Calling all my brides to be! I am sharing part 2 to our Tampa wedding vendors list. If you missed my last post, read that one first and then come back here. And if you’re looking for some inspiration for your wedding ceremony or writing your own vows, read this one! Okay, now that that’s out of the way, let’s get started.
All in all we had a very positive experience with our vendors. I wanted to share them for my local friends planning weddings. And of course for any brides to be in the central Florida/Tampa, Florida area. Or maybe you’re just looking for some wedding inspo for your Pinterest board, that’s cool too. Wedding planning isn’t for the faint of heart. I wanted to share some personal insight on our Tampa wedding vendors in an effort to try and make your planning process a little easier. Part 2 includes photography, videography, catering, dessert, bartenders, dresses, and makeup.
1. Photographer: Virgo Film
Just about everyone will tell you to splurge on photography and I’d say the same. In my opinion however, Laura is extremely reasonably priced. Especially for her quality of work and the sweet disposition she brings. If you’ve been around The Relatable Red, you’ve seen her work. Our engagement photos are all over my blog.
Laura is as sweet as sugar, one of those people you can’t help but love. She was super patient through every meeting, text, and email as I asked a million and one questions. As you can see from the pictures to follow and so many others on my blog, she does a beautiful job.
Matt and I are not the most touchy/romantic couple by nature. I asked Laura to help encourage us to get closer and kiss more. She guided and posed us seamlessly. Perhaps the moment that sticks out the most is when we were running a few minutes late after the ceremony. I began to feel rushed and stressed. I told her we could just be done taking pictures so no one had to wait any longer. Laura calmed me down and reminded me just how much I would want these few extra pictures. She was so right. Everyone was fine, we didn’t miss a thing, and I didn’t miss out on pictures she knew I wanted.
And lastly, she had my entire set of edited pictures (375 photos) back to me in under 2 weeks. Trust me when I say, that is what you need when you’re coming off of the best day of your life. Needless to say, I am so excited to continue to use her for all of our future milestones.
2. Videography: Eagle Vision Photography &Video
Eddie and Amy from Eagle vision were prompt with communications and super friendly to work with. Our wedding videos are absolutely beautiful and they chose the perfect music for our highlight video which was extremely important to me. We received all of our film in just under a month after the wedding!
Amy guided me through choosing a package and then was extremely gracious when I ended up upgrading my package after the wedding. Thankfully, like my other Tampa wedding vendors, Eddie and Amy happily and calmly stayed on board to perform my wedding, despite growing concerns over the COVID19 pandemic that arose just days before our big day.
Amy was so kind and calm during the whole day and communicated really well with me and the bridesmaids. I never felt nervous while they were recording our “getting ready” film. And we barely noticed they were there during the ceremony and reception, yet they didn’t miss a moment. Not to mention, they were very reasonably priced compared to my experience getting quotes from other Tampa videographers.
Watch our wedding highlight video on Instagram here
3. Catering: Affordable Catering
Affordable catering deserves the proper credit for really excellent service. In our tasting, phone call meetings for finalizing details, and the day of, the service was truly top notch. One of the owners worked our wedding and he actually came outside to Matt and I while we were doing photos and offered to bring us some appetizers from our cocktail hour. I regretfully told him I didn’t want to eat while taking pictures but explained how much I wanted to try the cocktail hour food. He set aside a little of everything for us and had it waiting on our table when we got into the reception. It was such a sweet and considerate gesture.
Full disclosure
I was so hyped up and antsy from the initial festivities that I could barely eat despite how much I wanted to. What I could eat was very good. I wouldn’t say it was outstanding but I also didn’t eat right away because of distractions so it wasn’t super hot.
Cocktail hour
Extensive charcuterie board, sausage stuffed mushrooms, hot crab dip with pita chips, and mini sliders. Everything was delicious except the sliders, but they were of course quite cold by the time we were able to eat them.
Dinner
We opted for a sausage stuffed chicken option, top sirloin roast beef, salads, asparagus, oven roasted potatoes, and a mac and cheese “bar.” The chicken was delicious. The beef was okay. I dont remember trying any of the sides and the mac and cheese “bar” was oversold. The mac and cheese was fine but with only a couple topping options, it certainly was not a bar.
All of this to say, overall I think everyone enjoyed their meal. And perhaps Matt and I didn’t eat enough to make a fair judgement. Like I said before, the service was great. I didn’t do tons of research on caterers in the Tampa area but what I did, Affordable Catering appeared to have the best menu options for the price.
4. Donuts: Nicolas Donuts
We opted out of the traditional dessert option and purchased a fake cake made from styrofoam from Etsy. We decorated it with a few flowers from our Florist and “cut” a slice of publix cake behind our cake to feed to each other for pictures. Personally, I feel like a lot of people don’t eat the cake at weddings and if they do, it takes them off the dance floor. I absolutely love donuts and figured a donut wall was the perfect solution.
Diane from Nicolas assisted me in picking flavors for the donut wall. She informed which ones were fan favorites and which ones wouldn’t hold up well for an extended period of time. The donuts were beautiful and a huge hit! We got text messages from guests for days after the wedding telling us how they much enjoyed them.
5. Bartending: All Mixed Up
We opted to do beer, wine, and 2 signature cocktails. We also chose to supply our own alcohol as opposed to using the drink/mixer packages offered. Truthfully, we didn’t do any research to find out if it would actually be more cost effective. Regardless, it worked perfectly well for us. Hillary, co owner of All Mixed Up was one of the better Tampa wedding vendors we picked.
A couple weeks before the wedding, Hillary called us to advise us on how much of each alcohol we would need for a wedding our size which was so helpful since we had no idea. She saved us money by advising against a champagne toast since most people do their toast with their drink and all the champagne just gets left on the tables.
I wanted a signature drink but had no idea what I wanted so she helped me decide on something I would enjoy that also didn’t require too many ingredients. She provided recommendations on what size and shape cups would be best for what we were serving since we chose not to purchase their cup package. Who knew cups would be such a pertinent detail? They totally are.
Due to the Coronavirus, one of the bartenders couldn’t work the wedding because she was immunocompromised. Hillary called me to verify the final guest count to ensure they could still service the wedding with one bartender. Due to some last minute cancellations from our guests, one bartender was perfectly fine and Hillary refunded me for the other immediately. And perhaps most important to me, no one waited for a drink for the whole wedding. They poured heavy and quick. Also, our bartender Kevin was so dang friendly! He was on a first name basis with some of my wedding guests.
6. Wedding Dress: Vocelles Bridal Shoppe
Okay this is not part of my Tampa wedding vendors. Vocelles is actually located in Tallahassee about 4.5 hours north of Tampa. If you know me, you know Tallahassee holds a special place in my heart so I was happy to spend a weekend in my favorite town to pick out my dream dress. A friend of my purchased her dress from Vocelles and it was the exact style I loved so I chose Vocelles and never looked back. In reality, I could have probably found the same or similar dress in Tampa.
I had such a positive experience at Vocelles. I can’t recommend them enough if you’re closer to central/north Florida or if you’re willing to take a little weekend trip. For one, the shop is beautiful. Quiet, elegant, and yet so fun. Seriously go look at their Instagram, it’s beautiful. It’s exactly what I had hoped for while I popped champagne and said yes to the dress. All of the staff was pleasant and kind but my stylist was amazing. She was super sweet and listened to everything I wanted. She ended up “doing one more sweep” and that’s when I found my dress. My dress is style #1078 by Martina Liana. I picked my dress mid March and it arrived in shop late July!
My best advice before your dress appointment, follow a bunch of bridal shops that are active on Instagram. It was so helpful for me because it became apparent that I consistently liked the same style of dress AND the same designer. It made me confident going into my appointment because I knew I loved basically everything from Martina Liana.
7. Bridesmaid Dresses: The Fancy Frock
I wanted something a little different and more unique for my bridesmaids so I opted out of a big chain store like David’s Bridal. We really enjoyed the small boutique style of The Fancy Frock and more importantly, we loved Jen, the owner. From the first phone call I made inquiring about pricing, up until wedding day, Jen went above and beyond for us.
She helped me finally decide on a color which felt impossible at the time. And she helped me figure out a way to make my maid of honor stand out while still being cohesive with the rest of the bridesmaids. It’s obvious she knows her industry inside and out.
Additionally, 2 months before our wedding, one of my bridesmaids was in a life threatening car accident. Thankfully she has now made an almost full recovery but it was clear from the extent of her injuries, she would not be able to attend the wedding. I texted Jen and asked if she had any ideas or if there was any chance we could get another dress in time for my sister to step in as a bridesmaid. Not only did she pull out every stop to figure out a solution for me (calling designers directly), she was so kind and texted me multiple times to tell me she was praying for my friend. Ultimately, she sold us her off the rack sample of the dress at a discount so I was able to have all my girls in the same dress.
Plus, as an added bonus, The Fancy Frock has an exceptional seamstress on staff who altered my wedding dress. Truly I have never seen someone pin a dress so fast in my whole life. While so much of retail is moving online, these small bridal boutiques need our support. There’s nothing like getting all of your girls together for dress shopping. We got our hair pieces at Fancy Frock too!
8. Makeup Artist: Jessica Jennings
Buckle up for these COVID chronicles! Originally my makeup artist was supposed to be a friend of mine, Alyssa from Alyssa Diana Makeup. She used to be located in the Orlando area but had moved to Chicago long before my wedding. She happened to be visiting our hometown the weekend of my wedding so I got really lucky to have the person I always dreamt of, doing my wedding makeup. Except the Tuesday before the wedding, she got sick with a fever and was no longer allowed to fly home.
Jess to the rescue!
Thankfully, Alyssa called on a friend and fellow makeup artist, Jessica. She asked if she would do mine and my entire bridal party’s makeup with only 5 days notice. Not only did she say yes and save my life, but also offered to do a bridal trial at my house before the wedding! I am so thankful for her.
She did a beautiful job. She is sweet as can be, so funny, and real. Also she was punctual for the trial and wedding and that means everything to me. She’s exactly who you would want in a bridal suite with your girls. I already had a hair stylist booked, but she does hair too if you need!
Jess made me feel totally comfortable. She encouraged me to say something if I wasn’t completely satisfied with my makeup trial to ensure I had exactly what I wanted on my wedding day. I have a wide arrange of skin types in my bridal party and a wide spectrum from “barely wears makeup” to “wears a full face on an every day basis.” She made them all blend seamlessly.
I explained that I wanted glam but still timeless and I think she nailed it. And my makeup stayed on for the whole night!
I hope if you are planning a wedding in the Tampa area or even Central Florida, that you find these helpful and consider using them for your wedding too. If you missed my Wedding Vendors Part 1 blog, that includes more details on the venue, wedding planner, and florist.
If you have any questions or there’s any details I missed regarding Tampa wedding vendors, feel free to comment below or message me directly. I am happy to help if I can!
-The Relatable Red
