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!

Romigu's Reviews 07.05.08

Ceremony/Reception Venue - The Ocean Club
The minute I walked into the reception area, I knew I was going to get married there. The ballroom is gorgeous and so different from the 20 other places I went to. It has a gorgeous pool area and the ocean just steps away from the ballroom. The ceremony was perfect in their garden and such a beautiful setting for our marriage. The food was incredible and I received compliments all night about how good everything was. The service was impeccable and we also lucked out with getting the premium bar upgrade.
I would say the only thing that went wrong (with the entire wedding as a matter of fact) was the catering manager, Claudio. He was completely unorganized and scatterbrained from the beginning. He never remembered our names...even the week of the wedding, he forgot Martin's name. It was very difficult to get a straight answer from him and he was constantly running 30 minutes late. The week of the wedding, we went to make the final payment and he lost the receipt of our payment of 25% of the cost. Luckily, I kept a receipt but he had to follow us home to get a copy. The night of the wedding, he also sprung on us a few costs he didn't remind us of since January..such as the last hour of bar not being included and the fact that he forgot to include Martin and I in the guest count. I really felt upset dealing with him and that he added more stress than necessary to the situation. On the other hand, he was in charge of the service and decor and it was all beautiful with everything laid out as instructed. In retrospect, I definitely would have had my wedding there but would have hired a wedding coordinator to deal with him.

Photographer - Gregory Paul Photography
One of my favorite vendors. Heidi and Greg were amazing to work with throughout the planning process. Heidi was always very prompt in returning my phone calls and was so helpful and flexible. My work schedule was so busy but they always were accomodating. I cannot say enough about my engagement session and how gorgeous the pictures turned out. Greg is truly a talented photographer and his eye for good shots is incredible. He really has a gift for seeing what will look good on camera and turned us from a camera shy couple to wanna be models. The days leading up to the wedding, Heidi reviewed the timeline with me several times to assure that there was enough time to get all the shots I wanted. They arrived on time the day of and almost acted as wedding coordinators, making sure everything was running on time. Greg was so detail oriented when he was shooting my bridal portraits and was practically invisible during the wedding. We actually only noticed him when we watched one of the videos our friend shot and realized he was crawling on the floor, etc. Our guests complimented his ability to really get in there without getting in the way of anyone's view. At one point during the ceremony, someone mentioned he had a worm crawling down his shirt and never once stopped shooting. That's dedication. They posted our teasers the week after the wedding and have kept contact with us to make sure we were happy with everything. Great experience!

Officiant - Eddie Rodriguez
My other favorite vendor. Eddie is remarkable. When we met him, we knew he would be perfect for our ceremony. He wasn't too religious or too preachy but had a wonderful sense of spirituality and character. Although we only met with him twice before the rehearsal/wedding, we talked for about 2 hours each time and I wouldn't mind signing up for every one of his seminars. He is really wise and intelligent. Ok but I digress. He did a phenomenal job at our ceremony. I really liked the fact that he had us fill out an extensive questionnaire regarding our relationship so that he could get an idea of what kind of a couple we are. When we went over the details of the ceremony, it was very obvious how experienced he was with his organization and ability to tailor the ceremony to the kind of personality we have. He prepared a beautiful dialogue for the ceremony that had so much meaning and was so personal...you would have thought we had known him for years. He was a wonderful choice for our officiant and I wish we were staying in Miami so I could go to all his seminars.

DJ - Ubi Marrero (DJ Ubi)
Ubi definitely lived up to his reputation. He played the music during the ceremony exactly on time and kept the dance floor jumping the entire reception. I was actually really surprised because we had such a huge mix of different people...Martin's family from Argentina, mine from Paraguay, Martin's surfer friends, my Miami friends..etc. Everyone was dancing and I found that to be incredible given everyone's different tastes.

Makeup - Anna Noriega
Well, I'm sure you all remember how many trials I had and I have to admit that I am really picky about my makeup but Anna did a spectacular job. She was always prompt in returning my phone calls and was extremely patient during my 2 trials with her. The day of the wedding, she arrived on time and with an assistant to prep all the girls. She was also very flexible despite the fact that 2 girls decided to get their makeup done at the last minute. Everyone looked gorgeous and not too overdone and their makeup lasted all night...even with all the dancing and sweating we all did. I loved the way she did my makeup and Martin was so happy that she managed to pull off my eyes so that they stood out but weren't too dark. It still looked the same when I took it off at the end of the night.

Hair - Alcira
Well, I first booked Angelica Fernandez to do my hair and really was happy with my hair trial. However, she cancelled on me 2 weeks before the wedding. If you would like my full review, please email me.
But things worked out well in the end and I booked Alcira. She was extremely pleasant, punctual, and patient. I loved my trial hairdo and she was able to reproduce it exactly for the wedding. She also did a phenomenal job on everyone else's hair and managed to come up with 8 (?) different hairstyles. And she was really gentle. My hairdo came out a bit towards the end of the night but I think I was the only one to notice the little strand to fall out. One word of advice - don't forget bobby pins!!!

Cake - Cake Designs by Edda
The cake turned out perfect and exactly the way I pictured it. We ordered the marble cake with fondant which was pretty yummy, although I still prefer Publix cake.

Florist - Desiree at Field of Flowers (Davie)
I loved my flowers!! I went to 4 different florists (Petunia, De la Flor, J. Morgan, and some other one in Key Biscayne who I can't remember) and found that Field of Flowers offered me the best price with the most amount of flowers. I had received the recommendation from 2 friends who had used Desiree for their wedding and had raved about her but I was a little worried because no one on the knot had used her. I am really glad that I went with her and the flowers were amazing. I'm also glad that I didn't go with someone more expensive that was more popular because all the flowers either were left at the reception or died the next week.
She did a wonderful job of taking detailed notes during our meetings and responding promptly to emails. She also discounted several of the arrangements. I was so happy when I turned the corner to see that the ceremony was right out of a magazine and that every detail was in place.

Dress - Leggenda
I loved my dress and the alterations were done very well but that's really all I can say about Leggenda. They are very unprofessional there and have no concept of customer service. Not to mention the fact that they cut the label off my dress and refused to tell me the designer even after I had purchased it. Boo.

Bridesmaid Dresses - Netbride
Although I didn't like the dresses at first (which was completely my fault for not seeing them in person) , I can't complain about Netbride's customer service. They offered me a 50% lower price on the dresses and had them delivered 4 weeks before their promised date. They also were willing to receive them back when I didn't like them but ultimately I used the dresses and the girls looked beautiful.

Shoes - Zappos.com
Colorrifics - Tori - These shoes were amazing. For the first time ever, I was on my feet for 8 hours and danced for half of that time and didn't complain about my feet. I had originally bought their "Desire" model but when I received them, they were so high that I knew I would be uncomfortable. Luckily, I returned them because my friend got married a month before me and used those shoes and was in so much pain the entire night.

Linens - Panache
I have to admit that I found the linens about 2 weeks before the wedding. Panache was great to work with and their prices were about the same as everyone else's but they seemed to have a wider variety from which to choose. They delivered everything as ordered and gave me a 10% discount because I was working with a vendor they work with pretty frequently.

"Guest Book" - Pictureframes.com - $120
Martin was in charge of this and he did a fantastic job of finding a creative way of making a guest book. We used one of the photographs from our engagement session and sent the image over to this company. They printed it onto a canvas print and the quality was excellent. They even sped up the processing time so that we could have it well before the wedding. Everyone loved signing the canvas and its a great piece of art that we now have hanging in our new home.

Invitations - Jack's Graphics
Jackie Alvarez was great to work with and very affordable. She was very flexible with our time constraints and was able to deliver our invitations 1 week after we put the order in. Everything was flawless and I received so many compliments on the gorgeous invites.

STD - Weddingpaperdivas.com
Great website, great prices. I also bought my thank you cards from them.

Rehearsal Dinner Invites - Vistaprint.com
It was cheap and they turned out really nice! You can't really beat the price...free plus shipping.

DIY -
Placecards - paper-source.com. Great price and nice quality paper. We bought the ribbon from Joann's and the blue cardstock from Michael's.

Table "numbers" - we spent a huge amount of time looking through old albums to find pictures of us doing similar things or in similar poses. We scanned the pictures and then put the two on one 8x11 photograph to be printed. We bought the silver frames from Walmart for $3 each and used card stock from Michael's as background.

Favors - I bought the tins at blissweddingsmarket.com - 2 boxes of 50 tins for $20 each. I custom ordered labels from myownlabels.com and we bought the ribbon from Joann Fabrics. It was a huge ordeal gluing the ribbon to the tins and then tying the bows. We filled the tins with either blueberry jelly bellies or blue m&m's. Most people took their tins home and I did notice that the clear cover to the tins came apart by the end of the night. Still, I was glad we didn't spend that much on favors since most people barely noticed them.


Jewelry - Twinkle Twinkle
They have a great selection of bridal jewelry at this tiny boutique store. I was having a lot of trouble finding what I wanted at other department stores and bought all my jewelry from there. Their prices were average for that type of jewelry and the owner is very courteous and helpful.

Alterations - Alterations by Reina
Reina did the alterations for 3 of my bridesmaids and she also lived up to her great reputation. She is such a sweetheart and was such a relief to work with after my initial problems with my bridesmaid dresses. Her prices were so affordable and she altered each dress perfectly.

Veil - Obridal.com
I bought a very simple veil for $23 from this website and I am so happy that I did. I couldn't afford to pay the $200 everyone else was charging and the veil looked stunning in the pictures, despite its simplicity. They promptly shipped me the veil in perfect condition within 3 days of my order and have a wide selection of more intricate veils.

Limo - Coastal Car & Limousine/ Brickell Key Tours & Transportation
My mom initially made the reservation with CCL for everyone but we decided to add on a limo at the last minute for the bridal party to return to the hotel after the wedding and hired a limo and car for us with BKTT. Both companies were on time and had very nice limos. BKTT even upgraded Martin and I from a Lincoln Town Car to a limo because their Town Car wasn't available. Both companies had very affordable prices and were great to work with.


Honeymoon Suite - The Ritz Carlton Coconut Grove
This hotel is on a completely different level from any hotel I've stayed in. They greeted me by name the moment I arrived and did not hesitate to go above and beyond our expectations. The suite was enormous and comfortably fit 6 bridesmaids, three moms, 2 photographers, the makeup artist, the hair stylist, and a partridge in a pear tree. Its too bad we couldn't stay there longer because it was truly in the lap of luxury.

Full Vendor List:
Dress - Leggenda Bridals
Venue - The Ocean Club of Key Biscayne
Photographer - Gregory Paul Photography
DJ - DJ Ubi
Save the Dates - Weddingpaperdivas.com
Bridesmaid Dresses - Netbride.com
Bridesmaid Alterations - Alterations by Reina
Veil - Obridal.com
Officiant - Rev. Eddie Rodriguez
Makeup - Anna Noriega
Hair - Alcira
Invitations - Jackie Alvarez (design by Giselle De Vera)
Cake - Cake Designs by Edda
Florist - Field of Flowers - Desiree
Limo - Coastal Car & Limousine and Brickell Key Tours & Transportation
Honeymoon - Amsterdam, Paris, Burgundy, Tuscany
Travel Agent - Olga at Jacaranda Travel

Melissainabq's Reviews 6.21.08

Ceremony and reception location: The Rusty Pelican
Planning review: A
I have been working with Betty, and she's been an absolute pleasure. She has been very accommodating and helpful, which has been a blessing since I'm not local and need all the help I can get.

Final review: A
The Rusty Pelican really came through for us. I cannot imagine a better, more perfect location. They were handing us water when we needed it, filling our glasses when we were thirsty and made sure that our every need was taken care of. There were a few hiccups along the way, which I think is expected with any big event. But when I turned the corner and saw the room all decorated, it truly took my breath away. Anyone who is wanting a smaller wedding (like 100 people or less) without spending the money for the upper ballrooms, I have no qualms about recommending the lower lounge. At no point did we feel like we were in a public portion of the restaurant. We both had people coming up to us and telling us how much they loved the food and were impressed with the venue. I especially recommend the chicken with spinach and pine nuts with the sundried tomato sauce – it was soooo yummy.

String Trio: Music for Anything
Planning review: A
Victoria has been great. This is one of the vendors I'm most excited about because I know they will add so much to our wedding ceremony and the cocktail hour.

Final review: A
They made the ceremony so beautiful. The music was perfect, and they were easy to deal with during the planning process. Guests from another wedding taking place at the Rusty Pelican even booked them on the spot to play for a bit.

DJ: DJ Ubi
Planning review: A
I really enjoyed my meeting with Ubi, and I look forward to working with him throughout the planning process as the wedding gets closer.

Final Review: A
This is going to sound awful, but I do not even know that I ever got the name of the DJ that worked our reception. He screwed up a few names during the introduction of the wedding party, but the music was great and he was easy to work with on the fly. I highly recommend Ubi and his company.

Photography: Melissa Powell Photography
Planning review: A+
I have really enjoyed my dealings with Melissa. She has a beautiful style, and her booking process was a breeze. She does everything online (which for a bride halfway across the country is a huge help), and she always responds to emails very promptly - sometimes within minutes. I look forward to working with her and seeing her images of our wedding. I know she is going to bring so much to our day.

Final review: A+ and more
The images we've seen so far say it all. Her work is breathtaking, and we have a hard time looking at them and not crying (well at least I do). We also look at them and almost can't believe that it's us and it's our wedding.

DOC: Leah Beth Events
Planning review: A+
Leah has been amazing. She has gone above and beyond the call of duty for a DOC by helping this out-of-town bride with a bunch of stuff, including info on a marriage license and scouting out florists, hairstylists etc. Even though we've only talked by phone and email, I've been amazed with her attention to detail and her help with things I hadn't even thought of. I highly recommend her to anyone who needs coordination assistance. I know she is going to make our wedding run smoother than I ever could have imagined.

Final review: How many + can you add to an A?
I do not even know where to begin to describe how blessed we were to have Leah handling our wedding. She went far beyond the role of a day of coordinator, which because I was so far away was a huge help. She was calm and patient with my crazy family and many people came up to me and told me how impressed they were with her work. She kept everything running very smoothly and made sure that we were always attended to. I have absolutely no doubt that our wedding would not have been the party it was without her. I was able to just relax and celebrate instead of focusing on what time the cake cutting was being done or when the first dance would happen.

Chair covers/linens: AB Cover Design
Planning review: C
This vendor has been difficult to work with. I requested swatches of the chair sashes, which took almost six weeks to arrive because they never managed to get them in the mail. Ana has been better to work with than the original person I contacted, but to be totally honest - if they weren't part of my package at TRP, I'd have found another vendor by now.

Final review: B-
The final product was beautiful. We only ended up getting chair sashes and covers from them. We just didn't have money in our budget for extra linens, and in the end we're glad we didn't. Everything was beautiful as it was and we didn't need to spend any money on extra stuff. The only reason I upgraded her rating is because the final result was beautiful. I still don't feel like they were too easy to deal with.

Hair: Angelica Fernandez
Review: A
Angleica was great. The trial went really well, and she did a superb job with everyone the day of. She was very patient with my really disorganized, overly stressed family, and she even jumped in and finished my makeup since we didn't hire someone. Her prices were very reasonable and she was worth the money and more.

Cake: Edible Creations
Planning review: A+
Ana Paz: F
Cakes by Edda: C
At first, the Rusty Pelican gave me two choices for cakes: Ana Paz and Cakes by Edda. Recently I found out they had added Edible Creations in Pembroke Pines to their package. In an effort to be helpful to others struggling to make a decsion, I have reviewed all 3 vendors here.

Ana Paz was exceptionally rude to me on the phone and completely unhelpful and wouldn't listen to me when I told them I was not local and had limited windows for a tasting.

Cakes by Edda: While the staff was extremely helpful on the phone when I was trying to fit a tasting into an already busy wedding weekend, the cake left a lot to be desired. I did my tasting at the Pembroke Pines location as they were the closest to my family's house. While the cakes were beautiful, they didn't have the rich flavor I prefer. I found the chocolate to be rather dense and tasteless, while the vanilla rum (their signature flavor) was overly rum-tasting.

Edible Creations (954-433-3445): Wow - that is the only word that comes to mind. From my first conversation with Lily, she has been a pleasure to work with. My mom did the tasting for me since I wasn't in town, and she seconded my great feelings about Lily. She said that Lily sat with her and explained everything - down to the thickness of each layer. She also said the cake was incredibly flavorful and that she that in her eyes, choosing Lily was a "no brainer."

Just for reference, I thought I'd include one more review here. While sending my mom on a whirlwind three-tastings-in-one-day adventure, she also visited Elegant Temptations in Hialeah Gardens. Rosie was a joy to deal with by phone and email, and my mom said the chocolate cake with chocolate chip cheesecake filling and the banana cake were just amazing. Her work is beautiful, and the main reason we went with Edible Creations was that they are part of the package and that Rosie's cakes were a little beyond our budget. However, I have no problems recommending her to others because of the taste and outstanding customer service both me and my mom experienced.

Final review for Edible Creations - Speechless
I didn't do the tasting. I never met Lily, and she is one of my new favorite people. She came through with flying colors. The cake looked amazing and tasted amazing too. In fact, it was so beautiful that it stopped me in my tracks when walking to the ceremony. I shouted "look at the cake" without realizing everyone was looking in the windows waiting for me to walk down the aisle. My coordinator was sitting there waving "come on" at me and I was just mesmorized by the cake.

Flowers: Flowers by Gerardo
Planning review: A+
Gerardo has been great to work with so far, and he is working with our very small floral budget. I look forward to seeing the final product.

Final review: A+
This is another vendor I never got to meet and someone I'd love to give a big hug. The flowers were simply gorgeous. When they were delivered, the room literally fell silent. All the girls just stood there staring at them in amazement. I couldn't have imagined a more beautiful result. He quote me based on a picture and stuck with the design and the quote. I highly recommend them.


David’s Bridal – Miracle Mile
Review – F
This location truly was awful to deal with from start to finish. We took my dress there a week before the wedding for a light steaming. It was supposed to be free but they charged my dad. Then on the day before the wedding, when I called to confirm my pickup appointment, they could not find the dress. The woman even said “don’t worry – we’ll just get you another one.” When I told her the wedding was the next day, she said “ooh – maybe not.” I gave them my name and my father’s name, and they never bothered to look under his. So for 45 minutes they kept me in a total panic (we were on our way to the rehearsal so this is what I was stressing over as we got ready). When they found it, they had not even started steaming it. A few hours later, when I went to pick it up, they did not even acknowledge what had happened earlier. Plus, it was storming like I had never seen, and the water in front of the store came up to just below my knees. I had to run into the store barefoot, and that was all they could focus on. I asked if they had a back door with better drainage since we had to go and were going to have to run through the rain in the dress, and they very begrudgingly said yes. They led me back there, and no one even bothered to help me carry the dress through the store. They glared at me and talked about me in Spanish (and I understood the nasty things they were saying) while I waited for my mom to drive around to the back of the store. There was not one friendly person there, and if that was the experience I’d had when looking for a dress, I would never have purchased from David’s.

David’s Bridal – Albuquerque, NM
Review – C
I have very mixed feelings about this store. I had a few bumps with their staff, but I loved my dress. I also had a few glitches with the alterations, but I was happy with the final outcome. They shipped my dress perfectly and it actually didn’t require much touch-up steaming.

Tuxedos: Mr. Tux in Albuquerque
Planning review: A
These guys have been great. We had visited the Men's Wearhouse on the west side, and walked out almost immediately because they were so rude and because we didn't want to pick our tuxes from a book. Mr. Tux (Eubank Blvd Location) is giving us a great deal and we can take the tuxes with us to Florida. They aren't even charging us extra for the extended rentals. I feel so much better knowing that we will be able to closely check the tuxes before we leave and that they can make any last-minute changes if necessary.

Final review: B-
The servie we got during our planning definitely was not what we got during pickup. Shirts were dirty. Stuff didn't fit. And we didn't notice until we got to Florida that they gave us a long tie instead of a bow tie for our ring bearer. The guys looked great, though, so in the end I wasn't too disappointed.

Invitations: Elva Marie's Fine Papers
Final review: A+ and more
I struggled choosing invitations. I must have ordered 20 samples from various catalogs, but none of the samples looked like "my" invite. Then I stumbled across a brochure from Elva that I had picked up a while ago at a bridal show and shoved away when I made the decision to have my wedding in Florida instead of New Mexico. I am so thankful I found that brochure because Elva is bring my thoughts to life. She brought a designed sample to our first meeting after I sent her some ideas. And she has been so patient with my many changes. I am really excited to see my final product. Plus I'm getting custom-designed invites with an RSVP card and additional insert, plus printed envelopes for about $3 per invite. Yay!
3/28 update: I picked up my invites today and I'm so happy. I just wish we had more to do because working with Elva has been a true delight.

Bridesmaids' Jewlery: Etsy.com seller Handmade by Diana
Final review: A+
Diana was very easy to work with during the ordering process. Her store had pictures of the necklace on a jewelry form, and I had trouble determining how they'd look on a person. I asked for pictures, and she sent them within 24 hours. Seeing them on a person (she took a pic of herself wearing it) sealed the deal, and I'm excited to see how they turn out.

Card Box, Photo Guest Book and Cake Topper: Etsy.com seller SheaChicDesigns
Final review: A+ and more
Amanda has been simply amazing to work with. We have easily exchanged 100+ emails over the last 8 weeks and I can not rave about her enough. The cake topper isn't done just yet, but I can't wait to see it. If it's even half as gorgeous as the card box and guest book, we'll be thrilled to no end. I highly suggest her for any projects you just don't have the time or energy to DIY.
Update: I didn't see most of the pieces until I walked into the reception, and Amanda really came through. Everything was just beautiful and worth the time and investment.

Garter: Etsy.com seller GartersbyKristi
Final review: B+
They aren't quite the color I had in mind (a little more turquoise than I pictured) but the work is nice and the shipping was very fast.

Ring Pillow: Etsy.com seller regianna
Final review: A
I haven't seen the pillow yet because like many other things, it was shipped directly to the wedding destination. However, her responses were always very quick and it arrived in under a week. I have a feeling it'll be more gorgeous in person than it is in pictures.

Update: The pillow was gorgeous and just what I wanted.

Candles: http://www.candlesjustonline.com
Review: A
Fast shipping. Good prices. And they looked great!

Group accommodations: Marriott Residence Inn, Coconut Grove
Planning review: C+
These people have been horrible to deal with. They act as though they are doing you a favor by hosting your group. I know for a fact that they are very empty during my timeframe (because a friend works for Marriott and looked up their occupancy for my wedding weekend), yet I can not get them to do anything - like return messages or emails. If the hotel wasn't so convenient to my wedding I'd find another one. As such, I'm just stuck for now. But I will be following up with Marriott when the wedding is done.

Final Review - B
As I said above, I had a pretty miserable experience with them in the months leading up to the wedding. But all of the people I dealt with had been fired by the time our wedding rolled around. My biggest complaint about our stay was that they had a list with all our group room names, and they still put us all at opposite ends of the hotel. Plus, my contract specified that we had half-price parking and no one there had any of the info. So I still have to follow up with them in order to get the extra money refunded to all of my guests. But the location of the hotel, the breakfast and the manager’s reception all were really nicely done and overall it was a good value for the money.

Bridal/wedding night hotel: Sonesta at Coconut Grove
Final review: A
The one bedroom suite with the bay view was gorgeous. The servie was also fantastic. No complaints! Plus the suite had a jacuzzi tub, which I didn't know about until I arrived.

Travel: Carnival Cruise Lines, Kenneth Hagen
1-800-819-3902, 85904
Review to-date: A+
Kenneth has been so wonderful to work with. He has been very friendly and never seems upset when I send him 20 questions in any given email. He called to let us know they were having a double upgrade sale, and no one has been able to meet or beat that price since we put our deposit down back in November. I highly recommend using Kenneth if you're considering Carnival. If you do talk with him, let him know Melissa sent you.

Muddilicious's Reviews 03.21.09

We had a great wedding! It rained, but it was a-ok. In the end, I think all our guests had a great time and they ate, danced, and partied all night. However, my husband and I have very opinioned reviews of our vendors. We have included them since knotties were so intregal to us when chosing ours.



Ceremony and Reception
Jungle Island - We have to break this down into parts to give an accurate review.

(A) Service (Day of) B : The waiting staff and bartenders were wonderful and were plentiful. Our guests felt well taken care of. However, the head person bowed out at the middle of our event and had to be replaced, then at the end of the evening, she magically reappeared for her tip - weird.

(B) Catering Management Staff (Planning) D+: I could go on and on, but to be brief, they promised things that they didn't do. Namely, they said that no event would start to the same time as us, nor would they be located near us. A wedding and a 1000 person corporate event all started within 30 minutes of our wedding. All our guests ran into each other. Plus, we had bass and steel drums that we could hear from the other events that we had to tell them to quiet down. There were many other issues here, involving them having problems following our contract (dates, times, etc), not being informed of our new coordinator (my emails were just unanswered), excess folded tables and trash being left out in full view of our guests during the reception, and planning staff being extremely rude on several occasions (the head honcho actually said "I wonder how much money I am going to lose on your wedding"). They caused me alot of stress that I never expected from a relatively all-inclusive venue. If you book them, make sure you understand that they are all in it for the money, so if another big ticket event wants to book on your wedding day - you will be bumped. We actually got kicked out of our cocktail hour space 1 week before the wedding, because the 1000 person event needed to walk through it. Email me for more details.

(C) Food B: The entrees themselves were eh and some of the dishes were under-seasoned. Passed appetizers were good (some much better than others). Salad was good, but had very few hearts of palm. The seated appetizer crab cake was much too spicy for a broad audience - it was disappointing. It was a bit of a letdown compared to our tasting.


Cake
Cakes by Edda: B-. Service and quality vary by location. I definitely had a rocky start with the Doral and Coral Gables locations, but Coral Gables and their fresh cake tastes great. That being said, I would not have booked them if they weren't included in our package. My advice is to avoid the weekends and make an appointment (get their name!) for FRESH cake and the fillings you want.

I dislike that they charged us extra for (1) making the buttercreme a color and (2) for filling to be added in between the layers (is there someone that has no filling in their cake?). I feel that this is something that should be included in our package cake. However, this might be more of something to bring up with the venue instead.

Our cake itself was gorgeous and the perfect color, the buttercreme was so smooth and looked just like fondant! However, the orange flavor was much too intense and the texture wasn't so good. It was coarse. The strawberry filling also did not taste the same as the tasting and was a really thin layer. Overall, I was quite disappointed in the taste, but happy with the appearance. I recommend that you look elsewhere and go with a smaller baker that isn't so hit-or-miss.


Officiant
Eddie Rodriguez A: So wonderful that we pretty much booked him on the spot, without interviewing anyone else. He is a very structured person, which I find to be a great quality for someone in this field. He constructed a great ceremony for us that was very personal and relevant. Everyone has been raving about it. He gave us great advice and pointers for the ceremony that we needed. I am so glad we had him marry us.


Day of Coordinator
Stylish Events by Karla A+ Wow, I feel so lucky to have have won her contest. About 1.5 months out she came on board and helped us out tremendously. Before the wedding, she helped construct our timeline and recommend the remaining vendor we needed. The day of the wedding, she was a God-send! We had to go to Plan B b/c of rain and she was there acting as an intermediary to our venue and us and set up. She did a great job, especially since everything changed from our original design. Her husband was also behind the scenes working the entire time.

Honestly, I never thought I needed a DOC. My catering coordinator at my venue assured me I didn't. However, I believe, that they deliberately try to get away from DOC's so that they don't have someone annoying them making sure that they are doing things the way that they are supposed to.

I highly recommend having a DOC and Karla. She saved us!


Wedding/TTD Photographer
KLK Photography TBD: Kristi is super sweet and creative, I can't wait to see what our pictures look like.


Videography
Blue Sky Videos A: Paul was super nice and accommodating. We love our long and short length videos. The audio selections were spot on too.


Engagement Pictures Photographer
Uplift Photography A+: Only the most awesome girl in the world! Jade took stunning pictures of us under crazy time constraints. And when we had no idea what to do, she gave us great direction. She is the best! Everyone raves about our pictures. Just stunning work!!! Highest recommendation!


B-Pic Photographer
Danielle Fletcher (Petaluma, CA) A: I am so happy with my pics and album. She was such a pleasure to work with and really made me at ease. Let her know when you need your album and you are good to go. Highly recommended!


DJ
Visions DJ Steven B+: Their online selection system and professionalism sealed the deal for us. Steven was super nice and played all the songs we suggested, however he technically wasn't the greatest DJ. His mixes weren't that good and he cut out ALOT of the best parts of songs. In his defense, dinner took so long, that we were left with little dancing time and he probably wanted to fit in as much of the music that we chose.


Cocktail Hour Musician
Deborah Fleisher A: She is a quirky, but talented harpist. She has a huge repertoire. I didn't hear too much of her music, but what I did was lovely.


Florist
DIY - I do not recommend DIYing your flowers unless you have experience with doing someone else's and/or have lots and lots of help. It could be a very unneeded last minute stress event. For me, it was truly relaxing arranging them the Thursday before our wedding. I loved it!
The Flower MegaStore. A: I bought my flowers from here. Giselle is great and was very honest with what she could and couldn't get (and what she might get). She has amazing prices and a great selection. She will keep you updated on her stock if it is something you are interested in. She really helped me alot and stayed in good contact.

Invitations
DIY - A pain in the booty, but I like them well enough. They weren't perfect, but I love the way that the envelopes came out. I would have done postcard RSVPs, had I had to do it all again. Some people had difficulty with doing the online RSVP.
Paper & More A+: Liner paper and thank you card envelopes were bought here. They have very fast and reasonable shipping. They also have inexpensive samples.
Paper Presentation B- : My cardstock had tears in it. They shipped a replacement in an envelope with no protection and therefore the replacement cardstock was bent. You also have to shell out $35 for samples and their shipping is expensive. However, the cardstock is beautiful.


Favors
DIY - I do not recommend DIY-ing food favors to everyone either, but I make these cookies in bulk every year, so I knew what I was tackling. I knew it would take me a whole day to do these. They went over very well.
PaperMart A: Bags were shipped quick and they have good prices.


Transportation
Meilan Limo A: Great service, easy to book. They made my life much easier and even brought the cake that was left behind in the truck back to my mom. I was extremely happy with their service day of.


My Dress
Amy Kuschel A+: They might not be the least expensive shop in town, but the quality of the dresses, the custom alterations, and the amazing customer service make this place a great deal, especially if you are a petite or tall woman. It was a wonderful experience every step of the way.
Adalgis Bezanilla A: Ada is a professional Bridal Valet and retired bridal gown consultant. If you need someone to come and take care of you the day of your wedding, this is your lady. For me though, she just pressed my dress and my mother's, when no other bridal shop in Miami would. She was quick and SOOO nice. I highly recommend her if you are an OOT bride in Miami and need your dress taken care of. She will even come to you. I just could not bring myself to entrust it to just a dry cleaner. Her contact numbers are 305.260.4421 and 305.969.4491


Tuxedos
Black Tie on the Circle A-: Great service and lovely tuxes. It may not be the cheapest in Miami, but it is a locally owned business that owns all of their tuxes. FI said it was the best feeling tux he ever had on. They treated all of us very well during the initial fitting, but DH felt a bit slighted on the day of pickup. I highly recommend them.


Jewelers
Shane Co. A+: My E ring & band. Absolutely wonderful. The only place that treated my FI well. They have taken great care of my rings.
West Coast Jewelry A: FI Band. Great selection and has a wonderful return policy. Quick shipping too. Highly recommended.


Hair/Make-up
Josey from MAC South Beach Macy*s B-: She did a great job on my trial at the counter. My mom wasn't so happy with hers so she offered to re-do her eyes, which she did a great job. However, she went on vacation and never contacted me until I hounded her down 3 days before our wedding. She made us an appointment with another girl, but I would have appreciated some more notice.
Fliberto from Bobbi Brown South Beach Macy*s A: I did both my trial and day of at counter. He did an amazing job and is a super nice guy. I highly recommend him and he is willing to travel for bridal parties.
Van Michael Salon Geer: B+ I learned my lesson and didn't tell them I was the bride, only that I wanted an updo. I found that there is a difference in price with salons for "Bridal" hair. This place is not cheap, but has a great rep, so I saved $ by not having a trial. Although, I did like my hair, I felt like she rushed it by the end when she was the one that started late. I had tons of frizzies and hair popping out that I had to tell her to fix over and over again. It was very unfinished looking when she was rushing me out. I immediately needed more hairspray as soon as I got back to my hotel. For $100 for a regular updo, I expected better service.
My mother did get an amazing cut and style there with Levi. I highly recommend him for a great affordable cut. If I lived in Miami, he would be my stylist!


Rehearsal Dinner
Monty's A+: Great food and amazing service for a wonderful price. Everyone loved the ambiance and food. One of the best choices we made.

Wedding Hotel Block
Indian Creek Hotel A- : I found them on Hotelplanner.com. They had great service and great rooms for the price, however they were so booked that they couldn't grant my then fiance late check-out on our wedding day. So he got kicked out of his hotel room 3 hours before he was scheduled to leave for our wedding. It was an oversight on our part, but I thought they might work with us. Staff at the hotel resturant were very high on drugs and had all their party friends hanging out there all day. Resturant was overpriced considering all this.



Guestbook
Blurb A-. Their software is relatively easy to use and upload to site. Prices are great for the quality. Great production and shipping time. My only complaint is that one of my books had black fingerprints and marring on it. Customer service was quick to answer and required me to take pics. They overnighted my new book in time. I will use them again for other albums.