My fiancé and I found Michele Rose listed on a number of wedding websites. After reading her bio,…read morewe felt she might be a good fit for us based on her website. It was important to us to have an officiant who performed all types of ceremonies, especially same sex, as we feel strongly about this topic. I called Michele Rose and we set up a time to meet at a local Panera. We all sat down and chatted for a bit and then we discussed what we were looking for in an officiant. She asked us some questions about our background and showed us a portfolio of weddings she had performed. She also went over her ceremony creation process and we were very impressed. She asked us how she might best get to know us and I suggested she may want to talk with our parents. This idea was very well received and ended up adding a very special touch to our ceremony. Needless to say, we decided to move forward and provided a deposit by check and signed the contract with her prior to leaving. As our wedding drew closer we received an extensive questionnaire from her along with instructions to fill out as much or as little as we were comfortable with. It was a bit like homework, but it was completely worth it. After we completed our questionnaires, our parents were contacted and then we received the first draft of our ceremony. After a few rounds of edits we had everything ready for the big day. In the days leading up to the wedding I sent our DJ and day of coordinator a copy of the ceremony and on our special day things went perfectly. Our friends and family raved about how personalized and "us" the ceremony was. Many asked if Michele Rose knew us outside of being our officiant (she did not). A few of our guests mentioned it was the only ceremony where they both laughed and cried. Overall, the day was perfect, beyond our expectations and we couldn't be more grateful for the personalized, wonderful and memorable ceremony provided by Michele Rose.

Marie was our lovely planner at Shannon Gail events, and we were SO lucky to work with her! We felt…read moreso confident that she had everything under control. She is organized, available and helpful. She did an incredible job at helping us create a vision for our wedding and then seamlessly bring it to life. Plus, Marie helped us with our idea for escort cards and then stuffed and sealed all the envelopes for our guests, which is a great example of how she goes above and beyond for her clients. I also appreciated that she is so on top of everything while keeping a calm energy throughout - no added stress on our wedding day. I can confidently say our wedding would not have been what it was without Marie and I'm so grateful for that.

Choosing Shannon Gale and their wedding planning team was one of the best decisions we made for our…read moreLabor Day weekend Indian-Western wedding. A friend had recommended them with the promise that I would feel completely at ease--and that proved true from the very beginning. Shannon paired us with Cecelia McIntosh, who turned out to be the most exceptional project manager I've ever worked with, not just in the wedding world but across all of my professional experiences. Cecelia's attention to detail was extraordinary. She cataloged every element of our multi-day Indian-Western celebration, managed vendor relationships with grace, secured us excellent deals where she had negotiating power, and offered thoughtful recommendations--like the perfect florals for our mehendi ceremony. She understood the cultural nuances of our events, from the importance of removing shoes at the mandap to the way certain rituals needed to be set up. She took ownership of everything: carrying and setting up décor, assembling seating charts, ensuring plate service was flawless, and keeping the entire wedding running with a level of timing and precision that every single guest commented on. There were moments where Cecelia truly went above and beyond--most memorably when she calmly and safely helped transport a ceremonial fire to an unexpected location, taking control of a situation that could have easily become chaotic. She handled every last-minute request without hesitation, kept our planning calls on schedule, and brought a sense of structure, warmth, and professionalism that made her an absolute dream to work with. As someone who is naturally a very thorough planner, I stepped into my wedding days feeling completely calm, knowing Cecelia had everything handled. Because of her, I was able to be fully present and simply enjoy our celebration. I cannot recommend Shannon Gale and Cecelia more highly--they are truly among the best planners you could ever hire.

Nicole, Colleen, and the rest of the Urban Allure team did all of the florals for our wedding and…read moreit completely exceeded all of my expectations. Nicole worked with me over several meetings to help me bring my vision to life. She had amazing creative ideas that I would have never thought of on my own and really understood what we were going for. They hung florals, disco balls, and even chandeliers over our dance floor, creating the most stunning environment. Colleen, who handled a lot of the floral sourcing, even included some beautiful blooms from her personal garden in our arrangements. It was such a special touch. Choosing Urban Allure was one of the BEST vendor decisions I could have made and I'd recommend them to anyone.

I agreed to work with Nicole on 2/23/24 and paid her $2,000 based on her assurance that there would…read morebe no issue securing sponsors and selling tickets. However, after more than four months had passed, there were no sponsorships or tickets sold and for that reason, I had to cancel the event, which was only two and a half months away. Here were two assurances in her contract: Create impactful promotional content Assist in sponsorship level creations & materials While I can't prove if the promotional content was impactful, it certainly didn't appear so given there were no sponsorships or tickets sold. And while she did create sponsorship materials, they clearly weren't helpful either in terms of selling tickets or securing sponsors. She also said that she had previously hosted a fundraiser for the charity I was looking to raise money for, so I believed her claim that she could secure sponsors and sell tickets without a problem. When I asked why there were no sponsorships or tickets sold upon cancelling the event, she said the market was unusually bad. If that was the case, I don't see how she couldn't have known this information merely four months earlier when we agreed to work together. Is it reasonable to think that the market changed so drastically so quickly? And why didn't she tell me the market was bad sooner before she started spending more time? She could have offered me the option of requesting a refund and suggested I cancel the event some time sooner. I should also note she did not create promotional materials until 4/5/24 and did not share a task list until 4/6/24. I then waited until 5/11/24 and saw that she hadn't contacted anyone on the list yet, so I sent over 100 e-mails over the next week, but hardly received any interest. The event was scheduled for 9/16/24, and since we didn't have any sponsorships or tickets sold, I decided to cancel the event on 6/27/24. I know people don't always buy tickets early, but the fact that not a single ticket was sold made no sense. At the very least, given that she materially misrepresented what she could offer, I would think Nicole would have offered a full or partial refund or at least a credit if I agreed to work with her again, but she made no such offer. I initially communicated all of this information through the Better Business Bureau, who reached out to Nicole multiples times, but Nicole did not respond to any of their requests. If she did, then I wouldn't have written this review.

We were referred by another Officiant that was booked for our wedding date, and couldn't have been…read morehappier how this worked out. Jill was very responsive, and she just got my husband's humor and our personalities. She was able to pick up on things from just a phone call and a few emails exchanged. She could have provided a very standard ceremony and vows for us, but she went above and beyond making something customized and personalized incorporating both of our cultures. It was a very thoughtful and much appreciated thing when you are planning a wedding that she can think of something that we didn't even think of, especially when you are in the thick of planning and thinking of so many other things for the wedding and other events going on in your life. She was on time and laid out expectations, easy to communicate with, and made everything simple. I must have also gotten quotes from more than 10 others and they were such ridiculously exorbitant prices for what in actuality might have been a half an hours worth of time that was spent in person. I feel like some people just capitalize on someone else's happiness and take advantage by charging a high fee or cost because you are getting married. This was not the case with Jill, as she was very reasonable in price and her personality really set her apart. We would highly recommend her.

I was lucky enough to get some referrals that led me to Jill, and I'm so thrilled that she was the…read moreofficiant for our wedding. Finding the right officiant isn't exactly easy -- we put a lot of effort towards creating a celebration that felt true to us as a couple, and we didn't want to necessarily follow the normal flow or traditions of a wedding ceremony. Jill was a perfect partner in helping us create something uniquely meaningful to our relationship. She was warm, personable and inquisitive during each of our meetings. I was impressed on her skill at picking up all the small details of our relationship and crafting them into a compelling story for our wedding guests. She was so excited to help us craft the right type of unity ritual -- she was a great creative partner and balanced our ideas with her sense of what would be most impactful for our event. I am so thrilled that the universe brought us together with Jill. Our wedding was a perfectly memorable event, and she played a huge role in making it so magical.

Martha was incredible! She was detailed orientated and so warm. Her calm demeanor and organization…read moremade this process so easy! highly recommend AELO. I do not know what we would have done without her!

We had an absolutely wonderful experience working with An Event Less Ordinary for a birthday…read morecelebration. From the planning process through the event itself, the team was kind, responsive, knowledgeable, and incredibly easy to work with. They helped us think through details we never would have considered on our own, offered thoughtful advice and support, and brought so much expertise to the overall planning. On the day of the event, they made everything feel seamless. It was such a relief to know they were managing all the details and making sure everything went according to plan. The decor they created was truly magical. When I came downstairs after getting ready and saw what they had done with the greenery, candles, and overall setup, I was blown away. They added beautiful touches I never would have thought of myself. It completely transformed the event! Most importantly, they made the actual celebration happen without a snag. We truly could not have done it without them, and I'm so grateful for the care, creativity, and hard work they brought to such a special day. Highly recommend!

Hiring Kari as our wedding planner was the best decision we made for our wedding - we could not…read morehave pulled off our dream wedding in 5 months without her! She is such a professional and brought so much wisdom and insider insights to our planning so that everything was streamlined, efficient, and our vision truly came to life, plus she is a lovely human and a pleasure to work with. Both during the planning process and on the big day, she brought our vendors together in a team that executed seamlessly. Hire kari - you will be so glad that you did!

Kari was FANTASTIC. I cannot recommend her enough! We hired her as our day of coordinator &…read moreofficiant. She made our wedding night feel seamless, and we were able to enjoy our wedding together without having to worry about anything. She took over vendor communications about a month or two out from the wedding, and anytime we had a call with our DJ/photographer/hotel she was always there asking the questions we never would've even thought to ask. She even came with us to the venue & hotel walkthrough to ask questions & scope out photography locations. You can tell that Kari is genuinely dedicated to making your wedding night the most amazing night, she went above and beyond in so many instances. I literally do not have the words to describe how thankful we are for Kari.

We hired Arin of Big City Bride as our day-of-coordinator. Other than deciding to marry one…read moreanother, this was the absolute best decision we made for our wedding. Arin did incredible work (and with such grace, patience, and enthusiasm). She emailed back and forth with the band, caterer, flower vendor, and venue contacts to make the perfect timeline. She made copies of our marriage license, readings, schedule, contracts, and contacts. She handled taking all the wedding sundries (the bathroom baskets, programs, signage) to the venue. She collected our marriage license, gratuity for all the vendors, and even offered to personally check us into our hotel so we don't have to think about it--all things we would have had to do ourselves or delegate. The pricing at Big City Bride is incredibly reasonable, especially considering all the work that they can do. We had the best day and were able to enjoy every second because of Arin!

Where to even begin?! From the FIRST meeting with Arin, I knew this was going to be a special…read moreexperience- she had pre-reserved our dream venue (The Field Museum!) just in case we wanted to get married in November... which we did! Arin is so full of ideas, kindness, and energy- she took my vision of color and RAN WITH IT... leading all of our vendors to create the absolute night of my dreams. Arin is incredibly responsive (nights, weekends, ALWAYS), organized, and creative. She wished me luck and sent me coffee before my dress shopping, asked for updates during my bachelorette, and even texted mere DAYS after giving birth to wish me well on wedding day. Arin shines so bright - and is a safe space in what can be a crazy/confusing industry. I am so thankful to Arin for the happiest night of my life- looking back, there isn't ONE THING I would change. It was perfect.

This is actually my second time having the pleasure of working with Nichole and her amazing team…read more Last minute (well a few months before) I decided I needed something beautiful to set the tone of our wedding weekend and have floral and decor for our wedding eve/rehearsal dinner at the Chicago Firehouse. I wanted a vibey/moody setting to really accentuate the dark wood and old Chicago feel of the building and knew that Nichole was the perfect fit from the start. I simply told her where it was and her proposal came back PERFECT. Beyond that, when it came to life it was 10000% times better than on paper in the proposal. All evening we received so many compliments about how everything looked and how beautiful everything was. Nichole is also an incredibly kind vendor - one who is always responsive, goes out of her way to make sure your vision comes to life and the truly best compliment you can give her and her team is to simply get out of their way. She has a way of seeing beauty in spaces and venue to make your vision come to life and she's such a gift to the wedding and event community in Chicago. Working with Nichole and her team, you will feel a sense of calm and contentment knowing that your dreams are in the very best of hands.

One look at XO Designs Instagram page and we knew Nichole and her team were the ones we wanted for…read moreour wedding. Nichole is a beautiful person, everything we discussed upon our initial conversation was brought to light on our wedding day, she truly delivered magic. Her creativity in building the floral assortments were simply stunning, our guests were in awe of the beauty. All of the flowers took my breath away, I will forever be daydreaming about them. We couldn't have asked for a better team to be with us on our wedding day, they were all very professional and kind. We can't recommend Nichole and XO Designs enough, they truly made our day magical