Our DIY Rosary Cord

A while back I had blogged about wanting our own Rosary Cord after seeing those of some fellow w@wies.

I finally came around to making our own cord one weekend when I got sick of making our invitations. Hehe!:)

So here it is:
(my apologies for the not so great picture, I kinda suck at taking photos)













Project Cost (approximates only):
- Swarovski Crystals
> 8mm round (12pcs x P10) = 120
> 6mm diamond cut (24pcs x P4) = 96
> 4mm diamond cut (24pcs x P2) = 48
- Freshwater pearls (109pcs x P1.875) = 204
- Metal findings (108pcs x P0.50) = 54
- High quality gold beads (226pcs x P0.50) = 113
- Swarovski Cross = 105
- 2-strand spacer = 25
TOTAL = P765

Tips to cut down on costs:
- Replace Swarovski crystals with other kinds of crystals
- Diamond Cut crystals are usually cheaper than round ones
- Use ordinary beads (about P0.10) instead of high quality ones
- Use an ordinary cross instead of a crystal one

The Luckiest

I fell in love with this song the first time I heard it:

The Luckiest by: Ben Folds

I don't get many things right the first time
In fact, I am told that a lot
Now I know all the wrong turns, the stumbles and falls
Brought me here

And where was I before the day
That I first saw your lovely face?
Now I see it everyday
And I know

That I am
I am
I am
The luckiest

What if I'd been born fifty years before you
In a house on a street where you lived?
Maybe I'd be outside as you passed on your bike
Would I know?

And in a white sea of eyes
I see one pair that I recognize
And I know

That I am
I am
I am
The luckiest

I love you more than I have ever found a way to say to you

Next door there's an old man who lived to his nineties
And one day passed away in his sleep
And his wife; she stayed for a couple of days
And passed away

I'm sorry, I know that's a strange way to tell you that I know we belong
That I know

That I am
I am
I am
The luckiest

The Pressure is On!

With just 2 months to go, the pressure is mounting. The combination of sleepless nights, paranoia and stress has started taking its toll on me. I've been getting sick on and off....and if I'm really honest, I'm also getting sick of planning. Right now, after being sick for the third consecutive week, I'm thinking of resorting to a flu shot to make sure that I won't get sick again come November.:)

There are days when I don't want to be bothered with any of the other details anymore, and my standard answer to the suppliers is "It's up to you, I trust your taste". Haha! I've long stopped dreaming of the "perfect wedding" and would just really be happy with a "decent wedding".

But on the bright side, Danz will be home in less than a month and so I'll have someone to share all the stress with.:)

Finding "The One(s)"

I thought that finding the "perfect man" to marry was the hard part. Boy, was I wrong. I've learned that finding the perfect suppliers for the wedding is equally as hard. In fact, I'd say that its a lot like the search for the perfect man.

There are some that:
- are out of your league
- seem like the perfect package, but there's a catch
- don't return your calls, emails, text messages (or promise to call or email, but never do)
- may be great for other people but just not right for you (or the other way around)
- you instantly connect with - like you have known each other forever
- you would prefer to just be friends with
- are just so-so, but you'll settle for them because you're just tired of looking

The whole process isn't easy, even if you feel that you've found "the one". But ultimately, you always have the choice to let go (even if it means foregoing your investment) or stick it out and work through the problems.

Thank the Lord for Lourd

Last week I finally decided on which makeup artist I wanted for my wedding. We exchanged a few messages during the week, but we never really had the chance to discuss the details. I don't like nagging my suppliers, because I know how busy they get, so I didn't follow him up. I told myself that I would text him this week.

I promised Danz I would text Lourd on Wednesday just to ask if I could give him a call. But before I had the chance to text him, I received a message saying that he was free to discuss things and I could give him a call. It was like he read my mind!

So finally, I have a makeup artist already! I'm really glad that things worked out and everything fell into place. I guess patience really is a virtue.

Here are some pics from my trial with him:

At the salon:

At home:

After two hours:

Too Worried to Plan

Danz has been telling me all week that they are preparing for a hurricane to hit the Cayman Islands in the next few days. At first, I wasn't worried because his tone was so casual, like it's something that happens every day. He was even asking me why I'm not worried or concerned about him. That was BEFORE I read the news on the internet.

It struck me today just how devastating this hurricane can be. As I type, I imagine the hurricane growing stronger (it's a Category 4 hurricane, but they are predicting it will become a Category 5 when it hits Jamaica). They are prepared for the worst but hoping for the best.

There are so many "what if's" crossing my mind to focus on the planning. I know that Danz has thought everything through and that he has contingency plans in place to make sure that he will be safe and to minimize the damages to his belongings. He has warned me not to worry in case I don't hear from him for the next few days, as there's a huge possibility that communications will be down for a while. But seriously, how can one not worry?

Though I know in my heart that Danz will be okay, please join me in praying for his safety and the safety of all those that will be hit by Hurricane Dean.

What Kind of Accountant Doesn't Know How to Budget?

Apparently, it's an Accountant that's about to get married.

Once Danz and I had established that we wanted a relatively small wedding (not more than 200 guests), we started to work on our budget. Initially, Danz had asked if P500k would be enough, and I told him that it was too much. I thought we could fit everything into P300k.

Fast forward to today....we've long been over the P300k mark! I'm normally pretty good at sticking to a budget, but with regard to our wedding, our financials are out of control! It doesn't help that when I consult Danz or ask him whether we should get a certain supplier or not, he would always say its ok even though its over the budget (I guess maybe it's because he doesn't want me to have a hard time). Another thing is that I'm not good at haggling with suppliers - partially because I don't agree that its a good thing to do to people who will play a huge part in making the wedding a success. Oftentimes, I am upfront with the suppliers regarding our budget, and we just work around it. But we sometimes end up going over nonetheless.

There are days when I sit and stare at our budget worksheet and try to figure out a way to minimize our expenses. But no matter what I do, we are still hopelessly over budget!