So it is 3 1/2 weeks already since I got married & I wish I could do it all over again. I loved every minute of it & wished it could have lasted longer. So here is my reviews on the vendors we used..
South Gate Manor - Freehold, NJ: I wanted to have my reception here since I was there a couple years prior for my co-worker's wedding. I'm glad my husband agreed. This hall is gorgeous, the owners know their stuff - they make sure you have everything that you need & are more than willing to help you with questions & ideas. We wanted some different options for cocktail hour & they honored them. The food is delicous & plentiful. They have a maitre'd & what I like to call a lady in waiting. Both of these people - Bobby & Jennifer - were with us from the moment we rolled up in the limo until we got in the limo to leave. They explain what happens next (the grand entrance, cake cutting, speeches, etc) plus they were there helping the photographer making sure that other guests don't walk into your picture. Jennifer re-busteled my dress because it got loose after church & the park pictures and she also helped me in the bathroom. They were by our side throughout the night. We told them to make sure to grab us at dinner & make us eat - which they did! The staff are very attentive & they have one waiter for two tables - so they make sure your guests are treated properly. The grounds are lovely too - with a nice outdoor area with a water feature. Our guests told us that this was the best wedding they had ever been to!!!
Photographer: Gerda Cella - Artist European Photography, Middletown, NJ. Gerda & her 2nd shooter, Ben, were amazing. They went to my husband's house for his getting ready pics, then drove 30 mins to my parent's house for my getting ready pics, the church, the park and then the hall. I believe they finally left about 30 mins before our reception was over. Gerda has so much energy & she even climbed up on a railing that was maybe 8" wide over a lake just to get the pictures she wanted. She also convinced the kids at the park to evacuate one area so we can gets some really cool pictures. The kids even gave her 2 bicycles & 2 skateboards to use in our pictures. One of the kids even came up the idea of riding up the ramp in the skate park & we stood behind the ramp kissing - so it looks like he is jumping up & over our heads (he was in front of us). Just amazing photos & over 1600 of them to choose from. I don't know how I am going to only pick 100 of them for our book.... LOL
Videographer: Rob Villano - Villanovision, Colonia, NJ. Rob makes videos like movie trailers - they are very artistic & he is very talented at what he does. Rob stayed an hour longer than we had him booked for because he was determined to get some footage for our video. The video is amazing & our friends & family all love watching it as much as we do. Well worth the money we spent on him!!!
Hair: Kris Kell Creations, Helmetta, NJ Other than my flower girl & one bridesmaid, everyone came to the salon I work at to get their hair done - Kris Kell Creations. Kelly & Nancy do amazing work - everyone's hair was exactly what they envisioned.
Make Up: Robin Nilsen 732-740-3950 Toms River, NJ. Robin came to my parent's house in Sayreville & did my mother & all but 3 girls make up including my own. I am a make up artist (work out of Kris Kell Creations) so it was very hard to give up the brush & allow her to do my make up. She knew my situation & made me look exactly how I wanted to look. She is also very inexpensive compared to most make up artists I have found. I highly recommend her.
DJ: Sound Connection Entertainment - Joe Falco. Sound Connection (SCE) was very easy to work with. We originally booked with a different DJ from their company, but that dj left SCE just 2 or 3 mths out from our wedding day. We chose to switch to Joe & are glad we did. He did a very good job with the music. I do wish he would have played the "mild club" music a little bit earlier - since it got the crowd on the floor, but I blame myself because I said I didn't want it to turn into a crazy club since it is a wedding. Oops, my mistake more than Joe's - can't blame him. They supplied the uplighting & worked with me on the color & came as close as they could to matching my girl's dresses. They took pictures throughout the night & we also had photo montages of both my Husband & I - which they made into really cool videos. I highly recommend SCE for your DJ needs.
Day Of Coordinator: Laura Savio from Every Last Detail eldplanning.com
Laura was fabulous. I am a very organized person & strive for perfection all the time - which was driving my finace (husband now) nuts. I was getting nervous that things were not going to turn out right. I looked into a DOC & found Laura - she was just what I needed. She made sure everything was correct, that everyone was where they needed to be & helped me tie the corset on my dress. For the price, it was well worth hiring her.
Limo: Action Limo, Garwood, NJ We were very particular with our limo company & John keeps his fleet meticulous. We hired the 24 passenger Tiffany bus to cart us around with our bp. When they showed up to pup my fiance (now husband) it was a different bus - it was bigger & brand new. We found out that the Tiffany bus had gone in for servicing & they upgraded us to a larger bus that only had 4K miles on it. Wow - that limo bus was amazing. The driver knew how to get around since the way GPS would take you has a road closed for construction. When I told him, he said he was already aware of it & knew how to get to Route 9 w/o dealing with the road that was closed. He was great with the champagne toast & help the photographer with setting up the picture. He was early to show up - which I love. I highly recommend Action Limo.
Shuttle: First Class Limo, Englishtown, NJ - we hired a 12 passenger luxury van at first & ended up upgrading to the 24 passenger limo bus due to more guests booking rooms. This limo bus was meticulous & much nicer than I expected. He ran the multiple trips smoothly w/o complaints from my guests.
Flowers: Rimmele's Flower Shop, Union, NJ - the owners are friend's of my husband, so he gave us a very sweet price. The centerpieces were exactly what I envisioned, the bouquets were stunning. He went above & beyond with helping us with this.