When I was still researching for my prospect wedding gown designer, I had a list according to price and quality. I removed those designers that are not within our budget range ( Hehe I don't want to splurge a huge amount on my gown,but without sacrificing its quality. There are really a lot of good designers out there but very expensive).I also listed some new designers to try them too, until I narrowed my decision to just visit one. I called new designer last May and was scheduled for an appointment to his shop on June 25. (But I canceled it due to Typhoon Falcon)
June 20 around 3pm in the afternoon,Sis Roan texted me that she already found her designer and that is Cecilio Abad, her dream wedding gown designer. I'm really happy for her because for months now, she's having a hard time finding her wedding gown designer and her wedding will be on January 2012. Bride to be's have to book a designer 6-7 months before the wedding day, so she's really pressured and in a hurry. When she told me her story about going and talking to CA, I was encouraged to try him as well. I opened this topic to James and he gave me the go signal to try.
The next day, I decided to call CA for an appointment but somehow my conscience stopped me from dialing his number. I paused for a while, then these questions came into my mind...
"Eh kung bigyan ka nga ng discount ni CA...pero di mo parin keri yung amount, ano na gagawin mo?"...
"Stick to the plan...follow your budget."...
"If you're going to book your dream designer with that kind of amount, you're going to trim down the other expenses for the other suppliers (quality maybe sacrificed)."...
Okay, so my conscience got me,I decided not to call CA anymore. I think it's a good thing because I know I'll have regrets if I found out that I can't still avail his services in spite of the major discount ( if ever there's a major discount) he'll give me. After several realizations, I decided to add another designer to visit in my list. I chatted Libz and Kristell of Allianz Sisters yesterday ( they are my OTD coordinators) and they gave me designer names based on my budget. They gave me, NX Couture, Sohrab Arciega, Joe San Antonio, Gretchen Pichay, Concha Espana, Boy Kastner Santos and Emil Ocampo. From those names, I decided to contact Emil and Boy. Emil's shop is located in Alvarez St., Metro Manila, near LRT Bambang Station while Boy Kastner Santos' shop is located in Cavite. I heard a lot of good feed backs about them, but I called the nearest one first and that was Emil.
Emil's shop was easy to find. If you are from QC you can take the MRT Taft>LRT Bambang, walk across the street and towards the LRT station going to Monumento, if you found the BDO Alvarez branch, beside it is Emil's shop. My mom and I took the other route, we rode a jeepney with a Munoz signboard from Congressional Ave. and then took the LRT Bambang ride. I scheduled a meeting with Emil last June 22, good thing he's still available in the morning.When we got there, there's still a client that Emil was attending to. The girl was trying on this red chiffon halter long gown that Emil created for her and I observed while he patiently accommodated her requests and revisions.Minutes later, the girl and his mom left the shop and not it's now our turn :)
I showed Emil my inspiration pegs for the wedding gown and suit, and he liked my ideas. Minutes later, he started sketching on a bond paper, and while waiting for him to finish we watched Showtime. ( He has this LG slim tv in his shop, it's actually a nice idea). My mom and I were laughing at Vice Ganda's jokes, and when I turned around, he's nearly finished with my gown sketch and I already loved it :D He combined my inspiration pegs and explained to me the type of cloth he'll be using for my gown ( like, satin, lace,organza,crystals etc.).
My mom also fell in love with the sketch, and we were both amazed on how he drew it ( Because of Emil's sketch, I wanted to try fashion designing too hehe maybe someday). I told Emil that I wanted to book him on the spot, but I still need to consult the prices first to James. Emil didn't pushed us to book immediately, and just agreed to what I told him. We went out of his shop with the smile stuck on my face, and still thinking of his sketch. The visit to Emil's shop was quite an experience, but the bad thing that happened after the meeting was when my mom's wallet was stolen from her bag while we were in Walter Mart Roosevelt. My mom bought some medicines at Mercury Drug and we ate at KFC then minutes later her wallet was gone.Too bad, she didn't retrieved her wallet or any of her IDs, oh well sometimes life really sucks.I know something good will happen next,
When I got in the office, I immediately told James about my visit to Emil's shop. Though it didn't exceeded our allotted budget, I still can't convince James about the amount. So I explained it to him further and maybe he felt how happy I was with the sketch, so he agreed anyway. He just told me to make sure that he will perform and deliver well (I know Emil will from the start).
I immediately texted Emil that night to tell him that we have decided to book his services. He told me that he'll give me his account number tomorrow because he's in Pampanga. The next day, he texted me that he forgot to bring the account number with him and he suggested to deposit the money next week when he comes back in Manila. June 27, 2011, Emil texted me his number and around 6-7pm I deposited the reservation fee in his mom's BDO account. The contract will be sent via email, so I'm still waiting for it :)
It is really true that when you already found your dream wedding gown sketch or designer, you'll have the THIS IS IT feeling. So I advice couples out there to save enough money if you are planning to get married someday. A well prepared wedding is the first step to a happy married life :)
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