Simistar

Quote: Originally Posted by Kits55 Thanks so much for the response! I am checking out Foto Fusion as I type this. There video is good so far. I will be excited to see how yours turns out. Thanks again! Hey girl! So funny you're looking into the same thing I am :-) Well, if we both end up using FotoFusion, maybe we can help each other out Not sure if Lolkitteh checks on here very often, but if you're out there, we'd LOVE your feedback on ease up uploading finished pages to BRI, as well as what version of Fotofusion you have and whether it allows you to do double-page spreads...?

Quote: Originally Posted by tcram I just sent you a PM about the hair pins/flower. Just sent you a PM back:-)

Quote: Originally Posted by saltocoach I got my linens from here as well. Very professional and FAST! ditto!! :-)

Quote: Originally Posted by cait713 I'd love to see more pictures of the dress, too! My email is [email protected]. Thanks a bunch! Just sent you some e-mails with pictures! Also sent the other ladies some e-mails too:-)

Quote: Originally Posted by ~*petals*~ Found one!!! Picaboo offers a flush-mount album for DIY'ers! Picaboo - Photo Books - Flush Mount Oooh... I would be interested in hearing if anyone has made a flush-mount through Picaboo and how it turned out, etc ?! Quote: Originally Posted by lolkitteh Hi - didn't order one yet, but it is fully designed. Just haven't gotten around to placing the order. I designed it in Fotofusion - it just needs to be proofed and uploaded. Will update once I get around to it. We are in the middle of moving, so I've been waiting to get settled in with the new address to place the order. with fotofusion it really wasnt that hard - BRI has their own templates, but I liked the flexibility of fotofusion. If you aren't liking what your photographer did, its a great option. Hey Lolkitteh, I found the BRI software to be IMPOSSIBLE to figure out!! I looked on some forums and even pro photogs were complaining about how non-user-frendly it is... So, I was thinking about using FotoFusion as well... can I ask, what version do you have...? (The middle one or the pro one...?) And were you able to do double-page spreads ...? And, once you've designed the pages on Fotofusion, is it easy to upload them to BRI..?? Sorry - I know - SO many questions! But I'd appreciate any help I can get :-) Thanks!!

Hey ladies! Sorry -- got super busy tonight -- but will e-mail you more pics tomorrow!! Thanks!!!

5. Aqua/Tiffany blue satin sash Measures 96 inches long and two inches wide. I bought the fabric and had this made by a seamstress to wear with my TTD dress (picture below)... It's a really thick, nice satin. The seamstress sewed it with a seam in the middle of it though... I didn't care b/c it was just for TTD, but just wanted to mention it:-) It has been worn...in the ocean for my TTD shoot but has been cleaned and looks like new :-) Asking $10 (*plus cost of shipping) Here's the seam: 6. Flip flops ordered from floppyjos.com I LOVED these, but ended up not being able to wear them (b/c of dress length issues etc)... so they've stayed in the bag they came in since I got them! I also have small feet... so they're a size 5, white flat flip flops with beautiful pearl beading and turquoise Swarovski crystals. Also, the woman who made them wrote my name inside in small writing... However, no one would see that while you're wearing them (and I think it would probably wear off quickly anyway)... If you can get over that... Paid $40 for them, will sell for $15 (*plus cost of shipping). 7. Swarovski crystal Havaianas wedge flip flops, size 36 (= to a US size 5 1/2, 6) Ordered these last minute when I realized my dress was too long to wear with the above flip flops! The wedge heel is about 2 1/2 inches at its highest. I wore these for MAYBE ten minutes! I ended up being barefoot our whole ceremony and reception! So, they've been sitting in my closet... yet somehow, they lost some of the crystals on the left one... If you are crafty though, and not lazy like me, you can easily get some Swarovski crystals from Michael's and hot glue them on. Anywaaay, I paid $110 for them... Will sell for $35 (*plus the cost of shipping) 8. TTD dress I bought this J.Crew wedding dress off a fellow BDWer! It was brand new... It's a J.Crew size six and has not been altered. (I'm normally a size four J.Crew, so it was a little big, but it was fine for a dress I was just wearing in the water, lol:-)) It's been cleaned and pressed... there are some small marks on it near the bottom etc as it WAS worn in the ocean afterall! Selling for $20 (*plus cost of shipping)... Shipping this to the States (I'm in Canada) may cost as much as the dress, so maybe better for a Canadian BDWer, but maybe not... I can try to cram it into as small a box as possible so it costs less:-)

Hi ladies, I FINALLY went through my drawers/closets that still had some wedding items in them and have a few things for sale... 1. Hair pins/flowers... Ordered these online (can't remember from which site)... they're lovely and basically untouched since I forgot to bring them to Mexico, lol:-) Paid $22 for 10, will sell for $12 (*plus the cost of shipping) 2. Hair pins/flowers Bought these off a fellow BDWer... Had been planning on wearing them but then the salon kind of messed up my hair and had to go a different route last minute, haha:-) Anyway, there are four of them...(I think originally ordered from Angel's accents?)... $5 (*plus the cost of shipping) 3.. Two hair flowers, ordered from flowerclips.com They definitely don't look real, but they are super cute! Never been worn. I paid $18 for two, will sell for $8 (*plus the cost of shipping). Plus, they sent me a free pink one (picture below) that I will include for free as well :-) To give you a sense of size: Free one! 4. Maggie Sottero antique rose satin sash Measures 141 inches long, two inches wide. Never used (just taken out of bag for these pics:-)) Paid $20, asking $15 (*plus cost of shipping) Still going....

Not sure if you've seen this sticky on centerpieces - but here's the link just in case! http://bestdestinationwedding.com/forum/t9012 Might help you with some ideas!

Quote: Originally Posted by Meg&Shay Simistar - those are super cute! Thanks!! The girl who did them was super nice and did a great job! (Even had matching envelopes :-))

Here are ours:-) (ordered from http://www.eiffelprintdesign.com/ ) We printed one of our pro pics in wallet size and then I used double-sided tape to attach to the inside flap...sorry don't have a pic of that, but it looked really nice! :-)

I vote #6!!! I think it's absolutely stunning!

Absouluetly gorgeous!!! I am SO HAPPY for you!!! It looks like all your hard work planning etc over the past few months paid off!! CONGRATS!!

Yaay! You're back!!! And you're married!! CONGRATS!!!! :-) So glad to hear pretty much everything went smoothly!! First of all -- you look GORGEOUS! Can't wait to see more pics:-) I gotta agree with Kits55 though -- you guys got a LOT more than what we did when we got married! lol:-) I know another girl on here (MandalayBay...she's not on here much) got married at SMB a few weeks ago and e-mailed me about it, and same thing! She got a bunch stuff that was never offered to other brides... So it sounds like (hopefully!) SMB is improving its service to brides! I mean, I did get married there after it had only been opened a few months, so glitches were inevitable :-) For example, we didn't get greeted with champagne and cold towels, nor did we get champagne in our room, rose petals or a jacuzzi tub with rose petals! (AND we were in the preferred club!!) So, nice to hear they're doing that now! Also, it sounds like Cecilia is now agreeing to substitutions in wedding packages...This was definitely NOT negotiable for us! (or Kits55) ! Believe me, we tried! So that's good for future brides to know as well! Also, I think its important to mention - I think SMB now charges extra for the bonfire...? NewYork6156...this is correct, yes? They charged you extra...? For us, we just had to pay per person for the food, but I think b/c of some government law about open fires they now have to charge for it... And that's funny how you described Cecilia... that's pretty much exactly how we felt about her. VERY nice woman, tries hard, but is overworked and just doesn't really follow through on MANY things. So, yes, for future SMB brides, it is a MUST to give her a check list of things to do!!! (I think I attached the one I made to my review... but if anyone can't find it and wants me to send it to them , just PM me :-)) And, as NewYork6156 suggested, HAVE A FRIEND(S) HELP MAKE SURE EVERYTHING'S DONE!!! Also, I honestly laughed out loud when you described the minister! We loved him and thought he was great... but yes, he pronounces his "v"'s like "b"'s! So every time he says "love" he says "lub" :-) Lastly, SO HAPPY your hair and make-up turned out beautifully!! As I said -- you look GORGEOUS...and your dress is beautiful too! (I'm not positive, but I think the woman to avoid in the salon who does the dark make-up and bad hair-dos is named Eliah for future SMB-ers out there :-)) Congrats again!!!!

Quote: Originally Posted by MsZ I hope your DIY album turns out beautifully Thanks! I've had some amazing offers of help from members of this site and I've just been so freakin' busy with work lately (I HATE it when work gets in the way of BDW-ing! :-)) that I haven't had a chance to take up some of the kind offers... It's on my to-do list for sure -- and as soon as I have an update on the DIY album, I will post here! :-) Quote: Originally Posted by inspiredfyre I laughed so hard at the where's waldo pics! It actually DID take me a minute to find you guys in that picture!! Haha! Yeah...what else can anyone do but laugh at this point -- it's THAT bad! Actually, Story By Photo (pro photogs Gino and Heather) kindly offered to edit some of the pics for me so hopefully we'll be able to find ourselves in some of the pics now:-) Again, as soon as I have time, I will hopefully be able to post some of the work they did! SO nice of them... Quote: Originally Posted by finzup You have saved me - just today I was on his website thinking I'd send him an email.. now I definitely won't, so thank you for your honest review. WHEW! :-)

Quote: Originally Posted by inspiredfyre Do you know how much the resort charges for an outside photographer, and more importantly, who loved their photog, and has contact info!?!?! Has anyone used Del Sol at this resort? Any advice from a previous SMB bride would be so helpful in this area. Hey there! Yes -- definitely -- if pictures are super important to you, bring in an outside photographer! (If you're not overly concerned about pics, the resort photog is fine...but again, ONLY if you don't care too much!) I definitely did NOT love my photog, lol:-) Anyone who's read my review will laugh at that I'm sure...it's the understatement of the year:-) However, if you do a search on the forum there are LOTS of great photogs... Del Sol are certainly one of them! Actually, NewYork6156 I believe is leaving soon or there right now and using Del Sol -- so hopefully she can give you some feedback when she returns! But honestly, I don't think I've ever seen a bad picture from them or their associates :-) They're pretty pricey though, so if they're out of your budget, there ARE other great photogs on here! Quote: Originally Posted by inspiredfyre ALSO, lol, if anyone can tell me if it's worth getting hair/makeup done at the resort, I'd greatly appreciate it! If you read my review, you'll know the woman at the SMB salon totally screwed up my hair! Haven't really heard good things from other SMB brides either... Actually, I think Kits55 said she liked how they did her hair! Basically, my suggestion is, practice doing your own hair and and make-up and be able to do it... Then when you get there, you can use the "bridal make-up and hair" that's part of your package for a "trial run"...if you like it you can pay to go back..but if you don't like it, then at least it will save you stress on your wedding day!!! Good luck!!

Quote: Originally Posted by newyork6156 OMG...we leave in 2 days!!! I can't wait! : HAVE FUN!!! And please let us know ALL about it (with pics!!!) when you get back!!!

Okay -- am now at my home computer! Here are some pics of what the sunset looks like from behind SMB... (The first two were taken on the beach just beside SMB in front of the Maroma Resort/Orient Express hotel looking back... The last one was taken from SMB grounds looking back) These next pics were taken from SMB beach at sunset looking out at the water: And to give you an idea...here's a shot one of our guests took during our ceremony...if you look in the background, that's the sunset... Hope this helps! :-)

Quote: Originally Posted by mlynnea I need some help from some brides that had sunset ceremony's. I want to have my ceremony at sunset, but still allow time for pictures before it gets too dark. Anyone have any advice on what time to start the ceremony? and how much time I should allot for pictures afterwards? Sunset for my date is supposedly at 5:51pm. Hey there! Okay, so sunset there is probably not like the sunset you have at home or are picturing... Basically, the sun sets kind of behind where SMB is... so if you look behind SMB you can see a sunset like you'd expect. But from where you'll be on the beach -- it's still nice! Don't worry! But it's just that it happens FAST! I'm at work right now so don't have time, but I can post some pics showing sunset on the beach and behind SMB so you can see what I mean.... In any case (sorry -- feel like I'm rambling:-))... point is -- it happens quickly! So if the sun is supposed to set at 5:51, I would actually plan your ceremony for well before that... But what exact time you want it to start all depends on how and when you want your pictures...Also whether you will be having a legal or symbolic ceremony... (the legal one takes a bit longer...) Many brides (myself included) choose to do bride and groom shots BEFORE a sunset ceremony as it gets dark really quickly... The downside to this of course is that your FI sees you before you walk down the aisle... The upside is, you get better lighting for your pics. Then, do you want post-ceremony group shots with family and friends...? If so, do you mind if those are dark or do you want it to be sunset in those pictures...? If you want it to look like sunset, you're going to have to start your ceremony even earlier... So...see where I'm going with this...? Figure out the picture situation then work backwards from there and that's your ceremony start time:-) e.g - 5:51 sunset time, symbolic ceremony: 4pm -- meet photog for bride and groom shots PRE ceremony (1 hour) 5:15pm - ceremony starts 5:40-ish - ceremony ends (will take longer if it's legal!) 5:45 - group and family shots (still some light left) Hope this hasn't been too confusing! :-)

Quote: Originally Posted by newyork6156 In addition, has anyone had any trouble setting up the flowers with Cecilia? Honestly, I'm a bit confused as to what I want the centerpieces to be and my bouquet, but I'm having some difficulty getting quotes from her. Maybe it's the florist they work with and not her, but it's getting frustrating. Yeah -- it's sometimes hard getting basic info out of Cecilia... I was married in December, so obviously things may have changed since then in terms of what florist they use and prices... But I think if you check out the previous Secrets thread on here or even the sticky with Secrets info under "RM Accommodations", there should be a price list and pics of different centerpieces and bouquets... Sorry -- in a rush right now so don't have time to find and link them, but if you have trouble finding them, just post again and I'll hunt 'em down for you:-) *One thing I will say (sorry to repeat...this was also in my review) is that I paid extra to upgrade my bouquet -- and my bouquet (all calla lillies) was CRAP! Seriously... for $130 I got like twelve half-dead flowers...I had to remove some of them b/c they were mushy! However, pretty much all the girls who just got the bouquet that was included said it was gorgeous! (And in fact, while we were there I saw some brides who had the "included" bouquet and it was MUCH nicer than the one I had paid to upgrade to!) Quote: Originally Posted by newyork6156 For those already married there - did you have a buffet or sit down dinner for the reception? We are only having 27 people but I think I want the buffet. If you have the sit down dinner everyone has to eat the same thing, at least that's how I understood what Cecilia told me. That just doesn't seem right though. We had a sit-down dinner... just what we preferred. However, you're right -- your guests only get ONE choice for an entree (i.e. everyone eats the same thing...unless you put in a special request if someone's allergic to something, one or two people can get special meals...) -- which does kind of suck:-) That said though, the food at our reception was really good! We got the beef tenderloin and grilled shrimp... Hope this helps!? :-)

Quote: Originally Posted by dc22173 Thanks for you honest review!!! I was looking to book this photographer last year and emailed him to get a quote. I decided to do a search here and found a review from another bride who did not recommend him at all http://bestdestinationwedding.com/forum/t19461. Yikes! Yep...if I had seen that review beforehand, I obviously never would have booked him! But hey...that's what I'm hoping this thread will do...let brides know what they're getting into if they decide to book with him... Quote: Originally Posted by bride2010 OMG, just reading your review was making ME mad! I'm really sorry you both had to go through that. On a brighter note, the others on this forum were right in saying that you both made a beautiful couple regardless of how badly the pictures were taken. It is also really nice to see all the people on the forum offering to help you out. I totally applaud them. lol -- thanks for getting mad FOR me! But thank you...and yes, everyone on this forum is AMAZING and everyone has been so supportive and understanding...makes me want to everyone! :-)

Quote: Originally Posted by paraisobeachbride2009 Isn't that convenient that they're all cropped and zoomed in now? As mentioned previously, if it was so dark during the ceremony thus resulting in dark pics, why do the guest pics seem fine? Oh right, it's because he's lying! What a nut job! Oh yeeeahh...he's a total wackadoodle, no doubt! So I found out some very interesting things from a photographer friend of mine about why the pics are so dark... He says the pictures were shot at too low of an "ISO" and too high of a shutter speed. He said they were shot at 1/125th and should have been shot at 1/50th.... Whatever all that means! :-) But what it boils down to is...Michael Maurus did not have his camera on the proper settings! As a side note...also interesting -- I found out I can see all the info about when each picture was taken, what kind of camera etc on my computer! So I checked that photo above he CLAIMS was from before the ceremony when he says I "finally" arrived... That pic was actually taken at 5:17pm! And our ceremony started at 5pm! AND, this also means that we weren't even CLOSE to running half an hour behind... we were actually about TWO MINUTES behind!! (I had budgeted half an hour for our ceremony but b/c of not starting til 5, our officiant made it super speedy!) So I had told Michael Maurus we'd be done our ceremony at 5:15...and we were done at 5:17... two minutes late -- big whoop!! :-)

Quote: Originally Posted by emme AND why did the wedding guests pictures (lighting) look so much better than the professional photographers pictures (lighting) when the pictures were taken at the same time. Michelle did get quite a few nice TTD pictures the next day though Good question! He never really answered that either...except to say it was all my fault for running behind and being a bridezilla:-) As for the TTD pics... I think he posted some of the only useable ones.. Though that one where I'm holding the parasol is terrible! I think I'm saying something right when the pic got snapped! We have lots of these shots...they just haven't been edited properly...

Oh my... I almost didn't want to respond to his post b/c it's so ridiculous and riddled with inaccuracies, but I'm waiting for some paint to dry, so I will:-) First of all... thanks Michael for posting pictures of us without our permission! Another sign of bad business! Second...thanks so much for finally editing some some of our pictures for us! Maybe you could send us a copy of a couple of the ones you posted that you edited just for this purpose?! That would be great! For example, the one you posted of me throwing my bouquet in the ocean... I'm going to post the exact same picture the way we got it: The one you posted has clearly been zoomed and cropped...something we were told you wouldn't do for us! So thanks... again, feel free to send us that edited copy! Next up... what's this all about?? Quote: Originally Posted by Tammy Host As much as we understand and feel for Michelle that she had the problem with her hairdresser and about everybody else at the resort, we can not accept her comments. Michelle hired us for a 3 hour coverage of her wedding day which should have ended just during sunset. Due to her being late because she was very unhappy and frustrated with her make up and hairdresser and had them re-do it over and over again, she missed the best light of the day for her photos. I can see you're trying to make me out to be some sort of a bridezilla...but we both know that's not really true, don't we? I did not blame everbody at the resort, just the hairdresser! Also, I did not have them re-do my hair over and over... I re-did it ONCE... myself! I did write about my experience at the resort salon in my wedding review... Here's the link for anyone who wants to read it: (and BTW, anyone who reads it can see I actually really liked the resort!) http://bestdestinationwedding.com/forum/t34046 You can read there I said I was running 45 mins behind schedule... But that also meant cutting the bride and groom pre-ceremony pictures short, so we weren't actually THAT far behind once the ceremony got started. And I fully admit we were behind... I even gave you some props for being nice about it! Guess I'm going to have to take back that ONE nice thing I had to say... a shame. And that picture you posted where you say I just arrived? This one: This was actually taken AFTER the ceremony, just as our cocktail hour was about to start (right about the time you disappeared and left your assistant to take our group photos... maybe that will jog your memory?) Here are the pictures of me actually arriving... See? I am running to hug my FI and apologize for being so late! See how light it is out? Yep...there's that light you say there was none of... Here I am running to meet him... Almost there: There we go...and look! You managed to shoot it at just such an angle where you can't see me at all! Great photojournalistic work! And finally, I see you didn't have any explanation for your bad attitude...? What about the fish eye lens you promised you'd use...? Bottom line is, we asked your for a few simple things that you agreed to... We PAID you to deliver these things.... AND YOU DIDN'T BECAUSE THEY WEREN'T THINGS YOU WANTED TO DO! Just a thought here..maybe take this and use it as a way to improve your people AND photography skills...? Girls...any questions...just ask!:-)

I vote #1 too!