Orbit Party Rentals was very easy to work with. Everything was taken care of over the phone and via e-mail. They were okay with me changing my rental order a million different times, and promptly gave me an updated rental quote. All the linens arrived on time in great condition. They apparently work a lot with the Clarke Estate (where my wedding was held). Their prices are also very reasonable.

Mario's is an excellent catering company. The food is delicious, Danielle is extremely easy to work with, and the price is awesome! This was the only way we were able to afford dinner and a full premium open bar for 200 people and stay within our budget. I highly recommend this vendor!

I absolutely LOVED having my wedding at the Clarke Estate!

Pros:
I saved some money on the rental fee since my brother-in-law is a resident of Santa Fe Springs
Tamra was so easy to work with
They allow you to bring in your own caterer and alcohol (which was a huge selling point since it made our 200 guest list affordable)
They have a big parking lot for your guests with free parking
You can have your ceremony and reception at the venue. All outdoors location.
The venue is very secluded so the public will not bother you. No wedding crashers.
We used the courtyard for cocktail hour
Beautiful bamboo garden, fountain, red gates, courtyard, etc for pictures.

Cons:
Party must end at 10 pm since it is owned by the city. (We just had an after party at the hotel.)
Must use a DJ from a list supplied by the Clarke Estate (We booked Ray Tomlinson, who was great)
All outdoors location. We had no backup plan if it rained. (We were married on 5/24/09 and luckily had perfect weather!)
Gets a little chilly at night (We had the heaters out but some did not work. We warned our guests to bring a sweater. Most people were warm though by being out on the dance floor.)
No nice hotel near the venue for your out-of-town guests (We stayed at the Downtown Long Beach Hilton and rented a 57 passenger motor coach to shuttle our guests to and from the venue...didn't want anyone drinking and driving)

None of these cons really mattered to us. This venue has everything we were looking for in a ceremony/reception site. We booked the venue immediately after finding it on the internet. I HIGHLY recommend this venue! But hurry since it books up fast!

I worked with Duke for my wedding. I chose this florist since my husband grew up in the City of Commerce, and they received great reviews on PW. I was a little worried throughout the planning process because the "contract" was literally Duke's handwritten notes on a torn piece of paper, instead of a spreadsheet on the computer. When he gave me the final estimate, the math did not add up. After an hour of trying to decipher what was written on the piece of paper, I called Duke to straighten out the estimate. Duke was very easy to work with and adjusted the price immediately.

The flowers were absolutely amazing the day of the wedding! I loved every bouquet and every arrangement! Duke got my color combo perfectly (yellow, red and orange). The only thing I would do differently would be to give Duke a swatch of fabric of the bridesmaids dresses. Instead of a "buttercup yellow" ribbon like he promised, he tied the bouquets and flower girl basket with a "lemon yellow." I probably could of made a nice flower girl basket myself, but then again I can't complain b/c he threw that in for free.

Duke's prices were unbeatable. (He probably cuts costs by not typing up the contract!) The flowers were amazing! Everything was set up by the time I arrived at the venue. I would highly recommend City of Commerce Flowers, as long as you know to expect a handwritten quote and are able to go through the quote with a fine tooth comb since I did find several mistakes throughout the planning process. I would use City of Commerce Flowers again in the future.

Minh was actually unavailable for my wedding date, but I booked my wedding makeup with her associate Edith. Edith was amazing! She was very professional...showed up at my apartment exactly on time, ready with all her supplies to make me and my bridesmaids beautiful for the day. Her prices are very reasonable, especially for doing on-location makeup...even includes the false eyelashes, airbrush makeup, and a small sample of lip color for touch-ups. She did the makeup for myself (the bride), three of my bridesmaids, and my flower girl. She made us all look very natural and very beautiful! I HIGHLY recommend Edith as a makeup specialist for any special occasion!

Samantha was awesome!!! I had so much trouble finding someone to do my hair since my wedding was on a Sunday and on Memorial Day weekend. I actually had three different hair ladies cancel on me a month before my wedding. I found Samantha on projectwedding.com and immediately called her. She was available for the Memorial day weekend so I set up a trial. She is fantastic! I brought in a couple of pictures of a hairstyle I liked...she made my hair look EXACTLY like the picture (I've never had a hairstylist accomplish this before). I booked her immediately for the wedding.

She showed up exactly on time at my apartment at 7:30 am. She is extremely fast also with the updos. She did my hair, my five bridesmaids, and my flower girl with extra time to spare. Every one of my girls loved their hair! She gave everyone a unique hairstyle, but with a cohesive look.

I HIGHLY recommend Samantha. Her prices are reasonable and she does on-location hair and makeup. She is very professional and very personable! Excellent hairstylist!!!