Wedding Bands

HUZZAH! We have bought our wedding bands today :) NB: the pics above are not the exact weddings bands we bought, but are very similar in style!

Charlie bought a white gold ring by Peter W Beck!

I didn't realise that finding a matching wedding band for my engagement ring was so hard! We went into about 5 or 6 jewellers and found nothing so I am getting mine custom made by Jacobsons Jewellery :)

I am so excited!! To me there are only two things important enough on the wedding day to splurge on: a) photography and b) wedding bands!!

Suit Up!

Today was our first day shopping for Charlie's suit. We found it in the third store we entered - Messini!!

It is a dark grey with subtle pinstripes - half price for approx $800. Very excited!! Now all that's left is a white shirt and a plum tie :D

Now both him and I have our dress and suits and shoes sorted. Here is a sneak peak of the shoes we bought and the cutest coffee cup ever ;) Note, his shoes were over double the price of mine :-O

JAPAN here we come!!

Jetstar had their birthday sale and unfortunately tickets to Hawaii were not on sale for the october travel period :(

So we have booked tickets to JAPAN! woohoo! im totally excited!! after having travelled all over aust and experiencing its nature, beaches and more nature, i really wanted a city experience. So i am soo excited!

We will be there for 2 weeks and are hoping to stay a few days in Seoul for shopping and yummy Korean food!

I havent done much research yet and have just been asking friends who have been to Japan. So far I think we are keen on doing the following in Japan:

- Osaka
- Tokyo
- Takaragawa Onsen (hot springs)
- a trek
- food
- ryokan
- shibuya shopping!

Will keep you posted on the itinerary once we've had a good think about it :)

What's been happening?

I've realised I've neglected this blog for all of March - I can't believe its already April!

A few progressions in terms of wedding plans:

1) Katrina came over a few weeks back to show us her invitation designs and discuss colours. We really liked the simplicity of her designs and am so excited to start choosing papers and colours!! This leads me onto the next topic...

2) The guestlist has been finalised...it was tough and I'm sure it's going to change leading up to the wedding. But just glad it has been done. So far we are looking at approximately 90-100 guests.

3) We went to Justen's housewarming and we hadn't seen the lovely couple since they got married last year. We were amazed at their new place - it was really nice!! We also got to see their wedding photos which were really beautiful and I'm hoping mine turn out just as good! I also found out that Renee got a good deal on her flowers so I should also pursue a quote from her florist!

4) Today we attended marriage education which is a program run by Catholicare. It was very very helpful and raised many questions that Charlie and I should be discussing such as expectations of married life, children, sacrament of marriage, conflict resolution etc. I feel exhausted now though!! Here is a pic of Our Lady of Lourdes Church for those who haven't seen the church before...



And in case you were wondering - March was very busy because of dragonboat - we came third at state titles which was awesome considering it was my first women's sport crew race :D



Another thing is I've also started a detox yesterday and I am ALREADY craving chocolate and making a food list of the first foods I will be eating on Day 11 (the detox runs for 10 days!). I think the worse thing so far is just having to drink digestive bitters before each meal - tastes FOUL. Below is what I'm having for dinner tonight - wholegrain pilaf using quinoa - actually quite yummy!


Finally I have an assignment on Australian International Tax due in 8 days and I have barely started!! *gulp* Although since I will be away for a whole month in October, I am deferring my final two subjects, so this will be my last subject for 2010. Hopefully that will give me some sort of motivation...

Loving: Breton Stripes

I want these both now!!

Cardi is from Bardot and long sleeve top is from Asos.

Love love.

Orange to Black

The wedding planning front has been very quiet lately, the only wedding thing related that has happened since I last posted was paying a monthly instalment for my dress haha.

I would have liked to go check out florists today but i have come down with a nasty cold so instead I have been in bed all day and gargling salty water :(

My hair was becoming very orangey

So I decided to dye it back to brown!! Turned out a little blacker than I wanted to be - i asked for an ash brown and it came out very very dark. What do you think??

It was also Nic's 18th birthday dinner at Masuya last night :) Happy Birthday bud!! Didnt have time to fix my hair so its flat and lifeless as can be

Dragon Boat and Clutches

I have been neglecting wedding planning for the past two weeks because of....dragon boat!! yeah, i'm just making excuses :P Although I'm sure I'll have more time to focus on wedding planning after CNY races!! But as I had promised myself to update my blog weekly, here is the update!

February literally feels like the most busiest month ever!! This week is CNY and even though we don't celebrate it in my family, Charlie's family does have a get together so I'll be having dinner with his family on both Friday and Saturday coming up. Sunday is Valentine's Day and cos we are saving up for the wedding, we both agreed not to get anything for each other and just have a nice feed somewhere. He has always been wanting to go back to this Turkish restie in Randwick that he and his frds went to last yr so hopefully we can try that this weekend!

Next weekend is Nic's 18th!! Very excited for her - it'll be the first time she'll go clubbing (i could say the same thing for me and charlie cos we are literally living over 55's lifestyles going to bed at 10.30 on a friday)!!

The weekend after that is CNY sports race and corporate AND anita's 24th at WAQU!! Very excited!!

See what i mean by busy?

I am still waiting for my coastal scents package to arrive. Fingers crossed none of the palettes have any broken colours! I am also still looking for l'oreal liquid eyeliner and also for essie nailpolishes thanks to my makeup guru youtube addiction!!

Also - what kind of clutches do brides carry on the day? I had a search on etsy and have come up with my favourite sellers:

Davie and Chiyo Clutches
I luvvv this one! I wonder if there is a strap though?

Angee W
I know this one ain't white but its my personal favourite! It is sooo 1950s :)



Vicky Riley Weddings

The Social Seam
I really love this oversized bow - very Valentino

Atelier Edyta Loukia
I like the size of this one and the flower details but from the pic it looks like canvas material...

And here is a bag I would LOVVVVVE to get my hands on!! Balenciaga-inspired Witchery bags :)
I dont know whether to get the black or brown!! I have had like a crush on Balenciaga bags like since forever.

Coastal Scents 88 Palette

Woohoo order has been put in for my coastal scents 88 palette! I cant wait to get it!! Plus I ordered an eyeshadow and chisel brush and an angle brush. I was browsing my makeup guru subscriptions on youtube and Kandee Johnson had posted up a bridal makeup tutorial! After watching it, I really want a MAC paint pot (heaps of other gurus use MAC paint pots too) and a whole lot of MAC highlighters lol.

I am soooo in love with makeup right now :) Gonna go for a walk and try to find the L'oreal liquid eyeliner!!

Btw I started up dragon boating again for corporate and I've also joined the Sports crew. Im hoping this will help me tone up my arms and back if I keep doing it throughout winter! I feel SUPER SUPER sore right now!

Chalet

With the mortgage always at the back of my mind, i always feel guilty spending money on clothes, shoes, makeup etc. So i turn to household goods. I am LOVING cute cute kitchen essentials from Chalet. I bought a pink can opener from them last weekend and am hoping to grow my collection of pastel cooking tools hehe.
Also, the BM's have bought their Sheike dresses, so excited to see it on them and what kind of style they will choose to tie their dresses :) fun fun!!

I didnt get a chance to visit the two remaining florists on my list this weekend cos its just been too busy, but hoping I will be able to book a florist soon!!

Deposit for dress - PAID!

This weekend, I had put a deposit for my dress at Dressense! YAY! I decided to go with Dressense rather than Abbey's Bridal cos a) its much closer to home and b) the SAs there are wayy nicer and so very helpful, it doesnt hurt either when they throw in a compliment here and there hehe. I'm very happy that mum likes the dress, she says I look like a mermaid in it hehe. I cant wait to get it!! I ordered it in the smallest size (the SA decided on the size based on my measurements which I actually never knew until I got measured) so I hope my body stays this shape 10 months later!! *starts regretting the blueberry and almond french toast bake she ate this morning for brunch, it didnt even taste that good either*



Whilst we were in Miranda, Nic tried on a couple of dresses, first this purple number from Sheike which looked very elegant on her and can be worn various ways as so
She also tried on a red dress at Events but wasnt as beautiful as this purple one. I spoke to Charlie about his feelings on having our theme colour changed to purple and he was fine with that, so now our theme colour is PURPLE! Thoughts on this colour theme?? My only concern is that it will be hard to find EXACT hues of purple, but hey, nothing is perfect :) and a little bit of oddity and mismatch just adds some character!

I also had a look at flights to Honolulu for our honeymoon - the cheapest flights i could find were jetstar for $919 return, per person. I also started reading hotel reviews on Trip Advisor and was horrified at the state and looks of some of the low-budget hotels..or should i say hostel-looking hotels? I must say though, planning for a holiday is so much fun fun fun!! :D Better than reading about the newest transfer pricing developments :P Can't wait!!

Seacret - Minerals from the Dead Sea Nail Care Collection

The catch of the day had a product called Seacret Nail and Body Care Kit for only $15, normally retailed at $70! My nails are always in a terrible condition cos they always have polish on them, I decided to buy and try this product to help my nails grow long and strong!!

I've also decided on Mimosa's for Mr & Mrs or Malaysian Mist both by OPI for my nail colour but both are currently sold out on 8ty8beauty supplies :(

Cookie favours

Kim, Nic and Joy have kindly volunteered to make cookie favours for the guests!! We had a baking day at our house today to test how difficult it would be to decorate the cookies.

We bought a gingerbread man baking kit from Coles and made our own pink icing. Personally I'm not a lover of gingerbread men...they taste too gingery! Next time I think I would prefer normal sugar cookies :) And decorating is hard!! They need all the practice they can get!

Here are some we made earlier :)

Sottero & Midgley and Essence

I went to Miranda today with Joy and Nic to check out some dresses, and I fell in love with two in particular at Dressense! Although they are kinda way over my price range :( But once you know its THE dress, you just gotta have it right? The ladies at Dressense were SOOO lovely and you can tell that they've got experience and have been doing this for a long time because of their service and the tips they were giving about the dresses...

Cos I'm such a shortie, I opted for dresses which hugged my figure at least past my hips (this makes me look like I have hips without being too pouffy at the bottom) and I tried on at least 6 dresses and I've narrowed it down to a Sottero & Midgley dress (first one) and an Essence dress (second champagne colour). I LOVE LOVE the beading under the bust that these two dresses have - the S&M dress has a bit more ruching and a bit more embellishment hence is priced at $2,300 which isnt too bad for a designer dress. The Essence dress creates movement having the ruching going to one side but isnt too pouffy at the bottom and is priced at $2,095. Both over my budget :(

Sooo I've come to make a pact with Charlie and myself, that I will NOT spend money on anything that is not wedding related!! no new work shoes, no new work clothes, nothing!! I can only spend on say a veil, hair pieces, food, makeup cos i will be using that for the wedding...etc. I have 10 months to save up and I'm determined to do it!!!

Saison Blanche Couture

OMG I am LOVING this dress by Saison Blanche Couture!!! It is so simple yet I love the sweetheart neckline and the ruching around the bust.

Unfortunately it is only available in stores in the US :( boo boo boo.

I wonder if I can find a dress similar here in Sydney???

Alex Lau

Alex Lau met up with us at home to show us his portfolio and to get to know him. He's a very lovely, laid back guy but best of all, he takes amazing photos!! We are very keen to book him!! Check out his portfolio on his website or his facebook.

Above are a few of my favourite shots!! Heaps more favourites in the facebook album!! But facebook doesnt do his pictures any justice - the high res pics are AMAZING!! I Love the jumping splits shot!! Plus he is willing to make a slideshow for our wedding using the shots taken in the morning and present it during the reception. Legend - wait for it - dary!!!!

Maggie Sottero

I decided to check out dresses last week at Abbey Bridal and a few others in the Dymocks Building but many of them were closed for the Christmas and New Years break. Abbey Bridal was open though and I fell in love with so many dressses!! I loved the fact that they were on sale and had some 2k dresses marked down to 1k!! yay!!!

I guess I'm looking for a strapless gown which has a rather fitted bodice and has some sort of embellishment around the bust or torso area. I am steering clear of pouffy princess dresses cos I'm shawtie and I will look like I'm drowning in it.

These are a couple of the Maggie Sottero dresses which I want to try on at my appointment next Thursday!! I also have an appointment Thursday morning with Brides of Sydney :) yay!!