Posts by Sarah Taylor4

Carl Clark said:Quick question about baking. ☕
Where I live, it’s common for family to drop off all the ingredients—margarine, chocolate, the whole works—for my parents to make cakes. Does anyone know an auntie with a registered small business or something similar so we don't get slapped by the health inspectors, because god knows we’re a bit too naive for our own good, 🤣 or maybe a local bakery that would work with us on pricing based on what we provide? The ones around here aren't licensed; they're all just operating under the table

Look, I'll give you some straight advice: tell your folks to tell these people that if they want to provide the supplies, they should just hand over the cash equivalent instead. I know that sounds blunt—maybe even a little rude—but at the end of the day, those people have to buy all this stuff anyway. It’s better for them to just give your parents that $200 or $300 or whatever the amount ends up being. If you can't find someone willing to work with the raw materials, you're just going to be stuck sitting on a mountain of ingredients, and trust me, it won't be a small amount ☕

Jeffrey Walker3 said:Wait, so we're talking about the same Sweetie?

In that case, she totally nailed it! 😬

I've actually had their cookies before 👍
and they are honestly amazing 🙏🙏
I didn't get a cake from them personally—mostly because my mom was handling the cookie order while we were out of town traveling through the States—but I ended up getting a cake later and, man, I can't even begin to tell you how good it was. We just sorted everything out locally 👎
Anyway, my mom ordered a cake from them for my best man's party, and let me tell you, it was stunning—looked incredible on the table and tasted even better 🙏

Nathan Cox25 said:There’s already been enough talk about Zampa—there’s an entire thread dedicated to that mess. But I’m just reposting this one specific comment from a girl I saw earlier—quoting her again here.

zamp Just my personal take—nothing more.It’s 160 if you’re looking at 250 to 350—otherwise, if it's under 250, it’s 170. Simple enough.

I don't think Zamp bills by the individual—not that I know how you managed to get such a low rate, Maya, but usually it's around... $333.
The shade from the hall covers us—but honestly, if it were... $57 Personally, if you’re sitting at fewer than 250 people—it's just a bit too much for me. 😲

It's true that you pay based on the headcount, but not exactly $57 per room 😲
. Like I said before, there's some sort of set pricing table they follow, and if I'm not mistaken, it also depends on the county—you know, the specific city or municipality you're in.

neonridge38 said:Nathan Cox25, you just pay a flat fee and it comes out to about $267, regardless of how many guests show up.. Isn't that just how things work in Columbus? A friend of mine had a crowd of around 400 people and paid roughly 800.. We're looking at about 250-300 guests and he quoted us 800, so the guest count doesn't seem to matter at all..

Someone seriously screwed you over if that's what they told you 😲
there's actually this specific pricing sheet they follow—I don't know the exact rates offhand—but for 250-300 people, there is absolutely no way it's $267
we ended up paying $127 for 200 people

Sandra Hernandez9 said:So, Mickey was just telling us all about attending a wedding over at Kroger tonight—which I assume means you two were 😁
there? Great. We’ve certainly had our fill of all those glowing compliments 😉
.

I guess that makes us 😍

We’ll probably swing by this Saturday morning to grab the photos—in the morning, obviously 😁

So, we held our wedding ceremony over in Napa Valley, followed by dinner at a Kroger restaurant nearby—and honestly, we couldn’t have been happier. Our guests were all over us afterward, telling us how fantastic everything was. There was plenty of room to breathe, the food was top-tier, and the service? Fast, seamless, and they stayed out of the way just enough to let things flow...

For photo and video, we went with Mickey. We haven’t actually gotten our footage back yet (should be sometime next week), but I can already tell you—those guys are absolute pros.

As for the band, we hired SAN for $750. They played the entire night straight through, only pausing while we were eating dinner. We were beyond thrilled with them.

Honestly, I’d recommend all three of them in a heartbeat.👍

Christian Taylor8 said:I’ve never actually tried any baked goods from B. Greda, though I’ve heard nothing but glowing reviews about them.
As for Sprinkles, I’m a total regular—they provided the treats for my wedding, and honestly, I can't find a single thing to complain about.
The cake was absolutely massive and delicious, and the cookies? They were gone in a flash... basically, I could go on forever about how good they are, but the real proof would be a photo of all those empty plates and the cake stand.

Is Sweetie running a registered business, and how many pounds of treats are we talking about here?
Shoot me a DM 😉
My mom ordered from this lady out in a town near the coast this past fall—somewhere like Savannah or maybe Charleston, I’m not from that part of the country so I can't be certain 😍—for my sister's wedding, and the desserts were incredible. I wanted to order some too, but she doesn't have a formal business license, and I specifically need everything to come with proper paperwork 🙄

mellowjackal1 said:So, I could really use some advice from anyone who’s already tied the knot, or maybe even someone getting married this coming Saturday. I rented my wedding dress over in Des Moines, and the shop lady told me to come in for my final fitting just a week before the big day. Apparently, it needs quite a bit of tailoring to fit right. Is waiting until a week before the wedding cutting it a little too close? Or am I just spiraling for no reason...

I don't think you're late at all.
I know a few girls who didn't even show up for their last fitting until Monday or Tuesday, then just went to pick up the dress on Thursday. 👍

gentledriver92 said:Thanks Maybelline... I know... but it's the exact same person handling things in Pittsburgh too. So one day the dress is in Pittsburgh, next it's in SB, and they only have it in white like I said🙄
Still... thanks for the help... I'm honestly thinking about just getting it tailored if I can't find her anywhere... though god knows how that would look or where I'd even find someone to do it🤷

Well, damn, I guess. Fingers crossed you actually manage to find it somewhere
but what kind of wedding is this even going to be?

gentledriver92 said:Help me, please! Does anyone know where I can find Maggie Sotero dresses besides that one shop in Požega? I found the exact dress I want there, but it’s only in white, and since I’m looking for a different color, they have to special order it. And man, once you factor in the custom order, the rental price goes through the roof... honestly, it's like triple what I expected. That's just way too much for me. As far as I know, nobody near St. Louis carries them. If you know any shops around the St. Louis area, please let me know. I heard Atelier St might have them, but I can't find a phone number or email for them anywhere online. Nothing. 😢

There's actually a Lisa in Springfield too that carries Maggie Sotero dresses. 👍

Sunflowers look gorgeous

rapidfox42 said:The real question is... how did you guys even track those down?

Look, that part is actually pretty simple,
just find a local coffee shop you hit up all the time and ask them to stash those bottles for you
or, if you've got a buddy working as a server somewhere, just tell them to grab them for you.👍

Daniel King4 said:I don't have anything going on with him, we barely know each other, I'm just looking at things realistically by comparing him to the rest, whereas you're busy tearing him down and trying to boost others even though you know I'm right. Anyone with actual taste would say he's the best in the business, it's just a shame he's not from Indianapolis so people won't give him the credit he deserves. He'd probably have hundreds of clients working all over the US and abroad if he wasn't stuck in this local bubble. Personally, I think you just lack any sense of style, so maybe take a breather... the truth hurts...

I still don't get how you can be this stubborn. Why won't you just accept that other people have different tastes? When we all say we love Marko, Pero, or Duro, but feel like John isn't really anything special—meaning there are better guys out there—that's just our opinion.

I didn't quite follow what Boldan was saying because it made zero sense—if he's pulling in a hundred weddings (I'm assuming per 😲) please explain that math to me, because that would mean he's doing a wedding basically every third day, if I'm not mistaken ☕
.
Whether someone is talented or a total hack was already settled by your very first post in this thread
. And seriously, I'm asking you—please stop humiliating yourself and being so insulting with your posts.

Daniel King4 said:They're just used to doing the same old thing, I've seen plenty of their work. It's all classic. A few good shots here and there, but their video style hasn't changed in four years. Cheers

They aren't "used to it" at all, so you've got that part wrong.
It's just that they have a studio in the 20G area, so everyone around that part of town knows them—just like they know names like Bruce Springsteen or Bruce Springsteen.

rapidfox42 said:I've learned the hard way that if something sounds too good to be true, it probably is.
Take a real close look at the photos and videos before picking someone who's half the price of everyone else—usually, those "cheap" fixes end up costing you way more in the long run.

Since I actually grew up in the same area where this studio is based, let me set the record straight: they aren't even half as cheap as the guys in Indianapolis, San Diego, or Chicago. Honestly, if you try to compare them to some big-name outfits like Artworks or Mirko or whoever else, the quality gap is just massive. That’s exactly why I ended up hiring someone from out of town—none of the local options here actually impressed me.
Basically, we're looking at studios that have been doing the same thing for twenty years and seem stuck in their ways—they lack any real imagination or creative spark, regardless of how much expensive gear they're lugging around...

gentledriver92 said:Maybelline... I was actually thinking about ham... not focus (not sure what their deal is with that either) 🙂 I checked out their online gallery and honestly, I wasn't impressed. It’s just the same old classic stuff. I gave them a call, though—they were super nice and the pricing is actually pretty reasonable. What they offer in a package costs twice as much everywhere else. So, I was just checking if anyone here has worked with them before? I want to know what the actual album and video look like. It’s a totally different story when you see someone's finished work instead of just a few random photos and clips online. Well, whatever, looks like I'll just have to head down there myself. 🙂 Anyway, thanks a ton for the effort. And hey, if you have a photographer you'd recommend, let me know... I've heard some rumors 🙂 (I'm from Indianapolis, so somewhere nearby works too)

And here I thought you were from the Poughkeepsie area or something😉
If you end up going to Sunja, it won't even be a hassle to swing by Focus or Photo Kaca—they're all right there in the pedestrian zone within a couple of blocks of each other 👍
Sunja does a good job with video, though I can't really vouch for their wedding photography since I haven't seen anyone's shots from the last two or three years
Focus did my sister's shoot back in September—I haven't seen the photos yet, but if it hasn't been four months by then, I'll let you know how they look. The video is fine, so I'm not being harsh after 2 or 2.5 hours of talking about it. They do a short intro at the start, and they don't provide a separate DVD with a music video, though maybe they do that now 🤷
I do have a few gripes with the video—for instance, they spent half an hour filming the groom, but only about ten minutes on us 👎 but the quality itself is solid 👍
One of the ladies from the forum used Photo Kaca; she might reach out to you, but if she doesn't, I'll tell her to get in touch

gentledriver92 said:Hey there, everyone from the Midwest! I’m new here, so just figured I’d jump in and join the conversation... I see we're talking about photographers, and since I'm actually hunting for one right now, I was wondering if anyone has worked with that "shady" photographer out of Indianapolis? I'd love to hear any feedback—good or bad. Also, quick question about the band unknown that we've been looking at booking; I haven't actually heard them play a wedding before, so if anyone has any intel on them, let me know! Thanks in advance 🙂

Are you talking about Sunny, or do you mean Focus (Sunjo)?
To be honest, I haven't been in Toledo for quite a while, so I haven't really seen their work firsthand—though they do have a website, even if it isn't exactly top-tier
I don't even think they're overpriced; honestly, they're pretty great. I actually worked with them a few years back—both the husband and wife are super nice people, and I was genuinely happy with how things turned out.
I don't know how much the specific style of the photos matters to you 😕 but if I were you, I'd go check out both Sunny and that other guy, Focus.

Daniel King4 said:I think the photography service works great and is super professional, so maybe look at what you're paying musicians... you give them 1500 bucks and they play for five hours and head home, while photographers have five more days of work and gear worth at least 50k... people really shouldn't talk about stuff they don't understand, especially when you see how much worse people work in Washington, D.C. while charging $3333 basic rates for standard shots. If I were the photographer, I wouldn't give you anything for $1200 pennies, because honestly, it's not easy money and you're stuck with the consequences for life... peace

Man, you really need to pick a lane here, and honestly, it would be a huge favor to everyone if you learned how to use a comma, because reading your rambling is a struggle.
So, what, you’re suddenly an expert on the industry now? Is that why you're lecturing us about "not talking about things we don't know"?

James Lopez8, I wasn't aiming that ad comment at you—from what you wrote, it’s pretty obvious this isn't some paid plug, just a genuine opinion and a solid recommendation.

Daniel King4 said:look, I’m not saying it just for you, I just want you to double-check everything so you don't go rushing into anything blindly... just hit up their websites and make your own call instead of taking some random recommendation, because people are always looking out for their buddies

I've already picked out my photographer, if you were actually talking to me.