Castalia Wedding Gallery

joyannnn

New Member
I sign my packages in with Castalia August 2013, followed by October 2013 my ROM which I have 1 gown rented from them followed by January 2014 my photo shoots and wedding held in Singapore in upcoming MAY 2014.

Let don’t mention about the packages or prices I have signed.

During this period of time a lot of selection to be done from Gowns, hand bouquets, photos selections EVEN car centre pieces etc.

During all these selections done, especially brides have a common problem; that’s either cannot decide or is keep making changes. Staff whom handle me most of the time are Helen & Joey, they are “flexible” & professional to allowing us on the changes we have made. Of cos not too ridiculous changes I am referring here. (eg. After selection of my gowns for my actual wedding after 2 tries, I have decide to change away my selection).Before i even signed my packages, i actually tried more than 2times on the same gown to ensure proven i do really like this gown. From you could tell their patience on serving you especially i remembered it was on a busy Saturday.

Another good service I receive from Castalia are the PROFESSIONALIZE & PATIENCE of the photography services!! We are lead by “AH YUAN & WEI JIE”. How to I define PROFESSIONALIZE & PATIENCE . It’s very important that photographer will lead the couple into the photo shoot mood & brings out the atmosphere on the entire day of shooting. Especially couples tends to be feeling over nervous & uneasy

One more thing importantly I like about their services are they followed up VERY closely with couples on schedules! A friendly call on the day before the appointment. This very important couples upon preparing for their BIG DAY!

To us services are more importantly rather than the prices of the packages given. Monetary wise it could
flexibility work along it. But if you have encountered poor services guess its going to be a suffer for till your wedding ended. !

Hi! May I know how do they do about in bringing the dresses over to SG for actual day? Is there any extra charges?
 


sherlynsam

Member
Hi! May I know how do they do about in bringing the dresses over to SG for actual day? Is there any extra charges?

Hi, from what i know... You would need to collect from them or you could task someone to do so. You would have to put a safety deposit (ringgit or sgd) that is returnable upon return of the gowns in good condition. I know if its just very minor defects that can be resolved easily, they arent gonna squabble with you over it, but if it is some wine stain which cannot be removed, then you would need to bear the full cost of the dress.

In my opinion, it will be more advisable for you to do so personally because you would want to try it on in case if any last minute alterations are required (i believe most of us choose our gowns months before hand becuz you would immediately want to reserve the piece you set your eyes on immediately). Collecting it personally can also allow you to check for defects to ensure you dont pick up the liability upon returning. And if it is really ruined, *touchwood*, at least you can demand to select another piece (unlikely to happen tho).
 

joyannnn

New Member
I just realized that there is a thread for Castalia Wedding Gallery. Good things are meant to be shared; especially for those doing their wedding preparations and intending to do their pre-wedding photography in JB.

Of all the decisions i have made so far for the wedding preparations, Castalia Wedding Gallery impresses me the most and I am dead sure I would select them even if I can re-make all my choices again. I am currently at the "confirming layout stage".

Like all brides, I did my fair share of research prior to sealing the stamp with Castalia. In fact, I am very kiasu. Even before my hubby proposed to me, I already accompanied my GFs and sister for window shopping since late 2013. Singapore and JB bridal shops, I covered many of them - Destino, Spozami, Mondore, Venus, SG Bridal, White Link, Rico-a-Mona, Thomson Wedding, Privately run studios, Overseas shoots (Macau, Bali, Taiwan, Japan, Greece, Paris, Venice, Prague) etc. Not sure why but somehow I just did not step into Castalia Wedding Gallery then. When it was my turn, I started scrolling around FB to peek at those who posted their pictures, and there.... I spotted Castalia Wedding Gallery from 2 not so close colleagues. I was already taken in then when I saw their photos. It was just very different from whatever I have seen so far. I did not immediately contact them still but continued to look around. I finally contacted them around April this year to check on the rates and package. After much dilemma between Rico-a-Mona (the gowns are super nice I have to admit), a newly set up studio (perks were madness and very cheap - everything bao ga liao) and them, I eventually picked them and it was never because of the price. If i really wanted cheap, I would have taken a bao ga liao package. A myraid of factors on why I chose them.

a) Service/Customer-Centric
Never once did the staff at Castalia pressured or tried to upsell me things. From the point i met JC to telling her i still need to look around, she didnt give me any black face or keep pushing me. She also took the time to explain their packages to me after hearing our needs. Most JB shops simply just pushed us their most expensive package. I just did my AD gowns and photo selections yesterday with JC and Joey respectively. Before I arrived, JC already had gowns prepared for me to try. I took about 1.5 hours to select a bridal gown and an evening gown. My third gown was a kwa so meh, nth much to select (tradition so ive no choice). For photos and layout, Joey was sitting there with us for 3.5 hours listening to our story and letting us contemplate over our picture choices. She doesnt even walk away, just fully focused on us. No upselling at all. Majority of my payments to Castalia has already been made prior to photos selection (left with only 400RM) but they still serve me so earnestly and gave me a lot of attention. The service simply supercedes any of the BS I have visited on my own and with my GFs.

b) Personalisation
Every wedding i go to, I will always check out the album. I have been to at least 20 weddings in the last 2 years and every album seriously looks the same to me or otherwise looks very cliche. Castalia is the only gallery that can actually personalize your album for your story. Most other shops would just blend in some poses here and there, nice backdrops/backgrounds, some lame hair-standing phases or worse, simply just the photo itself (my sis!). There are so many who spend thousands of dollars to custom make exclusive gowns or buy designer gowns, spend even more thousands just to fly to Greece - Santorini or even Grand Canyon in Vegas and they simply end up as an object in that beautiful background. No feel, no connection. I now know why people tell me that the album is kept in the storeroom - it probably didnt have a story and the album is just a ritual. Mine will definitely be different!

c) Album Layout and Design
We had Joey who will assist us in putting together all the beautiful shots from scratch for us. Lots of drawings and markings during our planning. Ive not seen the actual design yet but im sure it will be good. I am pretty sure the albums you have seen so far at weddings are simply very effortless compilation (boxed up or same theme pictures blended into the page).

d) Pre-Wedding Team's Professionalism
Before our shoot, I was introduced to our photographer, Jay and MUA, Gina. Jay showed us his works to give us ideas as we were still clueless as to what kind of pictures we want to take. Gina gave me advice on my hair (damn short zzz), face etc. I just told her that i want the natural look. We did not speak much then. Prior to the shoot, we had already been sending Jay ideas we want to try (naw.. not your Korean look alike thingy, not special enough). During the shoot was where he impresses me the most, he is very open to trying out whatever ideas we had and take the extra effort to get the best angle (i.e. standing on a ladder, lying on the wet dirty ground, standing in awkward positions, etc), constantly thinking out of the box, consistently checking every picture's feel/pose/overall look... He could have just do the norm as every couple does and not needing to waste time to get the best angles and light for our ideas. He showed us sneaks during the shoot which got me even more thrilled. You can have the nicest and most expensive gowns, most beautiful backgrounds, but with a mediocore photographer, that's it... You are just an object in a pretty thing and beautiful background. You have seen those right, the tiny couple against vast beautiful backgrounds, makes you wonder if you should be saying wah the background so nice or the couple is so nice.

To be honest, both me and hubby feel that we are underpaying Castalia for the effort. Yes! Even after we purchased extra pictures and pages (still slightly more than a thousand dollars cheaper than a similar SG package i found. must compare apple to apple la). I couldnt help with the purchasing because the photos were so perfect (just edit some blemishes and some other minor edits).

What was their package like? Do they return all soft copies?
 

sherlynsam

Member
What was their package like? Do they return all soft copies?

Nope. They do not return all soft copies. I dont think most BS return either unless its those shady bao ga liao packages. You will know what i mean when you see the real pictures. But anw even if you go to the shop, they will show you the best haha! You need to have friends/family who have done such packages to know. Lol. So... Choose your BS properly, cuz re-doing means more time and money.

Well, i took the cheapest standard package cuz my mentality at the point of time was that the album is just gonna end up in the storeroom. It wasnt so much of a budget issue cuz bao ga liao packages are very much cheaper. Fyi, cheapest i found was SGD4888 (pre-wed to ad all in, vg, pg, mua, etc). The reasons on why i chose them is on my super long post abv so i wont repeat la. But anw, given a choice again, i would still take Castalia's cheapest standard package which is RM4388, not including gst 6%. Ill pm you the package details cuz their items can change here and there.

Anw, the 1-day package was already sufficient for me. I had like more than 140 picture perfect pictures to choose from, that itself is a huge headache for me and my hubby. Jay's style is such that before he takes the next pose, he would check back on the last pic he took ensuring that the angle, lighting, colour, pose, smile, face, etc looks ok then he will move on. So yups... Every picture they showed me, i felt very difficult to put it in the reject pile. Plus although technically there are just those standard backdrops and scenes, Castalia and Jay welcome new ideas to suit your 'story' and what you want. You will get what i mean when you view their albums, you can ask them to show you those latest ones in the computer too. I self-created a number of my own scenes and my hubby also wanted pics with his precious car, it could be why we ended up with so many pictures too. Anws, our shoot lasted from 10.30am to 9.30pm (makeup started at 9am). We had our lunch and dinner too. They were very nice, i was starving so they ordered zhi char for me and hubby and waited for us to finish.
 

joyannnn

New Member
Hello! Sharing my experiences with Castalia. Have yet went down to their physical shop. But has been communicating with JC and she is really helpful in clarifying my doubts. I'm going down next Tuesday to talk about the packages as well as viewing some of the gowns! Hope can find some that fits me!
 

sherlynsam

Member
Hello! Sharing my experiences with Castalia. Have yet went down to their physical shop. But has been communicating with JC and she is really helpful in clarifying my doubts. I'm going down next Tuesday to talk about the packages as well as viewing some of the gowns! Hope can find some that fits me!

Nice! Going on a weekday is less hectic as compared to the weekend. You can go to seven oaks in the area to try the famous salted egg yolk crossiant, 1.30pm gotta queue.
 

joyannnn

New Member
Hello! Went down Castalia today and signed the package already! JC is Super friendly and helpful. Tuesday my Friend and I went down first. We tried so many gowns and find the gowns so beautiful! then today we went down with our bfs to sign the package. All the staffs are very nice and friendly! Can't wait to try our gowns and start our photoshoot!

P.S. The salted egg yolk croissant is good! My BF love it but my Friend say it's okay only. I Guess different people different preference! Haha
 

sherlynsam

Member
Yay! Happy for you. Definitely gonna be a choice you wont regret. :) Be prepared to add photos during your photo selection kekeke! Dont say i didnt warn you lol. I was firm on not purchasing but our minds changed after we saw the pictures. :p

I guess different people different tastes! I tried quite a lot but still like theirs. How was the queue?

Hello! Went down Castalia today and signed the package already! JC is Super friendly and helpful. Tuesday my Friend and I went down first. We tried so many gowns and find the gowns so beautiful! then today we went down with our bfs to sign the package. All the staffs are very nice and friendly! Can't wait to try our gowns and start our photoshoot!

P.S. The salted egg yolk croissant is good! My BF love it but my Friend say it's okay only. I Guess different people different preference! Haha
 

Castalia Wedding Gallery

Bridal Boutique
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RachelYeo

New Member
Castalia standards have definitely dropped. After signing up for package you will realise you have to push them to get things done. Gowns not that great condition and few new gowns. I worked with JC who promised everything i asked about can definitely be done which my friends had told me to check about. Eg types of photographs, poses, editing, designing. But after photoshoot, JC will say certain things cannot be done. Always pushy when come to ask to pay $$$ but when I want to get things done I have to push hard and only then she will try to sort it out. You must be lucky to get good photographer also who is experienced. Some of their photographers may be blur and make you take typical poses. Eva the mua is good though
 

Sia angie

New Member
I still rmb the feeling when I first walked into Castalia. A humble shop located amongst all the other boutiques.. The warmth and friendliness.. I guess i can never find it in Singapore, thats the reason why i choose to make a trip to JB and even entrust them to such impt role of my milestone.

Special mention to Catherine, for being always so helpful and patient. Thank you for coming down early and help me out during my photoshoot! Thank you for all that u have done! I really appreciate it!

Next the man behind all the beautiful pictures, Ah Jay! Thank you for making the photoshoot sessions a fun and enjoyable one. Thank you for sacrificing urself , lying down on the road under the scorching hot sun just to take the perfect shot! Thank you for always thinking out of the box to make our shots look special! Thank you for taking in our ideas and giving us many advices!

Next is Devan! Ok i dunno how to spell his name but he is the man behind all my neat dresses. And all the flying dresses. Thank you for being so very conscientious abt all the little details of my gowns and never complain abit! Thank you so much !!

JOEY! She is the one who always bring happiness to my hubby and I. Thank you for always going the extra mile for us and giving us whatever u can. We really appreciate all that u have done!

Eva, is the makeup artist for my shoot! She is very confident of her work and she pays attention to every little details be it our face or our hair.

To every single one at Castalia, as our pre-wedding journey is coming to an end soon, I know shawn and I will start missing every memories we had at Castalia. All the laughters were a great part of our wedding. To many more laughters at Castalia and to many more nice customers! I will miss all of u, i guess shawn will too! Thank you all for creating a new friendship! ❤️❤️❤️❤️
 

Maomao22

New Member
I did my fair share of research before engaging Castalia Wedding as my bridal studio. Indeed, the good reviews that I've gathered works the same way for me. I really enjoy my entire wedding journey with Castalia!

I had Ah Yen as my pre-wed photographer. He really captured the best moments for us. His professionalism, the way he calmed us down when we were overly nervous for the shoot, the way he entertained us with jokes, how he input our ideas into the shoot.. Thanks for everything!

Eva was my MUA for both the indoor and outdoor shoot! I have admit I have lousy skin but she covered my flaws really well! Thank you Eva!

Joey who helped with the album layout, Catherine who was always so patient with me during gown fitting, JC who helped with my photos, Helen and many more whom I have contact with!

Castalia treated us like their own and we often visit them for a chit chat session! They know us best! Haha!

Keep up the great work Castalia! Will definitely introduce your services to anyone who's getting married! :)

From Alan & Li Ling
 

jenny yi

New Member
Hi , everyone ...

Recall that day we go directly through CASTALIA to understand package...I and my husband didn't consider to signing that day...Because of their good service attitude and very friendly...
After a long time now we are like friends to get along...

The most important is my relatives,friends and family are very fond of my wedding dress...So we didn't regret choosing u,CASTALIA...

Thanks to CASTALIA for all the staff
 
Hi , everyone ...

Recall that day we go directly through CASTALIA to understand package...I and my husband didn't consider to signing that day...Because of their good service attitude and very friendly...
After a long time now we are like friends to get along...

The most important is my relatives,friends and family are very fond of my wedding dress...So we didn't regret choosing u,CASTALIA...

Thanks to CASTALIA for all the staff
Hihi mind sharing your experience through pm? Tqvm
 

Castalia Wedding Gallery

Bridal Boutique
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ITS OUR ANNIVERSARY !! Come March it is our 5th anniversary , we wholeheartedly thank all of our beloved couples who have made us part of their special day. And to show our gratitude we are offering great deals throughout March for soon to be MR & MRS. So call us or email us now for the details.
 

diiana

New Member
We were just trying to look around jb area for bridal shop and castalia was the first and last shop we stepped into. Got no intention to sign package but was happy with their service and the package they offer.
 

sherlynsam

Member
Did anyone engage their AD service? What's the package like? Which photographer and MUA you all recommend?

Hi.. Hope my message did not come too late. I almost wanted to hire their AD but ended up not. In terms of photography skills, they are good.. But I wasn't so confident on their video skills and editing skills. You would really need an experienced videographer who is creative! I hired Jackie Tan from SweetPotatoz for that. As for my MUA, I secretly hired Gina Gan (also known as Eva) from Castalia. She is awesome! I love her make up and hairstyling skills. Everyone was full of praises on my make up and hairstyles.
 

thebelljar

New Member
Hi all, I am a Singaporean bride who was planning my wedding with Castalia in the last six months. I just wanted to share my positive experience here now that my wedding has successfully ended!

I strongly recommend Castalia as a partner for photography, MUA and bridal services. The package is extremely value-for-money given the quality of the service. The people were nice, patient and friendly, not pushy or aggressive at all. In the beginning, Yuan (supervisor/head of photography) provided a good introduction to Castalia and went through a wide range of their previous works/portfolio so we can have a sense of the photos/direction that we like. JC explained the different packages and provided good clarifications to our queries on the scheduling, process and rates. As mentioned earlier by sherlynsam, Castalia is flexible enough to remove items that we didn't want in exchange for more photos or pages in the photo albums. Just let them know your concerns and they will advise on the alternatives.

After signing the package, we met our photographer Peter, who went into details about the type of story, mood and feel that we desire in the photos. Personally I love the outdoors, so he suggested three outdoor locations for the one-day shoot. On the day of the shoot, Peter was not feeling too well but he was very professional and put us at ease in front of the camera. Peter joked around with his assistant Dyven, gave us good directions on how to pose (given that we were so inexperienced) and at various points just lay down on the dirty roads just to take a shot from the perfect angle. We are so thankful to have Peter and Dyven who drove us around, carried all our things, waited tirelessly for us, and arranged our suits/gowns/props before every click of the camera just so that we can have beautiful photos. They are true professionals.

I want to give a SPECIAL thank you to my favourite make-up artist Minna - whom I can tell is a hardworking perfectionist and highly ethical person with a genuine passion for make-up and fashion. I never had to micromanage her, I just had to show her a few pictures of the hairstyles/make-up that I like, and she would perfectly adapt the look for me according to my facial features. If she thinks something doesn't suit me or won't work, she would let me know honestly and suggest better options. Whether it was my pre-wedding shoot or actual day of the wedding (I engaged her services for both), I received rave reviews from my guests for all the different hairstyles/make-up and how fantastic my entire look was. (I am not pretty so you can imagine how much work that would be for Minna.) In the run up to the shoot/wedding, she would send me reminders to put on facial masks and other tips to make sure I look my best. She spends a long time perfecting every look and you will never feel short-changed or rushed. I also looked into her huge case and almost all the make-up products that she uses are branded stuff, not cheap knock-offs from China. I eventually found out from friends that many MUAs do not practise this as it eats into their margins, so it just goes to show how committed Minna is to making sure that her clients get to use the best products (which she mostly pays out of her own pocket). She also has a wide range of accessories and taught me a lot about make-up during our time together. If you want to find a reliable, skillful and professional MUA, look no further.

Also a BIG SHOUT-OUT to Joey, who is the bubbly and fun-loving chiobu in charge of editing the photos and layout of my photo album. You will meet her when you come down for an appointment to select your photos. She would make the entire process fun and entertaining for you. If you have a tight budget, just let her know and she will try to help you find the most cost-effective way to choose the photos and arrange the layout. She WILL NOT hardsell you at all, and you can take as long as you like to think about the photos. She will also give her opinion on photos that she genuinely thinks are beautiful and should be kept. She also did a wonderful job doing the layout for the photo album. After choosing the photos and deciding on the layout, I made a last minute request to collect the album earlier. Joey actually had to rush out the design and print job for me within a short timespan as she was going on leave and refused to leave the job to another less experienced person. Needless to say, the final product was flawless. Thank you so much Joey!

Along the way, I want to thank Wing and Janice who patiently helped me with the gown choosing/fitting for both pre-wedding photoshoot and actual day. The gowns ended up looking amazing in all my photos! Catherine and Helen were also very helpful and conscientious in settling the administrative paperwork and preparing all the items (gowns, album, frames, bridal car decorations) that needed to be transported back to Singapore. The entire team also entertained me with plenty of stories and interesting conversations. Despite the hassle of going to and fro JB (without a car), even if I were to repeat the entire process, I would still choose Castalia again as my bridal studio. Every single person in the studio made our journey smoother and happier. They now feel more like family and friends. I am already missing them, as I know I will no longer be travelling to JB as frequently as before. THANK YOU ALL OF YOU AT CASTALIA! <3

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