Random Thoughts From Elaine: Wedding Related

I decided to copy and paste some content from my now defunct wedding website that I made on Google Pages. I did this because I loved my wedding and I found out that my cousin in law is eloping to Maui this year, and it brought back all the fond memories of planning our wedding, the events leading up to and around our wedding, and of course, the wedding itself.

Engagement Pictures:

Sonja McGill A+++

I never did think I would get around to engagement pictures. I mean we've been engaged for almost 3 years. Well, one day while browsing Craigslist, I found our engagement photographer. The photos were gorgeous, the locations divine. I sent off an email to Sonja McGill and before I knew it, we were booked for an engagement shoot down in Cincinnati. Of course, it rained that weekend, and we ended up going down the fourth of July weekend. It was hot, but so much fun. Sonja has a great eye for fabulous locations. She gave us romantic and traditional with Ault Park, a church with beautiful vine covered wall, and park in front of the Proctor and Gamble building downtown, but gave us edgy and urbane with a black painted brick wall (in a parking lot), stained glass wall (in the same parking lot), and broken down vintage signs (outside the sign museum). We loved the work she did, absolutely amazing.

Jewelry:

Elaine's Rock

IDG Jewelry: A+

I give IDG an A+ only because I love my ring. It's classic and sparkly and I get lots of compliments on it. Good Job Brock!

Elaine's Band

Jared's (Easton location): A+

We obviously have no loyalty to any particular jewelery store and we had no recommendations for a private jeweler. So we shopped around... a lot. Originally, I had my heart set on a 1 carat princess cut channel band in white gold which came it at around $2100 at Diamond Cellar earlier this year. Since we had time, we decided to wait to purchase as it got closer to our wedding date. We got a mailer advertising an annual sale, so we hopped in our car (in the middle of a blizzard to make the harrowing journey across town). Lo and behold, I had changed my mind once again and wanted the 3/4 carat princess cut channel ring; however, this ring, with a quarter less carats of diamonds came in at $1800 without tax with the sale price!!! I know gold went up, but come on! We passed and went to Jared's the next day (yes, with the blizzard still going on). Brock got his ring and I wanted mine. Imagine my surprise when we found out that a one carat eternity band would cost considerably less. I had originally wanted an eternity band, but initial estimates priced it at $4000, way out of budget. So more sparkly and less money, my decision was made. It came in before the promised date and more importantly, under budget. Everyone there was great to work with unlike the snooty Polaris location.

Brock's Band

Diamond Cellar: C-

Brock's band is square and not the usual round shape most men's bands come in. Therefore, the only place we found this particular design was at Diamond Cellar. If we had found it at anywhere else, we would have bought it elsewhere. Service at the Sawmill and Easton locations were less than desirable. We purchased his ring at their annual sale. We got there when it wasn't too busy. It looked like many sales personnel were available to assist us, but it was not to be. We came with intent of buying and we looked like it too, so why would no one help us? Anyway, we bought this ring and we got a call about a week and a half later telling us it was in, almost 3 weeks early. Woohoo! Excited, we drove on over and picked it up. Fit was fine, we even went down half a size upon their recommendation, BUT.... as I was examining it in our car on the ride home, there was a flaw in the matte portion of the ring. This was my fault, we should have looked at it more closely before we left. Anyway, back we went, and we asked if they could fix it. They came back and said it was a flaw in the mold the manufacturer used and they would order us a new one. The printed us out another ticket with a new promise date of only one day after the original. We weren't worried since the first one came in so fast. Well, the new promise date comes and goes and no phone call. Weird. Maybe they had to make a new mold since the old one was obviously producing sub-par rings. I get Brock to call up and guess what? "Your rings are in and have been for a while?" WTF, thanks for the call. We go and get it, but by far one of the worst vendor interactions I've had in this process.

Clothing:

Elaine's Dress

Alan Ray Bridal: D-

Looking and trying on dresses at Alan Ray was just like any other bridal shop, the reason it gets a D rating is what happened after I ordered my gown. I bought my gown in early January and was told to call back in June. I call back in June, and they give me a ship date of the last week of June. I call back during the last week, and it's not in yet and they ask for my name and number and they would call me back. No call back. I wait a week and try again. Same thing, leave name and number, we'll call you back. No call back. I wait a few days and repeat this song and dance 2 more times. I finally get a hold of them, and they hand me over to Alan Ray. I get my dress in two weeks before my wedding and alterations are finished 1 week before I leave for Hawaii. I understand they are made in China, I understand that it sometimes takes longer than predicted. That's fine, just don't give me the run around and don't have your answering machine put up for 2 straight hours during normal business hours.

Veil

Occansey Designs: A+

I bought my cathedral length ivory veil at Occansey Designs. It was super easy and I had no problems ordering. When I got my veil, it was exactly what I wanted and at a good price. It looked great.

Brock's Suit

Macy's (Easton location): A+

We bought a Ralph Lauren suit in khaki during one of the sales at Macy's. It looks fabulous and on top of the 50% off from the sale, we got an extra 20% for opening a Macy's card and another 15% for purchasing it on the Macy's card. We also bought a fitted dress shirt as well as a white/creme paisley print tie. Everything looked great together and we got great service from their Men's department. I can't remember the woman who helped us, but she has a huge personal shopper poster hanging up by the fitting room. She also found the tie for us which I loved. Brock also picked out a pair of flip flops that perfectly matched his suit from Buckle.

Bridal Party

Wendy's Bridal:C

I found my bridesmaids dresses during a dress shopping weekend when my cousin came to visit with my mom and aunt. Once I had her trying on dresses, I realized I did not want strapless for my girls. I choose a cute A line style dress with a cross-over-esque top with strap in Cotton Candy. I know, it surprised me too. I held off on ordering and I'm glad I did. A month later I called in to say I had made my decision and told them which dress I wanted, I found out they were on sale for $98 or $89, I can't remember. Score! I went in, gave them all my girls' contact information and paid for all the dresses. That was my biggest mistake. Apparently, the system at Wendy's is if you pay in full, the paperwork goes off in some other room and gets lost forever. Whenever my girls called in, they all went through the same thing. We can't find the paperwork, what color was it (blue? pink?). Once everyone called in with the measurements and the color confirmed, it was smooth sailing from there. The dresses came in on time and looked great. They get a C for not being more organized and making me freak out when my bridesmaid calls saying "I thought you ordered pink dresses, not blue."

Banana Republic and Gap:B

We found some great short sleeve white button down shirts at Banana Republic. They had this great pleating detail down the front. Very laid back and relaxed and would not stand out with Brock's khaki suit. They didn't have all the sizes we needed, but they called around for us to different stores and had them hold them for us. Now we needed khaki pants. We found a nice pair on sale at the Gap. End of story... cause come on, they are just khaki pants.

DIY

Gocco Supplies

Northwood Studios: A+

Quick delivery, good prices for gocco supplies. They did send the wrong ink one time (ink for clothe instead of ink for paper) and they sent me out a new one no problem and I didn't even have to return the wrong one.

Invitation Supploes

Envelopemall: A+

Nice price for cardstock and envelopes. No problems at all .

Papersource: A+

Great customer service. They sent me free samples and even informed me if some of the colors I chose would soon be discontinued. Bummer, but nice to know so I could make the appropriate changes if necessary.

Wedding

Wedding Planner

Precious Maui Weddings: A +++

Deanne is amazing. She answers emails promptly, was super patient with all my inane changes. Everything ran so smoothly. Everything looked great: the bouquet, the petal path, the centerpieces, the guest book table. I couldn't have done it with without her. Simply amazing and a lifesaver.

Photography

Lashawn Photographic: A +++

We had originally chosen a photographer that Deanne had suggested. The price was right, but I wasn't loving his work. I had been browsing a lot of knottie bios from hawaiian weddings and came across Chinorican's and MrsJansens' bios. They had used Lashawn for their weddings and honeymoon shoots. I was sold and emailed him to get some prices. His prices were about 3 times more than what I was quoted for our original photographer. I was crushed. We were already over budget. I was about to settle, but after a few phone calls, we realized our estimate of 50 guests was definitely an overestimation. The real number was more along the lines of 30. Fantastic! Extra money to work with and that was it. I zipped some more emails to Sabine, Lashawn's assistant and he was booked. He did an amazing job and was wonderful to work with.

Hair and Makeup

Liz (elizmichl@aol.com): A +++++

Liz was by far my favorite vendor and I didn't even pick her. Deanne had chosen her and she was amazing. (Part of the reason why Deanne gets stellar reviews from me.) I've never seen my mom look so beautiful. It was perfect. She did a fabulous job on the bridesmaids, and an even better job with me. I can't say enough about how much I loved how everything turned out. And on top of that, she even squeezed in two more hairdos. One for Brock's mom and one for my favorite aunt.

Doris: A ++

Nails

David's Happy Nails: A

I chose David's because it was pretty cheap. $40 for a mani/pedi seemed like a good deal. The service was good. I went in with my mother in law, sister in law, cousin, and maid of honor. We ended up getting a variety of services done: mani/pedi, eyebrow waxing, and even getting a couple fake toenails. I even got my rhinestones for free on my big toes. The only thing that sucked was the day after the wedding, we went swimming, and the chlorine ate up the polish, and everything was wrecked. So essentially, the polish lasted about 24 hours. It did the job, but it would have been nice to have nice nails for my trash the dress shoot.

Reception and Ceremony Locations

Seawatch Resaturant (Molokini Lookout): A +

The Seawatch and Molokini Lookout were our only choices for locations. Once we saw pictures of them, we were sold. Susan was great to work with and was always prompt with returning emails and answering questions. Both Molokini Lookout and the Seawatch's Lower Lawn had beautiful views. The food was good and the service even better. We had two servers dedicated to our group of 30.

Rehearsal Dinner

Mulligan's on the Blue: A

On the recommendation of another Hawaiian knottie, I chose Mulligan's on the Blue for the rehearsal dinner location. It was a breeze setting everything up with Julie Keane, the events coordinator. We picked the front lanai and had a lovely view. Everything was set up when we got there, and it was the perfect location for a laid back rehearsal/welcome dinner. Tables were set up for the out of town bags we handed out and the gifts for the bridal party. The food was so so, but the dessert (apple turnover) was delicious. The best wedding choice Brock has made aside from asking me to marry him.

Maui Activities

Trilogy Excursions: A++++

We took did the "Discover Molokini" tour with Trilogy. This was our favorite activity to do on Maui. Unlike other charter companies that take you out to Molokini, Trilogy is one of the few that actually include sailing as part of the trip. The service provided by the crew was awesome. The food was an unexpected surprise and was delicious. The cinnamon rolls in the morning were really good. I ate two. The teriyaki chicken lunch was delicious served with rice and salad. We were taken to two location: Molokini crater and Turtle Town. Molokini has the clearest water and you can see fish from the boat. We saw a lot of sealife. Turtle Town was a little crowded with another boat at the same location. But we did see turtles. In fact, Brock and I found the turtle. It was huge. The nicest surprise was on the way back to the bay, we were served ICE CREAM with chocolate sauce. Yes, ICE CREAM. Everything was awesome. We got to sail back and that was another unexpected surprise. It did cost a little more than the other companies, but it is definitely worth the extra cost. Hands down our favorite experience on Maui.

South Pacific Kayaks: A++

This was another fun activity we did while on Maui. We ended up going on a Saturday with my friend Lynn and her boyfriend Chris. Brock was not satisfied with just seeing one turtle during our Molokini trip. His turtle appetite had not been satiated. We were in a group 6 plus the tour guide. Our tour guide was great and went at good pace (We were definitely tired after the trip). We kayaked along the coast and stopped at several locations to snorkel. We saw lots of turtles, a manta ray, and a shark! We had a lot of fun. The only downside of it was I was getting motion sick from the kayak bobbing up and down from the waves.

Skyline Eco-Adventures: A

We did the Haleakala Skyline tour in Upcountry Maui. It includes 5 zips. The last of the zips is the longest that Skyline offers between this site and the West Maui site. Our guides were friendly. It didn't receive any plusses because it just wasn't our favorite activity. It was fun, but it's a lot of waiting because you can only go one at a time and along with my huge group of cousins, we had another newlywed with us making a group of 15!

Haleakala Bike Co: C-

Maybe getting up at 2:30 in the morning has skewed this review, but the operators at Haleakala Bike Co are quite bossy and rude in the morning. They talked to us like we were idiots while we were checking in. Once we got on the bus, it got a little better. Our guide gave us a quick tour as we ascended the volcano and also gave us helpful hints in remember our way back to their store. I ended up with a flat tire on my bike. I didn't realize it until about 60% way done with our trip. I didn't see the tour bus as we rode back down or else I would have flagged someone down to fix it. So that sucked. The flat tire only affected my ride on the non-hilly sections of the trip. I would be peddling my ass off and everyone else would be coasting and passing me. I don't know if the flat was due to negligence of the company or bad luck, but it made my experience suck.

Miscellaneous

Condo

Kamaole Beach Royale:

We choose Kamaole Beach Royale on the recommendation of a friend who stayed there when she got married in Maui. We ended up renting 3 units at Kamaole Beach Royale: a one bedroom unit and 2 three bedroom units. The condo is located in Kihei right off of South Kihei Rd. It is right next to Kamaole Beach II. It was a great location, close to supermarkets and restaurants.

One bedroom unit review: B, Brock and I stayed in the 1 bedroom unit located on the 6th floor which we rented from a private owner. It had an amazing view of the ocean from the lanai. It came well equipped and was perfect for us. We only had two complaints. The first complaint I had was that the unit got very hot without the use of the AC unit, but the cold air would only circulate in the main living area. We tried to use the box fan to circulate some of the cool air into the bedroom, but it was still quite warm. The second was that the stated checkout time on the owner's website was 11 am. They have a cleaning lady come in to set up the place for the next visitor for check in at 3 or 4 pm. Since our flight back home was not leaving until 11 pm, we wanted to stay at the condo for as long as possible. We had the cleaning lady knock on the door at 9 am! And then again at 10 am. We told her that we would be leaving closer to check out time which she then said, well some people leave earlier. WTF? We paid for the condo until 11 am and if we want to stay, it is well within our right. Overall, it was affordable and let us eat meals at the condo which saved us some money.
Three bedroom unit review: A, We did spend time in the three bedroom units since they housed my mom, dad, brothers, aunts, uncles, and cousins which means home cooked free food! These units were really quite spacious. If you have a large group, you really can't beat the price. These units could easily accommodate 12 people. I think my relatives enjoyed their stay there and my mom and aunts appreciated being able to cook some meals on their vacation.

Car Rental

Alamo: A

No problems with the car. We got a good rate for a convertible by waiting until the last minute to book it. We had a reservation for a standard car just in case we couldn't get the rate we wanted.