I just got married on the 8th and I wanted to give you lovely ladies some reviews of my venders! I'm in Bowling Green, KY, which is just 50 miles north of Nashville, a few of my venders are from Nashville, but the majority are from here and I know they most all travel. The best part is we're typically cheaper up here!
Venue - Lost River Cave - While it is an AMAZING venue, the lady over the rentals is a bit of an idiot. We scheduled a rehearsal and we were told we only had 15 minutes and only the people immediately in the wedding could attend. When we got there no one was there, which wasn't a problem, but they did not leave any lights on for us and it got dark before we left. Luckily our best lady is the education and staff manager so we were able to turn the lights in the cave on but then had to walk the .25 mile back out of the valley in pitch black. Had we not had people there who could get in and turn the lights on we would not have been able to have our rehearsal. They do provide staff, 1 person just as general overseeing and then we rented 3 golf carts and they provided 3 drivers, the guys were great. They helped break down (even though they really weren't supposed to) we gave them cake a beer and they were down for anything! It was absolutely beautiful and worth working with the stupid rentals manager.
Photographer - BGB Photo Design - Brie and her assistant Alex are fantastic! They were so much fun to be around, we had great chemistry, which made our day so easy. Our wedding was on the 8th and we should be going in for a viewing on Friday, so it's a pretty quick turn around. With only 8 pictures as a preview I am EXTREMELY happy and she was very well priced.
Cake - Diane's Cakes and Catering - Diane was great to work with, the cake looked and tasted fantastic (or so I'm told, we only ate a tiny mouthful) and she was also reasonably priced
Dresses - Bridal Warehouse - They have a fantastic selection and it makes it really nice to be able to try different styles becausethey have at least 10 dress in each size! The staff isn't always the most knowledable, I worked with a lady who was fantastic but no longer works there. Don't expect a whole lot from the sales team, but they have great dresses and great prices!
Tuxedos - Men's Warehouse (in Greenwood Mall) - The staff was super nice and seem to know what they were talking about. We forgot to order DH a white pocket square (got the rest red) and the lady slipped one in the pocket for us as we were leaving at no extra charge.
Rentals - Any Occasion Rentals - I did not actually work with this vender personally, my coordinator did, but the prices were reasonable and everything was there set up by 10am, so I was happy with that.
Band - City Lights Orchestra (out of Nashville, TN) - I can not rave about them enough! They were fantastic, we had a small entertainment budget but they worked with us and got down to a point where we could afford them. Sam, the band leader, was very helpful in suggesting song and tried to do everything he could to accomidate what I wanted. They learned our song (Michael Buble Everything) and it was perfect. They are worth every penny and you can mix and match pieces and get exactly what you want, they were amazing. Paula (their female vocalist) is beautiful and has an amazing voice, definitely recommend you looking into them! They travel the 50 miles to Bowling Green from Nashville at no extra cost.
Hair - Regina Webb Salon - The prices are pretty steep for the area, but my stylist Tammy knew what she was doing. I forgot my inspiration picture but with just describing what I wanted to her she nailed it and I got so many compliments.
Invitations - Cardsandpockets.com - I designed our invitations but purchased all paper from them and also utilized their printing services. The invitations were fantastic they have tons of color choices and the customer service is top notch.
Flowers - Geny's (Nashville, TN) - I worked with Ruth and the flowers were great! I ordered a ton and a few got held up in customs so they were late, but they made sure I got them and the flowers were awesome, and they had the best prices I found in Nashville and they sell to the public
Coordinator - Lasting Impressions by Leona - I have taken down my review of Lasting Impressions because the owner and myself have differing views of how the day went. There were several points in her contract that she did not fulfil, the main one being she was not the last one to leave as stated in her contract. I will say that I do not recommend her services.
I hope these are useful to you, feel free to ask me any questions!