Alyaki & Raist's Wishes Wedding - Italy/LSS/France 3/17/2015 - Mini Update 10/29 Food

[TiffinyKaye]

So, we have to wait until Monday before we find out if it's officially changed, since both our planner and her assistant are out of office today, but Raist and I decided to officially switch over to Japan for our ceremony venue. Unless we're told it's booked...but we're the only ones booked for that morning so far, so we should be okay. After doing the site visit, and getting the chance to see some pictures from more recent ceremonies done there, it just seems like it'll fit us a bit better. Though we'll still try and get some pictures done over in Italy.

So, yay!

Good choice! Japan brides rule!

 

[alyaki]

We are officially changed to Japan! We're doing the koi pond view.

The chairs will be angled more, so it looks like a half circle, but otherwise this should be the setup. Probably without the flowers on the altar area though.

Even sick, I've been doing a mini happy dance at my desk this morning. So excited!

 

[TiffinyKaye]

Such a pretty location! I'm happy for you!

 

[edeneye]

What great news! Your guests are going to be blown away by that location and your photos will be absolutely amazing. I don't think I've ever seen a picture of that spot in 'wedding mode' before, I think you've chosen really well there and you're right, it is so beautiful on its own that you can save all the decorating for the reception.

 

[alyaki]

So, not too much going on right now, as we're in waiting mode for BEOs and stuff. I figure we probably won't get anything till the end of this month, but if we don't get something by mid-November, I'll probably start bugging my planner. Otherwise, back to the waiting game!

I will say that, after discussing it, we've made a couple changes to some things already. First thing we did was ask our planner to see if it's possible to do hard cider for the toast, instead of champagne (or a champagne alternative). Neither of us are big fans of champagne, so we thought the cider would be more fun! Would have just went with the non-alcoholic cider, but every one I've tried has been way too sweet for me.

We also changed our table layout - instead of all of them looking the same, we asked for it to be changed so that a few have an overlay with the color we picked for napkins (it's an awesome green - still need to post a pic!) with the provided navy napkins, and the rest have just the provided navy linens, with the green napkins.

For table decor, we're going with a mix - some will have a candle centerpiece (those with the overlay), and the rest will have a floral centerpiece. For the candle centerpiece, we're after something that looks like the first picture below, but in square vases, and with water beads.

Bear Grass look

Candle Containers and Setup I'm hoping for

Water beads/pearls/whatever they are called


For the floral centerpiece, we're going for something like the look below (but flowers probably green and white), with votives or tea lights in aqua colored square glass candle holders (which I don't have a picture of). I really don't want it any fuller of an arrangement than what's in the picture, and I'm really hoping they can add the fiddle ferns (the ones sticking out).

Like this

The floral centerpiece will also be on the sweetheart table, with a couple candles on each side.

Also since our planning session, we changed the cake. So now, instead of a mad hatter with just two of the normal mad hatter designs on the layers, we're going with the top layer looking like the Mad Hatter's hat (like the top seen on the Alice related cake at the showcase), and the mickey swirl design for the bottom layer, with a dragon tail sticking out on the bottom. It's a Mad Hatter...so we figure, we might as well have fun with it! And the changes really aren't a bad price - I think we were told that it'll be $575++, which, while it's expensive, is only $125 more than the base price...which after seeing some of the cake prices others have had, that just doesn't seem so bad.

This top layer

Bottom Layer (slightly different colors)

Dragon Tail

The last change we are in the middle of trying for is possibly switching out the salad for the strawberry soup (it's soooo good). We're hoping we can actually give guests a choice between soup or salad, but that'll depend on what we're told. I'd rather just give everyone the soup instead of a salad, if we can only do one option on that though.

 

[twinkybel81]

So glad things are starting to get checked off the ever growing to-do list! Yay for another Japan bride! We just got penciled in to do our ceremony there December 2015. Can't wait to see pictures!

 

[Seia]

I just got caught up! That view in Japan is breathtaking. The pictures will be gorgeous!

And your cake sounds amazing. I love the idea of the Mad Hatter top. I can't wait to see the whole thing put together!

 

[alyaki]

So glad things are starting to get checked off the ever growing to-do list! Yay for another Japan bride! We just got penciled in to do our ceremony there December 2015. Can't wait to see pictures!

Talking to them, there haven't been very many for Japan ceremonies, but I think that may in part be because originally they only really showed the setup towards the pagoda and the red entrance. Which are both nice, but not everyone wants those. They've gotten a few more recently, though. It seems like there are definitely more couples using the space!

I just got caught up! That view in Japan is breathtaking. The pictures will be gorgeous!

And your cake sounds amazing. I love the idea of the Mad Hatter top. I can't wait to see the whole thing put together!

Haha, I think so too! And I am really looking forward to that cake - which reminds me, I'm going to have to bug Regina and let her know I want lots of pictures of that thing!

 

[edeneye]

Your cake sounds pretty exciting! I haven't seen those images - or anything like them - before and I swear we've spent hours google image searching every variation of 'disney' 'cake'. I love the Mad Hatter ones too! Can't wait to see how yours turns out, it's really awesome to see what a couple and the pastry chefs can come up with together. Definitely get lots of pictures of it!

 

[alyaki]

Your cake sounds pretty exciting! I haven't seen those images - or anything like them - before and I swear we've spent hours google image searching every variation of 'disney' 'cake'. I love the Mad Hatter ones too! Can't wait to see how yours turns out, it's really awesome to see what a couple and the pastry chefs can come up with together. Definitely get lots of pictures of it!

Hehe, those are actually images that came up in one of the groups recently. The mad hatter hat one was a cake that was done for the showcase this year, and the dragon tail one was from someone else's cake (can't remember whose right now). The design one was just one I had pulled off ages ago - I haven't seen it since.

 

[alyaki]

So, we finally have all our BEO stuff (both the normal Disney BEO/Budget doc, and our floral BEO). Overall, we're pretty much exactly where we expected to be. A couple things will be cut, but nothing big/that we weren't expecting to cut, which makes me happy! Looks like we're going to come in right around $17,500 with the Dessert Party, which is around $15,500 for the wedding itself (which is what we're paying for). Right now, it's a little higher, but we're cutting the Major Domo and the one-way van back to the hotel, which will save about $700. And we made a couple changes to our original floral BEO, which saved about $200'ish (though I don't have an updated one yet, even though the new price is in our BEO).

I don't have this anywhere to link to, but below is our Budget (typed by hand).
-------------------------Start Budget-------------------------------

Outdoor Wedding Ceremony, 08:30am-10:00am on Tuesday, March 17, 2015
Epcot, 30 guests
Operations/Attractions
1 Convention Media Guide @ $180.00 each $180.00
1 Venue Pkg/Location Fee @ $3500.00 each $3727.50
AV and Technical Services
1 Outdoor Wedding Sound System NWOS @ $0.01 each $0.01
Entertainment
1 Major Domo Announcer @ $675.00 each $675.00
1 Solo Keyboardist @ $200.00 each $200.00
Florist
1 Floral Wedding Package @ $1297.00 each $1381.31
1 Floral Delivery Fee @ $75.00 each $75.00
Transportation
1 Towncar Transfer (Disney property only @ $32.00 each $32.00
1 Motorcoach - Charter (8) Hours @ $840.00 each $840.00
Estimated Event Total: $7110.82


Wedding Cake Delivery, 09:00am-09:30am on Tuesday, March 17, 2015
Grand Floridian, 1 guests
Catering Food & Beverage
1 Wedding Cake - No Service Charge @ $525.00 each $559.13
Estimated Event Total: $559.13


Pre-Reception/Reception, 09:45am-02:00pm on Tuesday, March 17, 2015
Epcot, 30 guests
Operations/Attractions
1 Venue Pkg, Living Seas Salon @ $500.00 each $532.50
Bar
4 Hosted, MIMOSA'S @ $39.00 bottle $201.03
90 Hosted, Premium Wine @ $8.00 glass $927.83
5 Domaine Ste. Michelle, Blanc de Blanc @ 39.00 bottle $251.29
Catering Food & Beverage
20 Beef Plated Dinner @ $81.50 Guest $2100.50
9 Chicken Plated Dinner @ $63.00 Guest $730.66
1 Children's, Donal Duck (Ages 3-9) @ 30.00 Guest $38.66
1 Vendor Meal/Chef's Choice: 3rd Party @ 27.50 Guest $35.44
1 WDW, Coffee Regular (gallon) @ 76.00 gallon $97.94
1 WDW, Iced Tea (gallon) @ 76.00 gallon $97.94
30 Pre-Reception Menu @ $25.50 Guest $985.82
Catering Fees and Equipment
1 Fee, Bartender @ $100.00 each $106.50
1 Wedding Cake Service Charge @ $110.25 each $117.42
Entertainment
1 DJ Wedding Package - 4 Hours @ $1300.00 each $1300.00
1 Stitch (1 set) @ $975.00 each $975.00
Transportation
1 Towncar Transfer (Disney Property only @ $32.00 each $32.00
Estimated Event total: $8530.53


Dessert Party, 08:00pm-09:30pm on Tuesday, March 17, 2015
Epcot, 30 guests
Operations/Attractions
1 Event Guide #2 @ $90.00 each $90.00
1 Venue Pkg, Rue de Paris @ $250.00 each $266.25
28 Illuminations Viewing Fee @ 12.95 Guest $386.17
Catering Food & Beverage
30 Custom Dessert Buffet @ $33.00 Guest $1275.76
Estimated Event total: $2018.18



Estimated Program Total: $18218.66
---------------------------End Budget-------------------------------


Sorry to say, but I'm not typing out the full BEO by hand. But, I can put in the menus for you.


-------------------------BOC Bar-------------------------------
9:45am-1:30pm
(BOC) Hosted, Premium Brands Beer/Wine Bar
- NO COCKTAILS & NO BOTTLED WATER. Please close the Bar for a half hour during dinner.

(BOC) Hosted, Domestic Beer
Price: $6.00 per each (Bill on consumption)
- ATTN BARTENDER: PLEASE PUT A DROP OF GREEN FOOD COLORING IN THE BEER GLASS SO THAT WE HAVE GREEN BEER.
(BOC) Hosted, Imported Beer
Price: $6.75 per each (Bill on consumption)
- ATTN BARTENDER: PLEASE PUT A DROP OF GREEN FOOD COLORING IN THE BEER GLASS SO THAT WE HAVE GREEN BEER.

(BOC) Hosted, Soft Drinks, Assorted - Assortment of Soft Drinks
Price: $4.75 per each (Bill on consumption)
(BOC) Hosted, Assorted Juices
Price: $5.50 per each (Bill on consumption)
Fruit Juices to include: Orange Juice, Cranberry Juice, Pineapple Juice

(BOC) Hosted, MIMOSA'S
Price: $39.00 per bottle (Bill on consumption)
PLEASE OFFER CHAMPAGNE & OJ MIMOSA'S
PLEASE OFFER CHAMPAGNE & CRANBERRY

(BOC) Hosted, STRAWBERRY BREEZE
Price: $8.00 per glass (Bill on consumption)
Strawberry Vodka, Triple Sec, & Lemonade
(btw, this is wrong - should be strawberry puree instead of Triple Sec)

(BOC) Hosted, Premium Wine
Price: $8.00 per glass (Bill on consumption)
(BOC) Hosted, House Wine
Price: $7.00 per glass (Bill on consumption)

(BOC) Domaine Ste. Michelle, Blanc de Blanc
Price: $39.00 per bottle (Bill on consumption) (5 bottles)

-------------------------BOC Bar-------------------------------


Pre-reception menu is pretty simple -
Pork Pot Sticker with Sesame Ginger Sauce & Soy Pearls
Fresh Sliced Seasonal Fruit with Mango Yogurt Sauce


-------------------------Meals Start-------------------------------
Beef Plated Entree
Chilled Strawberry Soup
------------------------
Sea Salt & Cracked Pepper-crusted Beef Filet
with Blackberry Demi, Garlic Mashed Potatoes,
Asparagus & Baby Carrots
------------------------
Fresh Baked Bread and Butter

Chicken Plated Entree
Chilled Strawberry Soup
------------------------
Pan-roasted Chicken Breast with Red Orange-Shallot
Sauce, Garlic Mashed Potatoes, Asparagus & Baby Carrots
------------------------
Fresh Baked Bread and Butter

Children's Meal, Donald Duck
Mickey-roni and Cheese
GRILLED CHICKEN BREAST (not chicken tenders)
Fries and Baby Carrots
Dirt Pot Dessert
-------------------------Meals End-------------------------------


And last, but not least, here is our current dessert party menu. We need to see if Raist's mother is okay with it, as it's a little higher than we originally told her, so it may change some, but ice cream and cronuts will definitely be on it no matter what.

Dessert Party
Assorted Mini Pies, Bite-sized Cronuts, Crispie Treats
Vanilla & Chocolate ice cream with Hot Fudge, Caramel, & Strawberry Sauce
Seasonal Sliced Fruit
Lemonade, Coffee, Decaffinated Coffee, and Selection of Teas


That was a lot to type out!

 

[alyaki]

So, a couple other things came up in the last day or so on top of the BEO stuff. First off, approved our invitation proofs and samples, so we should be paying that in the next day or so! We want to get them out soon'ish, since we're making our due date early January - that way we have time to hunt people down before our final payment is due!

The other thing is...I may have just ordered my shoes. They ended up costing me $172, but it was free shipping, and I had a $25 off deal and one of the other lovely brides here was kind enough to give me a code for a percentage off the cost, so I actually saved about $50. They're custom shoes, mostly because I couldn't find anything that was the height and style I wanted (funny thing - blue wedges are somewhat hard to find!). The company I went through was Shoes of Prey. They'll take a bit, but I'll make sure to leave a review here when I finally get them.

 

[edeneye]

Wow! Sounds like you're in great shape with your planning! Its awesome you've got so much underway - and your BEO! - with plenty of time before your due date to make everything absolutely perfect. And I'm so jealous of your dessert party! I've heard nothing but spectacular things about the cronuts - I can't believe they didn't make it onto our menu. I hope you get to keep it all, who could say no to that menu?!

 

[Disney_Alli]

So, a couple other things came up in the last day or so on top of the BEO stuff. First off, approved our invitation proofs and samples, so we should be paying that in the next day or so! We want to get them out soon'ish, since we're making our due date early January - that way we have time to hunt people down before our final payment is due! The other thing is...I may have just ordered my shoes. They ended up costing me $172, but it was free shipping, and I had a $25 off deal and one of the other lovely brides here was kind enough to give me a code for a percentage off the cost, so I actually saved about $50. They're custom shoes, mostly because I couldn't find anything that was the height and style I wanted (funny thing - blue wedges are somewhat hard to find!). The company I went through was Shoes of Prey. They'll take a bit, but I'll make sure to leave a review here when I finally get them.

Yay for shoes! Lol! Finally got a chance to read through everything and it sounds lovely! I like your ring. I almost went with a sapphire or a blue diamond (actually my mom's ring is a sapphire too) but then I found my black diamond/black gold ring and fell completely in love with it.

Sent from my iPad using DISBoards

 

[alyaki]

Wow! Sounds like you're in great shape with your planning! Its awesome you've got so much underway - and your BEO! - with plenty of time before your due date to make everything absolutely perfect. And I'm so jealous of your dessert party! I've heard nothing but spectacular things about the cronuts - I can't believe they didn't make it onto our menu. I hope you get to keep it all, who could say no to that menu?!

We actually are getting to keep everything. Talked to Raist's parents and got the go ahead - super excited about it! I'm really happy with the price we're ending up with after everything, so other than a few things I need to have noted in the BEO, looks like we're pretty much good to go.

 

[alyaki]

Yay for shoes! Lol! Finally got a chance to read through everything and it sounds lovely! I like your ring. I almost went with a sapphire or a blue diamond (actually my mom's ring is a sapphire too) but then I found my black diamond/black gold ring and fell completely in love with it.

Sent from my iPad using DISBoards

Thanks for reading! We actually talked about blue diamonds, but I wanted a deeper color and the price on all the ones we came across were super high. Didn't bother me, since the ceylon sapphires are my favorite stone anyways!

I think the black diamond/black gold rings are really cool, even if they aren't generally my style. They have some really fun setting with that combo!

 

[andeesings]

Hey Alyaki!! When you had your tasting, did you TASTE the mini-pies???

Here's why I mention it. I saw "tarts" on the sample menus provided- I HATE tarts. My parents, however, love pies. So I asked for assorted mini-pies, thinking I'd get some sort of pastry crust, something ACTUALLY resembling a pie. That isn't what I got. I got the same mini-tart shells that they use that I specifically did NOT want, filled with I don't even know what- one was even filled with the same apple crumble that we already HAD at the dessert party! It was LAZY and I was incredibly angry.

If that's what you were looking for you might like them! I'm NOT a fan of those vertical round tart shell things (they don't look fresh or homemade or anything) I found a little pic on this page: http://blog.touringplans.com/2014/08/07/frozen-summer-fun-book-premium-package/ The one with the merengue glitter topping is the shell that they used for my "pies".

Like I said if that's what you want that's GREAT! But it wasn't what I wanted/expected at ALL.

 

[kytiam]

Hi! Congratulations on your engagement and planning your Happily Ever After!I have just started reading everyone's planning journals, including yours. All this information is SO helpful ! My daughter isn't officially engaged yet, but she and her BF are seriously talking that way and she is OBSESSED with the idea of a Disney Wedding! Actually, I am too! We have been planning a vacation in March and taking her BF for his first ever trip. She is really hoping to have the ring by then so we can maybe schedule a site visit while we are there.
Thanks for taking the time to type your BEO. I know that must have taken forever! It is really helpful to see how things breakdown financially. The Disney Wedding website is pretty vague.
So happy planning! Just about 140 more days or so to go!

 

[alyaki]

Hey Alyaki!! When you had your tasting, did you TASTE the mini-pies???

Here's why I mention it. I saw "tarts" on the sample menus provided- I HATE tarts. My parents, however, love pies. So I asked for assorted mini-pies, thinking I'd get some sort of pastry crust, something ACTUALLY resembling a pie. That isn't what I got. I got the same mini-tart shells that they use that I specifically did NOT want, filled with I don't even know what- one was even filled with the same apple crumble that we already HAD at the dessert party! It was LAZY and I was incredibly angry.

If that's what you were looking for you might like them! I'm NOT a fan of those vertical round tart shell things (they don't look fresh or homemade or anything) I found a little pic on this page: http://blog.touringplans.com/2014/08/07/frozen-summer-fun-book-premium-package/ The one with the merengue glitter topping is the shell that they used for my "pies".

Like I said if that's what you want that's GREAT! But it wasn't what I wanted/expected at ALL.

Urgh, thanks for the heads up - I'm going to send them a picture of what I want and verify that that is what they're going with, and not the tarts. I don't mind tarts...but I really wanted pies, because while it's a few days late, we wanted to honor pie day. I would not have thought to worry about that if you hadn't mentioned it!

And we didn't get to taste any of the desserts we wanted at the planning session - they completely messed that stuff up and ended up doing different things. All of which I hated (though Raist was okay with it).

 

[alyaki]

Hi! Congratulations on your engagement and planning your Happily Ever After!I have just started reading everyone's planning journals, including yours. All this information is SO helpful ! My daughter isn't officially engaged yet, but she and her BF are seriously talking that way and she is OBSESSED with the idea of a Disney Wedding! Actually, I am too! We have been planning a vacation in March and taking her BF for his first ever trip. She is really hoping to have the ring by then so we can maybe schedule a site visit while we are there.
Thanks for taking the time to type your BEO. I know that must have taken forever! It is really helpful to see how things breakdown financially. The Disney Wedding website is pretty vague.
So happy planning! Just about 140 more days or so to go!

That's exciting! And yeah, the Disney site can be pretty vague, but it's mostly because everything is customized with the Wishes packages - so it can go up as far as your heart desires. But because of that, it's hard to really understand the costs of things, and what you can really get for the minimums (outside of their pre-fixe menus and the set fees, like the ceremony fee). I'm sure her BF will enjoy the trip - and even if you decide not to do a site visit when you're there, you can actually go see quite a few of the areas on your own, so you could always go take a look. I will say that I hope you guys make sure to take him on the monorail loop (both the one through the MK resorts, and to Epcot) - both of us really enjoyed doing that, and it's fun because you see things you miss otherwise.

And, holy crud, are we really getting that close?!? I mean, I know I'm under 180, but it seems nuts that we're getting down. I'm not always great at keeping track of time, so except for the hard dates (like 90, when we get to pay them a ton of money and give them our souls ), it just sort of gets away from me.

Thanks for following along!