Hi Girls, I never posted while planning my Nov. 7th wedding, but I read the boards religiously for almost a year before our wedding. I would like to share my experiences with you, as we used some vendors not mentioned very often. Overall, we had an amazing day, with no issues at all (except for groom leaving tie at home, 1 1/2 hours away!) I will be as honest and brief as possible, but will ask you to page me for my email for any specifics.
I live in MA, but had our wedding Newport, RI. Many of our vendors travel to MA, and I know there must be girls in MA thinking about Newport, RI weddings!
Ceremony/Venue: Kay Chapel and Hotel Viking, Newport A+
We chose the Kay Chapel and Hotel Viking for two main reasons. The first is that the Kay Chapel is 100% my style. I wanted an evening, candle-lit ceremony in a small quaint church and that is exactly what I got. The chapel was absolutely beautiful. The Hotel Viking owns the Chapel, and when we toured the Viking we fell in love with it as well. The Viking is beautiful. There are older and newer areas of the hotel, but it is all fantastic. The second reason we picked both places was because so many of our guests were out of town-probably 98%. We wanted somewhere guests could arrive for the night and not worry about getting to another place in an unfamiliar area. It was perfect.
As for the night of the wedding, it was amazing beautiful. The food was top notch, the service was amazing, and our room was glowing. For the 14 months leading up to the wedding, our cooridinators were great. I had some issues with the way our guests' room blocks were handled. Overall, I would not change a second of the night at the Viking, and all of our guests raved about the evening.
There were times I second guessed my decision to have a Newport wedding that did not over look the water, but I really wanted an evening wedding in the fall, and I realized a water view might not have been so special.
Officiant: Rev. Mike Egan, RI A+
Mike Egan was truly awesome. We wanted a non-denominational service and met only with him. He was great with the planning process-maybe a little to laid back for me, but he showed up on time for every meeting we had with him, which means a lot to me. The service wass beautiful, and he was very experieced. I would recommend him in a heart beat.
Photographer: Cregg Annarino A+ (pending photos!)
Cregg has come up on this board a good amount of times in the past year. His work is awesome, and completely our style. He returns emails very quickly and was very professional at the wedding. After the wedding, manypeople commented on how many pictures he took, and how he was all over the place all night long. We had an evening wedding, and we took our photos on the streets of Newport on a cold windy night and he was totally game for it. We also snuck away during the reception for a bit to get some pictures on the roof of the hotel. Assuming our photos look like the other weddings he has shot, he gets an A+!
Videographer: Artistic Wedding Video, RI/MA A+ (pending video!)
Mike was also so fun to work with. He has the best personality. My mom wanted a videographer, and she found him and hired him on her own. I saw him at all the major events during the reception, so assuming he puts the video together like his others, it should be great. He also made a video slideshow of our pictures growing up for the reception, and it was perfect.
Hair and Makeup: Wedding Tresses, RI/MA A+ for actual hair and makeup, C for business relations
I gave Wedding Tresses two grades. The bottom line is that I looked amazing for my wedding, and all of the girls who got their hair done looked beautiful as well. The MUA, Kayla, was awesome. The hair stylist was the owner, Jacki. I will def. give them and A+ for the way we looked. I have to give them a C, however, for the way in which the business is handled. There were a few things that annoyed me with the owner Jacki's professionalism throughout the year I had been booked with them. Wedding Tresses is also very expensive-much, much more than what I've seen many of you post.. If you are interested in Wedding Tresses, I would recommend-but please ask if you want any more specifics.
Flowers: Stoneblossoms, E. Greenwich, RI A
Stoneblossoms was very professional throughout the entire planning process, and met with us two times to go over everything. When they came in with a quote, it was reasonable and within our budget. I've seen posts where people say they are more expensive, but they gave us a lower quote than Golden Gate. Anyway- I really loved working with Joyce and Stoneblossom. All of our flowers were absolutely amazing. The centerpieces and bouquets were great, along with our chapel decorations. I would recommend them, and if you really like their work, ask them to work within your budget.
DJ: MattyB MA/RI A++
Matty B made the night. He was so amazing, that it is hard to describe how well he performed. We wanted more than a DJ, but did not want to spend the money on a top-notch band. Matty B might have been one of the best decisions we made for the night. He got people up and dancing, and he sings over many of the songs he played throughout the night. He played the sax some of the night, and is a true performer. He played exactly what we requested. My parents, husband and myself all thanked him on separte occasions because we were all blown away by his performance.
Dress: Allegria Bridal, Belmont, MA A+ for dress, C for alterations
Allegria had the dress I wanted that I had found at a trunk show in NJ last winter. I was an easy sale, and they get an A+ for that. They were also very good to me throughout the year leading up to the wedding. After the dress came in, I tried it on and a eek later I freaked out thinking I had ordered the wrong size. They got the dress out of storage week later and let me come in again. They were very accomadating a re-assuring. They get a C for alterations. They obviously recommeneded their in house seamstress, and I used here for obvious reasons. The seamstress was very nice, and I think she knows what she is doing, but I do not think she is experienced. I would recommend going to Allegria, but maybe find your seamstress if you require a great deal of alterations like I did.
I think I got all of the major reviews out of the way. I will try to post some pics from Cregg and Artistic Wedding Video once I get them .
If you have any questions please ask!