Disastrous and shocking wedding decor.

We had a deeply disappointing experience with this vendor and feel obligated to share our story to prevent others from going through the same. While the initial presentation at wedding expos — particularly the Oakfield Farm Wedding Show in 2024 — was incredibly impressive and the vendor appeared exceptionally warm and professional, this unfortunately turned out to be a misleading front. All the vendors/contractors we used for the wedding contributed to making the wedding day as special as we hoped for. However, this one did not meet the expected standard at all. What we experienced was below average. Our dealings with Chantelle revealed certain red flags. Communication started off strong, but progressively declined as we moved closer to the event date. Delays in responses became routine, and important queries often went unanswered for days. We also identified multiple errors in the invoices — including duplicate charges — which required careful scrutiny to detect. When these discrepancies were brought up, they were quickly dismissed without taking responsibility for her own actions and brushed it off. This pattern of behavior, combined with vague responses and avoidance when confronted, raised serious concerns about transparency and integrity.

These are obvious reasons why she is on a level 3.9 Google rating. Please take time to read the other reviews below mine. The decor delivered was below the standard we were led to expect based on the wedding show display. It is important for prospective clients to approach this business with caution. While the vendor is charismatic and convincing — traits that can be very appealing in a sales setting — our experience points to a troubling lack of accountability. Other reviews seem to reflect similar issues, which supports the concerns we’ve raised here. As a Level 8 Google reviewer with 7 million views, I take the responsibility of accurate and honest reviewing seriously. We have documentation to support every claim made in this review and can substantiate the same with documentary proof. At all the wedding shows we attended, her displays featured an impressive abundance of beautiful sand candles with wicker inserts, creating a stunning and inviting ambiance. However, it's important not to be misled by these showpieces. She doesn't use these candles for her decor at any of her weddings. She told us she now had a new supplier with ordinary candles. Yet on each and every wedding show, she "still" uses these luxurious sand candles to lure people to her wedding expo displays. While similar candles are itemized and charged on the invoice, the actual quantity used on the day falls short of what was promised. We have both photographic evidence and documentation to support this discrepancy. Obviously, with our meetings, the excuses started. She couldn't deliver the cake, as she was initially offering on show as she left midweek for the venue. There is no large mirror, and she doesn't want to travel on a gravel road with the mirror, yet we did. She just had a tiny excuse of a mirror. We eventually bought our own, extremely large mirror for R1000. Her rental for her tiny mirror was R300.

We compiled (x10) detailed storyboards of 1.5-meter x 1 meter that discussed our intriguing wedding at Palala Boutique game lodge and spa to the finest aspect and detail so that there would be no misunderstanding. It was explained with both photos and in writing. We had various meetings with Chantelle. In total, 5 if we can recall correctly. All the meetings lasted 2 hours, and every minute aspect was discussed in detail, each and every time. The last meeting was 3 weeks before the wedding. This was also a 2-hour meeting with mock tables. We wanted to make a 100% sure everything is planned perfectly, so we visited the venue, which is a 6-hour drive again and we slightly changed some aspects and others we dropped completely. Again, altering the slight changes, immediately on the storyboards and explanation in detail, that there would be no misunderstanding. I have a WhatsApp from Chantelle, where she clearly states that we must please not worry about anything. She has gone through the storyboards herself in detail, and we should relax. She has everything under control. At the last meeting, 3 weeks before the wedding, we left the storyboards with her. She made mock tables up for us, and it looked really amazing. She also charged us for the mock tables R2000. We wouldn't have mind, but just give us a heads up. She never ever mentioned that mock tables were charged for. That is about the only aspect that looked like what we asked for. However, inferior flowers were used at the wedding, even that Saturday evening they looked off and the very next morning we couldn't even take it home as most bouquets were dead. The air-conditioning at Palala is exceptional, so heat wasn't the excuse. Another serious concern is the accuracy and clarity of her quotations and invoices. It is absolutely essential to review these documents thoroughly and ensure you fully understand each line item. Fortunately ,my daughter (the bride)is a registered SAICA Chartered Accountant, and we identified significant errors across all three invoices we received. The format is confusing, with a high volume of information presented in a way that could easily overwhelm someone without financial expertise. In several instances, we found duplicate charges as well as charges for items we did not request. These discrepancies appear to be subtle but deliberate, making it easy for unsuspecting clients to be overcharged. Another concerning practice is the significant escalation in pricing after the initial quote. The first quotation we received was quite reasonable, which initially gave us confidence in proceeding. However, after the second consultation—during which we made only minor changes—the quote increased by R23,876. Following a venue visit, the total rose again by an additional R17,122. In total, the cost increased by R40,998 from the original quote. This pattern of substantial price adjustments raises questions about transparency and consistency in her pricing approach. What followed was a frustrating and unnecessary delay. As the wedding date approached, we repeatedly requested the revised and accurate invoice, but it took over two weeks to receive it. In our view, this appears to be a deliberate tactic — taking advantage of the time pressure couples often face in the final stages of planning. Just one week before the wedding, she finally sent the updated invoice and then insisted that payment be made within 24 hours, placing us under significant pressure. As a result of the numerous errors—many of which involved duplicate charges, we contested the invoice. We eventually had a virtual meeting to address the discrepancies in the invoice. During this discussion, we raised several reasonable and practical requests — for example, asking if some of the candles used in the church ceremony could be repurposed for the reception, rather than being charged twice for the same items. She assured us this would be no problem. Unfortunately, this turned out to be a false promise. The invoice still contained serious errors. Many items were charged twice, often inserted in a subtle and misleading manner, making it easy to overlook unless carefully reviewed. It became clear that these were not simple mistakes, but part of a consistent pattern of overcharging. The mistakes were glaring, and when questioned, she dismissed the concerns with little explanation or accountability. Then came the disastrous wedding decor! Something to cry about. This wedding was planned meticulously at a very upmarket 5-star lodge. Palala Boutique game lodge and spa. On the Friday, the day before the wedding, I saw the backdrop of the main bridal table and was completely shocked. It didn't look like anything I've explained and the pictures on the storyboard. I discussed this with Chantelle, whilst the operations manager of Palala and my daughter were present. She made the most horrible old-fashioned scallops at the top of the draping, and I immediately corrected her and told her to take it off. We said soft draping’s in white and ivory. It looked **********. We specifically asked for soft draping’s as discussed and, in the storyboard, clearly displayed. This was sadly never corrected. From there, I unfortunately had to give her free range. Afterall she was our decor lady and as being the mother of the bride I was busy with other weddings aspects and as she confirmed via WhatsApp with us that she is totally in control and understands everything very well. She knows the storyboards off by heart and she had all of them with her, so no excuse for any misunderstanding. The weird aspect was that it was covered in gladwrap. She didn't even open them! Shocking fact is that, I even brought two of my own workers to assist the whole Thursday,Friday and partial Saturday. They said they even helped with flower arrangements, although they have no knowledge. Chantelle demanded accommodation for the Saturday evening as well and only after the wedding we found out that she left midday Saturday, not staying and overseeing everything till the reception started. She never even bothered to notify us she was leaving earlier. We already paid for that accommodation. How rude and unresponsible! Some candles at reception were not even lit. Just to clarify. Palala is an intriguing wedding venue in the sense that it has many facets, and not all are in the same vicinity. The first shocks came as we were attending the wedding. We did notice certain aspects, but as we were attending the wedding and enjoying it, we brushed it off and kind of ignored it as it did hit hard, but we decided to rather enjoy the day. We didn't take any photos, and no professional photos are ready yet, but soon after, the wedding photos of guests came streaming in, and this is when we just experienced this sickening feeling. Many aspects were done, but in such a sneaky, half-hearted manner. Other aspects were not done at all. Some aspects she just completely changed and definitely not what we asked for. Lastly some was not done at all, although we did pay for that.

People are stressed before a wedding and she knows it all too well. She goes from 0 to 100% to get paid the outstanding balance ASAP. So no one really goes through the invoice and just pays. On the wedding day, everyone is too stressed to notice mistakes, and afterwards they on cloud 9 and photo's take too long to realize what she has done. She is clever and always stays calm and collected, even telling me, when I showed her the horrible main table, she must have understood me wrong. I was just astonished with her again smooth answer as she had the storyboards with her as reference. She had all the meetings, and we did tell her the Friday in front of witnesses. No matter what the fairytale looks like at the show. This lady will **** you out of thousands of rand you won't even realize it. Also, be a 100% sure what she quotes for what she actually uses at the wedding. As mentioned, we are still waiting for the professional photography where more aspects will come to light. What we already picked up; she charged us for 12 candles of different sizes at the foot end of the signature table in the church. There were only 8. Another example, she quoted for 24 candles in glasvases for steps to altar. 12 on each side. So, 3 on each step. She did only 2 on each step. So we paid for 24 and she only used 16. See, tiny little sneaky things. We asked for a thick layer of petals on both sides of the aisle. She charged us R1200 to scatter some rose petals in a very large impressive church. It completely disappeared. We paid R1200 for basically hardly any petals. In the church, she had to do greenery around the personalized candle of the couple. She didn’t. Left it totally barren. She didn't charge us for it. Said she would do it for free. We don't want freebies. We would rather pay, and it gets done. We paid R1 550 for the huge display bouquet outside , but got a tiny insignificant posy. We paid R2500 for the 1.5-meter gip display in front of the selfie mirror infront of the canape island but got a cheap posy with JUST green leaves placed right in front of the written words on the mirror. On the island, we paid R1700 for branches we did not see nowhere. No greenery was placed on the canapé island tables and no flowers in tiny pots to soften the tables. The bouquets in pots looked ridiculous, and she charged us R3900 for 15 glas pots. She most definitely cut corners in such a way that it's difficult to detect, and that's how she makes money and gets away with it. We paid for 42 candles in varying vase sizes to be placed along the church aisle — specifically 21 candles on each side. However, photographs from the event clearly show that only 12 candles were placed on each side. Despite this significant shortfall, we were charged in full for the original quantity. This is yet another example of overcharging and cutting corners, where the service delivered did not match what was promised or paid for. In the hall there were 4 beautifully decorated tables done by Palala in each corner of the hall.We asked Chantelle to place **** orchards in the pots. We paid for 5 per table, but only 3 can be seen in the pots. I brought 12 of my own orchards to place at the bar area. Luckily, I did. We paid for 30 floating candles at the main table. We counted 16. Anyone reading this can now realize her modus operandi. In our experience, the priority seemed to be receiving payment, while she will be cutting corners wherever possible to reduce her costs and maximize her profit. We can provide loads of photos with all the ********** mistakes and shortfalls aswell as all 3 invoices were ridiculous and sneaky mistakes were made, aswell as items billed for but where she used lesser amounts. Given the above, I just cannot justify a good rating . I am very careful before giving a bad review, but in this case I feel obliged to do so. I cannot in good conscience recommend this business.