Review of the vendors used
Reeves Reed Arboretum (Ceremony Location - http://www.reeves-reedarboretum.org/): B
Gorgeous grounds. They only allow one wedding per day however the grounds are not closed to the public during the day. The public is barred from entering the house and the Azalea garden but the rest of the Arboretum is open. I did not have any problems with wedding crashers. Tents are only allowed once a month. The rental manager is not the easiest to get in contact with as she doesn't work Mondays and only has availability during normal working hours. I felt that she only contacted me when she wanted something. Having my photos taken on the grounds was the only redeeming factor of this venue. Make sure you pick up everything when you leave the grounds. We were charged $50 for the few rose petals that were left on site.
Wonder Seafood (Reception Location - 1984 Rt 27, Edison NJ): A
The restaurant was very willing to work with us from modifying the menu, testing the sound system two weeks before the wedding and help set up the layout of the reception. They are able to hold 18 banquet tables in the restaurant. The only down side is that their ability to speak English is very limited. The manager speaks very fluent English and so does the woman who works the cashier but that's about it. The remainder of the staff has very limited English if any at all. The restaurant was willing to shut it's doors for us if we paid $5000 for the cost of food. This was a major plus when we were comparing with other restaurants that didn't have a sufficient wall partition. On the day of the wedding, we actually arrived an hour early and they had no problems accommodating us.
Grand Rental Station (Tent and Chair Rental - http://grandrental-station.com/): A+
I can not speak highly enough about this rental company. Not only was Kristin the most patient person to work with me, she also went out of her way to ensure that I would be happy and as stress free as possible for the wedding. From drawing out different diagrams so that I could choose the seating layout of the tent to upgrading my tent space for free when she realized the tent she quoted me was too small for our wedding size this vendor was an absolute joy to work with. The workers called me the day of to confirm the tent was going up and they had even sent me picture texts of the final product. No deposit was necessary and I wasn't charged until the day of the event. They do have a 25% cancellation policy if you cancel within 5 days of the event.
Santos Limos (Limo Rental - http://www.santoslimousine.com/): A
This vendor was recommended by other Knotties. The driver (Marla) was extremely punctual and stepped up to be part bouncer in keeping away guests from me during the pre-ceremony pictures and did the last fluffing up of the train and veil before I stepped down the aisle. As I had a small wedding party, I was really grateful that Marla stepped in when she did. The limo itself was clean but I do wish that Marla took a few minutes in the beginning to explain how the limo worked. For someone that was never in a stretch limo like that before, I was more than a bit lost.
Ellie Kowal (Baker - http://www.elliekowal.com/default.html): A+
This vendor was recommended by other Knotties. Ellie was an absolute doll to work with. Her buttercreams were absolutely amazing, delicious and not overly sweet. She was easy to contact and responded fairly quickly. We paid $450 (including delivery fee) for a 3 tiered cake that would feed 100 people. Ellie also was willing to place flowers that my florist provided onto the cake on the day of as well as place my custom made cake toppers. She presented the top layer of the cake in a separate box so the venue wouldn't have to worry about saving the cake during cutting time. I would not hesitate to work with Ellie again.
DHM Photography (Photographer - http://dhmphotography.com/): A+
We met Dana at the HealthQuest Bridal Expo in Flemington. From the beginning she was very accommodating to us and extremely easy to get in contact with. Out of all my vendors, Dana has the best customer service hands down. She got our engagement session proofs to us in a few weeks during the holiday season (partially my fault because I gave her the wrong zip code and it took USPS forever to get it delivered) and she threw in a free small flip booklet of some of the photographs. Her packages come with all day coverage, no travel fee and rights to your photos which is mailed to you on a high-res DVD. Even though there is no package that include the engagement session, the engagement session only costed us an additional $200 which is still very reasonable compared to other photography packages out there.
JoS A Banks North Brunswick Branch (Tux Rental - http://www.josbank.com/): C
We had visited the North Brunswick branch in the early evening only to find out that nobody in the store knew how to operate the rental system as the system is brand new and not everybody had been trained. We did however look through the books and choose what styles and colors we wanted so the entire trip to the North Brunswick branch wasn't a complete waste. Fiance also had his measurements taken there.
JoS A Banks Bridgewater Branch (Tux Rental - http://www.josbank.com/): A-
We placed our tux rental order through the Bridgewater branch. The store manager Anthony was helpful and placed the order without any hitches. We also received prompt calls when our tux rentals were in (5 days in advance). Unfortunately everybody in the wedding party that was getting tux rentals also needed to have items resized upon trying them out. The exchange process was quick and simple but it put a bit of stress on me as the exchanged pieces weren't coming in until Friday (2 days prior). We had to call the branch to confirm that the exchanged pieces were in even though they said they would call each groomsmen. One lazy groomsmen even tried on the tux rental the first time around on Friday and they still managed to get the exchanged piece in time.
David's Bridal Springfield Branch: (Wedding Dress - http://www.davidsbridal.com/HomeView): A+
We went to the Springfield Branch to look for wedding dresses. I had Bianca help me with my consultation. She’s a very patient person having to deal with my inability to pick a dress and my mom’s constant requests for me to change back and forth between different gowns. She even found several more gowns for me to try based on the dresses I had pulled to try on. Even though we ran late and was the last appointment before closing, I didn’t feel rushed one bit. I had a very pleasant experience with this branch.
David's Bridal New Brunswick Branch: (Wedding Dress - http://www.davidsbridal.com/HomeView): C
I went to the New Brunswick Branch for my alterations simply because the drive was a mere 15 minutes away from home versus nearly an hour to the Springfield Branch. I had a single point bustle put in by the seamstress which was completed to my satisfaction but that was about it. Since we bought the gown brand new from the Springfield branch and had not altered it at any other location, David’s bridal was obligated to fix any problems with the dress (ie – beading that was beginning to unravel from the border) since the dress was literally straight from the factory. My mother and I had pointed out numerous items to fix but these were never completed. Ultimately, these were fixed by my mom and I since I didn’t have enough time to bring back the dress. I would not recommend this branch for alterations.
Sara's 22 (Bridesmaid Dresses- www.saras22.com): A+
I used Sara's 22 to purchase my bridesmaid dresses. Sara is extremely responsive via email and a joy to work with in person. Within the first day of contact, we had already placed the order for my dresses and when I stopped by later that day to drop off the payment, Sara already had my order confirmation number waiting for me. She also was very patient with my constant calls when it got within a month and a half before the wedding as I was getting very antsy that the dresses weren't in and possibly needed alterations.
Petals and Lace (Florist - http://petalsandlace.org/): A
We met Lori at the HealthQuest Bridal Expo in Flemington. Lori was fairly easy to get in touch with whenever I had any questions via email. No delivery or set up fees were charged. She dropped off the flowers at my mother's house and the remaining flowers at the Arboretum. Very accommodating and she was mindful of my budget but kept the style that I wanted.
Dawn Rose Makeup Artistry (http://www.dawnrosemakeupartistry.com/): A+
I found Dawn Rose through an advertisement through the "Celebrations" magazine. At the time of my trial, Dawn was running a promotion where the trial was free if you booked her services for the wedding. Dawn has a very light touch and even though my face was noticeably different at the end of the trial, it didn't look like that I had a ton of make up on. Very natural looking. She even took the time to let me see how I looked under artificial and natural lighting after the trial was done to make sure I was comfortable with her work. I would not hesitate to work with Dawn again.
Dawn Boas (Hair Stylist - 732-887-8640): A+
Dawn Boas was recommended to me by Dawn Rose as they had worked together in the past previously. Dawn certainly had her work cut out for her as I wanted a single hair style to match not only my wedding gown but my 2 cultural outfits that I needed to change into at the reception. After showing her reference pictures of my gown and outfits in addition to the hair styles that I liked, Dawn whipped up a hair style that was exactly what I was looking for. Dawn also took the time to take a look at my photos of my bridesmaids, their current hairstyle and the hair accessories that I was looking to purchase to make sure that everything jiived together. On the day of, she showed my mom and bridesmaids how to safely remove my veil and insert my cultural hair pieces to make sure that no accidents would happen later in the day. I can not recommend this vendor enough.
Karen Stern (Harpist - http://www.harpcat.com/ or [email protected]): A
We found Karen on Gigmasters.com. She's not the most responsive via email but I had no problems finalizing the details of the ceremony music with her. She's had previous experience playing her harp at the Arboretum. The quality of her harp playing on the day of was absolutely amazing. I could hear her playing from the Azalea garden from the house. No worries about our guests not being able to hear her music and it was obvious she was no amateur.
Reverend Wendy Venezio (Officiant - www.puravidanj.com): A
We found Rev. Wendy Venezio through an advertisement through the "Celebrations" magazine. She's quite personable and fairly accessible via email and phone (more responsive through the phone). She took the time to hammer out the details of the ceremony ab approximately a month out. No complaints from me.
Gorgeous grounds. They only allow one wedding per day however the grounds are not closed to the public during the day. The public is barred from entering the house and the Azalea garden but the rest of the Arboretum is open. I did not have any problems with wedding crashers. Tents are only allowed once a month. The rental manager is not the easiest to get in contact with as she doesn't work Mondays and only has availability during normal working hours. I felt that she only contacted me when she wanted something. Having my photos taken on the grounds was the only redeeming factor of this venue. Make sure you pick up everything when you leave the grounds. We were charged $50 for the few rose petals that were left on site.
Wonder Seafood (Reception Location - 1984 Rt 27, Edison NJ): A
The restaurant was very willing to work with us from modifying the menu, testing the sound system two weeks before the wedding and help set up the layout of the reception. They are able to hold 18 banquet tables in the restaurant. The only down side is that their ability to speak English is very limited. The manager speaks very fluent English and so does the woman who works the cashier but that's about it. The remainder of the staff has very limited English if any at all. The restaurant was willing to shut it's doors for us if we paid $5000 for the cost of food. This was a major plus when we were comparing with other restaurants that didn't have a sufficient wall partition. On the day of the wedding, we actually arrived an hour early and they had no problems accommodating us.
Grand Rental Station (Tent and Chair Rental - http://grandrental-station.com/): A+
I can not speak highly enough about this rental company. Not only was Kristin the most patient person to work with me, she also went out of her way to ensure that I would be happy and as stress free as possible for the wedding. From drawing out different diagrams so that I could choose the seating layout of the tent to upgrading my tent space for free when she realized the tent she quoted me was too small for our wedding size this vendor was an absolute joy to work with. The workers called me the day of to confirm the tent was going up and they had even sent me picture texts of the final product. No deposit was necessary and I wasn't charged until the day of the event. They do have a 25% cancellation policy if you cancel within 5 days of the event.
Santos Limos (Limo Rental - http://www.santoslimousine.com/): A
This vendor was recommended by other Knotties. The driver (Marla) was extremely punctual and stepped up to be part bouncer in keeping away guests from me during the pre-ceremony pictures and did the last fluffing up of the train and veil before I stepped down the aisle. As I had a small wedding party, I was really grateful that Marla stepped in when she did. The limo itself was clean but I do wish that Marla took a few minutes in the beginning to explain how the limo worked. For someone that was never in a stretch limo like that before, I was more than a bit lost.
Ellie Kowal (Baker - http://www.elliekowal.com/default.html): A+
This vendor was recommended by other Knotties. Ellie was an absolute doll to work with. Her buttercreams were absolutely amazing, delicious and not overly sweet. She was easy to contact and responded fairly quickly. We paid $450 (including delivery fee) for a 3 tiered cake that would feed 100 people. Ellie also was willing to place flowers that my florist provided onto the cake on the day of as well as place my custom made cake toppers. She presented the top layer of the cake in a separate box so the venue wouldn't have to worry about saving the cake during cutting time. I would not hesitate to work with Ellie again.
DHM Photography (Photographer - http://dhmphotography.com/): A+
We met Dana at the HealthQuest Bridal Expo in Flemington. From the beginning she was very accommodating to us and extremely easy to get in contact with. Out of all my vendors, Dana has the best customer service hands down. She got our engagement session proofs to us in a few weeks during the holiday season (partially my fault because I gave her the wrong zip code and it took USPS forever to get it delivered) and she threw in a free small flip booklet of some of the photographs. Her packages come with all day coverage, no travel fee and rights to your photos which is mailed to you on a high-res DVD. Even though there is no package that include the engagement session, the engagement session only costed us an additional $200 which is still very reasonable compared to other photography packages out there.
JoS A Banks North Brunswick Branch (Tux Rental - http://www.josbank.com/): C
We had visited the North Brunswick branch in the early evening only to find out that nobody in the store knew how to operate the rental system as the system is brand new and not everybody had been trained. We did however look through the books and choose what styles and colors we wanted so the entire trip to the North Brunswick branch wasn't a complete waste. Fiance also had his measurements taken there.
JoS A Banks Bridgewater Branch (Tux Rental - http://www.josbank.com/): A-
We placed our tux rental order through the Bridgewater branch. The store manager Anthony was helpful and placed the order without any hitches. We also received prompt calls when our tux rentals were in (5 days in advance). Unfortunately everybody in the wedding party that was getting tux rentals also needed to have items resized upon trying them out. The exchange process was quick and simple but it put a bit of stress on me as the exchanged pieces weren't coming in until Friday (2 days prior). We had to call the branch to confirm that the exchanged pieces were in even though they said they would call each groomsmen. One lazy groomsmen even tried on the tux rental the first time around on Friday and they still managed to get the exchanged piece in time.
David's Bridal Springfield Branch: (Wedding Dress - http://www.davidsbridal.com/HomeView): A+
We went to the Springfield Branch to look for wedding dresses. I had Bianca help me with my consultation. She’s a very patient person having to deal with my inability to pick a dress and my mom’s constant requests for me to change back and forth between different gowns. She even found several more gowns for me to try based on the dresses I had pulled to try on. Even though we ran late and was the last appointment before closing, I didn’t feel rushed one bit. I had a very pleasant experience with this branch.
David's Bridal New Brunswick Branch: (Wedding Dress - http://www.davidsbridal.com/HomeView): C
I went to the New Brunswick Branch for my alterations simply because the drive was a mere 15 minutes away from home versus nearly an hour to the Springfield Branch. I had a single point bustle put in by the seamstress which was completed to my satisfaction but that was about it. Since we bought the gown brand new from the Springfield branch and had not altered it at any other location, David’s bridal was obligated to fix any problems with the dress (ie – beading that was beginning to unravel from the border) since the dress was literally straight from the factory. My mother and I had pointed out numerous items to fix but these were never completed. Ultimately, these were fixed by my mom and I since I didn’t have enough time to bring back the dress. I would not recommend this branch for alterations.
Sara's 22 (Bridesmaid Dresses- www.saras22.com): A+
I used Sara's 22 to purchase my bridesmaid dresses. Sara is extremely responsive via email and a joy to work with in person. Within the first day of contact, we had already placed the order for my dresses and when I stopped by later that day to drop off the payment, Sara already had my order confirmation number waiting for me. She also was very patient with my constant calls when it got within a month and a half before the wedding as I was getting very antsy that the dresses weren't in and possibly needed alterations.
Petals and Lace (Florist - http://petalsandlace.org/): A
We met Lori at the HealthQuest Bridal Expo in Flemington. Lori was fairly easy to get in touch with whenever I had any questions via email. No delivery or set up fees were charged. She dropped off the flowers at my mother's house and the remaining flowers at the Arboretum. Very accommodating and she was mindful of my budget but kept the style that I wanted.
Dawn Rose Makeup Artistry (http://www.dawnrosemakeupartistry.com/): A+
I found Dawn Rose through an advertisement through the "Celebrations" magazine. At the time of my trial, Dawn was running a promotion where the trial was free if you booked her services for the wedding. Dawn has a very light touch and even though my face was noticeably different at the end of the trial, it didn't look like that I had a ton of make up on. Very natural looking. She even took the time to let me see how I looked under artificial and natural lighting after the trial was done to make sure I was comfortable with her work. I would not hesitate to work with Dawn again.
Dawn Boas (Hair Stylist - 732-887-8640): A+
Dawn Boas was recommended to me by Dawn Rose as they had worked together in the past previously. Dawn certainly had her work cut out for her as I wanted a single hair style to match not only my wedding gown but my 2 cultural outfits that I needed to change into at the reception. After showing her reference pictures of my gown and outfits in addition to the hair styles that I liked, Dawn whipped up a hair style that was exactly what I was looking for. Dawn also took the time to take a look at my photos of my bridesmaids, their current hairstyle and the hair accessories that I was looking to purchase to make sure that everything jiived together. On the day of, she showed my mom and bridesmaids how to safely remove my veil and insert my cultural hair pieces to make sure that no accidents would happen later in the day. I can not recommend this vendor enough.
Karen Stern (Harpist - http://www.harpcat.com/ or [email protected]): A
We found Karen on Gigmasters.com. She's not the most responsive via email but I had no problems finalizing the details of the ceremony music with her. She's had previous experience playing her harp at the Arboretum. The quality of her harp playing on the day of was absolutely amazing. I could hear her playing from the Azalea garden from the house. No worries about our guests not being able to hear her music and it was obvious she was no amateur.
Reverend Wendy Venezio (Officiant - www.puravidanj.com): A
We found Rev. Wendy Venezio through an advertisement through the "Celebrations" magazine. She's quite personable and fairly accessible via email and phone (more responsive through the phone). She took the time to hammer out the details of the ceremony ab approximately a month out. No complaints from me.
Online Vendors
Nicole W Clark (Cake Topper - http://nicolewong.com/Home.html or http://www.etsy.com/shop/nicolewclark?ref=pr_shop): A+
An absolute joy to work with. Fast communication and decent pricing. Nicole managed to get my cake toppers to me in time even though we had little more than a month from our first contact. She nailed our mini couple on her first try. I’ll be going back to Nicole for another mini couple for my ethnic outfits worn at the reception.
Hanatsukuri (Kanzashi - http://www.etsy.com/shop/hanatsukuri?ref=pr_shop): A+
Extremely fast communication and very responsive to questions, suggestions and comments. I ordered 4 custom kanzashi (2 kanzashi on hair pins and then 2 sets of 3 kanzashi on bobby pins) and she had all 4 pieces done within a week. She even redid one of the kanzashi for me because I thought the fabric was too dark. I would highly recommend this vendor for future kanzashi purchases.
Blissful Gatherings (Cake Boxes - http://www.blissfulgatherings.com/): B-
We had purchased our cake boxes and one of groomsmen gift from this vendor. Customer service is extremely poor. They didn't respond to my email when I asked them an update on my package. I was convinced for a week that they had taken my money and I wasn't going to see my order any time soon. However, I did receive my items in the end. The items were of decent quality but the customer service would stop me from purchasing from them again.
Fine Chinese Clothing (Chinese Dress - http://www.finechineseclothing.com/eng/index/index.aspx): A
I ordered 2 chinese dresses from this company based in China. They have excellent customer service with a decent handle on the English language. Customer service was very helpful from sending me pictures of fabric swatches to helping me around the site. They even sent me a seperate email confirming that they understood that I wanted them to use a different fabric to make the dress than what was offered (they offered to do this at no extra charge). They sent me a tracking number for the package when it was shipped but the link never worked for me. Regardless, I received the package on time as per their shipping guidelines. Prices are very comparable to others and certainly beats getting a custom made dress from Chinatown.
Angie's Gift Corner (Granulated Wax - http://angiesgiftcorner.com/scented_granulated_candle_wax.htm): A
I contacted Angie at what seemed to be the 11th hour trying to get granulated wax for my unity ceremony. She's very responsive via email and within a few days, we had finalized my order and production began. Angie had customized the granulated wax to match my wedding colors and even calculated how much wax I would need based on the container. Her calculations got me nearly twice the amount of wax that I needed but I'm not complaining as I can use this wax to fill up the container once the first candle is burnt down.
efavormart.com (silk florals and organza bags - http://www.efavormart.com/): A
I used efavormart to purchase my silk florals for the pomander topiaries and card box. I'm really pleased with the quality of the roses for the prices that I paid as Afloral.com was out of my budget for the amount of silks that I needed. Super happy with the organza bags that I purchased as well. I didn't find a single run in the 120 bags that I purchased. Great customer service. I had to add another item to a purchased order that was placed earlier in the day and their customer service chat handled that without any hitches. I had momentarily disconnected in the middle of the customer service chat and they were still able to get me back to the original operator that was helping me. The chat also features a download option so you have a record of what was discussed. I wouldn't hesitate to do business with this vendor again.
An absolute joy to work with. Fast communication and decent pricing. Nicole managed to get my cake toppers to me in time even though we had little more than a month from our first contact. She nailed our mini couple on her first try. I’ll be going back to Nicole for another mini couple for my ethnic outfits worn at the reception.
Hanatsukuri (Kanzashi - http://www.etsy.com/shop/hanatsukuri?ref=pr_shop): A+
Extremely fast communication and very responsive to questions, suggestions and comments. I ordered 4 custom kanzashi (2 kanzashi on hair pins and then 2 sets of 3 kanzashi on bobby pins) and she had all 4 pieces done within a week. She even redid one of the kanzashi for me because I thought the fabric was too dark. I would highly recommend this vendor for future kanzashi purchases.
Blissful Gatherings (Cake Boxes - http://www.blissfulgatherings.com/): B-
We had purchased our cake boxes and one of groomsmen gift from this vendor. Customer service is extremely poor. They didn't respond to my email when I asked them an update on my package. I was convinced for a week that they had taken my money and I wasn't going to see my order any time soon. However, I did receive my items in the end. The items were of decent quality but the customer service would stop me from purchasing from them again.
Fine Chinese Clothing (Chinese Dress - http://www.finechineseclothing.com/eng/index/index.aspx): A
I ordered 2 chinese dresses from this company based in China. They have excellent customer service with a decent handle on the English language. Customer service was very helpful from sending me pictures of fabric swatches to helping me around the site. They even sent me a seperate email confirming that they understood that I wanted them to use a different fabric to make the dress than what was offered (they offered to do this at no extra charge). They sent me a tracking number for the package when it was shipped but the link never worked for me. Regardless, I received the package on time as per their shipping guidelines. Prices are very comparable to others and certainly beats getting a custom made dress from Chinatown.
Angie's Gift Corner (Granulated Wax - http://angiesgiftcorner.com/scented_granulated_candle_wax.htm): A
I contacted Angie at what seemed to be the 11th hour trying to get granulated wax for my unity ceremony. She's very responsive via email and within a few days, we had finalized my order and production began. Angie had customized the granulated wax to match my wedding colors and even calculated how much wax I would need based on the container. Her calculations got me nearly twice the amount of wax that I needed but I'm not complaining as I can use this wax to fill up the container once the first candle is burnt down.
efavormart.com (silk florals and organza bags - http://www.efavormart.com/): A
I used efavormart to purchase my silk florals for the pomander topiaries and card box. I'm really pleased with the quality of the roses for the prices that I paid as Afloral.com was out of my budget for the amount of silks that I needed. Super happy with the organza bags that I purchased as well. I didn't find a single run in the 120 bags that I purchased. Great customer service. I had to add another item to a purchased order that was placed earlier in the day and their customer service chat handled that without any hitches. I had momentarily disconnected in the middle of the customer service chat and they were still able to get me back to the original operator that was helping me. The chat also features a download option so you have a record of what was discussed. I wouldn't hesitate to do business with this vendor again.