Mishka Designs

I have oodles, so here we go! Congratulations are way in order for Karah who tied the knot with her beau this November 26th in Merida. She chose Nikki's design and I love the color combination... Congratulations as well to Jocelyn who said her "i do's" at the Dreams Villa Magna in Nuevo Vallarta this December 3rd. She chose the popular White Flowers design.... Congratulations to Heather who said "of course!" to her groom this past December 6th in Puerto Morelos. Heather had a slight peacock theme but didn't want the maracas to be like a peacock feather exactly ... we found a peacock inspired graphic and Heather chose to do that - I think they turned out very classical... Shout out to Greg an Marianne who tied the knot this past December 6th at Dreams Puerto Vallarta and chose a combination of white flowers and the palm tree design - quite tropical! I adore these maracas and a big congrat goes to Bridget who said i do this past December 12th at the Sheraton ... Bridget combined two of our maraca designs, the Shaye and the Joy, and I think the end result was just ... well, heart heart! Coming-up, some fans we did for a sweet bride and, of course, I have the photos back from Soco and am ready to post Jenn & Kent's amazing Sayulita vintage garden wedding.... I will try to get to it before Christmas so ya'all have some eye candy . Also, don't forget to enter the WINWIN contest which is just a mere 3 weeks away from the drawing!

Sanyu & Deke's Beach Bohemian Wedding Wow - I honestly don't even know where to begin . When Sanyu and Deke first approached me about their wedding it was to be held at Dreams. Then a few months out it changed to El Dorado. And, then, with a week to go, it turned into Casa Garza Blanca. If I told you how this all happened you would think it was from a movie, so we'll just skip all of that and say that I have never ever seen a couple more calm, patient and simply going with the flow as Deke and Sanyu ... and the end result turned out to be even better than I had imagined. I knew it was going to be beautiful but, quite honestly, sometimes I even surprise myself . (Our staff photographer, Soco, took all these photos by the way! Woohoo!) INSPIRATION BOARD Every once-in-a-while I get a couple who send me a couple of images and seem very content to just let me create whatever, and Deke and Sanyu were such a couple. As I discovered more about them and asked them to send me some images of themselves what really struck me was that the photos they sent me, they were always smiling - looking so content, happy and at peace. One image in particular stuck out and that was this one up above - in front of the Love sculpture in New York City, which was one of their favorite places to go. I knew we had to have that image in the wedding ... I also knew that Sanyu really liked orchids ... from there, the rest was easy . THE CEREMONY & COCKTAIL The only real comment Sanyu and Deke made about the decor was that they wanted things to be more natural and neutral with pops of color. I absolutely adore Sanyu's bouquet which was filled with orchids, roses and hydrangae. It looked beautiful against her dress. As the guests entered the ceremony area, we had a poster designed and drawn just for Sanyu and Deke which they later took with them as a memento. We then lined the ceremony aisle with strung orchids and roses as well as strung orchids and roses on the back of the chuppah. A beautiful gold fabric was draped across the front of the chuppah to give it a bit more of a regal air to it. In the middle of the spiritual ceremony, Sanyu's mother performed a traditional Ugandan wedding basket ceremony and brought baskets from Uganda for that purpose ... I heart heart the fans - perfect blend of romance and elegance and Antonio did an amazing job of hand-painting them. Before concluding the ceremony, everyone did a tequila toast which was sweet! This was just a beautiful ceremony set-up for an absolutely beautiful couple. After the ceremony the cocktail was held on the wooden deck next to the ceremony area, with tables decorated in green with bright pops of magenta. THE RECEPTION After cocktails, the guests were invited up to the pool area for the reception. So much going on here! Tables were decorated with amazing purple orchids from Holland in painted adobe bases. Napkins were a rich chocolate gold with place cards tucked inside. Traditional Mexican toys were provided for the children. We can't rent wooden tables here but were fortunate enough to have Stewart from Plush (who also did the yummy food) provide them for us from the new El Dorado restaurant. We made paper screens for the candles in chocolate brown and creams to give a more natural feel to the tables and the candlelight. In the grass, we placed a small replica of the Love statute, which I'm happy to say had a lot of photos taken in front of it . We filled the pool with paper lanterns which had the word "love"written in Spanish, English and Sanyu's native dialect, Luganda. THE PHOTOBOOTH Patrick Malloys was a bar where they first "met"so to speak . I knew I wanted the sign created but didn't really know what we were going to do with it until I learned that their photographer, Nate, wanted to do a photo booth - I heart heart heart this sign and think Omar did an absolutely amazing job! THE DANCE FLOOR Wow, this was seriously pretty at night ... the floor, of course, had a replica of the Love photo which was awesome to watch people dancing on ... 3 different shades of gold chiffon fabric encircled the floor and Chinese lanterns were in tones of magenta, purple, golds and green. I know I'll probably put up way too many photos but it was soooo pretty . We passed out maracas as everyone was dancing which we did-up in true Bohemian fashion with the words "Truth, Love, Beauty and Freedom"printed in both Spanish and English. THE CAKE Sanyu wanted cupcakes, so cupcakes she had! They must have been yummy because every last cupcake was gone, as well as the cutting cake - Memo made red velvet topped with cream cheese - num! THE SURPRISE Sanyu & Deke had originally wanted fire dancers but it was just not in the budget. With some creativity, I managed to squeeze enough money together to surprise them with firedancers at the end of the evening ... my ideas are usually bigger than my budgets so I'm not usually able to do this, but I'm always thrilled when I can . Honestly, while the journey had been rocky, the wedding was a picture perfect fairy-tale day filled to the brim with love, laughter and joy - who could ask for more than that?! One word for this wedding .... Love.

Two more November shout-outs while I'm getting Sanyu & Deke's blog ready .... Congratulations to Kate who tied the knot this past November 19th. Kate ordered a little series of things - maracas, reserved signs, tags for shawls, photo booth sign and a cone for sand...they were fun little projects and I like how they turned out. Shout-out to Amber who tied the knot November 18th. Amber wanted something done like her logo - so, that's what Israel did and I think he did a really good job of replicating it . A couple more November shout-outs coming up and, of course, photos of the wedding I keep yakking about .

Well, maybe not gillions, but we have a lot of shout-outs this past November, so, without further ado, here they are.... Seahorse, Marlins, Starfish and more... Big shout-out to Chris & Stacey who tied the knot this past November 12th in Cabos. Stacey chose 4 different designs in her wedding colors of acqua, marine blue, white and hot pink. Doing some palm tree love, a big congratulations goes to Jena who tied the knot with her fiance this past November 13th in Dreams PV. Big shout-out to Amber & Ronald who said their "i dos" also November 13th with the help of Kayla fromEquisitely Dunn. They ordered painted maracas and Kayla surprised the couple with burnt engraved maracas but I only seem to have pictures of the burnt/engraved . Congratulations are in order for Alecia who tied the knot November 13th in Dreams Riviera Cancun. Shout-out to Krista & Cody who got married this November 13th at the One and Only Palmilla in Cabos - I have to tell you that Martha, their coordinator, is one of THE BEST hotel coordinators I have ever come into contact with. November 13th was a super busy day as Deanna and James said "yes!" at the Dreams Riviera Cancun. Congratulations to Tiffany for tying the knot in the Riviera Maya this November 17th. Unfortunately, we were so busy this November, that photos of her maracas didn't get taken, but she had chosen the famous Kate for her design in her wedding colors of coral and orange. Congratulations to Kim for saying "of course!" to her groom this past November 19th ... we did matching fans and a drink sign for Kim's wedding and I think they turned out pretty cool! Another shout-out to a different Kim who was married at Secrets Silversands in Cancun this November 19th. Congratulations to Lucia for saying "yes yes!" this November 22nd. We are still missing a few November shout-outs but I'm waiting on pictures from the artists ... up next the photos from Deke y Sanyu's amazing wedding! Also, the WINWIN contest is still going-on - don't forget to enter the drawing to win 20 of our hand-painted maracas!

Something else that might be fun would be to get a day pass to the Grand Mayan ... they have a large lazy river, pools, shows, etc. I have a 2 year old daughter and, as soon as it gets warm again (haha - warm to you guys maybe but I think it's getting cold we're going! Also, the Malecon on Sundays is super fun for all ages - they have live music around 5 pm in the square for the older people (music called "danzon" and they all dance - it's fun to watch) followed by a bit younger music (like salsa, cumbia, etc.), and clowns and other stuff - families love to go down there walking, eat some street food, etc. It's one of my daughters and my family's favorite things to do .

you guys are sweet . Allyson should be on here any day now - and she truly is as great in person as she is online and her groom is absolutely awesome as well - isn't that the best? .

Just a couple of notes ... I've lived here 7 years and we've never had a hurricane. Not to say it doesn't happen - I do think there was one here in the late 80's/early 90's. But, you know, it's not common like say in Cancun. If I had to recommend my favorite time of year it would be between December 2-14. We have a festival (festival de la virgin de guadalupe) that runs through that time period and they shut down one of the main streets downtown and it's very festive and fun - and different. PLUS the weather is AWESOME. Months I would advise against at all costs would be July-September. It will rain. It will be hot. And it will be humid. In September you have the additional problem of finding vendors - many restaurants and stores close down in September because business is so slow and I know many coordinators who won't take weddings in September. Including myself . October is typically very hot and humid as all get-out. And there's a good chance it will rain, although we've been lucky and it hasn't rained on one of our weddings yet (at least not the important parts .... November can be on the warm side, but way better than previous months. This year it's been (in my opinion) slightly cold at night and in the mornings which means it's perfect during the day. Absolute best time is Dec-April - perfect weather - beautiful. Awesome. ETc. May is one of the busiest months for weddings here in Vallarta. It runs a little on the hot and humid side and slight chance of rain. But, if you like the month of May, you want to book early because it fills up fast. And that's my two pesos worth ... I have no idea on the costs because I live here so I don't know how much hotels fluctuate in their prices. But weather - well, that I know .

Well, I know some of you think I have taken FOREVER and a day to post this wedding but, honestly, there was soooo much to it and I couldn't whittle down what I wanted to share so, hey, it's my blog and I'll post as many pictures as I want to! ha! (photos donated by both Aaron Wulf and untagged photos by Jillian Mitchell - thank you guys!). The wedding was held October 9, 2010 at Dreams Puerto Vallarta. Seriously awesome, amazing couples to start off the wedding season - first our multi-cultural sweet as honey couple Adam and Perla and, then, the dynamic, absolutely gracious Allyson & Jason - so blessed! Allyson came and basically told me she wanted BLING she wanted BANG she wanted WOWZERS and I said "SWEET!" Definitely a detail bride, everything she came to me with which she had already chosen was EXACTLY what I would have recommended had we started at the very very beginning (which we sortof did ... Monogram After discussing it a bit, we decided that the colors would be shades of pink with accents in silver and black. We were going for a hollywood glam but in a bit more vintage style. This was Allyson's design board: THE CEREMONY Can I heart heart heart my own ceremony? Of course I can! Nothing says "vintage" to me more than roses, so we selected white roses for Allyson's bouquet - I found this amazing vintage brooch when I was out and about and it ended-up matching Allyson's gown - we had a lot of those "coincidences" going on through-out this wedding which was cherries and more cherries. Allyson had one maid of honor and we decided to do pale blush pink roses to really off-set against her beautiful silver-gray bridesmaid dress. Miniature pale pink roses were chosen for Jason's bout and I am an accent girl - so anytime I can find a cool accent and have a place to put it I do, which is how that beautiful crystal accent found its way on Jason's bout. We made flower girl purses out of beautiful pink hand-beaded lace. The stage was set! Bridal Bouquet Bridesmaid Bouquet Groom Bout Flower Girl As guests arrived they were greeted with a sign and some flip-flops to change into so as not to get their heels dirty and full of sand . Hand-painted clear plastic fans with black handles were placed on top of the ceremony programs one of Allyson's friends made-up for her. I wanted an amazing ceremony aisle and I think the boys did a fantastic job ... All leading up to this absolutely amazing chuppah - seriously one of the prettiest ones I think we've ever done ... the chandelier base, believe it or not, I brought down from the States in my suitcase in pieces and we created it once I got home. I heart heart everything about this ceremony set-up. THE COCKTAIL We were intending on having part of the cocktail down below Oceana - but we hadn't really counted on the turtles hatching down there - so we moved it all up underneath the palapa and I think it worked out even better. A sign announced the event being held there that day. Silver vintage looking couches were brought-in, accented with black and pink and silver pillows and silver candle sticks were filled with miniature blush roses and surrounded by candles. We used the maracas as a decoration favor piece . TEQUILA TASTING/ESCORT CARDS I decided to kill two birds/one stone and we used the tequila shot glasses as containers to hold the escort cards. Signs introducing various tequilas, as well as the history behind it, were perched in silver photo frames. THE RECEPTION Six chandeliers filled with roses and crystals lined the center of the reception area. We also had candles with strung crystals hanging off to the side and gray curtains framing the entire space. Table marker names were based on Cold Play songs, as Allyson & Jason have a long history and their relationship story is tied-into Cold Play. Silver candlesticks went down the center of each table as well as floating hot pink roses. I found this amazing black/silver patterned napkins and we perched the hand-detailed crystal place cards inside each fork. Silver chivari chairs were brought up from the ceremony to complete the look. THE DANCE FLOOR Unfortunately, I can't seem to get my hands on a good photo of the dance floor chandelier which a local florist, Francisco, was kind enough to lend us. It looked awesome! We also transformed the wall behind the DJ with a cut-out which looked nice during the day but, at night, it was lit-up and looked spectacular. Down below the dance floor a cigar roller was in place along with a small cigar lounge for all to enjoy their cigars. THE CAKE I HEART HEART HEART this cake - I found a picture of something similar once and fell in love - I like the simplicity yet the absolute elegance of it and Memo, once again, outdid himself. Many of the crystals adorning the cake came from some old vintage jewelry of Dolores del Rio, a famous Mexican actress. At the end of the evening Allyson and Jason had a bonfire and an ice-cream gathering out on the beach which was a great, relaxing way to end the evening. It was one of those picture-perfect weddings and I'm super happy we were a part of it. Coming-up Sanyu & Deke's Beach Bohemian Wedding and not long after Jennifer & Kent's Sayulita Vintage Wedding! Forward and onward!

In the midst of the maracas and wedding design, Kerry from Sayulita Wave came to us and asked if we could help out Allison - a super sweet bride who wanted something outside the box for her floral arrangements. I loved the whole idea and vibe of Allison's wedding and said "YES" ... Allison had these amazing hats and hair pieces done by Alisha Stevens of Love Charlie. As you can imagine, these were a huge inspiration for the rest of the decor and I love how it all came together. Bridal Bouquet Bridesmaid Bouquets Bouts Corsages Centerpieces Ceremony Aisle Ceremony Altar Flowers I know I have been promising forever but I mean it this time - Allyson & Jason's wedding photos are coming-up - there are just so many good ones and so much to talk about it's taking me a bit .

November has been a crazy crazy month and it's not even half-way through! We do have some shout-outs to do so here they go! Beautiful Orange and White Big Congrats goes to Tara & Dave who tied the knot at the RIU Vallarta this past November 2nd. Tara sent me her invites (HEART HEART!) and asked us to do maracas, menus, wedding programs and place cards based off the invite ... Everything together Maracas (heart heart! Awesome job Omar!) Menus Ceremony Programs Place cards Orange and Pink - Always in Style You're going to be seeing a lot of the Kate in this blog post - last year our most popular design was Lacy Romance and this year it's hand's down, the Kate! Big shout-out to Melissa for tying the knot with her love at the Grand Riviera Princess this past November 4th. Melissa added her initials to the popular design to personalize it and make it her own . Flowers with Magenta & Chocolate Touch Congratulations to Megan & Ian who said "i do" in Las Caletas this past November 5th. Megan sent her invites which I think are just really beautiful and Omar worked some magic and created these HEART HEART maracas! Last Year's Runner-Up WINWIN winner Ashley entered our WINWIN contest last year - and, while she didn't win, she had so many entries that I decided she needed some sort of prize! Congratulations to this big sweetheart who tied the knot with her love November 5th at Le Kliff. She chose the super popular Kate design and we also painted a matching fan as her "thank you for having so many entries" prize . Gerbers in Red and Lemon Green Shout-out is in order for Kim and Dave who said "we will forever" this past November 6th at one of my favorite villas, Casa Cosmos. Kim chose the Amanda in her colors of red and lime green and I think they turned out really pretty. Fuschia and Orange Kate And, last but not least, congrats are in order for Monica who said her "i dos" at the Hotel Las Palmas in Ixtapa-Zihuatanejo. I've never been down there, but heard it's beautiful - so we'll wait for her report . She chose the popular Kate in her wedding colors of orange and fuschia. Coming-up photos of Allyson & Jason's wedding - and I mean it this time!

I wrote about this a while back and, okay, I pretty much stick with the same things but in case you want to get off the beaten touristy path, here are a few places I like to eat. And, yeah, I'm not a orange salsa dribbled on top of walnuts grown in the rain forest and marinated in oyster's from the Baltic sea kind of girl, so the food I'm recommending is just good, plain, num food. BREAKFAST Hands down my two favorite places are: 1. Freddy Toucans...Basilio Badillo 245 in Old Town It's just a staple of good breakfast and great service. My favorites are chilaquiles rojos which I usually add a couple of eggs to or if you love good beef, they make an awesome machaca. On Sat/Sundays this place gets crammed pretty quick and you may have to wait 15-20 minutes before you can get in - but I swear it's worth it. 2. Don't Know the Name .... Rio de La Plata - close to Brasilia in the Colonia 5 de Diciembre This place is absolutely amazing and the price will blow your socks off. It's in the living room, backyard of the chef's house - the backyard is this small little garden oasis that you can't believe just looking at the front of the house. You'll know you're at the right place because there will be about 2 tables in the front with some chairs and, in this residential neighborhood, well, it stands out . Seriously great great food and the price is unbeatable. LUNCH/DINNER Well, I stick to stuff I like. Which is: 1. Pipis ... Guadalupe Sánchez #807, Downtown Vallarta I'm not going to lie and say the food is absolutely amazing - it is a TexMex style food - but it is GOOD and it is PLENTIFUL. The chips and salsa are awesome and they make guacamole right at the table (it's customary to tip the guy making the complimentary guacamole - we usually give him $20.00 pesos). The margaritas are HUGE and YUMMY (I love peach, mango or banana). My favorite dish is nachos which I always ask them put carne desebrada (shredded beef) on it - for $60.00 pesos you can't beat it. But I also like their Mexican platter which is big enough to feed 3-4 people. Shell out $50.00 pesos for the Mexican Trio to sing my favorite which is Guadalajara or maybe La Bamba or Cancion del Mariachi or Besame Mucho. 2. Mayoyote ... Guatamala y Bolivia (thereabouts) in 5 de Diciembre If you want some good carne asada, this is the place to go. Homemade tortillas and just really really good tacos and quesadillas. This place started out this little tiny place and every year they've added to it and it's grown to something pretty special. 3. El Brujo .... venustiano carranza 510 in Emiliano Zapata (close to Old Town) This is where I send people when they tell me they want true Mexican food. Must order the Molcajate which is this amazing spiced beef which is served in a bowl of lava rock with cactus, onion and panela cheese, homemade tortillas to the side - absolutely YUM. Their margaritas are also nummy and I recommend the mango margarita. 4. Pollo Feliz .... all over the place ... it's a chain restaurant Don't laugh. I know it's a chain. But their tortillas are made from hand. The chicken is grilled on a huge grill in the back and it's just yummy. If you like grilled chicken tacos, this is the place to go. Don't be shy . Get the guacamole and a quesadilla (which you will fill with the chicken) ... it comes with their amazing salsa. 5. Tinos....http://tinos.tinosvallarta.com/malecon/esp/index.html They have several locations but for most of you the most convenient one is probably right downtown. I remember when they had only 2 places, so this little restaurant has grown . My favorite is shrimp cocktail but really any of their fish and shrimp is good. It's just a staple of good seafood . A BIT DIFFERENT 1. Aqua Fresca .... they like to serve water down here that's been flavored naturally with fruit. My favorite place for this treat is the Michoacana (it's a chain) and my favorite one is located right smack downtown next to Los Arcos, right across the street from Starbucks. I love Naranja (orange), Jamaica (it's a kind of root of fruit - really refreshing on a hot day and you're thirsty), and horchata (which is a rice based, milk drink spiced with cinnamon). 2. Street sold corn. When you are walking around downtown (especially at night) you'll see a few street vendors selling corn in a cup. I will admit that this is a MUCH better treat in mexico city because the corn, for some reason, in Vallarta is a little on the dry side. But a good treat, nonetheless. I like mine with mayonnaise, cheese (it's a special kind of cheese - I swear this isn't as good without it), some lemon, some salt, a little dry pepper spice.... you mix it altogether and eat it - yummy.

It took me a bit but here we are! Adam & Perla were an AMAZING couple to start off the 2010 wedding season! Being part of a multi-cultural relationship I completely understood when they both wanted to really combine the best of both worlds while, at the same time, really show-casing the colors and flavors of Mexico. They sent me first their invite, which I love: While their main colors were bright orange and light blue, Perla also wanted to include a few more colors so that the event was a bit more colorful - so we added-in touches of yellow and red and a turquoise blue in order to accent the main colors. This was the inspiration board: THE CEREMONY We decided to utilize papel picado to introduce each of the different areas of the party, so we started off with a papel picado sign to indicate where the ceremony was to be .... I used gerbers, sunflower, circus roses, wax flowers and pin cushions for Perla's colorful bouquet. The bridesmaids had similar flowers but I accented theirs more with red and made them a bit smaller. They both wanted the ceremony decor to be more about the beach than anything else. So, still considering the papel picado idea, Antonio created this amazing wooden chuppah and then we spiced it up a bit with bright colorful flowers. Adam's favorite flower was a sunflower so I thought it would be really beautiful and simple to use sunflowers to decorate the aisle. THE COCKTAIL Since we were going to be doing a lounge, station dinner, instead of a sit-down dinner, we decided to utilize high cocktail tables in the Hacienda. I love using pinata bases and filling them with flowers and, as an added Mexican artisan touch, we added-in metal frames of Frida and her artwork ... Perla loved the tin can centerpieces we did for Sara y Nick but I don't like doing the same thing twice if I can help it - so I thought we would use similar cans but punch holes in them and use them as candles instead- they looked awesome at night and were pretty decorations during the day! For the "guest book" we had a caricature drawn-up of them with space on the border for guests to write their well wishes. In the cocktail pool we placed their initials with flowers. I lucked out and found this amazing embroidered look patterned fabric with birds and Perla & Adam's colors and we peppered the lounge furniture with it and, of course, they had a Mariachi band to lead the guests from the ceremony to the cocktail area. Lovely! THE RECEPTION/DANCE FLOOR After the cocktail, we opened the doors into the Casita - we had more food stations in this half and a bit more lounge furniture along with a huge dance floor, as they had hired a local Cuban band and I knew it would fill up quickly (which it did ... We filled the dance floor with various colors and sizes of Chinese lanterns and, of course, had our famous maracas which we passed out during a fun song for guests to shake and dance with. In this pool we had papel-picado like lanterns floating in the pool. I loved this space but, yes, heart heart the cake - Memo did an AMAZING job with what I asked him to do - to give you an idea, you'll see the example I gave him and, then, what he did with it - HEART HEART! WHAT I GAVE MEMO: WHAT HE DID Coming-up in the next couple of days I will have a VERY different wedding to show - Allyson & Jason's wedding which took place the very next weekend - crystals, roses, glam ... fun! Don't forget to enter the WINWIN contest to win 20 of our hand-painted maracas - the drawing will be January 15th.

Why don't you pm me and I'll send you the info? :)

Well, my dear brides, as you've probably noticed I'm BEHIND - this season has started off with a bang so now I'm going to do my best to catch-up to the maraca brides who've tied the knot in this blog and, coming-up this week (I promise) you're going to get a real treat - awesome photos of both Adam and Perla's wedding AND Allyson & Jasons! Unusual Palm Trees Big Congrats goes to Becca & Whitney who tied the knot in Isla Mujeres this past October 15th. Whitney wanted us to do something similar to her invite - I had a hard time saving the invite, so it's sortof small, but I promise the maracas look just like it . Pretty Orange and Pop of Fuschia Huge shout out to Julie & Nick who tied the knot October 19th at the Azul Beach Hotel in the Riviera Maya - Julie's been a maraca fan for quite some time and she did a great job of ordering her Kate maracas - she wanted strong pops of color for her maracas and I think these probably hit the spot! Tropical Blues and Pink Congratulations are in order for Kym and Bryan who chose to tie the knot October 19th at the ever-popular Dreams Riviera Cancun. There is always a maraca design that makes me go 'wow' and this is one of them - she wanted the maracas to look like her monogram and Israel pulled it off! I heart heart these maracas! Pretty Hibiscus in Purple Gisella came to us a while back and wanted something similar to her invites but a little different. I was happy to help her come-up with an idea - especially since she and her groom tied the knot on my birthday, October 23rd, here in Vallarta! I love the little hibiscus flowers.... Kissing Seahorses Big shout-out to Oksana y Andy who tied the knot this past October 30th in the Riviera Maya. I think Antonio did an absolutely, over-the-top job on her maracas which were based on her monogram below - heart heart heart! We have some more brides tying the knot this week and I have photos coming-up from our past two weddings and we have more weddings this month and, holy cow! don't forget the WINWIN contest (win 20 free maracas - who can resist?) and this season is just taking off!

Hi girls! With a new season swinging into focus, I just thought about something when we were out and about today and thought I would share it with you .... Restaurants 1. It is considered very rude here to bring you the check before you ask for it. So, you need to ask the waiter to bring the check ... you can do this either by signing with your hand like you are writing on a piece of paper (if the waiter is a little distance away and makes eye contact with you) OR you can say in Spanish "la cuenta, por favor" .... pronounced: "lah-quin-tah" ... basically means "bill, please." 2. While Mexicans, as a rule, are known to be terrible tippers (I am referring to Mexicans here in Mexico, not Mexicans through-out the world), Vallarta basically runs on tipping. I guarantee you that, if waiters and waitresses up north make most of their money from their tips, here in Mexico it's even more so. I usually tip 20% if the service is awesome. 15% if the service was pretty good but there were some issues and I never tip below 10%. Well, okay, not NEVER but hardly ever .... Bars okay - this is a little tricky one - but I'll make a stab at it. We take going-out seriously down here. Mostly because, for most of us, it's not something we do often. If you are going to a touristy bar like, say, The Zoo, then probably doesn't matter too much if you show up in your flip-flops, torn shorts and Hawaiian shirts .... but, if you are going to some place more local, like, say, JB, then I strongly advise and urge you to please dress up as though you were going out clubbing - you probably won't get turned away, but it is frowned upon. Alright that's all I have for now my beautiful brides! More to come as it occurs to me or as you ask me .

I'm glad you found Banderas News because I was going to suggest that you send people there in general - it's local news, not sugar-coated (well, except for people selling themselves or their products so it will give people a better feel for what's going on around Vallarta .... for example, you will see in today's issue that the Vallarta area was just selected to host the Sailing National Cup for the 2011 Pan American Games. And, as the season gets into full swing, you will see more events and things like that pop up which should probably help to calm fears about what is going on in Vallarta . www.banderasnews.com (and, no, I am not affiliated with them in any way, do not even know anyone who works there .....

Since I live and here work, I would rather not comment on this specifically, but I did want to correct the translation a bit (not that it makes a huge difference, but still .... First, "me da mucho pena" a closer translation would be something along the lines of "although I am very embarrassed" with an emphasis on how hard it is for her to tell you this. Second, she said she was a christian, not a catholic (in this particular email). If she was saying she was a Catholic she would have used the term "catholicos" in place of "cristianos." Okay, I will make one comment - although I don't share or agree with Priscilla's convictions, I know both her and her husband personally - they are honestly a really kind, caring couple. She could have done what other coordinators I know of have done which is tell you they are busy or their schedule is full, instead of giving you the honest answer. Just something to think about - I DO understand where you are coming from and I completely understand why you would feel hurt. But I do admire Priscilla for being honest with you, rather than taking an easy way out. Just my two pesos worth....

Not sure why the blog posts aren't working, but just wanted you girls to know that the WINWIN contest is back on to win 20 free hand--painted maracas. The drawing is in January, so you have plenty of time to enter . PM here or email me or facebook me but you can't tweeter me because we Vallartans don't tweet (yet ....

Hey girls - I'm so sorry I've neglected you something terribly this last few months but I've been so super busy!! Anyway, the maraca competition is on again, so here's the information . And I PROMISE I will be answering your questions and your pms from here on out :). Well girls, here it is again - our annual "WINWIN" competition. Click here to see last year's winner! Same rules as last year but, in case you weren't engaged yet and this is new to you, here's the scoop.... GRAND PRIZE: 20 of our simple, two-tone maracas! Like these pictured below (you do not have to choose one of these examples - we CAN design something based on your invites, your dreams, your doodlings)! (For this competition, you have your option of: palm trees, white flowers, lacy romance or kate). *Note: the awesome red and white maraca photo in the middle is from Elizabeth Medina's website! RUNNER-UP: Your choice of either 20 "shake me" tags OR fork place cards (if you are not a bride, you do have an option of winning an original hand-painted fan!)!! HOW TO ENTER 1. You become one of our fans on our facebook page 2. You send me a message - either comment on facebook or to my email. Let me know that you would like to enter your name in our "WinWin" drawing 3. If you're already a fan of our facebook page, just send me a message (or leave a comment on the facebook page) and let me know you would like to enter the drawing HOW TO ENTER MORE THAN ONCE! We thought it would make things more fun if you could enter your name more than once - so, you could have the possibility of winning both the maracas AND the tags! Here's how to do that! 1. Every friend, relative or stranger you grab on the street who becomes one of our fans on facebook only needs to send us a comment via facebook or a message to my email and let me know the bride OR the name of the person they are entering for. It's just that simple! We will draw names and announce the winners January 15, 2011! THE FINE PRINT 1. You MUST be a fan of our facbook page at the time of the drawing but you CAN withdraw from being a fan right after the drawing 2. You are responsible for shipping charges, if you are outside of the Puerto Vallarta area 3. We must have 2 weeks to complete the order 4. You CAN add a fancier design, name/date/location, etc. for additional charges 5. You CAN order more maracas, tags/place cards, if you need more 6. If you've already ordered maracas and you are the grand prize winner, you can substitute hand-painted fans for maracas. 7. The maracas and/or the tags/place cards prize(s) can be claimed up until May 31, 2011. If you have not claimed the prize before that date, the prize(s) will be forfeit.

I don't even really know how to title this blog as it's a collection of things I found over at Project Wedding when I was looking for ideas. In order from pebbles to ROCK ON!, we have: Escort Board I don't use this idea often, but I do like it - a simpler, yet creative way to let everyone know where they will be seated. I don't think it fits every design, but, if it does fit the design, it's a great way to save a little money in a creative way! Handkerchiefs I absolutely adore this DIY stamped handkerchief - completely fit the wedding, creative, yet simple - definitely worth a mention. Signs What can I say? I'm a lover of signs - and this sign was no exception. If you are having guests walk to the beach from the villa, I think signs are a great way to point the way as well as add a creative decorative element into something so every-day. Ring-bearer Pillow This pillow just rocks. I mean, just look at it! Cupcakes Who doesn't love cupcakes? And these little signs are a really pretty DIY way to put your touch onto it - plus, don't they just look yummy? Photo Ideas As most of you know by now I am a lover of all things photo - I go "ga-ga" over creative, inspired photographers and "go-for-it" brides and grooms! Photo #1 This photo just reminds me of that old cartoon "wonder twin powers activate" - haha. I LOVE this ring photo... Photo #2 Fun with sparklers - and they did a great job! Photo #3 This just cracked me up when I ran across it - I would have loved to get this STD in the mail. Really an incredible way to put your personality forward and be informative all at the same time. Rock On! I absolutely ADORE and Slobber over this design - A-M-A-Z-I-N-G ... did I mention I HEART HEART it as well? Really have no idea what's next ... kindof winging-it this summer ... if you have a color combo you would like to see, let me know and away I will go .....otherwise you get what you get - ha!

Big congratulations to Jannae who said "I do" today in Playa del Carmen! Jannae wanted some palm trees like her wedding monogram and Antonio and Israel whipped these out in a jiffy and, well, looks just like it (I know you're shocked . I do have an inspiration board coming-up on the horizon - I miss those and imagine some of you looking for ideas miss them too!

Quote: Originally Posted by Ameliemak Hello there, I am getting married on July 13, 2010. I still haven't found an officiant to perform at our simple yet fabulous wedding ceremony for my party of 12. Time is running out and I don't want to pick some random joe from the internet. Please recommend someone! Thanks, -Amelie Amelie, Hello! I am a wedding officiant but not in town this summer - however, my girlfriends, Tamara and Lucie from Incredible Weddings, are also officiants and are in town. Tamara's email is: [email protected]. Best of luck! Awesome wedding date!! (my wedding was june 13th some years ago ....

I'm running behind but have to give the biggest shout-out to Marviette (whose maraca order was handled entirely by her BFF Shawnda - way to go Shawnda!) who tied the knot with her love this past June 26th in Cancun and to Julie who tied the knot this past June 26th in Tulum. Both of these maraca designs were based off of their invites. Shawnda sent me Marviette's beautiful invites and we decided to base something off of the beautiful flower arabesque - the only thing I would have changed would have been to do the color in white - the fuschia didn't show-up well against the orange - but I think it still turned out really pretty! I can't wait to see Julie's final invite - this invite was her inspiration but the company she was going to order it from couldn't do her order - but we based the maracas off of this idea anyway and I just love how they turned out - both of these were painted by the ever talented Antonio and Israel . Good job guys! I had a great time doing her tags and I think they complimented the maracas really well. Coming-up, our blog gets a much needed facelift and I'm going to share a wedding inspiration board to get your juices flowing .

Well, since I've been traveling I'm a bit behind ... but a late huge CONGRATS goes to Jessica who tied the knot with her love this past June 15th in Playa Mujeres! Jessica came to me a great inspiration document and in it was this amazing fabric piece and asked me for inspiration ideas for her maracas .... this was so much fun to do and I think the maracas turned out awesome! Up next are more maracas and a new inspiration board!!

Quote: Originally Posted by chiquiskipper Hello I am new to this forum, I am planning on having a destination wedding in puerto vallarta but the prices seem very similar to a US wedding. I am looking on having a private reception for around 80-100 but it seems that a lot of villas have curfews and lots of restrictions. Resorts I dont find as private as I would like a beachfront reception. Any ideas I want to have a catholic ceremony so the PV church it is since catholic church does not allow outside wedding ceremony. What about the Martoca Beach club? No time restrictions. You could do the catholic church in the Marina (which would be closer than the downtown church) .... or Bucerias probably has a catholic church, but I've never been there ... although going there this saturday to check out a villa .... there's a villa in Bucerias called Hacienda Camino del Mar - I don't think they have time restrictions - and their fares are a bit more reasonable because they aren't right on the beach - but a block up - but the villa is gorgeous. I've also heard that weddings at Le Kliff are fairly reasonable and, for that amount of people, you might be able to close the restaurant for your event .... anyway, just a few ideas....