Louisiana-New Orleans — The Knot Community

bridal boutique in Baton Rouge: good discounts at trunk shows?

Brooke4377 — Mon, 13 Feb 2012 17:34:03 +0000

Has anyone purchased a dress at a trunk show at the Bridal Boutique in BR? were the discounts good? I have 3 dresses I am considering that are all Mori Lee, and they have a trunk show there coming up soon...just wondering if I am likely to get better prices there than at Pearl's, where prices are essentially already discounted. I understand all the concerns about service at Pearl's Place, but I actually had a great experience there Saturday, and the prices are great....I'm just wondering if I should wait and see what the prices are at the trunk show, or just buy now....

Postcards

court476 — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 20:09:10 +0000

Does anyone know where I can get free or really cheap Louisiana postcards? They are for the save-the-dates so they need to have the Louisiana flag on them or the state on them or something like that

Thanks :)

house of brides

Brooke4377 — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 16:31:28 +0000

I know it's been asked before, but anyone have any experience ordering a wedding dress through them? I know it seems too good to be true, my top choice dress (so far) is half price through them....but I have heard mixed reviews. I hear good things about ordering bridesmaid dresses, but not so good in regards to wedding dresses.

Thimbelina or Angel Alterations Reviews Anyone?

raven541 — Thu, 16 Feb 2012 17:04:09 +0000

I am thinking about using them for my wedding dress alterations, since I do NOT trust Pearls Place.

Has anyone used them for their wedding dress?

I would appreciate any reviews or other recommendations!

Thanks!

Alterations in New Orleans area

kphelps2 — Sun, 12 Feb 2012 15:39:28 +0000

Hey all! Has anyone ever used/heard anything about Bee's Tailor in Metairie (by the TJ Maxx) for wedding dress alterations? The lady there came highly recommended by a friend of a friend (yeek), but there is no way I would take my dress there without at least one tried-and-true experience.

If not, does anyone know of any reliable and inexpensive places to get alterations done in the greater New Orleans area? Or are those two things mutually exclusive?

mardi gras parades

kbsmom1 — Wed, 15 Feb 2012 22:26:27 +0000

thinking of driving over form Mobile on Sunday for Uptown parades.....where to park and good place to watch....thanks

Florist

tigergirl7 — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 05:57:26 +0000

Just started looking for a florist. Anyone have any recommendations?

Second Line Questions. HELP!

SarahJean423 — Wed, 15 Feb 2012 14:07:58 +0000

Ok I'm new at all this boards stuff. I have a few questions for brides that have done the second line. How much is it usually to do this? How many blocks? How long will we have that band for? Do they charge by the hour, or just a set price for the second line? I would like to do this, but I have no clue where to start. Thanks for any help!

Recycled Bride

Brooke4377 — Wed, 15 Feb 2012 16:37:44 +0000

anyone get there dress on there? I have not found any other dresses I like besides the Vera Wang from David's bridal....I have tried on 50 or so, really!! Problem is that the things I do like are way out of my price range. I am getting married for the second time, so my budget for a dress is less than 1k. I would be most comfortable around 700...the closest to what I like in my budget is the Vera Wang at David's that's $1198....right now someone is selling it new with tags for $800, but I'm nervoous!! Any advice?

Receiving marriage certificate after wedding

Tango19 — Sat, 11 Feb 2012 20:59:26 +0000

Hey everyone! We submitted our marriage documents the middle of December and haven't received our marriage license yet. Anyone know how long it takes to process everything? I'm starting to get worried.

Affordable, quality cakes

JessMarri — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 04:30:03 +0000

We are looking to feed 90, and need to find someone who has a good, reasonable cake for less than $400... any one have any suggestions?

Rehearsal Dinner recommendations in NOLA

danalambert — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 19:09:04 +0000

We're coming from out of town for our NOLA wedding and I'm helping my future mother-in-law with some rehearsal dinner ideas. We'll probably have about 75 people and would be great if we could find a place that accomodate a sit down dinner on a budget of about $7-9K.

We've been looking at the following:

Irene's

Upperline

Galatoires

Nola

Arnauds

Antoine's

Felix Oyster Bar

Muriels

Remoulade

Thoughts or any other great ideas?

Thanks everyone!

Too early for invitations?

LaceyS25 — Mon, 13 Feb 2012 17:30:08 +0000

Is it too early to send invitations for a September wedding? My fiance and I live in NJ and are planning things ourselves for our NOLA wedding without the help of a planner. We want to send invitations out now and ask that people RSVP back by the beginning of May. We have an appointment with our caterer and feel that if we have an idea of how many guests we are having we can be better equipped to make decisions about what food we choose and stay within our budget.
I have gotten remarks about it being too early and even tacky, but I don't think people quite understand that it is not a typical wedding that we are having down the street and in which we can wait. Besides budget is very important to us since we are paying for everything ourselves. Help!!

Made a venue decision!!! (long)

Brooke4377 — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 14:40:12 +0000

OK....so after visiting 7 venues in one day (it was a long one with a 1 1/2 year old!) we made our decision, and have booked the Bourbon Orleans for our November 16th 2012 wedding. Cannot wait! So excited, love the location and the ballroom, and was very pleased at finding availability for our preferred date at 9 months out. Here is the background:

We were set on the Cathedral, my DF has wanted to get married there since he was little, and it's so beautiful I had to agree. My only demand was that it HAD to be 2012. We have a child, and he waited sooooo loooong to propose (not really, lol, but I had been antsy since Lex was born, but it was all about $$$), and I really didn't want our engagement to go all the way through 2012. So knowing we were set on the Cathedral, our first obstacle was finding available dates and communicating back and forth with them. As other Cathedral brides know, they ONLY return calls on Saturdays, and aren't the greatest about leaving messages (this is irritating, as more than once I've called with a specific question, and received a returned call that I missed, only to discover they did not leave a message answering said quesiton!). Once I knew a handful of 2012 dates that were available we started looking at venues (and believe it or not it is still quite a few....mostly all of December was available, and even a couple Saturday nights....many Fridays throughout the year available too, so if you have your heart set on the Cathedral don't give up!!).

Now I had several dates written down, but was particularly interested in Nov 16th, as it would mean we could spend the following Saturday with our OOT guests in NO, and then leave for our honeymoon Sunday, the 18th which is our anniversary, so it just seemed fitting. Below are my thoughts on each venue:

Benachi House: LOVED the house and grounds, thought it would be soooo beautiful for a wedding. I am a chicken however, and weather in November is too unpredictable. We are expecting too many guests to comfortably fit inside, and November can be hot, cold, rainy, dry, so it just seemed too risky. With a guarantee on weather, however, our choice may have been different since it is sooo affordable and allows such flexibility with how you want to plan your day. Plus you get the whole day to set up get ready, and can spend the night too. Would love to attend a wedding here.

Bourbon Orleans: I was biased going into this, considering it was my far ahead favorite after looking at pictures and realizing how ideal the location was for the Cathedral. I LOVED IT immediately. Alyssa was amazing and helpful, and I could tell there would be a lot of flexibility in the menu and the scheduling. The ballroom was also decorated with a lot of chandeliers, wall sconce candles (well, bulbs that look like candles) and gold, which really supports the sort of romantic vision I had in mind. Being older I think it really represents that old New Orleans charm as well, and I fell in love with the doors to the balcony (which can be left open in good weather). I also loved that you get a townhouse suite if you book there, and it will be perfect for us all to get ready/take pictures in. The balconies for most, I believe, have the Cathedral in the background. It was ideal in that no extra transportation would be required for guests to the reception.

St. Louis Hotel: Here we looked at the courtyard. It was beautiful, and with candles all around the fountain I think it would be spectacular. It was a little further from the Cathedral, however, and didn't have quite the open airy feel was hoping for (in the adjacent rooms that one would need with it). Also I am thinking we may go with a seated reception, and I don't think (though could be wrong) that this venue could accommodate that for many guests. I also didn't like the idea of everyone being sort of split up if we had to use more than one room.

Musee Conti: Big plus here was affordability, and a large, open space. For me though I thought it would require a lot of decorating to get the feel I was looking for, and also it was also several blocks from Cathedral. I am trying to be fairly low maintenance, so was looking for a place that wouldn't require as much out of me in terms of planning/decorating/DIY :)

Omni Royal: Also a top pic going into the day. LOVED the terrace, but wasn't interested in the other wedding rooms. The terrace was amazing, loved the slate floors where the food/bar would be set up, and loved that rooms open out onto terrace, so guests who booked early enough would potentially be able to go in and out of their room during reception if they wanted, which I thought was neat :) unfortunately I think Celeste told us our guest list was too large for a seated reception in this area, and it also was not available on our preferred date, so that made the decision easier as well.

Riverview Room: Loved the view, the modern feel, the balconies, and that chair covers are INCLUDED!! Silly, I know, but considering that at most venues you would want them I think they should include it in the price everywhere ;) I also really, really loved that the price is all inclusive, so no worries about surprise fees later. It was within our budget (just over 11k for 125 people, INCLUDING tax and tip, and I was so interested in the fact that you can add extra time at the end but only have to pay for guests still there, which I thought was fantastic. Location was great and this would have been in the running too but for not being available on our date. Really though I was kind of happy about this, because we would have had a tough time choosing between the top three, all for different reasons.

Race and Religious: This place is soooooo beautiful and amazingly unique, and I cannot wait to go to a wedding here someday! Again it was very far (no walking here possible), and had the same issues with weather. Also we aren't expecting a huge amount of guests (80-100) and with the houses and different rooms I was worried people would split off and the wedding would feel empty. But really, decorated right it is just amazing. It would also be a great option for anyone that wanted to spend the weekend there, as I think it was only 1k more to have it for 48 hours as opposed to 10, which is included with the booking. In addition, not only was this venue not available on our date, but had NO remaining reservations in 2012 (At least for a Friday or Saturday), except for August, I believe.

Anyhow, that is how we came to our decision, and I am so happy about it! Hope this post may narrow it down for anyone else trying to decide amongst any of these venues :_

Boudoir reviews

MMLM2012 — Sun, 12 Feb 2012 15:51:44 +0000

I was pretty nervous and looking all over for reviews before I did this, so thought I'd share my experience....

I used New Orleans Ladies Boudoir- he responded immediately and worked with my schedule very easily. His prices can't be beat (which is one of the main reasons I decided to go for it). I was super nervous about a male photog coming to my house, but he showed up on time with all his equipment and was incredibly professional. I had my dog here and friends close by so I felt very safe.

He let me use whatever outfits/props I wanted, and was great about suggesting poses and also letting me use some of my own ideas I found online. I got a few teaser pics the night of- they are GREAT! I couldn't be happier. I think it was definitely worth the nervousness/awkwardness of the first couple of minutes, I can't wait to share the pics with my FI! Would definitely recommend. PM me if you want more details as I def would have appreciated some reviews before I went for it.

Where did you get your FI's wedding band...

hirscheygirl — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 05:07:44 +0000

Where did you get your FI's wedding band, and what is it made of, and why did you chose that?
I am leaning toward silver for him, beacuse it is not expensive, and if it gets smashed and needs to be cut off, it can be repaired/replaced inexpensively...

Bridal Shower Venue

scarlett64 — Sat, 28 Jan 2012 04:02:50 +0000

I'm looking for a venue to host a bridal shower for about 40 ladies, Was thinking about Longue Vue, but saw it today and was underwhelmed. Wish I could see pics of how others have decorated the room. Also thinking about Windsor Court, The Ritz or The Roosevelt.

Help! Anyone have any experience with any of the above, or any great suggestions that I'm missing? I'd kind of like to be able to just drive up and have everything done, instead of having to organize a caterer, linens, etc

I am looking out for some candle lanterns.

Baroo22 — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 19:05:19 +0000

Where have you seen some really cute candle lanterns? I am looking for kinda rustic, but not too crafty.
Thanks!

Thanks and good-bye...

RYLZ — Sat, 04 Feb 2012 04:25:52 +0000

These are my last 2 days at home before we head to Nola for the official Wedding Week! Just want to say thanks to everyone for all the tips-- everyone's questions and answers have been so helpful! I'll have lots of reviews next month. A week of wedding, 2 weeks of honeymoon-- cant wait! See you on the other side :-)

Capdeboscq Catering Food Selections

leck1lsu — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 01:29:51 +0000

For anyone who has used Capdeboscq Catering could you please tell what items you chose? Likes and dislikes? There are so many options I don't even know where to start!! Thanks ladies!

In the heart of cutting overhead.

Baroo22 — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 18:44:46 +0000

My FI drives a 15 year old Ford truck, and he loves it. It is cheap to insure, gets ok mileage for how far he drives, and is cheap to maintain and insure. What are some of the knotties out there driving to keep the expenses down?

Atlanta Bride Couture - WORTH THE TRIP !!

SeaShellsShelly — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 21:32:02 +0000

Atlanta Bride Couture has the most amazing selection of wedding gowns anywhere in Atlanta, GA !! I've been to all the bridal shops and this one is hands down the most amazing ~ a boutique with class, great prices and the best customer service in the South !! There are over 600 sample gowns in the store to try on, with all most every designer represented. You can even buy a gown off the rack and save super big bucks !! OR, you can order a brand new wedding gown and save super big bucks !! It's a win~win for every bride !! Don't waste your time or money going anywhere esle but Atlanta Bride Couture. They even won THE KNOT 2012 BEST OF WEDDINGS ~ BRIDAL DRESS SHOP !! Read the reviews !! Everyone loves this store !! ...

Atlanta Bride Couture
20 Milton Avenue
Alpharetta, GA 30009
404-229-8690

*ROANDO2012

Queen Jane — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 20:47:19 +0000

I added some info to that PM response

Has anyone used Body by Vi to lose weight?

sweetcro — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 23:48:10 +0000

I keep getting messages on fb to come to a challenge party to get in to this weight loss thing- anybody here actually have good results?

So we are thinking about cutting our overhead...

hirscheygirl — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 05:18:17 +0000

I was thinking that we could sell one car, and get out of that note- does anyone else here share cars with their FI, or is this just rediculous thinking? Parking is not an issue, just insurance and maintenance.

Adults Only

celeste1983 — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 05:20:39 +0000

Is it a good idea?

What is the trendiest thing you are doing?

Baroo22 — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 18:29:59 +0000

Trendy being anything non traditional, from the last few years... I am thinking really hard about the cupcake cake, as I always see half the cake getting tossed on plates... No colored sash, though, nope...

NWR. Anyone know of a reputable Used Car Broker?

hirscheygirl — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 15:25:22 +0000

I think I am going to put the feelers out there for a good used Honda or Toyota Camry. I now need to find someone who has a good reputation for being honest, a Used Car Broker or someone like that.

I have some friends coming into town

sweetcro — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 23:56:15 +0000

And they are looking for a cute Bed and Breakfast to stay in. Are there any notable B&B's in NOLA? Any that just pour on the fleur d'lisciousness on reeeeal thick?

I need a nyquil toddy

sweetcro — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 23:41:16 +0000

I think I caught that funk going around, and I should be tipping some Nyquil here shortly...