Massachusetts-Boston

I wish someone had told me this....

So, I have yet to write reviews but I wanted to share some tips now that I'm married.

I wish that when chosing vendors, I paid more attention to reviews from married brides as opposed to recommendations from engaged girls who were working with certain vendors.  I have learned that even though a vendor may be great to work with up until the wedding day, they may fall terribly short on that very important day.  And for this, I apologize for all the reccommendations I made for vendor whose services I had not yet recieved.  Some of the vendors that I previously raved about I would NOT rave about now.

Another thing I learned is that in most cases, you get what you pay for!  Lets face it...wedding are expensive!  And I have expensive taste.  But I was a bride on a budget.  Although I had an "average" budget, I still needed to find deals. I thought I got some really good prices and now I know why.

Here's my last tip for now.  When chosing vendors, remember:
EXPERIENCE is key!  Make sure they know what they are doing!  Don't just take their word for it!  Ask for smaples, pictures, reference. 

I hope some of these tips can help you ladies who are choosing vendors! 

imageLilypie Second Birthday tickers Lilypie Kids Birthday tickers BabyFetus Ticker

Re: I wish someone had told me this....

  • edited December 2011
    Amen, anyalee. 110% agreement with you on all these (very) excellent points.
  • edited December 2011
    definitely agree with this... all of our vendors were recommended to me by other brides who actually HAD their wedding!
  • edited December 2011
    I agree with this so much!
  • edited December 2011
    I agree.....
    this is making me very curious though as to what went wrong :(
    Married September 25,2010
    Image and video hosting by TinyPic
    Vendor Reviews
  • edited December 2011
    EVERYTHING went wrong!  I'm not exagerrating either, unfortunately.  But I'm married and that's what matters. Here's what happened:


    -Florist emailed me two days before saying I need to pay a few hundred more because flowers were more than she thought.
    - The favors came in wrong and couldn't be fixed
    - My dress had wrinkles they couldn't get out and fell apart slowly as the night went on
    - DH tux was way wrong...but they fixed it
    -  Flowers were VERY wrong
    - Cake was wrong
    - Dad stepped on my Cathedral veil at end of aisle and it fell off
    - Night of rehersal we got word that my grandfather was dying (but they tried to hide it from me)
    - Day of wedding stepmother wore ivory to ceremony...then she got sick and left....then she had to take ambulance to hospital so my dad had to leave before the meal (we did squeeze in the dance though)
    - The free DOC I won did NOTHING!
    - The church coordinator was a nazi....approached DH 15 minutes before the cermony saying we need to pay $500 fee or we couldn't get married....we paid that fee back in Feb...then that made me 5 min late because I had to go back and get check book...then she yelled at us for being 5 min late...then she rushed the BM down the aisle right on top of each other
    -  Video just came back and half of my vows are cut out and the widescreen is screwed up
    - DJ did not play what wanted
    - 2 GM's got drunk (I think before the ceremony)

    What esle?  I'm sure there's more I'm forgetting!  The good thing is that guests didn't know most of this stuff so they enjoyed themselves
    imageLilypie Second Birthday tickers Lilypie Kids Birthday tickers BabyFetus Ticker
  • edited December 2011
    That is good advice but I also see brides recommending vendors that they where happy with but who IMO did a horrible job from what I see in the pictures. I think it all comes down to what is important to you (Pics, flowers, video etc) and what your knowledge is on the item. Like if you went took video/photo classes in college you will be able to know what is professional but if they pics all look the same to you might not know or care or you can spot a jump cut it will drive you crazy.  I took a video class LOL  You can't take all the recommendations on here verbatim as everyone hires their vendors because they love them or it is who they can afford. I love all of my vendors and most of them I got from friends who used them or I know them personally, but if my budget was unlimited I would have perhaps chosen different vendors in some areas. I love my photog and cake person, but would have MAYBE chosen a different florist since I saw some amazing work out there that was out of my budget and definitely would have had my wedding at a Newport Mansion venue. 
  • edited December 2011
    i think that everyone has different taste when it comes to photos, videos, flowers etc... i think that when you hear a rave from a bride who had their wedding day its a good starting point... you obviously have to meet with the vendor yourself and/or look at their work and see if YOUR taste fall in love with it and go from there... im most excited about our photog and flowers...

    anyways so sorry that your day didnt go 100% perfect but you are still married like anyone else would be and im sure a few drinks and a honeymoon can cheer you up! haha :P
  • edited December 2011
    Anya - I am reallly sorry to hear this happened to you, especially about your sick family members. I think this is a really wise review and VERY helpful for brides in the planning stages.

    On a related note:
    That is good advice but I also see brides recommending vendors that they where happy with but who IMO did a horrible job from what I see in the pictures.

    THIS. You have to really have common sense and see past the 'good deals' and realize that if garbage goes in, garbage comes out. All the time on these boards I see recs and ravs I completely disagree with. In the end, know that this is your wedding, not a time to jump on board the train of working with some cheap photographer or another (just an example). You get what you pay for and you can see it reflected in the outcome of the wedding.
  • edited December 2011
    Anyalee, I too am sorry, it sounds like it was a nightmare. Hopefully you got to enjoy some of your wedding!

    Meaghan, I could not agree more with you. You do get what you pay for, and as my Grandfather used to say to me free is never free! There is always a price you pay, one way or another.
    Sometimes I see vendors giving stuff away or deeply discounting their services to get your business, and I have to wonder why?  But one thing I have learned from being on the knot is that you have to take reviews with a grain of salt and do your own research!
  • luckymagluckymag member
    First Comment
    edited December 2011

    Hi anyalee, just wanted to say so sorry for all the things that went wrong during your wedding. I got married in July and had to deal with things that definitely did not go my way as well. At the end of the day, you married your soul mate and that is what is important. =)

    By the way I think we had the same florist and I had such terrible issues with my flowers that day too. =( It still makes me sad thinking about it. But like you, I had read many many great reviews of her from this site and another vendor reviews site. So I really thought it was just me!! She got really ill around my wedding day and she wasnt the one delivering the flowers so there was major confusion there. She completely forgot my toss bouquet and no one could reach her that day. There is more to it, but I guess it doesn't matter now.

    To future brides, take vendor reviews with a grain of salt. Everyone is different and have different opinions.

  • edited December 2011
    Amen Anyalee - I thought I did good research given that our florist had good reviews on weddingwire.com. I highly encourage you ladies to go on there & write REAL reviews so other brides don't have the same experience we did. I'll always regret my florist and that's something you can't go back and change.

    I'm sure your guests had a lovely time and didn't notice a thing!! And I hope you & your husband were able to enjoy yourselves despite the things that went wrong!!
  • edited December 2011
    This is really great advice.  I'm sorry things went wrong and I hope you were able to enjoy your day!
    12/12/2009
  • kellaukellau member
    10 Comments
    edited December 2011
    Try to think about all the good things that happened on your wedding day. No wedding is 100% perfect! Even good vendors make mistakes. Believe me...I know.
  • edited December 2011
    Well it looks like your florist is now out of business now anyways. I just looked on their site of a curiosity.
  • edited December 2011
    She is no longer accepting floral order but is accepting DOC clients...
  • janibridejanibride member
    10 Comments
    edited December 2011
    Wow!  That's a lot of stress.  Thanks for the advice!  I was wondering how brides can give their photo/video vendors an "A+" before they see the final results.  Why did your videographer cut your vows in half?
  • edited December 2011
    One rule I tried to follow was "you get what you pay for."  When a vendor offers you the same thing for a fraction of a competitor's price, it is often too good to be true, especially when the price point depends on the vendor's access to rawmaterials (e.g. flowers).  To me, it means that the vendor is highly inexperienced or just a poor business person.  Either of which is bad bad bad.  You only get 1 shot to make your wedding day as perfect as it can be - so why would you take such a huge risk?

    I understand that  most of us are under budgetary constraints, but there are some wedding items that you cannot penny pinch on. 

    And I agree, sometimes I see recs for vendors that clearly do awful work.  But I don't impose my opinion in that thread.  I just hope that the bride will do her research. 
  • edited December 2011
    In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/local-wedding-boards_massachusetts-boston_wish-someone-told-this?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Local%20Wedding%20BoardsForum:89Discussion:00573378-d496-4fe4-966f-36ad429069faPost:603c554f-ff6b-4720-b3c8-c9405f2a0c39">Re: I wish someone had told me this....</a>:
    [QUOTE]One rule I tried to follow was "you get what you pay for."  When a vendor offers you the same thing for a fraction of a competitor's price, it is often too good to be true, especially when the price point depends on the vendor's access to rawmaterials (e.g. flowers).  To me, it means that the vendor is highly inexperienced or just a poor business person.  Either of which is bad bad bad.  You only get 1 shot to make your wedding day as perfect as it can be - so why would you take such a huge risk? I understand that  most of us are under budgetary constraints, but there are some wedding items that you cannot penny pinch on.  And I agree, sometimes I see recs for vendors that clearly do awful work.  But I don't impose my opinion in that thread.  I just hope that the bride will do her research. 
    Posted by foolforfood[/QUOTE]

    I 100% agree.  I don't think you necessarily need to pick the MOST expensive vendors but if they have rock bottom prices, there is probably a reason. 

    I am having a smallish wedding of under 100 people.  Having a smaller wedding has truly allowed to me have the "best" for everything and I am so happy that I am doing it this way. 

    I have also noticed these positive reviews where the finished product is not something I would be happy with.  I have seen this the most frequently with photographers and makeup/hair vendors. 
  • edited December 2011
    Yes, I agree with all above.  I've definitely read raves from brides about services which I wouldn't have been satisfied with.  I chalk it up to different strokes for different folks... Which is why looking at as many samples of past work as possible is as important as reading reviews, in my opinion. 

    imageimage BFP #1 7/2011 natural m/c at 11.5 weeks. BFP #2 3/2012 ectopic pg, MTX at 7.5 weeks. BFP #3 10/2012, EDD 6/24/2013 over the moon to be expecting our baby girl in June!
  • edited December 2011
    In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/local-wedding-boards_massachusetts-boston_wish-someone-told-this?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Local%20Wedding%20BoardsForum:89Discussion:00573378-d496-4fe4-966f-36ad429069faPost:2e0ea69e-810f-4672-92e9-c8730cdcc6ab">Re: I wish someone had told me this....</a>:
    [QUOTE]Yes, I agree with all above.  I've definitely read raves from brides about services which I wouldn't have been satisfied with.  I chalk it up to different strokes for different folks... Which is why looking at as many samples of past work as possible is as important as reading reviews, in my opinion. 
    Posted by killian09[/QUOTE]

    I google vendors that I am interested in and try to find photographers who have "tagged" that vendor in their pictures.  Photographer blogs are also a great way to see vendors work because they often mention who the vendors were.  Google has been invaluable in researching vendors for me!!
  • edited December 2011
    Anya - so sorry you had so much go wrong. I felt that about my wedding too (some weather related disasters occurred, nevermind my family... ugh...) - but looking back, it's getting better - and I hope it'll be that way for you too. I think it's hard because as the bride you are right in the middle of this storm, seeing everything go wrong - but in the end the guests aren't even aware. 

    This is really great advice - that's why it was so difficult for me to write vendor reviews, or grade people. I just wanted to tell my story - this is what happened with this vendor, take it for what it's worth. I think it's important too for married ladies to point out what their vendors could've done better, so the next bride that books them goes in with eyes open.

    And I agree 100% with the PPs - I see weddings all the time that I would never be happy with - but the same could be said for my wedding too - so I just take it as varying taste levels.
  • megandjaymegandjay member
    1000 Comments
    edited December 2011
    I am home sick, and therefore looking at old posts, but...

    In addition to looking on sites like The Knot and Wedding Wire, you should check out your vendors with the Better Business Bureau, if they aren't registered or have poor ratings, then beware- no matter what website reviews say!
This discussion has been closed.
Choose Another Board
Search Boards