I didn't post much on here, but I did find the vendor reviews of others very useful, so I wanted to provide mine as well. Here are my first set of reviews - hopefully the rest to come later. Sorry for the length!
Wedding Coordinator – Jenny Harding with A New Chapter Weddings, A. I worked with Jenny from the beginning of the planning process through the day of the wedding. She is a very sweet and easy to work with. At first, I wasn’t really sure what her role was – what was she supposed to do, what was I supposed to do, and what was I willing to let go of (I’m a bit of a control freak). But eventually we figured out the best way to work together, which involved weekly email updates. I am a very organized person, so I didn’t use her budget tools/timelines so much, and created my own for a lot of things, but I didn’t have too – that’s just something that I wanted to spend my time on. Jenny recommended almost all of my vendors, set up and attended almost all of my vendor meetings, kept track of contact details, communications, payments due, and communications with my various vendors. The greatest value of using Jenny as in the weekend of the wedding – she coordinated and took care of everything. She worked her ass off the day of the wedding, was there before I got to the venue, and left well after the last guest. She worked will all the vendors, did all the set up, gave all the directions. It was amazing, I didn’t have to think or worry about anything. She worked with family and wedding party to make sure they all had everything they needed, and was right there throughout the reception to let us know what was going to happen next. Really, I couldn’t have been more pleased with her day off. Of course there were a few small things I would do differently now, but none of that was a result of her. Oh, I’ll also note that she is very respecting of the Bride’s opinion, vision, and decisions, so if you need her honest input, creative guidance, or suggestions, you have to make it clear that is what you want. I’ll also note that she’s not exactly for the budget bride, but does doe various levels of coordinating services (full deal, day-of, etc).
Venue – Seattle Tennis Club, A+. We worked with Amy Rathbone, their catering manager. She was very nice and accommodating for us. It is a beautiful venue. We had planned to perform our ceremony on the north lawn, next to Lake Washington, but due to the weather, we had to move the ceremony inside on the day of the wedding. They handled the change in plans and transition from ceremony to reception so smoothly, the guests couldn’t believe how quickly and easily it was done. The wait staff was great, and everyone was understanding and accommodating. Although this is a private club, you do not have to be a member to hold your event there, and while not inexpensive, we found the Tennis Club to be less expensive and more flexible than Newcastle Golf Club.
Catering – Seattle Tennis Club, B+. Like most similar venues, the Tennis Club requires you use them for food and beverage. The food was good, and everyone seemed very happy. We were able to choose exactly what items we wanted available at the bar ahead of time, and the staff and presentation was wonderful. The only reason I didn’t give them an “A” is that I thought the food and beverage was priced a little high.
Officiant – Len Smolen , A+. Len is a sweet, gentle, kind, romantic, soft-spoken man. He is very flexible, and was willing to conform to any type of ceremony we wanted. His experience and professionalism made our ceremony go smoothly, and he talked us through the entire process. We thought he was just great, and our family just loved him. We also felt he was reasonably priced, and had met with another officiant that wanted almost twice as much!
Flowers – Kendra Yaple with Loves Me Flowers, A+. Our flowers were absolutely gorgeous. She totally understood what I was looking for, had good suggestions about how to make it work. She even did a full mockup of a centerpiece for no additional charge. She’s easy to work with and responsive. I also felt she was very reasonably priced. I wish I could have those flowers in my home all the time!
Cake – Crème de la Crème – A+. We had a classic chocolate cake with European buttercream. Our cake was absolutely delicious. I loved it, and I don’t really like chocolate all that much (hubby’s choice). The design was fairly straight forward – swirls, but they also included our monogram on the cake using edible ink at no additional charge. We also received a 10% discount for using our wedding coordinator. We loved our cake, and I’m trying to come with a reason to spend that much on cake again!
Photographer – Redstone Photography – Grade pending return of pictures, B+ based on experience. Cassie and Jessie Redstone are to very fun and creative people. Being photographed for several hours straight is an odd experience, but Cass really worked it and seemed to be able to get what she needed out of everyone. She also listened to me when I said “no, I don’t want to do that.” During the ceremony and reception, they were not intrusive at all – in fact, I don’t even remember them being there. So our experience was good based on that.