kristinalilly

Originally Posted by K3nelson 

 

Congratulations, Kristinallily!

Your wedding dress is beautiful!  Thank you for the tip on the salon.  Did you get your hair done there?...love it! 

Was wonder if you could share where you got the chair sashes and the star fish...really cute!!  I'm debating between the chair covers and non chair covers...really like what you did.  Congratulations again and thank you for sharing your experience! - Karin

Hi K3nelson,

I did get my hair and make-up done there and was a bit nervous about it. She was great though and they had all MAC make-up so it's pretty legit.

The chair sashes I got from weddinglinensdirect.com and the starfish were from qualityshells.com. Both of the orders came super quickly and as advertised.

I'm sure some nights are windier than others, but we had no problems with our candles and we had a lot of them on each table. We found some beachy lanterns and put sand and seashells in them with a tall candle. We also bought mini lanterns with tea  lights in them online and had them stamped with the "Secrets Maroma Beach" and the date. We had a bunch on each table and let people take them home. We only had 3 tables so it came out to ~75$ for all three. We wanted to keep it kinda simple & beachy.

Here's what they looked like.

Hi everyone,

My apologies for taking so long to get my rear in gear and post since our wedding. We've been moving and starting new jobs and it's been pretty crazy.

The wedding was so wonderful. We had an amazing week and the resort is so gorgeous you ladies will love it. I worked with Valeria and she was so helpful. I know everyone else has said the same thing, but to reiterate. The wedding coordinator will make you feel so much more at ease. I went down there feeling so unprepared and not really knowing what the experience would be like. In seeing my girlfriends plan their own weddings I think I was prepared to be flipping out, but Valeria and her assistant Yolanda (who is an absolute doll) really took care of everything.

We got married on the beach and didn't do any of the sand ceremonies or extra things like that. The weather was great and being on the beach really kept everybody cool. I wore a long veil and put one pin in to anchor it down and would really recommend the same to anyone else wearing a long veil as it can get a little windy. The one thing that I did that I would not recommend doing is getting ready at the spa. They will not let you have food or drinks in there and we got married at 5 so it was a looong afternoon with no comfort eating/drinking. Definite regret, the only one though. Ceremony was nice and short and the setup was nice. I included a photo of the setup. Its what you get included in the Secrets of Love package and we brought our own chair bows and the starfish for the chairs.

Our cocktail hour was also on the beach. We upgraded to the Mexican tapas and it was pretty good. I probably wouldn't upgrade though if I had my time back. The 1 hour goes by so quickly once you get over there and though we wanted the upgraded bar too, you can't really drink enough in an hour to make it worthwhile. One thing I would also recommend is asking if there are other event occurring at the same time as your wedding at your selected location. During our cocktail hour there was also a beach party happening pretty nearby which kinda was a bummer. If there is events happening maybe you could request to be further apart.

The reception we did at the gazebo. We brought our own centrepieces and Yolanda set them all up. One thing I will say is that the food at the resort was super good, but the food at our reception was noticeably even better, which was nice.

The whole thing was great and as long as you go into it knowing it's a different kind of wedding than the traditional at-home wedding and be a bit relaxed about it you'll have a great time and anything that isn't perfect won't matter and won't be remembered anyway.
 

So exciting for all of the brides on their way down the aisle in the near future. I wish I could do it all over again!

Originally Posted by beachbride2013 

 

We struggled with this with out wedding. We had vegetarians, one person who won't eat beef, and some extremely picky eaters. We ended up going with the surf and turf and everyone enjoyed the meal as far as we know. We just sort of figured if they hated the food or didn't eat it then they could order room service after the reception. The food is really good at the resort and we figured with surf and turf it sort of gives two options and most would be able to eat one or the other. The beef is excellent quality and is comparable to what you get in an upscale steakhouse in the US.

 

I agree with KC, I don't think that would work KristenLilly. Not to mention, in Mexico when you order off of a menu at a restaurant you could be waiting a looooooong time. They will want to know what time you expect to have your meal, first dance, etc and they will be on time with the schedule that is set.

KC- that sounds like a great idea. I wish we had thought of doing that. I think it ended up working out fine though. What are the menu items that you chose?

So Valeria agreed to let us have a choice for the entrees. I'm confused why people are printing menus then if you have to tell the resort what people are having beforehand. Is it just a formality to have a menu there even though people don't order off of it?

Is anyone else not doing assigned seating? Thoughts on how that will work?

Originally Posted by CriCri 

 

 

Also in my case, the wedding coordinator told me  "–for a set menu it would be important to choose one option per course, the same for all guests, we can do 2 main entrée options if that helps "

At the end we have choosen only one option and the menu has been appreciated from everyone (remember, the SMB restaurant is a real fantastic restaurant!)

Thanks CriCri.

I think I'm going to just send her the info and assume it will be sorted out.

If we could get an option just for the entree that would be great. It's something that she's said can't be done. Good to know that it's being organized for others though. I'll just keep pushing for it.

Originally Posted by KCDawn 

 

I'm in the middle of that now.  We're doing the Ultimate Package so we have the Gold menu.  When I first asked Valeria about the food options, she said we could give people a choice for the entree but if we did so we'd have to give her the numbers about a week or so ahead of time and have a way to indicate to the staff who gets which choice.  In that email and a second one after she definitely pushed more for the buffet if you want more than one entree, but since she gave me the opening I took it.  I emailed her back with our choices for everything (one choice each for Appetizer, Salad, Soup and Desert and two choices for the entree) and told her I wanted the plated meal with two entree options.  I also told her I would do different colors for the seating cards so they could tell who ordered what.  Obviously that's more work for them but we're bringing about 40 people and I'm not going to make them all eat the same entree.  I haven't gotten her response back yet, so we'll see what she says.

Hmm.... interesting. I've been back and forth with her a couple times on this.

I'm just going to go ahead and get the numbers, suggest the place cards to indicate who's getting what and go with it. We're only having 20 people, but I just don't see the reasoning behind not letting people just order. I would rather just get to the reception, choose off of a menu and just wait for them to cook it like in a restaurant...

It's kind of been the first stumbling block for us. We definitely need to give people a choice.

Gorgeous photos Amber and check out those tans!

Has anyone else sorted out their food yet? We're doing the Secrets of Love package and have the Silver menu included, but we're upgrading to the gold/platinum. I was under the impression that in that case they provide you with that menu and guests can choose off of it at the reception. However, Valeria told me that you have to pick one item from each category (apps, salad, main, dessert) and everyone has to have that if you want a plated service. Your other option is to choose 2 items from each category, but it must be as a buffet... I'm super bummed about this as everyone has such different tastes/sensitivities so we'll have to give people an option, but I really wanted a plated service with a menu rather than a buffet. 

Thoughts, advice?

Originally Posted by KCDawn 

 

Good luck!  I'm sure it's not that bad.  Your day is getting so close!  When do you leave?

We're leaving on the 25th and arrive on the 26th. Can't wait!

It comes up fast. We only have the tedious things left to take care of now as we did all the fun stuff earlier on. I'm really starting to develop an attitude about when people say "Oh, but it's a destination wedding so it's not stressful"

Originally Posted by lmadore 

 

Im having the same problem with my mom and I get more and more worried as the summer gets closer to ending, seeing as all the fall stuff is already out.  I actually get upset with my mom because she looked for one day and tried on a bunch of dresses and didnt find any, but its only by my sisters urging that she even went out to find anything.  Me and my sister went shopping and picked up some stuff for her to try on and that was a bust. Ive ordered dresses online that was a bust.  She to be honest doesnt even seem to care, and its about the only thing she has to do for this wedding is find her self an outfit and that seems to be a big hassle for her.  Its not like there is going to be a lot of a choice in a month.

I know how you feel, my Mom's been the same way (difficult) about most everything wedding-related.

What worked for me was to go shopping with her and buy something small for the trip (a beach bag, flip flops, a hat or something like that) it was only then that she started to get a little into it and was an easier transition into the harder purchases like the wedding outfit and bathing suit (that was the worst, but I can relate).

Hope this helps

Originally Posted by KCDawn 

 

I bruise too so I'm a little worried about that too.  Hopefully if it's done at the beginning of the week it'll look ok by the wedding.  I did some searching on this site, just putting in "mexico blood test" and everyone that posted said it wasn't bad at all.  Everyone said it was very clean and professional.  Made me feel a lot better.  So many people say they do the ceremony before they leave so I was starting to worry I was crazy for doing it this way.  

My boyfriend insisted on doing the legal ceremony there, in hindsight I wish we had just gone to the courthouse here for the legal-stuff. With the judge/minister thing and the oversized needle that CriCri is talking about it seems complicated. I'm hoping to be able to get it out of the way the first day we're there. I'll let you know how it goes

Originally Posted by KCDawn 

 

We're doing the legal wedding too.  I'm definitely not looking forward to the blood test!  I remember reading a couple's review somewhere that you need to take cash because they had to pay for the test directly.  They also suggested getting a receipt so you don't get charged a second time by the resort.  

I think I've read that review too. I've pretty much exhausted reading every review there is out there I think.

I once got blood taken and bruised super badly so I'm a little nervous about how it will go. I'll let you know once I get back

Loove that cake topper, so cute!

Has anyone read any reviews about how the blood test was? Now that it's getting a little closer I'm starting to get a bit nervous about that.
 

Thanks for the advice ladies.

I think the operative term in this case may be "we'll see what happens". Maybe I'll just bring an alternate dress and see how sweaty and uncomfortable I am by the end of the reception. I guess I don't really have any plans of preserving the dress anyway, just seems sad to wreck it, but I'm not sure I'll want to take it off...

Starting to count down the weeks until we leave! Can't wait!

One logistical question for those of you who have been married at Secrets or are more organized than I am who have already figured this out...

We're getting married on the beach, having a cocktail hour there and having our reception up at a restaurant. We're only having ~20 people so we're just going to go to the nightclub afterwards for dancing. Has anyone else done this? If so what did you do about the dress? I'm wearing a long dress and though it has a bustle I think it may get wrecked if I'm dragging it around the nightclub all night. Not to mention that I may look a bit overdressed . I want to wear my dress as long as possible, but am wondering if I should just change into a short white dress for afterwards...

If you ladies could weigh in on this I would really appreciate the input and advice from those who've been through this.Thanks!
 

Hi everyone! Wow, so many of you got married in the last little while. Your photos are so beautiful Ckrn!

For everyone who has people staying outside of the resort... was that out of necessity or because they chose it based on price?

We're getting married at the end of August and nobody on my side has booked yet. So currently it's just people from my fiance's side who are flying in from Australia that have booked rooms/flights. I know some people mentioned that the rooms were sold out by the time people booked. How far in advance was that? I feel like I've exhausted all the prodding I could have done to get people to book (sending spreadsheets with pricing options, links with deals, etc.) so now we're just sitting back and letting them handle it.

I'm just wondering at what point I should start worrying about the resort being sold out?

Thanks for tips!

I'm finding the exact same thing. Now that people are starting to invite themselves I'm not sure what to do... do they get bags too?

Originally Posted by MrsMclemore 

Im trying to start working on my OOT bags but it is hard with out an exact head count

Thanks for your input!

inloveinkorea - how did your Dad react when you said you wanted to walk alone?

Stunning! And that dress completely suits you. Great choice!
 

Originally Posted by AmyG 

All of you have such Amazing & Beautiful dresses and I have loved looking at all of them over the past 1.5 years....I had my wedding so I can finally post my pics of my 'Ella 5468'.  I don't think that pictures do this dress justice because of all the details it has but here are some pics anyway....

 

 

 

 

Probably a good idea. Definitely if we're going to print them on something.
Thanks for your help!
 

Originally Posted by ChocoTaco7568 

Nice job, I really like this. I think the location and date should be a bit larger though.

Hoping to bring this thread back to life. Anyone else out there incorporating starfish into their weddings?
Here are the invitations we've made and are hoping to keep the starfish theme going.

Really lovely!
 

Originally Posted by TauruSmith 

I found my dress at the Bridal Garden in NYC. It is a non-profit who donates all of their proceeds to educational programs for children. It was a very laid back experience and it was nice to not buy into the "wedding machine". I was able to take the dress home with me that very day! I am altering the neckline to sweetheart, the back to come down in a v, instead of straight across, adding buttons all the way down the back, and removing the underlayer, where it hits the floors, so it will only be lace gliding over the sand!! I'm  going to wait about 6 months to start the alterations though.

Haha! Exactly what I thought when I saw mine. I love it now though. I think it's like choosing a wedding dress, you have something in your head that you think that you want, but you may end up with something totally different and be thrilled.
 

Originally Posted by cnd29 

I had one fleeting moment of "oh man, it's round, not square", but the ring is absolutely beautiful and I wouldnt trade it for anything.  A friend of mine (who did not like her ring at all btw) said it best "It doesn't matter if it's what I wanted or not.  HE chose it for me.  When I look at it, I will think of him and how he loved me so much he bought me this diamond ring."  I thought that said it nicely.

 

 

I've been working on getting used to making a logo in word.
What do you guys think. I would love some input.
Anyone else having trouble incorporating colours? Ours are aqua, yellow & tan... the yellow is tough without using a coloured background...

Wow, beautiful!