I can't believe I forgot to review Samantha. Samantha did my hair and make-up and my sister's hair and make-up. She was amazing. She did an amazing job. My hair was gorgeous and did not budge. It was soft and natural without looking over-sprayed. My sister and I partied into the wee hours after my wedding and our hair and make-up looked as fresh as it did when Samantha first applied it.

Samantha is incredibly sweet and professional. I liked her so much I decided to make her my regular hairdresser... even if it mean I have to trek out to see her;)

We chose La Casita because it sits on the hillside above the Lower Arroyo Park where we went on our first date. We frequently take our dog out for walks in the park and noticed it. When our beach wedding plans fell through, we thought it would be perfect.

Here are the pros:
- it is quaint and has a certain charm.
- there is a beautiful view of the Colorado Street bridge from the back terrace of the property.
- it's a also venue that allowed us to have ceremony and reception at one location.
- it comes with tables and chairs (special note: black plastic conference-style chairs)
- We were allowed to bring in all of our own vendors. We were not limited to any specific caterer, bakery, or DJ.
- The venue has lots of parking spaces.

Here is the biggest "con":
This clubhouse is rented through Pasadena's Office of Parks and Recreations. It is not often rented. To get any information or to get a tour of the inside of the facility is difficult at best. There isn't a direct number to speak to someone. You have to leave a message and wait for them to call you back. I had to rely primarily on email to contact them and make arrangements.

Bottom line, although this venue is really affordable, be prepared to put in some legwork.

When we had a misunderstanding with our caterer regarding linen rentals, we were referred to Cloth Connection. This was sadly two weeks before our wedding. We spoke to Valerie who was incredibly helpful and accommodating. She was willing to meet us at their showroom on a Saturday, a day they are not open. I told her our wedding colors. When we arrived, she had several tablescapes ready for us to review. Because we were on a strict budget, Valerie did her best to get us a discounted rate. Valerie was helpful, but not to the point of being pushy.

In the end, we did not use Cloth Connection because our linen rentals were covered by our caterer. In retrospect, we should have use them because their prices, selection and customer service is impeccable. I highly recommend them.

I found Vistaprint to be really hit or miss. I had some Baby Shower invites printed for my cousin and they turned out beautifully. My Save-the-Date Magnets and postcards were crooked and discolored. Their customer service was excellent and they refunded my money right away. The problems did cost me some time in mailing out my Save the Dates.

Thankfully, I found a better local printer to print my invitations.

I bought all my floral supplies here. Bring a list or you will be spinning your wheels for a long time. It is conveniently located in the middle of the flower mart. I found the staff is extremely helpful despite it being such a large and busy store

Empire Floral & Craft is located not far from the flower mart. This place was recommended by someone. They have the lowest prices on flower vases. If you are going to DIY flowers, this is a great place to buy vases. You can buy vases individually or by the dozen.

I found out about this company through Weddingbee.com. It's a brilliant concept. They rent out children's special occasion clothes.

My sister and I felt that my nephews would outgrow their suits before they can reuse them again. We rented matching suits. They arrived quickly and they make it really easy for you to return them. They rent the suits in 3 week increments. Each suit cost us less than $20 to rent. If you take the measurements as they list on their website, the clothes will turn out a perfect fit.

We went here based on the recommendations of several people. When we found out that we could buy suits for the same prices as renting, we jumped on it.

We got the suits for my husband, best man and groomsman. Our groomsmen suits were a breathable polyester. They cost only $99. We bought an nicer suit for my husband for $159.99. His suit was a cashmere/wool blend. We went two stores down for alterations which cost about $8 each to have pants their pants hemmed and cuffed.

Be firm about how much you want to spend. They will try to upsell you shirts, ties, socks and shoes. We got better deals on those items at Nordstrom Rack in Glendale.

I DIYed my invitations, but I bought labels, vellum, vellum envelopes and petal fold enclosures here. The staff is very helpful. I didn't have any problems returning or exchanging items.

Special note: Their labels have a tendency to smear. They are listed as laser and inkjet compatible. I ran the labels through a B&W laser and a color laser printer. With outputs from either machine, the labels smeared. This was especially problematic for the labels that were used for mailing.

The cake and cupcakes were incredibly decadent. I found Leda's again through bride recommendations. I have two small gripes. One is that my cake was not the right colors. I should have gone to the bakery to confirm my color choices. I did not do this and my colors were slightly off. No one really noticed because they were too busy inhaling them. The other gripe is that they were late delivering my cake. My venue is off-the-beaten path. I specifically sent detailed directions to my venue. They chose to use mapquest instead. My cake did not arrive until halfway through my reception! I did not get to display my cake and cupcakes like I wanted.