9/27/14 - Wedding Reviews

missholly18 · September 2014

Happy Monday! It's time for wedding reviews!! After months of planning, we are finally married! Everyone told me to enjoy the day, it will go by very fast and I can express how FAST time flew by on our wedding day.

I’ve gotten so much from this forum and wanted to thank everyone for all the solid advice. It’s time to pay it forward! Here are my reviews, I hope it helps with your planning!

Guest Count: 109

Venue - Bali Hai Golf Course (http://www.balihaigolfclub.com/weddings/weddings/) A+++

I couldn’t have picked a better location for our Ceremony/Reception. I toured a few options on the strip and decided against a hotel wedding. We didn’t see any chapels we liked that could fit our party size so we had to look into alternative venues. Luckily Bali Hai was on the strip right next to the Welcome to Las Vegas sign so it was still close/easy for out of town guests. Our wedding coordinator was Nicole (nmartin@cili.com) and she made our planning effortless. She was quick to respond to my emails, happy to fulfill all my requests and made time to see me whenever I wanted. I was late giving her my final headcount and she totally understood what I was going through. You couldn’t ask for am more understanding coordinator. Her communication throughout the process was lightning fast, she responded to texts, emails ASAP. She was on top of it and when planning a wedding, you need your coordinator to be responsive. Nicole wasn’t just a coordinator to me, she was my go-to person for recommendations, advice - EVERYTHING. She’s the most genuine, sweetest, nicest person and my favorite wedding vendor.
Everyone at Bali Hai is service oriented, polite and willing to go out of there way to make your wedding as smooth as possible. On our wedding day we were assigned one server (Rob) to make sure we got everything we needed in terms of food, drinks, requests.. anything. Tommy (the manager) checked on us throughout the day to make sure I was taken care of, for example I was dancing and decided to go sit down, next thing I know there was Tommy handing me a Fiji bottle water. Bali Hai exceeded all my expectations, if I had to plan any other event it would be my first choice hands down, no question!
Option B: If I had to choose a strip Hotel & had a smaller guest count we would pick Aria because the chapel is new, modern and the bridal suite is amazing!
Hair and Makeup - Lori White (lala@lorijwhite.com) A+++
The best thing about Harmony canceling last minute was that I got to work with Lori White. I contacted and booked Lori 12 days before my wedding! She sympathized with my situation and really helped me when I was desperate for a new Hair and Makeup Artist. I contacted multiple HMU artists in last minute frantic search and Lori stood out the most. I couldn’t believe how accommodating she was to my strict schedule. From our communication, I felt that Lori genuinely wanted to help me and even though it was more than I wanted to spend on HMU, based on my gut feeling I booked her immediately. That was the best decision I made!
We had our trial the Weds before the wedding. I cannot stress to you how important a trial is for your big day. For example, I had a vision of what I wanted for my hair and Lori recreated it exactly but when it was completed, I changed my mind. It wasn’t that I didn’t like the style, it was just different on me vs the Pinterest picture. Given that we had a trial, I was able to tweak some things for hair and makeup. Lori made some notes and we were on the same page. I made sure that I explained to Lori exactly what I wanted, I was not shy about it. I think she appreciated that because she wanted me to be completely happy.
For the actual wedding day, she executed the new vision flawlessly. Oh my goodness, I was beyond happy with the end result. Truly happy I was jumping around, giggling and smiling ear to ear. I’m sure everyone typically says the bride looks gorgeous on her wedding day but I had family members who said the trial was good/ok but the wedding day makeup/hair was AMAZING! The family members are makeup gurus, and would have fixed my makeup if needed and they didn’t want to change a thing. Thank god for Lori, I cannot express how wonderful she is, I would book her again in a heartbeat, half a heartbeat - she does amazing work! I am serious girls… if you want to look and feel beautiful book Lori for Hair and makeup. You will not find another HMU as talented as Lori.

Hair and Makeup - Harmony Medina/ Tapia - F
Some background, Harmony did my sisters makeup when she got married in Vegas. I have seen Harmony’s work first hand. In my opinion she does GREAT hair and good makeup. She’s a nice person and my sister liked her. To be completely honest, I booked her because she was the least expensive of all my options and I knew she could do great hair. Hair was more important to me than makeup.
I booked Harmony six months before my wedding date, 2 weeks before I sent her a confirmation email of trial/wedding date and time. She responds with “Yes, you are confirmed with Sue P. please text/call your makeup artist when you arrive” After this email, I immediately respond and ask, “I thought you were doing my makeup?”. Then she decides to tell me her sister is getting married and she found out last minute. I was shocked! I booked Harmony based on her experience not Sue. P. So I email her and say that I don’t feel comfortable with Sue P. and would like an opportunity to find a replacement even though it’s short notice I might not be able to find another HMU. I asked her for a refund if I found a new HMU. She said the deposit was non-refundable! I couldn’t believe it and had to read her contract twice! I was stuck….I debated my options between sticking with Sue or finding a new HMU (who of course all were more expensive). Ultimately, I decided to book Lori White rather than chance it.
Luckily, I was able to manage to use my deposit by having Sue for my sister’s (BM) hair. Sue P. came on time to work on my sister, and lets just say, Sue couldn’t even do a simple half up/half down curl style let alone my inspirational hair. She wasn’t even worth the difference between the deposit and the cost of BM hair. It was a joke how awful it was. I could have done better with my hands tied behind my back. Listen up ladies, when you book Harmony you are at risk of her cancelling on you and having Sue P. be her back up. You do not want this to happen! You are better off losing your $50 deposit, book Lori White instead.
P.S. Lori said if she cancels on anyone (which prob never has happened) she would give back the deposit
Option B:
Beauty by Bri also was inexpensive too but I didn’t book her b/c she didn’t work on “bride” only but bigger parties and I felt like she was better at makeup and less versed in hair. She said she does “simpler” hairdos.
Perfect Hair and Makeup - if they were available I would consider booking them. From their Facebook portfolio they (the owners) do amazing hair.
DJ Knight Sounds Entertainment (http://www.knightsoundsdjslasvegas.com/) A++
Chris was our DJ for the night and he was AWESOME! I was so worried our DJ would suck I requested my friend to provide a mix just in case. Luckily the mix was not needed. All of my friends love to dance and like to get down. He had everyone on the dance floor throughout the night. My friends even said it felt like we were in a club, they never heard such a good music from a DJ. Chris met me to go over some details prior to the ceremony and I told him my vision was to have a big party with lots of upbeat, 80’s 90’ 00’s music. He was spot on in every way. I hire Chris again, for any event. The communication prior to the the event was mostly with Jennifer. She was quick to respond and had good/fast communication skills. Overall, I liked Knight Sounds and would recommend them to anyone! Only Chris though!
Photobooth - PicBot - (http://www.picbots.com/) F- (worst vendor of the night!)
I am still mad at this company! I tried to stay calm and not let this stupid company ruin my day but they were AWFUL. Do not book this vendor. They should be embarrassed and ashamed for their lack of customer service. So many things went wrong with this vendor.
First, they came late to set up - they weren’t even ready when our guests came into the space for cocktail hour!
Second, there was a suppose to be a social media kiosk, there wasn’t one.
Third, my sister designed the print layout on 4X6 with our logo and wedding date. I sent it to Tania (main contact) and she confirmed it was exactly what she needed. I was appalled when I saw the prints and although it had the correct background, it was not a 4X6 but instead a strip 2X3 and without our logo/or wedding date! It was just three photos and then at the bottom a white empty space!! Our guests were supposed to leave with photos to commemorate our wedding but left a photo strip with a horrible layout.
Fourth, after finding out this error, I was expecting to talk to an attendant to help fix this error and NO ONE was there, they just left the machine and we couldn’t contact them! Nicole, our coordinator called numerous times and left a message and we never heard back. I was beyond disappointed and frustrated because I couldn’t do anything but accept that this vendor totally screwed up. I sent a raging email at the end of the night and still haven’t heard back. We will see what happens but I wouldn’t recommend PicBots - go with another vendor.
Videographer - Light Source Films (http://lightsourcefilms.com/) A+++
Jim (owner - jim@lightsourcefilms.com ) and Chase were our videographers for the day. I’ve actually met Jim before, he was my sister’s videographer so we go way back. My sister’s wedding video was AMAZING, I think it’s Jim’s best work. After seeing her video, I immediately emailed Jim and told him I’d book him when it was my time to get married and of course I did. Even though I haven’t seen my highlight video yet, I know without a doubt it will be amazing! Jim’s packages are reasonably priced and best yet, it’s unlimited hours so he stays ALL night, he was the last person to leave Bali Hai that night! Jim is a very kind, creative, easy going guy. He gives clear directions and guides you through every shot. Most of the time, you don’t even notice that he’s there and Chase, who I call the silent videographer because he’s just around filming everything and you don’t even notice him. It’s nice not the see someone filming you directly in your face :-) I would recommend Light Source to anyone looking for a great videographer. You can’t find a better videographer!
Transportation - Omni Limos - (https://www.omnilimo.com/) B+
The reason for the B+ rating is because of one incident. When the driver picked me up at Vdara, he had a bit of an attitude because I was 5 mins late for my 2:45pm pickup. It honestly wasn’t my fault he came early at 2:20pm and waited around. Also when he dropped me off at Bali Hai, the first thing he said when I got out of the limo was, do you want to pay in Cash/Card? I was taken back, I gave my credit card when I made the reservation and thought it was on file, so I said, could you just charge the card? He said no, and I luckily had my wallet and paid him. I made sure my sister call the company to have them charge the credit card for our 10pm pickup. Other than that, the shuttle buses and limo came on time.
I will post a follow up once I get photos! Let me know if you have any questions!

dbacksgirl · September 2014

Thank you for the reviews! So sorry you had such a bad experience with the photobooth. We have one scheduled, though not through that vendor, and I know how disappointed I would be if it turned out to be a mess. That said, it sounds like your ceremony was amazing and I am SO, SO happy that you liked Lori! Isn't she awesome! I'm sure Harmony does good work when she's the one actually doing it but the customer service experience you got from her was really bad. So many brides have used her and talked about her on here that obviously, other girls want to book her. Just goes to show though that there are other GREAT artists out there if you're willing to look around.

It's been fun reading your posts leading up to the Big Day and really cool to read how everything went. I'm excited to see some pics! Congratulations to you and Mr. Holly!

khristiana · September 2014

Great reviews, other than your hair from Harmony and the rude limo driver. You should post a picture or two

KikiMira · September 2014

I remember seeing your post about Harmony. I am glad you went with your gut feeling and booked Lori. I used beauty by Bri and she was fantastic, 2 of the do's she did weren't exactly "simple", I think she tries to keep them simple for timeline purposes. I am sorry your limo driver was rude and that they didn't auto charge your credit card. I would also still be raging from your experience with Picbot, I am sorry that it happened to you.

Can't wait to see photos.

tcnoble · September 2014

Thanks for the reviews!! We booked Knight Sounds too so I'm happy to hear you were pleased

Bummer about Harmony but the honest reviews will surely help other brides who come seeking recommendations.

missholly18 · September 2014

Thanks guys! There are some things I wished I did differently, 1) I wished I had drank more (weird I am not a drinker) but I think it takes the edge off. 2) I wished I had more photos on my phone. I took a ton of photos but none that I actually have on hand to send to family/friends after the wedding 3) I wished I ate more of the food/cake! 4) This is dumb too but less dancing/more mingling. Photos coming soon!

missholly18 · September 2014

Also - follow up on PicBot they refunded me my deposit so that's good.

Ndelible · September 2014

Congratulations and thank you for all of the helpful information!

Rosebubbly · September 2014

Congrats and thabks for such detailed reviews! Very helpful. I was considering picbot before this...now I'm not sure

vegasbride2015 · September 2014

Congratulations!!

j3nnmack3y · September 2014

Congrats! Thanks for all the reviews!!

hmgiffor · September 2014

Congrats!

Knottie76129794 · October 2014

So glad to read this review! I am seriously considering Bali Hai....it's also named Cili right?

Knottie76129794 · October 2014

@MissHolly18 Can I PM you for more information with Bali Hai?

vegasgroom · October 2014

Thanks for the reviews. I'll get them linked on my site tomorrow and will be sure to add a note about Harmony's contract and suggest future brides consider demanding service be provided by her rather than whomever she chooses, with no out.

missholly18 · October 2014

Hi - just got back from my honeymoon :-)

VegasGroom -

I actually got an email from Harmony, guess she heard about my review and she is refunding me my $$. It sucks that it was after the fact but I'll take it!

@knottie76129794 would be happy to help!

9/27/14 - Wedding Reviews

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