Vendor Reviews
Date: 9.25.2010
Location: Kure Beach/Wilmington, NC
I was blessed to work with such great vendors for our wedding, I can honestly say they were all fantastic, I hope these reviews help any of you planning a wedding in the area. If anyone would like any contact information for the vendors listed below, please let me know. All vendors are in the Wilmington area unless otherwise noted.
Event Venue:
Halyburton Park, A+. I couldn’t be happier with Halyburton. Andy & Teresa always followed up with me in a timely manner, and were very helpful the day of. We got the rental at a great price, and it’s such a beautiful place. They also provided several chairs and tables so we didn’t have to rent them all, and helped with coordinating my vendors. My only wish is that they had let us set up the night before, it would have made the day of the wedding less stressful.
Ceremony Site, Fort Fisher State Rec Area, A+. We didn’t realize we hadn’t applied for our permit for the ceremony until about 2 months before the wedding; it was something that slipped thru the cracks. Because they only allow one ceremony at a time on the beach, and there was a wedding scheduled the hour before our wedding, there was a strong possibility we would be denied our permit. I called them and explained the situation to them, and they were able to work something out so we could have the ceremony there. I was so thankful. One thing I liked most about having our ceremony at this location, we were allowed to have chairs, décor, anything we wanted. Most beaches in the area don’t allow any of that, as it can interfere with emergency vehicles going down the beach. So I liked that we could have these items at this location.
Rental Companies:
L&L, B. Libby at L&L was very pleasant to work with. We rented the items for the beach from them. When the rental items arrived, the people that delivered the items didn’t seem to know what was going on, so that is one issue I had with them. They charged a set up fee per bench, so I opted for us to set the benches up ourselves, but when the delivery guys arrived, they acted like they were supposed to set them up, and tried charging us the set up fee. DH and his friends were setting up the ceremony, so they were all confused about it and ended up calling me to double check, but I felt like they should have had instructions on what to do. We had originally planned on getting our reception items also from L&L but chose not to in the end, as they charged a high fee for pick up after normal business hours, I felt like this should have been disclosed to us in the beginning, as the normal business hours to them are 8-5, and most weddings do not end before 5pm.
A Tent Event, A+: We ended up renting our reception items from A Tent Event, as they didn’t charge a large pick up fee. The guys delivering the items were on time, and very helpful. They did arrive a few minutes early for pick up, but had no problems waiting until we were ready. We contacted A Tent Event very last minute on getting the items and they were very quick with getting me back a quote and following up with me. I was very pleased with their service. We did choose not to rent the items for the ceremony from A Tent Event because the price was better with L&L, had the prices been the same, we would have gotten those items from A Tent Event.
Caterer:
Musser’s Catering/Cap’n Bills Backyard Grill, A+++! I cannot begin to describe how happy I am with the service I received from John and Erin Musser and their staff. They were always quick to return my emails/calls, and very accommodating when I added items to our order, and when our head count changed. When Jason and I first met John and Erin, we knew that we wanted them to cater the wedding, not only were their prices great, but the food was amazing, and they were a joy to work with. John even gave us a bottle of their signature BBQ sauce and seasoning, and Jason and I cook with it all the time! I would definitely recommend them to anyone, and will make a stop just for the great food whenever I’m in town to visit.
Baker:
Debby Shaw Cakes, A+! Debby came recommended to me by John and Erin Musser, and she was a joy to work with as well. Her prices were great, and our cake was beautiful and delish! She was also very quick to respond to me when I had a question about something, and very patient with me when I couldn’t decide which cake design I wanted. I would definitely recommend her to others getting married in the area, she does a fabulous job!
Flowers:
Lou’s Flower Patch, A+. I DIYed the majority of our flowers, but I did get the flowers for our cake from Lou’s, they had the best prices in town, and their staff was super nice and helpful.
Photography:
Summer Martin Photography, A+ (Raleigh, NC). As you all know, Summer is my sibling… so it could be hard for most sisters not to give her a biased review… but I was honestly very very pleased with her work, not as my sibling, but as a vendor I hired. My bridal portraits and wedding photos came out amazing, and I got them back in a timely manner. I know we cannot recommend family or ourselves (if we are vendors), so I’ll leave her review at this but if anyone would like any specific information, please feel free to contact me. 
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Samantha Becker Photography, A+ (Raleigh, NC). My parents hired Samantha as our second shooter at the wedding, so my sister would be able to enjoy the wedding and not be so stressed. From the moment I met her we clicked… I love her creative ideas and was very pleased with my Bridal Portraits and our wedding photos are amazing. I just don't know how I'll not pick ALL of them. When Jason saw my portraits that I chose from our bridal shoot, he was speechless, and I loved that she was able to capture that moment. Samantha’s husband also came with her to the wedding, and he’s so helpful. I mentioned to him that I wish I had gotten silly bands for the kid’s table, and while we were getting ready for the ceremony, he went to the store and picked up silly bands for the kids table, and refused to let me pay him for them, and I didn't even have to ask, he just went ahead and thought that would be something we'd like. They are great people, and great to work with. I would definitely recommend Samantha to anyone.
DJ:
Mick Ellis of DJbe productions, A+. Mick was such a joy to work with… I honestly will admit I was a difficult bride, because I changed our first dance song several times, but he accommodated everything I sent to him, even the last minute changes. He was always very quick to email me back when I sent him a request or question, and put together a great slide show with photos I sent to him. I got Mick at a very reasonable price, and I couldn’t be happier with his work, he kept the party going the entire night, and there was never a dull moment. He followed our time line and made sure to double check that we were ready to move on to the next item before moving on. He also sent me photos he took at the wedding the following week, which I thought was a nice gesture. I would definitely recommend him to others, and if I lived in the area, I would definitely use his services again.
Dress:
Victorian Rose Bridals (Raleigh, NC), A. I worked with Daphne at VRB, and she was extremely helpful when I was in the store shopping for my dress. They didn’t have the specific dress I ordered in stock for me to try on, but she told me to go ahead and come in and she may be able to give me similar dresses, when I arrived for my appointment, she had went online and printed a photo of my dress and pulled any dress they had in the store that was similar for me to try. After purchasing my dress, I was given a specific date for the delivery, and when I did not get a call that date about my dress coming in, I gave them a call a few days later, the first person I spoke with told me I would need to speak with Daphne and she could not give me any information on my dress, and supposedly took a message but I never got a return call. When I called again I was told they didn’t have a estimated ship date. I ended up sending them in an email and got an immediate response from the owner of the store, who advised me the store manager would be contacting me. The manager did contact me within an hour, and gave me the ship date on my dress. I ended up getting my dress two weeks later than anticipated, but it didn’t interfere with any other appointments, and I was thankful for their quick response. I suggest only working with the store manager or owner if you get your dress from VRB.
Alterations:
Olga (Cary, NC), A+! Olga is amazing, enough said. Her prices are great. I know she has tons of reviews on here, and they are all the same, how great she is… so I’m not sure how much I can add, but I was very pleased with her work, and I recommend her to everyone.
Misc. Vendors:
Custom Neckties: RokGear on etsy, A+. Ken with RokGear was great to work with, our order was processed super fast and the ties looked awesome! I ordered an orange necktie with fuschia paisley skulls for Jason and our Ringbearer, and I ordered fuschia neckties with orange paisley skulls for the Groomsmen and my dad. Everyone loved their ties, and we got them at a great price.
Hair Fascinator: Bliss Accessories on etsy, A+. Amanda with Bliss Accessories was very fast with shipping my order, and the prices were great. I also got free shipping. I loved the hair flower and it looked so great with my dress. I would definitely recommend her items to anyone.
Flowergirl Hair Fascinator: BabyK designs on etsy, B. I ordered a hair flower for Natalie to wear from BabyK designs, my order shipped 2 weeks after I ordered and paid for it, although the shop policies said 5 business days. I had to send 3 messages on the status of my order before I got a response and the item updated to shipped. I didn’t receive my order for two weeks after it updated to shipped, and the seller could not give me a tracking number, she shipped a 2nd hair flower that day, and I received it in two days, but I was overall not happy with the experience and felt like she ignored my previous emails and did not follow her own shop polices. I wouldn’t recommend her to anyone.
Cake Serving Set and Flutes: Glass Box Menagerie on etsy, A++! I had attempted to make my own beaded serving set and toasting flutes and gave up quickly. Lisa with Glass Box Menagerie had the best price, and she was so helpful when making our set. She even sent me a photo to make sure it was what I wanted before she shipped them out. She also got the set made and shipped out in a very timely manner.
Monogrammed Bags and Dress Label: Just Embroidered Totes, A++! Kim was so helpful and my girls loved their bags. I also emailed her about using a custom font for my dress label and she downloaded the font and said it would be no problem. I received the items very quickly and everything looked wonderful. I would definitely shop here again. Her prices are great!