NJBride2014

Have any of you ladies tried the cake flavours and have any recommendations? My wedding planner is saying they have to get the menu in 1 month before to order ingredients, etc. so we missed our chance to try everything.  I got sent this for cake flavours:

 

Flavor: 

 **vanilla  (vainilla filling)

**Chocolate (chocolate filling)

**Strawberry (natural strawberries filling)

**Lemon (lemon cream)

**Red Velvet  (cream cheese)

**Cheesecake

I'm not sure if they use the same baker but they might so this was my experience.

We went with the vanilla cake with strawberry filling and it was yummy. I also did a vanilla cake with hazelnut cream filling for the surprise groom's cake and that was also very good.  Our guests loved them both.  Tres Leche we had for our rehearsal dinner and again that was yummy.  You won't go wrong with any of them. lol  Also just a tip we only had 45 people and the complimentary cake size was more than enough for everyone.  We had a lot of cake leftover, at least half of the complimentary cake and 3/4 left over of the grooms cake.  

Hi! You already know what happened with mine.

 

Just be proactive and make sure that if the day of forecast calls for rain that you talk it out with the coordinator before hand. Unfortunately my coordinator was no where to be found the morning of our wedding and never even advised us that there was rain in the forecast. They asked us to make the decision to move inside after it already started raining and all of our rented decor items were setup outside. Which means they got wet. They refused to move in the majority of our items and did not give us a refund for the items that were not used at our reception even though no one asked if we wanted to move everything inside at all or even informed us of the forecast.

 

I hope you have beautiful weather and that everything goes according to plan but don't let it get to you too much if your plans change. I did and it totally ruined my day. Just take a few shots (if you drink) to ease the nerves and enjoy the company of your husband, friends and family.

Totally agree if your planner is nowhere to be found have someone find her.  Be proactive and voice your opinion on locations and things because ultimately you brought all this business there and you want the best experience and they should give you the best experience.  I'm grateful my planner was there for everything but I'm not sure how Moon Palace works so make sure when you have your first meeting with your planner that you get her number and ask her to be at all events. 

Can anyone advise on what you have done or are planning to do if there is rain on your wedding day?!

 

All of my wedding decorations, tables, lighting I have rented is designed for our outside reception. I look at the weather for next week and absolutely panic!!!!

 

HELP!!

I was married at Le Blanc Spa Resort a Palace owned resort and for the whole weekend we were there it called for rain.  I was stressed about it but really I had no control over it so we went with some of the back up plans.  For our cocktail welcome party it was the first day everyone arrived and we had planned an outside event but my planner came to me and gave me the forecast for the night and I could see that it was cloudy and that it had rained on and off during the day so we moved it indoors next to the terrace so we could still go outside if we wanted too.  Trust me with the humidity at night going indoors was a better idea for all guests.

For our rehearsal dinner same thing your wedding planner will give you a print out of the weather for the day and you make the choice to keep it inside or out.  We got to keep ours outside as planned and it was great less humid than the night before but 2 hours in the rain started but it was no big deal because by then we were done eating and just mingling so we just moved the party inside and went to their upstairs bar. 

For the big Day again we got the print out and it did call for some rain and it did rain during the day for like 5 minutes and then cleared up so we went ahead and had the ceremony outside as planned and it was perfect.  As for the reception it was planned for the terrace roof top but it called for rain at night and my planner advised us to bring inside instead and keep cocktail hour outside so we could use some of the decor we also rented like lounge seats.  So that's what we did and to tell you the truth I was a little upset about moving inside at first but with weather in September being temperamental I didn't want to chance it plus it was super humid and my guests were much more comfortable inside for the reception.  They were all sweating at the cocktail hour so just don't freak out over the changes they are bound to happen just remember to keep calm and enjoy every moment.  Your guests will still have a blast no matter what heck on the first day rain and all everyone jumped in the pool.  We never got a full on rain out day either it would just be a quick rain and then clear up. Good luck at your wedding and enjoy every minute it goes by really fast.     

This is the welcome letter I put in all the welcome bags it was a nice way to say thank you for coming all this way and also gave people the timeline of events for the weekend. 

Welcome Letter.doc

How much is everyone paying for "other" stationary? Menus, placecards etc. I just got my quote back from the lady who did my invites and it seems really high... Now I'm considering making my own. Anyone else?

 

 

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I did all these myself except for the place cards because it came with my invitations but you can totally do those yourself too.  If you search online you will find a lot of templates for menus, place cards, programs etc. All you'll need is to buy the card stock/paper you want in your color theme and then play around with colors and design. Here are my menus, favor tags and programs for example. You can definitely do these super cheap I think I spent $5 on card stock and $10 on the wooden sticks and then just bought some crystals to bling it out a little. 

@@calgarybride2015 I think you are TOTALLY right that guests don't have expectations for a destination wedding. It is completely different than a traditional wedding at home where the day is pretty standard across weddings.

 

My sister got married in Mexico last year and kept it pretty simple, but the excitement about being on vacation with a group of fun people, having a new experience, and the beauty of the tropical location kind of makes people oblivious to everything else. People remember how much fun they had - and that is what I keep telling myself. I'm willing to spend money on things that up the fun factor!

 

@@TinkerSofi I would worry about not having much done. I am telling myself that is what snowy/freezing cold days in winter are for! I'll hit everything really hard in January-March - and I'll probably be so excited by then that I'll have my bags packed by April

I completely agree with your guests being excited just to be on vacation and having fun than all the little details we brides stress over.  I gave everyone a welcome bag filled with a hangover kit and personalized sunglasses and I barely saw people use the bag.  Some people didn't even look in the bag never noticed that it had stuff in it. lol Granted our resort gives each room very nice souvenir beach bag and has everything you need including sunscreen and aloe so people didn't really need my kits. I'm glad I kept them minimal and didn't spend too much money on them.

My guests were so excited and to busy having fun at the actual resort and using all their amenities and taking advantage of what the resort itself had to offer that my bags were mostly forgotten. There were one or two people who commented on the hangover kits and said they used them and I did see some people with the sunglasses throughout the weekend. But I mostly saw people using the hotel's free bag instead of mine oh well it was a favor as well so it worked as double duty. Moral of the story is not to stress out over the little things, your guests won't notice if something you had planned is missing trust me.  You'll be the only one who knows. 

just a tip if you buy 6 earrings or necklaces most etsy shops will give you a discount.  They don't always advertise the discount but if you ask they will most of the time give you coupon code or give you a private listing with a discounted price.  I know when I bought 5 earrings for my girls a couple of the shops offered either 5% or 10% off so its something. 

Here is a quick review on the wallybag....it worked great going to Cancun carried my wedding dress, second party dress, rehearsal dinner dress and 2 suits and men's shoes, it folded up nicely and then we hung it on the plane's closet.  I think we might have overpacked it too much because when we used it again to bring my 2 dresses and my husbands outfits to Playa Del Carmen for our TTD the shoulder straps both broke off.  We could still use it by holding it by the hand straps and that's what we did when we packed my dress and his suits on the way back home.  

So basically do not overfill it or the weight of everything will start to unstitch the straps.  I got my as a bridal gift from bed bath and beyond so I'm going to try to see if I can return it because all though it was heavy it does advertise that we should be able to hang 7 garments and we only had 5 so we'll see. 

I sent mine out 15 months early and it was great to give people so much time to plan and save. We had 45 people at our wedding more than we thought we would get to come and I'm sure it was the advanced notice that helped.

I'm at LeBlanc now on my honeymoon but we are going to Moon Palace today to visit the resort since we've never been.  Let me know if you need me to take any pictures I'll be happy to do it and share later on. 

Yesterday was awesome! Here are some pics from friends and family to share.

@@NJBride2014 does it fold up small enough to store overhead? Do you happen to know the folded dimensions. I can't seem to find them anywhere?

 

 

Anne Marie

November 21, 2014-Now Jade

I'm not sure I've haven't traveled with it yet.  It folds nicely though and if I had to guess I would say yes it will fit overhead.  I have my wedding dress and 2 extra dresses and 2 suits in it now and it all fits fine and folds right up.  I can comment more on how well it travels when I return from my wedding. 

Back from my last and final fitting now its off for a steam and I get to take my dress home! Yay 4 more days.

@@NJBride2014 those are actually the same exact choices we are leaning towards...rib eye and salmon. Our thought process has been the same... food is everywhere at the resort so they certainly can eat something else but I have heard good reviews of the wedding meals. I am having them chose their meals through the RSVP process so no surprises. Hopefully that will aid in everything running smoothly. The WC has been really firm about making sure I have a method to differentiate the guests so the servers will know who wants what entrée without having to ask them so I will have to come up with some sort of system or decoration on the seating card to let the servers know. Did you have to do this?

No they didn't ask us to differentiate I guess they will go around the table and just ask who ordered the salmon and who ordered the beef.  Or I can give my coordinator my seating chart and at least let her know how many beef and fish dishes are at a certain table.  I'll let you know how it all turns out in about a week lol.  We also will have a cocktail hour with food and our dinner is a 5 course meal so I think our guests will be satisfied.  If they are not we can all call room service at the after party. lol This is our menu. 

@ I was only allowed to choose 2 main entree options for our sit down dinner. So we went with rib eye and a salmon dish.  I figured it gave people an option of a beef or a fish.  Also if people are not full or don't like their meal it's an all inclusive so they can order something after the wedding.  I had my guests choose their meal before hand though so they picked what they would most like to eat so I don't think it will be a problem.  

@@NJBride2014 that bag is awesome! contemplating getting one...are you planning on carrying it on and stowing in overhead?

Yeah we are carrying it on folded and then we splurged for first class so the plan is to hang it in the closet in the front of the plane.  

I didn't get a custom bag with a monogram but I did get a wally bag at my bridal shower. Its awesome, you can fit a lot of dresses your fiance's suit and then some.  There are so many compartments and places to store things and it fold over so you can use it as a carry on.  

http://www.ebags.com/product/wally-bags/66-gown-length-destination-bag/137611?productid=1356960&sourceid=ADWPRODUCT&couponid=94790994&gclid=CIjHkpSxyMACFehj7AodggcA1Q&kwid=productads-plaid^94796119698-sku^1356960-adType^PLA-device^c-adid^50251270938

That's awesome!! Thank you!! I'm going to take a look. They already have a design on them, but I'm finding the paint chips quite easily so would like to try to touch them up just a little.

 

Your wedding is coming up really fast! I'm going to be in the hospital on your wedding day, but will make a mental note to wonder how it's going!! Really looking forward to seeing your photos when you come back!  Your DIY's are great!!

Thanks so much and its sweet of you to think of us on our wedding day!  

Sorry to hear that you will be in the hospital I hope its nothing too serious and everything is successful.  

I will definitely share photos/video and a lengthy review when I return. 

Before I forget again.... could you find out what kind of paint was used for the maracas? Was it a craft paint? Shiny? Flat? I have some that I got that need to be touched up just a little.

 

Thanks!!!

 

Great pics! and congrats again!! looking forward to seeing Mexico!

 

@@acw271011 the paint we used was Krylon indoor/outdoor gloss spray paint.  You can find them at Michaels and if you want to write on the maracas just get paint pens they are like $2 at Michaels.  Have fun crafting!!

Another last minute DIY project

My sister/MOH and I made these cute Mr. and Mrs. signs all for under $10.

Rehearsal centerpiece decor

I also ordered personalized papel picado banners from a seller on etsy with our names and wedding date on them for our rehearsal dinner centerpieces. 

Centerpiece inspiration

Bracelet for the wedding day

A simple bracelet I can wear again but still has some bling 

Hello wedding planners!

 

Just wanted to share with you some great news, the Summer 2014 ISPWP (International Society of Professional Wedding Photographers) Awards were just announced and we are pleased to present our work that was honored! Big congrats to photographers Marina, Sol and Jorge! Extra special kudos to Marina for being placed in the top 20 photographers overall of the thousands who participated!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Enjoy, we are at your service, happy planning!

Awesome work, Congrats to all the Photographers at Del Sol....I can't wait for my wedding in 10 days and to have Del Sol capture it all.  

This is awesome!! You are so organized and prepared! Can't wait to see pics of the big day in Mexico!! Congrats!

@@NJBride2014 congratulations!!! Can't wait to see the Mexico pics

You look awesome!!! Congrats:)

Thanks everyone!! I'll definitely post pictures when I'm back. 

I am in the hunt for bridesmaid jewelry. I am early wanting rose gold earrings and a bracelet. I have three bridesmaids so I don't want to spend too much money either!! Any ideas??

 

50 days til the big day!!

Check on Etsy you can find a lot of jewelry on there for reasonable prices. 

Everything looks amazing!!! Congratulations!

Would you mind sending me the maraca tag template!

sara.fortin1603@gmaildotcom

 

Thanks!

 The template has been sent.