Fashion gala highlights bridal fair and expo

The islands’ first ever Bridal Fair and Party Exhibit kicked off yesterday at the Hibiscus Hall of the Fiesta Resort and Spa Saipan with a Party Exhibit opening in the morning and the official Bridal Fair opening in the afternoon.

The fair, which is being eyed to become an annual event, is co-hosted by Fiesta Resort and Spa Saipan and the Saipan Grand Hotel.

Organized by Saipan Grand’s events manager and wedding planner Oscar Yema, the fair brings together under one roof all vendors and suppliers related to weddings and wedding receptions, giving future brides and grooms a sort of one-stop-shop for all their nuptial needs.

The Bridal Fair and Party Exhibit will continue today, still at the Hibiscus Hall, starting at 10am. Even more exciting in today’s segment is the Party and Bridal Makeup Competition, which takes place at 6pm, immediately followed by a Bridal Fashion Show at 8pm.

Former Saipan Tribune reporter Marconi Calindas sits down with Oscar Yema to talk about all things related to weddings and how he can make your special day even more extra special.

[B]Q: How long have you been a wedding planner?

A:[/B] I have been a wedding planner since 1996.

[B]Q: How did you start? Can you describe your first wedding event?

A:[/B] It started 12 years ago, while planning my own wedding. My wife, who is a self-confessed non-artist, gave me the green light as she said that I was the one who appreciates art and beauty more. I got my wedding mementos from the southern part of the Philippines. It was a handcrafted bamboo décor made by the children whose parents were killed during insurgency conflicts in Mindanao, the Philippines. Our invitations were made of recycled paper done by children at the Elsie Gaches Village, a home for abandoned special children.

The venue was at the Equestrian Club by the pool with a luau theme. My bride was the only one in white and the rest of the entourage was wearing a printer floral design fabric. There were floating flowers and candles in the pool. It was almost perfect but the rain started pouring. The outdoor wedding was moved inside the Club House. I learned to plan a wedding the hard way.

Since then, I have made wedding planning a business on the side. I put up a company called Multimedia Artist and Associates in Manila that does events. One of the services is wedding planning. We provide the A to Z’s of wedding— from coordination of venue, church, catering, and gowns to invitations, musicians, wedding singers, photos, videos and after wedding services.

[B]Q: What makes you different from other wedding planners?

A:[/B] I am the events and banquet manager for Fiesta Resort and Spa Saipan and Saipan Grand Hotel. What makes me different is that I am “in-house” thus my services are free of charge.

[B]Q: How many weddings have you planned so far?

A:[/B] In the Philippines, I only accept big weddings because it is just something that I do on the side. Here on Saipan, since we have two hotels, we have a wedding every week, sometimes back-to-back or simultaneous in Fiesta or Grand.

[B]Q: Any major weddings you’d planned?

A:[/B] The biggest wedding I planned was a singer-celebrity in Manila. Guest was 400 pax and venue was the Grand Ballroom of the Shangri-La Hotel. Just for the flowers and decoration, it took us two days to finish because of the draping and cloth formed the high ceiling of the hotel. It was a multi-media event with a lot audio-visual presentation, from the prayer, to the introduction of the newlyweds, to greetings and a short movie of their love story. The huge screen was perfect for the occasion.

[B]Q: How long have been planning weddings here in the CNMI?

A:[/B] I have been an events manager for almost two years now here on Saipan.

[B]Q: What differentiates your wedding events to other hotels?

A:[/B] Our weddings at Fiesta and Grand are customized. It is different from each one and we come up with a theme for each wedding. We don’t copy from one wedding to another. We make sure that each one is unique and we make sure it fits the personality of the bride and groom.

[B]Q: What can we expect from your wedding events?

A:[/B] If you’d read each testimonial of our past weddings, people would know the answer to your questions. They too can experience the satisfaction they received from our wedding events in the past.