Décor by Sebesta Design

Score Card

Designer: Corinne
Main contactee: Thao
Grade: A
Cost: A, we got more than we paid for
Met Expectations: A, above and beyond
Words: Professional, enthusiastic, creative, attentive to details, perfect execution
Would you use them again? Absolutely!
Donny's Grade: A

Site: Sebesta Design

Description

Everyone gushed about the faboulous event décor and we could not have pulled it off without Corinne's ability, flexibility, and personality.

We interviewed six event design vendors during the summer of 2008: Events to Rent, Petals & Forrest, An Affair with Flair, Sebesta Design, i.e. Ideas for Events, and All Grand Events. These vendors served Michigan, and specifically, served the Lansing area. The first two vendors were given a budget and my design ideas. They ended up spending every penny. For the last three vendors, we told them we would tell them our vision and that they would come up with the numbers themselves. This is what I recommend brides to do. Their proposals were well below our budget, but still able to meet our design expectations. Here is a brief review of them below.

We were happy with Sebesta Design in every way. Corinne was enthusiastic and after the first meeting, I knew she would be the one who could pull this off for us. Donny and I both met with her and I was prepared with excel spreadsheets and all.


She looked at them and made awesome suggestions. She added the tile chargers instead of my original intent of typical round, silver ones. She also added the changing light to the room and centerpieces with LED. Lighting was more important to me than flowers and she delivered it all for me. We were ecstatic to work with her so we chose Sebesta.

Once she was on our team of wedding vendors, she got to work. She sent me emails with new ideas and I could tell she was just as excited for my day as I was - and that was important. I wanted someone who felt that it was important for her to do a great job, not just to do a job. She worked with our venue and acted as a day of coordinator for our décor. She showed up, put all of my crap together, and tore it all down at the end of the night. She essentially helped me turn our venue into one of the most beautiful weddings I've ever attended. I was able to TRUST her to do her thing. I never once worried that something would not be done the way I wanted, and that is really nice during the stresses of school and planning a wedding!

I could not recommend anyone as sweet, professional, and attentive as Corinne from Sebesta Design. She "Got it". She saw my vision and made it her own. She executed flawlessly. I would use her again in a heartbeat and would recommend anyone wanted an exquisite event!

Here is some of the beautiful work she did:


Photo courtesy of Sebesta Design


Photo courtesy of Sebesta Design


Photo courtesy of Sebesta Design


Photo courtesy of Sebesta Design


Photo courtesy of Sebesta Design


Photo courtesy of Sebesta Design


Photo courtesy of Sebesta Design

Designers that didn't make the cut

Events to Rent tried to push things that they already did on me. I did not want a factory-packaged wedding. I don't want something they've done for hundreds of other brides in the area. I was impressed by their portfolio, but unimpressed by their ability to be attentive to MY design. They were given the budget and used every dime. I'm sure they would have done a beautiful job. Their studio was professional and I liked being able to touch and actually see the items they suggested to us. Ultimately, they were not the right fit.

Petals & Forrest also had a beautiful studio with an impressive portfolio. They were also given a budget in which they spent exactly that. She offered creative ideas, which improved from Events to Rent. She seemed attentive to what we tried to do and gave me a better vibe about it being my design, not something she's done a million times. However, our personalities just didn't click. The whole time we spoke with her, it was as if our wedding was a measly job and she seemed uninterested. I wanted someone who would be passionate about something personal to us, not someone who would just write down our wedding on a to-do list and go through the motions with us. I needed enthusiasm, so I moved on.

An Affair with Flair met with us in the Bigby in downtown Lansing. She had her laptop with her so she was able to pull up images for us to review. That was nice, but she offered "packages"s;. Again, we did not want to choose from a package. She also charged specific hours and on how much consultation I would receive. If I want to email her about something I just came up with, I didn't want to be charged for it. Ridiculous. The worst part was, we were excited in discussing our ideas with her, but her attitude was lax and unprofessional... even under-enthusiastic. She looked bored and unmotivated. I was practically falling asleep talking to her about something that I should be ECSTATIC about. She was given no budget and came way under, but she didn't add anything spectacular to what I wanted. It was easy to turn down her proposal.

i.e. Ideas for Events met with us in a rather unusual setting at her new studio. She was prepared. She had a posterboard with her ideas, which I appreciated. I definitely liked knowing she gave it some thought before meeting with us. However, the ideas were lacking. They weren't as grand as I envisioned. Another thing I didn't appreciate was telling her beforehand that I wanted chiffon panels and paper lanterns over the dance floor and then having her tell me it's too typical. So what if it is? It's what I wanted! She followed up in email stating that she saw it done that weekend and tried to convince me to do pillars with tulle wrapped around it. No. NO. NO. She didn't listen to what we wanted and even though she came way under budget, I wanted someone who would listen instead of sway me to ideas I said were clearly not my style.

We never met with All Grand Events. Everything was done via email, but we met them after Sebesta Design, and I think I had already made up my mind.

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