Shop with Me

I got an invitation from United Colors of Benetton so Pat and I decided to do a bit of shopping for our honeymoon in their High Street branch. If you grew up in the 90s just like me, I'm pretty sure you too had a few Benetton staples in your closet. I even recall wearing a plaid Benetton dress for my 7th grade graduation and totally rocking it! It's nice to see that Benetton has still remained true to their identity after all these years, providing comfortable and casual ensembles in vibrant colors. In the photo below,that's MISIS me wearing a cool aqua top with cowl neck, white shorts, and a cute tan handbag all by Benetton. 

I'm a big fan of menswear and Patrick has no choice but to play KEN DOLL for me.  He's your average jeans and tshirt kind of guy, possibly the most low maintenance fella you'll ever encounter---but he does indulge me from time to time, like yesterday when I asked him to try out the clothes in Benetton. Hehehe!

Who wants to shop with me???? 

Be my Barbie Doll for a day?

I'm treating ONE LUCKY BLOG READER

 to a super shopping spree worth

 10,000 PESOS at BENETTON!

1. Click the LIKE and TWEET buttons below.

2. Rummage through your closet and come up with your most stylish and colorful ensemble. Strike a pose. Send your fashion photo to pattylaurelblog@gmail.com along with your name, home address, and mobile number. 

The winner will be notified directly via email. Contest ends on December 10, 2012.

Love in the Details

Invitation Design by Fozzy Castro-Dayrit

Printing by Printsonalities

 

Ceremony Styling by Kaye Cunanan

Cross and Curtain by Cecil Filart and Bernice Sorongon

Ghost Chairs by Olive Tree

Wedding Cake by Angela Colet of Swell Sweets

Cake Topper Calligraphy by Alessa Lanot

Reception Styling and Catering by Kaye Cunanan

7 Course Sit Down Dinner Menu by Alessa Lanot

Table Assignments by ME! Yep, that's my handwriting. Hehehe :)

Candy Buffet Set Up by Mel Fernandez and Carms Hernandez of

Sugar and Spice Candy Buffet

Wedding Signs by Alessa Lanot 

Assisted by RG and Marge Montemayor

Entourage Flowers by Vatel Manila

Flower Girl Baskets by Kathleen Penaranda and Stef Juan

Photos by Catilo Photography

Event Styling and Catering by Kaye Cunanan

Kaye, when I stepped into the reception area---my jaw dropped. I wanted to tear up just looking at all the pretty little details you prepared!  To see all my pegs come to life, that made my heart swell up. Thank you Kaye for understanding my vision, for being such a good listener and for making this collaboration stress free for me!  You made this bride a very, very , very happy one!And based on the numerous raves from our friends and families, you made our guests super happy with the YUMMY food too! The steak was superb, the desserts were to die for, everything was delicious. We love you so much!!!

Wedding Props by Bernice Sorongon and Cecil Filart

Girlaloos, THANK YOU! Biro mo, may interior designer na, may architect pa kami! Big time talaga kami ni Pat!:) Thanks for taking charge of all the carpentry and design work--things we're absolutely clueless about! So blessed by you both!

Candy Buffet by Carms Hernandez and Mel Fernandez 

Girls, you've become more than just suppliers--you've become our friends. Your love for me and Patrick was written all over your sweet set up. Our guests absolutely loved the candy buffet--so much so that by the time we got there, wiped out na lahat! We apologize for the hoarders in our family! 

Entourage Flowers by Dylan Gozum 

Dylan, thank you for exceeding our expectations! The flowers were so delicately put together and they complimented our theme. My bouquet was so pretty I had a bit of separation anxiety. I had it sitting on a vase for days--praying it would last forever! hahaha! I also loved the floral cord you made, this was such a beautiful alternative to the traditional veil and cord. I'm so excited to see our B&B editorial!!! Eeeek!:)

Ghost Chairs by Florence Chan

Your chairs added that touch of class in our very rustic and laid back wedding. They glistened in the sun and made our photos pop even more. Thank you so much for being a part of our BIG DAY! 

Wedding Cake by Gel Colet
Gel, your cake was oh-so0o0o0-delicious!!! We had left over cake for breakfast! Sugar rush first thing in the morning. Haha :) Thanks for designing such an elegantly rustic cake for us. The fondant was flawless and the candied leaves looked so real! 

Alessa Lanot
Huyyy, Misisssss!!! Thank you Zexy for leaving your mark all over our wedding. There's so much to thank you for so it might take me all day to enumerate. Just wanted to say THANK YOU for helping me come up with a beautiful wedding even with a very tight budget! Your craftiness saved us from crappiness! Hahaha! Special thanks also to Kathleen Penaranda for squeezing your creative juices as well--the flower girl baskets were so dainty and sweet! Exactly what I had in mind! Thanks for working on all the details for me.

Prep Time

What I love most about weddings is that it's a big get together of all the people you love. It's an opportunity for you to gather your closest friends and family members under one roof and just revel in their love. This wedding made me realize that 1) Our friends are SPOILERS, they're the types of people who give 101% all the time. 2) Patrick and I enjoy being SPOILED! WE absolutely LOOOOVVE being the recipients of their affection and attention! From the sign posts, wedding cake, flower girl baskets, sandals, menu, table cards, etc----all these little details were lovingly made by our friends. Others also chose to serve us by taking the stressful jobs from our plates: like Anne and Dre who took care of RSVPing each and every guest, Dip designed and monitored our online gift registry, Stella took charge of all the hair/makeup preps, Cy made a cool dance playlist and the list of people we need to thank goes on and on and on. Even the nitty-gritty-turned-into-pretty details like carpentry work and other props, Cecil and Bernice took care of all these things for us. I am this close to planning another wedding, just so we can experience being baby-ed by our friends again. Renewal of vows naman???Hahahaha!! 

We were also so blessed to have the most considerate and helpful entourage ever! I wanted to give the girls the freedom to choose their own dress styles, to be able to wear something that would suit their personality. I just handed them the fabric and they designed their own dresses. This saved me a lot of moolah and a lot of stress too! They all looked stunning and I am just so happy my girlfriends all have good taste! Hahaha!:)

For the boys, talagang ZERO stress! My sister&brother in law Mic and Paul bought pants for the guys on sale in the States. Sobrang laking tipid at masaya pa yung mga groomsmen namin sa kanilang slim fit gray pants (which they can now use even after the wedding!). The peg was Ryan Gosling in GQ and they all pulled it off within our budget! Well done, gentlemen! Hahaha!

It is possible to pull off a beautiful wedding with a tight budget---IF and only IF, you have a set of good and dependable friends!:) Patrick and I couldn't have done this on our own! NO WAY, JOSE!  We were only able to execute all these little things because we had a whole baranggay of creative, innovative, and generous people backing us up. 

I woke up at 6AM on November 22 and started the morning with a prayer with Jam (Patrick's work assistant who has become one of my close friends too). At around 9AM, my girlfriends Stella, Sheila and Lea came and each of them prayed for me---and that's when the waterworks started. Magang-maga na mata ko buong umaga! Our preps were very simple and laid back---nothing too fancy to share but I wanted to post pictures anyway :)

Thanks so much to Rossel Taberna for sending her awesome The B LOUNGE team to do my entourage's hair and makeup. They all looked so fresh and sweet :)

I'd like to thank Ella and Sheena of LA TERCERA for making these custom wedding robes for me and my entourage! My girls looked so beautiful even during prep time thanks to these classy and ultra feminine cover ups. These robes are perfect as thank you gifts for MOHs, bridesmaids, and even your secondary sponsors. For inquiries, just email your color pegs and ideas to t3rcera@gmail.com :)

Here's my dad's first look of MOI in my wedding gown :)

On the other side of Hacienda Isabella, Patrick was camped out in isolation. We did cheat a bit and waved at each other from a distance. I missed him soooo much even if we were together for dinner just the night before! Hahaha! Drama ko diba!:) Here are some photos of Pat's preps with his brothers Jonsy and Paul. 

Thank you Veejay Floresca for Patrick's suit. Gray is a tricky color but he executed it so well. My husband looked so dapper and he survived the heat without sweating. Good job, Veej! Veejay even added this personalized embroidery inside the jacket! All together now---->AWWWWW!!!:) :) :)

I'll be posting more photos soon! Thanks for sharing in my kiliiiiiiigggg :)

The Makeup Wizard

Hi folks! I'm back! After nearly a week of being disconnected, I'm back to blogging!! HOORAY!!! (Thank you Manong Internet Connector Dude) You'll have to bear with me, I'll have to post pictures from our wedding in installments..hihihi. The Catilos have been kind enough to indulge us (eager beaver newlyweds) so we just have to wait a bit for the official photos! We have hundreds of pictures, all of which I'm dying to post here---so  get ready for a tsunami of pictures in the next 2 weeks!Hahaha!  

This morning, I'd like to say THANK YOU to a good old friend, Jasmine Mendiola. I've worked with a lot of brilliant makeup artists through the years--but for my wedding, it was important for me to choose a trusted friend. Jasmine is already well known in the wedding industry and I guess it's a bonus that we've known each other since college. But more than just her "name", I  chose her because of her actual work. I've had several shoots with her under different conditions (outdoor, indoor, aircon, under the heat of the sun) and her makeup has always been flawless. Malinis at Makinis, that's how I would like to describe her work. 

For all the brides out there, it's important that you choose your makeup artist carefully. To put it ever so bluntly, this person will have your face as hostage on the most important day of your life!!!! Even girls with the most delicate features ala-Natalie Portman can become victims of  poorly executed make-up, so take your time in selecting a makeup artist. Pick someone whose work is consistently excellent---this is something I can say is Jasmine's strength. She exerts the same effort on regular folks like me as she would on big shots like Tessa Prieto or Solenn Heusaff. 

I honestly believe that makeup artists (the sweet & considerate ones!)  are God's gifts to brides and I truly felt this on my wedding day because Jasmine literally held my hand all throughout my preps! She never left my side, keeping me calm and composed :) Thank you so much Jasmine! I pray that God will continue to use you to touch the lives of more brides!

For bookings, visit www.jasminemendiola.com. 

Special thanks to Donna Viola Andrada of MUD Manila and Sprint Asia for providing makeup products for my wedding. And my deepest thanks also to Marie Tan for working on my HAIR!

I'm giving away a gift certificate for a PERSONAL MAKE-UP CLASS 

worth Php9,800 

and a whole loot of make-up as well!!!

1. Click the LIKE and TWEET buttons below. 

2. Answer this simple question: "What's your favorite facial feature and how are you able to enhance it?" Tweet your answer to @jasminemendiola and add the hashtag #MUD"

"Hi @jasminemendiola I love my eyes so I always add a bit of white eyeshadow to enhance my chinky eyes! #MUD"

Contest ends on December 1. The winner will be notified via Twitter by Jasmine Mendiola.