the theme: vintage french country chic

let me start with our motif, blue + pink. pink because like most girls, i like pink despite my early denial thus my affinity with yellow four. blue because this is hubby's school color. well, mine too but i think pink + green or blue + green are better combinations. this is actually one of those times i wish hubby or i were from la salle.

i had a bit of a struggle with the motif because:

1.) pink and blue reminds me of prom

2.) pink and blue reminds me of baby shower

3.) and worst, pink and blue reminds me of mmda...

but eventually, i gave in as this was one of the few things hubby specifically requested. after much color-shopping, i finally settled on midnight blue + coral/pomelo pink + light pink. the color of the site is more or less how the wedding colors look.

so now for the theme. most of my friends know that i am into scrapbooking and paper crafting. i also wanted my wedding to be as distinct and as personal as possible so i decided to integrate this hobby in my wedding. also because of the global financial crisis, i decided to diy what i can for the wedding. my diy mishaps and misadventures to follow.

while trawling the web for ideas, i came across inspiration boards which was really very helpful for me because while i had an idea what i wanted, i had a difficult tiem coming up with fancy names for it. inspiration boards from snippet & ink and magnet street weddings.

vintage

i have a fascination with old stuff or the fancy term for it, vintage. i have this dream of going to antique stores and second-hand shops to find old typewriters and soda bottles, chipped cups and figurines and yellow-edged posters and books. well, that's the romantic spin on old stuff at least.

french country

i have always been drawn to homemade stuff and the country charm, think papemelroti. but i especially love how the french can make anything seem so charming and dainty. thus, the second inspriration board.

something blue

as i've already shared, blue was a specific request from hubby, a "manly" blue like midnight blue mind you. not the cutesy blue like tiffany blue or the "faux blue" like periwinkle. this was the blue that got his nod and the blue that i think i can work with.

pretty in pink

and finally pink. like most girls, i love pink. i initially thought i would be ok not to have the color for my wedding especially since most everyone will have it. boy was i wrong. now i find myself flipping over evry pink paper, fabric and inspiration i can grab.

now how to bring it all together? well, that's what i'll be attempting to do in the next few months. we've almost finalized our entourage and i have to complete the program and song list so i can submit them to the choir master tomorrow. have a great weekend ahead everyone. :)

the photographer: jason de guzman of imagine nation

remember the photographer i was talking about here? we finally got him! as soon as the mall opened today, i went to the wedding fair and booked him. hubby was impressed with his portfolio and the imagine nation team as a whole. when we were reviewing the portfolio of our other top 3, he was most impressed with him and the team.
see, hubby is more logical when it comes to these things. mine was an informed decision based on feedback from a photographer friend. but i have already made up my mind even before i asked for my friend's input because of what i saw in their site - their mission and most importantly, their passion not only for photography but their faith. somehow, it was just apt to get them. i told you i am a highly intuitive person.
i also learned from their brochure the stringent process each imagine nation photographer has to go to. think about this, only 12 out of the 60 who apply qualify for their apprenticeship program. along the way, half quit and only 6 continue to become junior photographers. then, 1 out of 3 become a senior photographer and only half become masters.
i am raving about them and we haven't even started working with them. i am just happy i guess that i feel we have been blessed enough to acquire the help of people we truly believe in and are passionate about. that's about it for me. i have a pre-valentine's date with hubby. happy valentine's day everyone.

the almost coup

i cant' wait for friday so i called up the photographer i finally "convinced" hubby we should get for the wedding. last sunday, while waiting for our order to arrive, we were looking through pamphlets and flyers we've collected from our wedding fair hopping. i have already made up my mind about the photographer but i wanted to go through the actual logical and methodical selection process to avoid the guilt of compulsive shopping. i actually asked one of my photographer friends what they thought of my prospect's works and he was all praises for his works. the fact that they are a christian company is also a big plus for me. anyway, hubby and i narrowed our list to about 5 or 7 then ranked our top 3 choices. we were agreement in all our choices (not our ranking) except one.
so after dinner, we checked out the sample works of our top 3 and after much cajoling and budget reallocation, hubby gave in. we agreed to book them during the fair this friday so we can avail some of the promos during the event. however, i was so restless about it so i decided to give them a call. i was surprised by my sadness when the girl told me that the photographer we wanted was already booked during our wedding day but was immensely relieved when i realized she got the wrong name. after what seemed like an eternity, she said he was still free and we are booking him this friday!yey!
after all my ramblings, i have not mentioned the photographer's name yet. i don't want to jinx it until we've finally put pen to paper but i will share more this friday. anyway, have a great week ahead everyone.

p.s.
is there really such a thing as a "marrying period" - for lack of a better term? in the span of a week, 3 people i know have been engaged. that's like one every other day. but i am so excited for them. in fact, i was screaming and shrieking when i heard of the most recent engagement. my friend even took a video of my reaction. :)

the venue: sonya's garden

i know i have been remiss in updating this blog but we have been busy getting things ready for the wedding. as early as november 22, we've already booked our venue. yes, after that single visit, we decided on sonya's garden. since it will be a christian wedding, the ceremony and reception will be in the same venue. anyway, here are some overdue shots from that trip.

we're moving along at a slow pace but we're happy with our progress. at least we still manage to get our bit of fun (him with his xbox and me with my scrapping) amidst all these preps. for this month, here are our deliverables (you think that sounds geeky? believe me when i tell you i am just the tip of the iceberg).

1.) book a photographer (another post on this)

2.) give sheet music to choir (another post on this)

3.) finish prototype for invite

4.) finalize entourage (yes, we are way behind on this. as of this writing, i have 7 bridesmaids in mind!)