Our Baler Wedding

"In high tide or in low tide, I'll be by your side."

Every girl wanted to have their dream wedding and I am so blessed and lucky to experience it with the love of my life, my husband - Jordan.



As everyone know, we met a couple of years, unexpectedly, in Baler. All I ever wanted that time was to to experience surfing on my birthday. So, I went to Baler to have my Birthday Surf and never thought I will find someone who I will spend the rest of my life with. Really glad he was my surf instructor, of all the surf schools and all the instructors in that place, destiny lead me to him.



The rest is history. To make the story short, we've decided on Forever - December 12, 2015 at Baler, Aurora - the most memorable place for both of us, the place where it all started.









    


Every wedding is perfect in its own special way. Mine is. What makes it even more special is because all my family was there. My husband's family was there and our friends was there. Though not all my friends from Manila.

It was my family's first time to visit Baler, I was more than happy that finally they can have a taste of what my life is everytime I go there every month or lucky, twice a month.

*some photos are grabbed from guests*

My Family



Hubby's Family

Some wedding ceremony photos. *will update/add more once i got all the official wedding photo copies*

   

Our reception ceremony was graced by my fellow bellydancer friends. This is my all time favorite gig ever! I've been performing in different events and occasions in the past but this is the first time my family has seen me perform live, really I was beyond happy! To add up more happiness, I danced with my Mom!

  

  

  


*Will add more reception photos soon*



Wedding Details, Planning and Organizing.
NOTE: I do not have a wedding planner or wedding organizer. I have decided to do a hands-on for this and ask for friends and families for cooperation when it comes to wedding march organization, reception event flow and hosting.


Wedding DIYs
We have 3 months to prepare. We've decided to tie the knot a year ago but we just started working on the details 3 months prior to the big day. Most of the wedding details are DIY. I love DIY so why not use my creativity on my wedding paraphernalia? I'm not really looking for cheaper ways, but to have a personal touch on my very own wedding. Total cost for all DIY stuff is approximately - 2,000.00

Wedding Ceremony Items:
Cord (DIY), beads = 350.00
Veil - 300.00
Arrhae - 60.00
Candles - 60.00

Other DIY Details:

Wedding Cord: I bought selected beads, brooch, crucifix from Carolina's and I made them based on my own idea. There's a lot of inspiration online, but at the end of the day, your own idea will always be your choice.

Candle: Bought candles from a grocery store and decorated it with my available cloth and ribbon I got from Carolina's as well.

    



Ring and Arrhae Pillows: Another favorite creation of mine. These are hand-sewn. Pillow inserts are from my old pillow. Just added ribbons and cord.

  


Flower Girl Baskets: Bought 3 for 100 at Tabora street. I decorated it with cloth and ribbons.

Boutonnieres: Also m fave creation, I enjoyed working on this one. made of random art supplies from National Bookstore. Added 'beach/sea-related' stuff to make it look like a beach-themed wedding. Some shells I used are from Baler which are part of my collection.

   


Bible Cover: Not really a cover, but I just used spare ribbon to give it a little decoration.

My DIY Guestbook Idea






Church Fee and Wedding Ceremony Items 

Another reason why I wanted a Baler wedding is because church here is cheaper than what we have in Manila. As for the requirement, it's not as much as well. Here's what we paid for on wedding church and choir.




Church Fee - 2,000.00
(church organizer, decoration/flowers included)
(500 pesos fee for photo/video included)
Church Choir - 800.00



Wedding Reception + Catering
We have chosen AMCO Bearch Resort in Sabang. During our planning, we've realized that weather in Baler during December is unpredictable, so better secure an indoor location. Here's what we have for a 150 pax package offered by AMCO:




*glimpse of the set-up*



AMCO Beach Resort Wedding Package = 55,000 for 150 pax
Inclussions:

• Reception Venue 
• Reception set-up (decorations, flowers, tables, chairs)
• 5-course meal set
• Sound System
• Free: Wine
• Free: 1 night accommodation

 Menu:
*Recieves a lot of possitive feedback from the guests. Food are really good!*

• Beef Caldereta
• Chicken Cordon Blue
• Pork Asado
• Fish FIllet with White Sauce
• Mixed Veggies with Quail Egg
• Fresh Fruits Platter
• Iced Tea

*Reception venue (5 hrs, but we are allowed to extend hours for free since there's no other event for that day. Reception set-up also started the night before the wedding. Really glad there's no event prior to us, which gave the decorators more time to set-up the place*
You can contact AMCO Beach Resort here.




Wedding Outfit -  Bride:
This is my favorite part, how I love my wedding dress and how simple yet cheap it is. I got it from Landmark, I accidentally saw this dress on my way out of the shopping mall. I tried it and it fits...perfectly! Bought it at the price of P585. I worked on beading at the belly area, though.

Wedding Dress - 585.00
Shoes from Rusty Lopez - 1,500
Hair Piece = 300.00
TOTAL = 2,385




  




Wedding Outfit -  Groom:

Michael Andre Coat - 3,000
Michae Andre Pants - 900.00
Inner longsleeve from Landmark - 600.00
Shoes from Milano - 1,200
TOTAL = 5,700

  





Wedding Entourage Outfit - Maid of Honor, Secondary Sponsors & Bridesmaids
I'm really glad that reafab - an online shop from cebu where I buy my swimwear and dresses offered me Infinity Dresses for my entourage. Not only I got them from really affordable price, but the quality is really good as well. You can normally buy infinity dress in stores, tyangge and divi for 2K and above, but from reafab, she only quote all 8 dresses for 4,000.

4 floor-length dresses (for Maid of Honor and SecondarySponsors) at 550.00 each - 2,200
4 knee-length dresses (for brides maids) at 450.00 each - 1,800




Wedding Entourage Outfit - Best Man, Secondary Sponsors & Grooms Men
We provided long sleeve polo for the boys from 168 Mall Divisoria.
Got a total of 8 polo at the price of 2,000.

Longsleeve polo at 250.00 each - 2,000.00

Flower Girl Dresses After a bit haggling from a store at 168 Mall Divisoria, I got these 3 cute flower girl dresses for only 2,100.00

3 flower girl dresses at 700.00 each - 2,100
3 flower crowns (3 for 100) - 100.00





Ring Bearer, Bible Bearer, Coin Bearer Outfit
Same as the guys in entourage, we only provided long sleeve polo, but I added little neckties for these boys. Got them all for 1,000.00

3 longsleeves polo at 250.00 each - 750.00
3 neckties at 100 each, less 50 - 250.00







Mom and Dad's Outfit
Got my mom a set of Filipiniana-inspired dress for the wedding. Bought it from 168 mall, same with my dad's hombre style barong.

Mom's Dress - 900.00
Dad's Barong - 500.00





Flowers: Bridal Bouquet, Mini Bouquet, Bridal Car Flowers
Our flowers are from Baguio but a good friend of my husband is really good to quote us for a very minimal fee. We only spent 2,000.00 for this, flower arrangement included.

Inclusions:
1 - bridal bouquet
8 - mini bouquet for maid of honor, secondary sponsors and bridesmaids
1 - bridal car flowers










Wedding Rings
Lucky to avail 50% discount from Karat World. Got this pair for only 12,500 (25,000 original price)
(visit Karat World website)





Wedding Cake
This lovely wedding cake from Madison's Cakes and Pastries at Baler. I sooooo love their creation. For the cake toppers, I provided this 'chibi' image of us and the 'Best Day Ever' sign made by my officemate. This 2-layered hombre Chocolate Cake with Hazelnut Filling is only 4,000.00
Thanks to my friend Ruby for sponsoring my cake, really a great gift!






Wedding Souvenirs
The original plan was a mason jar, but it's quite difficult to buy in bulk from divisoria during Christmas season, also kinda risky to transport from Manila to Baler. This candy souvenir is a last minute decision. Just saw it from a novelty store in 168 Mall in Divisoria. Each bottle costs 25.00, not bad really. I just print personalized stickers and added ribbons in it.
9pcs per tray. I bought 10 trays.

90 pcs. at 25.00 each - 2,250


  





Wedding Invitations
This is another DIY creation of mine - a 4-page wedding invitation. It's quite hard to decide on wedding invitation, there are tons to choose from. Finally, Ive decided to have a cartoons/chibi themed invitation. My officemate Jokai did a great job creating a chibi image of me and Jordan which I used for the invitation, cake topper and souvenir prints.

I made a total of 30 invitations which was given to Principal Sponsors, Entourage and few freinds and families. I just made an online invitation thru fb for other friends.

Materials and Expenses:

• Photo Printing (a total of 45 pages at 55 pesos each) - 2,500.00
• FREE: (4 pages of stickers for invitation/souvenir)
• Photo Paper: 3 packs at 40 pesos each - 120.00
• Special Paper for envelope - 50.00
• Lace (10 yards at 15 per yard) - 150.00
  TOTAL = 2,820

  


      





Photo and Video

GDG Films
The hardest part of wedding planning (for me) is looking for a photo and video team. There are so many talented photographers to choose from, but if you are considering your budget and a good quality output, it's not quite easy. I am losing hope after searching for months, really glad that a friend of mine referred GDG Films, little did I know she's a part of wedding coordination team - Southern Occasions

So, I contacted GDG Films (Jet Dy Gabatan) the owner and after few minutes of negotiation we closed a deal. I swear, I got the right choice, I love their work, I love this team and definitely worth it.
Please check out the links provided below to contact Jet Gabatan of GDG Films

My Package Includes: 
*Don't forget to contact them to know more about their team's wedding package and offers*

• Pre-nup Photo and Video 
• Same Day Edit
• Onsite Photo
• Wedding Photo and Video coverage
• Hair and Make-up (Makeup by Rouchele): Prenup and Wedding Day
• Photo Album

The most unforgettable videos of my life, a huge thanks GDG Films/Jet Dy Gabatan!!!

Engagement/Pre-nup Video
Vimeo URL: https://vimeo.com/147677176

Wedding Day: Same Day Edit Video
Vimeo URL: https://vimeo.com/148837428

I'm really glad I found this team. They are so nice, accommodating and cool. From prenup to wedding day itself, I feel so at ease working with these people. You can contact Jet Dy Gabatan here: GDG Facebook and see his sample works here - GDG Videos.



Total Computation: 
Church Fee/Choir/Wedding Ceremony Items = 3,570
Wedding Reception + Catering = 55,000
Wedding Outfit: Bride = 2,100
Wedding Outfit: Groom = 5,700
Wedding Entourage Outfit: Girls = 4,000
Wedding Entourage Outfit: Boys = 2,000
Flower Girl Dresses =2,100
Ring, Bible, Coin Bearer Outfit = 1,000
Parent's Outfit - 1,400
Flowers: Bridal Bouquet, Mini Bouquet, Bridal Car Flowers = 2,000
Wedding Rings = 12,500
Wedding Invitations = 2,800
Wedding DIY/Misc = 2,000
___________________________________________________________
TOTAL EXPENSES =  93,770 (Photo and Video NOT included)


Free/Sponsored:
Wedding Cake = 4,000.00
Wedding Souvenirs = 2,250

TIPS if you are on a budget:

* Don't be afraid to haggle to get the lowest price for the items you want to purchase.
* Don't be shy to ask for family/friend's help with the DIY if needed. (though on my part I want to be hand-on in all my DIYs)
* For bridal car, if you know someone who can lend you, please don't hesitate to ask for a huge favor. It's your wedding, they couldn't say No.
* If people offer for sponsorship (cakes, souvenirs, entourage outfit), just go with it.
* If you can DIY your invitations (i know a lot of couples who do this, nothing beats something that has personal touch) and with help of friends and families, please do so.
* If you know someone who can host, you might want to give it a try. This is applicable if you want a friendly-chill type of reception. Not for those who want to have a formal, hi-class ceremony, then you might want to hire professionals.
* If you have friends and family who can work together as 'coordinators' - assisting you from wedding preps to organizing the reception ceremony, then you're lucky. Just let them know what you want to do, what you want to happen and always set a meeting. They are not professional wedding organizers, but sure they can handle it if you are all well-organized with the event flow and ideas.
*Pay more attention to Food/Catering. It doesn't matter if you spend more on this as long as you and your guests are happy and satisfied with the food. Be selective on this.
*Same with Photo and Video - the memories will stay forever. You can spend less on material stuff on your wedding but investing on good photos and videos that will capture your special day is really something you have to focus on.

(I will add more, feel free to share your tips on the comment section too!) 



ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS:

• To God Almighty for letting this happen. You are the reason for everything, we coudln't thank you enough, Lord!
• To my family and Jordan's family of course for your time, effort, love and support. We love you so much!
• To my brother and sister who flew all the way from abroad just to witness this very special day. Thanks guys it means a lot!
• To my bestfriend who never fail to assist me from the day she arrived at Baler. You're the best bestfriend I love you so much!!! Thanks for the souvenirs!
• To Ruby, the ever busy girl, thanks for the cake and for the effort of traveling alone and you just don't exactly know where to go. I love you!
• Super thanks to my officemates who braved long travels and 1-day Baler visit. yes, they arrived 5am and left 3pm that same day. Kudos to you guys, what more can I say?
• Of course, to the rest of my officemates and friends who sent their warm wishes, thank you.
• Super thanks of course to my bellydancer friends who helped me grace my wedding reception ceremony. Two-thumbs up to you girls for that 5-props in 1 performance, really great indeed. It was my all time fave performance above all.
• Thanks a lot to my friend to hosted my ceremony. I know it was your first time to host but you did a great job, thanks so much girl for helping me out.
• Thank you to this couple for lending us your car. Super like my bridal car that day, Jordan and I are so thankful.
• To our surfer friends who skipped work, who traveled from Manila and who set aside their personal agenda just to be there on our special day, thanks a lot.
• To my entourage, thank you so much for being a part of our wedding.
• To our principal sponsors, we are ever so thankful.
• To our photo and video team, you guys are the best and the coolest. Hoping to see you guys again soon.
• To our pretty hair and makeup artist Rouchelle, super thanks for making me look pretty on my special day. Love yah girl!
• To Ms. Carol of AMCO Beach Resort, thanks so much for accomodating all my inquiries from day 1 up to my big day. Thanks for making sure everything from reception to food to our accommodation are pretty smooth. The food and set-up are great!
• To those I forgot, thank you so much, you know who you are. Don;t worry I can always edit this blog to add you up. haha! Thank You!!!