One Step Forward, Two Steps Back.

Since the new year has started, it also means that the new school term has started. So, as you can expect, I have been pretty much swamped with work for the first couple of weeks of 2016 - resulting in close to zero progress on the wedding planing front. Now I know why my dad was pushing me to make the most of the 2015 end year break to get started. To some people, starting planning and making bookings 2 years ahead may seem too early but my man and I agree that for us, given our busy schedules, it definitely was a wise move.

Despite the hectic start to the year, Azli and I did manage to make some progress on our bookings. We have officially secured Colossal Weddings as our actual day photographers! This booking was a fairly straightforward and fuss-free one because my man and I pretty much had our hearts set on them from the very start. The moment we scrolled through and laid eyes on the magic made by Afiq Omar and his mega talented team, every other photographer portfolio that came our way paled in comparison.

Some of you may be wondering why we chose Colossal Weddings, given they are fairly new to the wedding photography scene. This is true to a certain extent, but for those of you who have been doing some research on them or considering them for your own wedding, you'd know that Colossal Weddings is newly formed arm of one of the most well-reputed nightlife photography companies in Asia - Colossal Photos. So they do have experience taking photos in crowded, unruly, noisy, messy places with poor lighting (haha, abit like our malay weddings, no?)

all images retrieved from Colossal Weddings

Also, the team is lead by Afiq Omar, whose work, as you can see, is pretty jaw-dropping. And the team is a group of really talented guys, including Azli's childhood friend, Nasri Ibrahim. All in all, the reason is really simple, we are in love with their work and we have full trust in their craft.

For 2017 BTBs who are interested in engaging them, I believe they are having a 5% off promotion now for the first 10 couples to sign up! (make that 9 since one spot has already been grabbed by yours truly, haha) Their packages are quite versatile, ranging from those with pre-wedding shoots included to actual day packages that cater to single or double photographers and between 10 - 15 hours. We opted for The Colossal Package, which includes two photographers for 15 hours, a flushmount album, a photo canvas and 2 framed photos along with our digital copies. Their payment schedule makes their packages much more affordable - 30% retainer/deposit, 50% after the wedding and 20% upon collection of deliverables 2 months after the wedding. Another plus point! I love vendors that offer a non-cash mode of payment, because I am one of those kiasu people who just do not feel safe carrying tons of cash on me. Colossal Weddings only accepts bank transfers & cheques, which make me feel more secure! Those who are still on the fence, please make an appointment to meet up with them at their office on Arab Street where they will be more than welcoming and willing to show you their work up close. I dare you to walk away after that.

Right, well that was our one step forward, now for the 2 steps back - otherwise known as the major headache bane of my existence and wedding planning. THE VENUE.

Yes, I know that I said this was the first thing that needs to be settled, and yet here we are. Basically, I think for my side we have narrowed it down to 2 options - The Joyden Hall and The Star Gallery. From my previous post, I think you can tell that I was definitely swooning over the latter. Sadly, they have a list of approved caterers that we have to use, and the caterers are pretty pricey. Not only that, these caterers don't exactly cater malay wedding style food, you know? So it seems like a no brainer that I should go for The Joyden Hall, where they allow external caterers at no levy and where I know malay weddings have been done before. Right?

Alas, just like all things that we love and cannot get, we will refuse to let go till we try everything we possibly can. I wrote in to The Star Gallery to ask if they can make an exception for me to allow an external caterer in. So far, the response I got was a phone call after a couple of weeks to let me know that "in principle, we will allow it" but they need some time to get back to me with a list of T&Cs that I have to abide by. Which probably means a levy, and a lot of limitations in terms of what and how my caterer can bring in their food. And just a recap, this venue is already the more expensive of the two mind you. SIGH.

So, I am now just awaiting an official response from The Star Gallery on this caterer issue, and a good time to talk to my dad about these developments to see what he feels about it. To be honest, it seems so ma fan to work my way around all this red tape with The Star Gallery, that a part of me feels like I should just settle for The Joyden Hall? After all, it is a decent venue which does not have as many loops to jump through. We'll just have to wait and see I guess. And this is just one venue, we have not even come anywhere close to this progress for our nikah and groom's side venues.

So, I guess that's pretty much it for now. I can't move on to other key vendors like deco and food until this venue is finalised. InsyaAllah, we will be able to secure the right venue soon enough so that we can move on to other decisions like our other vendors and our nikah venue and arrangements.

Till next time dolls!

Love,
Z