Prior to her stroke, my mom had been a rabid shopper. She wasn’t a spend-thrift, mind you. She was smart. She bought our clothes and what-have-you’s in Divisoria at really low prices. I guess that’s why I always think that if you need to get something cheap, you can get it at Divisoria.

Nothing changed when I was searching for the perfect gown. Although some of my high society relatives insisted on it, I didn’t really see the need for having a designer gown. Besides, my budget couldn’t afford it.

Being the artist that I am, you really couldn’t help but want to have your entourage’s gowns be color-coordinated—and the same. My husband-to-be and I at that time didn’t have much to spend with. I was about to accept the fact that my entourage’s gowns will probably just be similarly colored (but not uniformed), until an aunt reminded me of the gowns in Divisoria. Read more »

This is probably one of the most exciting part of wedding planning: ring shopping! But, to be totally honest, this was the “most painful” for our pockets. Face it, rings don’t come in pancake packages—these babies aren’t cheap. But then again, I guess it will all depend on where you get the rings.

My husband, Marc, and I spent around P13,000 for our rings. Yes, P13k for both them already. And they weren’t made of silver, mind you. White gold! With a tiny, teeny weeny diamond on encrusted on each. We were on a tight budget, but we didn’t want the “symbols of our unending love” be as cheap as those things you’ll find in sterling silver shop. We wanted it to be worth something, but still within our reach. Read more »