Update on Wedding Prep

Over the holiday, some decisions were made, the guest list was finalized and my bridesmaids and parents worked together to get the invitations and bridesmaid dresses. I'm feeling pretty happy with the progress because the full picture is finally materializing. Before anything else, I want to thank everyone who was involved (both sets of parents, Rene and Amy) profusely for their cooperation to get everything done under a week or so. You can also read about the details here.

I'm always so kancheong to put plans into action, so the stress I felt prior to this might have been caused by the standstill. People have been telling me to "enjoy the process", but I've always been a goal-oriented person, so setbacks and waiting around tend to stress me out. That is, I'm usually happier at the end of the journey than on the way. Can't help my choleric personality. =P

Back to the progress they made. Bridesmaid dresses, (finally) check! I gave my bridesmaids the freedom to look for their own dresses, because if you can delegate, delegate lah  I don't want to micromanage the wedding and turn into a bridezilla (if people don't already think I'm one)  why should I put myself into another position of potential conflict and stress I think it's better to let others choose what they are going to wear, especially with different body shapes, sizes and preferences to factor into the decision. I just gave them the budget and some guidelines on what I was hoping to see, and then trusted them to make the decision themselves. The girls managed to find a gorgeous dress that fit all my requirements, and even had the added bonus of pockets! What a blessing. =D Oh and in case you were wondering, it was well within the budget. =P I love it when things fall into place smoothly.

No pictures here because I want it to be a surprise. =P

The invitation cards were gorgeous too. The bridesmaids asked for my input, but bettered the design to form something that looks so expensive. Note that I said "looks", because in reality, we only spent RM 75 to print 100 cards. No envelopes though, and the cutting and folding had to be done on their own. The lack of envelopes isn't an issue because only about 3 will be mailed, and the rest will be hand delivered. The ingenuity of the design renders envelopes unnecessary anyway, unless it has to be mailed. You can google "petal envelopes" to get the idea. =D What I love most about this is that it's unconventional and not CNY red or pink.

Speaking about CNY red or pink, I am thankful that my parents aren't superstitious or overly concerned about whether their older Chinese friends/relatives will be offended by the very Western colours and styles that we've picked for the wedding. I really hate CNY red and pink, and I never understood why the invitation cards we got were always in that colour. Now I understand that black and white aren't really considered appropriate wedding colours to the Chinese, because those are funeral colours. 

Although it doesn't make sense to me to accept a white wedding dress but not white flowers/cards. 

Well, whatever, I'm just grateful that I don't have to consider this factor because both sets of parents are more liberal. It also makes me wonder how many people had to give up their dream wedding because of parental expectations and wants.

*Disclaimer: I don't mean to sound demeaning to my own ethnicity, or like I idealize Western styles. I wouldn't say I'm very Western myself - I just don't like being fettered by superstitions or cultural expectations, especially when they don't suit my preferences and have no logical basis. And nobody likes their sense of style being judged, I guess.