Other Helpful Wedding Blogs

Soundtrack To I Do
Brides and Grooms are you looking for more inspiration and/or music for your wedding?  Check out this awesome blog I stumbled upon while planning our wedding.

http://www.soundtracktoido.com
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Love Story Chick
From vintage to couture my friend Meghan creates her blog through visual inspirations.  Check out her great ideas organized by style.
http://lovestorychick.blogspot.com/

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Photography by Anel

(write up review on Anel - fyi amazing)

Here is our photo album website created by Anel.  The song that is played is our first dance song which was also our first concert ever together.

http://180312mucci.dreamsriveriacancun.adventurephotos.com.mx/#/mucci/

Gazebo Ceremony & Decorations

The Ultimate Package Wedding Package includes your choice of the Gazebo or the Beach.  We chose the Gazebo since I knew I didn't want to have my wedding on the beach and I def wanted to rock out my fabulous shoes.

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REHEARSAL

The day before the wedding, the wedding party and parents met up for 10 min to do a quick rehearsal for the wedding with us.  At this time we gave Yamina the order we wanted and also we gave her our CD of music to be played and when.  

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Our package included white linens for the wedding and dinner.
We had the option of using covered chairs or the open style chairs.  I liked how the the fully covered chairs looked when a picture was taken from the back. I felt like my chair bows didn't get lost in peoples clothing showing through the chairs from the back end, but that is just my personal choice.

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This is other option of chairs.

They will be white if you choose the Tiffany style chairs.

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Chair Bows 

www.bbcrafts.com

If you bring the chair bows with you the resort will add them to the chairs for you free of charge, they will also bring them over to the dinner/reception too.  This also applies with any decorations you bring.

I had a few extra bows and they used them to line the rim of the gazebo - which is typically a $200 up charge.  

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The center isle leading up to the Gazebo had a long white carpet runner.  I was then asked if I wanted seashells or rocks to line the sides of the aisle.  I used the rocks since my theme wasn't very "beachy".  You will be asked what you want to use when you go over everything with the coordinator when you arrive at DRC.

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Champagne Toast

Since our wedding was over 20 people we choose not to do the champagne Toast, which was included in our package, immediately following the wedding with all of our guests.  We were not able to transfer any credit for this to another area either. Since there was more then 20 people they were going to charge per class extra.  To our surprise when we walked down the aisle they gave us (the bride and groom) champagne for the two of us!

Buffet Dinner Menus

If you are having 40+ Guests at your wedding.  You will be asked to choose from the Buffet Dinner Menus. Out of the 3 choices we chose the Caribbean Buffet and it was tasty.

Mexican Buffet Dinner 

Salad bar 

Shrimp Ceviche

Calamari Ceviche 

Fish Ceviche 

Guacamole

Mexican salsa

Beef Salpicon

Hot dish

Chicken tamales with mole sauce 

Hard shell beef tacos 

Chicken fajitas

Mexican rice 

Melted cheese with Mexican sausage

Cheese turnovers

Show cooking

Tacos pastor style

Mexican flank steak on the grill 

Desserts 

Mexican flan

Fried Mexican pastry 

Buñuelos with caramel sauce

Caribbean Buffet Dinner

Salad bar

Crab salad

Tuna salad 

Tomato and smoke salmon

Avocado and shrimp salad 

Tropical fruit salad

Green salad

Hot dish

Rice with beans and fried plantain

Chicken breast filed with vegetable served with mango sauce 

Sea bass filet with coconut sauce 

Mix vegetables with garlic butter

Stuff potatoes with bacon and cheese

Show cooking 

Baby back ribs with rum BBQ sauce 

Beef kebabs with mushroom and bell peppers 

Dessert 

Pineapple turnover

Warm apple pie 

Chocolate cake  

BBQ  Buffet  Dinner

SALAD BAR

FIELD GREEN WITH QUESADILLAS CROUTONS 

CURRIED CHICKEN DALAD 

FRESH VEGETEBAL PASTA SALAD 

THREE BEAN SALAD 

ROASTED POTATOS SALAD

CRANBERRY-WALNUT CABBAGE SLAW

CARROTTE AND RAISIN SALAD 

HOT DISH 

CAJUN GRILLED CORN

BAKE POTATOS WITH BACON AND GLAZED ONIONS 

GRILLED TERIYAKI MUSHROOM 

SMOKY GRILLED VEGETEBAL 

RICE WITH BLACK BEANS 

SHOW COOKING 

BEFF AND PORK RIBS ON THE BARBIE

TUNA AND SALMON KABOB MARINED WITH LIME AND HERBES

GRILL JERK CHICKEN BREAST 

DESSERT

MILLEFEUILLE WITH MASCARPONE AND STRAWBERRY 

BANANA FRITTERS WITH ICE CREAM 

CHEESECAKE WITH PEACH

Ultimate Package Wedding & Additions

Here is all the details of our wedding - Trying to sort this in the best possible way to view how I choose my options and how I was able to sub out options for other options.

PACKAGE DETAILS FOR DREAMS ULTIMATE WEDDING PACKAGE

    $2,999.00 USD
This package includes:
• Services of Justice of Peace or Minister
• Wedding Organization and personalization by our wedding coordinator
• Preparation and ironing of the Wedding dress and grooms tuxedo/suit
• Complimentary room for the groom the night before the wedding
(Based on availability)
• Personal Dressing Assistant
• Use of the Wedding Gazebo or Beach
• Bride`s Bouquet
• Two boutonnieres and two corsages for parents or witnesses
• One hour Gold cocktail party with Hors D`Oeuvres
(For 20 guests staying at the hotel)
• Special Gold Wedding Dinner party (For 20 guests staying at the hotel)
• 1 Natural Floral Centerpiece for Bride & Groom dinner table
• 1 Natural Floral Centerpiece for Ceremonial Table
• Wedding cake and sparkling wine for 20 guests
• Waterford Yours Truly Champagne Flute Pair
• Special turn down service
• Bride`s hairstyling for ceremony
• Make-up application for bride
• 15% discount on all Spa Treatments (Products not included)
• 50 Full color photos and wedding album
• Honeymoon Package
• Late check-out for bride and groom (Based on availability)
• Gazebo décor based on chairs with white covers, ceremonial table & white
carpeted walk way
• Live Mexican music trio (1 set)
• Video of the ceremony (30 min. DVD edited)
• 1 Spa treatment to choose from: 1 Swedish massage for two or 1 European
facial for two or 1 Salt Glow Body Scrub for two
*Restrictions/exclusions: Subject to Availability. Double occupancy only. Note: This package cannot be combined with the Dreams Eternity Honeymoon package. The free wedding package cannot be reduced when purchasing other packages. This package also applies for renewal of vows ceremony.



Gazebo Ceremony

Please see blog post - http://thetravelingbridedrc.blogspot.com/2012/03/gazebo-ceremony-decorations.html

Lanterns & Lighting
My parents own www.oogalights.com.  So I was able to snag the lanterns from them.  I wrote the coordinator and asked if I brought my own lanterns would they let me borrow their cord at no cost, they agreed in an email.  Make sure you have some type of clarification they will let you use their strand free of cost because another groom told me they were going to charge him for renting the strand even if he brought the lanterns.
*DRC strand holds 20 Lanterns/Bulbs. 


Lighting - they will give you lights for free - they won't leave you out in the dark.  So don't worry about ordering tons of lighting.  (can't make a promise) But they did add tons of lighting by the food area which I did not pay for (see picture).

Use code: WEDDING at check out for 10% off.

www.oogalights.com

lighting at the buffet

Cake
The cake in the Ultimate Package Serves 20 People every additional person is $4.00 extra.  I showed her a picture that I found on Pinterest with the cakes stacked and a simple blue ribbon around each layer and they made it.
The topper was made using about $5 in material from the local craft store. Purchased a wooden letter M and then painted it and added some sticky gems I found in the scrapbook section.  Add some Popsicle sticks to the back and your done!  The resort added the red flowers free of charge.
*Make sure you tell them you want your topper back. I didn't tell them to save it and now I don't have it.  Which is okay since I made it for less then $5.

60 Guests - Cake Size

Flowers & Centerpieces 
Here are the questions I was asked by Gina in regards to the flowers I will break it down on how I swapped and added. My answers to her are in RED

Selection of bride´s bouquet: (select from catalogue attached, according to your wedding package)

The Ultimate Wedding Package Includes.

1 Bride bouquet DO NOT NEED 

2 Boutonnieres DO NOT NEED

2 Wrist corsages DO NOT NEED

2 Centerpiece ( one for the ceremony & one for the reception).

Additional Bridesmaids bouquet: (quantity and your selection from catalogue) - DO NOT NEED

Boutonnieres required: (will be according to brides bouquet) DO NOT NEED

Corsages required: (select design from bouquet catalogue) DO NOT NEED

Centerpiece for ceremony: (select from centerpiece catalogue)  MAYA 33 or 38 OUR COLORS ARE NAVY BLUE AND WHITE AND GRAY Possible to match or close? 

Our flowers compared to the original - we used blue flowers instead of purple.

Centerpieces for reception: (quantity and your selection from centerpiece catalogue) 6-8 quanity MAYA 23  - change red rose to white petals P - can I use credit since I wont need any flowers for wedding? Gina said yes, to adding more center pcs since I wasn't using any other flowers - free of charge.

FYI -  MAYA 23 will not work if it is too windy.  I wish I brought my flameless candles instead of using actual lit candles since they did not stay lit at all.  Not sure anyone noticed or cared once the dancing started.

I switched the red petals to white petals at no extra fee

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Dinner Buffet

Dinner menus

http://thetravelingbridedrc.blogspot.com/2012/03/buffet-dinner-menus.html

The guest count for our wedding was 60 total, which required us to do the buffet option.  Which I thought was a much better option anyways since I knew I had some picky eaters attending our wedding.  We choose the Caribbean buffet which was soooooo tasty.  It had the best selection of meats and fish as well as side choices.

Service During Dinner
I just want to say the service and attention to the guests at dinner is hands down top of the line.  There was 6 guys working the dinner and the pop up bar at the reception.  They worked their butts off, they carried the plates of each our guests to their seats, placed napkins on their laps and constantly took drink orders.
Besides their work ethic being amazing they were also very cheerful and talkative.
We tipped each guy working $50.00 for their service.

*note make sure to have someone, maybe a parent, have the cash ready for tipping after the reception is over.  I didn't have cash right away and asked if I could tip tomorrow since it was in my room and they seemed to prefer it right away.  So we ran up to the room and grabbed the cash for them that night.

DJ - Music

Ceremony

We chose to rent the sound system that they also provided a sound tech to play our cd during the ceremony
The cost was $180 + Tax per hour for the Ceremony.

Some of you were wondering what we played for our options.

Guests/ Parents of the Bride/Groom: 

We played a collaboration of music we found on YouTube from Vitamin String Quartet.  We made track 1 very long and kept combining their different songs together so that it can play while everyone was seating.  This same track was all the same for the parents and grandparents entrance.

Groom Entrance

Band of Horses – Marry Song

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D4uNSMRMR8U

Bridesmaids & Groomsmen:  

Greensleeves (piano) best version

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bSjfkwvOOAM&feature=related

Bride & her father:   

Celtic Canon In D

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pvtdqPKHk8c

Sand/Hand Fasting Ceremony:

No Music - We did an Irish hand fasting ceremony so they lady talked the whole time - that is why their was no music played.

  

Signing Certificate:

Stevie Wonder – Signed Sealed Delivered

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=inXC_lab-34

Bride & Groom EXIT:

Wake Up – Arcade Fire

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=toYwtPLvwvE&feature=BFa&list=PL7DD3513477F80791&lf=BFp

Reception Music

We continued to rent the sound system for $180.00 per hour + tax.  We used our friend from www.Doubleplatinumdj.com who was also in our wedding to play our music via his laptop.  The sound techs also provided us an additional speaker so we would get perfect stereo sound (free of charge).  We had arranged music for the dinner then jumped into music for dancing.

We really had the party going - people were dancing like crazy!  Even the servers working that night kept asking our friend what tracks he was playing.  We had over 60 guests and everyone was up on their feet.   We ended the night with a slow song from Frank Sinatra and then closed out with Daft Punk's One More Time.  This is where it got wild, me and my husband stood on top of the reception table and then crowed surfed over everyone.  Anel took some great shots!  We love going to concerts and this closing fit our personality.  

After the night was over everyone said hands down the best wedding they have ever been to.  Most people said it was because we made everything unique and personal.  I really think that is the best part about wedding now a days, brides and grooms are moving away from traditional weddings and providing guests with a more unique evening that represents the couple.

RESORT DJ INFORMATION

If you are looking to hire the resort's recommended DJ here is his information. He is very quick to respond and also emails you a form to fill out to get a list of the music you want played and when.

Name: Mauricio Neri

E-mail address:   visualsound2010@hotmail.com

Here are some photos of our DJ and the set up

Dreams Riviera Cancun Spa - Hair and Make Up

Hair

We were all overly impressed with the Spa and their quality of work at the resort.  Highly recommend and I am a stylist myself.

Make sure you book your appointments with the spa: spa2.drerc@dreamsresorts.com
I did mine about 1 month before our wedding for booking.
Also you can have the total bill charged to your room then all of the girls and moms will get an additional 15% off.  They can then go to lobby front desk and pay off their total to your room bill.

I read that brides had recommended bringing pictures in to show the Spa Stylists since they speak little English.  Don't let that detour you since I did not bring in a picture and showed them with my hands how I wanted my hair and the lady did an excellent job.

They were very quick too, there was 7 of us getting our hair done and we all finished in an hour.

Brides you will be placed in a room off the main salon room and that is where you will get your hair done.  It was nice to be in my own room but then also wanted to be out in the main area with  the rest of the girls.

They did have books to look through but if you can bring your own pictures you might be able to find something more modern.

The same girl who did my hair also did my make up.

VEIL - I would recommend not using a veil I am so glad I didn't, I watched another wedding and the girl had a veil it was a hot mess, she was holding it the whole time - totally ruined her pictures. It was wrapping around her face and flying all over she held it the whole wedding.  Just a suggestion.

Here we are doing our Kim K pose

Here is the best back view of the hair I could find.

Make Up

I didn't get a chance to see the brand of make up - but it looked like a professional brand, they might have different manufacturers since the hair products were also a brand I never heard of but worked great.

I told her just brown tones on the eyes and I let her have at it.  Usually I am super tense when people do my hair and make up but reading the reviews on BDW (which were great).  I just realized I can't get my self worked up and could always touch up when I get back to the room.  I was very surprised by the results and didn't even have to touch up anything.

TIPS - $20 to the lady who did my hair and make up
          My girls tipped $10 to their stylists.

Massage and Relaxation

We choose the Ultimate Package which included a couples massage.  I highly recommend using the service!  The spa is tranquil and peaceful tucked off to the side of the resort by the main lobby stairs.
If you choose to make a massage appointment, make sure to get their early and take advantage of all the amenities.
Bring your bathing suite.  They give you a locker to store all of your belongings that you set your own code to.  They then go over all the areas that are free to use in the spa as long as your appointment is booked.  They have a lounge area to relax and a little bar with healthy drinks to enjoy and relax.  I even saw another couple reading a book and taking a nap their too.
Also the spa has a small gym and a yoga room.

Since we were upgraded to the Honeymoon Suite we also were given a tension massage that is paired with a body scrub or facial.  We just did the 25 min massage only.


We tipped around $10-15 per massage therapist.  You also don't have to tip until you leave the Spa.  The desk has envelopes that you can write the name of the therapist and then they give it to them.  So if you wanted to keep taking advantage of the spa you don't have to run and grab your tips for them.  Which makes it nice since I left my bag in the lockers.

Gift Bags - OOT Bags ?!?!

First off for those confused, OOT Bag = Out Of Town Bag.


Now-a-days when you attended a wedding and you stay at a hotel usually there is a little surprise for you when you check in or already waiting in your room.  Gift bags include things like water, snacks and maybe some other goodies.

Well what do you do when your wedding is at an ALL inclusive resort.  Water is free, food is free..... plus your traveling to another country.  Lugging extra gifts for the rooms can get tricky.

I pondered over this for a while, searching on sites coming up with a list of ideas browsing Best Destination Forums and asked people who would have extra room in their luggage to help me haul the items down.  I have 30 rooms to provide bags for and I was not looking to deal with all that extra stuff.  Don't get me wrong, OOT bags are awesome had it only been 15 rooms I might have opted for creating some fun gift bags.  I also don't like the idea of buying "junk" for people.  Rather just give nothing at all then something someone looks at and is like... yeah garbage!

That's when my Mother-In-Law came up with the idea for Gift Certificates.
I contacted Gina (wedding coordinator) and she got me in touch with the concierge who in formed me that they can provide certificates for each of my guests to use at the resort or gift shop.  I thought this was fabulous, they can use it for whatever they wanted at the gift shop!
Concierge told me they would charge one total to my credit card then divide it up between the rooms.


Contact Concierge Email: concierge.drerc@dreamsresorts.com

I decided to write a thank you note inspired by a Pinterest post and have the letters delivered to each room with the gift certificate inside.  This was also a great way to insert the timeline for the day of the wedding.

The letter we included with the gift certificates to the DRC Gift Shop
$10.00 per guest is what we gave

FYI - They charge a $3.00 service fee + 11% tax per room delivered
We handed ours to our guests - we greeted them when they arrived.

Symbolic Wedding - Documents

Hey Brides and Grooms to be,
Hope everything in your planning is going smoothly.  Just remember to be patient as the wedding coordinators are planning high volumes of weddings at the resorts.  I do have some information to share with you below if you choose to do a Symbolic Wedding at the resort.  At the bottom of this blog is the requirements to legally marry in Mexico.

March 6th, 2012 marks the first step in our marriage as we were married legally at the court house!  1 min and 40 seconds in front of a judge is all it takes to legally get married in Illinois.  We kinda laughed, the situation was just odd.  We are going to celebrate March 18, 2012 as our actually wedding day.

Here we are in front of the Judge

Here we are shortly after in front of the court house. I'm only wearing my Sapphire wedding band since my engagement ring is getting re-plated and cleaned. We took our rings off once we got back home.  

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The wedding officiant at DRC that we are using is Linda Vargas Aguilera.

Her email is: aguilera07_50@hotmail.com

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She emailed me the following:

1. OPENING STATEMENT

2. POEM OR DECLARATION OF MARRIAGE OR LOVE
3. SAND CEREMONY
4. PRE VOWS
5. VOWS  ( EXCHANING OF THE RINGS AND SIGNING OF THE MARRIAGE CERTIFICATE)
6. CLOSING STATEMENT

If you would like me to forward the email I would be happy to do so - Kmarchewka85@gmail.com 

I screen shot the files and added them as JPGs also.

I hope all these documents make planning easier on you.

We opted not to do the Sand Ceremony and we chose to do an Irish Hand Fasting Ceremony.  Were I made a ribbon with all of our colors that gets wrapped around our hands as we join them together while the officiant asks us questions about our love for each other.

Thanks -

Kate (Marchewka) Mucci  ;)

Legal Marriage Requirements

The following list of legal requirements are needed only for legal marriage. The Dreams Riviera Cancun Wedding Coordinator must receive the following documents to begin the application for marriage in the Civil Registry Office. All documents must be translated into Spanish. Each item that is translated into Spanish will incur a $75 USD plus 11% tax. To be valid, translation must be done in Mexico.

• Tourist Card - You will receive these upon arrival at Cancun Int’l Airport.

• Bride & Groom Birth Certificates

• Valid Passports

• Blood tests must be taken in Mexico and must be taken no more 

than 14 days prior to ceremony to be valid. The blood will be tested 

for HIV, STD’s and blood type. A $300 USD + 11% tax, per couple, will apply for the Blood Test.

• Four witnesses

• A Legal Form must be completed with the names, addresses, nationalities, ages, occupations and relationship to Bride and Groom. The wedding coordinator will provide couple with the form.

• The Marriage Certificate must be sent through a validation process in order to make it legal outside of Mexico. There is a $200 USD + 11% tax charge to have the Marriage Certificate translated and may take up to 4 months. Once the document is apostilled and translated into English the wedding coordinator will send the document to the Bride and Groom’s home address. 

None of the above mentioned services are included in any of the Dreams Wedding Packages. 

Shopping on Etsy

I know some of you may already know about www.Etsy.com.  But for those of you who don't, it's basically Amazon for crafters.  We were able to purchase many items for our wedding and have them customized just for us.

FLOWERS

The first purchase we made was our Flowers.  I knew I wanted more of a vintage feel and the flower selection that was offered for the Mexico wedding wasn't what I pictured on our big day.  My bridesmaids will have the white flowers against their navy blue dresses, and my flowers are the ones that have more blue.  The designer was very open to creating something that would fit my style that mixed with her imagination.

Shipping: Slow (she was in finally days before having her baby)

{ArtsyButterfly on Etsy}

GARTER

I had this seller change the purple to Navy Blue and the beads changed to Gray.  Here is a picture of the original design I was attracted to.  $27 was a great price too!

Shipping: Quick

{HelloDesignCrew on Etsy}

PHOTO BOOTH PROPS

This next seller was quick, quick, quick with response and shipping.  I seriously felt like I blinked my eyes and they were at my door.  These heavy duty card stock props are a great extra for the wedding.  We don't have a photo booth at our wedding (although Dreams offers it) the resort is allowing us to have an extra table set up with props and disposable cameras and a sign telling our guests to "get creative." 

I ordered 2 sets and she combined the shipping and also gave us a few extra props as a gift!

Shipping: FAST

{PartyGoods on Etsy}

GUEST BOOK POSTER

This is one of my favorite purchases off Etsy.  This seller takes your finger prints and wedding information and creates a high quality poster for your guests to sign!  We choose the 13x19 size poster for.  This seller slips the poster in to a plastic case and rolls it up and ships in a tube. Which is perfect for stashing in your suitcase.  We purchased a cheap frame to carry down with us and removed the glass, we just wanted the poster to lay flat and allow people to sign.  

Shipping: FAST

{FlutterByeNotes on Etsy}

BRIDAL FEATHER FASCINATOR 

I opted not to wear a veil based on some posts I read and also a friend who told me she held her veil under her armpit the whole ceremony because of the wind.  I knew I didn't want to have to deal with that, I just wanted to be focused on my man. lol  This clip was also customized for me after I contacted the sellar. I wanted a blue feather and not a purple.  This seller was easy to work with and responded quick.

{IceGreenEyes on Etsy}

HIS RING

We loved this seller, amazing customer service.  We ordered this ring with a custom engraving.  When the ring arrived we realized we ordered to big.  Make sure if you purchase from this seller to use their FREE ring sizer  they can ship to you.  They took the ring back and remade it to the correct size.  Which was really great customer service.  Turn around time was quick, even when we had to have it remade.

Shipping: Quick

{ClassicTitanium on Etsy}

MUSTACHE FAVORS

These silly mustaches were another item we purchased on Etsy.  This seller is from Canada and shipping was not an issue.  She also through in some extras and a free gift as a wedding present.  She makes each of these and stuffs them with filling to give them a 3D effect.  Quality is good and would recommend.  We gave these favors to the men and the women get pashmina scarves that I will mention in another post.

Shipping: Standard allow a couple weeks for larger orders

{YummyPocket on Etsy}

That sums up the items I purchased on Etsy.com for our wedding.  This website is filled with tons and tons of sellers and the ideas are endless.  

Tips: 

Create an account

Contact the seller first to see how long of a lead time there is

Give them a time a few weeks before your deadline just in case.

Always ask the seller if they are able to change something to fit your wedding dreams

Shop around use the key word search for finding items similar maybe for less or better customer service.

Remember to write a review after purchasing/receiving

I hope this helps make your wedding more unique!

(I do not get paid to endorse nor do I sell on Etsy.com this was just advice)