My 3/15 Wedding Review. LiONG
Wedding Group One Photography – A
Don was our photographer and he was very unobtrusive. Except for the formal shots I never noticed he was there until I was posing for pictures with family and he would pop in and take a shot. Don was very organized and took pictures of the BP before the wedding so we were all able to spend some time at the cocktail hour. We should get back our proofs in about two weeks and then I can further comment on his work.
Flower Den – A++
Gigi at Flower Den is great!!!! All of my flowers were exactly what I asked for and they were beautiful!!! She was concerned because I wanted tulips and she worried that they would not hold up the entire day, but they did!!! The centerpieces were beautiful and our bouquets were beautiful.
Lestan Bridal – B-
I did not have any major problems with Lestans. I will say that not all of the people working there are very helpful. The ladies in the bridal department were great and very attentive. My seamstress was a doll who listened to all of my concerns and she did a great job. I will suggest that if at all possible try to do your fittings during the day. Do not try to go after work because it becomes a madhouse. The ladies who work upstairs and at the registers are useless!!! They just sit around and gab and do not even offer to help you. I sometimes waited 15 minutes at the register while numerous workers walked right past me or sat a desk just looking at me!
Jaqueline Nicole – A++
Jaqueline is the best!!! Is decided that I wanted smoky eyes on my big day and she delivered. I also wanted the rest of the make-up to be very natural. Jaqueline worked with me because I really do not like make-up and I was very unsure during the whole process!! She picked the perfect color lip gloss for me on the first try, which is usually a big problem for me. The airbrush was great. It lasted the entire day and did not require any touch ups. JN arrived early and she got right to work in record time!!!
After Hours Tuxedo - B
We chose After Hours because we won a discount at a bridal show and they had locations all over the country. This was important because some of the groomsmen lived in other states. I did not like that they did not have a big selection in the store for the guys to try on. You have to order based on what you see in books. Also, the groom’s tux did not fit!!! His tux was way too big and they had to order in another one for him. This just added more stress the day before the wedding.
Icon Entertainment (DJ) – B
The DJ was great and played really good songs. My biggest complaint is that I asked for a nice selection of dancehall/reggae and he did not play this until the wedding was almost over! He also did not play enough old school, which I requested.
Jillian’s – B+
We had our rehearsal dinner at Jillian’s. I chose Jillian’s because we wanted it to be very casual and fun. We also had a few kids in our bridal party and I wanted them to be able to enjoy themselves. The food was good, but not he greatest, but w did not choose the place for the food. The games were great. I rented two pool tables and a lane for bowling. This was a big hit!! Everyone played and got to know each other.
Chateau Briand – A++
I saved the best for last. CB was awesome. The food was Great!!! My only complaint is that we had our ceremony in the chapel. The chapel is very small and they blocked off a few rows for family, which pushed our other guests all the way into the back of the chapel. This would not have been a problem if the family rows had people in them. There were empty rows in the front of the chapel that should have been filled!! It would have made the rest of the guest in the back rows not look so cramped. I also noticed a lot of family members sitting in those back rows.
I had two bridal attendants who were at my side during the entire wedding!! One of them was even nice enough to pick up and hold my nephew (2 year old) when he refused to let go of me during our entrance into the reception. They were great. These ladies even helped me pack up all of my stuff into my car after the wedding.
My Maitre D’ Angel was the best!! He had all kind of advice for us before, during and after the wedding. He even gave us some tip on cruising, since we were going on a cruise for our honeymoon.
The cocktail hour was beautiful. I did not get to eat anything because people started to mob us as soon as we walked into the room. I was told that the food was great!! Everyone was stuffing their faces and having a good time. We had a beautiful ice sculpture of a bride and groom that everyone talked about. For everyone concerned about going to your cocktail hour, I would say go for it!! Even though I did not get to eat I was able to talk to most of my guests before the reception even started.
Angel made sure everything was perfect. He orchestrated the entire days events and everything went off without a hitch!!
The day does fly and my advice is to just enjoy it. Do not worry about anything going wrong on that day!! Just let go and let God!!! All of the planning was worth it and I am still getting phone calls with my family raving about how beautiful and elegant everything was.
Don was our photographer and he was very unobtrusive. Except for the formal shots I never noticed he was there until I was posing for pictures with family and he would pop in and take a shot. Don was very organized and took pictures of the BP before the wedding so we were all able to spend some time at the cocktail hour. We should get back our proofs in about two weeks and then I can further comment on his work.
Flower Den – A++
Gigi at Flower Den is great!!!! All of my flowers were exactly what I asked for and they were beautiful!!! She was concerned because I wanted tulips and she worried that they would not hold up the entire day, but they did!!! The centerpieces were beautiful and our bouquets were beautiful.
Lestan Bridal – B-
I did not have any major problems with Lestans. I will say that not all of the people working there are very helpful. The ladies in the bridal department were great and very attentive. My seamstress was a doll who listened to all of my concerns and she did a great job. I will suggest that if at all possible try to do your fittings during the day. Do not try to go after work because it becomes a madhouse. The ladies who work upstairs and at the registers are useless!!! They just sit around and gab and do not even offer to help you. I sometimes waited 15 minutes at the register while numerous workers walked right past me or sat a desk just looking at me!
Jaqueline Nicole – A++
Jaqueline is the best!!! Is decided that I wanted smoky eyes on my big day and she delivered. I also wanted the rest of the make-up to be very natural. Jaqueline worked with me because I really do not like make-up and I was very unsure during the whole process!! She picked the perfect color lip gloss for me on the first try, which is usually a big problem for me. The airbrush was great. It lasted the entire day and did not require any touch ups. JN arrived early and she got right to work in record time!!!
After Hours Tuxedo - B
We chose After Hours because we won a discount at a bridal show and they had locations all over the country. This was important because some of the groomsmen lived in other states. I did not like that they did not have a big selection in the store for the guys to try on. You have to order based on what you see in books. Also, the groom’s tux did not fit!!! His tux was way too big and they had to order in another one for him. This just added more stress the day before the wedding.
Icon Entertainment (DJ) – B
The DJ was great and played really good songs. My biggest complaint is that I asked for a nice selection of dancehall/reggae and he did not play this until the wedding was almost over! He also did not play enough old school, which I requested.
Jillian’s – B+
We had our rehearsal dinner at Jillian’s. I chose Jillian’s because we wanted it to be very casual and fun. We also had a few kids in our bridal party and I wanted them to be able to enjoy themselves. The food was good, but not he greatest, but w did not choose the place for the food. The games were great. I rented two pool tables and a lane for bowling. This was a big hit!! Everyone played and got to know each other.
Chateau Briand – A++
I saved the best for last. CB was awesome. The food was Great!!! My only complaint is that we had our ceremony in the chapel. The chapel is very small and they blocked off a few rows for family, which pushed our other guests all the way into the back of the chapel. This would not have been a problem if the family rows had people in them. There were empty rows in the front of the chapel that should have been filled!! It would have made the rest of the guest in the back rows not look so cramped. I also noticed a lot of family members sitting in those back rows.
I had two bridal attendants who were at my side during the entire wedding!! One of them was even nice enough to pick up and hold my nephew (2 year old) when he refused to let go of me during our entrance into the reception. They were great. These ladies even helped me pack up all of my stuff into my car after the wedding.
My Maitre D’ Angel was the best!! He had all kind of advice for us before, during and after the wedding. He even gave us some tip on cruising, since we were going on a cruise for our honeymoon.
The cocktail hour was beautiful. I did not get to eat anything because people started to mob us as soon as we walked into the room. I was told that the food was great!! Everyone was stuffing their faces and having a good time. We had a beautiful ice sculpture of a bride and groom that everyone talked about. For everyone concerned about going to your cocktail hour, I would say go for it!! Even though I did not get to eat I was able to talk to most of my guests before the reception even started.
Angel made sure everything was perfect. He orchestrated the entire days events and everything went off without a hitch!!
The day does fly and my advice is to just enjoy it. Do not worry about anything going wrong on that day!! Just let go and let God!!! All of the planning was worth it and I am still getting phone calls with my family raving about how beautiful and elegant everything was.
