I absolutely LOVE Emily Smiley. I work with the best wedding planners around the globe (Phuket,…read moreFiji, the South of France, Bali, all over the States) and Emily is by far one of my top favorites to work with. Why? Because of how happy she makes her clients. And her end product for her brides is always completely stunning. Here are a couple of weddings I've shot with Emily... http://bobbyearle.com/blog/the-lodge-at-torrey-pines-wedding-photos-2/ http://bobbyearle.com/blog/hotel-del-coronado-wedding-pictures-full-post/ Emily will make your wedding as beautiful and perfect as you can imagine :) Bobby Earle

If you want a perfect wedding I highly suggest Emily Smiley. She helped me plan the most amazing…read morewedding at the Hotel Del complete with a bright pink dance floor!!! She is so sweet and a pleasure to work with. She had amazing, unique ideas and great vendor suggestions. My wedding day went so smoothly and people loved everything which I had to credit to Emily.

(This review is part of a Wedding Vendors List that I created - still working on it!)…read more I got married April 19, 2009. Dawn and Christy were quite good overall... I met with 7 or 8 wedding planners and I thought they were the best value (I didn't think it was worth it to pay more than $1000 for month-of services). I was extremely happy that I'd hired them. The nitty gritty - I met with Dawn in the initial interview. She came well-prepared to the meeting with tons of recommendations before she knew if I would hire her. This was important to me - someone that was willing to help me, not knowing if she would get the job. Over half of the other planners withheld info until they knew I'd be "worth it." To me, it's an important sales tactic to give free advice. It also makes the person appear that she is genuinely interested in helping people. I need a vision of how the person will help me; I am not looking for a listing of services in the interview - I can read that on the website or brochure. Dawn is full time and Christy does have another job, but she was very good at getting back to me promptly (she took the lead on my wedding). I was confused initially though, because Christy was responding to me and Dawn wasn't, so it would have been good to know up front that Christy would be "taking the lead" on my wedding, so I wasn't wondering what had happened with Dawn and had to ask. I also hired them because Christy is a designer. She's done department store windows and is creative. I was expecting too much though once I heard this. Dawn and Christy's role is not really to design the wedding decor, although they are very willing to help in this area with suggestions and as a sounding board for ideas. Christy gave me a lot of suggestions, but I wasn't really sure what I was looking for so I got a bit frustrated. I realized later this wasn't really what they had contracted to do though, and we figured things out. Christy put a lot of time in - she met with the florist to help with suggestions (on her own and after I had met with the florist once). She also came to 2 other meetings with the florist and me. And, it was hike because my florist was in Chula Vista (Tess Florist - she is terrific - review is coming soon on her). Christy also dealt with my numerous calls and emails. She came by my place twice to pick up stuff for the wedding, and went to the florist a 4th time to bring her the poles I had bought for the huppah - this one errand was huge, because we were getting pretty close to the wedding! Christy and Dawn were with us the day of the wedding; bringing us bouquets/ bouts/corsages, helping us stay on schedule, and making calls. Of course I didn't see all of the things that they were doing behind the scenes, but all was taken care of and that was amazing. My only complaints, which aren't dealbreakers and I would still recommend hiring them: I found out about this on the honeymoon when I saw pics (thankfully not at the reception) and it REALLY bothered me. They had not set out the placecard CDs that I made as I asked, and I was really upset about it. I know it's a bridezilla thing, but I'd worked so hard on this item of decor and I was really excited about it. Christy said there wasn't room to display my CDs as I asked. However, I'd suggested what to do in that case and I think she might have forgotten or didn't attempt it. She said there wasn't time to check with me, but I wish she would have. A second thing - the aisle wasn't wide enough for my parents to both walk me down the aisle - a detail that I thought they should have caught. (My Mom had to awkwardly walk behind Dad and me.) In the big picture though, those things are minor and compared to how well the event went. Dawn and Christy were a huge help and did a good job. My runner up selection for a wedding planner was Jo-Ann at http://www.jafevents.com

I am re-posting this review because somehow it got "filtered". Suspicious. (Update: I still have…read morenot received my $750 deposit back). We met with 3 wedding coordinators and decided on Dawn because she seemed nice and easy-going, had some creative ideas, and offered reasonably-priced services. Like Audra B., I fell for the "free advice" thing on the interview. Dawn seemed genuinely nice and like someone I could trust. I found that you get what you pay for, or less rather. We hired a planner to save us precious time, since we both work a lot (my fiance is a contracting manager, I'm a third year medical student). Unfortunately, I spent more time composing bulleted to-do emails to send to Dawn than it would have taken for me to just do the tasks myself. This is primarily because Dawn often would ignore my emails, so both my fiance and I had to repeatedly ask her to do things. She did not offer us price comparisons of vendors; she thought her work was done when she gave us 1-3 recommendations, basically we had to do all the work. Our only major preference was that we want to do a "green", environmentally-conscious wedding, and upon initial interview she sounded excited about this, and totally accommodating. Afterward however, she did not take this preference into account, she seemed to just offer the same vendor(s) as always, and did not screen them to see if they would fit us. My fiance and I had to again do most of the work. I found most of the vendors myself because I could not wait on Dawn to figure things out, and worried things would just not get done on time. She was seriously late on the time line SHE made. We would have been seriously over budget on the budget SHE made; another reason I had to step in and find vendors myself. Initially, she said she would accompany us on meetings (such as with the caterer), but once hired, she quickly came up with excuses to not do so. She did not once come with us to meet a vendor. After much time had passed, not a single thing on the time line was at completion. At the point the second check to her was due, she just stopped working entirely, backed out of our contract, and NEVER REFUNDED THE MONEY WE HAD ALREADY PAID HER. She did find the time to call two of our vendors (both of which I had found) and revoke our contracts. One of these vendors pulled out 17 days before the wedding, saying that we did not have a contract, so I am dealing with that at present. Suffice it to say, I do not recommend using A Blissful Event. Dawn, if you are reading this, please send us our money back.

Working with Kayla was the best decision of our entire wedding planning process! I could write a…read morenovel on how lucky my husband and I were to have worked with her for our wedding in May. We are forever grateful for having her help guide us through one of the most magical chapters of our lives that could have otherwise been incredibly overwhelming and stressful. Fellow couples having a destination wedding, look no further!!! To start, Kayla is truly a powerhouse of an advocate for the couples she works with and is responsible for making our wedding day be the most magical day of our lives. We know that without her, the wedding weekend we had and the circumstances of our wedding day wouldn't have been possible without her. We were so fortunate to have her in our corner through all of the ups and the downs through our 1.5 years of planning. Kayla is an absolute professional. Everyone always says your wedding day will not go perfectly and Kayla executed a 3 day weekend of events with very stressful weather concerns flawlessly while making it look easy and like there wasn't a stress in the world. I know that she protected my husband and I from so much stress and concern through our wedding and we are so grateful of the professional that she is. Kayla is organized, engaged and communicative. Multiple people from our wedding party from both budget and luxury end weddings have shared nightmare stories about their wedding planners being disengaged, uncommunicative and disorganized. However, Kayla exceeded our expectations in every area. She was communicative and responsive to both my husband and I through our entire wedding planning process and beyond, both as individuals and as a couple. She was engaged with our vendors and with our wedding planning. Also, as a type A bride with difficultly letting go of control, she was as type A organized as any event planner could dream of being and any bride could hope for! Often, the wedding planner is often forgotten or standing on the sidelines but not here - my family, wedding party and guests have been raving about Kayla since the wedding over two months ago. She kept a large bridal party focused and organized which is near impossible to do and helped everyone feel prepared for a chaotic weekend. So much so, the weekend was so calm and not chaotic for us at all. The things that could have gone wrong, didn't go wrong because of her and her alone. Kayla also made the wedding planning so fun for my husband and I from beginning to end. I have dreamed of planning my wedding for so long and it was very important for me to have a part in the planning process and not just be along for the ride. Kayla allowed me to walk alongside her through the process in a collaborative approach to wedding planning and not just be on the receiving end of decisions. Lastly, my husband and I both have strong personalities and opinions that often differ and she was patient, kind but also direct and honest with us. We needed someone who could provide us direct opinions and be transparent and honest through the entire process. She was able to do this exceptionally which furthermore describes how professional she is. We will be forever grateful to Kayla and the gift she has given to us of an incredible experience wedding planning and by allowing us to be a guest at all of our wedding events so that we could be present with our friends and family.

Hire Kayla & her team ASAP! She is an ace and was the best decision we made with our wedding…read moreplanning process. I'm very detail oriented and organized and even before I started wedding planning I didn't think I needed more than a day of coordinator and I was so wrong. My husband and I were originally getting married in Cancun Mexico in November 2020 but we had to postpone it to May 2021 but then travel restrictions forced us to postpone again and move our wedding location completely. We found a venue in San Diego we liked but they required us to hire a planner. By this point in the wedding planning process I was fed up and just wanted someone who could essentially take the lead and tell me what I needed to do. From the moment I had my first phone conversation with Kayla trying to find a wedding planner I immediately knew I wanted to hire her. Talking to her didn't feel like she was trying to sell me, she told me her whole philosophy and why she became a planner and how she works and how she grew and trained her team. She told me what was important to her and those things are what matched exactly what I was looking for in a planner. I could tell she genuinely loves what she does and is so passionate about being the planner that the couple needs. Kayla is the absolute sweetest but when she has to, she will lay down the law which is the perfect combination. She will have those honest conversations with you about your budget and if they matched your expectations and when those need adjusting. She also helped us stay on track in planning our new wedding in under 5 months. She made sure we were thinking about every detail and that we had a plan for everything. She helped us stay focused on what was most important to us, but she also made sure Sean and I were taking the time to still enjoy each other in the planning process and sent us some popcorn seasoning for a movie date night in. The month leading up to our wedding, it felt as though we were the only couple Southern House was working with and we're sure that is how every couple feels when working with Kayla and her team. Kayla accomodated to my busy work schedule and knew that texting and hoping on calls during my lunch breaks were the best way to get answers from me. She made sure all the major plans and details were buttoned up a week before our wedding so we could relax and enjoy the days leading up along with our wedding day. Kayla and her team exceeded our expectations on every aspect of planning and executing our wedding day. This day would not have happened if it wasn't for Kayla. Kayla went above and beyond. She worked with our other vendors and threw in extra surprises for Sean and I. Even though she wasn't there physically she was in constant communication with her team. Jessica, Jordyn. & Kellie were so amazing day of the wedding. They were so professional and executed everything perfectly. They were also constantly checking in with the bridal party making sure we had everything we needed and always answered any questions we had. Sean and I didn't have to worry about anything besides getting ready and enjoying our wedding day. We're so glad we had to postpone and move our wedding because in doing so we were able to work with Kayla and we had the best wedding day ever. It was absolutely perfect.

We first took a look at the venue about a year in advance and met Talissa. She took us around the…read morespace and was very knowledgeable. She answered all the many, many questions we had and was able to assist us with the planning. We were so excited to ask Talissa to be our event coordinator. As the big day came up, we met with Talissa a handful of times. She always kept us on track and was very receptive to our ideas or requests. She communicated regularly via phone and email. From the rehearsal to the wedding night, Talissa was a strong leader and coordinator. She set up our wedding décor perfectly and also made sure that my husband and I were having a good time during our wedding day. When I arrived at the venue on my wedding day, I found a beautiful flower arrangement and letter written to me from Talissa, wishing me luck on this day. So touching! I had a blast on my wedding day and Talissa had everything from set up to take down under control so I could relax and enjoy. I was not sure I would be able to find a coordinator that would be as focused on small details as I usually am, but Talissa was fantastic. From her bubbly and friendly personality to her professionalism and organization - she was the perfect event coordinator!

I recently had the opportunity to work an event under the direction and planning of Talissa and her…read moreteam. As a vendor, Talissa did an outstanding job at coordinating the event, was detailed-oriented and was able to plan a beautiful event that was curated to fit the theme and then some. Talissa is easy to work with, creative and obviously loves what she does AND is good at it too!

My wife and I met Angie about 6 months prior to our wedding. At that time we had most of the big…read moredecisions made, but hadn't worked much on the details. Thank goodness we brought Angie and RAD Events on board. We got completely stymied with the decorating. Angie asked a few questions, viewed my wife's Pinterest account, then jumped in and starting shopping. For the record, she's a savvy shopper and looks for deals :-) On the "day of", she was a warrior. Setting up decor, coordinating vendors, keeping time lines. She was on it! We couldn't be more pleased with how things turned out. Thanks, Angie for helping make some great memories. Greg & Mary

I used Angie as my wedding coordinator and she was amazing! She was there for me months before the…read morewedding preparing the decor list, seating charts and menu plans. She is extremely creative and also loves to create decor. She created multiple pieces of our decor and we loved them. On the day of the wedding she brought champagne for me and my bridal party and made sure everyone was happy and our schedule was on time. While I was getting ready I didn't worry about the setup of the wedding because I knew she would get it right. She has incredible attention to detail. Highly recommended!!

I literally could not have survived this wedding process without Hailey. She made sense of all of…read moremy ideas and honed them in to create a completely flawless wedding! She bent over backwards for me and made sure every little detail was perfect and exactly like we had discussed. When I finally got to the venue the day of the wedding and saw what Hailey and her assistance had accomplished I was absolutely floored. She wasn't just a wedding coordinator to me, she was a close friend helping me navigate the chaos of planning a wedding. She checked in with my stress level and was consistently emailing me tasks I needed to accomplish each month. She was AMAZING to say the least. Whether you need her for a full wedding coordinator or just the day of, I promise you will not be disappointed in her!

Having Hailey as our month of coordinator was the best decision we made during our wedding planning…read moreprocess. Hailey was amazing to work from the moment we contacted her until the last minute of our wedding. After meeting Hailey for the first time, we were relieved to find a coordinator who was so on top of it - she was responsive to our emails, super organized and made sure every single detail, even the smallest detail, was accounted for. On the day of, the setup of all our signage and decor and the execution of the rehearsal, ceremony, and reception were perfect. We received many compliments from guests about how organized and smooth the wedding day was. We also received many compliments from our bridal party and family about how sweet, positive and professional Hailey was. A close friend and bridal party member mentioned they wished they had Hailey as their wedding coordinator! It's clear that Hailey truly loves what she does and is really really good at it! She has the perfect demeanor and personality to calm a nervous and anxious bride. Even with a few incidents that threw our wedding off course, Hailey stepped in and made it work. It has been exactly 2 months from our wedding date and I am still in awe and overwhelmed with gratitude for all of Hailey's hard work, organization and positive attitude. We can't thank her enough for making our wedding day perfect. You won't regret making Hailey apart of your special day!

Hiring Amanda will be the best decision you make when it comes to any capacity of planning your…read morewedding. She went above and beyond with our day-of-coordination. She met with us monthly to make sure we were on track which was very helpful and alleviated the stress 100%. She was kind but direct and everyone in our wedding had nothing but fantastic things to say about her skill and execution. We love you Amanda!

Amanda was our day-of coordinator for our wedding at Scripps, and she was above and beyond from the…read moremoment we booked her. Let's just say I only received one text from her the day of my wedding and not a single thing went wrong. This is a testament to her organization and expertise. It was the smoothest wedding day that went off and exceeded my wildest dreams. If you want a stress free wedding day- Amanda is the one to hire!

I searched high and low for the perfect and most inexpensive place for my wedding floral…read morearrangements and rentals. Once we came to Raphael's, we were sold not only by their wide-ranging selection of everything and anything you could imagine, but also by their wonderful customer service, expertise and understanding. Our sales associate, Meilani was kind, helpful and patient with us. We went through so many contracts with her, and calls to finalize everything - she was always giving us suggestions and ways to help us save more money and had a way of making us feel at ease. On the day of our wedding, everything I had envisioned for my centerpieces, the ceremony, the cake, our chuppah, etc. was just perfect and everything I had hoped for and imagined. They did a beautiful job. They even went above and beyond in helping us during the ceremony with the procession, just because of their willingness to help out. What an outstanding job - I've recommended them to all of my friends and will continue to overtime. We were so fortunate to have Raphael's as an option for us here in San Diego!

I got married last June and was referred to Ana Aftahi at Floral Works and Events through my…read moreawesome wedding planner (Laura Rizzo). I had a few appointments with her, but after the first appointment, I was sure I wanted to go with her. She was able to understand the vision for our wedding perfectly and was able to design unbelievable things, even though we changed our vision a couple times. ;) When I saw my flowers on my wedding day, I couldn't believe my eyes. It was SO much more than I envisioned and hoped for. My guests were in awe. She was incredibly professional and such a perfectionist. She did my chuppah, sofreh, and flowers for the ceremony and party. She also did my cake table. Everything was amazing. I could not get more compliments from everyone at my wedding. My parents were also stunned, which was the best part. I absolutely recommend her.