I meant to have these posted months ago, but we had a death in the family after the wedding and then the holidays hit. I hope these help you! Please contact me if you have any additional questions.
Photography by Terry, Inc - http://www.photographybyterryinc.com Summerville, SC
Terry and Julia were both amazing! I first saw Photography by Terry set up at a spring bridal show, the display and the volume of people at the booth said enough for me. Terry was so easy going and fun to work with. Throughout the planning process she met with me and my fiancé multiple times, and on the wedding day she knew just what we had in mind. Her personality is very easy to get along with and she was very timely in all correspondence while planning. I had some planning issues due to a family member's illness, and Terry never pushed me to set a date or sign with her immediately. And after the wedding, I needed a few shots as soon as possible and she had a disk ready in two days. On the day of the wedding, they were both such a joy to work with. Julia has a great eye at catching tiny things out of place, and combined with Terry's skill they were on point making sure the entire wedding party looked their best. All I had to do was point (usually they were already aiming) and they captured some priceless candid shots as well! She was on board with the idea of a photo booth, and she caught some great shots of people coming out of the booth dressed up in all the props! I can't say enough positive things about my experience with Photography by Terry!
Tri-County Transportation Personal Shuttle and Limo Service TCTSLimo.com
I purchased a groupon deal and reserved a limo for transportation from our venue to Waterfront Park for photographs between the ceremony and reception. That said I can't complain on the price I paid and the service I got. The driver was very professional. I was slightly disappointed with the cleanliness of the passenger compartment. There was a dirty glass, another glass had an empty prescription pill bottle in it, and there was a cigarette butt on the tissue box. Luckily, we had brought our own drink ware also. The driver was on time and friendly, but unfortunately I can't remember his name.
Flowers by Frankie http://www.flowersbyfrankie.com/
I was planning on doing silk flowers myself, but things came up and at the last minute I was overwhelmed. Frankie came highly recommended by another vendor I had booked, and I couldn't have been happier! She used my silk flowers, and made me some breathtaking bouquets, corsages, and boutonnieres. She had talent I can't even describe! I am so glad I contacted her, the bouquets looked so much better than my best efforts. She was very fast at responding to emails, her prices were great, and she had everything done in no time! Highly recommend!!
Complete Music and Video - DJ and Photo booth
Ryan was our DJ and he was completely amazing at our wedding! He did the ceremony music as well as the reception, and all of my guests loved him. My family isn't much for dancing and our friend’s need a little persuasion, Ryan was determined to get the dance floor popping and made sure everyone was having fun! He scheduled time to meet with us prior to the event to get to know us and plan out the flow of events for the reception. Our tent was late, which hindered Ryan from setting up his equipment on schedule....but he pulled it off and the ceremony was perfect. My husband was very impressed with how professionally Ryan handled the tent fiasco. The dance floor started pretty empty at the reception, but he had some perfect ice breakers to draw people out and once he found what music my guests preferred (I wish I was a music buff that would have been able to tell him in advance, but I had no clue), the dance floor was busy!
The photo booth was something we wanted, but we weren't sure it would be worth the money. It turns out it was worth every penny! My guests are all still talking about it, and the photos we have are hilarious and priceless! I love the fact we could get the digital images, and we can get prints made of each individual shot. Only thing I wish was slightly better would be the quality of the images, since the 4x6 images turn out slightly grainy and pixilated.
The selection of props was great, and the photo strips made perfect favors for the guests. The album they put together and the guests signed is a keepsake to be cherished! It was a free pass for everyone to lighten up, be silly, and get the party started!
Charleston Harbor Resort and MarinaWe had our ceremony on the lawn and the reception on the Sunrise Terrace at the Charleston Harbor Resort and Marina located near Patriot's Point. The view at this resort is priceless!! We opted to have our wedding on a Sunday, which cut costs drastically. The rental fees included the dinnerware, tables, chairs, and basic linens. My guests loved the location! Our early encounters with the resort started off a little rocky since they changed wedding coordinators in the middle of it. (On a side note, after speaking with other wedding professionals and following the resort on Facebook….it does seem they have a high turnover in banquet/management staff). Ashley Nguyen was kind of thrown in to our wedding and there were previous details discussed with the previous wedding coordinator on staff there. Luckily, I had saved all the email correspondence and Ashley and I eventually got the details all worked out. It does seem that the resort will try to include numerous hidden charges after the contract is signed, so I recommend being extra diligent when ironing out the contract details. One issue we had been with our room block. Our rooms were originally described to us as Run of the House, which we were told was whatever guests preferred (view, bed, etc). However, many of my guests encountered problems at time of booking and were told of numerous upcharge fees and limited room options. Ashley and I worked this out prior to the wedding weekend and all of my guests got the rooms they preferred, but if we had a large block of rooms it would have been impossible to coordinate each one. The day of the wedding Ashley was amazing! She was one step ahead of everyone and had every detail under control. I was so impressed with her that entire day! She was there to help coordinate the ceremony and to assist me for anything we needed. She set up my candy buffet, revamped our centerpieces due to high winds, was there to take my veil off, made the dinner plates from the buffet for my husband and me, and even followed me to the bathroom and was handing me paper towels to clean the icing off after the cake smearing. My entire bridal party and immediate family members were so pleased with Ashley!
Wedding Hair by Charlotte - Charlotte Belk (Owner of Elysium Salon) http://weddinghairbycharlotte.com/Charlotte was a joy to work with. She was very prompt at replying to communications and not at all pushy. I had my trial run in her salon, and she was very happy to help me tweak the style to just what I imagined. She comes to location (without charging an astronomical amount like the other quotes I had) and she was very laid back. She styled my hair and both of my bridesmaids’ hair. We had an outdoor harbor side ceremony with high winds and intermittent showers (at the off times luckily) and all of our hair stayed in place perfectly. We even did outdoor photos at Waterfront Park and our hair still held up!
Makeup by Jonny Cosmetics
Jonny was a lot of fun to work with. His personality will make everyone smile! He came to our location and did the makeup for myself and one bridesmaid. The makeup held up through rain showers and hours on the dance floor. It photographed well and did not look caked on or reflective in the shots. I had a trial with him at Elysium salon and he made some minor adjustments for me on the wedding day! Everyone complimented my makeup. He has an eye for just knowing what will look great on each person!Stage Presence LLC – Tent RentalI signed a contract with Stage Presence well in advance of my wedding date for a tent rental to cover my dance floor, bar, and dj area for my reception. I paid this contract off over a month prior to the wedding. On the wedding day, the tent was to be set-up at 9am. The tent was late, we called the number numerous times and left many voicemails on the after hours extension. We had not way to directly contact the business. The tent showed up after noon, and my ceremony was scheduled to start at 2:30 in the adjacent yard area. This tent was also our plan B for rainy weather, and there were showers that day. My dj needed to set up under the tent early since he was also providing the ceremony music and microphones. Needless to say, the late arrival caused a panic. The tent was late, no one called to tell us there was a delay, and it caused a lot of unnecessary panic. My groom, my bridesmaids, and I were calling with no reply. We were supposed to do custom lighting on the tent and there was no way my groomsmen had time to do that and still be photo ready for pre-shots by 1:00. The tent was set up in time, barely, and my do was very rushed, but he managed to get everything done. The tent did end up having some extra lighting, which we didn’t pay for. However, we did pay for the rain guard and I don’t think it was used because the tent leaked during the reception. Also, the pole covers we had paid for were not there. I did email the company and had an email response in a timely manner saying my issue was being forwarded to the owner. I called and spoke with the owner and he apologized for everything, he said the tent was being used the day before and was torn down that morning. He also gave us a substantial refund. I told him I hoped he could change his company’s practices and communication issues so future brides wouldn’t have my frustration. I was very happy to know I was addressing the owner directly and I am sure he will do what is needed to make sure this doesn’t happen in the future. Publix Bakery – Queensborough Shopping CenterWe ordered our cake from the Publix Bakery in the Queensborough Shopping Center (store #00449) in Mount Pleasant on Johnnie Dodds Blvd. Rosinda was our main contact in the bakery. The cake was perfect, exactly what we ordered. They give awesome sample cakes to try the different flavor combinations. Delivery was on time and smooth. Also, they will make certain flavors that are not listed options. We had peanut butter icing in the middle, and it was great!! My guests complimented the cake, both the design and the flavor, very fresh. Buddy Roes Shrimp Shack, 1528 Ben Sawyer Blvd. Mt. Pleasant, SC 29464 843-388-5270www.buddyroesshrimpshack.comWe had our rehearsal luncheon on the patio area. It was very low key and relaxed. My quests could order what they wanted and everything was served in a very timely manner. I loved the prices and the flexibility it gave my guests. We just wanted something casual and outdoors, and this was perfect!!!