Posts by Melissa Grant69

Kevin Nguyen48 said:If you're looking for photographers, I’d highly recommend Artis by Jane Doe, Mary Peric, or the crew over at Coachella. People have already talked about the Zoom price on the earlier pages. Both the first two have Facebook profiles where you can check out their portfolios.

It’s definitely Artis for me. 🙂

graniteridge6 said:Since you brought it up, I’ve been wondering—how does the whole "first wear" thing actually work? I haven't even started my bridal search yet, so I'm completely in the dark here.
Can you request that for literally any gown? And more importantly, what kind of a price hike are we talking about on average? For instance, if I happen to track down the perfect dress just a few months before the wedding, I can't quite wrap my head around why a shop would find it profitable to set it aside for a "first wear" rather than just selling it to the next person—I'm really not clued in on the mechanics of the business side of this.
If anyone has some insight, please let me know. 🙂

The "first wear" option is really only available for gowns from the most recent collection. As far as I know, the premium for a first wear is over $1667, maybe around 🙂. If you happen to fall in love with a dress from the 2012 collection, it's pretty obvious it's been worn at least 20 times already.

Does anyone happen to know where I could track down one of those clusters of colorful helium balloons? (The kind you see in the movie UP 🙂). I’ve seen pictures of them online and they look pretty cool; I think I’d want to grab about ten of them 🙂

Uber, I actually have a discount at a boutique in LA from $333 that would let me sell them for $33, so if anyone is interested, just shoot me a DM 🙂

mellowridge7 said:Their selection isn't great—they are even offering older models—and the lady working there actually tried to pitch me a style that my friend wore to her wedding three years ago. When I explained the kind of dress I was actually looking for, she suggested ordering one from a different Nicholas location, provided I paid a deposit upfront. I wasn't willing to hand over cash for something I hadn't seen or tried on yet. To be honest, the staff at Stephanie are much kinder, and their selection is significantly larger. As for what they carry at the Nicholas in Jackson, I really couldn't say.

I felt the same way about the selection in Seattle 🙂they had everything—simple looks, extravagant ones, elegant silhouettes, mermaid cuts... I already put down a deposit for one, but if I change my mind by the fall, I doubt I won't find something equally good there 😉that boutique really caught me off guard, Seattle and Isabella are pretty solid.

jadeotter10 said:The crew at Chic is absolute perfection. 😍 I was in for a trial run recently, and "satisfied" doesn't even cover it—I was BLOWN AWAY! My only warning is that they stay incredibly busy, so if you're thinking about booking them, move fast... they barely squeezed me, my bestie, and my sister-in-law in, and I was actually the third bridesmaid that Saturday! 😲

I went ahead and booked them myself. I guess. 🙂

Does anyone here have much experience with lighting? I’ve been sitting here staring at price comparisons for a while now. I guess I'm just trying to figure out who actually delivers quality without completely draining my bank account. Who would you say is the best option that won't break the budget? Maybe someone has a recommendation.

Hey ladies 🙂
Does anyone happen to have a gift certificate for Stefania Atelier? I’ve got one for La Spose, but I’m thinking about swapping it. I didn't really see anything I liked over there, I guess. 🙂

rustyjackal26 said:Regarding those bands out of Cleveland—Passage is top-tier, along with Vigor, Blitz, and Quattr... I caught Quattr performing at Jubilee, but I've seen the rest of them live. Passage and Blitz pull off that dynamic mix of male and female vocals, Vigor features Mario Roth, and those guys in Quattr are just absolute legends...🙂 So, here’s how everyone feels about them... I’m still second-guessing my own math because I’ve realized some bands don't actually include the ZAMP fees in their booking price; instead, they expect me to cover that out of pocket, or they claim it's included without ever showing me a receipt proving they actually paid it...🙂

I was planning on seeing Passage because of the good reviews, but their YouTube recordings don't sound all that great to me. Maybe I'll just catch one of their live shows instead...

dustytinker58 said:Hey ladies!
Has anyone picked up bows, veils, or napkins from the hallway boutique yet? I'm curious about the price range! Also, does anyone know if they carry cloth napkins or those cute little dresses for the junior groomsmen?

One more thing regarding the corridor—does anyone happen to know what the pricing looks like for Leon production?

Somewhere between 15,000 and 20,000. I couldn't tell you the exact figure, but it's... well, it's a lot.

What kind of experiences have you all had with the Passage band?

For those who actually have experience with the saxophone band out of Indianapolis, is it true they play those traditional folk tunes on the tamburica? If that’s actually the case, it would be pretty much perfect 🙂 everything in one package 😁

nimbleviper15 said:A question for all the seasoned brides and those currently planning their big day!
Is it actually normal to be waiting over two weeks just to hear back from bands and photographers???
I don't get it. I sent emails to about ten different vendors and have only received four replies. wtf??? Well, I guess one person tried to comfort me by saying she waited an entire month :-)

Honestly, you're better off just calling them. You'll get the info much faster that way. 🙂

dustytinker58 said:From what I’ve heard, you can actually partition the room off if you're expecting a smaller crowd.
As for the bands, I've only seen Still live, and let me tell you, they are great!

Honestly, the service is what’s actually weighing on my mind. I suppose I'm just worried about my guests going hungry. For those of you who have actually eaten at Nikolina—is there enough food, and how is the service?

I wonder if a hall in Savannah would feel empty with 300 people in it?

And which of those big-name bands—Sax, Quattro, Still, Babylon, or 100%—actually plays a decent amount of foreign covers?

Henry Harris5 said:I’ve got a question about photographers too! I’d love to hear what you all think—specifically, does anyone have experience working with Brady from Savannah? What were their prices like?

From what I've seen on their Facebook page, their shots are great. 😁 They are definitely on my shortlist. 🙂

Local folks have been eyeing this for over a year now—either in Savannah or maybe closer to Memphis—and negotiations are supposedly ongoing.😁My dental work near the center is acting up again; I think I need a filling or something. Does anyone here have recent experience with this? What kind of prices are we looking at these days?

Daniel Jackson7 said:$4833

😲 too much

rustyjackal26 said:From the bands I’ve heard personally, or heard people talking about, for roughly $3333 you’ve got The Passage, Still, Quatro, Vigor, Bolero, and Sax... From what I can gather from the discussions on this forum, those are the heavy hitters in that specific price bracket. Most of them should have their own websites where you can dig into their style or listen to some recordings... Personally, The Passage, Vigor, and Sax stood out to me the most. 🙂
As for photographers, I don't have much experience there, but my cousin recently used Mark (http://mark.org/) and I thought his work was excellent. The photos they took were really high quality. I'm not sure exactly what he charges, but I'd bet he isn't asking for more than $3333..XD

I think he’s probably looking at around 6,000 or 7,000. Also, does anyone happen to know the typical price range for Studio 69?

Does anyone happen to know a decent local choir from around here?

Daniel Jackson7 said:Why? What happened???

So, she decides to head back home to touch up her makeup, thinking she can still make it, but she’s already running late and somehow managed to book four girls at once. I guess she was in such a rush that she ended up needing to redo her own face anyway. She blew me away the first time, but this? This was just a disaster.

Melissa Grant69 said:Victoria did my makeup once. She was about ten minutes late, I guess, but she actually did a pretty great job. 🙂

Actually, I take it back. A recent bad experience with her pretty much cancels out that one good memory.