aha106's reviews

Hiring Stephanie to make our wedding cake was one of the easiest decisions we made in the wedding planning process. We had our cake tasting with her and were immediately impressed. Her cakes are beautiful and delicious, and she uses the best quality ingredients out there - decadent Valhrona chocolate, Scharffenberger ganache, Petaluma farm fresh eggs, and fresh organic raspberries, to name a few. We ended up ordering two flavors for our wedding cake - dark chocolate cake w/ chocolate ganache and white cake w/ mango-passionfruit bavarian cream. Stephanie's cake designs have a modern flair yet still remain elegant and timeless. And starting at approx. $6/slice, I truly felt like we got a "luxury wedding cake" without the luxury prices.

Stephanie is extremely talented. I brought in a few pictures of cakes I liked and told her what I had in mind, and she provided me with a sketch that nailed every detail and was even better than I had imagined. She responded quickly to my inquiries and was sweet and professional. I just wish we had more cake leftover from the wedding because I was barely able to enjoy it myself!

Natalini Flowers provided the most beautiful orchid centerpieces for our wedding. They were both modern and creative and were everything I could have asked for. Unfortunately, there are many reasons why I'm unable to give them the full five stars they would otherwise deserve:

(1) They are hard to get a hold of and are not very responsive to emails or phone messages. It took me one email, one phone message, and another phone call before I was finally able to get someone to talk to and set up a first meeting. Even after that, it always took several calls before I was able to contact someone. I'd prefer to not have to chase vendors down if I am paying for their services.

(2) They wouldn't give me an estimate up front during our initial consultation. It wasn't until after our first meeting that they emailed me a contract and I discovered how astronomical their prices are. Although I was able to negotiate the contract to fit our budget by cutting out some unnecessary arrangements, it would have been nice to know what kind of prices I was dealing with from the beginning so I could make my decisions accordingly.

(3) Despite my giving pictures to Crispy (the owner) of bouquets I liked, I was a bit disappointed in my bridal bouquet. For one thing, it had roses in it (I hate roses) and way too much green filler. It didn't ruin the wedding, but I just wish she had followed the pictures I provided to her.

(4) We were charged for rentals we never received. At our final meeting two weeks before the wedding, we made some adjustments to our original contract including adding two pedestals for the ceremony arrangements, so that they could be re-used for the reception. This was done verbally and we were subsequently charged an additional $175 to rent the pedestals, which we paid along with our balance. We never received a revised contract after our final meeting reflecting the new additions. On the day of the wedding there were no pedestals. When we followed up with a phone call the next day we were told that since the pedestals weren't written in the contract they must have been overlooked. However they did not offer to refund our money, claiming that they had included extra things (ie. extra flowers for the centerpieces, although we did not ask for them) and therefore it made up for the missing rentals. This upsets me because it's one thing if they wanted to throw in some extra arrangements for us but we never asked for them in the first place and they can't say that those extras justify the fact that they forgot to rent pedestals that we already paid for.

In retrospect, if I could do it all again, I would probably still go back to Natalini just because I really did love the centerpieces and ceremony arrangements and I don't think any other florist could have had the same vision. However, I would definitely make sure to GET EVERYTHING IN WRITING, from my choice of flowers to the tiniest details, and not leave anything open to interpretation.

After researching dozens of wineries in both Napa and Sonoma, we couldn't have asked for a more perfect location for our wedding than Viansa. It had everything we were looking for in a wine country wedding: stunning views of the surrounding vineyards, hills, and wetlands; a spacious tented pavilion that could easily accommodate our 120+ guests; gourmet on-site catering; and a dedicated wedding coordinator who assisted with the planning process and ensured that everything went smoothly the day of. We received so many compliments from our guests during and after the wedding about how beautiful the location was and how delicious the food tasted.

Brooke, our coordinator, was a pleasure to work with - she was organized, friendly, and patient, especially with all our last-minute changes to the guest count and menu choices just days before the wedding. The service staff at Viansa was also extremely friendly and professional, and the service was outstanding. They ensured that all the events of the night moved according to schedule, while still remaining unobstrusive. Brooke and her staff must have worked hundreds of weddings at Viansa and they are clearly good at what they do.

We have absolutely no regrets about picking Viansa for our wedding and would definitely recommend it to anyone looking to get married in wine country.

A MUST VISIT FOR ALL BRIDES-TO-BE! I went everywhere from David's Bridal to Neiman Marcus to find my wedding gown. And out of them all, Amy Kuschel had the BEST service, the BEST ambiance, and a great selection of dresses. Although I ended up not buying my dress here, I loved every experience I had in this store and would recommend it to any bride.

For a couture dress, Amy's dresses are priced VERY reasonably, considering each is made to order to fit your body - no additional alteration fees are necessary. Also, the dresses are for the most part customizable - if you like a particular style but not the fabric, they will work with you to pick a fabric that you like. And if you are trying to avoid the cliche strapless gown look, there are a bunch of different options for adding straps to your dress. I just wish the website had more pictures of actual people wearing the dresses instead of just sketches.

My bridal consultant, Amber, was extremely patient during my entire two hour appointment. As soon as we walked in, I was asked for my shoe size, and there was a pair of heels in my size waiting for me inside the spacious dressing room, as well as a half slip so I didn't have to keep flashing Amber everytime she helped me into a dress.

You only go gown shopping once in your life (hopefully), so even if you don't plan on buying your dress here, make an appointment and check this place out so you know how gown shopping really should be.

Cute shop, great service. What I liked about this shop is that it is by appointment only. I felt like I had the whole store to myself when I went in, and I really enjoyed the personal service. My bridal consultant was Cathy, and she was extremely helpful and patient. She was also good at following up promptly after my visit. The prices range from $2k and up, and although there isn't a huge selection of designers, they have a good relationship with each of them and know what customizations each can or cannot do. So you can really end up getting the customized dress that you want from this store.

I have mixed feelings about this place. They have a great selection of dresses, and are one of the few stores that carry Jenny Lee, which is what drew me there in the first place. However, all the dresses are in the back, so we can't actually browse through the racks, which is kind of annoying. Your selection is limited to what the bridal consultants bring to you, based on what you tell them you're looking for. The dressing rooms are the most annoying - for a store that sells such high-end gowns, I would expect the dressing rooms to be just as nice. It really did feel like being at Macy's, with the fluorescent lighting and shuttered doors. And although they take appointments, it seemed really crowded and impersonal inside.

The one redeeming factor about this store is that they sold me a Jenny Lee sample, which wasn't otherwise included in the sample sale that was going on. I felt a little bit pressured to buy that day (the sale ended that day so I had to make my decision on the spot, without the input from my mom or bridesmaids), which made me feel skeptical about their sales tactics. But ultimately (and after a major dry-clean) I think I've made out with my dream dress at half price, so I can't complain.