PerfectMoment2007 Reviews 05.24.09

My wedding was absolutely what I had dreamed it would be and more! Everything came out beautifully and my vendors really were amazing to work with! (All pics credited to Domino Art)

Venue – Jungle Island: A+:
At first I was a little disappointed with JI because I had a total of 3 different coordinators and was not informed the last time my coordinator had left…However, Steve – my last coordinator – was really on top of things and did an amazing job! Steve assigned a waitress who helped me/followed me around all day to make sure I was always happy, and she really was awesome! The food was INCREDIBLE! We had cocktail hour before the ceremony and I got a lot of compliments on having it that way - At cocktail hour we had a paella station, a Mediterranean station, a sushi station, a crudités station, and 10 or so passed hor dorves! I got to try some of the hor dorves and they really were amazing! Everyone kept talking about how good the cocktail hour was. For dinner we gave a choice of Churrasco Steak, Mojo Chicken, or Maple Glazed Salmon, each with black beans, rice, and plantains – I asked Steve to bring me a sampler platter with 1 of each so that I could taste what everyone else was eating and he was happy to! I couldn’t believe how AMAZING everything was! I actually thought that they had made my steak better than everyone else’s (LOL), so I went over to my Man of Honor only to find out his was as good as mine lol. It all tasted like restaurant food… not at all like I was eating crappy wedding food lol! Everyone said the food was amazing! Originally we were supposed to have the ceremony outdoors, but it had been rainy all week and so we were anticipating the possibility of moving it indoors early on….All along, Steve was really nice and not pushy at all about making a rain call (as I expect others may be in that situation) - I asked that he give me until the afternoon to decide, and he was more than happy to, and left it totally up to me. I finally made the call to move inside because I realized that even if it wasn’t raining, it would be humid/muggy/uncomfortable outside and I was really happy I did move it in, because I think the ceremony décor and lighting looked beautiful indoors in the ballroom. We kept the cocktail hour on the balcony/veranda which is covered and JI brought out parrots for our guests to take pictures with there! I HIGHLY RECOMMEND Jungle Island! The service was amazing, the food was outrageous, and everything looked beautiful there!

Photographer/Videographer – Domino Art: A+:
Plamen and his wife Paolina were INCREDIBLE – Paolina took photos along with 2 other photographers, and Plamen took video along with another videographer! My mom was really set on having a company that did both photo/video, and I’m so glad we chose Domino Art. What I loved about them most is that they were ALWAYS THERE! Every time something fun/cute was going on, I would turn around to get a photographer’s/videographer’s attention, only to see they were already there! Unfortunately, we had to start shooting late cause 3 of my BMs (my cousins) were late to their makeup/hair L…BUT Paolina was determined to get EVERY shot, and she really tried her best to do it all! I just got the pictures and am SO happy with how they turned out! Plamen told me they took about 6000 photos, and he edited about 1200 for me to give me a reasonable number to choose from! I LOVED Domino Art, and highly recommend them! They are sweet and so easy to work with, and the photos they took are truly amazing! I can’t wait to see the video! Visit www.domino-art.com. To see my pictures visit http://www.domino-art.com/Elena_and_Andrew/index.htm

Florist – Petal Productions: A+:
Petal Productions was incredible! I was a little nervous because I didn’t love my trial, but after I sent Raffi some pictures of what I wanted and that changes I was interested in, he assured me he would create exactly what I was envisioning…and he did more than that! My bouquet was gorgeous…Raffi included beautiful crystals and I couldn’t get over itl!! The acrylic chuppah with hanging orchids and crystals was absolutely beautiful! The centerpieces were HUGE (someone counted over 100 roses) and absolutely incredible! They also did uplighting, lighting for the rooms, pink lighting underneath the tables, and fireworks from some of the centerpieces when we entered the room – all were amazing! He also draped the room for the ceremony (which he had to do last minute because of the move inside due to the rain) and draped the room for the reception – both looked beautiful! He added garden doors with hanging roses in the back of the room for the ceremony, which really added drama for the entrance! Petal Productions was INCREDIBLE…Everyone complimented the décor and I have them to thank for that! LOVE THEM! Visit http://petalproductions.com/

Band – Tal Productions - Shalom Band: A+:
I saw Shalom Band at another wedding a few years ago and knew I wanted them at my wedding! We kept adding more and more pieces and ended up with an incredible 13 piece band, thanks to the manager Yael! I have never seen more people on the dance floor at any wedding like at my own! My family and I love the Jewish tradition of the Hoorah and wanted a long, fun hoorah – But we did not expect the hoorah to be as CRAZY and FUN as it was! The dance floor was packed…there were times where I found myself outside of the dance floor pushing my way back in because of how crazy it was! I found out later that the power in the band’s side of the ballroom actually went off at some point in the hoorah (the fuse blew or something), but the band kept beating the drums and singing and everyone just thought it was part of the show (including me)..that’s how good and entertaining they were! Besides the hoorah, they really did an amazing job at playing a diverse array of music – I was slightly worried that they wouldn’t be able to play more modern songs because it was a band and not a DJ…but sure enough we were dancing from everything latin music, to Sweet Home Alabama, to Justin Timberlake, Pink, and Miley Cirus lol. They really were incredible and had everyone dancing the entire time! They are an AMAZING band! Visit http://talproductions.com/

Ceremony Music – Tal Production’s String Quartet: A:
I hired the String Quartet through the same company through which I hired my band. The string quartet played beautifully! They played every song I requested and it was really beautiful hearing them play! I also asked them to play Beauty and the Beast when I walked in, and they did an amazing job!! My cousin sang a few songs during the ceremony itself, and they played along with his singing (having only practiced the day of the wedding), and it really sounded beautiful.

Hair – Dina Acle: A:
Dina is a sweetheart and just a pleasure to work with! She did a great job with my hair, my moms hair, and some of the BMs, and it lasted the whole night! We actually paid her to stay around for after the pictures (which were before the ceremony and outdoors) ceremony to retouch my mom and I up…and despite being rushed at times by others, you could tell she really cared about making sure our hair looked beautiful! I would highly recommend Dina!!!

Make up – Hilda Blacher: A:
Hilda did my make up for my bat mitzvah almost 10 years ago (lol) and after a trial with her for the wedding, I knew she would do an amazing job! She also did a great job doing the makeup for my mom, and some of my BMs, and it all definitely lasted the entire night! It was important to me that the make up wasn’t too strong, because DH HATES make up, and she really worked with me to keep it natural but still perfect for pictures! She also stayed around for after the pictures and ceremony, and even followed me around touching me up for some of the pictures without even being asked to – since she also really cared about keeping my make up fresh! Visit www.hildamakeup.com

Day of Coordinator – Leyani: B+:
Leyani was my DOC; we also ordered invites/thank you notes from her, as well as Chairs, Chair Covers/sashes. I had a few really small issues with Leyani along the planning process….For example, she put the wrong size crystals on my invitations (which she had to remove/re-do), and she ordered my thank you notes without sending me a proof (which I had requested)…Overall not a huge deal. However, I felt that my wedding was a little too much for her to handle. We had about 300 people, and she just brought herself and one other girl to do it all. She seemed a little overwhelmed and I felt that she wasn’t there for me. Overall I was not unhappy with her work, I just think it was more than she could handle.

One great thing that came out of working with Leyani was our white chiviari chairs for the ceremony! The week of the wedding we gave Leyani our final number for the garden chairs that she was renting for us for the ceremony. The final number – 300 – was more than we had originally told her (which was about 250), so the company she was renting from didn’t have enough reserved…so, they offered white chiviari chairs with white pads for the same price (which was about $2)! They looked beautiful…especially since we had to move the ceremony indoors!

Cake – Cake Designs by Edda: A-:
My package at JI included a choice of a buttercream cake from either Ana Paz or Edda. I chose Edda because they told me they could do a flat white buttercream (which I really wanted), and also because they upgraded me to a fuchsia buttercream scroll design at no cost! They get a B+ because when the cake arrived, the fuchsia scrolls were more like a maroon or burgundy color (and they had a swatch of the color I wanted, and this was nowhere near it)! Thankfully it was early enough in the afternoon that they were able to pick it up and drop it back off later with the color exactly how it was supposed to be! The cake tasted great and it looked beautiful once it was the right color!

Mini Donuts – Donut Divas: A:
We hired Donut Divas to make donuts outside the ballroom give out little bags of Donuts as people were leaving. We gave them stickers to put on the bags which said something like you: Love is delicious, Your presence was sweet, Now please enjoy this little treat. I didn’t get to try the donuts, but I heard they were great!!! People were raving about how delicious they were! Visit http://www.donutdivas.com

Chocolate Fountain – Amazing Chocolate Cascades: A:
We got a milk chocolate and dulce de leche fountain from Amazing Chocolate Cascades!The milk chocolate fountain used Ghirardelli chocolate and dipping choices offered were great! I heard both fountains were amazing! Visit www.AmazingChocolateCascades.com

Coffee Station – Aroma Espresso: A:
Another station I didn’t get to visit/try, but looked great and guests loved it! Visit www.aromaespresso.net

Bridesmaid Dress Store: Happy Bride – Hallandale, FL: A:

I ordered my Bridesmaid’s dresses from Happy Bride because they offered me the best pricing for the Bridesmaid’s dresses from Impressions Bridal. I also loved that they were very willing to help me with the alterations I wanted done to the dresses. They really did a great job too! The dresses came in on time, and the alterations were great and done on time as well! I had 11 Bridesmaids, and they took great care of each and every one of them. My MIL also got her dress there and complimented their service and pricing! Happy Bride is a great store with great, quick, and friendly service!!! Visit http://happybrideonline.com

Bride Dress Store: Leggenda – Coral Gables, FL: A:
I saw my dress as I was walking by Leggenda’s window and went in, asking to try it on…I knew it was “the one” before it was even fully zipped up, and when it was, it fit me like a glove! I ordered my Blue by Enzoani dress from them, as well as my veil from the store, which is located on Miracle Mile. They also did my dress alterations and made my blusher veil. I also got my crystal hair comb from them. The staff was friendly and very helpful…Not pushy like a lot of other bridal shops that I went to, but still helpful and willing! My mom also bought her dress from Leggenda, and had her alterations done there, and was very happy with their service! I would definitely recommend them for their great service and nice selection.

Ties: Alter Ego - Coral Gables, FL: A:
I bought extra material from the BM dress material and took it to Alter Ego to make into ties for the Groom and Groomsmen! They did an amazing job and the ties looked great and matched beautifully!

Cristy0583's Reviews 08.30.09

Feel free to contact me if you have any questions! cristy0583@gmail.com
Planning bio: www.cristinaandaian.weebly.com

Ceremony and Reception Venue - Douglas Entrance: A
http://douglasentrance.com/
I had my wedding ceremony and reception at the Douglas Entrance and I had an excellent experience. Raul was a pleasure to work with and was very responsive. I went there after looking at several other venues and I stopped looking once I saw it. It is a spectacular venue and was perfect for our wedding. I absolutely loved it!

Caterer and DOC - A Fancy Fiesta Productions: A
http://afancyfiesta.com/
I had the catering for the wedding done by A Fancy Fiesta Productions. Everything went great with them. I keep getting raves about the food and the service from guests. The food was delicious and they served the meal super quick. Marggie (with a Fancy Fiesta) was my DOC and she did a great job, everything flowed perfectly.

Flowers and Up-lighting - Petal Productions: B
http://petalproductions.com/
All of the flowers for the wedding were done by Petal Productions. They were included in the package I chose with Fancy Fiesta. The flowers looked beautiful; however, they were not exactly what I asked for. I wanted all of the flowers to be white and have some pale pink but some of the arrangements had bright pink. I was also not happy with the bridesmaid’s bouquets. They were made up of hydrangea and roses and I was expecting the roses to be open/full, but they were tight rose buds and were sticking out. The reception flowers looked amazing, and I am overall happy with their work.

Petal Productions also did up- lighting which really added a great look and feel to the reception.

Photographer - NB Photographix: A
http://www.nbphotographix.com/
(Pending photos) They have been so great to work with! We had our engagement session at the Grove and although it was super hot and we were sweating we had a wonderful time and the pictures look amazing. Bryan does a very good job of capturing nice shots and I was amazed by his creativity as he transformed one of our pictures right before our eyes.

On the wedding day I feel they did very well getting great shots. I have not received all of the pictures yet but the teasers are incredible!

Link to wedding teasers: http://tinyurl.com/mxwdp3
Link to engagement session teasers: http://tinyurl.com/lbhphz

Cake - Divine Delicacies: C

I also booked Divine Delicacies(DD) through my caterer. I went to them months before the wedding to show them the cake I wanted. I asked the girl that was helping me if it was included in the package and she takes out a list with the caterers they work with to verify. She told me that according to the list the cake I wanted was included. The week of the wedding I went to meet with Marggie(Caterer/DOC) and she was on the phone with Ileana (I think she is the owner) from DD who is telling her that the cake I wanted would cost much more and that I knew that and had told them that I would cover whatever the extra costs were!! They said the cake I wanted would cost an extra $4 per person! So I said that I will just change it. Marggie took the time to show me cakes that they had done for her before and I saw one that I liked and she printed it out for me. The cake had a fondant bow and the girl told me that would cost extra… We kept going back and forth about the cake and the girl kept going to the back to speak to Ileana, who did not have the decency to come out and speak to me herself after the mix up and the continued mix up. I ended up being so confused… For whatever reason the cake was an extra $10 so I just paid it. Marggie had told me to call her if there was any issues but I had a lot of other things to do so I just wanted to get out of there quick. In the end, the cake did look nice and tasted good.

Gown - Leggenda Bridal: A
I bought my wedding gown at Leggenda Bridal, it was a sample sale and I got it at a good price. They also did the alterations. The dress fit me perfectly and was clean and ironed when I picked it up.

DJ UBI: A
UBI did the music for the ceremony and reception. Everything flowed very smoothly and he kept everyone on the dance floor!

FAVORS - Gifts and Romantic Wedding D
I bought 80 little trinket boxes for my wedding favors here. First, I thought it was odd that they charged me for the shipping costs, I don’t know if that is common practice. They told me the order would arrive in 2 weeks and they arrived in 3 weeks. My mom went to pick them up and they each came in individual boxes. We didn’t open them until a couple of weeks later and we noticed that many of them were damaged. We separated 26 of the ones that were very damaged and the store agreed to order replacements. When we went to pick up the replacements we began to open them in the store to inspect them and found that many of them had damages. The lady in the store also made a point to state the vendor they ordered them from told her that they accepted replacing the damaged ones once but would not do so again. We ended up taking the ones that were in best shape, but by no means perfect, because the wedding was in a couple of days and there was no time to find alternate favors. We were not offered any type of reimbursement or credit despite the trouble we went through and ending up with damaged favors.

Hair and Make-up - Noel: A
Noel did my hair and make-up. He did a wonderful job, I was very happy with how I looked. He was great to work with and he made my time with him fun and relaxing. I highly recommend him!

Chiavari Chairs - Hitched: A
I rented the white wood padded chairs for the ceremony and gold chiavari chairs for the reception from Hitched and I had a very good experience. I also asked about specialty linens and he had them for a very good price. I did not get the linens because I was already over my budget, but they had the lowest prices that I found.

Linens - AB Cover Designers: B
I booked them through my caterer and was originally using them for chivaris and linens before I found the chairs much cheaper through Hitched. I met with them months before the wedding to chose the linens. I told them I had the basic package and that I wanted ivory linens. The man who was helping showed me beautiful ivory crinkled linen. I asked him if he was sure that those were included in the basic package and he said yes. Of course in the end I found out that they were not included and that is why they get a B!

DIY Invitations
Paperandmore.com: A
I bought all of the paper and envelopes for my invitations on this site and the paper quality was very good.

Staples: F-
I printed my invitations at home with a color laser printer so I only needed to have them cut to the exact measurements. I had a thick card stock for the backing and the text cardstock for the top layer with the crop marks. I took them to staples to get cut. I went to pick them up and as soon as I looked at them I knew they were off… I layered them to see how bad it was… It was terrible! Not only were they off in the measurements, they were also slanted. . I was devastated! I spoke to the manager and he tells me that it is not possible for them to cut to exact measurements and the employee should not have taken the job. Luckily I had bought extra paper and I reprinted them and took them to be cut at SirSpeedy.

SirSpeedy: B
They did a good job at cutting the paper. They do not get an A because one of the sides was a tiny bit longer and I had to trim them myself.

Mmburns' Reviews 05.09.09

Caterer/DOC ~
Caribbean Catering
http://www.islamoradaweddings.com/ A+++++++++++
Debbie Pierog was the absolute reason our wedding went without a hitch. She catered both our rehearsal dinner and reception dinner. At the rehearsal we did a tapas style dinner with cocktail servers walking around with trays(Her staff was superfriendly and went out of their way to make sure my guests were happy and full). The food was delicious. We actually ran out of some of the appetizers so she added them to the cocktail hour after the wedding since they were such a hit! ( for free I might add) Everyone loved the food and kept asking for more! On the wedding day, her bartender came up with a signature drink and passed it at the cocktail hour without me even asking. They were delicious and I had two! We did a buffet for the reception and the food was again wonderful. There was something for everyone.

For the wedding day, she acts as a DOC as part of her catering services. Debbie made sure that we started on time for the ceremony and made sure that everything flowed according to the timeline we had discussed. She made sure Matt and I remembered to eat and that we always had a drink in our hand. I truthfully feel blessed because we were actually able to enjoy our own wedding and never worried about a thing! Debbie went above and beyond what we hired her to do! We got nothing but compliments about everything she did.

Officiant
Reverend Eddie Rodriguez ~ A++++++++
http://www.eddierodriguez.com/
Eddie is a true professional. He travelled from Miami to perform our ceremony in Islamorada and we couldn't be happier. He completely understood us and our ceremony reflected that. He put us both and ease and laughed along side of us when the small plane decided to circle overhead during one of our readings! He even made sure to match his tie to our wedding colors! Our only regret is that he had to head back right after the ceremony and we didn't get a picture with him.

DJ
Effects Entertainment, Inc. 786.229.8737 ~A++++++++++++++++
Jorge Navarro was fantastic and kept our party going! He followed our playlist perfectly and mixed the music so well that my 78 yr old grandma was the hit of the dance floor! He was priced well and gave way more than he charged. There was a wedding next door and Jorge was so good that they were requesting music from him!

Hair and makeup
Shannon Biondoletti A++++++++++++++++++++++++
Shannon came to my wedding site and did makeup for myself and my bridesmaids. I had a trial with her in February where she wowed me with the updo she came up with. Her vision the day of the wedding was AWESOME and I got tons of compliments on it. I was worried that with the heat and humidity that appeared for my wedding that my hair was going to be a mess. However, Shannon did such a fanstastic job that it stayed put until the very end of the reception when the humidity and my curly hair overtook the updo. I had done makeup trials with her as well and my only comment after the trial was that my makeup was too heavy. On the morning of my wedding, I had a fellow knottie's photo in hand and told Shannon that I wanted to switch gears and look just like the picture! She took it in full swing and created exactly the look I wanted. Shannon is easygoing and listens to exactly what her client wants. I loved her!

Photographer
Belinda Serata ~ A++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
http://www.bserata.com/
Belinda and her husband Bob were all that Matt and I could have asked for in a photographer. Not only did she capture every detail of our wedding day but she managed to make my camera shy husband actually enjoy having his picture taken. That to me is a miracle in its self. Belinda's goal was to chronicle our wedding day while actually letting us enjoy our day. She took all the "must have" photos I requested so quickly I don't think our families realized she had taken so many great photos! She also made sure to take tons of pictures of our wedding guests as well. It was great to see everyone enjoying themselves! She set up a last minute shot that I thought I had discussed with her but had actually just talked about with the caterer without missing a beat. We had fireworks before the dancing began and she took AWESOME photos of those too. She had our wedding website up within two days of the wedding and when we returned from our honeymoon we had a box with all of photos on cd waiting for our review!

BM Dresses
www.ariadress.com A+++++++
I was a little hesitant to order dresses online without a store for my girls to try the dress on and see a sample of the work. However, my experience was fantastic. My bridesmaids used their online sizing chart to determine which size to order and then we called customer service to confirm. I was a little worried because the turn around time was 4 months and it was January with my wedding in May, so when the dresses showed up in March, I was ecstatic. The color and quality of the dresses was great and the sizes were perfect. Only one of the girls needed a small alteration in the top. Aria Dress will send you fabric swatches so that you can view them prior to ordering and for a small fee they will mail you a sample dress in the size of your choice ( I believe that you have to ship it back at your cost but we didn't do that so I am not sure). All in all, both my of bridesmaids were happy with the dresses and so was I.

Wedding Dress
Brides Against Breast Cancer ~A+++++++
This organization gets an A ++++++ in my book mainly because they are a fantastic charity. My husband's mom passed away from breast cancer so it was a great way for me to include her in my day! They had a huge selection and lots of sizes for great prices. They even had designer gowns for low prices. They have a separate section for the designer/couture gowns which was nice because if you were looking for a specific designer, they would be easy to find. Unfortunately for me, they only had a much larger size than I needed in the dress I loved but I bought it and had it altered and was supremely happy! I went a year in advance and bought my dress that day. I never even looked in the bridal stores.

Alterations
Belissima Bridal ~ B-/C+
The work that they did on my dress was very good, however I give them a lesser grade because of the experience I had. First of all, I did not buy my dress at the store so the alterations were super expensive ( almost as much as the dress, however my dress was lace and had a beautiful hem I wanted put back on) but I knew other people who had alterations done there and were happy so I bit the bullet. The first fitting went well but I had to sign a waiver because I wanted the dress to be above the recommended length. I got married outside and was worried about the bottom dragging in the grass/dirt if it rained. Also, they kept trying to insist that the top needed to be very tight as I wouldn't want the dress to fall down. Well, I have a fuller bust and the dress falling down was not going to be an issue. I just wanted to be comfortable and be able to breathe as I was going to wear the dress all night. When I went back for the 2nd fitting, I brought one of my bridesmaids to make sure that I was being clear on what I wanted. After the first fitting, they were only working on the length as I was still losing weight and I didn't want to pay for a 2nd alteration if I lost too much weight. There was a month in between fittings so I expected the length to be done when I went back for the 2nd fitting. It was but not to the length I signed the waiver for...they decided I might change my mind (????) and it would be better to leave it longer and do a second alteration. So again, I had to fight over the length and insist that I didn't want the top to be too tight. I left feeling a little uncertain and I shouldn't have so I take responsibility for that part. However, the day I was to pick up my dress was a nightmare. They had doublebooked the appointments and because the other bride was buying her dress through the store, I felt like I wasn't a top priority. They hustled me into the dressing room where the dress was shoved on my body as quickly as possible. Instantly I knew the top was too tight even though they had loosened it and taken measurements at the 2nd fitting. They took a few stitches out and assured me that I had just GAINED WEIGHT and had a week and a half to lose it...WHAT???? According to them, most brides lose weight before the wedding because of the stress...that may be true but what a inconsiderate thing to say to a bride a week before. I also indicated that the length seemed like it hadn't been shortened since the 2nd fitting. I was assured that it was but it definitely wasn't. The manager even looked at the receipt and said that it was exactly what I asked for. BUT IT WAS NOT. The seamstress then whipped the dress over my head, threw it in the dress bag and handed it to me and I was ushered out. At this point, I should have marched back in and demanded that they fix my dress but I was so overwhelmed and distraught about the experience that I didn't want them doing anything else to the dress. One of my bridesmaids was able to loosen the top and although the length was too long at the reception even with the bustle, the dress was beautiful and I loved it nonetheless. I just felt like the customer service experience could have been better especially during the most stressful last weeks of the wedding planning process!

Save the Dates
Weddingpaperdivas.com. A+++++++ The website was super easy to use and the order was processed very quickly. The STD's came out beautiful. The only catch was the extra postage but they do tell you that upfront...I just didn't realize it was going to cost $1.17 per STD to mail!

Cake A++++++++++
My aunt Denise flew down for the wedding and made our wedding cake as a gift to us. It WAS DELICIOUS! We told her that she should quit her job, move to Florida and make cakes full time. People had two pieces....Other than the piece that my dear husband smashed in my face....I don't think we even got cake!!! And there was tons of cake...it just was a huge hit!

Flowers~ A++++++
In order to make room in our budget for other things that were important to us, we decided not to hire a florist. We made it a DIY project as the setting for our wedding didn't require much decoration. I went to the warehouse district near MIA and ordered flowers from Art Flowers Corp on NW 72 Ave They were fantastic. The woman there made great suggestions and I ended spending $80 on 125 gerbara daises that we used to make the bridal bouquet and bridesmaids bouquet. We then floated flowers in water on the tables. It was perfect for our wedding and I would recommend this company to anyone interested in ordering wholesale flowers.

jlr557's Reviews 04.18.09

Jacaranda Country Club A+: I don't know if some of the older knotties will remember but I did not want my wedding here at all. My Dad has played golf here for years and I've been to numerous affairs here and was just not feeling Jacaranda. My Dad basically said if you want a wedding from me its here, so with that being said we had a venue! Let me tell you.........they totally outdid themselves. The service was amazing, the drinks were fantastic, our martini bar was packed, the food was really really good which I always remember it being not so great. My MIL is gluten free, the caterer made her a special meal and assured her it was 100% gluten free. They even made her homemade gluten free brownies. They were just so wonderful, we had our own personal server who was just standing near the band waiting to get us anything we needed. Besides having the bar and bartenders they had servers walking around to get people drinks which I loved. Honestly, I am so glad my Dad forced us to have it here. Wow!

Rabbi Kaplan and Father Anderson A+: These 2 are a great pair, the ceremony was beautiful. It was sentimental and funny, sincere and politically correct you could say. It was not overly Jewish or Christian, they found a nice happy medium. My MIL walked up to the Rabbi afterwards to thank him and tell him how great everything was. They were fantastic!

Augustine from MAC A: This man rocks!!!!!! Great personality and does a fabulous job, I was sooooo happy with my make up. He would have gotten an A+ from me except that 4 days before my wedding I called him to make sure everything was on track and he threw me a curve ball. He was going to go into work late on my wedding day so he can come and do my makeup at our hotel, he now told me that he couldn't go in late anymore and needed to start doing our makeup at 11:00 at the hotel, it was only an hour before he was supposed to be there but dude 4 days before my wedding! I tried to push back a little but saw it wasn't an option, I had 4 trials before I found him and I was not losing my buddy from MAC to make me beautiful. He showed up on time, like exactly on time which was the best thing ever. He still decided once he got there that he'd take his time and go into work late. He hung out, did one of my BM's and myself. My cousin wants to be a makeup artist so he gave her some tips as well. I love him. He was so close to an A+.

My Treasure Videos A+: I love this man! From the moment I booked him his communication was on point. He always responded so quickly and I love that in a vendor. I checked my email when we were on our HM and saw that he emailed me the recap, it was more beautiful than I could have imagined. I cant wait to see the whole thing. One concern I had was that there would be a huge camera in our face all night, i don't think I even noticed him once. He does a fantastic job at not being noticed. If you're thinking of booking him do it!

Cindy Karp: Communication is A+, page me for details

Uplyte A+: This was one of the best additions I had, we added lighting just a month or so ago and I'm so glad we did. What a change in the room lighting makes, it had a soft romantic feel and everyones skin color looked great! We went with amber lighting and I just loved it. Dan and Alex (husband and wife) from uplyte were fantastic to work with, absolutely wonderful!

Dalsimer A-/B+ ish, keep flip flopping: This review is a little hard, I started writing this review in my head a while back and now am finally getting to put it down on paper (or the knot, you know what I mean). Dalsimer was one of my first vendors we chose, my Mom had tons of people that used them through the years so I decided to meet with them. My Dad and I hit it off with Jimmy from the second we sat down. I narrowed it down to Flowers by Tony and Dalsimer. The quotes were the same so it was really hard to choose, Dalsimer said he'd throw in an orchid bloom for each folded napkin at no charge. SOLD! I was ecstatic, I showed him a picture of what I wanted and we were good to go. I had my trial and wanted it fuller and with darker sticks, I had him axe the votives and confirmed that the orchid I wanted was a white cymbidium. He now tells me that I'm not getting a cymbidium, he never said that I was going to have that. He said they were too expensive and he would have never agreed to that. He said he is giving me a dendrobium, we battled for a few minutes, I brought up the picture I gave him that clearly shows a cymbidium on a napkin. He wasn't budging, the contract says orchid bloom (get them to be more specific in your contract cause I was pissed) We got a quote on 12-15 centerpieces, I ended up with 12 so thought my price would be lower. When I brought this up Jimmy told me that the quote was really on 12 centerpieces and he was throwing in the 3 extra centerpieces for free. What!!!!!! Give me a break, are you serious. That's bull, I was so annoyed. This was a week before my wedding so I didn't want to stress, I had my Dad call him and still got nowhere. My Dad said its okay, maybe Jimmy was right an the 3 would be free. I think that's a load of crap. Then he throws in a $100 charge to move the Chuppah over the cake. This is something that he forgot to mention until a week before my wedding. I really felt like we were nicked and dimmed. Overall besides me feeling like I was taken advantage of the flowers were gorgeous, better than the trial. My bouquet was beautiful, the chuppah was more than I ever thought it would be. Soooooooo, happy with the flowers 100%. Being screwed around, not cool! I would still recommend Dalsimer but please go through your contract with a fine tooth comb and be as specific as you can be, even if its something minor and you think its dumb. Put it in there!!!!!!!!!

Lovechild A+++++++: This band is not your typical wedding band. This was a huge must for me, my parents couldn't afford it so I saved and saved and threw in some money to make this happen. It was well worth it. Everyone kept telling us how amazing they were, my friend had Libido Band a few years ago and I knew from the moment I heard them I had to have them. I got a whopping $12,000 quote and almost threw up in my mouth. 12k for a band, omg not going to happen. I found out that Lovechild is there sister band and even uses some of the same band members at times. We negotiated back and forth for months and finally made it happen. You have to see this band in person, wow! Their under tropics entertainment.

Hitched Events Rentals A: Luis is a great guy, he was always on top of his communication. Like within 15 minutes I'd get a response always. The past few months I would have to follow up with a second email which kind of bothered me. I guess this can be normal but I was spoiled in the beginning. His staff showed up on time, our linens and chairs looked great, everything worked out very well. He didn't get an A+ for the lack of communication the past few months and a conversation we had the week of my wedding. I wanted to rent the glass chargers with the little beaded edges, he said he could do them for $3.00 a piece. I told Luis that I had heard he was negotiating the prices of his chairs and linens, and even throwing in the cushion covers which I was paying for. I told him that it was not my style to ask him to knock off some money the week before my wedding even though I know he has been doing some major negotiating with other brides, what I did ask was for him to throw in the chargers as a courtesy. He said that he would have but his Dad/Partner wont let him, blah blah blah. He said he'd ask his dad and call me the next day by 12:00pm. No call! I called him and said whats the deal, he said it wouldn't work. I told him look, I understand, if you can do the chargers for $1 a piece I can do it. You're already coming out to my venue so if you want to make and extra easy $130 bucks cash we can make that happen. Didn't happen, oh well. I tried! I used jacarandas ivory chargers and it looked fine. I really wanted those glass freaking charges though!!!!!

A piece of cake by Elena A+: Yum, that's all I can say. Beautiful and yum! Godiva marble liquor cake is delicious!

Music for Anything B: B is being nice. The communication is horrible, like horrible horrible. The music was great and that's what you pay for, I got a trio for $250 which is the best I had found. They were on time which was something I was nervous about when reading other peoples reviews. Good luck with these people!

LMG Events A++++++: Letty is the best!!!!! She was my DOC and made my life so easy during my planning. She would always call and check on me since the day I booked her, she always wanted to help but I had nothing for her to help me with (i have control issues). She definitely would have done more than what a DOC is supposed to do. My ceremony musicians fell off the face of the earth and Letty tracked them down, she said she would show up at there place of business if she hadn't heard back from them. She was on point, made sure everyone was where they needed to be, followed up with all my vendors, set up my menus, candle holders, broke everything down at the end of the night, made sure I was happy, I mean this girl rocks!!!!!!!!!! If you're thinking of a DOC hire Letty, it was the best thing I did. She is the reason i think i was so calm the week of the wedding and even the day of. Hire her, call her now!!!!!!

Honeymoon at Excellence Playa Mujeres A+++++: This resort is gorgeous, the service is the best I've seen. We used to travel when we were first together and we've been to some nice places, this is up there. Absolutely breathtaking. 2 story room on the beach with our own person pool on the rooftop. Gorgeous!

Terese with Hibiscus Travel A+: Best travel agent ever. I drilled her with millions of questions about everything before we even decided to book with her. Shes responsive, honest, and knows her stuff. I have a travel agent for life!

Belissimma Bridal Deerfield A: Kate and Tanya were great, they know what they are doing for sure! The only reason they didn't get an A+ was because my alterations were almost $500, wtf, $500??? But overall I was extremely happy!

Unique Bridal in Deerfield C: The best quote for my BM's dresses but they were so unorganized. They called my BM's a million times, told one of them they forgot to order her dress but that was a lie (weird), they told another BM that they couldn't show her my wedding gown (my wedding gown wasn't there because I got it at Belissimma, another weird), they threatened that if my BM's didn't p/u their dresses they would charge them storage fees when I was told by the owner that no fees were involved, they were just a mess. My girls would have rather spent the extra $30 and gone somewhere else. Be careful!

Vanessa&Eddie's Reviews - 7.24.09

Letty, LMG Events A+++++
Letty was absolutely INCREDIBLE!! I would like to point out that I won her day of services in a contest and boy did I luck out! I feel blessed to have met Letty. Eddie and I cannot stop raving about her and how she completely blew us away. She was on top of everything, there is NOTHING she cannot do! She took care of everything single detail for us. I had such an incredible, worry free day thanks to her constant attention to everything! If something went wrong I did not know about it. Everything she does, she does 100% and this is what makes Letty so special. I can truly say that she is professional, generous, sweet, and hard working. I can go on for days about Letty! If you are thinking of hiring a planner please consider Letty!!! Girls if you already have her rest assure you are in great hands. Letty will make sure everything on your wedding day goes as planned!

Coral Gables Congregational A
From the first time I stepped into this church I knew I wanted to get married there. The church is absolutely gorgeous and overall very easy to deal with. Rev. Milan was great to work with as well. He delivered a wonderful ceremony. I was crying from the isle all the way to the end of the ceremony! The soloist they provided also had an amazing voice!

Jungle Island A+
I had 3 different coordinators with Jungle Island,and about 6 months prior to the wedding I was assigned to Jessica. At first I was not 100% satisfied with the service, but 2 months prior to the wedding they kicked it up a few notches! Jessica was on top of everything. She made sure everything was exactly how I wanted. The day of the wedding Eddie and I felt like royalty. The service was outstanding and the food was very tasty. We used Prime Card, so their prices cannot be beat. They were very accommodating in allowing me to bring in my own liquor, which most venues did not allow. Overall I was very happy with Jungle Island.

Studio by Carmen Wedding Pics A+ (Pending Pics)
After seeing Carmen's pictures on The Knot I knew I wanted her to be my wedding photographer!! Carmen and Favio were great to work with the day of the wedding. Eddie and I were super excited to work with them again after a wonderful engagement shoot back in October. Carmen is super professional and has a great eye. I was able to see one teaser from the wedding and it came out great! They were there on time and started taking pictures right away. I can't wait to see the outcome of our day I'm positive they did an amazing job! LOVE CARMEN!!

Blueshore Productions A++
I booked Jeremy about 1 month prior to my wedding, after deciding we really wanted a video. I am so glad we made this decision and even more happy we chose Jeremy! After showing Eddie a few samples of his work we instantly decided his style fit us perfectly. Jeremy has gone above and beyond!!! He truly takes pride in the work. If you're considering a video, please contact Jeremy! You will not be disappointed!!! :)

Ubi (DJ and Up lighting) A++
Woah did I have a party! Ubi had EVERYONE on the dance floor the entire night. I hired him based solely on recommendations, and boy did he live up to his reputation! I didn't provide Ubi with a playlist and basically just told him to play whatever he thinks would work. He's a true professional..super nice..introduced himself and made sure we were happy with the music. I highly recommend him. The hot pink uplighting was spectacular as well!

Elsa, Elegant Bodas A++++++
After meeting with about 7 florists. I finally came across someone who's work was impressive! Not only was she the only florist that actually got my vision, but she came in under my budget! The day of the wedding I was IN LOVE with my flowers. Everyone could not stop raving about how beautiful they were. I still have people calling me about my flowers! Elsa has awesome taste and really does spectacular work! She's pretty well known in the wedding business and has been doing this for years. Give her a try you will NOT be disappointed!

Leyani A+ Linens and Draping
They did an incredible job on the draping and the linens. The draping really helped to transform the room! Leyani and her staff are super sweet and really helpful. We were super impressed with the final product!!!

Ana Paz- C-
I had a very good experience with Ana Paz up until a week before the wedding. I had Ana Paz's assistant contact me letting me know that my cake would be 4 ties instead of 5 b.c my guest count had dropped to 144 people instead of 150. I was not happy about this considering that the 5 tiers was in the contract and didn't really understand how 6 people would constitute removing a full tier. Well lucky Letty resolved this issue for me, but the day of the wedding my cake was dry, had sugar flowers on each tier which I did not request, and was TINY! I literally started laughing when I saw the size of my cake. Thank God I got a cake stand, which brings me to my next complaint. The assistant also asked me if it was OK to charge the credit card on file $350 for the cake stand. I asked her what it was for and why there were CHARGING the card. She said they would refund me as soon as the stand was returned. I told her it would be OK to place a hold, but not to charge it. They obviously had my credit card on file and if it was not returned they can go ahead and process the $350 they claim the stand it worth. Well Letty took care of that issue for me as well. My third and final issue with them was my ribbon. I had dropped off a full roll of 100 yard ribbon at Ana Paz in coral gables a couple of days prior to my wedding for them to use on my cake, well I called them back (Doral location, which is where they prepare the cakes) after my wedding to see when I can pass by to pick up my ribbon and they had NO CLUE what I was talking about. They told me that they cannot guarantee that my ribbon would still there and that they usually only keep it if the bride requests for it back (which obviously I did). Plus who tosses 100 yards of ribbon?!?! Luckily I complained so much that they miraculously found it. The only reason I do not give them an F is b.c I had a pleasant experience prior to my wedding.

Hitched A+
Luis is super easy to deal with and a total sweetheart! He has the best prices around. I highly recommend him!

Meilan- A
Pleasure to deal with. The driver was on time and super sweet. The only reason why I do not give them a plus is the drivers side window was broken and didn't go up. Good thing it wasn't a super hot day in July! I actually enjoyed the breeze..lol.

Gloria Pelo- A
Gloria is super sweet and was there right on time. B.C she is pretty expensive she only did my mom, sisters and myself. She did a good job on my hair and makeup, but it was falling out a lbit after the reception started. Granted I have a lot of hair and it's very heavy, so I guess this was bound to happen. Overall I was very happy with the way everything came out. My mom and sister looked beautiful.

Jorge A+
Jorge did everyones makeup. He was there on time and did a wonderful job! He's reasonably prices and very talented!

Barby26's Reviews 08.01.09

Ceremony: St. Rose of Lima Catholic Church
They were amazing and so was my priest Father John.


Coral Gables Women’s Club A+++++
They accommodated us on very short notice.


Caterer (incl. floral, linens, & DJ): Elegant Party Production
I have to break this down.

Caterer-B!!!
as far as the food goes it taste great, I also liked that they provided top shelf liquor for us. The reason they got a B is because they seem to be a bit disorganized prior to our arrival and we they took longer than usual to serve dinner. I am not sure why this was. We also had a chocolate fountain provided by them but there were no plates for the fountain. They also provided chargers at no extra cost.

Linens A!!!!!
They also provided linens they had a large variety and my colors matched perfect.

Floral A+++++
Elegant provided the flowers and I have to say they were amazing I was extremely pleased with my flowers and the centerpieces.


Cake: Divine Delicacies F!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I do not recommend this vendor. I did change my color scheme a few times on the cake but the day of the wedding the flowers that I paid extra for which were supposed to be hot pink were brought in a peach color no where near to any color pink. Aside from that the fondant was cracked and the cake on one side was sunk in. I was extremely disappointed since this was the vendor I was most excited about. Once the caterer and my coordinators saw the cake they contacted divine delicacies and they were supposed to come back to fix the cracked fondant and they never did. Once I called to complaint about the cake they never even returned my call. My coordinators and caterer saved the cake by adding hot pink flowers on top and having some flowers cascade down the cake where the cake was sunken and cracked.


Up Lighting: Liquid DJs A+++++!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
The lighting in the room was amazing they did such a good job they also had very good pricing.


My Oh My Events (Diana Louzado) www.myohmyevents.com A++++++++
I don't even know where to begin. They did such an amazing job. I would recommend her with my eyes closed. She was on top of everything with the cake the caterer she made sure everything I wanted was done. She also was great help during my wedding planning she assisted me with my unity candle, wedding ideas, and so much more. She also did such an amazing job on my sweetheart table, menu and on our place card. I also have to thank Marisol her assistant and her husband Orly for everything they did for us as well. My hubby left his phone in the limo and Orly bent over backwards for us and made sure the driver came back to give us our phone. We had some wedding crashers and Marisol and Diana very tastefully escorted them out of the room. I cannot say enough about what an amazing job My Oh My Events did and I know my wedding would not have been the same without them.


Photographer: Anthony W. Photography A!!!
So far I have only gotten some samples which I love. They look great.


Greynolds Florists, Inc. 305-893-7630 Flowers for Church A!!!!
They provided the flowers for the Church and did a good job.


Tuxes Zayas Fashions Inc. C!!!
The tuxes were all ok but the only issue I had with them was that both my ring bearers are small both are about 1 1/2 old they kept telling me the shoes would not be a problem. On the Thursday before my weeding the shoes were too big on them and they did not give us a discount for the shoes being big. We had to purchase shoes separately for the boys.


Padrino Limousine 305-871-6767 A!!!!
They did a great job. The driver even returned when we left our phone in the limo.


David’s Bridal (Coral Gables) -B+++
I have to say my dress was beautiful. The only complaint I have about the store is that they are super overcrowded and when I was going to have my dress fitted the lady was not picking up the back of my dress correctly so I ended up taking my dress to a private seamstress to get it picked up.

I also have to thank my Hubby for all of his great ideas & Carolina (my best friend) Designs by Carolina. Carolina provided the invitations for the wedding and bridal shower.


Anna Noriega-Makeup A+
She did an amazing job!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


Angelica—A+
My hair was beautiful and lasted the entire night.

Mcmahaee's Reviews 07.11.09

Jupiter Beach Resort & Spa- A+
The JBR, hands down was fantastic. I was there from Tuesday-Tuesday, and our guests arrived Thursday, and some of them are leaving tomorrow! Everyone was upgraded to an even better room than the room block was agreed upon. We had exceptional service from the resort staff. The entire stay at the resort as a hotel, was perfect.

The JBR as a place for your wedding? I have never attended a more orchestrated wedding. Everything was done in the same time frame we had worked with, the event planner Jonathan and very helpful, etc... It began raining, literally 15 min before the ceremony was supposed to start, Jonathan came and talked to Ashley and I, we checked out the back up plan, and decided to move it to the veranda, then he came up to me, and said, "Emily, its your day, and if you say go for it, we will have all of the wedding stuff back outside" I said yes! And out they went. :) Only 10 min behind schedule, we said "I do."

The waitstaff had champage waiting for all of our guests as we walked out of the ceremony area of beach! It was great! We walked to the cocktail hour... The food was EXCEPTIONAL. All of it, wow, it was just amazing.

During the reception, Ashley and I slipped away for some "sunset" pictures. When we came back, our appitizers were waiting for us, and the head waiter came up and asked us when we wanted to start the salads and gave them the go ahead, while we caught up. Then once our main course was served, we were so stuffed, that we asked him to box up our dinners after we had had a few bites! Not only did he box it up, but he had hot plates waiting for us the following afternoon for lunch :)

Overall, I would 100% encourage the WPB & Jupiter Brides to check out and consider the JBR. It was worth every penny (oh and we had our uplighting from the JBR too, and it was cheap!)

DBimages, Devynn Bohn- A+
Well, I have now AW'd my teasers so you all know how pleased I am by my gorgeous pictures! Devynn, is amazing. I have become friends with her over this process and spending 12 hours w/ her on my big day, was like hanging out with an old friend. I am in love w/ my teaser pics and I can't wait to see how amazing the rest of them are going to be! She also took our epics. Our guest sign in book was made up of our epics, and the book is gorgeous. Devynn really loves her job and she is a true artist. Go hire Devynn!! lol You will NOT regret it! I have now received all of my propics and they are FANTASTIC. My wedding pictures are now up on her website, she liked them so much! There are a few knottie weddings posted, so you know your fellow knotties are in good hands. Devynn's products are amazing. Our engagement picture/guest sign in book far exceeded my expectations. It is beautiful. I cannot wait to pick out my wedding album pictures! My pictures are beautiful, I can't stop looking at them, I am in love with our wedding pictures! (http://dbimages.instaproofs.com/enterEvent.php?id=99936&returnURL=/category.php?event=99936@id=35293)

Shanna with www.makemepictureperfect.com - A+
I LOVED my make up, my MIL, and my BM's loved their make up. Not only was she fantastic, but she was so affordable! I called her on July 5th, due to my previous MUA bailing on me, and she called me while on her family vacation! She was sooo sweet and she did a great job. She uses all MAC make up, so you are getting a great product. You will be in good hands with Shanna.

JMorgan Flowers- A+
Have you seen my flowers???? Lol, well if you have seen the pictures then you know why I am giving Jack an A+. I will start w/ Friday, I recieved a phone call from her while we were at our RD lunch. She told me that she had purple orchids left over from a wedding that she had that night (friday) and asked if I wanted them added into my CP's, and alter arrangements in addition to my green orchids, etc... I said "duh!!" lol Anyways, she was supposed to arrive by 3:00pm, she was there at 12pm! I teared up when I saw the bouquets, they were HUGE, GORGEOUS, and smelled heavenly! I was more than pleased with her work. She brought 2 colors of ribbon for me to choose to wrap over-top the base colors that she was going to use to attach the silver starfish to all the bouquets. It was nice to just have choices! I did not see the other flowers until I peeked into the reception room before the ceremony, I started crying, everything was just breathtaking. She also left her assistant, Nicole, to be with us the entire day, she was very helpful in moving the arrangements from outside to inside and then back outside again! JMorgan was an EXCELLENT wedding vendor. If you don't have your florist booked, go check her out!

Cake, Sweet Tiers- A+
We had NO cake left. We had 25 people eating a cake that was meant to serve 50... lol Everyone had more! Hands down Betty makes the best cakes ever. It was gorgeous, our flavors were a butterpound w/ fresh strawberry filling, and our other layer was white w/ fresh pineapple filling... DELISH! I want to eat more now! She is located in Hobe Sound, but she delivers all over SoFl. You should definitely go for a tasting, you will not be disappointed. She is such a sweetie, I can't wait for our 1 year anniversary, so we can get a fresh cake from Betty :)

Kenny Mondo, DJ & Strings- A+
The violin/cello duet was great! They played during the ceremony and then again during the cocktail hour. The guests loved them. Jerry was our DJ, and he was great. Everytime someone would request a song, he was playing it by the following song. He was interactive, funny, and very professional. We loved him! We were jammin on the dance floor all night long!!

Atlas Lines- A+
Atlas is located in Boynton Beach, but they were right off the highway. Our overlays were black crush linens, and our napkins were fushia crush. They were very easy to work with, very friendly, and our order was ready to be picked up on time. The prices were great, and I have no complaints.

Allhallowsbride08's Reviews 10.31.08

Let me start off by saying that I was a pretty laid back bride. I had my lists of everything that needed to get done and my budget ready. I had a list of questions ready prior to each meeting and read every contract carefully. I probably only had to contact each vendor once throughout the planning process and again at the end to confirm everything for the big day. We had a very small bridal party with just a maid of honor and a best man. We wanted the reception to be just a fun dinner party and did not include most of the traditional wedding activities, i.e. no bouquet toss, no garter removal and no conga line.
My wedding day was everything I could have hoped for and more. I think there were probably a couple of things that did not go exactly as I had planned but who cares. My guests, DH, and I had a blast and I have fantastic pictures and video of the day.

Sts. Peter and Paul Catholic Church - Ceremony/Officiant/Organist
There was no doubt that this was the church I would get married at. I received all my sacraments there and went to the school. The assistant at the rectory was great to work with. She was very clear about all the requirements and followed up with me to make sure I had all my paperwork in order. Father Lopez was the officiant and I also brought in a former teacher of the school to co-officiate. Both were wonderful to work with and very laid back. I had a full mass which they held in Spanglish. I love the look of this church as well. It has a very long aisle which is something I really wanted. The aisle is also carpeted which is great because I did not want to hear the sound of heals while I walked down the aisle. Note for people with large bridal parties/families: you only get 15 minutes after the ceremony to take formal portraits. You need to be organized and let everyone know that they have to stay in the church for the pictures. I gave my photographers a list of the portraits I wanted. I included people's name so they would pay attention when their name was called out loud. Overall my experience was great and I recommend this church.

Doubletree Grand Hotel Biscayne Bay - Reception
When I started planning my wedding I had already been to 2 weddings at this location. I was pretty much set on this hotel because it had everything I was looking for. I did go to several different hotels in the downtown, grove, and airport area but none had what I was looking for. I knew that I was going to have a small guest list and that I would have small centerpieces so I did not want the room to look empty. I was basically looking for something that was not too big and had a great view. The Doubletree was perfect; the view at night is fantastic. The ceilings in the ballroom are not as high as say the Rusty Pelican (another location with a great view). I also liked that the reception area was right next to the ballroom making it easy to transition my guest from cocktail hour to reception. The DJ was also able to pump music into the balcony during the cocktail hour. Another plus was that the balcony was accessible during the reception so I knew I would not lose my friends that needed to get fresh air during the party. I also wanted the reception to be at a hotel. I have a very crazy worklife and really liked the convenience of having a lot of things taken care of with just one vendor. I did not want to worry about hiring caterers or renting chairs and linens. I also got ready at the hotel and stayed there the night of the wedding.
The planning process was very smooth. Adriana was extremely helpful throughout the whole planning process. The night of the wedding, she was there along with an assistant. When we arrived at the hotel, they took us into a separate room for us to wait for everyone to come in from cocktail hour. They gave us a platter of the appetizers and drinks while we waited. They were always making sure that DH and I had everything we needed throughout the duration of the reception. My guest all said the service and food was great as well. They never ran low on food during cocktail hour. We had one of the chicken entrees and it was great. Most people expect dry chicken at a wedding but the food was fresh, warm and juicy. The week of the wedding I had some guests let me know that they would not be able to attend. Adriana was very helpful in helping reallocate the funds to upgrade some of my food and beverage options. Overall my experience was great and I recommend this location.
We had a great experience and I recommend this hotel.


Divine Delicacies - Cake
Out of all the bakeries that were included in my package this was by far our favorite. They do not have many upgrades included in their basic hotel package, but they make up for it in the flavor of the cake. The most important this for me was to not have a cake that was overly sweet. The cake was awesome!!! It was a marble cake with vanilla filling and buttercream frosting. I also used Divine Delicacies for the Groom's Cake. That cake was chocolate with chocolate filling. It had a buttercream frosting with the Oakland Raiders shield made out of fondant. Everyone raved about both cakes. I highly recommend them.


Ambrosio Photography - Photography
By far my favorite vendor! Craig and Stacey Ambrosio are the sweetest people I have ever met. Both of them are professional photographers and are unbelievable talented. They have a photojournalism style. Their pictures are very natural and look great without touchup. They shot our wedding day as well as our engagement pictures. I decided with a little over a month left to go that I wanted engagement pictures and that I wanted to use those pictures for a guest sign in book. I selected the images I wanted for the book but because we were cutting close on time I did not see the layout before it went into processing. I trusted their artistic abilities to just run with it. It turned out beautifully and everyone was raving about it.
The day of the wedding Stacey was with me from the moment I started getting ready at the hotel. Craig was with DH and the bestman while they got ready. They arranged a private meeting for me and DH before the ceremony. They took us to a park next to the hotel to take pictures and then over to the Venetian Causeway to get shots with the Miami skyline in the background.
I had printed proofs as part of my package, but I was able to first see them online. I fell in love with them and upgraded to receive my printed proofs all in 4X6. For the album I opted for a coffee table style from Graphistudios. It has a black leather cover with our names and wedding date embossed on the cover. I do not remember what type of paper I used, but I remember that it was a cross between glossy and matte paper. I think that the paper we used made the colors stand out even more.
I am planning on doing a post wedding/trash the dress shoot. DH and I are also planning and doing a first anniversary shoot with them. I highly recommend these guys with my eyes closed! No joke, their work is flawless.


Artistry Wedding Films - Videography
Videography was a completely last minute decision. I hired them the week before the wedding. Luckily I had done my research many months before and there were only 2 vendors I really liked. Artistry came highly recommended by a friend of mine. Alan is very professional and always responded to my emails. There were two shooters but I barely noticed them there. They were very unobtrusive but still captured all the moments that I wanted on video.
The final product is fantastic. It is perfectly edited to a mix of songs we selected and Alan suggested. The camara work is great and very steady. It is more than just a video, it is a little movie. I would say it is the video equivalent of photojournalism. Overall I had a great experience with this vendor and I highly recommend them.

Party Players - DJ
I did not do any shopping around for the DJ. I was looking for two things, reliability and experience. I had hired the Party Players several years ago for another event so I new they had the experience I was looking for. Since I knew I would hire them I just told my mom to please call and get the contract for me. That day one of the co-owners happen to take the call, DJ Andy. My mom had a great feeling about him and wanted him to be our DJ. He was very polite, professional and honest. He told my mom that since we were having a small g I wanted a fun party atmosphere. I wanted my guest to have fun from the moment they walked through the doors. We hired them to start playing music during cocktail hour all the way through the end of the reception at 2 AM. We requested DJ Andy, one of the co-owners, and that's who we got for the wedding. He did an amazing job. I had submitted my play list but most importantly I wanted him to read the crowd and work with that. That is exactly what he did. He took my friend's requests as well. Everyone had a great time and we danced the entire night. You can't go wrong with the party players. I highly recommend them.


Vivian Colls - Flowers
Wonderful lady! She came highly recommenced by a friend of mine. I actually first met with a couple of the highly recommened florists from the knot, but I came out of those meetings disappointed. It seems like they took a look at my modest budget and did not really care to do business with me. They did not offer much creative input either. All they were offering was the same design done in most of their weddings. In fact I told them of them the one thing my DH did not want and this person responded that I should not listen to him. I found this to be extremely unprofessional. Vivian on the other hand treated me like I was her one and only client. She looked at my magazine clippings, listened to what we like and even asked DH if there was anything in particular that he wanted. She was the one and only florist willing to meet with me on the weekend. She hand delivered the final proposal to my house bringing along with her the vases she thought would work. I loved loved loved my vases. I wanted something elegant and simple and that is what she gave me. My one and only must have request was to have a bouquet with mini black callas. I have seen mini black callas bloom in different shades from deep burgandy to deep purple. I wanted the deep purples. She assured me that she will do what it takes to get those to me even if she has soak them a few days before. This happens to be common practice if you need to achieve a particular shade. I bring this up because she is the only one that gave me this option. Another florist said sorry I can't promise anything and don't believe anything another florist tells you. So on my wedding day I had my bouquet of dark purple callas! I also hired Vivian to set up the guest sign in table and the favors. She even came back to the hotel after the reception was over to clear out the flowers. Fantastic and sweet lady. I highly recommend her.

Bellisima Bridal (in Coral Gables) - Wedding Dress
I purchased a Cassablanca dress from them. I am in love with my dress! The service was good. Although I did not use them for alterations, I recommend them due to the variety of styles that I saw in the store.

Occansey Designs (obridal.com) - Veil
This was the best decision I made. I wanted the most simple one tiered layer. For some reason simple means expensive. I could not deal with a $300 price tag for a veil so I too my chances and ordered from an online vendor. They were very helpful in helping me figure out which dimensions would work best for what I was wanted. It was great quality, great service, and great prices. I highly recommend them.

Rey's Cleaners (in Coral Gables) - Alterations and dress preservation
I was not really happy with the seamstress they had at the bridal store so I decided to take the dress somewhere else. Reina (a knottie favorite) was just too far from me that I would end up spending money on gas just to save money on alterations. One day while I was bridal shoe shopping I stopped at a bridal store in the grove. I asked them if they knew of a place for me to take my dress for alterations and they told me that they usually send their bridesmaids to Rey's Cleaners. So I was off to Rey's Cleaners. By the time I had gone to get the dress altered I had lost a good amount of weight so the bodice had to be fixed up a bit. The seamstress did a great job and the dress was delivered on time as promised. I also plan on taking my dress there to get cleaned and preserved. They don't use chemicals to preserve the dress, the preservation comes from the fabric it is wrapped in and the type of packaging. I highly recommend them.

DSW.com - Shoes
I ordered my shoes from DSW.com I had already tried on a pair of shoes from the same brand but in a different style at the store so I knew what size I needed to order. They fit perfectly and were comfy. They were gorgeous and matched the sash on my dress perfectly.

Symphony Jewelers - Bridal Jewelry
I discovered this boutique a few years ago. I love love love their selection. The pieces they carry are very unique. The only thing I purchased new for the wedding were my earings and the wedding band they custom made for me. My bracelet, my other ring (my something blue) and my necklace were purchased there a few years ago. I highly recommend them. They are really great people and I love their service.

Genesis - Hair comb
It was probably two weeks before the wedding and I still didn't have a comb for my hair. My plan was to remove the veil for th reception and just have a nice comb decorating my hair. I had almost given up because everything at the bridal stores were too pricey. Then one day a knottie mentions that she got her comb from a kiosk at the mall. I was curious so I went over to international mall to find this place. When I found it I could not believe that I hadn't thought about them before. They had a great selection of combs at reasonable prices. I wanted something simple and elegant. I bought 2 combs from them. The price can't be beat and the girl is really nice too! I highly recommend them.

Daisy Tarsi - Maid of Honor Dress
I did not care too much for the service there. However if you are looking for certain designers that only they may carry on the mile, you have to go there. My maid of honor picked her own gown and purchased it there. She was not interested in shopping around for a cheaper place. They also did not have the alterations done at the time they promised. They kept messing up as well. The dress was finally delivered on Oct. 30th. For service I don't recommend them, but for selection I do.

Manny's Formal Wear - Tuxes
Great service! DH, the bestman and our brothers got their tuxes there. I highly recommend them.

Syms - Dads' tuxes
Both our dads felt they needed to purchases tuxes. Syms has great prices and a good selection. Both were happy with their purchases.

Nordstrom - MOB dress, MIL dress, and SILs dresses
What can I say I love this store. The service is exceptional. Many people think that it is a very expensive store but you'd be surprise how many deals you can find if you just look. They are much more affordable than a bridal store. Alterations were also done at the store. Very clean work and delivered on the date promised. I highly recommend them.

Meilan - Bridal Car
This is a family run business. They are very professional and honest business people. The driver was super duper nice. He arrived on time. The car was beautiful, clean, and well air conditioned antique silver Bently. I highly recommend them!

Madeleine - Makeup
I have said it a bunch of times, I highly recommend this girl!!!! She is amazing at what she does. The makeup stayed on all night, I did not look or feel cakey, I felt fantastic! Madeleine also did the makeup for my e-pics

Zorayda - Hair
She did a great job on my hair. My hair was looking thinned out but I did not want to use extensions. She managed to make it look like I had a lot more hair than I really do. My hair has never ever stayed put from an updo or any type of styling, but my hair did not fall the entire night, yet it felt so soft! I was so amazed. I highly recommend her as well.

Palomilla Grill - Rehearsal Dinner
The rehearsal dinner was held at the Palomilla Grill, cuban restaurant. The service was great and the food was yummy! Can't beat the price.

We DIY'd the invitations, the place cards, the card box and the favors. We bought the supplies at Michaels, Office Max, Party City, Papermart.com, Walmart, and Jo-Ann's. I'd like to give DH an A++++ on this. He put all of this stuff together.

Tracy Ahrendt Photography - Bridal Shower photographer
Hiring a professional photographer for the bridal shower was the best decision I made. She understood that I wanted to capture all the moments of my party without having to stop to pose at every moment. She also had a little portrait session for DH and I. Tracey was an absolute pleasure to work with. The pictures were amazing and captured all the fun moments of the day. I highly recommend her.

Diana Carvajal Event Planner
We hired Diana to cater the meal for my bridal shower. I had a mashed potato martini bar. The food was a hit. It was set up buffet style, and we purchased large plastic martini glasses at party city to serve the food. There was shrimp, shredded chicken, and ground beef, mashed potato and mashed malanga. Additional toppings were also served. It was a small party for 25 people so we only needed one server. She stayed until it was time to serve the cake. She cut the cake (not provided by them) and served to the guests. I highly recommend Diana.

Mayda<3lester's Review 05.16.09

VENUE

Coral Gables Courtyard Marriott – A (service prior to the Wedding)/ B (Day of the Wedding)
http://www.marriott.com/hotels/travel/miagb-courtyard-miami-coral-gables/
I booked this Venue back in August 2008. It had recently been opened after they revamped the old hotel that used to be there and we looooved it the minute we walked in. The décor is very modern and stylish. The Ballroom was perfect for the small, intimate Wedding we wanted and since they only have one, we didn’t have to worry about running into another Wedding the same day.

Maggie, the Catering salesperson was very accommodating. We were the first ones to book a Contract for a Wedding once they opened as a Marriott. Their prices are very affordable being that is located in Coral Gables and the service is great! We did our tasting and changed a couple of things, so they scheduled another one for us to try the new Menu. Overall, the Cocktail Hour and Reception were perfect. The hor devours were delicious, they served Dinner on time, the waiters gave superb service to my guests and the food was great!

The only issue we had was on Wedding Day due to the weather. We really wanted the Ceremony to be Poolside in the Terrace but the forecast predicted rain for that Saturday so she called me on Friday to tell me that the Ceremony would not be outdoors as previously discussed in our meetings. The day of the Wedding the weather unexpectedly improved even though it was raining on and off. All we wanted was for her to give us the chance to wait a little longer to decide whether to move it or not but she was gave us a hard time and was not professional. Please contact me for further details…

My Ceremony was indoors but it was sooooo beautiful! (Even though, it didn’t rain outside in the end) We used our Chiavari chairs and they looked great! The Uplighting made it so romantic and we were very happy with how it turned out.



PHOTOGRAPHER

Devynn – DBImages A+++++++++++++++++++
http://www.dbimagesblog.wordpress.com/
http://www.dbimages.ca/
We were having issues with the photographer we had initially hired. Karla suggested to invest in a professional and reliable Photographer, and showed us Devynn’s wok. We fell in love right away! and hired her only 6 weeks before our Wedding. I am sooo glad she was still available for our date. Everything happens for a reason and even when you feel stressed, there’s something better out there. She was the BEST decision we made and we could not be happier with the end results.

Devynn was at the Hotel early to take some Getting-ready shots and even being pregnant, laid on the floor to get different angles. She and her crew were all over the place snapping shots of the night. She totally blew us away with the teasers only 2 days after our Wedding and captured our Beautiful Day perfectly. J I highly recommend Devynn to any bride looking for a Photographer, her work is awesome and she is a sweetheart!!!


VIDEO

Javier – My Treasure Videos A+++++++++
http://www.mytreasurevideos.com/
We contacted Javier right after we booked Devynn because my cancelled Contract with the other photographer included a video. I had seen his work and was crossing my fingers he was available so close to my Wedding date and he was!!!

We were very excited to have him on our Wedding Day. He is such a professional! plus he is very sweet. He was there early as well and started shooting our Pre-Ceremony pictures. We never really ‘felt’ him there because he did his job without being on everyone’s face. He even stayed over beyond the time contracted to get more footage and I can not thank him enough for being so generous. I totally recommend him!!!



UPLIGHTING

DJ Ubi A+++
http://www.ubismusic.com/
Ubi was our first option for DJ but he was booked for Our Wedding date already L. We hired him for Uplighting and he even went to walk-through our Venue to determine how many lights we needed. The end result was stunning! The room was glowing in pink and it gave such an ambiance! He also provided a GOBO and Pin-light for our Cake as a surprise to us from my sister. I highly recommend him!


MUSIC
JP Productions A++++++++++++++++++++++++
http://www.jpdisco.com/
Let me just say, JP had EVERYONE on the Dance floor all night long! He called me a couple of days prior to the Wedding to confirm our Play and Do not Play List. He followed everything to the T for all our Dances. We were going to provide him with a CD of music we wanted to play for our guests since it is very popular in our country but I was not able to get it. When he saw we didn’t have it, he downloaded the songs {very hard to find} into his laptop and played them for us!!! Our guests are very different to the usual Wedding crowd and he knew the in and outs of the music from our country which blew everyone away! We did the Crazy Hour and passed out masks and beads and he also did an amazing job with the Carnival Music.

This man went above and beyond our expectations and my guests are STILL talking about how good he was! At the end of the night, people were complimenting him as they left the party. I highly recommend!



LINENS & CHAIRS

ABCovers A+++++++++
http://www.abcoverdesigners.net/
I had a pleasant experience with Ana when I came in for my appointment. They have a great selection and she was very helpful when offering different options for Linens and Chairs. We came up with a Beautiful table set-up using my Wedding Colors, Lime Green and Pink.

I had rented some sashes for my Ceremony chairs but when we had to switch to plan B due to the rain, their crew came back to set-up those sashes on the white Chiavari Chairs we were using inside the Ballroom. It definitely looked even better than I had envisioned. Everything looked gorgeous on my Wedding Day!



FLORIST

Flowers by Gerardo- Final Product (A+++++++) Customer Service (Read below)
http://www.flowersbygerardo.com/
Gerardo came recommended by another bride who got married in November. She said he was affordable and her flowers were beautiful! When I came in for a consultation, he was not very helpful when it came to giving ideas (being the expert) but fortunately we knew exactly what we wanted. We just didn’t find his personality to be customer-friendly.

He gave us the quote right there and then, and when we saw the prices we knew we couldn’t get that somewhere else so we booked him on the spot! The fact that we were providing the Glass Cylinders helped us with pricing. When it was time to drop them off 2 weeks before my Wedding, I mistakenly took the wring vases to him. Once I realized that and took the right ones, we had an issue because he claimed not to know that they were that big but we had told him in advance.

In the end, he too blew us away with the Centerpieces, altar arrangements and my bouquet, oh so gorgeous!!! He even included a calla inside the vases, which he had told me wasn’t included so I appreciate that! Honestly, I just think his customer service can be improved but the quality and value for cost, it’s phenomenal! I highly recommend to all the brides on a budget just like me.



WEDDING CAKE

Rosie – Elegant Temptations A+++++++
http://www.eleganttemptations.com/
We met with Rosie to work on a custom design for my Cake. I wanted something that didn't look so common or copied out of a magazine. I told her that we were doing a Elegant Garden theme and she came up with a beautiful design that incorporated flowers, rhinestones and a gorgeous stand.

I was blown away when I saw my Wedding Cake. It was definitely a focal point in the Reception and my guests raved about the flavor and how original it was. I highly recommend Rosie if you want to have a delicious custom cake and great customer service.

I personally think that Edda's and Ana Paz are becoming too commercial and the service is not that good anymore. You feel like you are just another cake for the weekend and I prefer to pay a bit more for better service.


DOC

Karla – Stylish Events
http://www.stylishevents.net/
Karla designed our Wedding from scratch. We wanted a Garden-themed Wedding that was not overdone or tacky but Elegant and Classy. She took my vision and brought it to reality 100x more than I could have ever imagined! Our guests were WOWed with every detail throughout my Wedding, as it is I’m still getting calls to find out where I got this or how did I do that.

She designed and printed my paper goods (Programs, Placecards, Menus, Table Numbers and Signs). I wanted to have a Huppah for the Ceremony and Backdrop draping behind my Sweetheart Table but it was way out of my budget so she offered build it and it all came out perfect!. Karla also decorated the Cake stand to implement our theme and the result was stunning! I could go on and on talking about everything she did and it would still not be enough because it was all flawless!!!

I've been as impartially honest as possible and did not grade this review because besides being my DOC, she is also my sister and I'd like to avoid the validity of review being questioned.



Make Up

Jorge Pena - A+
786-306-5463
I had a trial with Jorge a few weeks before my Wedding and I loved how he did my make-up. That day, I had my Bachelorette party and the make-up looked weird (too white under my eyes) in the pictures so I brought this up to him the day of my Wedding and I showed him the pics. He worked on my make-up and then took pictures with my camera to make sure it was ok.

The make-up lasted all night and everyone told me how natural I looked which is what I really wanted. Jorge is really outgoing and clicks with you right away! I highly recommend him.



Hair

Alcira - A+
305-205-3579
I didn't have a trail with Alcira. I met with her in her house and showed her pictures of what I wanted my hair to look like. I simply wanted a loose updo that matched the natural make-up look I was going for.

She had done that Hair do for other brides as well and showed pictures of them. She arrived early the day of the Wedding and did my hair just as I had asked. It turned out perfect! After dancing all night, it started to undo a little bit but it was totally fixable. I was really pleased with Alcira and would recommed to other brides!


Alterations

Reina - A+
954-785-6222
I highly recommend Reina! She is not only very sweet but also does amazing work. She hemmed my dress and took in a couple inches. She steamed it for me and I was very pleased with the results! She is located in Pompano Beach but is worth the trip.


Tuxedo Rentals

Tommy's Tuxedos - A
http://www.tommystuxedos.com/
Best price in town. They are located on 87th Ave and SW 8th Street. Tommy takes care of his clients himself and the service is outstanding. They have tuxedos for $60.00 +tax and when you take the Bridal Party, the Groom gets his for free. I only had a Best Man and some family members but I think that is a great deal.


Vendor I do NOT recommend:

VARONA PHOTOGRAPHY- D
Do NOT use. Nestor Varona was the photographer I had initially hired and we canceled our Contract almost
6 weeks before the Wedding. Contact me for further details @ mayda.lester at gmail dot com