The limousine service we selected for our wedding day was Keen Limousine Service out of St. Charles. We chose this company because my sister had used them for her wedding a short time before, and had been happy with the service. I must make mention of how the driver went above and beyond, during my sister's wedding. My father had been given the wrong size dress shirt at the formalwear store. So, our driver drove to the store to pick it up. We were so impressed by the service! Our limousine driver was super personable, professional, and helpful! She uncorked the champagne and assisted me into the limo with my "poofy" gown. Overall, we were appreciative of her courteous and thoughtful manner. My one complaint, is that the driver talked a lot. My husband and I were alone in the limousine, right after the ceremony, and wanted to enjoy the intimate moment of being husband and wife with one another. So, we ended up putting up the screen. Other than that, it was great.

We held our rehearsal dinner at Jimmy's Charhouse in Elgin. We chose this location because we had a small dinner of about twenty people, and Jimmy's Charhouse was one of most accomodating venues for the amount of guests we had. The food was great, but the restaurant was very loud as we didn't have enough guests for their private room. The service was adequate. I would recommend finding a location that can provide a private area for the number of people attending, as the atmosphere may be better suited for the type of occasion it is.

I had my hair done at Mario Tricoci in Geneva. I did not have a trial done beforehand, which I wished I had. I didn’t want to spend an extra $80 to have a trial run. I met with my stylist the night before the wedding to show her pictures of what I wanted. It turned out ok, but it wasn’t what I had imagined in my head. I don’t know if we weren’t communicating, but it certainly didn’t look like the photos that I showed her.

We purchased both our wedding bands and the engagement ring at Kesslers Diamonds in Wisconsin. They were nice, but they tried to sell us other things that we weren’t looking for. My engagement ring has a non-traditional shape and they were willing to design a custom wedding band to fit the ring, but it was a bit too expensive. We opted for something they had in stock.

Inside our reception site, The Seville, it is a beautiful place. The outside is a little less romantic with a strip mall next to it. The spiral staircase in the interior is great for photos. They were priced fairly well for what you get. They provided a lot of food- more than you can eat! I was a bit disappointed with the wedding cake options. I wanted more of a contemporary cake. There were a lot of choices, but they were all very traditional. The planners coordinated the occasion and the vendors well. They have three rooms in the venue. Anywhere from 1 to all 3 of them can be rented at one time. We had one room and there was another wedding going on in the next room. There is a general lobby area, and other guests from the other wedding were out there. I didn’t like that it wasn’t completely separate. Otherwise, we were happy with the service they provided and the location features.

I had a very hard time with my bridesmaid’s gowns. I initially found the gowns I wanted at the House of Brides. My bridal party submitted the order for the gowns, and later we were told the gowns had been discontinued, so the order had to be canceled. Then we went to David’s Bridal and selected a gown there. This was a good option for me because I had bridesmaids who didn’t live in the area. I gave each of the girls the style number of the gown and they all were able to go to a David's Bridal that was convenient for them. They were able to buy them off the rack, which was also a plus. I had a bridesmaid that found out she was pregnant during this process, and she was able to wait till just before the wedding to buy the right size off the rack. I definitely didn't receive a lot of 1:1 attention from the staff, but I was happy with how the gowns looked for the wedding. The gowns were inexpensive, but still looked beautiful for the occasion and in the photos. We also ordered our invitations through David’s Bridal. I felt the invitations were overpriced. It seemed as if it was something we could have done on our own, for much less money and just as good of quality.

I purchased my gown from The Crystal Bride in Geneva. They were great to work with. I found a gown that I liked online and called around to see who had it in-stock. I went to Bridesmart in Schaumburg to try it on. I knew, however, that I wanted to purchase my gown from The Crystal Bride because my sister had gotten her gown there and had had a great experience. They were willing to work with me, pricewise, to match what bridesmart quoted the gown at. I was so surprised, and very grateful! It’s a small shop where I received a lot of individual, personal attention. The owner cares and invests in how each bride looks on on her wedding day. I was never worried that something bad would happen, like I would have if I purchased from Bridesmart. I received a hand written letter thanking me for my purchase. I still have it, a year later! This is a great place to shop if you want an intimate, personal, and reliable experience!

We hired Ameritune for our reception DJ service. Beth was our DJ and she did a good job of playing music that the guests could get into and feeling out the crowd. I had written up a list of songs that I had definitely wanted her to play, and I was disappointed that I didn’t hear some of the ones that I really wanted. She played more of my parents music rather than my music. Beth was lively, however- I just wish she would've catered to my specific song requests. She did have a knack for getting the guests involved in the various events that took place throughout the reception (cake cutting, etc.)

I had a basic idea of what I wanted when I went in to select my flowers at Fifth Avenue Flowers in St. Charles. They gave me suggestions as to what worked well for each type of arrangement. I felt they could’ve been a bit more involved or suggestive, however. I didn't feel a sense of personal interest or excitement on their part for being part of my "big day." However, we had no issues or problems with the florist, they were professional, and the flowers were of a great quality.

Our wedding photographer from Picture Perfect was Dane. He was unobtrusive, quiet, and stayed in the background but still got the shots I wanted him to get. He was also a friendly guy. When we arrived at the reception, the bridal party had missed the appetizers. Dane, very conscientiously brought some up to the bridal party. We loved the photos he took! We were worried about the lighting in the church because my sister had gotten married in the same church not long before, and her ceremony photos turned out horrible. Dane was able to work the lighting in the church so the photos looked great. I would recommend Picture Perfect for Brides and Grooms-to be.