Vendor Reviews

staar987 · May 2013

I'm making this a sticky so that future OC brides can get some vendor reviews without having to look through a ton of old posts! Please feel free to add your reviews here!

From MrsWilson2013 http://forums.theknot.com/discussion/106265/wedding-reviews-pic-heavy

staar987 · May 2013

My Reviews: Please contact me if you want to see any pictures or anything! You can tag me by adding @ before my screen name.

Venue: UCI Student Center Ballrooms http://confserv.uci.edu/meetings/Special_Occasions.php

We used them for our ceremony and reception. It was amazing. They helped us set up (we did a ton of DIY) and take down. They even helped us load our car back up! They went above and beyond by doing things our florist was supposed to do but never did. They were constantly there for us.

I had emailed our coordinator questions like crazy. She always emailed me back promptly with fantastic responses. In the end, she made the rooms look great.

All the little things that they did for us that day were unexpected and fantastic. There was a congratulations card in my getting ready room. Both of the ready rooms had emergency kits in them with everything you could need and chocolate! They really went above and beyond. It isn't a usual space that one thinks of when planning a wedding, but it worked well for us and our guests loved it as well.

There is an adorable outdoor area for ceremonies in Aldrich Park. Since we were a January wedding, I chose not to use it, but it really is gorgeous.

Plus you get a discount if you are alumni!

Wedding Dress: Blush Bridal Couture in Tustin www.blushbridalcoutureoc.com/

As someone who HATES to shop for clothes, I was worried that I wouldn't enjoy my dress shopping experience. I chose to go to here based on the reviews I read and I am so happy I did. Karly was amazing. I called on a Wednesday hoping to get in that weekend which was not a problem! She made me feel comfortable, didn't bat at eye at my budget, and let me pick out options to try on. I was able to take pictures in the dresses and she helped me visualize what the dresses would look like with cap sleeves on them.
They give you a folder that lists the name and designer of the dresses you liked WITH the prices. That goes into a nice reusable bag that is filled with wedding magazines and venders they work with and recommend.
In the end, I purchased my dress that day. Because of the type of dress I was getting, Karly recommended that I order the dress custom length. 2 days later after she spoke with the seamstress she called me saying that the seamstress found a way to hem my dress and they were going to take the additional fee off my final cost. I found that to be a great touch. Most places would rather just keep your money, but not Blush. To top it off, I got a Thank You card in the mail.

First Dance Lessons: Orange County Wedding Dance in Newport Beach http://www.orangecountyweddingdance.com/

My husband had never danced before and was really nervous about doing a spotlight so he thought dance lessons would be great. I found Orange County Wedding Dance online and sent an email asking for more information. Joe sent me a reply that night. We had our introductory lesson that week. Joe and Sara are fantastic. Sara was really patient with us, especially my husband! Even at that intro lesson, she taught us some steps and talked to us about what types of dances we would be doing for each of the songs we were thinking about. We have had 2 lessons since and have learned so much! My husband got so into dance lessons that he really looked forward to going and wants to go again in the future. Joe and Sara really have gotten to know us and remember things that we talked about months ago. I highly suggest going to them. Oh, and my in laws took lessons for them and were rocking it out on the dance floor too!

Hair and Makeup: Elizabeth Hickman http://www.elizabethhickman.com/

I loved working with Elizabeth. I was stressing out about finding someone reasonable for hair and makeup that was close to my venue since most hair and makeup artists didn't meet all the insurance requirements for my venue. I found Elizabeth on Yelp and was impressed by her quick and professional responses. She wasn't pushy at all unlike some other hair and makeup artists.

I had my trial done in her home studio and not only did everything look great but she is so sweet! We had fantastic conversation! I really tried to find vendors that would do a great job AND be great people. She really fits that mold.

The day of she did my hair and makeup and my mom's. Both of us looked fantastic. The way she did my mom's hair was great and she showed her how to tone it down a bit for normal wear. I got so many compliments on my look. She even gave me recommendations for moisturizer to use before my wedding and she gave me a touch up kit the day of!

Photography: Jessica Holley Photography http://www.jessicaholleyphotography.com/index2.php#/home/

Amazing! Her pictures are fantastic and she is such a pleasure to work with! I found Jessica's website after asking for recommendations here and another bride suggested her. I looked at her pictures all night and fell in love. We met with her and were impressed with her work, professionalism, attitude, and photo philosophy. She was always quick to respond to emails and took alot of the stress out of my planning. She helped a ton with our timeline and had amazing ideas for pictures at our venue. We highly recommend her and will be using her for family photo shoots in the future! I can't stress enough how much I absolutely love Jessica! She felt/feels like a friend.

DJ: 5 Star Mobile DJ http://5starmobiledj.com/

My husband was initially skeptical about hiring a DJ. I talked him into it. Once he met with Alan, he was so happy that I had hired him. He kept us on our timeline and knew how to work the crowd. Our guests are notorious for not getting out on the dance floor. Alan taught us all dances, played great music, and took requests. He was always quick to respond to any emails I had while I was planning. I am really happy that Alan was our DJ and would recommend him in a heart beat. Even our photographer commented how good he was! We also have a friend that is got engaged after our wedding that asked for Alan's contact info.

Cake: SusieCakes in Newport Beach https://www.susiecakes.com/newportbeach

We went with SusieCakes for our wedding after our previous baker had to close her business. We were not disappointed! At the tasting there were full sized cupcakes!

They do deliver but do not set up. We just had a small cake and a cupcake tower so our venue handled the set up for us. The delivered early and everything looked great! They are very professional and on top of things. We had 4 different flavors and all were loved. Their Red Velvet is to die for and I love their vanilla with strawberry icing.

They use real ingredients so the cake is heavier than some other bakery cakes, but are still good! But they are not at all like the light and fluffy cupcakes other places have.

If you visit their store try a whoopie pie or a peanut butter cookie pie-they are also amazing!

Florist: Colin Stevens Design in Lake Forest/Aliso Veijo

This is the only vendor we used that I would not recommend.

We met Colin at a bridal show in Anaheim in early 2012. We liked his set up and made an appointment with him. We met in a hotel since his home office was inconvenient for me that day. I was impressed with his various ideas and combinations. We had boxes for our centerpiece that he suggested putting a flower base under-he even drew pictures. We decided to sign the contract with him. Once he received our deposit, it was very difficult to get in contact with him again.

In September, I needed insurance information for our venue from him. He never responded. Finally, I had my husband deal with him. Colin called him back and said that he sent all the paperwork to me months ago. But when asked if we could get a copy, he sent paperwork that was for someone else. Then he told us that he didn't have it. We had our preview in October and despite giving him the centerpiece box dimensions (they were rectangular) in April, he made them round. He also made note of the spacing on the box so it wouldn't cover a sign we had on the boxes and said he would bring extra foam to prop it up higher. Additionally, the flowers that he used for our preview were over a week old. Not a huge deal, but it wasn't putting his best foot forward. At the preview we asked him to put in less blue hydrangeas and add more of the purple and white flowers.

When he sent the final receipt that listed his set up time and our ceremony time, I got worried even more. He listed our ceremony time as 2 and our set up at 4. Completely the opposite.

The day of the wedding he showed up around 2:45. The arch decoration was sparse compared to what we talked about and the picture he drew. The centerpiece boxes hardly had any purple in it and was more blue hydrangeas (that we didn't want) than anything. And he didn't bring extra floral foam to make our sign on the boxes visible (our venue fixed this for us.) To top it off, part of our arch decoration was supposed to be moved to our sweetheart table for the reception. I had asked him at the preview who would do that. He said that he stays to move it. When we joined the reception our flowers were still on the arch. He didn't stay to move it. I would avoid him at all costs. He is a liar and very difficult to get ahold of. We paid alot for what amounted to very little.

Moreruth92 · November 2013

Last year I was the bridesmaid for 3 weddings and your post is exactly what i see. The one vendor you got from the bridal show was a problem. 2 of my friends have had problems with vendors from the show at the OC fairgrounds. I think it's because it's more of a budget show ( well duh! It's at a swap meet! ) and they seem to cater to a real fly-by-night type.

staar987 · November 2013

I know some vendors that go to the OC fairgrounds show and they are fantastic. I think that there are always a few bad seeds in every crowd. I found my DJ at a bridal show. I went to another bridal show after that (which my DJ happened to be at as well) and that is where I found the florist. My DJ was fantastic, my florist was not. It didn't have anything to do with that particular bridal show. Most shows in the area have some very good vendors, but like I said, a few bad seeds in every bunch.

@Moreruth92 - I'm unsure based on reading your post if your friend(s) used the same florist, but if she/they haven't already reviewed them here, on Yelp, and on WeddingWire, I encourage them to do so. My florist had great ratings originally, but since there have been many negative reviews of him. Please encourage them to write reviews both positive and negative to help others! That is exactly why I have this post here-I want others to have a place to find truthful reviews of OC vendors.

Moreruth92 · November 2013

No staar, I don't mean all bridal shows-I went to one at the Doubletree in Orange that was wonderful, but my point is that some shows seemed to me to attract a 'different' type of vendor. I just used the one at the fairgrounds as an example because that seemed the worst that I went to...And a friend of mine booked a photo booth there that didn't show up!!!!! Which show did you find your DJ at?

staar987 · November 2013

@Moreruth92 - It was a Premier show. I went to the one in Newport Beach and the one in Anaheim.

And that is horrible for your friend!

Moreruth92 · November 2013

Yes, Thank God it was only the photobooth! It was a hassle, but not as horrible as if it had been the caterer, photographer or DJ! She actually changed photographers at the last minute because the one she booked had some very bad Yelp reviews. The 'replacement' one was great though...Pictures in time????? I'll probably use them too.

staar987 · December 2013

@KnotPorscha vendor alert

utica2 · December 2013

So we got married 6 weeks ago and we loved the majority of our vendors! (The ones we weren't so hot about I'm not listing).

Wedding Venue: The Hacienda

Customer Service: At first we weren't so sure because we started off working with so many different coordinators. They don't assign you 1 coordinator, you get handed off to whoever is working at the time you contact them. We were a little skeptical but after a few months, it seems like they really have it down. I attribute this to the their low turn over, most of the coordinators I dealt with have been with them 5+ years. I must say they're a well oiled machine.

Value: It's all inclusive, you just show up with your photographer, videographer, and DJ. They provide pretty much everything else such as flowers, food, and cake. Their pricing is very fair!

Ambiance/Look: We first saw this place in the day and well, it didn't blow my hair back however, we came a second time at night and this place is beautiful in the evening. The lighting really makes a huge difference!

In Conclusion: Whether you're on a budget or you have a big budget, if you're looking for a beautiful one of kind venue that provides excellent customer service at a fair price you have to check out the Hacienda!

Videographer: Encor Studio

We worked with Tony from Encor from the get go and he was fair with his pricing. Honestly, his pricing wasn't the cheapest nor was it the most expensive but he was willing to come down a bit on the package we wanted. On the day of the event, him & his crew showed up 2 hours early and they were ready to rumble. A few hours into my wedding, I quickly realized that he assigned a camera guy to me as no matter what I did or where I went, I had a camera up my ****. I guess they don't want to miss a moment! haha! Seriously though, they were great, I even had a few of my guests ask me for their contact info.

In Conclusion: They're willing to work with your budget (to a point), they're super professional, and use some high tech equipment!

Tuxedo Rentals: Mens Wearhouse

A few months before my wedding, I was a groomsmen in my buddy's wedding. He got us tux's from the Mens Wearhouse and I was seriously impressed going through the process. As a groomsmen, I just showed up at any mens wearhouse for measurements (painlessly took 10 minutes). A week before the event, my tux was ready and when I was done, I returned it to ANY Mens Wearhouse.

Since the process was so simple, I decided to go with them for my Tux Rentals. I showed up already knowing what I wanted so again, the process to rent 6 tux's was less than 20 minutes. I told them the style I wanted (Men's Vera Wang) the colors for the bowtie/hankie, paid my deposit and I was done!

Style: Vera Wang Gray

Tip: Look for the $40 OFF coupon (per tux) online, this saved me almost $300 bucks!

Photo Booth Rental: Dazzle Photobooth

My wife and I both agree that these guys did great for us! We loved that fact that they customized the photos with our wedding colors and theme. Since our cocktail hour was at one location and the reception at a different location, we needed them to move the booth. They did so effortlessly without disturbing our guests during dinner. Their staff showed up early, brought really nice props, and they were very friendly with our guests. I'd definately check these guys out.

If you need photos, please let me know, good luck & happy planning!

Pikuhchu · April 2014

Venue: The Newland Barn, Huntington Beach, CA

4/5 - I honestly really loved the venue, and I'm super happy that we went with it. The road noise isn't really an issue; I was too busy to even notice any at all. Plenty of room for my 110 guests, with seating outside on the lawn. The reason I give it 4 instead of 5 is because the parking lot is very much an eye sore, and can be seen in a lot of pictures. Also, it is a city owned venue, so it needs a lot of decorative touches to hide its blemishes, and you have to do everything yourself. That's a lot harder than it sounds, haha.

Lighting: De-lighted

4/5 - Super responsive, very accomodating, and very budget friendly. She is totally willing to work with your budget, so don't hesitate to ask for a better rate! 4 only because we had a little scare two days before the wedding, where the monogram gobo was not made, seemed frazzled. She quickly fixed this, and had the gobo ready on our wedding day.

Rentals: Baker Party Rentals

2/5 - Quotes are comparable to other rental companies in the area, if not less. However, we paid extra for a Sunday delivery and setup, but they only set up the tables and left. All the up-lights and amplifiers were left in a corner with no extension cords, so we were limited on our placement. I had drafted a full diagram of the venue, indicating were all the tables, chairs, lights, and sound should be set up. We were also told it would take 4 hours for setup, so we had to change our cocktail hour to accommodate this. They called us 2 hours before our scheduled delivery time (we rent the venue by the hour) to let us know they were almost at the venue. It only took them less than an hour to set up the tables and be gone, which is why we wanted them to come later and set up the tables during the cocktail hour so there wouldn't be tables everywhere during the ceremony. So, had to change time schedule, tables in the way during the ceremony when they didn't have to be, and did not set up any electronics leaving us to figure it out ourselves with no extension cords.

Catering: The Burnt Truck

5/5 - The BEST food truck ever. They make sliders that everyone loved. We had the classic cheeseburger, the PB&J, and the fried chicken (which is our FAVORITE!). Super super affordable. Great communication. Everything was perfect! They even provided drinks!

Photography: A Shutter in Time

5/5 - Amazing!! Incredibly accommodating of our budget, and worked out a deal where she would just give us the raw images, and I would edit it myself. She directed everyone and actually made my day of schedule with me! So helpful, and very passionate about photography. We ended up with pictures that look like I paid thousands for! Can't thank her enough. Feel free to e-mail me to see some pictures or if you have any questions about Photoshop!

Photobooth: PhotoMoto Media

5/5 - Couldn't be happier with PhotoMoto Media! They were super affordable, and I have a great scrapbook of all my guests!! Honestly, it was so much fun going through our scrapbook on our wedding night. There were a million props, and a few people there to make sure everything went smoothly, and in case anyone needed help. Showed up on time, setup quickly, and uploaded all the pictures too! I highly recommend them!

Cake: Tomgirl Baking

5/5 - The absolutely BEST cake. Everyone raved about how good it was! We ended up getting a small two tier cake for us to cut, and then a large sheet cake for everyone else. Cut the cost down by a bunch. They were very open about pricing, and advice on how to save money. Amazing to work with, and super nice!!

Florist: Love N Bloom

5/5 - Very responsive, and very affordable. I sent some images of what I wanted, and asked for a cheaper version, and they delivered! The flowers turned out beautiful, and looked like I spent way more. Super friendly every time we went in!

Hair/Make-up: Jessica Hughes

5/5 - She showed up early, did a great job on my hair and make up, and the best part was that it lasted ALL day, even though it was an outdoor wedding. I never got greasy or creases, and it photographed perfectly. It looked super natural too; not too heavy, but enough. Best part was the price!

Everything else was pretty much DIY. Email me if you want to see pictures

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