Hi, Knotties!
Just wanted to post reviews of some of the vendors we used.
I can't say enough good things about Wiens Family Cellars in Temecula. It's a BEAUTIFUL location and it seems like it just keeps getting better. They're doing a lot of upgrades and just added a second ceremony site outside. The site where we got married has a huge arch made out of big wooden beams and a big concrete platform with a few steps and a big green lawn. The best thing about Wiens are that you get the entire venue to yourselves after they close the tasting room for the evening- a definite plus if you don't want random people watching your wedding and appearing in your photos/video. Another huge plus is that they do SO much of the work for you- our coordinator, Carrie, was a huge help and thought of everything to make our day easier. The other coordinator there, Kenna, was also very helpful on the day of, so you really can't go wrong there! The bridal suite is huge, has a full bathroom, and they had a steamer which saved the day! They handle the linens, the catering, the setup, the cleanup, they have great bartenders and worked very well with the rest of our vendors. And their barrel room makes a gorgeous backdrop for pictures! I LOVED everything about Wiens. Their wines are delicious, too!
Our flowers were AWESOME! I had them done by Suzan Merrill of SuzanMflorals.com. She was so easy to work with and came up with some great and very creative suggestions that made the ceremony spot look gorgeous! The arbor at Wiens was covered in curly willow and Sue wove red roses into it and hung a few roses and crystals from the top beam so they were sort of dripping down (I'll try to attach a photo). My description is not doing it justice, but it was really really pretty. Our bouquets were the most beautiful red roses and mine had some white mini orchids in it. My groom's boutonniere and all the mom's flowers were simple and pretty, and the sweetheart table was very elegantly put together. I just loved working with her because I knew I wouldn't have to worry about a thing! Sue and her assistant helped with the setup and even took down the arbor decorations after the ceremony and pictures, so I was in good hands having them stay and take care of so many of the details!
Our cake was from Flour Power. I chose them because I knew I could count on them, and from what our guests have told us, they exceeded our expectations! They made a pumpkin chocolate chip as the third layer of our cake and I'm SO sad I didn't get to taste it! Apparently it was amazing. They also did an AWESOME groom's cake- my husband has a strange love of zombies, so as a surprise I had them make a special cake with figures of us fighting off my zombie bridesmaids. I wasn't sure that the girl helping me understood what I was asking for so when I saw the cake I was elated! So was my groom! Btw, if you want a zombie cake topper (and who doesn't?!) try Christen Baer on etsy- zombieholocaust is her store name. So cute!
And last but definitely not least, Mike Farmer. He came very highly recommended on yelp, and I couldn't be happier that we decided to go with him. I didn't even have to think about music or the flow of the evening once the entire day. He relieved SO much stress I can't imagine what we would have done without him. I gave him an idea of what we had in mind for music and every song he chose was one that we loved. He's funny, easy going, and just a pleasure to work with.
Good luck with your planning! Just remember to stop and take a moment together to just drink it all in. It goes by SO fast!
