No, I did not get married again. No plans ever whatsoever. Like I said
mid of last year, I was entrusted with the coordinator role for a very good friend. This post is actually a suppliers' review from the point of view of a wedding planner. I was not able to take a lot of photos though. :(
Arlene (the bride) and I go way back in highschool. So when she said that she wanted a simple, practical but elegant celebration, I was not surprised because that's very much her style. It was a non-traditional intimate civil wedding enjoyed by her closest family and friends.
Food and Venue -
The Atrium at Enderun
The place did not need any decorations as it was already beautiful on its own. Definitely no need for heavy styling. The almost floor-to-ceiling windows for me provided a "balanced" ambiance, mixing both the freshness of outdoors and the classy-ness of the indoors. I love the high ceiling!
There was no need to use tiffany nor ghost chairs as the available furniture already complimented the interiors. The account manager told us this could fit about 100pax but personally I think it could only accomodate about 80. Our headcount was only half this number and because of that we were able to bring in the photobooth inside, at the far end of the hall.
We also managed to set-up a lounge area at the back. That's also where we positioned the temporary tattoo station that the couple requested.
The only negative thing I could think of was that the air conditioning system seemed to work inefficiently. I had to tell the waiter several times to bring down the temperature but they couldn't do anything about it. In fairness, the event was from 12 noon to 4pm and that day the sun was really high up there. However, I felt that since they were allowing functions at that time of day, they might as well ensure that the temp won't cause inconvenience. Oh, and the AE that was assigned to us wasn't very quick to reply to my messages, good thing the staff on the day made up for it.
As for the food, everything was delicious. What can I say, it's a school for the culinary arts. They won't have a good reputation for nothing.
Photography -
MyPhotato
I only got to read about them in w@w's FB page but I have never met them nor seen any of their works until the wedding day. About a week before, I got in touch with them to mention some concerns on the AVP. The person I talked to was cooperative and really took time to reply to my messages. The crew was also early at the preps venue - in fact, I think the bride was still sleeping when they arrived. Hahaha!
The photographers (I think there were about 5 of them) were very
relaxed the entire time. They worked silently (hence the nice candid
shots) and made people feel at ease during the photo ops. The OC part
of me though wished that they took more photos. There were times when
I'd look for them during the program because I felt like they were not
as "involved" as I would've wanted them. But then again, that's just
me. The couple was very happy with their output, including the same-day
photos played during the latter part of the program.
More photos can be found
here.
Souvenirs -
Flipbooks
I am personally amazed at this new trend in photo-based party favors. It was my first time to see (and experience) flipbooks. Instead of the regular photo booth, you are to record a seven-minute video, every frame of which will be printed in a small sheet to form a booklet. When you flip the pages, you get to watch the short clip. Totally cool.
Now in terms of performance, all I can say that they were very accommodating and easy to transact with. Their call time was 10am but they were already there by 9am. They were also friendly and patient in explaining how the picture/video station works. I will surely recommend them for future events.
Bride's Gown and Groom's Barong Coat -
Amonn Velasco
I recommended Amonn to Arlene because I was very happy with my gown made by him/her during my brother's wedding 2 years ago. I cannot comment on their service for this particular case because it was really the couple who had an interaction with them. However, I can say that they really did a good job with the bride and groom's attire.
Flowers/Event Styling - Joe Honrado
Less than two weeks before the wedding, the bride surpised me - with a task that is to find a florist! During the start of our prep meetings, Arlene wasn't keen on getting an event stylist because she wanted to do a lot of Pinterest-worthy DIY projects. However, due to lack of time, she wasn't able to push through with this and resorted to a florist at the last minute. I contacted a few suppliers but they couldn't work on the budget that I was given. It was a good thing that Joy (the MOH and also a good friend from the same barkada) and I had a chat and she mentioned her uncle who could help us. She gave me his number and we just coordinated through phone. On the wedding day, whoa!! I was sooo impressed!
Everyone was commenting on how beautiful the flowers were. I couldn't agree more. Tito Joe definitely went over and above our expectations! He's so humble and nice but his output is really high-standard. I heard he used to have a flower shop in New York before he moved back here with his family. I'm definitely promoting him for future weddings.
Cake -
The Little Cake Company
Melissa, the owner, is actually Arlene's cousin. She is very nice and easy to talk with. From what I know, she's a dentist by profession but lately she's been more involved with her baking business. It's just a shame that I wasn't able to take a photo of the cake but it was absolutely a pretty sight. It's a two-layer white fondant cake with light purple dots through out. While it looks beautiful, the taste is even more than that. Hubby is not so into sweets but the carrot & walnut-flavored cake really got him. The fondant icing was soft and chewy, unlike the others that become hard once placed inside the ref.
Solemnizing Officer -
Manila Civil Weddings
Because I like the mood in my blog to remain positive, I will limit my comments on this supplier. Heeheeee... All I can say is, if you know someone who can officiate weddings without having to go through a "broker" like this one, that is the better option.
I also did several DIY projects (table numbers, station labels, on this wedding but of course I am not including those in this review. It was just a good outlet for me to do artsy-crafty stuff. :)
Overall, I had fun coordinating this wedding. It was an enriching experience, actually. I hope I get to do more of this soon. Cheeeeeeers!!!
