music hall = wedding venue?

i think it could totally work. well, for the wedding only that is.. not for the reception, unless the venue has other facilities that could accomodate.

i stumbled across koerner hall (toronto). look how gorgeous this is! the architecture of the ceiling is beautiful. WOW! really the only decor you'd have to take care of is the mandap. obviously you'd want to enhance the look by having a mandap that accentuates the amazing curves in the ceiling.

there's no worries about the seating since there's plenty on the main floor. it seats 540, which can easily be filled during an indian wedding. even though the balconies is unnecessary for guests, they would be great for the photographer and videographer. you don't typically get opportunities for angles like that in photos and videos.

considering it's a music hall with awesome acoustics, you could imagine what a live indian classical ensemble would sound like during the wedding. i'm sure it would create a very calming experience throughout the entire hall while the wedding is taking place.

i really love these kinds of venues.  it's definitely an easy way to make your wedding unique.

art deco delight

allstream centre (toronto):
the art deco details in this former automotive factory - think tulip-shaped light fixtures and a frank lloyd wright inspired ballroom ceiling - add flair to the greenest conference facility in canada. the sprawling 160,000 square foot limestone fortress of environmentally responsible bells and whistles features a white reflective roof and is powered exclusively by renewable energy sources.

the tree hugger in me loves this place. the artsy-fartsy in me adores this place. everyone can certainly appreciate the walls and ceiling in the ballroom.  with capacity of over 3800 for a banquet, i would have had no problems transitioning from wedding to reception.

i seriously wish i had found and looked into the possibility of this venue a year ago.  not to say i don't love the venue we booked.. it would have been nice to have comparable options.

from en route

81

81 days to go!!  81 days :S  oh crud.

silly sophisticated'ness

*sigh* busy, busy. we'll finish delivering all the invites over the next few weeks i hope!

my really good friends back home organized a weekend of sophisticated silliness! there was nothing raunchy all weekend, which i really appreciated:

	wild oat - fantastic vegetarian food. as you're walking towards this place, all you can smell is yumminess!
	hotel indigo - quaint boutique hotel with an awesome glass ceiling. we found the voyeur window from the room into the shower a little disturbing. thank goodness there were blinds!
	sir john a pub - home of the banana mothership connection! a "friendly" drink the bartender served on the house. banana liqueur, amaretto, orange juice, and one other type of alcohol i can't seem to remember.. tasted like banana medicine - yum :)
	canada science and technology museum - this was one of the fun field trip spots growing up! super cheap: $9/person entry. it's not very huge.. really, you're paying the $9 to walk through the crazy kitchen! it's totally worth the $9 for the silliness :)
	midway family fun park - so much silliness. cheesy'ness to the n'th degree :) this is the place you go to play games with tokens to win tickets; then redeem the tickets for prizes. we redeemed our 400+ tickets for four shutter shades shaped liked stars! class i tell you, real class :)
	beau's all natural brewing company - mmm.. beer. the beer's rather delicious! unfortunately our bottles did not travel well.. :S
	chateau laurier - BEST SURPRISE!! their standard rooms are the size of a suite. their beds are so comfortable. i could live there if i was rich enough.
	social restaurant and lounge - we tried a variety of martinis and cocktails here. some good, some super disgusting. at one point i left my drink full to the top, only to come back to it empty.. *raises eyebrow* the girls were obviously thirsty. :|
	elgin street diner - home of ottawa's yummiest poutine! one serving could feed a family.. they use mushroom gravy too, which is a definite bonus.
	cora's - my favourite place for breakfast. huge servings, fresh fruit, deliciously greasy and deliciously healthy options.
	le nordik spa en nature - the perfect ending to a great weekend! hot and cold baths. sauna. steam rooms. massage. hammock swings. serene environment. *sigh* i'll have to go with kiwi at some point.

this was definitely a MUCH NEEDED break from life! i owe these ladies big time :)

charity registry

kiwi and i aren't getting a registry. he's been in his current house for several years and it's pretty much.. full. there isn't room for the "we want" list.. and there isn't much on the "we need" list. instead, we opted for the "no boxed gifts" line on the invites. it's easier to just invest the money and use it towards a down payment on a home with a basement. (it'll be different living in a house without a basement.. i guess i'll now be afraid of the attic.) or we can use part of the money to buy some of the things we need/want and have room for after the wedding.

had we decided to sign up for a registry, i would have done it through a charity registry:

WeddingChannel.com

they set up a list for you to register for items from an impressive list of retailers who will in turn donate to a charity of your choice. the actual donation is based on a percent of the registry products purchased through WeddingChannel.com up to 3%. or you can have guests donate directly to the charity as well. they have over 100 listed charities - you can only choose one. although you can only choose a single charity from a list of 100, this is certainly a great program that gives you the opportunity register at large, common retailers while being charitable.

i do foundation

this is actually a really awesome website. they give you more flexbility in terms of which charities you want to donate to and number of charities you'd like to benefit. if your preferred charity is not on the list, they will add it as long as the charity meets their set criteria.

the WeddingChannel.com is listed as a retailer, so you have the benefit of setting up registries with the larger, common retailers with much more options open to you. the amount donated is between 3-10% depending on the stores you choose to setup a registry with. PLUS.. you can make purchases for items you'll need for the wedding through them (rings, honeymoons, invitations) - again a percentage is donated to the charities of your choice.

i can't get over how great this website is.

these registries are a total win-win situation. the couple gets exactly what they need and the charities benefit.. how can you go wrong? you may only raise $100 for a charity, but it still helps the charity. so why don't more people take advantage of it? unfortunately, i don't think engaged couples are in the mindset to even look for it in the first place. *sigh*

fashion designer: rocky s

we finished most of the kankotris this weekend! woo! and now it's procrastination time..

i wish i did a bit more research into india's fashion designers; i would have gotten some interesting ideas for my reception outfit. anyway, this is rocky s. - a designer with a retro contemporary style. he not only designs for commercial sale, but for bollywood movies. (which ones, i can't tell you. i tried to do a bit of research, but came up blank..) his collections span indian wear, western wear, bags, and home decor. here are some of my favourite pieces from rocky s' website:

	i really like the colour combination and the border on this one. pink pops so well off the beige.
	the top on this lehenga is AWESOME! it looks like boning, but i don't think it is.. probably just well placed embroidery? anyway, i really like the top. it can hold its own without trying to compete with the skirt.
	the detail on this is so nice. i really like the fact that the embroidery is the same colour as the rest of the purse.
	wouldn't these be really awesome for a mehndi night? (and if you accidentally drop a bit of mehndi on it.. you wouldn't notice cause they're so dark.)
	(not from his website; it's from his 2006 collection) this jacket would be really nice to wear at this time of year. i love the fringe and the puffy shoulders! the rest of the outfit on the other hand.. brings the attention in a very awkward place. i don't know about you, but i'm really not into wearing something that mimics a body part you don't find on women.. :|

last picture from nirvana woman

dream a little dream..

do weird dreams come with wedding planning?  well, maybe i can't blame the wedding.. i usually have weird dreams that make absolutely no sense.

one time i had a dream that the three little pigs were robbing our house in the middle of the night, while everyone was home passed out in their beds.  they were gutsy enough to be rummaging through our bedrooms.  they were wearing those retro jackets that b-boys wore in the 80's and all spoke like a 40 year old new york pizza shop owner.

in another dream, i dropped my friend off at her home, got out of my car and started running down the streets of downtown.. just running.  i seemed to know where i was going, but i didn't know what i was running to.  then as i pass this dark alley, a hand pops out and grabs my arm. (at which point i woke up)

anyway, last night's dream is a really odd one.  i opened the front door to do something and i see this little girl running up the driveway.  i quickly shut the door and frantically try to lock it and turn on the alarm.  i tell my brother, "it's that little asian girl trying to sell insurance again.." when i say little, i'm talking about a 5 year old with pig tails dressed like she's going to church (you know, pretty dress, white cardigan, shiny black mary janes); cheek pinching-ly cute.  why a 5 year old asian girl would be selling insurance is beyond me, but she was and really insistant.  she went as far as putting her hand through the mail slot on the door.  it was sort of like a zombie movie almost, except the little girl wasn't a demon of the undead, she just really wanted to sell insurance.

maybe i should start documenting my dreams.. might explain why my every day train of thought is so demented.

inscription on rings

different, interesting, and beautiful:


from m and r photography

champagne bar

i love this idea.. champagne & cider bar!  this idea is from a baby shower, but it could totally work at a wedding reception.  guests start with either champagne or sparkling cider, then choose from an assortment of mixes to enhance their drink.  what's great about this is that everyone can indulge: drinkers, non-drinkers, and designated drivers.

i would do this for the reception if it weren't for the cost of champagne for the number of guests we're having.  perhaps we can do this for one of the pre-wedding events, sans-champagne.

from hostess blog

first look

a lot of blogs talk about the "first look" prior to the wedding. despite it being unlucky for the bride and groom to see each other before the wedding, nowadays some meet prior to the wedding to ease those jitters as well as share a very private moment before you take that big step in your life. an alternative i've read is where they blindfold the bride and groom. instead of a "first look", they only get a first touch. they can talk to each other prior to, again to ease jitters, while keeping the excitement of the first look to happen while the bride walks down the aisle.


i would have loved to do the blind fold idea.. unfortunately there isn't time to do this. and i'm sure the parental units would have a fit at the idea.

a more recent tradition in india (and making its way to north america) is the bride greets the groom with a haar after the mother of the bride welcomes the groom to the wedding. i suppose you could call it a first look, indian style. it's still a rather public moment and sometimes involves the interaction of other family members. (the groom would be lifted by brothers and friends making it difficult for the bride to place the haar around the groom without help from her brothers to lift her.)

kiwi suggested we do that. i suggested we don't. :) to be honest, i really like the idea of anxiousness and anticipation. when i walk to the mandap, a large cloth is held in front of kiwi to prevent us from seeing one another. after i sit, my hand is put in kiwi's, while the cloth is still held up between us. a blessing is done, and then the cloth comes down (which is when we're officially married).

since kiwi won't be able to see me while i walk down the aisle, he'll get to experience that feeling of anxiousness while he waits for me. then there's that feeling of anticipation when all he can do is feel my hand in his. at this point, even though he still can't see my face, you can imagine the wave of emotions simply brought on by touch.

i personally consider that to be the intimate moment that's just between you two right in the middle of a chaotic indian wedding. i'm definitely looking forward to it!

pics from dinofa photography, still motion

colourful elephants

i considered making a kid station for kids to keep occupied during the cocktail hour with crayons, colour books, etc. cause i know how boring weddings can be for kids. there's nothing interesting to do. why do this kids run around so much and scream at events..?

mum and dad nixed the idea though out of fear that some of the tyrant children will let loose with the crayons and start designing their graffiti tag on the walls. we don't need an even larger bill after the event.

if indian kids were typically tame and we didn't run into the risk of child vandalism.. i would have made loot bags (favours) for them with a mini, homemade colouring book and some homemade crayons shaped like ELEPHANTS!

aren't these cute?! i love them!  i wish i had a whole herd of elephant crayons.. they look pretty easy to make too: how to make custom crayons.

oh well.. i wish i could have done this. there's always that one, rotten little kid all hopped up on sugar (or better yet coke) who ruins it for the rest. *sigh*

from hostess blog

my five: wedding shoes

i'm in a bit of a dilemma about wedding shoes.. a few years back, i bought some lovely shoes that would go really well with my wedding sari, and they're still in great condition. only problem is they're 3 inches.. maybe they're 4? usually that's not an issue; however, my wedding sari is literally the length of my leg. the store had to sew extra fabric at the top just so that i'd have something to tuck in.. so i don't have room to even wear a 2" heel.

because of that, my only choice for shoes to wear for the wedding are flats. i don't like those toe thongs because i'm not used to wearing them. i'm thinking ballerina flats would be nice, and easy to take on and off (since i need to take them off easily before stepping into the mandap).

so here are my top five:

	dipiero (found at aldo) they're not completely flat.. they have a little nub that's smaller than a kitten heel. these are certainly cute shoes.
	flopite (found at spring) flopite, really? bleh. ignore the name. not horribly fancy, not that i need horribly fancy. the first shoe is still prettier.
	dowe (found at spring) this is definitely less conservative and certainly a bit more fun!
	florale (found at steve madden) i like these. very cute and very wedding appropriate.
	seychelles sophia flat (found at nordstrom) they're pretty and yellow.. can't go wrong, can we?

i could make any of these shoes slightly more fancy looking than they currently are. there are shoe clips that have flowers and what not. i could easily put some stones on any of these; i'm sure someone owns a bedazzler :P a lady at work told me she sometimes uses clip on earrings to pretty up her shoes.. she's a shoe fashionista, so i don't doubt her judgement.

i'm glad the reception shoes will be a lot easier to find..

textured rings

while looking at rings for kiwi, i came across dawes design - jewellery made locally and sourced using sustainable businesses that use recycled products. she has some really funky ring designs, which i wish i could have incorporated for kiwi's ring.  (there were a few issues that prevented this from being possible.)

alligator texture	fine mesh texture	medium mesh texture

aren't they awesome?  the textures make the yellow gold look incredibly fashionable and non-traditional.

heavy metal

a few weeks back i got kiwi's wedding ring sorted. *sigh* it took long enough. i went to quite a few people asking about different metals, spent hours online comparing rings with kiwi. in the end he said the choice of ring is up to me since i have no clue what my wedding ring looks like!


i was looking at tungsten and titanium because they're darker metals.. very manly, you know? but speaking to jewellers and doing research on the internet, they all recommended against it. they're hard metals that don't distort their shape with wear and don't scratch easily. the fact it doesn't deform easily is an issue though.. remember my statement, "first comes marriage, then comes weight gain"? well, with titanium and tungsten, you have to get it adjusted accordingly; and adjustments aren't easy with these metals.

a few years back, one of my fois once told me that wedding rings traditionally are supposed to be gold. the more i've read up on different metals, the more that statement made sense. pure gold is the least reactive metal and the most malleable and ductile (deformable without fracture).

for that reason, i ended up going with trusty ol' gold. again with the traditionalist..