Man, I don’t even know where to begin! The last year and a half of my life has completely just flown by and somehow I’m supposed to sum it up, complete with pics. I think I’m up to the challenge!
LIW – A++++++ - I would’ve been nowhere without this site. Because I was always crunched for time when I was in NY, I could only make so many appointments and meet with so many possible vendors. This site really helped me narrow down my choices and reading everyone’s reviews helped me have peace of mind when I booked. While the site made me nuts at time (making me think I wasn’t doing enough, not being creative enough, etc), overall, this was a huge resource for an OOT girl!
Mom & Dad – no wordsI can’t write my review without mentioning my parents. As usual, their generosity was more than I ever could’ve asked. They are my two best friends and I don’t know how I ended up with the two coolest people in the world as parents.
Save the Dates – Semi DIY/Kinkos – CBlah, I didn’t like how these turned out. I collaborated with my graphic designer cousin and we didn’t quite agree on things, plus Kinkos couldn’t color match black and white.
Invites – mygatsby.com – A++++++I always wanted to order from mygatsby because everything is very customizable. Right around the time I went to order, someone posted on the boards that the colors on the website didn’t look them same on paper. I got nervous because I never ordered paper samples. I posted a plea for help and
Dalito322 graciously sent me some of her leftover paper samples, so I was able to pick the right colors. The service was great! We ordered our invites on a Thursday night. Due to my haste in ordering, I made a typo and immediately emailed the company (I placed my order at 11:30pm and couldn’t call them). The next morning, I had two emails waiting for me, one with a proof and one with a correction! I approved my proofs on a Sunday night and my box of invites arrived (unassembled) the following Thursday. I couldn’t believe the quick turn around time and not only that, the paper quality was fab. I absolutely loved my invites and the little starfish decal put on my invites (from their website) ended up being my theme. We put the invites together over the course of a week, using those glue dot things and tied the pockets shut with raffia. I printed out the envelopes on my home computer in the same color and font as the invites.
BMs Gifts – I purchased photo-totes on clearance from Bed, Bath and Beyond for $2.99 a piece and I got my MOH a bigger one for $3.99. Someone on these boards mentioned the totes on clearance (I forgot who) but thank you, whoever you are! I gave each BM specialty coffee or tea, depending on what they like best and a Philosophy “Bridal Party” shower gel gift set. I also tried to get an individual gift for each one of them. Ex, one of my girls loved the Lobster flip-flops I have from JCrew, so I bought her a pair. Another is getting married May 2008 and is always highly stressed, so I got her a “how to plan your wedding stress free!” book. My Mom also made wind chimes in our wedding colors with our starfish logo and wedding date, discreetly placed. Everyone LOVED them. Lastly, my awesome, amazing MOH made everyone matching DOJ. She did fabulous job and the jewelry went perfectly with their dresses.
my MOH and the jewelery she made
GM Gifts – Engraved Cigar Humidors, Things Remembered – A++++++++++ - DH, a cigar lover, wanted to get his guys humidors, especially since he knew most of them also love cigars. We found the perfect humidors on clearance on Things Remembered’s website. They were only $59.99, held up to 100 cigars and you could have them engraved! Of course, we waited a few days before we ordered and low and behold, they were sold out. We called the 800# and discovered that they had discontinued the humidors but a store in Washington state still had enough for our order. We called the store to make our purchase but were told they do not take phone orders – you have to pick them up! Being in AZ, not WA, we couldn’t do that, so again, DH explained why we needed them and the woman decided to take our order over the phone and ship them to my parents’ house in NY. They were a HUGE hit! DH also included a few special cigars (from a place we’re not allowed to get them from), which the guys greatly appreciated!
Gift for DH – Cufflinks, Executive Gift Shoppe.com – A++++ - DH and I decided not to get each other wedding gifts. Of course, we did anyway. While searching online for humidors for the GMs, I came across this website. They had a set of cufflinks that said “Cuban Cigar” on them. Being that DH is Cuban and he adores cigars, I had to get them for him! They were only $40.00 and arrived in about a week. DH loved them!
Bride’s Dress, Veil and Headpiece – Dress – Lazaro A++++++, purchased from Paradise Bridal - D –The only reason they didn’t get an F is because eventually, my dress came and I had no problems with my BM dresses. I originally went to Paradise Bridal on a whim. I was home in NY and thought it would be the only chance to shop for my wedding dress with my Mom. Of course, the very first dress I tried on, I had to have it. Although we said didn’t want to purchase here, we were in the moment and bought a dress, headpiece and veil. I didn’t even want a veil, but somehow, they (the salespeople and my Mom) convinced me. We purchased everything on Sept 10th, 2006 for my Sept 9, 2007 wedding. We were very clear that I lived in AZ and would be coming home in June and July for fittings. We were told, don’t worry, your dress will be in sometime in March – you’ll have plenty of time! Of course, that didn’t happen. We called numerous times throughout March and April, but to no avail and there were plenty of salespeople who were VERY rude to us about the situation. Finally, in mid-May, my Mom went the shop and finds out THEY NEVER ORDERED MY DRESS. Of course, they tried to hide that from us and blame the designer, but my Mom saw the order sheet, which had an order date sometime at the end of March – a full 6 months after we “ordered” it. To make a long story short, it was very stressful and they were NOT easy to deal with. My dress arrived at the very end of July, only 3 days before my first fitting (which I did NOT have done there). I had to book a special flight home in August because the dress arrived later than planned. We also had numerous veil problems. My dress was ivory, so I ordered an ivory veil, with no detailing. When my veil arrived, it was white and had beads. A second veil arrives – it’s diamond white! In the end, I picked out a completely different veil that. It was more expensive than my original veil, but since they screwed up so much, they didn’t charge us anything extra. I wouldn’t really recommend going there, unless you are extremely forceful from the get-go. Get the order # and designer’s phone number if you can! Luckily though, I LOVED my dress. It was well made and I’d like to wear it a million more times. I loved my headpiece too, but it had a point on it that dug into my head throughout the day and I was very happy to take it off at the end of the night. But I’d wear it again. With regards to my veil, I’m still either way about it. I would’ve been perfectly happy without it and almost decided the morning of the wedding not to wear it. It was a perfectly nice veil - it’s just that veils aren’t my thing. I know DH was happy I wore it though.
Shoes – C - After much drama, purchasing 7 pairs and returning all of them, I went to the one and only bridal shop in Tucson and found shoes. They were Coloriffics and while I thought they would be comfortable, they absolutely were not! I went barefoot most of the day, or wore my reef flip flops. I thought it would be great to get a dyeable shoe, so I could dye them black to wear again, but they were so uncomfortable the first time around, why bother?
DOJ – Pina – B- - I loved my DOJ. I can’t wait to wear it again sometime. However, I’m nervous. The first pair of earrings broke. I had a hair trial and when I went to put on the earrings to see how I looked, the post fell off. Pina was able to replace them without question, however my Mom also purchased her DOJ there and the morning of the wedding, the post fell off of one of her earring!! The stuff we bought was NOT cheap. In fact, it was probably grossly overpriced. It was gorgeous, but I’m rather annoyed that two pairs of earrings fell apart. Luckily, we replaced mine, but I don’t think my Mom ever went back to have hers fixed. If you’re going to go there, make sure you shop in the cheaper section. That way, you don’t feel ripped off when/if it breaks.
