We got married Feb 11, 2012 - last saturday. It was rainy days before and after, but somehow the weather was chilly but very sunny that day ;-) Below are my reviews, hope you find this helpful and informative. Feel free to contact me for further information if needed.
Church/Officiant:
St. Ignatius Loyola, married by Deacon Larry Vines. We are proud to be members of this church. Liz Shugart, our wedding coordinator, had her stuff together and ensured things went smoothly the day of. This is a Catholic church, so there was plenty of work prior to the wedding - Deacon Larry made this a wonderful experience for us both. With our Engaged Encounter weekend (open to non-Catholics too) our marriage license was only $12 (a $60 discount) and the 3 day waiting period was waived.
Reception location:
Tin Hall
www.tinhall.comLisa was wonderful, affordable and very easy to work with. Be sure to request that they not turn on the heater during the colder months - there is really no need in Houston with that many people dancing and drinking. The DJ was the only complaint I have as he only played 3 of the songs I requested to be played. Otherwise, Lisa was very accomodating and we really enjoyed the venue - a great place for a party! They allow you to choose whatever caterer you'd like, same for cake, they have a liquor license so you do need to go through them for beer/wine/liquor - they are regularly priced for their kegs and glasses of wine.
Catering:
Rudy's BBQ
$10/person for bbq, two sides and all the fixings, including people to serve the food. The turkey is a great option for non-red meat eaters. They also brought, unsweet tea, sweet tea and lemonade. They were a little late, but no one noticed - including me. They were also very clear we did not need to tip, but we did.
Cake:
Virginia's Cakes
Virginia and her staff are excellent, they know their stuff! We went in for our tasting about 6 months before hand. The cakes were so moist and delicious at the tasting as well as the night of. The cake itself was beautiful, went with our venue/personalities and they placed the fresh flowers themselves perfectly. We also got a small mini-cake (about the size of the top of the cake) to go with us to the hotel the night of. Two weeks before our anniversary, Virginia will bake us another mini-cake, so no need to choke down frozen nasty cake.
Photographer:
Chuck Gluch with Lifestyle Photography
Chuck and his wife were wonderful - they did my bridal portrait and wedding pictures. Both were very helpful and gave good direction to ensure we got great photos. This is one thing you do not want to skimp on - it will be such a busy day it will be a blur for you. Pictures are what you'll need to remember your special day.
Dress/Veil:
Davids Bridal in the Galleria.
Make an appt and you'll be well taken care of. There are plenty of non-shiny, non- typical wedding dresses here, you just need to look! Love that they have every size imaginable in their store. Dress came 3 months earlier than they thought.
Hair/Makeup:
Mitzie Prince with Gloss Style Company.
Mitzie did a special foundation color match for me at MAC days before the wedding. She also did a trial run a month before the wedding at my home. Her rates were extremely reasonable! And the product was a beautiful bride, bridesmaids, flower girl and mothers. She and her very talented helper got all 9 of us done on time for a 2pm wedding. I cannot tell you enough how much I enjoyed working with Mitzie, and how beautiful we all looked.
Personalized Chocolate:
www.gocandy.com (Based in Houston)
We chose this for our guest take away. 500 pieces for $150 personalized with our names, wedding date and template of choice. These were a big hit and were delivered in a very timely manner.
Bridesmaids Gift:
Clarity Day Spa
Instead of buying a cheesy necklace or something personalized that they'd never use, I booked a party with Pepper at Clarity Day Spa in Spring. She created a customized menu of services for the bridesmaids to enjoy. We had a light lunch, wine and the bridesmaids had their eye lashes tinted, hair massage and exfoliated their arms and hands. All of her products are from the Biodroga line. Lash tinting really does make it look like you have on mascara all the time.
Bubbles/etc...
Michaels
We found affordable bubbles at Michaels and skipped on paying shipping. Also found little tulle bags to group the chocolate in without breaking the bank.