My 05/13/05 wedding review

I have to start by saying that Rob and I had the day of our dreams! We were surrounded by family and friends for the most special day of our lives and felt enveloped in love and joy. We feel blessed to have had such a wonderful wedding day. We will cherish the memories from this very special day for the rest of our lives.

I definitely owe a big thank you to LIW and everyone on this site. I have gotten so many ideas and so much support along the way. Thank you for sharing this very special time in my life with me!

Overall, we had wonderful vendors, and if anyone wants more info on any of them, please feel free to FM. They added so much to our special day, and we could not have done it alone! On to vendor reviews. I am going to be completely and totally honest:

Reception Hall
Westbury Manor : A
Westbury Manor was great. The food was amazing, the service was out of this world, and we were treated like a king and queen. Our guests were also treated like royalty. The reason they get an A and not an A+ is because we had a few minor glitches. We were told that we would have full access to the grounds for pictures, regardless of other parties, and another bride beat us to the spot where we wanted to be photographed, and nothing was done to help us get that prime spot. Also, my bridal attendant was MIA after cocktail hours and my dress was falling apart (see Bridal Reflections review). None of this overshadows the good. The service was better than words can say, and the food was out of this world. Our guests were thrilled with the service and food. The grounds were absolutely gorgeous. May is a great time to get married there! Our banquet manager was Raol and he couldn't do enough for us. He is a super nice guy and is extremely accomodating and helpful. We had ordered the chocolate fountain as an extra surprise during dessert, and it was a huge hit. Our guests were raving about the food and service, and we were very happy.

Day of Coordinator
Laura – LA Productions A + + + +
I cannot say enough about Laura and Jill from LA Productions. I decided last minute that I wanted a day of coordinator, and we were going back and forth about whether or not we needed one. Let me tell you, if I had to change one thing, I would have hired Laura earlier. She was amazing! She is a pleasure to work with - incredibly enthusiastic, sensitive, and sweet. She allows you to be a guest at your own wedding. I did not have to deal with a single issue or problem. On top of all of her outstanding attributes, she handled everything with the utmost grace and professionalism. My father commented on what a great presence she was in our house the morning of the wedding – calm, approachable, easy to talk to, and comforting. If you are thinking about whether or not you need a DOC, I say, yes, it was money well spent, and I highly, highly, highly recommend Laura!
P.S. She made our cry packs and we looooved them. Laura is the best!

Photographer
B rett M atthews A+ + + +
We LOOOOOOOOOOOVE our proofs! When my brother saw them, his jaw dropped, and he said they are the first vendor he’ll hire when he gets engaged! Our proofs are artistic, unique, and beautiful! Chris was our main photographer, and he and his team were wonderful beyond what words can say. He was never intrusive. In fact, after cocktail hour, I was only asked to pose twice, and both times were for pictures we had specificically asked for. Chris has a very sensitive way about him, and he and his team were professional, approachable, and really fun to work with. Rob and I enjoyed taking our pictures because they made it pleasurable. I was in a wedding that used B rett M atthews and another one of my friends used them as well, and all of us have had amazing experiences. I rave about B rett M atthews when speaking about them, and I would recommend them to anyone who like photojournalism. They are the best!

DJ
Get in Tune Productions A + + + +
We love Get in Tune! They were great to work with from the first meeting. Glenn is friendly, honest, and so enthusiastic. He seems to love what he does and it shows! Our dance floor was packed from start to finish and I have NEVER seen a wedding where the dance floor was packed like that (literally the whole time) and with so many people smiling, laughing, and enjoying themselves. They were PERFECT - energetic, an amazing selection, and they played all of our requests. Our guests ranged in age from 4 to 89, and I saw them all out at some point dancing to the great mix of music. They made our night a fantastic time for all of our guests, and we are so grateful.

Hair
Salone di Capelli A+
My mother, my sister, and I all got our hair done at Salone di Capelli by three different hairdressers. All of us loved our hair, and our styles stayed perfectly throughout the night. Excellent, professional work, and all three of us got exactly what we wanted.

Make up
Keri Berman A + + + +
One of my favorite vendors! Make up caused me so much stress and anxiety. I was unhappy trial after trial. Rob suggested that I get a recommendation from our photographer, and they suggested Keri, who works out of Henri Bendel in Manhattan. I went for a trial and booked her on the spot. She came to my house the morning of and did make up for me, my mother, and my sister. She did very different work on all three of us, and we were thrilled beyond our wildest dreams. My sister’s friend is a model and said it was the best make up jobs she had ever seen. The make up stayed on all night and is accented in pictures. On top of the great work she did, Keri was on time the morning of and super nice and easy to work with. I love her and strongly suggest checking her out. She is on the expensive side but worth every penny!

Flowers
Colonial Florist A +
I loved our BO-Ks. They were exactly what I asked for. The flowers were fresh, alive, and the colors were vibrant. Same with the centerpieces. The flowers lasted for almost 2 weeks afterwards. They did a great job decorating our cake. Colonial definitely did a high quality job!

Limos
Royalty B
Rob is big into cars, and when we saw the 1929 Rolls Royce, that was the car we wanted for ourselves. We ordered the Rolls and a 12 person Lincoln for our BP. The limos were supposed to get Rob and the GM, take them to church, then come pick up the BM at my house and take them to church. When we confirmed, they forgot that they were supposed to come get the BM at my house (even though it was clearly written on the contract). The Rolls Royce was supposed to pick me up at 4:45 pm. At 3:00 pm, Royalty called my house and said the Rolls was not working when they checked it out that morning. We had a contract with them for over 6 months but they check out the car the morning of?! Laura from LA Productions was at my house at this point, thankfully, so she handled the call. After some back and forth, she resolved the issue. Royalty gets a B because they did ultimately show up with the car we requested but they caused a lot of unnecessary stress.

Dress Alterations
Bridal Reflections F
Do not get me started! First of all, the seamstress was horribly rude and nasty to me from the get go. I didn’t like the original bra I bought to go with the dress, and she proceeded to tell me that it is not the bra but she doesn’t like strapless dresses – as I am standing in front of her with a strapless dress that I have purchased already! Not only did I deal with rude and unprofessional behavior but my dress fell apart! Not even an hour into the reception, my bustle broke, and the back of my dress was busted. My dress was falling down the entire night. At one point, I had to hold the top so my sister could pin because it had actually fallen down. I have heard a lot of negativity about Bridal Reflections and wish I had taken it more seriously.

Invitations
Creative Party Works A +
Nicole is a vendor on this site, and she was great! She gave us a great price and was super quick and organized. She was in constant communication throughout the entire invitation process. She hooked us up with a great calligrapher. We were very happy with our invites, and they were so beautiful!

Programs
fairytalepress A+
Joanne is just getting her business going but I have to tell you that she did an AMAZING job with our programs! They are unlike any that I have ever seen before, and they were beautiful, creative, and a very personal reflection of us. Joanne worked very closely with us to make sure that the program reflected our wants as well as us and somehow, she did it. She was a pleasure to work with and did an excellent job for us!

Dante's Tuxedo's A+
They had what we wanted, and whenever we called or went in, they had all the time in the world for us. Very reasonable priced and super easy to work with. Great selection and a great, helpful, friendly staff!

BM Dresses
Lidia's Bridal Boutique (Copiague) A+
The ladies at Lidia's are so nice and could not do enough for my BM. They also did a perfect job with alterations. All 5 of my BM looked beautiful! Lidia's has a great selection - not to mention that they have the best prices around. I highly recommend checking them out.

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Re: My 05/13/05 wedding review

Daniela, again, you looked beautiful!!!!! I'm so glad you had a wonderful time!!!

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Congratulations!!! Glad to hear you had a great day!

Re: My 05/13/05 wedding review

Gorgeous. You look so natural and beautiful.

Re: My 05/13/05 wedding review

Gorgeous!!! I cant wait to see more pictures!!!!! You look beautiful!!! And I didnt notice your dress was falling apart at all!!!!!!

Re: My 05/13/05 wedding review

Congrats! You looked beautiful!

Re: My 05/13/05 wedding review

You look great Daniela! Glad you had a great day!

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A few bumps in the road, but by the radiance in your smile, I'd never know. You're beautiful and everything looks wonderful!!! Congratulations!!

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Oh I wanted to add that I agree your dance floor was packed all night!!! The DJ was AWSOME!!!!!!!! I have never seen a dance floor so packed ALL NIGHT!!!!!!!!!!

Omg and it was so cute when he played that song from Grease and EVERYONE was singing along.

Re: My 05/13/05 wedding review

Congratulations! You look beautiful! Were you in the Manor Room?

Re: My 05/13/05 wedding review

Thanks, Ladies!

Yes, we were in the Manor Room.

Re: My 05/13/05 wedding review

You looked beautiful, congrats!
Who was your bridal attendant?

Re: My 05/13/05 wedding review

Beautiful bride!! I love your veil!

Re: My 05/13/05 wedding review

Gorgeous!!!
Looks like a wonderful day