Chantelle's blog
January 2011 update
With only 50 days to go until the big day our wedding plans are well under way. We have organised my dress, bridesmaids’ dresses, wedding bands, flowers, cake, decoration for the reception and we even fit in a couple of dancing lessons!
Many of you have booked your flights and we’re starting to get really excited. There are just two short months to go…I’m sure the time will fly!
Looking forward to spending some time with all of you.
Chantelle
August 2010 update
RSVPs are being returned and the countdown is on for the big day. Time is flying and I am slowly getting through the millions of things that need to be done. I am now focusing on organizing my bridesmaids’ attire. While having a wedding ceremony on the sand will be amazing it means we and the bridal party will need suitable footwear for the ceremony and then regular shoes for the reception (which is on solid ground!). For our guests I recommend going barefoot for the ceremony as heels on sand simply will not work.
We have also finalised details for the formal dinner which will be on Monday 4 April 2011 with the menu being set and soon available for you to view on the Special Events and Activities website so keep an eye out.
Adding to the excitement, we have started thinking about our ‘post wedding’ movements. We have decided not to go on a honeymoon per se and to save that for later in the year. Instead, we will spend some time in Bangkok with family, then travel elsewhere in Thailand (destination yet to be decided) before returning home. Any suggestions about where we should go are welcome.
Kuala Lumpur trip report – June 2010
Last week we returned from a four day family (Mum, David, Michael and I) holiday in Kuala Lumpur (KL). We travelled with Air Asia for the first time and were a little nervous about what to expect from the low budget airline. Air Asia is a basic, no frills airline…no food, no entertainment system etc. You are paying for the seat alone (which is why you can get flights from as little as $99 each way to KL). We came prepared…we had our snacks, travel pillows and ear plugs.
As we boarded the flight we were prepared for the worst. However, we were pleasantly surprised when we heard the announcement “cabin crew arm doors” and only one third of our section of the cabin was filled. We each claimed three seats for ourselves, allowing us to lie flat and sleep for the entire overnight flight. All in all one of the most comfortable flights I have been on.
Our time in KL was brief, but we did everything we wanted to do. We spent most of out time shopping and eating, and whatever time was left getting massages and experiencing the unique ‘fish spa’. Fish spa involves dangling your feet in a fish tank filled with little fish which bite the dry skin off your feet. Disgusting I know, but when you take your feet out of that tank they’re as smooth as the day you were born!
For the journey back home we had slightly higher hopes than we’d had upon boarding the Air Asia plane at Melbourne Airport. Waiting at KL airport we sat next to a family with two young children, one of whom was screaming non stop. As luck would have it, they were sitting in the row in front of us on the plane…and not only did the little dear have a set of lungs on him, he had a tendency to fling things back over his seat. Needless to say the trip home was a little less comfortable than the trip there. The entire cabin was full, which made us realize just how narrow the seats were. I feel this may be a more typical Air Asia flight and we were just very lucky on the way there.
All in all an enjoyable holiday. Would I fly Air Asia again? For $99 I would struggle to say no!
We have just returned from our second trip to Phuket, and everything for the wedding seems to be pulling together. We once again met with our wedding planner JJ, and discussed further details such as colour scheme, accommodation arrangements for our guests (see our accommodation page under the guest services tab), and the general running of the day.
One of the reasons for this trip was for us to see what the weather would be like at this time of year. Many people had told us that April was the hottest time of the year to be in Phuket. While the days were very hot, the evenings were much cooler and the nights very pleasant. Our ceremony will be at 5:30pm and we found the weather had generally cooled by this stage. So, it shouldn’t be unbearably hot and we will pray for no rain (it didn’t rain once during the week we were there).
A lot of our time there was spent in meetings with JJ but we also managed to squeeze in a visit to Phuket’s new water park, Splash Jungle, a trip to the Big Buddha, a bit of shopping, plenty of eating and relaxing on the beach.
Phuket trip report – January 2010
We have recently returned from a trip to Phuket, during which we met with JJ and Jom of Twinpalms, who will be co-coordinating our big day.
We had concerns about the organisation involved in having a wedding overseas. However, having now met with Jom and JJ our minds have been put at ease. With instructions from us, they will organise everything from the bridal bouquet to the decoration and music for the reception.
While there I had arranged for a hair and make up trial. There were a few hiccups with the initial trial. However, we have now found someone we are happy with who did a wonderful job and has agreed to do my hair and make up for the wedding.
It was really exciting to be there making concrete decisions for the wedding. We hope after our trip in March everything will be locked in and we can start sending out our invitations.
Wedding Dress Shopping
I have reached a huge bridal milestone …my first appointment at a bridal store to try on wedding dresses.
For a few weeks before I organized my appointment I was increasingly hearing stories from friends who are getting married around the same time as me. All of them had been to at least two bridal stores already to try on wedding dresses. They all had stories about their experiences…and it got me motivated.
So, I made an appointment at Raffaele Ciuca, Brunswick, largely because this is the only bridal store I knew, having visited it with Tracy when she was shopping for her dress. Also, they stock a dress I have found which I like.
This was not something which had me hugely exited. I know for many girls, shopping for a wedding dress epitomises what it is to be a bride. However, I generally try to steer clear of trying clothes on in shops. This is mainly to avoid shop assistants stalking me around the store, hovering outside the dressing room, only to tell me everything looks “amazing”, no matter how hideous or unflattering. But, the wedding dress experience is different I was told.
I was accompanied by Mum and two of my bridesmaids, Katie and Keri. I tried five dresses (including one “joke” dress i.e. the ugliest dress my bridesmaids could find). The only one I really loved was the one I had found prior to visiting the store. Mum, Katie and Keri all agreed, that was the one which stood out.
All in all it was a god experience, even though the assistant did say everything looked amazing, including the “joke” dress!).
The experience was enjoyable, and I actually look forward to my next visit to a bridal store. I am now a little more educated when it comes to trying on wedding dresses. For instance, I learned you should not wear underwear with a fluorescent band- this often shows through a wedding dress. I shall put this lesson in to practice next time…live and learn!
Tracy’s Wedding
On 27th December 2009, I was maid of honor at my friend Tracy’s wedding. This is the third wedding I’ve ever attended and the first I’ve been involved in.
Having blindly made my way over such hurdles as the kitchen tea, and hen’s night during the year (both of which I recently learned were to be organized by me!), I reached the big day. I have to say, for bridesmaids…in particular maids of honour, the wedding day is no walk in the park.
Hair, make up, help the bride dress (tip: remember the hoop goes on before the dress), photos, wait for cars, wait in cars, make sure the bride’s dress is immaculate at all times (this often means slipping not so inadvertently across the alter during mass), more photos, photos in cars, photos near cars, photos at the park, reception, make sure bride’s make up looks fresh, more photos…and don’t forget to smile...always, there is a camera everywhere!
It was a busy day, but lots of fun. Tracy’s wedding was beautiful and it was nice to see all her hard work during the year paid off. It was also good to see a wedding from another perspective before my own big day. And to Tracy, my matron of honour I apologise in advance!
November 2009 update - Invitations and dresses
Well it’s been a while since I updated this page so I thought it was about time for an entry. We haven’t done a whole lot since the engagement party! We have made a bit of progress with invitations but that’s about it. Oh, and I’ve been looking at bridesmaid’s dresses. By next April we hope to start putting flight and accommodation details up on the ‘guest services’ page to assist you all with making arrangements for your attendance. As soon as we set a date we will put it up here so you can get cracking.
We have also booked a trip to Phuket for this coming March so we can check out the hotel, the area where the reception will be held, the weather etc. Well…that’s our excuse anyway! I’m sure we’ll have plenty to report when we get back.
The enegagement party and beyond
Just want to say thank you to everyone who attended our engagement party. Even though we have already been engaged for over four months it was nice to have an occasion we could share with the people who are special to us.
We both had a great night. It was nice to have people from different areas of our life all in the one room. All went off just as planned. Mother Nature even played her part, giving us a freakishly warm September night.
From here we begin the countdown to the Wedding, so I guess we’d better start planning. April 2011 sounds so far away but I’m sure the time will just fly so we want to get a move on. Also, we want to give you all a lot of time to plan your attendance so invitations are high up on our list of to dos. For now though…keep the first week of April 2011 free!
Welcome to my first blog
Welcome to my first blog. Things are already hectic with wedding preparation. We have set a tentative time of April 2011 for the wedding…it sounds so far away but already there is so much to do.
The first thing to organise is the engagement party, which is pretty much all done. We have been looking around for a cake and should probably look at ordering one fairly soon if it is to be ready on time!
I’m really looking forward to the engagement party. It will be fun to catch up with family and friends who we haven’t seen for a while.
We’re also starting to shop around for wedding invitations. As we are having the wedding overseas we want to give our guests plenty of time to make arrangements so invitations are high up on our list of things to do.
Well, that’s about it for my first blog. Stay tuned!
