Our overall experience with Joni was okay.
Things that we liked:
- Professional
- Experienced. I felt like she had done this thousands of times and that our wedding would go smoothly.
- Reasonable prices
- She made us feel very confident during the rehearsal the day before.
- Personality. Joni was positive, upbeat, and friendly from the moment we met her.
Things we didn't like:
- On the day of the wedding Joni was on property but we had to actively find her which took time and added stress.
- We needed help setting up the reception area and when asked for help she seemed unfocused and unclear on how to help. Perhaps this was a miscommunication on our part but we ended up having to do the things we asked her to help with (e.g. putting on chair covers, peeling off plastic from signs, etc).
- Because we spent time setting up the reception area our ceremony started about 30 minutes late. Not a big deal but she made me feel bad and rushed which I didn't appreciate. She also suggested we forego our first look with the photographer in an effort to save time which I'm glad we ignored because they ended up being some of our favorite photos.
If I could do it all over again I think we would give her another shot. She is undoubtedly a seasoned professional but her want to stay precisely on schedule came off as insensitive. I understand her job is to ensure we stay on time but at the end of the day her priority should have been making the bride and groom happy and comfortable which I felt was overlooked in favor of a schedule.