A little thank-you note

You'll know who your true friends and family are when preparing for a wedding, right up to the D-Day. They're the ones who ask how's everything going and listen to your long answers. They're the ones who put up with your craziness; who answered your every question on the caterer, the outfit, or on the honeymoon even though they haven't been married; who gave you advises even though their own marriage is falling apart.

They're the ones who would go beyond the way to create a surprise bachelorette dinner for you. They would contact everyone from every different circle of friends you're in, make a pretty veil from scratch so you can wear it all through the night, cancel a planned karaoke session just because you want to sit down and have a cup of coffee in the middle of the night, and of course, hand out a penis-shaped straw for every guest as a souvenir.

They're the ones who would stay all day long during the ceremonies, even though on the night before, they had stayed up all night decorating your room. They're the ones who keep saying how beautiful you are, who make sure you have a glass of water in hand when your hair and makeup are being done. They lend you their set of jewelry when the makeup artist didn't bring one that matched your outfit. 

 They're the ones who, for God's sake, apply an extra layer of nail polish on your toes, even though no one would pay attention to it.

They're the ones who sat with you, waiting for the Ijab Qabul to finish in the next room. Even though there might be a slight pang in their chest from a similar experience in the same place that didn't end good. But they were still standing by your side, making jokes so you wouldn't feel so tense because the ceremony was late. 

They're the ones who walked with you, held your hands steady while you cry your heart out, listening to the whole process. They go look around for a piece of tissue to wipe your tears,

(even though oddly enough, they're also the one who snatched the last piece of Kleenex on the one moment you need it.....) 
 

They're the ones who run around madly from one point to another during the wedding reception, to make sure everything goes well. They call out groups of people to take a photoshoot with you. They stay throughout the reception, right until everyone's practically gone, barely eating the foods served.

Also, they're the ones who, despite their very busy schedule, would practice traditional dance every weekend with their friends for the wedding. And because it had been ages since their last practice, they came home with bruises and bumps. In the end, they gave one hell of a performance with the dances, leaving the guests in awe.

And let's not forget the gifts. They're the ones who gave you the most wonderful gifts a bride could ever ask for. They painted you and your husband's silhouette, they gave you the finest wine and jewelry, and of course, they booked you a room in one of the most expensive, most luxurious hotels in town, just so you can have a comfortable rest after the reception.

This post is dedicated to you, Runi, Rozelle, and my little sister Dinda. You guys have your own lives to live, your own problems and day-to-day work, but still went beyond the way for me and the wedding. I love you and I can never thank you enough.

Looking back: Day 2

 [pictures are courtesy of Lightbrush Photography]

Our wedding ceremony was set to begin at 3.30 p.m. Deliberately so, because I and Bangun are two late-risers. Try to wake us up early in the morning, especially after a long night up, and you'll meet two crankyheads who's always trying to outcrank each other.

Expectedly, I woke up at....10.30 a.m. on the day I got married. After a very unhealthy McD breakfast, we drove to PTIK and started getting ready at 1 p.m. There was a glitch with Cut Marlyn team at this point. Kak Dede arrived late and only brought two people to do the makeup, hairdo, and dress a dozen of people.

Riuh rendah lah suasananya.

Anxiously waiting for the nail polish to dry

But of course, the bride stayed and sat pretty in her dressing room, waiting for the ceremony to begin. A few dozen screams from my dramatic mom later, it did begin. We used the tradition where the bride cannot enter the room before the groom is finished with his Ijab Qabul, a vow said to the bride's father that he will marry his daughter.

I waited in the next room, where the sound system was loud and clear. It was all a big blur until Bangun said, “Saya terima nikahnya Putri Bapak, Putri Dian Prameshwari Benprang, dengan mas kawin tersebut tunai.”

The handshake that says it all

In an instant, I cried like a baby.

I hadn't expected to cry, or to cry that hard, but you know, it's not everyday that you get to hear your boyfriend say that. It hit me that he (hopefully) would be there for the rest of our lives, as the leader of our little family.

Anyway, cheesiness aside, yay we're married! Now on to the par-tay, Sumatran style!

Kak Dede and Mbak Tanti both take turns to do my hair and makeup. I had prepared myself to wear the gazillion headpiece, but that day, I was nervous as hell and kept remembering horror stories of brides who collapsed when wearing sunting for too long. At around 6.30 I was set to go, and my nightmare came true; my head hurt like hell and it felt as if there's a spear stuck on my skull.

I asked for a Panadol (thanks, Run!) but it didn't do any good. My palms were sweating from holding back the pain, but I kept praying and thinking, “maybe this is the way it's supposed to feel.”

Thankfully, just about five minutes before we had to walk in, Tante Marlyn saw the worry lines in my face and rearranged the headpiece. All set and ready to smile to thousands of faces!

That's my sister, the dancer in the pink!

A moment before the reception began

Saman dance halfway to the party

The rest of the night went by too quickly. We stood on the stage for two and a half hours, but it seriously felt like ten minutes. It was heart-warming to greet the guests and knowing that they came all the way—from wherever they were—for us. The headpiece on my head weighed a ton, but it didn't hurt. And I didn't mind at all. I'd been worried that I'd hurt my cheeks from smiling, but nothing. I was more than happy to smile.

I used to think that Indonesian wedding receptions are overrated and overdone, but trust me, you want that. The festivity of celebrating your marriage with the ones you loved, plus knowing that people are there to celebrate with you, is worth all the penny and the tears, plus the occasional hair-pulling mood in between.

To say I'm happy is an understatement. Overall, I'm giving 1,563250 out of 5 for the wedding. I hope I can remember what the day feels like for the rest of my life.

Looking back: Day 1 (updated with new photos)

[pictures are courtesy of Ronna Nirmala, an aspiring journo AND photographer]

"How did you feel, getting married?"

"What is it like, married life?"

Those are the two questions I've been hearing post-Nov. 19. I've been answering with a single word, a nod, and a smile. So now let's have a look at question number 1: How did I feel that day?

Well, all vendors aside, Nov. 17-19 felt surreal to me. It began on Thursday, where everyone started to prepare my house for the Siraman and Midodareni the next day.

The giddiness and anxiety grew even bigger on Friday, when everyone gathered for my Javanese rituals. I prepared myself some text to read for the Sungkeman, but still, the lump in my throat was so big, I couldn't say the words clearly.

It was a modest celebration, really. After I was bathed, I stayed in my room getting my hair and makeup done for Midodareni. I heard laughters from outside, when my parents did the Dodol Dawet ritual where they sold Es Cincau to the guests with fake money. In Javanese tradition, it's believed to attract and symbolize that people will come flocking to the wedding party.

As dusk settled, Bangun's family arrived in my house for Midodareni. Correct me if I'm wrong, but in Javanese, this ritual symbolizes the night where angels come down from heaven to guard the bride. The groom and his family, except his parents, visit the bride's house to check if she's still in good health.

However, the bride cannot go out of her room and only female relatives of the groom can check on her. They also delivered the Seserahan boxes. The groom is not allowed to see his bride, nor is he allowed to eat and drink anything but mineral water. The latter is believed to prevent him from getting poisoned by any unhappy family member.

At this point, I felt like a school girl before a big date, except that I couldn't see my date. I kept asking anyone how Bangun looked like and wanted so much to get out.

But of course I had to wait for another day to see him. After everyone was gone that night, it became even more surreal that in the next 24 hours I would be married and having the reception. Just when I'd thought I was under the spotlight for a whole day, it hit me that Saturday would be an even bigger day.

Looking back: Lightbrush Photography (updated)

I'd recommend Lightbrush on the first sentence.

Why? In a nutshell, because they take amazing photos. Well I know it depends on one's taste, but to me, this vendor can find the coolest angles with beautiful shots. Plus it comes with a very affordable price.

On the day, they arrived early at PTIK's guest house where we did most of the preparation. Mas Pepy, one of the owners, himself was on duty, along with several others. My first impression was that they were fun to hangout with, and did not make you feel awkwardly under the spotlight.

While Mbak Tanti did my face and hair, Mas Pepy and his team never took a break from taking pictures. This went on until the end of the night, seriously. There's gotta be thousands of pictures in those cameras.

However, there's this glitch that, to me, is pretty major. They forgot to come to the technical meeting.

I know right.

Mbak Indri, Mas Pepy's wife who does the marketing and behind-the-scene stuff, apologized over and over again. It was an honest mistake, so I let it go. And then, just before the reception, there was an incident of miscommunication; neither Lightbrush or PTIK had prepared a cable to connect the jimmy jib, which we rented from Lightbrush, to the screen, which was from PTIK.

Had they come to the technical meeting and discuss, this wouldn't have happened.

But still, I got to give the credit to Mas Pepy, who handled the incident calmly and quickly made a decision. Magically, a connector appeared and all was good again, even though there was a blackout on the screen because we had to wait for the cable.

Update: The CD arrived yesterday and there were 2,061 photos inside. Two thousand and sixty one. I put it on slideshow and didn't finish looking at the pictures after two hours. Lightbrush took every single moment of the wedding, taking me back to Nov. 19. Thanks to the photos, now I know what the wedding looked like. Plus, they put another CD with a highlight of the photos. Later on, Mbak Indri told me it was a bonus because they had missed the meeting.

Overall, I'm giving 5 out of 5 stars for Lightbrush's photo quality, but 4 out of 5 stars for their service because of the technical meeting and cable incidents. Video will be out in about two months, so I can't rate it until then.

In the meantime, here's some of their work. Mbak Indri is available at 081802046374.

Looking back: Laili (and Friends)

Aside from foods, another thing you won't notice in your own wedding is the music. I had been warned by dozens of people about this, but I didn't care. I wanted the songs in my wedding to match what I like, not some random cheesy love songs or pretentious jazz tunes.

And with Laili and Friends, I got exactly what I wanted.

I'm not even sure the name of the band is Laili and Friends, but that's what Laili the vocalist told me to put on the MC script. Laili is a high-school friend of mine, and has the voice of dewi dari surga. Bagus amat.

Before we get to the reception, let's see the songlist I chose:

1.Tonight, Tonight – Smashing Pumpkins
2.I Love You More Today Than Yesterday
3.A Whole New World - Aladdin
4.Nobody Does It Better – Carly Simon
5.Mushaboom – Feist
6.Here Comes Your Man – Meaghan Smith/Pixies
7.Digital Love – Daft Punk
8.Everything's Not Lost – Coldplay
9.Lost In Your Eyes – Debbie Gibson
10.If You Leave – OMD

11.Waters of March
12.Especially For You
13.I Don't Wanna Miss A Thing
14.LOVE
15.Save The Last Dance
16.Somewhere Beyond The Sea
17.Waiting In Vain
18.We Could Be In Love
19.When You Tell Me That You Love Me
20.My Cherie Amor

The first ten were our own choice, and the last half were the songs we had to pick from Laili's play list. I had a doubt that Laili (or any band) would want to play the songs we picked, but she didn't say anything, so I assumed everything was good. And if anything did not go well, I just kept praying they'd play Tonight, Tonight 'cos it had been my dream wedding song since years ago.

Fast forward to the reception. I was on the dressing room, getting my makeup retouched when I heard Laili and the band rehearsing Tonight, Tonight from the auditorium. I and Bangun grinned at each other and knew then this band would not disappoint.

Throughout the night, to be honest, those people were right. I didn't pay much attention to the songs the band played. I tried to listen and managed to catch a few songs, but then the guests kept walking up and congratulating us on the stage, and the songs vanished from my ears again.

I did, however, caught the song Everything's Not Lost sung by the band with Ingga, a dear friend of ours and also a kick-ass singer, on the vocals. Ah-may-zing. Up to this day, some people still come up to me and say the band was awesome and ditto for the songs. Laili and Friends were not too loud for a wedding reception, yet you can hear the songs playing as the background to the festivity.

This is also a plus point;  Laili is one pretty woman and she dressed very elegantly for the reception, with her long black dress. Oh yeah, and she sings hell good. I'm giving them 5 out of 5 stars. Laili is available at laili.fauziah99@gmail.com.

Looking back: Dwi Tunggal Citra

They say food is the single most important thing of a wedding reception. They say if you run out of foods, or if it doesn't taste good, then the party's a failure. I half-heartedly agree with this, although of course to me, the bride, the number one priority is how I look.

Anyway, back to the foods. We didn't want to gamble with this, so we went a bit crazy on what to serve the guests with foods from Dwi Tunggal Citra, who apparently does not believe in online marketing since their web site and Facebook page are outdated.

I was a bit frustrated with choosing the menu, so I left it to the moms and sisters. The last time I saw, the order list was very long, I can't even remember what was in it. I do know, though, that we order eight Kambing Guling for 1,500-ish guests. Since I and Bangun are such huge fans of Kambing Guling and in most receptions it's pretty much gone in the first hour, we didn't want our wedding to run out of it. I think it kinda worked, because according to some of our friends and family, the lambs were still available until about 9-ish.

When you're standing there on the stage, it's very difficult to care or even notice anything going on with the caterers, so let's rely on testimonials from family and friends. Thankfully, none of them said anything bad about the foods. In fact, the biggest compliments we received were about the catering service.

You know how in receptions you see the waiters pushing around a lorry for the dirty dishes, put them in the pantry and then went back to serve the guests? Yeah, they don't do that in DTC. They have enough manpowers to serve the guests, take out the dirty dishes and prepare the foods in the pantry. Their head butler also walked up to the stage to give me, Bangun and our parents mineral water in the middle of the reception, during the Saman dance performance.

The decoration they gave, the flowers and centerpieces, were also exceptionally good. Very satisfying. Too bad I don't have any picture of it. But let me tell you this; I'm giving 7 out of 5 stars for DTC. Although the bill has single-handedly doubled the whole budget for this wedding, again, it was worth every single penny (and tear).

 

The person to contact is Retno at 021 7081 2532

Looking back: Ratu Wedding

Speaking of Cut Marlyn, my biggest concern was their bridal make-up. Therefore, I decided to use Ratu Wedding instead, with their main make-up artist, Mbak Tanti.

Mbak Tanti is this young-looking, very pretty, very soft-spoken lady who is nice to be around with. She arrived earlier than me in PTIK, so that's a good beginning. Exactly at 1 p.m. She started to do her thang, and about 90 minutes later we were done. I like what she did for my akad, with the headpiece and the soft-yet-very-Sumatranese-kinclong make-up.



Make-up and hairdo by Mbak Tanti and team

 In the afternoon, she and her two assistants retouched the make-up and made it more eye-catching for the reception. I like it too, but I think it was a bit too thick. But hey what do I know, heavy make-up for me is colored lip balm, one-layer mascara and thin eyelines. I absolutely love the bindi she put on my forehead, though. Pretty.

Waiting for our par-tay to begin

They also put a soft layer of foundation (or was it powder?) to Bangun, and I think it was of the right amount. I often see grooms are overly made-up in weddings, and thank God mine was not one of them.

All in all, with the low price and high-quality service she presented, I give 5 out of 5 stars for Mbak Tanti of Ratu Wedding, despite the over-layering for the reception. Tapi kan katanya kalo nggak menor bukan manten Sumatra...

The person to contact is Lili or Ami at 021 4788 1712

Looking back: Cut Marlyn Decoration

With the aftermath, the reviews shall come. Be aware though, that all the pictures uploaded are low-quality photos. Maybe later when Lightbrush is done with the JPEGs, I will put some of them up.

And so let's begin with the number one review: Cut Marlyn Decoration.

Let me repeat, there's not much Acehnese wedding vendors out there that focus on, well, Aceh. Cut Marlyn Decoration is one of the few, and from what I read, see, and hear, they're the best one out there.

Looking from the work they did with the stage, flowers and decoration, it could not have been more true. Quite a few people told us that the pelaminan was amazing, beautiful, and other synonyms you can ever think of. Alhamdulillah. Tante Marlyn and her daughter, Kak Dede, were top-notch professionals who knew what they were doing.




Photo courtesy of Kak Dede


The best thing was, in my opinion, when Tante Marlyn could tell that I was uncomfortable with the sunting after they put it on for the reception. It stabbed my scalp and hurt like hell, but since I'd never worn any sunting before, I thought that was how it's supposed to feel. Ten minutes before the reception began, I struggled to throw the pain away and took a Panadol (thanks, Runi the MaHo!) and my hands were sweating. I was pretty sure I was gonna pass out, imagining I had to stand up and smile for the next 2.5 hours.

The two families were all lined up, ready to enter the reception area when Tante Marlyn suddenly halted us and said “let the guests wait.” She then walked to me, rearrange the stacks of my headpiece right there and then on the VIP dining table. She said she could tell I was in pain, and after she did her magic, I swear the pain was completely gone and the world was a better place again.




Kak Dede, left, and Tante Marlyn, right, the deadly duo of the night


Cuman emang agak berat aje.

However, there's one minor glitch from them. Days before, I'd told Kak Dede the list of people who will get their make-up done by her team, and how many family members will borrow the beskap and songket. But on the day, she arrived a bit late to PTIK and only brought two assistants. This delayed the whole preparation process and sent my mom to her highest, most crucial panic mode.

Scary.

Anyway. In the end, when the reception began, I felt like the prettiest girl in the room. And that's what mattered. I took one look at the auditorium just a nanosecond before we walked in, and it took my breath away. Cut Marlyn Decoration is really the best one out there, and it is worth every single penny.




Looking deliriously happy? Cos we were.


I'd give 4.5 out of 5 stars to Cut Marlyn Decoration. The person to contact is Kak Dede at 0811173710.

The day after tomorrow

D minus two.

Amid the hectic makeover of the house, I of course slipped out of it and treated myself at Martha Tilaar Salon & Day Spa. They have one branch in Bintaro, and man, it's heavenly. I took the Ken Dedes Princess Ritual package, where they scrubbed my body with Javanese mangir, among others. In short, it was worth every single penny.

Tomorrow will be the Javanese Day of the ceremony; the Siraman and Midodareni. How do I feel, one might ask.

Let me tell you for the last few days now, I've been feeling like an exclamation point. Like I need to move all the time. I'm feeling very, very bouncy, I can't even write properly.

D minus five.

This morning after I had my breakfast at the office, suddenly my head felt very light. Not in a blonde-bimbo kind of way, although probably most of the time I act like one, but in a way that you'd want to sit down and can't see straight. Of course Bridezilla panicked; four days before the wedding rituals begin and I had to feel sick?!

Anyway. Everyone guessed it was a symptom of low blood pressure, which has been my case several times. However, my low blood pressure had never attacked me this bad.

Now, one cup of sweet tea and a healthy lunch later, I'm feeling a bit better. Maybe I really should take my leave earlier....

No more Bachelorette Pad for Bachelorette Ped

D minus six.

Since my room's going to be the "bride's room" for the Midodareni night and a home for The Suryoputros later on, we had to rearrange it and make sure it looks decent enough to be called Kamar Manten. So last Wednesday, overnight, it went from my Bachelorette Pad:

to a room for two:

It's of course a huge change for me. I am used to living alone, sleeping alone, and having all my stuff scattered all over the place. And I mean it; all over the place. You could find a body talc in my study desk, or a pen inside one of my toilettries drawers.

Therefore, today I had to clean the life out of that desk. I spent the whole morning picking out stuff I still need and putting the rest inside storage boxes, or worse, trash bin.

Why worse? Because I hate to throw stuff away. They're all memorabilia; receipts of souvenirs I bought while going on a trip, hotel key cards, and whatnots.

Now I have to share the desk and everything else in that room with Bangun, which means I can't really keep too many unimportant nitbits anymore. Ever since the double bed came in, replacing the single one, I can't help but keep thinking, as Monica Geller once said,

I'm gonna live with a booooooooooy.

Daily ramble: Seven days before

D minus seven.

I bet the next week is gonna be the longest seven days of my life. Looking back, though, it's a bit creepy how one full year went by so quick. At the beginning, some people might be asking why did it have to take a year for us to prepare a wedding? Why not hurry, because some of the elders believe that it's bad luck to be engaged for too long a time.

Well, I'm glad we had that full year. We had all the time in the world to research, compare prices and quality for each vendor, and most importantly of course we had more time to fill the piggy bank.

And now the final week's here. Let's revisit some check list, shall we.

1. Invitation - Done. Again, do not go to Atmaraya for invitation. I'm just glad we're done with them.
2. Wedding favors - Done. All we gotta do now is to put the thank-you cards to the souvenir pouches.
3. Rings - Done, of course.
4. Kebaya for midodareni - Went for the final fitting session last night. Man, it's pretty.
5. Decorative photos - We've picked which ones, now Hilman is taking care of it.
6. Honeymoon - All set and ready to go.
7. Seserahan for Bangun - Done. I'm giving him a set of black suit including the formal shirt, pants, shoes and ties; batik shirt; toilettries; a set of towels; a bottle of perfume; baju koko, sarong and peci Aceh; and a basket of fruits. They're currently at the House of Seserahan. Do your best, Tante Mira.
8. A home for the wedding - still :|, but my mom has turned my room at home into a room for two.

Last night I had dinner with my sister, mom, and Bangun's sister, mom and sister-in-law in Kemang, after our kebaya fitting session. We chatted for ours and it hit me right there and then; I'm gonna have a very extended family in  a week! And I'm glad that despite everything, they're fun to be with.

Can't wait for the late-night card games at Seroja!

One slaving bride on the loose

D minus eight.

I don't know if it's pure coincidence or some kind of test from The One Above, but as we're getting nearer to the day, the workload in my office seems to be getting heavier at the same time.

There's the SEA Games events, endless CSR stunts, the internal magazine, and other stuff I'm not gonna bore you with. Here's a picture, though: I'm pretty much thrown between writing a press release, management speech, editing a magazine layout, and finalizing payments for make-up, décor, photographers, honeymoon villas, and such.

Lama-lama di press release kita curhat aja kali ya.

And also, I just found out that despite the widely-known name it holds for being one of the biggest, most strategically-located wedding venue, PTIK only accepts cash for payment.

Fishy, ain't it. Who does that nowadays? What big institution does not have a bank account?

We'll be glowing in the dark

D minus ten.

I had my birthday over the weekend; that was by far the most un-birthday birthday I'd ever had, because everyone's main focus was the Pengajian for the wedding, which was deliberately held at the same day. It went pretty well, nothing big since I wanted it to be a very humble gathering where people pray for us. So it was only for my family, Runi-Bune-Rozelle, and later on Bangun's sister-in-law came with her son.

Still it was very nice to have everyone wishing you well for your birthday, plus there were wishes for the wedding.

Moving forward four days a.k.a today, Bangun's having his birthday. We're still on cloud 9 I guess, giggly and giddy and excited for the 19th.

Other people may go berserk over their missing bustier, incomplete Seserahan, mismatched menu, flower decoration, and whatever it is that pulls their veins. But currently, all we know is that when we're standing there in front of the guests after we tie the knot, nothing else will matter.

Happy birthday to us, dear future Mr. Prameshwari, and cheers to a very festive November!

Atmaraya: 1 of 5 stars

So here's why I don't recommend Atmaraya to you good people out there. Or is it Atma Raya?

Sometime in September, we finalized the deal to print 600 invitations with a bonus of 700 thank-you notes with Vian, one of their marketers, I suppose, since he's always at the front desk serving the customers. After negotiating, we settled a price and a deadline, all written in the bill.

Vian wrote that by Oct. 5, our invitations would be ready. Since it was a weekday, we agreed to pick up the invitations on Oct. 8, while the thank-you notes were scheduled to be taken later.

Fast forward to Oct. 3, when I called Vian to tell him I had just sent an email of the design for the thank-you notes. I asked him casually about the invitations since Oct. 5 was two days away. And he answered, even more casually, that they were yet to be printed, and that “hopefully” it would be done by Oct. 8.

I asked, “Lho kan nulisnya selesai tanggal 5, Mas?”

You know what he said?

“Ya kan itu nulis doang, Mbak.”

…

From there, everything was going downhill. A hundred phone calls later, I went to Pasar Tebet on Oct. 8 to get the invitations with Bangun's mom. They told us the cards would be ready at 3 p.m., but when we arrived, the shop looked like a mess and my invitations were far from ready.

In the end, the finished at 8.30 p.m. Eight fuckin thirty. Gak enak yaa sama camer yaa. Plus, I and (what we assume was) the manager yelled at each other because he wanted us to pay the full bill while the thank-you notes were still unclear. I mean, seeing how slow they work, how could I get a guarantee that they would work on the notes?

However, we are satisfied with the result. Their quality is not bad, although I think the envelopes could have been improved.

In short, Atmaraya is not recommended because the way they handle customers is beyond awful. Too bad because they do have the skill to produce high-quality cards, but it seems that they don't try to impress their customers at all. The way they talk with half-smiles, the way they answer questions half-heartedly, the way they seem to think that customers have to follow the way they work..it's not worth the price, nor your time.

Look around more. I believe most vendors in Pasar Tebet are better, although their prices might be higher. According to my survey though, do consider Batang Printing in the left side of the basement. They offered us a very nice price but we had to reject because they couldn't meet our deadline.

Well at least someone's being honest about it.

Single No More!

Last Saturday night, what I feared (but expected) would happen, happened. I got a surprise hen night with some of my closest friends and family. In a nutshell, it was the best get-together I had ever been in. And for the first time in my life, someone threw a surprise party for me.

Kayak di film-film gitu.

Runi and Dinda my sister were the two masterminds behind this. They invited me to this “casual hen dinner” on Senopati, and Runi picked me up and told me Dinda was meeting us there. She forced me to wear this beautiful, hand-made white veil which everybody looked at all the way there.

We reached the place with Rozelle and just like in the movies, I was greeted by a “surprise!” yell from the faces I knew. I saw friends from college, from Jakarta Globe, and also the supercool in-laws.

The rest of the night went too quickly and in a bit of a blur. I laughed, I ate, I drank, I was humiliated; it was truly a night to remember. For a few hours, my mind was free from thinking about the wedding because I was too busy having fun.

Cheers to everyone who made it there and special kudos to Runi and Dinda who managed to track down and call my friends, arrange the venue, hand-made the veil, tiaras and—of course—weewee-shaped straws as souvenirs. Also, you guys managed to blend all the groups of friends in one table. I don't think I could ever do that.

In pictures, I went from this happy bride:

To this of Chucky's in a few hours:

That's it, this bride's gonna be taken in the next two++ weeks!

Last night we said goodbye 'cos he had to fly to Balikpapan today for three weeks. The next time we see each other will (Insya Allah) be after he says his Ijab Qabul.

Dial down the crazy flutters, dear butterflies.

At the far end of the plank

Can you hear the wedding bells already?

Well of course there won't be any, but good God people, it's less than a month away! Invitations are labeled, the suntings and beskaps are packed, the menu's set, you get the gist.

First off let me tell you, I love the rings. They turned out to look exactly like how I'd imagined it would. I think it's the only vendor that could meet 100 percent of my expectation. Kudos to Kaliem Blok M Square.




Pardon the hairy fingers.

 So, rings are done, invitations are also done. There's a huge drama behind, which requires a whole other post to describe. In a nutshell, Atmaraya produces good-quality invitations, but their management and customer service is beyond horrible. Not worth the satisfying result.

Favors are also done. We are giving away a set of coasters to the guests, nicely packed in a small tulle bag. Sadly, I just realised I didn't know the name of that store in Asemka, but the person to call is Mbak Dian at 0815 8677 9257. Great service, pretty packaging, and el cheapo.

What's not so el cheapo, however, is the honeymoon budget. Seems like everyone is vaycay-ing in romantic resorts in Bali, cos almost every villa we had our eyes for were full. Thankfully, there's this one villa in Seminyak that offers what we want, only with a price higher than our budget. But it's available, so.

Anyway, we're still looking for some place to stay at Gili Trawangan. In addition, I have to have fresh water running in the villa instead of sea water, which I heard is the case for most villas in Gili T. Tuan Putri nggak bisa lah ya mandi air asin gitu.

Another progress is for Bangun's seserahan. In the boxes, he will find:

- Batik shirts
- A set of suit, formal pants, formal shirt and a couple of ties (for this, I was finally able to drag him to shop at Topshop and co!)
- Acehnese peci and sarung
- Baju koko
- Formal shoes
- A set of towel
- Perfume

So far, only baju koko that's still unchecked. Any idea where to find one with nice design? I find baju kokos look all the same in department stores.

With this progress, I'm pretty confident we're all set for the 19th. Beware for more nonsense posts like this one, though.

Still pending

OK so the post below was about the preparation we've done. Now, what about the rest?


Dare we?

1. Invitation - Atma Raya Printing, Pasar Tebet
I know we're a bit cari mati, having the invitations printed "only" two months before the wedding. So now I'm waiting for Atma Raya to pack those pieces of embossed papers and give me a ring. Or else there will be blood, I warn you.

2. Wedding favors - Asemka
Funny story. Since the very beginning of the preparation, we've always wanted to give the guests a set of blank cards and small envelopes. Nothing else. We would have them printed in the same vendor that print our invitations, therefore it wouldn't be much of a hassle. I really couldn't think of anything better to give.

However, all of a sudden, I was hunting for my Siraman souvenirs in Asemka when I saw these other options. A few phone calls later with Bangun, we decided to completely ditch the blank card idea. And now the favors are being wrapped, waiting to be picked up on Saturday. Talk about impulsive buy.

3. Rings - Kaliem
They should have called me days ago, but they haven't. Be prepared for some wrath, Kaliem guys.

4. Kebaya for Midodareni - Tante Dewi
Tante Dewi is a friend of Bangun's mom. Honestly I don't know when she will finish the Kebaya; I just hope the backless model I chose will be suitable with my recently cold-prone body.

5. Decorative photos
In the reception hall, we're gonna put up framed old pictures and a few of the engagement pictures we took recently. This is far from done, cos we're still due one more photo session and we haven't bought the frames.

6. Honeymoon - Gili Trawangan and Bali
Plane tickets are secured. However, we're still going back and forth (and back and forth..and back) on the accommodation. Surprisingly, finding a perfect, secluded-yet-strategically-located villa in Bali is not easy.

7. Seserahan for Bangun
This is still absurd. I have a list, but it's not final yet, so maybe I'll just bang my head three times on the window and the stuff will come flying through it. Decorated in boxes please, thank you.

8. A home for after the wedding
:|

October already? Get out.

Now that October's here, let's do a little recap of what we've done, about six weeks before the big day.

1. Venue: Done, no problem so far.

2. Decoration: Cut Marlyn
    Practically everything's set up for the reception, but we still have to settle the decor for the akad, which will take place in the room next to the auditorium. Color theme for the reception stage is gold and off white, while for the akad is a mix of bright red and gold. How more Sumatran do you think we could get, huh?

3. Outfit for the bride and groom: Cut Marlyn
    We've picked which ones, and will probably do one more fitting session before the day. It's gonna be a mix of gold and off white for the akad, and red-gold for the reception. Yes, the exact opposite of the decor. Right? Right?

4. Outfit for family and friends: Cipadu (forgot the store's name), Ikobana and Fancy in Mayestik
    We're done picking the color and the fabric, and I hope everyone has theirs sitting pretty in the tailors. I don't care how you're gonna wear it, as long as it doesn't show too much skin. Or else the elderly Acehnese relatives would go bonkers. Did I just say bonkers?

5. Catering: Dwi Tunggal Citra
    I don't really feel like talking about this. Not because they're not good, believe me, it's for internal reasons. Right now, as long as there are foods in my wedding, I'll be OK.

6. Photo/Video: Lightbrush
    This is the one vendor that we haven't talked to since we made a deal a few months ago. But I trust Mbak Indri and Mas Peppy to do what they do best.

7. Band: Laili (and friends?)
    I don't know what Laili my high school friends call her band, but anyway now all we gotta do is convince them to play our requests. Dance to Smashing Pumpkins, anyone?

8. Seserahan
  I think it's done. This is the list for my seserahan boxes:
  - Kebaya, bought in Cipadu
  - Songket, from Bangun's aunt
  - Baju kurung, also from Bangun's aunt
  - A set of towels, what else but Terry Palmer
  - A set of body care products, by Body Shop
  - A Zara clutch
  - A Promod black dress
  - A pair of black pumps, by Little Things She Needs
  - A Longchamp bag, again, thanks to Bangun's aunt
  - A bottle of perfume, which I don't know what, so obviously it's from Bangun's aunt
  - Mukena from my mom, in which case Bangun has to pretend to buy it from her
  - A party clutch, from this place called Elittas in Bintaro that specializes in making clutches and party shoes
  - A SONY PJ SERIES CAMCORDER OMG Bangun Suryoputro you are an angel if you're really gonna buy this.

9. MC for akad and reception: One of my relatives, hopefully she'll ace it.

10. Traditional Acehnese dances: My sister and her friends from her dance studio
      We will have not one, but two Acehnese dances performed in the reception. Look forward to it, (invited) people! They're really good!

11. Makeup: Ratu Wedding and Cut Marlyn
    For the bride and groom, Ratu Wedding will do their magic and turn this pimple land they call a face into something worth remembering for a lifetime. As for the others, we'll settle for Cut Marlyn.

12. Inai: Rinda's Henna
    So far, Kak Rinda has been very helpful and the price is also not bad at all. Her designs are not too scary-looking, and she can also color your nails with nail polish instead of creepy, red henna. 

There's still quite a few stuff that didn't make it to this list, a.k.a not done yet. In the meantime, let's raise our shot glasses to juggling the wedding preparation, meeting a deadline to publish an in-house magazine and (still) working on annual planning FY 2012!