I was never sure if I was someone who wanted to have a real wedding. I was so worried about what…read moreneeded to be done. I've focused on my career and had no idea about how to plan a wedding and my family does not live in the area to help out. I knew that I would need a wedding planner if we were to have a real wedding. And I couldn't have made a better choice than Elegant Events of West Michigan. Nicole is amazing. There are very few people in this world who are equally organized and creative and she is one of them. I had the platinum package of full planning and I am SO glad I did. My husband and I continue to say it was one of the best decisions we have made. She walked us through every detail and really got to know us as a couple. The vendors she recommended were perfect for us. She was there for every panicked phone call from me. When I had an entire flower meeting and then I got home and completely changed my mind...she set up another meeting without making me feel like a crazy person. She really cares about what you want. AND she kept us on budget. This was important as we paid for the wedding ourselves. I would have never known what to expect to pay for what things, she helped us prioritize our budget so we could afford the things that were most important to us. She also planned our rehearsal dinner which was at an art gallery and was amazing. She even took pictures of me and my family during the rehearsal dinner. She was there to handle every little thing that came up on the day of the wedding including sewing my belt for my dress back together after I tried to alter it. I felt like I was in a movie when she said, "Oh, I can fix that" and started sewing! The wedding was beautiful, more beautiful than I could have expected. The food and dessert table was amazing which was very important to us. I was worried that no one would dance and the dance floor was full all night thanks to the DJ she recommended. Everything was very professional and personal. Her assistant, Caitlyn who helped on the day was also very professional. She even handled a during event switch from Pepsi to Coke by my dad's request without me even knowing about it. We have been to many weddings over the years and of course we think that ours was great, but it has been over a month and we still have people calling us to tell us that it was the most amazing night. If you think about planning a wedding on your own, consider all the vendors and the coordination. You can't figure everything out from Pinterest! Do you want to spend time with your family for your wedding, or do you want to be setting up and breaking everything down? Do you want to spend months researching vendors or do you want to celebrate with your family, friends and fiance? I would highly encourage anyone to use Elegant Events of West Michigan to plan your wedding or event. I wouldn't have believed how great everything looked, but it turns out, she got me a great photographer...so I have the pictures to prove it!

My husband and I did the long distance thing through most of our relationship, including the months…read moreleading up to our wedding, so he didn't contribute a whole lot to the planning process just because he was so far away. The one thing that he did contribute however, was the idea of a wedding coordinator, and then finding Elegant Events and convincing me to have a preliminary meeting with Nicole. I didn't think we needed a coordinator, especially at the extra cost, but looking back, our wedding day would have been a complete disaster without Elegant Events. She helped me every single step of the way, having never been really into weddings, I was unsure of the way things were "supposed" to go or what was traditional, professional, etc. She never once made me feel stupid for asking what I'm sure were some really dumb questions. Our decorations in our reception tent were beautiful and I'm not sure I can take any of the credit for it. Nicole has a great eye, and helped me pull everything together for the look I wanted on our big day. She kept everything on track for the rehearsal and was in touch with all of the vendors the week of the wedding; everyone knew where they were supposed to be and when. It took a huge load off of my shoulders. On the wedding day, Nicole and her team spent the majority of the day setting up the reception tent in the 90 degree heat. When the bartenders didn't come with the mixers, she fixed it. When the pizza ovens weren't working and we were behind schedule, she took care of it, while I was pretty much oblivious. She even arranged transportation for my wedding party and anyone else who needed it back to the hotel when the cab service I had contacted didn't work out. Elegant Events is no less than amazing, easy to work with and will make any event a hit :)

What an amazing event space! We attended a masquerade ball at The Lit, and it was such a fun time…read more There was enough room for people to get refreshments and sit down while not on the main stage, and there was space upstairs for additional activities. It's such a cool and unique building, I hope we're able to attend another event here again!

Went to an event at The lit. They are trophies space for rentals, free saxophone events every other…read moreWednesday, yoga and more! They are back in business serving the community! WELCOME BACK!

The flowers at the wedding I attended in Grand Rapids were so incredible! Beauty beyond the…read moreimagination, art done in flowers. They are designers and artists with what they do.

I would never do business with a company that allows their drivers to FaceTime while behind the…read morewheel of one of their vehicles in public roadways!

If you want a business you can trust with your wedding day, I highly recommend Mixing Memories. The…read morestaff are organized and make the process so much easier. If you want a one stop shop to make wedding planning a lot easier, and for a fraction of the cost while still getting top notch services, look no further!

From the owner: All in one Event/Wedding Bartending Service! From clean up until close down, our Mixing Memories…read moreBartending Staff will be fun, engaging, and working hard to make sure your special day goes perfectly! We often work at venues ranging from South Haven to Holland and everywhere in between. We've grown to five bartenders that are all ready to make your day! Don't hesitate to reach out for rates, questions, ideas, or consulting for your next event! Wedding planning services begin in the 2023 season!

Aubrie was so incredible! She did my wedding makeup (& bridesmaids). The wedding itself was 90+°F &…read moremy makeup did not sweat off at all. She brought so many smiles to our getting ready room-- I would give her a 100/10 if I could.

I wanted to share my experience with Elegant on Arrival in hopes that it helps future bridal…read moreparties make informed decisions. When I sat down for my appointment, I explained the hairstyle I wanted. During the first pass with the straightener, there was a significant amount of smoke coming from my hair. I immediately stopped the stylist, Christina, and explained that my hair is extremely sensitive to heat and asked if she could lower the temperature to avoid damaging it. Her response felt defensive rather than reassuring. She stated that she had been doing hair for 15 years, had never burned anyone's hair, and knew what she was doing. While she did lower the straightener temperature, I felt my concerns were dismissed. Throughout that interaction, she laughed and seemed to brush off what I was saying instead of taking my concern seriously. Later, while curling my hair, I became distracted because my best friend, the bride, was opening a sentimental gift. Afterward, I realized the curling iron temperature had not been lowered as requested. I washed my hair today, and it now feels extremely dry, brittle, and straw-like. I understand that heat styling is part of the process, but I specifically communicated my concerns beforehand because I know how sensitive my hair is. Instead of feeling heard, I felt like my concerns were ignored because the stylist believed she knew better than I did about my own hair. Beyond the issue with my hair, I was disappointed by the overall professionalism and customer service. Throughout the morning, the stylist came across as condescending and difficult to approach. She was not warm, encouraging, or enthusiastic, which is especially important in a bridal suite environment. One example occurred when she finished styling the bride's mother's hair and asked for payment. The bride's mother mistakenly mentioned getting a check, and the stylist repeatedly responded in a condescending tone that checks were not accepted while chuckling and that it was "clearly" stated on our policy. It was an honest mistake, as cash had already been withdrawn for payment the day before. The interaction felt unnecessarily rude and embarrassing. I understand that there could have been some past experiences that brought her some stress with the mothers response to getting a check, but that was not a professional interaction. My biggest concern is that I felt completely dismissed when I expressed concerns about my hair, and I am now dealing with what appears to be heat damage as a result. She mentioned that in 15 years she had never burned anyone's hair. Perhaps that's true, or perhaps no one has spoken up about it before. Either way, you can count me as the first. Equally disappointing was the atmosphere that was created throughout the morning. What should have been a fun, relaxing experience getting ready with my best friend on her wedding day instead felt like walking on eggshells. No one should feel uncomfortable speaking up about concerns while receiving a service, especially during such an important event. I understand that working bridal parties can be stressful and demanding, but if you choose a career in customer service, knowing how to style hair is only part of the job. Knowing how to communicate professionally, listen to clients, and make people feel comfortable is equally important. Unfortunately, I left feeling dismissed, uncomfortable, and disappointed. There were also issues that the family had with her professionalism and communication leading up to the wedding, but those experiences are not mine to share. I am sharing my experience because if someone tells you that their hair is sensitive to heat, that concern should be taken seriously. I hope this feedback encourages better communication, more respect for client concerns, and a more positive experience for future bridal parties.

My husband and I chose Studio D2D as our wedding venue since it has an industrial look and we loved…read moreit. But the communication was awful for most of the time before the wedding. (I apologize for the long review but Studio D2D supplied our venue, floral, DJ and photography.) Deanna (who I don't think works there anymore) wasn't great at communicating. She told us that we get the bridal suite on our contract but that the grooms suite would be extra. Then when we asked about the bridal suite again the day of the wedding, we were told we would've had to pay extra for it. We went with Distinctive Catering for our food and when we reached out to them to get our contract, we told them our venue was Studio D2D and that we most likely would want the Full Level of Service for the buffet. Later, we wanted to save some money and go down to the Deluxe Level. Distinctive Catering then told us the Full Level was required at Studio D2D. This was a shock to us because no one had told us until now. So we checked our contracts with both companies, the catering menus and their websites, and found nothing that said it was required. We called Studio D2D and Deanna said it's up to the catering company to tell us. Then we emailed the catering company and they said it's up to the venue to tell us. So at this point, we were frustrated. We weren't mad at having to pay more, just that we had no idea about it and no idea how we would've figured it out. This is just a heads up for anyone working with both companies. There were other small things during the process, but our day-of coordinator (Amy) was awesome and honestly made up for most of our troubles! We had a large wedding party and 9 kids in the wedding, and she worked with us at rehearsal to make sure everything looked good and she even helped with the kids. On the wedding day, she helped set up our DIY centerpieces, picked up our personal ceremony items afterward, waited on the wedding party to get us drinks and helped with cutting our sheet canned. Seriously so great! Emily and Cassie on the floral/decor team were great to work with and very responsive. Although they don't have the flowers at the venue to look at. I couldn't find a picture of exactly what I wanted for bouquets, so I just had to guess what the final piece was going to look like. Nick was our DJ, which we didn't hear from him until the week of the wedding and I thought that was a little late. Otherwise, he was just an average DJ. Nothing that really stood out bad or good. We had two photographers the day of the wedding, which I thought would be great, but I received all our photos back and were missing ones they should've gotten. My husband cried when I walked down the aisle and I don't have a picture of it (other than him covering his face). Before the ceremony we each took photos with our side of the wedding party, or we were supposed to anyways. I only have individual pictures of me with each bridesmaids, and he doesn't have any individual photos with him and each groomsmen. I had a maid of honor and matron of honor, and I only received images of one of them doing the speech holding the microphone. And for my getting ready photos, there are several with the other photographer's feet in the background. The actual photos we got back look good, but not really impressed overall.

COUPLES BEWARE. RECOMMEND TO CHOOSE A DIFFERENT VENUE. We are really disappointed in Studio D2D and…read moredo not recommend booking this venue. Short version: Poor communication, lack of professionalism and empathy, values capitalism more than the couples that book with them. Long version: We originally booked for our September 12, 2020 wedding and had to re-book obviously due to COVID and moved it to June 26, 2021. My partner and I then made the difficult decision to cancel our June 26, 2021 date and give it to another couple. Per our contract, we were eligible for a refund of 80% of our $1500 deposit if the date was re-booked. We reached out to Deanna (who runs day-to-day operations for the venue) 3+ times via email throughout December with no response and the venue's phones go straight to voicemail. I had a friend go undercover and email Deanna to see if she'd reply to someone else about a date inquiry and sure enough, she responded to them confirming that our June 26, 2021 date had been re-booked. Deanna finally responded to me today in a what I would call less than empathetic and empty response saying that because the exact package we had was not re-booked, they won't give us a penny back. I'm astounded it took almost a month to respond to my emails because they had to take time to "work new procedures." In all honesty, it seems as if the "new procedures" were created and applied retroactively to our inquiry because the venue seems to me prioritizes financial gain and treating people poorly instead of putting customers first and being compassionate. On the same note, I was also less than impressed working with this venue prior to us canceling. Deanna was extremely flustered when I went to meet her, got me mixed up with other people and we did not love all of the strict rules for decorating. Seemed more like a template wedding factory than a place that was willing to work with you to create the day of your dreams. PLEASE CHOOSE ANOTHER VENUE! There are plenty of other venues throughout Grand Rapids that are beautiful and continued to deliver excellent customer service throughout the pandemic. Studio D2D is just not one of them.

Sadly, I went to The Knickerbocker wearing jeans and not my baggy trousers. New Holland's place is…read moreright on Bridge Street, so it's right in the heart of things. For drinks, I had the Dragon's Milk S'mores on tap and the S'moregasm cocktail. For such similar drinks they were wildly different. At 11% ABV the beer was quite strong and I really didn't taste the "s'more" flavor. Meanwhile, the cocktail was super sweet as expected. New Holland has a solid line of beers so you can't really go wrong, but I don't think the S'more flavors worked on tap. Everybody debates whether pineapple should be on pizza but how about mustard?! So I had to try the seasonal Chicken Cordon Bleu pizza and it was delicious! It had cut up fried chicken, ham, and different types of cheese along with scallions and of course mustard. Somehow, they made this work! Service was also great despite the crowds but my only real negative was that they sneak a credit card charge onto the bill and hide the notice at the bottom of the menu. That doesn't fee transparent when businesses do that but otherwise, we enjoyed our time at The Knickerbocker.

Ordered buffalo wings and double cheese burger…read more Start with the wings. Buffalo flavor was standard. 0 crisp on the wings, on top of that the chicken itself seemed to be lower quality. I could see after having a few beers these might have seemed good, but sober they were not it. Double cheese burger was smaller then I anticipated. Beef was well seasoned and had a good taste. Bun was generic. My real issue was the veggie on it. My lettuce had brown/black tips. My tomato was soggy. The pickles had no crunch to it, they were tough to bite through. Fries that came with the burger were also not my favorite. Thickness between wedge fried and steak fries, rough chopped every piece was different size so how could you cook them all consistently. No crisp to the fries, fairly greasy too. I wont be back.