New Here!

pinkcherryblossom · February 2010

New bride to be here...

Just getting off the ground with plans. I probably should've been planning sooner!

This site is great though, and I have a few friends/family members who are offering support.

Ms.BriarRose · February 2010

HI!!!! Welcome! The girls on here are the best, hands down. While the board sometimes is slower than others, these girls will provide you with the best advice, the best support, and will do it honestly and kindly!

Tell us about yourself; we love to hear stories on here, especially about engagements

Hope to see you posting a bunch; you will find all the resources, advice, vendor recs...anything you need at all!

Do you have anything planned for your wedding yet? Date, venue, etc? If you need help with keeping on track and any ideas on who to go to for anything, feel free to ask- I have gotten several of my vendors from recommendations made by the girls here! They won't let you down, that's for sure.

Congrats again, and hope to see you around much more!

Mattsbride10 · February 2010

Welcome and congrats! I'm a regular on here and ready to help with whatever.

Mrs.LuraT · February 2010

Hi and welcome! Congrats on your engagement!

Dnyce7282 · February 2010

Nice to have you here! Congratulations...happy planning!

pinkcherryblossom · February 2010

Thanks ladies!

Looking for Feb '11 dates. We both have smaller families, so we will probably have about a max of 60 guests.

We got engaged a little less then 2 months ago, in the middle of the snowstorm. He got down on one knee in the snow, it was really cute. We joke he did that so I couldn't get away.

I knew shortly after we met that he was the one for me, I have had a few other serious relationships but never one that was the full package. We really are a good team.

We are both 26 (well he will be next month), no kids, just pets. My future SIL and my mother and friend are all helping me to plan. We don't have a huge budget (just bought a house in Newark in August) but I do have my dress already!

As for venue: Looking at Executive Banquet hall, Chesapeake bay gold club (North East), Doubletree Wilm downtown.

Theme: evening, black/bright pink, w cherry blossoms of course! (I love them so much I had them tattooed on me about 4 years ago)

Beth

Ms.BriarRose · February 2010

Executive is my venue!!!!!!! They are so awesome to deal with, and they have the best deal around. You really get the bang for your buck. The food is good (we went to a tasting), and the hall is pretty with clean and simple lines. Brad is wonderful and will answer any questions you have (like the one we had on napkins and how they fold them...yes we went there).

Let's see, you get your cake (made by Cakes by Kim, one of the well known and delish bakers around here...I was going to go with her anyways regardless of who my venue included, so I was really happy when I found out they contract with her!), your centerpieces (they work with Elena's Broad Street Florist in Middletown or Petal in the Park in Ridley Park, and you get simple low ones, but you can upgrade), colored linens instead of white or ivory (no extra charge, we are getting cobalt blue), a 5 hour reception with a 5 hour open bar (top shelf, 8 beers on tap including local ones like Dogfishhead and other good ones like Blue Moon and Yuengling, and 6-8 different wines depending on what you want), a private bridal suite with a personal butler, add ons like crazy (dessert bar, coffee bar, etc), 10 different hor derves (4 stationed and 6 passed)...so much stuff, and they had the best prices around, hands down.

If you are having a small reception and want to keep costs down, ask them about doing a beer/wine only reception. Since they have top beers and wines and not just cheapy stuff, I was okay cutting it down- and they cut $8 a person off just for doing beer/wine only!

Some other things I really liked about the hall in general: The cocktail hour space (lobby) is huge and definitely has space for extra tables and such, and there is a hallway that runs in between the kitchen and ballroom (which sounds silly, but the guests that happen to get put next to the doorways won't hear the yelling and clanging in the kitchen, something that we never thought about but really impressed us). I have pictures in my bio of the space as well, if you need them. Kids Meals are only $10, versus the $45 most places charge (including Dupont, Hartfeld, and Deerfield among others). Also, there is a 10% discount on Fridays and Sundays.

I think the thing that sold me on them were two happenings: one, my RB is autistic with digestive issues, and is on a special diet. When I asked if his mom could bring in his meal, Brad said absolutely no problem; other venues (like DuPont CC and Deerfield) said that she coud not bring in special food and it had to be prepared there, which you can't do with his food. The final happening was our original date was October 9. I had told Brad, and he emailed me the contract. FI and I called Brad on a Friday to tell him that we were coming in that Saturday with the signed version and to put the down payment on the date. He called me back and said hold on, I will be right in touch with you. Within the hour we had several phone calls, several emails, and an apology; Brad had accidently double booked the 9th, and the other couple was signing the contract when I called. They offered to fix it however we wanted as an apology- they offered an ice sculpture, the dessert bar, an appetizer, etc etc. We asked if we could have the 10% discount on a Saturday, and he said absolutely. They were so apolegetic, and willing to fix their mistake as soon as they realized it was made (it shouldn't happen often, Brad was sick and one of his immediate family members was in the hospital when he wrote our contract, so he didn't realize that there was another couple with everything he had going on). The fact that they accepted responsibility for everything told us that was the right place to go- so many other places would have been "oh well, you lose".

For what we are getting, we are paying around $65 pp, which is an amazing price in DE. Even without all the stuff we got thrown in, it would have been around $75 pp, which is still amazing considering how much all the other places are (and most of them have $18k or more minimums, Executive has none). I have had friends who have gone to events there already, and said it was wonderfully done, which really puts my mind at ease.

Hope that helps you with thoughts on Executive. I briefly looked at the Doubletree, but they were more than I was willing to spend. Also, talk to Sparrow515 on here; she is getting married in May, and is having a cherry blossom theme too! You two can exchange ideas and tips

Anyway, good luck with everything! Where did you end up getting your dress? Can we see pics

?

pinkcherryblossom · February 2010

Oh wow, thats awesome. We live very close to Executive. My friend is getting married this October at Embassy Suites, and we just didn't want to "copy" her venue. I'm still looking, and I am going to arrange to see Executive soon.

Brad has been ok w a small wedding so far, but he wont book it for peak times, which is understandable. Who wants to give up potential business? Luckily we are going for offseason for a variety of reasons. We dont want this to be a shoddy quick wedding, my fiance is more traditional and he is very excited about the wedding process.

I am happy that Executive has a lot of vegetarian entrees, I don't eat meat and many of my family members are either vegan or vegetarian. I want to have choices for everyone present.

My dress is the "Elizabeth" style by Maggie Sottero, in Diamond White w cap sleeves. I love it! I never thought I'd choose that kind of dress, but it looked good and I felt like a bride. Bystanders in the shop actually complimented me on it. I dont have any pictures of me in it, I bought it rather spur of the moment, it was too good to pass on! And oddly the style name is my name....weird!

I also got shoes already. There was a veil I liked at the shop, but I want to look around.

Beth

Ms.BriarRose · February 2010

Check out Jennifer's in Hockessin for veils, along with Etsy. Jennifer's can be a bit pricey, but they have a wonderful selection and the veils there are gorgeous; if nothing else, it can help with inspiration. If you are looking to save some money on one, check out Etsy. Most of the girls I know on the boards who have gone with Etsy were happy with the price and the quality (steffiel on the philly board got hers from there, and paid I think around $30). If you don't find something you like on Etsy, you can put out an Alchemy and have someone create something for you specifically (ButtonsPepper, who just got married, did this; her veil was around 100-150, but was custom designed for her with lace from Italy that matched her dress perfectly Not bad for completely custom and Italian lace!).

Where did you end up getting your dress? Since it's a Maggie, I am going to assume you got it either at Brides and Grooms or Bridal and Tuxedo Shop, both of which are highly recommended around here. I would recommend getting your alterations done privately; not only will you save quite a bit of money (I know girls who have had boatloads of work done, including necklines changed and sleeves added along with complicated bustles, and they came nowhere near close to spending what the shop told them alterations would cost), but you will have much better work done (private seamstresses around here are very decent, you just have to book your appointments way in advance and be on top of them to make sure the work gets done; that's moreso when your appointments fall around homecoming or prom season).

I looked into some other venues around here, and there are a couple that are comparable in price, if you are interested in the names. Most notably and highly recommended on here and around Delaware is The Farmhouse; MrsLuraT just had her wedding there this past October, and it was gorgeous. The venue has a limit around 125 ppl, which is why we didn't check it out much, but with your smaller guest list it would fit your needs perfectly. The food was delicious, and the venue (an old converted farm house) has an outdoor ceremony site as well. It's unique and different, and has a wonderful charming feel to it. Pricing isn't bad, either. I highly recommend you check this one out! Like I said, i have several other names if you want them, but thought I would recommend this one because it would fit your size and it books up fast.

Can't wait to hear more about your planning! Any help you need, ask away- I love helping other brides and passing on the knowledge and research I have done! If you need help with a bio or a signature (like the picture and link that appears with every post I make), let me know!

pinkcherryblossom · February 2010

thanks for all the info!

I bought my dress from the Bridal & Tuxedo shop, Carmela fitted me. She's great, knows her craft. I really love my dress, it's way better in person then on the website.

I will look into the Farmhouse too. I'm pretty flexible on price actually, can go up maybe $125 a person, since we're not having a ton of people. I'm more concerned about the prices for flowers, hair/makeup, limo, favors, etc. In my experience it seems like the little things tend to add up when one least expects it!

I already have cake conflict, LOL, I actually have a friend/client who does wedding cakes, who was quite excited to hear I was engaged. My mom has few requests for my wedding, but she really wanted me to get a cake from Bing's (where she got hers)

We also have a photography connection, so that will save us money in that department.

Lou is very excited about our wedding, luckily he pretty much says anything goes, except no brown!

I'll probably spend my snow day tomorrow working on a bio page, instead of cleaning the house...hah

Beth

Ms.BriarRose · February 2010

MrsJax used Bings, and I am pretty sure Tonysgurl did as well. Talk to both of them, but they both were really happy with how it turned out.

Definitely ask the girls when it comes time to book other things. They have helped me find some great vendors that don't cost an arm and a leg, and have given me ideas on how to save more money on those vendors (like with limos). These girls know their stuff!

jenellybelly · February 2010

Congrats and welcome!

Santorini2011 · February 2010

Congrats and welcome!

For the cake-use the friend for a groom's cake and Bing's for your wedding cake.

I had Carmela for the 1st appt and she hit the nail on the head. Marky has been helping me since I can't commit...

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