I wouldn't trade a thing about getting married in OBX - best week of our lives so far - and looking forward to a lot of happy vacations there in our married life!
Village Realty: We rented 2 places from them....one the event home in Corolla and the other a condo for some guests. The staff in the Corolla office is beyond helpful, professional, and easy to work with. They went WAY above and beyond to help us throughout our planning from afar - including going to take specific measurements at the house for us, storing boxes in the office a month before our wedding, and letting us park all our guest vehicles at their location. Every dime we spent with them was well worth it. We didn't have any issues with the 2 houses - we were able to check in right on time.
Laura @ Sugar Snap Events: Pretty sure the Titanic would still be in operation if Laura had been the captain of that ship! She can handle any situation. She is hilarious - really kept my crew entertained during the rehersal - but knows how to lead a crowd with clear instructions. We hired Laura for Day Of Event Coordination and negotiated meeting her in advance at the rental house for a walk=thru planning session. Once I met her, I knew we were in good hands. She confirmed all my vendors before the wedding (a huge weight off my shoulders in knowing things were ready to go) and provided a timeline for the day, which she provided to all my vendors. She was always easy to reach, very responsive, and had great suggestions throughout the process. I couldn't have done it without her!!
Shirley @ Sugar Snap Events: Shirley did our flowers and they were beautiful!! I was terrible at imagining what things would look like and tried to do research on the internet to find flowers I liked, that were in season, would hold in the heat, etc. But I really needed help. Shirley was able to tell me all of that... she even started sending me pictures of groupings so I could try to see it visually. She must have sent me 8 or 9 before telling me I probably needed to pick one (haha)! This was tough for me and she made it VERY fun and easy. We did starfish bouts for the guys, and just before the wedding as they tried to put them on they all broke them (like boys) and Shirley and Laura had to whip up some new bouts for the guys, which they did without me even knowing it!! My flowers lasted for over a week after the wedding!! Great communication during the planning process.
Matt Lusk Photography: I can't say enough great things about Matt and Annie. They did our engagement photos in February and then our wedding in July...and I can't wait to go back to OBX for family portraits!! I know we'll be seeing them in the future! First of all, Matt's fee for 8 hours of photography was the best in OBX for what you get. And, he and his wife Ann are by far the coolest, most easy-going couple to have taking your pictures. At the wedding, I hardly knew they were there, but it seemed whenever I wanted a picture of something, they'd appear!! Very on cue. I don't have my pictures yet, but expect to see them soon. If photography is at the top of your priority list like it was on mine, you have to get Matt for your wedding. He was great during the planning stages - told us what time would be best for our ceremony, how linen suits would appear in pictures.... you name it, I asked the question, and he was always happy to reply. We would text, email, or call and he was very responsive either way.
Ryan @ The Grass Course: We held a grass course (like a mix between golf and putt putt) tournament during the week of our wedding for about 20 of our guests at The Grass Course in Corolla. It was AWESOME. At the end of the week, this is what everyone was still talking about. Better than playing golf because anyone can participate (parents and kids). We played for a gold putter (1st place) or a ribbon that read, "I try my best" (last place). Ryan, the manager, and Sean, the owner, were SO accomodating to our group. They let us bring coolers of drinks and snacks and had a couple extra staff people to serve us on the course. We didn't finish before dinner, so Ryan let us come back after dinner to finish (the guys had money riding on the last 4 holes - haha). Everyone loved it and I can't tell you how great these guys were.
The Good Life Gourmet: Steve and Susie at the Good Life Gourmet are great to work with, very nice and excited about what they do....and the food is excellent. The stuffed chicken was the best thing on the menu at our wedding! The food at their restaurant is awesome too! During planning, Susie is really responsive and provided an early quote for us to start budgeting. We met with Steve early on and got some great advice that helped us not just in the food department. We met with them one more time to taste some of our choices. I wouldn't say it's the most affordable option for what you get, but the food is very, very good and the staff is really, really nice. Steve is very particular and won't let you down in any way. However, because he is particular, make sure your contract is really clear on what you are responsible for and what you want his staff to handle (like stocking the bar, handling ice, re-racking plates & glasses, etc). We didn't have an issue here, but it sounded like if something hadn't been in the contract, they weren't really going to be flexible about just doing it for you either. One of the catering staff was also the person who took our application at the marriage license office! It was cool to see her again and nice to get a phone call afterwards with compliments!
Amber @ Bombshells: Amber did our hair and makeup on the day of the wedding (me, 4 bridesmaids, 2 moms). I had met her before when she did a trial run just before my engagement pictures with Matt. She did a great job - arrived on time and organized. She was able to squeeze in 2 people for makeup and one for hair that weren't on the original list, which was very helpful and flexible on her part. She was great at communicating in the beginning, but didn't hear much from her as we got closer to the wedding. I worried a little, but had Laura from Sugar Snaps on the task so I knew it was handled. Everyone's hair and makeup looked fantastic. My only wish is that she'd given me a little more direction on what to do with my hair as I was pretty undecided up until the minute I sat in the chair. I needed a little more advice, but likely most brides know exactly what they want in advance!!
Reverend Jay Bowman: AMAZING!! Rev. Jay did a great job with our ceremony. He made us laugh, made us cry, and really gave our guests a good show. He was just loud enough for everyone to hear, without us feeling like he was shouting at us. We had our dog in the ceremony and he included him perfectly. He reminded us that in the future we'd bring our kids to that very spot and laugh about our wedding day. We wanted the best and we got it.... He is well worth every penny. We didn't hire him to do our rehersal because we had Laura at Sugar Snaps to run that for us, but we did meet Rev Jay for coffee months before the wedding just to get to know him and run down what we wanted for our day. He is very sincere and loves what he does and that shows through in the ceremony. He's also a really cool dude if you take some time to learn about him too!
Club Violin: Great company to work with... very responsive...Leslie is very organized and detailed so you have no questions about how things will work. Steve, our solo guitarist, was there on the beach when I walked down and although I didn't get to hear much of it, he was able to play a special version of here comes the bride for us that I found on you tube. They couldn't have been easier to work with and very reasonably priced.
High Cotton BBQ: High Cotton catered our welcome reception the day before the wedding. The food was AWESOME and Tom, who setup and worked our event, was very good. We had to move inside because it was nearly 105 outside, but he was really flexible and showed up early enough to accommodate. They brought everything needed to make it happen and when they left everything was cleaned up. Really enjoyed working with HIgh Cotton and glad I made the right choice!
Metro Rental: We used Metro Rental for tables, chairs, dinnerware, and some extras like coolers, and easel, and a linen steamer. They were great to work with in terms of planning - answering questions and responding to email. I even had to make last minute changes (2 days before the wedding) and they were okay with that. They spent about 30 minutes on the phone with me reworking my rental order!! It was nice to know that I had that much flexibility. However, when they delivered, we did have a few items there that we had taken off the order (but we weren't charged for them) and the coolers were broken. I called and they offered to run new ones out to us but it couldn't have happened in time for the event. They found another solution that worked so we were happy. I liked working with them and would recommend them.
Eden Day Spa - Corolla: We went to Eden for mani/pedi appts the day before the wedding. Overall the place is really comfortable - I totally fell asleep waiting on my bridesmaids in the relaxation room!! I do consider it pricey - and would have expected a lot more massaging and pampering for the price I paid, but really just got like a normal everyday mani/pedi. I will say, they were very accommodating with my group since half of us showed up 20 minutes late for the appointment! My nails looked great and lasted for a week!
Mike Dianna's Restaurant: We did a group dinner of 22 and they were very accommodating. We stayed for Karoke afterwards and had a blast (other than a couple sweet 16 birthdays that made us feel like we needed to be more PG than we might have otherwise been). Food is excellent, service a little slow for 22 people. Lot's of fun in a good atmosphere. Worth a trip for your guests if you're in Corolla.
I will try to post some pictures when I get them and if anyone has any questions about the vendors don't hesitate to ask!! Wishing the best to all the future OBX brides!!
Jennifer