang paling sabar kat ofis ni, sebab tu dia asyik letak aku kat kaunter pertanyaan je sampai sekarang, naik jelak gak aku. Nasib baik dapat penghargaan dan pujian dari public, agak menaikkan semangat aku gak la untuk bekerja untuk gomen ni. Kaunter pertanyaan kat department aku tu kiranya kaunter maut la. Sape boleh stay kat situ lelama kira hebat ar, aku la tu. Okay, ni macam cite bangga diri je. Stop! Stop!

Petang tadi masa waktu rehat sembahyang Jumaat, waktu pejabat masih berjalan macam biasa. Bagus tak bagusnya Imigresen ni aku tak tau la. Macam biasa, aku kat kaunter pertanyaan ganti Diana sebab dia ade hal kena naik Unit. Masa aku kecah-kecah nak layan public ni, ade sorang akak ni bertudung dengan muka berlagaknya nak tanya procedure transfer fail dari Sabah/Sarawak ke Semenanjung. Ok, bagi korang yang tak tau, ni aku nak kasi tau. Kalau kau tinggal kat Sabah/Sarawak dan ada maid yang didaftarkan di Imigresen Sabah/Sarawak, bila kau pindah ke Semenanjung, kau tak boleh nak simply renew permit maid kau macam biasa. Kau mesti buat pindah fail. Pindah fail ni kiranya macam fresh maid application la. Kau kena isi semua borang permohonan maid yang Imigresen tetapkan, bagi semua supporting documents yang berkaitan kecuali tak perlu bagi laporan perubatan maid kau dari negara sumber, eg; Indonesia, Kemboja, Filipina etc. Sebabnya? Data majikan takkan wujud langsung dalam sistem Imigresen di Semenanjung. Aku tak pasti mengapa. Mungkin sistem yang digunapakai di Sabah/Sarawak tak sama dengan sistem yang digunakan di Semenanjung. Aku tau memang agak pelik sebab Sabah/Sarawak kan satu Malaysia gak, dan Imigresen kan satu Malaysia, nape tak link? Aku tak tau nak jawab ape kalau public tanya cenggini, aku just jawab sistemnya berlainan dengan Semenanjung jadi kena bukak fail majikan yang baru kalau dah berpindah ke Semenanjung. Huh, one Malaysia kunun.

So nak dijadikan cerita, akak ni dan husbandnya dulu keje di Sarawak. Sekarang, akak ni je dapat posting ke Semenanjung, husbandnya bakal menyusul la tapi tak tau bila. So akak ni tanya la aku, boleh ke dia nak isi borang tu and daftarkan nama dia as majikan, bukan nama suami. Ok, ni lagi aku nak bagitau. Kalau kau dah berkahwin, wajibul-ghunnah maid tu mesti didaftarkan atas nama suami kau walaupun gaji kau 10k dan gaji laki kau hanyalah 1k, STILL, kena letak atas nama husband kau jugak walau macamana kau tak puas hati pun, tetap kena bubuh nama suami sebagai majikan. Kecuali suami kesayangan kau dah meninggal dunia atau kamu berdua dah bercerai, barulah kau boleh hooorayyyy daftarkan maid tu atas nama kau, yakni ISTERI. Kisahnya, akak ni berkeras gak nak bubuh nama dia sebagai majikan. Aku pass pada Wawa untuk explainkan procedure pindah fail ni pada akak tu sebab aku agak busy entertain public lain. So far so good, die macam faham dan blah.

Beberapa ketika kemudian, sedang aku dan Wawa syok layan perasaan, tetiba akak ni datang kat kaunter aku sambil bagi henpon murahan die (maaf, aku bukan nak mengutuk tapi kau Pegawai Kerajaan, tak mampu ke nak beli henpon yang sesuai dengan kedudukan kau?), dengan berlagaknya cakap "Puan, ni suami saya nak cakap jap..". First of all, nape panggil aku puan? Walaupun aku Pegawai, panggillah aku Cik, sah-sah kau lagi tua dari aku. Tapi takpe, aku faham, itu panggilan hormat. Aku agak keberatan nak jawab panggilan dia tu sebab kami Pegawai Kerajaan tidak dibenarkan bercakap dengan orang awam melalui telefon, takut disalahertikan. Tapi aku fikir, ah, takpela, takde orang pun, apa salahnya jawab. So aku yang baik hati ni pun jawablah panggilan suami dia tu walaupun dalam hati merungut-rungut cakap "apelagi la ni..."..

AKU: Hello...
SUAMI AKAK TU: Hello. Hello. Ni orang mana? (dengan slang BM Sarawak yang kunun hebat la..Podacit!)
AKU: Haaa...??
SUAMI AKAK TU: Siapa ni?
AKU: Elliana.. ya?
SUAMI AKAK TU: Elliana..orang mana?
AKU: (aku macam agak pelik lak apesal nak tanya aku orang mana..apehal lak laki dia ni. nak ngorat aku ke??) Haa...??
SUAMI AKAK TU: Kamu orang Sarawak ke Semenanjung? Semenanjung ye?

Waktu ni aku iyekan je..

SUAMI AKAK TU: Ni saya tak puas hati ni. Bulan 6 hari tu saya ada datang bercakap dengan pegawai pasal benda ni. Dia kata boleh kalau saya tak datang masa hantar application, isteri saya saja yang datang hantar pun boleh. Tapi sekarang kenapa bila isteri saya datang tanya, kata tak boleh pulak?!
AKU: Dengan pegawai mana encik bercakap dulu?
SUAMI AKAK TU: Dengar la saya cakap dulu! Saya tak habis cakap lagi. Tak penting pegawai mana yang saya tanya, masalahnya penerangan yang diberikan dulu tu bercanggah dengan apa yang saya faham. Tu yang saya tak puas hati. Saya pun orang kerajaan jugak. Pasal pegawai macam awak la ramai orang awam komplen servis kerajaan sebab bagi salah penerangan. Bila orang komplen, marah lak!

Watefak?! Aku mula menyirap sebab apehal tetiba public ni marah aku?

AKU: Iyelah! Yang encik tetiba nak marah-marah saya ni apehal? Saya tak tahu dengan siapa encik tanya waktu tu, saya takde. Sebab tu saya tanya dengan siapa encik bercakap, mungkin dia staff baru ke, silap bagi penerangan ke. Mungkin encik tanya general questions, so pegawai tu pun jawab generally jela. Ade encik tanya pasal signature majikan dan cara isi borang sume?
SUAMI AKAK TU: Ada! Saya dah tanya in details dah. Dia kata boleh je. Saya tak perlu datang. Awak tak tahu ke saya ni busy, bukan boleh selalu datang semenanjung. Saya ni orang penting kat kementerian saya (watefak? ade aku kesah kau orang besar ke hape? kementerian kau bukan kementerian aku!), awak jangan nak main-mainkan saya. Saya ni educated, bukan orang kampung. Saya pun keje kerajaan macam awak, saya tau la procedure! (ohhh puh-leaseeeee.....! perlu la kau nak bagitau sume orang yang kau ni sangat educated dan penting supaya aku takut? blah la wei!).
AKU: Iye saya faham... (aku boleh bersabar tahap langit ke tujuh dah ni walaupun ikut ati aku nak baling je henpon murahan bini dia tu!) tapi itu procedure dia. Memang betul encik tak perlu hadir masa submit forms, isteri encik saja datang pun dah boleh dah. Pasal signature tu, kalau encik unavailable, isteri encik boleh pos atau faxkan, encik just sign dan fill up forms je... tak payah datang ofis kami.
SUAMI AKAK TU: Saya faham la yang itu, masalahnya procedure awak tu dah menyusahkan orang awam macam saya ni! Orang ni cakap ini, orang tu cakap itu, yang susahnya orang awam macam kami ni, terkejar ke sana ke mari. Tak boleh ke isteri saya je yang isi form tu? You should make it less hassle.. (bla bla bla speaking and marah aku dalam English macam la aku ni bodoh sangat tak reti speaking..)
AKU: (aku geram aku jawab balik dalam English dengan nada nak nangis ni...) Yes, it's true your wife can fill up the forms on your behalf. But the thing is, she cannot put her name as the employer, so she cannot sign the papers. She can name herself as the employer depending on two situations only. It's either she has been divorced or the husband has passed away, only then she can be named as the employer. If you are still married, you are the one who have to sign the forms and be the employer. Just sign and your wife can come to the office to submit the application.
SUAMI AKAK TU: Is there any other way because the previous officer talked to me differently. (ni salah satu spesis public bodoh sombong taknak ngaku salah dah la tak paham procedure pastu nak marah-marah and then nak blame kita balik!)
AKU: That's the only procedure, sir. We need your original signature.
SUAMI AKAK TU: Saya tak puas hati ni. Bagi saya no telefon ofis awak.
AKU: 03-55.......
SUAMI AKAK TU: Nama awak?
AKU: Elliana...
SUAMI AKAK TU: Ketua Bahagian awak?
AKU: Puan blablabla....
SUAMI AKAK TU: I don't want to take names today but I have to (amek la kau nak nama atok nenek aku skali ke amek la like I care!), I'm gonna talk to your Ketua Bahagian. You should make things simpler. There's a miscommunication, I want to query your boss..I'm an educated person (again, do you have to mention it everytime?), saya duduk bandar. Bayangkan kalau orang kampung yang tanya soalan awak semua jawab macam-macam, bukan ke menyusahkan orang?(Blablabla...ceramah Jumaat die la watefak!) Macam nila...17 September ni ofis awak bukak ke? Saya sendiri nak datang hantar application.
AKU: Eh, bukan ke encik kata encik keje kerajaan, takkan ofis bukak ke tutup ke encik tak tau? Mestila bukak! Bukannya cuti pun! (aku memang sound tahap kurang hajar gile dah waktu ni even kawan-kawan yang dengar pun terkejut denga nada suara aku time tu!)
SUAMI AKAK TU: Don't talk to me like that. I'm giving you a warning. So ofis awak tak tutup, saya akan datang 17 September ni hantar borang.
AKU: Ok. Boleh.
SUAMI AKAK TU: Ok Elliana, saya minta maaf la. Saya bukan nak marah-marah pun, cuma saya tak puas hati ada miscommunication sebelum ni. Kalau macam tu, biar nanti saya sendiri datang hantar borang dan tanya soalan. Nanti saya suruh isteri saya jumpa bos awak.
AKU: (selepas beristghfar banyak-banyak... bulan puasa..) Ok, saya pun minta maaf kalau ade salah faham tadi. Memang procedure dia begitu. Kalau encik nak mudah atau tak puas hati, jumpa la ketua bahagian saya nanti minta jasa baik dia untuk pecepatkan proses ke ape..
SUAMI AKAK TU: Yes, I will. Will you pass the phone to my wife?

Aku denga jeliknya bagi henpon murahan tu pada akak tu balik sambil jeling dia. Aku tau Pegawai Kerajaan tak patut buat begitu pada orang awam tapi untuk public yang sebegitu berlagak dan tolol, aku rasa mereka deserve layanan begitu. Aku tensen dengan public yang begini. Kau nak gunakan pangkat dan pelajaran kau untuk threaten aku? Pleaseeeee la! Bukan nak berlagak tapi bapak aku pun Pegawai Kerajaan tinggi. Aku pun ade degree, bukanlah dungu sangat seperti yang kau sangkakan. Tapi aku takdela berlagak macam kau sikit-sikit nak mention kedudukan kau. Blah la. Sememangnya aku tak sabar nak tunggu 17 September ni nak jumpa public yang kununnya berpangkat tinggi dan berpelajaran tinggi tu. Nak sangat aku tengok jawatannya. Pegawai Diplomatik ke? Ketua Pengarah ke? Menteri ke? Busy sangat sampai nak sign dan fax dokumen pun takde masa. Kalau Pegawai Tinggi, takkan kau takde PA nak tolong fax dokumen? Bodoh! Kalau kau setakat pegawai kerajaan gred 22, tak payah nak berlagak la dengan aku. Kau dengan bini kau yang sama-sama berlagak pandai tu boleh pergi mati. Aku rasa, baik lagi aku bagi penerangan dengan orang kampung daripada menerangkan kepada orang bandar yang terlebih pandai macam kau. Disebabkan orang-orang macam ni la procedure sering berubah-ubah dan jadik makin complicated. Semuanya nak cepat dan mudah, kalau boleh terus datang ofis, bagi pasport je dah terus lulus application tak payah isi borang or buat apa-apa, goyang kaki tau-tau 5 minit semua dah nak settle. Bodoh!

Aku stress tau keje macamni. Janganlah korang kata keje gomen ni rilek je. Penat gak tau, lagi letih sebab expectation dari public sangat tinggi. Lambat sikit, akan dikomplen kunun tak buat keje asyik berborak je. Aku tak tau la jabatan lain macam mana. Tapi bahagian aku ni, memang kalau keje kena tip top sampai naik K.O. aku bila balik rumah. Tapi aku bersyukur sebab aku masih lagi mempunyai pekerjaan tetap, dengan kerajaan lagi. Memang bonus la, lebih-lebih lagi di usia aku yang tak berapa nak tua ni. Jadi, hargailah kerja anda. Ceh ceh...

The Attire

2009-08-23T12:01:00.006+08:00

It's almost confirmed I'm gonna wear jilbab during my nikah ceremony and lacey dress during my wedding reception. Why almost? Because I haven't paid anything yet before I received the final assessment from them. I've made a booking with Al-Hijaab regarding the jilbab. It is custom made. I've sent my measurements already together with my choice of color, which is in ivory. Currently, they stopped accepting tailoring orders during the whole month of Ramadhan, work will only be resumed after the fasting month ended. I have no problems with that because I am not rushing.

This is the jilbab, just imagine it in ivory and round neck. It comes with matching shawl. I might buy a lacey headcover to drape on top of the shawl. I know it's too plain but I'll accessorise with chunky blings. Let's just see how it goes.

I'll buy this dress probably in the middle of September, when I receive the bonus. Hehehe. I've took the measurements already, and the bustline shouldn't be too low. I don't want the guests keep staring at my boobs. Otherwise, I'll get a smack from Johan.

Owh, did I tell you that I've received the veil I ordered online? It's a 2-metre, floor length, gorgeous ivory mantilla veil and I might be wearing it with my lacey wedding reception dress. Hihi. All for RM37 plus shipping from HK. Cheap, right? Talk about budget wedding.

Candy Buffet

2009-08-23T10:58:00.007+08:00

More info from Simply Stated.

Do you think it's appropriate for me to set up a candy buffet for the wedding reception? I love candies, I know it'll be a big hit among kids but I'm not too sure about the grown ups. My friends would definitely love it sebab mereka pun sengal dan selalu sugar rush macam saya but the others? Especially the older ones? Huhu. But I can't resist the colourful candies, it would make a good prop for deco as well.

From what I read from the internet regarding candy buffet is.. we shouldn't limit the candies to our wedding color. The candies should have various colors possible and should be placed in different jars. For matured guests, a selection of candies consists of M&Ms, Cadburys, mints and toffees would suit them while for kids, you can throw in practically everything. Lollipops, hard candy, etc. And make sure you've provided scoops, boxes or small plastic bags for your guests to self-fill up with candies.

This is fun. I should discuss with Johan. Wheeeeee!

Birdnest as Wedding Favor

2009-08-23T10:05:00.008+08:00

Modern brides tend to choose doorgifts that are practical and useful for their guests. The same goes with me. Personally, I prefer edible wedding favors for my guests. I don't believe in decorative items as doorgift. Not all of your guests have the same taste as you, and deco items will be collecting dusts if they have no ideas on how to use them and soon they'll be visiting the trash. So it's not practical after all.

At first, I wanted to give a gigantic bahulu (ok, I'm exaggerating here) as doorgift for my guests, with handmade black box and red ribbons but Johan's cousin chose it earlier as doorgifts during her wedding few months back. So, I must resort to another options. Johan's mother insists on having eggs as wedding favor, I can't literally say NO because after all, the moms gotta have the votes and it's her son's wedding too. I can't simply butt in and object, plus egg is the traditional Malay wedding favor and symbolises fertility.

I made frequent research on the beloved Google and I'm thinking of giving birdnest filled with egg(s) for my guests. It's cheap and it has egg(s) in it. Yeay! I scouted and found a local site that sells birdnest. Too bad it's not edible. I wish the nest could be edible, eg; nest made in wajik or cakar ayam. They are traditional and my Johorean side would be delighted. Hehehe. I did ask aound and most of them are expensive. So the answer is NO. I'm on budget.

Pictures are from Google Image
I can fill the nest with telur puyuh, telur ayam, telur masin or even egg-shaped chocolates. The choices are endless and they are cute. Aren't they? I know many brides have made this as their wedding favor but heck, I still want it for my wedding. It's unique and still traditional. Most of all, it suits my future in-law's requirements. Hehehe.

Living with In-Laws

2009-08-22T13:12:00.004+08:00

Before I go further, let me clarify that all that is written here is purely based on my thoughts. No offense please.

Living with in-laws, some might say NO! Some might say ok (tapi dalam hati sebenarnya tak nak), some would say nak!nak! and some just don't bother. So which category I fall into? I should say, I'm in the second category. I don't say I don't mind living with in-laws. I do mind, a lot actually. When I told my friends that I'm going to stay with Johan's family after we get married, I received various feedbacks. Most of them have doubts of me living around in-laws.

Why? Because I'm kinda lepas balik kerja, duduk dalam bilik diam-diam, mandi, turun makan dan tidur pukul 10. Usually at home during weekends, I wake up at 9am. Kununnya nak balas dendam sebab weekdays asyik bangun awal pukul 5.30 pagi dan pergi kerja pukul 6.20 pagi. So di situ, tak cukup tidur. And at home, I'm a bit pampered. A bit, ok! Not always. Mom's a housewife like FOREVER in her life, so she tends to manage everything in the house. I did help occasionally, lipat baju, bersihkan kandang kucing-kucing saya yang gemok tu, sidai baju, cuci toilet, kemas bilik, only when I have the time. And I hardly cook. Mom prepares everything, I wanted to help sometimes but she just have this habit of prefers not having helpers around her. So that's why she does everything herself and I will only help her when she calls for, which is rare. So that explains, why friends find it a bit impossible for me to live with in-laws.

Kalau duduk bersama dengan in-laws, kena bangun awal. Tak mungkin kau nak tidur exceeding 7am, even on weekends. Kurang sopan nampaknya. Nanti apa pulak in-laws akan kata. Dan kena rajin ke dapur menolong apa yang patut. This should be no problem, I like to cook just malas je. And I guess, I have the same habit like my mom does. I prefer to operate alone, not having helpers. Rasanya akan jadi lagi kucar-kacir bila ade helpers. Bersama in-laws, apa yang kau selalu buat kat rumah kau dengan ibu bapa kau sendiri agak terbatas. Mungkin juga sangat terbatas. Kalau di rumah selalu berseluar pendek ke hulu ke hilir ke atas ke bawah, tapi bila dengan in-laws, takkan kau nak pakai macam tu? Lagi-lagi depan bapa mertua. Tapi saya rasa pakai macam tu depan ibu mertua lagi mengundang maut berbanding bapa mertua. Ye tak? Nak tak nak, kau kena beli stok seluar panjang dan t-shirt loose banyak-banyak. Tak pun pakai je baju kelawar. Jangan mimpi lagi kau nak beli baju dan seluar tidur cantik-cantik kat FOS. Kalau in-laws jenis tak kisah sebab mereka pun lebih kurang takpe, kalau tidak, awas! Tapi semoden-moden mana pun in-laws, mereka pasti tak mahu menantu mereka pakai boxer di rumah.

Lagi satu, takkan kau nak online je dan tengok tv sepanjang hari di rumah dan goyang kaki macam kau selalu buat kat rumah ibu bapa kau? Makan depan tv lagi baring-baring, gelak kuat-kuat tengok Senario. Kurang sopan. Nak tak nak, kau kena jadi perempuan melayu terakhir. Lepas tu bila keluar jalan-jalan tengok wayang dengan suami, in-laws akan pandang je. Kenapa? Sebab dah tiap-tiap minggu asal cuti Sabtu Ahad je korang keluar tak lekat kat rumah asyik makan sedap-sedap kat luar. Dah jadik kes menantu malas lak. Nanti kawan-kawan nak datang melawat atau saudara-mara kau nak menjenguk pengantin baru pun agak kurang selesa sebab in-laws ada. Nak buat party tupperware dengan member kamcing pun susah. Kalau bestfriend kau yang kepoh datang nanti dapat jelingan maut lagi sebab bising sangat bile berborak. Haih. Bila duduk dengan in-laws, terpaksa berlakon banyak. Hipokrit. To tell you the truth, I much prefer to stay alone with my husband after we get married. We are at free to do everything and anything we like, and anywhere too. Mom always tell me, "bila dah kawen nanti, duduk la berdua. Cari la rumah sendiri, sewa la rumah kecik dulu flat pun takpe, lagipun duduk berdua je. Kalau boleh jangan duduk dengan family. Menantu perempuan dengan menantu lelaki tak sama situasinya bila duduk dengan mertua".

Haih...macamana ni?

Red and Black Reception

2009-08-22T12:29:00.007+08:00

As planned, we are going to use black and red for the wedding reception's theme color. Somehow, we haven't decided who's family going to wear red and who's going to wear black. But most probably, my family will be wearing black. Hahaha. Glamourous black ok, not dead-mourning black. ;p

I'm in the midst of searching for vendors who can provide black and red tablecloth/chair cover. It's a bit difficult to find one, maybe because this color combination is still a bit new in Malaysia, or people just don't find it appealing for wedding. But tell me just whatever, I still find these colors glamourous. But I don't want gothic-lookalike event like Elyana's engagement ceremony. Total turn off!

The only vendor (I've stumbled upon to) that have everything that I wanted in red and black mode is Puteris. I'm gonna contact her to ask for quotation. Do let me know if you brides/future brides out there have any other options for me. Your help is very much appreciated!

Pictures courtesy of Puteris flickr. I love these combination. It looks less gothic because of the white tablecloth.

Post Jiwa Kacau!

2009-08-06T20:40:00.009+08:00

Hari ini saya rasa tiada mood sungguh tapi bila tengok blog kesayangan terdampar kesepian tanpa sebarang update, maka haruslah diceriakan sedikit walaupun hati empunya blognya tidaklah seceria mana.

Jangan ditanya mengapa post kali ini diadaptasikan di dalam bahasa Melayu. Saja-saja hendak mengomel rasanya. Lebih molek berbicara dalam bahasa kebangsaan kita.

Semalam merupakan hari terakhir adik-adik saya yang baru balik kursus berpraktikal di Shah Alam. Teringat zaman saya buat praktikal sebulan selepas balik kursus. Ok Elly, tak perlu nak cerita kau sendiri tahu sudah. Hehehe. Maka, kami bercadang untuk makan tengahari beramai-ramai semasa rehat yang sangat singkat dalam masa 1 jam apa sangatlah yang dapat dibuat. Buat pesanan pun, 30 minit kemudian baru makanan tiba ke meja. Makan laju-laju macam esok sudah tiada lagi sebab takut Puan marah, lambat masuk pejabat. Padahal Puan pun tak sedar kami lambat masuk 15 minit. Bersungguh-sungguh aje kami berlari-lari anak dari SACC ke PKNS menaiki tangga untuk ke office di tingkat 2 bersama perut yang memboyot dengan makanan. Kalau tahu, selamba dog saja kami berjalan tak perlu nak rushing.

Petang itu sebelum balik, ada lagi sesi penggambaran. Mahu bergambar kenangan dengan Elly cantik (eh!) the mentor yang kononnya banyak memberi tunjuk ajar padahal Elly cantik (eh lagi!)lebih banyak berborak dengan mereka dan kanak-kanak praktikal itu lebih banyak jadi sukarelawan untuk menghantar pasport kepada Rasyid the cashier mahupun ke belakang untuk mengambil fail kelulusan. Tipu ni praktikal lah sangat!

Malam itu sangat bosan. Tidur sebentar dan SMS Didi, ajak keluar. Tidur lagi, kemudian Didi balas SMS kata nak keluar. Saya bangun, drive ke Shah Alam ambil Didi dan ajak Ummi sekali dan Joshua. Pergi makan daging di Williams sehingga ke lewat malam kerana terlalu asyik berborak, meluahkan perasaan dan sedikit girl talk. Saya bergaduh lagi dengan Johan kali ini sangat hebat, hati sangat sedih tapi kena cekal jangan mengikut perasaan sangat. Adik-adik (Didi dan Ummi), terima kasih sebab bagi kakak Elly cantik (eh perasan!) makan daging demi melawan kesedihan. Ummi kamu makan banyak ayam, kakak kempunan.

Muka sedikit berminyak kerana stress (Elly, kau jangan nak buat alasan. Kalau tak comel mengaku sahaja!)

Tiaras

2009-08-02T21:43:00.010+08:00

Yesterday we went out to scout the potential halls for our wedding reception. I am very delighted to see the Putrajaya halls. Sayang please...mahu dewan yang itu boleh kah?

Anyways, today's topic is about tiara, crown, whatever you want to call 'em. I'm not a fan of tiaras. I've always thought of wearing birdcage veil instead of the normal long veil with crown on top. But seeing that long veil would make a good prop for photography and it would be too dull without any headpiece, so tiara would be a good option to complete the look.

I browsed on Ebay this whole day and thought of getting a tiara online. Many wouldn't agree with me because I have this fetish for buying wedding stuffs online. In fact, I just bought an akad nikah veil thru Ebay last 2 days. Can't wait for it to arrive. Shall post pictures of it once I get my hands on it.

There are a few options of tiara which have been shortlisted by me. Cewah! I really cannot decide. So again, I shall need help from Johan to choose. Hehehehe..

My personal favourite would be the last picture. It looks kinda Statue of Liberty punya crown. Hahaha! These are priced at $11 including shipping. Uber cheap, right? I know there are cheaper options out there in Jln TAR, but I just love the comfort of shopping online.

Vintage Dresses on Etsy

2009-07-19T13:27:00.011+08:00

Etsy has an extensive option of vintage wedding dresses. I was on pure boredom just now and stumbled upon a few dresses that caught my attention. They are extremely cheap. But just beware, read over the descriptions first before buying because some dresses are so vintage they tend to appear torn, discoloured, have few yellowish stains and dirty spots.

Here are some of my favourites:

Victorian Gunne Sax Dress. Details here.

House Of Bianchi lace wedding dress. Details here.

Vintage Juliet Dress. Details here.

Vintage GUNNE SAX Victorian Prairie Romantic Lace Pink Dress. Details here.

1960s Floral Pearl Maxi Dress. Details here.

Upon seeing these dresses, I no longer wanted to buy the ones I posted this morning. Again, I'll shall make further discussion with Johan regarding these dresses. Which one will be in and which one will be out. Toodles!

Vintage Dresses

2009-07-19T09:52:00.010+08:00

It suddenly struck me, the long dress from Artizara is a bit expensive. It is RM625 plus shipping. Some of you might think it's cheap, considering it's a brand new dress. But, you know how much fuss I make for this whole wedding-on-budget thingy, right? The thing is, I want to have my own wedding dresses (not rented) which are affordable so that I can keep and cherish them and who knows, pass them on to my daughter/grandchild/great grandchild/the list goes on, for their wedding... if the vintage trend is still around perhaps. Theehee..

So back to the story. I like Artizara dress so much but it's too simple and the RM600+ is not worth it for a simple dress like that. I decided to go blog-hopping for inspirations and why not I try vintage-style dress for my akad nikah ceremony. I know it's very ODD, people usually wear baju kurung/kurung moden for this ceremony but vintage dresses are pretty too! Plus, they are a bit cheaper and still look brand new eventho they are ageing. Elly, tolong make up your mind!

Here's the two choices that I think are cool..

This dress is from Vintage Bridallure. Total plus shipping is only RM352. It's in ivory lace over ivory chiffon and fully lined, except around the collarbone and sleeves. It's exactly in my size and it's in ivory!

This dress retails at RM297 plus shipping. The materials are chiffon and tafetta with ivory/soft cream and white colors. I like the semi-sheer renaissance pouf-style sleeves (that's in white chiffon) and the pearl beading + lace. It's pretty!

Okay, I'm totally spoilt with choice. The dresses are pretty. Do you think I'll look like a pregnant woman in these? The truth is, I fell in love with the first dress because it's lacey and in ivory but it's not fully lined in selected areas. :( Maybe I should opt for the second one but the design looks like a maternity dress. Hahaha. Please help me!

Reception Dress

2009-07-18T09:34:00.012+08:00

Bad news regarding the reception wedding dress. Johan totally rejected it. *cries* I've been lobbying him (haha!) but to no avail. Okay, I'm very stubborn like this if I want something I'll make sure I'm getting it by any means. Huh!

Tak sesuai ke wahai kawan-kawan untuk pakai dress seperti ini ketika majlis resepsi? Dimana pengantin lelaki pula memakai baju melayu complete suit OMG hensemnyer! *berangan*

Ini contoh saya ambil dari Google Search. Owner of the picture please take the credit yeah. See! Ok je tu groom pakai baju melayu and bride pakai lace dress jarang-jarang. Nak menangis ni!

Ni dah entry ke berapa tah bulan ni mengenai dress sahaja. Haih!