minea52's reviews

First of all my dress had arrived late so I was a little worried about having enough time to go through the several potential fittings to make the dress just right for me. The second challenge was my dress needed some pretty significant alterations once it arrived. I had ordered the smallest size since I am a size 0 or 2, but when the dress arrived (just a month away from the wedding - so no way it is going back), the bust was way disproportionate to the waist. What 5 foot 4, 115 lb woman has a size 38 bust, and a 24 inch waist? Must be a designer's dream!!! So needless to say I needed a really talented and quick working seamstress. Kim Trickey from the Bridal Loft was my savior. The bust in the dress had some piping, which she knew would be a bit tricky to work with, but was willing to give it a try, trusting she could make it work. She knew exactly what to do with the bust, and how to take the waist out a bit, and hem it up from the floor. The end result was great. A bit more than I had thought I would spend - around $230, but well worth every dollar!

Stephen Hamilton of Remembrance Photographer is a great artist and was so easy to work with. He is a relaxed and modest photographer, which can be a rare find among artists. He and his partner Masonia were able to capture the memories of our day perfectly with us barely knowing they were there. He worked discreetly, not overshadowing or forcing poses. He shot over 500 photos of us in a little over 7 hours. They arrived at the hotel while we were getting ready in our individual rooms. We initially did some posed photos with the group and all, but we ultimately loved the photojournalistic style of photography he primarily uses. All of their photo packages come with albums. Seven months later we still need to select our photos for our coffee table style albums, but he tells us there is no hurry. I appreciate this.

What a fun, laid back, stylish and unique venue Bridgeport was. We and the groom's mother selected Bridgeport because it was a classic Portland site. It is in the heart of a happening place in Portland and a brewery is so Portland and the Northwest! We loved the set up of the Heritage room, there was our own bar, they had the tables nicely arranged, and provided a big screen and disc player for our slideshow. The service was great. The catering menu was wonderful. We were at the Bridgeport a couple weeks after the event and one of the catering managers remembered us. He offered to cover our meal that afternoon. That was unexpected and just showed how the company goes the extra step to make sure their guests are happy.

We learned of Rhythm Method from our caterer as we were beginning to realize this world of the wedding business is really small. Recommendations by various vendors were usually good ones. John Malarkey, is the manager of this several piece band. They played the funky, dance provoking, old school music we really desired. We were able to sit in on a band practice when deciding if we wanted to go with them. We found them to be really easygoing, professional musicians. They negotiated a very reasonable price for us. The only drawback (which had nothing to do with them) was our program was a little behind and we only ended up having them play for a couple hours, versus the 4 we had arranged for. Our guest loved them, everyone was dancing and having a great time! Just wished we had more time!!!

In selecting a caterer for our wedding at the Chinese Gardens we needed to choose from a list of preferred caterers that they had worked with in the past and would be familiar with the unique features and needs of the Garden. For one, there is no portable water, so all food would have to be brought in, and most dining ware would have to be disposable. We really wanted to work with a caterer that considered the effects of their work on the environmental. We loved the little details Vibrant Table offered us. We had these perfectly theme bamboo plates, had the salmon grilled on the sidewalk just outside the garden, were able to use large jugs for water and lemonade (rather than individual bottles which would be wasteful). We were so pleased with the excellent style, service, unique menu, and tasty food of Vibrant Table Catering. We and our guests were particularly impressed with the wasabi caesar salad and coconut sweet potatoes. Our catering manager Eric Sandstrom was amazing. He was very easy to communicate with and had many suggestions for various vendors. He suggested our band and our floral artist among many other details. Vibrant Table was efficient and thorough in all their communication and transactions. They even offered to pack up a meal for the bride and groom to make sure we had some food later in the night (in case we didn't eat while at the reception).

I first learned of Page's talent while in the waiting area of Vibrant Table catering. I was struck by the beauty and originality of the bouquets in the room. I had asked our caterer who did the flowers and he said Page, their floral artist did them and was really wonderful to work with. That day I found the perfect flower for my wedding bouquet, it would be the burnt orange Asiatic Lily I saw in one of the arrangements. Page was so great to work with. She is very creative and has a good eye for floral arrangements and décor. She was really helpful, even offering us tips for some DIY projects. She created the most beautiful bridal bouquet. It was a blend of asiatic lilies, orchids and more in vibrant colors - reds, oranges, yellows. She was easy and patient to work with considering I wasn't too familiar with flowers and arrangements. She was good at suggesting looks and styles since I wasn't too sure of what I wanted.

We were so lucky to be able to have our ceremony and reception at the Portland Classical Chinese Garden. It is such a unique, beautiful and serene place in the middle of the city. It was the perfect site for us. We were very pleased with our experience in working with Gary, the event coordinator. He was really helpful and was always available to us. Both Gary and Sarah gave us tremendous support on the day of the rehearsal and the day of the wedding. They helped direct bridal party and family members in a calm and friendly manner. The only downfalls to using this venue were we needed to be done at 11pm since there is a city noise ordinance, and we were only able to have beer and white wine (red wine and other colored drinks would stain the limestone) .

I met Diane at a makeup event at the Laura Mercier counter of the Nordstrom Lloyd Center. Before I chose her I had went through a couple of different makeup artists where the look they had created wasn't quite right for what I had envisioned for my wedding day look. I loved Diane. She was very experienced, professional, and knew what colors/shades and application would work for me and with my Italian features. She took her time and was very meticulous, which I really appreciated! I never felt like she was rushing me or the process, she was truly an artist at work. The first time she did my makeup it was the day of my bachelorette party. My look and the makeup held up even though it was a 95-degree day, and very warm night. The day of the wedding Diane came to hotel room to do my makeup. I loved the end result and the fabulous individual lashes she applied. That horrible pre-wedding nightmare of not being ready and looking hideous was in no way true. She was also very reasonably priced for her amazing service.

We had looked all over the malls in search of the perfect wedding ring. It is funny how you originally might think you want one particular style, and end up with something totally different, such was our experience in selecting our wedding rings. Prior to going to Joe Kassab's, we were not very impressed with any of the other jeweler's, they didn't seem that skilled, more or less they were just salespeople to us. But when we went into Joe's it felt different. We actually met Joe who designs many of the rings himself. We were able to talk with him about his work, diamonds and his small business. We decided to have a ring made we knew would be of high quality, and if there was anything not quite right we could come back and he would fix it as many times as necessary to make it right for us. We also chose to buy from Joe Kassab's because we would be supporting a small local business rather than a national chain. We ended up selecting a unique design with him. We did have to go back to have some simple work done to the ring (designing the perfect ring may take more than one shot), but he quickly made the changes and we ended up with a high quality, unique, and lovely ring. My husband also go this wedding band at Joe Kassab's. Joe has taken care of us very well.

Ruby is an extremely talented and creative woman! She is a one woman show operating Ruby Press out of her home. All her stationary (save the dates, invitations, thank you cards, envelopes, place cards, etc.) are hand crafted one-by one with love using her turn of the century letterpress machines. She uses soy based ink and tree-free paper, and considers the environment in every aspect of running her shop. She has an amazing sense of originality when it comes to her designs. She worked with us to design our Chinese Garden theme wedding stationary. We had so many compliments on the invitations. It set the tone for a very special, thoughtful and unique day our guests and we would experience.

Charlotte's was the first store I went to when looking for my wedding dress. A bridesmaid of mine had recommended them since she had such a good experience there for her own wedding. I loved the large size of the fitting rooms, I had a few friends with me when trying on gowns, and we weren't crammed at all. The fitting room attendant was very helpful, even pulled a few dresses I hadn't originally thought would suit me. To my surprise, I ended up buying one she suggested. In my process of searching for the perfect dress, I did go to nearly all the other wedding dress shops in town. Charlotte's was by far the best in terms of selection, room, comfort, and service. The only problem I had was my dress came in a month later than anticipated, seem to be an issue on the designer's end. This is why I rank it a 4, rather than a 5.