Sorry it took me soooo long to post these… but here they are… I hope they are still useful to some of you!
Reception: The Brookside Club, Bourne – A
The reception was perfect! Our guests are still raving about how much fun they had, how good the food was, how beautiful everything looked. The staff at Brookside was professional, courteous, and attentive; both Frank and Melissa were great to work with. We ran into a couple of snags communication-wise during the planning, but the frustration largely came from doing so from four states away. After a bit back and forth we were able to sort everything out. But the day of was stress-free and we were extremely pleased with how everything went, and we all had a blast! Tip: The tastings Brookside offers are samplings of some entrees so you get the sense of their cooking style. Particularly if you are going with a buffet meal you may not get to taste the specific entrees on the menu. Make a separate trip to their restaurant if you want to try particular items you’re thinking of serving (but call ahead).
Photographer: Metzger Studios, Scott Metzger – A+
We loved working with Scott, and we are delighted with our wedding pictures! Scott was great to work with during the planning process, quick to respond to emails and phone calls and professional every step of the way. He really captured the feel of the day and has recorded beautiful memories for us. Tip: Book an engagement shoot; it’s a great way to get to know your photographer’s style and demeanor before working with him/her the day of. Also, I found it helpful to learn in advance which poses I liked and/or thought we looked best in (aka ANTM: “know your angles”)!
DJ: 2way Entertainment, Mark Friedman (DJ), Lionel Hall (Emcee) – A
Mark and Lionel kept the dance floor packed all night! The best part of working with Mark was meeting with him in person at his studio and going through all the details. He really helped us structure the evening (without too much structure), pick out key songs and mixes, and he was able to learn our musical tastes and really create an atmosphere that was so us! They are down to earth, great people. Tip: Clarify with your DJ when song lists and day of timeline is due… we had to rush a bit at the end because we didn’t realize we missed the deadline – but it all worked out fine.
Flowers: Petals by the Sea, Karen Bryden – A
Karen was awesome to work with, very personable, and warm – she really made me feel that she cared about my wedding and wanted to make it beautiful! I went into our first meeting not really knowing much about flowers, and Karen was able to help me form a vision based on the theme I wanted to work with. The flowers came out great – they were slightly different from what we envisioned (but then we didn’t have a specific idea of what we wanted, more so just an overall visual concept); they looked wonderful and held up well. The centerpieces were especially lovely. Tip: Bring pictures of what you’re looking for. Even if it’s just in terms of the feel of the day or colors and not specific flowers, it’ll help inform your discussion. Karen uses them as a jumping point and was pretty much spot on with her result.
Cake: Cape Cod Cakes, Julie Driscoll – A-
The cake was both delicious and beautiful! Julie was a little slow to respond to emails and phone calls, and but her cake was the most moist and yummy of all we tasted, her prices were most reasonable, and she was the most generous with tastings of all (we tried several flavors of cakes and icings both times we met with her). We were very pleased with the results. Tip: Same as with flowers – bring images with you of what you’re thinking of for designs to your meetings, it’ll really help structure the discussion and help you get exactly what you want.
Ceremony Musician: Katie Lynch Koglin, Harpist – A+
Katie was so sweet to work with and her playing was so beautiful! It was great to meet with her and she was very generous with her time. We really didn’t have specific music in mind so she was more than happy to play several pieces for us to help us choose. The end result was wonderful. Tip: Consider bringing an audio recorder so you can listen to the music after the ceremony (most of the time Katie played I was trapped in the limo outside). But be sure to ask permission of your musician first!
Limo: White Tie Limo – A
White Tie was easy to deal with, the limo was beautiful and well-equipped, the driver was prompt, professional and courteous. Everything went smoothly with them the day of, no complaints. Tip: Brides and bridesmaids: be careful with your dresses getting in and out of the vehicle! Our driver, Richard, was very attentive and helped make sure my dress didn’t brush against the tire while getting in or out of the limo.
Accommodations: Quality Inn, Bourne – B+
The rooms at the Quality Inn were clean and comfortable and they had a nice Continental Breakfast set up each morning. The staff was very pleasant and courteous. But while everything went smoothly the weekend of our stay there, we initially had some difficulty ironing out the details of our contract with the manager. Tip: Guests have to book both Friday and Saturday nights, and by three months in advance, in order to get the group rate. While this restriction is not uncommon on the Cape, we felt it was a bit stringent, especially since they would not increase the block of rooms after we filled it.
Rehearsal Dinner: The Flying Bridge, Falmouth – A
The renovations look great, everything was delicious and the staff was attentive. Arrangements were handled by our families, so I can’t comment on the planning, but hear it went without a hitch!
Parting Shots: In all, our wedding day really was perfect! While I felt the day of that I was enjoying and taking in every moment, it is surprising to me in retrospect to see how much I missed; it’s impossible to catch everything! My personal advice: take a few moments at the end of your wedding day or soon after to think about everything you can remember, and let it sink in. Then make sure to connect with everyone you can who attended and get their version of it… it’s fun to get all the different perspectives!
If you’d like further details or have questions, email me at kikijbird at gmail dot com, or send me a private message (but if you send me a PM, please page me here first, as I sometimes forget to check there). Eventually I hope to get my married bio together so I can add pictures!
Edit: added towns, and line breaks that were lost in copying from Word.
photo by Scott Metzger
kikijbird ~ Erica (aka Kiki) & Paul ~ 24 April 2010
The JBirds Bio ~ Updated 03.02.10 - Invites!