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Mandarine

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Hi girls!!!! This is my first formal post in this forum!! yay!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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We still don''t know the date and I''m at a loss about where to start!!!!. I guess the site and date are the first priorities, correct?.

I''m on a tight budget since I will be paying for the wedding myself...so I will need all the help I can get to keep costs down without compromising certain things: (surprisingly enough the dress, the flowers, etc ...are NOT my priorities!)

- I want the wedding on a Satruday, preferably evening.
- I want great music.
- I want lots of alcohol! hehe

Here are my ideas thus far (FI not fully on board with some of these, but I''m working on it!)

Me and FI both come from Spanish families. Both my parents are from Spain and so is his mom. I have an idea about how to incorpoarte our European roots in the wedding that will also help keep costs down (think Paella, tapas and Sangria!!). I also can ask the girls in my Flamenco class to come and do a dance or something during the cocktail hour or dinner (the advanced girls, not the girls in MY group...hehe). I could hire a guitarrist and have them play nice sevillanas and flamenco music. It would all have to be really well planned so it''s still a classy and elegant affair. I was thinking using red, ivory/white and black as the colors. Keeping the flowers elegant and simple (maybe only red roses) and having candles everywhere!!!. I could create some sort of typical Spanish fans and use those as the menus or programs....and maybe give people castanuelas (the little noise making things flamenco dancers use in their hands while they dance)

I was borned in Venezuelan so I would also love to incorporate a little bit of my culture in the wedding as well. Mainly, the "cotillon"...kind of like the "crazy hour"!. In Venezulea this is a MUST!. This is when you play all the silly/great music everyone wants to hear but is to embarassed to admit it, and out come the masks, confetti, funny hats, sunglasses, whistles, etc.....it''s like a carnival and it''s usually how the party ends (or keeps going) because is just SO much fun!. In Venezuela usually they kick the "cotillon" off with a group of drummers. I doubt I will be able to get drummers here at a reasonable price...but that would be so awesome!.

So that''s what I have so far!....
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I know planning will be crazy!!!! ...but I''m excited to start!
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Oleee!!

M~
 

mela lu

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WELCOME! You''ll get great feedback here and tons of ideas!

Get ready :)

I love that you''re encorporating your roots. It''ll be so special and memorable and most importantly, YOU!

Another inexpensive route to go for music (which I''m doing) is hitting up a local music teacher and some of his students to play for 2 hours. "Free" (drinks and appi''s) but one way to get some live music for a while!

GL planning - we''re here for ya!
 

blushingbride

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Welcome Mandarine! Get ready for an exciting new journey!
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This forum is excellent in providing assistance with planning a wedding. Your ideas sound amazing - I''m sure your wedding will be beautiful! My FI is originally from Croatia so, we are trying to incorporate his European roots into our wedding (so, I know how you feel). Good luck in the planning process!
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mela lu

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HEE Blushing Bride! My FI is Croatian too! (I''m Italian)

LOVE it love it love it!

What are you encorporating?
 

turtledazzle

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Joined
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Oh, Mandarine! Congratulations! I didn''t see your post on the LIW forum as I don''t go there often. I know how you''ve waited for this, and how your year did not get off to a good start ~ but now the tide is turning! Congrats! Yay!
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Your ideas for the wedding sound fantastic!
 

anchor31

Ideal_Rock
Joined
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Yay! Hello there!
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I love your ideas, they sound so much fun... Happy planning!
 

Mandarine

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Thank you!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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I know you guys will be very helpful!...so I''m counting on you to keep me sane!
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Turtledazzle, thanks for your nice note!!!!
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M~
 

blushingbride

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Date: 2/22/2007 10:40:12 AM
Author: mela lu
HEE Blushing Bride! My FI is Croatian too! (I''m Italian)

LOVE it love it love it!

What are you encorporating?
Really Mela lu? That''s very cool! Where''s your FI from? Mine is from Dubrovnik, his parents were originally from Montenegro. We are having a "European style" wedding which I had never heard of, but our venue offers that. So our dinner and dancing will be in 2 different rooms. Also, the music!!! We are having 2 first dances (one American Song and one Croatian). Also, we are playing some Albanian music too since some of his family is from Albania. It''s going to be so much fun! Are you doing anything special?
 

aprilcait

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Welcome, Mandarine!!!
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I''m actually working on incorporaing my FI''s Spanish and Venzuelan roots into the wedding, along with my Irish and Lithuanian roots (I know, weird combo). FI and I attended his couin''s wedding in Spain a few years back and I think I might have a few ideas that might work for you.

The menus were handwritten on fans in gold ink/paint. (It was pretty and functional...a menu and wedding favor in one!)
The gold coin exchange was performed at the ceremony. (FI and I will definitely be doing this.)
The bride wore a manilla veil.
The dessert was tropical flavored ice cream (i.e.: coconut, mango, and papaya), which is common there, in chocolate dishes. (Simple but YUMMY!)
They had guitar music playing at the reception.

I''ll try to think of some other feasible ideas. (I was thinking of suggesting that you serve Spanish wine at the reception, but I''m not sure how cost effective that would be.)
 

musey

Super_Ideal_Rock
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YAY Mandarine!!! I''m just beginning the planning too, we just finished getting our initial head count so that we could start site scouting
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I LOVE the flamenco idea--how many other weddings would your guests see this at?? So unique and fun. (I also love the *ahem* SANGRIA idea
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I can''t wait to see how it all comes together. Happy planning!
 

mela lu

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Date: 2/22/2007 11:57:33 AM
Author: blushingbride

Date: 2/22/2007 10:40:12 AM
Author: mela lu
HEE Blushing Bride! My FI is Croatian too! (I''m Italian)

LOVE it love it love it!

What are you encorporating?
Really Mela lu? That''s very cool! Where''s your FI from? Mine is from Dubrovnik, his parents were originally from Montenegro. We are having a ''European style'' wedding which I had never heard of, but our venue offers that. So our dinner and dancing will be in 2 different rooms. Also, the music!!! We are having 2 first dances (one American Song and one Croatian). Also, we are playing some Albanian music too since some of his family is from Albania. It''s going to be so much fun! Are you doing anything special?
That sounds great! Nice of you to meld the two families like that! We''re keeping ours pretty Italian (lol) as were getting married in Italy, and then Mom''s having a cocktail party afterwards for us, with none other than Italian food ;-)

He''s cool with that....his family is from the south, near Herzegovina. But his family is sort of ''all over'' now (after the war)...so...

We''re honeymooning in Croatia - and that''s pretty much the extent of the Croatianness! LOL. I should ask his neice and nefew to preform that Coulo Dance (sp?)....that would be cute!
 

anchor31

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A simple and great idea could be to have a acoustic guitar player at the cerremony? You could have him play traditional pieces from your countries! Guitar can have such a Spanish sound to it...
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ChargerGrrl

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oh my, oh my, oh my!!
I''ve been MIA for a while, and saw your post here on BBW. I hightailed it over super-quick to LIW and learned the good news. Will post congrats there!!

How cool that you''re looking to incorporate your heritage into the wedding. I''m Mexican/Italian and DH is French/Irish. He didn''t care much to do anything on his side- except for having the RD at an Irish pub! But I was all over it. We had mariachi''s at the RD, and served an Italian, family-style wedding dinner (with italian varietals). My colors (crimson red & ivory) were also similar to what you''re going for, my flowers were roses, and we have candlelight EVERYWHERE.

It was fun planning it. Get ready for an adventure!
 

Mandarine

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Thanks Charger! you''re so sweet!
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I''m getting nervous about finding a venue that will fit my budget, timeframe and style!!!.....
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. I just started putting together a list of venues and it''s just crazy how much the fees vary from one to the other!. Once I have some options, I will post them
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Anchor, I thought about a guitarrist too! ...specially for the flamenco dancers. I was thinking that would be cool to do during the cocktail hour!

Aprilcait, thank you for all your ideas!. We''re definitely doing the gold coins (using the ones my family has used FOREVER!...grandmas, mom, sister, etc). I hope I can find a beautiful mantilla!

Thank you all for the warm welcome and ideas :)

M~
 

janinegirly

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hi mandarine! can''t wait to hear when you''ve come up w/a venue and date!! you''re already off to a great start with all kinds of ideas and potential venues!
 

Jaders731

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Joined
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Mandarine:

A heartfelt congratulations to you... that is sooo very exciting.. I too was following your "not great start" to the new year.. and I am sooo glad that you have some sunshine now to brighten your day!!

When I saw that you wanted to incorporate your Spanish heritage.. I thought.. duh!!! You are in South Florida right??? You absolutely MUST check out the Spanish Monastery in Miami!!! seriously... it is beautiful.. and its a great way to bring in your heritage! http://www.spanishmonastery.com/

Please please please check it out.. I would have LOVED to have gotten married there!!! but they were all booked on our date!

Let me know what you think.. I''m dying to hear your reaction!
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akw94

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Mandarine, Welcome!!
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Your ideas sound great and like a lot of fun! If you''re trying to keep cost down, you may want to consider a Friday or Sunday. A lot of places have reduced rates for those days. Also, possibly a Spanish restaurant might work. There is this tapas restaurant here that Monarch suggested that I would''ve loved, has all the charm, great menu, etc..., however, in reality, it was more expensive per person than other sites. I ended up going w/a country club b/c it has things much cheaper. When you''re looking around, ask places if they have options outside of the wedding package. I found that many places have "a la carte" options which let you pick and choose the pieces that you want. It''s also a much cheaper food menu but doesn''t include the open bar usually. So as you''re shopping around, you''ll get a feel for what best suits your needs.

Good luck w/the planning! I agree that the ceremony/reception site is the most important thing to handle first. I think it''s a great idea to contact a local music teacher, including the music departments at local schools to see if students would play cheaper. I''m thinking of doing that myself.
 

Mandarine

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Thanks girls!!!

Jaders, that is my favorite site!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!...I''ve had my eye on it forever...I actually posted about it in the LIW forum once!...I love, love, love that place!. Are you in South Florida?...

Thanks for the suggestion :)

M~
 

akw94

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Mandarine

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Thank you Dixie!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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Ok, I''m depressed, called the Spanish Monastery and they''re booked all the way through May 2008...
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I don''t want to wait that long to have our wedding...I actually can''t wait that long (immigration issues)...

I guess that''s out of the list of options!
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M~
 

Jaders731

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Mandarine:

My place of Residence is South florida, yes.. but i am currently living and working in Turks and Caicos!

Ughh i just read your latest post about them beeing booked.. bummer.. I''m sooo sad for you.. seriously.. that would have been soooo AWESOME!
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janinegirly

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yea mandarine that was one thing i was surprised at .. how quickly things were booked up. i knew i didn''t want to wait too long to marry (waited long enough as a LIW!!!!) so realized i had to compromise. our ceremony is at 12 pm for example (kinda early), but i''d have to wait months and months after our current date if i wanted the later slot.

draft up your list of venues and call today to see availabilty. from there you can work out possible dates and which works best with your budget/vision. my ceremony and reception are in 2 diff locations so also coordinating those 2 was another piece which took some juggling.
 

firebirdgold

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Congratulations And Welcome to the BIW side!!
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Your ideas sound amazing! Which ones are your Fi not so keen on?
How big of a wedding are you guys thinking? Um, how tight of a budget are we talking?

If the music for the cotillon was from an ipod hooked up to some speakers that should help keep the costs down. The paella and tapas as a buffet should help, but if you do the tapas as passed apps that could be pricey. I'd look for somewhere (or a caterer) that includes the tables, linens, and stuff in their price.
Sticking to Sangria and beer for alcohol will also be cost effective. I know some places require a bartender to serve alcohol, but if you could find a place that would let you just have buckets of ice with beer stuck in them and pitchers or punch bowls with the Sangria that'd be great! Maybe that's too casual. hmmm.
You might want to think of trying for a slightly more casual party feel for the reception. Unfortunately elegant often equates to more people/servers. people == money.
You've got some great ideas for saving money with the entertainment and the fans and things. This sounds like it'll be a very fun wedding!
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ETA: don't forget parks and other things like that for your reception and wedding! One of my favorite places locally is an Audubon Society park thingy.
 

fisherofmengirly

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Yay! Mandarine is here!

So, are you still in happy, happy, bubbly mode? I swear, I''ve not come down from it from more than a day or two since we got engaged and married. It''s great and beautiful marrying the man of your dreams!

Yay for Mandarine and her boy!!!

As for saving money and stuff, as long as you shop around, and are willing to do some do-it-yourself things *or ask for the help of bridesmaids, friends, family, whatever* you really can get married relatively inexpensively, and still get the things that really matter to you.

Paul and I wanted to have money so we could have a good time and do what we wanted to do on our honeymoon, so the things that didn''t matter much to us *flowers, expensive clothing you wear only once, etc.* we didn''t focus on. And you know what? The wedding was beautiful, everyone loved how it was so much about *us* and not the hype of an elaborate wedding, and that we had so many personal touches along the way. It was a great day, and neither of us or either set of our parents went in debt over it. It''s totally do-able!

What we did was sat down together and figured out what mattered the most to us: having pictures of us up at the reception as part of the centerpieces, having a purple cake that tasted GREAT, and having everyone we loved who wanted to be in the wedding, in it. We wanted the music to be what we wanted, Christian, and not necessarily what is more traditional. We wanted to have great pictures and a video, but later decided to nix the video once we knew how much it cost. *His parents ended up making that part of their gift to us.* Anyway, we decided that since flowers weren''t a HUGE deal, we''d go with silk, and I love the way they looked and look in the pictures. This way, we still have some of them laid out on top of the armoire, which totally makes me happy because I think of our wedding every time I see them.

Anyway, get with some really creative friends and they can help you come up with tons of ideas. You can save SO much money if you make your own announcements/invitations/programs. You can also save a ton when you get creative with whatever favor you do.

Mostly, have fun with the process and keep your budget in mind with every purchase you make, so you don''t stress out later on with three hundred things left to do, and only 50 bucks to spend!

Yay! You''re getting married!
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Mandarine

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yayyy!!! I AM getting married!!! Thank you for your note Fisher and all the great ideas!!!!!!!!!!!. Flowers are not that important to me either, but I have a family friend that will do them for free or very little cost!...woohooooo

The place is what is killing me...I can''t find a place I love and I can afford!! but I will continue my search!....any ideas on the search for the perfect venue are appreciated!! hehe ;-)

My budget is not tiny, but is well below the average of most weddings in FL...

Indie, thanks for your note!!! FI doesn''t love the crazy hour idea...he says is not a carnival..haha...but it IS!....it''s just a celebration and what better way to end it??. He was also not sold on the Paella idea because he thinks it would be too casual...but it is still on the table becuase I know I can make that idea work in an elegant way!. I was also thinking that I could have beer+sangria but I still want hard liquor...my goal is to find a place that will let me bring my own because that way I can go to Costco or something and then they allow you to return any un-opened bottles.

We are inviting about 75 people....so we figure we will have like 60-70. This weekend we''re nailing down the list so I will have a better idea!..

Tonight is a girly night...FI is out with a client so a friend of mine is coming over...we''re browsing wedding magazines and drinking some wine! perfect!!!

M~
 

fatafelice

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Joined
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YAY, Mandarine!!! Congrats and welcome to the BIW!!!

I can''t help much with the south Florida stuff because I''m from Jacksonville -- though if you wanted to travel at all, you could head up to St. Augustine. I love it there and they definitely have some Spanish heritage.

Anyway, I hope your FI changes his mind about the crazy hour because that sounds like so much fun!
 

akw94

Brilliant_Rock
Joined
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Mandarine, the book Bridal Bargains has been very helpful to me. I bought it on Amazon and it has been well worth it. If there are particular topics that you have questions on, I can always look in the book and give you a recap.
 

sarie_j

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Joined
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The girls on here are absolutely fabulous, and between them all they know everything about wedding planning that can be known -- Trust me, you''ve come to the right place!!! (Oh yeah, and they''re not hateful like some of the other boards we all know about)
 

appletini

Ideal_Rock
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Nov 29, 2004
Messages
2,696
Mandarine,

I''ve been following all of your stories and OMG your wedding sounds like it is going to be a blast!

I know you want a Saturday evening wedding, but have you thought about a Friday night? Thats what I did and it really does help to cut costs as well as open up more potential dates. We saved $1,000 on our location fee and got a 15% discount with our photographer...I''m sure you can save even more depening on your vendors.
 

argh&stuff

Shiny_Rock
Joined
Feb 24, 2006
Messages
405
Congratulations, Mandarine. Glad to know your waiting stress has passed. Have fun planning, and don''t get too upset if your fiance doesn''t get incredibly involved. I''m caught on tape at our wedding saying I didn''t have anything to do with most of the decorations and the like. It''s a guy thing, I suppose. That and Jen likes to have control over things like that.
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Congratulations again.
 
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