WEDDING | Why I choose Manolo Blahnik Hangisi? & How to get it for cheaper

Today I want to talk about why I choose Manolo Blahnik Hangisi for my main wedding shoes.
Is it because Carrie Bradshaw? Olivia Palermo?

(Note: I do not own those photos, they belong to rightful owner)

Well, I can't say 100% NO, so, just a little bit 👠

In my last post, I talked about my budget for my shoes. I give myself a $1000 budget, which I spent $107 on my red Stuart Weitzman, so I decided that the rest $893 goes to >>>>  Manolo Blahnik Hangisi. 

The retail price for a pair Hangisi is $965, of course. First I used 10% sign-up promotion from Neiman Marcus, which went down to $868.5, then I used the 12% cash back from Ebates, which in the end, I spent $765 on this beautiful heel. Guess what, I am still under budget 😄

Now, I want to talk about Why, the real reason.

First of all, I know in my head that I want to buy a pair that I can use later in my life. Not just ONE for wedding, that's it. 

Second, it has to be comfortable since I am going to wear this for at least 5 hours, standing & walking.

Third, it needs to be a timeless design because I want to wear this for our 10 years, 20 years, 30 years, .... anniversary. 

Fourth, about the color. Because you won't see the shoe while I am wearing my main wedding gown, but you will see it at during after party with different dress, so the color needs to be versatile. It cannot be black or red. 

With all in my mind, I started searching. I didn't really start with Manolo Blanhik because of the price. I actually started with Jimmy Choo Abel. However.... like the same thing happened during red shoe hunting, they do not have my size. Then I went on Christian Louboutin, nothing. Then I went to Shopstyle.com, it is a great website by the way, I select pumps, filtered with my shoe size -- 6, and search. The ONLY style, I am talking about ONLY style, is Manolo Blanhik Hingisi. It is so elegant, beautiful, simple, and absolutely timeless. And most of all, they have my size in Colbalt Blue. My first choice was in white, but of course, they didn't have my size, so I chose colbalt blue, which "accidentally" is the same color as Carrie Bradshaw. 

I would be lying if I say I didn't struggle convincing myself for paying almost $1,000 on a pair shoes. Then I saw the 10% OFF from Neiman Marcus, and then I saw the 12% cash back from Ebates, and THEN, they have my size!! Ok, I do agree, even $765 for a pair shoes is still quite ridiculous, but this is the only one I LOVE, it is still under my budget, and they have my size in stock, so why the wait? Right?

When I receive the shoe, it was absolutely beautiful. I do need to add sole protection tape because it is in handmade soft leather, it is not a 'everyday walking shoes'.

During wedding shoe hunting, it is really important to list out what is the most important to you without thinking about the budget. Once you have the styles decided, you can try to find promotions, cashbacks, or even try Ebay, Poshmark to find your perfect pair. I hope this helped you to find what you love, and be the happiest bride ever!!

I would love love to know what did you choose for your wedding!! Please share in the comments ❤️

JE

WEDDING | My Red Wedding Shoes

Because of our working schedule, we couldn't have ours in beautiful spring or summer, not even my favorite fall, which is beautiful in New England by the way 🍂. Our only option was in the winter, Luckily, we found a perfect location indoors, so that helped a lot.

A modern traditional Chinese wedding has three major parts: gate crushing--where the groom and his best man have to pass many challenges/tests from bridesmaid, wedding ceremony, and we thank our guests for their blessing. So total I have three dresses, does that mean I need three pairs of shoes? Maybe, maybe not.

Even though I haven't decided what dresses to wear, I know that I have to get a pair shoes in red for the traditional gown. Then, I need another pair for the wedding (but because normally no one sees the shoes, so the color can be optional, just not black), so I have color options here. Because of my sort of tight budget ($1,000 for all the shoes), I think two nice pairs will do.

Today I want to focus on my search journey with the red pair, which it was full of frustration and "hard work".

One thing I know for sure is that I want a Closed toe style.
I want something beautiful but simple. Not only because less is more, but also I don't want to just buy a pair for my wedding, then I have no other use. After day and night search, literally, I had my eye on these:

They are all "sort of" within my budget, I rarely pay full price for them, I try to get as much promotion as possible. But, with shoes, I found a one big difficulty: None of the above have my size. I looked virtually everywhere, and they are either no longer carry the series, or they are out of stock. 

WEDDING | Save the date card

Not every girl knows what is her dream wedding, like .... ME.

Because of our job, we have to have a winter wedding. But since it is going to be a indoor wedding, the weather may not be a huge issue. I really want to record the process of my wedding planning, it is going to be little bit exciting, a lot of decision making, and very nervous couple months, but I am sure in the end, it will be memorable.

Starting with the very first step, Save the date card.

Even though I don't have a theme in my mind yet, I know I want to design my own as many as possible because this is OUR wedding, I am not the type girl who likes to use all ready made stuff, I love add our personality into it. Also, because I am a Chinese, I want to have both Chinese and western elements in my entire wedding.

I do admit, I did a lot of Pinteresting for inspiration, and I love love the idea of using your photo as a background, which is what I did. I know [normally] you send out your card at least 6 months before the wedding, but I didn't quiet finish mine until last week, so.... I sent to all my friends digitally.

>>>>And also because I have such a hard time deciding what types of material to use...

So here it is:

The photo was taken by my beloved father. We were in Santa Monica beach, it was a beautiful sunset, and the photo was perfect.