The Ring

Love your own! ♥

Here's my engagement ring from Diamond Fire Manila!

XOXO,

ENGAGED!

it's a YES! 

 

XOXO,

Venue Hunting Part 1

Finally, nakapag-ocular na kami on 6 venues! 

April 23:
L'Orchard
The Mango Farm
Sun Valley Estates

April 24:
Jardin de Miramar
Le Blanc

April 30:
Camp Aguinaldo

L'Orchard

PROS: 

Honestly. I can't think of any. :| Probably because the venue was super bare when we visited and napangitan talaga ako haha. But it's not so bad naman. Actually, L'Carmen (the indoor and airconditioned pavillion) is nice. The others, meh. Siguro pag may setup, but I don't know. I can only judge from pictures.

CONS: 

Nice in pictures, not so in actual. If you're planning to visit or you've already been to The Mango Farm, sobrang... macocompare mo talaga sila. Tapos the ceremony charge 35k so aabot ng almost 100k ang venue rental! Almost the same as the whole day, exclusive, full day rate of The Mango Farm so sorry, L'Orchard. Hindi talaga.

PESO POWER: 

Php65,000 (L'Pavillion and L'Lagoon); and

Php75,000 (L'Carmen) for reception venue 

+ Php35,000 for ceremony 

VERDICT: 

NO.

The Mango Farm

PROS: 

The Mango Farm is beautiful and captivating. For the first time (and this is just the second venue!), I felt the "this is it" feeling. I felt in awe, nakatayo lang ako silently sa may entrance and gandang ganda talaga ako sa Mango Farm. Sa entrance pa lang sobrang ganda na. Then there's the garden for the ceremony, the indoor airconditioned hall for the reception, with a cocktail area, powder room, and the rest of the farm is just so perfect and beautiful. It's all praises for The Mango Farm!

CONS: 

Even with the venue+catering packages, para lang syang standard venue rates plus the standard catering rates of their accredited caterers. Walang na-discount, walang natipid. :| Plus, LAHAT may corkage! UGH! I am really allergic to corkages! Para kang nagtatapon ng pera sa ere! Also, my vision is to get married on a golf course, or at least in a green grassy area or garden na super malawak, without walls. The ceremony area of TMF is malawak naman, but it's still not quite how I envision it. Still, TMF is a very strong contender. 

PESO POWER: 

Php83,500++ for the whole farm

++++++corkages!

VERDICT: 

YES! Expensive, yes, but it's THE venue to beat if wala na talaga akong mahanap na golf course/clubhouse.

Sun Valley Estates

PROS: 
Because I'm still dreaming of a golf course wedding ceremony! Haha! Well, the ceremony area is not really part of the golf course, this is just an empty lot across the clubhouse. Pero pak na pak sya for the ceremony, and sobrang ganda talaga nya with aerial videography! (Watch sample SDE below!) Also, the reception hall, Promenade, is grand! Malaki, modern, high ceiling. Minimal styling na lang ang kelangan. Plus, absolutely no corkage on anything! It's perrrfect!

WATCH: Haydee + Jantzen SDE

CONS:

1) We need a sponsor :( Unang tanong samin when we went there was kung sinong homeowner ang mage-endorse samin so they can check daw the records. Well, truth is we didn't know anybody in Sun Valley. This was originally on my shortlisted golf courses to check out, and nung nakita ko in W@W na may recent WaWie lang na kinasal dito, I emailed her agad to ask for details. Wala din syang kakilala but the contact person there (Miss Nelly) helped her daw to look for a homeowner to endorse them. I really had high hopes and and when we were there, we were ready na to make a downpayment sana to reserve, but Miss Nelly was kinda insisting na we need a sponsor. I asked her if maybe she can assist us and magawan ng paraan na makahanap kami ng sponsor, but medyo malabo kausap si Miss Nelly. Na-lost ako sa conversation namin and in the end, hindi pa din ako sure if it will still be possible for us to book there. 

2) Another con, since December 2017 pa ang wedding date namin, hindi daw nila malo-lock in yun rate since masyado pa syang matagal and chances are magtataas pa daw yung rate ng venue. 

3) ANG HIRAP HANAPIN. We got lost and kung saan-saan kami lumusot na mali mali. Even Sis Haydee warned us na pati din daw ang mga guests nila naligaw going here, and lalo if you use Waze kase maling daan ang ituturo.

4) Lastly, walang "this is it" feeling. :( 

PESO POWER: 
Php60,000 for reception +
Php10,000 for ceremony = Php70,000
No corkage on anything!

VERDICT: 
YES! By far this is the strongest contender. Andaming cons but I feel like if ma-book lang namin to, everything else will go smoothly na. 

Jardin de Miramar

PROS: 

It could have been perfect. From the garden (Either Prado or Estacion) to the reception hall (Sevilla)... it's all pasok sa banga. And actually, mas bet ko ang garden nito for the ceremony kesa sa garden ng TMF and I can already imagine my wedding here. However...

CONS: 

...the deal breaker is that we will have to pay for both venues. The ceremony area will be given at 50% off alright, but it's still not a good deal. Also, the rate of the reception hall will depend on the number of guests. All in all, the total rate would be more expensive than The Mango Farm, and TMF is the venue to beat. Siguro if Jardin is about 20k cheaper than TMF, that's the only time we will consider it. And another factor pala is the location. The road going to Jardin is super masikip and matarik. There are sharp curves pa and it's not easy to find. 

PESO POWER: 

(Around) Php80,000++ for reception +

Php12,450 for ceremony

++corkages on outside caterer, P/V, etc

VERDICT: 

NO.

Le Blanc

PROS: 

Le Blanc is immaculately clean! It's a really great house! Plus, the contact person, Kryzia is really nice (though medyo makulit sa pag-follow up hehe).

CONS: 

1) It's super tabi ng kalsada, you can hear the jeepneys and tricycles from the outside, and since we'll have the ceremony there (and considering that we'll have a 2-hour long sermon), hindi okay na rinig lahat ng ingay from the outside. 

2) The pool platform which will serve as the aisle... Hindi talaga.

PESO POWER: 

Php85,000 for the entire house

OPTIONAL: Php10,000 for three rooms or Php30,000 for all seven rooms of the house good for 30 pax with breakfast

VERDICT: 

NO. The pool platform for the ceremony is a deal-breaker. But perhaps if reception venue lang ang hanap namin, this would be a strong contender. Too bad... 

Camp Aguinaldo

PROS: 

Tejeros Hall is grand. As in engrande and vahnggeycious!

CONS: 

MADAMI AKONG ISSUES.

1) If we'll get an outside caterer, the ENTIRE catering staff (from the waiters, AEs, to the drivers) will have to submit an NBI clearance. Yes. EACH ONE OF THEM. 

2) If we'll get their in-house catering naman, the package is just for food so we need to get an event stylist pa (and the food package is just as mahal as other caterers with complete styling na).

3) We need an AFP officer to sponsor us before we can book. No sponsor, no booking.

4) We can only use the Tejeros Hall if we'll have guests 200 above. Even if we'll pay for the full rate, it's still minimum 200 pax. Below 200, they can only let us use Dimalupig Hall. KTNXBYE.

PESO POWER: 

Php25,000 for In-house caterer

Php57,000 for Outside caterer 

(Tejeros Hall)

Php11,000 for In-house caterer

Php27,000 for Outside caterer 

(Dimalupig Hall)

VERDICT: NO.

RANKING:

1. Sun Valley Estates
2. The Mango Farm
3. Jardin de Miramar
4. Le Blanc
5. L'Orchard
6. Camp Aguinaldo

XOXO,

I'm officially a December 2017 Bride!

The date is officially set! :)

December 29, 2017

And we have finally booked our very first supplier, 

our OTD Coordinator, 

Imbitado Events!

http://imbitadoevents.yolasite.com/

YAAAASSSS!!!

#ImbitadoBride

XOXO,

SHORTLIST: Caterer

• Passion Cooks - Sobrang accommodating ng PC during the Weddings & Debuts Bridal Fair in Megamall last Feb. They gave me the rates and nag-take down notes ng LAHAT ng kelangan kong quotations na pwede nilang i-send (upgraded styling, ceremony setup). Sinabi ko din sa kanila yung concern ko na i read na yung mga nakikita kong pictures ng styling nila lahat us upgraded so wala akong idea sa ichura ng basic and prices ng upgrades. Lahat ng concerns ko ni-note talaga nila and assured me na they will send an email. After a couple of days, I received an email with everything that I asked for. May this-is-it feeling talaga with them. I felt na stress-free ako pagdating sa caterer if sila ang iboo-book namin. If hindi lang talaga sila super expensive (they are the MOST expensive of all), I will definitely choose them. It all comes with a price!
• PESO POWER: 1,145 + 10% Service Charge

• K by Cunanan - Major turn off! Though highly recommened in GT, PC, and friends, I felt like I wasn't accommodated probably because matagal pa yung date namin? I don't know. I had some questions about the ceremony setup and basic styling and all they said was, for all other questions (aside from the rates), please send us an email. EH NANDUN NA KO DIBA. UGH. Crossing them off my list because of that. Sobrang layo from how Passion Cooks entertained me.
• PESO POWER: 1,040/head + 10% service charge + 12% vat

• Purpledish - they were originally one of my top choices. However, all recent reviews are mostly negative :| And not just with the food but with the service. 
• PESO POWER: 994/head (149,000/150 pax) + 10% service charge = 1,093.40/head

• Josiah's - Hay Josiah's. I don't even know how to start. So we had our food tasting last March 19 during the Wedding Expo at SMX. Pagdating namin dun, our contact, Lady asked us to fill out the form with the wedding details. Then afterwards, sabi sandali lang. Eh sobrang tagal naming naghintay, pero okay lang kase I understand na busy sila pero inisip ko sana while waiting pinakuha na rin kami ng food para hindi kami nakaupo lang sa table at naghihintay, pero okay lang naman kahit matagal talaga kami naghintay. Then pagbalik, Lady handed us the prinotout of the 2017 rates, so medyo binasa ko konti, and then, loooong dead silence and she just stared at us as if implying na okay na, nabigay na yung rates, you may now go. That's how they made us feel. Then ako na, ako pa, ang nagsabi na, "So, uh, pwede na ba kaming mag-food tasting?". She said sure, and that was it. Ni hindi kami binigyan nung form to rate the food, ni hindi kami inupuan to discuss details, or pakitaan kami ng styling and stuff. I felt again, na dahil December 2017 pa kami, hindi kami ine-entertain. I felt really bad :( Pero hinayaan ko na lang. Then nung patapos na kami kumain, malaman laman ko na yung katabi namin sa table December 2017 din pala ang target date. Iba nga lang yung AE na nage-entertain sa kanila. Pati mga waiters and yung nagse-serve sa buffet eh mga naka-simangot. In all fairness, nasarapan ako sa food ng Josiah's. Sayang, sayang na sayang talaga kase I was not expecting much pero nasarapan ako sa halos lahat. They could have been a contender, kung kaya pang i-customize ang menu at i-negotiate ang rates. Sayang.
• PESO POWER: 1,100/head (165,000/150 pax all-inclusive)

• Hizons - negative reviews, negative reviews everywhere! :S
• PESO POWER: Didn't even ask, didn't even inquire.

• M Catering - rates are okay, but not much reviews but they can customize according to your budget, this is now one of my top choices, but will need to attend a Food Tasting first. Packages can be customized according to budget. A fellow WaWie even got her package for as low as 550/head (pero syempre maraming tinanggal). Mostly positive reviews so it's definitely one of the top choices!
• PESO POWER: 750++/head, 1,095++/head

• Ma Del's Cuisine - good reviews, budget friendly, but limited reviews. Will need to attend a food tasting first. But this is without doubt our top choice for now. It's super budget friendly, their most expensive package (710/head) is super complete course na from appetizer to dessert, I don't need to trim down the menu para mapamura ang rate. Also, their styling is also good (as per reviews and their FB) and so far wala pa naman akong nabasang hindi nasarapan sa food nila. The only negative review (and deal breaker for some brides) is the contact person Anj is reaaally hard to contact.
• PESO POWER: 560/head, 635/head, 710/head (2015 rates)

FINAL RANKING:

1. Ma Del's Cuisine

2. M Catering

3. Passion Cooks

4. K by Cunanan

5. Josiah's

6. Hizon's

7. Purple Dish

XOXO,