DIY STUFF

This is where personally I had fun. Why? Because it does not only saved us moolah but had so much memories while doing it and that adds more value to it. Well we had a number of DIY stuff (listed below) but the one which I liked the most was the honey favors. When Henzi and I were talking about the favors we wanted something that can connect with us or how we began or things that are dear to us. In one of our brainstorming sessions (aka date haha), we thought that since we both work in a glass plant we wanted something made of glass. We originally wanted a glass work art from a glass art studio in Japan which is also part of the group of companies we are in. But nah this would be so expensive so we just thought it would be best to get a product locally which is SMY which then I was still part of. So we were sure it was a bottle. The next decision was easy and that is to fill it with honey since its how we call each other. Yes, we can have opted for a supplier to do this but in the light of making it more personalized and unique for the guest we want to be able to do it ourselves or technically by the bride rather because the groom is in a far away land.

Just when we thought it was easy because all I had to do was buy bottles from the company I am working and then look for honey and that’s it, I was faced with bigger issues. All the bottles that I liked in our display area that may be suited for the favors are design patented which means they cannot be used with any other product. Generic bottles are sold too but in such humongous size of that of kaongs, sweet beans, nata de coco or the likes of for patis, suka and toyo. Not a good looking bottle for honey. To cut the long story of the search for bottles, I then asked the help of no less than our plant manager to find a bottle for it (I mustered all my guts to seek for his help amidst all the more important issues in the plant hehe) and my prayers were answered then I asked another help from a colleague to order the caps in another of the packaging plant because ordering from them requires some technical dimensions with regards to the fit of the cap etc. Whew! This I thought was just easy like buying from a sarisari store but I was mistaken but wait that just a quarter of the story (you might probably be saying what!!!!).

Yes, oh yes so I already had 200 bottles. I had to bring it from my office in Cavite to Makati for safekeeping at my lola’s house and to ask for their help to wash and dry the 200 bottles. Talk about delegation hehe. So now I should look for a honey supplier. Things would be easier to just purchase honey from a grocery store but that would be a little expensive so I need to find a much cheaper supplier. I remember that in the stretch of Tagaytay you will see some local shops selling fruits as pasalubong and there are also signs there “honey and suka for sale”. So one rainy afternoon (Hmmm now I don’t even recall why I proceeded that day with that weather), I drove all the way to Tagaytay for my sweet honey tasting (hmmm never tasted honey that is not sweet LOL). I went to each of the stores and had so many spoonfuls of honey. I was already in my way down from Tagaytay when I finally found the honey supplier I want and realized it had already been 20 km from where I started and that I think I am already in glucose overload. This sums up the 1st half of the story.

(And oh did I mention it to you that I made all this search more than a year before the wedding but it was just two months before when I went back to that store to confirm my order. I had to introduce myself again and made her recall our previous encounter and funny the lady who owns the store told me, “Akala ko hindi ka na babalik eh, nakapanganak na ako lahat e hindi ka pa nakabalik” haha)

I realized that for a DIY bride, planning is the key to maximize the idea of savings and admit that I need help because I cannot do it all by myself. It was just a month before the wedding and the honey I ordered were already due to be picked up and the caps were already delivered in the office. I realized that the simple DIY project I thought is very tedious after al. I then asked my friends in the workplace to help me label the 200 caps (ooops I forgot to mention there that this had to start from carefully cutting it into a circle) and since I am already leaving the country might as well do a despedida. So in this despedida cum labor night, we went to Silang to get the honey and drive up to Tagaytay to do the labeling of the caps over food of course!!! A productive bonding moment if I may say.

Bottles check…Caps with labels check…Honey check…Ooohhh now I am getting more excited this to be finished. So since the bottles are in Makati I thought that it would be best to just do the filling there so I can ask the folks in Makati to help me this time because my friends in Cavite might think I am abusing them already haha. Lola’s dining room was suddenly transformed in a factory filling line since we have to create a system not to make a big mess and attract ants (oh lord) so a space would be for filling, capping then individually sealing it into plastic bags (because of the paranoia that it will be reached by ants) and stacking them into boxes. And voila after a whole day of filling, sticky sweet hands we were able to finish 200 of it all. I brought a sample to my mom back home in Cavite for her to see the finished product (of course sans the plastic bag) and she said it looked so plain. She thought that it would be nicer if it would be placed in tulle in the weddings color palette (which is pink and purple) and alternately tied with a ribbon of the other color. I told my mom it was a nice idea but with just 2 weeks before the wedding we might not have time to do it. She said she’’ll be the one to take care of it after all she can do it during her free time instead of watching telenovela or siesta time. She asked me to bring back the honey filled jars to our house in Cavite and so I did. She called on the help of her “kumares” and invited them to our house to help her do it. I say that was very ingenious of you mother…another set of workforce brilliant! After it has been packaged my brother presented to cut off and assemble boxes that would fit the newly packaged honey jars. After all of this, I transferred that honey jars again to Lola’s house in Makati since our house is very ant friendly, the ant kingdom near our house has such very intelligent ants that they seemingly appear INSTANTLY wherever you have food LOL. And so I also asked the folks in Makati that they’ll be the one to endorse the favor to the coordinators so that it can be less of a burden on my part.

And that’s the end of the honey favors DIY adventure. Initially, a supplier had me quoted around P100/bottle of honey which costs P20,000 for 200 bottle. Computing all the materials purchased for this DIY project only summed up to P6,300. Prior to the wedding day I was completely convinced that doing the favors as DIY was a good idea because we were able to save on this but looking back with all the time and effort of me, my family and so many other people plus the gas and food expenses, I am now thinking it might have been easier to have just opted to get it from a supplier. But nah the adventures, the hardships, bonding, laughter and memories shared in every phase of this DIY is certainly PRICELESS!!! =)