Hello everyone!
Time flies and before I know it - its the middle of the week already!
I have so many things to do, and some of it are part of the wedding preparation.

And I have about 3 & a half more months to go before the BIG DAY!
Wow.. and it seems like just yesterday that we just got engaged.
:)

Earlier on.. we celebrated LOVER's big birthday!
It was Hello Kitty themed.
(Now u know why we are lovers....ha!)





I was feeling so tired then, thinking back- I think it was the beginning of my sore throat!



Birthday girl has to follow her theme closely.



The cake is Hello Kitty!



These are all my SECONDARY schoolmates!
Its been about 13 years since we graduated.. wow!



Personal friend of ours .. Dawn!
But if are from Flowerpod/Les Dames/Cozycot, u might know her as kissesfrombeigirl!
(Although u might not recognise her now haha!)



The cake is RAINBOW colour!



I wish my Lover to be happy & healthy & be blessed forever and I hope she will find her Prince Charming one day so I can pass him my 'LOVER' title!
:p

Then I went New York.
Do u recognise Stella Ng Dou Dou???



So cute!



It was a lovely Sunday morning so we went for brunch at Grove Street.



My darling friends in New Jersey.. who will be flying back for my wedding.
They are practically family to me!



Marco & Pepe was absolutely perfect for coffee, conversation (thou I didnt have any voice!) and spending time on a lazy weekend.



More camwhoring pics of Stella Ng Dou Dou.



Kpo-ing in my bag!



Innocent look!



We wanted to go to New York City so we also took Stella along!



And we even dropped by the library!



The New York Public Library is the third largest public library in North America and is one of the United States' most significant research libraries.
It is simultaneously one of the largest public library systems in the United States and one of the largest research library systems in the world.
It is a privately managed, nonprofit corporation with a public mission, operating with both private and public financing. The historian David McCullough has described the New York Public Library as one of the five most important libraries in the United States.



Ardent fans of Sex & The City will recognise this as the place where Carrie nearly married Mr Big in the first movie.



It was huge and grand - but I am pretty certain libraries would be quite obsolete in the near future with the advancement of technology.
Nearly everyone in the library was on their MacBook when I was there!



It was a nice summer day so we strolled with Stella in the park.
Being the weekend, everyone was just sitting around having a drink and a chat enjoying the weather.



I miss little Stella already!



Dinner before I left.



For those interested, I use this spray sunblock!
Its actually called 'Sexy Girl' and I got it from Japan the last time I was there.
Spf 50+! Not bad for the sweltering sun here locally I guess.



My new smoky eye palette from Too-Faced!



Sephora USA sells it for around USD$38/- iirc.



This is me with the eyeshadow.. I kinda like it!
Alittle darker than my usual look.



Special Thanks to RISQUE.SG for my star studded look!
More on it later!



Yesterday, I tried my Dollywink eyelashes!



The colours are so weird coz the camera was in a funny mode!
(And I dunno how to change it back!)



I was with BFF Ah Ong becoz we had a date to go see wedding gowns!
:))))

But first... we went shopping.. !



For those who have been here before, do u recognise the clothes rank?
Heehee!



LoveMi Shop is managed by my personal friend and I loveeeee meeting her in the afternoons in her office!



Clever B changed my colour settings for me!
Now all my pictures look soooo much better.



Love big mirrors!
I haven gotten around to buying one for my room but I really think I need one soon!
Then can camwhore at home like nobody business.. keke!



Miss B is so busy behind me, but I am happily snapping pictures.. of myself!



Soon it was time for us to go to our next appointment!
But coffee first...



My cuppuccino is sooooooo cute!



And I wore my acrylic black star again!



And then it was time to go choose some gowns!



Im an ala-carte bride, which means I dun have a bridal studio to do everything for me under one roof.
I source for most of my items individually, which is more tiring - but at least I get things done MTM.
And of coz, our budget goes through the roof as compared as doing it solely at one place but I guess this is a once in a lifetime thing - so hopefully everything will turn out well!

Frankly, I've been to the studios in Tanjong Pagar but unfortunately I am extremely turned off by their pushiness.
And becoz I try to avoid crowds during weekends, I visit the studios on a weekday while Jungle Boy is at work.
So imagine me, alone - listening to their sales pitch.

It was pretty daunting and exasperating, to say the least.
But the great part was that I could say, "Oh I need to check with my bf before I sign anything!"
LOL!

Brides-to-be, u can try it!
Heehee.

For those who follow my blog, U would have seen my previous post here.
I confirmed my Actual Day wedding gown designer then.

If u are wondering what I mean by Actual Day Wedding Gown.. its becoz I am taking an alternative route here with my wedding.

My AD (Actual Day) gowns are not the ones that I will wear in my pre-wedding shoots.
It will remain a secret until my wedding day.

Currently I am keeping ALL my family members in the dark.
And yes .. that includes Jungle Boy, most definitely.

Together with Ted Wu the designer, we have came up with the design, colour and feel of my MTM wedding and evening gown.
Only my closest girlfriends have caught a glimpse of the design.
(It is not totally done yet!)

I guess people might wonder why Im doing that.

No Im not trying to be 'special' or 'different' (plenty of brides do this actually,hehe.) but really, anyone who has been to a gown-fitting will tell what the most difficult part of it is.

And no, its not the choosing of the gowns.
But the opinions of the people who are there choosing the gown with u.

Who do u listen to?
Ur husband-to-be? Ur best friend? Or ur mother?

I just chose to listen to myself.
:)

I go through the details with Ted closely, and he listens to me.
And just me alone.

There will be no 'good-willed' opinions of people who think they know best.
Becoz they are not the ones wearing the gown.

I just hope my closest and dearest understand that Im doing this becoz I treasure everything too much.
Just as much as I dun wish to offend anyone by not listening to their wishes, or how my gown should look like - I also want my gown to be exactly how I would like it to be.

And not trying to please everyone and end up not liking my gown choice.

But most importantly, Jungle Boy respects my decision and is 100% behind my 'weird' choice.
And to me, that is all that matters.
:)

Ok back to Bridal Closet!
I am here with BFF Ah Ong to choose our gowns for our pre-wedding photography session.



In case u missed it out from my previous posts, my BFF will be taking pre-wedding pictures with me in Malacca.
Although she is married (for God knows so many years), she didnt like the ones she had - so she and her husband will be taking it with us!

We have engaged Creme Photography to do the job.
My close friend had recommended George to me and now George is a personal friend.
He does studio shots too, not only weddings but after looking at his portfolio - I am most impressed by his sincerity in his pictures.
His website doesnt really show his latest works but u can find him in Facebook.

Joie will be doing our hair and makeup and she works with George closely so Im glad she is available to go Malacca with us!
Joie does weddings as well as high fashion magazine spreads, so Im excited!

Alittle distraction.
Bridal Closet owner Elsie's daughter! Eating her cupcake!
She is such a darling.



Pictures of the gowns that I tried on yesterday.
A tube style one.







This is one of my personal favourites.. but in the end I chose another gown over this.





The detailing was pretty nice!



Another similar looking gown.



But not as flattering, I reckon.



I picked this design out from the ranks personally becoz it has a more streamlined silhouette and the lace details are intricate.



But alas, sometimes u have to wear the dress in order to see the if it is perfect.
It might look great on the hanger, but if it doesnt fit - it doesnt fit.
And there were minor flaws like the length of the straps that couldnt be altered etc.



In the end, I chose this.
It is so simple but when I wore it, it just felt right.



It wasnt anything I had in mind, but having done some research and trying of gowns previously : the golden rule that I've learned is - To go with an open mind!
Brides often envision themselves in a certain dress or design, but sometimes it might not be the best for ur body type/style/feel.



I need minor alterations, but thats pretty normal for an 'off-the-rack' item.
And try to arrange alterations as close to the date as possible, so u wun end up with a too tight or loose dress!
(Stress wrecks havoc on the figure!)



Here's BFF in the gown that I tried on just now.



Looks different on me and on her, hor!



The two of us!



And this is my selected evening look for the pre-wedding shots.
Pink of coz ... I simply have to!
:p



The night ended with a small celebration in Kazu, then Club Soul with lychee martinis & champagne and also a secretly happy Jungle Boy coz he doesnt have to go through the gown fitting process with me I think!
Thank God for girlfriends - what will I do without them!





Take care everyone!
Will be back real soon.

xoxo
elaine73



Special Thanks to RISQUE for their Acrylic Black Star (See above pic)!

Here's another cute accessory!





RISQUE is a punk rock chick trendy heaven for all kinds of accessories under the sun!
Apart from necklaces, bracelets, rings and earrings - RISQUE has a collection of stockings to suit any girl!



All readers here can simply quote ELAINE73 for a 7% discount off all items!
Take a look, now!

RISQUE
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TAGS REPLIED!

Evilin32: OMG wahaahhaahaha yesss and that story oopppsss forget to tell until now!!! *paiseh* Ok one day.. before the wedding okie.. I will sit down and bore u all with it! Promise!

mochaccinoland: Thanks for dropping by babe!!! U have a great blog too! Can I link u up! :) And of coz laaaa u are in SHOPPING HEAVEN HONGKONG!!! Everything there is fashionable n cheaper than Singapore!!! Sob!!!

Fan si: Hi hiiii! Did u see my above sunblock picture?? For u specially okie babe!!! *wink!*

mmmmmmmmmm: Ok one day when I got time ok! :D

fan: LOLOLOLOL! Yes yes.. see above answer to Evilin32 kekeke!

Poi poi: Hello my dear Poi poi! PLS UPDATE YR BLOG OK! Hehehehe!!!!
Okieee I slowly answer all ur questions k!!!! :)))

In HCM u can use either 'dong' or USD. Both are widely accepted although I would encourage u to use Dong more (esp for hawkers n street vendors) and double conversion (from dong to USD..n ur USD is from Sin dollars right) will make u lugi more lor.
And yes most restaurants accept credit card!
But dun tell me Mr Ng will go n give the ma ma shop his credit card when he buy a Coke lor.. I will faint let u see... haha!
Any more questions u can FB me k! Or tag here.. I think alot of readers miss u too!
PLEASE UPDATE UR BLOG ARH THANKYOUVERYMUCH!!!!

Okieee bye guys!!!
This is a loooong post!
Night night!