Wedding Photos

A collection of our photos leading to the wedding.

Photo Credits:

* Jhoel Laureano (SST)

* Lightpost Studio

* Foreveryday Photography

Pre-wedding Photos

one of our earlier food trip (around 2011)

baguio tour (february 2011)

Wedding Photos

entrance of the bride (St. Ignatius Cathedral)

the groom with lolo and mommy (St. Ignatius Cathedral)

the bride's ride (courtesy of Arvin)

eagerly waiting for the bride (with the best man, mommy, and lolo)

married by Kat's cousin, Father RJ

 

How-How the Carabao

Our wedding is D.I.Y.-heavy and it is not uncommon that we get inquiries on how we did these things. To share our craft, we'll post instructional materials from time to time. In this case, we will demonstrate how we turned a simple wooden box from a thrift store into a decorative material for a vintage-whimsical themed wedding (like ours)!

The Project:

ornamental boxes

The Materials:

• Felt flowers (another DIY project na sana mapakita namin paano gawin in future articles)
• Wooden box (nabili sa isang Japanese thrift store na nakikita sa mga sikat na malls) 
• Styro ball (galing Divisoria)
• Glue gun (doh!)
• Metallic and pearl accessories (meron din sa malls, pero mas mura sa Divisoria)

halos meron sa Divisoria lahat neto

The Instructions:

Step 1: Cut a styro ball in half o kaya sa size na kasya sa wooden box.
Step 2: Glue one half of the styro ball inside it.

Step 3: Itusok ang mga felt flowers sa styro ball na parang hotdog at marshmallow sa pinya kapag may birthday... wow, 1980's na punchline [obi]. Simulan ang pag tusok ng felt flowers sa gilid ng styro ball hanggang sa makarating papuntang gitna. In this way, you can make sure that the flowers on the middle part of the arrangement are higher than those on the sides.

like marshmallow and hotdog in a pinya, y'know?

Step 4: Continue inserting felt flowers on the styro ball generously. Dapat hanggang sa wala nang makita sa styro ball beneath the arrangement.

flowers on the top should protrude higher than on the sides

Step 5: Put hot glue on smaller or softer flower designs (like the pompom flowers below) para mas secure kapag idinikit na sa arrangement. Target the part that will be glued on to the styro ball.

bang! bang! bang!

Step 6: It is advisable to alternate between big and small flowers to have an even look.

quirky!

The Parting Words
When setting it up for the occasion, put the accessories on the other half of the box. Dapat medyo overflowing. Metallic (lalo na yung medyo tarnished) and pearl accessories are perfect for that vintage touch.

The Wedding's Dress Code

What to wear and what not to wear on our wedding day?

The first thing to remember is that it is a formal event and you can't go wrong strutting around on your formal attire. In cases like this, it is always safer to leave the house feeling you are overdressed than under. To be more specific about it, we suggest to please consider the following compilations as a style guide.

Female Principal Sponsors

Para kay Ninang

1. Accessories - Silver, gold, and bronze accessories are fit to accentuate the vintage theme. It complements better if the metallics are tarnished or dull-colored with minimal gems (in the color of the motif, if you prefer) or pearls.

2. Purse - Any purse or bags that matches the gown will do. Keep it handy.

3. Gowns - Ladies of the principal sponsors should wear cream-colored long gowns with minimal embellishments. 

4. Shoes - Any dress shoes that matches the gown will do. Keep it comfortable. 

Male Principal Sponsors

Para kay Ninong

1. Barong Tagalog - Wear something with the usual collar please because Obi wants to be the only gentleman sporting a Chinese collar on our wedding... Kahit hindi siya Chinese [kat]. Also, it is appreciated if it is minimally embroidered. No colored barong other than the traditional hues. 

2. Pants - Keep it black.

3. Undershirt - A camisa de chino or any similar white undershirts will do.

4. Belt - Keep it formal and matching your attire.

5. Shoes - Black leather shoes please.

Female Guests

Para sa Babaeng Bisita

1. Cocktail dress - Simple pastel colored dress or in fun floral prints.

2. Shoes - Any flat shoes or classic pumps that matches the dress.

3. Accessories - Complete your look with subtle accessories.

4. Bags - Appropriate feminine clutches or bags.

Male Guests

Para sa Lalakeng Bisita

1. Polo - Long-sleeved polo with colors that are not so bold and loud. Avoid black and other similar hues.
2. Belt - Keep it formal and matching your attire.
3. Necktie - Optional. Stick to those with formal prints.
4. Pants - A pair of suit pants or slacks in neutral colors.
5. Shoes - Formal leather shoes.

AVOID WEARING THESE

Mga Hindi Dapat Suotin

1. Black or dark-colored tops and dress

2. T-shirt

3. Rubber shoes, slippers, or casual sandals

4. Jeans (maong pants)

Always remember, it is a FORMAL event.

Additional information that are relevant to the dress code.

Wedding Colors: african violet and tender shoots

Theme: vintage, rustic, whimsical

tender shoots and african violet

*****

* photos taken from the internet
* "Bookmarks" section updated with link for WINK 
* "Dress Code" button added in the header menu

Three Months to Go

It's about three months to go before we say "I do"! Here, have a chunk of updates from what we accomplished during the last month.

D.I.Y. Crafts

Creating our D.I.Y. stuff is now on full-scale. There's still a lot to do but it looks like finishing them before December is still a possibility so hala bira! Enjoy naman kami sa mga ginagawa namin kaya hindi namin namamalayan na nakakadami na kami ng nagagawa. Masaya din kami kapag may mga nakaka-appreciate ng mga gawa namin from friends and relatives. Good job kami! Fat in the back! LOL.

new and improved boutonniers 

potted paper flowers

These are done projects:

• felt bouquet for bride (added brooches and improved aesthetics)
• colored tin pails for the flower girls (added laces around the pail)
• boutonniere for the entourage (wrapped the wires with ribbons)
• headbands for the flower girls (decorated with felt flowers)
• vessels for the rings and arrhae
• menu card design (printed in kraft paper)
• match box design (printed in kraft paper)
• handmade stamps for the... uhmm... we still need to think where to use these. LOL. (with help from Kaye)

"pillow" for our rings

"pillow" for our arrhae

headbands for the flower girls

These projects are still in progress:

• tags for the wishing tree (need to do about 40 pieces more)
• tags for the give-aways (have to attach it to the give-aways)
• ornamental board with our monogram (monogram is done, just need to decorate the board)
• boutonniere for the groom (boutonniere needs to stand out from others)

for the entourage

write something for us

handmade stamps (obi and kat caricatures)

Projects that are not started yet:

• wishing tree (bought the twigs in Divisoria yesterday)
• cake topper

flower pails

table ornaments

Big thanks goes to Sara Kim for giving us permission to use her designs for the wishing tag!

Bridal Gown

This month, we visited Roxy Bagano (our gown designer) for Kath's measurements. She's also a B2B (bride-to-be) o-ha, andami kong natututunang wedding acronyms [obi] and so we shared things about suppliers and other wedding stories. Kat is very happy that Roxy liked her DIY's. She left some of her flower templates with Roxy so she can try to craft her own. We are always glad to help out other couples on their preparations so imagine how happy we are to be of help to our own supplier. Apir! Haypayb!

Invitation

We almost missed where Wink is along Mayapis Street in Makati due to heavy rains heralding the typhoon Maring. Wink (or Written in Ink) will provide the invitations for our wedding. They have tons of very creative designs at affordable prices. Salamat sa malupit na pagsasaliksik ni Kath.

mas madali pa pumili ng design kesa sa kulay ng design #colorBlinding

We picked a cute and unconventional design for our invitation. It will be in a two-page loose format, inclusive of a small card where the map will be printed. May binabalak kaming gawing chechebureche para malagyan ng rustic feel yung invitations (since mostly whimsical ang datingan niya). Tignan naten.

Attire

Our moms will wear green gowns on the occasion. That will serve to bring back green on a majority violet hue of the entourage's dress and hand-carried items. A subtle way to pronounce that the motif is not just violet. 

Lahat na lang kasi ako ang itinuturong pumili ng kulay porke madaming violet. AMP! Guilty. [obi] 

peg ng mommy ni obi

We went to Divisoria on separate dates to have our moms select their gown designs and be measured for fitting. Wedding Collections by Lilia Bonaobra is the name of the store and it's conveniently inside the 168 Shopping Mall (Basement Level at LGF 07-08, to be exact). Kahilera nito yung mga iba pang pagawaan ng gowns at barong kaya madaming mapag-pipilian within the area. We picked Bonaobra's among them since nakita na namin yung mga gawa nila in the past from Kath's researches online kaya at least may references na kami.

Sa kanila na din nagpagawa ng barong si Long (my brother and a secondary sponsor) at si Tita Angie (my aunt and a principal sponsor).

mommy ni obi and kat (miss lilia, looking by)
this is NOT our gown, but the green should be the same

Shoes
Matagal na kaming may idea kung ano ang gusto naming design na swak sa vintage feel ng kasal. Pero lately lang namin nalaman na may tawag pala sa ganung klaseng style ng sapatoses!

Ladies and gents, meet the "brogue".

eto mismo ang trip ni obi (an oxford, wingtip brogue)

eto naman ang trip ni kat (a single monk, quarter brogue)

Brogues pala ang tawag sa mga multi-piece leather shoes na may decorative perforations. Ganitong klaseng sapatos ang unang pumasok sa isip namin since we decided to scratch the idea of wearing skate shoes (andami nang nagpapakasal nang naka rubbershoes) and look for alternatives.

We are looking at having our shoes custom-made in Marikina this weekend. Hoping everything goes well.

Others
We went to Divisoria yesterday and we were able to buy the following items.

• secondary veil
• dried twigs for our wishing tree
• additional DIY materials

Bibili din sana kami ng photo frames para may mapaglagyan ng social media notices kaso yung napuntahan naming store ayaw magbenta ng panay puting frames lang. Ang gusto assorted colors. Marunong pa sa amin. Eh di wag!

Kumain na lang kami sa Wai Ying, Binondo... as usual! Reward for a job well done!

pabili po ng lace

Wedding Starts on the Hudrendth

Remember, Remember, The Fourth of Forever

[Words by Obi] 

We celebrated our 4th and last anniversary as BF/GF with a relaxed dinner at Myron's Place in Greenbelt 3. Ako ang pumili ng lugar at surprise ito supposedly (will only tell her at the day, itself) but the low EQ in me blurted it out a day before the occasion (to the joy of the low EQ in her! ...bagay nga kami). So we anticipated everything ahead of time, salivating at the photos of their food online and, of course, choosing what to eat from the menu. 

In the spirit of our one-time one year food trippings, I will write the rest of this entry like how I did our food reviews. 'Ere we go!

Ang Pasakalye
Nadadaanan na namin araw-araw ang Myron's pauwi from work kaya, at the least, may idea kami how the place looks like and so identify a nice and comfy spot for us. Kat called for the reservation and requested to be seated on that area (it's along the patio facing the mini park between Greenbelt 5 and 4). Okay sa spot na yun, peksman. Tahimik at tsaka, ano yung tagalog ng "cozy"? Basta, yun!

see? relax relax lang!

Ang Nilantakan

• some chocolate-colored bread with a spoon of butter (complimentary)
• mesclun salad
• morrocan lamb shank
• oyster sampler
• angus beef rib eye steak

warming up

Nothing special about the complimentary bread. It's not even warm. Also, we're not sure why it's chocolate colored, but I'm sure there's nothing chocolatey about it.

mesclun salad

We got the basic salad para lang pampatagal ng umay. It did it's job alright and complemented the meaty taste of both the steak and the lamb shank. Still, nothing too special about it.

lamb shank

The Morrocan lamb shank comes with mashed potatoes and doused in a sauce with almonds and apricot. Lasang lasa ang middle-eastern spices sa sabaw and Kath is happy about it (we are fond of spicy food). The lamb is tender although there are bits of the obligatory rubbery tendons in between meat (to Kath's approval... siya ang mahilig sa ganun).

she sells sea shells by the sea shore

Etong oysters ang patok. We got the sampler plate which has two of each of the rockefeller, the melanio, and those with foie gras. Masarap! Ang pinaka nagustuhan namin ay yung may atay. According to personal preference na lang kung dadagdagan mo pa yung alat (sprinkled salt) or eat it as it is. Ako, gusto ko pa dagdagan ng konting asin. Nag-enjoy kami ni Kath dito, as in wide-eyed satisfaction and teary in gusto.

fact: ang pangalan ni MacGyver ay Angus. alam ko ang nasa isip mo... sino si MacGyver? sikret!

The clincher should always be their signature steak. For that, we ordered the entry level one - 240 grams of US-grade Angus beef cooked medium-rare. Saraaap! At ambigat sa tiyan! Nung nilatag siya sa amin, ang una kong naisip ay bitin ito sa akin. But even before midway through the meat, humihimas na ako ng tiyan (my equivalent of raising the white flag). Madugo at juicy yung karne. Bagay na bagay sa kasamang gravy at mashed potato. Ito ang babalikan namin dito, and the oysters!

 

Ibang Chechebureche

Okay ang nilalaman ng menu. Naiintindihan ko naman ang karamihan ng napapaloob dito. Sa ibang items, lalo na yung mga nasa wikang Pranses, medyo kelangang mag tanong na kay Kuya Waiter. Babala: huwag subukang bigkasin. Gumamit ng hintuturo. "Kuya, whatz dezz?"

nag long-sleeves ako! the end is near!

The staff are pretty attentive that in fact I believe some are either precognitive or at least clairvoyant. Isang tingin ko lang kay Kath, may lumalapit na para mag refill ng tubig. Amazing!

Walang motif yung interiors and I'm not expecting any. It's not as if they need one to match their menu. Gusto ko lang may masabi dahil ginagahanan pa ako mag sulat. Sige na nga, sasabihin ko na kung bakit nabanggit ang motif. Pag pasok ko kasi ng kubeta, napaka vintage slash quirky ng design. Parang gusto ko ng ganung kubeta sa kasal namin ni Kath. Haha! So nakakapag taka lang kung bakit hindi tugma ang disenyo ng kubeta at interiors ng resto.

one of their toilet's wall design

The place in general is worth a slice of the price tag. The furniture is sightly if not impressive and everything looks neat. Turn off lang na may aircon na tumutulo sa lugar na inupuan namin. Nothing a little shove of the table can fix, para hindi kami matuluan. We can deal with it.

Kaching!

I can sum up my comment on their pricing in one word...

Mahalperomaydahilan.

Ang Hatol

Kung may perang masusunog, go ahead. Try it here. Sulit naman eh. Saktan ang kayamanan from time to time. I foresee Kath wanting to come back in the future so pag iipunan ko na ulit ngayon pa lang.

10 out of 14!

Here's to our next anniversary... as Mister and Misis Parcon na!!

aayiiieeeehiiiiieeeee!!!

Divi Dum Divi Doo

Last weekend, we visited Divisoria for the third time since we started prepping up for the wedding. 

*insert dreamy flashback effect here*

We did the our first Divisoria run to buy DIY craft materials and paraphernalia. The second time (which, we realized just now, went undocumented) is to resupply those and check out prices for barongs and gowns. Bonus na lang na habang naglalakad kami pauwi noon, may nadaanan kaming Korean-owned store that sells very affordable faux flowers. Nagkaroon kami ng wedding giveaways ng de oras at sa halagang hindi lalampas ng isang libo... lahat lahat! Peksman!

instant kargador

*end of flashback*

For this trip, ang target namin ay bumili ng tela at magtingin ulit ng mga barong at gown. We were able to keep tabs on where to go and what to look for after thorough researching online, asking tips from our seamstress, and even questioning staffs of fabric stores in malls around Makati. In short, we are armed (if not well armed) with relevant information about textiles bago kami pumunta.

Nasobrahan kami ng aga. Wala pang alas-ocho ng umaga, nasa Divine Mart na kami (Obi, Kath, at sister ni Kath). Blessing in disguise ito dahil sa unang bukas na stall na napuntahan namin (wala pang masyadong bukas na stalls noon) ay nandoon na agad lahat ng kailangan naming tela.

selfie sa loob ng padyak
babala: huwag tularan, nakawawala ng cellphone

Nasa kahabaan ng Ilaya Street ang Divine Mart sa Divisoria. Ang entrance ng lugar ay nasa left side bago lang dumating ng Jollibee at Mang Inasal (na nasa right side). May malaking signage naman sa entrance na "Divine Mart" so madaling makita. Navigating inside is the tricky part. Parang maze sa loob at andaming tabi-tabing stalls ("pasilio" ang tawag nila).


View Larger Map

Yung napagbilhan namin ng tela para sa gown ng entourage ay TMC Commercial ang pangalan. Ayon sa naka-paskil sa kanilang signboard, sila ay nasa T63-S64. Not sure how do you locate them with those coordinates. I guess, mag tanong tanong na lang sa loob.

manang cely and manang kat, discussed fabric stuff

Accommodating yung staff na umasikaso sa amin. Si Manang Cely. Natuwa kami dahil lahat ng gusto naming kulay at uri ng tela ay meron sila and for cheaps! Ito yung mga nabili namin.

• lilac & african violet multi chiffon (outer layer ng adult gowns)
• lilac charmeuse (2nd layer ng adult gowns)
• lilac geena silk (inner layer ng adult gowns)
• cream satin (tops ng kiddie gowns)
• lavender organza (outer layer skirt ng kiddie gowns)
• lilac satin (inner layer skirt ng kiddie gowns)

tela-lalala! kalhati ng presyo ang tubo ng mga textile stores sa sikat na malls

Kinailangan pa namin bumalik after an hour dahil sarado pa ang bodega nila sa sobrang aga namin. Kaya nagtingin tingin na lang muna kami sa paligid ng mga supplies for our DIY crafts. The other side of Ilaya Street (Tabora Street) is known to have tons of items for weddings and similar events. Doon kami namalagi noong unang dalawang punta namin sa Divisoria para mamili. Here are the things that we got this time.

• assorted vintage buttons
• magic zipper na lilac
• sinulid na lilac
• brooch
• pearls
• headband
• white na lace

more vintage-y buttons for us!

Bitbit ang sandamakmak na tela, tinuloy namin ang pag-gagala sa katabing 168 Mall at 999 Mall. Dito kami nagtuloy maningin ng mga barong at gowns. Napaka intensive ng collection ng mga damit at tela dito, at sooobrang mura kumpara sa mga sikat na stores sa mga mall. Most likely bumalik kami doon para sa barong ng mga abay at gowns ng moms.

Wellmanson - Divisoria

At the end of the day, ang reward namin for ourselves for a job well done ay ang kumain sa Wai Ying in Binondo! Can't go wrong... yub yub! Dumaan din muna kami sa Eng Bee Tin para bumili ng pasalubong at sa Binondo Church para magpasalamat sa lahaaat ng blessings na natatanggap namin.

goodjob!

P.S.: Medyo may minor boo-boo lang dahil mali ang kulay ng nabili naming sinulid at zipper. Pero as of now, naghahanap na kami ng sinulid at zippers na kakulay ng mga tela namin.