Wedding Suppliers: Review and Rating

Providing a supplier rating has gradually become a post-nuptial responsibility to most couples. Today, I am joining the bandwagon.

CATERER / VENUE: The University Hotel – UP Diliman

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Being that this is a budget wedding, I must say I was impressed of how the venue didn't make the event look its cost. I never imagined that garden setting to be so photogenic. I am giving it 4 out of 5 though because of the food. The hotel does not allow caterers from outside and so we had to make do with their Oriental Cuisine. Not that I don't like this specialty, I just hoped that beanthread with ground pork was as savory as it was during the food tasting.

WEDDING COORDINATOR/ SINGER/ HOST: Noreen Eleria

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Yes, she was the person behind almost everything. She's the reason I was left to only worry about our attires, rings, and make-up. The entire wedding package came from her -- cake, program, coordination, flowers, doves, wine, photo/video, photo-booth, etc. for a very affordable price. The not-so-perfect score is due to the occasions it took her some time to respond to my emails due to that she has very few people in her team and she has a wedding to attend almost every week. Nonetheless, she made an excellent host and singer that even my guests were in awe.

CAKE / FLOWERS: c/o Noreen Eleria

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These are the things I am not very particular about. To be honest, I was so close to requesting Noreen to remove these two from the package. First, the garden was already too garden-y for my expectation. No flower was deemed necessary because

I'll be very honored to DIY my very own bouquet, thank you. Second, cake was never a wedding must-have, at least for me. Both are fixed part of the package, unfortunately. The very reason I am not giving it a perfect score though is that in the contract, I was promised a cupcake tower. The idea that the entire cake would be edible made me so excited 'cause I hate eating styrofoam. However, a few days before the wedding, I was advised they had to change the cupcakes to a real 3-tier cake in which only the bottom layer is edible. That last minute cruel unkind change merited this supplier a 3 out of 5.

PHOTO / VIDEO / PHOTOBOOTH: c/o Noreen Eleria
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Although I have yet to see the output, this rating is based on their wedding day performance. Giving them 3 out of 5 for not being able to arrive at least an hour ahead of the schedule. They weren't able to cover the actual part of me being made up and groomed so definitely the prepping part won't be seen on the video. I also heard some feedback from the guests that the photobooth, though unlimited for 2 hours, weren't so productive and weren't able to entertain all the guests because of the relatively slow shot interval and delivery of the photos' hard copy. Upon receiving the CDs containing both raw and edited footage and photos, I was not happy. Most photos seem to be out-of-focus and look like taken using a digital camera. The videos are not that great either. Just like with the photos, there was not much artistry. Just enough to say that the event was documented. I guess you get what you paid for.

MUSIC: c/o Noreen Eleria

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Frankly, I chose not to have much say on this. It was Noreen who decided which songs to use all throughout the ceremony. I told her I wanted to be surprised. She asked me for at least my preferred bridal march music which I refuse to give. I used the surprise excuse when in reality, I just felt so lazy to choose any song. I just made sure she didn't play any pop song as it will totally ruin my mood. I want everything to sound new, unfamiliar. I should say she delivered well because I don't remember a single music. Hey, I was busy walking down the aisle and posing for the cameras to notice it, give me a break. Lol. Now I'm giving this 4 out of 5 because out of the 20+  party music I downloaded for the reception, only 1 were played. :( On the flip side, have I already mentioned how an excellent singer Noreen is? Lol.

HAIR & MAKE-UP: Xyrene Eugenio & Malou Manalo

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Hah! They are amazing. Perfect score. Need I say more? Just view how they made me up during the prenup shoot here. Later, I'll post the actual wedding photos for you too see how they did. I must say, I was very satisfied by how our faces were prettified, not to mention that unlimited retouch was part of the package. Although I saw a minimal area for improvement on how one of the hairstylists made my mother's locks, I'm still giving it a perfect score 'cause more than a supplier, I might have actually gained a friend in Xyrene.

BRIDAL GOWN/ GROOM & ENTOURAGE’S ATTIRE: MVR Bridals (businessapple in Sulit.com)

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As much as I want to give them 0 out of 5, I couldn't. Let's face it, they still made me a decent gown -- something really close to my peg. Not to mention, I didn't have to worry about the little things like veil, arrhae, ring pillows, etc anymore because those were included in their package. This was my first time to deal with a couture (if they consider themselves one) and I must say they were the hardest supplier to deal with mainly because they don't follow instruction. Not sure anymore if they just don't use the notes they took down during our discussions and measurement acquisitions or they were just plain careless. Just to give you an idea, we had all our outfits made by them. Parents, the whole entourage, and the bride and groom outfits. That would be a total of 12 dresses (including mine), 9 barongs, and hubby's pair of pants. Out of all those, almost 95% had to be repaired drastically. I'm counting my gown and hubby's barong as the other 5% they were able to deliver well. There were a lot of measurement errors (like 5-inch difference) and color error (they used royal blue material for the dresses when the fabric I chose was midnight blue). Another thing that I didn't like about them is that they don't admit their lapses. Our main point-of-contact, Corie Dionisio, even argued very casually that my motif was royal blue and not midnight blue. Can you imagine she knows the motif more than the bride herself? Our patience was stretched at its maximum that I thank God for giving me grace to remain calm and poised in the midst of frustration and disappointment. MVR Bridals is located along Ilaya St. in Divisoria. I'd still like to believe that not all supplier in Divisoria are like them. They had the dresses tailored in Bulacan, anyway. So technically, those are not Divi-made.

WEDDING FAVORS: Coffee Ideas

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DISCLAIMER: I didn't get the chance to taste their houseblend coffee (the flavor I ordered as favor to the sponsors).
I might have already mentioned in a previous post that I don't drink coffee. At least not habitually. However, I just love this supplier because they were so easy to talk to and they delivered my order (more than 2kgs of coffee bean) right at our doorstep. They deliver free of charge within the Marikina area.

CANDY BUFFET: Tasty Treats Candy Buffet 
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Yey! Another perfect score. I have made a separate entry for this supplier just because I love them. Please view it here.