Hi all! Apologize in advance, this is very long! I loved all of our vendors, I feel like we had the dream team! Message me if you have any questions, I definitely want to help future brides!
Cruiseport Gloucester: Working with Cruiseport was a dream from beginning to end. We worked with Bridget and she was there for us every step of the way and extremely helpful explaining what the timeline of the day would be and what to expect along the way. We had a lot of decor items we wanted her to set up (puzzle guest book, escort cards, over 150 candles to light & place, various signs etc.) and not only did it look perfect on the day of, but they also packaged it up really nicely for us to take home after the wedding was over. The venue itself was stunning--we chose it because of the rich hardwood floors, high ceilings, crystal chandeliers and the fact that this venue was pretty new and modern. A lot of places we looked at had ugly carpets, ugly chairs and just felt like something that may be good for more than just weddings (which is fine, but we were planning a wedding!). I could not have been happier with Cruiseport and highly recommend it to anyone! The only downside I can see people having is that it is "all the way in Gloucester", but a lot of our guests made it into a weekend trip and spent time in Rockport or Gloucester and got to experience a different side of Massachusetts!
Vinwood Catering: Vinwood was chosen for us by the exclusive contract with Cruiseport, but honestly that made me happy because it was one less decision I had to make. I didn't realize until after we put down our deposit that we didn't actually get to do a tasting, and was a little concerned but I had heard so many things on review sites that Vinwood is excellent. They did not disappoint! We had multiple people come up to us throughout the night telling us their favorite dish -- and it was different for everyone! Also we got a ton of compliments on the filet mignon, people said it was the best they had ever had--even better than a restaurants! I was honestly too nervous and too busy to eat much of anything except some mashed potatoes, but my husband loved it all! My one downside would be that they didn't save the other flavors of cake (they only saved the top tier for us) and I would've liked to have some later that night!
Audrey's Flowershop: Dee and Heather at Audrey's were amazing to work with for our wedding. When we met with Heather she knew we were budget conscious and came up with multiple ways to save or reuse flowers throughout the ceremony, cocktail hour and reception. We knew we wanted blue hydrangea and white roses and from there they took it forward to beautiful centerpieces and bouquets. They were so reasonably priced, so easy to work with and not pushy at all (we met with a few other florists and they all kept trying to tell me what is 'in style' which may have been true in the 90s, but I wanted clean, simple and classic, not trashy!). I also have a soft spot for Heather because she gave us the name of our photographer which I consider a hidden gem for the North Shore/Gloucester area.
BW Gibson Photography: Brooks & Whitney Gibson were the only photographers we met with during the planning process because as soon as we met with them we knew they were it! They are warm, welcoming and totally understood our point of view and what kind of wedding we wanted to have. We also had an engagement shoot in the Charlestown Navy Yard and they found so many unique places there for us to have pictures taken, it's a shame we didn't get to show all of the good ones to everyone! They made my husband very comfortable (he is usually extremely shy and doesn't really like having his picture taken) and were so thoughtful throughout the whole process. This of course carried over into the wedding--and having two photographers meant we could cover double the area in the same amount of time! Whitney was with the ladies while we got ready, and Brooks went with the guys to take pictures of them before the ceremony. I know that the pictures will be absolutely gorgeous and can't wait to see them! As part of our package we got the 2 photographers, an engagement shoot, wedding day coverage for probably 6 or 7 hours (they arrived at 2:30 and I don't remember when they left but it must've been 8 or 9 pm) and we will have a leather-bound coffee table book of our wedding put together as well. Very reasonably priced, much lower than anything else out there!
Move it Music: We absolutely LOVED working with DJ Jimmie! We used him for his DJ services, uplighting & photobooth. The photobooth was such a big hit, our guests had so much fun going in there, and Move it puts together a book that you get to take home with you that night along with a CD of all the pictures and it was so much fun to look through since we don't have our other pictures back yet! DJ Jimmie was so upbeat and genuinely excited about our wedding, it really showed throughout the night. He had everyone dancing even while dinner was being served and kept the energy levels up throughout the night! He was so good with us and very responsive through email, and his online service to select songs & plan the evening was great for us to use. The uplighting was also amazing, and I can't wait to see how it was captured in pictures. We met with a few other DJs and you can just tell upon meeting them if they are right or not. A lot of them tended to be cheesy or fake, and Jimmie was not like that at all. He really loves what he does and he wants to make you happy and that is what he did! If you haven't chosen yet, go meet with him and you will be happy you did!
Montilio's: We chose Montilio's because of their cannoli -- delicious! They had such amazing flavors for cake, it was hard to choose just three! We ended up choosing a Grand Marnier Strawberry for our top tier, a truffle fudge chocolate layer and a delicious carrot cake layer as well. I wish we had been able to eat more of it during the night because I have such a sweet tooth! I can't wait for our anniversary so we can get some more and relive that night! Their prices were reasonable and the end product looked absolutely stunning during our night. Highly recommended, absolutely loved them!
Black Tie Limo: Working with Black Tie Limo was easy and convenient--I prefer to work over email and they were very responsive and able to edit the timeline a few times for us in the last week as we realized there were more guests than we had expected for the shuttle service. We had shuttles going from the hotel to the ceremony and after the evening ended (the ceremony and reception were at the same venue). We also had an earlier shuttle for the groom & groomsmen so they could do pictures, and a limo for myself and the maids and moms to go over for the ceremony. Everything arrived early and the drivers were all courteous and respectful, and helped us get in and out of the vehicles! I shopped around a bit and saved a few dollars with them so I would recommend them for anyone looking for transportation.