Long post alert!
The rehearsal and wedding day were just- a complete, wonderful blur. The wedding party was in town by Thursday night, and it was wonderful to just hang out with them, talk, catch up, etc. Friday we did mani-pedis and bridesmaid's lunch, which was so much fun, and was great because they got a chance to get to know each other better. The rehearsal dinner was amazing, my semi-DIY decor turned out great and the food was awesome. Everyone seemed to have a great time. The wedding day- started out myself and two of my bridesmaids waking up and getting some coffee (I realized after my second cup that I was way too excited for caffeine) and then we spent the rest of the day in the hotel room getting beautified by Margo and chatting. The wedding itself- I couldn't have even imagined it would be that beautiful. The outdoor setting was lovely, the weather was great, no one stepped in any holes. And the golf cart was a huge hit for driving people from the parking to the ceremony. My friend Michael LOVED driving it. The ceremony was done by a close friend of mine- and I wouldn't change a thing, it was so person to us and yet still traditional. We had planned to write our own vows, but when my mom ended up in the hospital (she's fine now though) we basically couldn't scratch out the time to do that. So Loren, my wonderful friend and officiant, came up with some truly wonderful vows to use instead. The reception was fantastic- the clear tent was gorgeous with the full moon, the food was great, everyone at one point or another danced (I was so surprised at the moves some of our family pulled out!)
I did forget- one hiccup ocurred. DH and I had taken dance lessons and had a semi-choreographed dance prepared to "At Last" which our friend Russell was going to perform for us. We started doing our rhumba "box" and at our first "move" I realized my dress wasn't cut out for it. It was longer on the sides, according to the seamstress there was a reason for this, but I had forgotten about that. I tangled in my dress a bit, DH caught me (he's good like that!) and we ended up nixing the "moves" and just doing some basic steps with a turn and a dip at the end. It still worked out, and we thought it was hilarious, so that was fine. We liked the dance lessons so much on their own that we didn't care.
On the vendor reviews!
Chapel Hill Catering Co.- Food/Rentals: A
I LOVED the food. Everyone who I've talked to loved the food. We did heavy hors d'ouevres with several stations and CHCC did a great job creating an awesome menu. Heather was great to work with, she had a vision for the event that was right there with my own. She also coordinated the rentals, so I didn't have to worry about that. My only issue was that she went a bit AWOL right before the wedding (I know she was busy) and I only got the updated estimate on the Wednesday before the wedding, and the rentals had increased in price a lot. I ended up figuring it out with her and we changed linens around, but I was having to figure that out on the phone with her while simultaneously trying to help my mom get discharged from the hospital, and if that info had gotten to me sooner we wouldn't have had to rush so fast. Still though, I would highly recommend them to anyone, they did a bang up, smashing job!
A Southern Soiree- Wedding Coordination: A
I worked with Cara and her team for weekend-of coordination. Cara was great beginning on day 1, my contract with her included unlimited phone and email contact, so any questions I had, she was right there to help. Beginning about 3 months out, Cara stepped in and we started meeting to look over the event space, get things in order with vendors, etc. Cara was a great choice- I may have been able to do all this myself, but Cara (mostly her team at the actual wedding) made sure that I didn't have to worry about anything which turned out to be the exact thing I needed the week before the wedding- I was able to be there for my mom and trust that the wedding would go on as needed.
Margo Williams (Bellaviso)- Hair and Makeup: A++!
I love Margo! Love her. She spent all day with us on Saturday, making myself and the bridesmaids pretty.
She took my idea for my hair to the next level, it came out gorgeous, and I loved my "kicked-up but still natural" makeup look. She fit in great with myself and the bridesmaids, and we had the best time on Saturday chatting about wedding and non-wedding stuff. On top of that, Margo is incredibly reasonably priced. I would highly recommend her!
Joe Bunn DJ Co. (Kent)- DJ: A+
Kent knew exactly what to play, when to play it, and stayed in the background keeping people dancing! We loved him, and he also went with the flow incredibly easily- if we changed around something on the timeline, he got it and did it flawlessly. He also managed to dissuade several family members from their, ahem, somewhat odd song-requests, without angering them at all!
Tre Bella- Florals: A+
Rachael was amazing to work with, she was one of those vendors that knew exactly what I wanted without me really even having to explain it that much. The ceremony and reception decor was wonderful, and the bouquets were perfect. There was an issue a couple weeks before the wedding where it turned out the initial estimate was several hundred dollars below what the actual price would be, which was due to some math errors on her part. However, it still came in under budget and was totally beyond what I could have pictured. I would still recommend them to anyone- Rachael is amazing. Just double check her math.
Sweet Memories- Cake: A
I loved this cake- it was exactly what I wanted, looked beautiful and tasted even better. I didn't have to worry about it after I selected the design, they emailed me once or twice and then on the wedding day my beautiful cake appeared! I love that they will make a new, small cake for us on our anniversary, so we didn't have to freeze anything. I will say that I was a bit astounded at the price, because of the design fee, apparently, but I trusted them and they definitely got it right. So, it was definitely worth it, but if I had to do this again I might shop around more.
Big Bundts & More- Favors: A+++!
I met Kristen (Big Bundts owner) at our local farmer's market last year and both DH and I thought immediately that she should do our favors. She made us mini bundt cakes in three customized flavors (lemon cardamom, pumpkin praline and chocolate ginger pear) and packaged them in cute boxes. She hadn't done favors before, and she was just so excited to work with us her enthusiasm was catching. For anyone looking for delicious, amazing, and very unique favors (she can also do mini-pies and other things) I would totally recommend her.
White Horse Transportation- To-The-Wedding Transport: A
White Horse was easy to work with, arrived on time, and got us there safely! They made two trips in one hour to save us from having to get two vehicles (one for groom and groomsmen, one for bride and bridesmaids) and they were just what we needed (SUVs, not limos.) They also transported my mom to the ceremony, and were great with her (they came and got her when she wanted to leave early.)
Raleigh Wedding Cars- Getaway Vehicle: A
I loved the idea of a classic car for a getaway, and so did DH- we decided RWC would be our "splurge" for their 1969 Rolls Royce. They were great to work with, if a little impersonal (all their stuff is done online, I never talked to anyone.) The driver arrived early, made sure the car was exactly where I wanted it, and got us back to the hotel safely and in style!
Thick & Thin Stationary- Save the Dates & Invites: A+++
I found Caitrin through a contact at my alma mater- she was also an alum and my friend said she had seen her work and it was great. Well, she was right! Caitrin took my ideas and my budget and made beautiful, beautiful Save the Dates and Invites. I am not sure that I could have gotten what I did for the price I did without Caitrin's help. Thick & Thin's website isn't up yet but if you are interested in them/seeing pics of my invites feel free to email me at corinne.ev at gmail dot com.
Weathervane Restaurant- Rehearsal Dinner: A+++
The staff the Weathervane were awesome to work with, the food was fantastic, and the head server made especially sure that I always had a glass of prosecco in hand! (He was amazing.) They made sure the event was wonderful without me having to do hardly anything! I had done the decor DIY, and delivered it to them the day before. Sarah, the catering manager, looked at my diagram, set everything up, and it looked wonderful! I was so happy with them.
Best for last:
Robin Lin Photography- E-Pics, Wedding Pics: A(infinite +)
I love Robin, I cannot say enough great things about her. I haven't even seen the wedding photos yet, but I know they'll be great (the one she posted, in my last post, already has a frame waiting for it.) Robin was great to work with as soon as I booked her- I pestered her for her favorite vendors (all of which I basically booked) asked her advice, and generally probably bugged her. She was so flexible, professional, and wonderful! At the wedding she made sure family photos (a sensitive area as both our families are divorced) were painless and quick, and she made sure that the ones with my mother were done first so she could go sit down and rest. She fit in seamlessly at the wedding, I actually had several people say they loved how Robin wasn't running around demanding people pose for shots. We snuck away for some super-fun shots of just DH and I during the reception, and it was great to get away for a little while and just chat with Robin and take some photos. Robin went above and beyond for our wedding- I could NOT have chosen a better photographer. We're already trying to figure out when we need photos taken again so we can work with Robin more.
Next post will be all the Etsy vendors I used, in case anyone is interested. I found a lot of great people on that site, but it took me a while to find them, so I thought that might be helpful.
Thanks so much to all the Knotties who helped me figure all this stuff out! Getting married can be so confusing, but the ladies on this board always had an answer for any questions I had.