I was the MOH and Wedding Planner for my sisters wedding at the St. Louis Hotel on March 13. The hardest parts of planning this wedding were that we planned it all completely long distance (I live in Los Angeles, my sister and fiance in Honolulu) and on a major budget. Despite these challenges, it was a magical day (and looked way more expensive then it was!!)
VENUE (both ceremony and reception): St Louis Hotel
I think the best part of the venue is how little decoration the courtyard needs to look amazing! We added some grocery store flowers, candles, candle holders, and vases from Walmart, and some mardi gras masks and beads on the tables but they have twinkle lights, linens, candle holders for tables, and tons of greenery included which made the decor look very classy and expensive. We worked with Rachel and Tracy and, though they were a little slow to respond to emails a few months out, they were very responsive once it got a little closer to the wedding and extremely helpful once we arrived that weekend.
PHOTOGRAPHER: Erika Parker
In a word, AMAZING. Wonderful customer service and communication from the beginning. She met with us when we arrived in NOLA and asked my sister tons of questions about what she was envisioning. Best of all, her prices can not be beat, especially if you look at the quality of her pictures on her website (
www.picsbyerika.com). DJ: DJ Whouwit (aka Merrell Moore)
The budget was so tight we were actually planning on renting a sound system and using an iPod for all the music. However, when I was looking into it I found that it was going to be a min. of $250 for a simple set-up (not including a mic). I took a big risk and found DJ Whouwit on craigslist advertising $50 an hour (+$50 deposit). He was great!! Played everything we requested ahead of time (incl. lots of country) and cued the ceremony music perfectly. Such a great deal! (merrell_moore@yahoo.com)
HAIR/MAKEUP JustFaceIt - Angele
Jessica wasn't available so I was a little nervous since everything I had heard was for her. Angele was good, though I wish we had time for a trial. She worked fast and when my sister didn't like her eye makeup at first, she kept her cool and fixed it until she LOVED it. I was a little bummed she didn't have the colors I wanted (smoky navy eye and peach lip) but was able to create it pretty closely using other colors. She was quick and efficient but I rec'd a trial...