When I was first looking around for a wedding planner over a year ago, I was a little hesitant to…read moresign up with AJ because there were no online reviews. So now that all the wedding craziness is over, I thought I should post something about how great AJ and her crew are. As out-of-towners planning a small (36 guest) wedding in Anna Maria, we were looking for someone who could help us with planning and also provide that crucial local knowledge--where to get flowers, where to rent a sound system, etc. From our first meeting with AJ, we knew we'd made a good choice. She is warm, personable, and incredibly knowledgeable about both wedding planning and all aspects of the local area. I know she has lots of clients, but I really felt like she took the time to listen to us, get to know who we were, and make sure that we ended up with the exact vibe we wanted: casual and beach-y, but still classy. We had AJ's team handle all three of our events (a welcome party the night before, the wedding itself, and a brunch), and they provided planning, rentals, staging, AND all the food for all the parties. It was a great option for us and it took away a lot of the stress of trying to put all the pieces together ourselves. Since we live over 1000 miles away, I had to rely on AJ to make a lot of the decisions, including choosing new linens after prices went up and we had to change suppliers. She took our invitation as inspiration and selected the PERFECT table settings--I can honestly say that she could not have chosen anything that was more perfect or that I would have liked better. From the beginning of the first party, we were blown away by how beautiful everything was and how smoothly it all went. AJ has a great eye for detail, and she is really good at choosing decorations that complement the natural setting. Our Welcome party was a backyard picnic, very casual, but she added funky details like lanterns and picnic cloths that really elevated the look. All of the design elements associated with the wedding itself were creative and cool. The day before the wedding, she e-mailed me a photo of a driftwood arch she'd made for a photo shoot earlier in the week and asked me if we wanted to use it for our ceremony. We'd been planning on standard bamboo, but as soon as I saw the photo I decided to go with the driftwood! She even added pearls to the arch to echo the pearls on my dress. All of the food was excellent. We did a cocktail hour with passed appetizers, followed by a buffet dinner with a Caribbean BBQ theme. Unlike with a traditional caterer, AJ's team does all the cooking on-site, so everything is fresh. The food isn't overly complicated, just top-of-the-line ingredients and great flavor combinations. All four passed appetizers were awesome, and the chimichuri sauce they made was one of the best things I've ever tasted. One note: Although AJ's team provides food, you supply your own alcohol--which is great from a cost perspective, but it can be a bit of a hassle if you're from out of town. In short, AJ knows what she's doing, and her team goes way beyond the cookie-cutter stuff you see everywhere. If you're looking for something elegant with unique design elements, I don't think you could make a better choice. The only real complaint I could make is that communication in terms of quotes and costs is not as clear and polished as you might get with a larger company--you need to be on your toes and make sure that what you've requested is accurately reflected in quotations and that sort of thing. But for us at least, the quality and personal service that we got from AJ was well worth any additional effort on our part to keep up with the quotes.

Creative ability excellent. Communication and responsiveness poor. Did not meet expectations as a…read morewedding. Did not bring the grooms boutonnière and orchid stems on sweetheart table were broken. Would not recommend.

We don't get a chance away from our son often. This event was everything and more! Erica and Amanda…read morewere so welcoming and professional. The set up was so beautiful if your looking for something intimate and outside the box book with these ladies. We're already planning to book again. It was beyond my expectations

From the owner: With A Shore Thing Events, your next event is sure to be the talk of the town. We combine our…read morecreativity and years of experience to make your special day turn out exactly how you want it. Whether you're planning the perfect Wedding, Corporate Event, Dinner Party or Fundraising Gala, we will make sure every detail is taken care of.

I highly recommend Shannon Crona Wilson and Table 6 Productions! Soon after my fiancé proposed to…read moreme, I reached out to Shannon to discuss hiring her to be our wedding planner. I'll admit that planning a wedding is out of my league. Additionally, I work part-time and I'm studying to be a psychiatrist. My husband is a biological scientist and conservation planner, which requires him to frequently travel. Not only did we not have any idea where or how to begin planning a wedding, but we also both have very little free time. From our first interaction with Shannon, we were extremely impressed. In fact, our first interaction with Shannon was on a Friday night since that was the only time that our schedules allowed us to talk with her. Throughout the nine months that we worked with her to plan our wedding, Shannon always communicated with us when it was most convenient for us - including nights, weekends, and even holidays. Because we live in Tallahassee, FL - the location of our wedding - and Table 6 Productions is located in St Petersburg, FL, Shannon communicated with us by phone and email. Shannon worked with every vendor involved in our wedding, which included negotiating and securing contracts with them. Although Shannon was working outside of the area of our wedding venue, the planning process was seamless. Shannon listened to our ideas for our wedding, and she then turned our dreams into reality. We have no idea if Shannon was working with other couples during the time that she was planning our wedding, as she never mentioned it. Shannon gave my husband and I VIP treatment, making us both feel like royalty. Since wedding planning is about your big day, why wouldn't you want to feel like you are the most important couple in the world? We set an original budget, which Shannon strived hard to adhere to. We did exceed it, but that was only by our choice. Shannon was very conscientious with regards to our budget, and she made recommendations about rentals and other aspects of our wedding that were not necessary in an attempt to stay within our original budget. Again, we only went over our original budget by choosing to have specific elements in our wedding that were not originally discussed with Shannon. Three months prior to our wedding date, Shannon made a trip to Tallahassee, FL to meet with all of our vendors, my husband, and myself. Several of our vendors mentioned to us that they were impressed that Shannon came to meet with them in person, as that is rare for other wedding planners that they've worked with - including ones who live in our area. In fact, all of our vendors and everyone involved in our wedding informed us how friendly Shannon was and what a pleasure she was to work with. Shannon's knowledge of the wedding industry, coupled with her attention to detail, allowed her to execute every aspect of planning our wedding with flawless precision and class. There is no possible way that our wedding would have come to fruition without Shannon's help. Over the course of planning our wedding with Shannon, we became so close that we consider her more than our wedding planner - she is valued as a member of our family. We utilized Shannon and Table 6 Productions for full-service wedding planning, which was the best decision we've ever made. On the day of our wedding, we enjoyed relaxing and spending time with our friends and family. The only thing that we had to do on our wedding day was show up to our venue and marry one another. Shannon coordinated every aspect of setting up for our wedding with our vendors, as well as the clean-up that took place afterwards. Several of our friends and family members who attended our wedding later mentioned to us that they wish Shannon was their wedding planner when they were married. They added that they had never seen a wedding flow as smoothly as ours did. To say that my husband and I are pleased with the service we received from Shannon and Table 6 Productions would be an understatement. Shannon exceeded our expectations and created the most memorable experience of our lives. We are forever thankful!

I could not be happier with my wedding day and I owe it all to Shannon Wilson!…read moreAn experienced and well connected wedding planner can make your money go a long way. She helped me stay on budget without having to make any sacrifices. She was so easy to communicate with-It was like having your most competent girlfriend (the one that also happens to have all the connections) laser focused on bringing your dreams to reality. She helped me sort through the countless vendors and matched me perfectly with each one based both on personalities and expectations. Shannon kept all the contracts together, reminded me of due dates for payments, and coordinated timelines with all the vendors. My husband and I got to sit back and enjoy the planning process, because we knew we had a professional to steer us in the right direction. Each taste testing or mock up was like a fun date that only brought us closer as a couple. Shannon helped ensure that everything was to my taste and I thoroughly enjoyed one of the most memorable days of my life. I don't know what I would have done without you Shannon!

Outstanding service provided by operator. Easy set up and surprisingly easy cleanup. This is a…read moresuper fun experience for the kiddos and TBH, I think I had just as much fun. It's affordable, it's something different for a party, and very affordable. Definitely worth checking out.

LOOK NO FURTHER!! This company is top notch- ran by…read moreincredible people, and provided a night of absolute fun for a middle and high school event. We will be hiring them again in the future!

The website is laid out so well that it was easy to choose my options for my son's party with…read moreprices clearly stated. There are several options for add-ons and the color choices for boys, girls and gender neutral was fabulous. I was able to choose colors that matched my theme. Brian is fabulous to work with and easy to communicate with.

From the owner: We deliver the MOST fun to your party or event with soft play rentals! Let us give your toddler…read moreendless laughter with ball pits, climbers, slides, bounce houses and more! We serve the Sarasota County and surrounding areas to bring the fun to your party or event!

If you are on the fence about whether or not to hire a wedding planner, JUST DO IT! It's worth…read moreevery cent. We had a great handle on all the details of our wedding as we hired our own vendors a year in advance, but in the end, we really needed a planner who could help us pull everything together in the final days when we needed to focus on other things. Debbie and Laurie, owners of Core Concepts, did an amazing job. We hired them to help us coordinate all the details in the final 30 days leading up to our special day. You can trust that they will be in regular communication during the time that you contract to work with them - they will deliver! All of the details came together perfectly - from the beautiful flowers in our requested colors (white, purple and blue) and table seatings, coordinating with our other vendors and keeping everything on time during the day, to the signage and programs and pipe and drape and uplighting and Gobo OH MY. The setting was just perfect - Core Concepts truly helped transformed the space (which was drab) to make it feel elegant and created an atmosphere that made the entire evening feel special to us and our guests. They were hustling until the very end to ensure all the details were taken care of. They also went the extra mile and delivered our flowers after the wedding festivities to the venue where we were hosting a brunch the next morning -- and that was after a really long day of set up and breakdown. That extra touch was a huge help, and we were very appreciative. So many of our guests told us, with sincerity, that it was the best (and most magical) wedding they have ever attended (!!!), and that was thanks in no small part to the Core Concepts team. We are thrilled. They worked hard to help bring our vision to life and for helping us kick off our next adventure as a married couple. :)

After the money spent on the dress, the venue, the reception, etc. - my mother and I really…read morewondered if we absolutely needed "Day Of" support and if it was worth the cost. We shouldn't have hesitated for a minute! The help we got from Rachel and Core Events was THE best money we spent for anything in the wedding planning. We met with Rachel a couple times and reviewed our plans for the day. She was AMAZING - helping smooth out final details at the rehearsal, checking our sound system/music selections, and providing suggestions for different ways to handle the various traditional elements. The day of, while my mother and I had our hair and makeup done, she checked in at the reception venue and ensured the cake and flowers were delivered and set up properly and the banquet room was set up according to our specs. She also placed our favors, guest book, and other little personal touches we wanted at the reception. That sorted, she booked it over to our ceremony location and helped distribute programs, herded family members and the wedding party here and there so the photographer could get as many pre-wedding family pics as possible. While we stayed behind for photos, she headed to the reception and helped get our guests started on nibbles and cocktails, even cueing our playlist for each part of the reception. Once we arrived, she announced our arrival and got our first dance music going. All this on a day she wasn't feeling too great! We are SO grateful to have had the help of someone so professional, organized, and reliable. Her help let us just relaxed, visit with family, and enjoy the day rather than running around and checking on vendors, set up and details. I cannot recommend Core Events highly enough to anyone planning a wedding or large scale event where you'd actually like to be able to enjoy the event and your guests.

I am a huge fan. We called ConceptBAIT to help out at the last minute to help decorate a surprise…read morewedding anniversary party at the Vinoy. They provided stunning centerpieces and table and chair decorations. They went above and beyond and everyone complimented the decor.

From the owner: At conceptBAIT we specialize in custom designed event and floral decor "environments" which include…read morebut not limited to: ceiling & perimeter draping, lounge furniture, chandeliers, tablescapes, Spandex & lavish Linens as well as a superior customer experience. By appointment only and your complete confidentiality is assured.

Embellished Catering was truly an incredible experience for us! Wedding planning is overwhelming,…read morebut with Embellished, it became as easy as possible. Embellished is a one-stop shop for all wedding needs. They provided the catering, bar, DJ, florals, decorations, dance floor & lighting. They also paired us with a fantastic wedding coordinator, Savanah, and chef, Jason. They were both extremely helpful throughout the whole process and went above and beyond to satisfy our needs - including on the wedding day itself. Our bartenders and servers were also extremely helpful and friendly. 10/10 recommend. Anika & Max Steele

Thank you so much for catering my son's college graduation party. The food was absolutely amazing,…read moreand the setup was phenomenal. Our guests are still talking about how wonderful the event was, and Embellished Catering played a major role in making it such a success. There was plenty of food, with great options for everyone, and we truly appreciated the quality and presentation. Thank you again for helping make this celebration so special and memorable.