Locations

Accommodations

Key Vendors

Attire

Beauty

Ceremony Accessories

Reception (Other)

Printed Materials

Jewelry

Attendant Gifts

Registry

Miscellaneous

Honeymoon



LOCATIONS

Rehearsal Dinner
Austin Grill (Glover Park location) www.austingrill.com
Grade: A
We love Austin Grill and wanted to have the RD somewhere reasonably priced that had some meaning to us. We were originally going to have it at the one near MCI Center, but decided the one in Glover Park would be easier to get to from the hotel for folks not going to the actual rehearsal. We had the upstairs section all to ourselves. It was a little tight, but it worked out fine. Jennifer, the General Manager there was AWESOME – she put pictures the kids drew up on the wall there and was so accommodating. The wait staff was GREAT, as was the food.

Ceremony
St. Mark's Episcopal Church on Capitol Hill www.stmarks.net
Grade: How can I rate my church???!!!
I love my church and think it is so beautiful. It is a progressive Episcopal Church that welcomes people who are at various stages in their faith journey – even skeptics. We have made some great friends there and were so happy we chose to get married there.

Reception
Maggiano's (Julie Day) www.maggianos.com
Grade: A+
We chose Maggiano’s for a few reasons: 1) the packages they have include everything, which meant I didn’t have to have different vendors for everything from booze to tables and chairs to linens; 2) we likes the room – they have a ballroom upstairs with 2 adjacent bars; and 3) we got a discount because FI’s sister and her husband work for the company that owns it. Julie was great, the staff was great, and everyone said the food was great (and there was a LOT of it!) And they have the biggest cosmos I’ve ever seen! If you want more info on them, just e-mail me.

Sunday Brunch
Guy Mason Recreation Site DC Parks and Rec
Grade: A-
We rented the outside and inside (in case of rain). The first time I put in the application they sent it back rejected because they couldn’t find someone to work on Sunday. I called back and asked them what I could do. I couldn’t believe they couldn’t find someone to work that day considering I was going to pay them $40/hour to just sit there. They found someone and the site was perfect. There was a playground for the kids and they had tables and chairs we used. The rental price was very reasonable (like $350 for 4 hours).

ACCOMMODATIONS

Guest Hotel
Hyatt Regency Bethesda www.bethesda.hyatt.com
Grade: B+
We chose the Hyatt because we held our reception at Maggiano’s in Chevy Chase and since the Embassy Suites, which is right next door, was too expensive, we thought this was the next nicest option that was close. The rooms were very nice and we had a suite with a HUGE balcony for the wedding night. Our sales agent, Jan Gonzaludo, was really helpful and extended our deadline for guests to reserve a room a couple times and sent me updates on the guests who were registered really fast after asking for them. And she sent up cheese, crackers and a bottle of wine (I chose that over champagne and strawberries) on the wedding night. There were a couple things that annoyed me a bit - they were doing renovations in the lobby at the time of my wedding and I wish I had known that ahead of time (not sure if it would have made a difference, but it would have been nice to know) and they charged me $2/box to deliver the OOT goodie boxes. Also, I accidentally left my bouquet in our room and when I realized it a couple hours later I called, but they had thrown it out already. I wasn’t too upset because I wasn’t planning on professionally preserving it or anything, and it was my fault, but you’d think that they might think that it was a mistake and save it just in case.

KEY VENDORS

Planning
The Knot DC Chat Board! www.theknot.com
Grade: A+++
What would I have done without this board?! Thanks to all the ladies on here over the last 2 years who gave me advice and support while planning my wedding.

Photographer
Linda Wallace www.lindawallacephotography.com
Grade: A++
I LOVE Linda! She was such a calming presence and my niece loved her (she fell asleep on Linda in the limo on the way to the ceremony.) Linda is still so reasonably priced for DC and she does great work. I can’t say enough good things about her.

Some more of our wedding photos are on her Web site. Click here to see them.

DJ
Dave Battey
Grade: A++
He was recommended by another knottie and I am so glad we chose him. He was so reasonably priced, has a huge music collection and an unbelievable knowledge of artists and music history. He is fun too! He doesn’t do any cheesy commentary, just the announcements you need him to make. This was the one vendor my FI really cared about and he was thrilled with him. He didn’t play anything we didn’t want him to and even when someone asked for something that wasn’t on our play list he came and asked me if it was all right to play it.

Florist
Growing Wild (Barbara Von Elm)
Grade: A-
I loved Barbara the first time I met with her. She has such a great perspective on wedding planning, is so upbeat, and she is so reasonably priced. The only glitch was that she forgot to leave a couple things at the church for the ceremony. No one noticed. She even gave me a refund without asking because of it. And I LOVED my bouquet – it was even more beautiful that I thought it would be.

Cake
The Sweet Life www.thesweetlife.com
Grade: B
I used The Sweet Life because they have a relationship with Maggiano's, the place we had our reception. We met with Norman, the owner, and we tasted about 8 different cakes. I would have liked to taste more, since he had a lot of other flavors, but I was happy with what we did try, so I was confident that no matter what we chose would be good. I did have trouble getting in touch with him via phone most of the time. He seemed to respond better to e-mail. I did have to call him a bunch of times to follow-up on him getting a cake stand for me. He also didn't give me "warm-fuzzies" like some of my other vendors did (e.g. my photographer Linda Wallace), but I didn't mind that so much because I thought he would do a great job with the cake. The package we got at Maggiano's included $3/person toward the cake. I ended up ordering a cake that was $351 MORE, so if I bought the cake separately from the package it would have cost $651 for 120 people. Our cake was great - but I think it was overpriced. We had french vanilla and chocolate cake with fresh strawberries and vanilla bettercreame (yes - it's was bettercream - Norman's own recipe). The design was swiss dots. I'm going to update my bio with wedding pictures today. I'll post when I do. Anyway, I think I could have gotten the same thing somewhere else for cheaper. Also, I accidentally paid him with a credit card check from an account that I had closed and when he called me and I said I would just pay him with a credit card, he charged me a 5% fee for doing it over the phone. Kind of annoying...Bottom line - I would rule out other places before going with him.

Limo
Limos, Inc. www.limos-inc.com
Grade: A
They were recommended by folks on this board and they were the right price. Sandi was awesome and she event let me change the total time I needed them after I signed a contract. They were on time and even went over the time a bit.

Dance Lessons
Kim at First Dance Impressions www.firstdanceimpressions.com
Grade: A+
My FI loves to dance, but doesn’t like to have to follow steps, not to mention that when we dance I like to lead, so I was nervous about taking dance lessons. Kim was GREAT! She had us dancing by the end of our first lesson and we learned a bunch of different maneuvers after five lessons. We did a 2-step (we wanted to do something different) and our guests loved it. They were standing up and clapping along to the music the whole time. And when Kim tells you your guests will heckle you at the reception, believe her.

Catering for Brunch
Corner Bakery, Whole Foods and Costco
Grade: A
Again, we got a discount on some of the food for the brunch from Corner Bakery because FI’s sister and her husband work there. We got fruit from Whole Foods because it was a little cheaper and beverages from Costco. Worked out great.

ATTIRE

Wedding Dress
Jeannette's: Joan (sales associate), Millie (seamstress)
www.jeanettesbride.com
Grade: A-
I really liked Jeannette’s because I felt like they had a really wide selection and I felt comfortable there. Joan was great and was very honest with me about what she thought would work best since I’m not a size 2. I ordered a Paula Varsalona from them and it came in just when they said it would. Millie the seamstress did an amazing job – you couldn’t event tell it had been altered. The only thing was that the morning of the wedding I noticed one of the buttons on the back of the dress was out of place and FI’s cousin took it off and had to sew it back on where it belonged at the bottom of the row of buttons.

Veil, Headpiece and Undergarments
Trousseau www. trousseaultd.com
Grade: A-
I would have given Trousseau an A if I didn’t think they were a bit overpriced. I love this store and wish I could have afforded to buy more stuff there. They were extremely helpful every time I went there and they had a great selection. The bras I bought there weren’t too expensive and my veil was great and only $75, but my headpiece was $185 and I thought that was too expensive.

Tuxes
Men's Wearhouse
Grade: F
My FI loves shopping here for suits, so we figured we would go here since we were familiar with them – BIG MISTAKE! When we went in to choose the tuxes, the ones we chose we were told were $99 each to rent (FI got his free with 4 rentals). When I found out that you could get a discount from a bridal show, I called and asked if the discount could be applied to existing reservations. I was told I could, so I went to a bridal show the weekend BEFORE my wedding to get it. When the tuxes arrived and I went with FI and BM to try them on, we were told they were $120 to rent and that the discount was only $20. I then proceeded to get into an argument over the total cost because they didn’t tell me there was a processing fee as well. Well, FI’s and BM’s shoes didn’t fit, so they had to send them back and were told they would be there the morning of the wedding day. When the other guys in the wedding went to pick up the other tuxes and the new shoes they were told the shoes weren’t there. I had to get on the phone with them while I was trying to get ready. They finally found them. But I was just so annoyed that there was such a lack of communication on the part of their staff and was told different things every time I went in there.

Flower Girl Dress
www.MyFlowerGirls.net
Grade: C
I knew exactly what I wanted in a flower girl dress and I just needed to find someone who either had it or could make it. This vendor had the design and a ton of colors to choose from, so I was excited, although it was more expensive than I had hoped it would be. I ordered the dress with enough time that I didn’t have to rush it, and she said I would get it in early September (the wedding was the 25th). Well, I first started to worry when 3 weeks after I placed the order she hadn’t charged my credit card yet. I called to make sure she had my order. She said yes, but that she was really busy. I said fine. Well, early September came and went and I called to see how she was doing – she said she was behind and that it should be done in a couple days. Those came and went and I called again – same story. This happened I think one or two more times. The dress finally arrived the Wednesday before the wedding. It was lovely, but I wish she had been more honest with me about the timing.

Bride and Maid of Honor Shoes
www.discountbridalshoes.com
Grade: A
I just wanted a VERY low heel, open-toed shoe and they had exactly what I wanted since I couldn’t find it ANYWHERE else. Easy to order, quick delivery and reasonable prices. Couldn’t ask for more.

Flower Girl Shoes
Nordstrom’s
Grade: A
I found the shoes I wanted for her – basic ivory mary jane’s – in the store, but there didn’t have her size. They shipped a pair to my office from a store in PA. They were great.

BEAUTY

Hairstylist
Elegant Hair by Giselle www.hairbygiselle.com
Grade: A
I had two trials with Giselle. The first was a mini trial run and after that I decided to change the way she was doing my hair, so at the full trial run we really worked out the kinks. She did my hair, my sister’s, my niece’s and my mom’s the day of the wedding. She is a perfectionist and will do anything you ask her. Although, she is quite pricey.

Make-up
Beauty Mark (Kim Giammaria) www.beautymark.biz
Grade: A
I did a trial with Kim the same day as my full hair trial with Giselle. Kim was great and knew what would look good on me. She tried other things so I could see the difference and I ended up going with her recommendations. She also did my mom and sister. Everyone looked beautiful. She is also pricey though.

Manis and Pedis
Tips to Toes, Bethesda
(301) 656-0530
Grade: A
I chose this place because a girlfriend recommended them. They were fine. My sister and I had pedicures and tips put on the day before the wedding. They looked great, weren’t too expensive and lasted a while.

Waxing
Royal Nails, Arlington
(703) 526-0566
Grade: B
This is a little place I go on Lee Highway in Arlington up the street from my apartment. They are cheap and quick. I didn’t want to pay a fortune to have my legs waxed, so I went here. It was fine, but there were a few stray hairs.

Bogart www.bogartsalon.com
Grade: A
Simone is the skin expert at Bogart in Georgetown. I had heard good things about her on this board and they are right up the street from my office, so I gave her a try. I had never had a bikini wax before and she was GREAT. I think it hurt less than the legs and it was reasonably priced.

Facial
Bogart www.bogartsalon.com
Grade: A
Again, I went to Simone after hearing about her on this board and because of the proximity to my office. She did a great facial on me and got rid of a bunch of stuff that was bothering me.

CEREMONY ACCESSORIES

Aisle Runner
www.originalrunner.com
Grade: A-
They had the color I wanted and because of the special backing their runners have I didn’t have to tape it down or worry that it would ruin the floor in my church. It was perfect. It was just expensive!

Bubbles
www.janeweddings.com
Grade: A
We got wedding cake shaped bubbles. They were great and the cheapest ones I could find in that style.

Ring Bearer Pillows
ME!
Grade: A
Our color scheme was different shades of blue, so I bought silk in 2 shades of blue and thick ribbon in 2 shades of blue, as well as pillow stuffing, at G Street Fabrics. I sewed them myself. I think they came out great.

Clear Tea Light Holders
www.candlesjustonline.com
Grade: A
We places tea lights in clear holders along the window sills of the stained glass windows in my church. They looked great and this Web site had the best price I could find for the holders.

RECEPTION (OTHER)

Blue Tea Light Holders
Ikea (online) www.ikea.com
Grade: A
I ordered 100 blue tea light holders to use at the reception because of color scheme was shades of blue. Ikea had them on their Web site for $0.50 each. They were great and shipped really quick.

Tea Lights
Bed, Bath and Beyond
Grade: A-
While we were shopping I found tea lights here for $5 for 100 of them. I bought 2 packages, but have since seen them for cheaper other places like Ikea.

Favors
Truffles
Friend
Grade: A
A friend of a friend used to make chocolates for a living and he still makes them for his friends for special occasions. I tried some chocolate truffles he had made for my friend and I fell in love. He made them for me at cost.

Boxes, Ribbons and Fill
www.papermart.com
Grade: A
Papermart has the best selection I’ve seen on the Web, their product is very well made and they ship really fast.

Grooms Cake
Especially For You (Joann Kottkamp) www.chefesp4u.com
Grade: A+
I saw a picture of a cake of Wrigley Field that Joann had made for another knottie, so I contacted her about making a replica cake of a soccer stadium in England for my FI as a surprise. I sent her pictures of the stadium from various angles for her to design it. This cake came out better than I expected. She did a great job and the price was less than I expected. See the pictures of the cake for yourself.

PRINTED MATERIALS

Invitations, Programs and Place Cards
Not From A Box www.notfromabox.com
Grade: A+
Love Amy! I made a bunch of changes, couldn’t make up my mind, FI wanted different things, and she went along with all of it. Everything came out beautiful and was very reasonably priced. She even got the place cards and programs done during hurricane season!

Maps to go with invitations
www.custom-programs.com
Grade: A
This was the most difficult thing for FI and I to agree on in the whole wedding planning process. We had so many changes to this over the course of its development (and we started late too). Adrienne was great and did everything we asked. I went over my budget, but that was my fault. They turned out great and we got lots of compliments on how helpful they were.

Rehearsal Dinner Invitations
www.frenchblueonline.com
Grade: A
We had our rehearsal dinner at a Mexican restaurant, so I wanted invitations with a fiesta theme, but not any alcohol-related ones. I found a cute one with 2 sombreros here. They were alittle more than I expected to pay, but FI’s parents helped pay for them. I ordered them blank, downloaded fonts from the Web and printed them out myself to make them a little cheaper. I think they came out great.

Brunch Invitations
www.paperstyle.com
Grade: A
It was surprisingly hard to find Brunch invitations that were casual. I ended up buying ones from the Inviting Company from this Web site that were specific to a wedding brunch of a bride and groom driving off after getting married. I did the same thing as with the rehearsal dinner invitations in that I downloaded fonts off the Web and printed them myself.

JEWELRY

Engagement Ring
O’Rourke’s in Bethesda
Grade: A
A friend recommended them, so we went there. It is not a fancy store and Mr. O’Rourke is like 150 years old, but they have very unique pieces and will make you anything you want. We found a beautiful ring in our price range.

Bride Wedding Ring
www.faycullen.com
Grade: A
I wanted a slim diamond wedding band. I found exactly what I wanted here for a very reasonable price. They have some GREAT pieces here – both genuine antiques and replicas.

Groom Wedding Ring
www.e-weddingbands.com
Grade: A
We got him an 18K gold band with filigree for cheaper than other places we looked. Needed to have it re-sized and it was very easy.

ATTENDANT GIFTS

Maid of Honor Gift
Tiffany’s www.tiffany.com
Grade: A
I only had one attended – my younger and only sister. I got her the classic Tiffany heart bracelet with her name engraved. It was beautiful and she loved it.

Best Man Gift
Hecht’s
Grade: A
FI and I picked out the BM gift together since we are both good friends with him and FI hates making big decisions alone. We got him a Swiss Army watch, which was a little cheaper at Hecht’s than other places, and he wears it every day.

Flower Girl Gift
Blue Nile www.bluenile.com
Grade: A
I got my niece (my MOH’s daughter) a bracelet just like the one I got her mom from Tiffany’s, only it was $45. It was perfect and she loved it.

Ring Bearers Gifts
www.theknot.com
Grade: A
We got each of them a silver train piggy bank. Not too expensive and they both loved them.

Engraving
Things Remembered www.thingsremembered.com
Grade: A-
They did a fine job on the flower girl’s bracelet, but they cracked one of the piggy banks that I had ordered from the knot for the ring bearers. Luckily, they sold the same one and re-did if for free.

REGISTRY

Crate and Barrel
www.crateandbarrel.com
Grade: A
Very easy to set up and change. Love their stuff and it is reasonably priced. We registered for everyday things here since we got fine china from my aunt.

Pottery Barn
www.potterybarn.com
Grade: A
Did it online and it was easy. Pricier stuff, but I really like their bedding.

Bed Bath and Beyond
www.bedbathandbeyond.com
Grade: B+
We did this in the store and it was a little bit of a disaster. We waited for a while to get started and while we were waiting they lost a registry for a couple that had just finished. I will say that it has been easy to return things we got and didn’t want or needed to replace and even got cash for some of them, but they just seem like a very disorganized store.

MISCELLANEOUS

Save the Dates
Me, FI and friends
Grade: A
We did photo booth save the dates. We took the pictures; a friend scanned them in and put them into a Word document so they could be manipulated, FI printed them out on the color printer at work on magnetic photo paper, then I cut them at Kinko’s. I designed the card to go with them and had that printed at Kinko’s as well. I was really happy with them, but it made me realize I didn’t want to do do-it-yourself invitations.

Wedding Web Page
www.weddingtracker.com
Grade: A-
Everyone loved the Web page. My only complaint is there isn’t enough space or enough options for different pages here. They have been regularly upgrading this site and adding new features, so I think it’s worth checking out.

OOT Boxes
Boxes
www.papermart.com
Grade: A
Papermart has the best selection I’ve seen on the Web, their product is very well made and they ship really fast.

Stuff Inside
Maryland Crab Chips
www.utz.com
Grade: A
Cheap and quick delivery (and yummy yoo!)

M&Ms (chocolate and peanut), granola bars, fruit snacks, water, gum, mints, Famous Amos chocolate chip cookies
Costco
Grade: A
Costco rocks!

Around town info
www.bethesda.org & www.washington.org
Grade: A
Easy and free ordering and delivery.

HONEYMOON

Travel Agent
Anne Rose at Celebrate Travel www.celebrate-travel.com
Grade: A
Anne was recommended by a bunch of knotties on the honeymoon and DC boards. She works with a wholesaler that offers a waiver for $59/person that lets you make changes to your itinerary at any time – even when you are ON the trip, which we did. Anne was very attentive, responded very quickly, made changes up to the last minute without any questions or pushback. Although I did hear that she gave pushback to some other knotties when they wanted to change certain things. She advertises herself as an expert on Hawaii and travels there frequently to check out the properties and excursions. I would recommend checking with her if you are thinking about going to Hawaii.

Kauai
Princeville Resort www.princeville.com
Grade: A+
The Princeville is GORGEOUS! The décor is more European elegant, rather than tropical, but it is beautiful. It is built into the cliff at Hanalei Bay in the northern part of Kauai, so most, if not all of the rooms, have some kind of ocean view. We stayed in a partial ocean view room, but I couldn’t tell what was partial about it. I was concerned at first because the rooms don’t have lanais (balconies), but have this large windowsill that you can sit on and open the window. We ended up liking this better than the rooms we stayed in after it that had lanais because we have more privacy. The view is absolutely incredible from this resort and Anne got us free breakfast buffet every day with our stay (which would have cost us $50/day). The buffet was incredible—it had every breakfast food you can think of, and some you wouldn’t think of as breakfast food—omelets, waffles, pancakes, bagels, smoked salmon, fresh fruit, muffins, etc, etc. And you sit outside on this patio that is on the 8th floor with the most amazing view. The valets were great and remembered you everytime you came and went.(it’s the same price to valet or self-park, so we valeted.) They have a swim-up bar in their pool and yummy lava-flows…ahhh…what an incredible way to start the honeymoon.

Big Island
Fairmont Orchid www.fairmont.com/orchid
Grade: A-
When we arrived and were taken to out room we were given a room with 2 double beds on the first floor. I reminded them that we were on our honeymoon and had requested a king bed and would like a higher room, but they said they didn’t have any and could move us in the morning. I called the travel agent to tell them what happened and they got the hotel to send us a free cheese platter for the inconvenience. In the morning I called early to see about moving and they moved us to a very nice room. Except that right after we got there and started unpacking, the woman who was staying in the room previous to us still had her key and walked in because she thought she had left something there. Good thing we weren’t naked or something – it was our honeymoon after all! For the rest of our stay they never closed out this woman’s account and every time I called the front desk or some other department they would call me by her name. It got kind of annoying. In fact, when we ordered room service one night they charged it to her account and I had to fix it when we were checking out. The manager who checked us out was annoyed that it hadn’t been fixed earlier, so I appreciated her concern. We played a round of golf on the BI and got free club rental at the Fairmont for joining their President’s Club, which is free—you just give them your contact info and e-mail. The grounds are gorgeous and the décor is tropical elegance. We ate at the pool café almost everyday. It is right next to a turtle sanctuary. We had massages on the beach that were great, if not a little hot. We really liked this resort.

Oahu
Outrigger Reef www.outrigger.com
Grade: B+
We had to stay over in Oahu the first night because we got there too late to take a flight to Kauai. This hotel was fine for just staying one night and they put us in a suite. We had a coupon for a complimentary breakfast at their restaurant Shore Birds, which was very good and had a very nice view. We ended up going back there for breakfast on our last day there.

Hilton Hawaiian Village www.hiltonhawaiianvillage.com
Grade: B+
HHV is HUGE! It is like 7 different towers of rooms spread out over acres of land. Our room was nothing to write home about, but clean and comfortable. We were here for 3 nights and didn’t spend a lot of time in the room so it was fine. Things at this resort are very expensive (Hawaii in general is expensive, but even I was shocked by an in-room breakfast menu that charged something like $12 for 3 pancakes.)