uhura526

I was told the best way to remember which goes on first is that the wedding band is first because it's closer to your heart lol Anyway, I am doing the same as Chocotaco and wearing my engagement ring on my right hand prior to the ceremony and just stack it on top of my wedding band after the ceremony.

This thread was started in the Dominican Republic thread but I see everyone now is joining in who has an April wedding so I'll put my hat in. I'm getting married in Grand Cayman on April 19, 2013. My dress is already here as I got it last month from China. I will probably try it on maybe in February to see if I need to make any last minute changes but as of now it fits perfectly.

I have done all things paper for my wedding via Vista Print. From my magnet save the dates to invites and now I just ordered things for my OOT bags and thank you cards, even X-mas cards They have groupons for Vista Print all the time too. I always get updates via this twitter page: https://twitter.com/MrsJenaB She also posts other steals and deals on there too

Yay!!! You look gorgeous! I am so happy for you

We were together 2.5 years when he proposed and we'll be together 3.5 years by the time we get married

Thanks Krisitn for the information! I have been in touch with Karl at Royal Palms and they are quite reasonable. So I'm working with them to have my welcome party there. That was really the last thing I really needed to work on because everything else is handled and booked. I cannot wait to see your pro pics. Again, you looked lovely! I love your dress and hair accessory too. Congrats

what a beautiful gown!

Kristin: Sounds wonderful!! You look absolutely stunning and so happy! You have now renewed my excitement about getting married in Grand Cayman. I hope you don't mind me asking you a few questions. Re: Royal Palms I was actually considering having our welcome/after rehearsal party here as well! We actually have hung out here every time we go to Grand Cayman and rent a cabana and chill on the beach from morning to night. They have some yummy food here too. Is there anyone in particular you contacted to reserve for your party? Also, did you use a company to provide transportation for your guests between venues?

Yeah I agree with this. In our case, we did send invitations to friends and family we know will not be coming because of distance or whatever else is the case. We just wanted to include them in the loop anyway. This definitely brings our percentage of likely guests down. RSVPs are SLOWLY coming in for us at this point. We heard from some folks before invites even went out, but since invitations went out 3 weeks ago, we've heard back from 10 guests. 5 accepted and 5 declined. I predict we should hear back from the bulk of people after the holidays (I hope).

it looks like there is some flight price fluctuation since the holiday season kicked off even for flights for next Spring. I noticed a price jump of at least $50 for flights coming from all over the country to Grand Cayman in the last 3 weeks. For example, the nonstop flight from NYC to Grand Cayman was $468 and is now going for $517. Same flight. Hope things go down after the holidays in January. They probably will.

what is a republica?

you could also order the original gowns directly from bridal shops online in the US. Just have yourself measured to get the proper sizing and if you need adjustments, you could have your local seamstress do that for you. There are other ways to get an affordable dress online if that's the only way you can do it without using a Chinese replica site. I am also on weddingbee.com and there's extensive discussions and threads about Jasmine's on there. There are a lot of international brides on there, one even went personally to the Jasmine's factory in China and documented her entire experience there! James actually participates on the threads and answers questions to clarify things on there. My gown is actually a replica of a Pronovias dress. I actually went to the Pronovias flagship store in NYC to try on the dress and that's how I decided it was the one I wanted. It would have cost me nearly $3000 USD and alterations would have been extra. I personally felt the risk was worth it to go with a replica. I paid approx $600 including bustle, underskirt and a slight change in measurements (premium grade materials and premium grade craftmanship) for the dress Jasmine's made for me and it is really a beautiful dress. I am particular but I went in with realistic expectations and what I received exceeded them. However, like with everything else, these feelings are subjective. It's what you make of it. I do hope the unhappy brides on here try to look at the bigger picture and are still able to enjoy their special day.

Your wedding is a long time down the line and honestly, you have enough time to save for a dress at this point to be purchased directly from a bridal salon. The possibility of a dress ordered online via a replica dressmaker site not meeting your expectations 100 percent is obviously going to be higher because you are not getting the original from the original designer. If that is a risk you are not comfortable taking, definitely don't and just get a dress you can afford via a bridal salon.

I can understand your frustration but I do agree with your fiance, I think you will still look fabulous. You're right, the dress is nice, but according to what you pointed out is wrong with the dress, maybe they didn't do designer quality like you had requested? I don't know. I gotta be honest, I think if I saw you walking down the aisle at your wedding or whatever, I would not be able to notice or see these things lol I do hope you come to a mutually agreed upon solution with Jasmine's though. I'm sure they have their share of unhappy customers like any company does. What will make them stand out is their customer service and how they try to resolve the issues. Good luck.

she did post pics of her dress and progress. Scroll through this thread. I don't recall the pages, but it's in the gallery.

In that case, with the holidays being here, they might just be budgeting money. In reality it takes very little time to book something so if they do it on January 5th! Then it's on time. You could send a text message or email to remind them the deadline has passed and when they expect to book. But don't do it yet. I'd wait until maybe a week before the absolute deadline if they haven't booked by then..you have no choice obviously but to hound them as they are in the wedding!

Just send them a text message or something and tell them the deadline has passed and they really need to book. I am not sure how else you can light fire under their buns to do this. When is the OFFICIAL deadline to book?

oh I forgot to add to the to do list: purchase wedding bands. We got a $500 gift card for Tiffany so that will go towards the bands. We'll do this in February.

well I did the Chinese knock-off route for my dress and I couldn't be happier (Jasmine's Bridal Shop). I got my custom Pronovias replica dress in 9 weeks. I spent less than $600 and I don't think anyone will be able to tell it's not a real Pronovias gown that would have cost me about $3,000 without alterations. I posted about my experience in the knock-off thread. As for welcome bags. I am doing one per couple/room and one per single guest. I'm an April 2013 bride but my timeline is very similar to you guys: This week I had a chance to send in my musical requests for the ceremony for the steel drummer we're having to play from ceremony through cocktail hour. Deposit down and working on playlist for the DJ for the reception Photographer booked Officiant booked Invitations went out two weeks ago Dress, accessories and shoes bought Hotel and rental car booked Flights booked Ceremony decor determined Make up artist booked Florist booked (submitted flower requests) MOH dress arrived this week. She picked it up but it has to be altered. She's lost about a dress size so, she's gonna hold off to do final alterations. They told her it would take 6 weeks. Mother of the bride dress bought and she looks fabulous. This is sort of a big deal but my FI's mom FINALLY got her passport!! lol She's never been out of the country before and she has not been on a plane in 15 years. We still have to get her to book her flight and hotel. *crosses fingers* FI will have to pay for at least one of those things. TBD later. Honeymoon plane tickets/hotel and rental car booked for Cayman Brac To do: Groom, Best Man and Dad outfits to be purchased within the next week or two via Island Importer Plan casual welcome party (this is contingent on how many guests are coming and who they are!) Get welcome bag together but most of the items we're using will be purchased in Grand Cayman. Also no idea how many guests yet. Waiting on 2013 menu to come out for venue so we can't plan the wedding menu yet. come up with reception decor Have fun and not flip out Ladies, after the holidays, all the magic will really begin. RSVPs, finalizing guest numbers, etc. In other words, CRUNCH TIME. Glad to have this forum for support.

This is what is scaring me. Still have very few booked. Sent invites out two weeks ago. I am trying to not stress about this but it's hard. I have a RSVP deadline for 1/18/2013 so I'm just going to have faith that people are going to do the right thing and respond. I am not doing any follow ups so if I don't get any response, I will take that as a "no". I will wait to make that absolute determination on Feb 1st. I am so good at RSVPing and responding to invites, I just don't get why most people aren't.

This is the danger of not having tried on the dress style before. I thought I saw that you had never tried on any wedding dress before, is that correct? In any event, wedding gowns are heavy but I am sorry that you feel frumpy in yours. That can't be a good feeling. Sometimes dresses you see photos of aren't exactly what you imagine when you put it on in real life. I swore up and down I would go with an A-line cut dress and had several picked out to try on before my first visit to a salon and I ended up hating them on me and the bridal consultant surprised me with a few mermaid/trumpet cut dresses and I ended up finding my dress! Maybe definitely get a second opinion and help getting the dress on fully. I am really sorry you aren't happy though

Still haven't really been able to think through what we'll do for the welcome party yet. I sent my invitations out about a week and a half ago. I still have no better idea of how many guests we will have attending than I did back in August! lol Anyway, I presume most folks will not RSVP yes or no until the last minute: January 18 is the deadline. I will not be accepting anymore after February 1st. I refuse to budge on that. Where are you doing your welcome party? Will this be on the beach? Let me know if you get any info on table and chair vendors.

Also for ladies who haven't put in their orders for Jasmine's yet, keep in mind that it is now busy season. Also, all Chinese knock off shops will be closed for the entire month of February for Chinese New Year. Also the price of your dress will be slightly higher since it's busy season now. They are taking up to 3 days to answer emails so keep patient, it will be worth it. Dress prices will vary depending on the season your order them and demand. Also I ordered an underskirt ( I don't have it on in the photo I took of myself in the dress) and had them add a bustle to my dress so it cost a bit more than the base price. I did not order rush delivery and there are no customs issues or paid if you are getting it delivered in the USA.

I missed this earlier! This is a beautiful dress!

Thanks! I'm excited. I also received my jewelry on the same day so I'm all set!