There's no upcoming wedding for us because we would want to renew our vows later in our life like on our 25th anniversary, that's way too far just yet. I just got reminded of those times we were planning for our wedding when a friend came over here at home an looked at our wedding photo. She complemented on the wedding dress saying it's pretty, she didn't believe me when I said it's not even as expensive as she thought it was.

Our wedding wasn't like any royal wedding of the year with designer gowns and suits not even extravagant wedding reception. We tried to make it as solemn as possible having it held in one of the most known churches in Manila, The Manila Cathedral. It's not because of the fame that we wanted to do it there but the accessibility to all. The church is at the center of the metro and all possible commute is easy to access there. We also love the fact that it has aircon option making the ceremony a lot more convenient for the hot April Summer wedding.

Though we spent a bit more on the reception garden to make sure our food selection would be really good, everybody was so happy and loved it. Enjoying an open garden dining and watching the rest of the ceremony under the stars. We're even lucky to have a bonus fireworks display at the end courtesy of the neighboring reception, our guests thought it's part of our finale. Mom wanted originally to have fireworks just to end it with a blast but after getting some quotes and knowing how expensive the cost would be excluding fees for permits and all, she just changed her mind. I wouldn't even have it myself because I find it quite impractical to do so but then we got lucky! Too bad my photo-video team left already but we managed to enjoy some photo shoot with friends and other guests.

Those two major places were given so much though and consideration for our wedding planning. Other things like invitations, souvenirs, rsvp cards, I made it myself to save money since I can do those things. I actually enjoyed designing the rsvp and invitation. For the souvenirs had to go to the wholesale place to get cheaper ends and didn't go to those wedding exhibitors and exclusive stores. Na-ah! If you want to save and have the capacity to do things yourself then do so. You will definitely save big money this way.

Finally the wedding dresses and the Barongs for the guys. A Barong is a traditional suit for the gentlemen paired with slacks. Through the years designs evolved and more style variations came out. We decided to go for the Chinese collar rather than the traditional collar and using a not so transparent fabric material, Piña Jusi. It's the same place where we got my wedding gown and the junior bridesmaid dresses. Believe it or not we had a great deal for our package because we were referred by my client to this designer.

I got a real breather when he gave me a good sum for all the designs which I initially made and he did the certain touches to make it better of course. Good thing he loved my wedding gown idea and for my bridesmaids, I gave him the option to work on the flower girls' dresses to match it better with our dresses. They have ready made wedding dresses, bridesmaid dresses, all other gowns including cheap prom dresses, accessories and fabrics. We didn't have to go to different boutiques to get all the other things we needed for the bridal entourage.

I can say that planning for our wedding can be considered as one of my best achievement and I am happy that everything worked out right. So for those of you who plan to tie the knot but betting worried over the finances, there will always be a way to cut down on expenses and still get the things that you want for your big day. Just like us we didn't have unlimited budget but still managed to make the most of what we intended to use for the wedding.