Review for Jericho Terrace wedding on August 30, 2013

To view my professional wedding pictures go to collages.net. Username is casiano and password is 17646.

I’m so happy to be writing my wedding review. I still can’t believe I’m married. Michael and I have been together for almost 9 years and we have an almost 3 year old daughter, Arianna. He’s Puerto Rican and I am Italian. The whole planning process and day of the wedding went by too quickly. I didn’t really enjoy planning the wedding. It was just too much drama for me and was very stressful. I’m very happy it is over with and more than happy that the wedding was better than I expected. Everything was perfect and everyone was really happy to be there for us. My husband never wanted a wedding but since I did, he did it for me. He would have been happy to have gotten married at City Hall. There were times when I told myself why am I doing this for because it is just too stressful for me. After the wedding, my husband said that he is happy we did a wedding because he had so much fun and was so happy everything went well. It was worth it.
I was so happy to find LIWeddings.com. I love to read other posts and look at the pictures. It was nice knowing that I wasn’t the only one that was having family drama. All I have to say is that everything really does work out in the end. I want to thank everyone here for being so nice and helpful. You all are a great bunch of ladies and I have enjoyed coming on here and reading about all of your wedding planning.

Invitations: David’s Bridal - A
I didn’t want to go crazy on invitations. My bridesmaid dresses were purple which is the color called Wisteria so I matched the font to the dresses and found invitations with my double hearted theme. I ordered online and it was easy and fast. I liked that they were able to put the wisteria color in the lining of the envelope because it made it look nicer. I had them also print the guest address and my address on each envelope and I thought it came out really good. The price was fantastic and I have no regrets. Everyone liked them and I was happy with their services.

Church: St Anastasia in Douglaston
They were doing construction on the outside of the church and I was worried that it wouldn’t be ready. On the day of the rehearsal which was 2 days before the wedding, it looked really bad and I was panicking. Thank goodness on the day of the wedding all was good and it was like the construction never took place. I love the fact that my church is a few blocks from where I live.

Favors: Fox’s Gift Shop in Flushing - A+
My family always goes to them whenever we have an event to celebrate. They are super nice and I love how pretty they wrap up the favors and they even add the Italian Jordan Almonds. We always get a discount because we all use them so much. There was this beautiful silver platter dish that caught my eye that had jewels outlined around it. It was very pretty and everyone loved the favor so much.

Card box: It was nice of my cousin to let me borrow her white card box. It was one less expense for me and it looked great in the reception room. It was really elegant and I am happy to have used it.

My dress: David’s Bridal – A
My mom told me she was going to pay for my dress, veil and shoes so I felt bad and didn’t want her to spend so much. I went to Estelle’s, Macy’s in Manhasset, this wedding dress store near where I live and finally ended up at David’s Bridal. The dresses I had picked out online were discontinued or they didn’t come in my size so the consultant pulled some dresses for me. I tried on my dress twice to make sure and I love that I picked it. It was very comfortable and everyone said how pretty the dress looked on me. I felt beautiful in it and thrilled with my choice. Everyone was saying how skinny I looked in it. I did alterations there too and that was crazy. They were always busy and it was always hectic and so happy I am done with that. I also got my tiara and shoes from David’s Bridal too. I love the tiara. It made me feel like a princess for the day. The shoes definitely were hurting my feet on the day of the wedding. So happy I don’t have to wear them again!

Day of Jewelry: A
My cousin let me borrow her bracelet and I found a pretty necklace and earring set on Amazon. It wasn’t easy finding jewelry so I was relieved when I found this pretty set at a great price.

Bridesmaid Dresses: David’s Bridal – A
I found this beautiful tea length dress on their website and when the girls tried the dress on in the color Wisteria, they all really liked it. People who saw the color said that it would look amazing against my white dress and it did. We just added the straps to the dress because 2 of the girls were heavier chested so I decided that I wanted them all to have the straps so they look the same. The girls all picked out their own style of open toed shoes. Most got them at Estelle’s. They have nice shoes there.

BM Jewelry: Amazon - A
Trying to find jewelry gave me so much stress of all things. When I was looking through pictures from another LIwedding bride, katnwill, I saw the jewelry her girls had so I asked her where she got it from. It came from Amazon and the price was unbeatable. When they arrived, the earrings and necklace were more beautiful than in the picture. It completed the bridesmaid look and they all loved it. Thanks katnwill!

Flower Girl Dress and MOB dress: My Daughter’s Wedding III in Great Neck – A+
They were so great to work with. My mom picked out a gorgeous burgundy dress. They are so nice and every time we walked through the door they would greet us by name. I love the dress we got for my daughter. She was the cutest flower girl ever. They all loved my daughter there and were so helpful. We got their alterations there too. My mom got her bag and shoes from them as well. We got so used to going to that shop almost every week that it’s so sad that we don’t go there anymore. I miss them!

Tuxes and Ring Bearer Tux: The Tux Shop of New York in Bayside – A+
We went to Men’s Wearhouse but they didn’t have the best reviews so I found this shop by where I live. They are the nicest people ever and the prices were cheaper than the rest. When the tuxes came in, my dad’s pants were too short so Danny fixed them right away. When I first saw the vest and ties of the groomsmen, I thought the color was much lighter than the bridesmaid dresses even though it was in the color Wisteria. It was no big deal. The colors didn’t look that far apart and no one said anything about it. I think they matched up quite nicely. The groomsmen, the ring bearer and the groom all looked so handsome!

Makeup Artist/Hair: Glam Me Up Down the Aisle – A+
I used Gina from Glam Me Up Down the Aisle. Her prices were awesome and she really is the nicest person. She came to me for the hair and makeup trial. I wasn’t crazy how my hair came out in the trial but on the day of the wedding she made it different and I loved it. She arrived with an assistant on the day of the wedding and came right on time. They did my hair/makeup, my mom, sister and one other bridesmaid. Gina even gave me a little gift bag with lip gloss, hair spray, pins and other things. Everyone’s hair and makeup came out great and I am so happy I picked her to do hair and makeup. She is quick to email you back and I have enjoyed working with her.

Florist: Distinctive Floral Design – A+
I really enjoyed working and getting to know Maria. On my first visit, I had no idea what I wanted or what kind of flowers to pick and she really helped me. She is really detailed and really knows what she is talking about. I loved the bridesmaid bouquets and the centerpieces were amazing. I purchased the vases from them as well so the guests can take the flowers home. The bridesmaid bouquets had pretty silver material wrapped around the handle and it matched their silver shoes perfectly. They gave me rose petals and votive candles for the cake and card table for free and added an orchid to the vases of the centerpieces. I noticed that the flower girl rose petals were missing after the delivery guy left so I left a message for Maria and she called me back to say that it was on the truck and he was on his way back to deliver them. I couldn’t have been more happy with their services.

Limo: Camelot – A
Joe was great to work with. He knows someone that I work with so he gave me a discount. We got the 1957 Rolls Royce and the 20 passenger Infiniti. The limos arrived early and our driver was very nice. Some people said that there was no air conditioner in the 20 passenger limo but my mom said it was fine so who knows how hot is really was in there. We kept getting stopped in our Rolls Royce because everyone was commenting to the driver about the car at the stop lights. It was funny. Our driver recommended to the photographer that we go to the Garden City Gazeboo to take pictures. It was a great decision and I am happy he recommended it. We got a free limo pick up after the wedding to take us to the hotel. Camelot is great!

DJ: After Hours – A+
Phil knows my aunt who works at the Four Points Sheraton in Plainview where he meets the brides and he knows some people I work with because he does our holiday party every year (which I have never been to.) I really wanted LI Sound but they were too expensive for us so someone I knew had Phil for his wedding and recommended him. Picking him was the best decision ever. He gave us the DJ light up booth for free and I loved it. The name in lights came out so nice and he is always quick to reply back to emails. My guests absolutely enjoyed my DJ. My cousin was so impressed that she plans on hiring him for her daughter’s communion party next year. He got my guests involved in the Italian dance, the Tarantella. When I looked around at everyone’s faces during that dance, I knew that they were having the time of their life. Phil had my husband and I dance on top of the speakers and that was a blast. I love After Hours!! Best decision ever hands down!

Photo/Video: Cassarino Studios – A
My cousin used them for her wedding years ago so I went to see them at the JT showcase. I liked their pictures. On the wedding day, my photographer, Dominic, arrived early. He spoke Italian so of course my family loved him. He knew the right shots to take and he was pretty funny. The thing with him was that he could be a bit rude when he wanted to. I think it was because he is trying to get the shots in and trying to hurry it all up so he has to be like that. We were never rushed by him but I guess that is how he is. He was very direct and knew what he was doing. The videographer was the complete opposite of him. He was much quieter and you barely knew he was even there.

Reception: Jericho Terrace – A++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
I loved everything about my wedding at JT. I went to look at Swan Club and wasn’t feeling the place so my mother in law and my sister and I went to Jericho one rainy day. From the moment I walked in, I was hooked. I had to have my wedding there. We met with Michael, the Banquet Manager and he is just the most hysterical guy ever. We loved him! When we met with Chad to do our menu selection, he answered every single question on my sheet of paper and even said that he liked a prepared and organized bride. I had everything ready for him and was very prepared. I loved our maître’d, Donna! What a nice person she is!! When we got to Jericho at 5:30 pm, she was already waiting outside for us. I never felt rushed and since we got there early to take pictures, she was able to bring us upstairs to their Dome room so I can have one of my must take photo there. She was even nice enough to open the balcony door for us in that room to take the balcony shot. The food in the bridal suite was the best! My bridal attendants Lauren and Christina were amazing. My shoes were hurting me so they kept on changing my shoes for me whenever I had to put my heels back on. In the bridal suite, my sister was getting me food and the bridal attendant told her she will do it. My sister was like wow, what great service! They really took care of us. When we were able to see the cocktail hour room I was so excited because it was going to be in their brand new room. That room was the room that I wanted to have my reception at but I didn’t have the minimum number of people. I was surprised and happy that I got it for the cocktail room. My ice sculpture was beautiful and my manager said it was the best cocktail food he has ever tasted. My dad said that we did good for what we paid per head because there was so much food and it was delicious. He was very impressed with the food and could not believe we only paid $85 per person. What I liked about them was that they made us sit down and eat and I am thankful for that! When we were able to see the reception room, I wanted to cry because it was so gorgeous! My flowers looked amazing in the room and I knew I made the right choice in picking Jericho for my wedding. I miss everyone there!

Cake: Jericho Terrace – B
We were not able to do a tasting of the cake at Jericho so we just picked chocolate pudding and vanilla pudding filling. They matched the purple to the icing of the cake and it looked pretty. I wasn’t impressed with the taste of it but it was still good. I did love the cannoli overstuffed with ice cream! Still, I wish they would have at least given us a cake tasting.

Hotel: Viana Hotel – A
We stayed at the Viana Hotel which is another property that the owner of the hotel that I work at owns. We had the kitchenette suite and it was like a little cute apartment with a living room, bedroom, kitchen and bathroom with Jacuzzi. That Jacuzzi was the best thing at the end of the night. It was very stress-free! The mini apartment was so clean, spacious and I didn’t want to leave. The Viana Hotel is a wonderful hotel and you can’t go wrong with staying there. I’m not just saying that because I work for the owner of the hotel company!!
We didn’t go on a honeymoon. We will wait a while to go somewhere so we can take a family vacation with our daughter. The night after the wedding we did go to the Aqueduct Casino. We had a great time eating at their buffet restaurant. Very yummy food! We had a blast gambling. We were about to leave when my husband said let me just play $10 more. He did and we won $900 while only spending about $100 gambling. It was the best way to start our married life! Of course we cashed out and ran out of there! I know this was long but I hope you enjoyed reading it and I wish all of you the best wedding you can possibly have. Don’t stress the small things and don’t worry if things don’t go according to plan. We were supposed to do the arch after we got introduced but somehow that never happened and I have no idea what went wrong. I walked in the reception room looking for the BM and GM doing the arch and I was confused so I just stood there like ok now what do I do? One small thing but other than that I had the greatest wedding and I don’t regret anything at all. Remember to enjoy yourselves and eat the food!! Good luck. Any questions, I am always here to help.

Review for Jericho Terrace wedding on August 30, 2013 - Long Island Weddings

Congratulations. Everything looked beautiful.

I loved the tea length bridesmaid dresses, I wanted this length but my bridesmaids convinced me to do long.

Review for Jericho Terrace wedding on August 30, 2013 - Long Island Weddings

I am really glad things worked out beautifully for you- the cards. the church, the dress, the food and the hotel. Have a lovely wedded life ! Both of you look really good together.

Review for Jericho Terrace wedding on August 30, 2013 - Long Island Weddings

Thank you!

Review for Jericho Terrace wedding on August 30, 2013 - Long Island Weddings

so pretty!! Congrats!

Review for Jericho Terrace wedding on August 30, 2013 - Long Island Weddings

Congratulations. Everything looked beautiful