Our 6/21/09 Wedding Review. Woodbury Country Club, Venus Ensembles, International Sounds, Verbena Designs, Barnaby Draper Photography, Designer Limos, MGM salon & Spa, La Quina Inn & Suites

Hi all! This board was so incredibly helpful while we were planning our wedding i wanted to make sure to post our review. Enjoy!

Our 6/21/09 Wedding Review. Woodbury Country Club, Venus Ensembles (Ceremony Music), International Sounds (DJ), Verbena Designs (Florist), Barnaby Draper Photography & Video, Designer Limos, MGM salon & Spa, La Quina Inn & Suites

WOODBURY COUNTRY CLUB: They were fantastic! We had both the ceremony and reception there. As soon as we visited we fell in love with the gorgeous grounds and the inside was just as nice! We knew we wanted an outdoor ceremony. We were in the downstairs garden room, with the gazebo and large rectangular pool with the fountains outside and it was just perfect. Even though it was overcast on the day of our wedding, it still looked beautiful and the pictures still came out great.

All through the process our banquet manger Caroline was very professional and helpful, and was very patient with our many phone calls. On the day of everything went off without a hitch, even the rain held off, and they had everything set up for both inside and outside just in case. Even after a short rain shower right before, they wiped off all the chairs and we were able to have our ceremony outside which was beautiful.

The food and the service were INCREDIBLE! everything was delicious and ran smoothly. I really didn't have to worry about much. And we are still getting compliments from our guest about the food and service. And Woodbury Country Club has the best cocktail hour ever! The amount of food you get for the price is such a good value, and everything is super delicious! And we're very picky when it comes to food, so that was very important to us.
www.woodburycc.com

VENUS ENSEMBLES (Ceremony Music): I think i found them through one of the bride websites. We had string quartet and they were great! Jessica was always super quick to respond to emails and the whole process was very seamless. The day of they arrived early and were very professional. Their playing was top notch and were able to find the songs i had requested with no problem. They were a little more expenisve than others, but i didn't have to worry about them and it was just perfect.
www.venusensembles.com

INTERNATIONAL SOUNDS DJ: George, Lou, and the rest of the team were really fantastic! We're still getting rave reviews about the music! People I've never seen dance in my family were on the dance floor all night! And my husband and i had SO much fun! The whole night just flowed seamlessly, and everyone had a blast! From our first meeting we just loved George. Also, he was great with us in planning. He was always quick to respond to emails or phone calls and was very patient with our many emails back and forth. And definitely check out the lighting packages. The lighting made it even better!
www.internationalsounds.com

BARNABY DRAPER PHOTO & VIDEO: We got his info from my husband's cousin and after meeting with him we knew we wanted him to do our wedding. Barnaby and his whole staff were AMAZING!!!!! Not only did they take incredible pictures, they were super friendly (and funny) and kept everyone at ease. And he and his staff were a lot of fun to be around while taking our pictures. We totally had a blast with them! And we didn't have to worry about the pictures, it just went seamlessly. Barnaby was very cool, go with the flow and down to earth and was able to navigate my divorced family and my new in laws family with ease. Everyone on all sides loved him! Even my dad kept saying, 'Barnaby's the man!'. And they literally got pictures of everyone, all families, friends, people dancing, not dancing, the kids, even cool artistic shots of the surroundings, and the whole time they were totally not intrusive, but still got every shot. And we got the link to the pictures a little over a week after the wedding which was very exciting! It was so fast! And all the pictures are really like mini works of art! I can't stop looking at them and even a few hours after sending out the link, we got rave reviews from family and friends! The website they use is awesome, b/c all of your friends and family can just purchase the pictures on their own, and you can create favorites, it's really an awesome website for the pictures, and very user friendly (even my grandma figured out how to use it lol). Also, in the planning stage and after process, they are always quick to respond to emails and phone calls, and are always super helpful. And they were very patient with our emails...lol. Overall, Barnaby and his staff were FABULOUS! At first i was concerned it was a little pricier than other photographers we looked at, but it was so worth every penny! They are INCREDIBLE!!!
www.barnabydraper.com/

VERBENA DESIGNS FLORIST: I actually found them through this board. What struck me at first was that they only do one wedding a day. And once we met with Jen we loved her. Not only was she super nice but she was willing to really work with us and also work within our budget. She also had great ideas without being pushy. And she really listened to my ideas and helped us figure out what would work best. The day of the flowers were so GORGEOUS! They honestly were beyond my expectations. And the day off Jen and her staff were so super great, they even had everything ready to go flower wise for both an indoor or outdoor ceremony. Everything looked so beautiful, and they were the sweetest to work with. Definitely a great experience!
www.verbenadesigns.com

DESIGNER LIMOS: I also found them through these boards. And looked at a lot of reviews. After calling around, their prices were reasonable and they had great reviews. They were great! We originally booked the double decker limo bus, but then had to downgrade to 3 normal limos, and they were very helpful in making the switch. the day of they arrived on time, the limos were clean and they looked shiny and new. the drivers we had were super nice. and helped everyone in and out of the limos, especially the grandmothers (and the grandmothers loved our drivers...lol). would definitely recommend them.
www.designerlimo.com

MGM SALON & SPA Westbury (Hair & Makeup): I went on a lot of really horrible trials in the LI and NYC area, and this was my last trial. I googled salons near our hotel, this came up, and their prices were SO good ($65 for bridal hair, $45 for makeup) i was like i can't not check this place out. And i was so trialed out, i expected to totally hate it, but i LOVED IT! When i first walked in, it's a smaller shop, i was like oh no, but don't judge a book by it's cover. They were fantastic! I loved my trial (hair and makeup) and the day of it was even better. The staff is very nice and even though they had to close early the day of the wedding, they were able to switch their schedule to accommodate our rather large bridal party. They did about 15 of us, including me, mothers, grandmothers, bridal party, and the flower girls and everyone loved their hair. And the prices were super reasonable.
www.mgmhair.com

LA QUINTA INN & SUITES GARDEN CITY: So we kind of got stuck with this hotel, but it actually ended up being FABULOUS! We had a lot of out of town guests, and found out that the weekend of our wedding was also the weekend of the US golf open. So when we looked for hotels, everything was booked up and there were no hotels available within a half hour radius, except for this hotel. So luckily we got a huge block of rooms and it actually ended up being perfect. The front desk staff and the manager were really super helpful and nice throughout the whole process. Their group sales department wasn't the greatest. They wouldn't return calls and they gave our guest incorrect info. So we just ended up going through the front desk and manager and they were GREAT! The hotel rooms are clean, rather large, and it has a hot tub, gym, and bar area. After the rehearsal dinner we hung out at the hot tub and bar all night. And the bridal suite (and their other suites) were perfect for getting ready. Also, it was reasonably priced. It was much cheaper than the other hotels, and was just as good. So even though we got stuck with it, it really worked out perfectly!
http://www.lq.com/lq/properties/propertyProfile.do?ident=LQ2056&propId=2056

Re: Our 6/21/09 Wedding Review. Woodbury Country Club, Venus Ensembles, International Sounds, Verbena Designs, Barnaby Draper Photography, Designer Limos, MGM salon & Spa, La Quina Inn & Suites

Congrats...great review.

Re: Our 6/21/09 Wedding Review. Woodbury Country Club, Venus Ensembles, International Sounds, Verbena Designs, Barnaby Draper Photography, Designer Limos, MGM salon & Spa, La Quina Inn & Suites

Thank you so much for posting. WCC is where I am getting married and I am a little nervous about the place since I don't hear too much feedback about it. I have the garden suite too! Did they let you have the grounds the entire time? I'm glad you were happy with their service. If you have any tips or advice on anything they did, please share. would love to hear it. congrats again!!!

Re: Our 6/21/09 Wedding Review. Woodbury Country Club, Venus Ensembles, International Sounds, Verbena Designs, Barnaby Draper Photography, Designer Limos, MGM salon & Spa, La Quina Inn & Suites

Did La Quina provide shuttle service for your guests on the way home from your wedding ???????

Re: Our 6/21/09 Wedding Review. Woodbury Country Club, Venus Ensembles, International Sounds, Verbena Designs, Barnaby Draper Photography, Designer Limos, MGM salon & Spa, La Quina Inn & Suites

Congrats!!! great review!!!

Re: Our 6/21/09 Wedding Review. Woodbury Country Club, Venus Ensembles, International Sounds, Verbena Designs, Barnaby Draper Photography, Designer Limos, MGM salon & Spa, La Quina Inn & Suites

congrats! great review!!

Re: Our 6/21/09 Wedding Review. Woodbury Country Club, Venus Ensembles, International Sounds, Verbena Designs, Barnaby Draper Photography, Designer Limos, MGM salon & Spa, La Quina Inn & Suites

yeah! glad you had a great time and i'm so happy to hear la quinta worked out well for you - we're booking our block with them this afternoon!!!

Re: Our 6/21/09 Wedding Review. Woodbury Country Club, Venus Ensembles, International Sounds, Verbena Designs, Barnaby Draper Photography, Designer Limos, MGM salon & Spa, La Quina Inn & Suites

great review!!