So it has taken me a few days to get around to this, but my husband and I are also moving out of state in two weeks so things have been a little hectic. :)We were married Friday, July 24th at the Dana on Mission Bay.1) Ceremony: the Dana on Mission BayI couldn't have been more happy with our ceremony. The location facing Mission Bay on a summer afternoon is beautiful. Everything was set up perfectly and the staff was helpful in getting our DJ (who also did the ceremony music), officiant and florist all set. It was kinda funny that people at the hotel and walking by stopped to watch the ceremony, pulled up lawn chairs or hung out on their balconies. It made the ceremony feel very friendly and not stuffy at all. I loved how everything turned out.Grade: A 2) Cocktail Reception / Reception: the Dana on Mission BayMy husband and I were taking pictures during the Cocktail Reception, but everyone loved the hors d'oeuvres and drinks. The area that is set up facing the pool/marina is really nice and the only complaint is that the guests were confused on where the staff had set up the gift table.The Reception itself was really great overall. The food was FANTASTIC and the waitstaff were very good. We had a very unfortunate experience with gifts from our guests that went missing, but with no proof I can't point a finger at the hotel staff. I was in tears when I found out after opening our gifts that some things had apparently "walked off" so if you have your reception here, have someone from your party watch the gift table during the ceremony, cocktail reception and during the reception (especially during cake cutting when everyone is looking the other way).
The Catering Director is very nice, but flaked a few different times on our details (messed up a few food choices that we luckily caught, double booked the room I was supposed to get ready in and had another meeting in the ballroom until just before our event which made me nervous) so make sure you keep good tabs on everything yourself. In general, still a great wedding and I think everyone had a blast.Grade: A 4) Cake: Twiggs BakerySo, I am very conflicted about this review. I raved about Twiggs after our tasting (we were really looking forward to the White Chiffon Cake with Passionfruit mousse) because the cake was delicious and the owners are SUPER nice. The sad realization was when my husband and I bit into the cake and it wasn't what we ordered. The cake looked great on the outside, but it was heavy, dry and VERY tart. It didn't taste anything like what we had ordered and almost no one ate it. Fortunately we had ordered a dessert bar so our guests ate those instead. We ended up throwing away our top layer because it just didn't taste good at all. Sad, sad, sad....Grade: D 5) Photographer: Tim OttoTim is just amazing to work with. When we did our Engagement Photos with him, I was so excited to see the wonderful work he did. We ended up ordering a big 16 x 20 print to put on an easel during the reception and I can't wait to see the wedding photos. He is professional, super talented and kinda goofy. We love him.Grade: A+ 6) Flowers: Artistic Florals - Patrick Higgins Patrick did flowers for our arch, the ceremony chairs, leis for the guys, bouquets for the girls and boutonnieres/corsages for the parents. Everything looked AMAZING. Patrick was really helpful during my wedding planning because I didn't really know what I wanted and everything ended up being perfect for a really reasonable price. He is very laid back and didn't push anything on us that we didn't want. I think the flowers exceeded my expectations..they really just looked beautiful. Grade: A 7) Wedding Gown - David's Bridal Mission Valley I bought my wedding dress about 8 months before our wedding during a big sale. I got my dress for $300 off the regular price and it was GORGEOUS. I really liked their selection and prices, but the alterations staff is TERRIBLE. The seamstress pricked herself and bled on my dress and I had to have them redo the bustle twice because it wasn't right. In general I had a good experience with them, but I would recommend getting your alterations done at a different store.Grade: A- 8) Hair: Beauty Ever After - Erica HighfillI love Erica. Erica is amazing. My hair rocked for my wedding. I loved my trial with her, and I even ended up going to her for highlights ahead of time. She did my hair up and it stayed the entire night and I received a LOT of comments on how great it looked. My makeup artist even took a picture of it in case she needed to do her hair up because she wanted it to look like mine. Did I mention I love Erica? She's very sweet, uber talented and was a delight to have in the bridal sweet while I was getting ready for my big day.Grade: A++ 9) Makeup: Melissa Rae & Co - Melissa GraffMelissa was an absolute godsend! She did airbrush makeup for me, the moms, and bridesmaids (I only had two). My trial with her was so relaxed and I felt really pretty when she was done. What's cool is that Melissa is also a licensed esthitican so she offers discounts on spa services for clients who book her for wedding makeup too. I had two facials with her before the wedding which were just AMAZING and my skin had never looked as good as it did on my wedding day. My makeup for the wedding was natural looking, but very pretty. I really felt like a princess when she was done. She's super sweet and I just love her. I'm sad that we're moving out of state otherwise I'd have to find time to go pamper myself with her some more.Grade: A++10) DJ: Aloha Mobile DJ - Paul Ente Paul is so rad. We wanted someone who was professional but a lot of fun and Paul totally exceeded our expectations. He played a lot of island style music for us before the ceremony and during the cocktail reception and then mixed in a lot of great music for the reception. When we met with him he did a fantastic job of getting a feel for what we liked and didn't like and really ran the whole wedding for us. I couldn't recommend him more highly. Paul is just a fantastic guy and loves what he does. I wish I could throw another party just so I could have Paul DJ it.Grade: A+ 11) Officiant - Pastor Mike MitschkePastor Mike is so nice and really made us feel comfortable. He was really flexible in determining the ceremony and helped us to incorporate my husband's daughter into the ceremony so it was about family. He was great in all aspects of planning the ceremony and the day of the wedding.Grade: A I really couldn't have planned anything without the Knot and all of you fantastic knotties out there.
Thanks to everyone else who posted great reviews and hopefully this helps some of the rest of you who still have your big day to look forward to!
Hopefully I didn't forget anything....