Rehearsal Dinner - The Chophouse/Chinatown - A
- I didn't really work with them in the planning, but from what I saw at the dinner, everything was great! They have a private room downstairs that is nice for this type of event. We had appetizers and then a buffet for our guests. Everyone enjoyed everything. We also had a bar set-up that served guests beer and wine.
Reception Venue - Old Ebbitt Grill - A
- Everything went smoothly and all of our requests were worked out to help make our day special. We held our Cocktail Hour on the rooftop and guests loved the view and raved about the appetizers. The food was great during the reception, we had chicken and salmon with a mango bbq glaze. Everyone cleaned their plates!
Wedding Planner - The Grande Affair - B
- Teresa and her staff were very helpful with working out the hotel blocks, lining up a lighting vendor and day-of transportation. They also set-up the reception site and everything looked great. Her and her staff also set-up and organized the candy bar. We picked the candies and she bought everything we requested from a vendor for a very reasonable price. Our guests loved the candy bar! Candy apples were a big hit! My only complaint would be related to response time. In my daily work, I respond to an email within 24 hours, either with an answer or "I'm working on it." Sometimes I wouldn't hear back from Teresa for a week and in that time felt like I could have had it done and finalized already if I had done it myself. Lastly, the staff members that were sent to the hotel site on the day-of were not very helpful in relaying information to guests and the shuttle company to help things run smoothly.
Hotel - Sofitel - A
- The hotel was very accommodating. Most of our guests were able to check-in early. The staff provided myself and the rest of the bridal party with everything we needed, an extra mini fridge, comp. champagne and strawberries, kept the hotel bar open late Saturday night. We did have some problems with all our guests getting their welcome bags when checking in, but that is bound to happen with shift changes at the front desk and word not getting passed on to all staff.
Transportation - Name not known but out of Baltimore, MD
- The limo driver was great and did everything with a smile. The shuttle bus drivers were a different story. We had two shuttles and neither knew how to get to the hotels or to the Jefferson Memorial for the ceremony. Word of advise.....please make sure your drivers know where they are going...and be prepared for traffic accidents that are out of your control! There was a huge accident that shut down part of 95 Saturday afternoon so one of our shuttles was an hour late.....which then caused the ceremony to start about 10-15 minutes late.
Makeup - Crystal Jo - A+
- Everyone loved their makeup and Crystal is so sweet! She also charges great rates for brides and the bridal party.
Hair - Carla (PR at Partners in Old Town, Alexandria) - B
Carla was to bring an assistant, but then the day before informed me that she would be coming alone. This wasn't a huge issue for us since only 5 people were having their hair done, but this could cause a problem for some. Also, please bring actual pictures of your hair from the hair trial. I brought pictures of what I brought to the hair trial but not photos of what was done at the hair trial. My hair on the day-of looked fine, but completely different.
Cake - Cakes by Design- A+
- Everything looked and tasted great. Debbie did a 3D shoe design for the groom's cake and a topsy-turvey design for the wedding cake, with all three tiers a different flavor.
Flowers - Growing Wild - A
- The flowers looked great, from the bouquets to the reception centerpieces. Now, I almost did end up with the wrong flowers, the wrong box was delivered at first. Thank gosh we were missing something and they went back down to the van to check, because they then realized they had dropped off the wrong bouquets.
Wedding Dress and BM's - Hannelore's - B
- Kimberly was really fun to work with and I loved my dress, but please take your dress elsewhere for alterations, the price is $$$. Also, buy all of your accessories elsewhere. The bridesmaid dress experience was ok. Everyone got their dresses, but sizing was off for everyone and shipping to your house was a pain.
Tuxedos - Sarno and Sons - A
- Service was good and everything came in and fit almost everyone perfect.
Ceremony Chairs - Potomac Party Rentals - A
Chairs were at the ceremony as requested for a great price.
I am sure there is more....but at the moment these are the big things I can think of. E-mail me if you have any question,
spongecake@gmail.com