So you just got engaged, and you're Yelping for a wedding planner...Call Swann Soirées now. It…read morewill be the best decision of your foreseeable future, and you're going to have a lot of decisions to make between now and when you say "I Do". EXPERIENCED Brenda and her team have worked at almost every venue and with almost every vendor in the area. They'll get a feel for your preferences and styles, and then provide you with a short list to choose from. PROFESSIONAL Responsive to emails and phone calls, considerate of issues that are important to one or both families, flexible enough to adapt and make your wedding day turn out the way you want it to be. They offer additional services like Workshops, Monthly Check-Ins, and a team of pros to answer any question any time. DAY-OF BLISS On the day of your wedding there are a couple things on your mind, and you don't want one of those to be "has the caterer arrived....do they know where to put the reserved seating signs......does someone have an extension chord in case the band forgot theirs?". Brenda and her team take care of EVERYTHING - the vendors all know to direct all of their questions to her. This was the most valuable part of our experience, our entire wedding-day was 100% worry free...priceless. ADDED VALUE Swann Soirées paid for themselves by securing us discounted services and vendors, with the peace of mind that they had a proven track-record and could be trusted. Beyond all of the above, Brenda is a smart, kind, affable person that cares about the people she works with. It was an honor to have someone as genuine as her helping us plan our wedding.

If you want a no BS, has your back, and will throw down (well not literally) wedding coordinator…read more.. then Brenda Swann should be your numero uno. She was super chill but equally elegant, beneficially opinionated but open minded to my pretentious ideas, and easy to talk to-- like the big sister I never had! My husband and I are fortunate to have found her. She has great connections within the wedding world. She is easily accessible via phone. On the day of your event, she and her team can keep things running but also maintain a cool head. Her ideas come to fruition beautifully! She's also there to keep it real and steer you clear when you've hit a wedding planning wall. My wedding reception was at the Hotel Del. While that can come off as fluffy and seemingly ostentatious (which is not us as a couple at all), Brenda worked expertly with their team and us to keep it as "true" to ourselves as possible. Despite me being a "Type A", I DO NOT KNOW where we would be without her! Thank you Brenda and Swann Soirees!

The ladies of Soirees by Lauren are amazing! We hired them for Day Of and from beginning to end,…read morethey handled everything for our wedding day - even things I didn't even know I needed! Every time I turned around, someone was there to ask if I needed anything and to coordinate my vendors. I didn't have to think about anything the whole night! Their price is reasonable and I'm so grateful I had them by my side. I would highly recommend!

Ashley was the best wedding coordinator I could ever ask for; without her I would have never made…read moreit through the wedding process. Ashley was able to see my vision and also suggested additional creative ideas to help make them amazing. She has a creative eye that can work with any budget! Ashley also pays attention to 'little' details and ensures nothing is missed--many items of which I would not have thought twice about! Numerous times I would ask for my catering estimates/details or different photographer estimates and she was able to email them to me in a short period of time. She keeps everything in a binder and/or computer and everything you need is at her fingertips! Organization is definitely one of her greatest strengths! I feel this is a skill needed for smooth wedding planning because, let's face it, wedding planning is stressful! She also has a timeline in order to ensure things are done promptly, and she gave me small 'chunks' of tasks to accomplish so that the planning on my part was not overwhelming. Ashley is dedicated to making your wedding the most amazing stress free day of your life! I would recommend Soirees by Lauren to ANY bride!

My wife & I have deep ties to VA (I lived out here for years & she grew up/went to college here,…read moreand her family still lives here), however we both now live in San Diego, CA- far from home. We received wonderful news a few months ago, WE'RE PREGNANT! However, we were only able to share this wonderful news with our families (In VA, TN, TX, FL, Jamaica, etc) over the phone because we're so far away from eachother. We wanted to do something big to involve our family in our wonderful gift to this world, however it seemed like there was nothing we could do....but we did not give up hope & contacted a local event planner we knew (@alluringafairs)who put together the biggest baby shower of the year! She planned everything, fixed expectations, considered our budget, utilized her many connections for the best price, and brought about a night NO ONE will forget. 5/5 For sure very professional business with deep credibility. Contact alluringafairs, you won't regret it!

This was my first and absolute last time dealing with Fairfield Flowers. I ordered flowers from…read morethem to be picked up on my family members birthday. I went to pick up the flowers and the ones I were given were not anything like the pictures that I had used to purchase this flower arrangement. I showed the picture of the flowers that I ordered from THEIR website, and was told "most of those flowers are out of season and you should have known that since you ordered them." At this point the owner was already aware of my issue and began yelling from her back cubical and said "leave the flowers we'll call when they're fixed". NINE DAYS later I get a call that the flowers are ready and they still do not even slightly resemble the image from their website. Save your money and go to a reputable and honest local business. Photo 3is the picture of the arrangement I ordered from the Fairfield flowers website Photo 2 is the actual flowers I received Photo 1 is the "Fixed" flower arrangement

It was a lot of fun! James is so talented and patient. We ended up with beautiful arrangement!!…read moreCan't wait until next time.

MAKE THE NEW LEAF YOUR "FIRST CHOICE" FOR FLOWERS!!!…read more ... is what's requested in "About Our Company" -- and I must emphatically agree! They DO, as also stated, "go the extra mile to make your floral gift perfect." Shopping online from Maine, theirs was the 5th or 6th on-the-ground real, in-town (vs. online) floral shop I researched, following discovering them here, thanks to Yelp. Nobody offered what was shown on the typical FTD or Teleflora, it seemed. Only, I needed something special for my friend, who'd suddenly lost her husband. Arrangements offered by others weren't right for my artistic friend's elegantly designed and furnished home and tastes, nor the expression I'd hoped to achieve. THE NEW LEAF's, however, were phenomenal. I was blown away! Never had I seen such beautifully designed arrangements -- indeed, "beautiful floral designs" -- which is why I chose them. I selected "Soft Serenity" for the balanced trio of greens, lilac and whites, and balanced artful composition, too -- only to be sad seeing what'd arrived had substituted some yellow and other flowers. Uh-oh... Calling Dina with my disappointment, however, I was kindly offered either a refund or to send again. We worked closely to ensure that softly serene design I sought for comfort was replicated as closely as one can... I'm so glad I did! My friend was just over the moon with superlatives! While the first was nice, the second was absolutely Wonderful, she'd said. And just now on the phone she shared how the arrangement was simply Magnificent. "Wonderful" and "Magnificent" are pretty exceptional descriptors of their designs... All-in-all, a terrific value and experience. I've saved Dina's number for the next time I need something special for my friend in Virginia Beach.

Fabulous local florist that knows the industry and understands customers' needs; they went above…read moreand beyond on a recent order for a friend that lost a loved one. At first visit, Sara and James were friendly, welcoming and knowledgeable. My vague wishes: "she likes low maintenance, maybe an orchid or an arrangement in the $75 range." She offered to create a fresh and unique arrangement in summer colors AND have an orchid dressed so I could choose; she even ok'd pickup outside of their normal hours. Turns out, I ended up needing it a day sooner...and they came through, calling to update me when needed. At pick-up, James said "I saw this peach double orchid and knew it was for your friend." That's personalized service at its finest!

TASTE Catering & Events is simply the best. The Full Service Team knocks it out of the park every…read moresingle time with their top-notch Event Managers and a carefully-vetted staff as well as the delectable custom menus they create! Specialty Catering features a diverse menu with something for anybody and is the best drop-off catering experience you could ask for.

We just hosted our best holiday open house ever thanks to Taste. They were phenomenal from the…read morefirst contact. The event managers worked with me to determine what type of food that I wanted from their very extensive menu to the quantity that I would need for each. Communications prior to the event were flawless. The event manager arrived with the food at the exact time requested and went over each item with me. The taste and presentation of the food was incredible. We received so many positive comments on the quality and the flavors. Taste crushed it on all levels. This is definitely the best drop-off catering service in the Tidewater Region.

I used DJ on the side for my wedding and Chris Phillips was amazing! He was professional, prompt,…read moreresponsive and most importantly, everyone had a fantastic time. He balanced the different tastes of the crowd and kept the reception moving smoothly. I would hire him again in a heart beat and highly recommend his services.

We used Jim Myers from DJ on the Side for our wedding. We were delighted with his work and every…read moreinteraction we had with DJ on the Side. We met with Chris, the owner, initially - and he was very organized, pleasant, and fun. He recommended Jim as our DJ. All our paperwork / contracts were simple and efficient. We were never surprised by the costs. Jim did an outstanding job at our wedding. He knew exactly what music to play for our crowd. He was very sensitive to some "unusual" family dynamics - and made everyone very comfortable. He played everything that we had asked for, and sprinkled in just the right mix of other songs to make the party a lot of fun. This company is a bit more expensive than some of the other DJ companies in the area, but I definitely think the quality of their work was well worth the price.

This is my second order from Ion Florist and Gifts. The bouquet is exactly as I hoped it would be!…read moreIt was very quickly delivered. It's always a challenge when you order flowers from 1000 miles away. I won't order from anywhere else in Chesapeake! Thank you!!

A few months (2), my dad transitioned and the funeral home shared this floral shop with us to order…read morethe arrangements. The customer service from the time we walked in and selected the floral arrangements leading up to the service was amazing. The floral arrangements were beautiful and met our expectations during one of the hardest moments of our lives. Thank you for your kindness and the lovely flowers and the ribbons. Everything was so nice. Everyone shared how beautiful the flowers were and this was one less thing to stress about. I don't have pictures but please trust my judgment.