Merry merry xmas everyone~~

Tailor Made Bridesmaid dress

Finally. After a month of waiting. With only a week left to Yim's wedding. My custom made bridesmaid dress is DONE!

Well, one thing I learnt: if you ever want to duplicate any design to the T, the best way would be to buy it. However, if you are willing to set aside some allowance of change and take some risk, it may turn out really fun and fruitful.

Here was what I wanted, an ASOS dress:

And after much laborious hours (no kidding!) poring over the tiny photos on my iphone, Li Hwa bravely took on the challenge. And here is the result.

During the first fitting, I got Li Hwa to cut down the ruffles and MOST importantly, take out the bust padding and tapered the bust area down.

And after a lengthy discussion with Li Hwa and another of her client (a very nice British lady who gave me great tips to keep warm in London) who happened to drop by, we decided to forgo the belt.

I am a little hesitant about the result. I love the cut and Li Hwa is FABULOUS in her craftsmanship. It is just too.......bright! I am used to wearing much darker hue. Shiny Gold is certainly new to me!

But all in all, though the dress did not turned out exactly how I wanted but it was skillfully constructed and it fits me like a glove. I know I will find the occasion to wear it again and therefore, effectively amortizing the premium dollars I paid. Hee.. dollars well spent!

Wedding AD - Dinner events

ROM was at 6.30pm. Right before dinner started. And man, it was a stressful start to the night!

There was mis-communication with Mr Phang on the timing of ROM (our fault completely!!) and amidst my rush from the hotel room to Grand Shanghai, Yong called to inform that he left the angbao in the hotel room. Got my cousin to go up to the room while I wait for her at the lobby, only to find out that the card key did not work!! Had to frantically wait for the new card key to be made and after a mad rush to the ROM, we completed the short ceremony with our hearts thumping wildly throughout the session.

Not the romantic touching ROM as I would like to have. But after all those hiccups we were just glad it was over and done with!

Thanks to super sporting brothers and sisters, we fully made use of the Grand Shanghai theme so the whole gang of us, donning our cheong sams and page boy caps, we boogied in to the tune of 我要你的爱 for march in #2.

A special thanks to Cathy, who declined gently to be my jie mei, but was as good as one throughout my entire wedding preparation. She accompanied me to Dang and Grand shanghai, at times, helped to negotiate the contracts term, prompted me through the months on the things to do, flexed her wedding planner muscles to ensure I was well prepared for the wedding. And as if those kind gestures were not enough, she helped to choreograph the march in, from the dance step to the music. :___) all i can say is THank you THank you Thank you...

Some random photos of guests.. and not forgetting the adorable babies photos.. Thomas is really really good...

Next up: Random Candid shots...

Wedding AD - Grand Shanghai

When going through the photos with Thomas, I laughingly asked if he was doing ad prints for Grand Shanghai. He did such beautiful shots of our restaurant! Definitely ad worthy.

Yesterday I dropped by my auntie's office for a chat. And the first thing she said was how much she liked the food in Grand Shanghai. So much so, she is making plans to go back one of the days. It is SO heartening to hear the great feedback from relatives and friends, given that our lack of appetite that night lead us to believe the food was not good at all!

Guests found the food tasty and not the typical Chinese wedding cuisine. We did shark friendly switch of the soup to Abalone soup and crossed our fingers that the more traditional guests would not curse and swear. We pat our shoulders when many of the feedback was on how good and hearty the abalone soup was. The dessert 高力豆沙 was a hit as well. No good photo of it, unfortunately. Our initial thought was that it may be too oily as the final dish. But when we mentioned our concern to Shirley, our restaurant manager, she promptly got her kitchen to deliver samples to us and oh my, we confirmed the dessert right away after tasting it. Grand Shanghai version is laced with banana and that makes SUCH a difference. It is considerably lighter and more refreshing. Yumzzzz...

Which brings me to the next part of the review on Grand Shanghai - restaurant manager and service. The restaurant managers Shirley and Sally are definitely not the sweet talking kind. Rather, more of the straight talking type. You may not get the most devoted attention from them and some of the bridezella-to-bes would probably take offense at that. But I realized it is simply because they are so damn experienced, they really do not see the big deal in handling wedding banquets.

It was so comforting to have her say "i will prompt you through the night so don't worry about the timing, everything will flow through by sequence". And it was exactly so on the actual night. The restaurant staff are mostly old timers so their service was also excellent. I remembered the kind waitress who quickly taught me how to hold the bouquet and Yong's arm at the same time (it was NOT easy!) and Yong to hold my dress up when marching in.

All in all, the service was prompt, efficient and ...... experienced. Yeah, that is THE word to describe the staffs and service at Grand Shanghai. They are definitely assuring to work with and we truly enjoyed our experience with them.

Anyhow.. enough writing from me.. will let the photos do the rest of the talking...

Some ad worthy shots by Thomas...

The wonderful 3 piece band.. first singer is quite chio.. :)

The foodie...

Thought I will slot in some photos on the guests book and the door gift. No pix on the Angbao box but for those curious, it is a transparent cookie jar with the 喜 word on it...

Some restaurant pix for those shopping for wedding dinner venue...

The new chandeliers .... they recently renovated the place..

古色古香 的 bar counter.. too bad it is tucked at the side.. so not something the guests will notice..

Thomas took a wonderful photo of the band on stage and at the same time captured the 热闹 atmosphere just before the dinner started..

Next up.. events during the dinner...

Wedding AD - Gatecrash & Tea Ceremony

Will let the pictures do the talking...

Wedding AD - the Fashion (Part II)

My Tea dress. Bought this from Blum, advised by my fashion consultant, Jess. My relatives thought it was custom made. hee.. I was alot more comfortable in this than the gown and the photos tell. Thanks Jess, it was a great choice!

Thomas fell head over heel with the bouquet. Silently thank Dang for her impeccable taste. She is really an all rounder bridal designer. She did both the bouquet and the bridal car decor herself (with help from Daphne of cos).. Yong's 小黄 looks so good in the pix...

Next up, Parents' Fashion!! Mum in law specially tailored the pant suit. And my mum combed through many stores before she settled for the gown. Our dads looked so sharp in their respective suits too.. Pleasantly surprised to see dad's matching tie to mum's gown.

Last but not the least, the groom's fashion. Had some trouble getting detailed shot of him. Not easy since it is pretty much just a standard suit. But pay a little attention to the accessories. Thanks to Lester, our in house men fashion consultant, we got his accessories right, down to the pocket square. Hee...

His morning get up

Evening get up...Love the hat we bought from far east.. so michael buble.. Love the scarf Cathy lent us.. so shanghai-themed..

Next up: Ceremonies/events.....

Wedding AD - the fashion

First set of photos.. the FASHION...

I mentioned earlier that my Jie Meis went through the trouble in getting the same fabric to tailor different designs for the morning event. It was challenging at times with one of the jie mei in UK but we got around it. There was some unhappiness with some of the dresses that were not that well made.. but I felt they looked really pretty (as always :P) but they were BEAUTIFUL at night in their cheong sums and hair and make up! I had so many comments from friends asking about the chio Jie meis.. I teared abit when I saw them in their cheong sum get up. The stylist did a GREAT job and their hair and make up were sooo Shanghai themed! I was overwhelmed with emotions on how much effort they put in for this and how amazingly beautiful they are.

The brothers were given dress code of pink shirts and we bought them the ties from my dearest friend Eric's shop - Roff at The Cathy. For those who needs good quality yet mid-priced ties do go to his shop to have a look. Really nice stuff there.

Again, brothers were given dress code of plain shirt and dark pants for the dinner. With "props" liked suspenders and page boy caps. They were a hit!

Now my dress... the main wedding gown...Thomas took really good shots of the details..

Dang's signature cheong sum lovingly made from scratch.. with layers and layers of lace.. She tightened the cheongsum just a few days before the wedding day and man, that really made a difference.

Some shots friends took of me which I think were good shots of the dresses. For those who are contemplating Dang Bridal.. these are for you... ....

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Okay, I confess, the second photo is just a good shot of ME (must be the lighting).. hehe.. hey, I am not photogenic so it is not always I chance upon a good shot of myself........ :P

Next up: More Fashion to come....

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I have been using the last template for a good few months. Love the graphics but hated the narrow column for writing and posting of photos. Had to constantly resize the photos to make sure they don't spill over. Pain in the ass, really.

Been meaning to look for a new template for the longest time. Finally have the time to do so over the long weekend.

Bear with me while I get the new look up. :)

Insomnia and the start of the real journey

I am officially married for 7 days. Still in a daze. Still a little disoriented.

Sometime during the week, I ask Yong if there is any difference before and after the wedding since we started cohabiting before that. After the usual pregnant pause, he replied that he thinks there is a difference. And quoting a line from IP Man 2, he said that “娶个老婆，人变得踏实点”and went on to tell me that he felt he should dote and love me even more. Considering that I was just expecting a yes or no answer, this sensitive and loving reply just blew me away.

I had been exceptionally emotional last week. My nightmare insomnia that started more than a week before the wedding decided to do overtime even after the event. After umpteen trips to the doctors (both western and Chinese), my body was in a total wreck.

After weeks of not able to get a full night sleep, I finally broke down one of those sleepless night, collapsed in sobs in Yong’s arms. Being so unwell physically and mentally (oh yeah, at one point I thought I was getting depression; not sleeping for weeks do A LOT of damage to the self being) brought me up to a whole new level of vulnerability. I was not comfortable showing him, or for the matter, anyone, this side of me.

It is strange how the timing works. It is liked God has planned this little tutorial for us right after our wedding. First marriage lesson – learn to show your ‘dark’ side to your hubby. Yeah, the whole red and swollen face after crying, super dark eye rings, sallow horrible breakout skin, disheveled hair, out of control sobbing in the middle of the night, erratic emotional outburst, etc.. Hey, I was not ready to do that just yet. Thought I can amortize that side of me to Yong over time (:P).. but no, God has to wreak my nights, deteriorate my well-being to pulp and then present my dismayed self in a shot glass, straight up, for Yong. Thanks leh…

But the truth is, we are now husband and wife. And the start of the REAL relationship - the thick and thin kind. And I have to say, Yong has been just A-MAZ-ING. I will spare you the mushy details but I could not stop muttering to myself that I really married the right guy. Hmm.. did I say that I am married.. oh ya.. I did.. I am married... OH MY GOD.. I am really friggin MARRIED!! O_o
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And I can’t stop grinning silly at my computer screen now.. :)))))))))

Getting the photos tonight from Thomas. So expect more posts following up.

BTW, for those brides who are contemplating Grand Shanghai for the wedding dinner, you are in for a treat as I will be waxing lyrical about it in the next few posts. NO REGRETS at all for choosing this wonderful restaurant. Stay tuned.

My Bridesmaid aka Sisters aka Jie Meis

Here is the fabric my bridesmaid will be using for their morning gatecrash get up. They are using the same fabric to tailor made different dresses. I can't wait to see the final products. Think they will look amazing.

Cheongsum shopping are mostly done too. In fact some of them will be getting their own make up artists/stylists for the dinner. There is a running joke among us that my wedding is becoming a pageant for the bridesmaid. Hee...

I have five amazing bridesmaids. My beloved F4, Jessica and Yim.

F4 aka  犯贱四 are my besties from Temasek Junior college. All four of us gravitated towards each other after graduation. Funnily we never really hung out together when in student council. Perhaps our 犯贱ness only fully evolved after school.  We behave liked guys in our friendship. We seldom talk on the phone. Never felt the need to have regular meeting up sessions. But if ever one of us is down, the rest will always put down everything to rush to our side. No words. Just booz and presence needed. F4 are one of my most loved people in the world. And nothing can change that.

Jessica was my ex colleague in AIA introduced by Xiaolin, one of the F4. And I got her into my current company. Grew closer ever since. She has the tightest lips ever and I trust her with my secrets cos I know she will never spill them. Both Jess and Xiaolin are long time friends with Dot who is Yong's sister. We are all interlinked in some ways. Good ways. :)

And Yim, my favorite Thai in the whole world. Met her when I was at student exchange back in Sweden and we just hit off and never looked back. Ten years down the road and halfway across the globe (she is working in UK) and we are still as close as ever. We don't talk or email much but we know we care deeply for each other nonetheless. She is getting married London and Bangkok later this year and I just can't wait to be there for her. Her darling dad, Papa Pisit, as all her good friends affectionately call him, will also be coming down together with her and her fiancee, Mike to the wedding. 

All my favorite people in the world.

They have been putting time aside to source out the right dress for my wedding. Listening me out when I had a hard time dealing with some wedding preparation issues. Brainstorming ideas for my wedding program.

So, knowing their pattern and that they will NOT bother to read my blog (-.-") I shall unbashfully confess my undying love for my favorite gals.

Love you babes. Deep deep. :*

Pre Wed - Casual shots and some rantings

Last batch of my pre wed photos:

Wonky moments after the wrap up. Really fun working with Thomas and his super assistant Bush!

Not sure if I said it before, but I will say it again, it is not an easy job being a model! And I will miss this "modeling" experience I had!

Just a month plus before the wedding. The whole music copyright thingy they are clamping down on weddings is a real bummer. Best of all, they decided to throw the bomb without clear instructions to the public. How thoughtful of them to add on more stress to us couples.

Need to remind myself to call Grand Shanghai to see if they know anything after the long weekend.