My amazing 'vintage inspired' black and white wedding @ Oheka Castle. Amazing vendors (Long list!). PICS IN ALBUM (More to come!)

I have never felt luckier in my entire life. My wedding fell right in between an earthquake and a hurricane--- yet our day was a perfect 80 degrees. Everyone can say whatever they want about your wedding--- but as long as it is what you imagined that is all that matters…. For me it couldn’t have turned out better. I must say, as crazy as some people think having a wedding at oheka is--- I wound up saving a lot of money because oheka included almost everything I can imagine in their pricing and didn’t have “upgrades.” All in all oheka stayed true to their word and that is why they have the great reputation they have. On top of that- because I did chose Oheka- I was VERY careful with staying on a very strict (but realistic) budget for the remaining vendors for my wedding. I must say I am proud to say that I stayed on my budget and would spend every penny all over again!!

PS- LIW is amazing and my wedding would not be the same without it.

....who knew i had so many vendors, ahh!

Oheka Hotel- A+
Oheka has 32 rooms (which is under separate management than the catering facility). We wound up booking every single room (I was more than shocked by my family and friends). I do wish the catering and hotel were under one management so it would cause less confusion, but nothing major. I must say it was well worth every penny they spent. We had the bar stay open until 2am (which flew by), where we had 10 Domino’s pizzas delivered and we also had a private brunch the next morning for our guests. Everything was amazing and they stayed true to their word on every promise made. They truly make you feel like you own that place on your day. I could not be more grateful for their hard work.

Engagement party- Marriot Plainview, NY- A
We had a long engagement (2 years exactly) so on our 1 year mark (well a week or so short of that) we had a small (well it wound up still being about 50+ people) of closest friends and family. We did a brunch buffet. It was very nice and I would recommend this place (we were actually their 1st engagement party—so they were excited to do whatever we wanted). They included a lot in the pricing and it was a really nice room with floor to ceiling windows looking out to the hotel pool. The food was delicious as well.

Rehearsal dinner- Tesoro’s- A-
As far as I am considered it was an A+. After the wedding I heard my MIL was not too pleased with some events that occurred with the owner on the day of. I did not know about any of this until after it was all over. Nothing major--- but she felt she was promised more than was delivered. She also was never given a written bill- but that night charged more than she expected, but did not want to make a big scene in front of everyone and just paid. We had the back room to ourselves--- part of the problem was that the amount of people kept changing so we wound up telling the owner about 6-8 people less than actually showed up---- so we needed to add chairs and re-situate the set-up. In the end everything worked out great and the food was delicious! I do know that my MIL did pay a lot considering what was served, but I enjoyed it.

Bridal Shower- Orchid Garden City, NY- A
Let me start off by saying I did not want my shower to be a “Sunday typical brunch” nor did I want to open presents--- but a few events occurred--- and of course as things always go---- both of those things I did not want, happened. Oh well---- besides that I must say my mom was alone in planning the shower (no one really offered help and neither my mom nor I have sisters who could have pitched in). She gets easily overwhelmed so my expectations were low- which she far exceeded! She did a “good fortune” theme since it was a Chinese restaurant- we had the whole down stairs and the décor was very nice! I would def have another event there and I heard from my mom they were super easy to work with. Plus for us, garden city was a good location between Suffolk and NJ/Brooklyn guests.

Photo booth- Incredibooths- A+
I went with them because they were the cheapest. I wanted a “vintage look” so I wound up booking one of the less expensive photobooths. They were very easy to work with- and a few weeks before even offered to upgrade my photobooth- which to their surprise I actually declined bc the new modern photobooth was not the “look” I was going for. As far as I know everyone had a blast and every time I walked by people were using it and it was not broken (unless it broke without me knowing, which could be possible). I took great pics in it and at the end of the night we got the usb of all the pics as promised. My parents were sooo upset when they saw how much fun everyone had and they never got in the booth! I would totally have a photobooth at another event if it is in the budget- so fun and such a great memory! We did not get a scrap book from them- but they did not give us a hard time by setting up a basket with a sign to throw in a copy for the bride and groom. I am in the process of a DIY to put together the pics in a frame.

Trumpeteers- A+
wish i got pics with them in front of the castle (but we did get some when they first arrived in the back) - didnt see the guests reactions when they walked in obv, but everyone took a ton a fun pics with them- such a fun touch!

DYI- table numbers, bathroom baskets, photo booth basket, signs, signature drink, OOT baskets, black and white family photos- A+
….i am giving myself an A+ bc I am not a “DIY” person, although I think I have good ideas- I usually hire someone else to execute the ideas. So the little I did, im proud with ?

Rae of Art Designs- Seating Chart- B
In the end…. Everything turned out amazing. But while it was being put together, there was a lot of stress. Part of the problem was because seating charts cannot be done until everyone RSVPs and as you all know…. People change their minds with the RSVPs and last minute says they are coming or vice versa. In the end it came out great, and it was exactly what I wanted… but during the process I almost freaked out. Oh and one person was on the chart (their name) but did not have a table number next to them. Luckily- oheka had the list and seated him right away at his correct table.

DOC- Leanne, Above and Beyond Events- B-
Before the wedding I met with Ryan (who then got pregnant with triplets and went on bed rest this summer). In comes Leanne, who at first I actually liked better than Ryan. I will say that they helped me with a lot of last minute ideas and things to remember and lists, etc etc. and I still say it was worth the money to have the peace of mind that day. But many of the tasks I assigned the DOC – was actually completed by the oheka staff that day while I was getting ready. On top of that there was one or two times I realllyyyyy needed to find the doc and she was no where in site. But the worst part of it all is that she wore comfy Capri style pants to my black tie affair (which was discussed at the dinner I had with wedding guests after the wedding--- they brought it up not me!). See…. Before I had Leanne, when I met with Ryan, I actually made a hugeeee deal to please wear all black etc etc and blend in. In leanne’s defense, I totally forgot to tell her this at our meeting (although I heard from other people who are in the “business” that wedding planners do typically have to dress in accordance with the wedding). Anyway, the day of I was too crazy with other stuff to really take it in (about her wardrobe) but now looking back on it, from guests that did not know she was the DOC--- def would think she sticks out like a sore thumb. I mean she was in the ballroom and everything in front of all the guests. So while I do think she was worth the money, I would be more specific next time! But she was a sweetheart and very calming that day (and did carry around my lipstick!)

Cigars- La Rosa Cubana –A-
This was the one vendor that I had no idea if they would show up. Their communications skills prior to the day of were poor to say the least. But the day of (as far as I saw) they showed up on time and did a nice job. The only problem was where they were situated, not everyone saw he was there and missed him. Oh well, so much fun and those that did see him, raved about it!

Invitations- Fat Cat Paperie- C
We paid top dollar with them, they were an oheka vendor and we trusted them, while in the end our invitations are beautiful….. on the hotel information they left off the last digit of oheka’s hotel’s phone number. When we confronted them about it- they were less than professional and told us they could not do anything for us. After a few more phone calls back and forth (and my husband being rude to them) they finally offered us “10 percent off” our next order with them)- who would order with them after bad service. Our invites were amazing, but for what we paid, they should have been. We went with Spark a company that did letterpress (which was one of the few requests from my husband)- and I would totally recommend them!

Flowers- Pedestals- A-
Before the wedding they were amazing, and I still say for our package and deal I am happy with the outcome- but a few things they def should have known better. It was not their first time at oheka and they fell through on some stuff. They came very late to wrap the flowers (to hand to guests) so most people didn’t get them and I wanted a ton of candles in the fireplace- and they brought the wrong kind! This was a huge part of my image I wanted for oheka and mentioned to them 100x about the candles. They should have known what they needed to bring. The flowers were still beautiful and all in all it is exactly what we wanted.

Rabbi- Ronald Broden- A++
Found him from someone on LIW I believe, and he was great. A lot of people complimented him afterwards. He gave a nice ceremony plus he is a rabbi and cantor, so he sang beautifully too. He is a conservative rabbi but modern. He allowed us to do as much or as little of the traditions as we wanted. He was helpful and explained everything during the planning. I would recommend him and I hope I keep in touch with him and who knows maybe use him for our children’s events in the future.

Band- Hank Lane, Bobby Attiko- A++++++++++++++
Worth every penny- everyone loved them--- cannot say enough amazing things. Throughout the whole process they were by far my fav vendor--- I raved about them on LIW every chance I got- and they really did live up to their reputation. They are amazing and I only hope that I get to hear them at another wedding. They had every single person up and dancing. My other pet peeve is that at our final meeting I had to convince them to play more old but good wedding songs than all modern top 20 songs. I like more of the traditional wedding fun sing along songs, and I am glad I made them do that because it fit the crowd (which at the end of the night bobby came up to me and agreed!) I am glad I stayed true to what I wanted and didn’t let them convince me otherwise.

Stage- Taylor Rentals- Hauppauge, NY- A+
It was actually harder than I thought to find a stage for the band. We booked them towards the end, and it was well worth the money. I was on stage with the band multiple times that night, dancing and singing. Even my parents who at first thought it was a waste of money, in the end agreed it was worth the money and added an extra level for the band. FYI- our band did not recommend us using their stage company because of the price compared to other stage companies (something about them being in a union and need an engineer then, etc, who knows).

Dress- Kleinfelds- A+
They are amazing, and they have the reputation they do for a reason. I just had a great time every single time I went. Randy even helped me chose the color of my dress. They really are a family owned business and treat their customers well. They made me feel special and had every single style you can imagine. I hope I get to go there when my friends get married in the future.

Shoes- Sandys Massapequa- B+
I had shoes that were 4 inches high until my seamstress told me I needed smaller heels if I wanted to change into flats for the reception. The shoes I found were nice, but sandy’s was $$$ for what I got- and I am sure if I had more time I could have found it else where for less. Their customer service was relatively good and I have no real complaints.

Seamstress- old lady in new hyde park
If you want her info fm me- got it from LIW. She was quick, efficient, half the price of kleinfelds, and stayed open late for my crazy hours. I would recommend her.

Jewlery- Tejani- A++
I looked around everywhere, and even bought elsewhere- and last minute I was not happy with anything. I walked in to tejani and they treated me like I owned the place. I had the whole studio all to myself, she opened the store specially for me at a time they are usually closed. They brought up pictures of my dress online and discussed the look I was going for. The woman nailed it and I quickly walked out with jewelry. At my wedding my friend already told me she will be borrowing it for her wedding next summer as her “something borrowed.” Well worth the money and I will wear them any chance I get.

Wedding bands and Engagement Ring- NYC- A+
Salvatore and Co.
We were treated great here and even taken in to a private room. Of course I spent more than my husband wanted to on my rings, but they are great and follow through on everything they promise. My rings are amazing and I get a compliment from a random person almost 1x a day, that’s enough said.

Minimoon- out east- A
Great and relaxing, and just what we needed! But because it was labor day weekend we paid wayyyy too much for the hotel rooms. But we didn’t mind because we got to do everything we wanted and was on no one else’s schedule.

Honeymoon- Tahiti
TBD….. going in Feb ? it will get its own review then. PG cruise line and a water bungalow for 2 nights plus a night or two in LA ?

Makeup- Mia- A
She is expensive (compared to other local artists) but worth her price. She is a great person and very creative. I had 3 trials before her- and she nailed it on the spot. She was on time and waiting at oheka for me to arrive. My makeup stayed through all my sweat and tears and I got a million compliments on it!

Hair- Hair genie (jenn)- A
She is so fun and a great person. I made sure for her to keep putting more pins in my hair- and I must say it stayed all night and I was dancing and jumping around like a crazy woman! My bm’s hair did not last as long but everyone looked amazing and I cant wait to use her in the future. She was on time and professional.

Calligraphy- Brooklyn- A
This woman was amazing, cheap, beautiful work, quick and efficient. I could not ask for more- except that I wish she didn’t live in Brooklyn! Not a fun commute during the week. I already got her 2 new clients – great find from an LIW bride.

Photo/Video/e-pics- North Island- A
Our proofs are in the mail…. But so far everything we have seen is amazing. They were great to work with at our e-pics and day of. I think he brought a few extra crew guys bc even my other vendors are like “wow how many people did you hire”- it was great and I didn’t mind a thing. I must say the only negative is 1. they def took a million pics of me getting ready and didn’t have anyone downstairs taking pics of the boys getting dresses (until my husband asked directly) to shoot him getting ready, 2. I was running late which I didn’t know (and heard it is common that they don’t tell the bride when this happens) so they were busy wasting 20 mins of my pics of my dress on the hanger when I would have hurried them up and 3. both families feel they didn’t get enough family photos, maybe this is a common thing, but the family portraits did feel rushed, so I will have to wait and see if he got everyone and good ones once the proofs come in. But he is a true artist and I hope I am able to use him in the future. SO happy I chose him.

Cake- Oheka- A+
Daniel, the baker at oheka and his amazing team… are, well, just that, AMAZING! His cake is actually delicious (not the norm with wedding cakes). You meet with him and design anything you want. He is an amazing guy with great stories about oheka and the people that have passed through. He has worked their for years and is well respected. I actually wanted to have only cupcakes and not an actual wedding cake, he refused to allow me to do that- so he gave me both! I had a huge cupcake tree, a 4 tier cake and a whole room of amazing desserts. My only wish is to be able to go back to a wedding at oheka, so I can eat everything (because I did not at my wedding!).

BM Dresses- Jim Hjlem - A
The bridesmaids dresses were black and came out amazing. Jim Hjlem usually is a pretty expensive line of dresses but I found this guy that sells them wholesale (people from my town have used him before)- not like a random guy on the street, lol. He was crazy but he delivered as promised and saved the girls almost $100 each and they all looked amazing!

Tuxes- garden city- A
Tuxedo Park
They were def one of the more expensive around, and my husband had to pay for his tuxes (because they will give you a $20 credit towards each tux, or grooms free, and my husband wanted to keep the GM prices down for them). But the day of- everyone’s fit, looked good, they gave my husband another shirt to change into after the outdoor ceremony in case he was sweaty, and really treated the men so nicely! Top notch classy place with good service, so I guess worth the money to make the men feel good about themselves.

MOB dress- Hewlett place- B+
My mom had a lot of drama with her dress and actually had to walk away from her first one and go to a new place. She went to this couture place in Hewlett that wound up working out well and because the designer owned the place she was able to create the dress in a short amount of time, which is exactly what my mom needed. I do think my mom paid on the higher end of what most MOB would pay, but she wanted to feel special. So considering the price she paid, I think she should have been so obsessed with her dress that she would never want to take it off. And while I do think she loved it, I don’t think she was obsessed with it (which makes me a little sad). Plus the material of the dress always made it look like it was a little wrinkled which drove my mom nuts. All in all I think she looked great and she got a ton of compliments. If you want a unique dress for your mom fm me and I will give you the store name (I don’t know it off hand) but my mom originally went there because she 1. felt everything in the other stores was starting to look the same and 2. did not want an even 1% chance that someone at the wedding was wearing a similar dress to her.

Save the date magnets- vista print- A
They were dirt cheap and perfect to hand out at our e-party. Everyone was pleased with them (just wish I ordered more- so I had some extras for my own fridge). Vistaprint is a great find for wedding stuff.

Veil/Hair piece- barrons- B
The guy who owns barrons has a strong accent and I think a few things got “lost in translation” but all in all he was by far the cheapest and in the end I got what I wanted from him.

Fans (for ceremony outdoors)- Wrap with us- B-
When I ordered them they told me they are backordered until first week in Aug- which was not a problem for me bc my wedding was not until the end of Aug. As promised they came in exactly when they told me, and I chose in-store pick up so I did not have to pay for shipping. They were by far the cheapest priced around and were white which went nicely with my black and white color scheme. I must say though they looked pretty cheap- bc they did not easily fold back up after you opened it. But all in all I would still order from them again probably bc I knew it was not a major part of my wedding so I still would chose the cheap product over spending more for the same thing.

Re: My amazing 'vintage inspired' black and white wedding @ Oheka Castle. Amazing vendors (Long list!). PICS IN ALBUM (More to come!)

amazing review!! so glad that everything went well at oheka!! :)

Re: My amazing 'vintage inspired' black and white wedding @ Oheka Castle. Amazing vendors (Long list!). PICS IN ALBUM (More to come!)

great review...im gonna check out incredibooths now! oh and we want pictures

Re: My amazing 'vintage inspired' black and white wedding @ Oheka Castle. Amazing vendors (Long list!). PICS IN ALBUM (More to come!)

Such a beautiful Bride!!! The dress was gorgeous on you

Re: My amazing 'vintage inspired' black and white wedding @ Oheka Castle. Amazing vendors (Long list!). PICS IN ALBUM (More to come!)

Congrats and great review!!!

Re: My amazing 'vintage inspired' black and white wedding @ Oheka Castle. Amazing vendors (Long list!). PICS IN ALBUM (More to come!)

Thanks for sharing your special day!

Re: My amazing 'vintage inspired' black and white wedding @ Oheka Castle. Amazing vendors (Long list!). PICS IN ALBUM (More to come!)

Was your dress by an in house Kleinfeld designer? Do they have that kind of thing?

If not, who designed your dress and could you give the model name or number? Ivory or white? Thanks!

How was the quality of the letterpress from Spark? I'm looking into letterpress too.

Thanks for sharing the review!

Re: My amazing 'vintage inspired' black and white wedding @ Oheka Castle. Amazing vendors (Long list!). PICS IN ALBUM (More to come!)

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Posted by PSP

Was your dress by an in house Kleinfeld designer? Do they have that kind of thing?

If not, who designed your dress and could you give the model name or number? Ivory or white? Thanks!

How was the quality of the letterpress from Spark? I'm looking into letterpress too.

Thanks for sharing the review!

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i was just at fat cat yesterday looking at spark letterpress. they are gorgeous. google spark and their website will come up and you can get samples. would also reco smock if you are thinking letterpress, they have an amazing collection.

Re: My amazing 'vintage inspired' black and white wedding @ Oheka Castle. Amazing vendors (Long list!). PICS IN ALBUM (More to come!)

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Posted by mjm2012

i was just at fat cat yesterday looking at spark letterpress. they are gorgeous. google spark and their website will come up and you can get samples. would also reco smock if you are thinking letterpress, they have an amazing collection.

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YES! I have looked at Smock and Bella Figura. I really like them but its all a blur at the moment. I had to stop because I was getting overwhelmed and a headache from looking at so many invites. I hadn't heard of spark so I'll have to take a look!

Re: My amazing 'vintage inspired' black and white wedding @ Oheka Castle. Amazing vendors (Long list!). PICS IN ALBUM (More to come!)

i'd love to see pics of your reception set up because i too was thinking of going with black and white theme...

Re: My amazing 'vintage inspired' black and white wedding @ Oheka Castle. Amazing vendors (Long list!). PICS IN ALBUM (More to come!)

Thanks for the review! It looks like you had a beautiful day! Congrats on your wedded bliss!

Sorry to hear you were stressed about the seating chart! I am surprised to hear it since Rae of Arts makes beautiful wedding goods and has a reputation of being easy to work with and of putting out a beautiful product. If everything turned out beautiful in the end I vote for upping that B!!!

Again congrats on your wedding day and hope you have a great time in Tahiti!

Re: My amazing 'vintage inspired' black and white wedding @ Oheka Castle. Amazing vendors (Long list!). PICS IN ALBUM (More to come!)

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Posted by kerryums

Thanks for the review! It looks like you had a beautiful day! Congrats on your wedded bliss!

Sorry to hear you were stressed about the seating chart! I am surprised to hear it since Rae of Arts makes beautiful wedding goods and has a reputation of being easy to work with and of putting out a beautiful product. If everything turned out beautiful in the end I vote for upping that B!!!

Again congrats on your wedding day and hope you have a great time in Tahiti!

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This I vote A+ for Rae Of Art !!!!

Re: My amazing 'vintage inspired' black and white wedding @ Oheka Castle. Amazing vendors (Long list!). PICS IN ALBUM (More to come!)

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Posted by PSP

Was your dress by an in house Kleinfeld designer? Do they have that kind of thing?

If not, who designed your dress and could you give the model name or number? Ivory or white? Thanks!

How was the quality of the letterpress from Spark? I'm looking into letterpress too.

Thanks for sharing the review!

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mine was lazaro- and it was purchased 2 yrs ago- so i believe they do not have the same style but have things similar (i went to the kleinfelds webstie recently to show someone a pic of the dress and did not find mine but found similar). and after much debate (and help from randy at kleinfelds) i went with the light ivory color (the dress does come in white but it is so white it almost has a blueish tone).


I LOVE SPARK invites- amazing and got great compliments on it. not cheap, but worth it!

Re: My amazing 'vintage inspired' black and white wedding @ Oheka Castle. Amazing vendors (Long list!). PICS IN ALBUM (More to come!)

great review!