My hubby got my engagement ring here, and they made him feel comfortable and secure with both his nerves and his purchase! They were equally wonderful with our wedding bands, and we were happy to give them the business. A very down to earth store with a wide price range and beautiful jewelry.

Rabbi Jill was the only Rabbi we met with, and we just loved loved loved her. She was so sweet - just a really warm, loving presence. Although she's a Rabbi she performs many interfaith weddings, and had no problems with us customizing her service (my hubby is half Jewish and was brought up with barely any religion, so we didn't want it to be "too Jewy" if you know what I mean). She even comes with her own huppah (although we ended up not using it)! We not only enjoyed working with her in building our ceremony - and appreciated her input and feedback - but we loved the questions she asked us that dealt with our future and what we love about each other. We honestly spoke about things that we have never broached before (like what part religion would play in our future kid's lives) and also learned what we respect, appreciate, and love in each other. She took our words and crafted a beautiful, personal "speech" for us in our ceremony. Since neither one of us had a relationship with her prior to hiring her, I thought what she said about us might be generic. Thankfully, it was anything but. The reason Rabbi Jill doesn't get an A+ is because she forgot to have us sign our ketubah during the ceremony! We know we're the weird ones in deciding to sign the ketubah during the ceremony (we didn't want to do it before because we weren't seeing each other prior to the ceremony, and we didn't want to do it after because we wouldn't have enough time for the photos), but it was passed over and she left without doing it. She realized it that night and called and apologized (she also accidentally spilled red wine on it), which was nice. We had our siblings/witnesses sign it separately and then we went to her apartment this weekend to sign it (she lives 3 blocks away from us). It made it less special, but it still doesn't taint everything else she's done.

Harley Abrevaya is a dear friend, and is just getting her wedding event business off the ground. However, I have worked with her for years as she's managed movie premieres for Universal Pictures, and I knew that we'd be in good hands with her running the show. Between getting married in a public park (we have a permit, but it doesn't allow you to kick people out of your space), getting all of our photos done during the cocktail hour, getting (and keeping!) our wacky families where they were supposed to be, and dealing with all of our vendors, she had a lot to handle. She's forceful and commanding but does it with a smile and is so effective.

I spent hours (days?) looking online at invites, which were another thing I didn't really "care" about. We had a modest budget but I disliked a lot of stuff out there. I found Etsy and realized I could get custom invites for the money we had to spend, and I was sold. I put out an Alchemy bid (you post what you're looking for, and sellers contact you) and immediately regretted it when I got back close to 100 responses! It was overwhelming - and I took great pains in selecting Kate. I didn't know I hit the jackpot! We exchanged a few emails so she could get some details, and I gave her great direction in saying "We want something fun, but not too over the top. And it should still be formal, but not boring. And we think we want the Brooklyn Bridge in there somewhere." So helpful. She came back with this: http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=12355245
She worked through revisions for us and even reprinted some items that didn't meet her standards. She was so awesome, and we got such a huge response from our guests, that we asked her to do our table cards and signage too, which were just perfect.

In full disclosure, Sara is my cousin. BUT if she wasn't I would have hired her anyway! She worked at the Trish McEvoy counter for years and now exclusively does freelance work, with bridal being the bulk of her business. I made things difficult by not bringing her any photos to the trial. Instead, I told her I didn't want heavy eyes (I figured I'd be crying all day) and I didn't want red lips (I had an accidental '40s look going, which I loved but wanted to work against with the make-up), and that was it. She nailed the trial and the make-up on my wedding day lasted a good 9 hours. I've never looked this glamorous (but natural) in my whole freaking life.

We met with 3 photographers and while the hubby leaned toward Kate right away I could have gone with someone else. Thankfully, her reasonable package, great personality, and beautiful pictures/albums had us make the right choice. We got our wedding photos back last week and I can't stop looking at them. What she caught - those emotional, funny, energized, tearful, exciting moments - were both things I never would have seen (my Mom and stepfather holding hands behind their backs) and ones that I would not have wanted to miss. The candids were unbelievable, and most of the time we didn't know she was there! She also took amazing portraits - the spots she used as backgrounds in DUMBO, and the "poses" she had us in ended up being so freaking fantastic I might have a wall of 30 framed wedding photos in my house.

Colleen is the only DJ we met with, partly because we got so excited by her 12-pg PDF of all the songs she will and won't play (http://www.popshopdjs.com/music.html). We felt we were on the same page right away, and loved her music knowledge (although she doesn't come off as a music snob), her personality and the mixes she put together on her radio show ( http://www.eastvillageradio.com/modules.php?name=evrshow& ;showid=76). I loved that she asked for the mix of ages of the guests so she knew what she was working with, and that she has a policy to not leave the booth unattended (we were worried about some drunk friends/relatives getting a hold of the mic). Nobody got off the dance floor the entire night! One of our friends leaned over at the end of the night and said "Best DJ ever" while many others kept commenting us on our playlist. Of course, we gave the credit back to her!

Kerry Quade was our savior. We met with 3 florists before her (which wasn't a lot, but we found our venue on the 2nd try and our rabbi & DJ on the 1st) and all were nightmares for different reasons, which was frustrating because I didn't really care about flowers so much. Honestly, the space was so great I didn't need a lot of decorating, didn't want to spend a lot of money, and know nothing about flowers. While other florists tortured us with a 90 min+ consultation (forcing us to look at picture books and commit to different things that we knew nothing about), Kerry asked for details about us as a couple, the wedding, and our budget in a 30 minute meeting. A week later I had a proposal which was just.....us. To a tee. When I asked to lower the cost a bit, she helped cut things. She was a dream. The day of the wedding, I didn't see her or her assistants - everything was just done! Like little elves came and made the space so colorful and beautiful. I'm still getting compliments on the centerpieces and the bouquets.

I don't have enough words to express how happy we were with Bubby's and everyone that worked there. JoJo, the event coordinator, responds to emails in under 24 hours (usually) and is nothing short of sweet, friendly, and accommodating. Carlos, the head manager, took care of us from the first time we walked in the door in February (he saw us looking at the catering menu before we chose our dinner entrees and offered us a tour) until the very last guest left the night of our wedding. Since JoJo had to have foot surgery last month, Carlos took the reigns that night and boy, did he deliver. He made sure we were fed, kept us on schedule, and moved the reception along smoothly and seamlessly. I was a tiny bit nervous to find out JoJo wouldn't be coordinating for our wedding, but he went above and beyond. The guests are not only raving about the food (which was freaking awesome!), the views, and the space - but also about the service. This was my absolute dream spot and it surpassed all expectations. Bubby's treats you and your guests like family.

I can't say enough about working with Kirsten at CastleBride. Until I found their site, I was going to be a veiless bride, as I hated the traditional look and thought that birdcages were too...birdcagey. I was able to work with Kirsten to create a cusomized, affordable veil that was complimented more than my dress! As someone with no design skills, Kirsten was a huge help in taking stock of my venue, dress and colors to get a sense of what I'd want and just nailed it. 4 months after my wedding date, my Dad's fiance asked if she could wear it at her wedding! It's the one piece from my wedding that I'll pass down through generations.