* Detroit Knottie Vendor Grades/Reviews *

stebbe81 · May 2010

In addition to the list of everyone's vendors, I thought it might be useful if there was a sticky with all the married ladies' vendor grades/reviews. The reviews don't need to be paragraphs long (like what would be in your bio), but if you wanted to write a few words about a vendor in addition to the grade, go for it.

Thanks to Taryn for coming up with the idea!

Ceremony Site:
Reception Site:
Caterer:
Chair Covers/Linens:
Hair:
Makeup:
Limo:
Photographer:
Videographer:
Florist:
Bakery:
DJ:
DOC:
Photobooth:

Officiant:

Bridal Salon:

Rentals:

And any others we may have missed!

mink492 · May 2010

Ceremony Site: First United Methodist, Farmington A
Reception Site: St. Mary's Cultural Center, Livonia A
Chair Covers/Linens: Stephanie's Wedding Creations B/C-
Makeup: GiGi from ULTA A
Limo: Luxury Limos of Dearborn D
Photographer: KBL Photography A
Videographer: Paul Briles A
Florist: Irelynn Designs A
Bakery: Cakes by Kara A
DJ: Shea Sounds A
DOC: A Beautiful Day Events A

Bridal Salon: Moni's Bridal A
Tuxes: Ushers - President Tuxedo A, GMs - Men's Wearhouse A-

I loved most of my vendors. Specifics & contact info is in my siggy. Email me with any questions. williams.wedding.prep @gmail.com

thecatsfancy · May 2010

Ceremony Site: Bavarian Inn Lodge (F'muth, MI) A-
Reception Site: Bavarian Inn Lodge (F'muth, MI) A-
The staff at the Lodge were amazing! They were incredibly helpful and accommodating. I don't reget choosing to have my wedding & reception here; however, there was a huge mix-up on the final bill and it took a couple months to get it all sorted out.

Chair Covers/Linens: Sposa Seating A-
Maya did a wonderful job with my chair covers. She arrived on time and everything looked perfect! My only complaint is that she charged me sales tax on the travel fee...even after I pointed it out to her.

Hair: Octane Beauty Salon (Clio, MI) A
Kim and her girls are awesome!! Kim is my normal hair stylist and i knew she'd make me look great. Oh, and my hair stayed up all night! That is quite a feat seeing as I'd never had an updo last longer than a few hours in the past.

Makeup: Deux Adore A+
What else can I say, but Jen is AMAZING. Seriously. I have never in my life looked (or felt) as gorgeous as I did on my wedding day. Even without a trial or inspiration pictures, Jen captured perfectly how I wanted to look on my wedding day.

Photographer: Amy Boeve A+
I love Amy. That pretty much sums it up...LOL! She is very easy to work with and laid-back. She is open to suggestions...definitely not a photographer who thinks "I'm the pro so I know best!". We got our pictures back quickly (within 4 weeks!) and they are great! We're both extremely happy we hired Amy!

Videographer: Shutterspeed Productions A
Jamie and Ian were literally "flies on the wall". We barely even noticed they were there...we are both very sensitive about having video cameras in our faces so, trust me, we would have noticed! They were very prompt and polite. We received our final video very quickly (within 6 weeks) and it was everything we were hoping it would be.

Florist: MK Designs - Marcia Herzog (F'muth, MI) A+
Marcia was a Godsend. She works out of her home in Frankenmuth so if you are having a wedding in the Saginaw/Flint area, HIRE HER. She is so incredibly creative and talented. My bouquet was more than I could have ever dreamt of! She also threw in a few extra arrangements with flowers she had left over. Contact me for her phone # if you want to hire her.

Bakery: Grandma Nuechterlein A
My MOH's grandma used to bake cakes professionally (she made all of my birthday cakes growing up). She stopped a few years ago so I had to beg her to make my wedding cake. The cake was amazing as always, but she's not for hire anymore. Sorry!

DJ: E&J Entertainment A-
My only complaint is that emails often weren't answered promptly. I know they both have other full time jobs, but it was a bit frustrating at times. That being said, there were absolutely NO problems on the wedding day. They arrived early so they would be set up w/ music playing by the time guests started arriving for cocktail hour. Jason (the J) is very entertaining...not a dull moment for sure! Also, they stayed all night...no time limit.   I don't regret hiring them at all. I just wish they were better at answering emails.

DOC: A Beautiful Day Events A+
Rachel is an absolute doll! Because of her, everything ran smoothly (at least as far as I could tell!). It honestly seemed like she was everywhere at once!!   I can't recommend her enough...I am SO happy I decided to hire her.

Officiant: Pastor David Eardley (F'muth United Methodist) A
Pastor David is at my "home" church so it was a no-brainer to ask him to perform the ceremony. We both really like him and enjoyed meeting with him for the pre-marital counseling.

Bridal Salon: David's Bridal B+
I didn't have any MAJOR problems with them (like some people), but they did try to convince me to order my dress two sizes too big even though I knew the next size up would fit just fine. Also, my consultant was very pushy and in my face. She even came in the teeny tiny DB dressing room with me!! I finally told her to get out because there wasn't enough room in there for two of us!

Rentals: President's Tuxedo C
I know, tuxedo rentals are usually one of the most frustrating aspects of a wedding. That being said, we didn't have any problems prior to the wedding...everyone's tuxes fit perfectly. Unfortunately, President's charged all of the GM and my dad for rental shoes...that they didn't have! It took several follow up calls to the manager (and the threat of us contacting the district manager) to get everyone's money refunded. What a headache!

alarthame · May 2010

Ceremony Site: First Baptist Church of Royal Oak (Now Genesis) A+, Beautiful church and wonderful staff
Officiant: Rev. Dr. Dave Nichols A+, Awesome guy.
Reception Site: Royalty House, Warren, MI A+++ Absolutely wonderful. They really have their act together and understand how to run a business well.
Caterer: Royalty House, Warren, MI A+++, Food was so delicious.
Chair Covers/Linens: Royalty House, Warren, MI (Linens only) A
Hair: PURE Salon and Day Spa, Commerce, MI (Shannon) B+
Makeup: PURE Salon and Day Spa, Commerce, MI (Shannon) B+
Limo: Didn't have one
Photographer: Lennon Photo, Birmingham, MI - STILL PENDING
Videographer: Didn't have one
Florist: Blumz, Royal Oak, MI - B
Bakery: Sorella's, Livonia, MI A++, See siggy. My cake was AMAZING! Took my sketch and made it awesome at an affordable price!!
DJ: M.K. Entertainment DJ, DJ Mike, C+ I didn't book him, my mother did
DOC: Didn't have one
Photobooth: Rock the Booth A++++, Cannot say enough good things!
Dress & Alterations: Un Amour Bridal, Roseville B-
Bridesmaid dresses: David's Bridal (various) F-, I seriously hate David's.
Tuxes: Tux on 9 (Blumz), Royal Oak, MI B
Honeymoon: NWA World Vacations (now Delta) A+, Free Honeymoon. Nuff said.
Shower Location: Hampton Inn - Warren A, Nice location for a smaller shower.
Cake Topper: etsy seller: kharygoarts A++++, Beautiful piece (Check for sale page to see the awesome topper she made!)
Wedding Bands: JustMetal.com - A, Almost didn't make it, but great company!
Tiara: Hobby Street Ebay Store A

If you have any questions about my grades, feel free to page me with your email addy and question & I'll explain.

katiebird1981 · May 2010

Ceremony Site: St. Hugo of the Hills in Bloomfield Hills: A
Reception Site: Iroquois Club in Bloomfield Hills: A
Hair: Act II Salon..blanking on name: A
Makeup: Act II Salon (Beth): A
Limo: Satisfaction Limousines: A
Photographer: Kreativ Imaging: A...so far
Videographer: Kreativ Imaging: ask in a couple months once I see the video
Florist: Michele Nonis: B...was a little late to the chapel and vendors were waiting on her.
Bakery: Friend of family: A
DJ: Mike Staff: A

Officiant: Ft. Gomez: A+

Bridal Salon: Alfred Angelo: A

Bridesmaids Dresses: David's Bridal: A-...all my bm's had great customer service...shocker, I know!

Tuxes: Men's Wearhouse: D - ...all 6 groomsmen and DH had problems with sizes and poor quality.

Knottie1435582995 · May 2010

Ceremony Site: Kellogg Park: A-
I give them an A- solely because of the construction. We spoke with the city and construction workers multiple times before the wedding and they assured us that there would be no heavy machinery working on the day of the wedding. Wrong. Not only did they have heavy machinery BUT they were using DURING the ceremony. We sent 2 groomsmen to ask them to take a 20 min break and they literally told us they could give us 10. So they started back up 1/2 way thru the ceremony and 1/2 our guests couldn't hear anything.

Reception Site: Meeting House Grand Ballroom: A
Despite minor bumps in the road of planning, I could not have asked for a better venue. My guests raved about how wonderful the food was. Randy and Mary were absolutely WONDERFUL hosts. I truly cannot say how wonderful Randy was the day of the wedding. The venue was beautiful. I couldn't have asked for more.

Caterer: Meeting House Grand Ballroom: A+
This is based off of my guests. I honestly didn't have a chance to eat more that about 2 bites of food, so I can't say myself. I did not hear a single bad thing about the food --- I did however have a TON of guests make a point to tell me how wonderful the food was.

Chair Covers/Linens: MPE Events: A
The linens were beautiful. Absolutely beautiful. They did a spectacular job setting everything up. I didn't notice a single wrinkle in anything. They also provided us with a backdrop and lighting for behind the head table and it was spectacular. They were truly easy to work with.

Hair & Makeup: Bridal Beauty on Location: D
I give them a D because a different hair stylist showed up the day of the wedding without any notice to me that there was a change, and because after seeing my professional photos my make-up was awful. I was less impressed with this new stylist and her ability to do hair. I had my hair done by my make-up artist and she did a beautiful job -- tho it was different than I wanted. The makeup done on my wedding day looked absolutely nothing like the trial. In my prof pics, it looks like I'm wearing NO makeup. There isn't a single photo of myself from my wedding that I like. I'm so horribly disappointed I can't even express it in words.

Limo: Millennium Limos (limogiant.com): A-
Millennium Limos were wonderful to work with, they arrived on time, they took us where we needed to go. 2 of the 3 limos we used were clean and beautiful. The limo drivers were all professional. They get an A- for two reasons: 1) The air conditioning didn't work in 2 of the 3 limos (although it was fixed on the wedding day after about an hour), and 2) the party bus we used the day of the wedding could have used a better cleaning as the bench seats near the back were pretty gross.

Photographer: American Photographers (Clint): A+ (pending)
Clint has been wonderful to work with throughout the entire wedding planning process. He was fantastic the day of the wedding and very kind to everyone. I was able to see some of the pictures he and his assistant took on their cameras during the day and they looked absolutely spectacular. Clint certainly has an eye for staging everything in a beautiful manner. I can't wait to get my pictures back and will update this accordingly.

Florist: Viviano (Marena): A+
The flowers for my wedding were SPECTACULAR!!! My bouquet was even better than I could have dreamed of! The flowers were all so bright and vivid and wonderful. We were even given vases for all of the girls to put the flowers in so they lasted longer during the day. The ceremony and reception flowers were also fantastic. I got so many compliments from guests on how absolutely beautiful my centerpieces were. Only minus (and not that big of a deal) was that we did not have enough rose petals to line the aisle at the ceremony. Also, their delivery personnel were WONDERFUL! I can't say enough about how much I enjoyed working with Marena and seeing my beautiful flowers!!!

Bakery: Elite Sweets: A- (cake)/ B- (communication)
Communication: They could definitely do better in this area. You sign up for cake flavors you would like to sample and they are supposed to call you when they have them available. I had about 5 flavors I wanted to try and never got a single phone call. I wanted 3 flavors for my wedding cake, but was never able to try the last few flavors I wanted to. I was VERY unimpressed with this aspect of their business.
Cake: The cake tasted absolutely wonderful. I cannot tell you how moist and delicious it was!!! The decorating was not exactly what I was expecting, hence the minus.

DJ: Music Box Productions (Tony Rice): A
Tony is amazing. Seriously. Book him before he retires next year -- for real. Go. Now.

Photobooth: Shutterbooth: A (day of) / C (communication)
Shutterbooth was horrible in the communication realm. They waited until the last minute to do anything, and then acted like I was inconveniencing them when I tried to get things done/accomplished. They also kept calling for final payment but never sent me a final invoice. I asked them multiple times (as did my mom) for a final bill because we didn't know how much we owed them. They didn't send it until like 3 days before the wedding. I don't know what goes on in their office, but they are seriously lacking some organization there.
Day of: All of my guests absolutely loved the photobooth. They had a lot of fun taking silly pictures and many of them raved about the frames we gave them that doubled as place card holders. I had a number of guests ask if we had any extras. My guest book is GREAT! I LOVED looking through it after the wedding and seeing all the messages my guests left. It's so much better than a traditional guest book. Our host was Michelle and she was fantastic -- professional, friendly, funny. I'd definitely recommend her.

Officiant: Wayne Byron: A
Wayne's ceremony was absolutely beautiful. I had a number of guests comment on how wonderful it was. Wayne is fantastic -- he completely directed my rehearsal until all of my guests were comfortable. He made sure everyone signed all of the documents, and is taking the documents to the county for me. He is the sweetest guy! I would totally recommend him.

Bridal Salon: I Do Too Bridal: C

I will never shop there again. A number of my dresses had issues. Instead of discussing them with me the owner came out accusing me of losing weight and that it was MY fault the dress didn't fit. She was condescending, snobby, and rude. She was an utter nightmare to work with. I would have given them a BIG FAT F, but I can't in good conscience because they did end up rectifying the multiple issues by comping me for some alterations. However, I cannot get over how absolutely rude the owners was to me and my mom on multiple occasions.

Rentals: Men's Warehouse (Laurel Park Mall): A
I didn't hear about any issues from the boys. The tuxes looked amazing. They fixed the tux coat that didn't fit my dad and it was ready the next day.

Harpist: Paula Pinterpe: A
She was super easy to work with, very relaxed, and just about the sweetest lady in the world. She was even showing my step-daughter how to play the harp before the ceremony started. The music was absolutely beautiful!!!! I couldn't have asked for better!

Pianist: Scott Blackett: A+
OH MY GOSH! He was soooo good that a number of my guests told me that they thought he was a recording until they looked over and saw him playing. I cannot recommend him highly enough -- he was fantastic!!!

festivegal2008 · May 2010

Ceremony Site: OUR LADY OF THE WOODS CATHOLIC CHURCH A I've been a member since I was 4 years old so I'm pretty biased, but Fr. Rick performed a lovely ceremony and it was still decorated wtih lovely spring flowers from Easter. Mike's family couldn't stop complimenting how pretty it was inside and how much they liked the ceremony. Coordinator was fast and kept things moving.
Reception Site: ORLANDO FAMILIA BANQUET CENTER A- Everything was great - food, decor, staff....my only complaint was that the staff did not serve cake to the bridal party, as we were in the hallway having photos during that time, nor did they come and ask us if we watned any. It's not hard to pick out the lady in the big white dress. Nobody in the party received cake and my Jr. BM threw a fit!
Caterer: SEE ABOVE
Chair Covers/Linens: N/A
Hair: VIA BELLA, WOODHAVEN A Krystal did amazing work on my hair as well as the make up for myself, my sister and my 2 cousins. All stylists did a great job on my girls' hair and were very friendly and fun. They also put out a spread for us consisting of bagels, fruit and OJ from Panera. It was too bad we had such a windy day that my curls dind't stay in long!
Makeup: SEE ABOVE
Limo: ENTERTAINMENT EXPRESS A Although we had a little bit of a tight fit in our Tahoe, Aaron, our driver, helped my sister and brother in law into the back-back part of the limo to make room for the rest of the group. He arrived 15 mintues early and was very friendly and courteous to the party.
Photographer: CARROLL'S PHOTOGRAPHY, RIVERVIEW A Will did a great job with the photos and it helped going in with a list of must-take photos for him. He did everything we asked him to and I am very pleased wiht the final product.
Videographer: N/A
Florist: THRIFTY A All bouquets were ready for pick-up the evening before the wedding, and all boutonneires and corsages were delivered promplty to the church the day of. Lilies were plucked to avoid staining.
Bakery: INDEPENDENT CAKE MAKER, KARA CLARKE A Although we won't get a "real" slice until our first anniversary, we enjoyed it during the cake-cutting and all guests were extremely pleased with it.
DJ: JOHN FRASSON (DJ AND MUSIC) A John did a fabulous job with the music, he kept everyone on the dance floor all night long with his selections throughout the night, and he did everythign we asked him to as far as special dances, entrance songs, etc. went. Everyone was very pleased.
DOC: RACHEL CAUDILL (A BEAUTIFUL DAY EVENTS) A Rachel and her assistant John did a great job putting all the decorations out at the hall, distributing vendor payments and tips and having everything done in a timely manner. Packing up the items at the end of the night took no time at all. She also went out of her way to pick up more tealights and a candle lighter from Meijer when we ran out, as well as offering to pick me up a pair of slippers. They kept on top of things, making sure we dind't need anything and offering to bring our drinks. Excellent job, and very friendly and professional.
Photobooth: N/A :-(

Officiant: FATHER RICK MACEY (see ceremony site)

Bridal Salon: VICTORIAS, DEARBORN HEIGHTS A- Everything was great except my dress was still a little too long when I put it on the day of. Service was exceptional, staff is very friendly and their policy of no alteration charges when all girls purchse dresses there helped us out a lot!!!!

Rentals: N/A

culbycheese · May 2010

More in-depth reviews available on bio shortly, but here's the short & sweet!

Ceremony Site: St John Vianney, Shelby Township A
Reception Site: Oakhurst Golf & CC, Clarkston, MI
Venue itself: A++++
Venue coordinator: D
Caterer: Chef Joe at Oakhurst Golf & CC: C
Chair Covers/Linens: Oakhurst Golf & CC: B
Implementation of design: B-
Hair: Stacy Brinker at The Beauty Bar: A
Makeup: Stefanie at The Beauty Bar: A
Limo: SFIL's Volkswagen Routan: A
Photographer: Russell Photography, Lake Orion
Photographers: A
Pictures: B A lot of good ones, but some were way too dark.
Willingness to work with pricing/make a deal/trying to upsell since we didn't buy their biggest package/reneging on email deal to lower said largest package when they didn't say there was a time limit: C
Videographer: Sterling Video Productions: Pending Review
Florist: Liz @ The Parsonage, Clarkston: A+++++
Bakery: Lisa's Confection Connection, Clarkston: A
DJ: Rod Burnette from Music Box Productions, Clinton Twp: AOfficiant: Father Doc Ortman, St. John Vianney: A+Bridal Salon: Kray Chic Salon, Novi (Closed 5/1/10): Treatment of the bride: A Treatment of bridesmaids: A at fitting, D after.
Rentals: Liz @ The Parsonage, Clarkston: A++++
Favors: Butter cookies from Christine's Cakes & Pastries, Clinton Twp: A+

teeniegreenie · June 2010

Here are mine. For detailed reviews please see my bio in my siggy.
Ceremony Site: Holy Family Catholic Church A
Reception Site: Lapeer Country Club B
Hair & Makeup: The Spa (Flint) Marcie A
Limo: Koz Limosines F

Shuttle: Blue Drive City Club A
Photographer: A Thousand Words Photography A
Florist: The Parsonage A-
Bakery: Tasty Layers A
DJ: Moonboogie Media-Nate Fiss A+
DOC: Laura Allis A+
Bridal Salon: Lett's Bridal A
Invite Printer: DaSilva Printing B+

Invite Designer: Emily Cowdrey A

Hotel: Best-Western Lapeer A

Honeymoon: Excellence Riveria Cancun A

Favors: Truffle Trolley A+

Others:

Unity Candle: Holland Candle Company A

Guestbook: Blurb.com A

Floor Decal: Right on the Walls A

Flower Girl Dress: David's Bridal A

Bracelet: White Aisle A

Shoes: Zappos.com A+

brobin01 · June 2010

I listed out prices because I am sure this will help future knotties out. I am proud of my budget

!!

Church: New St. Paul Tabernacle – A…. My home church..no problem with them at all. PRICE: Free

Officiant: Elder Wynne – A …..he was great! I love him! PRICE: FREE for me..but we gave him a $$ donation $150

Reception Hall: Metro beach Glasshouse – A…… I had no problems with the hall, they even let me in a day early to drop things off. PRICE: $600

Caterer: B- …. (I can’t put the name out here on the internet) The food was off the hook!!! The jerk chicken, stir fry, mashed potatoes, string beans and home made bread w/ honey butter.. YUMMY!!!!! She also set up my candy buffet and head table. But…..I heard that the lead caterer was out in the open grabbing salad with her bare hands and placing them on plates. Even though that is common in some food industries, and she did claim that her hands were very clean and washed…you have to be careful when handling food in front of guests. Especially the type of people that don’t like there food to be handled with bare hands. PRICE: $5,000.00 Wait Staff: B- (some forgot to bring out dressing with the salad’s. Heard that one lady might have had an attitude problem toward some guests)

Bartending Service: Cocktails and Dreams F – enough said! : $171.00

Day of Coordinator: Grade pending…..need to check on some things and clarify some negative comments that I have heard.

Flowers: April Oboza A ++++++++++++++++ (one of my most favorite vendors) My flowers were perfect and exceeded my expectations. She was VERY affordable and was always available via email or phone. Perfect vendor. Love her! : $1,700.00 (for a lot of flowers, rented vases and decoration my church)

Cake: Piper @Trendy Treatz B+….The cupcake table and the décor was so awesome! My only complaint is that the cupcakes weren't elegantly decorated like my shower cupcakes were. I didn't notice that until a few days after, not happy about how they were decorated at all. But they did tastes great.She was so nice and also easy to work with. We had Pineapple, Lemon, Red Velvet and Chocolate cupcakes. (200 cupcakes) : $330

Candy: 15928 Grand River
Detroit, MI 48227-1818
(313) 272-2218

Linens: Stephanie’s Wedding Creations: A- (Stephanie was the bomb!) the only reason I gave her a minus was b/c of the linens for my church. I needed enough to drape the entire aisle, but that wasn’t given to us. April – the flower lady still made it look pretty. But Stephanie was awesome throughout this entire process! I was extremely happy with my linens and her communication. She was great to work with! : $576.00

Photography: Amy Boeve Photography A+++++++++++ I cannot explain how much I love Amy! She is probably the sweetest person I have ever met! I heard she helped out so much at the reception. I heart her and did I even mention that her work is PERFECT?!!! She includes a engagement photo session. Book her or dies! LOL: $1,500

Rock the booth: A++++++ (Awesome!!!) I loved them! The attendants were so awesome and fun! Loved them! My guest cannot stop talking about this! J $600

Videographer: s2rproductions (Adam Retli) pending video… However, Adam is awesome. Very nice guy! Can’t wait to see my video: $500

DJ: A+ Chuck’s DJ Service. I love Chuck! He is great and affordable! He also teaches ballroom dancing! $350

Brides & Bridesmaids & Groomsman attire: A (Miracle Wedding Village) they were great to work with! No problems.
My dress: $400 BM dresses $130 Tux rental: $109

Brides Alterations: Needle Nook: I think she did a good job, but I would have liked it to be a little bit tighter around my tummy and boobs.$150.00

Hair: Sexy Hair by Brandy @ Salon Secrets: A+++ $50.00

Make-up for bridal party: Raqual Winkler Smith: A++ She is awesome! Me and the girls looked great.She showed up early and got us all done right on schedule! I love her!!! ($55 w/airbrush $45 w/no airbrush)

Mani’s & Pedi’s: A…..Vertrice with Nourished Sole - She came out to our hotel to do our nails. We loved them. Very nice, neat and clean! : $40

Veil: A+ Cathleen (knottie Catsoy) It was beautiful!! – (I purchased the veil from another knottie (thecatsfancy aka Taryn) $20 and had alterations to it $10) $30

Limo – Bill at Red Carpet Events: B+ no air in one, but did call another limo right away. $800

Shoes: Nina Shoes @ Macys $50

Bracelet: Made by a knottie: $45

any questions feel free to page me here on the Detroit board!

blackberryaddict · June 2010

Ceremony Site: Meadow Brook Hall/Mansion A+
Reception Site: " " A+
Caterer: " " A+
Chair Covers/Linens: Colonial Event Rental A
Hair: A friend
Makeup: A friend
Limo/Shuttle: All Star Transportation A
Photographer: (pending photos)
Videographer: (pending video)
Florist: Michele Nonis A++++
Bakery: Holiday Market B
DJ: Lorio Ross Entertainment (Chris Anthony) A
Venue Coordinator: Amelia from Meadow Brook A
Photobooth: Grand Jour Events (Photowallfun.com) A+++++ (guests are still raving about the photo wall!)
Officiant: Leonetta from the Paint Creek Unitarian Church A+ (she is hilarious and made us feel at ease)
Bridal Salon/Alterations: Macys A

Dance Lessons: Arthur Murray B

Tux Rentals: President Tuxedo B-

Guest Block/Hotel: Marriott Centerpoint B+

Bridal Shoes: Hey Lady Shoes (www.shopheylady.com) A++

Bridesmaid Dresses: Pearl's Place B

Stationery: Lee's Speciality A+

Restaurant for rehearsal dinner: Kruse & Muer A

fosteray · July 2010

This was really helpful! I'm having my wedding in MI but live in Maryland, so reading the reviews was really helpful as I try to plan long distrance! Keep up the good work ladies!

shadow0304 · July 2010

I might write a little more since I don't have a bio... I had good luck with most of my vendors with the exception of a few I was underwhelmed with.

Ceremony/Reception Site: Twin Lakes Golf & Swim Club - A+
I think this totally made our wedding. So many compliments on the venue, the food, etc.

Venue Coordinator: Rebecca... she rocks

Chair Covers/Linens: Chair Covers & Linens/Linen Hero - A
Easy to work with, great staff.

Photographer: Amy Boeve - A+
Booked her because she had so many recommendations on here and her work speaks for itself. Love her.

Videographer: Forever Cherished Productions - A (pending video)
Total last minute gametime decision to have a videographer... I fell in love with their work from the clips on their site. I knew they'd do an incredible job. Only took a week or two for them to already have a trailer up and I can't tell you how many people have complimented it.

Florist: Liz @ The Parsonage - A
Super, energetic and fun to work with.

Bakery: Militello's - B
I brought in about 8 photos of cakes I liked and felt sort of pushed into a design (and flavor) that I think the bakery was used to mass producing. After a few conversations, I did have them change the design, but I was not "wowed" by what I saw on the wedding day. Lots of leftovers tho, mmmm.

DJ: Tony Thomas of TNT Sound Productions - A+
Awe.Some. Tony is like a friend to us and we met him completely by chance at our place. We had a special song request/mix and he worked it out with us until it was perfect.

String Quartet: Rondo String Quartet - A
Easy to work with... flawless.

Officiant: Rev. Fred Jolicoeur - A
Rev. Fred made us feel at ease from day one.

Hair: Kim @ Andrew Marke Salon, Rochester - A
She knows her stuff.

Makeup: Aleksandra Adams/I Make You Up - A+
Another Knottie recommendation. Creative and beautiful work.

Bridal Salon/Alterations: Alessandra Bridal - A

Veil: Obridal.com - A+
I worked with them solely via email sending photos of what I liked, etc. Super fast communication and a perfect product. I would recommend them to anyone not looking to spend $200 on a veil!

Headpiece/necklace: Karen @ Crowning Glory, Rochester - A+
One of my favorite vendors, hands down. She spent over 2 hrs with me when I was about a week out from my wedding and helped coordinate my jewelry, etc.

Tux Rentals: President Tuxedo, Rochester - A

Guest Block/Hotel: Courtyard by Marriott, Auburn Hills - B
Eh, communication was so-so. Had to work on the shuttle a bit with them and it still wasn't perfect.

Bridal Shoes: DSW.com - A-
Only A minus because the shoes i wanted weren't in my size originally on the site (only 2 sizes available).

Bridesmaid Dresses: Konja's Bridal - A

Restaurant for rehearsal dinner: Rochester Mills Brewery - A+

MGLI2006 · July 2010

I was married in Lansing, but some of my vendors were from the Detroit area and/or travel. So, I wanted to list these on this board as well.
This will be long....and in no specific order at all.
Brett Maxwell photography. grade: A+++++our preview can be viewed here http://brettmaxwellphoto.com/2010/06/20/ally-and-tj/Click on Preview.You'll see some photos of makeup, hair, table set up, aisle set up, etc. You can use these photos to guide your decisions about our vendors.
Brett-he was AWESOME! Brett did our engagement photos too, which can also be found on his website (brettmaxwellphoto.com) He just offers one package. It included engagement photos and all day for the wedding AND he was the most reasonably priced photographer we found. Besides that, he also knows what he's doing. He's a great person to be around socially, and he really has an eye for photojournalistic photos. He was excellent and I'm so glad we went with him. We're also planning to do a "trash the dress" session with him. So, look for that later.
Twiggies-Beth Herendeen:(www.twiggies.biz) grade: Ashe was my florist, decorator, linen rental, charger rental, etc. She was everything and she was awesome!!! You can see some photos above of the reception set up. I loved my bouquet and all of my girls bouquet's. She was great to work with. She had excellent ideas and built off of what she realized that I wanted for the wedding. Some other florists/decorator's I met with wanted to push their ideas on me. Beth, was able to build the ideas I already had into something amazing.
Limo: www.limogiant.com AKA Millennium Limousines. grade: AWe rented a limo bus. It was great! We were very satisfied. The only thing is we did not get the bus we rented. Again, it was great, just a surprise was all. I'm not sure if we were upgraded or downgraded as I did not actually view the bus in person to begin with (my mother did). Anyways, we had a good time.
Videographer: Truvision Studios www.truvisionstudios.com:grade: A and TBDWe hired Matt and his second shooter. We literally hired them like 2 weeks before the wedding, and I'm so glad we did. Everyone says you won't remember anything that happens on your wedding day, but I thought nahhh no way. WAY! I have no idea what happened the entire day other than saying "I Do". So, my advice, hire a videographer. Matt also did our growing up montage/slideshow for me in a week! I can't wait to see our wedding video!
Reception: Lexington Lansing www.lexingtonlansing.comgrade: AEveryone at the Lexington were AWESOME! I think I dropped off things almost every day the week of the wedding. table cards, menu cards, favors, etc. They set everything up and it was great. All of the staff are so great to work with and the Lexington is beautiful!
Zoe Life Spa and Salon. www.zoelifespasalon.comgrade: AI've gone to Zoe for the past couple of months for eyebrow wax, massage, etc. When I asked them about getting a french manicure for the wedding the told me about this new thing called a gel overlay. See, I have long nails, but I also have oily nail beds. So, everytime I get a mani the polish peals after a matter of hours. The gel overlay makes your nails almost like fake nails, but with out the edward scissor hands feeling. (Whenever I get fake nails I feel like I can't use my hands). It's been 2 weeks since my mani at zoe and my nails still look like I got them done yesterday. Seriously, they are great and I would recommend them for all of the services they offer.
DJ: Steve Thelen - Music Unlimitedwww.musicunlimitedgrandledge.comgrade: B+I really liked Steve. He was great to work with before the wedding. He even bought a special light for our grand entrance that we did to the Chicago Bulls starting line up song. I only grade him slightly down b/c apparently he did not please many of the guests, in particular my brother and my mom. I heard the people would request songs and he wouldn't play them. Instead, he would play a slow song and the dance floor would empty.He also seemed somewhat unsure of himself. Every hour it seemed that he would come up to me to make sure things were going all right. Then, after our grand entrance he followed my husband and I out and took us to the next ballrooms b/c he wanted us to meet his daughter who was DJing in the next room.Like I said, I really enjoyed Steve, but you gotta please the guests too.
Cake: Shorty's Cake n' Bakes www.shortyscakes.comgrade: AWe ordered a small cake from Shorty like 2 weeks before the wedding. It was very plain. We ordered it to have dowels in it and my sister stacked the 2 rounds. Cake wasn't a very big deal on my list. We ordered some loose flowers from Twiggies and my sister put the rounds together and decorated it. It was great for us.
Sweetie-licious: ttp://www.sweetie-licious.com/grade: AWe had a small cake from Shorty's and a bunch of different cookies from Sweetie's. The cookies were sooooo good! This was a hit with our guests. honestly, who doesn't like a good cookie? We had a couple different varieties. One of my friends husband's actually went and bought her some more a couple of days after the wedding for her birthday. She loved them.
VixiDust Designs - Angela Noble: spagirlnoble@hotmail.comgrade: AAngela did my airbrush makeup and also for my mom, MIL, step mom, and 3 of my bridesmaids. I think we all looked great. Best part - the makeup stayed put ALL DAY! I cried and sweated, and it still looked flawless. PLUS-angela is a great person on the inside too! She was great to work with. Also, she came to my bridal suite the morning of.
Stillman's modern Barber's.1701 South Waverly Road Lansing, MI 48917 - (517) 484-4400Grade: AAAA!!We used Danielle Guana (who is my normal stylist) and Mo (not sure of her last name). They popped out 8 hair styles/updos in about 4 hours. Seriously, they rocked it! We had 4 girls with very long, very thick hair too. Everyone looked great. You can see the photos! They also came to my bridal suite. It was really great to just be able to wake up and have everyone come to me. Very convenient for us to hang out in the comfort of our suite instead of a salon.
paper products - vistaprint and Target AND myself!grade:AI designed and ordered our Save the Dates, thank you postcards (shower), thank you cards (wedding), and menus from vistaprint. They are AWESOME!I bought some print yourself invites from target. I purchased paper from www.paperandmore.com and printed inserts. I then bought some ribbon from JoAnn's and tied them together. I think they looked great! I used the extra paper for our programs.
The Wedding Bell - theweddingbell.netgrade: A-I loved the Wedding Bell. They were always so nice and on top of things. I did do a dress search here, but did not find "the one." I called around and ended up going to a place in the Detroit area that had many of the pronovias dresses that I wanted to try on. I did find the one there, and since the Wedding Bell is the only Lansing bridal store that carries Pronovias collection, I ordered it through them. We also then ordered the bridesmaid dresses through them as we got a discount b/c I ordered my dress there. My mom also ordered her dress there (at a discount) and we ordered tuxes there. Myself, my mom, and 2 of my bridesmaids all had alterations done there and Hilda was fantastic! She even made my garter from fabric left over from alterations on my dress. It was great!The only reason I give them a minus is because when my Brother in law went to pick up his tux and his son (my ringbearer) tux, they noticed that my ringbearer's vest and tie matched the groomsmen. It wasn't a huge deal, but he was supposed to match the groom. Also, I did not purchase my veil there, but I did bring it in for my fittings and I did have Hilda do some work on it. I left it with them and planned to pick up the dress along with my veil the Friday of our rehearsal. Well, when I went in the owner could not find my veil. That's a freak out moment right there, but more than that it was my sister's wedding veil that was also my something borrowed. Double freak out! It took a while, but she did find it. Apparently, it had someone else's name written on it! ack! Anyways, the point is they found it and steamed it for me. The only other complaint I have is that though the tuxes looked great, ALL of the guys shoes were horrible. Not in comfort, but their soles were completely worn off and the guides were sliding around. My dad actually went back for another pair b/c his sole was actually falling off.I did love my experience with The Wedding Bell and I would definitely recommend them above any other wedding shop in the Lansing area, I tried them all.
My advice: hire great vendors! I wasn't worried about a thing the day of b/c I knew we'd hired great vendors and had great friends/family there. Just relax and enjoy.Also-make sure you assign food to someone. I asked my step mom to bring some fruit and muffins for us girls to eat for breakfast while we were getting our makeup and hair done. She went above and beyond. She also brought some bread and sandwich meat to the church for sandwiches later. I'm so happy she did! no one passed out!

Hope this helps. Feel free to email me at mgli2006knot@gmail.com if you have any questions.

jennifer0124 · July 2010

Reception: Villa Penna – A+ Villa Penna did a phenomenal job. They made sure the headtable (that’s all I can speak of since I just wanted to eat!) had everything they needed. We made a change to the timeline the day of the wedding and they were right there with us ready to move dinner up. We told the coordinator that morning we were eliminating speeches and Penna’s made it so that nobody even realized they were gone. They packed up the pizza and other goodies for us to take home so we had food that evening and didn’t have to cook that day. Gloria and the coordinators were fantastic and I never had to visit the bar!

Limo: Luxury Limo Detroit – A+ I have heard so many bad things about the Limo companies so I was scared when I received a call from our driver to verify an address. Turns out I couldn’t spell my street when I sent the email and he wanted to make sure he was right. He was on time, the limo was clean, and he even went out to buy a country CD during the ceremony when he heard I was a fan. I would recommend Luxury Limo DETROIT to anybody!

Simplicity Day of Coordination – A+++ Jill and Shelly were so fantastic. Jill was so willing to work with any changes and even made sure everyone knew about the timeline change that morning! We had added a favor that my dad ordered (we didn’t know about it until the day before) and they were ready to roll with it and they were out the tables before the ceremony. I can say so many good things about them: Jill took care of me at the ceremony, made sure I had my drink full all night, packed up everything, emptied the limo…. We didn’t have to worry about a thing! Absolutely fantastic

Flowers: Parsonage – A+ Liz was so willing to work with me that she has ruined me for all other customer service interactions. I had a picture of what I wanted with a few changes. I had no idea what changes I wanted just that I didn’t want exactly what was in the picture. She gave me all my options, ordered them prior to the day so I could see them and knocked it out of the park that day! I couldn’t have been happier with Liz – although I’m not surprised since I have only heard fantastic things about her this last year.

Linens: Royal Linen – A Royal Linen did a great job. They were there at 11am to setup when my reception didn’t start until 530. I knew everything was set to go prior to the ceremony! We were missing silver napkins on headtable. Although if it might be I couldn’t tell the difference between white and silver I apologize and it’s an A+

Officiant: Minister Cory Heck – A+ Minister Heck did a phenomenal job as well. His voice carried through the chapel, we ended up married, everybody complimented his ceremony – what else could I hope for!

DJ: Music Box Productions – A+ Fletcher and Kyle did a great job. They were ready to roll with the changes we made that morning and had everything planned prior to when we arrived. I didn’t give them much to go with because we like just about everything and they did a fantastic job. I can’t say enough good things about them!

Hair Piece: Bella Rose Bridal – A I didn’t want a veil so we started looking at other headpieces. Bella Rose did a great job – delivered on time but we ordered it way early. Couldn’t complain at all.

Hair/Makeup: Bridal Beauty on Location (Kim) – A+++ Kim handled all my sisters questions the entire time very well. Was patient and even showed my BM how to do their eyes from now on. She asked what type of look everyone was going for and made it happen. Everyone is still commenting about how fantastic my one bridesmaid looked. She event commented about how she looked better than she did in her own wedding! Kim also handled the fact I cut off my hair two months before my wedding very well and was ready to go!

Rehearsal Dinner: Marcus Grill – A+ Marcus Grill ended up being a great place for the rehearsal dinner. It was reasonable, people got to order off the menu, and ended up not even equaling what we were planning on spending. They also do party packages (and have a separate banquet room) we just opted not to go with that. I would also recommend them to anyone.

Favors: ShutterBooth – A++++++++

I cannot believe how great ShutterBooth was. I received such great service from the office and was excited to start with but couldn’t believe how great Anthony was that night. He handled my drunk bridal party, his family that wanted to fill the booth as much as they could (16 people) and my 91 year old aunt that was hitting on him. My guest book is an absolute treasure that we plan on adding the invites and some professional pics to as well. Event my grandpa was raving about what a fantastic idea and is so excited to blow up a few pictures and he’s a hard man to please!

stebbe81 · July 2010

Ceremony Site: Mansion at Pine Knob- A-
Reception Site: Mansion at Pine Knob- A-
Caterer: Mansion at Pine Knob- A-
Chair Covers/Linens: The Parsonage- A+
Hair: Deux Adore- A
Makeup: Deux Adore- A
Limo: N/A
Photographer: The Shooting Gallery- A +++
Videographer: S2R Productions- A+
Florist: The Parsonage- A +++
Bakery: The Home Bakery Rochester Hills- B
DJ: Mary Ann Productions- A+++
DOC: Bliss Weddings- C
Photobooth: N/A
Officiant: Family Friend

karolinawsu · July 2010

Ceremony Site: Our Lady of Czestehowa A+
Reception Site: The Palazzo Grande A+
Caterer:
Chair Covers/Linens: Linens & Beyond A
Hair: Bianchis West Salon A+
Makeup: Alexandra Adams A+
Limo: Black Tie Limo C
Photographer: JS Photography A++++
Videographer:
Florist: Wafaa Flowers B+(only because she gave us the wrong flower stands, and thankfully my hubby stopped in to look!!!) But it was gorgeous!
Bakery: Grafs Pastry A ( it sorta melted)
DJ: Rytm Polish Band A
DOC: Jill from Simplicity A+++
Photobooth:

Officiant:

Bridal Salon: Dior Bridal B+ (alterations were expensive)

Rentals:

MsFlicka · August 2010

Most of our vendors were excellent:

Ceremony Site: St. Andrews Episcopal, Ann Arbor, A Not really a "Vendor" since it is our spiritual community and home, but it is a beautiful church, the priest was great to meet with ahead of time and gave excellent advice, very organized for weddings.

Reception Site: My parents house, so A!

Caterer: Katherine's Catering, A, great food, on time, easy to work with, also supplied us with a day of coordinator to put everything together so we didn't have to worry

Chair Covers/Linens: Katherine's Catering, A, beautiful linens, tons of variety and choices, and they were able to make some last minute changes at our request easily

Hair and Makeup: Fran Coys Salon, Ann Arbor, A, they did a beautiful job on all of us, they have a great "special events" room to chill in, water, tea, really friendly staff; also have massages and waxing.

Photographer: Abby Rose, A, amazing photographer, so easy to work with, went right along when we had to make sudden changes to our plan, and has great suggestions for pictures and really knows her stuff. Never missed a moment.

Florist: Tom Thompson, A, flowers were gorgeous, I gave them some suggestions and some pictures and a general "theme" and she just went to town with my vision and created something even more beautiful than I could have imagined myself.

Bakery: Decadent Delights, A, cakes were delicious and beautiful!

DJ: Rob Vedder, Optimum Sound, A, I've been going to weddings that he has DJed since I was about 10 years old and he is great at keeping a party going and feeling a room. Also was able to seamlessly incorporate some Portuguese music we gave him into the mix.

Bridal Salon: Macy's Somerset A - for selection an service, C- for alterations. They have an excellent range of dresses compared to some of the other salons I went to. I had excellent service selecting my dress and ordering. Their staff was friendly and easy to work with, no pressure, very willing to work with my "vision", made great suggestions helping me find the perfect dress. They let me pick the size I ordered and showed me the measurements chart. The dress came in promptly, correctly, and in perfect condition. Their business practices are totally clean, trustworthy, open, none of the bridal salon horror stories that you often hear.

Alterations, however, were a complete nightmare. I give the girl a C because she did, after I BEGGED, consent to do some hand stiching to take my dress in at the waist that was really nice. But my dress was ordered a size up (which I consented to) with the understanding and assurance that it would be taken in to fit properly. The alterations girl said it was "too much work" to take it in the way I wanted, that the salesgirl didn't know what she was talking about when she said the dress could be taken in, and that it fit fine the way it was (it did not fit fine at all - I ordered it a size up from my measurements after all!). She just wanted to do the basic "hem, cups, straps" and didn't want to bother with taking a dress in at the zipper (it had no side seams). She pressured me after my first fitting to not have anymore saying they wouldn't be necessary, because she knew I would just keep asking her to take my dress in. I got the feeling she was overworked and underpaid, and only willing to do the most basic, routine alterations. Rather than take the dress in properly she did what my sister called a "high school theater costume job" that luckily was so cheap that another seamstress was able to take it out easily and alter the dress properly, which takes me too...

Seamstress: Clothing Cove, Milford A. This place is AMAZING. This is where my mom got her mother of the Bride dress, and her seamstress here agreed to do my dress when I needed a new seamstress. They did an excellent job, did exactly what I wanted (took the zipper out and took in the dress there several inches), and did it for less then HALF of what alterations cost at the bridal salon.

Rentals: Special Events Rental, A. Just flat out the best rental company ever, for tents, flooring, lighting excellent variety of tables an chairs. They agreed to put stuff up several days early, and were flexible when we made some last minute changes. Their people, from sales to workmen, are very knowledgable, full of ideas, and the workmen putting stuff up were able to make some great suggestions last minute. Beautiful showroom.

cmkuno · August 2010

Full reviews are in my bio!
Ceremony Site: Cathedral of the Most Blessed Sacrament, Detroit = A+

Reception Site: The Heather's Club, Bloomfield Hills = A++
Caterer: done by the reception site
Chair Covers/Linens: rented napkins from the Parsonage = A
Hair: Stephanie from Deux Adore = A-
Makeup: Jen from Deux Adore = A-
Photographer: Melissa Squires from A Girl in Love Photography = A++
Videographer: Forever Cherished Productions (Simply Ceremony) = so far, A+
Florist: The Parsonage in Clarkston = A+++
Bakery: The Jefferson Market Cakery, Ann Arbor = B
Band: U of M school of music student jazz quartet (PM me for contact info) = A+++

Alterations: Quality Alterations in Frankenmuth = A
Bridesmaid Dresses: David's Bridal = A

Tuxedos: President's Tuxedo = A-

Rings: Amazon.com = A+

B-pics & "Rock the Dress" shoot: Lovella Photography = A+

Hotel: The Hilton Suites in Auburn Hills = B

jodyk23 · August 2010

Ceremony/Reception Site: Cleary University, Howell - A+
Caterer/Coordinator: Pure & Simple Events, Brighton - B+
Hair: The Town Shop Salon, Howell - A
Makeup: Alekandra Adams, Novi - A
Carriage: Ann Arbor Carriage, Ann Arbor - A+
Shuttle Service: Hillside Chauffuered Services, Milford - C (sent us a 5 person car, not a 14 person shuttle as requested)
Photographer: Essence of Life Photography, South Lyon - A+
Videographer: Wedding Crashers, Algonac - A+
Florist: April Irelynn Designs, Trenton - A+
Bakery: Lakes Cakes, Commerce Twp - A+
DJ: Starflight Productions, Brighton - A

Officiant: Reverend Frederick Jolicoeur, Milford - A

Bridal Salon: B. Ella Bridal, Ann Arbor - A
Tuxedos: Brighton Tux Shop, Brighton - A+

leeshab1982 · August 2010

This is super long and detailed, but hopefully it'll be helpful! Feel free to email me at ambecker625 @ gmail with any questions.

Ceremony & Reception - Fern Hill Golf and Country Club

($40.95/person for ultimate wedding package...includes centerpieces, chair covers and sashes, appetizers, buffet dinner, dessert table, and late night pizza )

Ceremony - C, Reception - A+

http://www.fernhillcc.com/

Our ceremony was outside in their garden gazebo next to the golf course. They promised they'd have the cart path blocked off during our ceremony and they didn't. There were carts zipping by and they were pretty loud. There were also some very loud people in the parking lot right outside the fence. I know this wasn't Fern Hill's fault, but it was frustrating that no one was there to ask them to quiet down. My photographer ended up going over there. Everything else with the ceremony was great though. The reception was fabulous! The food was delicious, great service, and they brought everything out on time...appetizers, dinner, dessert table, and late night pizza. The bartenders and servers were so nice. The main server even saved us a pizza to take back to our hotel room. I highly recommend working with Lance in their banquet office. He was so helpful and accommodating!

Officiant - Linda from Secular Ceremony ($275)

A+

http://www.secularceremony.com/

Linda was absolutely amazing!! She was great with communicating via email, which was most convenient for me because I can't talk on the phone while at work. She guided us through planning our entire ceremony, met with us in person, came to our rehearsal, filed our marriage certificate for us, and she even typed up a keepsake copy of our ceremony in our wedding colors and sent it to us in the mail. I love her!!

DJ – Josh from Big Foot DJs ($770 for ceremony and reception)

A+

http://www.bigfootdjs.com/

Josh was super nice and easy to work with. He is always entertaining but never over the top or cheesy at all. He kept the dance floor packed all night and managed to play pretty much all of our requests. He also provided the music and microphone for our ceremony. He even brought me a few drinks throughout the night and checked on me to see if I needed anything. I highly recommend Josh! His assistant, Charlie, was great as well.

Photo booth – Rock the Booth ($650)

A+

www.rockthebooth.com

Mara is awesome!! She was always super quick to respond to my emails and answered very thoroughly. The photo booth was such a hit at our wedding. People are still telling us how much fun they had in it!! The scrapbook is hilarious, too! I have looked at it like a hundred times already. We ended up purchasing the acrylic frames from Mara, as well. We made inserts for them and used those as our escort cards and then people put the photo strips in them later after visiting the booth. I love how that worked out. I highly recommend Rock the Booth!

Photographer – Mark from MPK Photo ($800)

A

http://www.mpk-photo.com/Site/Home.html

I will start by saying that we got an incredible deal with our pictures. Mark misquoted us a price in an email, but honored it even though it’s less than what he normally charges. He includes engagement pictures in the package, and those turned out great! He is very creative and is definitely good at what he does. Our wedding pictures turned out beautiful! He took so many pictures of the details and lots of candid shots. I am so pleased with all of our photos!! The only negative thing I would say about Mark is that he isn’t always quick with responding to emails/phone calls. Other than that, amazing!

Videographer – John Kerfoot from Trifoot Productions ($1295)

Grade pending…haven’t received video yet

http://www.trifoot.com/Tri-Foot_Productions/Home.html

We lucked out because we booked about a year in advance and John recently switched over to shooting in HD (and prices went up because of this), so we got the HD package for the lower price. Nice! John did a few of my friends’ weddings and they were really happy with their videos. I’m confident mine will be just as good! John is great about responding to emails and answering questions. We hardly even noticed he was there on our wedding day. He stays out of the way and just gets those natural moments. I can’t wait to see what he puts together for us!

Florist – April from April Irelynn Designs

A+

I don't think she has a website, but here is the link to her facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/people/April-Irelynn-Dsg/1161221022#!/profile.php?id=1161221022

April did such a great job with our flowers! They were soooo beautiful! When I first met with April, I knew right away that I wanted to book her. She was the only florist that I met with that didn’t try to talk me into something that I didn’t want. She didn’t turn her nose up at my small flower budget like some other florists did. She beat all of the other quotes I got by hundreds of dollars and gave me nicer flowers! I paid around $900 for 2 kinds of roses, ranunculus, hydrangea, and spray roses in 1 bride bouquet, 6 bridesmaid bouquets, 8 bouts, 5 corsages, and 20 centerpieces. Plus she threw in a free toss bouquet and rose petals for the cake table. I highly recommend April. She’s awesome!!

DOC – Rachel from A Beautiful Day Events ($325)

A+

http://www.abeautifuldayeventsmi.com/

I really cannot say enough good things about Rachel. She kept me on track leading up to the wedding and was extremely organized and responsive to emails. She reminded me of several things that I never would have thought of on my own. Our wedding day was so stress free thanks to her! She set everything up, fixed any minor problems that came up, and had everything packed up and in my sister’s van at the end of the night. She also helped out with our ceremony, which was really great of her because that wasn’t included in our package. I think that this is the best money that I spent and I would highly, highly, highly recommend Rachel to any bride out there!! She is amazing!

Hotel Block – Hampton Inn in Sterling Heights ($94/night room rate)

A

http://hamptoninn.hilton.com/en/hp/hotels/index.jhtml?ctyhocn=DTTSHHX

The Hampton Inn at 16 Mile and Van Dyke is very nice and the rooms are updated and clean. They offered to do the shuttle for us if we had 5 rooms booked, which we did. Our family/friends loved the shuttle…they are big drinkers and were so happy to have a DD! The room rate also included hot breakfast in the morning, which was super yummy! We were actually late getting down there and they had stopped serving breakfast, but they went in the back and got us a plate to take up to our room. I thought that was really nice of them. Also, the night desk guy let our guests swim and party in the pool all night long. He told them to go have a good time and he’d clean up their mess in the morning. I’m not sure if that’s a common thing or not, but everyone was happy to hang out a little longer after the reception. The only thing that I didn’t like was that they wouldn’t give us a free room even though we had 15 rooms booked with them. I was hoping they would.

Bridal Gown – Eva’s Bridal in Garden City

A

http://evasbridal.net/

The ladies at Eva’s were always nice and helpful. When I went to buy my dress, I told them that I saw the dress cheaper at another store (only $50 cheaper) and asked them if they’d price match. They said they couldn’t do anything to the price of the dress, but they’d throw in a free veil of my choice to make up the difference. I thought that was great because the veil I picked out was over $100 and I didn’t have to go elsewhere to look for it. The dress came in on time and I didn’t have any issues. I didn’t get alterations done there, just the dress purchase.

Bridesmaid Dresses – Konja’s in Berkley

A+

http://www.konjasbridal.com/

I was very happy with the service at Konja’s. I love that their prices include alterations. I had 3 pregnant bridesmaids (2 were pregnant at the time of the wedding and one had given birth 2 months prior) so they required lots of alterations as their bodies kept changing! The seamstress was always super nice to them and let them come in the week of the wedding just to make sure they wouldn’t grow or shrink anymore before the wedding day. All of the girls looked amazing and their dresses fit them perfectly. Highly recommend Konja’s!

Tuxedos – President Tuxedo

B

We went to the Oakland Mall location and the guys were always very nice and helpful. The only reason I gave them a B is because when we went to pick up the tuxes, one of the guys had a ripped shirt and we had to wait for it to be sewn. Not really a big deal, but you’d think they’d notice something like that before handing it off to a customer. Also, it took a long time to get the paperwork for the $100 Visa gift card that they advertise. We had to call 3 times after the wedding trying to find out how to get the gift card. We finally got the paperwork in the mail a few weeks ago. The tuxes were very nice and the employees were always polite and helpful.

Cake – Husband’s sweet grandma! A+++++ She’s amazing! 83 years old and made us a beautiful cake from scratch. I love her!!

Seamstress – My amazing cousin! A+++++ She made that dress fit me like a glove. She saved me a ton of money! J

All paper items – ME! Of course A+++++!! I did order the paper from www.paperandmore.com and they were great. The paper was shiny, beautiful and very good quality.

Rings – Jared Galleria of Jewelry in Madison Heights

B

We purchased my engagement ring, wedding ring, DH’s wedding ring, plus he bought me diamond earrings and a necklace from there as a wedding present. The only reason they are getting a B and not an A+ is because of an incident with my husband’s ring. Long story short…they sized his finger with the wrong sizer, made him pay extra to have the ring sized up because the store sample was too small, ring fell off in Mexico on our honeymoon because it was too big, when we went to buy a replacement the employees laughed and thought it was funny that he lost it, turns out you can order the ring in your size from the manufacturer rather than paying the extra money to have it sized up. When we complained, they did refund the money that we paid to have the ring sized up, so that was good. Other than this, Jared has always been excellent to us!

Makeup – Aleksandra Adams from I Make You Up ($40 trial/$80 wedding day, $50/bridesmaid)

A+

http://www.imakeyouup.com/

Aleksandra is great at what she does!! She made me look and feel so pretty. I got the airbrush foundation and it was fabulous. Stayed on all day and never got oily or greasy looking. All of my bridesmaids loved their makeup, too. She is definitely worth the money!

Hair – my wonderful MOH! She is my normal stylist, so of course she did my hair for the wedding. She’s amazing! Love her!!

Rehearsal Dinner – Villa Penna Restaurant ($13.95/person)

A+

http://www.pennasbanquets.com/gallery_restaurant.asp

We did the pizza, salad, and pasta meal in the bocce room at Villa Penna Restaurant. The food was so delicious! Best pizza I’ve had in a long time!! That bocce room is perfect for a gathering like a rehearsal dinner. We had our own private room, bar and bartender (not included in the price/person), a TV, 2 bocce courts, and lots of room to mingle. They served the food family style and let us bring in our own cakes for dessert, which they cut and served for us at no extra charge. I highly recommend this venue. It’s very affordable and a nice atmosphere for a big group.

Honeymoon – Grand Palladium Royal Suites Yucatan, Riviera Maya, Mexico ($2400)

A+

http://www.fiestahotelgroup.com/en/Hotels/Destination/America/Mexico/Riviera-Maya/The-Royal-Suites-Yucatan-by-Palladium

This place was AMAZING!! We really did feel like royalty staying in their Royal Suites. Just a few of the perks were top shelf liquor, adults only section of resort, butler, pillow menu, golf cart service to drive us wherever we wanted on resort, unlimited reservations at resort restaurants, private restaurant for Royal Suites guests, stacked bar in room – refilled daily, Jacuzzi outside on balcony, 2 Sony flat screen TVs, unlimited free room service, and private section on beach with cabana beds. I know I’m forgetting some stuff, too! The food was great, drinks were strong and delicious, spa was awesome, service was great at every restaurant and bar, and such beautiful grounds. We definitely got a great deal on this trip! I highly recommend the Royal Suites!!

Travel Agent – Shelly Andrus @ Brookside Travel in Northville (free)

A+

sandrus@jebrookside.com

Shelly was unbelievably helpful in planning our honeymoon. We had no idea where we wanted to go or what we could afford. She was extremely thorough and responsive with her emails. She found us a great deal to a beautiful resort and we couldn’t be happier! We are planning on going on vacation with a few friends next year and I will definitely going back to Shelly. Highly recommend!!

Kimbus 87 · August 2010

We had a rather simple wedding but it turned out great and just what we wanted. We were supper happy w/our budget (under $10,000 for everything!). Any questions feel free to ask.

Ceremony Site: Waterford Community Bible Church A- ($300 for pastor)
The church was HOT but other than that all worked out and was well.
Reception Site: Myth Golf and Banquet A (#36/pp + tax and gratituity)
Food was good but the golf cart/picture was a BLAST! Something we will never forget and is talked about all the time.
Photographer: Kris from Kreativ Imaging ($1500) B
Took a little over 2 months to get pictures....any pictures that is. No teasers or anything. There weren't as many as I thought there would be. There was literally a handful of pics of me, DH and our 2 kids --- which was what the day was about to us and he knew.
Florist: Sam's club and SIL did the work. Cost $200 for ALL flowers

A
Bakery: Sam's Club. We just had a small cake and cupcakes. Everyone loved them and said they tasted great. Actually DJ took the left overs home because they were so good. Cost $75 A+
DJ: Mar LaRochelle from Night and Day. ($950) A++++++ LOVE Marc. He had the dance floor packed all night. All of our engaged friends or about to be engaged friedns took his card and plan on booking him.
FG Dress: Davids Bridal -- bought off ebay. A
My Dress: It was a David's Bridal Dress but I bought it off ebay. Got a killer deal on it and LOVED my dress. A
Alterations: Dee in White Lake A++++++ She worked on my dress and had it done in under a week -- that was including a 4 day holiday weekend when she went out of town. The dress was beautiful!

eadeluca · August 2010

Ceremony/Receptioon Site: Belle Isle Casino. Detroit, MI A

-i think it was $1000 for rental

-had our ceremony downstairs & reception upstairs, worked out great. beautiful building with a light up dance, good price, includes table & chair set up. had tons of compliments on the building, and we didn't even decorate it at all. only downside is that you can't set up until 2 hours prior to event.

Caterer: Events of Excellence. Southfield, MI F

-about $8000 for everything (linens, food, servers, china) for 150 people

-very disorganized, forgot rented equipment. owner was very unprofessional. food was actually good, but not worth the hassle. now owner refuses to return my calls about promised credit for forgotten items.
Chair Covers/Linens: Discount Linen Rental. Detroit, MI B

-booked through our caterer, but was reasonably priced & looked great.

Hair/Makeup: Deux Adore A

-hair about $65 & makeup about $55

-jen & stephanie did a great job, everybody looked great & my hair & makeup stayed all night.
Photographer: Arglye Photography A

-$1000 includes a lot of prints

-Erin did a great job, photographs are beautiful & was great to work with, very professional.

Florist: Flowers by Amore. Lathrup Village, MI A

-total was $1200, had 22 tables

-flowers & bouquets looked amazing for a great price! they let me bring my own vases for centerpieces. Set-up everything. very nice & professional.
Bakery: Lakes Cakes A

-i think it was about $500 for 150 person cake with filling

-cake was delicious & looked great, i actually got tons of compliments on how it tasted & it was vegan, she also made me a small gluten free cake for us free of charge. heidi was great to work with
DJ: used ipod, worked awesome & saved us lots of money
Officiant: The Wedding Connection. A

-$400

-Miriam did a great job, she helps you write & plan your ceremony. was calm & organized on the day of. She didn't even flinch when we told her we forgot the mic. very professional.

Bridal Salon: Brides by Demetrios. Troy, MI B

-shopping for the dress was great, however after dress was purchased they were slightly less helpful when I came in to try it on & for bridesmaid dress shopping

Hotel: Motorcity Hotel & Casino. Detroit, MI A+

-$200 for night

-beautiful hotel & room, & the front desk was super nice about all the people coming in to our room to get ready on the day of.

Alterations: Bella Alterations. Livonia, MI A-

-about $150

-did a great job for a great price, one of the buttons for my bustle was missing, so i had to pin it, still worked great.

feel free to email me with any questions about my vendors or wedding eadeluca@gmail.com

cwimer6154 · August 2010

Ceremony Site: Longacre House of Farmington Hills - A-
It's an absolutely beautiful location for an indoor or outdoor wedding. A little on the pricey side and they don't have central air so our 90 degree, 90% humidity day was a little rough on the group but overall it was a lovely venue.

Reception Site: St. Mary's Cultural Center - A+
I have nothing but wonderful things to say about St. Mary's. It's affordable, good location and the staff was more than helpful and cooperative throughout the whole process. The food was delicious, you can bring in your own liquor...oh and did I mention the price!!

Chair Covers/Linens: Elegant Linens, LLC - A+
Jessica was awesome to work with! We did everything via email, I never actually spoke to her or saw her in person. She was prompt to reply to emails and the linens were perfect. They came promptly at the end of the night to take away the chair covers and sashes.

Hair: Tomy Lulgjuraj @ 6 Salon - A+
Tomy is a true artist. The fee is a little pricey but it was worth every penny by far. I loved my hair for the wedding and I had tons and tons of compliments from my guests. The BP had their hair done by the staff at the salon and they all did amazing work! I love 6 Salon!!

Makeup: Aleksandra Adams @ I Make You Up - A
Aleksandra is a true artist. There was a little confusion on the day of in regards to the timing, but it all worked out in the end. Her and her assistant worked their magic on me and my five bridesmaids and we all looked and felt super HOT on the wedding day!

Limo: Millennium Limos - A+
After reading so many bad reviews on so many limo companies, I didn't think I'd ever find an affordable or reliable company. We booked them at a bridal show and saved some money doing it that way. We booked the F350 Harley Davidson stretch limo and it was absolutely bad*ss! This was one thing I left to DH and I'm glad we did. The company is professional, affordable and reliable!!

Photographer: Tammy LaBar - A+ (pending photos)
I haven't seen the photos yet from the wedding but Tammy was an absolute blast to work with. Her and her two assistants worked their butts off for us on the wedding day in the super hot and humid weather. They made us all feel very comfortable during the shoot. We had our e-pics done with Tammy and absolutely loved them so I have no fear that our wedding pics will be even better!

Florist: Floral Expressions By Kathy - A-
Kathy is a local eco-friendly florist. She works mainly with local vendors and cares very much how her business affects the environment which DH and I both appreciated. Kathy's work is modern and unique. I loved how our flowers turned out but they were a tiny bit smaller than I had envisioned for the price. And her communication skills leave much to be desired. She was actually quite bad at returning emails and phone calls...she always had an excuse though when I complained. In the end we were very pleased with the product.

Bakery: Just Baked Cupcake Shop - A+
We had the cutest cupcake tower ever!! Just Baked is a great company! The cupcakes are delicious and the tower was a very festive addition to the reception. We had so many compliments on the cupcakes and the concept as a whole. I highly recommend them to anyone for any occasion as their prices are much more affordable than a traditional cake.

DJ: Bigfoot DJ's - B+
Overall, DJ's Misty and Charles did a pretty good job at our reception. I felt the company's communication during the planning process lacked professionalism. I had to reach out to them when the wedding was only 5 days away and I hadn't heard from anyone since we booked them a year prior. There was some confusion about who our DJ was going to be but we worked that out fairly easily. There was also a few things at the reception that I didn't care for but I'll get into that when I do my full vendor reviews in my Married Bio.

DOC: Rachel @ A Beautiful Day Events - A+++++
Rachel is by far the best vendor we had!! She was worth every penny (which didn't break the bank by the way). She was professional, prompt, helpful, organized, informative, and the list could go on and on! She made our day go as smooth as humanly possible which allowed us and our family to enjoy our day to its fullest potential. I highly recommend her!!

Officiant: Kirk Haas - Secular Ceremonies - A+

Kirk was a fantastic pastor. He is kind, funny, intelligent and professional. He's affordable and flexible too. I recommend him to anyone who wants a nondenominational minister.

Alterations: Mary Sumey-Rodzcewicz - A+
Mary is a seamstress who works out of her home in Garden City. She is a funny little lady who is great at her craft. She's affordable, fast and easy to work with. I had her take my dress in, remove the halter strap, add boning to the sides, add the bustle, shorten the lining and she cleaned and pressed my dress, slip and veil all for $195. Totally worth every penny!

Paper: Amy Yocum - A+
Amy is a family friend who is starting her paper business as a side job. She does everything by hand is very affordable. I had the most compliments on her invites, thank you's and signs for the reception. Her info is in my planning bio so look her up if you're interested!

Bridal Salon: David's Bridal - A
I really had a great experience with David's. All of the sales people we dealt with were friendly and knowledgable. The dress was affordable and was ordered and delivered in a very reasonable amount of time. The bridesmaids all had very similar experiences too. No problems or complaints here!

Tuxedos: Mens Wearhouse - A
We also had a great experience with the sometimes-not-so-popular MW. All of the guys had no problems, the tuxes fit and were picked up and dropped off successfully. DH also received his free suit for having 8 tux rentals and it's a really nice suit!

Hotel: Courtyard Marriott Livonia - A-
While there was some confusion during the planning process on who our event coordinator was, as well as some confusion on how many rooms were booked at various times, everything turned out great in the end. All of my guests were accomodated with reasonably priced rooms and no one had any complaints. The front desk was kind and courteous to all of our guests during the weekend of the wedding. No complaints here overall!

Shuttle Service: Royal Transportation - A+++++
While this company was not one of our direct vendors (it was the shuttle service provided by Courtyard Marriott), they were so great they are worthy of a separate review!! The shuttle was clean, the driver was nice and the service was timely and efficient. The kicker is that I happened to lose my purse on the shuttle after the reception. I didn't realize this until 2am. The front desk gave me the phone number and I was actually able to speak to someone on call at 2am!! The girl on the phone was sympathetic and kind. She ended up calling me on Sunday morning to tell me my purse was locked in the supervisor's safe and would be available to be picked up on Monday morning. So we had to make a quick stop to Detroit before our honeymoon, but my purse was there and all of its contents so all was well in my world after that. They were an awesome company!!!

Overall, the 17 months of planning was worth every penny and minute we put into it. This board helped make our day a huge success and I hope to help some future Knotties make their day just as special as ours was. Good luck!

clusk01 · August 2010

Ceremony Site: White House Wedding Chapel
Reception Site: Royal Oak Elks Lodge
Caterer: In-House Caterer
Chair Covers/Linens: Affordable Events by Chris
Hair: TBD
Makeup: Airbrush Face & Body by Devawn
Limo: n/a
Photographer: LaRoche Photography
Videographer: n/a
Florist: Affordable events by Chris
Bakery: Family Friend
DJ: we have a local cover band Threshold they will be dj'ing in between as well
DOC: Affordable events by Chris
Photobooth: n/a

Officiant: White House Wedding Chapel

Bridal Salon: David's Bridal

Rentals: n/a

corinne2010 · August 2010

Ceremony Site: Holy Cross Lutheran-A
I loved this place from the moment I saw it. The office manager was great to work with and was very helpful. The church itself gets an A, but the wedding coordinator I was assigned got a C.

Wedding Coordinator at Church-C
When you book a ceremony at this church, you are required to have a wedding coordinator from the church. I was told that right after booking the church, I would be assigned a coordinator and they would call me. A few months went by and I never got a call. Finally the coordinator called and we set up a meeting to check out the church and just figure out where the girls would be and where the guys would be. She was in charge 100% of the time at the rehearsal and it was her way or no way. I could tell our officiant didn't really like how bossy she was being and even on the day of the wedding, she was trying to tell me to do something different than what we practiced. As a result, she wasn't listening to the music queue and ended up opening the doors late. I was really the only one that noticed, but still.

Officiant: Reverend Fred Jolicoeur-A+
Reverend Fred was awesome. He did such a good job at the rehearsal and at the ceremony. I was very pleased with the ceremony we chose and got so many compliments on how nice and personal it was.

Reception Hall: The Meeting House Grand Ballroom-A+
Randy and Mary were awesome throughout the entire process. I booked them back in November of 2008 and had visited for decoration ideas and called multiple times with random questions. They were so accomodating and I loved that. They were very nice to all of our guests! Their venue is amazing and well worth the $$$ we spent. The food was outstanding. For those that are leary about booking this place because they don't offer a tasting, I have to say that we have never had so many compliments about the food. It was excellent and I'm so happy everything turned out perfectly!

Wedding Coordinator: Divine Events-A+
Theresa, the owner, was awesome. She was a life saver and I don't know what my day would have been like if she wasn't around! If you are on the fence about a wedding coordinator or even a DOC, I would say it is well worth the money. I had such a relaxing day because she was doing all the running around and contacting people when they weren't on time. She did a fabulous job!

Cupcakes: Sorella's Bakery-A
I loved our cupcakes and cake! They did such an awesome job with the flavors we wanted and everyone loved the flavors. They're reasonably priced and allowed us to rent their cupcake tier for a small charge. I'm so happy we chose to do cupcakes over cake. Everyone thought it was such a unique idea and I have some great pics of the cupcake cake!

Flowers: Bakman Florist-A+++
Brian, the owner, is out of this world. I owe him big time. He gave us an amazing deal on flowers. Our concept for the CP were to have each CP be a different flower. That table would then be the flower name instead of a table number. He loved the idea and really did a great job at getting all the flowers together. He also made 2 altar arrangements which dubbed as decorations at the reception. My bouquet was perfect and all the BM bouquets turned out great too! The bouts and flowers for the mothers and readers turned out great as well. Overall, he did much more than what he charged us for and I was greatly appreciative of that.

Photographer: Kreativ Imaging-A+++ (pending photos)
Kris and his assistant were great! Despite being a little late, he jumped right in and started taking pictures of us getting ready. The sneak peaks we got back are amazing and I can't wait to see the rest of them. Our guests and BP kept commenting on how awesome he was doing. He even posted a preview for our guests at the reception of some pics that were taken earlier in the day. He did a great job and was very affordable. He was by far one of my favorite vendors we booked!

Videographer: Paul Briles-A+ (pending video)
I was on the fence about getting a videographer. A former Knottie used him and I saw her wedding video and it was great. For $400, I couldn't pass it up. He was great. I barely knew he was there filming and I can't wait to get the video. Again, for those not sure if you can afford a videographer, I highly recommend him. I will definitely post the video once we get it back!

DJ: Sunshine Entertainment-A++++
Paul is great at what he does and you can tell he loves doing it. He kept the dance floor packed the entire night. I spent the majority of my time on the dance floor and so did most of our guests. He played alot of the songs we requested and also took requests from our guests during dinner and the cocktail hour. He was a little late getting to the reception, but he had a very good reason. He became a grandpa on our wedding day earlier in the afternoon! I had no idea this happened until after the reception, but I would have never known. He was very professional and organized. The last dance was by far the greatest part of the night. I loved every minute of it and a few other engaged couples that attended our wedding have called and booked him since. He's very affordable and has unlimited hours.

Chair Covers: Sposa Seating-B+
Maya did a great job with the chair covers. I did have a problem contacting her toward the end to figure out how much I owed her and when she needed the final payment. I know we also discussed getting about 25-26 napkins for our CP. She didn't have that anywhere on file. She didn't have any napkins in the color I requested available, so we had to call at the last minute to get some. It ended up working out in the end, but I was still a bit disappointed that she missed that request.

Invitations/Seating Chart/Programs/Extra Signage: So In Love Invitations-A+
I love Kristie. She is such a sweetheart and did an awesome job with our invitations and extras. The seating chart turned out great and I'm so glad we chose to do that. We had so many compliments about our invites and programs, I'm so happy I booked her. She was a bit difficult to get a hold of for a time, but she was busy with completing her Bachelor's degree. I know she has drastically cut back on her business and hopefully she picks it up again because she truly has an amazing talent!

Limo: A Dream Limousine-A
We were looking for a limo company that had a 3 hour package. We didn't need anything for 5 hours. DH called this company and had a really good deal going on. Our driver was punctual in getting us all to the church on time and picking us up from the hotel. She did get lost leaving the church and as a result, we ended up going over our time. She didn't charge us, but we ended up giving her a tip in addition to the tip we already gave her. She was awesome. The party bus was a 20 person bus. It was a tight squeeze because of all the coolers we had, but we made do with what we had and there weren't any problems.

Make up: I Make You Up-A
Alex was awesome! We were having some problems trying to figure out when we would do my trial and she ended up having to come to my house while she was sick, but she did a great job. She sent her assistant to do my make up on the day of which I was completely fine with. Katerina did the make up on the day of and it looked exactly the way it looked when Alex did it. I'm so glad I got airbrush because it was hot and steamy that day and my make up lasted the entire day and well into the night.

Hair: Friends-A++
All the BM got their hair done by two of my close friends. They came to the hotel and all the girls were very pleased with their hair. A close family friend of my mom's did mine and I loved it. None of our hair fell out or flatened. The humidity was horrible, but everything looked great!

Bridal Salon: Dior Bridal-B
I ordered my dress from here only because they had a trunk show for Maggie Sotterro gowns. Of course the staff was nice the day I was placing the order, but when I went to pick it up, they couldn't have cared less. No one offered a room for me to try my dress on. I had to ask. Then when we got into the dressing room, I needed a slip and it took forever to get someone to bring me one. Their excuse was that it was very busy that day. There were maybe 4 or 5 girls there trying on dresses. I didn't need any help getting in my dress because I went with some BM and my mom. I just needed a fitting room and a slip. They were not very helpful at all.

BM Dresses: Moni's Bridal-A
Despite all the bad reviews I've heard about Moni's, I decided to order the BM dresses from there and had no issues what so ever. Moni was very helpful and all the girls' dresses fit them perfectly.

Alterations: Mary in Garden City-B+
Mary is very good at what she does. I just didn't understand why I needed to have 6 fittings for my dress. From the first time I went there, I showed her something that I wanted to be fixed. Every time I went back, it wasn't done. At my final fitting it was fixed, but something else was wrong. My mom ended up having to pick it up on Friday before the wedding and the string to lace up had a huge black mark on it. My mom had to wait for her to get it out. I was also concerned that the top would be too big. It was. I wasn't super uncomfortable, but I wasn't comfortable. Everything else like the bustle, the veil, the hem, the earrings I ordered from her, the flip flops I got from her, the unity candle, and the bracelet they made for me was perfect! Mary gave me a great deal on my dress alterations and even let me borrow the slip for free. Even with all the minor issues I had, I think she does amazing work and is excellent at what she does.

Tuxedos: Men's Warehouse-E
They fail. Plain and simple. DH is a bigger guy and he specifically asked if they had a longer vest where it would cover him. He went to go pick his suit up on Tuesday before the wedding, it wasn't what he asked for. We were there on Friday at 3:00 pm picking up his tux. They ended up finding a longer vest for him, but the design on the vest was different than the other guys. No big deal. His shirt was also way too long so they had to fix it. My dad also had some problems with his tux. His pants were too short and his shirt was too long. They ended up fixing it, but it was a bit irritating that he had to make multiple trips to get his tux fixed. Some of the other GM had problems as far as not being helped and the sales staff not being very friendly. Overall, I think DH should have been treated better. He was very upset and afraid he was going to feel uncomfortable on his own wedding day. Having a tux ready the night before the wedding was cutting it a bit too close.

Rehearsal Dinner: Aubrees in Northville-A+
I'm so glad we decided to have a pizza and salad buffet instead of a fancy dinner. It was a very laid back atmosphere and all the food was excellent. We were a little packed back in their banquet room, but it wasn't a big deal.

Hotel Block: Courtyard Marriott in Livonia-D-
I was very excited when the sales lady called me after two months of contacting them about booking a block of rooms. Their initial requirement was that we had to have 20 rooms booked in order to get the free shuttle. Also if we didn't book all 20 rooms, then we were financially responsible for the rooms. Their room rate was $89/night at that time too. When they contacted me, they were willing to give me a free shuttle if we booked 10 rooms at $79/night. I said sign me up! We also got a king suite at the $79 room rate for both Friday and Saturday. Their communication skills suck royally. I called multiple times around the time when our reservation cut off approached. I was always transferred to a service center where people did reservations for multiple hotels. One time I called they said they didn't even have our wedding block, another time I called they said we booked a diferent hotel than we really did, and there were other times where no one and I mean no one could tell me how many rooms had been booked. It was a huge cluster. The day after the wedding, I had to pick something up at the front desk and the ladies there said they had quite a few complaints about our wedding party. I flat out told them that it was their fault for not putting us all in one spot. They disbursed us rather than keeping us all together. Not my problem. The shuttle service was great. I didn't hear one bad thing about that.

If you have any questions about these reviews, e-mail me at cnpouch at gmail dot com!

emily1004 · August 2010

Ceremony/Reception/Caterer: Detroit Novi Sheraton Hotel- A+++

They were so amazing in every way! I never had any issues with anything. They had everything under control and they were very accommodating to all my vendors. We had so many complements on the food. People told us it was the best food they ever had at a wedding. Even when our wedding guest got a little too loud in the guest rooms at an after party, security moved them down to the 2nd floor where there were only board rooms. This way they never disturbed any guest. They let them party until 5 in the morning!

Chair Covers/Linens: Couture Chair Collection- A+

They were so reasonably priced! The chair cover, charger plates and lines were beautiful! Anita or Sue always got back to my emails in a timely manner.

Rentals: MPE Events A+

They were wonderful with all the lighting, draping, and our chuppah. They were a little pricey but totally worth with. Mark and his staff bent over backwards for me. They were so accommodating with me and I changed my mind 100 times!

Hair: Taja from Avalon Salon- A

She came to me and my hair looked great. Her salon is an Avada Salon. I normally like Avada products but I didn't like the hair spray she used.

Makeup: Suzanne Skorich A

Laura Mercier make-up. She also came to me. Unlike a lot of other make up artist, she knows how to do make-up for the camera, which makes a huge difference.

Limo: Millennium Limo-A+

Great prices, a clean limo and a great driver. Best limo company around IMO. I use them for any special occasion!

Photographer: Casey Irey Photography-A

Beautiful pictures. I was a little hesitant because I didn't think she was really my style, but then I saw my pictures. The only thing I wish I had done was hire a second photographer to get shots she missed. Her prices are wonderful!

Videographer: John Kerfoot- Tri-Foot Productions- A+

Amazing in every way! He did everything we asked, and I hardly ever knew he was there video taping us. With his video skills he should be charging three times more than what he does! My DH and I should know, we both majored in Broadcasting.

Florist: Happiness Is....A Little Flower Shop B

Most everything was very pretty. On the up side, Carol was very accommodating to me, I changed my mind 100 times there too. I was a little disappointed with my center pieces, even though it was what I though I asked for. They looked a little cheesy. Also, my DOC said she was putting out business cards on the tables. I thought that was kinda tacky. But all in all I would hire them again.

Cake: Milford Baking Company A+++

My cake not only looked absolutely gorgeous, it tasted amazing too!

Plus it was a fraction of the price than other bakeries. They charge per tier NOT per person. Even before I met my DH I knew I wanted my wedding cake from there.

Challah Bread: Dakota Bakery A+++

OMG! Their bread is like cake!! SO GOOD! Best challah in all of Metro Detroit!

DJ: Adam Barragato 3DJ Services A

He is the best priced DJ in town! There maybe DJ's out there with a little more experience, but Adam kept the dance floor full all night long, he wasn't too cheesy and that's all that mattered to me. We had a tiny mix up in the beginning but he corrected it right away. He didn't play any songs on my Do Not Play List, and he was very professional.

Ceremony Music: Panache D

They only reason they didn't fail is because they were wonderful to work with in the beginning and they sounded okay.

The problem: One of the string quartet members was TEXTING during my entire wedding ceremony and they missed almost every single cue my DOC was giving them! My grandmother went down the aisle to no music and my DH went back down the aisle, half way before they started playing! Totally unprofessional. Plus they were very expensive and I even fed them!! I should of hired Rondo String Quartet.

DOC: Andrea Solomon LLC A

She was great! She was also my wedding planner. She books up months in advance so if you want her get her early! She helped me with so much along the way. Invitations, napkins, STD's, favors and some vendors. I did a partial plan with her.

Photobooth: Didn't use one, but now wish I did! Oh well! Incomplete for ME!

Officiant: Rabbi Roman Norman A+++

Our ceremony was so personal and so special. It was the best part of my day. My DH grew up with him and he did his father's funeral. It was very important to him that Rabbi Roman officiated out ceremony.

Bridal Salon: Maria's Bridal (before they moved to W. Bloomfield) B-

I bought my dress off the rack because they were moving and they were no longer selling the designer. I got it for half off, and the sales girl was really nice. I tried it on, paid for it and walked out with it the same day.

The reason they got a B- was because they wanted more money for alterations then the dress cost! The sales girl even told me not to have my alterations done there! I took it some place else

Alterations: Denise's Bridal- B

She is a little strange, but she did the alterations so fast! That was nice. My crinoline fit funny the day of my wedding and it was kind of expensive. Other then that it was fine for a dress I was only wearing one day. Another problem was with my mother. NOTE TO GIRLS: DO NOT have your mother dress you on the day of your wedding. Mine was a wreck and she laced up my dress too loose in the waist. I was pulling it up all night long. It looked pretty but my dress was super heavy. Partially my fault. Opps!

Tuxes: President Tuxedo (W. Bloomfield Location) A

A small issue with my father's tux, but they fixed it right away. My DH said the shoe were a little uncomfortable, but nothing a few shots of Parton couldn't help. (LOL) Other then that they were really great. The customer service was really friendly, and they kept in contact with everyone from out of town.

Send me a PM if you have any questions!

whywedding · August 2010

Our wedding was August 28 and SO MUCH FUN! You can find more details on our wedding website: http://www.jay-jamie.com/

Ceremony Site: Heidelberg Project, Detroit-A++
Affordable, easy to work with, truly unique location. We loved that the whole neighborhood came out to watch our wedding.
Reception Site: Dossin Great Lakes Museum on Belle Isle, Detroit-B+
So, so affordable, great fun and very easy to work with, despite the fact that I live in Atlanta and wasn't able to do much with them in-person. Beautiful surroundings. It's not elegant in a traditional way, but if you're looking for something fun, quirky and engaging for your guests, I would absolutely check this out. Scheduling was a bit tough -- we couldn't get in to decorate till that morning, but it turned out beautifully, thanks to our fantastic groomsmen and their mad decorating skills. Staff was wonderful, and we love that our money went to a good cause.
Caterer: Golden Spice Catering -A
Tina created a vegetarian menu that our omnivorous family members loved. She was thorough, friendly, organized, relaxed and the cost was WAY less than every other caterer we contacted. I really felt like she loved food and was willing to accommodate anything we wanted.
Chair Covers/Linens: Linens by Harte/Golden Spice-A
This was handled as a subrental through Golden Spice, but they did look beautiful, and were very affordable.
Hair: Lydia Widing-A+
Friend of my maid of honor -- came to our hotel room in Detroit even though she was moving that afternoon and pulled off some gorgeous up-dos that held ALL DAY. We really didn't know how to make the birdcage veil work, but she was on it. LOVE HER.
Photographer: mod4-A
I haven't seen our images yet, so I'm only assuming they'll be awesome, because Jess and Nate were entirely awesome to work with. So friendly, so interested in detail and personality. They really loved that our wedding was unconventional, and were totally willing to play along. I heard later both of them were sick; I had no idea. They were great.
Florist: Blumz by JR Designs - B
This would have been an A++ before the wedding day. Robbin in Detroit met with us on Mother's Day, one of the busiest days of his year, and everyone left feeling special and excited about the flowers. In the weeks before the wedding, he was easy to communicate with, friendly and excited. He was happy to adjust our order as needed. I just loved it. On the day of the wedding, though, they accidentally delivered the chairs and flowers for the ceremony to the wrong location. WHOOPS. It all worked out -- they didn't have to go too far to correct themselves, and it was a mistake I could understand. (They delivered to the office of the Heidelberg Project, not the project itself.) Unfortunately, when flowers arrived, we found we were shy a groomsman boutonniere. WHOOPS. Our planner cut another orange rose off the alter arrangement and fashioned a bout; nobody seemed to notice. Nothing catastrophic, but it was kind of a disappointing mistake for a very pricey, if small-ish, flower order.Beautiful flowers, though,that really fit into our kinda-weird ceremony!
Bakery: Achatz Pies - A
AMAZING pie, great stands and easy to work with. Very affordable. Not open Saturdays, so had to do Friday delivery.
DOC: Simplicity - A
Shelly Andrus is a badass. She was serving only as a day-of coordinator, but was totally helpful in the days and weeks leading up to the wedding. She was on top of everything and everybody, and worked perfectly as a filter of information. Even in the midst of the flower gaffe -- which delayed the ceremony a bit, and required a little flower surgery -- she was on top of it. I never worried about a thing. She gave us a great deal because we were Mod4 customers, and she was worth every penny.

Music: Detroit Party Marching Band - A+
We bought them a used sousaphone; they learned "Ain't No Mountain High Enough" for our processional and "Bowtie" by OutKast for the recessional. EVERYONE loved them. They were so fun to work with, so willing to accommodate us, so willing to play along with our request that they be a SECRET marching band -- which is nearly impossible! -- but I can't imagine our wedding without them now.
Rehearsal dinner: Angelina Italian Bistro, A
So delicious, right in the heart of downtown, friendly staff, lovely space with windows that open right onto Grand Circus Park. It could only have been better if there'd been a Tigers game and fireworks that night. We'll go back there every time we're in Detroit. I adore it.

jbasore1123 · August 2010

Overall, we had no bad vendors. We were very lucky. Our day was beautiful and we couldn’t have done it without these people

A+’s are rarely given and given only to those who we believe did an exceptional job; A’s mean no issues whatsoever or only one very minor issue; A-'s are for two or more issues

Ceremony Site: Jefferson Avenue Presbyterian Church- A-

The church is gorgeous and we only needed VERY minimal decoration. The pastor is very friendly and he and the staff were easy to get a hold of when I needed them. However, there were a few issues. During the rehearsal the wedding coordinator was a little short and rude with people. Also, they promised that that air conditioning would be on after we all melted during the rehearsal but this did not prove true on the wedding day (they must have just turned it on right when we arrived)- a lot of our guests complained about the heat. Finally, we were not announced as husband and wife and no “you may now kiss the bride” was said at the end of the ceremony, which makes me sad- that’s what all girls dream about hearing! It made our kiss a little awkward as we were totally unsure whether we were supposed to or not!

Reception Site: Laurel Manor- A

The wedding reception was very lovely. The staff was great, especially the woman in charge on the day-of. She made sure Joe and I were comfortable and had everything we needed and even went out of her way to make a bouquet for me when my florist forgot to leave a toss bouquet- that was above and beyond what she needed to do and it was very appreciated and very kind of her! I've heard so much positive feedback about the staff and the food from my guests- everyone was raving about it (unfortunately, I didn't get to eat much of it and there was not much left when we asked to take some to go, which shows how much people enjoyed it). My grandmother especially liked the staff because I heard later that she had tripped and spilled her plate. Many of the staff came to her side and got her a new plate, which she really appreciated and obviously it was done quickly since I did not even notice. Prior to the wedding, they were so open to all my many questions and meetings there. We had a few odd requests (moving tables around and getting rid of the foliage in the room) and they were fine with that. They also did the linens, which were stunning. The package we got included a candy buffet and late-night pizza buffet, which everyone loved- I wish I wasn’t so stingy and went all out for myself when in line!

My only critiques would be that my mom was not able to enjoy herself fully because each concern the staff had they would all go to her about it and she felt stressed and needed to help fix everything rather than enjoying herself. I noticed this too when I was asked by staff to take care of the children running around the dance floor rather than the staff asking the children to slow down. Also, I guess the room could not handle all the power and a few of the par can lights had to be turned off during different times. I asked at the beginning if this would be an issue and was reassured that it wouldn’t be- well, the power went out in the bar (I didn’t notice this until I was told later) but it was quickly taken care of. However, these are only small critiques in the grand scheme. I definitely thought Laurel Manor was one of the best vendors we had and we are so glad we brought our wedding to them.

Paper Products: DH and I- A+

We wanted to do our own invitations, STDs, and programs. A HUGE task but we loved how they turned out.

Hair/Makeup: Dean Sadler Salon- A+

The staff was all great and very talented. When at the last minute my MIL wanted to get her hair done, they were fine with adding another person. We had the whole salon to ourselves and they got us bagels and coffee. Everyone’s hair turned out beautiful and lasted the whole night (the only person’s who didn’t was one BM who wanted her hair down) and the whole next day afterward. I trusted Dean completely to come up with something he loved and he listened to my input. He also did my eye makeup, which was beautiful. My lashes lasted until I washed my face that night, no issues when crying. The trial two weeks before was pointless, however, because he ended up doing my hair and my sister’s hair slightly differently anyway.

Limo: Millennium Limos- A-

The limo driver was on time and the limo was clean and looked great. The only critiques I have is that it did not have nearly enough water bottles (it was hot in there with so many people!) and the driver told us we could not write on the windows with the car chalk “Just Married” because he would be putting up a sign, which he did not do. However, he knew exactly where to take us and we had a red carpet rolled out for us after the ceremony.

Photographer: Amanda Williams- A+ (pending photos)

What can I say that has not already been said by previous brides- we love her. She was so much fun doing our engagement pics but was much more “business” on the wedding. She was open to me sending her my ideas on must take photos and she did almost all of them I believe. She always answered my emails quickly. The day of, She kept everyone on time and was very professional when the pastor was trying to rush us out of the church. My pastor raved about how well she listened to his rules. The next day I checked my email before leaving on our HM and she had already sent us 5 teaser pics- love that!

Videographer- Days to Remember Media- A+ (pending video)

Love them. They are so different than what I had seen in other videographers and I love their style. The communication was minimal, but that was fine. We barely noticed them throughout the day unless they had concerns or questions, which I appreciated. It was very important to them to get the shots I had asked for, but they also maintained their own style. I got some of my song ideas off of their website and watching other videos, which they noticed (I hope they don’t mind!) and our teaser video brought everyone who watched it to tears. We can’t wait to see the rest.

DJ- Justin from So Prime entertainment (based out of Chicago)- A

Our bestman Chris runs a DJ company with his friend and has been DJ’ing for years so we wanted them to DJ the wedding. Before the wedding we talked a lot about must play lists and how we wanted things announced and communication was great. At the wedding, it was Justin’s first time DJ’ing by himself and he did a great job. He kept everyone dancing and the party could have went on all night. Chris got out on the floor to show people how to do a couple of dances, which people seemed to really enjoy. Of course, there were a couple minor issues (the reception manager did not tell him that cake was being served so he didn’t know to announce it so almost no one had cake; my sister surprised us with a slideshow but it was announced a little late), but overall everything went well and we had a lot of fun.

Florist- Michele Nonis- A-

Michele was great to work with. She was easier to contact through phone than by email but always answered my questions. Our flowers turned out beautifully and she was so kind in buying little flowers to put on the branches of the centerpiece for free since I could not find them and did not have time before the wedding to do it myself. The flowers stayed fresh all day thanks to the boxes she gave us to keep the flowers in when not in use. The bouquets were absolutely beautiful and she added crystals to my bouquet free of charge as well. The centerpieces were also pretty but I expected her to use more branches than she ended up using (half of what I expected) and the branches were arranged differently than what I had talked about- but this isn’t a big issue. My only critique is that she did not leave me a toss bouquet, which I figured she simply forgot. At the end of the night my mom mentioned it to her and Michele told my mom that I specifically said I did not want one, which in my emails I very clearly said I did. I was a little disappointed in this as I feel she blamed me for her mistake. Other than that, everything was perfect.

Bakery: Just Baked- A (final product)/ B (for communication)

Communication prior to the wedding was poor unless speaking directly to the owners. On our last meeting before the wedding, the designer did not show up, no one could get a hold of her, nor even find our paperwork about us having ordered a cake. The girls running the counter were unprofessional but tried to be helpful and the owner had to come up to the store to take over the meeting. She remembered about us and was very helpful. Our cake ended up costing $100 more than what we originally discussed, which was disappointing. However, the cake turned out beautiful and very close to what we discussed (i.e., the “pearls” on the cake were separated rather than being connected). It tasted fantastic and it still does nearly 3 weeks later! It was very moist and has incredibly retained that moisture (in the fridge of course). We got both vanilla and red velvet layers- so yummy! I recommend them but make sure you talk directly to the owners.

Photobooth: Amanda Williams- A

Such a hit for a good price. However, it is advertised as fitting 7-8 people, we could only fit 6 (which is fine). It also says that you can choose black and white or colored pics, but I didn't see the option in the booth (it was dark and probably a small button). Also, the price gives you a prop box, which I did not see. Amanda says it was there though, but I wish me and my guests would have seen it

Lighting- Mercury Sound & Lighting- A

They came into the game at last minute after we had a horrible experience with a previous vendor and we’re glad we chose them. The woman who met with us brought a light and a lot of samples for us to look at, which was nice, and had ideas on where to position the lights to get the best ambiance. They were a little pricey but the lights looked great and really made the room pop.

Bridal Salon (my dress): I Do Too Bridal- A

The ladies here are so sweet and helpful. We had only minor issues but those pertained to my mom and the salon rather than with me. My dress came in dirty and stained and the women quickly sent for a new one to be shipped. They were very good with showing my mom how to tie up my dress and allowed me to keep my dress there for a couple months until it needed alterations.

Alterations: Family friend- A

She did my dress, my mom’s dress, and my sister’s dress and they all turned out beautifully.

Tuxes: Men’s Warehouse- A

We only had two tuxes that had issues (one was because one of the guys gained weight since the fitting so it was not MW’s fault) and they were helpful in finding alternatives. The tuxes all were clean and looked nice, no snags or holes. When the guys decided at last minute to order black shirts to change into at the reception, they were easily accommodated.

Bridal Salon (bridesmaid’s dresses): David’s Bridal- A

All of the dresses came in quickly and fit well. Only one issue came up when one of my bridesmaids was given the wrong dress, but they found the one she actually ordered and it was not a big problem. The only annoying thing is the amount of phone calls and emails you get with registering there. They have people posted at the doors for you to fill out more paperwork each time, which is a little much.

Honeymoon: Dreams Tulum Resort and Spa- A+

We had an amazing time on our honeymoon. The staff are all very friendly, the rooms were cleaned twice a day and everything was kept stocked. Room service was usually pretty quick (within 30 minutes) and all the food there was great. The beach is clean and it is a perfect place for couples and families (without the couples feeling overwhelmed by the kids and the parents feeling uncomfortable due to all the couples around their children). The daily/nightly entertainment was fun and the location is perfect (right on the beach, close to the ruins and not too far from the night life). The middle of the beach is rocky but if you stay toward the right side it is sandy. No issues with the water (everything was purified). The store is expensive to buy things like sunblock though ($20 per bottle) so make sure you bring enough. I would definitely recommend this place for anyone!

Tdancin45678 · September 2010

Ceremony Site: Van Hoosen Farm (A) Very great service! It was raining for our outdoor ceremony and they brought umbrellas for everyone
Reception Site: Club Monte Carlo (C) food was cold and tasted bad
Caterer:
Chair Covers/Linens:
Hair: Malia Salon (A) Came to my house and they girls looked great
Makeup: Fadya (A) Came to my house and they girls looked great
Limo: Rendevous Limos (C) THey forgot to pick me up!
Photographer: Alluring Images by Sarah and Mia (A) AMAZING photos
Videographer:Rodriguez Video Service (A)
Florist: Flowers by Marlene (A) Older lady who was affordable and did a great job on our wedding
Bakery:Papa Joes (D) Cake was 3 hours late, crooked and thrown together. But tasted great
DJ: 1, 2 Step Entertainment (A) Got EVERYONE on the dance floor all night
DOC:
Photobooth:

Officiant:Pastor Rob Friske (A)

Bridal Salon:

Rentals:

lynn888 · September 2010

Ceremony Site: Parent's backyard - A
Reception Site: Parent's backyard - A
We had a small wedding, and this settting worked out great!
Officiant - A
We had a friend of the family who is a minister in Ohio.
Caterer: Costco - B
It was a little tricky to have everything ready after the wedding, but it wasn't anything I didn't expect. Some of the food was wonderful. Some was just ok.
Hair: N/A
Makeup: N/A
Limo: N/A
Photographer: Bates Photographic- A
Videographer: N/A
Florist: Blumz - A
Beautiful!
Bakery: Tasty Layers - A
Yummy!
DJ: N/A
String Quartet - Rondo String Quartet - A ++
We had Rondo play for our ceremony and all the way through our reception. Wow! They were the best part of our day! It was perfect.

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