Nevada-Las Vegas

My Wedding Reviews - June 1 - Chapel of Flowers * UPDATED

*Update - I forgot a few I wanted to mention so I've added them in below

Mirage  A+

We both loved the Mirage.  We’ve stayed at Caesars and MGM in the past and this is the first time we have wanted to come back again.  You won’t get lost in the Mirage and I loved the location on the strip.  We had a 1 bedroom Tower Suite – it was a little dated but GORGEOUS and huge at 1200 sq. ft.  The view was incredible overlooking the pool and looking up the strip towards Paris.  We hosted 20 people in here easily with drinks the night before.  Didn’t have to involve the Mirage at all.  Purchased our alcohol from the ABC store at Fashion show mall, mix and cups across the street at Wallgreens.  We also rented a Cabana for the day after our wedding.  Yes, it was pricey but totally worth it.  The pool at this hotel is out of this world and the Cabana’s make you feel like a high roller.  I also wanted to mention that we got $75 in food/drink taken off our bill from the Players Club.  We are not big gamblers just play penny slots.  We signed up for the Mirage card and linked our accounts.  We only gambled at the Mirage.  Before checking out I went to the Players Club desk and asked if there were any comps and he removed the charges for us.  VERY COOL! 

Rat Pack is Back A
If you are looking for a group activity check out this show at the Plaza downtown.  It was great.  I know the girl who plays Marilyn in it and she got us great seats for our group right up front in this great booths.  The whole theater screams old vegas.  Thoroughly enjoyed the show and so did our guests.  You can get same day tickets at the half price ticket booth on the strip - not the booth located downtown.

Lori White  A+
I loved Lori.  She did my trial the day before and then on the day of also did my Mom’s makeup.  It was nice having great hair/makeup 2 days in a row ☺  She was great to work with and I would recommend her to everyone.

WestJet A
My biggest stress was whether they would let me carry my dress on the plane.  I was relieved when the stewardess told me to hold my dress until last.  She was able to put it in an overhead bin by itself.  I had brought a portable steamer but was shocked when the dress hardly needed it.  Yeah, was able to save some money on steaming services ☺

Bell Trans A
I ordered an airport pickup online for $65 prepaid.  This price couldn’t be beat.  The shuttle bus was plenty big enough for the 16 of us that travelled together.  The driver was waiting for us at the baggage claim. Totally worth it.

Earth Limos B-
Had the 26 passenger party bus (although there is no way it would have seated 26 people) booked for 4 hours – to take guests to the chapel and go on a strip tour after ending at Maggiano’s. I had great dealings with them leading up to the day and really it all worked out as the bus looked good but some things still bug me.  I found out the day before that the groom had to get to the chapel a little earlier than I had planned.  So I literally needed the bus for an additional 10 minutes.  They came early as planned and I assumed we still had it till the original end time.  I was wrong.  The guy was kind of a jerk about it and wouldn’t give us extra time even if we paid – so we ended up at Maggiano’s early.  Speaking of pay, I guess I should have asked whether they needed the money upfront.  It was a cash sale I had negotiated with tip included.  However, I had the cash on me and I wasn’t getting on the bus till after the ceremony.  Guess the driver wanted the cash so one of my guests spotted the groom the cash.  Problem was they gave an extra $20 tip because no one knew it was included in the price he said.  Wouldn’t have been a big deal if he had given us the extra time but he got $20 for nothing at all.  I had told all my guests about the party bus with a stripper pole – so imagine my surprise when I get on board and there is no pole ☹  I didn’t even figure out how to hook up my ipod and play music but no one seemed to care.   It also would have been nice if he had actually driven on the strip but he went the back way to everything. 

Chapel of Flowers A++
I am so happy with our ceremony.  It was truly romantic and touching.  We had everyone in tears but it also had it’s fun moments too.  Highly recommended.  We paid $1000 for the traditional package with some add-ons in the Victorian Chapel.  I think this is the nicest spot to get married at this venue.  The Victorian is located inside the cute white chapel you see from the outside.  The guest doors lead right to a great shaded gazebo.  It was beautiful – not cheesy at all.  They have some beautiful areas for photos.  We had the first look service, 3 custom bouquets and a bout, DVD, 32 photos and they even sent us in a limo the day before to get our wedding license.  The best part was all of our family who couldn’t make it were able to watch it live online.  I also loved that I could provide them with a CD of the music we wanted played.  It all worked flawlessly.  We went back a few days later to pick out our photos.  It took us an hour and a half to decide but it was worth it to come home with photos in hand.  I was impressed with the photos but not enough to pay $600 for the CD. We were good with what came in the package.  They also had a second “lifestyle” photographer shooting.  I asked not to even be shown these photos as you can only buy that CD after you’ve purchased the main one.  They complied and I don’t feel like it was a hard sell or anything. 

Maggiano’s  A++
Ditto to what every other bride has said.  This place is amazing.  We had the Abruzzi room with 23 guests and it was perfect.  We had the bar in the room and they would make you any drink you wanted.  I was drinking something called an Alligator.  YUMMY!  The food I tried was great – I wish I had eaten more.  Guests are still raving about the food.  The service was amazing too.  We arrived 15-20 minutes early and were allowed in the room – there was just no bar open yet.  My group were drinkers so we stayed until the bitter end to make use of the open bar.  So I would say we got our money's worth and more.  The party in the Calabria room finished up much earlier than ours so they told us to feel free to use the whole balcony.  It was just wondering having access to that.  If you are between using the DiCarlo room and the Abruzzi like I was - upgrade for sure.  You will be so glad you did.  We danced a little but mostly just mingled.  No one was sitting and lots of people loved the Balcony and the view of the Wynn.

Creations Bakery A
We LOVED our cake.  It was tuxedo with ½ white ½ choc layers and chocolate mousse filling.  It had dripped chocolate on top and chocolate covered strawberries.  The only downside was the size.  I don’t think the cake was big enough for the number of guests we had.  There would not have been enough if everyone had wanted a piece.  Plus I was hoping to take some back to the suite ☹

Todd Wilson A++
Totally enjoyed working with Todd.  We had him for 3 hours.  We met back at the Mirage after the ceremony.  We took some photos there then we went to the Sign.  We stopped quickly at Planet Hollywood and then headed to Maggiano’s.  While the guests went upstairs we walked over to Wynn with Todd and got some photos there.  Todd came upstairs and took some shots of the room, favours, etc.  I can’t wait to get back the photos.  I’m sure they will be FAB!  BTW, Todd actually handed a guest his camera so he could get his photo taken with my beautiful Marilyn Monroe bridesmaids ☺



Fontana Bar at Bellagio A
This was a great place to go for dancing.  I knew when we finished up at Maggianos at 10pm I wanted to walk down the strip.  So we walked back to the Mirage.  I changed into my sketchers - great idea :)  We all went to freshen up for a few minutes and then met in the lobby.  We walked from the Mirage to the Bellagio.  The bar has a patio where you can watch the fountains.  There was a great band playing current hits so we were up dancing.  It closed at 1am since it was a Tuesday night.  Loved it.  The decor was beautiful and we weren't out of place in our wedding gear.

Firefly B
We ended up at Firefly in the Plaza after the Rat Pack Show.  The view from the restaurant of Fremont St is awesome.  I really enjoyed the food and would recommend it.  The lower rating is for the service.  I know they said that the food comes out randomly but DH and I were left without food while everyone else had at least 2 or 3 plates already.  They were also difficult about splitting up the bill and were no help at all in assisting us to calculate out what eveyone owes.  Some people had several bottles of wine while others didn't drink so we couldn't just split it evenly.  It took us a long time to get it sorted out while they obviously wanted us to leave as we were the last table.

Peepshow A+
DH and I went to this alone on our last night in Vegas.  It was incredible.  Lots of gorgeous and talented girls and a few hot guys too.  We had 3rd row center seats which were perfect. 

Lastly, I just had to share that I ran into 2 very different brides.  It was such a kick seeing another bride.


  

Re: My Wedding Reviews - June 1 - Chapel of Flowers * UPDATED

  • pebbs_17pebbs_17 member
    Seventh Anniversary 500 Comments
    edited December 2011
    Great reviews!  Congrats to both of you, your ceremony was beautiful!  And, yes, you had me in tears!  :)
  • edited December 2011
    Great reviews! So you haven't got your Todd pix yet? I konw you were a couple days ahead of me, so I'm patiently waiting for you to get yours so I can get mine!
    image
  • GribblesGribbles member
    500 Comments
    edited December 2011

    Great to read your reviews, as I am a COF bride using Todd and also was considering Earth buses. How many people would you say the 26-seater comfortably seated? Do you have a link to the one you used, or a pic? Our group will be about this size and I was looking at the party bus that has the same capacity - I just want to make sure I dont book this particular model with them or any other company if it is too small!

    Congrats again!

    www.mywedding.com/benandpetra
  • edited December 2011

    Congrats :) I love that Todd picture can't wait to see more!

  • edited December 2011
    Congrats!! Can't wait to see more pic's :)
    image
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  • edited December 2011
    Congrats!  I watched your ceremony and thought it was so beautiful! Glad everything went well.
  • edited December 2011
    Thanks everyone.

    Dvohnout, no pics from Todd yet.  This waiting is killing me.  He told me 3 weeks so I have another week or so to go.

    Gribbles - I am wondering if they actually sent something a little smaller than I had reserved.  We were anticipating 24 people on the bus including Todd.  It ended up with only 22 and I thought that was comfortable.  Especially considering that we had a couple of collapsible coolers with champagne and drinks.  It would have been squishy with more people. I should say that many of my guests were on the bigger side (big guys who are firefighters).  I will have some photos of the inside that Todd took.
  • MNVegasMNVegas member
    Fifth Anniversary 1000 Comments 250 Love Its Name Dropper
    edited December 2011
    So happy you liked COTF. It is so nice there. I watched your wedding and thought it was great.
     
    Todd is amazing! I got an email from him saying he sent my pics out yesterday, so can't wait to get them next week.

    Congratulations again Mrs!

  • tigerlily25tigerlily25 member
    10 Comments
    edited December 2011
    These reviews were helpful :) Im glad you had a great experience with Chapel of the Flowers and Maggianos, because thats who Im using! Ive had a really hard time getting answers from Creations Bakery, however. They dont seem to want business...
  • edited December 2011
    Let Cassy at Maggianos know your having a hard time contacting Creations.  Give Cassy your order.  That is what I ended up doing.

  • tigerlily25tigerlily25 member
    10 Comments
    edited December 2011
    OK, I'll do that. The other vendors on the Maggianos list have been very helpful, just Creations seems to not be as organized. Oh well :)
  • pabride2010pabride2010 member
    10 Comments
    edited December 2011
    Great reviews!  Your Marilyn bridesmaids is the coolest idea ever!
    ***
  • edited December 2011
    Your ceremony was so sweet :)  Thanks for the reviews! 

    About the cake (I am using Creations also) - was it 2 layers? Now I am nervous because I have about the same number of guests as you and a lot of people that love cake!
    Anniversary
  • edited December 2011
    Yes, it was 2 layers I would specify that you want extra to take home - then they should make it plenty big enough.  I neglected to do this.
  • ddchhichiddchhichi member
    100 Comments
    edited December 2011
    Great Reviews!

    I'll be taking WestJet too - I'm glad to hear about your reviews about them.

    As for Earth Limo, I'm having the hardest time with them via email.  I guess I can try calling. 
  • SunnyCanadianSunnyCanadian member
    100 Comments
    edited December 2011
    Yay congrats fellow Canadian!! Great reviews.

    We also used Creations bakery and Maggiano's and just an FYI for other brides - we had 39 guests for a 2 tier square cake (I believe the layers were 6" and 10") and we had a TON of cake left over. Our cake was soo yummy and it looked amazing! We also had one layer 1/2 chocolate, 1/2 vanilla but with raspberry mousse inside. The other layer was red velvet with cream cheese mousse.

    Also, we had problems near the end trying to get a hold of Susie so we mentioned it to Maggiano's and Marc told us they had her very busy with cakes but she would respond to us soon.

    Here's a non-pro pic of our cake (I'm working on our bio and hope to get other pics up very soon!):

    http://tinypic.com/r/2zybwgk/6

    Hope that worked...the photo upload feature NEVER works for me!
    BFP #1 MM/C discovered at 8w2d, loss 11/18/11
    I'll hold you in my heart until I hold you in heaven
    BFP #2 7/7/12, EDD 3/14/13, stick baby stick!
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  • SunnyCanadianSunnyCanadian member
    100 Comments
    edited December 2011
    Hmm let's see if I can bring it in here:

    [IMG]http://i47.tinypic.com/2zybwgk.jpg[/IMG]
    BFP #1 MM/C discovered at 8w2d, loss 11/18/11
    I'll hold you in my heart until I hold you in heaven
    BFP #2 7/7/12, EDD 3/14/13, stick baby stick!
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  • edited December 2011
    Oh, your cake is beautiful.  Glad to hear you had enough.  I should also mention that we didn't serve any other dessert (except for ice cream).  We subsitutied dessert for another app.  I really think that Creations still had our original person count which was 5 less than what we ended up with. 

    Can't wait to see more pics my fellow Canadian!

    Here was our cake.



  • edited December 2011
    SunnyCanadian - your cake is gorgeous! I loved glass thing it's on with the flowers underneath! And that cake looks quite large!
    Anniversary
  • SunnyCanadianSunnyCanadian member
    100 Comments
    edited December 2011
    Marilynfan - us too! We only had the wedding cake and ice cream for dessert. I forgot to ask Maggiano's to cut the cake pieces slightly larger than normal in order to use up more cake, since Susie let me know I would have a lot of cake left over. But I didn't want to compromise on the size, I thought it would be too small as it was, but it was perfect!

    Ebonyivory - Thank you!! The cake turned out exactly the way I wanted it to, it was one of my favorite details of the day. The "glass" is actually a piece of plexi I had cut at Lowe's. It's sitting on 9 square vases filled with orchids. (FYI-I got the cake stand idea off of Project Wedding).
    BFP #1 MM/C discovered at 8w2d, loss 11/18/11
    I'll hold you in my heart until I hold you in heaven
    BFP #2 7/7/12, EDD 3/14/13, stick baby stick!
    image Image and video hosting by TinyPic Image and video hosting by TinyPic BabyFruit Ticker
  • edited December 2011
    Yeah, I don't know what happened.  Even the banquet captain said to me afterwards that they were worried there was not going to be enough.  I had a hard time getting ahold of Susie at the end so Cassy stepped in and I had said to her to make sure the cake was adjusted because we had about 5 more people than originally planned.  Maybe that never got communicated.  And again, I never specificed that I wanted extra to take home :)
  • edited December 2011
    So I went and watched your wedding.  We're getting married there on the 19th.  You guys are adorable! Congrats!
    MyBio
    Yes I am.....Living the Dream
    image
  • edited December 2011
    Ha!  I love stalkers :)  I keep trying to convince hubby to let me put it on my Marilyn youtube channel.  We could be internet sensations!  LOL!
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