Hi everyone! I never posted much, but I always found vendor
reviews useful, especially since I had a rather long engagement…plenty of time
for research J
Our wedding was on 12/7/13 (Icemageddon!), and all of our
vendors came through for us and knocked it out of the park! So, they all
definitely deserve a shout out. I saw another post about stories from that
weekend, and probably the most interesting thing that happened to us was we had
to change priests the day before the wedding. A family friend from another
parish north of Denton was going to say the Mass, but as everyone knows, I-35W
north of Denton was an absolute mess. Luckily, the wedding was taking place at
a Catholic university, so there was an on campus chaplain who was available.
The priest did a wonderful job, and had never met us.
Wedding Planner: Kelly Simants with Sweet Pea Events
(A++++++) – I cannot say enough about how awesome Kelly is. She is worth about
10 times her fee. We used her full planning service because my husband and I
both work full time, and I have to travel. I interviewed 4 different planners
(all great) and decided on Kelly because our personalities meshed well, and I
was really impressed with her business acumen. The whole wedding planning
process was actually enjoyable because she handled the to-do lists, and she was
very responsive. If I emailed her with a question, I would hear back generally
within 24-48 hours. As it got closer to the wedding day, she would give me a
heads up if she needed to be out of the office (i.e. for a destination wedding
or vacation) just so that I wouldn’t be surprised when I got an out of office
response. The day before the wedding, we had to change up a lot of plans due to
the weather. For example, I was planning to go to a salon to get my hair done
and then a makeup artist was meeting me at the reception venue. We realized
that there was no way we would be able to make it to the salon on Saturday
morning, and the makeup artist was worried about being able to make it as well.
I was beginning to accept the idea of just doing my own hair and makeup with the
help of my bridesmaids…not a problem. Kelly checked in with me on Friday
afternoon, and when I told her what was going on, she found someone who could
do BOTH my hair and makeup on Saturday morning.
Photography: McGowan Images (A+++++++) – They were
the first vendor we booked more than a year prior to the wedding date…because
they are awesome. ‘Nuff said. I found them on this discussion board, so thank
you for posting reviews! I am just so glad they made it safely because the
wedding just would not have been the same without them.
Florals/Décor: Branching Out Events (A++++++) – Debby
is just awesome and so much fun to work with. I basically just explained my
vision and showed her my Pinterest page, and she ran with it. She is so
creative and passionate about her job. She drew up a proposal early on, and
then she came up with even more ideas during the weeks leading up to the
wedding after we had a better idea of the guest count and table layout.
Reception Venue: Noah’s in Irving (A) – They are extremely
flexible and allow you to bring everything, which means that it would be kind
of difficult to DIY your wedding unless you’re extremely organized. We used
every room in the building, and it was nice to spread things out so that people
weren’t stepping on each other when they were getting their food. The only
slightly negative thing was our wedding planner contacted them the week of our
wedding asking about salting the parking lot because we knew the ice storm was
coming. They basically said that they weren’t equipped to handle it, so it was
an ice skating rink on Saturday. By the time we got back to Noah’s after the
ceremony, the parking lot was somewhat better because our wedding planner
called (I think) their landscaping company to clear the ice. It was just a
little disappointing that they couldn’t help out more with the ice, especially
since we asked about it ahead of time. However, everything else about their
customer service was positive, so I think they just underestimated how bad it
would be.
Ceremony Venue: Church of the Incarnation at the
University of Dallas (A) – I am an alum, so that is why I was able to get
married here. They don’t do a ton of weddings, but they are more flexible than
most Diocesan parishes that I’ve had experience with. Campus Safety also really
came through with the walkways, parking lots, and tree branches. If you are an alum
and are planning a Catholic wedding, definitely consider having your wedding
here.
DJ: Colby Logan with Astounding Sounds (A+) – This guy
is hilarious and so much fun to work with. He does fairly in depth
questionnaires after he meets with you to get to know you and your fiancé better.
He also asks you to send the questionnaires to your parents (if you want) to
get their input as well. Consequently, there were songs that he played during
the reception that got a lot of awesome reactions…like, “OMG! THIS SONG!!!” He’s
also really professional when he makes announcements. I’ve heard cheesy wedding
DJs before, and Colby is not like that at all.
Catering: Gil’s Elegant Catering (A+++) – We went to
one of their monthly events to try their food, and then we did a tasting after
we booked. I am so glad we were able to bring our own caterer because it really
offered flexibility. The food at the wedding was just as good as the food we
tried at the tasting, and we kept getting “thumbs up” from our guests during
the wedding as well as plenty of compliments afterwards. Gil’s even provided
large signs on easels at each action station so that guests could easily peruse
the offering. Their staff was extremely professional when passing hors d’oeuvres
and refilling drinks. They also brought plates of food to me and my new husband
so that we wouldn’t have to carry anything. At the end of the night, they gave
us a to-go cooler with snacks and leftover food in case we wanted a late night
snack. We also used their bartending service, and they did a great job.
Late Night Snack: The Snack Box (A) – Towards the end
of the night, we offered fresh mini donuts that The Snack Box made on site. I
couldn’t eat much because I was so full, but I did try a few bites and they
were delicious! They had standard toppings like cinnamon/sugar, chocolate, and
powdered sugar, and it went well with the hot chocolate and coffee bar that Gil’s
provided.
Cakes: Sugar Bee Sweets (A) – Everything we tried at the
tasting was awesome, so it was really difficult to choose flavors. I didn’t eat
much cake at the reception because I was so full (and too busy dancing), but
what I did have was just as delicious as the tasting. Because we kept our cakes
relatively simple (no fondant or sugar flowers), we came in under budget.
Videography: Splendor Films (A) – We obviously haven’t
seen the results yet, but Jeff and Amanda were extremely professional and easy
to work with. They were also troopers during the icy mess. I can’t wait to see
the final results!
Ceremony Musicians: Meridian Strings (A) – We obviously
used the pianist at the church, but we also wanted a string trio. Because we
had a full Catholic Mass, we really needed to use musicians that were approved
by the music director at the church. Obviously, this can be a bit worrisome
because choices are limited, but Drew with Meridian was very responsive,
checked in during the wedding week to verify a few details, and the musicians
showed up on time and performed well. The Mass was just beautiful.
Transportation: Choice Luxury Limo (A+++++) – Holy cow,
am I glad we hired these guys!! We requested a 24 passenger bus to get guests
from the hotel to the ceremony, then to the reception and back to the hotel. We
had a lot of out of town guests, so this was really more of a convenience when
we hired them. That shuttle bus was an absolute life saver on the wedding day!
The driver grew up out of state (somewhere up north), so he was comfortable
driving in the weather, and because the shuttle was heavier than your average
car, it could handle the ice much better. The driver was named Cyrus, and he
even helped me walking down steps after the ceremony when I was making my way
back to the bus. We also hired a sedan to pick up my elderly grandparents from
Ft. Worth. The driver, Ken (very nice man), made a valiant effort trying to get
them, but in the end, they just weren’t comfortable with all the ice and asked
him to turn around. He was our driver at the end of the night and got us safely
to our hotel.
Wedding Guest Hotel: NYLO Las Colinas (A-) – There was
a lot of confusion during the wedding weekend because reservations were being
canceled and rebooked just about every hour due to flight cancelations and
guests deciding they didn’t want to drive home after the wedding due to the
weather. They lost some reservations and couldn’t get people checked in quickly
(because people wouldn’t leave their rooms), but they remedied the situation as
best they could. In the end, anyone who needed a room got one, but it was a
little chaotic. In addition, they ran out of food the night before the wedding
and Saturday morning, which meant people were trying their best to get to
nearby gas stations and restaurants (most places were closed). The problem was
their supply trucks couldn’t get there, so apparently the chef was running to
local grocery stores to try to get supplies. We provided a breakfast buffet the
morning after the wedding, and I think they had enough food by then.
Wedding Night Hotel: Four Seasons Las Colinas (A+) – The
suite we got was awesome, and their service was great. We stayed Saturday and
Sunday night because we weren’t flying out until Monday morning. When we had
dinner Sunday night, the waiter found out we were newlyweds and gave us complimentary
champagne and dessert! Our wedding planner was able to get us a ridiculously
good rate, so definitely ask your planner to make the reservation for you if
you’re interested in staying at this hotel.
Wedding Dress: Neiman Marcus (A) – I got my dress at
a trunk show, so there was a nice discount. Otherwise, it’s pretty expensive.
Their customer service is great, and I was able to contact my bridal consultant
directly anytime I had a question.
Furniture Rentals: Period Charm Rentals (B) – We only
got a few pieces like a cake hutch and a few tables, couches, and chairs. The
warehouse is a little disorganized and Lisa, the owner, is very sweet but a
little flighty. Luckily, our wedding planner could “translate” for us and knew
what we needed. I don’t think I would work with Period Charm on my own because
it would be too confusing. The pieces were absolutely beautiful, though, and
fit our décor perfectly.
The wedding party attire was pretty DIY to keep the costs
down. The groomsmen all wore black suits that they already owned or bought, and
my husband got their ties and pocket squares from The Tie Bar as part of their
gift. The other part of their gift was custom cufflinks from frenchcuffed.com
(very reasonable and good quality). The bridesmaids all wore pencil skirts and
patterned tights that they already owned or bought, and then I ordered their
tops from Ann Taylor when they were running a big sale. Their pashminas came
from Tom Thumb (What?! Yes).
I hope I didn’t forget anyone! Please feel free to let me
know if you have any questions.