almost down the aisle part II

Traditionally, the tea ceremony would take place at the bride's family's house. But because of time constraints and because my mom's kinda lazy, we opted to have the Chinese tea ceremony at the W Hotel, where our main ceremony and reception would take place.

My Gramma was absolutely thrilled that we were having a tea ceremony. She had that silly smile on her face all day long! (I pretty much had that smile on my face too!) It made me so happy to be able to make my Gramma so happy too. She's my favorite person.

My Grampa came from Hong Kong for the wedding. (He's my mom's dad; my Gramma's my dad's mom.) He cracks me up because the older he gets, the more childlike he becomes. All he's concerned about is where his next meal is!

During the tea ceremony, Hunny Bunny and I offered tea to our elders. My godmother (not the crazy fur lady - that's my crazy fur lady aunt!) led the entire ceremony, offering words of good fortune, success and health to those who accepted our offerings of tea.

In return, Hunny Bunny and I received gifts and red envelopes with lucky money.

On a side note, Gramma's got some great stems, don't you think? One of my (many, many) aunties kept trying to get her to adjust the slit of her dress because she was showing too much skin. Ha!

My mommy and daddy were beaming when it was their turn. My brother joked that instead of accepting the tea from HB, my dad would throw it in his face!

D'oh.

Luckily, dad was in a good mood.

Here are some of the gifts we received during the ceremony. The 24K gold ring was from my grandfather - I don't think he actually knew what he gave me. I have a feeling someone else picked it out and just told him to hand it to me. He was mainly concerned about the roast pork that everyone else was nibbling on!



The diamond tennis bracelet was from my parents. I couldn't believe how HUGE the diamonds were! Daddy said it was over five carats. Holy moly! The 24K gold dragon/phoenix bangles (there's a matching one on my other wrist) are also from my parents. They're traditional wedding bangles and are extremely delicate - not for every day wear. They're meant to be passed down from generation to generation.

My dad present HB with a limited-edition Omega Snoopy watch! It's super duper cute! Daddy's a bit of a watch collector and had this watch for several years. I think HB liked it.

My eldest auntie gave me a 24K gold bracelet (on my other wrist, sorry!) that my great-grandfather had given to her when she got married. I was so touched that she would give something so meaningful to me. I barely remember my great-grandfather. In my mind, he was a well-dressed man who always had candy in his pocket for me!

And finally! It's time for the snacks! My dad is serving up some wedding cookies or, as we youngsters like to call, "the pink hockey pucks."

Just another hour until the main ceremony... eep!

almost down the aisle part I

Hunny Bunny is Vietnamese and I'm Chinese. That meant that we would have to somehow accommodate both traditions during our wedding day.

We started our hectic (and rainy!) morning (after hair and makeup for me and the bridesmaids) at HB's place for the Vietnamese ceremony.

We had to light incense and bow to his ancestors and provide offerings of fruit. His uncle took charge and led us through the whole process. Unfortunately, I had no idea what he was saying since he only spoke Vietnamese.

I just did what any other sensible girl would do on her wedding day - follow the groom's lead!

Then HB's mom and dad spoke and sadly, I still had no idea what was going on. I just smiled and nodded. Finally, his mom turned to me and spoke in English.

She welcomed me into the family and said that while HB is an only child, she had enough love to share with both of us and that she loved me like a daughter. *sniff* And then she presented with me with a gorgeous diamond necklace that she had made especially for me!

(I realized after the wedding that she even had our initials engraved on the clasp! How sweet and thoughtful is that!?)

This was all followed by more smiling and nodding on my part. HB's relatives greeted us and gave us gifts of money and cards and wishes of love and success and happiness.

And children. Lots and lots of children.

ACK.

tardy for the party

Scottsdale was ah-mazing. My bff and I arrived a day earlier than the rest of the girls and just enjoyed a day of shopping, followed by an intense yoga class for me and a relaxing facial for her at the Phoenician Resort.

Another girlfriend arrived from LA that evening and we had a yummy dinner at Cowboy Ciao, where we also enjoyed a wine flight of bubbly. I think I enjoyed it too much because I damn near passed out. I blame my low blood pressure. Uh huh. Yup.

The next morning, two of my cousins arrived and we had brunch at the pool. (C/D-list Celebrity siting: Fantasia!)

Later, we check in to the W Hotel where we spent the rest of the weekend. That's also when we found out it was their 1-year anniversary and they were having a huge party - and we were all invited!

The theme was Alice in Wonderlust. ADORE! (D-list Celebrity siting: Malcolm from Malcolm in the Middle!)

Mushrooms!

We had an amazing time and even got little Bliss spa swag bags! The next day, we were all just a tad hungover... At least I was! (Lightweight!)

Lounged at the pool and took turns going to the Bliss Spa for our appointments. Just what the doctor ordered. After a day of relaxation, we had dinner at Mastro's steakhouse.

That place is reason enough for us to go back! Drool....

Following dinner, and unbeknownst to me, the girls had another treat up their sleeves.. A horrible, horrible treat.

A male nudey bar! EWWWWWWWWWWWW!

The icky boys got full on nekkid! *shudder*

There were twins workin' the pole when we walked in and later there was a guy wearing nothing but black socks doing handstands!

Needless to say, we left pretty quickly. And we do not have any photos.

I can't wait to be married.

at long last

My bad. For real.

With the wedding exactly three weeks (eeps!) I can't concentrate on anything but. Not to mention my part time job has turned into a nearly full time now, though without the benefits. At least I'm getting paid though right?

Anyway, the winner of the Tolani wool/silk scarf is Persian Tea!!

Congrats! And please email me your name and address!

first chance at last chance

For years I heard rumors about this mythical Rack for the Rack in Scottsdale, called Last Chance. I thought it was another desert mirage.

Ladies, let me assure you that it's the real deal. All the rejects from the Rack, all the worn/damaged/returned merchandise from the full line stores make there way to Last Chance - a fitting name for the doomed.

I suppose if you had the time, and you went often, you would be able to find some gems. But for those of us in a hurry, it was overwhelming and a little bit disturbing. A couple of my girlfriends couldn't stand the germiness of handling used merchandise so they waited outside.

The rest of us scoured the haystack in hopes of finding that needle.

I scored with this pristine, oversized clutch by Longchamp. The rest of the bags and wallets were majorly damaged.

Mango snagged these amazing sky-high marc jacobs shoeties in black and Veen scored some olive Pierre Hardy suede peep toes. Damn their small feet!

is that a hickey?

No one would ever ask you that if you were wearing this amazing Tolani silk/wool blend scarf around your neck!

And lucky for you, it's up for grabs from
chickdowntown! I secretly wish I was eligible to win.

I could see myself wearing it with jeans and a boyfriend blazer or just throwing it over a LBD for a pop of color. The gal who wins must send me a photo! *jealous*

For those of you who follow
chickdowntown's twitter, you'll also know that Amy LOOOOOOOVES giveaways. Seriously. She has one every day, so be sure to follow her. Who knows? You might score one of the BB Dakota Bella jackets.

Here are the deets:

1. Contest open to U.S. and international residents. Note that international folks are responsible for any taxes or fees.
2. Leave a comment telling me how you would wear this scarf!
3. You must follow my blog, I promise I won't lead you anywhere scary.
4. Extra entries if you follow my twitter and also tweet about this drawing, just make sure you add @lookrichbitch.

I'll announce the winner on Monday, Oct 12th so get your entry in by midnight PST, Oct. 11. Late entries will not be accepted.

nice and naughty

My darling bridesmaids threw me the most wonderful bridal shower ever! All of my friends, aunties, ang cousins came. Even gramma showed up - though she was antsy to leave because she wanted to go play poker!

I couldn't ask for anything better.

There were peach and raspberry bellinis! Yum! Limoncello! Yum!

Mini sandwiches! Yum. Egg salad! YUM. So thoughtful of mango to remember my favorite kind of sandwich.

We played games. Hello? Toilet paper wedding gowns? Love it!

Loved it even more after seeing Auntie Po! Had to choose her as the winner. Only at a bridal shower would you see a 70+ year old lady wearing a toilet paper dress with coffee filter boob holders!

And some sneaky-sneak snuck a little treat in my bag during one of the games. Candy-flavored condom anyone? (I think it's still in my purse.)


But that wasn't the funniest part. When asked who had a condom in her purse, Auntie Po said, "Oh all these young girls will have them!"

And then it was time for gifts! Got this lovely Cuisinart Griddler. It's like the Chanel of George Foreman Grills.

Then I opened the gift of all gifts. The Kitchen Aid Mixer. Not the little one. The big one. EEKS!

Can't wait to use it!

My silly 13 year old niece bought me a whole bunch of Victoria's Secret panties. Gigantic brief style ones cos she thinks I'm one of those old ladies.

One of the most useful gifts was a pillow case. One side says, In the mood. The other side says, Not in the mood.

Hunny Bunny got a gift too - a man-pouch made of candy!

I guess you could count this little pink number as a gift for him as well!

With matching pink furry handcuffs, of course.

So many underthings!

Off to my
bachelorette weekend! Wonder if I should bring any of this stuff...

here's a peek

Bridal shower this weekend.. More to come!

Latest must-read!

and the winner is...

Francine!

Please email me your contact info to claim you brand new Perricone MD Advanced Face Firming Activator. Be sure to tell me how you like it!

(And I'm so sorry for the delay in getting the winner announced. I was a sick girl yesterday! Fever, congestion, the whole shibang. Much better today!)

scoffs at 40% off...

I wish someone would hire me to do this every day..

Spent the morning with my good friend Nicole from the Seattle Times.

Her assignment? Shop at the newly opened Neiman Marcus at The Shops at the Bravern. My assignment? Shop at the newly opened Neiman Marcus at The Shops at the Bravern.

Oh and tweeting about our finds!

We walked right into the cosmetics department and already I could feel the frenzy. Immediately, we were offered makeovers at the Chanel counter. They could feel the $50 gift card burning a hole in my pocket. Must.Resist. (I'm waiting for the arrival of the Noir Obscur collection to arrive before I make any hasty makeup decisions!)

Then we hit the shoes. Loves.

Then we hit the designer collections. Loves-Loves.

Then I tried on an Ali Ro ruffle windbreak. Loves-Loves-Loooooves.

I was a good girl today and didn't buy anything. (It probably didn't help that I just dropped my car off for repairs and am anticipating a hefty bill!)

And you know me. I prefer to shop when there's a discount involved. I'm more excited for future Last Call sales!

who/what/wear:

shirt - Hunny Bunny's closet
jeans - Rock & Republic
flats - Loeffler Randall
tote - vintage Chanel
sunnies - ray ban
...and a couple pearl necklaces I twisted up