Since vendor reviews were so helpful when I was planning - I would love to recommend all the amazing people that made my day so special!
Venue: Marie
Gabrielle
Fell in love with this place from the first visit, so I
really tried to work this place into my budget and went with the least
expensive buffet option. FOOD was amazing and still get compliments. Lisa
Yarbro was priceless – a built in wedding coordinator. She was fairly easy to
get a hold of via email with questions through the entire process even though
she is extremely busy most of the time. She really tries to get you everything
you want… she and her assistant truly wait on you, hand and foot- making sure everyone
including your immediate family- is happy the entire night of your wedding.
Wouldn’t have wanted my wedding anywhere else, the lights in the trees at night
made for some truly magical moments and photographs. The price of this venue is
on the higher end – BUT something to keep in mind is that it includes a lot of
things already built in: food, bar, dinnerware & linens, furniture,
ceremony location, ceremony chairs, coordinator, and the décor of the
restaurant and garden already comes with so much to begin with! It really eliminates having to hire other
caterers and rental services.
Florist: DIRT Flowers in Oak Cliff
Sonya and Kyra did an amazing job and were a joy to work
with!! Couldn’t have been happier and got so many compliments on the bouquets,
centerpieces, cake flowers and boutonnieres. They were so accommodating and I’m so thankful I trusted
their expertise. Side note: just as talented and almost half the price of other
florists I got estimates from! They work a lot with succulents, driftwood, etc – which was so
unique and appealing to me. Go visit their shop in Oak Cliff, you will fall in love!
Makeup and Hair: Sasha “Sassy” Hollingworth from The Style
House in Frisco
Sasha was wonderful – so talented, genuine, reliable, sweet
and not to mention ALSO reasonably priced! Her great personality makes you feel
completely comfortable. We did a trial
run in Frisco and on the wedding day she came to us at the Palomar hotel. She
did my mom and I’s hair and makeup, and fit in one of my bridesmaids at the
last minute. She wants you to be open and honest about what you want which I
really appreciated. I LOVED the way my
hair and makeup turned out and in photos so I was so happy I decided to hire
her as my hair and makeup artist.
Hotel and room
blocks: Hotel Palomar
We stayed here and got ready the day-of in one of the
suites, truly incredible! The key here was “complimentary blocks”, we weren’t
penalized or held financially responsible if we didn’t meet the number or
minimum number of blocked rooms. Ruth Bilbo was SO incredibly sweet to us. Huge
difference between the other hotels I visited.
Engagement and bridal
photographer : Laura Squire
Not only is she one of my best friends but she also did an
amazing job (as always) on my bridal portraits and our engagement photos. She
listens to your ideas about locations and is creative with an attention to
CLASSIC details. She definitely wants your photos to be timeless and for you to
feel comfortable during your experience. LOVE her!
Wedding day
photographer: Heather Hawkins
I remember reaching out to Sarah Kate and she was
unavailable for my date, I loved her style so I was really bummed. After more
searching I came across Heather’s name and reached out to her – she emailed me
back within hours! Which was the first clue to me that she was going to be
great to work with. We met with her within the next few days and got to see her
portfolio in person before making a final decision, in fact she thought it was
important that all parties involved felt like it would be a good fit. The
photography industry is a very small world, Heather had just started out on her
own in 2012 and actually worked for Sarah Kate as a second shooter. She is
incredibly talented and creative!!! I loved seeing some of her light-filled
shots, her style is so magical which was exactly what I wanted to capture and
she did it. She took special attention to all the details that went into the
décor and now I will have all her photographs to remember the WHOLE day by.
Videographer: Dream
Driven Media
Haven’t seen their finished product yet since it takes them
10 weeks to complete – but I really enjoyed working with them. I found Jason
and Joey at the Addison bridal show and actually won a drawing for a discounted
package deal. I was nervous about having
a camera around all day but after awhile you forget they are even there, which
allows them to capture some of the most special moments. They both made us feel
incredibly comfortable which made it very easy to relax and enjoy the day!! Their online forms and contract made it very
easy to coordinate with them about details and specifics.
Cake: Dallas Affaires
Margaret Gregg is the wedding contact and she is one of a
kind! She has been in the business for many years and really knows her stuff.
You can’t go wrong with anything at DA, classic in all ways and the cakes taste
amazing. My friend who is a wedding photographer told me to go straight to her
– and not to bother with any other cake places in Dallas. She’s been to MANY
weddings and knew theirs were the best, she was right. Margaret was always in
touch when she needed to be and I trusted her guidance and experience.
Perfection and a true professional.
Transportation: Blue
Diamond
I was a little hesitant after reading some negative reviews
but my fiancé really wanted the vintage Rolls Royce for our exit transportation
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It was a beautiful car and the driver was so very nice. We got
a lot of compliments from our guests and will be a favorite memory!
Ceremony Officiate:
Marty Younkin with Love Notes
We really loved Marty. He made us feel comfortable about the
ceremony process as soon as we met him for the first time. He is very
accessible by email or phone with any questions I had. He has a workbook of
MANY ceremony options, so you can truly make it your own and personalize it to fit
your story and personal preferences. He did a lovely job and really makes sure
he tailors his commentary for the mood you are going for. Understandably we
were nervous just before the start of the ceremony and he asked if we would
like a more serious OR a more relaxed and upbeat tone. We opted for the latter
option and he really helped to lighten the mood, made for a few laughs and just
like that it helped calm the nerves immediately.
He was perfect and I wouldn’t have wanted anyone one else up
there with us on our special day.
Honeymoon travel arrangements
and packages – Stephanie Medina with All About Honeymoons
We got lucky here too – Stephanie was recommended to our
friend who got married at a resort in Mexico. We knew our budget and we knew we
also wanted to be pampered at an all inclusive resort for a week, so we
narrowed it down to Rivera Maya at Excellence Playa Mujeres. It was perfection
and Stephanie worked so many angles to get us the best possible deal. She was
amazing and so flexible & understanding when we kept changing our minds 
Invitations: Lily
Among Thorns Bride on Etsy
Such a breeze to work with Adrianne, she somehow completed
my order just after having a baby! I even ordered two separate amounts - I wasn’t
100% sure of the wedding count so she got the majority done then I was able to
order more at the last minute. I was wanted something unique to the garden fan
program – so I found her “ribbon wand” programs so cute and different!
Photo booth: Ohh Snap with Brandi Strickland
Brandi was recommended to me from Lisa Yarbro at Marie
Gabrielle. Brandi has just recently started her photo booth business and wanted
to get more experience at weddings in the DFW area. I am SO glad I contacted
her, she really was so sweet from the beginning and really had the best prices
in Dallas– even offered to include the scrapbook with my package. She also
gives you all the digital copies of the images on a travel drive ---- even a
bigger plus: the booth has a modern all white look, she let me put a streamer
garland in the background of the booth that I bought from Etsy… AND she already
had a lot of really cute & tasteful props for us to use!
Bridal wear
Terry Costa –
looked all over Dallas and Austin and found my favorite bridal gowns here
Alterations –
Becky Fowler, this lady is an amazing seamstress and person. Runs her business
out of her home and she makes you feel like family.
Cleaning and
preservation – Bill Braun with Pinstripes, he and Becky know of each other
and I truly think they are the best in the Dallas area. He makes delivery and
pick-up so convenient, he comes to your house or work and is so very nice!
DJ & Lighting:
David Allen
This was our only disappointment. We got along great the
whole time and clicked with him from the very first meeting, we loved his personality
and he truly went above and beyond with all the price negotiations, additions
and subtractions to packages – really working with us to make our lighting and
music vision come alive. The lighting was great! The ceremony music – perfect!
But the reception just wasn’t what we expected. He played SOME
of the songs on our playlist… but I know some songs that were not on our list,
were played… not sure why. And some of the two-step songs and slow couple songs
were also not played… not sure why!? I was also shocked there was so much
awkward silence. I REALLY wish we had asked him to play light soft music in the
background during speeches and toasts…and the “newlywed game”. Guess we just didn’t
think about that happening. To top it off, a few days after the wedding – I realized
even after we reviewed the package together prior to the wedding : somehow he
forgot to do the anniversary dance we asked for!! If we ran out of time
during our reception: I would’ve just appreciated a heads up that he wasn’t
able to fit that in.
All in all a beautiful, memorable day!