Road Trip #8: The One with the On-The-Day Coordinator

March 25, 2012 is a very busy day for us. Solely alloted to meet wedding suppliers.

After the meeting in Cavite with Tito boy, we then went to Mandaluyong to meet 2 perspective OTD coordinators:

1. The One Exclusive at 4pm Megamall
2. Event Malditas at 530pm Podium

I've been exchanging emails with these 2 coordinators and both and them were prompt in replying to my queries and very accomodating kahit ilang beses na ko nagpachange ng schedule.

We arrived a little over lunch at Megamall. 4pm pa 1st meeting namin kaya nag-ikot muna kami sa megamall.

Around 330pm, we are searching for a venue for the meeting sa labas ng Megamall. We found J.CO Dougnuts, they offer deliciously-looking doughnuts, tea and coffee.

Come 4pm, TOE's kath and toffy arrived at J.CO's. At first, si Kath lang yung nagsasalita and Toffy seems bored. Pero after a while naman, siya na yung nagkukwento. We talk bussiness muna, inclusions and their tasks as coordinator and Toffy as the emcee. All seems okay naman and actually our only concern naman is if Toffy can make the program formal and fun at the same time. And from his background and our impression naman namin from him, mukhang kaya naman niya. 

So, we decided to go with TOE and not meet Malditas anymore. Eto talaga ang sakit namin, once nagmeet na kami ng supplier, we always booked them on the spot.hehe. Madali kaming maconvince. :D

Road Trip #7: The One with the Bridal Gown Part 2

On March 25, 2012, we had our meeting with Tito Boy in his office. Our schedule was around 9 to 10am. We arrived at the subdivision before 9am, so confident kami na maaga kaming makakarating sa office niya. 

We just noted his address and relied on my phone's GPS so we didn't ask for directions. And that was our biggest mistake. GPS cannot locate the block and lot info of the address. We had a hard time searching for the address. After circling the subdivision and asking for people for directions, we decided to call Tito Boy and asked for directions. And finally, nakarating din kami. Sa wakas! 

For those dependent on Google Maps and GPS, here's the location of his office in map:

Pagdating namin sa office, he retrieved my pegs from his mails and sabi niya akala niya hindi na ko magpapakita.haha. I cancelled the schedule kasi after the first emails kasi his quote is above the budget. Pero tinuloy na din namin kasi I really want to meet him, para kasi siyang celebrity sa W@W,hehe.

After looking at my pegs and checking my body structure, he designed a gown for me. Ang bilis niya lang mag-drawing. He didn't want the ball-gown-skirt that i originally wanted a suggested other design for the skirt. I liked the design so I asked neil if we can extend the budget for my gown, on-the-spot para hindi na siya makatanggi.hehe. Luckily, pumayag naman siya. So we immediately signed the contract with him. I paid the deposit the day after na kasi we did not bring cash and we're afraid na maligaw ulet if magwithdaw at babalik pa kami.

Here's the picture of me with my couturier: Tito Boy!

RF in Powerhouse

Our photographer was recently featured in 'Powerhouse', a TV show in Qtv 11.

Though this is not the first time that you can see Raymond Fortun in TV, I was thrilled by this because he also discussed his works as a Wedding Photographer. 

Check it out:

RF in Powerhouse from Raymond Fortun on Vimeo.

Also, you can check his podcast in W@W here: RF Podcast

Road Trip #6: The One with the Caterer, finally!

March 17, 2012.

We had our scheduled food tasting with Eloquente last saturday. We've been eyeing them ever since we've decided to get a certain venue for our reception. Among all the accredited caterers, sila yung may magandang reviews and feedbacks. 

These are what they served us:

The food is great, especially the pink salmon and the vegetable with shrimp.We will try pa yung ibang menu nila later on.

And this is my always smiling AE, Grace. Ok naman yung naging usap namin. Sana until wedding day, maayos pa din.

Road Trip #5: The One with the Bridal Gown Part 1

When: March 10, 2012

Where: Divisoria

Who: Hanna and Russell

Last Saturday, I went to Divisoria to accompany Russell for her Bridal Gown fitting. Pero siyempre, i also have another agenda sa pagpunta dun:

1. Go to Tabora Street, the DIY heaven.
2. Check Ilaya street, madami daw fabric/tela dun.
3. Ask for quotations for my bridal gown
4. buy cellphone casing.hehe

 So, day before I printed a map of Divisoria kasi pareho kaming walang sense of direction ni rj. Saved the pix of my bridal gown pegs to my phone and sleep earlier than usual (mahaba-habang lakaran kinabukasan).

Come saturday, ang 1st stop namin is Tabora since after lunch pa ang appointment ni Rj sa couturier nya. Tabora is really a DIY heaven for B2Bs. Napakadaming small little things na pwedeng iDIY! What really got me excited was the invitation case that I was eyeing from Tiffany's Novelty, less than 50% lang ang price sa Tabora! Amazing! I just need to bring a sample nung paggagayahan nila. No problem with that kasi merong ganun yung pinsan ko! Yey! Nakakita din ako ng mga flowers, ribbons, cords, fans, etc na pwedeng gamitin ko sa DIYs ko.

After nun, we went to 168 mall kasi bili ako ng case ng phone. Dun pa kami nawala, hindi kasi covered ng printed map ko ang loob ng mall. Mali pala ang pagkakatanda ko nung store na bilihan.hehe. After ilang ikot, nakita na din namin yung store and i bought a Red case for my phone.

We skipped lunch muna since nagBrunch naman kami before going. We went straight to Tutuban for Here Comes the Gown, yung shop ng designer ni Rj. Below is her picture fitting her gown.

While nagfi-fit siya, other clients' comments were "Papakasal na siya? Ang bata pa niya" and "Ang payat naman niya, buti pa siya hindi na kelangan mgpapayat". I agree with the 2nd comment, life is so unfair.hehe.

After her fitting, nagpadesign na ko ng gown ko. Mentioning my 'sabog' na ideas, he was able to design a very nice gown. And the price? Pasok naman sa budget. Im considering him to be my designer, pero gusto ko pa din icheck ang quotes ng other designers muna before booking.

We ended our Divisoria tour with some shopping and super late lunch.

A very long and tiring day for me. Pero pagdating ko sa house, nakuha ko pang manood ng sine at pumorma.

Road Trip #4: The One with the Lawyer as Wedding Photographer

I've been following this photographer ever since I attended an officemate's wedding where he is a backup.
Here is the picture that I am tagged in which linked me to his facebook account:

After that, I always check his site for his wedding coverages. And i really like his pictures. When we started planning our wedding, he's among the first suppliers that I inquired at. At first, I thought that he's a little over our budget. So, nag-inquire muna ako sa ibang photographers and I found out na he's rate is still inexpensive for the quality of service that he is giving. So, we decided na balikan siya...

All inquiries and negotation were done through emails lang. I don't want a meet up kasi im afraid na baka ma-intimidate ako considering na he's a lawyer,hehe. He sends us the contract, and looking at the contract, alam mo na agad na lawyer ang mayari ng business kasi ang haba at masyadong technical.haha. We signed this contract and send it to him. Tinanong ko siya if he's going to send it back to us with his signature, and he said: 

The contract I sent is deemed to be an offer, and is legally accepted once that you send a signed copy to me. I am legally bound already by the terms even without my signature.

Ganun pala yun. O diba, May natutunan pa ko.haha.

So, who is this lawyer? Our official photographer, Raymond P.A. Fortun.

You can view his portfolio on this site: http://raymond42n.multiply.com/
Also, in that site, you can see that we are already in his calendar. :)

 

Road Trip #3: The One with the "Meet Up"

Last Feb. 25, 2012, we had our first supplier meet-up in Coffee Bean in Megamall. 

We met our prospect for videographer,

Aisle 1401 is owned and managed by an engaged couple, Anna and John. I thought they are already married kasi i read that Anna already left w@w and I assumed that its because they are already married. Yun pala, they will get married palang on March 2, 2013. (Exactly 1 month after our wedding.)

Anna is nice and friendly while John is tahimik lang at first. They explained how their business started and who are their partners. If I remembered it correctly, they have one videographer from ABS CBN and one from Star Cinema. They also mentioned na meron din silang ibang business, online shop. They are so business-oriented, nakakainggit. Ang tamad namin to setup a business, we're destined to be just employees.hehe.

After chika, we talked business na. Since we already exchanged emails with them so meron na kaming idea on their packages. We already picked 'The works' package. They explained the inclusions of this package and how they usually work. After that, we asked about the option on adding 4 mini-movies on our package. We just need to add x amount to our current package rate. We did not decide agad on the add ons, but we decided to book them na din, signed the contract and paid the 5,000php downpayment.

Another major supplier booked. Happiness. :)