We worked with Courtney of After the Engagement as our wedding planner for our wedding in April of 2026 in Solvang, California, and honestly, this could be the shortest or the longest review we write, because you'd be an idiot not to work with Courtney. We're going with the long version, but if you don't want to read the whole thing, just know this: go work with her! We first met Courtney when we were considering getting married in Palm Springs, she was the preferred planner at one of the venues we were looking at. We hopped on a call and immediately loved her style and approach, even though we ultimately decided not to get married in that area. Many months later, once we'd finally landed on our actual destination, we called her back and asked if she'd be willing to plan a wedding with us somewhere else entirely. We are SO glad she said yes, because it led not just to an incredible planning partnership, but to a real friendship! From the start, it was clear Courtney has an extremely thoughtful process and an incredible eye for detail, nothing ever slips through the cracks with her. She has this rare balance of being able to lead and guide with real expertise, while also staying open and creative, exploring every option with us instead of just dictating a path. She met us exactly where we were on any given topic, if we wanted her opinion or needed her to just make the call, she'd step up, and where we had strong opinions ourselves, she let us lead. What makes her truly exceptional is the combination of being incredibly on top of the process, timeline, and vendors, basically the glue holding everything together, while ALSO having genuinely excellent taste and style. It is so rare to find someone who excels at both, and she is off the charts on each! We joked that we hired her because I knew she'd make sure we had enough restrooms at the venue, and my wife knew we could trust her taste on everything else, and that combination is nearly impossible to find in one person. As the wedding got closer, Courtney also had a remarkable read on our emotional journey, supporting me and my wife in completely different ways depending on what each of us needed. By the end, she'd become a true friend, we were swapping stories about our lives together, and we genuinely can't imagine having gone through this with anyone else. The biggest testament to her is that we miss our regular conversations now that the wedding is over, she truly feels like family at this point, and we've made a real commitment to staying close and treasuring this friendship for years to come. There are too many inside jokes now for this friendship not to flourish! You should be so lucky to get to work with Courtney. read more

I don't think I will ever truly be able to express how much I love Courtney and the After The Engagement team. I am a former wedding planner and stylist and was lucky enough to work with Courtney during my previous career. So when my fiance, now husband, proposed, and we knew we wanted to get married at Frank Sinatra's Estate in Palm Springs, hiring Courtney was an absolute no-brainer. From day one, Courtney was on it when booking our very sought-after venue on a very popular date, during the busiest part of wedding season. She was our advocate when researching and booking each and every vendor. She was as hands-on or hands-off when we needed her to be. However, she was never shy to give us honest, unfiltered advice about vendors, service, and experience to ensure we found the right vendors for us, our venue, and our vision for the day. Courtney is an absolute badass. She takes no sh!t and will not let anyone take advantage of her or her clients. This is by far one of the most valuable qualities a wedding planner can have, especially in the fast-paced Southern California wedding scene. I had a very specific vision for our day and Courtney got the vision immediately and was able to steer us in the right direction for everything we needed. She understood where we wanted to splurge and where we wanted to be a little frugal on certain items. I knew she understood what we were going for, and always had our backs, even when working behind the scenes. I cannot tell you how freaking organized and thorough she is. As someone who understands wedding planning, she answered my questions and had things planned and ready before I needed to even say or do anything. She has excellent communication with her clients, her team, and all vendors, and I knew everyone had the information and what they needed during planning and the day of the wedding. The entire planning process was epic. However, the day of was f'ing blissful. Courtney, Johnny, and Amanda made sure everything looked perfect, all vendors were on time, and where they needed to be, and everything was on schedule... we even ran early. I honestly did not worry about anything that day. My job was to look beautiful and marry the love of my life, and Courtney ensured that is what happened. I am just in awe of Courtney's skills, the team she has built, and the community of vendors she has lovingly curated. I will never stop talking about what an asset and badass she is. She is not for everyone, which I find to be even more appealing. She knows herself and her clients and has built an amazing brand by being true to herself. Her brand of weddings is in a galaxy of their own, out of this world. If you are looking for a rad, one-of-a-kind, bad b!tch to help you plan an epic, one-of-a-kind wedding day, then Courtney and the After the Engagement team are for you. Do not hesitate to book her. She is 1,000,000% worth it. read more

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We were so fortunate to have Courtney as our wedding planner. When initially looking for a planner, Courtney stood out because of her cool, modern, non-traditional weddings, but we were also told by our venue (and later several vendors) that she was the best wedding planner to work with. During the planning process Courtney was prompt, detail-oriented, and very direct. This was definitely true during the wedding weekend. Everything went as initially planned, except that the first dance was started at a different time than anticipated. However, this change happened so smoothly that even we forgot it hadn't been planned that way from the start. Multiple guests also told us how amazing our planner was. I have nothing, but positive things to say. Courtney can definitely take charge of an event; she's extremely capable, prompt, direct, and honest. Our wedding SO perfect and way better than I could have imagined it because of Courtney! Alsooo she connected us with the BEST vendors! read more

The only regret I have with wedding planning is not hiring Courtney sooner. Seriously if you are considering hiring a planner (which you should) you absolutely NEED Courtney and her team part of your wedding. We hired Courtney later in the wedding planning process when we had to shift our original plan, and she jumped in right away and didn't miss a beat. She is a pro, she knows what you need before you even ask, she always gives her honest opinion (spoiler alert she's always right TRUST her), and she is just a great person that you want to have around you and part of your wedding. Every idea we had Courtney made come to life. She made us feel like true VIPs and like we were her only client. She truly puts her heart into everything she does and made us feel so incredibly loved, special, and taken care of. She has incredible resources, whether it's her vendor list, her team, or her incredibly organized documents and questionnaires. You can tell she spends A LOT of time getting to know each of her couples, their vision, and she will stop at nothing to make sure their wedding is magic. We were also so lucky to work with Courtney's team, Johnny, Amanda, and Thomas and they are all so incredible too. They were all so much fun to work with, and were ready to handle anything (groom ripped his pants 5 min before the wedding? After the engagement didn't even flinch, they sprung into action to remedy the situation as quickly and calmly as they could) I could go on and on and on, but you get the idea. Hire After The Engagement, they are SO worth the investment. It was the best money we could have spent on our wedding. Our wedding was truly magical, and I know it's because of Courtney. read more

Do not hesitate, do not second guess yourself. If you were lucky enough to come across Courtney and the After the Engagement team. Just BOOK! Not only is Courtney effortlessly cool, but she is also everything you need her to be: kind when you feel totally overwhelmed, a badass when she needs to get shit done, a therapist occasionally if family is driving you nuts, and hilarious to keep you sane from start to finish of wedding planning and execution. Looking back, I truly didn't realize what an undertaking planning a destination wedding was - but with Courtney leading the way - I was not only able to have an incredible wedding but have fun in the process. Truly one of a kind human being and wedding planner. When every vendor we were connected to sung her praises, we knew we had the right person to bring our vision to life. Cannot say enough about Courtney and her team. 1000/10 will recommend her every time. PS - photos by Brogen Jessup - one of the many awesome vendors Courtney recommended! read more

After the Engagement - Party & Event Planning Near Me

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After interviewing several wedding planners, we knew immediately after meeting Courtney that we had to have her on our team.. and we are SO incredibly lucky that we did. Courtney gave us everything we dreamed of and more. The planning, execution, and our entire weekend was seamless from start to finish. If you are considering Courtney, book her now. I promise you will not regret it. Here's why.. First off, Courtney is extremely honest. She is not afraid to give her invaluable opinion based on years of experience, and will literally be at your every command (we could not get over how quick she was to respond to us with everything!). I can't tell you how many times Courtney put things into perspective for us and made decisions easy. She is 100% there to tell it like it is AND make your dreams come true too. Secondly, if you want an epic, one-of-a-kind, FUN, and gorgeous wedding, Courtney is your girl. Her style is impeccable and so is her vision. Courtney helped narrow down our wedding location based on our vision of our dream wedding. She was able to show us a variety of different venues, all unique to one another, and all within our price range. She is also very realistic about price ranges and is NOT commission based! She knows how to stay within your range and will not push you to spend a cent more. Courtney also had a vendor list of literally EVERYTHING we were looking for from the basics like photographers, videographers, florals, cake, signage, etc. to way more specific things like boba tea vendors and lion dance performers.. and if there wasn't already someone she had worked with and recommended, she would find someone almost immediately to introduce to us. Third, our entire weekend went so incredibly smoothly. Everyone warns you that there will always be something that inevitably goes wrong at your wedding. It didn't happen to us. And if it did, we were totally unaware of it because Courtney was on it IMMEDIATELY. Lastly, it's been 7 months since our wedding and we are still having friends and family reach out about how SPECIAL our wedding was. How it was the most fun and unique wedding they had ever been to and how it will forever be something they cherish. As a bride and groom hosting a wedding, that is all we could have ever wished for. Yes, it is about us and our union, but it's just as much about your guests experience too. Courtney is a dream to work with and we are honestly forever grateful to her. I wish we could plan an annual anniversary party with her just to be able to live it over again and again and again. LOVE YOU, COURTNEY!! Kim & Web read more

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Seriously the best in the business. I own a wedding catering company and we work with Courtney often and she is by far the best planner in SoCal. We get to experience working with a lot of different planners and vendors so I would say our opinion matters, and honestly if you're considering her book her before you lose out. Her attention to detail and overall badassery is what you want for your big day lead. read more

We LOVE Courtney. We were connected to Courtney by word of mouth after we started circling a venue, and we're so grateful that we started working together when we did. She helped us navigate locking down our dream venue, and from there she made the wedding planning process a dream. She is incredibly organized, professional, and -- equally important -- really fun to talk to. It felt like we were on a team with her, from planning through the wedding day. She has a strong arsenal of incredible vendors. We knew Courtney was incredible when all the vendors couldn't stop singing her praises. And every vendor rec we got from her (photog, caterer, bartender, rentals) exceeded expectations and helped create the exact vibe we wanted for our wedding. During the night before party, we had a situation where 2 guests who had not RSVPed decided to--surprise!--show up, and Courtney handled the situation SO quickly and SO calmly. We didn't even have enough time to panic before she had figured out their meals and seating for the wedding day. The wedding day went absolutely perfect, thanks to Courtney and her team. Her timeline of the day was spot-on, and she kept everyone on track. We had a moment before our grand entrance where I realized I had forgotten to bring our thank you speech print-outs with me; I told her exactly where they were, and before I even knew what was happening she had returned from her literal sprint over to our hotel room, speeches in hand. We could go on forever about all the things she did to make the experience unforgettable. Maybe we'll get divorced just so we can plan a wedding with Courtney all over again. read more

Courtney is your wedding sherpa. My husband and I are that annoying couple that's both picky and also too busy with work to make choices about our own wedding, and if that's you (or if it's not you), Courtney and her team are perfect. She is efficient as hell, incredibly organized, fun to talk to, a calming presence on days when everything is overwhelming, and I loved and appreciated that she has opinions about how to throw an amazing party based on what you value most. She's seen it all and done it all. We had Thomas and Cassie with us the day of our welcome party and wedding, and they were incredible -- Thomas was sewing on buttons that fell off at the last minute and showing up with cocktails for me and ushering family members places and managing personalities all at once. Listen, here's the thing: Every single person we've spoken to about our wedding mentioned that we seemed so relaxed and like we were having a great time. That's because of Courtney, Thomas, and Cassie. We just trusted them, and we were right to trust them, and our wedding was absolutely flawless and as perfect as any I've ever seen. And we had a wonderful time. You're going to spend a lot of money on this day as it is, but all the various aesthetics and elements will only be as good as their execution. So hire a team that can execute. Hire this team! read more

I don't even know where to begin. I guess I could start by saying that I am a wedding planner here in Los Angeles, and I thought planning my wedding, as well as handling things the day of, I would be an expert, and super chill. I do this for a living, what would I need help with? Let me be honest and say all of it. First off, choosing a planner to coordinate all the details was a no-brainer. I had been following/stalking Courtney for the past 6 years. I knew she was the queen of Palm Springs. Her style, unique weddings, and down-to-earth attitude made her the obvious choice. What I was so surprised about was her demeanor. She was incredibly level-headed and calm throughout the entire process. Since her style is so incredible, I really looked for her stamp of approval on design choices. She was so thoughtful when discussing design, layout, vendors ( and honestly anything I inquired about) she offered fresh ideas when I felt stuck or unsure. She is a pro and I felt so confident in letting her place rental order, design our floorplan, and place all of my sourced decor. What I hadn't planned on was it raining in Palm Springs on my wedding day or the anxiety that seemed to come out of nowhere. I am not an anxious person and was SO excited for my day, but I had actual anxiety and the only person who made me feel at ease was Court. She came in so calm, talked me through each moment, and reminded me to breathe. Then came the rain- ugh. Was I a bit sad? Yes, but Court put a rain plan into action, flipped around a few vendors and it was perfection. We all danced the night away and partied like there was no rain. Every single person has told us it was the best/ most fun wedding they have ever been to. I know without Court being so chill and handling it, I may have freaked out, but she is truly a boss babe and made it all seem like no big deal. I couldn't be more grateful. Lastly- I will say this, her style. Chefs kiss. She always looks the part and when I asked my guests for "no black" I did not necessarily expect vendors to follow suit. Courtney ( and her cutie assistants) showed up looking so bright and fun. This was my cherry on top. I can not recommend her enough, especially for a Palm Springs wedding. She is the mayor/queen. 10 out of 10! read more

Choosing Courtney & her team to plan our wedding was hands down the best and most impactful decision we made throughout this process. Truly a no-brainer if you're considering a southern California and/or destination wedding, like us. Courtney knows her wedding/event/general life s**t!!!!! Her and her team worked extremely hard to make every step of wedding planning simple (and enjoyable). Anytime we began to feel overwhelmed, Courtney jumped in and eased our minds. There's so much going on behind the scenes with her and her team that I can't even speak to, but I felt fully taken care of and would 10000% put my trust in this team to carry out any type of wedding. Like, it RAINED during our Palm Springs wedding, and my biggest concern was my hair. Courtney's team--in partnership with our incredible vendors--flawlessly handled the rest. Let's talk about those vendors...we had to bring in ~everything~ to our venue. Courtney's team has outstanding relationships with their vendors and I quickly realized that it's a non-negotiable to have trustworthy vendors for the big day. We took every single one of Courtney's recommendations and were beyond impressed. Namely our bartenders, florists, photographer, hair & makeup artists, band, caterer....wait, I think that's literally everyone. My boomer parents were thrilled with how hardworking this team was, and they are really hard to please. Ahh!!! I wish I could get married all over again so I could work with Courtney and her team again :) THANK YOU!!! read more

Courtney and her team were perfect. Full stop. From start to finish, they exuded calm, professionalism, and creativity. She took the stress out of wedding planning and made sure, at every step, that our vision was centered, and our worries addressed. Day-of, our coordinator Thomas navigated what might have been a nightmare scenario (i.e., surprise visit from EMTs) with grace and humor. We honestly cannot imagine our wedding without them. And separately, let us just add that as a same-sex couple, we cannot overstate how fucking fabulous it was to work with a planner who gets it. Courtney helped us hone a vision for a wedding that was perfectly us--not just a sanitized, same-sex version of a straight wedding. She guided us as we identified traditions that worked for us, discarded those that didn't, and dreamt up fun ways to stitch it altogether. read more

Courtney killed it designing and planning my 15th wedding anniversary. She kept helpful communication and took care of all the things that I definitely didn't want to be stressing about for our vow renewal. Everything was thought out and handled beautifully. Courtney is top notch and I will definitely want her to handle the planning if we ever get married again..for a third time :-) Thanks so much Courtney for keeping our big day stress free, despite the 110 degree heat! read more

After the Engagement - The Sands hotel & spa, 15th anniversary vow renewal- planned & designed by Courtney - Party & Event Planning Near Me

Words can not express how thankful we were that we chose Courtney and her team to be our wedding planner. She was super easy to work with and would have absolutely died without her. Right from the beginning I knew she could bring my vision to life. She was there every step of the way and responded right away with any email and texts from me asking a billion questions ! She put my mind at ease whenever a situation presented itself. Day of we had a couple obstacles that arose and she dealt with them as a true professional. Everything came out amazing and it was so fun having her and Johnny around. I can not say enough good things about both of them!! ATE has so much experience with venues and vendors in the PS area that it would be silly to hire anyone else but them!! read more

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I just realized I never posted an updated review for the Trash the Dress (TTD) session I had with After the Engagement! Courtney had a vision of having different themed brides for an untraditional TTD photo shoot with Dapper Images and I was lucky enough to be one of the brides who was able to partake! Courtney styled and coordinated the entire photo shoot. She came up with a different theme for each bride (enchanted bride, 80s bride, pinup bride, goth bride); I was the enchanted bride! All I had to do was show up with my dress. Courtney provided the headpiece and socks, b.mookie provided the gorgeous jewelry (custom made creations!), hair was done by Gerine Coronado, makeup was done by Ann DeNicolo, flowers provided by Exquisite Blooms and photography by Dapper Images. The photo shoot was a lot of fun and I love the photos! I would never have come up with this idea on my own. Courtney has great ideas for unconventional TTDs; I highly recommend her if you are looking for a stylized photo shoot! read more

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Courtney and her team are the absolute best in the business. I cannot recommend them highly enough! We did the "Big Day" package and it was exactly what we needed. Courtney provided expert guidance and advice as we navigated our own planning. Her knowledge and experience were unparalleled and her kindness and professionalism next level! Not only was she available to answer any / all questions for the 3 months leading to our big day, she responded immediately to every email and was always happy and available to chat on the phone if we needed. She also coordinated all our booked vendors and made sure we had everything we needed for our insurance etc.. Stuff I would never have even known to ask she had 100% covered and explained every step of the way! For our day-of coordination we were thrilled to have Johnny lead us through the day! Johnny absolutely MADE. THE. DAY. He was cool, calm and collected and ran the schedule to perfection. It is a true talent to deal with families and friends on such an emotional day and keep it all on track and he did it with style and finesse! He solved every problem that arose: sorting a new cake stand when the one I had purchased was too small, getting us a shout wipe when I smudged makeup all over the groom's collar, rearranging the toasts last minute because we're crazy ! He had it all covered! Between the two of them they alleviated our planning stresses and made it a perfect worry-free day! We honestly could not have done it without them! read more

Courtney and her team deserve nothing less than 10 stars!! They are THE go-to wedding planners in southern California. We started working with Courtney summer of 2019, little did we know this would be a 2.5 year partnership. Our wedding finally happened last weekend and it was all worth it - Courtney and her team ensured we had the most fabulous wedding event and everything was easy, seamless, and went off without a hitch even when having to reschedule 3 different times. Courtney's service, professionalism, and responsiveness were unparalleled, and the quality of her vendor partnerships and recommendations were sensational. It was obvious the amazing level of care and quality across the board because it resulted in the most fabulous, easy and seamless wedding day. read more

Courtney is such an incredible wedding planner! She really stands out in the massive sea of planners. She's kind, listens, and has your back no matter what! It's hard not to become best friends with her after meeting her. She's one in a million and I loved working with her. Not to mention, her vision for color and design is unmatched! She is the most incredible Wedding Girl out there. Anyone wanting the most amazing wedding, hire Courtney! read more

Hire. Courtney. Now. If you are considering hiring After the Engagement at all, just make the decision and do it. You will not regret it. I cannot say enough good things about Courtney and her team (shoutout to Thomas, who was with us on our wedding day). The first thing you will learn about hiring Courtney is that everyone knows and loves her. Every venue you tour or vendor you speak with will simply say "Courtney is the best." And it's true. She is deeply knowledgeable and incredibly smart. She has exceptional taste and the best methods of delivering information, opinions, and needs. She knows the wedding industry like none other, and has an insane roster of vendors to recommend. She takes what could be an incredibly stressful experience, and turns it into a fun and enjoyable process. Hire her and trust her implicitly - she will not steer you wrong. read more

We just had the most magical day of our lives last Saturday at our wedding in Palm Springs. Hiring Courtney was by far the BEST decision we had during our planning process. We were asked multiple times up to and after the day of our wedding if we were stressed, and our answer was the same the entire time, NOT AT ALL! Courtney has a wonderful system that you follow and planning feels like a breeze. She walks you through each step and follows up when needed. The details of our wedding were just perfection. All of the vendors she recommended were fantastic and the day was absolutely perfect! I did not realize how much time you spend with a wedding planner/coordinator the day of your wedding, and we were so lucky that not only is she extremely organized and professional, she is also extremely cool and fun to be around! My husband (still so fun to say) and I cannot say enough wonderful things about Courtney and her team. She is truly a gem and we would recommend her to anyone who wants an epic, stress free wedding. Don't sleep on this, hire Courtney and the After The Engagement team now for the wedding of your dreams!! read more

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When we decided to get married in Desert Hot Springs just six months after our engagement, we thought, "OMG, what have we done?" Then our venue pointed us to Courtney. Courtney and her team at AtE are - like others have said many times over - the best decision we made when we decided to get married in Palm Springs. From the very first phone call we had with her, Courtney exuded a level of confidence and comfort that we knew would serve us well as we planned our wedding from San Francisco. She patiently and interestedly listened to our vision and ideas, making recommendations where needed and cheering us on where we already had ideas. She seemed to instantly get what we were going for and got to work from the first moment to make it happen. Every. Little. Detail. was thought through and taken care of, often without our intervention or time spent wondering. She and her team have the process down to a science that flexed to work with our needs. Often, it felt like we were her only client - with the smallest questions answered quickly, thoughtfully, and, most importantly for us, confidently. Of course, what she and Johnny brought to life on our day was far better than we even imagined. Every element was perfectly placed. We didn't have to think about planning or stressing for one second the entire weekend. Friends and family were thanking US for being so calm and worry-free the days leading up to the wedding - we'd always say, "Why worry? We've got Courtney." Bottom line: Don't question AtE for a second. You will not regret hiring Courtney and her team for a moment! We're so grateful they were the catalysts behind our day - we wish we could do it all over again! Thank you Courtney!! xx read more

We couldn't be more thrilled that Courtney was our wedding planner!!! Still beaming over our wedding even over a month later!! From the moment we had our initial call and throughout the craziness of the pandemic, Courtney has always kept her cool, calm, collected vibessss going!! She never let this process feel overwhelming at all, when I need her opinion, advice, she always made us feel that we didn't have to go the traditional route, we could do anything we wanted!! Her dream team of vendors absolutely adore her and have great things to say about her! Courtney and Thomas were just absolute rockstars came wedding day! Thomas went knocking on our guests' rooms and made sure they were all at the ceremony on time!! I was nervous people were going to be late! We didn't have bobby-pins on hand for my veil right as we were walking out to the ceremony and Courtney saved the day with makeshift paper clips! I mean their A-1 service is what every bride and groom needs!! We had so many guests complimenting their work that day and that just speaks volumes! If something went wrong that day, I had no clue cuz that's how good they are! When we wanted huge party vibes, her and Thomas made it happen! We will forever be grateful to these two for such a special day!! We love you guys so much! Xoxo, Freeps read more

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I could not recommend highly enough, if there were hundreds of stars, Courtney and Johnny would get hundreds. Courtney is a consummate professional but also is extremely skilled in recommending the best things to do for the type of wedding you are having; I felt like she really took to heart what me and my husband were trying to accomplish, which was a mix of traditional and modern things. It felt like working with my friend, and her knowledge of the SoCal area made everything so much easier. Courtney literally recommended vendors to us, and my husband and I just had to go through the list and pick which best suited our vibe and desires; it saved literally months of researching and I could rest assured she knew the vendors and they would all show up and do their jobs day of. Johnny was my Wedding Coodinator day of and he handled everything, literally perfectly. Nothing went wrong at our wedding, and I heard later that one of the vendors was severely late and they handled it without it ever touching me or my family. There were also all these little moments during the wedding that Johnny handled, like when we went to cut the cake and we realized we didn't bring a cake cutter, he disappeared and after he reappeared there is magically a cake cutter. He really helped us understand 100% of the logistics when rehearsing so everyone knew exactly what they were doing day of instead of phoning it in. Also our speeches threw us an hour late into dancing with one speech left to go, and he calmly came up to us and discussed with us that we should pick up the speeches a bit and we agreed and everything moved faster from that point so we could get to dancing. And generally, you just always feel happy and light around Johnny, which let me tell you, day of really matters. Hiring After the Engagement was literally, and I'll say this for the rest of my life, the best money we spent out of everything at the wedding. If you have the chance, hire Courtney and her team and you will not regret it. read more

From the second we had our first phone call with Courtney, we knew it was going to be an amazing relationship. Planning a wedding during a pandemic in a venue we booked sight-unseen presented its own challenges, but somehow we never felt overwhelmed. Courtney, with her extensive knowledge of the Palm Springs area, was able to navigate the whole landscape with us, presenting ideas and décor that spoke directly to who we are as a couple. The way in which she was organized allowed us to have a clear picture from start to finish as to what deadlines happened (and when), so we were never surprised about anything - and she was extremely accessible to answer all of the basic questions in addition to the more complicated ones. When the venue came to us two weeks before the wedding and told us we had to have table assignments, Courtney's sense of humor and aplomb cooled Doug down before he even had a chance to get too stressed. The day of the wedding, Courtney and Thomas were SO ecstatic to be there with us, which only added to the excitement of the day. They came rolling up with their neon pink backpacks and Courtney had her signature cheetah print hat, and you knew they meant business. They even by and picked everything up from our hotel room so we wouldn't have to leave and drop things off (a huge A+ for that one). They kept the schedule moving so efficiently that we actually had time to breathe and collect our thoughts as a couple and didn't have any stress whatsoever on the wedding day. Their time management, kindness to our family/friends, and general dispositions made them calm even the most tense nerves. They love what they do so much and that love came through in such unexpected ways. Doug even sat down during the reception and chatted with them for almost twenty minutes because they were so much more like family vs. someone we hired. When there was a song snafu, Courtney worked with both Doug and the DJ to make sure everyone was happy - and it wound up being one of the top moments of the reception! We wouldn't have had it without them. We cannot state enough how much we LOVED working with Courtney and her team (we even had the chance to meet Johnny during our final walkthrough in June)! Knowing how much time, detail, and attention they put into everything made us so at ease (even when Doug added a napkin order last minute). They are a mighty force to be reckoned with - they make the most important day of your life perfection from top to bottom. There are so many things we're missing, but that's the thing: every single moment had with After the Engagement was glaringly positive. We gained two new friends throughout the process, and we'e been referring them to guests of ours who were then convinced that they wanted to get married in PS. And, every time we come back to Palm Springs, we'll be calling them to grab a drink and some vegan treats. read more

After the Engagement - Party & Event Planning Near Me

WOW is what I have to say about Courtney, Johnny and Ashley. So much patience and attention to every detail from start to finish and throughout the rehearsal and wedding always with a smile. Love them all and recommend them highly to make your dream wedding come true!! read more

After the Engagement - A perfect ceremony at the Desert Ridge Estate, Indio. Every detail perfect!!! Thank you!!! - Party & Event Planning Near Me

Courtney is absolute magic. If you don't hire her, you're making a mistake. Lock this sh*t down faster than you did your fiancé because make no mistake, she is the best. Courtney and her team are kind of like if Beyonce and Elton John procreated (unlikely, I know... but imagine the possibilities). They're talented, completely fabulous, and masters of their craft. It's so rare to work with a vendor who's not only lovely but can also execute so flawlessly. Her and Johnny created, nurtured, and saw through the most incredible day of my husband and I's life. They have an almost an insane level of attention to detail, can solve problems quickly and with grace, and work together in a way that makes your day seamless and spectacular. They are also the most well connected planners you'll meet, and their network of vendors who they have created longstanding relationships with will pay off for you in spades. They're kind of like a warm protective shield that surrounds you from day one all the way to the big day. In all seriousness, I am an insanely unorganized person with a terrible memory. The sheer volume of "quick question" emails I sent Courtney's way rivaled the rate at which the current president tweets - fu**ing absurd. Court handled it all like a champ. She always had a well thought out answer, and responded at a rate that set new land speed records. Our guests have been talking about the magic at our wedding for nearly 2 weeks now and we only have her and Johnny to thank for that. Hire these majestic land mermaids and buckle up, because you're about to have the greatest wedding of your life. read more

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Five stars isn't enough. Courtney and her team are the very best in the business. No one compares to the level of skill, professionalism, experience and overall amazingness that After the Engagement provides. I'm a photographer and I know first hand planners and coordinators can make our jobs a nightmare. Timelines, organization and overall control of vendors is crucial to being on top of your game. I've seen Courtney handle all sorts of wild twists and turns with ease, she keeps everyone happy and on track at all times. There isn't anyone else in the industry I enjoy working with more than Courtney and her incredible team. I recommend her to every single couple I possibly can. 10/10 would recommend. read more

After the Engagement - Courtney & Johnny - Party & Event Planning Near Me

Hiring Courtney and her team at After the Engagement was the BEST decision my husband and I made after we got engaged and started to plan our destination wedding in Palm Springs. I still remember the very first call we had with Courtney (before we decided to work with her), and how she explained the process, our options, and answered all our questions - and we knew instantly we needed to work with her and could trust her to help us create one of the most special days of our lives. My husband and I live in New York, so thinking about planning a destination wedding from afar and under a year felt a bit daunting. But Courtney made us feel at ease and we knew we could count on her for every last detail. During the process, Courtney guided us every step of the way. We had to bring in every single vendor (florals, tables, chairs, lighting, etc) and Courtney was totally on point with every vendor she recommended based on our budget and the vibe we were going for. Courtney is extremely easy-going, has a great sense of humor, and is so accommodating. We knew she truly listened to us. The day of our wedding we were blown away - she and her team exceeded our expectations (which were already very high!) and everything was absolutely PERFECT. She coordinated every last detail to make sure the day ran as smoothly as possible. It was a day I know we will never forget, and our friends and family are still telling us months later how our wedding was the best wedding they have ever been to. We cannot thank Courtney and her team enough for their amazing work and support. We highly recommend After the Engagement to anyone looking to create a kick-ass wedding of their dreams! read more

Courtney & her team are the best ever. Like really, THE BEST ever. Courtney made our wedding our dream wedding & we would recommend her to literally anyone & everyone getting married. Every detail of our wedding turned out even better than how we imagined it would be... every vendor suggested was 100/10 and literally killed it for us. It's hard for us to even put into words how incredible everything was/looked/and went down for us that weekend. I've cried multiple times thinking about how all of the details turned out & you had your hand in all of it!! We will be forever grateful for you! We would be remiss to not mention how incredible Thomas, our day-of coordinator, was that day.... every single person in the wedding was absolutely obsessed with Thomas! You were the perfect fit for us that day - you kept all of us calm (even when the ceremony site didn't go to plan) and everything looked absolutely beyond beautiful. I can't even tell you how many people have sung your praises to me! Especially my parents & my bridesmaids - they are still talking about how much they love you. read more

We used Courtney's photo booth services for our 10/2/10 wedding at Ocean View Villas. She brought the funnest props like mustache on a stick, funny crazy hats, boas, etc. for our guests to wear for their photo shoots and everyone, I MEAN EVERYONE from my bridal party to my grandma had a blast with it! Courtney has this amazing energy that gives any bride the energy she needs before, during, and after the wedding planning. She is both friendly and professional, but the best thing I liked about Courtney is that she is really quick to respond, which is something any bride would appreciate. http://www.aftertheengagement.com/photobooth.html is the website to check out the photo booth section of Courtney's services. Lastly, what was really cool is after the wedding - we received a CD in the mail with copies of all of the photo booth pictures that were taken at our wedding that I (the bride) didn't get to see before. She had these pictures in both strips and individually so I can re-print them and share with friends and family, but best of all, post on FaceBook! read more

After the Engagement - Photo Booth Picture - Party & Event Planning Near Me

Courtney of After the Engagement rocks! She is so passionate and enthusiastic about what she does, and it really shows! We had the perfect wedding day and it was all thanks to her! We hired Courtney early in the process and she helped us hone our mess of ideas into a cohesive and fabulous design. She has great taste, and really understood our vision so I completely trusted her recommendations because I knew she just "got us." She kept us calm and sane throughout the planning while keeping us organized and on task. She was always extremely responsive by e-mail, phone and text! She helped us to assemble a team of absolutely incredible vendors that she had personal experience working with and knew matched our style, budget and personalities. Her recommendations for our venue, officiant, photographers, florist, DJ and numerous other vendors completely MADE our wedding day - there is no way we could have selected such perfect vendors without her guidance! Courtney communicated our vision to our vendors in a way I really don't have the lingo or knowledge to do, which ensured that everything really came together the way we envisioned it! During our rehearsal and on our wedding day, she kept everything moving smoothly with a smile. We had a large and complicated family for her to wrangle together and she was professional, authoritative, organized, but always friendly and calming to have around. Courtney made sure everyone was exactly where they needed to be at all times, so there were never any awkward "ok what do we do now" moments during our day. And with the minor glitches that inevitably occur, Courtney was there and ready: she fixed my broken bustle, and quickly dove in to clean a spilled drink off my dress. We were able to truly enjoy our wedding day because she was so on top of everything else. Her assistants on the day of were also fantastic. Hiring Courtney was without a doubt one of the best decisions we made. She really goes above and beyond to make sure everything is perfect. And she is just FUN to work with - we truly had a blast planning our wedding with her! I already miss her!! We are so grateful to her for helping us create a wedding that was so perfect and "so us!" I cannot recommend Courtney highly enough! She's the best of the best! read more

Courtney is AMAZING! We could not have planned the wedding of our dreams without her. She totally got our style and vision from the very beginning, which was evident in the inspiration board she made for us. She responded to all my questions promptly and was always ready with awesome vendor recommendations. My husband and I can be indecisive at times, so we looked to Courtney a lot for even the littlest decisions, such as which box to use for our enveloped gifts. Her expertise and wonderful advice always pointed us in the right direction. Our wedding day was absolutely perfect and, if there was a glitch, we haven't heard of it yet! Courtney set everything up on the day of, made sure everything ran smoothly, and was there till the very end. We also used her photobooth which was a huge hit and tons of fun! Courtney is the best decision we made. Words can't express how grateful we are to have had someone like her by our sides throughout the entire planning process. I highly recommend her to anyone, anywhere! read more

After the Engagement was the BEST possible choice to help us with our wedding. We highly recommend Courtney and her team. Courtney coordinated the most fun event we could have hoped for. It's more than four months behind us, but we are still receiving compliments from our friends and family - it was the most fun wedding they had been to in years! Courtney is this great combination of down-to-Earth and laid-back, yet very responsive and detail oriented. We hired her for partial planning, less than a year before our date. She did a great job of helping us prioritize how to spend our $$$, and she made sure we didn't sweat the small stuff. She always presented vendor options and helped us narrow them down to who would suit us best. She kept our stress level low. About a week before The Big Day, we heard from our officiant that he would not be able to participate in our ceremony. I called Courtney late at night in a pretty anxious state. Thanks to her awesome network, we were connected with new officiant (whom we loved!) the next morning. No sweat. Our ATE package also included day-of coordination. Courtney and her team were great. Everything went smoothly. Our families only had to worry about showing up on time and enjoying the evening! The ATE team literally even packed my parents' car with everything that had to be taken home. My parents were able to dance all the way through the last song and then they just had to drive off! Courtney is truly fantastic. Exactly what you should look for in a planner. Thanks again, Courtney! Much love, Amy & Bryan read more

If you are planning a destination wedding in Southern California, I would highly recommend reaching out to Courtney before you get too far into the planning process. My husband and I live in Chicago but with family on both coasts decided to have a destination wedding near Pacific Beach in San Diego. Since we were unfamiliar with San Diego, we found researching vendors online was extremely overwhelming. We sought personal recommendations so altered our approach to first find a local planner. Courtney was recommended to us by a friend, and hands down, was the best decision we made throughout the whole wedding planning process. We signed up for partial planning with Courtney, which meant she provided vendor suggestions, reviewed contracts for us, and provided overall guidance throughout, but really swooped in to handle every last detail the month before our wedding through the day of the event. From the very beginning of our working relationship, Courtney took the time to get to know us and truly listen to what we envisioned for our wedding day. Without fail, for a year and a half straight, Courtney answered every one of our emails within 24 hours, but most of them within 1-2 hours! She was organized, providing us with a timeline, as well as a list of recommended vendors. Courtney always made herself available to us whenever we had a question, and was our trusted advisor the whole way through. We've never met anyone as hard-working as Courtney. Through the wedding day itself, Courtney puts her all into making sure her clients are happy. Despite living in two different cities, Courtney made us feel like fast friends. Courtney exceeded our expectations, we feel lucky to have worked with her! read more

I love Courtney! There is no way that our wedding could have been as wonderful as it was without Courtney to help every step of the way. She was incredibly prompt in replying to emails and figuring out an answer to any question/concern that we had. She totally understood what our style was and what type of vibe we wanted our wedding to have and did everything in her power to help us achieve that. As wonderful as all of her assistance was leading up until the wedding, we simply could not have handled our actual wedding day without Courtney and her girls there. They made sure that everything went as planned and set up the whole thing to perfection. Do not hesitate hiring Courtney for your upcoming wedding - she's amazing! read more

This review is long overdue. I had a wonderful experience planning a wedding with Courtney over the labor day weekend in 2012. Courtney was an absolute pleasure to work with. Here are some of the reasons why you should work with her: (1) Professional and prompt with responses - Over a year of planning long distance from Boston, I must have bombarded her with many many questions. Courtney was very quick and responsive. I felt she was always there to help me. Now having friends complain to me about wedding planners who take a month to respond, I realize how lucky I was. (2) Flexible and helpful: Courtney was able to help me with some logistical problems since I was so far away - e.g. figuring out where to store all my wedding stuff. (3) Relationships with great vendors - Courtney suggested wonderful and responsive vendors that I was very happy hiring and contributed to a great wedding. I was happy with the service those vendors provided and also the cost was very reasonable. (4) Ability to work with difficult venues - we had our wedding at a very beautiful hotel who unfortunately had a little bit of a reputation of being difficult to work with. I was pulling my hair out until I hired Courtney and immediately delegated all correspondence with the hotel to her. It was amazing how she got things done with that hotel! All in all thanks Courtney and team! read more

We cannot express how lucky and thankful we are for Courtney and all that she did to make our wedding weekend perfect. My husband and I were first planning our wedding in Palm Springs while we were living in NYC. We had spoken to many planners and it was without a doubt so clear to us that if you want to have a great wedding, you have to have the right relationships. The one thing we couldn't help notice was how highly all of the vendors we spoke with thought of Courtney. Everyone in the industry thought she was the best and loved working with her. Major green flag. We knew we wanted a whole weekend of plans from a welcome reception to a pool party, to a hotel buyout, and reception that made both family and friends happy. We had no idea where to even begin and Courtney coached us through the whole process. You don't know what you don't know and Courtney made it feel way less daunting. And on the weekend of, Courtney, Johnny and Thomas really showed up for us. It felt like our entire team was rooting for us and truly like friends there to make our special weekend amazing. If you're on the fence about getting a planner or which planner to even go with, make the jump. Choose Courtney. She was single handedly the best decision we made throughout the whole process, and every good decision thereafter was because of her guidance. Everyone we've spoken to after the wedding has told us ours was the most fun wedding they've ever been to - and it warms our hearts. Both my husband and I have very demanding jobs and also did a cross-country move this year, so everyone was extra impressed that we pulled off such a fun, stylish, and perfectly coordinated weekend of events. It's all because of Courtney! If you are getting married and don't know where to start (or know but still want some help) get Courtney. She's truly the best! read more

Our wedding was 8/16/14. Courtney at After the Engagement was awesome. I will admit to being one of those people who was not convinced that we needed a Wedding Planner. I'm very organized and have definite opinions of what I want so I was really having a challenge in understanding why everyone was telling us we had to have a planner. The final 'push' was that our venue required a day-of coordinator. So, with that said, we met with Courtney and fully disclosed our hesitation. Well, from that first meeting it was clear that Courtney would 'enhance' what we wanted and guide us but not take over control which was my initial concern. We did agree to a package from the beginning that was more than a day-of so we could leverage all that Courtney had to offer. This wound up being one of our best decisions. Courtney was easy to work with and east to get in touch with. She responded to texts and emails quickly and met with us when/where we needed. She was fully of great recommendations for vendors and advise on how to pick them. She met with us and the florist and had some great suggestions which we took advantage of. She provided us with an overall timeline of what needed to be done when, and periodically checked in to make sure that we were making the progress we needed and staying on top of the key items. I never felt 'pushed' by Courtney and looked forward to her reaching out and checking in on things. As the day of our wedding got closer we were more in touch with dozens of little details that we did not know would come up. She was always ahead of things and we always had such great energy, support and enthusiasm when we interacted with her! We got to the point where I was very glad that for the actual day we would have Courtney there to keep an eye on everything and everyone and was completely comfortable that she would make sure we had the day we wanted and planned for. This was a huge acknowledgement for us and a huge relief! On the day before the wedding she was there to gather all of our 'stuff' and do a final walkthrough with everyone so that everyone was clear on who needed to be where and when. It was time to step back and let Courtney do her thing. And she did, wonderfully! Our wedding was a wonderful day and ran beautifully. Courtney and her team at ATE took care of everything as they promised and we enjoyed the full day. There was no craziness, no meltdown, no drama, and if there was anything that didn't work out as expected, we did not know about it because Courtney and her team were on top of it. In short, if you're considering a wedding planner...do it. And if you need to know who, definitely choose Courtney and the team at ATE and you'll be in excellent hands. Thank you Courtney for being a part of our special day; and for making sure that all the work and planning came together without a hitch. read more

I knew I was going to like Courtney as soon as her first email came through. As an event coordinator turned bride I wanted someone that I could "click" and enjoy working with. I was so very lucky to find Courtney as my month of wedding coordinator, as she was everything we had wanted and more! She was able to answer all of my questions, always responded promptly, and was a blast to work with. Not only that but she had great recommendations, and worked in with my large and crazy family. She is super knowledgeable and a great resource to have. I was able to have an amazing wedding weekend, knowing that I had Courtney and her team on-site! I highly recommend hiring her! read more

Hiring Courtney was the best decision my wife and I made for our wedding. Courtney proved valuable with her extensive knowledge and experience at just about every decision point during our planning process. If you're on the fence about hiring a wedding planner, let me help you: there are about a dozen other things you can scale down slightly (flowers, DJ, chairs, whatever) so that you can hire Courtney. She'll have your back, tell you honestly what she thinks, point out where you might be getting the short end of the stick from a vendor or venue, keep you aware of pitfalls, help you prioritize the things that actually matter, supply you with a list of the best transportation companies in the area if you decide a week before the wedding that you want a shuttle for your guests, the list just goes on. Oh, and she'll do all of this via email with a response time so fast and on point that you'll swear you were texting with your bff. Seriously just stop reading this and just make the call. read more