I have finally booked a videography team.  After playing email and phone tag for well over a month I was finally able to chat over the phone with Alaina, founder of Capture Me Videography (CMV) http://capturemevideography.com/.  What a doll!  She and her husband are the owner/operator of the company.  They have been in business for about a year and have done 4 weddings to date.  We have some very specific needs to cover, but they worked around and accommodated us better than any other company was able to and at a price point that is awesome.  Here is a list of things we are looking for...

• Work from 8-3pm
• cover prep, Vietnamese tea ceremony, ceremony, pictures
• break from 3-5:30
• set up for detail shots at the reception at 5:30
• work till 11:30
• highlight video
• full length dvd to cover in real time, tea ceremony, ceremony and highlights of the reception.  DVD length to be roughly 1 hour 45 minutes to 2 hour long (for the parents)
• be artistic and journalistic
• 3 videographers!

We were super impressed and confident that they can capture our day.  Even though they don't speak Vietnamese and a good part of the ceremonies are in Vietnamese they know film.  It's more important to us that we find someone with the talent and eye for the type of documenting we want rather than find a videographer who spoke Vietnamese and understood the nuances of the day.  This just means we will do more prep and consult with them to cover all the bases.

I have to admit that I'm not a big partier, preferring intimate gatherings to crowded ones.  Not to say that I don't enjoy dance music, I just don't know and am not familiar with the DJ culture.  My brother and hair stylist are since they are very into the dancing, partying, spinning scene.  FI was a big time partier in his hey day but has since settled into career and relationship so he doesn't frequent clubs and lounges anymore.  While he's still in contact with some DJ pals, they are more restaurant spinners and we didn't want to ask them as a favor.

Lucky for me my brother volunteered his good friend ((((DJ Komodo)))) aka Tony Lengsavath.

I don't know him, but I trust my brother's taste in music.  Like me he's completely eccletic in his taste and our playlists can be Andrea Botcelli with OutKast, with Sinatra, U2, and Lady Gaga with a couple of French songs and Vietnamese songs thrown into the mix.  I am super grateful that my brother is hooking us up with a DJ and have happily signed the contract and written out the check.  Another check on the wedding check list =)

I love blog stalking, here are some of my favorites:

Jen Skog http://www.skogasinvogue.com/

Augie Chang http://augiechangphotography.blogspot.com/

Anna Kuperberg http://www.kuperblog.com/

Thai Mai http://thaimaiphotography.com/blog/

Stephanie Williams http://stephaniewilliamsphotography.com/blog/

Crystal Le http://www.crystalle.net/

Henry Chen http://www.henrychenphoto.com/blog/

Kim Le http://www.kimlephotography.com/blog/

Caroline Tran http://www.carolinetran.net/blog/

Shanni Weilert http://whatshannisawblog.com/

http://www.axioo.com/blog

Vero Suh (fellow PW bride ILoveMyDog introduced me to her blog) http://www.verosuh.com/index2.php#/home/

Paul Von Rieter http://www.paulvonrieter.com/

An Amazing crew of Videographer/Cinematographers Americana Cinema http://americanacinemablog.com/wordpress/

Those are my most stalked blogs!  I'll add more as I chance upon them.  So many inspirations!  Be Inspired!

I loved the novel idea of having guest "leaf" their prints and sign their name on our tree.  It is a momento that is decorative and meaningful.  Everyone who saw this really <3 the idea.  A tip, use fade resistant ink pads.  I used the dye-based, fade resistant Tsuneko pads that I purchased from michaels.  I used the pads that I purchased for my invitations in shades of purple and a green pads.  I would have loved to include a grey color, but overall the color scheme worked out well.  Tsuneko makes a chalk ink, I'm not sure how quick drying that is compared to the dye-based.  

Even with the wet wipes, fingertips are still stained.  A little nail polish remover ot rubbing alchohol took care of the color.  This might not be feasable at your reception so hopefully your guest wont mind. 

My tree was a large 22X28 and held many signatures.  The guest came fast and furious at one point so the direction to put the print on the branch was somewhat ignored, but since it was fall, I had a lot of falling leaves. 

Here is out invitation.  I had it done on Etsy.  I ordered a set in English and a seperate Vietnamese set.  We are in the midst of addressing them right now.

Stupid me didn't want to spend extra money to get colored enveloped so we went with the standard ivory one.  So typical of me to not think things through because when I saw the envelopes I went straight to Paper Source and got the swirl stamp, stamp pads, and a custom monogram stamp for the return address which I stamped on the flap.  All in all, I spent more money procurring those items to dress up the envelope, not to mention the time I spent hand stamping each one, all 185 envelopes.  My back hurt afterwards!

Brown (Milk Chocolate): A natural, neutral color of the earth, brown represents wholesomeness and dependability. Symbolizing comfort and contentment, brown represents honesty. Just right for your wedding day, brown is substantial, steady and responsible. From rich chocolate and dark coffee to cream and soft beige, this earthy shade can be intense or pale, dramatic or modest. 

White (Ivory): Symbolic of purity and innocence, white has strong connotations of youth and perfection. White aficionados seek excellence and enlightenment, as simplicity and recognition are constant ventures. White is a glorious hue (or lack thereof) that denotes a clean palette or fresh start for those who seek serenity and peace.

Purple (and Berry):  Often associated with both royalty and luxury, purple is a passionate color.  Choosing purple symbolizes dignisty, tolerance, and value.  Violet lovers tend to be uncoventional and observant, with a multifaceted personality.  Tolerant and witty, purple devotees are likely to acheive authoritative positions.  From light lavendar and lilac buffs, who tend to be charming, witty and cultured, to deep eggplant lovers, who are creative and talented, purple can be provocative or sweet.

Who knew that the colors I chose would come to represent me so closely.  I'm an earth sign Taurus.  I love luxury, but also long for purity and innocence in life.

I wore the Badgley Mischka Randee shoes in purple satin on my wedding day.  Actually I also wore the Enzo Angiolini Merryann pump in the gold/silver color (very glittery) with my ao dai and as the reception began.  Let me tell you that both shoes were comfortable and beautiful.  The BM Randee was totally worth the money and they looked hot.

Prior to ordering the Randee I tried Pour La Victoire and BM Xango.  It was really hard for me to find a purple shoes that were actually purple in photos, had a good heel height or platform and didn't break the bank.  At $215 they are not cheap, but they aren't Louboutin expensive either.  Closer to the wedding I started to notice BM making several models in a purple color.  I think in the future purple shoes will be easier to come by.

I had my fear of the shoes because at 4 1/2" they are hight.  The BM platform also gets mixed review.  The design and color are absoultely breathtaking.  No one can argue that the shoes are pretty.  Having seen and tried on the shoes in person (Nordstrom) and dismissing it as too high, I noticed myself coming back to it again and again.  Several brides have worn it to rave reviews, but can I wear these for my 15 hour day?  No, I didn't wear them for the entire day.  In fact I first put them on at 11am and took them off at 7pm, which is a good 8 hours.  In between, like in the limo, I kicked them off but let's be honest most bridal shoes are kicked off at one point or the other.  However, if you are on the fenced then yes, do get them.  Some tips:

• Size down 1/2 size and fit the straps on snuggly (I put it on the last strap hole).
• Break them in and practice around the house on carpet and wood floors or tile.  (I practiced for 1 month on and off)
• Rest your feet when you can.

I had them on Randee on 90% of the time between 11am and 7pm.  By 7, I was completely done with them and changed into my Enzo, which is a good inch shorter.  My dress hemmed puddled a bit more, but it wasn't noticeable.  The Merryann pump is stiff out of the box.  You need to break them in too.  I wore mine to San Fransisco and to dinner.  They are comfrotable and good looking at the same time.

Initially I wantes to drape, but then when I got the estimate the cost was rather high-$800 for the head table and $250 for an 8' picture backdrop.  My photographer uncle, Jay Nguyen, introduced me to Cham of Kayla's Florist.  Her prices were super reasonable.  For $450 she draped the wall behind the head table that was 21' and provided a photo backdrop that was at least 8-10' with light in the back and white silk orchids pinned on the panels. 

Here was the inspiration look I provided for the head table.  Below was how it turned out.

Picture backdrop

I think that they draping added the finishing touches to my decor and unified the restaurant colors with the color scheme of the wedding.  I'm thrilled that Cham was able to accomadate me at such a great price.  Grade A.