weekend updates

friday & saturday updates :

bridesmaid kain sent to kak kam, the tailor :)

shafaf busy explaining her dream (datin) dress LOL

the biggest problem dah solved, they got me new ones to capture my events. and they compensated with free pre-wedding too..doubt fiance will have time for this, still, i'm shortlisting few places just in case :)

attended wedding of fellow blogger in Equatorial..congrats Sue! love almost everything about your wed esp the pelamin & deco...and very pleased to meet Qis & Diah in person too! and this silent blogger wearing red hijab that night....very friendly (and pretty!)...if u're reading this please invite us to your link k :) p/s : how come i lupa tanya your name? tsk tsk :(

the rest pix, let's wait for Sue's update :D

fiance advised to re-try my ring since i've lost some weight..i may need to resize. so the noon was spent at jeweller..yeap, the ring now abit longgar..since im planning to lose few kgs more, our SA suggest for resizing to be done only by end Jan & he promised the process nothing longer than 2 days...baiklah! :) p/s : their Lazare now on 30% sale...bencinyeeee...

fiance's nehru now sent to his father's fave Antonz..they berborak like nobody's business sampai i tertido while waiting for them! coming 23rd is the fitting..praying hard the result as good as the bill...

semalam we met the baker. this aunty very very nice & full of ideas...but i prefer to keep the cake design just as the pic in mag...simple :) we only change the topping part, which this aunty very keen of doing hydrangeas hehe...and she even made us few samples...so as of now, bye bye peony!

then headed to klcc..catching some sale, mostly tinggal the leftovers...fiance got his white shoes for bertandang, happy :)

p/s : with 1mth+ left, i tell you...setiap weekend dah macam amazing race hehe...

ring hunting

i'm sharing some info based on our ring hunting experience months ago :)


more options for 916 gold and selalu ade diskaun 5 ringgit! for perfect cut diamond, HOF of similar spec is cheaper than Lazare. HOF mostly disc 10%, u can get up to 15% in Bangsar branch, talk to Syahrunizam. their SA? hmm, double standard :( Habib Semua House mahal and they put HOF in torn box! this one SA told me for below 0.5c, better go for HOF since price not much diff from certified diamond. my friend had bad experience with their workmanship, but this may not apply to all i believe :) no custom made for platinum band. 75% diamond value for upgrade.

dont get overwhelmed with their xx% + xx% sale! the price in the end just similar to other jewellers :( wide selection, but i dont quite satisfied with their band - ringan sangat for their price heee! their signature collection is Le Lumiere, available at The Garden.

best customer service so far, be it any branch. have price control policy, thus max discount is 15% while members can get extra 5%. membership rm10 je, janganlah kedekut hehe. high end collection is Estrella, reasonable price for well cut diamond. good thing, this collection come in platinum settings :)

they dont have 916 gold. but trust me, their 750 gold is far better. expensive workmanship cost. limited collection, separate price for diamond & band. white gold band starts from rm1k+, and platinum will cost u double :( they claimed their white gold is pure, not the typical in market came in chrome and just celup with white gold - reason to why theirs are expensive..hmm, not sure!

the only brand carrying Lazare in Msia now. HQ in bangsar, but Pavilion's offer better customer service. expensive workmanship cost. they have yearly sale for certified diamond (up to 50%), last time was in July 09. psst, heard they're having sale again this Nov/Dec, not sure if it includes Lazare.

my next fave to Lazare, but too expensive! famous among Singaporeans, as Habib J to Malaysian ;P worth only if u buy their 66-facets brilliant rose signature, collection satu lagi tu standard certified diamond biasa je..showroom @ Bangsar Village.

tiffany novo is gorgeous, so as the price! rather than expensive platinum, u can find titanium with nicely crafted T&CO for your man here, less than rm2k :) both platinum & titanium are hypoallergenic, tapi problem nak resize if u gemuk after kahwin....

FAQs & My 2-Cents

1) should i go for cert diamond?

- recommended but not necessary. if u need one, consider only GIA / AGS. cert available only for 0.3c above

2) well cut diamond with reasonable price?

- malaysian brand, D&P's Estrella or Tomei's Le Lumiere are reasonably priced. u can ask other local jewellers too, request for 3EX (triple excellent). Lazare & HOF are internationally recognized, hence more expensive.

3) 4C priority? - my opinion..

(cash hehe!)> cut > color > carat > clarity

if u pick well cut diamond, u can compromise on color. this wiseman said perfect-cut H is better looking than normal diamond with F color (agreed by all jewellery shop that i went..)

4) min 4C to be considered? - my opinion hehe..

cut - VG (very good)

clarity - SI. VVS above only if u're going for investment.

color - near colorless, nothing further than J.

carat - depends. similar carat might look differently to slim and fat fingers. if u're torn between 0.49c and 0.5c, pick 0.49c since there'll be huge price diff once they jump to 0.5c and above, whilst physically the size almost similar to our naked eyes :)

5) should i custom made?

if u u're buying loose diamond or u they dont have nice band setting as u wish. risk includes outcome may not as expected, they dont have simulation maa...

6) my last 2 cents ...

- dont get overwhelmed with their investment strategy e.g. "for cert diamond, we accept 100% of your diamond value for any upgrade within 2 yrs etc" i know it's tempting, but somehow upgrading ring which has shared ur laughters & tears as husband & wife is not that right to me, sentimental tau! get your hubby to buy a new one instead of upgrading your wed ring. if he cant afford now, tunggu jelah his next bonus hehe...

- dress up for ring hunting! not to extend carrying your latest designer hbag, but at least be presentable. first impression lasts, remember? :)

- appear knowledgeable. some 'blings' conversation include :

"which size u're looking for..?" . this is referring to carat, not your finger size ;)

"sorry miss, we only have one with 32-pointer". SA usually used pointer instead of carat, 32 pt = 0.32c hehe..

"may i know what's roughly your budget?" dont immediately stop as "my budget is rm6k". sambunglah dgn your min req e.g. "my budget rm6k, perfect cut, min 0.3c and color not beyond J. ade?" SA yang bijak will check in system with other branches to maximize your option ;)

- wear your ring! (merisik/engagement). this gives impression u're not first timer :)

- and finally, bring your banker hehehe....!

panjang pulak entry ni :P

p/s : baru notice comment2 previous entry belum dibalas...mlm nnt je lah, dah 7am ni should mandi and go to work huhu!

ring deco

if jewellery box or ring holder not your type,

you may consider this :)

bunga hijau ni murah je in floristika, kan fizz ;P

p/s : parents coming over tomorrow!

yeay dapat berbuka dgn family lagi on 2nd weekend heeee

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2 days progress

hari ini dapat berehat di rumah, setelah berhempas pulas over the weekend di negara orang. nothing really much changed since my 1st trip in 2007 - except our staff complex dah siap & occupied. their kharuf still my fave, and the greens by Nile river too :) found nice pink chiffon with sari border sold at their souq, terfikir utk pengapit, niat dibatalkan setelah dibelek pricenya 200 Sudan pound (nearly rm400, gulp). maaf cik pengapit, budget tak lepas. so budget itu digunakan untuk membeli satu barang hantaran ketika transit di dubai hehe.

fiance came back from PD, and we get to settle few things yesterday, including :

- change my ring setting. no more my fave princess cut illusion.
- bought shirt & necktie for hantaran. Isetan on megasale now :)
- met up bertandang dressmaker, paid my deposit while measurement will be in nov. new heels, handbouquet included. he secured makeup with my fave too, alhamdulillah :)

something is cooking :)

little black box & vid

We’ve got the ring. Came in a little black box, that’s it for now ;)

With ticker now going less than 7mths, I know there should be more of decision making rather than my never-ending survey hehe. Since fiancé was on Israk Mikraj leave, we had the chance to meet our videographer yesterday. We didn’t do much talking, mainly the reason we’re almost zero on video thing and plus, it was nearly 10pm late – guess how tired I was :( But one thing we’re sure with – we love their work.

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we booked them for our bertandang. He shared these tips, which I thought worth sharing with future brides :

1) share your chosen song with videographer prior your event, not after. This will help videographer to catch greater moments to suit your song :) or else, trust them to pick the song for you!
2) pick catchy song. this abit subjective, but at some point I realized, their combo of creativity and catchy song that's actually interesting about their vids :)

So brides, if you’re planning to grab their July promo, wait no more!

we get different videographer for our penang event; 2 events for the price of 1 average event in KL, came with 2 videographers :) and no transport charge to penang yeay! Many many thanks to Diah for recommendation - i owe you alot babe ;)

ring settings

princess cut in the middle, gambar hiasan

of all diamond shapes, princess cut is always my all-time fave. usually for similar specs, princess cut is cheaper due to less brilliance produced compared to ever timeless round brilliant diamond. and due to that too, fiance had insisted for round cut than wasting for my angan-angan itu. timeless ok timeless, he said (siap ade sedikit nada mengejek bila bercakap tu, cis). ok, fine.

since i'm not going to get my fave princess, i'll veto anything on my ring settings hehe. and here we go :

a) i'll go for my fave modern 4-prongs, i always thought it could give illusion of princess cut in the end hihihi...
b) prongs nya haruslah tinggi sikit, otherwise my tiny diamond will tenggelam
c) right size of band, not too thick

d) white gold ok too :)

you may try 6-prongs to emphasize round brilliant shape :)

hearts & arrows

he got his ring finally, and within budget.

for platinum band with diamond, i'd say the price quite reasonable :)

one down, eight to go

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he got the chrono, i got the blings.

so yesterday, we officially done with one dulang each for hantaran - watches :)

prior to Put's wedding yesterday, we went to The Garden and pay our frequent look-look-see-see visit to Selberan. their SA told they'll no longer carry Lazare diamond in future, therefore those remaining Lazares are now on clearance at 40% off. the left ones were smaller in carat, but being me, the first C that i'm concerned with is CUT. as long it's right, ideal cut, im fine with even that tiny 0.2c hehe. i wont be able to explain the significance, you'll finally know as more walk-ins you do to jewellery shops :)

p/s : selamat pengantin baru to Put, Hanie & Anil...to Hanie, maaf tidak dapat memenuhi jemputan - ade emergency sikit pasal our bibik. no rezeki to makan free hari ni hehe.

officially him

It's official now ..

Udey Ismail is our main photographer for nikah & home reception in Penang :) we did survey avicenna, nurulsuhaimi, prettypeektures, jangguttouch. somehow, love at first sight that keep bringing us back to him hehe.

for outstation customer, we entitled for 30mins free outdoor photoshoot. Coupled with their extended promo, we have total of 1.5hrs free outdoor. to-do : lookout nearby place for outdoor & shorten to max 1 hr je.

for majlis bertandang, after bayar booking lah baru spell out ;) hehe.

we checked out the Curve D&P last weekend. been eyeing for their Estrellas almost a year now and GR 3*** still the tempting one as ever .. my second choice if their sister co. not putting up any sale this December hehehe.

anyway, i came across this pic while surfing for fuschia ideas. i can now relate my color to flowers too yeay, like how u link lavender to purple :D this is due to hard time explaining to veterans what fuschia really really is..

"pink mcm bunga kertas tu lah maktok.." (sambil pointing pokok di halaman rumah) hihi.

but, bougainvillas do come in magenta too :P

well, life's just too short to bother fuschia/magenta thingy.

except wedding decorators, as long the rest know it's hot pink..i'm totally fine :D

engagement pic #4 : rings

Disclaimer : No editing at all, collage done at WLT's laziness & pls click on pic for bigger version.

his & hers

with this ring, i thee engaged..

rings & bouquet

got the raw files from my photographer.

will share soon :)

merisik ring

I FINALLY GOT MINE..

like the one i wanted, with a gram lesser than my favourite Selberan's.

and of course wayyy cheaper *wink*

thanks to Habib The Curve!

parents & wedding

Last CNY was spent in A Famosa Resort with my family. First family gathering since our parents’ return from Hajj, I should say I really really missed such moment. We all do, in fact.

Me & parents lepak by the pool je while rest of my siblings sibuk bermain air di waterpark. And there was the whole wedding conversation started. Since my parents will be meeting his parents the next day, they started discussing about mas kahwin, hantaran etc.

I made it clear to my parents kemampuan dotty for mas kahwin + hantaran should not exceed 1x,xxx. Alhamdulillah, they were very understanding and in fact, my dad kate tak payah duit hantaran pun takpe sbb yang wajibnye just mas kahwin. Eh, mane boleh kan hehe. Not that I’m demanding but at least duit hantaran tu more or less will later show his effort to seriously and sincerely take me as his wife. Amount doesn’t have to be berbelas-belas K lah of course, yang penting bagi jugak sikit. Just an opinion, no judging pls.

My parents agreed to have my wedding in nearby Dewan Milenium. Erm, why not my own home? I’m so wanting it to be at home :( Abah ok je if kat rumah, just his comment hall tu ade aircond so lebih selesa for guests. For mom, she didn’t want to gile2 kemas rumah, penat. True, I should think about my mum cos I know she’ll be the busiest person throughout my wedding later. Mengalah..?

This evening we’ll be on ring hunting again *grin*. Wanted something like below, but Lion kate the design was so auntiessss hahaha!! But for me, I think the ring looks very solid.. Habib KLCC doesn’t have such, Selberan punye mahal sgt smpi 800++, too much for a merisik ring la. Tomei ade around 500++, but kuning nye agak weirdooo. I never liked Tomei anyway, their discounts are super ridiculous and the band gile ringan for their discounted price. blah..

you've got mail!

Few days left for 2009 to come, and it means i'm 25th-to-be this very early January. Check out my advanced bday gift from my fave jeweller, Diamond & Platinum.

RM50 voucher might be too little cut for jewellery purchase. But at least, you're sure enough not being forgotten on your special day, right? After all, that's the least a customer like me could ask - sense of appreciation :)

D&P made their tagline right; "small beginning comes greater things". Very very right.

And for D&P, thanks alot for making my day. Hope to have another yours on my long-to-go big day..

dotty's new ring

Guess what, that Habib ring was finally his! We both went to klcc, purposely for his engagement-ring-hunting & he was sooo into that Habib's. So funny to find out that dotty wears diff size for right & left fingers...size 15 and 17..man that's huge gap haha..nyaris2 kene tempah bcos we cant find 15.5 or 16...last2 he ended up with size 15 as his left finger is much2 smaller hee...

dotty sangatlah happy & singing all the way back from klcc ok?

we went to Maya Silk to exchange shafaf's lacey to pink..kan dah ckp pink nye lagi schweeett..
next we serbu Jakel, to look for kain pasang as hantaran since we dont want to give any kain akad nikah for each other..

my eyes stumble on this italian chiffon silk..very soft, & the color+design was soo datin.grab it for hantaran, color kuning yg very meriah itu - which dotty liked it so much!

dotty also got his kemeja batik for hantaran here...color orange, mencapap betul hahaha...whatever lah, jangan tak pakai sudahlah...

dotty's ring hunting

yesterday, ezi & myself went to check out Habib's renovation sale - they're having discount up to 50%. one thing about Habib is, they have sale at all season, so dont worry if you missed their sale as the next day they'll introduce another new sale - you name it: renovation sale, clearance sale, raya sale etc. (but you may end up losing the design that you want heee..)

but this time not for me. for him - his engagement ring....eeee bertunang pun nk cincin ke??(suddenly i ter-imagine how my dad akan sarungkn cincin kat my dotty haha)

my eyes stumble on one suasa ring, after 50% less is rm370. very nice,and simple............i like the color - gold-like and have one small zircone on it. checked.

next we dropped by MIMOSA, for cheaper option hehe. stainless steel ring for dotty. nice design & can get it for less than rm200 yeay!

talked to dotty & we'll do his ring-hunting tomorrow, after we successfully exchange shafaf's lacey to pink (as i wanted earlier!) @ MayaSilk..

three stones

beautiful masterpiece to be dreamt of...

three stones, with a nice size of solitaire in the middle and those mini sidestones!

D&P affair..

me just got back from sunway pyramid with dotty, and guess what i brought home for dinner? my unbelievably engagement ring! it was again a so called unplanned ring hunting, but the megasale attraction was undeniably irresistable!!

we went through out all jewellery shops in SP, from My Diamond (salesgirl very sombong, banned!), Tomei, Poh Kong, Wah Chan, SK Jewellery and finally D&P was our last stop. Out of these shops, Wah Chan & D&P deserve a 10 for their excellent customer service. Both shops have the ring that i wanted, and which of course fit our budget. like i said, we just went there to survey and we supposed to buy it only in Dec....

Wah Chan is giving 70% disc for all rings, and the one that caught my eyes left with rm1250 (from rm4k++) only!! we just went out as we thought today is just another ring-window-shopping hehe.

but as we went out, my dotty said "bie, i think we shud just buy - it's megasale anyway. when the hell can we get this price nemore rite?" i just kept quiet & we kept walking, until we finally warmly welcomed by D&P staff, Barrin Lim (i think i quoted it right hehe).

Barrin was damn friendly & helpful, he showed us from one ring to another just to make sure we got what we really really want! he even provided us with lots of useful advice, especially in matching my engagement & wedding ring. yes Barrin, the one with rm10k pricetag was damn hard to resist but it's way off our budget hehe.....

after long hrs consultation with him, we finally ended up with above. it was something that i like, few diamonds in the middle (which looks like a big solitaire!), and being 'apit' with micro diamonds at both left & right. as per Barrin, the design was sold out but he re-order for his so-called customer. and that was the last piece left, and the price? surprisingly less than rm2k!! no discount since that was the best price :)

me love it.dotty too. but i still think the price was too much for an engagement, which supposed to be simple. shafaf is right; when it is about me, nothing from head-to-toe is simple haha. kadang2 je la shafaf...

we ended up buying it, considering the price and 0.36c that we get. worth it....and me soo happy!!

again, Diamond & Platinum never dissapoints me. ohh counting the days...lambatnye..

diamonds are forever

a ring to die for...

engagement ring

yeay sudah kenyang. so can continue my blogging (eventho i'm still load with piles of work now!).

first thing.do you really need an engagement ring?truthfully for me who always seek ways of cutting cost i would say NO hehe. but hey, it has been a long way tradition & last week my dad already hint for engagement ceremony.so the conclusion - he expected a ring, so we need the ring.ok at least me.

me & dotty went to D&P, so called unplanned ring-hunting (or survey je kut hehe). the salesgirl is friendly, hmm best. felt in love with this eternity band, but it's so thiiin (which justify why the price is only rm1.1k).we didnt intend to look for those at the left-side rings since we knew they're wayyyy beyond our budget :)

then we dropped by Poh Kong. plenty of choices within our budget range.found this lovely ring with little diamond and the cost? less than 1k! hmm quite nice for a simple engagement ring :) dotty warned to better made my choice right cos he assumed i'll be asking for another solitaire for the real wedding. so he preferred me to take the eternity band for engagement. ok dotty, let's take it as either one k. if eternity band already for engagement, so the wedding ring will be solitaire and vice versa. subject to change without prior notice *grin*

macam mane if tetibe ter-suka yang three stones nye pulak? haha pening la my dotty.pening nak cari duit keh keh..!!