Vendor Reviews
Venue - The Villa at Ridder Country Club
The Villa is owned and operated by the Sapphire Family (also own Sapphire Estate) From the moment I walked into this venue I fell in love. We chose the Madera Ballroom because of its upscale rustic charm and the fireplaces. I thought the menu and package pricing was very fair as well.
In the beginning I worked with Jon Sapphire (owner) he was always very responsive to emails and they seemed willing to work with me on whatever I wanted to do. As my date got closer I was assigned to my coordinator Lauren. Lauren also always answered emails and phone calls promptly. As for the day of our wedding everything was AMAZING! The staff was friendly and attentive. My hair flower broke during pictures and someone went out just to get me superglue. The food was incredible! My guests raved about it. I have worked in the wedding industry for 8 years and was seriously impressed by the level of service the Villa provided.
My only complaint was with the bar tab. We set a limit and kept increasing it. The manager kept checking in with me to update where we were but later I came to find out that amount did not include tax and service so in the end we had to pay more money then we were expecting because of not being updated on the total with tax and service. That problem to me is minor and partly my fault for not asking so I still would highly recommend the villa!
Photographer - John LoConte of JohnLo Photography
John is incredible! From the beginning he has always been amazing about answering emails and questions. I probably changed my package and what I wanted to do a dozen times and he was always very accomodating. A few weeks before My husband and I decided to do an E-shoot with John and we are so glad we did. The pictures came out great and it was great to meet John before the wedding.
The wedding day John showed up on time and ready to shoot. He was never in the way while we were getting ready and he was capturing all the little moments. When we arrived at the venue John was all set to go and we started doing our formals etc. He gave great direction and was quick and efficient. He was flexible with whatever I wanted to do and took any pictures I wanted to take. John was always there to take the pictures I wanted and even while tearing up the dance floor anytime I looked up John was around taking great photos.
We have not recieved our wedding day pictures yet but am confident that they will be everything I want.
Videographer - Darryn Carroll of Harborview Video
(pending video) _
Darryn has been another great vendor. Very easy to work with. He was always available for questions or concerns and always checking in to see if we needed anything. The day of the wedding he showed up while we were taking formal photographs and began taping right away. Darryn did a great job of blending in with the guests and not being intrusive or in the way. He communicated well with my bridal party regarding how he was filming the ceremony so he could get the best angles possible. The thing I really loved most about Darryn is there are no time restrictions on his packages so he is there from beginning to end to capture all the special moments of the day.
Darryn already sent me a clip of our receptions introductions and if it is an indication of the whole video we will be very happy!
Florist - Jen Cahill of The Tangled Web
I enjoyed working with Jen and the final product was gorgeous. I originally met with Jen and she seemed to understand what I was looking for and was able to offer insightful ideas. Jen was very patient with me and my millions of questions and always answered emails in an reasonable time frame. She was great with making changes and her prices really can't be beat. Our centerpieces and bouquets looks awesome! I was especially in love with our dramatic tall centerpieces. Jen was really able to help make our vision come true. I highly recommend working with Jen.
The Villa is owned and operated by the Sapphire Family (also own Sapphire Estate) From the moment I walked into this venue I fell in love. We chose the Madera Ballroom because of its upscale rustic charm and the fireplaces. I thought the menu and package pricing was very fair as well.
In the beginning I worked with Jon Sapphire (owner) he was always very responsive to emails and they seemed willing to work with me on whatever I wanted to do. As my date got closer I was assigned to my coordinator Lauren. Lauren also always answered emails and phone calls promptly. As for the day of our wedding everything was AMAZING! The staff was friendly and attentive. My hair flower broke during pictures and someone went out just to get me superglue. The food was incredible! My guests raved about it. I have worked in the wedding industry for 8 years and was seriously impressed by the level of service the Villa provided.
My only complaint was with the bar tab. We set a limit and kept increasing it. The manager kept checking in with me to update where we were but later I came to find out that amount did not include tax and service so in the end we had to pay more money then we were expecting because of not being updated on the total with tax and service. That problem to me is minor and partly my fault for not asking so I still would highly recommend the villa!
Photographer - John LoConte of JohnLo Photography
John is incredible! From the beginning he has always been amazing about answering emails and questions. I probably changed my package and what I wanted to do a dozen times and he was always very accomodating. A few weeks before My husband and I decided to do an E-shoot with John and we are so glad we did. The pictures came out great and it was great to meet John before the wedding.
The wedding day John showed up on time and ready to shoot. He was never in the way while we were getting ready and he was capturing all the little moments. When we arrived at the venue John was all set to go and we started doing our formals etc. He gave great direction and was quick and efficient. He was flexible with whatever I wanted to do and took any pictures I wanted to take. John was always there to take the pictures I wanted and even while tearing up the dance floor anytime I looked up John was around taking great photos.
We have not recieved our wedding day pictures yet but am confident that they will be everything I want.
Videographer - Darryn Carroll of Harborview Video
(pending video) _
Darryn has been another great vendor. Very easy to work with. He was always available for questions or concerns and always checking in to see if we needed anything. The day of the wedding he showed up while we were taking formal photographs and began taping right away. Darryn did a great job of blending in with the guests and not being intrusive or in the way. He communicated well with my bridal party regarding how he was filming the ceremony so he could get the best angles possible. The thing I really loved most about Darryn is there are no time restrictions on his packages so he is there from beginning to end to capture all the special moments of the day.
Darryn already sent me a clip of our receptions introductions and if it is an indication of the whole video we will be very happy!
Florist - Jen Cahill of The Tangled Web
I enjoyed working with Jen and the final product was gorgeous. I originally met with Jen and she seemed to understand what I was looking for and was able to offer insightful ideas. Jen was very patient with me and my millions of questions and always answered emails in an reasonable time frame. She was great with making changes and her prices really can't be beat. Our centerpieces and bouquets looks awesome! I was especially in love with our dramatic tall centerpieces. Jen was really able to help make our vision come true. I highly recommend working with Jen.
Ceremony/Cocktail hr. Musician - Bruce Lewis
We booked Bruce through Gigmasters but he was not our first choice. Due to an unfortunate cancellation we were referred to Bruce. Bruce was great at responding to emails and was able and willing to learn new music I had requested for our ceremony. Day of he showed up on time and played everything we asked. He worked quickly and efficiently to move his equipment for cocktail hour and entertained our guests nicely.
DJ - Victor Barruzza of Entertainment Specialists
Victor was AWESOME! I have known Victor for years and have worked many weddings with him and decided to book him for my own wedding. I have to say I was probably more of a laid back bride with him because I knew he would do a great job. We only met/spoke once a couple of weeks before the wedding to go over our music choices, must play/do not play list and our introductions and timeline. I left the meeting feeling confident that Victor would do exactly what we wanted. The day of Victor was early and eager to get the party started. He did an amazing job with everything we threw at him and he kept our dance floor packed all night long. We could not be happier with him and got many compliments on his music choices. He really made our wedding what it was. I highly highly recommend him.
Cake - Konditormeister
Our cake looked awesome! It tasted delicious too! We had a great experience with Konditormeister. We scheduled a wedding tasting/consultation and were pleasantly surprised at how attentive they were. We got to try what seemed like a hundred different flavors and they even made custom mousses for us to try when they didn't have that flavor cake available that day. We booked with them and picked our cake. 6 months later we wanted to change our design. We scheduled another appointment just to change the look of the cake. They were great again and even brought us more cake to eat even though we had already picked our flavors. We were really very satisfied with them for our wedding cake.
Paper Products - Brandy Nicole Weddings on Etsy
Brandy did a fantastic job with all of our paper products. She made our invitations, programs and placecards. We have recieved so many compliments on her work. The quality of her work is phenomenal and the prices can't be beat. I am very happy with everything we got from her and would recommend her to anyone.
Hair & Makeup - Caitlin Murphy
Love Caitlin! I saw her twice before our wedding, once for a trial and once for our e-pics. I was never dissapointed. Caitlin is an amazing make-up artist. She did my makeup and all my girls makeup the day of the wedding and we were all extremely happy. I felt absoloutely gorgeous on my wedding day all because of her! She brought Michelle with her to help with Hair and Michelle is a true genious. Everyones hair looked awesome and everyones was different and reflected their personality. They are a great team and I loved working with them.
Dress - Bella Sera in Danvers
I bought my dress and the bridesmaids dresses at Bella Sera in Danvers. I was very happy working with them and had good shopping experiences with them. I really loved the Bridesmaid brunch that they offer if you buy your wedding gown with them. Heidi (one of the owners) is a sweetheart and they really make you feel comfortable there. As far as alterations I thought the price quote for alterations was a bit outrageous and took my dress elsewhere. I would recommend them to buy your dress but take it somewhere else to alter it.
Alterations - Chris O'Hare
Chris does alterations out of her home and I called her based on recommendations on the Knot. Chris did a great job with my dress. It needed to be taken in a few sizes, hemmed and needed to have a bustle put in. I went for 4 fittings and she did everything perfectly. Her sewing room is a bit chaotic and looks like it threw up dresses but if you can get past that it is definitely worth it to work with Chris. Her prices are VERY affordable and she is a knowledgeable seamstress.
Accomodations - Holiday Inn Rockland
I booked with the Holiday Inn Rockland 10 months before our wedding. Their sales person informed me that they don't do room blocks but instead offer Wedding rates. I was concerned that we wouldn't have a certain amount of rooms blocked off for us but she assured me there would not be a problem. 2 months before our wedding I found out the hotel was sold out. I was never contacted by the hotel to inform me of this and when I emailed the sales person it took her days to reply and she was not helpful at all. Over time I was able to book rooms myself for my guests by being vigilant about checking their website but I was very disspointed with the sales staff and the hotel staff. I found the desk staff to be rude and unhelpful. When we checked in to the hotel it was nothing but problems. It was obvious there were many weddings staying in house. I requested a roll-away at check in and 3 hours later when I called the desk to inquire about it they informed me they just ran out. When I asked why it wasn't brought 3 hours ago when requested they did not have an answer. They were not helpful and offered not alternative to not having a rollaway and one of my bridesmaids had to sleep on the floor. Very unacceptable. We supplied the hotel with 20 rooms that night and also hosted breakfast for our guests the next day and the hotel did not appreciate our business at all. Everything we asked of them they made seem like a monumental task and that we were inconveniencing them. I DO NOT recommend this hotel!
Rehearsal Dinner Transportation - Expo Limo
We rented a stretch hummer for our bridal party to transport them to the rehearsal and rehearsal dinner. They were great to work with. Always answered emails and didn't mind picking up at multiple locations. They were on time and got us where we needed to go on time.
We were happy with their service
Bridal Party Transportation - Special Ocassion Limo
We rented a party bus to transport the bridal party and immediate family to the venue on our wedding day. They were pleasant to deal with and their pricing couldn't be beat. They were the only limo company I could find with a 2 hour minimum so we weren't forced to pay for extra time we didn't need. The Limo was on time and the driver was very friendly. The limo bus was very nice inside and was comfortable for 18 of us. My only complaint was the air conditioning wasn't working that well and it was hot. Otherwise I would recommend this company
Guest Transportation - Local Motion
We rented a 50 passenger school bus to transport our guests from the Hotel to the Venue. They were easy to work with when booking and confirming details. The pricing couldn't be beat.
The day of they were on time and got out guests to the ceremony early. At the end of the evening I found the bus driver to be rude. We were running a few minutes behind and the driver was complaining about having to wait for the bride and groom. We offered to pay extra for the extra time and his response was " I don't care I don't make more money" In the end we told him to leave and we drove a guests car back to the hotel.
Uplighting - Boston Uplights
We loved having uplighting. Boston uplights was great to work with. Excellent about answering emails and offering suggestions. They made the room look amazing the day of our wedding. and we got so many comments on how awesome the lighting was. It was very comforting knowing their was a tech on site in case anything went wrong. I highly recommend them.
Photobooth - Boston Photobooth
This was probably one of my favorite things at our wedding. We paid a little extra so they wouldn't be setting up doing our ceremony and so we could have the booth open for 5 hours. They were so great to work with. We talked to Sean 2 weeks before the wedding to design our photostrip and he did a great job making it match our stationary etc. The day of they were already there and set-up when we arrived an hour before the ceremony. The attendant was very friendly and helpful. Our guests got plenty of use of the photobooth and we have recieved so many compliments and comments about how great it was. I really loved the scrapbook they put together for us! It was nice to have some pictures to take home with us at the end of the wedding. Definitely one of the best investments we made in our wedding and I would highly recommend Boston Photobooth!
We booked Bruce through Gigmasters but he was not our first choice. Due to an unfortunate cancellation we were referred to Bruce. Bruce was great at responding to emails and was able and willing to learn new music I had requested for our ceremony. Day of he showed up on time and played everything we asked. He worked quickly and efficiently to move his equipment for cocktail hour and entertained our guests nicely.
DJ - Victor Barruzza of Entertainment Specialists
Victor was AWESOME! I have known Victor for years and have worked many weddings with him and decided to book him for my own wedding. I have to say I was probably more of a laid back bride with him because I knew he would do a great job. We only met/spoke once a couple of weeks before the wedding to go over our music choices, must play/do not play list and our introductions and timeline. I left the meeting feeling confident that Victor would do exactly what we wanted. The day of Victor was early and eager to get the party started. He did an amazing job with everything we threw at him and he kept our dance floor packed all night long. We could not be happier with him and got many compliments on his music choices. He really made our wedding what it was. I highly highly recommend him.
Cake - Konditormeister
Our cake looked awesome! It tasted delicious too! We had a great experience with Konditormeister. We scheduled a wedding tasting/consultation and were pleasantly surprised at how attentive they were. We got to try what seemed like a hundred different flavors and they even made custom mousses for us to try when they didn't have that flavor cake available that day. We booked with them and picked our cake. 6 months later we wanted to change our design. We scheduled another appointment just to change the look of the cake. They were great again and even brought us more cake to eat even though we had already picked our flavors. We were really very satisfied with them for our wedding cake.
Paper Products - Brandy Nicole Weddings on Etsy
Brandy did a fantastic job with all of our paper products. She made our invitations, programs and placecards. We have recieved so many compliments on her work. The quality of her work is phenomenal and the prices can't be beat. I am very happy with everything we got from her and would recommend her to anyone.
Hair & Makeup - Caitlin Murphy
Love Caitlin! I saw her twice before our wedding, once for a trial and once for our e-pics. I was never dissapointed. Caitlin is an amazing make-up artist. She did my makeup and all my girls makeup the day of the wedding and we were all extremely happy. I felt absoloutely gorgeous on my wedding day all because of her! She brought Michelle with her to help with Hair and Michelle is a true genious. Everyones hair looked awesome and everyones was different and reflected their personality. They are a great team and I loved working with them.
Dress - Bella Sera in Danvers
I bought my dress and the bridesmaids dresses at Bella Sera in Danvers. I was very happy working with them and had good shopping experiences with them. I really loved the Bridesmaid brunch that they offer if you buy your wedding gown with them. Heidi (one of the owners) is a sweetheart and they really make you feel comfortable there. As far as alterations I thought the price quote for alterations was a bit outrageous and took my dress elsewhere. I would recommend them to buy your dress but take it somewhere else to alter it.
Alterations - Chris O'Hare
Chris does alterations out of her home and I called her based on recommendations on the Knot. Chris did a great job with my dress. It needed to be taken in a few sizes, hemmed and needed to have a bustle put in. I went for 4 fittings and she did everything perfectly. Her sewing room is a bit chaotic and looks like it threw up dresses but if you can get past that it is definitely worth it to work with Chris. Her prices are VERY affordable and she is a knowledgeable seamstress.
Accomodations - Holiday Inn Rockland
I booked with the Holiday Inn Rockland 10 months before our wedding. Their sales person informed me that they don't do room blocks but instead offer Wedding rates. I was concerned that we wouldn't have a certain amount of rooms blocked off for us but she assured me there would not be a problem. 2 months before our wedding I found out the hotel was sold out. I was never contacted by the hotel to inform me of this and when I emailed the sales person it took her days to reply and she was not helpful at all. Over time I was able to book rooms myself for my guests by being vigilant about checking their website but I was very disspointed with the sales staff and the hotel staff. I found the desk staff to be rude and unhelpful. When we checked in to the hotel it was nothing but problems. It was obvious there were many weddings staying in house. I requested a roll-away at check in and 3 hours later when I called the desk to inquire about it they informed me they just ran out. When I asked why it wasn't brought 3 hours ago when requested they did not have an answer. They were not helpful and offered not alternative to not having a rollaway and one of my bridesmaids had to sleep on the floor. Very unacceptable. We supplied the hotel with 20 rooms that night and also hosted breakfast for our guests the next day and the hotel did not appreciate our business at all. Everything we asked of them they made seem like a monumental task and that we were inconveniencing them. I DO NOT recommend this hotel!
Rehearsal Dinner Transportation - Expo Limo
We rented a stretch hummer for our bridal party to transport them to the rehearsal and rehearsal dinner. They were great to work with. Always answered emails and didn't mind picking up at multiple locations. They were on time and got us where we needed to go on time.
We were happy with their service
Bridal Party Transportation - Special Ocassion Limo
We rented a party bus to transport the bridal party and immediate family to the venue on our wedding day. They were pleasant to deal with and their pricing couldn't be beat. They were the only limo company I could find with a 2 hour minimum so we weren't forced to pay for extra time we didn't need. The Limo was on time and the driver was very friendly. The limo bus was very nice inside and was comfortable for 18 of us. My only complaint was the air conditioning wasn't working that well and it was hot. Otherwise I would recommend this company
Guest Transportation - Local Motion
We rented a 50 passenger school bus to transport our guests from the Hotel to the Venue. They were easy to work with when booking and confirming details. The pricing couldn't be beat.
The day of they were on time and got out guests to the ceremony early. At the end of the evening I found the bus driver to be rude. We were running a few minutes behind and the driver was complaining about having to wait for the bride and groom. We offered to pay extra for the extra time and his response was " I don't care I don't make more money" In the end we told him to leave and we drove a guests car back to the hotel.
Uplighting - Boston Uplights
We loved having uplighting. Boston uplights was great to work with. Excellent about answering emails and offering suggestions. They made the room look amazing the day of our wedding. and we got so many comments on how awesome the lighting was. It was very comforting knowing their was a tech on site in case anything went wrong. I highly recommend them.
Photobooth - Boston Photobooth
This was probably one of my favorite things at our wedding. We paid a little extra so they wouldn't be setting up doing our ceremony and so we could have the booth open for 5 hours. They were so great to work with. We talked to Sean 2 weeks before the wedding to design our photostrip and he did a great job making it match our stationary etc. The day of they were already there and set-up when we arrived an hour before the ceremony. The attendant was very friendly and helpful. Our guests got plenty of use of the photobooth and we have recieved so many compliments and comments about how great it was. I really loved the scrapbook they put together for us! It was nice to have some pictures to take home with us at the end of the wedding. Definitely one of the best investments we made in our wedding and I would highly recommend Boston Photobooth!
