They did an excellent job with my flowers. Katie listened closely to what I wanted and gave…read moreexcellent suggestions.

Popped into the Flower Boutique to purchase sympathy flowers and the arrangement I wanted something…read moreother than your typical all white arrangement. The woman working that day was extremely friendly and created a gorgeous arrangement to gift my close friend. The flowers looked freshly picked and were vibrant in color. The flowers costed $85 and in my opinion that is a fantastic price for the amount of flowers I got as well as the size. The garden roses especially were large and smelled like perfume. Although it was difficult to not keep such a beautiful bundle of flowers for myself, my friend absolutely loved them and I will definitely be purchasing again.

Thank you Pat for making such a beautiful arrangement for my father's funeral. I ordered from…read moreCalifornia and trusted her expertise! She did not disappoint. I am so happy with the gorgeous arrangement. Thanks a million! Photo 1 in review by Larissa Field

Warm and pretty! I frequent Maple Shade for a few things every now and then. I saw Watson's Florist…read more& Gifts on Small Business Saturday and decided to stop in and view the flowers. It is a small quaint store nestled quietly in the town of Maple Shade not to far from the Betsey Ross Bridge. Pat, the owner, told me about some of the different services she offers her clients. She showed me wedding bouquets, flower girl bouquets, and holiday arrangements. I even had the opportunity to hear about some of her past orders, she did a lovely Phillies inspired wedding floral arrangement that I thought was soo cool. She explained how she maintains the integrity and beauty of flowers which I thought was pretty cool. Usually when I buy flowers I'd opt to just grab some from a generic place that sometimes doesn't specialize in flowers. So to have the one on one feedback was a personal touch to my shopping/browsing experience. If you're in the Maple shade, Cherry Hill area I'd say stop by or give Watson's Florist & Gifts a call. I'm certain you will be happy with your floral arrangement. - and for the Holidays, she has a 50 year old Xmas tree growing outside. It's sooo tall! I thought that was pretty neat

Attempting to work with this company has by far been the most frustrating and exhausting part of…read morewedding planning. I have asked for a quote for the price of chairs SIX TIMES and the owner, Tom, has completely ignored my requests. Six times. I'm now convinced that he's finding great amusement in this because no one can possibly be this obtuse. He must be trying to make my head explode. That's the only explanation I can come up with. He continues to try to get me on the phone or to meet in person - I do not have time to schedule workday calls or in-person meetings with every single potential vendor before they even give me a quote. Quote first, then phone call, then in-person meeting, that's how this goes. If you value your time and sanity, do not try to work with this company.

Celebrations Design Group provided the flowers for our wedding ceremony and reception. Prior to the…read moreevent, getting in contact with CDG was always a challenge because the office is only open two days a week (even during prime wedding season - Tuesdays and Thursdays) and even during said hours nobody in the office seems to answer the phone. They were good at returning messages however, usually in the order of about two days or so. We met with Tom (the owner) during our consultation and we passed on all of our wants to him and we thought all was good. The flowers for the ceremony looked great, though the person delivering the flowers never did deliver the bouquets to the girls as the delivery team promised the night prior. The hotel staff had to search to figure out where they dropped them off only finding them at the very last minute. The reception is where the true problem laid. We had requested during our consultation to have half of our centerpieces be the standard version that came with our package and half of them be elevated and upgraded. Unfortunately, all were low level. When I spoke to Tom about this, he really only offered a series of excuses and meaningless platitudes. In fact, his only real remark was, and this is a direct quote, "Well we can't be expected to get it right every time." Every other vendor we had worked extraordinarily hard to make it perfect even with regards to even the smallest hiccups without us even requesting it. However I suppose each vendor would have their own standards. Unfortunately, CDG just isn't choosing to live up to or even close to the status quo. According to hotel that held our reception, this has happened more than once. They are apparently thinking of dropping them as a vendor.

First of all, I would like to state that Sheila did an amazing job (as a florist); if we were just…read moredealing with her I would give Elegant Events a 5 out of 5. If you're looking for a great florist, you have found one with her. However, for my wedding we ended up working mostly with Donielle (the wedding planner), and her services left much to be desired. We went with their premium full package because neither my husband nor I live near PA, we were on a tight schedule, and we needed some eyes and ears on the ground. Unfortunately, it was our tight schedule that kept us from seeking a better service as these issues came to light. Our issues were as follows: 1. Many of Donielle's vendor recommendations were very overpriced. In many cases we were so shocked that we set out and found our own vendors, who were much more reasonable (and they were brilliant). We expected her to know where to find a good deal, having worked in the business, but that clearly wasn't the case. On multiple occasions I was able to find a better deal at a reputable company with just a quick google search. As an example, the suggested table vendor was priced hundreds of dollars (per table) higher than the one we found on Google. 2. Donielle became difficult to reach, if not unavailable, during the last couple of months leading up to our wedding. We would have to hassle her for simple status updates. Had we not been so proactive in communicating with our vendors, we would have been in the dark. I understand that spring is a busy time for a wedding planner, but if you can't fulfill the promises to a client who you know is on a tight time-table, you should be honest and turn the job down. 3. We were charged a lot for our floral arrangements; however many of the flowers that we ordered were never used, and instead were left in the van. While a small excess of flowers is acceptable to be left behind (you don't need to use every petal), leaving such a considerable quantity in the van, not asking the client if they want to use the excess, and then charging them the full cost is wrong. 4. One of the few things we were not particularly proactive about was the bus shuttle, and Donielle dropped the ball. The one hiccup the day of our wedding was that the shuttle bus from New York showed up 1.5 hours late. After we spoke to the bus company (who took responsibility and provided us with a generous discount) they informed us that Donielle had never bothered to tell them when they had to arrive at the event, but rather told them when they should pick people up per our amateur estimate. As such, they couldn't accurately factor in the time in transit and they showed up late. Had they known when we were supposed to start, they would have suggested that we move the pickup time up (and we would have). 5. We were surprised with a $1,300 invoice after the wedding. The invoice was for the purchase of 20-30 rustic flower vases. Donielle wasn't particularly forthcoming about the price of the containers when we requested them, and it was a last minute thing we trusted her on during the weeks leading up. I can't imagine how the containers in the picture I posted (photo courtesy of BG Photography) would cost $40-$60 per container, even with EE's markup. You can find the same exact containers on Amazon for $18 including shipping, which means EE's markup was 2-3x the cost of the containers (assuming they were purchased at retail price). We trusted her, and (once again) we were burned. Had we known their rate, we would have purchased our own; in the least this final invoice shouldn't have come as a surprise after the event. Link to the vases on Amazon: https://goo.gl/Q3wgAO 6. Donielle refused to take responsibility for any of the issues listed above. She attempted to skirt around them (particularly regarding the last two points); instead of a simple apology she insisted that we all have a phone meeting days before my terminally ill father-in-law went in for a risky surgery. Understandably we didn't take her up on that offer and wrote her and the costs associated off. Fortunately, these problems didn't stop us from having a great time and a wonderful wedding. However, had it not been for our careful monitoring/follow-up and my mother-in-law's tireless efforts contributing to contract negotiation and organizing, I can't say things would have gone so well.

SCAMMER BEWARE! I came upon Elegant Events Florist/Sheila and saw okay reviews, so I figured this…read morewas an okay business to work with... BOY WAS I WRONG! My first encounter with Elegant Events Florist/ Sheila initially seemed pleasant but something was off! She sort of spoke in circles and had a suspicion about her. She boasted about the huge weddings she does and how booked she would be in the upcoming year. It lacked humility, but I didn't think too much of it. On our first call she informed me that she only requires a $500 non-refundable deposit to secure the date and that I could pay the rest of the total at my leisure up to 30days out from the wedding date. However, on our first zoom meeting, two weeks after the deposit was given, she informed me that a $2000 first payment would be due (RED FLAG). This obviously confused me because just a few weeks before she said that the $500 deposit would suffice. Honestly, I should have walked away right there!! My instincts told me that this was very big SCAMMER ENERGY. I even had a conversation with my fiancé about it but at the time we didn't want to lose our $500 non-refundable deposit. She says likeable things to get your business only to change the rules (RED FLAG). Next, we had an in-person meeting with Shelia and after some discussion I began to realize that she wasn't truly involved with all the floral design. When I asked about specific designs, she would tell me that she needed to inquire with someone else to get a quote (RED FLAG). From what I gathered she operates like a middleman. A little less than one year before my wedding I ran into some challenges and needed to cancel my services with Elegant Events Florist/Sheila. I reached out to Elegant Events Florist/Sheila explaining my situation and I politely asked for a refund on my first payment of $2000. I felt comfortable asking for this refund because the wedding date was so far in advance that it would allow Elegant Events Florist/Sheila ample time to replace me with another client for the highly desirable spring wedding season. Also, the design was not yet finalized so in all actuality nothing yet was done on my behalf. Even with this knowledge Shelia denied a full refund and would only give a 50% refund if I gave proof of cancellation such as written notification from my wedding venue(s). Even with all the scammer vibes this still SHOCKED me because she confirmed that no floral and/or staff had been purchased and/or scheduled for my wedding nearly one year out. Of course, I looked back at the contract and here is where I saw the biggest RED FLAG ever. She has no obligation/policy to return any monies paid no matter the timing or possibility of replacing the client (RED FLAG). Even though, the $500 deposit is the only payment that explicitly says non-refundable. It is up to Sheila's sole discretion to give a refund despite any timing or circumstance (RED FLAG). This type of cancellation policy leaves room for inequality and various biases. I never want to hurt or harm a Black Women Owned Business but this business is not run with honor, please avoid. Some may say contract this ... contract that but overall, Elegant Events Florist/Sheila stole $2000 from me! I am writing this review as a lesson to myself to thoroughly question every contract line and follow my god given instincts by walking away when things just don't feel right. I am also writing this review to YOU. Beware of Elegant Events Florist/Sheila!!!! Elegant Events Florist/Sheila doesn't operate on integrity or basic kindness. Elegant Events Florist/Sheila will KEEP your money knowing damn well she did NOTHING to earn it!!! Its shameful. I would assume that most people, especially during a sentimental time like wedding planning would want to work with a business rooted in decency and righteousness. Also, if you're still not convinced look at other reviews on all other platforms. I am not the first to call the integrity of Elegant Events Florist/Sheila into question. Thank you

My husband needed floral arrangements for my surprise Birthday party. When he contacted Eric at…read moreBlack Cat, he explained the feeling he wanted to convey and left it in his capable hands. The results were perfect! He wanted a rustic yet elegant feel to match the venue. Not only did the arrangements fit the beautiful barn, they felt completely personalized from my favorite colors down to my childhood picture tag displayed on each individual vase. You could feel the love and care that went into each individual creation. Eric's work goes beyond just flowers and is truly "ART". We will use "Black Cat Flowerworks" for All our future floral needs. Thanks Eric! Lisa and Matt Brown

Custom made grave blankets are exactly what I requested. I wanted something with winter and…read moreChristmas colors, but more lush and rich looking than what I could find at the typical places that sell them. Each is unique, and all three are beautiful! They are made with high quality artificial flowers so they'll last through the holidays. Many complements from family members that loved how nice these look for all of us visiting our loved ones at rest.

I had to find a florist in Jersey for a rehearsal dinner that I was coordinating from North…read moreCarolina. Gina recently took over ownership of the shop and assisted me in creating arrangements for the event. Gina was fabulous, excellent communication, executed the design and even helped with supplies. Highly recommend!

I have received flowers from this company more than once. I have also used this florist for…read moreordering a flower delivery. Great customer service. Flowers are always beautiful. Received yellow roses from this florist on Wednesday and they were gorgeous. I would highly recommend!!

We recently used Pastore Events for our wedding planner this past weekend. We couldn't have been…read moremore pleased with the work that Colette and her assistant Tish did for us. Our wedding was at Deerfield in Newark, DE. Colette worked with their in house planning team to make sure everything was perfect for us that day. The entire event went off without a hitch, and we received many compliments on how smooth everything ran. I have no doubt that this was due to Colette and her team. Her recommendations for vendors also was spot on. We could not be happier with how everything turned out that day. Thank you so much Colette!!!!

We couldn't be happier to have chosen Jim from Offshoots as our wedding florist. He is passionate,…read morehonest, and hands on. We took him up on almost every suggestion he had from the flowers/greenery to the color and texture of the linens. Jim did a great job understanding and creating a proposal based on our vision. He used the simplicity of flowers and candles to enhance the natural beauty of our venue. Every detail was exactly as we had wanted - natural, organic and elegant. Thank you Jim!

Offshoots is a florist that deserves a 5-star rating and is comparable, if not better, than the…read moreother well-known florists in Philadelphia. To Jim, it is not a job, but truly a passion to create beauty. From our first meeting with Jim, I knew that he understood the vision for our wedding and would bring it to life. He was always available to talk and was both professional and extremely fun to work with. We had multiple meetings, where he displayed samples to really give us a visual to make sure it was everything we wanted for our big day, and we were always laughing together the whole time. On the day of our wedding, I was absolutely blown away by everything Jim and Offshoots accomplished. The centerpieces, the bouquets, and the boutonnieres were magnificent. They were elegant and modern and wowed all of our guests. He designed our ceremony space with a gorgeous arch and incorporated beautiful cherry blossom trees, and I cannot say enough positive things about the décor for the reception space. Words just can't do it justice. It was tasteful, modern, and fit perfectly within the venue space. I think it is important to mention that Jim also made centerpieces for our "welcome dinner" which was in lieu of a rehearsal dinner. They were gorgeous and completely different from what he did the following night at the wedding (which truly shows his versatility). In addition to the centerpieces, he decorated a table when you first walked into the space with flowers and tons of candlelight. It was absolutely radiant and blew everyone away from the moment they stepped into the venue. Again, it was beyond my expectations and I could not have been more pleased working with Jim. He is so knowledgeable and I am forever grateful for how he brought our ideas and the venues to life. I can't thank Jim and Offshoots enough! I can only hope to have another event in the future so that they can do what they do best!