Hi Ladies,
My wedding was in Maine, but I wanted to post these particular reviews because a couple of our vendors operate out of NH or travel throughout New England.
I'm really more of a lurker than a poster, but I always found the vendor reviews to be super helpful and intriguing when planning my wedding. It’s SO important to do the research before signing any contracts, and I learned that the hard way (as you’ll see from my photographer story below). My biggest advice would be to check with the BBB before hiring anyone.
I feel so lucky to have found the people I worked with because most of them were really great. I hope this helps!
Photographers – Hitched Photography, New England – A++
http://hitchedphotography.net, http://beccawoodphotography.com
I had an unbelievably horrible experience with the first photographer I hired. To make a long story short, I gave her a massive security deposit and travel fee up front and ended up breaking our contract after a friend of mine failed to receive her wedding pics from her (Andrea Runkel of Luminescence Photography, for anyone who’s interested in avoiding the same mistake). She was awful and rude and spiteful about the whole thing, and refused to give me any of my money back even though she booked a new job for my date the very next day (she also made it a point to rub that in my face… super). Anyhow, when I found Becca Wood of Hitched Photography on Craigslist, it was if the clouds had parted. I ended up hiring Becca and her friend/business partner, Aja Stephan, for our wedding and they were absolutely AMAZING. It was such a bonus to have two photographers because they were able to capture moments from multiple angles and the formal pics were done in a snap. They worked so hard and everyone raved about how friendly and professional they both were. Their prices are also extremely competitive, especially for two photographers. I haven’t received the final images or album yet, but you can see a sneak peek on Becca’s blog by clicking on the link above and finding “Laura and Will” under recent posts. Their company is fairly new, but I would highly recommend them to anyone looking for a quality, artistic, documentary-style photographer at a great price!
Musician/DJ – Aaron Denny, NH – A+
www.aarondenny.com
Aaron was able to give us the best of everything wedding music-related. He played classical guitar for the ceremony, live music during dinner, and DJ’d the cocktail hour and reception. We are HUGE Beatles freaks, and he incorporated Beatles music into every part of the event (under our direction mostly, but he did such an amazing job). When my bridesmaids and I were out on the dock having pics taken, he walked out and serenaded us with my favorite song, Rocky Raccoon. It was so spontaneous and sweet, and it made for a really great photo opp! One of the groomsmen ended up paying him to stay on for another hour because everyone was having so much fun dancing. He was one of those vendors that asked all the right questions and got me to think of details that I never would have thought of on my own. He was great, and I would highly recommend him!
Dress – Saja Wedding, NYC – A+
www.sajawedding.com
After a few frustrating experiences at some local bridal boutiques, I was starting to feel like I would never find the perfect dress. I had a vision (as most brides do), of an ethereal, breathable gown that I could actually dance in. Everything I had tried on was either too poofy, too scratchy, too restricting, or just uncomfortable and ugly in general. Although I had a great experience at J. Crew, I decided to keep looking. I stumbled upon a Saja dress at Bliss in Portland – a charcoal gray beauty. I thought to myself, “Why can’t they make something like that in white?” So I Googled the company and low and behold, they had started making bridal gowns. On a trip to visit a friend in NYC, I decided to pop in and see if I could try on some dresses – I ended up finding the perfect dress for the right price. I loved EVERY SINGLE dress I tried on there, and it was really hard to make my decision. Thea, the store manager, was so thoughtful in all of her communications with me – she even followed up with a congratulatory e-mail a couple of weeks ago. I’m so in love with my dress – I’m looking forward to having it shortened and wearing it again to future events!