Venue: Crowne Plaza: A+
I’m pretty much a Crowne groupie. Our reception was in the Atrium and I loved that it gave us an outside feel but indoors, as one of my friends put it. From day one, I was hooked on Crowne. I originally worked with Michele for about 1.5 years! She was awesome, but sadly, a few months before the wedding, left Crowne. I was not happy but Peggy is amazing and swept right in without batting an eye. Zac in the events office is also awesome, as is Jessica who was our room block go-to person. Jessica helped me move guests into the block whenever they forgot to book within it which no complaints.
As for the reception – it was great. Crowne’s package sells itself in my opinion. It has everything! People have commented to me about how much food there was – and it was all delicious! Each course from hors d’oeuvres to the cake was great – and plentiful. They have an ice sculpture in the package, which we totally didn’t need, but we had a “knot” – completely Matt’s choice. A nod to tying the knot and also, his love of ships and pirates and whatnot. It looked great. The Crowne staff executed our vision perfectly – all decorations or small touches we brought they placed perfectly
Linens: Couture Bridal: A+
I think the linens added so much to our reception look! We had black table cloths with white runners and white chair covers with black satin sashes. I think it helped convey our dramatic, formal look and Annmaire was a peach to work with (even when I forgot to mail the final payment on time!). She was so patient when I scrambled to figure out our final number. If you’re on the fence about whether or not linens matter, I am now a strong believer that they do! It’s such a nice way to add a punch of color – especially for our black and white wedding.
Wedding gown: Alexandra’s (Fall River): A-
I’m still in love with my Sottero and Midgley gown. It was more than I could have dreamt of. The consultant couldn’t have done a better job for me. But when we ordered it, the color we signed off on (pearl) was not what we thought it was. It was actually the same color I tried on which I knew I didn’t want. So when it came in – ACK! After frustration on behalf of the store and my mother and I, they reordered it in just plain white. Thank God I ordered early. It was stunning, and they did a great job on alterations. I got my veil and comb there, too. I love their staff, and despite the snafu, it was all perfect. My advice to brides here: trust your instinct! If you think you want a ‘white’ dress, just go for white – this naming business is confusing... I was aiming for something that was ‘white-ish’ and due to the wrong sample swatch it all got messed up. But, I do HIGHLY recommend Alexandra’s – they have great people, beautiful gowns, and do a lovely job with alterations (albeit pricey in my opinion!).
Tux: Men’s Warehouse: C
I just have always hated MW. I hear so many horror stories, but Matt thought it was easiest so we went there. We dealt with Warwick. I feel it is a meat factory – the guy basically showed us one tux and pushed it on us. The guys all looked nice, but there were snafus. One groomsman who picked his up had to go back (making Matt late for the RD) because in MN they gave him the wrong jacket. The ring bearer in TX was measured wrong and was swimming in his tux. My brother got charged for a missing shirt and tie to the tune of $40, but it turns out another GM had turned in his stuff. Nice of MW to double check the entire group of bags in front of them... (We’ll call about that one!). I just don’t like dealing with them, but as this was not my department, I just tried to nod and smile.