Design and Day of Coordinator - Elegance by ACE: A+Where do I begin?? Elegance by ACE was exactly what I needed for my wedding day. I did not use the full service, but I purchased their Design and Day of Coordinator package. Anissa was available for every meeting, phone conference, etc I had with other vendors (including the hundreds of times I texted or called her for her suggestions or assistance). She went above and beyond what I paid for and kept me grounded and calm throughout the entire planning process. Anissa and her team coordinated all decorating, table assembly, lighting and more for the reception. She also acted as my right hand woman through the rehearsal, morning of the wedding and reception. I never thought I would have needed or used a coordinator, but I am so happy I did. Her team took care of all the little things that could have added a lot of stress to the day. Even when one of my vendors had a few issues, Anissa had it all taken care of before I could even notice something was wrong. I was so relaxed just knowing that she was there. I really could not have done it without the amazing Elegance by ACE team!
Transportation- Big Easy Limos: A+
Very easy to work with and affordable. We used one Stretch Escalade and one Stretch Hummer to transport the wedding party and parents to and from the ceremony and reception, as well as a vintage Rolls Royce for my husband and I. They gave us a great deal and came in way under budget. The drivers were on time and friendly and the cars were clean and perfect! They even supplied a glass of champagne for my husband and I as soon as we walked out of the church!
Venue- The Four Columns: B
Very budget friendly and reasonably price for everything that is offered in the reception package. However, my now husband and I wanted to change things up a little bit to make the reception space fun and modern and reflect us as z couple.. since all couples are different. The staff at The Four Columns was not very open to change and was very stubborn about their way of doing things, as they informed us that they had been open and "doing weddings for 37 years". We hired an outside planner to help up spruce the place up but they still were behind us every step of the way very reluctant to let us change anything. In the end I actually enjoyed my wedding and the service was absolutely FANTASTIC. My guests also loved the open bar.
Bridal Gown- Pearl's Place: B
LOVED my gown... hated the services sometimes and the entire alterations process at Pearl's Place. They have a large selection of gowns that are fairly inexpensive.
Florist- Christina O'Malley: F
Whatever you do, do NOT use Christina O’Malley for your wedding if you have a certain look in mind and flowers are a big thing for you. She will continuously mislead you and make you think she understands your vision and has everything taken care of, but it was not the case for us. I was very shocked when I saw the flowers she delivered for us at the hotel and the centerpieces at the reception because I was used to reading so many great reviews from other brides on The Knot about her. I guess she is only used to making a few bouquets and not big orders. Please understand the flowers were "nice", they just were not what my husband and I asked for and communicated with Christina.
My husband and I had several concerns that appeared during the execution phase of our business agreement with Christina. I was extremely disappointed in the quality of the flowers she delivered and the inaccuracy of the items I confirmed and ordered with her. To begin, the colors were incorrect, the flower type for several arrangements were incorrect, and the flower quality of several arrangements looked aged and lacked vibrancy. When we contacted her after the honeymoon she was rude and very defensive.
Cakes- Haydel's Bakery: A
Thanks to Haydel's and their amazing staff for doing such an awesome job on our wedding cakes. My groom will not stop talking about how perfect his cake turned out.. so that is HUGE! We went to Haydel's with our own design for both the main wedding cake and the groom's cake and they delivered! They did exactly what we asked for and the cakes tasted great. Thanks for being apart of our special day!
Photographer- Photo 225: B
They did an amazing job with our wedding pictures, engagement pictures, and my bridal portraits! The oly issue we had with Photo 225 is that the guy that we first met with and signed the contract with was booked to do another wedding on our wedding day. They did not inform us of this mix up until the month before our wedding. We are slightly upset because we did not know what photographer they were replacing our original photographer with. The original photographer had previously taken our engagement pics and my bridal portraits so we were already very comfortable with him and he already had a feel of the type of couple we were. On our wedding day we met the replacement photographer but he was super nice and understanding and the pictures are beyond amazing. He did a fantastic job!
Makeup- Charlie at The Makeup Lab Artistry: A+
There are no words that can express how grateful I am to Charlie for making me look and feel absolutely beautiful on my wedding day!!! He was professional, prompt, and tons of fun! If I had to do it all over again I would still choose Charlie. I wouldn't have had it any other way. Highly recommended ladies!
Wedding Prep and Honeymoon suite- Westin New Orleans Canal Place: A+
My fiance and I rented 2 suites at the Westin. One for myself and my bridesmaids and one for the groom and groomsmen. My fiance received a free upgrade to a much bigger suite (one identical to the suite I rented for the girls) when we checked in since they had the room available. The staff was super nice and friendly as we had a ton of people and vendors coming to the rooms on the day before and morning of the wedding. When we returned from the reception we were greeted with a bottle of champagne and a congratulations card from the general manager and staff at the hotel. Our suites were huge and included views of the Mississippi River and french quarter. More than enough room for 7 bridesmaids, 2 makeup artists, 2 flower girls and their parents, ring bearer, my mom and mother in law, and a photographer and videographer.
DJ- DJ GrooveKidd: A+
He was on time and kept everyone dancing the ENTIRE night. He listened to the style of music I wanted and I didn’t have to give him a list of songs! People are still talking about how much fun they had and how awesome the DJ was.