Wedding Digest Philippines Weddings. More fun In the Philippines Edition | Page 252

A SK T E H EXP E R T Ms. Ma. Crisanta Chan-Duculan Planning Dream Weddings Ma. Crisanta Chan-Duculan, also known as MC, is a Certified Wedding Planner and she is here to make sure we all get our ‘certified’ dream wedding... Your Planner for a Happily Ever After She is the Chief Executive Officer of Forever After Events Management, a member of the top wedding school in America since 1968 and the only formal wedding school in the country, Weddings Beautiful Worldwide, where she got her certification. But she started closer to home as the go-to event planner of family and friends. She officially opened her business in January 2012. Together with her A-team and her select wedding suppliers, she has been making wedding wishes come true like a personal fairy godmother! “From planning, preparation, coordination up to the date of execution, we will work with you hand in hand to give you what you deserve on your special day. We promise you honesty and quality in everything we do, making your special day as our own.” Celebrity Weddings for Me and You The greatest of weddings was seen all over the world, when Prince Charles married Lady Diana in a lavish fairytale celebration that since then has been the standard. Locally, we have also been charmed by various celebrity weddings, from Tuesday Vargas’ beach wedding, Jolina Magdangal’s fairy-bohemian garden wedding, to the classic grand wedding of Richard Gomez and Lucy Torres back in 1998, and much, much more. With the advent of social media, Youtube and the traditional TV broadcasting, more and more Filipinos are inspired to have weddings that are made-for-TV. And thanks to wedding planners like Ms. MC, today, nothing is impossible, anyone can have their ‘celebrity’ wedding. “We had formal trainings and undeniable experience. In fact, we have a lot of Filipino planners with world class talents and skills. Filipinos commit themselves to the things they do with love and passion. We are very hardworking and determined. We take an extra mile just to make our clients happy because at the end of each and every event, it’s their satisfaction that pays more.” Why Weddings are more fun in the Philippines. We asked her, if given full reign, what Filipiniana wedding she will plan, “I would suggest a three - day affair like how our native tribe were wed by Babaylans. We would start in the Pamanhikan or Parental Marriage Proposal and emphasize the familial nature of a wedding. I would focus on the details, like in choosing the sponsors, choose one that could really share their knowledge in family upbringing and values. In giving away invitations, I prefer the couple to do it as part of the pa-alam or wedding announcement visitations where they will go to their relatives and inform their status. A church wedding will suffice, as I uphold what every Catholic believes in. Ending that will be a gathering of the relatives of both families until the third day for uniting is not just in papers but in bonding. I believe that bringing out the core values of the Filipinos and following our passed on traditions will be a benchmark for a traditional wedding. A wedding focused on the familial nature of every Filipino.” She adds, “Weddings are more fun in the Philippines basically because Filipinos are religious, value-oriented and happy people. Incorporating the influences of the Spaniards and Americans with our own native traditions, Filipinos are able to enhance the wedding ceremonies here. From a tribal wedding, Christian Wedding, Church wedding or even a civil wedding, Filipinos bring out the true essence of this event – the union of two hearts, uniting two families in one.” Forever After Events Manage ment [phone] / [phone] 6 [email protected] m www.facebook.com/forevera fterevents Hair and Make up by: Vidarie Sancho and Alex Rodanilla of Toque de Glamour Photo by: Direk Lambert Pangilinan Venue: LeBlanc Antipolo