过大礼 - mainly cakes (preparation 2)

Ah Lau and Mum sat down to talk about the 过大礼 stuff that we need to give each other. And thank God both sides agree (with Ah Lau's mum's consent) that everything can be simplified. No more going big in the heads about those Chinese traditional stuff.

The main thing is that, Mum has upped the number of cakes from 6 to 10 for a nice number. But she has decided not to ask for the traditional Teochew cookies and wedding cakes (I mean come on, She is Teochew but I am Hokkien! But she insisted we follow the Teochew ways because I grew up in her household...)

Anyways, to cut everything short, we are having a mixture of Teochew and Hokkien style 过大礼 items which to my delight, I can have a say in them too. 

So here is the revised list of items that Ah Lau has to give me

- 10 boxes of wedding cake

- 12 oranges

- Jewellery

- 5 types of sweets (I asked for this), like melon slices, dried longans, lotus seeds, red dates and peanuts

- Dragon and Phoenix candles to be substituted with lamps (if we can find them)

- Betrothal red packet (like duh!)

- 2 bottles of red wine for my Dad

- 1 roast pig for my Mum

- 1 老嫲糕 for my Ah Ma

And here is the list from me to him

- Dragon and Phoenix candles to be substituted with lamps (if we can find them)

- 2 bottles of orange juice

- 1 tea cup set

- 1 set of bed linen

- 1 set of pants and a belt

Finally! We can now pop to JB and get them there which is way cheaper than in SG. By the way, we had some sort of confusing thoughts (mostly from my Mum) about the types of wedding cakes. At first, she asked for Teochew style wedding cakes which are these:

https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtN3GGcfy-YiQnRjN_6juNDQXJQjFRvyT_M_mTwdr0lvFD6tXhgll3UPBhilvOtAlX9vaCx7OAHNa7AUg5vqT1_n6WotGQBfGMEhkCQ9ZpAWiXGnvpMk2utOuu8cPf18l_7CFllU71bDpV/s1600/DSCF0409.jpg

When I showed her the brochure, she was like no no no not these. Then I showed her the Hokkien style which consists mainly of sweets and no cakes, plus 2 cans of pig trotters.

http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-nU7pk2E8dBs/UMYmvlgKhgI/AAAAAAAAQrE/FBoMZ6PD3mk/s1600/20121209_123345.jpg

Finally, she told me what she'd wanted which are the more modern types like these:

http://farm3.staticflickr.com/2805/10164968365_581602778b_o.jpg

I yelled back a big no no no, because although I am a sucker for cute small cream cakes like these, I am not able ready to give these to my relatives because first of all, they are modern and too sweet. They just do not symbolise anything at all, and lastly, cut cakes when given as gifts are ugly and lack respect (in my opinion).

So we settled on a half traditional, half ang mo type which are these:

https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjS3JqwYa2mAeR9MFnIDA_oXRLHYkyWyq-bFxbpCWdhjnX3jwxHUV4U7ouLIIM1qour12EEsq05hftdhDCbkYzItmZ7PJo9CERAyU62BhZ0yKnGyQ66c27A8JUVW-Yk0gBONrQMb0pNfh4/s1600/28032010(001).jpg

I recalled always receiving cakes such as these when I was young and although I don't like eating them because they are mostly dry and I don't fancy dry cakes, I actually like those wafer-like roses and what little green cream as leaves on the cake. I find them very pretty and always try to preserve them for as long as I can.

Lastly, since we are now no longer going towards the Teochew style, the baskets that Ah Lau brings these things in to my parents have to be the Hokkien style ones already (and since I am a Peranakan, we can't deviate away from their Hokkien baskets). 

https://tampines1.files.wordpress.com/2014/07/dsc_00441.jpg

The black and red ones are the Hokkien ones but Peranakan ones have a more rounded top (or so said by my Mum) while the one in straw colour is used by Teochews.

So be honest, this is the most fun part of my preparation of my wedding - not the gown choosing (although I must say, it does make me feel like a princess and important. Ha!), not the photoshoot, not the shoe shopping or sourcing for photographers and wedding bands. It is actually the preparation of the 过大礼haha! 

I know, I am weird. But I really am finally feeling the excitement which kind of died down a little in me in the midst of choosing the dresses, shoes and other things. Can't wait to drive around like mad and give these cakes away!

Photoshoot

Wow!

I always know that make-up makes wonders to my face but not THIS much! Gonna photo-spam on whatever I can take from my photoshoot on Friday.

I can haz pouty look

After accessories and lipstick

There you go!

Snapshot before another round of photo-taking

Told my make-up artist I want a veil that touches the floor and she gave one to me straight away!

Feathers checked, flowers checked, lace checked, crystals checked; I love this look so much!

I think I look a little older than my age here but it's only for the day-time look. 

Bought a $5 giant and super heavy hair clip from Carousell and am loving it to the max!

And yap! It's for my tea dress peranakan costume. Back to my roots yo!

My make-up artist left for the day when I went back to the studio to change from my peranakan costume. One of the kind consultant helped me let down my hair because I ain't going out for an outdoor shoot in my hair like a Ah So! 

Turns out, my hair ain't curly anymore and I had this hair in a mess bad-girl look. No complaints, I think I look good =)

This is the pink dress with the super long peacock tail but you can't see from here, only the tons of fake flowers at my bust area. I wore white sneakers from Cotton On just for this look and that pair of damn shoes costed me $19.90. 

Bridal nails (for photoshoot)

Alrightly,

It was a tough decision to decide that I need to go for nail extension after knowing how expensive it costs. If it is just for the photoshoot, I can always ask the photographer to photoshop it on or just not focus on my nails altogether.

My mum was super bend on me looking good so she pushed me on a bus to JB's city square to do my nails. I picked a french manicure simply because I don't want super long nails and  I was not about ready to pay so much for nails.

I must say that even though I would like more add-ons, they look extremely fine on me!

Dress picked (3)

Hello!

It's finally time to show guys my dresses! Although 2 of them aren't taken nicely and therefore can't be posted but the main gist is there. Take a look!

This is the evening gown for the actual day. It is in bright chili red with a little bit of wiremesh-like material for the skirt, in fact, it is more shimmery and glittery than anything. 

As you guys know, I don't like belts but the giant ribbon at the waist does magnify my small waist a little bit more and and crystals at the chest area (although I hated them at first sight) were very flatteringly beautiful especially under light. 

One bad thing when I put it on, was how tight it was at my armpits and how loose it is at my waist. It was so bad that even though I am so underweight, I had whatever left of my fats being squeezed out from my under arms, making me look fat! I yelled a big no no because that clearly isn't the way to wear a bustier-dress. As usual, the people there ie my consultant, the seamstress etc all tried to convince me that that was because the bustier is a straight line across my chest and not a sweetheart line. Excuse me! Just how can that make my under arms look fat? 

So the designer (who is a man, thank God!) was there to suggest that he will sew a little coarse cloth some sort like the one on my skirt there to cover the 'fats'. I jumped into it straight away because there is no way I would want to pick another dress over such a small thing.  

Anyways, on a side note, I didn't know I hunch back that much in real life. Yucks!

This would be THE wedding dress for my actual day. When I put it on, I was kinda pissed that it was still in that A-line skirt style when I had specifically told them to mermaid it. The original designer who always wanted to force things down my throat was thankfully not there and the kind gentleman designer sewed a mermaid cutting for me straight away and even gave me ideas on how it will look like etc. I am so so grateful for him. 

And this would be the princess dress that I will be wearing for the outdoor photo shoot. I guess there would have been dozens of brides wearing this before me since it is one of the dresses to be chosen for an outdoor photo shoot. But I like it at first size. The corset was filled with many sequins and crystals. And most importantly, it is a very clear different look from my actual day's dress. I meant to look like a runaway princess in this look. 

I picked a short pink dress that has a super looooooooooooong peacock tail with shades of yellow and violet in it as another look for the outdoor shoot. For that, Ah Lau and I intend to wear sneakers for that look. 

More pictures later! Cheerios!

Our wedding bands

I have always have very simple taste and do not like very extravagant jewellery. When I was very young and I knew I would get married, I was already telling people that I like this and this, that and that. My first choice was Georg Jensen's.

http://www.mallory-jewellers.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/Georg_jensen_22.png

It is not very popular among Singaporean couples as compared to the Tiffany band or the Bvlgari where every bride in her twenties would definitely get one. 

When I got into my thirties, I decided that I'd want a simple one, one that is elegant yet simple in design. And so I picked this one. 

http://assets.cartier.com/sites/assets/files/styles/cartier-1000-1000/public/catms/images/B4077900_0_cartier_wedding-bands-rings.png?itok=PyuL86-8

A beautiful circle of clean cut diamonds, small, neat and well... just simple. I saw a girlfriend wearing it as a gift from her lesbian girlfriend and I thought to myself, that I would want a similar one but definitely not the Cartier one. 

And of course, not forgetting, the groom will be wearing a simple one as well like so:

http://hitchedukst.s3.amazonaws.com/Fashion/MensJewellery/images/12_710_1713HisandHerWeddingBands.jpg

Then one of my closest friend who was going through a divorce told me that she was once told there was a reason why wedding bands used to be just a simple gold band eons ago. It not only represents simplicity at its purest state (just like the love between husband and wife) but its smooth surface also means that there will be no obstacles. Bands must also be rock-free (or diamond-free) so that the marriage will not be rocky. 

She further add that those people she knows who are have blissful marriages have smooth, simple bands and one of them was her brother. Her wedding band for example, has rocks on it, hence the rocky marriage. 

I was amused with this tale but superstition or not, Ah Lau and I decided to believe it. After looking around especially in Love and Co and Goldheart which offered simple bands at an astonishing $1.6k and above (Love and Co was $1.8k), I was dismayed and disappointed. They were even more expensive than those with designs on them!

We walked around until we casually went to Corrine's Jewellery at Marina Square and decided that there was where we wanted to get our bands. They are genuine (for sure!) an American standard of 14 karat white gold that weighs pretty heavy in my hands. Not sure if it is because that rest of the make-up is zinc and copper but I am very happy with it. 

I read somewhere (I think on hardwarezone) that the service there is very poor and their jewellery is also in very bad quality. Not to me. The wedding bands are gorgeous. And since Ah Lau and I decided that a wedding band need not be so expensive because it is for daily wear, then we jumped into it and bought both at $600. 

Here they are:

Second draft checklist

Now for a part 2 checklist since we are 3 months away from the wedding. Here goes:

1. Pick wedding gowns [checked]
2. Chinese traditional items for 过大礼 [checked]
3. Nyonya tea dress [checked]
4. Wedding shoes [checked]
5. Emcee [checked]
6. Wedding bands [checked]
7. Videographer [checked]

Now for part 3
1. Band (maybe)
2. Groomsmen (pending Ah Lau again!!)
3. Wedding shoot (it'll be on the 19 Dec)
4. Nyonya shoes
5. Groom shoes
6. Groom shirts
7. Decor and flowers

过大礼 (preparation 1)

Mum and I went to Chinatown market to look around for what to get the groom for the 过大礼exchange. Of course there are the usual, 四点金 argument if it should come from the groom or accompanies the bride to be married off. Turns out, it is supposed to be part of a betrothal from a groom to ask for a bride's hands.

There is also the confusion if we are able to ask for a roast pig (since it is only a Cantonese tradition but according to this http://www.goldenhappiness.com.sg/bethrothal.html its not. And if we do, we can't ask for the 24 cans of pig trotters. Argh!

So to make things simple, we'll just get the usual traditional stuff and if one or two items are not in the specific dialect list, we'll still get it. In fact, my sister-in-law asked for a roast pig and 24 cans of pig trotters anyway.

In short, here is the list of things that Ah Lau needs to get me.

- 聘金
- 四点金 
- 2 pairs of dragon and phoenix candles
- peanut candy
- sesame candy
- 1 roast pig
- 12 oranges
- 2 bottles of wine
- 6 boxes of wedding cakes
- 老嫲糕 (for my grandma)
- 安床 things
- 1 tea set

And here are the things I would need to give back the groom.

- part of the 聘金
- a pair of the dragon and phoenix candles
- a pair of lamps
- 1 red basin and baby's bath tub
- towel
- bed linen
- tooth brush and tooth paste
- 1 belt and a pair of pants
- 2 bottles of orange juice
- 1 tea set

I think that's about it. The rest, I'll leave it my mum and Ah Lau's godma to ponder and add it.

Furniture shopping part 2

Ah Lau and I (or more like I did) jumped into paying for a super duper comfortable mattress at only $999 at Rozel! At first it was $2k+ then we bargained and told the sales manager whom I bought my first queen size maiden bed from couple of years ago, our difficulty to which he allowed us to just a small deposit (and I really mean very very small) and pay the rest when the mattress arrives 1 week before our wedding. Whew! Talk about meeting kind people.

We skipped buying the bed from Rozel though because none of them are what I have in mind and if we do, it is out of our budget. Finally, we decided to go with a cheap from Ikea first and since it is that princess-look that I love, Ah Lau has graciously agreed to us getting it. Ha!

http://www.dwdsm.com/3299-ikea-bed-frame-white/

Got my shoes!

I have high arch feet which makes walking for a long time very taxing on my feet. And they are very bony too. So I am very picky when it comes to shoes or I might get blisters, hell I get blisters all the damn time on my feet regardless any footwear, including sneakers!

I opted for covered toe shoes for my wedding because of my ugly feet and also, since my solemnization dress is short, I have to wear stockings to cover my leg tattoos, hence covered shoes. 

Chris referred me to a website that customises wedding shoes and she boasts of how comfy they are. But that is because she doesn't know the nature of my feet and I don't feel secure buying shoes and not ever trying on them first. 

After trying so many shoes and even Nina Ricci who is famous for their dinner shoes, I was getting fed up and was thinking of maybe really going for the website. But low and behold, a chance visit to BHG at bugis, I found my dream pair. In the 3 colours that suit my dresses too, and only at $59.90!

Panic for nyonya kebaya

OMG!

Panic attack!

I forgot that my Peranakan costume is included in  my photo shoot on the 19th Dec! Ah Lau and I are totally strapped for cash and I am embarrassed to say that I'd planned for more than I can afford. Ermm... okay that is story for another day.

So I have to quickly buy or rent a set for the photo shoot and wedding, by the looks of it after searching online, buying would be my best choice because rental will make everything go haywire with the alteration and this fits, that doesn't fit.

My mum just came back from KL not long ago and took pictures of so many nyonya kebayas and sarongs but what is the use? It is silly to take a flight there or a 4 hours coach there just to buy a kebaya. So I decided to write to http://www.littlenyonyabatik.com for help. I also chanced upon a small peranakan stall right in the middle of People's park complex which sells quite good kebayas, only thing is, it's the same price as little nyonya and I might as well just write to the latter first.

Speaking of my kebaya, I was thinking of a red one but since my evening gown is already red, I think a pink one should be better instead of looking like a red packet from head to toe in the afternoon and in the evening.

Here is what I have found and I really like the colour combination so much. Hopefully, little nyonya has it so it is one load off my mind. Fingers crossed!

Can't find the link to this pic (sorry!)

Trial make up

I did my trial make up today (for the day look) and I must say although it isn't so much the look that I want, I do look nice in it. It totally matches my dress and the mild look that I always look good at. Most importantly, it matches the garden theme of a fairy-look (sorta).

After that, we kinda firm up the timing for our photo shoot, what to expect and so on. Then finally, we walked the entire town area in my allure of make up haha!

Right now, I just have to find a place that does cheap and good french manicure for the photo shoot and I can probably relax a bit.

My goodness... getting married in Singapore is really stressful.

One does not stop loving someone because of money

Ok, finally spoke to my Dad about Ah Lau's status and so on and so forth. My Dad teared and I cried buckets to my Da Sao's silence, my bro's helplessness and my Mum's talking to which I think none of us were listening to.

I guess it is inevitable that I have to break the news to my Dad (I didn't expect him to cry), but I know that deep down, whilst he really is not totally at ease with my choice of husband, I know he will still give me his blessings and I am determined to make sure Ah Lau steps up to it.

Just now, Ah Lau and I were calculating our budget for the wedding and I am so glad that my family offered to help. I know his family would too if they could. I find myself often getting mad at having to share certain things and argue about money with him until I read Tony Parson's Catching the Sun. He said that one does no stop loving someone because of money and I guess somewhere along our journey into our impending marriage, I had forgotten about it.

Dress picked! (2)

Okay!

Went back to Beautiful Love and got my actual day's gown finally picked and finalized. But I must say again that it is not ENTIRELY the one that I really want but it is pretty much close.

It has a high collar and in Chinese style. It basically has the same design as the very dress I had picked on my first blog post That Perfect Dress so many months ago. But since I cannot have every single part too laced or I'll look too old, the lace fades off into a plain mermaid skirt as it gets lower down my legs.

The only pity is that it doesn't have a hole at the back which I really want to accentuate my arched back and no holes on the front too, oh well, it beats one that makes me look like I'm 40.

Chris says that nothing matters as much as me being happy with it and I totally agree.

Dress picked (not)

You know, after much thinking and reconsideration and looking at the secretly taken photo of myself in my chosen wedding gown, I called my consultation, Janice and told her I changed my mind. I am not saying that Beautiful Love is filled with a bunch of lazy shits but they did try their best to listen to what I want - albeit me already saying yes to that first dress their had me tried on.

She is super nice to keep calling me and telling me what the designer said. I already knew they will charge me when I showed them what I had in mind by whatsapping Janice the picture. And I know they spared no efforts to try to convince me that I already look good in the original dress that I'd picked.

But it is MY WEDDING! I don't care if you guys say I look good in this and day, it just makes me think you guys are lazy to continue to search you library for me and lazy to make amendments to it. So I did whatever little I could do to no incur anymore cost to altering the dress and simply telling them I want a high collar.

The front part of the dress will still be bare and there will still be sleeves but I die die want a halter neck to accentuate my thin neck line. So I goggled some pictures to show them.

http://img.alibaba.com/img/pb/836/029/363/363029836_023.jpg

Okay, this is how I want it to be, except the lace is all gone (I have already accepted my fate of looking at like a 50 year old in laced dresses).

More pics here:

http://image.dhgate.com/albu_392208900_00-1.0x0/wedding-dress-high-collar-slim-bride-wedding.jpg

This one is almost like what I have in mind, the super high collar, with the hole at the chest and another hole at the back. Imagine with this a super mermaid-like skirt sweeping from the back... oh my!

This time, I must stand firm in what I want and not let ANYONE sway me! And if you try to, damn you!

Okay... inner peace... *breathes in and out deeply*

Dress picked! (1)

Okay, I finally picked my few dresses. I must say that they are TOTALLY not what I had in mind. As you know, I'd always wanted a full lace dress; but as God forbid or cursed, I look like shat in them- it's as though I have aged 20 years or something!

When I arrived at Beautiful Love with Ah Lau, my consultant was so nice to ask me to pick from their array of dress. I picked 2 laced ones and tried them on; I looked like a 50 year old.

So they helped me pick a super simple one with crystals on a belt which I absolutely hated and demanded they remove it. There is lace on it but it only covers the cap sleeves and part of the hips. I do look older than my age in this dress but I like it that it really does look so much better on me and that there is a hole at the back that can show off my arch. I have also requested that they tighten the hips part so I can really have a mermaid's dress.

Since I have myself wrapped in the white dress, I picked a sleeveless lace top dress and a short flowy skirt with a big bow at the back hip as my dress for solemnization. I was also advised to reveal my upper shoulder and not pick another dress that has to have my shoulders covered again. So I picked a bright red even gown with a bow at at the front (I love bows!).

Lastly, I also picked another white gown for my outdoor photoshoot which was a princess gown complete with a nice corset top. Finally a pink short dress as an evening gown to complete the outdoor shoot. Best thing about the pink dress is that it comes with an attached 'tail' that is super long, that makes it look like a peacock's tail. I super love it!

More pictures will be up when they have altered the size and measurements for me which will be on the 17 Dec and 19 Dec, our photoshoot. Can't wait to show you!

Meantime, we just fixed the air-con on my side so say hurrah to no sweat-stained bedsheets and irritable sleep. We're off to buy our bed next. So many things to do and so much fun to look forward to!

Updates!

Long time no update yo!

This is because Ah Lau and I have been locked into other plans to bring in more money for the wedding. Rest assured these plans are definitely legal and I am just so happy and relieved that we not only need not worry about money in the near future for the wedding but also propel us to a brand new career.

Maya is also back from his 3 month study in London and he would be able to help Chris in the wedding decor. I also happened to chance upon a wedding decor coordinator on Carousell. Ha! Can't wait to see what magic can happen.

Lastly, I also found a freelance baker who can bake my wedding cake at below $500! Yippe!

I hope to bring more pictures during my next update because it will be when I have my first go at picking my wedding dress! Stay tune!

Sourcing for baker for a wedding cake part 2

I have attended so many weddings in Singapore to know that the cake-cutting part of the ceremony is a prop cake. When I was young, I often waited and waited for the waiters to serve to cake during dessert but the cakes never came. So when I boldly asked one day, where is the freaking cake?! and got returned with "the cake is a fake, my dear," I knew I had to have REAL cake during my wedding. 

Googled for a list of wedding cake bakers and from the last time I updated, the prices of wedding cakes range from $1,000 to $1,650 and some have yet to even include delivery fees and deposit of $150 for the tier supporters which we have to return!

All this hustle just for a freaking cake!?

Then it struck me, I can always look for blog-bakers, those who does freelance baking. I have ordered from these bakers many times and their standard of cakes are definitely on par with those from the boutique bakeries.

So I wrote to Hazel and Lucille. Hazel was quick to get back and I am so happy that she remembers me from these years that I have ordered from her. She has won a lot of awards for her creativity and when I asked her for this favour, she proceeded to give me some advice and how it is not right to copy the designs that I got from google images. I roger that and gave her the go ahead for redesigning the cake for me. Meantime though, she needs to do her math and work out a quote for me. Fingers crossed it doesn't cost me a crazy amount. I only set aside $200 for this in the initial budgeting.

I asked Ah lau if eventually, we would have to drop one, would be prefer the cake or the band. He said the cake while I went for the band. Although I really do want to have both, I guess when we finally do come to it, I am sure Ah lau will definitely give in to me and let me have the cake. After all, it has always been my dream to have a wedding cake during my wedding.

I found some beautiful pictures of turquoise wedding cakes on google images and I must say that they are all SOOOOOO gorgeous! I can't decided on which designs I want Hazel (if not her, then Lucille) to work on. Ah lau and I looked through a few and our eyes were dazzled by the variety. We can't wait to sink our teeth into everyone of them.

http://cdn.cakecentral.com/9/97/900x900px-LL-97db32ec_gallery7893151330397438.jpeg

http://www.weddingsee.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/09/turquoise-wedding-cakes-satisfying.jpg

http://media-cache-ec0.pinimg.com/236x/9e/d5/8a/9ed58ac41d477749324a38678591b141.jpg

Initially, I have decided on a plain turquoise 3 tier cake with pink flowers since we will be having pink roses for our wedding as well. I think the first one is really pretty and simple just like the one I had in mind. We are also opened to just turquoise with various of white add-ons like butterflies or sea-shells (which I later think would be more suitable for a beach themed wedding)

http://bronniebakes.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/114.jpg

http://cdnpix.com/show/imgs/d7119c893c65b916faa7878f02db5f98.jpg

http://tws1.ftwmedia.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/plugins/jobber-import-articles/photos/133994-turquoise-beach-wedding-cakes-3.jpg

http://www.cakesannietime.com.au/uploads/pics/Turquoise_Topsy_Turvy_Wed_3.jpg

During our search, I was asking Ah lau if he wants a vanilla sponge cake or are there any favours he would like our wedding cake to be.When he came up with chocolate, we found turquoise cakes that are decorated with chocolate colour rather than the conventional vanilla. We find that it would be interesting to cut the cake open and see chocolate sponge instead of white and it will definitely be a wonderful dessert for our guests!

http://snazzybiscuits.files.wordpress.com/2012/08/img_4969.jpg

http://www.mazelmoments.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/Mint-Green-Wedding-Cake.jpg

http://images.pinkcakebox.com/cake569.jpg

http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-0LUNNaWsGcQ/Tfsh%252Bblue%252Bturquoise.jpg

http://www.polyvore.com/cgi/img-thing?.out=jpg&size=l&tid=564064

http://www.elegantweddinginvites.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/tiffany-blue-and-chocolate-brown-wedding-cakes.jpg

http://media-cache-ec0.pinimg.com/236x/26/ae/2c/26ae2c9c807089358c27efb853095267.jpg

There! Look at how beautiful and yummy they are! I can't wait for Hazel to get back with a good rate and for her to come up with her own design of a turquoise chocolate 3-tier wedding cake!

Where is that damn car?

I have almost given up looking for that dream car as my wedding car.

http://images.thecarconnection.com/sml/mini_100318525_s.jpg

I'd wanted a mini cooper countryman and chanced upon this website that hosts all sorts of cars for rental. From here, I finally saw the mini cooper that I'd love to have for my wedding.

https://www.drive.sg/rent/Mini-Cooper-Countryman-by-eurokars-399

Except for the bonnet, the colour, size and shape is exactly the one that Ah lau and I would go for. So I proceeded to drop the guys an email to no avail. The rates stated on the website is also weird and I found out that I am forced to rent for a minimum of 3 days instead of just 1.

The only way for me to find out more is to drive all the way to Sungei Kadut's showroom. All this effort to go all the way to there got me so really tired just thinking about it. And that when Chris has kindly offered to even buy one herself so she can lend it to me for my wedding got me to rethink if I really want a mini cooper after countryman after all.

So couple of weeks ago, I looked at a Range Rover Evoque and saw how it totally fitted my idea of a casual yet classy drive.

http://media.caranddriver.com/images/media/51/2012-land-rover-range-rover-evoque-5-door-embed-end-photo-375978-s-original.jpg

But to my disappointment, it is too new a car  model to be able to offer renting, although I did find a car rental company that offers it but only in Msia. I am not about ready to put in tons of deposit just to have a car drive in from Msia for 1 day.

Then I recalled I wrote to Ace Drive Team and went back to my email inbox to take a look at their rates.

Ace Drive has been featured on a bridal website. I figured since it is a featured and recommended, I bet the cars they offer are in good, 'drivable' condition and most importantly, they are clean and well-maintained. From the rates above, I bet you can see why I have a sudden turn-off the moment I looked at it. The choices of cars are really too common and too little to choose from. Except for the porsche and mini cooper S which are all 2 seaters, the rest are all luxury and all so very common on the roads. For every 10 wedding cars that you see, 9 are from the list above.

So finally, (almost) admitting defeat, I asked Ah lau to ask his friends to help source for a white car for us. Ah lau was all hands on and ready to help not because he didn't at the beginning but because we agreed to let me decided on all matters on the wedding.

Now, we wait for his friends to see if they can get back to us on borrowing a good car. Otherwise, it is to Ace Drive that we have to go to.

Furniture shopping part 1

Last night, Ah Lau and I went to Nova to look around for our new beds. We have decided to just get a cheap one for his mum's place since we will only be staying there twice a week.

The beds at Nova look pretty okay with a few looking quite luxurious. Without saying out loud, we silently picked white beds. I love this kind of unspoken likeness between us.

Half way through our browsing, I saw this humongous couch that is so pretty that I am sure Ah Lau wouldn't mind me inserting a red furniture in the midst of our white furniture jungle.

There it is! Beautiful isn't it? I think it would look perfect as a reading couch at the corner of our room, except it costs $28k.

After looking around Nova, I spoke of how I got a good deal at Rozel with a super mattress and a free bed frame in leather white at only $890. Then we reverted back to our plan of getting a cheap bed until we get our own place.

We also took the time to look around for a dressing table that Ah Lau thinks that we'll certainly need as a newly wed's bedroom. Looking at the cheapo and low graded variety there, I have decided that with that type of pricing, I can easily get one from Courts or Ikea.

The crazy prices of furniture malls these days. 

Sourcing for baker for a wedding cake part 1

OMG!

My friend who will be baking my wedding cake has backed out! He said he is unable to do it because of a tight schedule. And I just banged my laptop keyboard until my fingers hurt. I hate to have something settled for good, then it has to be changed or something about it is unable to happen as predicted.

So I wrote to some freelance bakers, some boutique bakers and even some that I have ordered cupcakes from to see if they are able to bake a wedding cake for me.

One came back and quoted me $1,500 for that damn cake! What are you? A baker from France!?

Geez!

The correct shade of pink

https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRz5-OglhKr4UxTG3ptUO_trfioVQUuH9S17c9n-znPJosV_Xp9e8OZOqdu8soscM99UFNYYdJwtzKydN05AhtFxRJ_SmpUHgp9S1H1xVvWTYogHvtCk22zvnBzKxMRMOKNxJcXwIbp28/s1600/Scan.jpeg

So I'm picking some flowers for the actual day and there is no qualms about it, definitely picking my favourite pink roses. After all, I think it is a perfect stand out colour with the turquoise theme.

My best buddy and wedding coordinator, Chris asked me about the particular shade that I want and then it got me. There are too many shades of pink that I love and I really can't decide on one, or two for that matter.

Recently, Ah Lau always likes to dawn my room with an occasional singular rose to make me wake up with a smile and the florist who is his true blue best friend who never fails to introduce the most expensive rose to him, a new breed called the Kenya rose which is not only big with plenty of petals, but is gorgeous as well. However, I don't think I will be making this breed my choice since it costs about 3 times the amount of a local breed.

http://static.guim.co.uk/sys-images/Admin/BkFill/Default_image_group/2010/4/20/1271723539862/Naivasha-Kenya-001.jpg

Anyways, here goes my research on the different shades and types:

http://www.theflowersociety.com/images/flowers/roses-orange.jpg

These are not pink roses, they are however, in the perfect hue of orange which I think I might consider to match the turquoise. Most importantly, it is in the right shape that I want- in the flute shape and not a round type or a busting type like so:

http://www.rosesofyesterday.com/ourroses/ambridgerose2.jpg

https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjB8nPkaU4j9QYYffnNG_B6dgeSS8NuaNt2JayqeE1b-yWr1aKgXTghnoVOEdbhD9yB2teDixlX1tpo0MSVQBnYrkSBpBmHcFIwX6OVTDws2VMYyn-EmQ6PShImZ_GMPKglceSVZu74g6ML/s1600/red+rose.jpg

Shocking pink roses!

http://www.fareastorchid.com/media/catalog/product/cache/1/i/n/india_rose_shocking_pink_d.jpg

Ah Lau gave me my first bouquet of shocking pink roses on my first birthday with him. They do look beautiful but I don't think it suits the right garden theme that I am looking for.

http://images.wisegeek.com/group-of-growing-pink-roses.jpg

I am looking at this particular shade which is very common and mostly what you see in florists. It would not stand out by itself and I guess I might need to accompany it with some babybreath or a paler shade. 

http://media-cache-ec0.pinimg.com/236x/bb/b8/a7/bbb8a79c2259012257d6a35cceb40d54.jpg

Yap, this is one of the shade that is love at first sight. But I am not sure if it should be just by itself or accompanied by the shade above.

http://www.lovethesepics.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/02/Light-pink-roses-can-mean-sweetness-admiration-sympathy-
gentleness-grace-gladness-joy.jpg

I came across this breed and can't help but think that it looks like roses dipped in pink dye. Not keen.

http://wolnature.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/white-pink-roses.jpg

And these, dark pink wrapped in lighter shade of pink. Looks like dumplings; not keen too.

http://media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/236x/fc/a9/0c/fca90c8e9ae5a485ff5236158728011c.jpg

I can't seem to google find any decor with the sort of 2 shades that I like, the picture above is the closest I can find except it has lilac and white colour roses to the bouquet. But you get the idea =)