After 4 date changes and that many theme/color changes, our wedding ceremony happened last weekend! It had some hiccups (the unexpected winds and YAY it was cold!!), but all in all it was perfect!
VENUE -- The Officer's Club (NAS Jax) -- This place wasn't my first choice. We booked with The Winterbourne and they were great! We had to change venues because The Winterbourne didn't have any dates available in the month we needed it for our 4th date change. The O'Club was affordable, accommodating, and perfect in the end for what we needed. We had the whole place to our selves (lucky us) and were able to come in Friday and set up the place. We also had all day to set up on Saturday, we had an open bar and the food was delicious! 70 guests and all this for $2700.
PHOTOGRAPHY -- Julie Paisley Photography -- Julie was AWESOME! Her pictures came out amazing and she made us feel so comfortable. I booked her in the summer of 2010 and at that time she was $1050 for engagement pictures and our wedding day pictures.
DJ -- DJ Steadman -- Steadman was GREAT as well! Very accommodating. Everything is online and we were able to create our playlist (and "do-not-play" list) in the weeks/months leading up to the wedding. He also has a planner on his client website. This was helpful because it guided me throughout the ceremony and wedding and helped me remember the little things I forgot. I got BEAUTIFUL up-lighting in my package and that on it's own was worth every penny. All in all, I paid $825 ((Extra up-lighting included in this price)). Emails were answered VERY quickly if I ever had any questions.
CAKE -- 3 Sister's Chocolate -- Oh My God!! This cake was amazing!! It was gorgeous and soooo good! I grew up going to 3 Sister's so even after visiting other bakers, this was an easy choice and one of the only "splurges." My cake was $700, 3 tiers, and each tier was customized. Nicole was so easy to work with and reachable by email whenever I had questions. Almost a week after the wedding and our leftover cake is still fluffy and moist
BRIDAL MAKEUP -- Renee from Simply Makeup Artists -- Renee did a GREAT job making me look like me, but better. I actually had breakouts from all the stress of the wedding and she was able to cover me up like I had perfect skin. DO NOT do makeup yourself! This is your day! Why not get pampered?
-- All in all (for trial and day of makeup) I paid $90 and she came to us the day of the wedding. Did I mention that I booked them 2 weeks before the wedding? lol
HAIR -- Since I booked Renee so close to the wedding, I needed someone to do my hair. She recommended Apryle Nolan. WOW! Apryle did a great job! My hair is super thick and long. She was able to give me a lasting curls and exactly what I wanted! For the trial run (which isn't required), day of hair and travel to me it was $125 for me. My mom has super short and thin hair and hers was $35. My MOH has thin, shoulder length hair and she was $45.
It was a hard, long process. Being a military wife is never easy, but I wouldn't change anything. Hope some of these reviews help! Message me if you have any questions