zanlee's reviews

Festive Fare is quite expensive so definitely look into buying in bulk somewhere. It's often cheaper. Cloth napkins were outrageous and they didn't have any I liked so I bought large paper napkins from the internet and tied them with pretty ribbon in a fan like shape and they were perfect. I don't think anyone missed having a real linen. In general, I did not prefer working with them but they are really your only option in the Charlottesville, Virginia area.

The service here was great. They gave us the attention we needed and special care even though we were not looking to spend very much money. The staff was helpful and friendly and made sure that we had just what we needed. We ended up with wonderful wedding bands for a reasonable price. I didn't think we'd be able to afford diamonds in my wedding band but they had just the right thing for me. Their extended warranty is fabulous.

ALC Copies in Charlottesville, Virginia is so much better than Kinko's! It's local and run by a great guy and his brother-in-law. I had all of my invitations and programs printed in black and white there and they were super cheap and great quality. He cut the invitations and was very helpful and gave me personal attention. It's a friendly atmosphere and I was able to trust him with such an important job. ALC Copies was very quick and efficient. Everything was done in a matter of 1-3 days.

This is the best website ever for cardstock and envelopes. Don't get ripped off for invitations. You can get more cardstock than you would ever need for your whole life and envelopes too then design your own invitation with Microsoft Publisher (download a free 30-day trial if you don't have it) and all you have to pay for is minimal printing cost and postage. We bought A2 envelopes and cut the 8.5 x 11 cardstock into 4 pieces for our invitations. Then we had plenty left over to print matching programs. There was still more leftover so I used them for thank-yous. I ended up with a coordinated look when I wasn't even trying. I had a few questions and emailed customer service and they were unbelievably prompt, helpful, friendly, and human. I felt like I was emailing a local copy shop, not some big website. They didn't treat me like my question was stupid or send me an automated response that I could have found on the FAQ page (which was thorough). The cost was great and we ordered enough to get free shipping. The only thing is that samples are expensive. They do give you a $6 coupon to place toward your order (only 1 per order ) but I accidentally forgot to use it. It was worth the money spent on samples to see the colors and make sure I liked them.

A Formal Affair in Warrenton, Virginia is great to work with and has a lovely new location. We rented 8 tuxedos from there (the groom's was free because we paid for at least 6) and it was pretty easy. It was the only place anywhere near Charlottesville, VA that we could find to rent brown tuxedos. The Calvin Klein was beautiful and they were very nice, high quality tuxedos. My husband decided to spring for the more expensive microfiber shirts and he was very glad. The wedding was on a Sunday and it was not a problem to pick them up Friday and return Monday morning. The only glitch was that we had ordered a bowtie for my dad instead of a long one so he'd be different from the groom and groomsmen. He was given a long tie and it wasn't discovered until it was too late. If possible, have everyone check their tuxedos to make sure everything is correct before you leave the store. Of course, you should really do this no matter where you rent them.

I ordered several hundred bulk roses from Sam's Club and they arrived the day I requested packaged well. They were a great deal, better than my florist could get. Beautiful flowers that looked good everywhere. After I ordered them I realized I should have had them delivered to my florist instead of my house so that I wouldn't have to drive them to the other side of town 3 days before the wedding. I e-mailed Sam's Club to ask about changing the shipping address since it was well in advance and I knew the flowers had not been shipped yet. I never got a response but it didn't matter. I'd still use them again!

I ordered 12,000 fresh yellow rose petals and they were beautiful. They arrived the morning I requested and were easy to store until the wedding. The cost was good relative to other sites I found. Although, it's difficult to compare when they sell by the thousands and other websites sell by the cup. Free shipping, too! I had petals in the aisle from where the chairs began in the back to where they ended up front. It was outside and the petals were distributed about 3.5 feet wide and about 25 feet long. It came out quite lush and thick with not much grass showing, which is the way I wanted it. They have a great color variety. Much better than some other sites I checked.

Ash Lawn-Highland, the home of James Monroe, is a beautiful setting with very few amenities to offer. Basically, you pay for the beauty. I got married on a Sunday to keep down costs and it still hurt the budget. However, multiple guests have said it was the most beautiful wedding they've ever attended (in a sincere way, not that "we just want to be nice" kind of comment). So if the setting is a big deal for you then I say go for it. If you need more of a complete package that provides a lot of the details for you (such as a kitchen, linens, set-up, etc.) then search elsewhere. I do like that this provides a clean canvas for you the entire day of your event, unlike many of the churches I checked. We held the ceremony here as well.

The cost includes both service and food and is an approximation. We paid to feed 165 people. It was a buffet dinner with chicken, corn, assorted bread, and pasta. We also served appetizers. Eric is flexible!!! Other than his fantastic food (my friends raved about it later), this is his best quality. He was completely willing to work with all of our desires to cut costs. It can be tough to get a hold of him, though. http://www.stauntonweb.com/stamer.html

Sarah is very friendly and great to have around on the wedding day. She totally put me at ease as soon as she arrived. Her pictures are beautiful and artistic. She gives you her full attention and puts every effort into editing your pictures. The product was certainly worth the money. I highly recommend her service, especially if you want someone for all day instead of a pay-by-the-hour kind of thing. AND she gives you your pictures on a DVD and you're done. No need to order $5 prints through her or pay for fancy albums that aren't your style. The engagement shoot is definitely worth it. It was wonderful to work with her before the wedding day and get used to it. Plus, it was so special and she made us feel like we were the best couple she'd ever photographed! www.cramerphoto.com