Real Bride Ae Geli-Pastrana: The Hyphenate Architecht-Blogger

 I met Ae (pronounced as simply, "A")at a Clinique counter event for bloggers. I wanted to do her makeup at the event because I found her so beautiful. Mild mannered and unassuming, I knew she had the potential to look stunning. A few months down the road, I am pleasantly surprised to find an email from her, asking me to be her makeup artist for her wedding. This my friends, was a vision of mine, of Ae, that eventually came true.

Her demeanor reminds me of Katie Holmes. Do you see why? Awesome dress by Patty Eustaquio. Photos by Raena Abella. :)

P.S. She's also a beauty blogger, find the link to her blog here. See her posts on how we met here, her makeup trial here and her wedding here.

Real Bride Leah Realubit-Hansford: Bride from Down Unda!

Leah has been based in Sydney for the past few years. She and her husband Trevor had an intimate wedding down under but they still wanted to push through with the tradition here in the Philippines. It was Leah's mom who would constantly call me every week to set an appointment for Leah's visit. Mrs. Realubit is a sweet and funny lady. When I finally met her, she was so sexy! 

Leah and Trev are an awesome twosome. Trev was taking his own photos of Leah at the trial then. Even though this was technically their second wedding, I knew that to them, it seemed like the first time all over again. 

Leah and Trev, thank you for keeping in touch! xoxo :) 

Photos by Jayson and Joanne Arquiza

Some photos I grabbed from their Sydney (civil) Wedding below :)

Real Bride Tin Prima-Velasco: She Likes Them French! Bulldogs that is ;p

I met Tin through a referral by Dylan of Vatel Manila. She's a wonderful writer and enjoyed our conversations via email. She has a sweet disposition! The photo of my chair with my hands here in my blog are courtesy of her now husband Mike. Tin and Mike are so sweet and genuine. As you would know, I always talk about my son and Tin and Mike have been a gracious audience. Tin and Mike are proud parents of Timi. She is the most adorable thing! I've posted a photo of her below. Someday I'm gonna get me a French Bulldog too! 

P.S. Flowers are by Vatel Manila. And her dress is awesome too!  

Timi is so cute, isn't she?

Middle photo taken by yours truly, top and bottom by Jeff and Lisa Photography :)

Real Bride Annie Hofilena-Cheng: The Purple Rainbow

Annie is officially my oldest friend - meaning I've known her all my life minus just 2 years. We first met in pre-school and I remember hanging out at her house just walking distance from our school. Her mom would always give me chocolate mousse whenever I was around. When we were in Kinder, Annie brought her new bike (the one with a sidecar, mind you) to school. As expected, I was on the passenger seat on the way to her house after school. Maybe it was me, or maybe it was her driving skills then, but I remember seeing the yellow and black stripes of the village hump right in front of my face. Bless our lucky stars that neither of us got hurt. 

There are a lot more stories we share and a lot more to make. Annie is a creative and culinary genius. She is my son's godmother too. Although we don't get to spend much time together, we know that there is tie that binds us till forever. She's an only child and I treat myself as her sister (sorry Annie, whether you like it or not). We both love the color purple but I think Annie's OC-ness is way beyond mine (or anyone else's for that matter, but that's debatable).

Dear Annie, allow me to be the first one to say (at least publicly): One day, you will overtake Martha Stewart's empire. I just know it. I love you and I will see you very soon. 

Photos by Redfox

Real Bride Christina Dimapilis-Gonzales: Winter Wondergirl

The funniest thing that Tinay told me is that she will be sharing the name of a popular 90's sexy actress after she gets married. The good thing about that is she has the right to! Tinay and I share a lot of similar traits, the OCness, the timid katarayan (or sometimes full-on) and even share the same birthday. 

She wanted Winter Wonderland to be the inspiration of her wedding - and thus used blue and white as her motif. The accessories for the wedding worked around the theme and DIY'd her way to it. Her wedding seemed like a big barkada party. I remember that she was nervous for the dance at the reception, but hey, she rocked it! Baby tonight, the DJ's got us falling in love again! ;p

Real Bride Arian Trovela-Brania: The Bungisngis Bride

The first time I met Arian, I was completely comfortable. Her parents were very warm, accommodating and seemed younger than their years. The whole time we were doing makeup, we were exchanging stories about family, skin care and makeup. Arian is such a tiny girl and seemed like a walking ball of positivity. It was also at the trial where I scolded her about her skincare routine, or the lack thereof. Arian and I made a pact to work on her skin. I pointed out the things I was concerned about, what adjustments she had to make (like drinking more water) and to see a dermatologist. I would text her from time to time to check up on her skincare routine. The judgement day was her wedding day. Needless to say, Arian and I were successful in our mission to improve her skin condition. Aside from being just her makeup artist, I was very happy that she took my advice and has (hopefully) maintained the skincare habits. 

Super cute parents! <3

You can actually gauge from this shot that she has a tendency to be bungisngis!

Photos by Danielle Tan

Real Bride Paula Bautista-Tongco: The Daddy's Girl

I met Paula at one of my bridal fairs. I knew from the start that she (like most brides) wanted her day to be perfect. When we talked about the rest of her wedding preps and suppliers, indeed she was working with the best ones. I am honored to have the chance to be a part of her team. Paula's wedding had a rustic, Filipino charm. Hacienda Isabella had a busy yet peaceful mood when my team arrived. I got to know Paula more on her wedding day. Like myself, she's Daddy's girl. Seeing her dad when we were doing the makeup made her eyes well up. We put music on to distract her from being too emotional but I made the mistake of choosing the wrong playlist - it got worse! Paula had to take a break from the pressure of the big day, and while she took I breather, I made sure that I just had dance music on. 

Beautiful wedding Paula, congratulations! :) 

Photos by Dino Lara