Finally I have had some time to sit down and do these. I did most of them laast night, withthe exception of Lily Pad, cause I wanted to see her response before I did hers, to give her a fair chance to attempt redemption.
VENUE The Magnolia (A+)
have nothing but compliments to give Jessica and her team! The value for what you get in Dallas on a Saturday is amazing compared to other venues in the area. From booking in January 2011 to the end of the wedding in February 2012, I never felt like we weren't a priority. Jessica went out of her way to answer my questions, and make sure that both my groom and myself were 100% satisfied.
Our menu consisted of heavy appetizers, carving stations, a soup station, and petite plates; I feel like for everything that we had, we would have paid twice as much at any other venue. Compared to other venues directly in the area, The Magnolia's catering minimum is great for a "budget bride" wanting a classic and classy affair.
HOTEL ACCOMODATIONS - Also the Magnolia (A++)Our out of town guests also stayed at the hotel during the wedding weekend, and we have heard nothing but compliments on the entire Magnolia team. The front desk staff was an absolute dream and super friendly any time we needed something. Room blocks were easy to set up, and a great rate for all that comes with it (Breakfast, Happy Hour & Cookie Buffet)
DJ - Melodies and Memories (A++++++)
What is there to say about Melody that hasn't already been said? I don't even know where to begin on how much I adore Melody and appreciate the job she did for our wedding. Even with some of my off the wall last minute requests, she rolled with it and made for the most memorable night of our lives. My family members were complimenting the job she did well after the party was over. She made sure to keep the dance floor full all night. Out of all the DJs I priced out, she is definitely the most bang for the least amount of buck. Ed and I both agree that she was by far the best investment.
Cake - Cake Guys (Cake = A, Customer Service = C)
We used the Sweet Inspirations package, since this was the most cost-friendly option. We opted to use the portions from the groom's cake for a second tier on our bridal cake instead. We are still receiving compliments on how moist and delicious the cake was - several guests said they have never liked anything tart, but had multiple slices of our layer with the Key Lime Cream Cheese.
My only complaint is the responsiveness to my e-mails - it seemed like the only way I could get acknowledgment of my requests was to call. I also requested that I receive e-mail confirmation once my final balance was run, and I never got that. I just had to look on my bank account to verify that they charged the balance.
Calligraphy - BP Invites (A)
Danica was so great to work with! She was quick to respond to my e-mails, and very patient with changes that I needed to make to any last minute addresses that came in. Great value for the quality of work that she produces.
Note: She runs specials often, and I came across one of her specials on Craigslist which was 40 cents an envelope. She happens to live right by me in Frisco so I dropped off and picked up from her within 3 days.
Officiant - Rev Diane Robertson (A)
Diane has got to be the sweetest person we have ever met. Even though we had maybe a 45-minute long meeting one time, she did an amazing job on our ceremony and customized it to our personalities. I have gotten several compliments on how she did.
Photography - Stephanie Brazzle Photography (A)
I absolutely LOVE Stephanie. She was such a doll to work with from first meeting, to engagement pics, to bridal pics, to our wedding day.
While I haven't seen all of our wedding photos, I can only imagine they look awesome just from knowing how our engagements and bridals turned out.
While her contract says to allow 6-8 weeks for total turn around, she got our engagement photos to me in a quicker time frame. My bridals did take a little longer, however she kept me in the loop the entire time.
She also was more than kind enough to take some pics and forward the unedited ones of my flowers along in order to help me out requesting a refund from my florist
Videography - Wylie Video (A)
I won't have the video for a month, but Jason is awesome. He was prompt, and courteous which are two big plusses in my book. He really complimented Stephanie and together they made sure our guys were where they needed to be when they needed to be there. I have seen the quality of his other wedding videos and am super excited to see ours. He also upgraded us to his HD package for free.
Floral - Lily Pad (C-)
While I am super disappointed with how my bridesmaids flowers and my bouquets turned out, I do think it is necessary to highlight the floral that was simply beautiful. All of out Bouts and Corsages turned out wonderful and kept well. In fact, Ed's was still crisp the morning after the wedding. That being said, I spent minimal on my overall floral, and for the amount I paid, I probably would have been better off picking up from Central Market the morning of the wedding. Luckily, the Magnolia has such great decor that floral wasn't necessary.
Here's a pic of what one of our callas looked like the morning of the wedding.
Additionally, my bridal bouquet was wilted on the bottom, and was completely destroyed come Sunday morning since we had to used that as a toss bouquet since the actual toss bouquet was completely done-ski. My bouquet that she created in November for my bridal portraits was gorgeous, so I expected nothing to be wrong with this one. Add on to that, I asked for feathers to be included and there were four total. FOUR.
I do have to commend Kirsten on her quick response and desire to resolve the matter, though. She and I will be meeting face to face again when I return the vases from my unused altar arrangements next week, and she has offered to give me a refund for what I think is fair. I will keep you all posted.
~DFWs Resident Snark~
I'm not so good with the advice... Can I interest you in a sarcastic comment?
