Calyxta Engagement Stories:

Mara Gutierrez and Mikey Bitanga

What was the initial reaction after the proposal? Can you share with us the story?

Tears—lots of them!

It happened on our very first anniversary and I came prepared. My nails were freshly manicured and at the salon earlier that day, they asked me what kind of look I wanted to go for and admittedly I said, “bridal.” Haha!

He picked me up that evening and we headed towards what would’ve been a “surprise” venue as he refused to tell me where dinner reservations were despite my incessant asking. In the car, busy on my phone, I hadn’t noticed that the driver had taken us to his new place, one that he had just moved into the same week. He goes on to say that he forgot his jacket and that he had to run in to get it. I asked to wait in the car instead although he insisted that I go down and since I greatly refused, he then admitted that the surprise dinner was where we were, at his new place!

I get down and I see the set up. Beautiful but clearly done by his own mom and their household staff and not at all by him. The food was superb—we have this almost every Sunday with his family. And when the bottle of wine was finally finished, Mikey goes on to tell me that it’s time for me to open my gift.

Who was the first person you shared your engagement with and why?

Aside from my sister, and both Mikey’s and my friends, my fiance’s mom. She and I had been texting while Mikey and I were having dinner. She kept asking me to send her photos of the set up secretly waiting to be updated whether I had been proposed to our not! I was also in touch with my mom who shared a Viber group with my future mother-in-law, and one of my closest Ninangs. They knew all along what would happen that night and wanted to be updated real time.

Want to share your engagement story with us? Shoot us an e-mail at bridesbycalyxta@calyxta.com, and we’d love to hear more about it!

Bohol was actually not our first choice. We had a series of venues we were choosing from, but from the very beginning we wanted a destination wedding (beach) because my husband and I really love going to the beach.

3. How was it like planning a destination wedding? What were the biggest challenges and how did you overcome them?

Planning a destination wedding was fun, exciting, and stressful. It was very different and challenging. The biggest challenge for me were the suppliers and going back and forth Bohol for meetings and oculars with our venues. We had two different hotel venues, plus our church which made the planning even more stressful—but it’s okay, because we enjoyed! We were able to overcome them because luckily, my mom and my husband’s dad are both in the events industry in Manila. Both my mom’s team and my husband’s dad’s team joined forces and helped us all throughout. But most of the work (the pre-wedding stuff), it was my husband and I who worked on them.

4. How did you choose your suppliers?

My venues (Be Grand Resort for welcome cocktails, and Bellevue Hotel for reception and official hotel of guests) were our non-negotiables. Bellevue had their own private beachfront (for our reception) and my uncle is the consultant of Bellevue Hotels, so that was easy. For the other suppliers, there were a lot of awesome suppliers from Bohol, but not everyone was perfect for the vibe that we wanted for

our wedding weekend. The very first thing we did was research and ask our venues who were reliable suppliers in the island. We met with each and every one of them and asked about their previous weddings. Most of them were great—but since my mom and my husband’s dad is in the events industry, we wanted to make sure that we worked with people that our parents already worked with in the past. We still got local suppliers like the lights and sounds, because that was one of the most challenging things we had to decide on (bringing everything in from Manila, especially the technical stuff, would be very costly.) Luckily, our Manila supplier was able to recommend one that they already worked with before. For our stylist, from the very beginning we wanted Tita Jo Claravall and no one else. That’s why we had to fly in everything from Manila—even all her staff and decorations.

5. How did you coordinate with guests and suppliers?

Coordination was challenged as well. We started with a wedding website wherein we put all the information necessary, and then we also made a Facebook page where they would get weekly updates. Messaging all our guests personally was the fastest and most convenient way to coordinate everything. For our suppliers, we would go in and out of Bohol to meet some of them while the others, we communicated via phone calls and emails.

9. What was in your wedding day makeup kit/pouch? Actually, I did not have any! My makeup artist was with me the whole time, and my sister/Maid of Honor had everything for me, too.

10. What were the preparations you did for your skin prior to the wedding day? Did you go to a skincare center regularly? What kind of services did you have done? Is this something you would recommend to other brides-to-be?

I went to my Tita who is also a derma in Pampanga every two weeks for facial and skin treatments. For some reason, months before my wedding I started breaking out (which was super not normal for me) so I had to go back and forth to make sure that I had better skin on my wedding day.

Actually, funny story—the day before I flew to Bohol, I even went to a derma to have my pimples injected! It was that bad. My only regret is I did not have any skin regimen before my big day. I just relied on facials and diamond peel. I suggest starting your skin treatments early because you might break out from all the stress.

11. What was the best beauty advice you received that helped you prepare for your wedding?

In terms of fitness, I enrolled in our village gym and had a personal program for weight management. I also had to count my calories (which wasn’t so bad). I just had to log everything I would eat in the My Fitness Pal app and ate only 1,500 calories a day. I also went boxing with my husband. It was our way to de-stress during the wedding planning. Release all that anger and stress! Haha.

Wedding Team

• Ceremony Venue: OUR LADY OF ASSUMPTION CHURCH, DAUIS
• Reception Venue: BELLEVUE RESORT, PANGLAO
• Photographer: RV MITRA
• Videographer: RV MITRA
• Makeup Artist: OLIVER BUMATAY
• Hairstylist: OLIVER BUMATAY
• Gown: Rosa Clara, Barcelona
• Stylist: Monika Ravanera
• Derma: Aenelle Dizon of E-derm
• Program Team: Miej De Dios and Rico Mortel
• Yazmitha Guzman – ( my tita from new york made my veil )

Calyxta Engagement Stories:

Ina Yulo and Brage Stuve

2. When did you start dating? How did your love story start?

We started dating in September 2014. It was the year that I first moved to London and we actually met on a night out at an 80s-themed club called Maggie’s. We randomly bumped into each other in the club and started chatting. Then I said I was hungry, so Brage took me to the 24-hour restaurant next door. I’d like to think our relationship has reflected that night quite a bit with me always being hungry and complaining until he finds me something to eat. Haha!

After saying yes, a waiter brought out a bottle of champagne for us. We celebrated for about 15 minutes before Brage excused himself to go to the restroom, but he was actually picking up our families and my best friend, Chabeli, who were waiting outside. They came and celebrated with us, and we all had a great lunch and more champagne together. After that, Brage had one more surprise, which was that he had booked for us to stay the night at Blake’s, a beautiful boutique hotel in South Kensington.

Want to share your engagement story with us? Shoot us an e-mail at bridesbycalyxta@calyxta.com, and we’d love to hear more about it!

1. Can you tell us a little bit about yourself and what you do?

My name is Gretchen Gatan, and I’m the Managing Director of WeaveWorks, the Managing Editor of Calyxta.com, the Beauty and Lifestyle Blogger behind GretasJunkyard.com, and a makeup artist.

My husband, Cayo Fragada, works in Marketing and Operations at an online gaming company. Because of the nature of his job, he self-learned how to make websites during his free time—which resulted in him developing and maintaining my beauty and lifestyle blog. He also put together our wedding website, teamcatch.ph.

Seda Vertis North was a good and practical venue for our reception, because it was a quick 10-minute drive away from the church, and their ballroom was able to accommodate our number of guests. It incidentally matched the modern minimalist look and feel of our wedding.

3. What’s the inspiration behind your wedding look?

I’ve always had a very simple and minimalist sense of style, and this translated even to our wedding. I had a very clear visual of how I wanted my wedding to look like, and it all followed a simple, clean, and minimalist theme with a hint of my favorite color (lilac) and flowers (carnations and roses). I also wanted everything to look timeless.

She first took my measurements last February 2019 but had to retake them in May because I lost weight. It only took me two fittings, before I picked up my gown two weeks before the wedding!

5. How did you choose your hair and makeup artist? Did you have any hair and makeup pegs?

As a makeup artist, I initially wanted to do my own makeup—but Cayo suggested I get someone else instead, so that I wouldn’t have to stress over it. I only had two people in mind to do my hair and makeup on my wedding day—Mong Amado and Jake Galvez, who I’ve worked with for several Calyxta cover girl shoots (including Lauren Reid, Andi Eigenmann, Maggie Wilson, Jasmine Curtis-Smith, and Iza Calzado). I’ve always been a fan of their work, and I knew I’d be comfortable with them. Mong did my hair for our pre-nup photoshoot but Jake, even without trial, I trusted completely as well. I knew he’d give me that bridal glow while still making me look like me.

6. What lip color did you choose for the wedding day?

I just trusted Jake to choose a color that would look good on me! During preparations, he chose a peachy nude while for the ceremony, he changed it to a nude pink topped with gloss. For the reception, I touched up and used Sunnies Face in Milkshake.

8. What were the preparations you did for your skin prior to the wedding day? Did you go to a skincare center regularly? What kind of services did you have done? Is this something you would recommend to other brides-to-be?

I’ve always been very particular about my skin, thanks to my mom who influenced me early on in life. I was about 10 years old when I started following a basic skin care routine—which included a facial wash, toner, moisturizer, and sunblock. I also regularly visited my dermatologist for cleaning and consultation. When I started working for the beauty industry about five or six years ago, my skin care routine expanded—I now use a facial wash, toner, serum, essence, eye cream, moisturizer, and sunblock. Whenever I wear makeup, I make sure to double cleanse with an oil-based makeup remover followed by micellar water. On top of everything, I drink collagen supplements every day to improve the overall health of my skin.

About four or five months before the wedding, I scheduled a diamond peel with facial cleaning once a month in a skincare clinic near my office. I do recommend this to other brides—just to exfoliate your skin, smoothen out your complexion, and clean out whiteheads and blackheads. Getting a diamond peel regularly also allows your skin to absorb your skin care products better, so if you can do this once a month about five to six months before your wedding, I highly suggest it!

9. What was the best beauty advice you received that helped you prepare for your wedding?

I don’t think anyone really gave me beauty advice (that I didn’t already know, considering I’ve worked in the industry for a while now), but if I may suggest to upcoming brides—find a skincare routine that works for you and stick to it. If you plan to experiment with a new product or hairstyle, be sure to do it months before the wedding. Keep yourself hydrated and drink lots of water every day—this will really show on your skin! Lastly, take a break. I took a leave one week before the wedding just so I could focus on getting some rest, and I’m so glad I did that. I detached myself completely from my work and passion projects temporarily, to really enjoy and make the most out of my special day.

10. How about in terms of fitness? What did you do months before the wedding to stay in shape and make sure your wedding dress fit perfectly? Did you enroll in a gym or fitness center? What was your diet like?

After high school when I was no longer a competitive softball player and I traded it for Ultimate Frisbee (which entailed a lot of cardio), I naturally lost my bulky and muscular frame and retained a leaner one. Since then, I’ve been playing Ultimate Frisbee once or twice a week. I never enrolled in a gym or fitness center, nor did I change my diet. I just maintained eating healthy—by healthy, it was more of avoiding processed food, and too much sugar and salt.

One was learning the art of letting go early on, which my best friend and Matron of Honor (who got married a couple of months before me) kept reminding me. There will really be things to happen that are out of your control (like guests not following the dress code nor the seating arrangement), and that’s okay. Just breathe in and out, and know that everything will still be okay. “Choose your battles wisely,” were the exact words that Iza Calzado herself advised to me when we had a conversation about our wedding planning. Next—learn to delegate tasks. This is something that my husband had to learn, because it turns out (and contrary to what was expected), he’s more of the groomzilla, while I was the more chill bride! Third—don’t forget to eat breakfast and lunch (which I did), and keep yourself hydrated (which I also did). Lastly, don’t wear a watch. The day goes by so fast, you’d wish it was on temporal loop.

To read more about Gretchen and Cayo’s wedding, check out her blog post on all the details, stories, and suppliers of their very meaningful and memorable wedding here.

Wedding Team

• Ceremony: Sta Rita. De Cascia Parish
• Officiant: Bishop Socrates Villegas
• Preps, Reception, and Sit-Down Dinner: Seda Vertis North
• Wedding Coordinator: Day One Project
• Event Stylist and Florist: Passion Cooks
• Photographer: Nicolai Melicor
• Videographer: Lula Films
• Makeup Artist: Jake Galvez
• Hairstylist: Mong Amado
• Bridal Gown: Rosenthal Tee
• Bridal Shoes: Kate Spade
• Bridal Pajamas: Simple Sew
• Entourage Gowns: Patricia Syquiatco
• Entourage Hair and Makeup: Aldrin Jalandoni and Katch Mejias
• Wedding Cake: Elle’s Kitchen PH
• Music: Manila String Machine
• Giveaways: Black Coffee PH

Calyxta Engagement Stories:

Allysiu Alvarez and Marc Enriquez

1. Can you give us a quick introduction of yourselves? What do you do?

My name is Allysiu Alvarez. I am 24 years old from Metro Manila. I was a former hotelier who handled social events, but I recently resigned because I wanted to focus on and explore different opportunities coming my way. I currently own a photo booth company with my fiancé and run a YouTube channel with makeup, lifestyle, and travel content. I also help in our family business in which we manufacture and supply fine jewelry.

My fiancé is Marc Enriquez, 30 years old. He manages their family business, Brewing Point Neighborhood Café.

3. What was the initial reaction after the proposal? Can you share the story with us?

My sister planned her wedding this September 2019, so in order to avoid sukob, I knew that our wedding would be in the year 2020. I was honestly expecting him to propose around October 2019 since January was a bit early, so I was so surprised. I had no idea!

On the day of the proposal, I was so busy with work since I was leaving for Hong Kong the next day, so I had to fix my endorsements. I used to stay in the office until 10:00 PM because I didn’t like to have pending work. He told my boss and colleagues about the proposal since I would have stayed in the office if they did not push me to “pack” for my vacation.

Marc and his family messaged in our Viber group that there will be a dinner for Marc’s niece’s birthday. So I finished work around 8:00 PM and drove in my black t-shirt and white culottes – just my usual chill comfortable outfit. So when I got there, Marc’s sister-in-law, Van, was in the restaurant waiting for me. She told me to change my outfit. So from there, I already had an idea that something was up. I did not want to assume, so I was just laughing. On the 2nd floor of Brewing Point, there was already a setup: flower petals, balloons, a flat screen TV, and a chair were all waiting for me. They made me watch an AVP – a compilation of our photos through the years.

I was already in tears watching the video. Then, Ate Van led me to a room. I started to cry again when I saw everyone – both of our families were complete (even the kids!), and most of my best friends were there.

He said his speech and asked the big question! It was the most perfect proposal I could have ever dreamed of.

4. Who was the first person you shared your engagement with and why?

Since all of my family and most of my best friends were there already, I just sent out my engagement ring photo to my college best friends, my former colleagues, and of course, uploaded it on social media.

5. What was the first thing you thought about right after the engagement that’s related to the wedding?

The first thing I thought was the date and the venue. I had to inquire and make reservations right away!

Want to share your engagement story with us? Shoot us an e-mail at bridesbycalyxta@calyxta.com, and we’d love to hear more about it!

When we were having our food tasting, we were informed that due to recent regulations that were strictly being implemented, our chosen venue could not set up on the beach area as planned. Their alternative venue could not fit our 140 guests or if they did try to fit everyone, the guests’ view would always be partially obstructed by hotel pillars. Six weeks before our wedding, we had NO VENUE for both our ceremony and reception. The very first things that we locked down and checked off our list a year before were now up in the air!

In that same weekend, Amanda had already called all the possible resorts that had our wedding date open and scheduled us meetings to tour their facilities. After two weeks of talking to different venues for both the ceremony and reception, considering our options and going back and forth with our coordinator, we finally booked The Lind Boracay as our final venue less than a month before our wedding. We fell in love with the view from the Infinity Deck plus they were the only venue that could accommodate our number of guests, have the same venue for the ceremony and reception, and costs almost the same as our previous venue. At first, they said that it was not possible to acquiesce to our request of holding both the ceremony and the reception in the same venue but Amanda worked it all out and made it happen.

Even at the very last minute, you can never be too sure that everything is already set. A week before we were set to leave for the island, one of our pre-wedding event suppliers had to cancel our Boat Party. Again, the new regulations restricted them from sailing and they could only operate in January 2019. Amanda and her team worked tirelessly and gave me quotations for possible replacements. On the day we got to the island, Zane walked us through every detail of the wedding and set up a meeting for us with our replacement pre-wedding event venue. Amanda, Zane and the rest of the Events by Amanda Tirol team are miracle workers and we love how flawless their execution is.

I was never a big fan of real flowers. I wouldn’t know what to do with a bouquet since it will eventually wilt, and I won’t be able to keep it as a souvenir. So I asked my friend, Roma Agsunod of Pop.Junk.Love, to make my bridal bouquet. She specializes in crafts and upcycling materials. I gave her my peg and she turned it into such a beautiful bouquet made of pearls, fake flowers, shells, starfish, and brooches. My entourage flowers were made by Handmade Blooms by Joy. Joy makes paper flowers that look like the real thing. They looked so real that one of my entourage was stopped at the airport and was asked if the flowers she was hand-carrying had already been quarantined. She also made our boutonnieres and hair/wrist corsages for the rest of our entourage.

For our giveaways, I asked my friend if she could customize a beach essentials giveaway for our guests and principal sponsors. This was made up of shampoo, conditioner, body wash and sunblock made by her mom’s business, Baby Girl Fragrances. Basically, we chose our suppliers from our friend’s small businesses to support local entrepreneurs.

If you have a slew of talented friends, it doesn’t hurt to ask for their services. For our wedding hosts and reception entertainment, we asked our friends to host and sing during the mass and reception. I think it’s better to ask those you personally know because you’re sure that they’ll do a great job. The connection is more personal, and they wouldn’t want to disappoint you.

As mentioned for our pre-wedding events, we wanted one event with heavy drinking, and one event with fun games and light drinking especially since it would be the day before the wedding. Same principle with our flowers and giveaways, we held our Sunset Barbeque Boodle Fight at Casa Pilar as we were friends with the owners. We had a lot of freedom with regards to the activities that we could do, and food to be brought in. We really wanted ribs from Hawaiian BBQ and we were able to do that as well.

For the entourage suits and gowns, we had them made in Manila since most of our entourage were based in Manila. We made sure that the entourage would bring their own gown or suit to the island as we didn’t have enough manpower to bring everything to Boracay. To help with bringing in the entourage bouquets, I asked some of my entourage to hand-carry the paper blooms. In the airport, we made sure that we checked in as a group so that we wouldn’t go over the baggage limit.

For my hair and makeup, I only flew in my hairstylist from Manila and my makeup artist is my sister, Abby Maglaya from Makeup by Gabrielle, so I didn’t have to worry about that. The entourage makeup was again sourced from local suppliers, Fern Quimpo.

What’s the inspiration behind your wedding look? Did you have any hair and makeup pegs?

The overall theme of our wedding was Fairytale Beach Wedding because my favorite Disney Princess is Ariel. My favorite color is purple, so all my entourage had sequined gold tops and purple skirts made by Carina Canlas-Villaluz. The sequined tops of the gowns gave out a mermaid-like feel and the full skirts made them look like princesses. Given their beautiful gowns, my own dresses had to stand out. My prep gown was made by Janina of Heleyna Bridal. She made me a beautiful mermaid colored custom gown dyed seafoam green, blue and purple that complemented my theme perfectly.

For my wedding gown, I had it hand-painted with purple and yellow flowers and my bouquet had starfish, shells, and pearls on it to tie everything together. For hair, I wanted a braided updo for the ceremony and a half-fishtail down hairdo for the reception. I didn’t want a tiara since it would be too much, so I opted for pearl and diamond studs in my hair. For make-up, I didn’t have a peg because I had complete trust in my sister. She knew my theme and I knew she would do an amazing job.

Who designed your wedding gown, and how did you come up with the style? How long did it take to create or find the perfect wedding dress?

Hannah Kong was my wedding dress designer. I really wanted something unique and when I saw Hannah’s Instagram, I fell in love with her hand-painted pieces. I instantly knew I wanted a hand-painted gown from her. It didn’t take that long to find my perfect wedding dress because I had already seen my designer make it. After meeting with her for the first time, I already had my measurements taken. Next meeting, I thought we were just going to talk about the design but she already had a dress ready. She told me it was because I knew exactly what I wanted. On our third meeting, I told her that since the train of the skirt was two meters long, I was concerned that I wouldn’t be able to dance. Hannah made me a second skirt just for the reception. She made it a serpentina skirt which also fit my overall theme. I loved how flexible she was about things and her work is absolutely amazing.

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What was in your wedding day makeup kit or pouch?

I actually didn’t have a makeup kit or pouch on my wedding day. With my sister’s airbrush makeup and Maybelline’s SuperStay, I knew I wouldn’t need it since I knew my makeup would be set until the wee hours of the morning.

What were the preparations you did for your skin prior to the wedding day? Did you go to a skin care center regularly? What kind of services did you have done? Is this something you would recommend to other brides-to-be?

I didn’t really plan any preps for my skin but seven months before my wedding, I met an accident and had to deal with scars all over my left leg. My dermatologist gave me Gluthathione lozenges to take every day. Of course, the Gluthathione brightened up my skin and lightened the scars on my legs in time for my wedding. It’s so ironic because I did have services done but only to my leg scars. I had microdermabrasion and bleaching done on my scars to lessen the discoloration of my skin.

They told me to get enough sleep but it’s really impossible when there are a million things to do and you’re cramming your vows the night before the wedding!

How about in terms of fitness? What did you do months before the wedding to stay in shape and make sure your wedding dress fit perfectly? Did you enroll in a gym or fitness center? What was your diet like?

I tried to go on a diet and failed. But we were preparing for an ultimate frisbee competition at the end of October so I had training four times a week for two months, so that helped a lot.

Who designed your wedding gown, and how did you come up with the style? How long did it take to create or find the perfect wedding dress?

From the start of our wedding planning, I already had a rough idea of what I wanted my wedding gown to look like. So when it came to choosing my designer, I went with one whose aesthetic I felt was a good match, Hannah Kong. Hannah and I just sat down in her studio a year before the date—for a session that felt more like friends catching up than a formal meeting. She was so warm and accommodating as she showed me little details from some of her pieces to get a feel for what I liked. She then sketched me a rough design combining the things I wanted—tulle, lace, and subtle sparkle. Within an 8-month fitting process, she put together my beautiful dress.

How did you choose your hair and makeup artist? Did you have any hair and makeup pegs?

Similar to the way I chose my gown designer, I also only approached one makeup artist, Sari Campos. Her bridal makeup style is very clean and feminine, which was exactly what I wanted. I didn’t want a makeup transformation or a dramatically different look. I just wanted to feel pretty on my big day, but still feel like myself. Aside from her obvious skill and talent, she was also a long-time friend, so it was such an easy decision for me to go with her. Sari’s partner hairstylist, Kierlo Velasco, was great too. We worked together for our engagement shoots (we had so much fun that we decided to have two!), and for the wedding, of course.

What was the best beauty advice you received that helped you prepare for your wedding?

Take a few days off before the wedding! I took the week off to get into the right mindset and emotional state—to refocus and re-center myself in preparation for the commitment I was about to take on. (That, and I needed those few days to bake and decorate my wedding cake and prepare the desserts for our guests!).

How about in terms of fitness? What did you do months before the wedding to stay in shape and make sure your wedding dress fit perfectly? Did you enroll in a gym or fitness center? What was your diet like?

6 months before the wedding, I really tried to lessen my carb and sugar intake. I stopped eating rice on weekdays, and I stopped having sweet drinks (except for wine—I don’t think I can ever give up wine!). 3 months before, I did intermittent fasting as well. My exercise routine consisted of kneading, whisking, and lifting kitchen equipment. That’s about it, but thankfully, the dress fit perfectly!

“I took the week off to get into the right mindset and emotional state—to refocus and re-center myself in preparation for the commitment I was about to take on.”

Did you have your nails done? If so, where? Would you recommend this nail salon to others?

I had my nails done with two of my best friends and bridesmaids at Buffed BGC. It was a nice place where we got to enjoy some wine and cheese (we brought our own) while getting a mani-pedi.

What was your biggest takeaway from your wedding day? Do you have any beauty-related tips you’d like to share to upcoming brides?

My biggest takeaway from our wedding planning is that at the end of the day, the goal shouldn’t be to impress but to express. Our focus was to express our gratitude to our family and friends for celebrating with us, and to express our personalities (as individuals and as a couple). We just zeroed in on the most important parts, which helped us enjoy the whole process and savor the day itself. Try not to control everything, don’t worry too much, get some sleep, and trust your suppliers.

“The goal shouldn’t be to impress but to express.”

Wedding Team

Photographer: MR Villar

Videographer: The Spark Series

MUA: Sari Campos

Hair: Kierlo Velasco

How did you choose your hair and makeup artist? Did you have any hair and makeup pegs?

I am lucky because a good friend from high school is a professional make-up artist, Tin Albano. I trust her completely. She was the one who recommended the hair stylist, Rudolf Davalos. I actually didn’t have pegs. I just explained to my friend and hair stylist how I wanted to look like—classy and elegant. From there, we agreed on the total look for both church and reception.

What lip color did you choose for the wedding day?

My make-up artist chose for me since I wanted my whole look to be cohesive. It was nude with a bit of gloss to make it look very natural.

“The creams, serums, and treatments won’t do you any good if deep inside, you are stressed.”

What was your biggest takeaway from your wedding day? Do you have any beauty-related tips you’d like to share to upcoming brides?

Just have fun and enjoy every moment! There is no perfect wedding (not everything will go as planned) so just let go and focus on your husband, family, and friends. Your wedding is a celebration of love so just let it be. Don’t sweat the small stuff! Pamper yourself so that you can look your best on your wedding day!

Wedding Team

Photographer: Nice Print Photography and Exige Weddings

Videographer: Nice Print Photography and Exige Weddings

Makeup Artist: Tin Albano

Hair: Rudolf Davalos

Gown by: Joe San Antonio

Who was the first person you shared your engagement with and why?

I asked Jico if my sister knew, but she didn’t since she was out of the country that time. There was no chance to meet her personally. So I messaged her via Viber on our way home. Why? Because she’s my big sister!

What was the first thing you thought about right after the engagement that’s related to the wedding?

Budget! Haha.

Want to share your engagement story with us? Shoot us an e-mail at bridesbycalyxta@calyxta.com, and we’d love to hear more about it!

Calyxta Engagement Stories:

Cayo Fragada and Gretchen Gatan

August 27, 2018 at the Church of Gesu

I think it was during April or May 2013 when we joined a beach tournament in Las Casas Filipinas de Acuzar in Bataan that our love story truly started—in the middle of a game, I suffered from a heat stroke, and Cayo was the one who took care of me the whole weekend. Later on in our relationship, he told me that he remembers thinking to himself during that weekend, “Hey, I think I want to take care of this girl forever.”

From group hangouts with our team, we started going out as just us. We even tried to hide it at first, but only because we didn’t want people to tease us—especially because EVERYONE (his mom, Chino, our teammates, and our friends) all believed that one day, we would eventually get together. And we knew that they would all say, “We told you so!” Haha.

We officially got together on December 13, 2013 (it was a Friday the 13th) in Panglao, Bohol—a special date because we both love the number 13. It was his jersey number when he used to play basketball for the Ateneo Varsity Team, and it was coincidentally my jersey number when I used to play softball for the Poveda Varsity Team. When we became teammates, we even fought over the jersey number at one point! But eventually, when we got together, he gave up the jersey number for me. Haha! That’s basically how our love story started, and I think what strengthened our relationship even more apart from starting out as good friends first was how we constantly kept the communication lines open. It was very easy to do that ever since we started dating, because we would ride together to and from work. Everyday, he would pick me up from my house, drop me off in my office in Makati, then head to his office (which is a 10-minute walk away from mine). After work, he’d either pick me up or I’d walk to his office, have dinner, and then go home together. So imagine all that time in traffic just talking about anything and everything for the last five years!

Nowadays, we still play Ultimate (but not as competitive as before), and we’ve become that type of couple who loves just staying at home on weekends to watch movies or play video games.

“Hey, I think I want to take care of this girl forever.”

The One with @cay013’s Proposal 😂💜 #TeamCatch13#CayoNaNiGretch 💍

Who was the first person you shared your engagement with and why?

I messaged my best friend, Kim, Calyxta’s Editorial Assistant, Maan, and Calyxta’s Graphic and Media Artist, Ming. Because the day before, when Cayo told me he wanted to go to Ateneo to reminisce, I sent a screenshot of our conversation to the three and told them I found it a little strange that we would be going to Ateneo on a random holiday. We all had a hunch, but didn’t want to assume anything! Haha. After he proposed, we drove to Mario’s Restaurant (his family’s go-to ever since he was a kid), and found both our families already waiting to celebrate our engagement with us.

What was the first thing you thought about right after the engagement that’s related to the wedding?

Since we were leaving for Europe a few days after he proposed, he told me to try not to think about wedding plans until after we got back—just so we could fully enjoy the trip. But of course, being the obsessive control freak that I am, who already created a Trello board, Pinterest board, and Google Docs way before the proposal, I already had a wedding motif in mind, as well as my list of top suppliers. It was just a matter of finding the right date, setting a budget, and seeing which aspects of our wedding we wanted to prioritize more (like good food!). We just booked our church and hotel, and we’re set to get married in September 2019!

Want to share your engagement story with us? Shoot us an e-mail at bridesbycalyxta@calyxta.com, and we’d love to hear more about it!

Who designed your wedding gown, and how did you come up with the style? How long did it take to create or find the perfect wedding dress?

My wedding gown was designed by Alex Cristobal. Alex is our go-to couturier ever since I was in high school. We go to him whenever we need gowns for different occasions. To be honest, my final wedding gown wasn’t the original idea. Being the indecisive me, I decided to just go for a very simple gown at the last minute! I am really just simple when it comes to my style. Maxene Magalona’s gown during their beach wedding was my inspiration for the final design of my wedding gown. I think Alex made my final gown for only 2 weeks! Thankfully, he was still able to deliver. I definitely do not recommend what I did though! Haha! It’s still better to really decide on a peg and once your decision is final, refrain from looking at other pegs so it doesn’t confuse you. If you’re still indecisive, you should try on RTW wedding gowns so you can really visualize the style or cut that perfectly fits your body shape.

How did you choose your hair and makeup artist? Did you have any hair and makeup pegs?

I am so happy and thankful that our makeup artist is one of the first suppliers that we were able to book. I really didn’t have a list of makeup artists to choose from as I avoided giving myself too many options. Our makeup artist was Ysra Guarino. She was recommended to me by my maid of honor. When I looked through her social media accounts, I noticed that her style was very natural and fresh—the peg I had in mind, since I am also not very comfortable with heavy makeup. I was happy because she was true to her claim that she just enhances the beauty of her clients. During the wedding, I told her I didn’t really have any pegs for my makeup and asked her to just make me look fresh and natural and not too made up, and I loved it! For my hair, I did have a peg. I wanted a relaxed hairstyle, a low bun that covered my ears. I had a second look at the reception and I just let Ysra do her thing again and of course, I also loved it. For my hair, I went for a ponytail with my hair parted in the middle.

What were the preparations you did for your skin prior to the wedding day? Did you go to a skincare center regularly? What kind of services did you have done? Is this something you would recommend to other brides-to-be?

I don’t have major problems with my skin but I would sometimes get dry patches around my nose area. So to somehow prevent that on my wedding day, I made sure to soak my face with moisturizer every night. I did that religiously for 2 months. I would also regularly exfoliate 1 to 2 times a week. I observed that this routine really helped my skin remain hydrated and fresh before the wedding. I also had a facial cleaning a month before to make sure that my face was deeply cleaned.

What was your biggest takeaway from your wedding day? Do you have any beauty-related tips you’d like to share to upcoming brides?

We got married last August 11, 2018. It was the day in August that the rain almost didn’t stop. Of course we knew ahead that August was a rainy month but we didn’t expect it to rain so hard on our wedding day. Our wedding was almost a nightmare for us. It was so gloomy during the preps, it was raining so hard during the wedding ceremony, and when we got to the reception venue, we had a power outage scare because the flood was about to reach the breaker of the venue. It was so stressful for us especially because we’ve already envisioned everything that will happen on our big day. My biggest takeaway was to learn to let go. How can you let go when this event can only happen once in your life? When you have prepared for more than a year and have put all your time and effort? It was definitely hard, but I am thankful that we let go of the things we had no control of anymore. My husband and I thought we couldn’t waste this day stressing on the things that didn’t happen the way we planned it. We shifted our perspective and saw how much love we got from our families and friends. That despite the weather, the heavy traffic and the flooding, a lot of people still came to celebrate with us. And that is far more valuable than any element in our wedding that didn’t push through.

To all the future brides out there, make sure you get enough sleep at least a few days before the wedding! Not only will lack of sleep show on the outside, it could also lower your energy and you will need a lot during the wedding. If you have no dermatologist yet, I suggest you have a consultation first and decide on your skincare routine based on the assessment of the dermatologist, so you can avoid wasting money on skincare products that don’t suit your skin type. I wish I had done that! Haha. And of course, hydrate, hydrate, hydrate! Having healthy skin is really a must so that your makeup will look flawless on the big day!

“To all the future brides out there, make sure you get enough sleep at least a few days before the wedding!”

How was it like planning a destination wedding? What were the biggest challenges and how did you overcome them?

I was fortunate enough to have a friend who hired me for her wedding in Bohol several months before I got engaged, so her wedding inspired me a lot that I ended up choosing the same venue. This gave me the ability to anticipate our needs for the wedding quite well. One of the biggest challenges was managing the accomodations and logistics for my guests. My wedding venue, Amarela, had limited rooms so a lot of our other guests had to book in nearby accomodations. To manage this, I made a website with all the pertinent details my guests needed to know, including a list of resorts close to my venue. Whenever a guest would ask us about hotel options, we just sent them the link. What I liked about Amarela is that they automatically blocked off the entire resort for us on our wedding weekend, so we didn’t have to worry of outside guests booking on the same weekend, and we had the entire resort to ourselves.

As part of having a destination wedding, we also had to take care of the transportation between venues during the wedding day for all our guests. We had to hire several vans and coasters ahead of time. I was grateful to have a reliable resort manager and wedding coordinator because that really helped a lot in managing and anticipating our needs. We had fly to Bohol twice before our wedding—the first one was for a general ocular (visiting different churches and resorts, meeting potential suppliers) and another one was a month before our wedding to iron out the details and completing requirements for the wedding (food tasting and final ocular at our chosen venue, finalizing with suppliers, completing church requirements, meeting our priest). Communicating effectively with our suppliers given that it’s limited to online and mobile was also a challenge. We made sure that we were able to align expectations with our suppliers which entailed a lot of detailed email exchanges, continuous follow ups and preparing visual guide decks to really ensure we set a clear direction and manage expectations.

What’s the inspiration behind your wedding look? Did you have any hair and makeup pegs?

My wedding theme was tropical, but minimalist, for an elegant touch. I wanted my look to be simple yet elegant as well. For the makeup, I did not have any particular inspiration but just wanted a look that works best on my features, which is a classic smokey brown eye paired with a nude lip, and bronzey skin to complement my morena complexion. I wore brown contact lenses so that my eyes will pop out more. For the hair, I wanted something effortless and practical. Just before my wedding was the Royal Wedding, and I loved how natural and effortless Meghan Markle’s hair was—so that became my peg. I usually have ash blonde hair color, but for my wedding, I opted for a darker tone, like a chocolate brown, for a more classic, toned-down look.

Who designed your wedding gown, and how did you come up with the style? How long did it take to create or find the perfect wedding dress?

I already had a specific style in my head for my dress. I wanted a V neck, deep V back, A line flowy skirt with a slit, and nude lining. When I consulted with Teena, I fell in love with how she interpreted my ideas and she even added pockets to the dress, which I loved. The whole design and fitting process took about 3 months. Teena was a breeze to work with—she was always professional, accommodating, and she gets what I want, which really made the process easy and fun.

“My wedding theme was tropical, but minimalist, for an elegant touch.”

“Get a lot of rest, stay calm and positive.”

How about in terms of fitness? What did you do months before the wedding to stay in shape and make sure your wedding dress fit perfectly? Did you enroll in a gym or fitness center? What was your diet like?

Three months before the wedding, I started attending barre classes in Planaforma. It’s a great work out for ladies since it effectively tones the body, plus it’s fun. I also did yoga in between Planaforma work outs. In terms of diet, I controlled my carb and sugar intake, following on the concept of Keto diet. I also cut down on my alcohol intake before the wedding to stay looking fresh and avoid dehydrating my skin.

Did you have your nails done? If so, where? Would you recommend this nail salon to others?

I went for a classic french tip gel polish manicure, and a nude gel pedicure at Nail Spa in Gamboa St, Makati. Really simple, nothing fancy. I like the ambiance in the salon and they have highly trained nail technicians.

What was your biggest takeaway from your wedding day? Do you have any beauty-related tips (or tips in general) that you can share?

You have to let go on the wedding day, trust your suppliers, and just savour and enjoy each moment as it can go by quickly. Since our wedding was by the beach, a mobile electric fan helped me immensely to stay cool and comfortable the entire day, and helped save my makeup from melting. Invest on skin care and treatments prior to your wedding day to give your skin the utmost pampering it needs.

“Invest on skin care and treatments prior to your wedding day to give your skin the utmost pampering it needs.”

Wedding Team

Photographer: ProudRad

Videographer: Super Seven Studio

MUA: Byron Velasquez

Hair: Kierlo Velasco

Gown by: Teena Sabrina

What’s the inspiration behind your wedding look? 

In all honesty, I didn’t have one when I started out (that same time, I was wishing I had taken my secret wedding Pinterest more seriously)! And it didn’t help that I’m not a very creative person! So for me, it was very important that I had good suppliers because I relied on them a lot when it came to conceptualization. I had a general idea on what I preferred, and my suppliers and I worked from there.

What lip color did you choose for the wedding day?

Honestly, I left this all to Nicole! She just picked something natural for the ceremony and pictorials, then something a little darker for the reception.

What was in your wedding day makeup kit/pouch?

Hate to say it, but I didn’t have any! Nicole also took care of this. After the ceremony and pictorials, right before the reception, she gave me a touch-up—something a little darker to be more appropriate for an evening reception.

What were the preparations you did for your skin prior to the wedding day? Did you go to a skincare center regularly? What kind of services did you have done? Is this something you would recommend to other brides-to-be?

I actually did go to a dermatologist a few months before. A friend who got married two months before me kept raving about wart removals—how after she had it done in time for her wedding, her face became so smooth. So that inspired me! When I got to the clinic though, the dermatologist said I didn’t really have a lot, so it would’ve been slightly useless to schedule a session. I asked her what she suggested I have done, and she mentioned something about plumping. It felt unnecessary (especially since I have a lot of other wedding expenses to prioritize) so I didn’t bother.

As soon as I got engaged though, I did increase my water intake and a few months before, I opted for sleeping a little earlier than usual. Since I have dry skin, I also seriously upped the moisturizing—I added that seven skin method that Koreans supposedly swear by into my nightly skin routine, and my skin did get a lot less dry! Haven’t had dry spots since!

What was the best beauty advice you received that helped you prepare for your wedding?

Everyone told me to keep hydrated for the skin—so that’s really all I did. I still do it now, actually!