Vendor Reviews

My DH and I were married on July 24, 2010. The day went smoothly and I give almost all the credit to these wonderful vendors. ;) It was also one hot day and an outside wedding....I think I lost 10lbs that weekend.

Victorian Villa Inn...A
We had our wedding here, rehearsal dinner and stayed the whole weekend. It is truly a wonderful place. It is off of Lake Wylie and it has a victorian style setting. The staff is absolutely amazing. The wedding coordinator helped me with everything (I had never met with her before the weekend). She also had water at my service every time I blinked. I probably would have passed out if she hadn't done this, it was just that hot. The kitchen staff set up my candy buffet, my reserved signs, extra pictures I received last minute,...all those little details you are wondering if anyone actually listened to you the day before on what those were for. The cake, centerpieces, dj, glassware, tables, linen, lighting, chairs, EVERYTHING is included. Except alcohol and that saved me a bunch. If you want to know more, just send me an email at jaguter@live.com. The only reason I gave them an A, was because I didn't agree with the DJ. But I think that can be fixed and/or just hire your own separate DJ for that place. I won't explain here because the inn is awesome.

Suaraz Bakery...A+
This wonderful bakery gave me an amazing cake. Plus my ring bearer and flower girl are allergic to egg, so they sent two decorated doughnuts for these too. Awesome. The cake alternated layers of vanilla pound and strawberry chiffon. Yummy.

Dana Arndt Photography...A+
This girl is amazing. She stayed out of the way and took a ton of pictures. She also did our engagement pictures. She is real easy to work with and timely on everything. She didn't demand a whole lot and did everything my needy family asked without complaint. I have seen a lot of photographers at other weddings who seem to demand a lot of time or special pictures of the bride and groom. She didn't do any of this and I loved working with her. She and her sister photographed our wedding. My package included engagement photos, 6 hours wedding coverage with 2 photographers, all digital prints at 4x6 size (engagement and wedding)... for $1850. I am sure there might be better deals, but I just love her work! You can also purchase a cd of all your wedding photos for a low price. She is out of Charlotte.
http://www.danaarndtphotography.com

Harris Teeter, Morocroft/Southpark in Charlotte... Florist, A++
There is professional designer named Michael. I ordered calla lillies and white roses and he designed the rest. He listened to everything I wanted (I had a slight problem with other florists) and gave me a low price of just over $700, including delivery, tax, etc. Keep in mind, I needed bouquets, bouts, flower girl basket and petals, and that was it. I didn't need centerpieces because of all the decorations the inn provides. I also received two peace lillies on accident that wasn't originally in my order. I think I just got lucky there.

Diamonds Direct...A+
We bought our wedding bands here. These salesmen seem to know their stuff and they don't hassle you. I didn't feel like I was being pushed into buying a ring here. Plus they have every kind of warranty and insurance you can imagine.

JMajors...A
We purchased our bridesmaid dresses here. They are wonderful and very helpful. The dresses were ordered and arrived 2 months earlier then projected. We had no problems and they also called me with updates on who had paid, and who still needed to order by the deadline.

Wedding Mall...B+
I purchased my wedding dress here. I give them a B+ because the owner is rude and drove me nuts. However the lady who helped me was wonderful and told me my dress would be on sale the next weekend. I received it for 60% because of her. They do require you to pay $20 to look at dresses, but however they didn't require me to do so. Haha, they said something about my personality and how they thought we were serious customers. It was just me and my mom, and it was our first time looking at dresses!!

Men's Wearhouse...A
We didn't have any problems with them, but I have heard horror stories. My DH also called them a few times to check up on things and to double check orders. That probably helped. We ordered the gray suits and it was around $160 rental.


I believe this is all my vendor reviews. Like I said, the Victorian Villa Inn does most of the hiring. My glass of wine is kicking in and I am running out of steam :) If I think of any others I'll add them later. Hope this helps, and good luck to all the brides.

Rehearsal Dinner Invite

I designed these postcards in Publisher for the rehearsal dinner. All I had to pay was postage and I got the design from one of those free downloads. I can't remember the website right now, but if you want the design, shoot me an email at jaguter@live.com or find me on the knot nc board.

Lingerie Shower Invite

Yes, I did design and order my own lingerie invites. BUT that was because my sister was going to spend a fortune getting them printed, when I just ordered them from Vistaprint for 15 dollars/20 invites with envelopes. Cool deal.

Bridesmaid Earrings

I ordered these from a seller, Indigo Moon, on Etsy. I thought about making them myself, but Michael's is a 45 minute drive from where I live. I just realized that I might not have the time to make them, so I ordered them for a great deal. I love them, I hope the BM's like them too.

RSVP Stalking

We finally got all of our invites sent out last Thursday, and now the RSVP's are coming in! It is a lot of fun, just like everyone says. I actually look forward to checking the mail! I still need to post what our invites look like and how I did it. Coming soon...

I stopped by the JCREW outlet store last night. I bought a navy sleeveless dress for just under $60 dollars!! It is a lovely dress and I can wear it to my bridesmaid luncheon and some of these weddings I am going to that are coming up. Did you know that if you are a student or a teacher, you receive a discount at JCREW?? Bring your id :)

Hair Trial

I had my hair trial done a few weeks ago. I was so nervous since I haven't met her and had no idea what to expect. But the lady I hired is wonderful. She had tons of ideas and listened to what I wanted. I knew I wanted big loose curls (more of a natural look) and half up. This is what we came up with. She will also add more curls the day of the wedding, we were just coming up with ideas. FI was in the car sleeping, lol. (I also looked drugged in one of the pics, ugh. I'm not just groggy.)

Earrings!

My mom bought me these earrings. I am going to wear them for the wedding! I don't plan on wearing a necklace since I have a halter dress and it has beading on the halter. I need to find something to wear in my hair now and I am not wearing a veil. I'll post pictures of my hair style soon and I will need advice on picking out hair accessories!