The truth is…
Bago pa man kami maging officially engaged ni Paolo, nakapagscout na kami ng main suppliers namin for the wedding. Last March 4, out of our another “inip na ako” tampuhan, we mutually agreed to get married by 2018. But it’s a mutual decision to not have a Church wedding. I am Catholic & he is an Adventist and neither of us needs to convert to any religion, as we respect our own religions. I initially thought to have the wedding this coming December 2017, but eventually, we decided to have it on our 8th anniversary: March 22, 2018. Since no’n, nagstart na kami magprepare. Kung anong theme, anong color motif and pegs. And as someone who works in (corporate) events, ang una sa pre-work talaga ang kung saan gaganapin ang event. I know that as early as now dapat nakapagreserve ka na ang venue. So, since identified na namin na hindi kami mag-church wedding, ang una talaga naming hinanap kung saan kami ikakasal?
Last March, we attended Themes & Motiffs Wedding Expo in SMX. First time namin umattend ng ganon kalaking expo (or a wedding expo as is) and we were overwhelmed! Literal. We went there to check options for venue muna sana pero pagpasok mo pa lang ng expo, sasalubungin ka na nila ng mga flyers. Wedding expo or bridal fairs are the soon-to-wed couple’s best friend, because each supplier has discounts if you book them on the spot! But here’s my advice before going to wedding expo or bridal fairs.
Know the participating suppliers. If you already have a supplier in mind and you wanted to book them, check if your supplier is on the list of the wedding expo or bridal fair. This is a perfect place for the suppliers to gather their prospective clients in one location. This is also perfect for clients to avail discounts from suppliers and sometimes you get freebies pa!
Check if the event is for free. Para lang di ka masurprise. LOL May mga wedding expo o bridal fair na free entrance. These are big organized events na may mas maraming suppliers, nakakalula. I remembered after ng pagiikot namin sa venue, gowns, HMUA nag-mnagtry pa kami magfood tasting dahil medyo nahihilo at napapagod na kami. There are some events that require minimal entrance fee.
Come with a mission. Noong pumunta kami do’n, sobrang na overwhelm talaga kami. If you decide to go to a wedding expo or bridal fair, aside from researching which suppliers you want to know or inquire. For the venue set up ng event may floor plan sila kung nasaan ang mga suppliers. Some organized event, isang row ang mga venues, catering, etc. Some events naman, they strategically mixed suppliers para lahat madadaan ang booth, pero halu halo yung mga suppliers. So, if you target to book a supplier on that wedding expo, research if that venue place is an exhibitor then go directly sa booth nya! haha
Come with your partner. It must have been hard if hindi ko kasama si Paolo sa pagaasikaso ng kasal namin. I can only image yung mga couple na yung isa nasa abroad, tapos isa lang syang nagaayos ng kasal nila. I’m thankful that Paolo is with me in this journey, less bridezilla mode. Parehas kaming may say sa lahat ng aspeto, hindi lang siya o ako lang ang may idea etc. Sabi ng aking career & life mentor and soon-to-be ninong, wedding preparation is a bliss at perfect time din itong maging ‘practice’ or to know more about your partner. Matetest din (daw) ang patience ninyong dalawa, magkakapikunan at one point dahil sa guestlist, most especially sa gastos at budget (pero wala pa naman kaming ganung moment so far) pero dapat at the end of it everything must be both of your decision. 🙂
So, after ng wedding expo ang dami naming flyers LOL we used those to do a comparative scan/ matrix of venues. Some suppliers who offer discounts extends their promo and even tapos na ang event. In that expo, we were able to book two of our main suppliers for our wedding: venue and photo & video.
Some of our suppliers were suppliers from my friend’s wedding din kaya tried and tested na but some of them are from the wedding expo and bridal fair. These events are wedding couples’ best friend and if you take advantage of it, sobrang sulit & makakamura ka talaga dahil sa discounts & freebies.
Parallel Synchronized Randomness 