Illinois Bridal and Wedding Expo

Last weekend, Wolfman and I went to our first real planning event, the Illinois Bridal and Wedding Expo at the Donald E. Stephens Convention Center in Rosemont.

We got there a little before 11 and Wolfman ended up running back out to the parking garage to ditch our coats so we wouldn't have to carry them around. It was a typical cold Illinois day in the single digits Fahrenheit.

Going to an expo was a pretty overwhelming experience. I wished I was wearing a shirt that said, "We're getting married April 2019," so people would stop asking me. They kept trying to get us to sign up for something or commit to something up front. I'm not good at not making eye contact with people in these sorts of situations, but there was definitely stuff we didn't need, like real estate information. We're just not there at the moment.

Wolfman is much better than me at escaping and moving forward.

I'm not a good blogger, so I didn't really take pictures. At all. But I'm going to talk about a couple of the vendors who interested me, so the following images will be sourced from each vendor in question, with attribution links.

It was frustrating how most of the vendors did not want to tell us what their prices were. I'm not going to consider a company unless I know they're at least feasible in our budget! The ones who gave out brochures with their packages and included price ranges at least got a big extra point from me.

Fred Fox Studios

This company's claim to fame is being Chicago's oldest privately owned wedding photography studio, opened about 100 years ago. We talked to a very nice man from there. I can't recall his name, but he had long hair and he self-publishes children's books. 

Spin N Play

This is a wedding company that has a team of photographers, videography, DJs, lighting, live musicians, and hair and makeup. Full disclosure: my cousin and MOH's brother does work with them and was at the booth during the Expo. If this company were in our price range, I'd definitely make them a contender, but their rates are just high enough that it would only work if we got some of the other stuff definitely cheaper than we thought. 

Blogger doesn't seem to let me post videos shared on a Facebook page, but I wanted to at least link to a cinematic highlight trailer my cousin put together, because he is really excellent at it, especially considering he's only been doing it for a couple of years. McMillan Visuals

I have given serious thought to asking him to do some videography for us, but I also want him to be able to actually attend the wedding and have fun. I suppose I need to talk to him about that. That's not something I need to figure out for a little while. As I kept telling vendors on Sunday, "No, we don't have a venue yet."

Schaul's Cuisine

This is a caterer we've already started talking to, so I wanted to stop by. They had samples of this mousse in an edible chocolate cup. Very tasty. Unfortunately, it kind of cracked and got all over my face and hands. Wolfman says I was supposed to eat it in one bite, but that seemed a little too big. I couldn't shake any hands for the last handful of vendors we talked to because my fingers were sticky and the bathroom was on the other side of the Hall. But it was really good!

Relish

Relish's menu had actual prices on it (cue heavenly chord) and they were surprisingly reasonable. This place's information went right into our "contact later" pile. 

City Barbeque

This place was serving the tastiest brisket with a side of macaroni and cheese. I'm picky about food, especially meat because it often feels bland or overdone to me. I don't know if I've ever really enjoyed a brisket before. Wolfman couldn't try the pasta because milk allergy, but the two things worked really well together. City Barbeque's food tasted good enough that I would consider shuffling the budget to make room for it. Definite contender.

Nothing Bundt Cakes

Nothing Bundt Cakes had this really nice cake with cream cheese. I wish I could remember exactly what it was called. They let me have two since Wolfman couldn't have any. You can always get my attention with free cake.

The Little House

I had to save this one for last because Wolfman went a little bit apeshit when he saw it. It's literally a tiny house that can be moved by hitching it to a truck. Very easy for them to move it anywhere. And it's a photobooth, which of course I love! They bring their own props too, selected based off the event. I know it's not a necessity, but I like how people can go in and be silly, just as an extra thing to have besides what we get from the photographer. 

I hope this post isn't boring.