PhotographR

So when it’s all set and done, all that’s left is the memory. What are weddings without their photographers?



Pictures are extremely important to nostalgic me. I have 7 diaries and 320 gb worth of personal pictures. I keep movie tickets and receipts. I don’t let my family members touch my room even though I’ve moved out. I kept magazines since 1999. My husband calls me a hoarder, but that’s just serious accusation.





I was in the midst of short listing my photographers. It was between one really famous photographer (Udey Ismail), and another less famous (Nonofara, photolicious) which were respectively good. I also liked Saiful Nang, but I’d rather buy a superbike with the money. I actually met up and discussed terms and vision with these people and almost put down the deposit.

One day my brother suggested that I should take a look at his friend’s work. Me being me, didn’t pay any mind until he shoved the laptop under my nose with his friend’s website on screen.

I was blown away. Please note that this isn’t an exaggeration. His pictures were personal, beautifully candid, tasteful, and full of emotion.















His name is Raffi Thng! Honestly I’ve practically booked him for my children’s aqiqah.
Now goodies for nostalgic people like me.



What is this? A present for me?



Super duper thick and heavy. This was sent to be bound in the USA. For reals, people.



Huge pictures and layout pleasing to the eye.



A good professional photographer not only has to take awesome pictures, but they have to produce awesome images and compile everything. From first contact to delivery service.



Look how sturdy the pages are!



Another goodie—the coffee table booklet!



Full page picture goodness.



Sighs. The CD of softcopies received with tasteful wrappings and ribbons.



And finally, sturdy elegant frames.

I’m ganna be downright honest here. He does not ask you to do stupid poses. He prompts and suggests, and has a keen eye on the perfect moment. One time I said, husband, carry me. We goofed around, and when suddenly husband actually carried me, Raffi instantly snapped pictures.

Most people I asked would describe his pictures as ‘candid’, ‘with feeling’, ‘beautifully edited’, ‘has taste’.
There’s much to be said about Raffi Thng, but enough talk. Check out his work at www.raffithng.com.

Wedding Prep: Flower Bouquet

For clothes & accessories, go here.

Please take note that these wedding preparations posts are merely to share what I did for my wedding, not guides because frankly speaking, I’ve missed my boat on that one.

Honestly I never thought that I’d enjoy the whole process. But I did, and mostly thanks to my mom who kept the enthusiasm level high. That two stacks of wedding magazine at home? My mom.

There used to be days when we had a week full of appointments and shopping trips. It helps that we both were on holiday for two months at the time. *Good times*

Anyways, my idea of the perfect bouquet.





Ok, first of all—whoever thought of getting inspiration from  a four season country is delusional. Like me. Because, two weeks before the wedding, I found out that those flowers became literally not available to
purchase anywhere.

My bridal lady told me that we’re ganna have to import the flowers. I actually agreed to that. And found out again, that she can’t get those flowers because of christmas, winter etc and even so, the price will be super expensive.

Note: Getting imported flowers in December is extremely hard.

In the end I ended up with roses. But they were bunched up nice and smelled heavenly so it turned out
okay.



For my reception, after back to back discussions, we decided to go for artificial flowers!
I know what you’re thinking but today’s artificial flowers look surprisingly like the real thing. I love them because

a) Doesn’t wilt in our hot weather b) Looks life-like c) Can smell perfume-nice d) May get any type of flower unavailable in the country

Tadaa! End result.



A picture with my mama:



Till next time, xoxo.

Wedding Prep: Baju & Accessories

Due credit for some amazing people!

When our parents set our marriage date in December 2011, we only had about 6 months to prepare for everything. Plus there was an engagement ceremony 3 months prior to the Nikah! I didn’t wanna jinx anything, that’s why everything was very hush hush and between the families only.

Hence why the blog was abandoned for a couple of months. Because of that and because I was running with the wolves everyday. And here we are 4 months after. So on to the backdated preparations: (bear with me here)

The Baju


For the nikah ceremony I’ve always wanted to wear an ivory white lace baju kurung + chiffon, for as long as I remember. A few reasons to this being

a) white is the purest of all colors and I wanted the clothes to embody pureness

b) classic & withstands the test of time

and c) my mom wore pure white when she married my dad & looked gorgeous



I was totally aware that pure white might look washed out in pictures, but I was willing to sacrifice being washed out rather than looking dated. When I looked back at my parents album, you couldn’t really put a date to the photos. It could be the 1960s, or it could be the 1990s. So to achieve the timeless look, nothing could be too trendy.



Mom was beside me all the way through the preparations. She suggested we went for the ultimate classic – the Solstiss french lace. Based on my watered down understanding, there’s only two types of lace, french or not french. French laces are intricate, strong and really soft to the skin. Some come with beading and the prices are through the roof. So what we did was to get plain french lace and let our talented tailor do the rest.

Lace – Solstiss french lace from Gulati’s bridal section; lining – ivory bridal satin; tailoring, beading & veil – Alice of Nobella Collection; veil – chiffon silk with lace applique




For this baju, we went back to the tailor 3 times. First was initial discussion on the measurements and design. The second time I visited Alice, it was to discuss beading placement and veil. Third time was for the fitting.

Because I wanted pure white, Alice suggested that we used pearls as the beading, instead of colored beads or crystals.

As for the long chiffon veil, the idea is to provide a counterbalance to the laced baju kurung so the overall look wouldn’t be too crowded.





Accessories




I had several ideas about the headband. First there was the flowers but I didn’t think I could pull it off. Mom wanted me to wear a tiara but truth is, I never liked tiaras. They either have to look luxurious or look like crap. But that’s just my two cents. And it’s hard to look for the type of tiara I like. Pretty ones are not too tall, but dense and intricate.

Something like these two:-

 

It was actually easy to just bulk up the veil with embroidery and wear just that, but since the whole outfit was pretty safe and classic, I wanted one part that was modern and chic.

At one point I was engrossed with these:-







and my favorite below!





I couldn’t find similar ones in Malaysia though, so I got the next best thing:



I bought it from a custom jewelry shop shop at Semua House, KL. In fact, we also had 3 other options for the headband, but I decided on this one at the last minute.

Though you couldn’t actually see my wrist throughout the ceremony, it was assuring to know that I’ve got this pretty thing underneath.



And the shoes were bought at Tangs Pavilion.. and these are Fioruccis. You can find their store at the Gardens. I was most proud of these shoes because I bought it for only RM80!! These normally retail for RM300++

When I got back from buying these shoes, I was huffing and puffing about it to my mom. Most savvy bride ever! LOL. Again, I chose plain peep-toe pumps to counterbalance the heavy lace outfit..aaand to avoid the shoes snagging on the lace.





Make Up & the Nitty Gritties




My hand & leg henna was done by Henna Dayu Designs. It was pretty straightforward and I didn’t give much thought on it.

I would caution you against doing it yourself or asking family members, unless they’ve done it many times before.  It looks simple enough, but to do it neatly will require some expertise.

I simply googled henna kahwin and got her name at the top. I would recommend them for a no fuss service, but please know that there are many many others who provide similar and cheaper services.





As for makeup, I did it myself. It was very easy to do! DIY post to be up soon.

Hope you enjoyed the post.

Till then, xoxo. Take care everybody!

Weekend Getaway: Cameron Highlands

Last weekend, me & hubs, ilyia & rauf went to Cameron Highlands!

This place is soo close to utp, but I never went! So this is my first time going up there. We stayed in Equatorial Cameron Highlands, booked through Agoda. I must say Agoda is easy to use, and you make all payments beforehand online so you only need to show the booking slip at the lobby.

Enjoy the photos!

































Things to buy/see: Bharat Tea Plantation, strawberry farm, rose garden, honey farm. And oh Lata Iskandar.