Illinois-Chicago — The Knot Community

vintage 1953 pick up truck rental ??

ajtwins21 — Wed, 10 Oct 2012 05:14:50 +0000

i would love to drive a way with my man in a 3100 chevy or ford pick up truck its a 1953 model. were can i rent one ? im in the northern part of IL im on the border, a little town called zion. the color i really dont care i just want the truck but greens or blues ora white would be best. i was thinking the volo musieam has them there for sale maybe i could rent one but i need a back up place just in case thay dont. thanks for your help.

this is what the chevy truck looks like:

Chiavari chairs

nzawodniak — Tue, 02 Oct 2012 19:45:47 +0000

Has anyone rented from Prestige wedding decoration out of Wheeling?

They have great prices on chiavaris but I want to make sure they are a stand up company!

Thanks!

Photography

minskat30 — Wed, 19 Sep 2012 01:09:25 +0000

Does anyone have any recommendations for a photographer who produces really quality photojournalistic work? My budget is around $3,500 for two photographers for 9-10 hours of photography. The wedding will be downtown in Chicago. Thanks in advance!

Florists - far west suburbs?

gottadance64 — Wed, 08 Aug 2012 15:50:40 +0000

Hi guys - I have two florists that have been recommended - Hollyhocks in Wheaton and Carousel in Elmhurst, but I'm looking for a third recommendation. I live in Wheaton, so anything from Itasca, Roselle, Carol Stream, to Bloomingdale, West Chicago, Winfield, north Naperville. Thanks!

Vendor Reviews 9.21.12 - part 2!

LawyerLover810 — Sun, 07 Oct 2012 16:57:18 +0000

Favors: Andrews Carmel Apples - A+++
They were so easy, I called and put in my order and picked them up and it was done. They give you the carmel apples in bulk but also have the celphane wrapping with it. It was about .70 cents an apple. Only downside is they only take cash and it has to be picked up in the city. Great product.

Hair and Makeup: Tamara Hair & Makeup Artistry: A++
I had Melanie for hair and Cristina for make up. They both did an awesome job at my trials and the day of. I was a little disappointed because they told me for bridesmaid hair it was between $50-$70 and $70 would be a full updo. I had girls who got their hair half up and they were still charged $70. Regardless - they did an awesome job. I worked mostly with Cristina with booking and setting up time for trial, etc. She was more responsive by phone but also got back to me within 48 hours by email.

Ceremony: St. Peter Lutheran Church - A++
I liked St. Peter bc they allowed non members to marry there. They required pre marriage sessions which I liked and was glad we didn't have to find that elsewhere. We had Pastor Dean do our pre marriage sessions and ceremony. The day before our rehearsal he let me know he couldn't make it to the rehearsal which I wasn't very happy about, we had the church coordinator do it and she told us to do a few things that Pastor Dean had not discused with us but it ended up being just fine. Beautiful church.

Dress: Crystal Bride in Geneva: A+++
I worked with Chante and she is awesome. The first time I went it was over a year away from the wedding and I found a dress I loved but I was concerned more dresses would come out in the next season so she suggested I come back in a few months when new dresses were out and try anything else on plus the one I loved. I ended up getting the one I loved from the first time but my mind was at ease knowing I explored all my options. They did awesome alteration work and I also got my girls BM dresses from there. They got a 10% discount which was nice. I was very happy and would suggest this store to any bride.

Invitations: Desgined by icingonthepaper (Etsy seller) - A++
Sarah (Etsy desinger) was awesome to work with, created us something from scratch that we loved. She was patient with me when there were little things I didn't like. Only bad thing is that she did take a few days to respond most times but it ended up working out great.
We used all paper materials from paperandmore.com which was excellent quality and did the printing, cutting and assembling ourselves.

Bridesmaid Gifts - U Design Jewlery A+++
I know someone who is a sales rep for U Design Jewlery. It is great because you can pick out the beads you like (and based on price) and she creates anything you need, earrings, bracelet, necklaces, etc. If anyone is interested I can give you the rep's contact info.
Also got the girls some compact mirrors, bath and body works lotion/body gel, tervis tumblers based on each girls interest.

Tuxes: Formally Modern Tuxedo - A+++
We really liked the selection here, the sales people were friendly and helpful (and not pushy) and the prices were reasonable. They have several locations around Chicagoland which was helpful and our one out of state GM just faxed in his order and it worked out well. The tuxes looked awesome.

Travel Agent: Sunshine Travel in Crystal Lake - A++
Janet was super helpful, gave us tons of suggestions and we didn't have any surprises along the way.

Honeymoon: St Lucia - Sandals Regency La Toc
I loved St. Lucia and Sandals. I would def suggest Sandals to anyone looking for an all inclusive trip. We upgraded our room to a beachfront walk out and got the concierge service. I don't think I would upgrade the room again if I had the choice. It was on the first floor since it was a walk out room and I don't think it was worth the extra money. The conceirge service was nice - we had liquor, champagne and wine in our room plus the other soda, water, juice, etc. They also made all our dinner reservations and excursion trip reservations for us. I don't think the concierge service made that big of a difference considering the extra money we paid. I think if I had the option again I would either do the butler service or the basic room. The butler service looked nice just for the room service aspect. We had no problem getting chairs at the pool or getting into restaurants. We went over to the Grande and they do have a nicer beach there but we were told La Toc has more younger couples and a more "active" pool.

Vendor Reviews - 9/21/12 Wedding

LawyerLover810 — Sun, 07 Oct 2012 16:42:41 +0000

Hi ladies! Since I found a lot of vendors from this board I wanted to give reviews on the ones we used!

Reception: Belvedere Events & Banquets - A++:
I loved the Belvedere, their decor was modern and not your typical banquet hall and the price was awesome on a Friday. We worked with Caroline and she was super easy to work with, very responsive and basically did whatever we asked her to. When we signed the contract we were told there was an hour between cocktail hours, ours started at 5:30 so I thought the next was 7:30. Turns out an hour meant the next one started at 6:30. I was a little nervous people from the next wedding would be coming in during our cocktail hour (it is in the atrium) and was assured if anyone did they would ask them to wait elsewhere. Around 6:15 people from the next wedding started showing up and were not turned away (which I get, you can't turn away guests). I was a little annoyed but by that time our guests were heading into our room to find their seats. The other fear I had was that we would hear the other wedding since it was on the other side. During our speeches and dinner we did hear the bass of the other DJ which was really annoying, but we asked the server to have them turn it down and they did right away and we didn't have any other issues. Minus those 2 things it was a great reception place.

Florist: Kio Kreations - A+++
Kristen is so easy to work with, has excellent suggestions and tons of pictures to give you ideas. I found out after booking her she was going to be having a baby and on maternity leave for a little while. She still responded the whole time she was on leave and was back in time to do our wedding flowers. They were perfect.

Photographer: Miller & Miller - A+++
Sarah and Ryan are a husband and wife team. They are awesome, their pictures are soo good and they have great crative ideas for pictures. They had increased their prices but we were able to have them throw in the engagement pics and album for the price of wedding day only. The only negative is that since they are soo busy it will take us about 4 months to get our pictures back. But it is worth it because they are so good!

Videographer: Shilo Studios - A++
Chris is the main contact and he is very nice. They weren't super responsive, I think they got really busy really fast and weren't able to get back to emails quickly, he did answer the phone everytime I called though. A few months ago I believe they merged with another company and after that he was way more responsive. Their work is incredible. So good. We got a great price since we booked pre-merge. They also did a same day edit for us at the reception and it was amazing. I got awesome feedback, everyone loved it. I haven't seen the end result wedding video but if it is anything like the sam day edit I will be thrilled.

DJ: MDM Entertainment - A+++
We used David from MDM. He was awesome, so responsive, had great ideas and suggestions. The dance floor was packed. He also did a back drop for us and uplighting which looked awesome. Highly recommend.

Transportation: Avital Limo - A+++
There weren't a lot of reviews on this company online but their prices were really good so we gave it a try. We used them for my bachelorette party as well and both experiences were awesome. The driver for the wedding was so nice, it was raining out and he went out of his way to make sure I didn't have to walk anywhere in the rain during pictures. I would use them again for any event.

Catholic priest recommendation to marry couple off-site - Chicago/Chicago Suburbs

JacksonPowell2013 — Mon, 24 Sep 2012 16:17:58 +0000

Does anyone have any recommendations for Catholic priests that would be willing to preform a Catholic mass outside of their resident church and in a non- denominational church?

My fiance and I are both Catholic, however, we opted out of having the wedding at our parish in favor of having the wedding at a beautiful, non-denominational church at Northwestern. We met during college and thought it would be very special to get married on campus.

The staff at mentioned that they had held many Catholic weddings in the past, however, we would need to find a priest that was willing to preform the ceremony outside of a consecrated church. There is a small Catholic center/church on campus, however, they are unwilling to preform masses off-site (I would assume because they would rather Catholic alumni choose to host their weddings there than in another venue on campus).

Really appreciate any recommendations or insights!

DJ

Madda7 — Thu, 20 Sep 2012 16:26:14 +0000

Hey Ladies, I need your help!!!!

I'm looking for a DJ for a reasonable price. Any one have one they would suggest??

make-up recs in the Naperville area?

cschneider16 — Mon, 24 Sep 2012 05:42:23 +0000

Hi ladies! :-)

I'm looking for day-of make-up recs. I already have hair taken care of. I'd prefer someone to come to my place so we can relax and enjoy the morning, but would also go close by for make up. All the places I've found have make-up with trial for $125, which seems steep to me. Anyone have a rec close to the Naperville area? Thanks!

***Attention Moderator omgitscasey

MobKaz — Mon, 01 Oct 2012 02:50:47 +0000

Someone has been spamming the Illinois Board with scores of junk posts. Is there anything you can do to stop that? I was concerned about posting this on that actual board for fear of "picking something up" :-(

Florist near Chicago Loop --- zip 60607

smende3 — Mon, 13 Aug 2012 17:26:20 +0000

Hello, Looking for a florist

florist help

Madda7 — Wed, 22 Aug 2012 16:08:20 +0000

Im looking for an inexpensive florist to work with, preferably in the SW suburbs but really anywhere would work im willing to travel a little bit to get nice flowers at a good price

Four Finches Floral

kwarnick23 — Sun, 20 Nov 2011 01:42:56 +0000

Hi ladies! Has anyone used Four Finches in Evanston for their flowers? I met with them today and absolutely loved the florist and her ideas, but am curious to hear from people who have worked with her. ANY comments would be really helpful! Thank you!

XP: FS: Tablecloths, runners, milk glass, mason jars, drink dispensers, ikea tolsby frames

kitkat887 — Tue, 02 Oct 2012 21:34:27 +0000

2 white 70in square tablecloths - $10
24 white 60 x 126 rectangle tablecloths - $100
21 turquoise pintuck table runners - $50
50 milk glass bud vases, varying sizes and patterns - $200 (would prefer pickup, chicagoland/nw indiana)
60 mason jars - assorted sizes - $100
8 3-gallon drink dispensers, plastic - $15 each
15 IKEA tolsby frames - $10

Reasonable offers will be considered.

e-mail kathleenrusher@rocketmail.com

Waukegan illinois wedding venue

countrywedding0318 — Mon, 24 Sep 2012 22:03:53 +0000

Anyone have any suggestions for inexpensive recpetion venues in or around Waukegan, IL? For a march wedding of 200.
Look forward to your suggestions.

jeweler recommendation for ring resizing?

kristenecook — Fri, 28 Sep 2012 03:45:36 +0000

Hi everyone,
I just moved to Chicago so I don't really know my way around yet, but I need to get my engagement ring sized down a bit. Does anyone have a favorite jeweler in town/nearby? I'm not usually a huge snob but for this I want to make sure I go somewhere really good. Thanks! -- Kristen

Wedding Bug Photography

lizhuml — Sat, 25 Aug 2012 19:24:55 +0000

Hey there! Has anyone had any experience using this vendor? Thanks!

Recommendation for rental place?

kwarnick23 — Sun, 19 Aug 2012 16:45:21 +0000

Hi ladies! We are looking to rent linens and chargers for our October rental. If anyone has any recommendations could you please share them? The wedding is in the NW suburbs and we're searching for the cheapest prices. Thanks!

Dress shopping in Western Suburbs?

ajbernardi — Tue, 11 Sep 2012 15:39:55 +0000

Anyone have any suggestions for bridal salons in the Western Suburbs? thanks so much!

XP: F/S near Chicago (PIP): Rustic Vineyard Decor

jdink32 — Wed, 26 Sep 2012 21:58:46 +0000

Email at jsdinkelman@gmail.com if interested. Available for pickup in Chicago area (Loop/northside).

Table Linens
20x20 squares (18 avail): $5 each
14x70 runner (1 avail): $10

Wine Bottle Candle Holders (14 avail, variety of green/clear): $10 each

Card Box with removable pendant: $50
Brown leather-like luggage box, custom made with card slot opening

Ikea Tolsby frames (20 avail): 2/$1
http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/30151035/
2 sided, holds 4x6 photos

Ikea Borby lanterns (4 avail): $5 each
http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/30156108/
6x6x11

Mr. & Mrs. signs: $20 for set

Used corks for crafting projects: Set of 100 for $10 (have 1000 total available)
All from Lawlor vineyard

Is $2,400 too expensive for the advanced DJ package from Fantastic DJs?

GregandNatalie2012 — Sun, 02 Jan 2011 16:58:00 +0000

We meet with John, the owner of Fantastic DJs right before Christmas. We had read really great reviews on him and didn't hear anything negative. We really liked him and had a great connection. Also, he does about 8-10 events at our location a year...which is great because he was able to give us tips.

He has 2 packages; 1 basic ($1,400) and 1 advanced ($2,400) . We would go with the advanced package which includes a top of the line system, with lights, and multiple speakers for our large room.

Most websites don't show how much the packages cost so I am at a loss about where this price stands. I have looked through some DJ reviews on TK and there are a couple that I have seen where people have paid around the amount he offers for the standard package. Any thoughts would be awesome! Thank you and Happy New Year!

HORRIBLE LIMO COMPANY BRIDES BEWARE

murluga — Wed, 26 Sep 2012 16:21:27 +0000

http://limousine-chicago-illinois.com/
773-653-5466

If I could give this business zero stars I would! Our wedding went off without a hitch except for our limo service. We booked our limo with the above company several months before our wedding. About a month prior we called to confirm that we still had the correct limo/party bus also reconfirming all of the drop off and pick up points we needed for the bride, groom, and bridal party. The company told us we could call the day prior to our event to get the drivers phone number in case of an emergency, we also reconfirm all drop off and pick ups again. We called and they said they now would not know that information until the day of. The day of our wedding came and the limo was 25mins late to pick up the groom, father of the groom, and attendants. Not only was the limo late he self admitted that he did not have directions! REALLY we confirmed multiple times with them all drop off and pick up times and locations! The Driver then drove all the guys to the church but could not fit the party bus under a viaduct and the Groom and attendants had to walk 4 BLOCK! Side note the father of the groom has a heart condition! My brother, a groomsmen, then had to ride with the limo to come pick up all the girls because still no directions! When I called the company to complain they blamed us! ABSOLUTELY HORRIBLE COMPANY WOULD NEVER RECOMMEND! WORST VENDOR WE USED!

This review was also put on Yelp!

Naperville restaurant for rehearsal dinner

gottadance64 — Mon, 17 Sep 2012 16:05:11 +0000

Anyone have any recommendations - looking for a place with a private space/room, reasonably priced. Open to a variety of types of restaurants - Mexican, American Standard, Mongolian, etc. Thanks!

Elite Signature DJs- Skokie, IL =NIGHTMARE

whippurs1 — Fri, 21 Sep 2012 18:57:16 +0000

DO NOT waste your time and breath working with this company. They have awful customer service skills. I tried to contact the owner and another member of manangement after my wedding because of the awful service I had gotten from my DJ, and they both told me there was nothing they could do, because I did not report it "within 3 days of the event." One of them even told me that he did not believe my service was bad, that I had probably spend too much on other vendors and wanted to get money back anyway I could. I was appalled!!

It all started with the DJ, Mark not even calling to confirm his presence at the wedding. The day before my wedding, the office called to verify the address of the venue, which was given. I asked if the Mark would be calling to verify details with me. The representative seemed shocked that he had not called already, and gave me his cell to call him. (The company states that he attempted to call me once and could not reach me, and told me, "not sure why his number did not appear in your phone." Interesting how their office and every other vendor was able to reach me with zero difficulty!) When he finally returned my call at 10:30pm the night before my wedding, we discussed what I wanted to see the next day. Not only did he give me a hard time about my music selection being "country" and the order of events at my reception, but I asked a specific request that he allow my guests to use the cordless microphone to sing a song, instead of clinking glasses to see the bride and groom kiss. He was very rude, saying this was a bad idea, not one would do this, and questioned how we would do this and that there would be gaps in between songs. After he argued that my idea was not a good one for a few minutes, he went onto say that he was not bringing a cordless microphone, which was part of my contract! After informing him that I had already paid for the cordless microphone, he said he would look into it. (He did end up bringing it to the wedding reception.)

The day of the wedding, Mark did not find me or my husband, I had to find him at the bar to talk to him about the bridal party entrance. After the annoucements were made and dinner was starting to be served, people started doing my 'special request' of singing songs to the bride and groom instead of 'clinking' their glasses. At this point Mark was nowhere to be found. It turned out that he had turned on a playlist and was sitting at a guest table, eating a meal that was not set for him. I was unaware that he would help himself to a plated dinner without being invited to do so by the people paying for the meal and the event. (When I told the company this, they told me I should have told him ahead of time that he was 'not supposed to eat.' I did not know that a dinner was a requirement of this vendor? That was not in my contract!). This to me was appalling, as I paid this company to actually DJ my event, not just turn on a playlist and walk away, as I could have had a friend do the same thing. After the 4th song by the SAME artist in a row, I had one of my bridesmaids ask him to please "man his station", and basically do his job. This resulted in dirty looks from him to me and my bridesmaid for the rest of the evening. (Great customer service!)

Through dinner, my guests would stand, clink their glasses, and start singing a song to the bride and groom. Because I had talked with Mark the night before and discussed that this would be happening, it was my impression that he would be willing to work with me for this request. I guess I was wrong. Mark was too busy enjoying the dinner that was not his, than to turn down the songs that were playing when people wanted to sing, bring the microphone over to the guests, or even address the singers during this time. Once again, I had someone ask him to just turn down the music a little when people were singing, which would have been very easy had he been at the DJ table, which he was not. Again, it was my understanding that the music was HIS JOB. Once again, I guess I was wrong. Even after we asked him to turn the music down when people were singing, he returned to a dinner table and ignored the request for the rest of dinner.

After dinner, Mark's made many runs to the open bar that was provided for my guests, which would not have been a big deal to me, but it is against policy for his company, which I found out later. (When this was brought up to the company, they told me that I needed 'proof', other than me, my husband, and many guests witnessing him drinking bottles of beer throughout the night.)

When I tried talking with this company after my negaitve experience, I was told that I was a liar, and trying to get money from them because I overspent on other vendors from my wedding. They also asked me if we tipped Mark (we did because when we booked, we were told that it was appropriate too), and that because we tipped him, we were obviously happy with the service that night. I was also told that because the contract said that we could only make complaints within 3 days of the event, that nothing would happen. When I told them that I had tried to call the day of my wedding (the morning after the awful rude conversation the night before with Mark), to complain and make sure that things would get better that night, there was no one there to take the call, and there was no answering machine to take the request. Elite's response to this was "if you were calling before your wedding to complain, then you were never going to be satisfied with your service", and accused me again for only looking to get my money back.

Do not waste your time, money, or frustration on a company that is not willing to treat their customers with respect!!

Great Southside Photographer

myrahman84 — Tue, 25 Sep 2012 17:45:33 +0000

Hi Everybody,

If you are looking for a wonderful photographer on the South side of the city. We used Artlynn Photography in Evergreen Park. I cannot say enough good remarks about Artlynn. They were such a wonderful business to work with. My family has been long time customers and we have never been disappointed. George did our pictures for the wedding and he was fantastic.

Melanie

Weddings by Karolina

chatterfl — Sat, 24 Mar 2012 18:19:48 +0000

Has anyone used Weddings by Karolina for full planning (not day of coordinator)? I would like some reviews on her full planning, if anyone can testify. Thank you!

Looking for VIDEOGRAPHER in Chicago

deegoings — Tue, 07 Aug 2012 23:34:14 +0000

Hello Ladies!!
We are having our wedding 08/24/13 at Fultons on the River, Chicago & we're looking for a videographer! <$1000.
Your suggestions & recommendations are requested!! Thanks All!!

DW

lovelybride614 — Sat, 22 Sep 2012 23:59:08 +0000

FI & I are considering Chicago as our DW. We are from Cincy Ohio & fell in love with Chicago on a recent trip. We know we won't have a ton of people, prob under 75. Any recommendations? We're looking at June 2014, but our date is flexible to consider off season as well.

Any Swing Assembly Reviews?

kangaria13 — Sat, 22 Sep 2012 03:09:09 +0000

I am planning our wedding for March 9, 2013 at Indian Lakes Resort in Bloomingdale. FI would LOVE to have a live band, but I wasn't sure we could get it to work out with our budget. I got a quote from a group called Swing Assembly. They offer a 12-piece band for four hours (with 3 15 minute breaks) for $3,800.

I found them through a site called Gig Masters and all reviews were 5 out of 5 stars. I checked out their You Tube videos and they sound great. But most of their videos were from charity events and outdoor festivals.

Their schedule shows that they seem to have a nice amount of weddings booked over the next several months. So my question is: Has anyone booked them for their wedding or seen them at someone else's wedding and how were they? Obviously, we will meet with them in person and try to see them live before we book them, but any past experieces would be greatly appreciated.

TIA!

My Vendor Reviews!

parrothead84 — Fri, 21 Sep 2012 20:01:44 +0000

We had an amazing day two weeks ago today, and we had really great vendors so I just wanted to share my thoughts on everyone:

Reception - Naperville Country Club: This space was a perfect fit for us, in terms of the actual space. We had about 130 people and I don't think I'd want much more than that here. However, if you are having a small-ish wedding, I highly recommend. The coordinator, Laura, was pretty responsive and let me store so much wedding stuff in her office weeks before the wedding. On the actual day, she had set everything up exactly how I wanted it, and she was there the entire time, making sure everything went smoothly. 10/10

DJ - Sound Sonic DJs: WOW. We were a little worried that our dance floor wouldn't be that packed. But John from Sound Sonic was unbelievable. There were times when people couldn't even fit on the dance floor because it was so crowded! I would recommend him in a heartbeat. 10/10

Photographers - AO Photographers: They were amazing; however, they're now located in Michigan. They would probably come out for an event, but I know they're not local anymore. They're a young husband and wife team, and they are always both at the event, which is awesome. 10/10 (Note: Haven't seen the final photos yet)

Florist - Amy with Unique Floral: Amy does this out of her home, so she is much more affordable than others. And the bouquets turned out so beautifully. I was so thrilled when I saw my bouquet. I had 8 BMs, so we had just one rose with filler for each girl to keep costs down... but she made these look SO GREAT. 10/10

Travel Agent - Barb with Heavenly Honeymoons: Phenomenal. SO responsive. Gave us so many options. She's been everywhere, so she can give you a truly honest review of so many different resorts. Highly recommend. 10/10

Rehearsal Dinner - Lou Malnati's Downtown Naperville: So fun! Couldn't have asked for a better rehearsal dinner. Plus, they are super affordable!! 10/10

Hotel - Hilton Lisle Naperville: Great hotel. Upgraded us to the club level. I wasn't super happy with the shuttle service. They arrived at the end of the night to at least 10-15 minutes early, if not earlier, and had the DJ make an announcement. I get being there early, but I was really disappointed that they had the DJ make the announcement early. The last driver was kind of pushy. 8/10 - points missing for the shuttle.

Dress - Davids Bridal Schaumburg: OK service. Typical DB. 6/10 - all points for the great price. :)

Limo - Emperor Limos out of Addison: Fantastic!! Our driver Tito was great and the best part was that the tax/gratuity was included in our final quote, so we didn't have to worry about anything (plus, the rate was really affordable). 10/10