Nayara's reviews

My sister made the decision to have my bachelorette part at Guido’s. We took a private area on the second level. We had a really good time. It’s a very modern-looking restaurant, and it’s pretty laid-back. If you want a place to throw back a few and get a little wild, Guido’s is not that place. We didn’t do any drinking, nor did we have naughty gifts. Knowing the temperament of many of my bridesmaids, we didn’t need a place to cut loose. There was jazz playing in the background, which added a touch of elegance to the evening. They let us bring balloons and tie them to the chairs. There was plenty of room for all of us. The pizza was great, and the price was very reasonable.

We used Homestyle Bakery after visiting just about every other bakery in the city. They were almost half the price of all the other professional bakeries. What a relief! They didn’t have a very formal process for choosing the cake. There’s a small area in the corner of the small shop to sit down with the baker. I would have liked a more formal process to have the assurance that everything would go according to plan. The baker made a few notes and put them in a folder. The cake tasted great, and they didn’t charge us for little extras, like using 2 flavors, and turning the layers in contrasting directions. Believe it or not, another bakery wanted to charge us an extra $50 for each of those requests. They delivered the cake to Murfreesboro, TN for an extra $30. It showed up in tact, but it was considerably darker than the color I requested. That was my only complaint. I would definitely recommend them as a vendor – just be sure to let them know if you’re particular about your cake’s color.

The Holiday Inn seemed an unlikely choice for our reception, but being on a limited budget, we were looking for a bargain, so we checked it out. I fell in love with the ballroom. I was determined to have a real ballroom feel – plush carpets, and large chandeliers. Their ballroom fulfilled these requirements, and they were considerably cheaper than any of the other venues we had looked at, so we booked them. The manager’s name was Bila. My husband was determined not to let any detail slip through the cracks, so we called and met with Bila often. We got the sense early on that they had not dealt with a function like ours before. The hotel’s linen was wrinkled and cheap-looking. The tablecloths came in only a couple of colors, and none of them were floor-length. When we asked for a recommendation for a linen company, they didn’t know of anyone. I found this strange for a hotel that hosts events such as this as often as they do. Bila was always polite, but often seemed too busy to really devote one-on-one attention to us. He realized early on that we were not going to let any details slide, but we had to stay on him. There was smoking allowed in the lounge right down the hall from the ballroom. We were concerned that this would seep into the ballroom, and we asked them to keep that door closed. They complied. The meal they served was very good, however, we were not allowed to use an outside caterer. The surroundings were not ideal, but once everyone made it into the ballroom, it served us very well.

We used Stewart’s for our tablecloth, candelabra, cake stand and column rental. Unlike a couple of other rental companies we visited, Stewart’s showroom was open, bright and inviting. They had their products clearly displayed, and the staff was friendly, open, and available for consultation every time we visited. They took as long as was necessary to consult with us about the details of our reception. The sales people were anxious to give helpful advice, and provide recommendations. They delivered the products on time, and everything looked absolutely great. I would wholeheartedly recommend them to anyone needing professional service and top quality products.

“Blossom” was a joy to work with. She runs a small flower shop out of her home. We were working with a limited budget, and she worked with us to find the most economical solutions to making our vision for our wedding a reality. She offered to paint our flowers in our wedding colors. It added just the right touch of individuality. She showed a genuine interest in helping to make our wedding memorable. She offered suggestions, but never attempted to influence us to make decisions we did not feel comfortable with. We never felt “sold to.” I would definitely recommend her to anyone wanting a personalized experience with their florist.

Firstly, the church was one of the most impressive and beautiful that I’ve ever seen – particularly the lobby. I’m quite sure the architects designed it with weddings in mind. The church’s wedding coordinator – Ann Null – was very organized and professional. She took an afternoon to meet with us to fully discuss all the church’s policies and procedures – and there were MANY. Several of the policies seemed to be designed to protect the church, rather than to give the bride and groom the best possible experience. They insisted that no pictures be taken during the wedding, so we have no photos of the actual ceremony. There were no photos allowed in the sanctuary at all, except 4 shots that were specified by the planner. The videographer was not allowed to set up a camera anywhere on the ground level. He could only operate from the balcony, and could not move around during the ceremony. This made it very difficult for him to get the shots he needed. I wish they had been a little more flexible with these policies. There must be creative ways to allow the professionals whose job it is to document the wedding to do their job without so many restrictions. As beautiful as the church was, I’m not sure I would have agreed to have the wedding there had I known they would be so inflexible with the photographer and videographer. That said, Ann Null was very efficient when it came to conducting the rehearsal. Some of my family members and friends found her a bit of a drill sergeant (Her husband refers to her as the wedding Nazi), but that’s probably exactly the disposition that’s needed when dealing with large wedding parties. She did an excellent job of keeping order. I would recommend the venue, but with a caveat – be prepared to sacrifice the documentation of your special day for the privilege of holding your ceremony at this magnificent venue.

I had used Thomas on a couple of occasions before the wedding. He was a little talkative, but I was always pleased with his work. A couple of months before the wedding, I asked him if he would be willing to do all the bridesmaids’ hair for the wedding day. He said he would be willing to do that. I told him I would prefer it if he would come to the church, rather than have everyone spend the whole day before the wedding at the beauty salon. He said he would be open to that. He also voluntarily offered to do my hair for free for bringing him a day’s worth of business. When the wedding week came, I contacted him to try and arrange a time for him to meet us at the church. He had decided that it was not worthwhile to come all the way to the church, and said he preferred to do the bridesmaids’ hair at his salon instead. My brother spent the entire day before the wedding ferrying my bridesmaids from out of town back and forth to the salon for their appointments. It added another layer of stress to that day that none of us needed. On top of that, he asked me to come to his salon the morning of the wedding to have my hair done. The salon was 45 minutes away from the church. I had to wake up at 6am to make sure he would be finished in time for me to be at the church by the time the wedding coordinator wanted me there. To top it all off, he charged me for the appointment, when he had previously offered not to. I have not been back to see him since then.





Using Zales was a smart decision on my (then) fiancé’s part. I chose the ring before we were engaged. When we went to pick out the ring, the saleslady seemed genuinely interested in not only making the sale, but participating in our engagement experience. We didn’t get the sense that she was jaded, and just wanted us to move on with the selection process. She let us take our time, and she seemed very happy for us. She explained the insurance and return policies very well. When we came in a few weeks after the wedding to get the rings cleaned, she remembered us, and greeted us with a smile. We actually saw her at the airport more than a year after we got married, and she recognized us then! We were very happy with our experience there.

Hiawatha Walker could not have been more pleasant and professional to work with. He was referred to us by a friend, and we’re so happy we found him. He worked with us to personalize a design that represented who we were as a couple. When we requested minor changes, he was more than willing to adjust the design to our specifications. Our wedding invitations were unique and beautiful. He worked with the printer for no additional charge to make sure the right paper was used to bring out the beauty of his design. We could not be happier with our decision to use Mr. Walker.

Using David’s Bridal seemed like the logical choice at the beginning of the planning process. I had bridesmaids coming from many different parts of the country, and I decided it would be easiest to use a dress shop that had a national presence. Unfortunately, their national presence could not compensate for their complete lack of organization, communication or attention to detail. My bridesmaids and I were given conflicting reports on David’s Bridal’s policy regarding taking measurements. At the Antioch, TN location, we were told that they would input each bridesmaid’s dress size into the computer, and that information would be available in their system no matter which store the dress was ordered in. This was not the case. Two bridesmaids were fitted in Tulsa, OK, and had planned to come back and order their dress a couple of months before the wedding. When they returned, there was no record of their fitting. I went to the Antioch, TN David’s Bridal to have several bridesmaids fitted, and when we returned one month later, there was no record of their fitting in the computer. I gave them the option to mix and match tops and skirts. There was no record of the tops and skirts they had chosen either. The store was extremely busy every time we stopped in, and there never seemed to be quite enough help there to make each bride feel she was getting a personalized experience. They told us the first time we visited that we had our own “planner,” but there was no record of that “planner” having been assigned to us the next time we visited. In fact, it seemed that there was a completely different staff present just 2 months later. My bridesmaids all commented on how disorganized and unprofessional the chain seemed to be. Unfortunately, I cannot recommend David’s Bridal as a vendor.