We had an absolutely wonderful day & I don't think I'd change a single thing! The biggest piece of advice I can give to all the brides-to-be out there is to ignore everyone who pokes a little fun at you for getting wedding-related tasks done too early! My friends couldn't believe how much I did early on, while I couldn't believe how much I still had left to do the week of the wedding! I spent a lot of time planning this wedding, but in the end, it totally paid off!
Now, the reviews:
Blackstone Catering/ Karen Riley- A+Literally, there were so many times in the planning process that I'm not sure I could have pulled things off without Karen. We had wines served with each course, and one of the wines that we wanted couldn't be shipped to RI (due to crazy liquor laws). Karen had it shipped to her parents' house in NY & had them bring it when they came to visit. She's amazing & the food was amazing.
Casino at Roger Williams Park- AIt's a beautiful building on beautiful grounds. In the planning process, you don't work all that much with the Casino staff. But, when I needed them, they were quite helpful & gave honest opinions on other vendors, etc.
Flowers by Semia- A+The flowers were amazing. Yes, their prices are higher than some, but I never worried about the flowers. I explained my overall vision, they got it, and delivered. Also, I had a bridesmaid who was unable to be in the wedding due to illness; I asked to have the flowers that were supposed to be in her bouquet put into an arrangement & delivered to her. They were happy to oblige.
Melissa Robotti- A+Here are our teasers:
http://www.melissarobotti.com/blog/index.php/2011/10/24/roger-williams-park-casino-wedding/comment-page-1/#comment-40786I think Melissa is just wonderful. Her photos were one of the reasons we chose to have our reception at the Casino. She's even better in person: accomdating every request I made & just a calming influence during an otherwise stressful time.
GQ & the Lady- A+Someone, they manage to please everyone both young & old. They took 2 breaks during our 5 hour reception & they timed the breaks absolutely perfectly. The hardest part was that nobody could take a break from dancing because they played one great song after the next.
Viking Trolley- A-The trolleys & drivers were absolutely fantastic. I did have a few hiccups in the planning process. After already paying my deposit, I was quoted the incorrect (higher) balance twice. Once the glitches were worked out, everything was fine. I would use them again, but just make sure you double check things. We had 2 trolleys- one for guests & one for the wedding party. The guests absolutely loved the convenience of the trolleys.
Kristin Greene (Make up)- A+She did an amazing job. I went for one trial & wasn't in love with the look. I think I had chosen a picture of someone else that just didn't work for me. I expressed my concerns to Kristin, we had a second trial & it was just perfect. She did a great job for me & all my bridesmaids on the day of. She's super sweet, too.
Sam C (Hair)- A+She's fantastic & reasonable, too. She's getting married & having a baby within the next year. So, she's not taking on as many weddings. If you want her, book her early. It's worth it. I was struck by how beautiful all of my bridesmaids were following their time with Sam & Kristin (they are always beautiful, just enhanced beauty
)
Hilton Garden Inn (airport)- A+We had some guests book outside of our room block for a variety of reasons (booking with points, etc). Lindsey went through our list of guests & compared to the list of guests booked at the hotel for the weekend to let us know exacatly which of our guests were staying at the hotel. We brought in 35 welcome boxes on the Wednesday before the wedding. I'm sure that it was annoying for the front desk to have to worry about where to keep them & figure out the logistics of distributing them. But, they were great--- even helped us carry them in!
Iron Works Tavern (rehearsal dinner)- AWe weren't sure how this was going to work out, because leading up to October, we were told the upstairs would be ready by Spring, then by Summer, then by Fall. Turns out they officially opened the upstairs of the restaurant a week or two before our rehearsal. Everything from that point on was perfect. The room is beautiful & the food was fantastic.
Sweet Indulgence (Wedding Favors & Cupcakes for rehearsal)- A+Can't say enough about their cupcakes-- absolutely delicious. Also, they let use use their beautful stands for free since they were making our wedding favors as well. For wedding favors, we had cute "bride and groom" fortune cookies.
I hope I didn't forget anyone--- If I did, I'll write another post when I remember. Please feel free to ask if you have any questions about anyone's services!