Ceremony Site—the Collge of Notre Dame of Maryland, Marikle Chapel of the Annunciation (Baltimore, MD)
A+++
From my first tour on CND’s campus my senior year of high school I knew that I would get married in Marikle Chapel. There was no question about it. It is such a beautiful and unique little chapel. Bogda Soltys was our coordinator, and we worked with her from September ’09 up until the wedding. She was great, and really kept everyone in line at the rehearsal and on the wedding day. Everything ran smoothly, and the only reason we ran a few minutes late starting was because my grandmother was running late getting across the city from the hotel! I am so glad we had our wedding at a chapel which is so near and dear to me.
Reception Site—Tremont Grand (Baltimore, MD)
A++++
Wow, I cannot say enough great things about the Tremont. From start to finish, they were nothing but professional, and they handled my very difficult momzilla like professionals. Delia Wilson was the one who sold us on the Tremont way back in September of ’09. We loved Delia, and I actually got to see her on my wedding day, which was so cool!!! Lauren Flaig was our coordinator, and she was amazing. I can’t tell you how many e-mails, phone conversations, and meetings we had… and she was really a good person to work with my mom. She is the reason that everything went so smoothly the day of the wedding. The only snafu that happened is that there was a mix-up with the groom’s cake and after the wedding they (I’m assuming) couldn’t find it. Lauren told momzilla that everything had been served at the wedding, which most definitely was not true. About 3 days later they miraculously found the cake, and we were able to pick it up (boy was it delicious, too!). The Tremont and the staff really made our wedding day Grand. The space is so beautiful, and the service you receive is just as great. I wish we could have our wedding there and re-live it every weekend!
Guest accommodations—Tremont Plaza Suites Hotel
A++++
It was awesome to have the hotel connected to the reception venue, and was very convenient for the after-party in my parents’ suite (which lasted until 4 AM)! We loved that we were all able to get ready there on the wedding day as well, and had plenty of room in the 2-bedroom/2-bathroom Chairman’s suites. They offered us an unbeatable group rate as well, which they honored up until the day of the wedding. The only snafu was that for the first few guests to check in (including myself!) they forgot to had the welcome bags to at check-in. When we let our coordinator Lauren know, she took care of everything and had the bellmen hand-deliver bags to all the rooms who didn’t receive one at check-in.
Photographer – Jenni Combs, Forever-Yesterday Photography (Columbia, MD)
A+++++
Jenni was easily one of my favorite vendors, probably because she was one of the ones I worked with the most, aside from our coordinator Lauren, in the process of planning the wedding. We had engagement pictures done with Jenni in October, I did a boudoir session with her in February, and then she of course did our wedding… plus we conversed over countless e-mail threads! By the time the wedding rolled around, it was like having a friend there to take the pictures. We are so happy with our pictures, and I am trying to convince Kev to go for a TTD shoot… he is convinced we have “so many pictures, how could we possibly need more?” A girl can never have too many, right!? As I said before, we are so happy with all of our pictures from Jenni. After the wedding I told her she was our “forever photographer.” We love you, Jenni!
Officiant – Deacon Fred Schoennagel, St. John the Evangelist Church (Hydes, MD)
Organist- Lori Ramser, found via the Baltimore Chapter of the American Guild of Organists
Band – Radiant (Baltimore Metro Area)
A+++++
We found Radiant through my best friend and her husband who were married 3 weeks before us. When we heard Radiant play at Julianna and Gabe’s wedding, we knew our wedding was going to be absolutely amazing. These guys are so versatile in their music selection and the crowd never left the dancefloor. As my college swim coach told me, the dancefloor was a “zoo” the whole night. Radiant really made the night as amazing as it was. Dave, the band leader, is great to work with. After the wedding my best friend and I told him we needed to figure out another occasion to celebrate with them in now that our weddings are over. These guys are just so fun!!! And the best part… they are so economical. Easily half the price of other bands we looked at (and probably double the entertainment and fun). Having a band, Radiant in particular, was probably one of the best decisions we made.
Cake – Mary Elliott (Timonium, MD)
A++++
In the Baltimore Knot world, Mary comes highly recommended. She also came very highly recommended by our coordinator at the Tremont, Lauren. And she is also easy on the wallet, which is nice. Her cakes are DELICIOUS. She was so sweet (literally and figuratively!) to work with, and also made a special little Lilly Pulitzer-themed cake for my mom because the wedding day was her birthday. We got a fun candle and the band had everyone sing happy birthday to her. She was so surprised by it all, and the little cake was adorable! Mary did a great job, and our cake was pretty much perfect! I highly recommend the almond cake/lemon curd filling pair… we got a lot of compliments! Our other flavor combo was chocolate cake/raspberry jam filling… equally delicious. The only reason I didn’t give her one more “+” is because there was a huge smudge in the monogram of our cake, and it is very noticeable in all the picture. We don’t really know where it came from because we saw Mary dropping the cake off at the Tremont before we left for the ceremony and it was perfect then. We think my little cousin might have done it because he was having a melt-down before the reception started (which is of course definitely NOT Mary’s fault at all).
Florist – Ann’s Garden, Laurie Ann Myers (Bel Air, MD)
A+++++
Mrs. Laurie was another one of my favorites (I don’t think there were too many vendors I was really unhappy with though!). My mom, grandmother and I worked very closely with her in planning the flowers. Before getting too much into the florals, I really wanted to use the florist as a place to cut the budget some… with my mom and grandmother (and Mrs. Laurie), I learned very early on that was not going to happen. I really didn’t understand paying so much for flowers… they only last a week or so, tops! Well, all I have to say is when the wedding day came, my weariness of spending too much on the flowers was set aside. Mrs. Laurie’s work was absolutely gorgeous. The already beautiful Tremont was transformed into even more of a wedding wonderland, the bouquets- stunning, and the arrangements in the chapel really made it’s natural beauty “pop”. It was breathtaking. My bouquet was possibly my favorite part of the day… sometimes I wish I could still have it to carry around! All in all, Mrs. Laurie was more than worth every cent. (Though she is definitely not so easy on the wallet!)
Hair – Kim Skarsenski of South Mane Salon (Bel Air, MD)
A+
Pretty much all the women in my family (mom, aunts, grandmothers, great aunts and great grandmother) including myself have gone to Mrs. Kim for several years. So there was no question she and her co-stylist Zeynep would be doing everyone’s hair on the wedding day. They did a beautiful job with everyone, and it was great to be able to spend time relaxing morning-of and pretty much take over the salon.
Makeup – Nicole Palermo of Happily Ever After, LLC (Perry Hall, MD)
A+++++
Another one of the vendors who really made my day as great as it was… Nicole was so wonderful to have around the afternoon of the wedding while getting ready. She made my mom and grandmother look like absolute movie stars! She is a little pricey, but worth it definitely in my opinion. She really helped keep me calm that afternoon and was just fun to have around. I cannot recommend her enough!
Transportation: American Limousines (Baltimore, MD)
A
We got a 36-person old-fashioned Trolley, and I really think it was a great investment. We got some awesome photos on and off the trolley and it was so cute. The driver got us everywhere on time, so no complaints there. The only reason I didn’t give them pluses is because there was a mix-up with the payments. They told me they couldn’t charge anything to our credit card until they had an imprint of my credit card or a copy of it faxed to them, and that I’d need to give the driver my card to make an imprint the day-of. Which I was fine with. However, the company charged my credit card the day of the rehearsal, when I had never given them a copy or an imprint. It really didn’t matter to me, but I found it strange and a little untrustworthy/dishonest since they were so firm with me that they needed an imprint. I never gave them the imprint… the driver never mentioned it. So I don’t really know what happened there!
Bridal gown, veil, alterations; bridesmaids dresses and alterations – Gamberdella’s Salon for Brides (Towson, MD)
A+++++
From start to finish, Gamberdella’s was absolutely wonderful. My mom got her dress from Gamberdella’s 25 years ago, as did her sisters, so there was no question I would at least look there for my dress. I went there on the first day of dress shopping with no intention of buying, but they had a trunk sale dress by my favorite designer (who was way out of my price range). The dresss fit almost perfectly and I was in love. Since the dress was a discontinued model they offered it to me at half price- and viola it was in my price range! Eve, the seamstress was wonderful with alterations. She was so patient with my fidgety self during the fittings where I had to stand still for painfully long periods of time. Mary, Sharon, Theresa, Emily, Eve, and all the other staff are just so wonderful and make the experience so personal. 25 years ago, Mary Gamberdella actually came to the church for my mother’s wedding to help fluff the train. I don’t think she does that anymore, but she does just about everything else. I truly loved working with them. They are very reasonable on alteration prices, for both bridal gowns and bridesmaids dresses.
Flower Girl – the Growing Up Shoppe (Towson, MD)
A+
We were able to buy Brookie’s dress off-the-rack because they had her size. It was great! Warning: this store will make you want to have a thousand little baby girls because all the clothes are so cute!!!
Tuxes - Tuxedo House (Timonium, MD)
A+++++
They were very easy to work with for both our in-town groomsmen and our out-of-town groomsmen. And the boys all looked great! We had an out-of-town groomsmen with a special need due to a physical condition and he had to have his tux specially altered. The guys at Tuxedo House were very accommodating in working with him the day before the wedding when all the guys picked up their tuxes. They were about comparable in price to Men’s Warehouse, but we thought the service was a lot more personal.
- Kevin did not get his cummerbund/bow-tie set from here, though, it was a Vineyard Vines set purchased from Cohen’s Clothier’s in Timonium (highly recommended).
Jeweler – Radcliffe Jewelers (Towson, MD; also a Parkville location)
A+++++
Kevin worked with Anne to buy my engagement ring, and they were very accommodating through that process (He also looked at Saxon’s, Jared, and Smyth’s). He said Radcliffe’s selection was above and beyond the quality of all the other stores (and I love my ring!). We worked with Eric to buy our wedding bands, and were equally as happy with the service. They are very professional and we will be continuing to work with Radcliffe’s for our jewelry needs.
Invitations – Personal Touch Printing and Invitations (Perry Hall, MD)
A+++++
Christine Miller with PTP Invite is awesome. She pretty much runs her business via word-of-mouth, and we came across her through my mom’s friend who used Christine for her wedding invitations 2 years ago. We had such a fun time picking out the invitations, and her selection is huge- comparable to Preston’s or Greetings and Readings. But she comes at a much lower price, which was great. We also ordered really pretty monogrammed thank you cards from Christine (which I’m sure we’ll need a re-fill of!).
One last person I want to review is one of my mom's best friends, Beth Davis, who made our groom's cake. Beth is incredibly talented, and ontop of her full-time job as a second grade teacher she also bakes delicious and very creative cakes, and does all kinds of other artsy craftsy things. I would have loved for Beth to have made our wedding cake, but I also wanted her to enjoy the night as a guest and not feel too stressed over the main cake. She did an awesome job on our groom's cake, it was chocolate cake with chocolate ganache filling and European buttercream icing. Beth also help us bake my great great aunt's recipe of sugar cookies for our 180 guests, design and print out programs, place cards, table numbers, welcome bag tags, and memory frame for my cousin who is no longer with us. Beth is totally awesome, and many things could not have happened for our wedding without her!!!! She also kept my mother sane.
Rehearsal Dinner – Rusty Scupper Restaurant (Baltimore, MD)
A+++++
Bridal Shower—Maryland Golf and Country Club (Bel Air, MD)
A+++++
Just for fun! Bachelorette Party—Ocean City, MD
- Coconut Malorie Hotel
- La Hacienda Mexican Food and Spirits
- Fager’s Island
- Seacret’s
- Fish Tales Bar and Grill
A+++
From my first tour on CND’s campus my senior year of high school I knew that I would get married in Marikle Chapel. There was no question about it. It is such a beautiful and unique little chapel. Bogda Soltys was our coordinator, and we worked with her from September ’09 up until the wedding. She was great, and really kept everyone in line at the rehearsal and on the wedding day. Everything ran smoothly, and the only reason we ran a few minutes late starting was because my grandmother was running late getting across the city from the hotel! I am so glad we had our wedding at a chapel which is so near and dear to me.
Reception Site—Tremont Grand (Baltimore, MD)
A++++
Wow, I cannot say enough great things about the Tremont. From start to finish, they were nothing but professional, and they handled my very difficult momzilla like professionals. Delia Wilson was the one who sold us on the Tremont way back in September of ’09. We loved Delia, and I actually got to see her on my wedding day, which was so cool!!! Lauren Flaig was our coordinator, and she was amazing. I can’t tell you how many e-mails, phone conversations, and meetings we had… and she was really a good person to work with my mom. She is the reason that everything went so smoothly the day of the wedding. The only snafu that happened is that there was a mix-up with the groom’s cake and after the wedding they (I’m assuming) couldn’t find it. Lauren told momzilla that everything had been served at the wedding, which most definitely was not true. About 3 days later they miraculously found the cake, and we were able to pick it up (boy was it delicious, too!). The Tremont and the staff really made our wedding day Grand. The space is so beautiful, and the service you receive is just as great. I wish we could have our wedding there and re-live it every weekend!
Guest accommodations—Tremont Plaza Suites Hotel
A++++
It was awesome to have the hotel connected to the reception venue, and was very convenient for the after-party in my parents’ suite (which lasted until 4 AM)! We loved that we were all able to get ready there on the wedding day as well, and had plenty of room in the 2-bedroom/2-bathroom Chairman’s suites. They offered us an unbeatable group rate as well, which they honored up until the day of the wedding. The only snafu was that for the first few guests to check in (including myself!) they forgot to had the welcome bags to at check-in. When we let our coordinator Lauren know, she took care of everything and had the bellmen hand-deliver bags to all the rooms who didn’t receive one at check-in.
Photographer – Jenni Combs, Forever-Yesterday Photography (Columbia, MD)
A+++++
Jenni was easily one of my favorite vendors, probably because she was one of the ones I worked with the most, aside from our coordinator Lauren, in the process of planning the wedding. We had engagement pictures done with Jenni in October, I did a boudoir session with her in February, and then she of course did our wedding… plus we conversed over countless e-mail threads! By the time the wedding rolled around, it was like having a friend there to take the pictures. We are so happy with our pictures, and I am trying to convince Kev to go for a TTD shoot… he is convinced we have “so many pictures, how could we possibly need more?” A girl can never have too many, right!? As I said before, we are so happy with all of our pictures from Jenni. After the wedding I told her she was our “forever photographer.” We love you, Jenni!
Officiant – Deacon Fred Schoennagel, St. John the Evangelist Church (Hydes, MD)
Organist- Lori Ramser, found via the Baltimore Chapter of the American Guild of Organists
Band – Radiant (Baltimore Metro Area)
A+++++
We found Radiant through my best friend and her husband who were married 3 weeks before us. When we heard Radiant play at Julianna and Gabe’s wedding, we knew our wedding was going to be absolutely amazing. These guys are so versatile in their music selection and the crowd never left the dancefloor. As my college swim coach told me, the dancefloor was a “zoo” the whole night. Radiant really made the night as amazing as it was. Dave, the band leader, is great to work with. After the wedding my best friend and I told him we needed to figure out another occasion to celebrate with them in now that our weddings are over. These guys are just so fun!!! And the best part… they are so economical. Easily half the price of other bands we looked at (and probably double the entertainment and fun). Having a band, Radiant in particular, was probably one of the best decisions we made.
Cake – Mary Elliott (Timonium, MD)
A++++
In the Baltimore Knot world, Mary comes highly recommended. She also came very highly recommended by our coordinator at the Tremont, Lauren. And she is also easy on the wallet, which is nice. Her cakes are DELICIOUS. She was so sweet (literally and figuratively!) to work with, and also made a special little Lilly Pulitzer-themed cake for my mom because the wedding day was her birthday. We got a fun candle and the band had everyone sing happy birthday to her. She was so surprised by it all, and the little cake was adorable! Mary did a great job, and our cake was pretty much perfect! I highly recommend the almond cake/lemon curd filling pair… we got a lot of compliments! Our other flavor combo was chocolate cake/raspberry jam filling… equally delicious. The only reason I didn’t give her one more “+” is because there was a huge smudge in the monogram of our cake, and it is very noticeable in all the picture. We don’t really know where it came from because we saw Mary dropping the cake off at the Tremont before we left for the ceremony and it was perfect then. We think my little cousin might have done it because he was having a melt-down before the reception started (which is of course definitely NOT Mary’s fault at all).
Florist – Ann’s Garden, Laurie Ann Myers (Bel Air, MD)
A+++++
Mrs. Laurie was another one of my favorites (I don’t think there were too many vendors I was really unhappy with though!). My mom, grandmother and I worked very closely with her in planning the flowers. Before getting too much into the florals, I really wanted to use the florist as a place to cut the budget some… with my mom and grandmother (and Mrs. Laurie), I learned very early on that was not going to happen. I really didn’t understand paying so much for flowers… they only last a week or so, tops! Well, all I have to say is when the wedding day came, my weariness of spending too much on the flowers was set aside. Mrs. Laurie’s work was absolutely gorgeous. The already beautiful Tremont was transformed into even more of a wedding wonderland, the bouquets- stunning, and the arrangements in the chapel really made it’s natural beauty “pop”. It was breathtaking. My bouquet was possibly my favorite part of the day… sometimes I wish I could still have it to carry around! All in all, Mrs. Laurie was more than worth every cent. (Though she is definitely not so easy on the wallet!)
Hair – Kim Skarsenski of South Mane Salon (Bel Air, MD)
A+
Pretty much all the women in my family (mom, aunts, grandmothers, great aunts and great grandmother) including myself have gone to Mrs. Kim for several years. So there was no question she and her co-stylist Zeynep would be doing everyone’s hair on the wedding day. They did a beautiful job with everyone, and it was great to be able to spend time relaxing morning-of and pretty much take over the salon.
Makeup – Nicole Palermo of Happily Ever After, LLC (Perry Hall, MD)
A+++++
Another one of the vendors who really made my day as great as it was… Nicole was so wonderful to have around the afternoon of the wedding while getting ready. She made my mom and grandmother look like absolute movie stars! She is a little pricey, but worth it definitely in my opinion. She really helped keep me calm that afternoon and was just fun to have around. I cannot recommend her enough!
Transportation: American Limousines (Baltimore, MD)
A
We got a 36-person old-fashioned Trolley, and I really think it was a great investment. We got some awesome photos on and off the trolley and it was so cute. The driver got us everywhere on time, so no complaints there. The only reason I didn’t give them pluses is because there was a mix-up with the payments. They told me they couldn’t charge anything to our credit card until they had an imprint of my credit card or a copy of it faxed to them, and that I’d need to give the driver my card to make an imprint the day-of. Which I was fine with. However, the company charged my credit card the day of the rehearsal, when I had never given them a copy or an imprint. It really didn’t matter to me, but I found it strange and a little untrustworthy/dishonest since they were so firm with me that they needed an imprint. I never gave them the imprint… the driver never mentioned it. So I don’t really know what happened there!
Bridal gown, veil, alterations; bridesmaids dresses and alterations – Gamberdella’s Salon for Brides (Towson, MD)
A+++++
From start to finish, Gamberdella’s was absolutely wonderful. My mom got her dress from Gamberdella’s 25 years ago, as did her sisters, so there was no question I would at least look there for my dress. I went there on the first day of dress shopping with no intention of buying, but they had a trunk sale dress by my favorite designer (who was way out of my price range). The dresss fit almost perfectly and I was in love. Since the dress was a discontinued model they offered it to me at half price- and viola it was in my price range! Eve, the seamstress was wonderful with alterations. She was so patient with my fidgety self during the fittings where I had to stand still for painfully long periods of time. Mary, Sharon, Theresa, Emily, Eve, and all the other staff are just so wonderful and make the experience so personal. 25 years ago, Mary Gamberdella actually came to the church for my mother’s wedding to help fluff the train. I don’t think she does that anymore, but she does just about everything else. I truly loved working with them. They are very reasonable on alteration prices, for both bridal gowns and bridesmaids dresses.
Flower Girl – the Growing Up Shoppe (Towson, MD)
A+
We were able to buy Brookie’s dress off-the-rack because they had her size. It was great! Warning: this store will make you want to have a thousand little baby girls because all the clothes are so cute!!!
Tuxes - Tuxedo House (Timonium, MD)
A+++++
They were very easy to work with for both our in-town groomsmen and our out-of-town groomsmen. And the boys all looked great! We had an out-of-town groomsmen with a special need due to a physical condition and he had to have his tux specially altered. The guys at Tuxedo House were very accommodating in working with him the day before the wedding when all the guys picked up their tuxes. They were about comparable in price to Men’s Warehouse, but we thought the service was a lot more personal.
- Kevin did not get his cummerbund/bow-tie set from here, though, it was a Vineyard Vines set purchased from Cohen’s Clothier’s in Timonium (highly recommended).
Jeweler – Radcliffe Jewelers (Towson, MD; also a Parkville location)
A+++++
Kevin worked with Anne to buy my engagement ring, and they were very accommodating through that process (He also looked at Saxon’s, Jared, and Smyth’s). He said Radcliffe’s selection was above and beyond the quality of all the other stores (and I love my ring!). We worked with Eric to buy our wedding bands, and were equally as happy with the service. They are very professional and we will be continuing to work with Radcliffe’s for our jewelry needs.
Invitations – Personal Touch Printing and Invitations (Perry Hall, MD)
A+++++
Christine Miller with PTP Invite is awesome. She pretty much runs her business via word-of-mouth, and we came across her through my mom’s friend who used Christine for her wedding invitations 2 years ago. We had such a fun time picking out the invitations, and her selection is huge- comparable to Preston’s or Greetings and Readings. But she comes at a much lower price, which was great. We also ordered really pretty monogrammed thank you cards from Christine (which I’m sure we’ll need a re-fill of!).
One last person I want to review is one of my mom's best friends, Beth Davis, who made our groom's cake. Beth is incredibly talented, and ontop of her full-time job as a second grade teacher she also bakes delicious and very creative cakes, and does all kinds of other artsy craftsy things. I would have loved for Beth to have made our wedding cake, but I also wanted her to enjoy the night as a guest and not feel too stressed over the main cake. She did an awesome job on our groom's cake, it was chocolate cake with chocolate ganache filling and European buttercream icing. Beth also help us bake my great great aunt's recipe of sugar cookies for our 180 guests, design and print out programs, place cards, table numbers, welcome bag tags, and memory frame for my cousin who is no longer with us. Beth is totally awesome, and many things could not have happened for our wedding without her!!!! She also kept my mother sane.
Rehearsal Dinner – Rusty Scupper Restaurant (Baltimore, MD)
A+++++
Bridal Shower—Maryland Golf and Country Club (Bel Air, MD)
A+++++
Just for fun! Bachelorette Party—Ocean City, MD
- Coconut Malorie Hotel
- La Hacienda Mexican Food and Spirits
- Fager’s Island
- Seacret’s
- Fish Tales Bar and Grill