MY 10/19 FOX HOLLOW WEDDING!!! AND PICS *UPDATED REVIEW OF BELLARINO & CASSARINO!

Hi ladies! I'm back!!! I've been MIA the last few weeks before my wedding... but things went sooo smoothly, I don't think I could've asked for a better day! There were a few little problems, that left us upset... but all in all, things went great!

I couldn't have asked for more from Fox Hollow and my vendors were FANTASTIC! Every single one... like I said a few things here and there! I will give a detailed review in a few!

I think my review is done, except for my HM! I will have to do that tomorrow!

My day was wonderful and I NEVER thought I'd say I want to go back and do it all over! Although that time I want to sit there and just watch it all!!! I wish I could do it again! The stress and planning was ALL WORTH IT!

Good luck to ALL of the future brides!

Re: MY 10/19 WEDDING!!! AND PICS

Okay here I go! First off I just want to thank EVERYONE on this site!!! Without this site, I don't think my planning would've went as smooth as it did!!!

A SPECIAL thanks to:
Denise - Thank you SO SO much for your money bags!!! It was very last minute and you came through for me!!! I am VERY grateful for the bags and for our friendship!!! I will bring them by sometime soon! Also thank you for the pumpkin placecards! They were a HIT!

Michelle - My wedding twin! Thanks for keeping me sane the week before my wedding! We were both panicking and I don't think either of us could've asked for a better day! Thanks for driving me to Flower Michele a week before and for introducing me to the most FANTASTIC florist I have ever met!!! You are a great person and I'm so glad we became friends!

Laura, Lisa, Tammy, Mary & Irene - thank you for the threads, the e-mails and FMs full of well wishes! It meant a lot!!!

If I missed anyone, I am terribly sorry!

Re: MY 10/19 WEDDING!!! AND PICS

Okay... let me start by saying, I don't think I could've asked for better vendors!!! They were ALL fantastic!!! My reviews are rating on the letter system, A+ being the highest!

The Soapbox - A+
One week before my wedding I decided to do something extra for my BM's. I e-mailed the Soapbox and they put together 9 Pamper Me Packages for my BMs. Each was in an ivory organza bag, including, soap, lotion and lip balm. They came out so nice and I got them so quick! I highly recommend them!!!

Bridal Reflections (Massapequa) - B+
Many people have had bad experiences here, I did not. Everything was GREAT! I ordered my dress with Gloria who was fantastic, it came in so quick! My dress came out perfect and Zi Zi (sp?) did my alterations great and my bustle stayed the entire night! Reason only a B+: I ordered my veil from them and it came in all wrong about 1 month before the wedding - they rushed a new one and I got it when I went for my last fitting. And the last minor problem - the day I went to pic up my dress, they had me waiting for about an hour because they did not attach the blusher to my veil. They decided to steam my dress again and when I got home it was all wrinkled. I had to re-steam it when I got home. Other than that, they have a BEAUTIFUL selection-I recommend them!

Re: MY 10/19 WEDDING!!! AND PICS

Invites - Perfect Wedding Planner - A
If you are getting married at any of the Scotto Bros. locations, I highly recommend them for invites. They have a HUGE selection and they were very efficient! They came in so quick, HOWEVER, my first batch of envelopes had a typo on them. Other than that, I have no complaints!

All Type Computer Calligraphy - A I was in a HUGE rush to get these done. Sheryl was able to get all of my envelopes addressed in 1 week! A few minor typo's but, mistakes happen! Highly recommend!

Lenox Retail Factory - Favors - A+ I searched high and low for the perfect wine charms and found them through the Lenox website! They were the 4 seasons and were just what I was looking for. I ordered them by phone and I got them within the week!!!

VIP Tuxedos - C+
Ordering them was fine. The tuxedos were VERY nice! However, the measurements for those ordered in the Syosset store were a little wrong. John's tux came in too small. My dad's jacket was too small and one of my RB's pants were too short. They fix all the mistakes, but we were still annoyed. All in all, not too bad.

Coachman Limousines - A+
Claudia was WONDERFUL to work with!!! We got 2 14 passengers, 1 Rolls, 1 14 passenger for after reception and 1 car to airport. The cars were clean, the drivers were spectacular -arrived early and all were very sweet!!! I was very happy with their services! Couldn't have asked for a better limo company!

Re: MY 10/19 WEDDING!!! AND PICS

Whew! My fingers are getting tired! Let's see:

Macy's Bridal Salon - A
The girls ordered their gowns here! The dresses arrived very quickly! They have a very nice selection! Alterations were all done great! No complaints - Highly Recommended! My friend is actually getting her BMs gowns here because of me! They are very busy and have a strange schedule for alterations. Other than that, I have NO complaints!

Flower Michele - A+++
Okay, he gets extra PLUS'S!!! What can I say?! Anyone who have used him knows! John Feeney is SPECTACULAR!!! My flowers came out absolutely gorgeous and one of my BMs told me it took forever for her bo-k to finally start wilting, lol! He used fall colored roses for the girls bo-k's, centerpieces and cake. He did my pew bows as well! I've gotten SOOOO many compliments on my flowers! I am sooo happy I decided to go with Flower Michele! I could NOT have asked for a better florist! The Saturday before my wedding, I popped in to give him my FG baskets, he was so sweet and wished me well!!! He was worth the drive and the money!!! HIGHLY HIGHLY HIGHLY recommend them!!!

Cassarino Studios - A+
My photographer for the day was Jodi. She was TERRIFIC! Funny and quick!!! I spoke to her a few days before the wedding and she gave me a little pep talk to calm me down and assured me everything will go smoothly! She arrived on time and got MOST of the shots I asked for. Quite honestly, I don't remember any of the pics I took, haha! If you use Cassarino I HIGHLY recommend you ask for Jodi! We also had John go to John's house for some shots. As far as I know he was good too! My John, doesn't say much, lol!

B+ for service - I have to say I was a little nervous with Cassarino. Their office never seems to be open when I call. I was supposed to get a 60 day booklet and never recieved it. From what I hear it's unnecessary but, still I never got it. Then after I found out the owner sold to the employees, got me even more nervous... All in all... I am happy with my choice and CANNOT wait to see my proofs!

Re: MY 10/19 WEDDING!!! AND PICS

Okay, I'm really annoyed, because I guess I took too long and my JN and Rhapsody review is GONE!

Jacqueline Nicole - A+++
Ok- she gets extras too! I LOVED my make-up! I did the airbrush and it stayed the entire day... All I had to do was re-apply my lipstick. Even John liked my make-up and he hates when I have too much on! She is just FANTASTIC - whatever you have heard about her is TRUE! She came on time, set up and started working! She also did one of my BM's who just looked beautiful!!! At the last minute my grandmother asked her if she could help her with her eyes and she did! My grandmother LOVED her make-up!!! I HIGHLY recommend her! I suggest calling her ASAP if your wedding is NEXT year! One of my guests wants to use her for her make-up, but her wedding is in December... don't know if she'll be available! She is GREAT, if you are using her, you will NOT have any regrets! She is SOOO sweet and good at what she does!

Rhapsody - Skyline Orchestras - A
When I booked Rhapsody I was VERY excited and could NOT wait for them to play at my wedding. Unfortunatly, it seemed our Croatian band played more. His side did NOT dance to Rhapsody at all so when they played it didn't seem like the dance floor was as packed (my family danced for both), so Rhapsody gave most of the time to them That was NOT the reason for the second band. DO NOT get me wrong, Rhapsody is a GREAT band and when they did play, they were GREAT! I recommend them!! Also, I did NOT know that Daddy's Little Girl was such a short song and they only played it once. Had I known I would've told them to play it twice. My Dad was SOOOO UPSET as was I. But my Dad has been dwelling on it since the wedding The last problem was my OWN fault. I never told them I decided NOT to do the anniversary dance. They started getting all the married couples out on the floor. That's when Phil (Bellarino) stepped in and had to tell him to do something else! lol.

Kristali - Croatian Band - A+
John is Croatian so we had the second band come in to play the polkas... If you need a Croatian band, I HIGHLY recommend them! However, they book up pretty quickly!! The dance floor was packed! Even my NON-Croatian family was up there making fools of themselves doing the polka! LOL!

I'll do my review on Fox Hollow in a few mins! I have some work to do!

Re: MY 10/19 WEDDING!!! AND PICS

Here's some pics

Wed Pics

Bellarino - A+
I don't know what happened before, but I lost my Bellarino review too Anyway, the moment we met with Phil I KNEW he was the guy I wanted taping my wedding!!! His personality is FANTASTIC! We both loved his work!!! I CANNOT wait until my video is ready! Him and Kate were there waiting at the Church with smiles on their faces. I hardly saw them the entire night!!! At one point he came to my rescue when I needed someone to get a message to the band ASAP! They both were so calm and sweet!!! I HIGHLY recommend them!!!!! I'm sure his score will go up once I see my video!!!

Fox Hollow - A+++++

We did not look at many places and just fell in love with Fox Hollow! We booked them right away! We booked the place with JR, did our final arrangements with Mindy and did the paying and drop off with Jennifer. All three were a pleasure to work with! They went OUT of their way to make sure I was comfortable with everything and assured me that my day would be wonderful! They were right!!! I have never been treated with so much respect the whole time I was planning the wedding AND during the reception! A few months ago I heard a HORRIBLE rumor and inquired about it. Anthony Scotto himself made sure we were treated like royalty! Well not royalty, but we were never treated so nice by anyone! Don’t worry the RUMOR was NOT TRUE and my day was SPECTACULAR!

As soon as we arrived we were greeted by Jenna our bridal attendant! She was PHENOMENAL!!! My dress was practically covered in mud (from taking pics in the grass) and she spent the first 45 mins on her knees getting the stain out! The poor thing! But she was just GREAT!!! She got it out pretty well and once it was bustled couldn’t see a thing anyway. She made sure we got a chance to sit and eat. We ALWAYS had a fresh drink! I kinda felt bad she was working so hard, I didn’t think I was a crazy bride, haha!

Our Maitre’D was Carey (sp?)… He was pretty good. I didn’t see him much, lol! I’m assuming he treated the guests good! I got NO complaints from anyone!!!

Both my mother and John’s mom got tons of calls the next day RAVING about Fox Hollow! From what I hear the cocktail hour was GREAT! Tons of food everywhere and the service was out of this world! My e-mail was filled with TONS of compliments!!! Like I said, I couldn’t have chosen a better place!!!!

If I missed anything or anyone has any questions about Fox Hollow or any of my vendors feel free to contact me!!! :o)

I’ll post some more pics when I get more! :o)

Re: MY 10/19 WEDDING!!! AND PICS

Lauren - you looked absolutely perfect. Congratulations. Your day sounds like it was everything it should be. I can't wait to see the rest of the pictures!!!

Re: MY 10/19 WEDDING!!! AND PICS

Congrats!!! Your dress was gorgeous!!!

Re: MY 10/19 WEDDING!!! AND PICS

Lauren you looked BEAUTIFUL!!! Your dress is gorgeous!! I LOVE the color of the BM dresses also and the flowers!!! All the best to you and John!!!

Re: MY 10/19 WEDDING!!! AND PICS

Your pics are beautiful. Congrats!

Re: MY 10/19 FOX HOLLOW WEDDING!!! AND PICS

Beautiful pics - Congrats!!

Re: MY 10/19 FOX HOLLOW WEDDING!!! AND PICS

Sounds like a perfect wedding day! Lovely pics too...Congrats!!

Re: MY 10/19 FOX HOLLOW WEDDING!!! AND PICS

Congrats! You looked beautiful!

Re: MY 10/19 FOX HOLLOW WEDDING!!! AND PICS *UPDATED REVIEW OF BELLARINO & CASSARINO!

Bellarino - A+
I don't know what happened before, but I lost my Bellarino review too Anyway, the moment we met with Phil I KNEW he was the guy I wanted taping my wedding!!! His personality is FANTASTIC! We both loved his work!!! I CANNOT wait until my video is ready! Him and Kate were there waiting at the Church with smiles on their faces. I hardly saw them the entire night!!! At one point he came to my rescue when I needed someone to get a message to the band ASAP! They both were so calm and sweet!!! I HIGHLY recommend them!!!!! I'm sure his score will go up once I see my video!!!

UPDATE - I'll add some more ++! I received my video back in December, but didn't even think of updating my review!!! My video came out BEAUTIFUL!!!! If you have chosen Bellarino you will NOT be disappointed and if you are looking for a videographer, I HIGHLY suggest you check them out!!! THEY ARE FANTASTIC!

Cassarino Studios - A+
My photographer for the day was Jodi. She was TERRIFIC! Funny and quick!!! I spoke to her a few days before the wedding and she gave me a little pep talk to calm me down and assured me everything will go smoothly! She arrived on time and got MOST of the shots I asked for. Quite honestly, I don't remember any of the pics I took, haha! If you use Cassarino I HIGHLY recommend you ask for Jodi! We also had John go to John's house for some shots. As far as I know he was good too! My John, doesn't say much, lol!

B+ for service - I have to say I was a little nervous with Cassarino. Their office never seems to be open when I call. I was supposed to get a 60 day booklet and never recieved it. From what I hear it's unnecessary but, still I never got it. Then after I found out the owner sold to the employees, got me even more nervous... All in all... I am happy with my choice and CANNOT wait to see my proofs!

UPDATE - I have received my proofs EXACTLY at the 30 day mark! (Again, late with the review update) They came out beautiful! There are some shots I WISH I would've stressed I wanted, but all in all, we are VERY happy with how the pics came out! We have yet to pick out our album pics... hopefully we'll get to that soon!!!

Re: MY 10/19 FOX HOLLOW WEDDING!!! AND PICS *UPDATED REVIEW OF BELLARINO & CASSARINO!

Don't know how I missed this. Pics are beautiful!!!!!!!!!!!!

Re: MY 10/19 FOX HOLLOW WEDDING!!! AND PICS *UPDATED REVIEW OF BELLARINO & CASSARINO!

Thanks!

Those are not my proofs, I never scanned them, lol!

Did you bring your photos to Cassarino yet for your album?

Re: MY 10/19 FOX HOLLOW WEDDING!!! AND PICS *UPDATED REVIEW OF BELLARINO & CASSARINO!

Your wedding looked beautiful! I am glad it all went smoothly.

Thank you especially for posting about PWP and Cassarino - we're using them!

Re: MY 10/19 FOX HOLLOW WEDDING!!! AND PICS *UPDATED REVIEW OF BELLARINO & CASSARINO!

Hi! Can you let me know your experience with Cassarino? Who was your photograper? I'm a little nervous about booking them, I was hoping for some input. Thanks!

Re: MY 10/19 FOX HOLLOW WEDDING!!! AND PICS *UPDATED REVIEW OF BELLARINO & CASSARINO!

Hi! Can you let me know about your experience with Cassarino photographers? Who was your photographer? I would love some advice. Thank you so much.