My engagement ring and my wedding band were both purchased at Shane Co. They include resizing (my ring was two whole sizes too big when Shawn proposed) and cleaning. Anytime I need anything done to keep it looking its best, I just drop it off and it is usually done the following day, though they say to prepare of a three day wait. The staff at Shane are very nice and quick to offer their assistance as soon as you walk through the door. I don't even mind the hour drive for me to get there ;)
Jerry took really, really beautiful photos. He has an incredible eye for light and blew us away with a lot of our portraits. My biggest complaint is timeliness. He would tell us a specific date that we would receive our photos/album and then that date would come and go and then he wouldn't return our calls for a few days. It made us nervous, but he is a stand-up guy who is really good at what he does.
Reverend George is Five-Stars all the way! He is an incredibly sweet man and a treasure to work with. He not only worked with our limited budget, but he allowed for me to write my own ceremony! The ceremony was the most important part of my day and he really made it special. I was very nervous and quite giggly, and he made me feel like a true princess. Reverend George lives quite a distance from our wedding venue and he happily drove not only to the ceremony, but also conducted our rehearsal the night before. I very highly recommend working with him.
Jeanne Birmingham of White Poppy was one of the first vendors I booked for our wedding - a year in advance! She has a studio out of her home and uses the freshest, most perfect wholesale flower supplier. I opted to create all of the decoration for my wedding myself, using Jeanne's considerable talent for the personal-carry flowers such as bouquets, boutonnieres and corsages. What hooked me was her enthusiasm for her job. I told her my colors and she worked with me over the course of an hour (we chit chatted for a good portion of that time) and created the look and feel of my wedding. We chose burgundy roses, white roses, violet lisianthus, green hypericum berries, and white cymbidium orchids for my bouquet (the bridesmaids had the same without any white) and Shawn wore a white cymbidium orchid (the groomsmen wore green hypericum berries). The quality of the flowers blew me away. She is a delightful person and truly an artist.
Roberts Catering was included in our wedding package with the reception venue. I was thrilled with what they delivered. The best part of our cake-planning, of coursem was the tasting. Wow! So goooood! Shawn and I chose dark mocha chocolate with a mocha cream filling. It was pure decadence. Roberts gave us the option to have two different flavors, but our love for this luscious cake was unstoppable. It was the final of 7 flavors we tried and were hooked from the first bite. We were told that our package only included butter cream, rather than fondant (which tastes like play-doh to me anyway), but they could make it look like fondant. They were right! We had an original design of a three white square tiers with thick black frosting piped in a baroque pattern to resemble our save-the-dates. I was a touch worried that the final product wouldn't come out as I envisioned, because I didn't see many cakes in their book/catalog that looked anything like what we wanted. I was impressed to say the least come our wedding day. We saved our top tier, per tradition, but Robert's also has a fantastic deal that for our anniversary for the REST OF OUR LIVES we can get a replica of our top tier in our signature flavor for $30! The office is in downtown Chandler and we plan on using them for many future catering needs. A truly great company.
One of the best things about Arizona Bridal Warehouse is the selection! You can definitely find your dream gown here, all sizes, shapes and price points. I found my dress and immediately fell in love. Strapless sweetheart, A-Line, with beading on the bodice and buttons down the back down the chapel train... it had everything I ever wanted. Also included in my "Princess Package" were my slip, garment bag, and veil - NO EXTRA COST! Shopping here was easy and stress free, but make sure you do it early. It took SIX months before I could pick up my dress. I planned my wedding a year in advance, so it wasn't a problem for me. I didn't pay attention to the size ordered, and it was too big so I had to have it taken a whole size (I am a rare bride that didn't lose weight before the big day). Alterations are not done in-house, but they can recommend someone for you. (SewWhat.biz 's Diana is wonderful and very inexpensive)
Jen is a real artist! She uses airbrush makeup which virtually erases any blemishes, includes false eyelashes, and creates a personalized color palette for you. She is friendly and funny and great to work with. She did my makeup for one of my best friend's wedding six weeks before mine and mine on my wedding day. My mom, mother-in-law, sister and two bridesmaids all had their makeup done. Everyone looked beautiful! If there is ever an occasion to have my makeup done again, I will certainly be calling her.