My Community Bio
	Knot Name:  DRZBride
	Wedding Role:  Bride
	Location:  Live in Manhattan, wedding in Philadelphia
	Age:  30
	What I do when I'm not on The Knot (occupation): Consultant
	Where you'll find me on The Knot (favorite board): Advice from Recent Brides
	About our wedding: Our Wedding My husband and I had an amazing wedding day! It was crazy and the rain was coming down in buckets but none of it mattered because we were so excited to be getting married. Here are two pictures that my photographer sent me. If you would like to see more professional pictures from the wedding, please check out my married bio. Here's the link... Married Bio (DRZWife) In addition, my photographer put together a slideshow of some of our pics. Here is the link to that slideshow...Make sure your sound is on - I love the music!! Pro Pic Slideshow My videographer (Tangerine Media Group) put together a 2 minute "movie trailer" of our wedding. My actual video won't get here for a while but this should give you a taste of what Tangerine's work is like...Again, make sure your sound is on! Tangerine Clip Here are some pics that my photographer took for my florist for her website. The first is my bouquet. The second is the ring pillow that my ringbearer held and the third is the placecard table with the apple candles… Here are some non-professional pictures that my friends have sent me… My DH and I really did party and dance at our wedding! It is possible!! Nice shot of brooches in my hair: Here are some pics of our rehearsal dinner and the Korean Pyabaeck ceremony…. My Vendor Reviews Ceremony Cathedral Basilica of SS Peter and Paul (A+): Normally, knotties do not review the church that they got married in but I had to put in a note about them here. Monsignor Close has been wonderful!! He really treated us with so much respect and we felt like he really cared about our wedding day. Even though we brought in our own priest to perform the ceremony, he was a huge part of the preparations. He even called us the day we got back from our honeymoon to congratulate us and let us know about some packages that may have been left behind. Obviously, the location is beautiful but the staff sometimes gets a bad rap because they can be curt. Just take it with a grain of salt because they get calls about weddings ALL the time and get annoyed with the same questions. All of the people I met with and dealt with were kind and wonderful. Lastly, our wedding ceremony was taking place when the Pope was passing away. In fact, he passed away at 3:45pm and our ceremony started at 3:00pm, so it happened during our ceremony. There was a lot of press at the Basilica throughout the Rehearsal and the ceremony (which is how our picture ended up in the paper, I guess.) Monsignor and his staff were there to personally make sure everything was going to run smoothly. Reception Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts – www.pafa.org (B+): I fell in love with this location the minute I laid eyes on it. It was exactly what I was looking for – intimate, stylish and a little bit unconventional. Problem is that it’s expensive and an art museum (with lots of museum rules). I happen to be a bit detail-oriented (have you noticed??) and I was able to deal with all of the rules, paperwork etc. that the PAFA required but I have to warn future knotties who aren’t as anal as I am…it’s a little overwhelming. We had to get insurance policies for all the vendors we were bringing in and we weren’t allowed to use candles etc. On the day of my wedding though, I was thrilled because the artwork and the architecture just brought everything together. The people are very accommodating but at times were a bit confused about all the rules as well. I thought it was well worth it for the great locale. So, I say an A+ for location and a C for the hassle which averages to a B+ Jimmy Duffy’s Caterers (B+): The PAFA has an exclusive contract with Duffy’s so it’s the only option for catering. However, they really work hand in hand (in fact, my Duffy’s rep has an office at PAFA). It was a seamless relationship. The food was excellent and the service was impeccable. However, they didn’t bring the food out fast enough during the cocktail hour and would only come in from one side of the room so that only half the guests ever saw food. They quickly remedied the situation when my DH and I pointed it out. I would recommend getting more cocktail hour food than they suggest because my guests were gobbling them up! (Lambchops are excellent as is the seafood bar). They also made substitutions for me at the bar (my DH is a Johnny Walker Scotch drinker and they had Dewars.) for no additional charge. They also made two additional little flubs…they forgot to check and make sure each table had a menu card with a wax seal on it (for the centerpiece winner) and they didn’t check to make sure each favor was facing in the right direction. I know, I told you I was anal! But, it was quickly fixed. Beautiful Blooms Floral Design – www.beautifulblooms.com (A+): One thing I looked for in vendors is that they didn’t need a lot of guidance from me. There are many florists out there that you can choose from and admittedly for a cheaper price. Let’s face it, flowers are a commodity and you can find them being bought and sold at cheaper prices always. But, I really wanted to find someone who was not only talented but creative. That way, I didn’t have to look at my flower trial and think ‘well, could you put more hydrangea here? Or, how about a pink rose?’ Instead, they could offer me suggestions and come up with some creative options…this is why I chose Donna. Instead of sitting with her for hours about what exact flowers I wanted in each arrangement, we talked about the place, the dresses, the feel and my and my DH’s personalities. After that, she came up with the suggestions for the flowers and I was thrilled with the results. She’s the one who initially suggested the apple candles for the placecards and then made the centerpiece so beautiful that it brought the whole thing together. Donna is very enthusiastic about her business and she really wants your wedding to look beautiful. I would often get emails from her saying things like, “I saw this in Martha Stewart weddings and I thought it would look so nice on your cocktail tables etc. What do you think?” Or, “I saw peonies in the market today and they look really wonderful!” You have to be excited about someone who’s that excited about your event! I HIGHLY recommend her. Scott Lighting (B-): Gobo looked great! The stand that was holding the huge lamp did not! I should have checked to see how they were going to light the Gobo and instead was presented with a surprise at the reception when I noticed a big black stand on the side of the dance floor. Annoying. They didn’t hide it behind a column like I had thought they would. Overall, would recommend the Gobo and ask that they hide the stand discreetly… D’Executives Band (B+): The dance floor was packed all night. The music was fantastic. The band was very talented! Our intros were perfect. They also had a DJ who would play when the band was on a break…so, we had both older band dance music and fun DJ music. But, they made a couple mistakes. First, they brought a lot more people and equipment than I thought they would. They took up soooo much space! The dance floor was compromised as a result. Second, they didn’t make certain announcements that we had requested. For instance, they didn’t tell the crowd NOT to take the vases for the centerpieces (a costly mistake for me who has to pay for missing vases). Also, they didn’t allow me to introduce my wedding gift to my DH (Swoop from the Philadelphia Eagles) which kind of bummed me out because I had a nice little speech about how I wanted to get my DH the perfect gift etc…They also didn’t give Dennis the microphone right before the cake cutting so that he could say his thank you’s etc. All little details that nobody noticed but also moments that I will never get back. Overall, I recommend them. Especially, if you have the room for a band – they are the best deal we found in the planning process. In fact, they’re super cheap for a 8 piece live band - less than $3K for band and DJ. Day-of-Coordinator – Melody Appel (www.innoveeventdesign.com) (A+): By far, the BEST decision I made in the planning process. Melody was an absolute lifesaver. First of all, she is soooo CALM and a welcome presence on a hectic day. Second, she is just as detail oriented as me and was on top of all the little details of the day. She ran the entire Rehearsal which was such a relief because I had over 30 people in the wedding party (including primary and secondary sponsors). On Saturday, she was at the hotel bright and early and ran errands for us all day long! She would run out and get more false eyelashes or fresh flowers for people’s hair, or water etc…Then, she would run over to the boy’s room and make sure they knew what they were doing. Also, since it was raining cats and dogs, we had to change a lot of the picture taking plans and she was on top of it. There were so many things she took care of that night (for example, my photographer had left one of her cameras in the limousine and Melody had to go track it down – I didn’t even know about it until the next day.) Lastly, she was the only one who would constantly ask me if I wanted to go to the bathroom and freshen up, or would fix my bustle. Ladies, trust me, your BMs are probably wonderful and great trusting friends but they’re having fun and getting drunk at your wedding. Nobody is out to make sure you aren’t looking too sweaty or your bra is showing or your bustle broke. Melody made sure I was ok all the time and was checking my lipstick and my dress etc…what a relief too because cameras are on you at all times! Even my DH was impressed and commented that Melody was the best investment in the wedding planning. (I bit my tongue before I could say ‘I told you so!!’) Photographer – Marie Labbancz (www.artoflove.com) (A+): I fell in love with Marie’s work when I met her early on in the planning process. She has such a great eye and amazing talent for making simple things look extraordinary. I also love the way she made each wedding so romantic. She focuses on the couple and their love for one another as opposed to posed pictures of family. She is really easy to work with and came all the way to NYC for our engagement session. I cannot wait to see how the pictures turned out! Oh, and she will give you all negatives and digital proofs for her price. One thing I was impressed with is her love for her work. She stayed over her allotted 8 hours because she wanted to capture all the events (cake cutting etc) and I appreciate a vendor that is willing to go above and beyond. Highly recommend! Videographer – Tangerine Media Group (www.tangerinemediagroup.com) (A+): We haven’t received the DVD yet but they sent us a 2 minute “movie trailer” clip and I was soooooo impressed that I shared it with everyone that would listen! (link is at the top of the bio). I really hope this experience will generate some business for them because I really think that they are such talented and wonderful people! They met with us for over an hour after we signed with them to discuss our style and our interests…they even asked what our favorite movies are! The Movie Trailer uses quotes out of my own program and they tied in my theme and colors so well…I was floored when I saw it. If you have not chosen a Videographer yet, please give them a call – they are really really good! Oh, and if you are on the fence about videography, I say you should definitely do it. I was on the fence too but my DH was adamant about it and we went on a pursuit to find one that we liked. Unfortunately, it wasn’t the cheapest option. BUT, I am SOOOO glad that he convinced me to sign Tangerine because I love the video just as much as the pictures. And, I think my friends and family enjoy watching the video rather than flipping through album after album…. Clothes, Makeup and Hair Kleinfelds New York (C+): Yes, they have the biggest selection and yes, they are a superstore, but I wasn’t impressed by their service. It was extremely overwhelming and I felt sooooo much pressure when I went there!! Then, they wanted to order me a dress size that was way too big. I had to write a letter asking them to change it (they wouldn’t do it verbally over the phone). What a pain! I absolutely LOVE my dress (Amsale) and thrilled that I bought it, but not there. Plus, the alterations were close to $400!! Are you kidding me??? I love the seamstress – she did an excellent job but $400?? for a little hemming and a bustle? Ugh. Makeup – Stanford Smith (A+): I found Stanford Smith at Bergdorf Goodman in NYC. He’s the business manager at the Nars counter there. I ended up getting a makeover there for a fun night out and was really, really impressed by his makeup skills. Because I’m Asian, I have a really hard time finding anyone who can do my makeup well. Anyways, not only is he good, he’s fun and really knows how to pamper you! I had him do all the BM’s makeup and each one of them looked incredible. I had a very multi-ethnic bridal party (Indian, Korean, Filipino, Black) and each one of them looked like models!! He brought his assistant Patrick and they worked efficiently together. Very calming and very talented. I highly recommend. He’s a little bit expensive but totally worth it, I promise!! Oh, and he provided as many makeup trials as I wanted until I was satisfied with the way I would look…. Hair – Claudia Seyler (A+): She gets raves on this board all the time but I’m still going to sing her praises! She did all the BMs hair and each of them had a different style and they all looked beautiful and unique! She worked soooo quickly and was done with all our hair before Stanford and his asst. were done with makeup. Plus, she’s just such a NICE person! I love what she did with my hair and I must have said 2 sentences to her about what I was looking for…she just knew. Gotta love that. Highly recommend! Tuxes- Men’s Wearhouse (B): Not much to comment on here. Super easy and very convenient. Everyone got their tuxes there for less than 100 bucks. We returned everyone’s tuxes to the nearest location the next day. One warning – you should definitely try the tux on before taking home….my DH and my dad’s were off in size. Bridesmaid Dresses – Bloomingdales NYC (D): After searching high and low for discounts on Vera Wang BM dresses, I found out that you can get 15% off when opening a Bloomingdales card and ordering them through Bloomies. So, I had all the girls try them on at different VW stores and give me style numbers and sizes. Ordering was simple and easy. The problem happened when one of my BM got pregnant and decided to drop out of the wedding. We had to change the size of one of the dresses to a larger size to fit another BM who decided to take her place. Because of this one change, I didn’t get any of my BM dresses until 2 weeks before the wedding. Not only that, but the last dress (the one that got changed) didn’t come in until 5 days before the actual wedding. I felt like I was completely getting the run around each time I called and I couldn’t understand why Bloomies wouldn’t at least let me have the other dresses earlier. Oh, and they never gave me tracking numbers even though I kept asking for them. The only reason I didn’t put “F” for their service is because the rep actually came to my home to hand deliver the last dress because she was afraid it getting lost again. It was a stress that I didn’t need in the last week of planning. Miscellaneous OOT gable boxes – www.bagsandbowsonline.com (A): About $60 for 100 of them. Smaller than I’d hoped for but totally enough space for everything. Favor boxes – www.papermart.com (A): Fast, easy and convenient. Custom Wax Seal – www.oldschoolseals.com (A+): They recreated exactly what I was looking for! Works perfectly. Faux Wax Sticks – www.scribesdelight.com (A): Kind of expensive but the exact color I was looking for. Service was fast and easy. Flower Monograms – www.bouquetjewels.com (A+): Arrived in perfect condition and they even exchanged one of the letters for another when one of my BMs dropped out. Cake Topper – www.lovelettersweddings.com (B+): They recreated my custom monogram exactly and the colors were perfect. I rated them slightly lower because I feel like they’re overpriced. There seems to be many vendors out there now that can provide the same topper for cheaper (but it may also be because my topper was customized with my specific font? Hard to say). Ritz Carlton Philadelphia (A+): This is where we stayed during our wedding weekend and I couldn’t be happier with their service! It’s pricey but you only get married once! The car valet lost our rental car key and the Ritz paid for the replacement cost of the key and never questioned it. This was a relief because the parking lot and the Ritz weren’t the same company so ultimately, the Ritz will be responsible for tracking down that replacement cost from the lot. The suites were big and the bar was fun to hang out in after the wedding. Apple Candles – www.waxwizard.net (A): They were the perfect size and came quickly. One of my favorite details in the wedding. Bridesmaid Gifts – www.bagettes.com (A+): Service was really on top of things and had the bags at my door within 2 weeks of ordering them. All the girls loved them! Customized M&Ms – www.colorworks.com (A): I did a trial order and realized that if you put quotations around your saying, it won’t print them. Otherwise, perfect service and perfect product. Albeit, expensive for what is basically M&Ms. Invitations – www.innoveeventdesign.com (A): Melody is wonderful to work with for stationary ideas. Very creative and she listens to find what you are looking for. If you haven’t ordered your invites yet, I would highly suggest contacting her. Everyone commented on the invites! Even, people you would never expect would notice that kind of thing…. Rehearsal Dinner – Han Chon Restaurant (Cherry Hill, NJ) (A): OK, I admit, my uncle owns this restaurant…but, I would have chosen it anyways because it’s perfect for a large Rehearsal Dinner and a great setting for the Korean Pyabaeck ceremony. They served so much food!! We were in a separate private room and they set up a buffet line for us. It was perfect – casual yet very Korean. Food was excellent and service was superb. We even had a little dancing and karaoke! Calligraphy – Carmela Mazzarulli, 856-428-2543: Many knotties know how GREAT her work is and her price is a steal! Book her now! Ok – that’s it for now…if you have any questions about anything in my bio, you can page me or email me at drzbride@yahoo.com!! Good luck to all of you!! And, THANK YOU for making wedding planning so fun!! Old Planning Bio My FI and I got engaged on my birthday - July 4, 2004! He surprised me with an amazing ring on a bridge overlooking the Seine in Paris. I was shocked to say the least. We're planning a Spring Black Tie wedding in Philadelphia, PA. His family is from the area, and coincidentally, I have a lot of family near there. I'm originally from Southern California and we both now live in NYC. We'll probably have people coming from LA, NYC and Philadelphia. Picture taken right after he proposed. I look really swollen - probably from all that traveling... Dancing at my friend's wedding in London. I'm wearing a Vera Wang BM gown. A picture from another wedding I was just in. One of my best friends from high school. Doesn't she look so pretty and aren't the dresses great? They're actually from Laundry (Shelli Segal) and I'm thrilled because I think I could wear it again! Another picture from that same wedding but with my FI and my younger sister. We were a wee bit intoxicated... This is my FI and I in our throwback Eagles jerseys. He's obviously a huge fan! I'm a huge fan of when they win since he's so happy! This is us on New Year's Eve 2003.. Here are some of our engagement photos. They were taken by Marie Labbancz and we were in Central Park and then the Meatpacking district. She took 300 pictures! If you're looking for a photographer, I would highly recommend her...she has such a great eye and talent. Her website is www.artoflove.com I love this series of us walking down the stairs... There were so many people in Central Park that day, but we managed to get some private moments... The last shot of the day... Some pictures from my Bachelorette Party... My ring! I love it! My wedding band finally came in! Here it is with my engagement ring...it's a very thin band with micropave diamonds. Very simple but I love it! My dress (front and back) - the back has permanent french bustling all the way down Here are some pictures from my first fitting. Please excuse my appearance, I was really tired and it was EARLY! No makeup either! The seamstress had already bustled the train by the time my friend got the camera out. But, basically, the top two bustles are permanent and the bottom one unfolds to a short train. Instead of wearing a tiara, I decided to do an up-do and put some pretty brooches in my hair. I really like the way the rhinestones look...Here's my hair trial with Claudia Seyler. I really like her and love what she did to my hair! I can't believe my short hair could get into an up-do! I ordered my shoes from myglassslipper.com. They have the best deals! I'm a shoe fanatic so I'm very excited about these! Our ceremony is at the Basilica Cathedral of SS Peter and Paul. I fell in love with the cathedral when my fiance took me there 2 years ago. I envisioned myself getting married there when he showed me, so when he proposed - I knew exactly where my wedding planning was to begin...Here's a picture of the inside. Our reception will be at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts in the Washington Foyer. Here's a picture of what it looks like... I want my BMs to wear Apple Green from Vera Wang but in all different styles. Here's one of the styles that I like in the color, from the front... and from the back... For flowers, I love Peonies and Hydrangeas! I also love the look of multiple square vases. I think I want a combination of low and high. We're not allowed to have candles at the PAFA so I have to get creative on how to light the centerpieces. Here are some great pictures that I'm hoping to show my florist... I like this idea for the high cocktail tables...very modern and sleek We’re going to have a gobo with our intials on the dancefloor like this picture...I don't know who's this is so if it's yours, let me know! I really like the idea of having lots of "sparkles" in the decorations and details of the wedding. I want to have jewels in my bouquet as well as the BM bouquets. For the BM bouquets, I wanted to have their initals in each one...like this picture... I also want the GM boutannaires to have crystals with their flowers...like this except in apple green. I got my caketopper from lovelettersweddings.com and it's soooo sparkly and perfect! I highly recommend! This is what my cake will look like but with light pink frosting. The topper will sit on the top (obviously) I want to have the BMs put their bouquets into large hurricane vases like this all around the cake table. I like the use of apples, and limes in the decorations because I think it ties in the apple green color. I want to have a placecard table with apples in the vases with flowers and the reception/escort cards will look like this with mini green apple candles.... Here's another cute one with a leaf as the placecard... Here are the green apple candles I bought with a green "leaf" placecard that I cut and pinned onto the candle. I think that the cardstock is too thick so the final product might be a text-weight... For favors, we're going to have pink and white M&Ms with our names printed on them. Then, we're going to package them in 3x3x2 pink boxes...Here's my sample... I was trying to get the same look as these wrapped boxes... Here are the favor boxes all done and wrapped! I also put a picture of what it looked like when you open the box. I had two sayings: one was “Your presence is the sweetest gift of all. Thank You” and the other said “Magandang Gabi. Good Night” (It’s Tagalog for Good Night in tribute to my Filipino FI and in laws). The M&Ms had a variety of saying, “Rita and Dennis”, “I do. 04.02.05”, “Thank You” and “To Have. To Hold” Here are my OOT boxes. I love the ribbon! Here are the OOT boxes and contents: 2 bottles of water, Chocolate covered pretzels (I wrapped them in a cellophane bag and made labels that say “We’re tying the ‘knot’. 04.02.05”), Herr’s chips, TastyKakes, Gum, Motrin and Tylenol. On the outside, I placed a welcome letter with a weekend schedule and a map of Philadelphia. Here are the pics of the boxes and me putting them together at my FMIL’s house. Bridesmaid gifts!! Bought the bags from bagettes.com. They are so cute in person. I'm also giving them watches with their initials on them! I bought a birdcage from Target.com. We'll use this to place the cards in on the guestbook table. And, here's the guestbook! Got it on sale at Kate's Paperie and it matches my colors perfectly! I put engagement pictures throughout the book (with lots of blank pages also for signatures)...and used some scrapbooking stuff from ACMoores. Here are some of the pages... I really like the look of beaded table numbers that hang. Ok, so here's my attempt at the table numbers. I actually really like them! Here are what my invites look like (without the reception card and all the other stuff). The interesting thing about the invite is that the ink is actually the green part and the white is the actual card (instead of vice versa). I want to have the "to have and to hold" theme throughout the wedding stationary because it was on our STDs (below). It's going on the menu cards, programs etc... Here's a picture of my actual invitations...all laid out and then tied up with a belly band and custom-made wax seal with our monogram. I also included a pic of Carmella's work...very pretty!! Here's a scanned image of my menu card to match my invites. It's printed on a cardstock with a metallic sheen on it... I made programs to match the invites and menus. The "belly band" slips off and there's printed image of our monogram underneath. Other vendors we've booked: Photography: Marie Labbancz Band/DJ: D'Executives Caterer: Jimmy Duffys Videographer: Tangerine Media Group Florist: Beautiful Blooms Day-Of-Coordinator and Stationary: Innove Event Design Transportation: limotoday.com Here are some other fun DIY projects I've done for the wedding... The "Will you be my bridesmaid" cards. For the ones I actually sent out, the ribbon on the dress in the card was ivory instead of this weird green color. I forgot to take a picture of the card before sending so I made a mock-up to take a picture of and I had run out of ivory ribbon. The poem is the same one that many Knotties have used. Since my fiance is filipino, we have "sponsors" in our wedding. They're basically aunts and uncles that you feel close to and want to be a part of your wedding party. I made "Will you be our sponsor" cards for all of them. Disclaimer: I did copy another knotties idea on these and I can't remember her name. If it was you, let me know, and I will credit you! For our Save the Dates, we need to save some money so we're making our own. I thought we should take a picture of our holding hands (in B&W) and then put it on an Ipad card with the caption "...to have and to hold..." and the date. Here's a picture. They came out really cute and cheap!! Here are some pictures of my Bridesmaid Newsletter. For some reason, Shutterfly is cutting off the edges? Here are the gifts for the BMs throwing my bridal shower...I bought them pashminas and undies with "Bridesmaid" written in rhinestones. I made the gift tags for each box. Since we have many sponsors etc. in our wedding party, I put together a newsletter for them also. Here are our Rehearsal Dinner invitations. We bought the paper at mygatsby.com and printed them ourselves. Our Rehearsal is going to be in a korean restaurant and we're going to have a korean P'yaebaek ceremony. I included a "newsletter" with the same design as all our other newsletters. It contains directions and explanations of all the cultural traditions etc. so that everyone will understand the significance of the ceremony. There's a picture of it below... I had to put a picture of the shower invitations that my sister (MOH) made for my shower...they're beautiful!! The theme is "Everything Paris" since that's where we got engaged. She made the invites to resemble airplane boarding passes...aren't they adorable?? Here are some monograms I made. The first one is going to be put on labels and I also got a custom wax seal with the image for invites and other stuff. free counter from digits.com Search the Philadelphia Planning Boards steal this code / make this work for your city Search the New York City Planning Boards steal this code / make this work for your city
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