The Brides' Review - Vanderbilt Mansion-Oakdale - Dec 4 wedding

BriDec05 Posted: Jan 05, 2006 03:34 PM+

BriDec05 MEMBER SINCE: 1/05 TOTAL POSTS : 200 WEDDING DATE: Dec 04, 2005

Posted: Jan 05, 2006 03:34 PM

Vanderbilt Mansion-Oakdale - Dec 4 wedding

We really lucked out with our vendors – most of whom I found here LIW. Everything went really smoothly and everyone did a fantastic job. And the small issue wasn’t that big a deal in the end because the music was beautiful!

Planning this wedding was the most stressful thing I’ve done, thanks to a ton of family drama. Thankfully, the majority of our vendors were not only total professionals but also really nice people.

Bridal Suite of Bay Shore – My dress – A++
No complaints whatsoever. Cynthia was great and worked with me to find the perfect dress. I found “the one” on my first trip! My dress was a Maggie Sottero with a corset back so it didn’t need a lot of alterations ($$ saver). The alterations that I did need (hem/bustle) were done beautifully. Everything went very smoothly and I received many compliments on the dress.

Simple Silhouettes – Bridesmaid/MOH dresses – A+
www.simpledress.com
LOVE these dresses! They’re on the expensive side but the dresses can definitely be worn again. And they looked beautiful! The ordering process is simple and the sales people were very helpful. My bridesmaids had to get their own seamstresses to do the alterations but that didn’t seem to be too much trouble. Worth the price, imho.

S&S Tuxedos (Hicksville)– all tuxes – A++
These guys were fantastic to deal with. Two of the tuxedo-wearers were from out of town and sent in their measurements. Even though they weren’t able to try on the tuxedos, the tuxes fit perfectly. They looked great, the price was right and the service was super-friendly.

Designs by Rose – flowers – A+++
www.designsbyroseinc.com
We were on a very tight budget and had seen Rose’s work at another wedding. We knew their flowers/arrangements are beautiful and that they’d work within our budget. Designs by Rose was our first and only stop for flowers for our wedding. Rose and Doris (Rose’s mom) are an absolute pleasure to work with. Rose is so creative and comes up with really beautiful arrangements and unique ideas. We went in with a budget and told them what we were envisioning. They came up with very simple, elegant, beautiful flowers - in our budget!! I loved all the flowers and we got so many compliments about how beautiful and unique the centerpieces were.

Right Brian Creations – cake topper – A+
www.rightbraincreations.com
We have a lot of pets (cats and rabbits) and DH kept asking/joking about having them in the ceremony. Naturally I said no. Instead I had a cake topper made with the pets on it instead of a bride and groom. It was a surprise for DH and he loved it. The guests got a kick out of it too. Everything was done online. It was a simple process, went very smoothly and I was very happy with it.

Fr. Henry Fehrenbacher – officiant – A++
I really like Fr. Fehrenbacher. I was at another wedding he did and knew I wanted him to do ours. He’s got a great sense of humour and he’s very efficient. The ceremony was sweet and quick! I really enjoyed having him at the wedding.

BriDec05 Posted: Jan 05, 2006 03:35 PM+

BriDec05 MEMBER SINCE: 1/05 TOTAL POSTS : 200 WEDDING DATE: Dec 04, 2005

Posted: Jan 05, 2006 03:35 PM

Re: Vanderbilt Mansion-Oakdale - Dec 4 wedding

Spin Around Sound – DJ – (Tom and his assistant Scott) – A++
www.spinaroundsound.com
We went to a wedding that Tom DJ’d and knew he was the one for us. Just to be sure, we spoke to some other dj’s which only made us even more certain that Spin Around Sound was the right DJ for us. We wanted a dj/mc who was unobtrusive but who would play good music that got the crowd moving. That’s Spin Around Sound. Incredibly, Tom was also able to make some last minute changes I requested within seconds during the wedding. We’ve received a ton comments about how good the music was and how great a DJ Tom is. I highly recommend Spin Around Sound.

Susan Francy – photographer – A+
www.susanfrancyphotographs.com/
Not your traditional wedding photographs/photographer – which is great because that was what we wanted! I had a short list of posed photos which we got out of the way before the ceremony. After that, Susan was on her own. We just got the proofs and they’re great!

Vanderbilt Mansion/Lovin’ Oven/Audreys Bakery – ceremony and reception - A++
www.vanderbiltmansion.com
As we were looking for reception locations, my then-fiance wondered if we would know when we found “The Place” or would we’d just settle on something because it fit our budget. The minute we saw the Vanderbilt, we knew this was IT. It’s such a beautiful space and Lovin’ Ovens does a fabulous job with the organization and the catering!

Maryann was fantastic to work with. I didn’t have a clear picture in my head of what I wanted the wedding to be but I knew what I didn’t want. Maryann somehow was able to piece together a beautiful day from all my scattered thoughts and ideas.

The mansion was decorated for the holidays (another good way to save some $$) and it looked spectacular! The ceremony was in the conservatory which was really beautiful, decorated with Christmas trees and wreaths. We received a ton of compliments about how beautiful the mansion was and how comfortable everyone was in the space.

The maitre d’, Suzanne, and the bridal attendant, Michelle, were amazing! They really made sure everything went smoothly and anticipated our every need. The food was amazing – as is always the case with Lovin’ Ovens and Audrey’s Bakery. We’re VERY happy we chose the Vanderbilt!

Hyatt Regency Wind Watch – guest and bridal party accomodations – A+
http://windwatch.hyatt.com/hyatt/hotels/index.jsp
The Hyatt is a beautiful hotel and they gave us a great rate on the guest rooms. Connie was very helpful and terrific to work with during the planning. The weekend we were there, the staff could not have been more helpful or friendly.

The only issue I had was that I spent a long time putting bags together for the guests staying at the hotel. The bags included transportation information for the morning of the wedding (we provided transportation to and from the reception for the guests at the hotel). The people at the front desk kept forgetting to give people the bags. Thankfully, we had a small (relatively) wedding so I was able to let everyone know to ask for the bags. I’ve been to weddings where this has happened so apparently it’s a common problem and it wasn’t a big one.

Rain Day Spa – bridal party spa day – A+
www.raindayspa.com
I love this place! It’s such a peaceful, calming place to go for a facial, massage, manicure or pedicure. As a gift to my mom, maid of honor and bridesmaid (and myself

I arranged for massages and manicures/pedicures the Saturday before the wedding. It was a great way to spend the morning before the wedding. My nails looked great and I was totally refreshed and relaxed (well, as relaxed as you can be the day before your wedding!). I *highly* recommend this place!

Quality Limos – limos – A
We went for the no-frills limos because we weren’t having photos with the limo or anything. We basically just needed a ride for about 25 people. Donald at Quality was very helpful and they gave us a great price. They showed up on time and got us where we needed to be.

Unfortunately, one of the drivers was AMAZINGLY rude. Thankfully, he was driving my limo so my guests weren’t subjected to him. He was on his cell phone as we were getting into the car and couldn’t be bothered to open the trunk for our stuff, nevermind help any of us into the car. Then he stood right next to my mom as she almost wiped out in the snow. My sister grabbed her before she fell. The driver told my sister that it wasn’t his job to help us in and out of the car! Apparently, politeness is a “frill” these days!
But, at the end of the day, we got to where we needed to be and the price was right.

BriDec05 Posted: Jan 05, 2006 03:36 PM+

BriDec05 MEMBER SINCE: 1/05 TOTAL POSTS : 200 WEDDING DATE: Dec 04, 2005

Posted: Jan 05, 2006 03:36 PM

Re: Vanderbilt Mansion-Oakdale - Dec 4 wedding

Michelle Nocella, Defining Moments – day of coordinator – A++
www.thedefiningmoments.com
This was, by far, the best money spent for my wedding. I hired Michelle very late in the game. The family drama was getting to me and I was beginning to be concerned that DH and I weren’t going to be able to enjoy our wedding because we’d be running around putting out fires and dealing with all the issues.

Enter Michelle and her assistant, Lauren. They took care of EVERYTHING that day. From picking up the priest to locating lost items to giving my mom a pair of boots so she could trudge through the snow to making sure I touched up my lipstick – nothing got by them. My bridesmaid said that she was able to enjoy the reception more because she knew Michelle and Lauren were on top of everything.

I know there are a lot of questions about whether having a coordinator is worth the expense. People have been doing weddings for years without them but if I had to do it over again, I’d hire Michelle earlier to help with the planning! Having a coordinator really takes the pressure off you and your bridal party so you can just enjoy. Without reservation, I recommend Defining Moments because Michelle is an absolute professional. She conducts herself with amazing poise; she can diffuse difficult situations and she’s fun to be around, to boot!

Pomodorino – Pre-wedding dinner – A
www.pomodorino.com
We didn’t have a rehearsal so instead of a rehearsal dinner, we had a pre-wedding dinner for our out-of-town guests staying at the hotel and our families. We went with Pomodorino because it was close to the hotel and we’d heard good things about them. I was pretty lax in terms of the planning for this. I just wanted a place to have some dinner and drinks with friends/family and relax before the big day. Everyone there was pretty helpful. The food was delicious; service was good and our guests enjoyed it.
There was one incident that was more funny than anything else. No one mentioned that I had to provide my own CD’s for background music. I didn’t have any with me and was told that the staff would try to find something suitable. Next thing we know, heavy metal is blaring into the room! Finally, someone located a CD of Italian standards. Other than that, it was a really fun evening.

MAS Travel – honeymoon – A++
We booked our honeymoon (Sandals Whitehouse) through MAS Travel. John and Maryann are fantastic! They really go the extra mile, whether it’s to give you some pointers about where you’re traveling or sending photos of their trips or getting a better price on your trip even after you’ve booked!

We haven’t left for our honeymoon yet but I have no doubt it’ll be awesome!

Other vendors:

Paper Presentation – 17th St. in NYC and www.paperpresentation.com
Paper and More – www.paperandmore.com
I bought the paper for our programs, out of town bags, labels and pre-wedding dinner invitations at both stores.

Paper Style – www.paperstyle.com
Our invitations and thank you cards came from here. Terrific to work with; great price; great turn around!

Veils.com
I bought a very simple, two-tiered veil. It was a great price and arrived quickly. No problems!