I know that this is my first post, but I would like to express my gratitude for ideas and information that I gained from this board while we were planning my daughter's wedding last year. She was married on December 30 and it was a very beautiful wedding. Since your help was so invaluable to us, I'd like to return the favor with some vendor reviews. We were very fortunate in the vendors we chose and they did a fabulous job. My daughter used a very simple selection process, she interviewed vendors until she felt that she "connected" with someone and then she stopped looking. We were careful to check reviews before talking with them, but (with one exception) her system worked very well.
Powell Gardens Chapel - Powell Gardens are beautiful and it was the only place my daughter considered getting married (she had dreamed of having her wedding there since the first time she visited at 12 years old). We were concerned in scheduling a wedding so far out of town at that time of year, but it turned out beautifully. In fact, since it was an off-season wedding, we were able to negotiate an extra hour in the chapel for pictures. The chapel is expensive and the rules are very strict, but they are definitely doable. We were greatly fortunate to have a sunny 54-degree day with a stunning sunset, and the chapel was completely decorated with pointsettias and wreaths for the holiday season. Sam and Dena are wonderful to work with and I highly recommend them as long as you can work within their rules. We did, however, opt for a Friday wedding so that we could have the reception off-site.
Overland Park Marriott -- I can't say enough wonderful things about the Marriott and their event staff. They were extremely accomodating and worked with us to make the reception wonderful. We also had a room block there that was used by many out of town guests. The all-inclusive package made planning the wedding a breeze. Since my daughter and son-in-law live out of state, everything was substantially easier than dealing with individual vendors. The package included a cocktail hour in the foyer, full meal, open bar, hot chocolate bar, late night snack, linens, chair covers and wait staff. We especially liked how the price quoted to us included tax and service charge, so there were no surprises. We also had a suite and a hospitality room to get ready before leaving for Powell Gardens, and to use through the weekend. Since we had several children at the reception, they set up a table near the dance floor covered in butcher paper for the kids to draw and play while the adults danced and visited. The flow of the room worked very well.
Emily Hart Bridal -- This is a boutique style shop with wonderful customer service. In addition to my daughter's wedding gown, we purchased her veil and headpiece, the bridesmaid dresses, and the flower girl dress. The dresses all arrived on time. One bridesmaid dress was flawed and had to be returned, but came back in plenty of time for alterations. Their seamstress is truly wonderful. My daughter added pockets to her dress and some illusion sleeves for the ceremony. The sleeves snapped out of the strapless gown for the reception, and were seeded with small crystals and created a lovely keyhole back.
Found in Nature -- Rhea Adams was the first vendor that my daughter found. She is very reasonably priced and did not try to "oversell" us. My daughter's favorite flower is the carnation and she built her flowers around ivory and deep purple carnations. Her bouquet of purple carnations, eggplant cala lillies, purple tulips, and ivory waxflowers was stunning. We did not decorate the chapel at all, but did have centerpieces of tulips, carnations and floating candles. Rhea is truly an artist and such a pleasure to deal with.
Horizon Limousine -- as with some of the other vendors, we received a nice discount based on the date of the wedding. They used a Cadillac Escalade limo and it was clean and prompt. The driver was very nice and helpful. There was plenty of room for the wedding party, the photographers and a few extras to and from Powell Gardens.
Party Sounds -- I can't say enough about how great Kelly and Susan are to work with. Kelly provided the sound at the chapel as well as at the reception. Since my daughter is a musician, she was very particular about the music and they listened to her very carefully. We had a long meeting a few weeks before the wedding, and Kelly came to the rehearsal. He was even able to use the processional that my daugher provided to him from an MP3 played by a friend. Not only do you get Kelly as DJ, you get his wife as a coordinator and full lighting for the reception space. Since they chose a buffet meal, Kelly and Susan suggested that we "name" the tables by song to be released to eat... they had a lot of fun with that and used "food" songs that everyone really enjoyed.
Iced Art -- First of all, you want to have a delicious cake for your wedding. Michelle's designs are beautiful and her cake is delicious. She makes the best buttercream that I have ever tasted. Also, my son-in-law and I share a love of peanut butter and Michelle created a peanut butter cake recipe for his groom's cake. The design they selected was simple, but it was beautifully executed and delicious. We received many compliments on the cake.
KC Photobooth -- Definitely the hit of the party. The album of picture strips is something they look at regularly, and it was so much fun. Everyone enjoyed their picture strips and expressed a lot of compliments. During the reception, my daughter and her husband took turns taking pictures with the guests, and there was a steady line of people taking pictures all night. They gave no other favors (other than individual boxes of cake) and everyone seemed pleased. The DJ regularly reminded everyone to go to the photobooth whenever he noticed a lull.
Norland Studios -- Abby is such a special lady and truly gifted photographer. Although we have not yet received the prints or albums, the photos from the wedding are stunning. Getting married at Powell Gardens in December can be severely limiting, but she took advantage of the dormant prairie grass and beautiful sunset to achieve some truly amazing photos. I have seen a lot of pictures from Powell Gardens posted on the internet, but the pictures that Abby took are different from any that you have ever seen. She took full advantage of everything the landscape provided and got some very special shots both inside and outside of the chapel. In addition, she got some great candid shots during the reception that really reflect the personality of the group and the fun of the party. When it became difficult to get some family members to the altar (due to limited mobility) she took the pictures to the family and once again we were treated to shots outside the standard.
Tip Top Tux -- after reading less than stellar reviews of Men's Warehouse and Joseph A Banks, we met with Tip Top Tux in Hawthorne Plaza. The inital meeting went great, and they were very patient as my daughter plowed through the different color swatches and took pictures for her husband to select the colors. Overall, we were happy with them. The tuxedoes were correct in both color and style, but there was a lot of miscommunication. All but one of the men in the party lived out of town and it took three tries before they received the measurements that they submitted online. Two tuxedoes were delivered in the wrong size and one groomsman was charged double the agreed-upon rate. However, they made everything right and the tuxes looked great at the wedding. My daughter and son-in-law were a little frustrated, but in the end it turned out. If you choose to use them, just make sure that you follow up carefully with them on details.
Other vendors that they used were Shane & Co. for their rings, Exclusively Weddings for the invitations, and Magnet Street for the save-the-dates. Our DIY projects were a card box, table numbers, escort cards, and programs.
If you have any questions, I'd be happy to answer them. Thank you again for helping this "lurker" to give her daughter a truly wonderful wedding.