Weddingbee boards

Overall, I had amazing experiences with my vendors.  I did have one bad egg, but I wanted to share my negative experience and give a positive word for the people who worked really hard for us, in hopes that I can help out a future bride.

MB Bride- Greensburg, PA- F minus minus minus

I bought my dress in Greensburg so that I wouldn't have to travel to NC for dress fittings.  MB Bride has a wide selection of wedding, bridesmaid, and MOB dresses, as well as accessories.  I found a dress that I loved there, and even though the saleslady left a bad taste in my mouth by pressuring me to buy RIGHT THEN and basically refusing to allow me to try on any more dresses, my mother and I decided to go ahead and buy it.  If I could go back in time, I would definitely have gone elsewhere to buy my dress.  Not only is this the same shop involved in the BM dress debacle I wrote about here, but I had a lot of trouble with them lying to me and basically being uncooperative.

When I purchased my dress I was told that all alterations were included in the price, and the only circumstances under which I would have to pay for alterations were if I gained or lost such a significant amount of weight that the dress structure had to be altered.  When I went to actually have my alterations done, they ended up charging me $80 for the bustle, which I contested, on the grounds that a bustle is a standard alteration on a dress with a train, and I should have been notified that that was not included in the price.  

The shop seamstress hemmed my dress but I felt that it was too long.  She refused to make it any shorter for me, and as my wedding date was only 2 weeks away, I didn't have time to find another seamstress to do the job and was forced to walk in the dress.  I tripped walking down the aisle after the ceremony, and stepped on the lace hem all day.

Prestonwood Country Club- Cary, NC A+

http://www.prestonwoodcc.com/ 

I could not have made a better choice for our wedding venue than Prestonwood.  Not only is it exceptionally beautiful, the prices are very fair.  It was one of the less expensive options we considered, but I've never regretted that decision.  Their wedding coordinator was so professional and helpful- he answered every question I had and made excellent suggestions for the menu and additional offerings.  We didn't have to do a thing- we just dropped off all our supplies and DIY projects and they took care of the rest-- everything was perfect. 

They do wedding cakes on site, and I can also attest to the skill of the pastry chef.  He did a beautiful job designing our cake (it was a new design for him, and it was beautiful), and it was delicious!

Amy Kortus, harpist, Raleigh, NC  A+

http://www.harpgigs.com/AmyKortus/index.htm 

Amy is a harpist based out of her home in Raleigh.  She met with us to let us listen to her music and choose our songs, and she is extraordinarily talented.  She played for our ceremony and the cocktail hour at the reception.  What really earned her an A+ -- she arranged by ear "I Love NYE" by Badly Drawn Boy for our processional.  

Sounds Good Mobile Entertainment, Raleigh, NC  A

http://www.soundsgoodshow.com/ 

Sounds Good has an extremely comprehensive music database (seriously, I even got them to play my favorite Japanese new wave cover of My Sharona).  The interface for selecting songs is easy to use, and they mostly all got played.  Our DJ was professional, and he did a really, really good job. Everyone danced at my daytime wedding-- even my grandma.  My only regret was that one song I really wanted to hear didn't get played, although I had requested it.

Smith Florist, Rocky Mount, NC A+

Smith Florist has done all floral arrangements for my family for as long as they've lived in the Rocky Mount area, and my wedding was no exception.  Jerry did an excellent job.  When we sat down together, I could tell he was really understanding my vision, and he really knows his stuff.  Our flowers were so beautiful, no one could stop talking about them. The perk of using a Rocky Mount florist was that we were able to save a significant amount of money over using a Raleigh based florist, freeing up funds for other things!

Koppers Chocolates, A+

http://www.kopperschocolate.com/

We used three varieties of chocolates for our candy buffet from Koppers.  Their customer service was top notch.  My mom spent hours on the phone with a consultant finding the perfect candies in the right colors.  We had irish mocha beans, chocolate lentils, and lavender scented chocolates.  They were delicious, and they shipped promptly.  I would definitely recommend looking here for your candy!

I think that's about it for the big ones..  I don't have my professional photos back yet so I can't give a total review of my photographer, but she was a blast on the wedding day!  I posted pictures here if you want to see.