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Advice, Crazy Outbursts, Lessons Learned, My articles / researches, My Life, Steffi Says

Wedding in Malta: How to get started

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Daniel and I are both planners, which I’d say is of an advantage when it comes to organizing our wedding plan. We have heard about so many stories, where couples are stressed beyond compare, fighting every minute they get, that we were a bit paranoid. Truth be told, none of this has happened. Three months into the preparation, we have been very respectful towards each other, and we have managed to compromise on everything so far, be it budget, and choosing our providers.

We believe, that the hardest thing that we had to come up with was our budget. The main reason being that we had absolutely no idea on how much a wedding should cost.  We heard of weddings which costed €10,000 and others which were €30,000 and more! This confused us further, as we were unsure how two weddings which had roughly the same items (sizable venue and guest-list, food, DJ, open bar) could differentiate so much in terms of cost!

wedding to do list

So how did we come up with a budget? In reality, we did not! Wait, what? We decided on what we can afford. We decided on the guests we wanted to invite. I come from a large family, and we had to draw a line somewhere. We made the guest list, and we asked vendors for quotations based on these numbers. Then by priority, we started to add additional costs – listing the must haves and the nice to haves.

This is the must-have list we came up with:

– Gather an approximate Guest list and request quotations for food and drinks
– Chapel & Venue – booked on the same day
– Food tasting from top 2 or 3 caterers (based on price, reputation and wedding date availability)
– Photographer – A beautiful memory to cherish in the years to come
– DJ – a wedding reception without music, is not really a celebration. In Malta, DJ is the most common form of entertainment for weddings. Some choose to have a live-band or singer
– Cars – Bare necessity is a bridal car and taxi for groom and our respective family
– Hair & Make–up – We all want to look at our best for our big day
– Rings – The symbol for our marriage
– Invitations – Compulsory
– Souvenirs – A small thank you gift for our guests
– Clothes – Bride, Groom, Bridesmaids, Groomsmen
– Bride’s flower bouquet

Nice to have list:

– Flowers (for the church)
– Church Singer
– Themed Decor (for the venue)
– Lighting
– Videographer
– Red Carpet (for the church)

My articles / researches, Other Reviews, Reviews, Steffi Says

Perfect Perth

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Perth not only enjoys wonderful weather, beautiful beaches and a laid back demeanor but there is more to this captivating city than the myriad of bars, restaurants and activities. Perth’s pristine parkland, nearby bush, and river and ocean beaches allow its visitors to spread out and enjoy what’s on offer.

The transport system is fabulous but to truly take advantage of all that’s on offer you may wish to hire a car. Burswood Car Rentals offers free delivery to all city hotels allowing you to explore further afield and visit some of the less well known yet spectacular spots that cost next to nothing. (Please note that costs may apply for some activities)

Shoalwater Islands Marine Park is accessible from Rockingham which is less than an hour’s drive south of Perth. Swarming with marine life including sea stars and urchins as well as a number of fish species flitting through the shipwrecks and makes for excellent diving, snorkeling and wildlife watching. While in the water you’ll probably run into a pod of bottle-nose dolphins and can swim with these on the regularly operated tours.

Penguin Island, a breeding colony for an array of perth1incredible birds, has Little Penguins which breed in the burrows and you can watch them being fed at the interactive center.

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If you have a dive permit, The Saxon Ranger, a 400 tonne former fishing vessel takes residence at the Park. The boat is first purpose sunk dive wreck in the Perth metropolitan area.

Just 20 minutes east of Perth, sample the divine fruits of the vineyards of Western Australia’s oldest wine region at the Swan Valley and Darling Range.  Here you may indulge on award-winning local produce, discover the incredible local heritage or simply relax in the stunning bush-land of the Darling Range. The antithesis of the bustle of city life, it can be reached via road or aboard a Swan River Cruise from Perth’s Barrack Street Jetty.

Sharing a glass of red with the vineyard owners, they are happy to recount stories of the generations of their families who owned the vineyards before them, some dating back to the early European settlers.

With over 70 eateries to choose from you are spoiled for choice or pack a lunch enjoying the breathtaking views of your surroundings.

You can also partake in many activities including horse riding, cycling and Indigenous culture.

perth2If you fancy getting even closer to some furry friends, head to Caversham Wildlife Park –  where close encounters with kangaroos and koalas is order of the day.

Alternatively you could choose to drive along the Great Eastern Highway to the blissful tranquillity of the Avon Valley heritage town in under an hour and a half. One of the few towns in WA to hold ‘Historic Town’ status, the proud residents of York have taken great care over restoring its many Victorian and Federation buildings. Due to retaining its heritage charms, it remains Perth’s favourite country escape.

No wonder this area is a top spot for romantic weekends or family fun.

My Life, Steffi Says

All Hallows’ Eve and Jagermeister

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This last Saturday marked the final night out before I travel back to Wales, and it being my favourite holiday of the year, Halloween, I made sure it ended with a bang.

It was the first time I have ever experimented with fake blood, and I underestimated it. Never realised it was so runny and that it so much takes time (was it 15 mins, or 30 minute?) to dry! It kept moving and dripping everywhere. Patience was running low as I kept worrying that I might ruin my dress, but luckily all is good when it ends well.

Originally, I wanted to dress up like some sort of a goth-zombie Jessica Rabbit. I thought it would be funny, since a lot of people pulled my leg about me pulling off that character. Unfortunately the wig I had in mind never made it, so I improvised with the only red and black wig (thus the goth part of the costume) I had available.

When I finished off the make up and added the blood, I looked more like some sort of vampire rather than anything else. BUT I was still rather pleased about the outcome. Especially when people asked me whether my wig was my real hair.

Some photos of the outcome and the night out itself:

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Halloween-2015-steffisays-2 Halloween-2015-steffisays-3

Music, My articles / researches, Reviews, Steffi Says

Throwing Shade; A sensual music video

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Have you seen the sexy video coming from Honeytrap featuring Emily Bee?

I was very sceptic to watch this, as I thought it will as always be objectifying women, or men in order to get tons of views and become popular.

To my surprise, the video is very sensual; focusing on the colour red.. which is the colour of love, passion, sensitivity, lust and anger. It is a colour that stimulates people, increases blood pressure and has high visibility. Red is courageous and also it evokes erotic feelings; red lips, red nails, red light district…. The Lady in Red. This video takes advantage of the colour, and it energises us to watch, and listen… and to stay alert!

The play with the colours, the fruits and the honey, is what drew me in… how simplicity can still be so sensual. We almost forget this, in a life so fast, when people are so upfront on what they want. Nakedness is not always a turn-on. I for one, love the teasing and playfulness more. The sexual connotations in this music video is also enhanced by the lyrics of the song.

See for yourself…

My tattoos, Steffi Says

Of skulls and Bows

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The 5th of June, 2014 was a big day for me. It was a warm late afternoon, and at around 5pm I was waiting at the tattoo studio to design my first two tattoos. Yes, you heard me, two tattoos. Some people think I’m crazy that I started off with two tattoos. But I’ve been wanting tattoos for years, and never had enough courage. I just knew what I wanted, I built up the courage I needed and wanted to show them off all summer ;p

Joking apart, the tattooist from Skink Tattoo Studio in Mosta, was very patient with me.. He answered all the questions I had before I placed the booking and even during our session. He was very gentle with me since I never had any tattoos done. He made sure that he had some music I love while he was working on me, and we had a few interesting conversations along the way. I think that helped me to relax and enjoy the ride. My friend Le Pav, was my sidekick for the day to help me be strong and not succumb to my fear.

skulls n bows

I did two identical tattoos on my lower calves. I love skulls, and always will. But I thought I should personify them to make them a bit more classy. So I gave them a bow. Not the regular bow on the upper part of the skull; The bow is in the background, as if the skull was placed right on top. If you look at the skulls well enough, you should realise that the eye sockets are in the shape of a heart. This was done on purpose, as per my request. This is me giving my tattoos a meaning. I might have not found true love just yet, but I do believe there’s a person for every person. To me, it symbolises the fact that in such a world, it’s hard to find love, and when you find it, you should embrace it and work hard on it… ‘until death do us apart’.

Understood?
I hope so!

PS. It was very much worth the pain.