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Wedding Vendor Review
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01-08-2015 1:57pm#1So the dust has settled, we are back from honeymoon, everything went perfectly so I was thinking it may be a good idea if people wanted to post their experiences with their suppliers for the various things that they used for their weddings, links to the websites etc. Mods, feel free to close if you guys feel this isnt acceptable.
Photographer - Bronte Photography.
Absolutely brilliant service from Tanya. She was there from 10 am up until just before dinner. Aside from when we were having the posed shots we barely noticed her around which is massively important for a photographer, she was in no way intrusive and we could not be happier with her, cannot wait for the official pictures.
Flowers - Bronte Bouquets
This is the photographers sister, Tracey. He work was out of this world. From the button holes to the bouquets, the church pew ends and lanterns, bay trees, the centre piece for the unity candle, all were beautiful. She also decorated our venue with papers lanterns and bunting which were stunning and everyone that was there raved about them.
Videographer - David Stokes Video Production.
Absolutely faultless. He was there from around 11 am up until the third dance at around 10 pm. Like with the photographer we barely noticed him around the place, top top bloke.
Hair & Makeup - The Powder Room Girls.
Obviously I didnt see these guys on the day but the o/h was delighted with them so Im taking that as a good sign.
:pac:
Cars - Heffernan Wedding Cars
Cars were immaculate, punctual and relaxed throughout and an unbelievably comfortable journey.
Dress - The Town Bride
Obviously I didnt have any dealings here but the missus raved about them, she couldnt have been happier with the service and the dress.
Suits - Aston Formal and Protocol Menswear.
Professional and helpful staff in both places.
Band & DJ - Perfect Day.
Fantastic from start to finish. We had a very tough crowd but Catherine and the team kept it going throughout and adjusted the set list accordingly based on some of the more difficult attendees, very happy.
Venue - Rathsallagh House
We love this place anyway so one could accuse us of bias but it really was amazing. We had the drinks reception in the walled garden, there was ample finger food and scones for everyone, nobodies glasses stayed empty for long, there were lots of service staff posted strategically around so nobody went thirsty or hungry. There was no pressure from them for anything, even when the dinner bell went and myself and herself asked could we have 10 minutes to ourselves to catch our breath, they gave us 20 and asked if it was enough. The meal was out of this world and anyone that spoke about it to us said it was as good a meal they had anywhere, never mind at a wedding. The service throughout was completely on point and anyone that wanted seconds was happily obliged. I couldn't recommend this venue highly enough.
Honeymoon - We booked through Travelmood on Duke Street. We did Vegas for 4 nights, San Francisco for 3 and 8 in Cancun and they were the best price we could find. We priced booking all ourselves but the price difference was nominal.
Hotel in Vegas - The Aria
Beautiful, modern Hotel & casino resort, just off the strip. Great service, not as cheesey as some of the resorts around, spotlessly clean with fantastically attentive staff. Their breakfast / lunch buffet restaurant (all you can eat for $25) is a sight to behold!
Hotel in San Fran - Handlery Union Square
Hotel accommodation in San Fran is ridiculously expensive so this is very much a 3* place however we couldn't fault it for what it is. Comfortable, clean rooms, good if not particularly friendly service but the location is what really pushes this up. Its a 2 minute walk to the cable car that links to Fishermans Wharf, 5 minute walk to Chinatown and one minutes walk to some cracking bars and restaurants, the best of which we saw was Mortons Steakhouse. Its pricey (around $250 incl tip for 2 mains, a good bottle of wine and a few gin and tonics) but my God it was without a shadow of a doubt the best steak Ive ever had, and Ive eaten alot of steak. The 12oz filet with the lobster "surf & turf" option was to die for, perfectly cooked with attentive but not intrusive staff, if you like steak then you NEED to visit this place.
Hotel Cancun - Maroma Beach Riviera Cancun.
A 5 diamond, adults only, all inclusive resort. Gorgeous place. Excellent service, some fabulous on site restaurants - the Italian and Japanese ones being highlights. All the staff were brilliant from housekeeping to the check in and everything in between. Sadly when we were there the beach was pretty much covered in seaweed throughout, they said its something they have not seen in many years and was due to tidal changes so that took away from it a bit as you couldnt really go into the sea but of course, the Hotel cannot be blamed for tidal shifts! The entertainment staff were excellent and really tried their best to get everyone involved. There were different shows on every night with the Beatles tribute being a particular highlight. One disappointing aspect is that I has booked an on the beach dining experience for us for our second night as it was our anniversary and for what we paid ($379) it was in no way worth it. The service was grand but the waiter wasn't particularly helpful or friendly, the food was average at best - what we ate in the Italian was miles ahead we thought - so I wouldn't be too quick to recommend it. Overall though, its a cracking spot for living like a king for a week or so!
I think thats the major things covered anyway, hope this was helpful!17
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Administrators, Business & Finance Moderators, Society & Culture Moderators Posts: 16,905 Admin ✭✭✭✭✭
Join Date:Posts: 16095
Congratulations Business Cat! This is a good idea for a thread - I'll stick my vendors in too, although I got married in 2010, still might be of some use.
Venue: The Glenview Hotel.
We were delighted with the venue and how the reception went. Right from when we went to view it the first time, the service was brilliant, they couldn't do enough for us. The food was fantastic (we had sea bass and roast lamb) so much so that people still mention it to us 5 years later, everyone was offered seconds of what they'd had or they could have some of the other option. There were so many little nice touches, like one of the barmen bringing my bouquet down to the cold room for the night, so it would stay fresh. Not to mention the head chef saving the day with our wedding cake when the top tier nearly fell off (see review of cake supplier). They tailored a package for us, taking bits out of existing packages and mixing them together, so that it would work out cheaper for us. It was all paid for before the wedding, and when we were checking out the following morning my parents got reimbursed money because there were some bottles of wine left that hadn't been drunk!
Car: Leinster Wedding Cars
These guys were great, punctual, friendly and very professional. We had the Rolls Royce which was really lovely, completely immaculate. We saw them at one of the wedding fairs at our venue, and booked them based on that - it was nice to have seen the car in person.
Photographer: Darren Purcell - Visionary Photography
Darren was absolutely fantastic, very professional to deal with and responded to emails etc promptly. He was really helpful on the day as well, with tips etc, and perfectly wiping out a footprint from the back of my dress when someone stood on it :pac: He does candid style, but I also wanted some 'posed' shots, and he had them done super fast - no boring hanging around. The photos are amazing, and we had them back within less than 8 weeks of the wedding. I was on crutches at the time, so wasn't sure when I could get to the studio to collect them. It was the week before Christmas, so Darren delivered them to my parents' house (his parents live in the area) so that I'd have them in time for Christmas!
DJ: Tommy Greene - Mobile DJs
I still recommend Tommy to anyone who asks about a DJ. He was brilliant! He's the resident DJ for the hotel, so that was why we booked initially, because when it came to bands/djs we were totally clueless. Our wedding co-ordinator assured us that Tommy was great, and she was absolutely right! The dance floor was full from start to finish.
Ceremony Music: The Miller String Quartet
I've still got people asking me for their contact details 5 years later. We were delighted with them! Marcus was so pleasant to deal with, and very helpful with advice on what bits of the ceremony I'd need to pick songs for, etc. I know for a fact that they learned at least 3 new songs for my wedding, and they also had to shorten/rearrange them a bit for the ceremony (I walked up the aisle to a Led Zeppelin song that was originally about 5 mins long). We had them for the ceremony and then for 2 hours at the drinks reception. Our guests raved about them, and I know that a few of our guests booked them for their own weddings after hearing them play at ours.
Flowers: Dundrum Blooms
Again, delighted with the flowers, they were beautiful! Eva was really helpful in the whole planning process. I had wanted a specific type of rose, but I didn't realise that they cost an absolute bomb. She was able to get me a different sort of rose that looked virtually identical and was half the price. I love my bouquet, and I dried it and have it in a cabinet in my living room.
Cake: Amazing Cakes
The cake was the only part of the day we weren't happy with. Taste-wise it was lovely, but it wasn't exactly what I'd asked for, and for €700+ I don't think that was on. (We'd had a very detailed consultation and I'd provided pictures etc) Plus, the major issue was that the top tier of the cake started to fall off. It was one of those topsy turvey cakes (there's a pic of it in the Post A Pic of Your Wedding Thread) and it looks to me like the top tier was put on the wrong way around.
It was just lucky that we went in with the photographer to take a posed 'cutting the cake' photo when we were getting our photos done, because from the looks of it the top tier would have been on the floor if we'd left it until dinner. My SIL was with us, so she went off to get someone and came back with the head chef who managed to sort of reinforce it so that it would hold up a bit longer, although he was limited in what sort of repairs he made because they couldn't be too visible. While we were waiting for everyone to get sitting down before we went in as 'Mr & Mrs' our wedding co-ordinator said that the chef was recommending that we do the cake cutting before the dinner, so that they could get the cake out of the room. He said it could get warm in the room with so many people there, and he was concerned that with the heat that the cake wouldn't last through the dinner.
We considered complaining about it when we got back from our honeymoon, but at that stage we didn't see what good it would do and we didn't want to ruin our post-wedding buzz with a load of hassle about it. It was really disappointing, because they had come very highly recommended and have won a good few awards. That being said, going by our experience I wouldn't use them again, or recommend them.
Honeymoon: Hotel de Banville
We went to Paris, so we booked it ourselves without a travel agent. My parents had stayed in the same hotel on their honeymoon, so that was why we booked it - we didn't really have any ideas of what hotels were good (aside from the really famous ones which obviously were for the mega-rich)
The hotel was really something special, all the rooms are different and have their own individual theme. The staff were lovely, they gave us a great upgrade, and on the first night we lost the run of ourselves and drank the €175 bottle of champagne that was in the mini-bar, but when we were checking out they told us it was on the house
The location was great because we were in a quieter part of Paris, but a 2 minute walk to the metro so getting around was easy. And we had a lovely little balcony, so we could sit out for our coffee in the morning, and then have a glass of wine at night and see the Eiffel Tower lighting up. 0 -
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So just back from my honeymoon and thought I would give my tuppenceworth.
Dress. Justin Alexander bought in Baldoyle Bridal Outlet.
They were very nice to deal with. However, be patient, as the dress takes a good while to come in from the States. Theyre not great at answering phones either, but I got the dress I wanted and it was perfect. I would recommend them.
Suits Dorian Black
Would definitely recommend. Very professional and helpful. The suits looked sharp and of high quality.
Hotel Portmarnock Golf Links
I have nothing but good things to say about this hotel. The food was out of this world. Everybody was raving about the food, even the evening food was of really high standard.
They made us feel so special and gave us two tastings to pick the menu. The room looked beautiful and the wedding planners helped to complete the theme of the wedding.
Hair http://www.alison-weddinghair.ie/contact
Allison was brilliant, from the trials to the day, she did exactly what I wanted and was very professional. The hairs stayed in place all day
Make Up http://www.laurakinneymake-up.com/
Laura was amazing. I changed my mind on a style I wanted and she did another trial on me, doing exactly what I had in mind. her makeup and brushes are of the highest quality and hygiene standards.
Band Good Times I was really picky for my band, as I am a wedding singer myself. I chose this band purely on how good the two vocalists were. There is no ""crooning" in this band, and they had the floor full all night.
Cake Cocoamoiselle If you're in doubt about your cake supplier look no further. Be aware of bogus people selling cheap cakes that look nothing like their advertising pictures.
We got macarons and a three tier cake. (Choc Bis Cake, White Choc and Rasberry and Carrot cake) It was an outstanding piece of art. It was one of my favourite parts of the day seeing the cake. If you're ordering a cake , you get to go to her lovely little cake studio too for a consultation. that alone, is worth the booking
Flowers and Candleabras- Frogprince
I enjoyed the booking process with Frogprince, going to their showroom etc.
They were helpful and flexible when I wanted to alter my booking.
The candleabras were stunning and really set off the room
The flowers were exactly what we wanted colour wise. the bouquets were generous and overflowing with the colour scheme. The only negative thing I could mention is where they placed the altar arrangements. they werent visible from the congregation. I actually thought they were missing for the whole wedding.
FairyLight DanceFloor. _ Gers Covers
I really researched this one. There are cheaper options out there, but they are cheaper dancefloors with badly dispersed lights and missing tiles. I would definitely recommend getting this. It really added to the effect of the room
Vintage Ice Cream stand Rockfield Ice Cream
Unfortunately, due to my own fault, the time I had this at the wedding, I didnt really get to see it at all. However guests raved about it and loved the icecreams. they were very pleasant to deal with and gave me a choice of 5 flavours of handmade icecream.
Photographer http://www.dokphotography.com/
She was lovely. So nice, in fact, that two weeks before the wedding when I realised I had booked the wrong date, she rearranged her own holiday so she could photograph our wedding. I would definitely recommend her. she has a real passion for photography that you can see when she's taking photos.
Videography David Stokes
100% would recommend this guy. He is very reasonably priced and has the nicest attitude. So unobtrusive too. youd barely know he was there.
Invitations Design of Affection meghan is lovely. She meets up with you to design your own personal invite.
We had a completely bespoke design and she did it no problem. They arrived in plenty of time, and she was very nice to send me a few extra envelopes when I had ran out them. I would definitely recommend
Honeymoon Trailfinders I would only half recommend these. Having just returned from our honeymoon, the parts of the trip that we booked ourselves turned out smoother than the Trialfinders part. I think they just tried to get us the cheapest deal on flights etc, when it's not always the best option as far as stopovers, airline choice and baggage fees are concerned. I would suggest trying to organise it yourself.
Trailfinders are handy however, for booking numerous flights in the one holiday with car rentals included. Maybe sort the accommodation yourself and double check all the airlines and stopovers they may get you .0 -
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Alright, I'll throw up ours. All done in Cork, but the band and photographer travelled to us.
Ceremony: Triskel Christchurch. We had a Humanist ceremony and having our ceremony here meant we got all of the pomp and splendor of a church wedding, with no religion :pac:. They were lovely to deal with and made everything very stress-free. They have a sound system with a guy working on the day, as well as a baby grand piano that your musicians are welcome to use.
Reception: Fota Island Resort. They were so helpful and accommodating. From the moment we viewed the place, we just knew they'd do a great job. Service and attention to detail are very important to us, and they exceeded our expectations. The food was OUTSTANDING. We stayed for a couple of days after the wedding, and all of the staff were greeting us by name and congratulating us. They honestly could not do enough for us.
Hair: Upstyle Junkie. Audrey is incredible. She's so laid back, she knows exactly what you want and she just makes it happen. She's also great fun on the day! My bridesmaids were over the moon with their styles (we gave Audrey only the vaguest of instructions so we didn't know how it would turn out). Several of our guests asked for her details afterwards.
Make up: Porcelain. Colette was also wonderful. I just loved my makeup on the day, and she really nailed all of the bridesmaids' looks too.
Photographer: Moat Hill Photography. One of the standout suppliers, for sure! Paul came to my house in the morning and Elaine went to my husband. Paul is a legend. He is so calm and funny and relaxed and helpful. You can't help but feel at ease with him. I didn't get to know Elaine really, but she seemed lovely. They were both so creative and open to hearing all of the mad things we wanted to do with pictures, and they took them a step further. The photographs are just stunning. We ended up with close to 700 amazing photographs, and I could not recommend them highly enough.
Dress: Rice N Roses. I have slightly mixed feelings here. On one hand, they helped me find the perfect dress. The woman who worked with me took a lot of time listening to what I wanted, and when she brought The Dress to me, she told me before I even tried it on that she knew it was The One. And she was right! She was so patient and kind and spent about 90 minutes with me. On the other hand, their website is poor and I can't find the link on the first page of Google (I think it's gone?). It was hard to get through by phone to make an appointment. They didn't return voicemail messages or Facebook messages. And worst of all, I booked my alterations with them, but when my bridesmaid tried to ring to change the date of the first fitting, she couldn't get an answer. She tried for 2 weeks to get through, leaving message after message, before I gave up and found a new person to do the alterations.
Which leads me to... Alterations: Alterations by Kate. She is unbelievable. I live abroad so had hardly any time for alterations. She got everything done in a week, at an amazingly cheap price! I would bring any and all alterations to her.
Flowers: I got a word-of-mouth referral to two women in Cork. I'm not sure they run an official business though; I think it's just their hobby. They were wonderful and really affordable! If anyone wants the details, I can pass them on through PM.
Videography: On Track Films. They were... Okay. We won a competition, so we didn't have to pay for their services, but it's obvious that they're new to the business and I don't think they're overly passionate about it. Communication was really poor, and there was a lot of back-and-forth and delays about getting the wedding video itself.
Band & DJ: The Bentley Boys. Music was really important to us. We had a wide range of guests and we wanted to cater to them all. The Bentley Boys absolutely exceeded our expectations! They were brilliant. After every single wedding my mum has ever been to, she has complained that the music was too loud for older guests to still talk, but the day after ours, she could only rave that "the music was great, and not too loud!". So that's the highest praise available there. So many guests asked for their details afterwards, and I still get people talking about how great they were.
Wedding Car & Ice Cream Cart: Butlers of Dungarvan. We got a gorgeous 1955 Bentley and an adorable artisan ice-cream cart from them for a really good price. The more services you get with them, the greater the discount they'll offer. Our driver was so nice, and as is usual in Ireland, we pretty quickly established that we're distantly related through marriage
Suits: Tom Murphy's. I haven't got too much to say here, other than they were very helpful and we got gorgeous suits for a really reasonable price.
I've left some of the more minor details out, obviously, but I hope that's helpful to someone.0 -
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