EDITED: I added more photos to elaborate further on the review. I am a small business owner myself,…read moreso I know how imperative each contract can be. But because of that I think it is so incredibly important to be honest with yourself and your clients about what you can and cannot do. My sister never brought it up with Ashley because she did not want to give any bad feedback, but I would hate for another couple to experience the same on their wedding day. There is no point in hiring a coordinator if you are going to end up doing and planning it all yourself anyway. ______________ Just because you can, doesn't mean you should. My sister got married in Richmond in October of '24. I live in CA and helped her with whatever I could, but obviously, with a wedding, it helps to have someone with experience and knowledge of the industry and be hands-on on the ground. Enter Ashley. Now I did not work with Ashley directly nor do I know what her other skills entail, I can only go off of what I saw firsthand at both the rehearsal dinner and the actual wedding. Mind you, it's been a full 6 months at this point so this isn't even an emotion-filled rant or anything. I'd simply hate for this to happen to another couple. Your wedding is supposed to be the most important day of your life. And a coordinator is there to ensure it is, right? I've gone through Ashley's website page by page a dozen times to see if maybe we expected more than what was promised. My sister wanted her wedding to be very DIY, she had a very specific vision in mind for how she wanted it to look and feel. Part of that meant that they brought in a bunch of stuff from home. The few days before the wedding involved a ton of trips back and forth carting all the stuff to and from. I first met Ashley at the rehearsal dinner the day before the wedding. She seemed to know what she was doing as she was guiding the wedding party and officiant through what the ceremony would entail. The next morning, however, is when it became glaringly obvious that perhaps this was way more than one single person could handle. She was MIA when the groom tried calling and/or texting her so we ended up sending some family members to the venue to ensure someone would be there when vendors began to show up. They arrived about an hour or two before Ashley did. Since they had gotten a head start they had started decorating the church and reception area with all the fresh flowers. When they asked Ashley to takeover, she told them she wasn't a florist and therefore would not be handling any of the flowers. Fast forward to when the wedding party starts showing up and she is again, nowhere to be found. A bridesmaid is having issues with her dress and I told her to find Ashley as I know most coordinators usually carry a disaster kit with them with basic sewing essentials, I figured she'd have a safety pin or skin tape to help, but no one could find her. I'd say the worst of it though was everything after the wedding. While things had been somewhat consolidated to an area or two, stuff was thrown everywhere haphazardly. Maybe Ashley thought the other vendors were going to take care of it, maybe the other vendors thought she would? Either way, no one wants to show up the next morning to clean only to discover that nothing has been properly stored or put away! Most importantly, the goddamn cake! My sister did different pies instead of cake, it doesn't matter, she still wanted to keep them for their one-year anniversary. Where were the slices left? Outside, in a box, with other random leftovers that were left out overnight. I could go on and on about everything Ashley did and didn't do, but the truth is I would hate to have another couple hire her for a wedding only to find out the day of, they are going to be left on their own to figure it out for themselves. Coordinating parties is nothing compared to weddings and it is beyond disrespectful that someone would use their weekend side-hustle to sell a "month-of coordinator" service when what was given was anything but. Doing something as a hobby or because you are good at it is fine. But charging people hundreds or thousands of dollars to show up and not even do what you stated you would is just straight up nonsense.

Ashley did a great job with our wedding! She was easy to communicate and detail oriented. She was…read morepersonable with us, our wedding party, and guests as she helped make our wedding day go so smoothly. Highly recommend!

I've always worked with Prop Shop but this first event with Party Perfect was awesome!…read moreNed (one of the owners) came out himself and measured our yard to make sure everything would fit, Bryan and his set up team were amazing, and of course the creative team in the office. But Will & Reese (tent crew) went above and beyond and stole the show in my eyes. Even after they had finished setting up these guys ran to the store to make sure we had everything we could possibly need for our event like surge protector and spare extension cords. Made sure I had the after hours number in case I had ANY questions. 100/10 in my book!

We rented a tent for my daughters surprise engagement. This was the third time we've used Party…read morePerfect. They are so easy to work with and the set up was a breeze and happened quickly and smoothly. They come check for utilities first and do set up and tear down without any issues. Angela is wonderful to work with and everything was handled online, efficiently and super organized. I will use Party Perfect again!!!

Just ordered this for a friends birthday. The price was reasonable and she actually delivered to my…read morework which was awesome! She was able to text me when she arrived to tell me she was coming! My friend LOVED the box! It was so cute and even had a Happy Birthday sign inside!! Will definitely be ordering again!

Amazing! I've ordered from Picnic RVA 2x now and the quality is always top notch and the boards are…read morelaid out beautifully. It's so convenient that they offer delivery too. I'll be ordering from Picnic again for sure.

What an amazing time at Muse Paintbar! Had a wonderful experience on Valentines Day Weekend…read morepainting with guided instructions. We were surprisingly able to create a masterpiece that my partner and I are super excited to display in our home. Muse has a variety of classes with different art designs to appease all style preferences! They also have a full bar with a mixture of alcoholic and non-alcoholic offerings! I ordered a yuzu pineapple limeade mocktail to sip on with my painting which was delicious! We didn't indulge in food this time but they had multiple food options from pretzel bites to boneless wings. Super excited to return and would definitely reccomend checking out some of their partner painting classes. It was so cool to work together and see our photo come together. I could see it being a fun friends night out or a cute date night.

First time visiting was for a Yelp Elite event (shout out to Lena), and I've been back twice thus…read morefar and wish I had the time and ability to visit more! This is one of the less demanding activities I can tolerate nowadays with a chronic illness, and it's always quite therapeutic every time. The music is awesome, but I'm at the "this grocery store is playing all my jams" age so take that as you will... But whether you make this a solo activity or go with company, the music allows you to zone out but it's not so loud that you can't hear whomever you're conversing with. I have a tendency to not follow instructions, or rather, tap into my creative uniqueness, lol. However, the instructors are very encouraging either way and support your mistakes and intentional deviations alike. The food and drinks are mediocre at best, but I appreciate that they offer snacks and 21+ sips at all. So, maybe don't arrive hungry but it's not the end of the world if you do.

Lauren is phenomenal! She is thoughtful, organized, creative, and so talented. We could not have…read morehad the wedding we dreamed of without her. She took a standard brewery and helped us dress it up in a way that was unrecognizable to the brewery owner and staff without busting our budget. She's a jack of all trades- she can arrange flowers in such a beautiful way. And, she's an amazing baker! We hired Lauren before COVID and she easily adapted our vision once COVID caused our plans to change. As a very type A person and bride, I felt at ease knowing Lauren was taking care of everything as our day of coordinator. Thanks Lauren!

Lauren is a dream wedding planner! From start to finish our experience with Lauren truly made our…read morewedding day truly special and truly us. From the start Lauren blew me away. The very first question she asked me before the big day was, "What are you worried about?" I cannot tell you how important this was and what a difference it made. By going through everything that was important to me, Lauren was able to take the lead and guarantee that I would not have any worries and the day would be stress-free. I really did not need to lift a finger on my wedding day! Lauren has vision, Lauren has passion, and Lauren works so hard so you don't have to. Lauren had everything handled from the showing us where to order affordable candles, making table arrangements, designing place cards, gorgeous programs, and even the delicious heavenly cake. She even made a surprise grooms cake for my husband for our rehearsal dinner! After our wedding my husband and I just rode off into the sunset and she handled it all! Her attention to detailed is unparalleled and she goes above and beyond. If you are like me and have an idea of what you want but are unsure where to begin- hire Whisked Away Weddings & Events!

The sisters (anna and elsa) had my wife and mother in law in tears when they watched our daughter…read moresinging eith them. The pure joy I saw in ny daughters eyes while she was performing with the sisters is worth more than any price I would pay to this company. They also arrived way in advance and kept in contact with me for the entrance.

We had the Ice Queen over for our daughters 6th birthday She came in the door singing and surprised…read moreall of the kids. The look on their face was priceless! The Ice Queen entertained the children for about an hour, was very sweet to the birthday girl and all her guests! My daughter was coronated Princess of Virginia and now she tells everybody she meets her new title . It was a magical day and we were so happy with our experience. My daughter now wants a princess to come to every birthday party!

A Sharper Palate catered our wedding and absolutely blew us away! We consulted with a few different…read morecatering/event companies before making a decision on ASP and they were the only one to deliver on a menu that met our specific vision while remaining budget conscious. Even though we provided our own alcohol, they gave us guidance on how much to provide and helped us choose recipes for signature drinks that met the theme of our event and our bar budget. Our contact throughout the entire process was Hope, and she was incredibly helpful and responsive - even with our last minute guest additions with dietary restrictions, and rental research when inclement weather threatened to derail our plans. On the actual day of the wedding, everything was orchestrated so smoothly and looked so gorgeous (I'll admit I was an emotional bride, but I burst into tears when I saw the cheese presentation because it looked so beautiful, haha)! Not only was the food delicious, but Hope and ASP had the utmost attention to detail - providing extra touches of florals, fabrics, and candles that added to the ambiance. We got so many compliments on the service, the food, and the seamless organization of the entire event. Would hire ASP again in a heartbeat!

Working with A Sharper Palate was a fantastic experience. From our tasting to the wedding day,…read moreLeslie was professional, honest and creative! They worked in a very tight area, feeding nearly 200 people - the food still hot and fresh! We would highly recommend them for a wedding or any kind of event. Food was delicious and the presentation stunning.

We decided to have a fun bounce house at our residence for Easter! We were celebrating our…read moregrandson's 2nd birthday! It was FABULOUS! The rental process was easy, staff was friendly, and arrived on time! The set up did not take long! I am beyond static with their products and services! We look forward to utilizing their services again!

From the owner: Welcome to Magic Special Events, a full service special event design and production company that…read morespecializes in transforming your vision into spectacular, memorable events with professional yet personal service.