Let me first start off by saying February 18th was hands down the best day of my life. I have only one regret. I wish I would have been more diligent about working out and eating right. But, hindsight is 20/20, and I have yet to see my proofs, I’ve only seen non-professional pictures. On to the review . . .
Because we financed this wedding 100% ourselves, I kept a very close eye on my budget. One thing I MUST say to all of those who are in the same boat, NEVER BE AFRAID TO ASK FOR A BETTER PRICE!! What’s the worst that can happen, they say no?? At least you tried! I negotiated everything I could, from no tax to a few extras.
All of my vendors definitely met my expectations, some exceeded them and one vendor in particular completely blew me away.
FYI – all of the pictures below are non-professional
RK Bridal – Bride’s Dress & Alterations A
I ordered my dress (Maggie Sottero Addison) in April 05. It arrived in July, and I went for my first fitting in January. Everything went smoothly, prices are great and the staff is very helpful. The only negative, is it gets super crazy on the weekends, so be prepared to wait. My cousin (matron of honor) bought me a shadow box that had an exact replica of my dress in it. One of the seamstresses there made it. It’s absolutely gorgeous and one of my most treasured keepsakes from the wedding.
Jessica McClintock – MOB Dress A
My mother is petite and very “young at heart”. She was afraid of looking too matronly, so finding a dress for her was proving to be “challenge”. After an extensive search, my very patient sister, took mom to Jessica McClintock. There they found the perfect dress, for a perfect price – I believe it was around $250 and they even shipped to our house for free.
Perfect Bridesmaids.com – Bridesmaids A
We ordered Bill Levkoff 502 dresses for $138. That was about $80 less than an retail store. Now the only downside, is you have to get measured somewhere and once the dresses come in find your own seamstress. If you don’t mind that, this was a great way to save my bridal party money. The dresses came in early and they were all the correct sizes. Also, if you have the entire order shipped to one address, you don’t pay shipping.
The site is also tax free.
My sister:
After Hours – Tuxes B
I wasn’t that involved with this part of the process. There were some mishaps with pant and shirt sizes, but everything was resolved when the tuxes were picked up. At the end of the day, everyone looked great.
Mya – Cosmetic Artistry – A+
Mya is a true artist and professional. She was early and handled my “picky” bridal party with ease! She did both my hair and make-up and I couldn’t have been more pleased! I also changed my hairstyle at least 4 times between my trial and the day of the wedding and she was so accommodating every time! I highly recommend.
Getting ready at my house:
National Floral Wholesale – A+
By far my most favorite vendor. Ana went above and beyond in every aspect. Her prices are fantastic and the quality of her work is exquisite. She came to the Riviera to help set-up and when Maxine suggested we put some petals on the tables, Ana didn’t flinch. There were petals everywhere and it looked amazing! My bouquet was stunning. Three days later it was still beautiful. (The pictures of the bouquet on the table were taken 2 days after the wedding) I told Ana I wanted to marry my bouquet. She’s great at what she does and I strongly suggest giving her a call if you haven’t already booked a florist. Or, if you are having second thoughts about the florist you already have, that’s what I did and it was one of the best decisions I ever could have made!
High Voltage Sounds DJ – A+
Another great deicision! Also, another vendor that I did not have booked originally and only booked after I was having second thoughts about my original DJ and had read all of the amazing reviews Vinny was getting. Initially, Vinny was supposed to be working a day wedding and wasn’t sure if he’d be able to be at ours. You can imagine how ecstatic I was when I saw him walk through the door in his music note vest! He completely put me at ease and made the entire night flow. He didn’t even flinch when I told him we were adding another half hour on to the reception. I received so many compliments on the music and the great variety. He played every song on our must play list and mixed in a great selection of salsa music! He is wonderful at what he does and I HIGHLY recommend him.
Frederick Studios Photography – A+
Fred is not a vendor on this site. I found him through a recommendation from the Riviera. He’s GREAT! He is the owner of the company and does not sub out to other photographers. He photographs every single wedding he books. He handled my crazy bridal party with ease. Fred is a consummate professional and a doll to work with. His assistant Pete was amazing also. During one of our pictures outside on the balcony of the bridal suite, my veil flew off and went all the way to the point of the roof. Pete scaled the roof like Spider-man and got it for me!!!
I can not wait to see the proofs.
ETA: I saw the proofs - they are amazing! When i get them on a disk - I will upload here.
Classic Video (Fran & Lou) – A+
Another great vendor. Fran and Lou are a husband and wife team that offer 2 camera videography. Unfortunately, due to the overly-strict rules of my church, they were not able to get the second camera shot of us doing our vows. They were so apologetic, even though it was totally not their fault. They did a great job at the wedding, never in anyone’s way or in anyone’s face. I can not wait to see the final result – especially because Al and I did our infamous version of Paradise by the Dashboard Light!
Royalty Limousine – A+
They were great. They were on time, professional and so friendly and nice. Our drivers were Charlie & Mike. Mike drove us from the church to the Riviera and even brought the cases of beer and champagne from the limo all the way up to the bridal suite. I highly recommend them.
La Rosa Cigar Rollers – A+
Great product, great price. Just beware of the “transportation fee”.
M A X I N E – A+
I’m so so so thrilled I hired a DOC. Even though she told me and I quote, “You are the most organized bride I ever met” (sorry I had too), I still felt so relieved that she was there. Anything I needed, or THOUGHT I could have needed, she got for me!
A great investment!!
Riviera Waterfront Caterers – A+++
The staff here is truly amazing. Michelle was my banquet manager and she was a doll. From start to finish, I was completely confident in Michelle. She even called me the night before my wedding to see how I was doing! I was totally blown away.
Robert Jay was my Matre’D and he was a godsend. When my cousin, who begged me to let her do my bustle, had too many drinks, he swooped right in and took over. The party was going so great, we decided in the middle to extend it an extra half hour and Robert was more than accommodating. Meghan was my bridal attendant and DH and I never had an empty drink or unfulfilled wish!
The food was amazing, the drinks were plentiful and everyone commented on what a great cozy place the Riviera is. It was perfect for our winter wedding, with the fireplaces going.
I highly recommend for a wedding in any season! It’s especially perfect if you are having a wedding for around 150 people. We had exactly 150 and everyone fit perfectly, even in the cocktail room (I know a lot of people have commented on that – and they are renovating).
Like I said earlier, it was the BEST day of my life, so far
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If anyone has any questions, please feel free to FM me!!!
Here are some more pics - enjoy!
Looking up to the balcony at the Riviera
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ETA: Honeymoon
Grand Velas Resort & Spa - Nuevo Vallarta, Mexico - A+
When we first thought about planning our honeymoon, I started to get nervous. We were paying for the entire wedding and I just didn't see how we could afford an amazing honeymoon. Luckily, I have the BEST uncle and cousin in the entire world!! My uncle is an RCI member and gave me his week to use anywhere we wanted. We chose the Grand Velas and luckily it was available the week we wanted. All we did was pay for the all-inclusive fees - which came out to around $2500. If we were to book this resort on our own, it would have cost us about tripple that.
We had superb weather. It was 85 and sunny everyday. The rooms were spectacular, every one of them is ocean front. The food was great and we definitley took advantage of the all-inclusive alcohol. We were at the swim-up bar everyday ordering cadillac margaritas by 11AM.
Some pictures of the view we had, the iguanas that seemed to be everywhere and my cutie hubby getting his scuba lesson in the heated pool.
ETA : Classic Video (Fran & Lou)
First off, I want to mention that DH's father passed last Tuesday after a long battle with cancer. It's been extremely difficult for our family and now he is finally at peace. We also received the call from Classic that our video was ready to be picked up. With mixed emotions, I told DH and to my surprise he wanted to get it immediately. We waited until Saturday and watched it alone. It was amazing! FH was brought to tears, but in a happy way when he saw the entrance his father and mother made to the reception.
Besides the obvious emotional and sentimental value, words can not express what Fran and Lou have done for our family. They were able to capture every amazing moment of that day and now we have wonderful memories of his father forever.
If you are on the fence about getting a videographer, let our situation convince you that you should. We were unsure about it as well. We are so thrilled that we went with our gut and did it. It means so much more to us now than we ever thought it could.
I know you've all been sick with worry over my professional pictures. Without further ado, here they are. ![]()
I'll post the party pictures in a bit.
