Musings of a bride.

It's exactly 1 week to the wedding now!!! :O

I was missing from my blog before this as I was caught up with work (audit is due T_T), as well as busy with wedding stuff. There were a couple of last-minute things that cropped up which sent me scrambling for remedies. For example, suddenly we need to find a sound system. Before this we have checked that the venue has one, but recently we found out that it's from the dinosaur ages-- when we actually need something that we can plug and play from Itunes! T_T Also, the venue is only providing 50 chairs when we have about 100 guests. I half-contemplated letting some of the guests to stand wtf, since the ceremony won't take long anyway. However, the boy is really against letting our guests stand. Plus, I googled "Is it okay to let guests stand during wedding ceremony", and all results said NO wtf. So I had to start searching for chair rentals haih.

Then the biggest fuck-up happened. I went for my wedding dress fitting, and I was expecting that the worst thing to happen is that I would look fat in the dress or something. But no. As my luck would have it, my dress was not what I envisioned due to a miscommunication between me and the designer!! T_____T And there is no way to change the dress, we have to REMAKE one. With 2 weeks to go!!! I think my wedding dress designer and I were both shitting in our pants wtf. Thank god, I have the most talented designer ever, and I have been going for fittings every other days for the new dress!! Fingers crossed that it will turn out ok.

Just when I thought things can't get any worse, suddenly Teeny told me that she doesn't want to wear her bridesmaid dress anymore. -_- I was really freaking out at this point, 'cause it was one too many things that have gone wrong.

When I was stressed out, everyone told me to not worry, that everything will turn out fine. And to a large extent, I know that it is true! To be honest, I am more stressed out over work stuff than the wedding. 'Cause I can't focus my attention onto the wedding till I settle my work, and I guess that was what that was stressing me.

While trying to take a deep breath doing all the wedding problem-solving, I really took a step back to reflect the entire wedding-planning process. And I feel like sharing them here, 'cause I know I will enjoy reflecting over it in the future.

Let's start from the very beginning ok? :)

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The boy proposed to me last year, and if everything went to plan, we would have probably gotten married at the end of this year. Alas, things never go according to plan, do they? The boy's mom passed away middle of last year, and due to traditions, we were required to wait for 2 years before the wedding. However, 2 years is a long time, and if there's something that we have learned from the past year, it's that life is short and full of unpredictability. Also, my grandparents are getting older (they are 85 this year), and I know they are quite excited for my wedding (I am the first grandchild in the family to get married). In the end, we decided that we will get registered this year, and have our tea ceremony and wedding reception next year.

Now, truth to be told, if it was up to the boy, we will just sign in the registration office and call it a day. However, I was quite adamant to not get registered in the office. There's something about it that seems so sterile and cold. T_T And personally, I feel that the vow-exchange and registration symbolizes the actual union between us, so I really wanted something special to remember the day by. Also, it will make my grandparents very happy to have a small celebration. So we decided to have a small, intimate wedding ceremony this year. :)

I was really excited to start planning for the ceremony! To me, it was equivalent to our wedding day, the day of our union. I guess this is when some misunderstanding started to arise, as some friends started asking us why are they not invited FOL. Also, when some people find out that it's just the wedding ceremony, or the ROM, they go, "Chehhhh". Which is fine, 'cause I understand that to most Malaysian couples, the wedding is equivalent to the wedding dinner/ reception. The ROM is just a procedure to get to the wedding dinner.

But I guess I am different. The wedding to me, is standing in front of some of our dearest and most-loved ones, exchanging our vows, and officially becoming husband and wife. Tthe reception or dinner, on the other hand, is more of a party to celebrate that union. Also, I can't say I am particularly excited about being at a dinner where I don't know half of the people wtf. And ALL of my married friends told me that the ceremony is the most personal part of the wedding, it's the part where it's truly about the couple and noone else. :)

And I really wanted our wedding to be a reflection of our personality and styles! So although I have never given any thought to my wedding day before this, suddenly I found myself having very strong opinions about the wedding day wtf. I still remember telling the boy that "to our guests, it's just one of the weddings that they will attend in their lives, but to us, it's the only wedding we will ever have".

One of the first things I bought for the wedding was my bridesmaid dresses. I intended to have my sisters as my bridesmaids, and whilst part of me did toy with the idea of having the boy's sister as my bridesmaid as well, I quickly pushed the idea out of my head. I wanted my bridesmaids to wear pink, and she couldn't as she is in mourning. I got pink dresses for my sisters with matching pink floral crowns, though the thought that I should have my future sister-in-law as my bridesmaid still came back to disturb me from time to time.

As I delved deeper into wedding-planning though, my perspective started to change. Yes, our wedding is about us becoming husband and wife, but it is special because we are doing it in front of the people we love. We have guest who are traveling from Singapore, New Zealand, Australia, to name a few. We have guests who are purposely driving down from the North at 5am as they can't take leave. It dawned on me that our wedding is also about the people we love, and it's also about the union of two families.

So I did what I knew was the right thing all along. I scraped my original bridesmaid dresses, and asked my future sister-in-law to be my bridesmaid too. I wanted her to know that she is my sister too. :) I asked each of them to pick their own dresses in a pastel color of their choice. I consulted with the boy on the food/ drinks that his relatives will consume, I checked with my dad on the relatives/ friends he want at the wedding. It's no longer a day about the both of us, it's a day for all of us. :)

Also, recently, one of his cousins lost her husband to dengue. It was so sudden, and extremely devastating. They are newly married for about 1-2 years, and it happening so close to our wedding only reminded me that ultimately, what's important is that we are getting married to each other, not the color of my sister's dress or whether or not I get the flowers I want.

Now that we are down to the last week... I really want to enjoy this last precious days of wedding planning! It honestly has been a really fun process even with some unexpected glitches. I am not going to lose focus of the end goal, which is to officially become a Mrs! :P

Bangkok Tai-Tai trip 2014: Day 2.

I must warn you now that there is not much substance to this post LOL.

Unless you like to see camwhoring girls, yummy Bangkok street food, and erm, us in our pajamas wtf.

Didn't take much photos for the second day 'cause we spent most of the day shopping! And when girls shop, the wallet is whipped out more than the camera wtf.


Started our day with some delicious Hokaido milk that Bobo recommended us to! You can get it from the food court in Siam Paragon.

Still getting ready in our pajamas...


...and after make-up and outfit-change! We don't look too shabby eh. *blows nails*


Obligatory outfit shot before we stepped out.

Decided to go to Chatchuchak market since it was the weekend! Took a cab 'cause it would have cost more to take the train wtf, and the taxi driver stopped us in the middle of nowhere. We were trying to get our bearings right to get to the fashion district, but anyone who has been to Chatchuchak will know that place is a maze. As we were stumbling around, suddenly Audrey gave a yelp!


Turns out she spotted a restaurant that she has ate at before, which serves yummy noodles.

Phew! I was so afraid that these girls would be full with just one bottle of milk wtf. Luckily we all still can (and want to) eat. :P Also, this stall was PACKED, so it must be good! *sheep mentality wtf*


Chicken broth noodles, with iced coke.


One for the album before we morph into gluttons.

After eating, we were refueled with energy, causing our preying mode to surge wtf. Very quickly we found the fashion section after that LOL.


We look really fresh here, but in truth we were so sticky and icky from the humidity and heat. T_T

But it was a fruitful trip for me though! Got quite a bit of stuff for the wedding here. :D


Then Bobo recommended me to this really good iced milk tea at the fashion district. It is this stall on the main road which serves iced milk tea with coffee jelly.

By the way, my motto on this trip was : DRINK ALL THE THAI MILK TEA! Literally whenever I see it on the menu, I would order it haha.

Remember I mentioned that the chicken noodles' portion was too small? Again I thank my lucky stars that Audrey and Bobo have the same appetite as me wtf. We quickly directed ourselves to an air-conditioned place for a late lunch!


Go all the way to Thailand to eat Japanese curry LOL. But to make it more Thai, we ordered extra spicy wtf.


Amazing how good we look, considering that we were sweating like pigs right before this. All thanks to Audrey's miracle camera!

Haih, actually I feel damn bad on this trip. I didn't bother to bring my DSLR along as it was too bulky for all the walking and shopping we would be undoubtedly doing, and my mom has stolen my compact digital camera. So I actually stole the boy's camera for this trip.

Alas, I really need not bother to bring a camera... 'Cause these two girls have such awesome cameras! Bobo has a Sony one, and Audrey is using the famous Casio miracle camera-- both which have wifi, i.e. can easily transfer photos into our phone, and are really good for selfies-- deeming my camera pretty useless. T_T So most of the time, I only use my iPhone to snap photos, and rely on their cameras for the high quality images. So big thanks to Bobo and Audrey for almost all of the photos from this trip!

In fact, I was so impressed with Bobo's camera....
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.... that I got it today! :D :D :D

Hehe so I guess you can expect more (and better) photos on this blog from now onwards. :P Abrupt end to this blog post now, and Day 3 coming soon!

My wedding shoes.

I sat down all ready to blog about my wedding dress, but changed my mind at the last minute. Instead, I am going to talk about an important yet very underrated part of any girl's big day.

The wedding shoes. :)

I think I place a fairly high importance on my wedding shoes. Yes, the wedding gown is the most significant and momentous outfit a girl will ever put on in her life, but she can only wear it once. Wedding shoes, on the other hand, can be reused for other occasions. And I like the idea of still being able to put on a beautiful part from my wedding even in my daily life. So a part of me has always hoped to have a special pair of shoes for my wedding.

That being said, if you have read my blog for some time, you would recall me saying that I am never the type to fantasize about my wedding day. However, I still remember vividly back to that one day on Orchard Singapore at end 2012.

We stepped into Valentino in Ion Orchard, and there they were-- ivory embellished, studded, glossy, netted heels, perching proudly on the display racks. Instantly, I was in love. And although at that time, I wasn't anywhere near getting engaged, Jing and I started playing make-believe, and began to choose our "wedding shoes". My mom walked by, and she sniffed at me and said in a challenging tone, "Cheh, you are also not getting married. When you are getting married, I buy for you also can la!"

#Challengeaccepted wtf.

After the boy proposed, I admit I started window-shopping for wedding shoes (even way before I had any idea of what I want to wear!). However, when I run through the designers that I admire, somehow one fashion house still always stood out to me as THE one for my wedding shoes.

Valentino.

When I think of Valentino, I think of: romantic, classic, feminine, yet whimsical. It's all the things I want for my wedding!

Then last year, during our Eurotrip, we stepped into a Valentino boutique in Paris. And much to my surprise, my mom remembered her words! :O Maybe there was something about the wildly romantic air in Paris... But without having a single inkling of how my wedding dress (or even wedding venue!) will look like, I bought my wedding shoes then and there.



Can't wait to unveil them in less than a month's time! :)

Bangkok Tai-Tai trip 2014: Day 1.

As you all know, I was in Bangkok with Audrey and Bobo for a few days last weekend! We jokingly call ourselves "tai-tai"s, because we are all married/ engaged with relatively flexible schedules, and have really similar interests (i.e. vanity wtf). But mind you, so far we have not had a single successful tai-tai high outing. -_- We are forever trying to arrange for a tai-tai high tea, but somehow it will always not work out FOL. Even when we successfully made a booking at Hyatt for high tea, we would go all the way there only to find out that Hyatt DOES NOT serve high tea and we ended eating the buffet lunch wtf.

We have been talking about going on a girls' trip for awhile, and when Audrey told us she needed some time off from mommy duties. we jumped at the chance!

Despite our excitement, this trip nearly didn't materialize at the 11th hour. Fighter, Audrey's baby was have on-and-off fever right before the trip, and she was really afraid that it would be dengue. We were preparing for the worst, and was fully understanding that she might not be able to make it for the trip. Thank god Fighter got better in the end, and we were back on track! :D

Anyway, as much as we call this a tai-tai trip... It's really very very UN-tai-tai wtf.

It started at Don Muang airport (obviously we took budget-- another untai-tai thing to do haha), whereby I waited ages and still there was no sign of my checked-in bag (Audrey and Bobo has long gotten the bags).

I then realized that my bag has fell off the conveyer belt inside the prohibited staff section!!!


So I had to crawl onto the conveyer belt whilst balancing myself to not be moved along the belt, while trying to grab my 15kg luggage bag from the inside WTF.

See how blur this photo is?? That's how much action and velocity that is involved in this act wtf.

We then got to our hotel, Renaissance hotel, which we are really happy about! Price was pretty reasonable at RM300++ (especially considering we are splitting it 3 ways), and the hotel was really nice. :)


We got served welcome drinks! Some herb drink with a refreshing face towel.


Which we created a big mess of at the reception hehe. Really unglam and untai-tai!


Our room! Very big and comfy. Beds are big as well, and I think it can fit even 4 people in a room!


Indulging in the elixir of life that is wifi wtf.

By this time, it was 3pm already! Which is 4pm Malaysian time, and we still haven't had lunch. Quickly hurried to get ready so that we can go out.


One outfit shot before we head out!

Outfit details:
Dotted silk romper: Topshop
Statement necklace: Chatchuchak market, Bangkok
Velvet bow glitter sandals: Korea


Lunch at Som Tam Nua at Soi 5, Siam Square. I have been here once with the boy, but didn't superbly enjoy it 'cause he doesn't take spicy and I felt bad for ordering anything too spicy (everything on the menu is spicy wtf).

But with these girls, woohoo, we have the same taste in food! And the best part is, they EAT. I am really scared of going out with girls who always don't dare to order too much food, or only eat like 5 grains of rice before declaring that they are full. But with Audrey and Bobo, there is no such problem! We always order more than necessary, and finish all the food. :D


Spotted some Thai elephants and decided to camwhore in front of it, as proof that we were in Thailand wtf.

We then walked around Siam square for a bit. I was really sleepy (woke up at 6am on that day, and also 6am the day before), so I wasn't really in the mood to shop. Audrey and Bobo on the other hand, have bought quite a bit of stuff! Audrey turned to me and said in a hostile manner, "I don't like people who don't shop" hahaha.


After some light shopping, we then went to After You cafe in Siam Paragon for the famous Shibuya honey toast. Oh god, it was yummier than I remembered!


Only flaw is that the drinks there are REALLY sweet. So sweet that we had to take the free tea from the drinks dispenser and add it into our drinks. :/


Night time was reserved for Asiatique! Both the girls haven't been there before, so I was quite hopeful that they will like the place. Luckily they do! :D


Audrey shopped a lot for Fighter on this trip. :P


In front of Kiss Me Doll, this shop which sells the most adorable scarves! I got one for Teeny because the scarf's illustrated resembled a carousel tattoo that she has. Also, it was a thank-you gift because she helped me a lot with my wedding invitations! :)


Further untai-tai things... While Audrey and Bobo were learning how to tie the scarves in the shop, I was being a hooligan as usual wtf and accidentally beheaded the shop's resident deer.


I was pointing out this pastel leopard print bikini to Audrey (we both share a love for pastel leopard prints), and she was like, "Tube ar, sure very easy to drop wan", and proceed to lightly tug at the bikini, and it really dropped wtf.

We were trying to maximize our time before the curfew starts at 12am, so we decided to not have dinner at Asiatique (need to get out of there by 11pm just in case there is a traffic jam), and instead opted to have dinner nearby our hotel.


So the first day of our untai-tai trip ended up in Mcdonalds, which is really typical of us, haha.