Its long....did not want to miss details !!
I really must say all my vendors and people conected with my wedding provided wonderful service. Pls FM if you want any links.
Ceremony Location: Ariana Waterfall,West Hempstead, New York A+ We choose Ariana Waterfall for our wedding because of its beautiful interior with elegant skylights, glass enclosed lush tropical gardens and interior waterfalls waterfalls, very affordable & excellent customer service all at a very affordable price. The beauty of this room was soo evident on my wedding day; I notice in my pics as I walked down to my FH, with sunlight coming through the skylights, gave a goddess like glow to me as I walked. It makes such a elegant and beautiful picture.
Tony & Ishmael the owners have run this catering hall for over 15 plus years or more. When we booked back in February 2004, they were professional & very courteous. That professionalism carried through my year & half of working with them. I must have called Ariana a zillion times with questions & normal bridal fears. They never once cut me short or did not return a phone call. They are real people who understand the stress of being a bride. When I went to Ariana during the last week of my bridal plans, they were reviewing my seating & brought to my attention a change of moving the square tables to the back of the room to make sure all the guest could see us. Small detail but, I was pleasantly surprised that they were that concerned about things being perfect for me as I had already been paid in full. To other Ariana Brides after me, you are in good hands.
Reception Location: Ariana Waterfall A+ Ariana Waterfall’s main room was decorated per the details I had discussed with the staff. DH brought our wedding cake from Brooklyn the day before the wedding, this is something we wanted. Ariana offered to keep it refrigerated for our wedding day. That was great of them. During dinner, Our Matre’d, personally came over to us, with congrats and to make sure everything was perfect. All our chairs were covered and with a bow on each & the tables looked magnificent with the raised centerpieces that I upgraded. The meal began with a fresh fruit bowl, then salad and then the main course of Chicken Marsala & Filet Mignon, Red Roasted Potatoes Seasonal Vegetables and Fresh Baked Breads so I know our guests were well fed. I have seen pictures of the reception room before the guest filled it & I must say it was breathtakingly beautiful. The beautiful day we had, caused the sun light to dance through the skylights and bounce off the many crystal chandlers Ariana has in its main dining room.
Ariana Bridal suite A I was glad that we had a place to relax before & after the ceremony. We were treated like royalty, enjoyed the cocktail foods & got to talk with the BP and give them their gifts before the reception.
Cocktail hour A Presentation is everything, and I asked the guests how they enjoyed it. The big smiles and compliments to the chef was affirmation that the finger foods of popcorns shrimp, beef ksbobs, Ariana Chicken Kabobs Seasoned Sun dried Tomatoes on Garlic Toast to name a FEW indicated that we all enjoyed. We had the same food in the Bridal suite, and yes it was good. The open bar was an obvious hit & the bartender handled my signatue drinks well.
Photographer: 12th Night A+ There are NOT enough words to say how wonderful Dominic was and is as a professional photographer. We booked Dom on the spot March 04. He took out e pics in May and I was ecstatic with the results. Dominic is extremely professional and very easy going. He has an eye for ‘that’ great shot & will do it over (digitally) until he sees it. Dom was at my home at 7:30 am & began right away with shots of me getting my makeup done. He made sure all the Must take were done at OWG, the ceremony & reception, he referred to my list to make sure & he artistically did others on the spot that I know are gems. I need another occasion to use him again ! ...how about Vow Renewal???
Day of Coordinator – Judith Garner A + I met with Judith Jan 05, as at first I was not having a DOC, but as I thought about all the last minute things to do, I scanned the LIW boards and came across Judith from Nsgramhs review. Judith is every bit the professional coordinator with a keen attention to detail. As detailed as I am, she brought things to my attention our pre meetings that I was like oh…..that too?? She kept everything running smoothly throughout the day and only advised me if there was any change to what we had not planned for on our timeline, i.e. dinner was abut 15min behind schedule so we danced instead LOL She called me the morning of the wedding and took care of everything from beginning to end at Ariana. I would recommend her to other brides in a heartbeat.
Videographer: MIttermax I see why Travis is always busy – he arrived on time & got to work right away as Okasna was doing my makeup. I like that I KNEW he was there, but didn’t. He was not obtrusive but I know he was always around as I heard guests refer to him. From his services on my wedding day I am very satified & will let u all know abt the video when I get it.
Old Westbury Gardens A+ I am so glad I booked the gardens as I wanted a different feel in the wedding pictures. We took pictures BEFORE the cerm. We were there from 9am-10:30am. I booked the gardens back in Mar 04 or Mar 05 and I was the ONLY bride for that morning so we had the whole mansion to ourselves. I have seen some shots and they are great I cant wait to see the proofs. Diana the manager was great in making sure I kept breathing LOL , no really . there were times I stopped & did not even notice it, we laughed as she said brides do it all the time. The gardens are truly a magnificant place for wedding photography.
DJ & MC : SmoothDJ Rus A+ I booked DJ Rus July 2004. I read reviews abt him and sent for the info pack. Right off the bat I knew this was my Dj as his professionalism was evident in his package presentation. He met with DH & I in Jan 05 to finalize details, & for the next 8 weeks, up to the week before the wedding, I must have send him a million changes, deletions to play list, hard to find songs, and he made it right. I burned 5 CDs for him abt 5 songs each as what I wanted him to play (just me with details) & left the rest to him from the play list. During the ceremony & reception he played each song I requested – NO one was sitting. That is how is should be a CELEBRATION. He is just wonderful. I highly recommend him.
Ceremony Music I bought abut 6 wedding cd’s and found my walk song – I knew from the moment I heard it. The romantic melody of the Love Theme - Romeo & Juliet” Tchaikovsky was just what I was looking for. The Bridal Party walked to Unchained melody and the Flower girls to Cantata 147
Limousine: Royalty Limos A We had 2 limos before the wedding; an Escalade picked up the guys and a BMW 745i for me. All the divers were at least 15-20min early and were very nice and helpful. they all knew exactly where they were going. The cars were clean and well stocked. There were absolutely no worries with this company. Their fleet is housed indoors so they in great condition.
Florist: House Of Roses, Rockville Center A- Bo’ks & Centerpieces & Arch flowers. Maj & Felicia were wonderful. My total time devoted to flowers was about 8+ hours. I first met Maj back in Sept 04 – that was about 4 hrs we talked about what I envisioned for my wedding. He took the time to show me each flower he had in stock as we spoke about it & show me a samples of how the bok may look. My last meeting with them in Feb 05 finalized everything & they made the arreagements beautiful. They were a bit late with delivery of the bo'k's to my house that morning, but not a stress factor.
Gown By: Bridesave.com Gown designer - Moonlight Jewel B- My gown was ordered thru Bridesave.com. – The driving factor for my gown was I wanted a Royal train – VERY long. I found my gown and it has a 12 foot train. Just fit for a princess !! I ordered in March 04 arrived July 04. Staff was courteous but could have kept me a bit more informed as to status of Bridal Party ordering their dresses late etc. which lead me spending the rush fee to get the dresses by Jan05
BP Gowns – Gownfind.com A+ Phyllis is wonderful. My MOH, Jr BM dresses were ordered from her at a great saving. She did the alterations also. One of my flower dresses was a carriage back lilac & white Jordan dress –but I wanted it a bit different, cap sleeves and set on waist band & bow in back iso of flower – Phyllis made it to my details at only abt $30 more than the original. The rave about Phyllis in the boards is all true.
Calligraphy; Inkspun A+ Bill is a godsend, I got all my invites done within a week. He called to let me know the purple ink was a bit more vibrant than the one I choose & if it was OK use it??? Customer service like this is rare these days.
Officiator: Hon. William Corrbett A He performed our ceremony exactly as I gave it to him. I remember key words that we put in and he delivered. He was referred by Ariana at very reasonable price, as we were not about to pay $600&up for 20mins of ceremony
Favors: Candy wrapper Store A+ We got the personal wrapped chocolate with the matching foil and all loved the personalized wrapping. So did we! The colored foil matched my royal purple theme. They arrived the week of the wedding & I tasted one –it was very fresh. Great favor idea !
Wrap With Us - A I call it the Costo wedding warehouse. Small location but they have everything at prices you can get change with!!! I was only going to do the chocolate but caved in at last min with the wrapped place card holders. Funny, when wrapped they match the name cards i got on Ebay EXACTLY, so i guess it was meant to be. I recommend this place to all. I also did the sliced of cake in personalized boxes i bought on ebay.
Makeup: Oksana A+ I had two trials with Oksana. I booked my Aug 04 trial in April 04 !! Oksna is truly an artist that is gifted in what she does with makeup. The first trial she did a great job, however I felt the colors were not WOW enough. The second trial she toned up the colors significantly and created the look that I wanted. She was very eager to please, friendly and talented. She also worked with my complexion and for my second trial bought makeup that she felt looked more natural. That is what I called an artist who cares about her work and results. One my wedding morning Oksana arrived on time & made me look fabulous for my day !! The makeups held up thru the day with minimum touch ups, and trust me I was dancing! She books fast so keep that in mind if you want to use her.
Cake – Maxwell’s bakery, Brooklyn A - DH & I love the cake from this bakery, so although they dont deliver –DH brought the cake to Ariana the day before the wedding. My Hero !!! The cake was fresh soft and tasted yummy.
Bridal accessories – Georgettes A For bras ladies, this is the place. I was concerned about being ‘secure’ on top as I am well endowed. They fitted me with a great bra & it was very comfortable. Shoes – Glass slipper.com A - No problem & they were comfortable
Invites – Precious Colletions.com A+ Great & speedy services. My invites were a double press run as I had verses on the front. They invites were wonderfully done. Great prices – definitely a find i would recommend to other brides !
Table Names – documents&designs.com A+ Really liked the service. $65 for 12 cards. They adjusted the ink in the floral pattern to be purpler to match my theme. Great find if you want to table names in any pattern and not spend a lot, but will look like you did.
Veil & Tiara – Barrons, Tri-County A - My first time there was July 04 as we went tiara hunting. They prices are wonderful and the selection is great. My triara was custom made as I wanted a more added to it that they did. My veil was custom made also from the shimmer material with intricate beading. I totally love how both came out. My veil was a bit more than I expected to spend, but I am a bride…LOL
Fox Hollow, Syosett, NY A+ The bridal Suite was beautiful for our wedding night. I love the romantic rose petals on the bed & chilled champagne & chocolate in the room when we arrived. A bit pricy for one night –but we figured, this was a very special night. I am very happy with the choice.
Wilbraham Mansion, Cape May NJ A+ This bed and breakfast was a romantic haven. Cape May is a summer town, so it was quiet and not many people around when we were there. That is exactly what we needed. We were both so tired after the wedding we rested most of the first day there. After that, I swear time stood still. The peace & solitude created a tranquil feel that we both enjoyed. Wilbraham is the only B&B in NJ to have a headed indoor pool. So as it was minus 4 degrees out side, were were enjoying swimming in a 96 degree indoor heated pool. I totally enjoyed our honeymoon
Feldman’s Tuxedo Lynbrook NY A+ Mike was great to work with. We started with him Oct 2004. Mike ordered vaious styles for DH to try on during that month so we could see. We came back with the BP in Dec04 for the rest of the BP tuxes. Mike made sure all were fitted & comfortable. Vendor of Ariana, would definitely recommend them.
Rings - Sun Jewelry –California, A+ Abit is just phenomenal. We ordered my engagement ring July 03. Abit spoke with me regarding all my how I wanted my ring to look. I gasped with the beauty of my e ring when DH proposed in Feb04. I still get many complements on the setting. Our platinum wedding bands are unique in style & design.Both togeter look stunning. My appraiser says she has never seen such workmanship & quality in a very long time. Our wedding bands are also wonderful made and just beautiful. If you can think outside the box, i.e. they are in California; this is a great place for jewelry.
Jewelry Appraiser FKA The Jewelry Judge, Manhasset NY A + Ms Deborah A. Villepigue, GG, MGI, RMV
Deborah KNOWS her gems and has a genuine passion about jewelry. She appraised all our rings and said she has never seen such detail & quality on rings. She stands behind every appraisal & will go to court if something happens to your gems. We were able to insure all our rings before we went on our HM. She is fun and a great person. Worth every penny & some. Defiantely recommended.
Here are a 'few' pics by BCM
Pics by BCM aka Ms Minolta Old Westbury pics UPDATE 6.16
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Here are the proofs -they are AMAZING !!!!
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C & J proofs
