Wanted to make sure I got these up, in case it might help someone else! The summary is that the only thing I would change is our DJ, I would use all the others again. I got my dress in NYC (Lovely Bridal) so I'm leaving them out. My MIL made our cake, she was awesome but does not do weddings commercially anymore
Good luck to those of you still planning and feel free to send any questions my way if I can help! There are also more pictures in my bio (link in siggy).
Photographer: Carrie Roseman Photography: A+
We chose Carrie through a personal connection, and I am so very glad that we found her! Once we did our engagement shoot I knew that we were in good hands, as she went above and beyond to make sure we had fun props (including a tandem bike and hot chocolate). She was also super friendly and put us at ease, which was something I was definitely worried about (being overly self-conscious and having it show up in the pictures). She brought in a second photographer for our wedding, and they were both fun to have around while also being extremely professional. By the day of the wedding, Carrie had become somewhat of a day-of coordinator: she was amazing, making sure that everyone was doing what they should be and that we were on schedule. I can't imagine the day without her. Here is a sample of her work:
Hair and Makeup: Larissa Lake, Makeup Artist: A+
Larissa and her assistant Stephanie came to the hotel room and did my hair as well as the rest of the bridal party, and my makeup. I also did a hair trial, and Larissa got what I wanted right away. She knew what would work with my hair, and gave great advice. I wish she could do my hair every day. Seriously. She gave a very accurate estimate on how long everything would take, and was super patient with one of the girls who didn't like how her hair looked the first time through. Everyone looked amazingly beautiful. I was also super happy with how my makeup came out. I don't normally wear anything except mascara, and even though I had a lot more on than I was used to, I still felt like myself - just a more beautiful version! There is a reason people on this board rave about Larissa.
Reception Venue: Mystic Aquarium: A
The Aquarium got rave reviews from all of our guests. The event planner, Kathy, helped me plan the event, and they supplied someone the day of the wedding to help coordinate. The only reason they don't get an A+ is that while the coordinator was there on the wedding day, I didn't actually speak with her, and would have liked her to check in with me a few times. They also cut our cake into big pieces, so it ran out before everyone got some. These were really pretty minor things, though, and overall we had a really great experience at the Aquarium and have no regrets choosing them! The food was definitely the best wedding food I've ever had, even if I am biased our buffet was extremely high quality food, including prime rib and ravioli in a lobster cream sauce. I wish I had been less excited and more hungry so I could have eaten more of it!
DJ: Atlantic Coast Entertainment: B
I think in this case we got what we paid for. The price was much lower than the other DJs we were looking at, and we decided to spend that money elsewhere. DJ Anthony was nice, but extremely laid back, to the point that I didn't feel like he was very dedicated to helping us. The meetings seemed indecisive, and during the wedding he did great when he stuck to the playlist I'd provided, but once he started out on his own I wasn't thrilled. There was not much response to how the crowd was doing. That said, our guests were on the floor dancing pretty much the whole time (except right at the end), so I'm not unhappy, just know that if we'd paid a bit more we probably could have done better!
Florist: Mystic Florist: A+
Our wedding was the same weekend as Mother's Day, so we had some concern about flowers and availability. We didn't do centerpieces, and in my meeting with Richard, who owns Mystic Florist, he really read what I was looking for well. He also made great suggestions about how to keep things within our budget. When the flowers arrived on Saturday, I was stunned by how absolutely gorgeous they were! Way beyond my expectations. My bouquet was gigantic and beyond beautiful. He also did the flowers for our cake, which looked amazing.
Bridesmaid Dresses: Ann Taylor: B+
I fell in love with the deep turquoise color of the 'plume' dresses that we chose. On the negative side, since Ann Taylor has no physical stores, the dresses did not fit exactly how I expected, but it didn't make sense to change once the girls had ordered them. Some tailoring was needed. Also, the material got wrinkly pretty quickly. This is not necessarily Ann Taylor's fault, but again, I might have chosen differently had I seen the dresses in person.
Invites: Wedding Paper Divas: A
Both our Save the Date postcards and our Invites were ordered through Wedding Paper Divas. They allowed us a few rounds of proofs, the staff were professional and helpful, and they caught a couple of things that we missed. The final products looked amazing, and were a great value!