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Hi! I'm always surprised not to see more activity on the NC boards, because there are definitely some of us around. I'm actually in the Triad area, having our wedding at a historic home that's now a venue for small events. I guess the style would be sort of fancy-casual, maybe?
For you or other NC gals, has anyone had much luck finding affordable photographers who seem to know what they're doing? I'm not really after a hugely experienced pro or anything, but so far I'm not finding that combination of affordability, skill, and inclination to answer my emails, you know?
I actually was born and raised in Charlotte and live about ten/fifteen minutes away from Charlotte now. But, I'm getting married at the beach. I do know a lot about Charlotte area venues from my extensive research, though!
@TankGirl: Hmm, all the photographers I've found that I consider good are at least $2,000. What do you consider affordable?
@Pinksapphire: I originally wanted a beach wedding. That sounds like such a fun thing to do. :) Did you find it to be much more expensive than anything locally or cheaper?
@Bichon Frise: Well, I do consider $2000 to be affordable for wedding photography in general, but it's not in our budget. I think I'm going to need to keep it under $1500, if not less. I know, I know, not real likely.
@Bichon Frise: For my particular venue, it was actually cheaper at the beach than things I'd found here. But, it really just depends on what you're looking for. A lot of people I know who are getting married/have gotten married around here recently opted for a church wedding (free at their own churches) and a reception somewhere nice. Have you chosen a venue yet?
@Pinksapphire: Yes, I'm having the ceremony at St. Mary's Chapel downtown. It's owned by the city, so it's not expensive to rent it a few hours. My reception will be at Pewter Rose, a restaurant in an old warehouse. My whole wedding has kind of a historic/eclectic feel.
@TankGirl: Maybe you could find someone who is new to the area or someone just starting out. They would be more willing to negotiate on the price. Here is a vendor I considered: http://aliciawhitephoto.com. She recently moved to the area, so she may give you a deal.
Hey, Raleigh girl here!
We're getting married on stage at Raleigh Little Theatre with a reception to follow at the NC Museum of Natural Sciences. We wanted places that were Raleigh/NC institutions, and we did quite well for ourselves. Both places are excellent prices and very unusual.
Our photographer, by the way, is just the sort of "newbie" that Bichon Frise suggested. Her name is Rebecca, and she's the creative force behind Red Fern Photography (www.redfernphotographync.com). We found her on Craigslist and really loved her style, so we met her for dinner and found her to be sweet and down-to-earth. She offered us a spectacular eight hours of coverage, plus high-res images and full rights for every photo that doesn't turn out terrible (probably 800-1000 photos). Her price? ONE THOUSAND DOLLARS. Yay!
@Bichon Frise: Oh, believe me, "just starting out" is exactly what I've been looking for, but new to the area works as well or better. Thanks very much for the link, I hadn't seen her site before and I like what I'm seeing!
@sarasouth: Holy crap. Thank you for sharing your photographer, I am majorly interested. Wow! Okay, I'm going to go to bed and quit thread-jacking here. Yay, y'all are awesome (I feel like I can say y'all because it's NC ladies here...).
i got married in februrary but still linger on the boards! im in charlotte too :) we got married at St. Matthew Catholic Church in ballantyne and had the reception at the Renaissance hotel in South Park (really loved the reception venue!) for Cakes i used off the wall designs and events and for photography i used AN Photography - Anna Nichole.
NC Bride as well!! I was also surprised to see the lack of activity on the NC boards. I'm getting married in Raleigh at the Pavilions at the Angus Barn (we too wanted something that was so classically Raleigh...and the Angus Barn is an NC/Raleigh institution!). I have family in Charlotte and will be going there in the beginning of December to do some dress shopping. On my list are Nitsa's and J. Majors. What other boutiques do I need to check out? And what about Bridesmaids boutiques? J. Crews only NC bridal store in in CLT so we'll be going there, but i'd love other suggestions.
@TankGirl: i was interested in Lauren Jackson Photography. She's out of CLT but wasn't available for my wedding. I love her aesthetic and style though. We're using Raleigh-based (and award winning) Live View Studios who are amazing as well...we got very lucky!
@akp0702: I don't know what your dress budget is, but NY Bride and Groom has a good selection of dresses for $2,000 and under. It's where I purchased my gown. For bridesmaid dresses, I'll be checking out J Crew too!
@akp0702: there is a place in gastonia called poffie girls that has some beautiful dresses and tons of bridesmaid dresses. Its about 20 mintues outside charlotte on 85 south.
Live in the Charlotte area, but I'm still trying to figure out whether or not to have the wedding here or have it in the Winston area where most of our guests live.
@CoffeeBean319: I'd have it in Charlotte. Planning will be much easier on you, and Winston isn't so far away that they can't drive down for the evening.
@CoffeeBean319: I agree that you should do it in Charlotte. Not only will planning be easier on you, but you will have many more options for venues and vendors.
Hey y'all! I am late in finding the Bee. I wish I had found it earlier. It is a great place to gt advice and vent. We are getting married at Wadsworth Estate outside of downtown Charlotte and having the reception there too. It is a small wedding just family and close friends. Still so much to do but I should be done in the next few weeks. I hope. lol Nice to meet you all.
@TankGirl If you are still looking or a photgrapher the one I am using is really good and we are paying 850$ and it includes all shots on a disk. I know they have diferent packages too. They did our family photos and they did an amazing job. It is a husband and wife duo, They are very nice people. http://www.justadreamllc.com/
Any brides near Charlotte have a recommendation for a hair and makeup professional? I'm looking for someone reasonable.
@Bichon Frise: i dont know of anyone that does both but I got my hair done at 90 degrees salon - it was about $60 for an updo (not including tip) i've been getting my hair cut there for years - they did a great job.
Went to the MAC counter at Carolina Place for make up.
I'm a NC bee! We're having a meetup in Durham on December 8th, if any of y'all can make it!
http://boards.weddingbee.com/topic/nc-holiday-meet-up-thursday-december-8th
oh im so sad i missed the meet up :( Im in Chapel Hill!!!! and we are getting married in Warrenton right out side of Raleigh in April!
Happy New Year! Thanks for posting information about the photographers; I've spent way too many hours shopping for a photographer. We've narrowed it down to a few, w/ the average price tag of $1,800. When I started to plan for our wedding, I thought it would have been nice to see what local brides were budgeting for their day, so here is some info. about how we are staying w/in a $6,500 outdoor wedding budget for 60ppl, w/ one (1) bridesmaid and best man.
October 2012 Ceremony and reception: NC Arboretum (Asheville), $2,450 / Food: BBQ, estimated $800 / Vintage dress: Etsy, $150 (For real, I did pay that!) / Decor: 4-colors (that took more time than I expected), estimated price per unit for 10-center displays, $4 (Vintage blue-green Ball jars, white pumpkins, acorns, leaves,...) / Bluegrass/Old-style duo: Estimated $700 / Hair: sister is a stylist (score!), $0 / DIY Invitations: $20
Of course there are other costs involved, I only listed the major ones. The estimated figures are based on the vendors we've narrowed it down to. I've also signed up for Michael’s Crafts store email, which I know will save me mucho bucks.
And here's my dress, of which I will be making some minor changes to: http://www.etsy.com/listing/67345717/gorgeous-lilli-diamond-wedding-dress
If anyone has cost saving tips, please share!
@Miss B to Mrs. Z: I just looked at your dress, and it is really nice! I can't believe how little you paid for it. Thanks for sharing. Once I sort out everything, I'll post my budget breakdown too.
Do any North Carolina brides have bachelorette party ideas? What are you guys planning to do?
Hello! I live in Charlotte south east Ballantyne area. I was planning a wedding at the Firethorn Country Club, great place and they give you all day unlike some places who give you your 4-6 hour window and your out! After to much stress over the planning we ended up going with DW at Sandals Royal Bahamian and it saved us almost 10 grand.
I lived in the RTP area for 9 years and was married this past summer in Asheville.
@Miss B to Mrs. Z: The Arboretum is a beautiful place to get married and your dress is lovely. :)
@Bichon Frise: Have you heard of polished nail bar? i believe they have locations in south end, southpark and myers park. that might be a great place to start - get your nails done and drinks, followed by some dinner (sushi would be my choice, Nikkos!) then i would probably head to a bar (far from the epicenter! haha) something more like thomas street tavern or solstice in noda. though i love some country music and in all my years of living in charlotte i have never been to coyote joes - i've been drying to go! so that might make my list.
There is also a place in steele creek/160 area that you can paint on canvas and its BYOB - tons of fun, i've dont it with my sister a few times http://cajuncanvas.com/
@totheislnds: Those are all great ideas! I've been to Coyote Joes, and I had a blast both times! It's a huge bar and they have awesome drink specials on 1-2-3 Night. I talked about it with my bridesmaids, and I think we may end up going to Myrtle Beach for a weekend trip.
Hi all!! I'm getting married at St. Peter's Catholic in Uptown, and we're having the reception at the Marriott City Center in Uptown as well.
I got my dress at NY Bride, and I got my BM dresses at Dar-Lynn's. They are located in Matthews (about 20 minutes outside of Charlotte), and they give you a 30% discount if you buy more than one dress! My BM dresses are this (but in watermelon)
And they retailed for $200 and over at all of the other salons, but I got them for $147 at Dar-Lynn's. Worth the effort of calling around! :)
I'm having L.Hoke Photography do my pictures (they are located about an hour outside of Charlotte and do exquisite work). They were voted SC photographers of the year for many years in a row. I'm having the Bloom Room do my cake and Cheesecake, etc. do my cake!
Whew! So much planning!
@Kenic315: St. Peters is so pretty! we looked at getting married there but ended up at St. Matts in ballantyne since its my home parish. We also looked at the Marriott in center city but ended up in south park! i love the idea of having your wedding in the city and the proximity of the church to the hotel is great too for guests! Glad everything is coming together for you! those BM dresses are lovely!
I'm a NC bride also. Seems there are no Bees near me or at least active....
Im getting married at Redbone Willies. Its a old general store, bed and breakfast and has an event barn in Vale. November 24th is the day, vintage, rustic, laidback, southern is the way.
Dress shopping has been a nightmare so far, I have so many ideas pinned and in my basement but finding a hard time finding my "start place"...haha.
Hope everyone is having a fun time...
Raleigh bride here! Anyone else out ther?? Seems like most of you all are in Charlotte. I would love some advice for hair and makeup in Raleigh. Also Florists..who is good and reasonably priced?? We just need flowers for the ceremony, we are not planning on decorating with them.
We are havig both our ceremony and reception at the North Hills Club, so excited! They were actually very reasonable on price, but you have to use their caterer.
Its 7 months away and I am soo excited!
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Just curious to see if there are any other NC brides or even brides in the Charlotte area. Which venues did you choose? What style is your wedding? Feel free to introduce yourself. :)