Storybook Wedding

Chapter Seven: In the Supplier’s Shoes

[She Writes]

A couple of weeks ago, a former work colleague (a very good friend of mine) asked me to help her coordinate her friend’s (the groom) wedding.   The company I used to work for, which she is still a part of now, handles corporate PR, publicity and promotions.  I figured it would be fun working with her again in coordinating events. Plus, it would be able to provide me a basic assessment in terms of hiring my Day Coordinator for my own wedding as well.  Hence, my adventure of (sort of) being in the Supplier’s Shoes.

Non-working holiday.  The Wedding Day.

I had to attend to work-related matters in the morning (workaholic in the house), so I arrived at the venue (The Oasis) around noon.  Coming from ABS-CBN, I was able to get to The Oasis in less than fifteen minutes (It’s either the fact that it was a non-working day or that I drove like a maniac. Or both.).

I passed by The MakeUp Studio, which was located at The Oasis, to pay Jesy Alto a visit.  She was shocked when she saw me. And when she found out that I was doing day coordination, she kept teasing me that we might someday end up working together as suppliers.  It was fun seeing her, and I somehow felt more excited about helping coordinate this wedding.

The Couple.

The Bride was very sweet and genuinely nice.  She was radiant in her gown, though she confessed that she was stressed from the preparations, admitting that they only focused on their wedding planning about a month before THE day.

The Groom was… unconventional.  He didn’t get to the venue until about 30 minutes before the start of the ceremony (And he was still in his jeans and an old T-shirt).  He burned the songs for the ceremony only minutes after he arrived.  He said they had a missalette.  When we rummaged in his bag, they actually did – one photocopied missalette provided by the church.  And that’s it.

That’s when I knew it was going to be an interesting day.

The Oasis| 169 Aurora Boulevard, San Juan| 721.4585| 726.6832| http://www.oasismanila.com

It was my first time at The Oasis, and I couldn’t mask my surprise at the location.  I’ve seen photos of the place, and I never at all expected that it would be in an area right along a major road, much less right beside the LRT.  It was mind-boggling how a place so serene could exist within an area completely unlike it.

I met up with my friend and we went up to the Bridal Suites (There were three, and two were being occupied for this one wedding).  We checked where the Bride was being made up, and it was filled to capacity by (I presumed) family members and friends.  The room wasn’t that spacious to begin with, but people kept popping in to see the Bride in all her un-made-up-yet glory.  My friend had earlier advised the photographers to shoot the wedding details at the (luckily) unused hall next door, which worked out better for them because it offered more lighting.

The second room was for us (coordinators) and other materials such as souvenirs, flowers, doves, and whatnot.  We had our lunch there (Jollibee Chickenjoy – Yum!), and my friend handed me one of two walkie-talkies her brother purchased for her in the States.  As I inserted the plug in my ear and hooked the radio onto the waistband of my skirt, I was really feeling the Day Coordinator vibe.

We went downstairs to check The Pavilion.  It’s basically the largest of the three options in The Oasis, and it offered the best “garden” location without having to worry about the unpredictable weather.  I saw this benefit first hand since the sky was moody at the time – rain and shine and rain and shine.

The staff knew that we were coordinating the wedding (as a friendly favor) and they were very accommodating to us, helping us in any and every way possible.  They helped us carry the souvenirs from the room to The Pavilion, and they shared their supplies with us (scotch tape, scissors) when we were preparing materials for the reception program.  (I figure professional coordinators would have enough people to carry wedding-related materials, and would have essential supplies on hand.)

After some last minute checking on the venue and the bride, we loaded all the materials for the ceremony – the doves, the flowers, the bible, the veil, the cord, and all the CDs of the songs to be used – in my car, then headed to the Church.

Mount Carmel| Our Lady of Carmel Shrine| 5th St., Broadway, New Manila, Quezon City| 724.5938

It was also my first time at Mount Carmel, and it was no wonder that it’s the usual church tandem with The Oasis because it’s only about 2 or 3 minutes away.   It was fairly easy to locate, and there was ample parking.  There’s no airconditioning, but because it was raining, heat wasn’t really an issue.  It’s also quite spacious, so there was plenty of air circulation.  The huge wooden doors allowed for a dramatic entrance for the bride, which is a big plus for me, personally.

We brought all the materials down from my car (By then, the interiors of my car smelled suspiciously of molten earth and bird poo), and settled at the last pew at the back.  We set the cage containing the doves near the entrance for easy accessibility to one of the groomsmen who volunteered to take care of the dove release.

About 10 minutes before the official start of the ceremony, we handed out all the bouquets to the entourage members.  I’m quite proud that we were able to get instant proxy’s for the Ninangs who were running late.  (The Maid of Honor was a great help to us.)

We stayed only until after the bridal march.  After making sure that everyone and everything was settled, we headed back to The Oasis to check on the reception set-up.

Hizon’s Catering| http://www.hizonscatering.com

The caterer was the long-standing Hizon’s Catering.  Their set-up was quite festive, following the couple’s theme colors of maroon and gold.  Long vases held lively flowers arranged like a pomander.  Tiffany chairs were provided for all the guests, which was good.  I just didn’t like how they added a maroon Organza to decorate the chair, which I felt defeated the whole purpose of having the Tiffany.  Oh, well.  I guess that’s already a matter of personal preference.  The couple’s table stood under a gazebo with strings of tivoli lights cascading at the back.  Two long presidential tables were placed at either side of the couple’s table.

While it was good that they had finished their set-up early, they also already brought the cake out (We saw this even before heading to the Church).  It just sat on the stand for hours, being exposed to all the outdoor elements.

Because of the rain-shine-rain-shine weather, a couple of chairs by the registration area were already wet.  But none of the people from Hizon’s bothered to remove them to keep from being further doused with rain.

They had a guest frame as well, but didn’t even bother to remove it from the plastic bubble wrap.  It was just lying on the gift table.  They didn’t have an easel either, and they didn’t even exert any sort of effort to mount it on anything.  I just placed it atop a chair, and I had to ask the Captain Waiter for the marker, too.

About an hour after the supposed start of the ceremony, the waiters were already dressed in their uniforms.  They sat on one of the guest tables, and they were playing with the goblets and utensils.  Seeing this, I felt like a Mother who wanted to scold naughty schoolchildren for misbehaving, but I decided to let it go.  It wasn’t that big a deal anyway.  That is, until the guests started arriving.  Even when they could clearly see the people heading to the pavilion (and most were Principal Sponsors), they just continued to sit there, playing with the dang goblets and utensils, like they were oblivious to the entire event, which they’re supposed to be working for.  We told them politely that there were guests arriving, and they just looked at us.  So we had to request them explicitly (albeit politely) to move because the reception was starting in a few minutes.

Because our coordination was being done as a favor, we could also partake of the buffet like all the other guests.  And considering I was really hungry by dinner time, I still wasn’t very satisfied with the food.  I’ve attended other weddings with Hizon’s as the caterer, and the taste of their food doesn’t seem to be consistent for all their events.  There were some occasions where their food was delicious, but others (like this wedding) weren’t up to par.

Emcee| Friend

Right at the start of the reception, it was further justified – the emcee is actually CRITICAL and IMPORTANT in ensuring that your guests will enjoy and actually stay to finish the entire program.

While it will save us money to enlist friends to do the emcee-ing, it will not save us from the possible embarrassment of having a long-drawn-out and dull program.  It’s best to hire someone who is naturally witty, with a good sense of humor, and whose taste is similar to ours.

Trading back shoes.

After all was done and said, it doesn’t really matter what I thought about this couple, their wedding or the suppliers they chose.  The most important thing is this:  During their wedding, every time I happened to glance at them, they looked happy and satisfied.  And I’m sure this didn’t come simply from the fulfillment of their plans for their wedding day.  Instead, I’m pretty confident it came from the fact that they’re finally going to spend the rest of their lives together as man and wife.

Cheers to all the couples who have taken the plunge.