Nice enough guy, but he was slow to respond to emails, sometimes not responding at all, and I had…read moreto keep following-up with him while also planning my wedding. Because of the poor communication, he didn't make specifically requested corrections and updates to our marriage license, resulting in multiple errors on our marriage certificate. I've had to spend months trying to get corrections with LA County. Now for the rest of my life I have this ridiculous 2-page marriage certificate (one page for the original with errors and one with the corrections). If you use them, just make sure to quadruple check his work on your official marriage documents...

Everything was perfect! Thank you again Mark for being apart of our special day we will never…read moreforget! Brandy & Jorden

This review is a looooong time coming! My husband and I got married on Catalina Island on February…read more22, 2020...2 weeks before the pandemic started shutting the world down. As we just celebrated our 1 year anniversary, I realized I didn't post a review and wanted to get to it! I believe that the ownership of Avalon Magical Weddings has changed so the negative reviews posted here do not match up to our experience. Our coordinator, Janeth, was AMAZING. My husband proposed on January 10, 2020 and we wanted to elope with just our kids on 02/22/20 (2 is my fav number) and it had to be on Catalina, where we had gone every year to celebrate our anniversary for the past 5 years. Janeth jumped into action, coordinated the flowers, the pastor, location, photography, marriage license and the dinner...mostly all over email! She asked detailed questions, I sent her numerous pics of what I had envisioned and she was patient through it all! We met her in person the day before our wedding, walked through how it would all go, met with the Pastor and had all of our last minute questions answered. The morning of our wedding it POURED! We had no Plan B really, as we were committed to getting married on the beach, but as luck (or some other Devine intervention) would have it, the rain stopped and the sun came out in time for the 3p ceremony! I hadn't seen the flowers or knew what to expect but my bouquet was stunning! Exactly what I wanted! All in all, it was a beautiful day and we were blown away with how great everything turned out. Absolutely zero regrets!

Gosh where do I begin. First of all if you are shopping for a wedding package in Catalina this is…read moreNOT the place to go. Let me repeat that to save you a possible wedding disaster...DO NOT again DO NOT hire Laurie to plan, officiate or have anything to do with your wedding. In her add right now it says the silver package (the one I signed up for) cost $975. I added 2 corsages and 3 boutonniere and had my bouquet upgraded (basically added 6 roses and 3 carnations) my total came up to $1525...thats $550 extra. Now as if that's not ridiculous enough, I asked to add a tulle in my arch and to change the venue from Cabana Beach to Beach platform. I was charged extra $300 for the platform (I guess I understand that) and extra $400 for the tulle (WTF!!!!). Laurie says that I have to pay for the time she spend away from work and her transportation. Then she told me that she did not charge me for the Tulle. Now just how much does she charge per hour, a roundtrip to Catalina express is $72.50 plus the taxi $100...I'm pretty sure she knows a vendor to go to, so should not be more than an hour to pick up a Tulle but I was charged $400 just for that. Then she had the nerve to tell me that I got the tulle for free...Bullshit!!! And the unlimited phone contact is a joke. First of all good luck on trying to contact this lady. If you get a hold of her she is always in a hurry. Then try and talk to her I dare you, thats a joke...one question will take you one hour and a half to get answered 'coz once she start talking you will never have a chance to talk, she can literally talk you to DEATH. She nevers listens to what you want and she will insist that her way is the ONLY way. Now if you want to just show up on your wedding and have no input of whatsoever, like a puppet on Laurie's show, then she will be your gal. The Background music and the ceremony itself is ridiculous. The boombox you will not hear, she does not wear a microphone of some kind so the guest will be surprise when she pronounce you as husband and wife. The wedding is over and none of the guest know that it even took place (sooo sad!!!). The minister (Laurie) dressed inappropriately, I will take a hooker in a heartbeat to officiate our wedding, a clown costume is better. I will post a picture later and you be the judge. She is also the photographer (professional, or at least she calls herself). How can you officiate and take the precious moment of the ceremony? She can't and she did not. No picture of my dad (who is sick by the way) walking me down the aisle. Our first kiss as husband and wife and so forth and so on. And the pictures which by the way she throw 50 extra (making it 150 total) had 102 pictures (no exaggeration here 'coz I counted) of the same pose...me and my husband kiss like picture. I asked to have a family photo as my dad can't be out on the sun for a long time due to chemotheraphy drugs that he is taking but Laurie said that she need to take the photos in order. In the end I have 4 group pictures in which at that point was incomplete guest due to dehydration and we had to pack our stuff from the rented hotel. The icing on the cake is this, not only did she give (paid for already) the garter but when she sent the expedited marriage license registration she sent it $3.00 short. So we had to come to our local county registrar to pay the $3.00 and pick our license ourselves. This whole experience with here was a NIGHTMARE. Do yourself a favor if you want a wedding bliss this is not the place. There is NOTHING MAGICAL in Laurie's business!!! P.S. Laurie don't deserve even a half star but yelp will not allow zero!!!!

We are so grateful to have found Shana to shoot our wedding on Catalina Island. She was so easy to…read morework with and did an excellent job capturing the day. Both Shana and her second photographer were professional, talented and lovely all around. I will be cherishing these photos for decades to come. I highly recommend Shana to anyone in need of a skilled photographer.

Shana Cassidy did an amazing job photographing our wedding on Catalina Island, we got married in…read moreMarch 2016 on a hill overlooking Avalon and Shana was a great partner throughout the entire process. She was prompt to respond prior to, during and after our wedding, she has a great eye for photo shots and knows the Island inside and out being a local. Shana helped recommend our officiant (Anni Marshall- the major of Avalon), where to stay on Catalina, specifics on the ceremony and where to get great wedding shots on the island. She even drove us around in her personal golf cart to get us to different locations. She was very professional, helpful, and made our big day feel special- would highly recommend her as a wedding photographer! From a brides perspective, she was calm and collected which is super important, had great tips on lighting and flattering poses, and was extremely flexible with where we could take the pictures and what types of shots we wanted. And we absolutely LOVE our pictures, and get compliments on them all the time! A great mix of journalistic style, creative and traditional shots. Her prices were very reasonable and she had a very quick turnaround time on getting us our photos electronically. She was able to get us some of our best photos in a couple days, so we could print them out for a family reception that weekend. Shana is the best!

We can't say enough about Chris, we just loved him. He is all that you require and expect, of…read morecourse: Courteous, responsive & professional. But he is also all those things you HOPE for: stylish, refined and sophisticated, with a calming voice and flawless delivery. We eloped, planning a simple living room ceremony with just a half dozen guests. This was to be the final event of a three week cruise through the Panama canal. Unexpectedly, we arrived in LA just as the Palisades fire was gaining speed, a very destabilizing event. Everyone involved was understandably stressed, but we kept our wits about us in no small part due to Chris' unflappable commitment. He never wavered, not even for a second, from his task and he made our little elopement an event to remember. He arrived ready to take us through the "paperwork" part, confidently and professionally, then seamlessly switching over to our ceremony in front of the living room fireplace, while fires outside pretty much raged all around us. We were so lucky to have found him and would recommend him wholeheartedly, whether your event be grand or modest, Chris will shine for sure and take the best care of you both! - Amy & Bryce Weber, wed Jan 11, 2025

I'm so lucky he was available on our wedding date! It was so easy to work with him! Always…read moreresponsive! Took care of the wedding licenses, the service was eloquent and perfect. You could tell that he had a lot of experience and took his role seriously. I loved working with him to edit the wedding script, too! He was the first one on the boat, and I got there way early! I didn't recognize him and was just about to ask the crew to remove him when my bride said, "Did you know that officiant guy is here?" He was very patient with me during this frantic state - always giving me gentle reminders that we needed to sign the marriage license and, of course, pay him! Would highly recommend Chris!

Forever and after licenses really helped my husband and I be able to afford an officiant for our…read morewedding due to our financial situation caused by the pandemic! They work with you at the best of their abilities to make sure your wedding is within your budget still and helped me and my husband enjoy our special day

From the owner: Confidential Marriage License, Notary Public, Jail Marriages, Officiant Services, Same Day…read moreMarriage, Birth Certificate Translations, Spanish to English, English to Spanish, Mobile Notary, Traveling Notary, Entertainment, High Profile, Bookkeeping, Men's Jail Traveling Notary, Women's Jail Traveling Notary, Loan Signing, Recording, Transcribing, Estate Planning Signing

We had an amazing experience with our wedding officiant, Andy. From the very beginning, he was…read moreincredibly communicative and always available to answer any questions we had, which made the entire planning process feel so much easier and less overwhelming. He made both my husband and me feel comfortable and confident every step of the way. On the day of the ceremony, everything flowed so smoothly! Andy created such a calm and welcoming atmosphere that helped us truly relax and enjoy the moment. The ceremony felt effortless, meaningful, and perfectly guided, and we're so grateful for his professionalism, kindness, and the care he put into making our day so special.

I truly appreciate that Andy and his mother were at our venue on time. We were extremely satisfied…read morewith the services provided. Thank you for the wonderful Spanish ceremony.

Bryan is an absolute rockstar! If you're looking for an officiant in Southern California, he is the…read moreone. He spent a full hour interviewing my fiancé and me to truly get to know us, and it showed... our ceremony was beautifully personalized and perfectly executed. He arrived on time, was extremely professional, and went above and beyond on our wedding day. He even came to the bridal suite to check on me and make sure I was doing okay. When we experienced some technical difficulties right before the ceremony, Bryan checked on me twice, reassured me, and made sure I stayed calm. He is genuinely the sweetest, and choosing him as our officiant was one of the best decisions we made. Highly recommend!

Bryan was essential for our wedding. From being the keeper of cool before the ceremony, to a very…read morepersonalized story and experience during the ceremony; Bryan helped out so incredibly much. We had a fantastic virtual call before the wedding where he really got to know us. We knew then that we had made the right decision. Before our ceremony he let us have our moment, brought us together as a team and we all went out there and he delivered a heartfelt ceremony that had us both tearing up at points. It felt like a friend for many years was up there with us, not someone we hired. He's professional, yet personal. If you're on your first marriage or fifth, I can bet that Bryan is going to be the best officiant you've ever had.

They are great. Fast, professional and EASY! Thank you for making it easy and special.read more

Well I wish I would have came here first because I just saw how they rip you off they tell you 350…read moreup front they tell you $80 for the certification and $20 for a copy so I marked it around 450 475 Max and then I get the statement and it's $666 Because you can see as the other reviews that's all they're here to do is rip you off They work with the devil and they steall and lie I would never recommend them They're deceiving and untrustworthy. I will be contacting the District Attorney's office the Better Business Bureau because I would be the last person they f$#@ over.....

Thank you, Wedgewood Weddings Rio Hondo, for making my dream wedding come to life! We planned our…read morewedding in just six months, and not once did it feel stressful. One of the things we loved most was that it was truly a one-stop venue. Having so many services included made the planning process easy and enjoyable. A special thank you to our wedding coordinator, Liz Zamudio, who went above and beyond every step of the way. No matter what we needed, she took care of it. Everything was so well organized that we were able to relax and fully enjoy our special day. We received countless compliments on how beautiful the venue was, and our guests absolutely loved the food. We chose the buffet option, which included Panko Parmesan Chicken, Oven-Roasted Salmon, and Carved Roast Beef, served with Garlic Smashed Potatoes and Seasonal Vegetables. Everything was delicious! Our package also included the cake through Whisk'd Away. We chose a small cake accompanied by a dessert display, and both were absolutely amazing. Our guests couldn't stop talking about how delicious everything was. The floral arrangements by Annie from Little Blue Hummingbird were stunning and brought our vision to life perfectly. And finally, a huge shoutout to our DJ, Scott! He knew exactly how to keep the energy up all night long. The dance floor was never empty, and the vibes were incredible from start to finish. We couldn't have asked for a more perfect wedding day. Thank you to the entire Wedgewood Weddings Rio Hondo team for creating memories we'll cherish forever! -Robles Wedding (6/12/26)

From the planning to the day of the wedding Wedgewood and our coordinator Liz did an amazing job…read moretaking a lot of the stress away and having everything very organized for us to enjoy our special day. Our Dj Scott did his thing , we let him know our guest were going to like dance and party and he made sure of that! From the groom and brides walk out song to the wedding party entrance he nailed everything!