I wanted to make sure I got wedding reviews out to help new brides who begining planning. I hope this might help some people with planning.
Chapel: UNM Wedding Chapel (A). The great part is if your are Alumni it is not very expensive. They are pretty finicky about what you are allowed to have for decorations, but probably no more than most chapels. And they allow you to play whatever music you want unlike some churches.
Dress: Budget Bridal (A+++). These ladies are amazing. They spent an entire afternoon with me without pressuring me to buy. They never rushed me, like my appointment at David's Bridal. They encouraged me to try on several different styles, and had great types like what veils looked great with what dress. They were amazing for my alterations as well. They actually finished my alterations a week ahead of schedule. I can't say enough good things about them.
Hair: Christina at Inspire Salon (A+++). She is a family friend, so I might be a little biased. On a day where everything else was going wrong, this was the only thing that went right. Christina was able to glue in extensions and style my hair in only two hours.
Make-up: Noel Dalton (F). This was one of the big mistakes of the actual wedding day. We had talked about doing a consult but I had emailed to cancel, and she went ahead and scheduled it. It was a massive miscommunication, and needless to say my wedding day when I called she was not at the shop because she said I had no called, no showed for the consult that I did not know she had booked after I emailed to cancel it a week before. I was stuck going to walgreens to buy make-up.
Reception: Albuquerque Grand Airport Hotel (A+++). This was a great decision to use them. The catering manager is so attentive and helpful through the whole process. The food was incredible, we were able to have a sitdown menu for a reasonable price. The banquet manager was incredibly attentive through the whole evening, he made sure we had everything we needed. It was also great to be able to just go upstairs after to go to sleep.
Flowers: Osuna Florist (B). There were a few things that went wrong. The flower colors were not quite what they should have been. I wanted all bright colors, and they were more muted, pastel. As well as each bridesmaid was supposed to have her own color, which is not what happened at all. The florist is nice because he has an idea of what works well. However he can also be pushy about what he thinks it should look like. The one good thing I can say is they have unbelievable prices. Everybody else said they still loved the flowers even with the mix-ups.
Cake: Cake Odyssey (A+++). This was Unique Cakes by Karen. They have some great flavors, lots of options, unbelievable cake designs. They are upfront about what is in your price range, and still get you the design you like.
Photographer: Bryan's Photography (A+++). I had never heard of them before one of the bridal shows. They are the same quality as Kevin's but a more reasonable price. Our photographer Brianna was everything we could hope for. She was not pushy, but still had great suggestions for photos. She was always around when we needed her. She was willing to walk around UNM campus with us to get lots of different shots. I can't wait to see the pictures.