New decade who dis?

2nd of January 2020.

20

Friggin

20

How amazing is that? And i love how i somehow always find myself coming back to this blog every time a new year dawns, albeit alternate years apart, that it has become somewhat of a tradition for me even. I must say a plus point is that literally nobody is reading this blog (can i still even call it that) so my oxymoron of a public platform on the world wide web accessible to 7 billion people remains a private sanctuary unhinged.

So many things have transpired, expired, inspired since my last post, how does one even begin?

2017 in a nutshell

More than a year since my last post, and 2017 is already coming to an end. What an amazing year it has been - nothing major or spectacular but for me as long as my family is in good health and we get to spend quality time together as a unit, that's as eventful as it gets!

Started the year off right, spent an amazing New Year's eve celebration in our favourite place in the whole wide world, Switzerland. Skiing in Villars & Diablaret then back in Geneve with pitstops in Lausanne and Montreux, then to London again before flying back.

Summer of 2017 we took a family trip down under to Melbourne and Sydney - a totally spur of the moment decision thing but wonderful as always. Beautiful erratic winter in Melbourne, as always, and crisp and cool Sydney. The trip coincided with my 32nd birthday (promise this was unplanned... or was it?) which we celebrated at Matt Moran's Aria (food was top notch, please do try if you have the chance).

Celebrations were cut short unfortunately with the passing of my beloved FIL - he had been suffering with Stage 4 lung cancer since December 2015 and succumbed to the disease just short of commencing radiotherapy treatment at IKN in Putrajaya. Innalillahiwainnaillahirajiun.

Now as 2017 is drawing its curtains, I go on a different kind of journey altogether. Will probably sit and write about it, likely in a year's time as it looks like this blogging thing has become an annual affair LOL. Hoping and praying for Allah's blessings and that He grant all of us our deepest and sincerest wishes, for He is the best of planners.

Lets bring on 2018 with a bang!


PS: Promised myself no weight loss resolutions this year coz, lets face it, they've never stuck! ;P

DISCOVER HONG KONG

Planning a short weekend trip with Anisa to Hong Kong at the end of this month. So random but so exciting! The last time I was in HK was when the Disneyland opened in.. 2005? That was 11 years ago oh my how time flies. Looking forward to exploring the sights and FOOD and of course shopping!! Watch this space.

(PIC: www.anglopacific.co.uk)

GIR

 Definitely coming back again. Weekend well spent!

Micro management

If I have over seven years working experience (and i'm DAMN good at what I do), please don't treat me like a fresh grad houseman, comprende? The only micro i need is a celine luggage.

/end rant

Bag Baru

Today I'm finally taking out my brand new baby the LV Pochette Metis. Looking in my closet most of my bags are huge! I tend to gravitate towards big bags because I love to just chuck everything inside plus I'm tall so smaller bags would just disappear on me. But this one is such a good size and it fits so much! Plus point = adjustable cross body strap which is removable so it can double as a clutch too. LOVING IT! 

Classic monogram done right.

 

(pic source: blondieinthecity.com)

Appom adventures

Made plans to see my HKL girls for tea yesterday, and we finally got to try the new appom place on Jalan Pudu (of all places!). I usually get my appom fix from the Indian aunty behind TMC and she makes them the bomb.com, but Hoppers apparently makes them fusion style and includes SAVOURY options and I'm definitely down for anything savoury. Came for the new special: BUTTER PRAWNS! But it was late in the day and it was already sold out.

I picked from the girls' plain with coconut milk, rendang ayam, gula melaka and horlicks ones before actually ordering mine lol. That's what friends are for eh, sharing food! How else would we have managed to eat 15 appoms in one seating? ;D

The savoury crab one was reeeeally nice and refreshing - with a squirt of lemon and that beetroot dressing, plus an additional runny egg por mi, PERFECTION! The sweet mango one was a miss - edible flowers were a tinge bitter and the mangoes could have been just a tad riper (is that even a word?) (plus i'm spoilt by my Harum Manis mangoes, I can't take any other kind lol). But they serve with a dash of sugar and coconut milk so all in all it was not too bad, but could have been better. These two appoms with a coconut drink cost RM31 which is a bit on the higher end but still not too bad for a novelty meal such as this.

So we'll definitely come again to try out newer varieties once available sebab sedap! And parking is easy too - paid open parking just a few doors down so you don't have to park on the sidewalks of busy Jalan Pudu.. takut bas langgar!

Sun, Sea, Sand

Excited to be planning a short weekend escapade for le hubs and I next month. Traveling is my one true love (ok i lie i have many but this ranks pretty much way up there) but we're always short of time or finances (mostly the latter) so once in a while it's nice to treat yourself after all that hard work all year.

I've never been to Sabah before so what better way to pop my cherry than YTL's Gaya Island Resort? Well deserved quiet weekend for two, coming right up! How lucky are we to be living in this era of information where everything is just a click away? I for one REALLY appreciate it when bloggers review things (especially when its unsponsored slash unbiased), it feels like you're actually there and you know what to expect already. Be it for travel, food, make up, beauty products... I LOVE READING REVIEWS ONLINE! So keep up the good work guys!

Based on my extensive research (ie minimal to none coz i'm lazy like that) i already know which massage to book, which attractions are free and which ones i have to book in advance (sunset cruise!), times for boat transfers etc... Who needs a travel agent anymore these days. Maybe if i'm rajin i might post up my own review too. Mostly likely tak rajin la *looks at last entry date grudgingly* But you neverrrr knowwwwww... ;)

Pic credit: www.travelandbeyond.org

MAS - DEN

You know how some days.. You just feel like blogging again? And then you look at your dusty blog that hasn't been touched since January 2015 (!!) and you flash back on aaaaallllll the events that have happened from that moment till now....... Then decide it's too much work and leave your blog vacant for another year or so ;)

Anyway, currently watching the Thomas Cup and LCW has just won! Malaysia Boleh!

A girl's gotta do what a girl's gotta do!

Hey in the midst of all the "wedding planning" i've been doing, i managed to fly myself to Paris for a last attempt at a solo trip! I must not have been so busy after all, ay? ;P I had three weeks break at the end of the year that was meant for our annual family holiday, but since that was cancelled/postponed to sometime in the unforseeable future, I decided to utilize the leave in the best way possible - go on a holiday anyway! And voila 13 hours later i found myself in 7 degree weather exploring my favorite city via Metro (for the first time) and walking the cobbled streets solo. To be fair, i did pick up a thing or two somewhat wedding related so yes we are considering this a working trip okay! Haha..

Good trip, good time to clear my head and get back on track. Now back in KL and missing this cold, gloomy view. Till we meet again Paree, au revoir!

Bridal Party!

I'm organizing a small tea party (i call it a tea party because it's at 4pm, but knowing us girls we'll be having the full monty meals ha ha) to announce to my bridal party that they will be involved in my wedding. I don't know whether this is traditionally done or not, but it's more of me officially announcing that we are getting married and this bunch (besides my immediate family) will know exact dates and details of the big day before anyone else. Sooo excited as this will be the first official event that will lead up to the auspicious date :))))))

My guestlist will include

-My Maid of Honour aka sister
-My nine tray bearers for the solemnization
-My four bridesmaids for the reception

Which totals up to 15 people in total including me. Three won't be able to make it (sob sob) because of work / geographical reasons / etc so 12 pax it is. Soooo difficult to get everyone together in one seating so I had to settle with the three absentees. All I hope is full attendance during the wedding, at least! LOL ;) At this tea party, as a surprise for the girls, their outfit designers (or reps, depending) will come and do their measurements straight away! The MOH aka my baby sister will be wearing Innai Red, the bridesmaids will be in Mimpi Kita and the tray bearers will be donning Ezzati Amira KL.

I've booked the venue at (where else) Modesto's in RSGC. I just really like it there because they cater to your every need and they're very flexible too for example in menu, setting up, etc... Thinking of themes and decoration ideas for the small event.. Thinking of lots of floral arrangements and maybe some watercolour flower decor too. So obsessed with watercolor flowers at the moment.. Still thinking of whether I will incorporate them into my official wedding invites or not. Which reminds me I haven't thought of invitation cards yeeeettt.....

 

Tossing around ideas before bed. Let's see how this pans out.. being DIY and all. Haha!

Mehndi

Malam Berinai is still one of those things on my maybe, maybe not list. I know for sure i want to have henna on my hands and feet, but definitely not those large scale Bollywood themed nights I always see pictures of. Maybe a small do at the house with a few close female friends and relatives, while we cut up bunga rampai and tie up the doorgift ribbons.. Aaaaa just the thought of it gets me excited!!! Hehe..

Thanks to the countless accounts and "sila visit IG saya sis" posts on Instagram, i was able to narrow my choice of henna artists down to two main selections. I've noticed that since the invent of social media, people don't really update their blogs and websites anymore so most are outdated or simply have links directing us to their Facebooks or Instagrams. Either way, happy camper i am because there are an abundance of photos to choose from and also user testimonials in the form of IG reposts and wall comments. These are the two that i'm thinking about:

@ChanteeqMulusHenna

 

 @FaizaHalim

 

I'm not too sure what the going rate are for henna artists these days but i think both are quite reasonable; ChanteeqMulus is charging RM200 for full henna of palms, hands and feet with henna caps for hands and feet, and FaizaHalim is charging RM300 for the same but with one free henna drawing for a relative or friend (usually the maid of honour/sister/best friend). If this package is taken, any additional free hand drawing of henna will be RM10-RM20 per drawing per hand, so any other guests who want to get in on the action can do so too!

At the moment I'm leaning more towards Faiza Halim because all her designs look so intricate and neat, but it's still open season! Have also got to think of whether we would need catered food or just cook ourselves (a bit leceh, takut penat right) and also whether I want to do it one or two nights before the nikah. Apparently the henna sets in darker after a couple of days, so I'd prefer earlier, also I wouldn't want to have a late night right before the nikah lest my eyebags decide to come as an aninvited guest to my solemnization right.... Lots to think of!

P/S: Stuff I've (or more likely, my Momzilla has) done so far:

• Sort out dates - 1) nikah, 2) reception, 3) bertandang
• Hire wedding planner
• Nikah venue
• Nikah outfit
• MOH outfit
• Dulang girls outfit
• Reception venue
• Reception outfit
• MOH outfit
• Bridesmaids outfit
• Reception doorgifts
• Paid deposit for MUA + hair

Banyaaaaaakk lagi nak buat, pelan-pelan kayuh. JUST UNDER FOUR MONTHS TO GO! :)))

WIP

*heart flutters*

Cushion Cut

Lusting over some cushion cut rings today.. Sighhhhhhh :))))

Hotel, Motel, Holiday Inn

After deciding that we did, indeed, want a ballroom reception, that led to a KL-wide hunt for a suitable space. It turned out to be quite limited because we didn't want a large scale wedding attended by 1500 people oh noooo.. We were looking at more or less 300 of our nearest and dearest friends and immediate family so finding a ballroom that would accommodate to that and still tick all the boxes. Honestly I personally had no time to go touring around KL hotels because of work and other commitments, so after my momzilla's hard work and head hunting, it finally came down to:

1) Mandarin Oriental - Diamond Ballroom

2) Double Tree Hilton

3) Le Meridien KL

These ballrooms can accommodate about 300-450 pax each, which was wonderful, and narrowing it down to one final choice was a no brainer for me! KLCC is like a second home to me and it's like a minute away from our family home so DING DING DING we had a winner! Since this is not the main ballroom, of course it is smaller and less grand and somewhat low ceiling, so that led to a new Google search - low ceiling ballroom wedding! It's just amazing what you can find on the net, just a click away from the comfort of your own bed and Revenge playing in the background. There are a few pictures i nicked away for safekeeping:

I am having my wedding reception in a ballroom that has lower ceilings than I would have liked (9ft). Do you have any wedding design tips that will help transform the space without feeling small or claustrophobic?

Use mirrors or mirror runners on your tabletops. An inexpensive way to do this is to purchase back-of-door mirrors from IKEA. Remove the frames and lie them flat on the table to be used as a runner. You could also purchase mirrored tiles and alternate them on the table for a similar effect. Though it may seem counterintuitive, mixing taller arrangements in with low centerpieces is a great idea. The taller centerpieces will add some height to the room. 

How on earth did people plan weddings before the world wide web?!

Tray Bearers

I was so lucky to have met up with Ezzati right before her recent buying trip to China - she came back with sooooo many fabric swatches for me to choose from. RAMBANG MATA MAK! I showed her a few ideas that I got off Google and Pinterest and magazine cuttings, and it's like she literally went inside of my head and picked out the exact fabrics and materials and textures that I would have picked myself!! And we found one especially nice sequined piece that would look so great on my baby sister - in non other than BLUSH and GOLD, my exact colour theme for the Nikah. *somersaults* So over some frappucinos and poorly made pastries (sorry Starbucks but your food really needs to "buck" up!) we finalized the colours and materials I liked for all the outfits. At the next meeting she will be showing me the sketches for all my 10 girls based on that.

My maid of honour and dulang bearers will look sooooo friggin cool in custom Ezzati Amira KL dresses, can't wait!! :D

BAJU KAWIN

Had a good first discussion at Innai Red regarding my two wedding outfits - one for nikah and another for the dinner reception. Yes TWO receptions, I now have a hotel dinner as well despite our earlier agreement to have one home reception from nikah to sanding to dinner haha. Plans keep changing left right and center, every week it's a different outcome but I've been told by old brides that this is a normal occurrence and that I should take it in good stride. And that I will! ;) There were a few designers that I had in mind when it came to my dresses, what with having so many talented people in KL to choose from, but when i found the dress of my dreams to copy be inspired from after countless hours or googling and pinning and magazine page tearing all that jazz, IR immediately popped into my mind as someone who could execute it. 

I chose a kind of twist-on-traditional for nikah - very covered, very modest, as syariah compliant as I possibly can as there will be tok kadi and pak imam and orang-orang masjid in attendance he he he, and then for the dinner I went down the route of a more western evening gown Hollywood glam kinda feel, but still modest and covered of course, for fear of being disowned by my father at the alter lols. Erin and Juliani the two main designers from IR were very forthcoming; I could tell that we were on the same page from the get go, and their rough sketches were exactly as I had envisioned! Will meet them again in two weeks for the final sketch and review of some fabric swatches, and also the most important thing - costing! This bride has a budget yawwllss! 

Updates on that to follow. 

Anyway, if you've never been to their boutique in Plaza Damas, you should! So many nice things off the rack to touch and feel and smell and gather inspiration from. Of course all in a size ZERO so i didn't get to try anything on *cry* #notasiansized

Colour Me Pretty!

I've decided to go with a gold & blush theme for my Nikah night. I've always envisioned my maid of honour and bridesmaids, or in this case, dulang girls, all decked in mismatched metallics and since we've decided to have the Nikah ceremony at night, BRING ON THE BLING! Blush was a natural progression from gold, as I still want the tone to be soft and flirty, very romantic and ethereal, so the soft blush will set off the strong gold. I've set an appointment with Ezzati Amira for tomorrow to discuss the girls' outfits, will see how that pans out. Ezzati is such a talented up and coming designer and also happens to be my junior in high school and close friends with my niece Natrah, so that's how we like to keep it in the family ;) Her designs are very edgy, definitely not your run of the mill wedding designer and that's what I like about it! Hopefully we can work well together.

Mint was another one of my final choice colours, but to avoid headache and chaos I omitted it from my colour palette. Too many colour combinations can cause confusion especially when it's not a common colour like MERAH or BIRU LAUT (Daun pudina? Macam atas laksa tu ke?) But how does one still incorporate your colour of choice without having to do it yourself? MAKE YOUR FUTURE HUSBAND'S SIDE WEAR THE COLOUR! *evil laughter* Luckily my betrothed is quite flexible, has never heard of the colour "mint" before, and is game for whatever theme I throw his way so YAY. This way, my photos will have blush and gold aaaannnnddd mint (how diviiiinnnneee) and of course, bride and groom will be in white all the way.

The where, not quite the when (yet)

A lot of going back and forth (and then back again, then forth, you get the picture) about where exactly we would hold the ceremonies for the wedding. The very initial plan was to have one nikah ceremony, one hall/hotel reception for very close family and friends, and one post-wedding party of sorts. After a lot of research (during free locum slots and in between patients, lol) regarding halls and capacities and menus and packages, my mom(zilla) has decided to have just one big reception at my grandma's house in Taman Melawati. I was thrilled, of course, that being the place i grew up in and spent most of my childhood. So many fond memories of my late grandfather in that place, and what more we have just finished renovating the front porch and terrace.. SO WHY NOT!

That led to countless Google searches and screenshots and pinterest pins on "pelamin rumah 2014" and "idea hantaran" and "kanopi sewa" and the endless list of wedding planners and their jaw dropping work, and I was pleasantly surprised to find that there was a lot that you can do to make even a home wedding feel very special. After all, you get married only once. That's the plan anyways. We have set up a meeting with Pak Abu who is also a dear family friend, and we shall see where that takes us. Plenty to discuss - the pelamin, hantaran, decor, main table, guest tables, marquee vs tents, bilik pengantin, photo booth, and most importantly... FOOD! If all else fails, I know that at the very least I want GOOD FOOD at my wedding because that's what I personally look forward to the most when attending weddings. Well the bride and groom, too, for sure, but the food better be damn good!

 So, six months to go (or is it five? I wouldn't know because my dad STILL has not decided on a date yet, well that's another issue all together) and I've finally done ONE thing - Pick a venue. Ha ha. So screwed ;)

New Chapters

Significant other and I have decided to take the nuptial trains to the chapel (masjid?), leading to my recent "merisik" ceremony in August. The men's side rombongan, which included my future husbands (!) parents, sister and BIL, aunty and uncle, and two cousins, came all the way from Kuantan to our family home in U Thant, all decked in blue (everyone's outfits were hand made by my future MIL!) and met my family for the first time. Everyone had a good chat , my dad gave a sermon (typical) and then had lunch before they headed back to the East Coast.  Very relaxed, very casual, just how I wanted it. Didn't want to make a big fuss about the whole thing in fear of jinxing myself hehe. Even got a few scoldings from close friends who had absolutely no idea what was going on, sorry guys! :))

Isn't my tepak sirih just so beautiful! Crafted with love by Team Mak Cinta aka my beautiful mommies Sofia and Ieja especially for this occasion. I absolutely love it, and I also love the ring that came with it too! ;) Sooo... my life now basically revolves around work, wedding planning, and setting up house ( that's a whole new entry on it's own I'm guessing). 6 months countdown starts... NOW!

Watch this space ;)