David’s Bridal-Monroeville PA (B+)
My dress was actually the first thing I bought and I didn’t plan on getting it right away or from David’s for that matter. I went in with the expectation of trying a few different styles on so that I knew what type of dress I would want. First off, my consultant was not good at all….she kept brining me dresses way over my price range and not the styles I was looking for at all. My sisters and my mother were the ones that pulled the dress I ended up buying. It was a discontinued dress and the price was only $240. It had lace and beading all over it so it was a great deal. I had nightmares about the alterations because I had heard so many different reviews on David’s alterations. I had a modesty piece put in and they tried to convince me to have it hemmed but it really wasn’t necessary with my heels. Overall it was not as bad as I thought it would be and everything turned out great with my dress.

I also had the bridesmaids order their dresses from here. We went with one of their $99 dollar dresses and the girls were able to get shoes as well and not spend a fortune. The thing that was great about the bridesmaid dresses is that months after they were ordered my sister found out she was pregnant (with twins!). David’s let her order a new dress in a bigger size like 2 months before my wedding. She said they were extremely nice about it. All in all it wasn’t a bad experience; I just wished my consultant would have been a bit more involved in what I wanted.

Glades Pike Winery –Somerset PA-(A+)-Ceremony and reception site
My husband and I both knew we wanted the ceremony outside and the reception inside and that we wanted one location so guests weren’t driving in between the ceremony and the reception. We looked at at least 4 venues before we checked out Glades Pike Winery. I can honestly tell you the moment I stepped into their banquet hall it took my breath away and I knew instantly this was our venue. The pictures on their website do not do it justice. You truly have to go see this place in person to understand its beauty. But what really sold me on the venue was the awesome staff working there. I can’t even begin to explain how nice Liz and Monica, the coordinators at Glades Pike Winery were to my husband and I. I must have emailed Liz at least once a week for months and she never once seemed irritated or annoyed with me. I think she understood how brides can get months before their wedding and she was just very honest and helpful with me. Of course it helps that the venue is AMAZING and was well within our price range!! Another great thing about this venue is you can use any vendors you want, they don’t have a specific list of caterers or dj’s that you must use, however they will provide with a list of people they have worked with in the past.  It was a good starting point for us and we were able to find vendors from that list that were within our price range. (Glades Pike does not have a fully functioning kitchen so be aware that your cater will have to make everything before hand and will only have the option to heat it up there and store it in the refrigerators there. This wasn’t a problem for us but it could be depending on your cater)

Days Inn Donegal (Donegal, PA  724-593-7536)-A+-Rehearsal Dinner, Day of Breakfast and hotel accommodations
The ladies at the Days Inn were absolutely amazing to work with. We met with them a few months before the wedding because the restaurant we originally wanted for our rehearsal dinner was booked. We knew we were blocking rooms for our guests here and the staff was super helpful with our planning! We were able to have our rehearsal outside on their beautiful patio and we picked a casual menu for the dinner.  The best part was the fact that we were able to walk right up to our hotel rooms after the rehearsal dinner was completed. It was convenient and the staff was excellent! Andrea Cuda was the coordinator and I couldn’t thank her enough for making our day so memorable! The food wasn’t bad either, which is nice because sometimes you never know what you are getting with hotel food.

Duane’s Café on Grove –Catering (B+)
My husband and I were excited about being able to bring whatever cater we wanted into the reception. We did a lot of searching around and a friend actually recommended Duane’s Café on Grove because they used him for their wedding. The food was great and they were willing to give us exactly what we wanted within our price range! My husband really wanted mini pizzas for appetizers and Duane did a wonderful job with giving him exactly what he was looking for, and they were delicious. Duane and his staff were very easy to work with the only thing that upset me was the fact that a couple weeks before the wedding I had requested a vegan meal and a gluten free meal for two guests at my wedding. That day  we ended up only needing the vegan meal because the other guest didn't show however, when the guests asked for their meal he said he didn’t have it. This upset me more than it did the guest, who told me they were fine and found something to eat. I had a specific conversation with him about these meals and he said they would be provided and they weren’t. Besides this issue, everything else was fantastic. The food was delicious and the service was very professional.

Beauty by Lauren-A++
Lauren has known me for years and I would have done my make myself if she couldn’t do it. I do not trust a lot of people to do my makeup. I am a very natural looking person and I wanted to look like myself that day and not someone my husband wouldn’t recognize.  She was able to give me that natural look but with a touch of something different so that it looked special. Lauren uses Motives Makeup and it’s a wonderful brand. I have been using it for years now and I can honestly say I was thrilled with the way my make up turned out. Everything matched my skin perfectly and it lasted the entire night. I didn’t want to wash it off at the end of the night, it looked just the same as when she first put it on! I was more than pleased with how it turned out and she will be my go to girl if I ever need make up done again in the future! Here is her facebook page and if you are interested in her contact information message me and I can pass it along.
http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.739920336902.2178001.35101953&type=3#!/pages/Beauty-By-Lauren/119214901455751

Brannon Lyons-(A-) Ceremony Music
Brannon was great to work with. He came to us for the initial consult and he was very laid back and down to earth. He is very talented and also very professional.  I honestly don’t remember the music for the ceremony at all but I think that’s because I was a big ball of emotions. Everyone else told me it was perfect. I trust everyone else and my husband is a guitar player and he seemed happy with the results. He was reasonably priced and it turned out nice!

DJ Josh-Pittsburgh East Entertainment-(A+)
Josh was very easy to work with. He met with us several times before our wedding to approve practically every single song he was going to play at our reception. He literally put together our playlist and played it for my husband before hand to make sure it was perfect! And it was. Now I left the Dj up to the husband, it was one of his only tasks to complete on his own. He did a fantastic job because Josh was flexible in meeting with us, easy to work with and was very professional at our wedding.  Job well done to the husband!

As always if anyone has any questions please feel free to message me and I will be more than happy to answer them!

Thanks so much!!