Vendor Reviews: Andaman, Photography & Videography

Now that I'm done with my reviews on catering, decor and entertainment, it's time to review three other heavyweights for our wedding - bridal outfits and andaman, photography and videography! Jeng jeng jeng~

Bridal Outfits & Andaman - Ishq by Nora Zee

I first wrote about Ishq By Nora Zee here.

Services: Bridal Outfits & Andaman (Make-up & Hair/Hijab-styling)

Company: Ishq By Nora Zee

Email: ishqbynorazee[at]gmail[dot]com

 Facebook: Ishq By Nora Zee

Website: -

I don't think I need to go into much details for Ishq By Nora Zee because I think it pretty obvious from my first entry on Ishq By Nora Zee and from my constant posts about them on this blog and on Instagram that I LOVE KAK NORA AND ISHQ BY NORA ZEE TO THE MOON AND BACK. 

Maybe I ceritakan sikit lah eh on how it was going through the process with Ishq By Nora Zee and Kak Nora. Let's start with the different outfits and looks we had for our wedding:

This is my nikah outfit!

Super love this customized piece because it is simple and pretty and most importantly white, (okay fine, it was a little creamy), which was our main criteria for our nikah outfits. More pictures of our nikah outfits here.

As for our sanding reception, we got a customized plain icy blue songket (which looks more... light grey, silver-ish?)! Love the songket (we specifically requested for songket), love the simplicity of the pahang cut, and super love the beading work which was fantastic!!!!! 

In all of our kecohness, I forgot to ask our photographers to take a close-up of the beading seh. Meh. More pictures of our sanding outfits here.

Have to say the sanding getup was my least favourite though, mainly because my hair was bunned up and my make-up caked heavily towards the end of the sanding reception... but I don't blame Kak Nora for that lah of course!!! 

We had no choice - my hair had to be bunned up so she can letak the cucuk sanggul (BAH, hate having my hair tied or bunned up) and the make-up caked at the later part presumably because of the sweat and heat and humidity + Kak Nora had to layer the new coat of make-up over my nikah make-up.

That said, Saliheen felt the opposite of me okay - the sanding getup was his absolute favourite! Probably because the fit for his sanding baju was the best amongst the three and that vainpot loved how he looked absolutely segak and the colour complemented his susah-nak-match dark skin. (His least favourite was his nikah outfit because the cutting was too snug for his liking lolz)

Gorgeous little piece designed and tailored by sought-after Malaysian designers, Mimpi Kita for our dinner reception!!!!!

From the front when worn:



From the back when worn:  

I hate that this Mimpi Kita piece doesn't look outstanding when hung on a hanger or laid flat but trust me, the dress falls perfectly and damn lovely when worn on a person okay!!!!! The beading and detailing is crazy gorgeous and the fabric is daaaaammmnnn awesome and delicate!!!!! 

In fact, it was so awesome and delicate, I was so scared I was going to ruin the dress just by breathing okay HAHA. Saliheen loved his outfit for dinner as well, I think this pairing was the only one both of us sama sama loved to the core of our being hehe. More pictures of our dinner outfits here.

Okay, yang I just mentioned tu semua baju-wise ah. Kalau make up-wise, jangan cakap lah - I LOVE KAK NORA'S MAKE UP SAMPAI BOLEH JATUH DEMAM 7 HARI 7 MALAM, CAN?! It's like... freaking live Photoshop, man. My maha ultimate favourite has to be my nikah make-up and hairstyle, of course - you all actually dah nampak gambar ni before but I nak show off lagi pulak :P

 Mehehehehe.

Oh, just one thing - when Kak Nora finished doing my wedding dinner make-up and I saw myself in the mirror, I was a liiiiittle taken back because I wasn't used to seeing myself in dark vampy make-up and I'll have to admit I was a liiiiittle apprehensive about the dinner make-up. But once we hit the ground, I saw myself glamming it up in pictures, I knew Kak Nora did the right thing and I was an idiot and foolish for even having the slightest of doubts. I mean, there is a good reason why I trusted Kak Nora and engaged her services kan!!!

[Side story on the dinner hairstyle: Kak Nora actually wanted to do something different for my dinner hairstyle but my hair refuseddddd to cooperate after a whole day of sweat, grime and bucketloads of hairspray so Kak Nora gave up and twisted it into a sideswept hairdo which worked just fine for me because I like sideswept hair heh heh (Well, my supermother always did say that my hair is degil, just like the person ha. ha. ha. ha. ha. I must have gotten my sense of humour from her eh)]

By the way, just thought I should mention this: I think I have quite a lot of laughing pictures with Kak Nora ah, I don't know why. These pictures below (taken by the amazing Bliss Photocinema) are only a few out of the lot, yang lain aku malas nak gi cari and save and upload hahahahaha.

Lolololol I'm kidding. I do know why I have SO MANY laughing pictures with Kak Nora from Ishq - how can you not have so many laughing pictures with someone when she is damn funny and damn gerek and damn awesome seh?!!! Mesti ada je benda yang nak diketawakan zomg, tak tau itu hari aku tengah kahwing ke, atau kita tengah buat sketsa comedy central tau.

Oh, and because my husband is such a maknenek, he was sooooo excited to get a pak andam for himself!!! We never really saw the true benefits of having a pak andam until our wedding day itself - useful gila lah siak to have a pak andam for the groom!!!!! TAK BEDEK OK. Him, his baju, his tanjak, his samping, his accessories, his face, his everything got the attention that they also deserve. Semua ditanggung beres.

This was a particularly great service for us because Saliheen is such a vainpot for a guy!!! He is more vain than me, actually, I think I've mentioned this quite a number of times. (This dude uses SKII for his daily skincare regime lah okay.) The first time I asked him about switching bridal to Ishq By Nora Zee, one of his first few questions was "Abeh I? Ada baju cantik untuk I tak?" HAIYO GOT LAH, GOT BAJU CANTIK FOR YOU LAH, PRINCESS *grumbles*

Some light moments with his pak andam, Onan, who is also a super awesome and super gerek person like Kak Nora:

(I am damn tickled by someone's comment - can't remember who! - that Kak Nora looks like she can be my sister and Onan looks like he can be Saliheen's brother, by the way. Hahahahahaha!)

And now that I'm done with my "cerita sikit" about Ishq By Nora Zee, we move on to the ~burning~ questions:

Did we regret changing bridals 4 months before the wedding? NO.

Do we think Ishq By Nora Zee is too simple, too safe, too new? NOPE.

If given another chance, would we choose another bridal instead? NEVER NO NOPE NOT BY THE HAIR OF OUR CHINNY CHIN CHINS.

As far as Saliheen and I (and our parents who approved maha approved Kak Nora!) are concerned, Ishq By Nora Zee is damn awesome, and our love for Kak Nora is setinggi gunung Everest, sekuat besi tungsten, seluas lautan Pacific, sehangat bebola matahari dan segala sebagai yang sewaktu dengannya. Amin!

Wedding Photography by Bliss Photocinema

Services: Wedding Photography
Company: Bliss Photocinema
Email: bliss.fotografi[at]gmail[dot]com

 Facebook: Bliss Photocinema

I have NOTHING to say about Bliss Photocinema. 

Except that they are absolutely fantastic, they delivered their services exceptionally well and I freaking love them to the end of the manfreakingkind. Hahahahaha.

We chose Naz as our photographer right from the start because we really loved his work and he definitely did not disappoint us!!!!! We also had a second photographer, Shahdan, because we didn't want a flush mount album and was told that we can replace it with a second photographer instead... and replace it with a second photographer, we did. 

So damn glad we did that because having a second photographer actually helps okay!!! We had a range of photographs which might not have been possible if we only had one + ours was a full day wedding and having two photographers meant they could take turns capturing moments. 

And Shahdan was such a goofball, we cannot tahan!!! Couldn't stop laughing with him and Naz, these two are so happening and gerek to be around. Helps to ease the tension and the exhaustion you might feel as a pengantin on your wedding day, you know? Akak approve seratus persen!

Oh, and one of the perks we got for choosing Naz - this speedy gonzales was the one who worked on our wedding photos so freaking laju macam nak kejar bullet train kat Japan, he delivered our wedding album 2 weeks and 5 days after our wedding!!! (I think I mentioned this before somewhere) Crazyshitballs! We were actually expecting to receive our album only after 4 weeks lah eh. Inilah example of aiming for the stars and landing on the moon (Entah, aku pun tak tau what's the link hahahahaha)

Wedding Videography by CST Singapore

Services: Wedding Videography
Company: CST Singapore 
Email: booking[at]cst[dot]sg 
Facebook: CST Singapore 
Website: CST on Vimeo

The CST Singapore (CST) crew that worked at our wedding turned out to be... pretty awesome :D

I will be very frank and say right now that we were very, very, VERY unimpressed and pissed at CST weeks before the wedding to the point that we almost forfeited our $1050 deposit and engaged another videography company (yes, we were that pissed off). But after getting their warm and fantastic service during our wedding day, the rage has softened... somewhat.

I'd really like to review and share our experience with CST as a whole though, so I'll reserve my full review until after we receive our wedding video. 

For now, let's just say dealing with them pre-wedding was absolutely horrendous because of one particular admin staff of theirs who had shabby administration skills, couldn't be bothered to get her records right and had ZERO motivation to do any bloody work. Which was why during my last entry mentioning CST, you can hear the sound of my blood boiling while reading some of my paragraphs on CST. Haha.

(Your blood will also boil if I told you what she did, okay?! Making your clients wait for you for more than an hour? Not acceptable. Mixing up your clients and missing appointments? Not acceptable. Asking your client for records because you insist "your office does not have records"? NOT ACCEPTABLE. I now refuse to call that particular admin staff by her real name and shall only refer to her as the nickname that my husband and I have coined for her.)

It was a totally different scenario during the wedding, though! It was much, much, much better and restored our faith in CST Singapore - the crew was hardworking, everyone knew what they were doing, they were friendly and really, really patient with us - Saliheen and I kept protesting every time they asked us to say something for the video and kept groaning and dragging our feet whenever they told us to act it up for the camera because we absolutely hated it lolz - and everything was just... really great ah. 

Now all we ask for is for the wedding video to be just as great, if not better! And hopefully... not 7 months late ah.

The only thing that can be 7 months late is... my next blog entry. 

(I'm kidding!) (Or am I.)

five weeks to crunch time

Some updates before the weekend hits :D

Posting of Invitation Cards

Posted out invitation cards to most of our dinner guests earlier this week! I still have one more batch left but haven't been able to find time after work to sit down and finish cutting and pasting the address labels on the envelopes. So kirakan aku nya posting ada sikit cacat ah, ada guests yang dah dapat cards, ada yang belum ah hahaha.

I do realize that the easier way is to write down the addresses but my handwriting is embarassing + I think labels look more proper! I also know that I could have printed them on sticker labels so I don't have to cut them up one by one but... I'm too lazy to go find out where and how to print on sticker labels lah okay. Haha. Actually told my mamat to do this too for consistency but he rebelled and wrote the addresses for his invites instead. Thanks eh budak gemuk.

Oh, and can you believe it - I did about 40 cards on Monday night and by the end of it, I was sprawled like a motionless dugong on my living room floor for about an hour? Dasar tak boleh buat kerja sikit! This is exactly why I don't trust myself with DIY tasks lah seriously. Baru kena potong and tampal address labels sikit je dah merengek.

Initially thought of doing something special for the envelopes jugak, like DIY envelope liners but decided it was too much work for something that people will rip off in the end. And again, aku dah start malas haha so we settled for cheap envelopes from bookshop belakang rumah je.

Oh, our guests have started tagging on to our official hashtag too, which is awesome!!! I previously mentioned my apprehension about using our wedding preparation hashtag as our official wedding hashtag but it turned out alright in the end - in fact, it's actually pretty heartwarming to see pictures of our wedding-related stuff from our guests' point of view :D

We're also starting to see a stream of RSVPs coming in to our inbox - here's one of the most annoying nak mampos RSVP we've received to date:

Ini lah the kind of penyangak friends I have eh. BAGUS.

(You see, our wedding website has all the necessary information for our guests so my smart aleck friend here is just trolling us by asking questions which she already knows the answers to, macam those suckers who suka tanya derp questions like "Where's this?" and "How much is this?" on Instagram and Facebook even though the location or price is already freaking tagged in the caption. Macam siak. Ni mesti nak balas dendam sebab aku punya wedding day is on her birthday lah tu SORRY LAH WOMAN TAK SENGAJA KAN)

First Fitting with Ishq By Nora Zee

My mat and I finally had our first fitting last night!!! 

To go for our first baju fitting 5 and a half weeks to the wedding is considered quite late since the standard period for fitting is usually 2 to 3 months prior to wedding date kan? But there wasn't really a need for us to cepat cepatkan our fitting because: 

(1) we had to wait for my KL piece to siap (the timeline to discuss, design and have it made was already tight because I only switched to Ishq By Nora Zee just before Ramadhan)

(2) we're the only couple for our date so no issue of other pengantins "choosing the better bajus"

(3) not that we have to "choose better bajus" anyway, since our bajus are tailored to fit :D

Okay, ni ada sikit preview from the testing testing:

Our MUA did his samping "sembarang sembarang" since it was only to help us see how it will feel like on actual day but her "sembarang sembarang" pun dah nampak tertib eh. Ape maksud.

And here's one of mine, sitting snugly inside its fabulous cover. Hehehe.

See you in November, sayang!!!!! ♥ ♥ ♥

Or more specifically end October, since we'll have our final fitting then. So excitez!

My mat and I couldn't stop telling each other how happy we were with the colour, the feel and the look of our outfits and accessories on the way home - dua dua mabuk with excitezment! :D :D :D

Oh, there's something else that is also very excitez - dalam kesibukkan kita bersiap siap berriuh rendah for our wedding, tup tup tup painting works have started for our BTO seh!!!

Not sure how long the painting will take, though.

One of our future neighbours posted up these pictures on our BTO's Facebook page on 22nd September (Sunday) but Saliheen's friend who stays at the existing block beside our BTO site told us that the two levels were painted yellow on the Monday before 22nd and has remained that way since... so she speculated that "painting dah habis agaknye" HAHAHAHAHA BIADAB.

a survey on singapore malay bridals

Just a quick one for today! Dzaf emailed me few days ago about needing some help from BTBs for her Final Year Project on Branding for Singapore Malay Bridals and it'll be really great if we can help her out by answering her survey here. Go go go BTBs!

of ishq and fate

You know it's fate when...

... out of allllllllll baju pengantin pictures your MUA chooses for inspiration, she chooses the EXACT same one you and your fiance have been lusting after for the past year without you having to show or tell her in detail what exactly you want.

Tengah tengah malam buta aku freak out gila eh when Kak Nora whatsapped me picture of that Malaysian pengantin. Such an IMPOSSIBRUUUUU moment lor!!!!!

 

Here's the enthusiastic response from my mamat lol:

Not regretting our decision to switch to Ishq and forfeit our deposit with our ex-bridal so far!!! Kak Nora also gave me picture of the kain that she bought for my mat's baju for dinner and we LOVE IT MAX OKAY. She got the exact right shade and we couldn't be happier!!! My mat baru messaged me lagi tadi pagi saying that he "is very happy and walking with a spring in his step now" after seeing the text messages from Kak Nora last night. Had to tell him to stop being so auta mama.

Anyway. In other updates - have I already mentioned...

... that we've received the special add-on item for our dinner invitation cards???

Haven't found the time to put them together with our dinner invitation cards (which we've already collected from the printer last month) but hopefully we can sit down and get this task out of the way on one of the weekends during this fasting month. Should probably start printing some of the stuff that my sister dah finished designing so I can do the necessary finishing touches on them as well.

You know, I actually thought I'd have some extra free time during the fasting month to do some of the wedding-related tasks but turns out I'm either too tired or too busy to do so - weekday mornings and afternoons are spent working in the office, weekday evenings are spent slaving in the gym whereas weekends are spent catching up on sleep and having iftar sessions with family and different groups of friends.

Siapa mau layan gunting gunting tampal tampal ikat ikat, beb.

salam ramadhan from kahwin khronicles

The process of customizing my dinner bridal gown... has officially commenced.

*hits a gong*

Dahlia called me last Saturday (about an hour after we sealed the deal with Ishq by Nora Zee) to get a feel of what I like and what I had in mind so she can discuss the possible gown designs and styles with the appointed designer in KL. 

Fast forward three days later - Dahlia came to Singapore yesterday and together with Nora, they met me with three possible design ideas that the designer had sketched out in hand for my input and approval! Pretty much finalized the colour and details during our meeting yesterday and I am so so so psyched to see the actual bridal gown in person when it's ready to be brought into Singapore!!!

We moved (and are moving) really fast because we're actually on a pretty tight deadline - less than four months to the wedding, designers busy with their Raya orders and collection and eventually their bridal orders for year-end weddings (as we all know, year-end is the peak period for weddings!), the amount of time needed to source for the right fabrics... it's madness. But a crazy good kind of madness :D

Sneak peak of one of the sketches WOOP WOOP!

For now we're expecting my dinner bridal gown to be completed and brought in to Singapore by end September so I have Ramadhan (July), Aidilfitri (August), my bachelorette party (!!!!!) and other wedding-related appointments to keep me occupied till then. In the meantime...

Ramadhan Mubarak, everyone! 

May your Ramadhan this year be fruitful and full of barakah for you!

This year's Ramadhan will be a ~pretty~ emotional one for me personally because this is my last Ramadhan having sahur and iftar sessions together with my family at home as a single. Next year got laki already! If Saliheen and I get our house keys before Ramadhan next year then all the more it will be a very different experience for us when next year's Ramadhan comes along. Ah well...

Part and parcel of growing up and getting married eh?

why Ishq By Nora Zee should be your #1 choice for bridal andaman

Y'all who follow me on Instagram...

... would have known what I was up to last Thursday night hehehehehe

I think some of you guys might have already gotten wind of this piece of news from early this year especially if you're already following this particular bridal company's Facebook account, but for those who have not... the great Ishq by Nora Zee has started collaborating with renowned Malaysian bridal designers to bring more awesome bridal outfit choices for Singaporean brides like you and me!!! :D :D :D

You know how it's always sakit hati when you browse through pages and pages of glossy magazines filled with gambar gambar of glooooorious bridal outfits offered by Malaysian designers... and knowing that our local bridal houses don't offer such awesomeness?

(Sure, there are fab local bridal houses who offer lawa choices out there in market but the styles offered are definitely... different. And more often than not... predictable.

Plus I really don't understand why some of our local bridal houses insist on having ridiculously poofy and heavy and outdated-looking ballroom gowns with excessive reben reben and renda renda for their Western range. Sorry to report eh guys, orang Western pun dah lama move on and no longer look like walking cupcakes with too much icing on their wedding day. Even the existing poofy ones that they still have dah already updated to look more current, not look like they're still livin' the life in 1980s)  

Anyway. Back to akak punya sesi soal jawab.
How geram does it feel, knowing that you can actually get an outfit or two from these Malaysian designers but you're too busy or too lazy to turun naik Kuala Lumpur? Or knowing that their off-the-rack / customized pieces might be too expensive (and rightfully so) for you to even consider???

Well, no more, girls... NO MORE. 

Because now you, my fellow Singaporean brides-to-be, CAN HAZ SUCH AN OPTION!!!!!

YOU, my friend, can now wear bridal gowns designed by renowned Malaysian designers for your wedding. YOU, my friend, can do that without even having to step foot into the next bus or flight out to Kuala Lumpur. YOU, my friend, no longer have to bust your precious wedding fund (that much) but still be able to look as ayu and ravishing as these lucky brides who wore drop dead gorgeous designer bridal pieces like these for their weddings:

(Designer: Alia Bastamam)

(Designer: Innai Red)

(Designer: Mimpi Kita)

(Designer: Syomir Izwa)

Yes, my friend, you can do alllll that now for your Singaporean wedding because Ishq by Nora Zee has taken the initative to step up the game and have started offering a more modern bridal look which still retains a traditional flavour as inspired by Malaysian bridal designs. That's the thing I love the most about Malaysian bridal outfits tau - they're able to make their styles look very chic and modern but still retain the traditional Malay element for the pengantin's look and feel. It's the right balance, I feel!

Anyway if you're interested and subscribe to such an idea, all you have to do is:

(1) call the fabulous people behind Ishq By Nora Zee for an appointment to go down to their boutique at Chiku Road for a discussion;

(2) inform them as to whether you'd like to choose a designer piece off their existing collection OR have one tailormade SPECIALLY for you *squeals!!!*

(3) pay the deposit of $200 or 20% of total package price, whichever is higher (Psssttttt... don't worry about withdrawing a large sum of cash beforehand because Ishq By Nora Zee accepts payments via Nets! Thoughtful and convenient hor???)

(4) have your measurements and fittings done + have a discussion on your requirements, preferences etc before you approve sketches done by your Malaysian designer of choice (if you're making a customized bridal outfit)

(5) wait in great excitement for your wedding day because you won't just be getting married and starting a new life adventure with the love of your life... you'll be wearing authentic and gorgeous Malaysian designer pieces while you're at it!!!!!

I won't bore you guys with long-winded details about how the business works lah eh (Although I'll be more than happy to explain it in detail to you if you meet me in real life! Heh heh) but basically there's 2 fabulous ladies behind this whole schamazing operation:

(a) There's Nora who is the creative director and resident MUA of Ishq and is based in Singapore - she will liaise and coordinate with brides-to-be directly at her boutique and come up with the whole look and feel for the pengantins; and

(b) There's Dahlia who  is currently based in Kuala Lumpur and acts as the buyer - she will be the one who liaises directly with the Malaysian designers and collaborates with them to come up with designs for Ishq.

I'm sure you all mesti wondering whether there are additional costs kalau you want designer pieces that are available in Ishq's existing collection... and the answer is yes... yes, of course. But please hear me out dulu before you campak your PC or laptop luar tingkap!

Okay, the additional costs for designer pieces can be anything from S$250 to S$500 for each designer bridal outfit, on top of package price. I don't know about you, but personally I'd pay that few extra hundred dollars!!! I mean, kalau you pergi other bridals pun sama kan? You will still need to pay extra premium for outfits from their "exclusive range" kan? Might as well you bayar that premium and get drop dead gorgeous pieces from renowned Malaysian designers whose styles are much more updated than local ones ma.

Imagine the piece actually costs S$5,000 ke, S$8,000 ke, S$10,000 onwards ke kalau you beli directly from the designer... but now instead of forking out that amount of money to buy something that you might possibly only wear once (although their pieces are too awesome to be worn once so you'd probably end up wearing the baju out bila you pergi shopping kat Orchard every weekend hahahahaha) - sekarang you cuma kena top up S$250 to S$500 for rental of their Malaysian designer bridal outfits that already exist in their current collection instead okay! Put that amount next to the 4-digit and 5-digit figures I just mentioned tadi... doesn't sound thaaaaattt bad kan?

Of course kalau you memang ada rezeki lebih sikit (alhamdullilah!) and you memang nak your bridal outfits to be special schmecial sikit, you can opt for the full custom made gown experience... prices start from S$1500 per gown, depending on the fabric and the type of design and detailing that you want. Imagine! Your own customized designer bridal gown specially tailored for you and no one else! You mesti rasa macam nak fast forward your wedding date :P

Oh but you know what's the best bloody part that I love about their special service ni tak???

You don't have to turun naik turun naik KL at all kalau you nak customize your own bridal outfit!!!!! Just indicate your interest with Ishq, place your deposit, take your measurements, discuss and confirm your designs, and then your customized gown will be brought in from KL. 

Easy peasy? Pretty much. Awesome gila? Most definitely.

Untuk pengetahuan tuan tuan dan puan puan (especially my fellow puan puan ye), Ishq by Nora Zee currently has outfits from 6 designers in their bridal collection: Innai Red, Syomir Izwa, Khairi Sufi, Ridzuan Bohari, Mimpi Kita and Nurita Harith but but BUT they're planning to add more to the collection as and when Malaysian designers launch their new collection so you MUST keep your eyes peeled out macam kulit pisang to know whose collection they're bringing in next and when their new pieces come in okay! 

Eh but even if you don't want to pay additional costs for designer pieces, no worries tau! Because Ishq by Nora Zee also has a more modest non-designer range for the budget-conscious bride!!! So kalau you tak nak the designer range pun takpe, because Ishq by Nora Zee still has their usual range of collection which you can choose from.

And if you want another reason to compel you to choose Ishq by Nora Zee for your andaman besides the fact that you can opt for designer pieces (or maybe you just want another reason because you don't want to opt for their designer pieces and just want to know whether their services are worth it), you should probably check out Kak Nora's make-up masterpieces on Facebook and Instagram if you haven't already!!!!!

Come I show you samples. No photo, no talk, ma.

Oooh check out Kak Nora's latest work on Instagram and be AMAZED by the transformation!!! If I'm you, I'd be so. freaking. sold. please.

By the way, I know Ishq By Nora Zee has announced that they are open for 2013 and 2014 bookings but I was informed that they're accepting bookings for 2015 as well so lepas you all dah habis scream in excitement depan your computer or laptop or mobile device, you all must cepat cepat contact Kak Nora Zee okay?!?!?! You belum tau you nak confirm pun takpe, just give her a call, fix an appointment, take a look at some of the available bridal pieces and decide only when you're comfortable enough to make a decision. I promise Kak Nora not the sort to make you sign for a package on the spot.

Although I'd advise you to make a good swift decision if you do decide to engage her services because she only does 1 wedding per weekend!!! (You can also engage her other stuff tau, tak semestinya weddings... she also does engagements, D&Ds, birthdays, and all other special occasions that you can think of. Kalau you murah hati nak engage her to do make-up for your bridesmaids ke, mother of the bride ke, pun boleh.)

But okay lah, sebelum you all do that, come I share some of the bridal pieces yang Kak Nora Zee dah share on Ishq's Facebook account okay... You dah tengok pun takpe, boleh tengok lagi sebab JAMBU LAH SANGAT. Barang jambu tengok sepuluh, dua puluh kali pun tak akan boring or muak tau. Limit limit, geram je. Gigit jari sampai putus je.

Super love this lilac piece max!!!!! Dreamy piece by Khairi Sufi.

Pieces by the maha fabulous Mimpi Kita!!!!!

 Just another lovely piece by Innai Red!

If this looks familiar, it might be because you saw it... on Nora Danish here.

That's right. Nora Danish. Happening pe dapat pakai baju that she once wore to the Anugerah Bintang Popular BH event?! And maaaaanalah tau after you sarung the baju for your wedding, tiba tiba seri muka you macam Nora Danish gitu. Tak wasted you bayar beribu ribu for your wedding photography and videography, you know.

A ridiculously lawa piece by Syomir Izwa!

And here's me, getting frisky with a faaaaabulous piece by Nurita Harith ha ha ha ha ha

 

Okay dah tuuuuuuu je yang I will post kat sini okay, the rest you can tengok sendiri telan air liur sendiri meraung sendiri when you visit Ishq's Facebook. And trust me eh, even though I already saw the pieces on their Facebook I was still pleasantly surprised and couldn't stop gushing when I saw them in real life!!!!! Dalam gambar macam tak justified gitu, I feel. When you see their pieces in real life... the quality of fabric, the workmanship, the detailing semua... TIP TOP. I was IN AWE.

In fact I was SOooooooooo in awe..........

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I've decided to ditch my existing bridal and signed up with Ishq By Nora Zee.

Yes. You read that right.

Changed bridals. $500 deposit forfeited. Less than 4 months to the wedding.

That, my friends, is how hard we fell in love with Ishq by Nora Zee.

Of course we didn't make a sembarang terjun without parachute decision lah. The night after I met Kak Nora at Ishq's boutique i.e. Friday night:

• I obsessively scrutinized every bride's 'Before and After' shot that Kak Nora uploaded on her Facebook to see if I like her make-up style (Verdict: Love it!);

• My mamat and I recalculated our finances to make sure we can afford to bear the brunt of a forfeited deposit in order to make the switch;

• We weighed the pros and cons thoroughly;

• We spoke to our amazing set of orang orang kuat for their opinions and they were ridiculously supportive;

• Then we made a trip down to Ishq's boutique on Saturday (two days after my first meeting with Kak Nora of Ishq) to browse through their existing collection to make sure there are pieces we like and can consider... plus my mamat wanted to see their keris and tanjak to make sure he likes them -____-

That trip, of course, turned out to be the "Say Yes to The Dress" moment for us.

It was a little of crazy with a whole lot of exhilaration but we can definitely put our heads and hearts in and say that we have no regrets with this momentous decision made sooo close to the wedding!!!

One of the reasons why I also wanted to make the switch is because I feel very very very selesa and very happy with Kak Nora - she is so goddamn warm and friendly and fantastic that there is no way I could have walked away from her and not regret it after the wedding.

With her as our MUA, we know that she will be there with us (not only as a MUA but also a friend and mentor) throughout the whole process - She will be there for our fittings and trials and she will by our side the whole day on the wedding day.

In contrast, if we had stuck to our ex-bridal choice, the experience would merely be payment of deposit with administrative staff, fittings with the staff at the boutique who might or might not be the same person who talked to us at the initial meeting, and then I will only see my chosen MUA for the 1st time on my wedding day.

It would have been an especially cold and indifferent experience for me because I chose a "touch and go" MUA who will make me up for 2, 3 hours and then leave me with an assistant for the rest of the day. To be fair, I was initially okay with a "touch and go" MUA but the minute I put both options side by side, naturally I was attracted towards having someone who I can have a stronger relationship with and someone who will be by my side throughout the event, come rain, come shine, come thunderstorm.

Plus Kak Nora is so cute and bubbly and wacky - exactly my mat and I punya style!!!

You all tengok lah dorang ni pagi pagi dah macam macam:

Hahahahaha. And yes, I am happy to report that my mamat lovesssss that goddamn tanjak so much, it was on his head for most of the time when we were in the boutique okay. Macam tanjak tu DIA YANG PUNYA. A day after we met Kak Nora, he even started calling it "my tanjak" eh. Ah ye, banyak kau punya tanjak eh.

Anyway. I know some people will say "Ala you can just get inspired by the designers' designs or just rip off the designs and get your local tailor to do, what! Same, what!" Eh eh mari sini kau, I nak cili your mulut with lada jeruk. WHERE GOT SAME??? Like what my mamat cakap "It's not about the design, it's about the workmanship. Design memang orang boleh copy but workmanship? That's different already." SEE. MY BAKAL LAKI PUN PAHAM.

But of course tak salah get inspired by the designs you see in fashion spreads lah... I'm guilty of doing that myself for Raya pieces sometimes heh. Buttttt if you want the experience of wearing a maha gorgeous authentic Malaysian designer piece or would love to experience having one customized for you by the designers themselves, Ishq by Nora Zee should be your #1 choice for bridal.

Okay I repeat eh, in case you tak pay attention tadi - Ishq by Nora Zee should be your #1 choice for bridal.

In fact, even if you tak nak designer outfits for your wedding, Ishq by Nora Zee should still be your #1 choice for bridal. Because of the sole fact that Kak Nora does absolutely wonderful miracles on people's faces. Please refer to her Instagram pictures if you don't believe me lor!!!

I first heard about Nora Zee from my cousin - she had vowed that she will choose Nora Zee as her MUA if she ever gets married because she has seen Nora Zee create an awesome look for a bride who didn't want to cukur her kening (my cousin herself tak nak cukur her kening when she kahwing). My cousin showed me the picture of the said bride and I wouldn't have guessed that her super tebal and messy eyebrows were not plucked at all.

It was amazeballs okay!!!

Okay guys, I know this entry is already quite panjang now (korang macam tak biasa lah pulak...) but I just want to give my special thanks to these fabulous people who made this panjang lebar entry possible:

• To Nora and Dahlia for entertaining my questions about their exciting new business and for giving me an opportunity to work with them. I'm already impressed by your efficiency and dedication so far so I have faith that things will only get better from here! 

• To my super lovely Natasha... thank you sooooo much for hooking us up!!! All this would not have happened if you hadn't Whatsapped me that fateful night so for that, I thank you.

• To my homegirl Nani for taking the time to accompany me last Thursday night so I had someone to do some hardcore gushing and squealing with while at Ishq's boutique - Nani and I created quite a ruckus that night okay!!! We kept gasping and squealing everytime Kak Nora revealed the bridal pieces... I think I might have asked for mercy at one point even hahahahaha what WHAT

• And of course thanks yang paling special goes to my one and only mamat, who is always eager and supportive when it comes to things that require good sense and good taste. Come, I nyanyikan you lagu Yuna okay ~ Sayangku jangan kau persoalkan~ Siapa dihatiku~ Terukir di bintang~ Tak mungkin hilang~ Cintaku padamuuuuu~ hehehehehe

AND NOW. Now I can't wait to meet Dahlia and Nora tomorrow to see the sketches for my customized dinner bridal gown, y'all!!!!! It's all very sudden and surreal but it is very, very exciting so we're definitely pumped to see what Ishq can create for us in such a short span of time. Will blog more about the whole experience so this is definitely not the last time you'll hear about Ishq by Nora Zee, my friends.

You know, on one of the recent JB trips that I made, I actually bought one of the Malaysian magazines in hopes of entering a contest to "menangi busana Innai Red and Fabrik Altelia Amani bernilai RM18,000" tau:

Sooooooo kental mak lodeh kan???? HAHA

Anyway, turned out I had to do some stuff and submit it to the magazine before I get a chance at winning the prize! It was not an easy fill-up-the-form-and-submit-for-lucky-draw style that I hoped it'd be so I let it go, read the rest of magazine (more like, went googly-eyed hahaha) and chucked the magazine aside with the rest of my mag stash.

Little did I know I wouldn't have to go through all that trouble to have a mere chance of winning a bridal piece from Innai Red because a few weeks down the road, I will get the chance to realize my dream of having an authentic Malaysian-designed bridal gown for my wedding, syukur Alhamdullilah!!!!!

Okay lah, sambil sambil tunggu for the next update, you all try guess which Malaysian designer will be designing my customized dinner gown okay :D