Our 05/12/12 wedding was everything we dreamed it would be. I am so happy with everything, and would love to share our experience with you. PM me if you have any questions.
Chic Designs and Fabulous Events (Wedding Planning/Coordination) – A++ Julie Perez is my “Wizard of Oz”. She was the woman behind the curtain making sure our wedding day was everything that I dreamt it would be. I didn’t have to make any decisions, deal with last minute changes, or stress over anything at all on our wedding day. More than that, she helped me throughout the whole planning process. She listened to my ideas and helped me make them into a beautiful event that we received so many compliments on. She recommended vendors and offered ideas. We saved money by using some of her ideas, and were even able to add a videographer back in to our budget. I cannot thank her enough and would highly recommend her to brides. Even if your venue comes with a wedding coordinator, I recommend you hire a planner/coordinator on your own. You have no idea how much stress it will save you to have someone on your side giving you a different perspective.
The White Closet (Wedding Dress) – A+ I felt like Cindy really cared about my experience. She was just as excited about my day as I was, and I felt like she took the time to help me find the perfect dress. Their selection is great. They have a variety of sizes and prices. Their service is fantastic, and there isn’t a single negative thing I can say about The White Closet. Go there. You won’t be disappointed. I really feel like I made friends here.
JC Penny’s Brandon Mall (Men’s Attire) – A+ My husband decided he didn’t want to wear a tuxedo, instead he wanted a light tan suit. So we shopped around and found the best overall prices at JC Penny’s (I was surprised). We found all the suits we needed for 6 guys (with vests and ties). Perfect colors, light weight and comfortable, and we spent less than we budgeted.
MagnetStreet (Invitations/Save-the-dates) – A+ Magnetstreet’s customer service is great! They customized our save-the-dates and invitations, and we were so happy with the result. I received a discount code with the save-the-dates to use toward our invitations, and saved over $200. Picking out invitations was probably the hardest part of the planning process…there are just so many to chose from. MagnetStreet’s service is what won us over.
Sheraton Suites Tampa Airport (Venue) – A The interior of this hotel is perfect for a wedding with an outside feel, without the outdoor hassles. We hadn’t planned on having the wedding at a hotel, but being close to the airport and having everything in one place ended up being a great decision. We checked in Friday, did the rehearsal, had the wedding Saturday, and then a breakfast on Sunday with all the out of town guests. We didn’t have to set anything up, or clean anything up. The only thing I wish we could change is the limited space (we had 200 guests). I kept feeling like there wasn’t going to be enough room, and the layout had to be changed to make everything work at the last minute; but it all worked out. The week before our wedding the hotel coordinator moved our cocktail hour from the small ball room into their restaurant (which gave us much more room). There were little details that got missed that I am sure no one noticed but me, and in the end our day was fabulous, and we were happy.
Reverend Jason Sowell – A+ We met Jason through wedding wire, and have become friends with him over the past 18 months. He is down to earth and was open to whatever we threw at him. Our ceremony was perfect and I wouldn’t change a thing. If you are looking for someone that can do your ceremony the way YOU want it, and that you will really connect with, try Jason.
Michele Renee (Hair/Make-up) – A+ Having a stylist team come to us at the venue made all the difference in the world. We (all 8 of us) were able to relax and didn’t have to worry about timing. I highly recommend them. I would also recommend getting a style assistant…for the small amount extra it was worth it to have touch ups after the ceremony and before the pictures. She even helped make sure strings weren’t showing, tags were removed, and we all looked perfect from head to toe. I didn’t expect that!
Fishhawk Weddings (Flowers/Up-Lighting/GOBO Lighting/Draping) – A+ Stephanie and Collette worked with me from the beginning of my planning. They poured through pictures, talked over ideas, and ended up coming up with something so beautiful it was beyond our expectations. They did a few last minute changes for me, and were always available to answer questions. When we walked into the reception room, we couldn’t believe it was our wedding. All the elements of their design complimented each other so perfectly. I am so happy with their work and recommend without a moment’s hesitation.
Publix Greenwise (Wedding/Groom’s Cake) – A+ Ellen at Publix Greenwise was a doll to work with. We sat down with our ideas, tasted samples, and made up our minds in no time. The cake was perfect. The surprise groom’s cake was delivered to our rehearsal dinner site, and I never had to worry about it. It was a complicated custom design of everything about my husband (teams, activities, foods, etc) with fondant icing. I was so happy with it! Everyone loved the flavors of both the groom’s cake and the wedding cake and said the cakes were so fresh. Of course I didn’t expect anything less…its Publix!
Chic Sweets (Candy/Dessert Buffet) – A+ This is one of the elements of our wedding the guests really appreciated. We received so many compliments on the Dessert Buffet; especially the goody bags guests were able to take with them. And you get what you pay for…any candy/desserts left over went home with us the next day. Natalie came up with some ideas, and gave us the pricing for different options. You can go big or small, whatever your preference or budget. This is a great alternative to favors, since (let’s face it) everyone throws those out anyway!
Breezin’ Entertainment (String Duo) – A+ Cindy’s team did a fantastic job with music from pre-ceremony through cocktail hour. They provided a song list and I was able to select our favorites. I’m so glad we selected them instead of just playing recorded music. It added a personal touch and set the mood for the day.
Phase5 (Band/DJ) – A+ Josh and his team did a fantastic job reading the crowd and playing music to keep people dancing (even my dad was dancing most of the night!). They got every song we selected perfect, and I didn’t have a single complaint. We received so many compliments of “Wow! You can’t usually find a decent band to play at weddings!”…and it was so true! They were amazing and I am so glad we hired them.
FabUlous Photobooth – C I was looking forward to the photo booth after attending a wedding they did. Since we had seen them in action, we weren't worried about hiring them. We couldn’t wait to see all the fun photos our friends and family took. It was something our guests appreciated ...until their booth stopped working (just as my husband and I went to use it) part way through the night and took a while to get fixed. It’s the one thing we were disappointed with. We didn’t get as many pictures as we had expected, and I suspect it was because the booth wasn’t working. I expected them to apologize at the end of the night, but the only thing they did was collect their check.
Connie Duglin (Linens) – A+ Delivered exactly what we ordered on time. Great selection! And their online table builder lets you put your selections together to see what they will look like. Fantastic!
PKS Rental (Chiavari Chairs) – A+ Everything arrived on schedule. They gave us a great price, and I was happy not to have to worry about delivery/pick-up.
Panache (Charger Rental) – A We rented the most beautiful chargers, and everything arrived on time. They have a huge selection of unique chargers. If you want something different from the standard gold/silver you should check them out. The only thing I didn’t like was their high delivery fee. I almost opted to pick the chargers up myself, but I didn’t want to have to deal with it so I paid the fee.
Spaghetti Warehouse (Rehearsal Dinner) – A+ Phillip helped us arrange everything we needed for a very large party including providing special menus for our guests. I was able to drop off my wedding party gifts the day before, so that I wouldn’t have to drag boxes in the day of the rehearsal. On top of that, I was surprising my husband with a Groom’s cake that SW set up for us and kept a secret until after dinner. They have a huge space, awesome food and great prices. I really recommend it! Our guests loved the sangria!
Phillip Lloyd (Photography) – A+ I will update this review after I get the photos back, but our sneak peek pictures are phenomenal. He has such an artistic ability, and I am so happy we chose Phillip. We didn’t even know he was there most of the time. He didn’t have a lot to do with making our event happen, but he sure did capture the day perfectly!
Travis Brogen (Videographer) – A++ Ladies, if you want a video that you will watch over and over again, hire Travis. He is not like any other videographer I have seen. We selected a package that came with a “Love Story”, which meant we got to spend time with him shooting video before the wedding (like a video engagement session). It was so worth it!! We absolutely loved his ideas, and cannot wait to see the end result of the wedding video. Best of all…he’s affordable.
And I can’t forget Kay Skordilis at Elite Travel (Honeymoon/Travel Agency) – Kay did an outstanding job planning our honeymoon. She got us a complimentary upgrade from a garden view to a mountain view, a $100 hotel credit, one day of free use of a pool side cabana, and buffet breakfast included for our entire stay in Hawaii and she arranged for early/late check in/out! She kept her eye on our flights to make sure we needed need any last minute changes and took away some of our stress! I hadn’t ever used a travel agent before (just always did it myself), but she was able to do things I hadn’t even thought of! I highly recommend checking them out. It doesn’t cost anything to make the call.
I think that’s it. (I hope I haven’t missed anyone). Happy planning ladies!!