labre's reviews

We used Jay to make our honeymoon accomodations but decided to use miles for our airline tickets. We were attracted to Unforgettable Honeymoons as their website offered excellent prices for a few of the resorts that we were looking for in St. Lucia. Jay made the process very easy, especially as neither my husband nor I live in Portland. We paid the deposit ($300) early on in the process, and then put down the remainder about a month or so before our trip. About a week before the wedding, Jay mailed information about our stay, vouchers for transportation to and from the resort, and extra information about travel in St. Lucia. He was always quick to respond to phone calls and e-mails. His prices were so good, I would have to use him again!

We were originally supposed to stay at the Hotel Vintage Plaza on our wedding night; the two hotels are both part of the Kimpton Hotels group. Unfortunately, due to some mishaps on the part of the Hotel Vintage Plaza staff and reservation department, we were unable to stay there and were transferred over to a King Spa Suite at the Hotel Monaco. Despite all of the issues with the reservations, at the end of the day I feel that our problems were dealth with accordingly and that we were adequately compensated for the problems. The Hotel Monaco was lovely! The room was large and beautiful, with a deep whirlpool bathtub large enough for two and a very comfortable bed. The hotel staff was incredibly professional and helpful, and even came and tidied the room up after my bridesmaids and I used it to get ready. If I was looking for a higher end hotel in Portland, I would stay at the Hotel Monaco again and would consider a Kimpton Hotel in another city as well.

The music at the reception ended up being exactly what I was looking for. I think I would have liked the band to have a more extensive song list, though they certainly had quite a bit of variety in their song choices. We were looking for more of a 50s big band/swing style, and Kim Ralphs fit the bill. I had requested more up-tempo songs, which they played, and I also appreciated that they stayed away from our “do not play” list, which included some rather popular songs. I think overall they are more of a “mature” sound (as my husband and I are in our mid-20s there were not a ton of familiar songs) though our guests danced all night and enjoyed it. They did have a much more full sound for the amount of persons in the band, and this surprised both of us (in a good way, of course).

At the beginning, I had some difficulties in dealing with Karren and Cameron (her secretary). It seemed to be difficult to contact them and get a quick reply, though I stuck it out as I had heard good recommendations. In the end, I am glad that we did! She had us out for a tasting, and I thought the cakes to be very good. However, the cake on my wedding day tasted ten times better than that, and many of our guests continue to compliment us on the cake a month later and say that it was the best wedding cake they had tasted! Also, I changed my idea for a cake design about two weeks before the wedding, and all I had to do was e-mail her a picture with my idea and on my wedding day the cake was exactly as I had imagined. Also, as Karren only does one wedding per week her cake was amazingly fresh (way better than I have had from some of the more high volume bakeries in town). The price was very reasonable, especially for a wedding cake. I could eat her cakes all day long and would definitely recommend her!

I could not imagine having my reception anywhere else after my experience at the University Club. Granted, you have to have a member willing to sponsor your wedding, and it is not an inexpensive place to hold an event. However, it was an incredibly low stress venue, mostly due to the amazing event coordinator Shelly Carlisle. There was no set up or tear down that was needed, which was very important to me. The chairs, linens, and china are stunning and so no rentals are needed unless you want something very specific. The food was excellent (we did a plated dinner as opposed to buffet), and we were easily able to have passed appetizers and two dinner choices. At the end of the night, Shelly even had a box with a split of champage, fruit, cheese and cookies for my husband and I to take to the hotel with us! I could not have imaged the reception going any more smoothly and loved my experience with the University Club.

I found this vendor a bit difficult to work with, partly because of the many names that this company seems to have. At the end of the day, they were reasonably priced and on time. However, I felt like we took what was quite possibly the most circuitous route possible between the church and the reception, which still confuses me. The limo was in okay condition, but by no means spotlessly clean or brand new. I got the impression that when I called the company to discuss pickup times and locations, that the phone actually rang to the owner’s house as he seemed to be doing the dishes at the time. Overall I do not have any specific complaints about this vendor, but I also do not know if I would recommend them or use them again in the future. My gut tells me that I would probably go with another limo driver if the option was available.

I should start by saying that I dealth with Marti, the owner of Burkhardt’s, and I loved her! I felt very at ease with her from the beginning and appreciated that she seemed to listen to me and not take it poorly when I asked for changes to be made. I had an initial consultation where we talked about the overall look and feel of the event, and the colors, and I picked out many ideas that I liked from magazines. Once I had my dress and more things finalized, we met again and did something similar, though this time she pulled flowers to give me a better idea of what I would be getting. At the end of the day I loved the flowers and thought my bouquet was gorgeous and absolutely exactly what I was looking for. We ordered a lot of flowers from Marti (rehearsal dinner, church and reception) and I think we got a lot more for the price from her than we could have from many vendors. I found her easy to work with and would use her again for an event in a heartbeat.

I picked this curch because it is absolutely beautiful. Neither my husband nor I live in Portland, so it is not a parish that we attend regularly. It was a beautiful wedding. There are two wedding coordinators that are affilitated with the church; you are assigned to one as part of the package. We worked with Sue Duyck, and she was excellent. She took the time to take us around the church (on multiple occasions, no less) to determine where we were going to place items and how the ceremony would go. She also met with me a week before the wedding to go over the readings, etc for the ceremony as well as coming to the rehearsal and the day of to help us out. She was a pleasure to work with, and I think this is the most beautiful Catholic church in Portland.

I ended up loving my makeup on my wedding day. I had gone for a trial about a month before, and to be honest, I wasn’t a fan. I think part of it was that I wanted a bit more definition in the eye, though at the time I was assured that she would do more on my wedding day. So, I was a bit apprehensive when I showed up that morning. However, my makeup artist, Athena, had pulled out a book with a look that she thought I would like – and I loved it! My bridesmaids also got their makeup done there and looked beautiful. My only complaint is that there were some issues with pricing. We were given one quote for the bridesmaids originally but after that they kept trying to up the price. Needless to say, we inisisted on paying the original price and it worked out, but I would be careful to make sure this doesn’t happen to you as well!

Overall, I have no complaints about the Men’s Warehouse. We used them because we had groomsmen from many different states, so it seemed to be the easiest option as they could be fitted at home. The quality of the tuxes was excellent, and there were no missing / incorrect / damaged items that had to be dealt with the day before the wedding (thankfully!). Pickup was easy and I think they gave us a good price; this was helped by using some of the many coupons that I had received at the wedding show or in the mail. I think the biggest downfall what that they did not have a ton of selection for what we were looking for, which was a black and white tuxedo. I chose this vendor as the word from other brides was that the quality of Men’s Warehouse tuxes was better than those from Mr. Formal, and I would definitely recommend using Men’s Warehouse to a friend.