JOINED's reviews

This was one of the best gifts that we received! A group of our friends went in and paid for Mike and I to have our portrait done in oil paint by Patti Trostle, an incredible oil portrait painter. Patti took sketches of us, and then took an engagement picture that we really liked, and then reproduced it in oil paint. It’s beautiful, it’s really an incredible work of art. She’s a very talented artist, and she captured joy and love in her art. Mike and I simply adore it. There’s just something about having a real piece of art in your house, especially when it’s a picture of you and your husband.

I was very nervous about booking a holiday over the internet, especially since we were going to Mexico, and country that I had never been to before. My husband said that Mexico is such a popular destination, and that most sites would advertise the good locations. In either case, I booked us a package flight and hotel all-inclusive deal through expedia.com. I choose to go with expedia.com because they are a well-advertised company, and I figure they would weed out all the bad or seedy hotels. We also chose our hotel based on the star rating, and went with a 4 star hotel. We could have gone 5 stars for $50 more dollars a night, but decided that 4 stars would be good for us! The flight was easy, the hotel was great, and our stay was perfect. We got a good deal, and now I know what to expect when booking a package deal.

The only problem we had with planning the rehearsal dinner at the Cheesecake factory was that many of our friends and family from out of town did not know where the mall was, so several people got lost and were late. The manager at the Cheesecake Factory was super helpful and offered to speak to the lost guests over the phone and giving them directions. I think she went beyond the expectations of what a restaurant manager is expected to do, but we were so happy she helped out! They had placed tables together for us, and they are great about accommodating big groups. I personally like the Cheesecake Factory because I think they have a great menu, and the servings are huge. Finally, I think everyone loves this place because of the cheesecake. We pre-ordered two cheesecakes, one strawberry and one chocolate, for our guests.

We read about West Wood in the features section of a newspaper, and they seemed to have good reviews so we made an appointment to speak with them. I went here with my fiancé to look at wedding invitations. We both felt that our invitations were important, because we were sending them not only to friends but to family members as well. We wanted them to look nice, and also to be of a nice enough quality that people could tell we were having a wedding and not just a regular party. We both loved most of the samples that we saw at West Wood Paper Company. They customized our order, and they delivered on the product they promised. Really professional, really talented, and also incredible smart when it comes to designing wedding cards. I was so happy we found out about them.

My stepmother offered to pay for my bouquet and the flowers at my wedding as a wedding present, which was very generous and nice of her. We went into the consultation together, and looked at hundreds of flowers options we could have for our wedding. They have binders filled with hundreds of bouquet options! I liked the idea of having a simple bouquet of white lilies, and then having my bridesmaids carry really colorful and cascading bouquets. I think the staff had great suggestions and tips for us, including the decision to order flowers that were in-season for the centerpieces. I also liked the idea of having each member of the wedding party have a small boutonnière.

Pier 1 is a great place to pick up cute things for your house, and when things go on sale, they really go on sale! We found these really cute glass candleholders at Piers 1, and we decided that they would make cute party favors for the guests. It was less than $2 per candleholder. The glass candleholders were about three inches high, with small details on the glass, and they came in shades of pink, blue, green, and yellow. At first we wanted to get all the candleholders in yellow, but they didn’t have enough in stock. We finally decided that a mixture of the colors would be fine, because it would add more color to the party. We debated on where we would leave the favors, and finally decided to set up a table at the front of the restaurant with a small “thank you” note inside each candleholder. We wrote out each card by hand, which I think was appreciated.

We actually had the cake picked out before we had the reception place chosen! Luckily, the restaurant we picked let us bring in our own cake, which was a good thing because I was already in love with the cake design and flavor we had chosen. We chose Taylor’s Bakery because they have such a great reputation, they’ve been featured in a few newspapers, and also the cakes taste just incredible. We wanted a three-tier cake decorated with bright yellow flowers, and we discussed all this with Matt, the baker. He was a great person to work with, and he understood our vision of a cake right away. The cake was so fresh and tasty. They promise that they bake the cake the day before the wedding, and I really believe that they do!

This was where we found the veil that I would use for my wedding, along with the bridesmaids dresses, and also the dress that my mother would wear to the wedding. This is a very typical bridal store. Unlike the Bridal Outlet where I bought my dress, this place was very well organized and the staff was very friendly and professional. We specifically went to their store because they were having a trunk sale, and we were able to buy the bridesmaids’ dresses for really cheap. I wanted my bridesmaids’ to be in simple dresses, and I wanted the dresses to be yellow, which was what we found. We went because of the trunk sale, but they always seem to have a section of discounted dresses. I bought my veil here because it was on sale, and I’m really happy we went here.

This is a great place if you like Dim Sum, and I think the Great Wall has one of the best Dim Sum menus in all of Indianapolis. We chose this location for the bridal shower because we were going to be a big group, and we would need enough space for at least twenty people. This is also one of my favorite restaurants in the area, and I always associate it with good memories and celebrations. We made reservations, and the manager and staff were great about accommodating such a large group of women! When we explained that it was for a bridal shower they even let some of us come in early and decorate the table. They even set up a smaller table for gifts, which was really helpful. They also helped come up with a menu for people who don’t normally eat Chinese food, so that everyone could find something that they liked.

I brought my mother here, and she hated it. She found it to be very disorganized. I loved it. Once I figured out the system of how they organized their dresses, I simply looked for what I wanted. It took me less than an hour to find three dresses that I was ready to buy. The only thing I don’t like about the Bridal Outlet are the hours that they’re open: they close early during the week, they’re closed on Sunday, and I think it would have been easier if they would have stayed open to 9pm on a Friday night. I had to take a half-day off of work to get to the store and try on dresses.