At the start of our wedding planning, flowers were seen as one of the necessary evil - a very expensive one for that matter.

Neither of us care so much about flowers, we made a pact not to give or expect a dozen long-stemmed roses at inflated price during Valentine's Day, Ange couldn't tell what hydrangea, peonies, or carnations look like, thinks that (but for the colors) all flowers look the same and doesn't like the fact that flowers are so... fleeting.

All that changed when Ange met Nancy, one of the florists recommended by the good people at The Ritz-Carlton. The first impression she's got was of her bubbly personality and friendly demeanor (OK... the fact that she bribed us with delicious beignets is also a factor). Then as she showcased her portfolio, there was this one picture of the centerpiece that was exactly as Ange had envisioned, and then some. Nancy even hooked her up with admissions to the awesome Wedding University (TM) at the Four Seasons few weeks after their meeting!

Since flowers are expensive (yet) necessary evil, why not go with one of the best the Bay Area could offer? At least you end up with one that's aesthetically pleasing.

I chanced upon St Mary's Cathedral when I was searching for the venue for my wedding ceremony. To my Catholic parents, civil ceremony was not even an option. So I called the two San Francisco Catholic churches that actually made history - The Old St Mary's Cathedral, the first cathedral in California, and Mission Dolores, part of the oldest building in San Francisco.

We went with St Mary's as we took a liking in Father Charles Kullman, a Paulist and the pastor who would preside over our wedding, and after our subsequent visits to the 8AM masses, I found out that the pastors actually do have something funny (AND useful, isn't that what homilies are about?) to say. The church itself, which survived the 1906 quake, is breathtakingly beautiful, albeit eerie (or at least it was, at 8PM FROM the altar). With the rich history, beautiful interior and extremely personable pastor, we decided to look no further.

Kim S is awesome - honest, professional and responsive to my needs. It was unfortunate that the dress that I tried on, a Lazaro number with a heap of beading enough to sink a ship, didn't quite work out. Nonetheless, she continued to be patient with me, upfront in explaining all the costs that would've been otherwise 'hidden' (watch out for this cost called 'hollow to hem' - I never knew the term existed until yesterday), and, that word again, professional.

Overall, a pleasing experience. I would definitely recommend Kim - she's a rare find!

The rating for The Unique Bride is that of a cautious five-star - the services that I have experienced in my three visits to this store has been no less than that. Everyone was gracious, eager to help, friendly and courteous.

Patricia, my bridal consultant, was the best. Being the first bridal boutique that I visited in the quest to find the perfect gown, I came in knowing zilch about bridal gowns (apart from the fact that they are hideously white and large and seemingly a pain to walk in). She brought in a wide variety of gowns, enough for me to realize that, no, I do not like plain satin gowns and yes, I am all for ruffles and beads and vintage embroidery, and sometimes all of the above. And thanks to her, I soon learned that I am not a Vera Wang or Monique Lhullier kind of bride, but more of a Lazaro or Pronovias.

Several visits to bridal stores and fifty gowns later, I found myself back at the store, in an exquisite, just-out Lazaro number with delicate embroidery, ruched bodice (which successfully created an illusion of a more generous bosom) and beautiful layers of tulle, which was, unfortunately, a bit above my budget.

And that was when I knew that it never hurt to ask. I did, and, thanks to lovely Patricia, got 10% of the gown price credited toward alteration, or veil, whatever else I could find in the store.

So, we'll see what happens between the time I dropped the first $3k as the deposit and the time I get my hand on the dream gown.

To be continued........... ........




Update #1 - 01.16.09 -

7PM - waiting anxiously in the dressing room for the size-4 Lazaro piece that I ordered five months ago. excited to actually try on something that is NOT a floor sample and NOT size 12, to not have to have Patricia attach a bunch of alligator clips-lookalike behind my back.

Breathed a sigh of relief after a five-month wait, knowing that my (north of) $6k investment is indeed a right decision, at the sight of the amazing dress.

Wondered how to even walk in this dress, let alone trot down the aisle without tripping and falling flat on my face.

8PM - flushed and happy, made an appointment to meet with the seamstress. All done with the level of professionalism, courtesy and friendliness that I would only expect from top bridal salons such as this.

To be continued....

Update #2 - 02/22/09 -

After a few failed attempts to play hooky in the middle of busy season in order to visit Unique Bride during the week, I gave up and instead went on the first Saturday that I didn't have to work for more than 4 hours.

I was there to pick up my Lazaro. Soon I was ushered to a change room by Sheila, who was lovely, sweet and extremely apologetic because Patricia, whom I have dealt with all along, were busy with another appointment. I stepped into the dress, gave it one final nod, and had it wrapped for me and ready to go.

But wait, there's more.

Along came one of my three bridesmaids as we would like to start on the bridesmaid dresses search.

No appointment's needed if you're browsing for bridesmaid's dresses. This lack of appointment got me initially worried as I did not want us to have to wait around for service, given that Saturday's always their busiest day. Turns out that my worry was unfounded - we were allowed to browse at our leisure, were given a spacious change room, did not have anyone to fuss over us as we were having the most fun trying on the different bridesmaid dresses - all the while making a lot of noise giggling and oohing and aahing (for potential customers who happened to be there the same time we were, sincerest apologies).

We narrowed it down to two dresses - a Vera Wang and a Lazaro. Now the toughest part is to get the other two to agree.

As for me - I just want them to love the dress they're in that day - the thought of having my BFFs walk around in matronly tea-length dresses (which, by the way, would make even the tallest, leggiest Victoria's Secret models look like they have tree stumps as legs) made of fabrics that resemble the reception tablecloth is my biggest no no.

To be continued...

Flawless execution and nothing but excellent customer service are what I have experienced from dealing with various individuals at Ritz Carlton, all the way from the time we were making our decision on the reception site, to the nitty-gritty of the planning process.

We came in unannounced, it was a quiet Thursday night and we just wanted to check out Ritz Carlton, having decided upon our ceremony site in the nearby Old St Mary's Cathedral. We were looking like two lost tourists and, instead of being chased away by the concierge, this good young man approached us and, after learning what we were there for, gave us a quick tour of the site. We fell in love first with the level of hospitality that the hotel staff demonstrated - the concierge didn't really have to show us around - and second with the Terrace Restaurant - with the private entrance, private adjoining courtyard and beautifully decorated interior, it was all that we wanted a reception site to be.

We were sold. We put in our deposit the next day, and canceled our appointment with the other (potential) reception sites.

Karen and Marianne, two senior wedding coordinators, were very open, accommodating and prompt in their responses throughout the planning process. Marianne, specifically, agreed to meet with me in the busiest time of the year just so that I could meet with the chefs and the pastry chef. She was also willing to be the contact person for the vendors so that I have one less thing to worry about.

We could not have picked a better place for our reception site.

Three most important things when choosing a wedding photographer: (1) Awesome portfolio of work, (2) Flexibility and willingness to work with us, and most importantly, (3) The X Factor.

We have come across extremely narcissistic wedding photographers - they are reputed to be (so-called) the best in the Industry and therefore are very, very self-centered and full of themselves. So unfortunately for them and fortunately for us, we were paranoid enough to not want to put up with primadonna photographers on our big day. Far from impressed, the search continued on.

We've got extremely positive vibe from Marc and Phoebe. Even my fiance, who's the world's greatest cynic and who hardly says anything positive about strangers, found Marc and Phoebe very engaging.

It's hard to explain - it's the X Factor.

On top of that, their portfolio were more than just great - they're impressive. Marc has a great eye and sense of timing, for some of the pictures that he snapped couldn't have been staged or faked, exactly what we are after.

We cannot wait to work with Marc & Phoebe.

Saida and Chantal are the two loveliest ladies I've come across during my quest for the perfect wedding dress. Keeping an 'open mind', as requested by Chantal, I found myself liking the dress that I wouldn't have originally picked off the shelf.

Not that I would have to do the picking - they did. And as a result, a number of pretty dresses with which you can make an absolute statement, including one phenomenal Cymbeline dress which, surprisingly, is very well within my budget and therefore makes it to the top of my shortlist.

And... I have no idea that, while American-designed wedding dresses weigh close to fifty pounds, their European counterparts weigh only three.