Wedding Decorator from US?

[Lovely3457]

I was thinking about bring a Wedding Decorator from US since I wanted a certain type of look at my wedding. Are there any Wedding Decorator, not planner in Aruba? I wanted to see if I could save on travel fees.

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[christene]

Hi - I'm curious about what type of a 'look' it is you are going for? We were in Aruba in May to visit resorts and meet with people - We get married there in October.

We are REALLY struggling with decorating though. There seems to be a pretty standard 'Aruba Wedding' look that we don't particularly care for (ie chair covers and big bows, ugh, we've been trying to find classic Chiavari or white wooden folding chairs with little luck).

We love Aruba and have met WONDERFUL people, but want a more sophisticated feel than we've seen in the photos we've looked at... we want a more 'Miami Beach' vibe. No one has been able to show us an outdoor wedding set up that has made us go "Wow". We have picked our resort, retaining the right to do all our own decorations with an outside vendor if we can find something we like better than the resort's limited offerings. We're wanting a chic reception - ie, bamboo draped with white fabric around the long tables, contemporary lanterns and hurricane vases with candles, sophisticated lighting, a bar that's nicer than the typical ugly 'bar on wheels', some 'loungy seating' groups that will give us a mix of functional and casual seating...

Of course the resort will try to do what we are asking (and charge us plenty to 'hope for the best'), but I really want to see someone that's DONE something like what we are looking for. We can't be the only couple that wants something more sophisticated.

Anyway - We know that we have to be a lot more flexible with a destination wedding (we've made tons of compromised already) but aren't giving up decor quite yet.

[Andrea J.]

there are a number of wedding planners from aruba that visit this community forum.
hopefully at least one of them will be able to address your concerns.

but off the top of my head, aruba is small, with a population of about <100,000.
the kind of decor that you hope for, might just not be available on a place the size of aruba.

at what resort are you being married?
wishing you well.
hoping you get some replies
andrea

Originally Posted by christene

Hi - I'm curious about what type of a 'look' it is you are going for? We were in Aruba in May to visit resorts and meet with people - We get married there in October.

We are REALLY struggling with decorating though. There seems to be a pretty standard 'Aruba Wedding' look that we don't particularly care for (ie chair covers and big bows, ugh, we've been trying to find classic Chiavari or white wooden folding chairs with no luck).

We love Aruba and have met WONDERFUL people, but want a more sophisticated feel than we've seen in the photos we've looked at... we want a more 'Miami Beach' vibe. No one has been able to show us an outdoor wedding set up that has made us go "Wow". We have picked our resort, retaining the right to do all our own decorations with an outside vendor if we can find something we like better than the resort's limited offerings. We're wanting a chic reception - ie, bamboo draped with white fabric around the long tables, contemporary lanterns and hurricane vases with candles, sophisticated lighting, a bar that's nicer than the typical ugly 'bar on wheels', some 'loungy seating' groups that will give us a mix of functional and casual seating...

Of course the resort will try to do what we are asking (and charge us plenty to 'hope for the best'), but I really want to see someone that's DONE something like what we are looking for. We can't be the only couple that wants something more sophisticated.

Anyway - We know that we have to be a lot more flexible with a destination wedding (we've made tons of compromised already) but aren't giving up decor quite yet. I mean come on, are classy chairs too much to ask? Even a plain wood folding chair is better than plastic covered chairs...

[margaret wever]

The person you are looking for is Fernando Mansur!!! moartizah@gmail.com.
He does basics that everyone requests, but also THE FABULOUS!
I highly recommend him.
Let us know how all turns out.
Good luck.
Margaret

[Karen Lutzker]

As far as I'm concerned, there is an outstanding event decorator that I work with in Aruba. Many of the items she has in stock I have assisted her obtaining for the USA. These items are hard to get in Aruba. You can reach me at
(212) 292-4221 or ((201) 703-9140. If the items are not in stock in Aruba, we can order from our supplier in the USA.

[weddingfan]

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[Lovely3457]

Hi - Do you ever get help with this? I think I am going to bring in my wedding decorator.

[christene]

I'm not sure if the last post is directed at me, but I'm learning to just deal with the fact that the offerings on the island are somewhat limited. Fernando has some more contemporary offerings but is booked on my date. (I'm also getting the impression he deals with larger scale events and doesn't really do much with renting a few items for a small-ish wedding.) He was going to let me know if he might have some time for me even with the other event, but hasn't responsed to my last two emails.

Another person recommended by the hotel has not followed through. I received one brief phone call but no other follow-through in the last three weeks, even after I followed up by email.

One thing I had really wanted is these large contemporary floor lanterns that can hold like 5 pillar candles (like the square Santorini lanterns from Restoration Hardware, only larger). These are not available on the island so I was looking to bring them myself. Unfortunately getting them there is complicated.

Another thing I wanted to do is create a 'lounge area' but contemporary rental furniture is limited (Fernando was the only source I found).

I am hoping to work with another independent planner that will help me with a few things. She will soon have folding chairs available (I hate the chair cover / sash look - looks so 80s to me). She also plans to order the Chiavari chairs this winter which are really classy (we fell in love with these at the Ritz Carlton Naples Beach House). She's also working hard to come up with a canopy solution for us - we want to have our dinner tables draped with a fabric canopy to create some intimacy. I'm still waiting on a proposal though. She's wonderful but seems to be really busy because its taking me several weeks to get this proposal so now here I am - less than 4 months to go and can't even put together my budget. Im getting anxious because I don't know what I'll have left over for a welcome party.

So I've met with many disappointments on the decorating front and am trying to just go with the flow. If you're looking for the latest trends, you're not likely to find it down there. I just need to keep myself away from sites like FeteNY.com (that's where I fell in love with outdoor lounge containing the lanterns).

If you come up with any great resources, please pass them along!