Michelle is a master planner, full of ideas. During this time of uncertainty due to Covid-19, she…read moredoesn't just create, she builds relationships in order to deliver a product that you're both proud of. I found these gift boxes circulating on social media, and they were so perfect to send my mom for her birthday and Mother's Day. My mom loved her box and was so happy with the personalized details! I 10/10 recommend these gift boxes for birthdays, graduations, holidays, and any other occasion really.

I'm not sure "great" adequately describes my experience with NORA events. Because of Omicron we…read morehad to quickly transition a reception from live to virtual. I was determined to create some sort of "at home" reception for the guests of honor, two colleagues who deserved a real party. Another event-planning colleague recommended NORA events. I contacted Michelle, explained the situation, and she instantly went into creation mode. She asked for details about each person, made suggestions, and quickly produced an initial proposal that was close to perfect. After one or two more discussions it was perfect, and the boxes were customized to the specific needs/preferences of each recipient: cheese, charcuterie, personalized Champagne bottles, chocolate - already ingredients for perfection, right? But Michelle didn't stop there. I sent customized gift enclosure cards (with logos etc.) at her suggestion, and she found two unique boxes to wrap everything up in. (It's worth noting that both recipients were men, and both were really impressed with the presentation as well as the box contents.) The day of the event I received an email with sneak preview photos. I was blown away. Within minutes of the first delivery I heard from the first recipient who was equally so; and later that evening the other recipient sent me a note, paraphrased as follows: "...We enjoyed a small post-event reception later in the evening... with the wonderful chocolates, cheeses, and Champagne. Thanks so much for finding a way to make the remoteness of this event more personal and meaningful." Beyond the gift boxes themselves, what impressed me most was the short timeframe in which they were accomplished (14 days!); and that Michelle gave as much personal and thoughtful attention to a small order as she would to a large one. She really wanted to get every detail right, and she succeeded. We'll definitely use NORA events again, and I'll be sharing information with other event planning colleagues. Highly recommended!

So happy we booked Blush Events to do hair/makeup for our wedding in July 2017! Prior to booking, I…read moretalked with Ben over email. He was very responsive, professional, and helpful. The booking process was very easy. In the beginning, I was unsure of some details - how many people, locations, etc - but Ben was very flexible with this. I was also pleased with how affordable Blush was compared to other hair/makeup services in Chicago. Raina did my hair/makeup trial a month or so before at Bleach and I was so impressed! On the day of, Raina and Jackie came to our hotel room to do hair/makeup for myself as well as my three bridesmaids. They did such an amazing job on all of us! Very talented and all of our hair/makeup stayed for the whole day/night. Would definitely recommend Blush Events to others!

I am so glad I booked Ben and his team for my wedding. All my bridesmaids loved their hair and…read moremakeup and everyone at the wedding commented on how impressed they were by how well the hair and makeup withstood the crazy wind and rain we experienced on my wedding day. My hair stayed up so well that I was able to wear it to our good-bye brunch the next morning! Finally, Ben's team was just enjoyable to be around. We loved spending the morning of the wedding with them, everyone was comfortable and able to relax. I cannot recommend Ben and Blush Events enough. I now go to Ben's salon, Bleach on Lincoln Ave., for my cut and color.

Alyssa and her team at Northwest Weddings were absolutely flawless from the day I hired them to the…read moreday of the wedding! Whenever I needed assistance or someone to bounce ideas off of, Alyssa would respond so quickly and give her expertise. There were so many little things that I did not have to worry about at all because Alyssa had it covered. She had a running list of all of our day-of items, and timeline. She created the timeline for us and even our venue said that it was perfect! Our florist and officiant raved about her also! The wedding day went absolutely perfectly because of Alyssa and her team. We even had a shuttle issue, where a shuttle and driver did not show and she handled it so well. She did not want to stress me out so I had no idea until the last minute and at that point, Alyssa had already figured out a solution and it was perfect. Our guests and vendors were happy during all of this and my parents were so grateful for Alyssa's handling of the situation. I would recommend Alyssa at Northwest Weddings to ANYONE getting married!

There is no shortage of amazing photographers on the North Shore. I met with so many talented…read morephotographers for my daughters bat mitzvah, but ultimately decided to go with Anna because I liked her personality and the albums she showed me were absolutely beautiful. I'm sure all the photographers at North Shore Photography are fabulous, but if you want Anna be sure to book way ahead and there's also an extra fee to reserve her. Throughout the planning process I knew I chose right because Anna and her office were wonderful to work with. They were super accommodating working around the synagogues schedule. We first met up with Anna last July to do a photo shoot outside at Ravinia Festival, which was where we were hosting the party. It was the most gorgeous summer day, although pretty hot. Anna worked fast in the heat to get amazing photos of my daughter and overall it was super chill and just fun. We spent a lot of time with Anna the weekend of the bat mitzvah and pretty much every member of my family remarked how much they liked her. She was super organized, got thru all the family pics so fast and just very easy to be around. She clearly does this a lot- actually i believe our synagogue photos were her 3rd shoot just that day! Anna and her assistant did a wonderful job capturing it all the night of the party. We did another round of quick family photos and then they got everything in the moment. I wasn't expecting to see pics for at least a few weeks, but had them 5 days later...and they were just perfect. She got some great family pics, shots of my daughter having the time of her life and even photos of all the little details that we created to make event extra special. I've already signed the contract to have Anna photograph my son's bar mitzvah and look forward to seeing her again!

Professional and personable and so easy to work with! This was my first experience getting…read moreprofessional pictures of my children. I had the photographer, Anna, and she was fantastic. My kids loved her and were able to be comfortable around her, which is tough because my children are sort of skittish. I love the photos and was so pleased with how they turned out. I had so many choices to order from and got the photos so quickly. I would highly recommend this company. Plus, Anna has quite an adorable British accent. The kids loved that, too!

Schrader Photographs is spectacularly on point if your looking to have photos taken that bring back…read morenostalgic moments in life. We've had family and graduation pictures done with care and patience. If your looking for a professional to capture that special essence, Schrader Photographs is your choice :)

Cherie is the most fun! We've had her do our family photos when the kids were little all the way…read morethrough senior pictures! She makes everyone comfortable, is up to doing crazy pictures, and will figure out a way to get the shot just right! She's animal friendly and endorses holding a turkey if that's what your daughter wants to do! We can't say enough good things about Schrader Photographs! Book her, you won't regret it!

We LOVED working with Natalie and Studio Poppy for our wedding florals! Natalie was so incredible…read moreto work with - she really understood the look we were going for and delivered the most STUNNING florals and reception decor, while staying within our budget.

Studio Poppy is literally the perfect floral company! The owner, Natalie, is the sweetest-…read morecreative, easy to work with, friendly, just couldn't be better. We wanted our wedding to be mostly greens, with unique white flowers & she nailed it. The groom & I love beer- so she came up with the idea of adding beer hops to the boutonnieres, & they were a complete hit. I had 8 bridesmaid bouquets, 1 bridal bouquet and 2 bridal corsages. We also had a large greenery arch and she nailed that as well. It worked great as a center point for our ceremony, as well as a back drop for the bride/groom as we ate. She really works with you on what you have in mind creatively. For instance, my husband and I love wine; so wanted to include our wine bottles as decor. We also wanted to utilize fake greenery as runners on the tables. Natalie allowed us to drop our bottles off (~60 of them I think) as well as probably around the same number of greenery runners. She set everything up in the most perfect manner. Overall I can't say enough good things about Studio Poppy. Be sure to use them for your wedding/any special events. Additionally- I did a holiday wreath workshop with Studio Poppy & it was equally as fun as my wedding planning experience with her. From this I can confidently say, anything you book with them will be amazing!

Professional in every way, but with just the appropriate and expected amount of creativity. I LOVED…read morethe studio as well as the experience. Joel's experience in theater and dance revealed itself during the shoot. Who better to know what the industry looks for than someone IN the industry? What an experience!

Our first contact was via email. Very professional from beginning to end. We made arrangements for…read moremy headshots to be taken and he was great to work with. Plenty of fun and smiles and his direction on what to do was on point. He knew his craft. He would take the time to show me the difference between my chin being up vs my chin being up and out. He was sharp. Timing was perfect. I received my photos in a timely manner... which I deeply appreciated. No regrets using Joel. I highly recommend him!!!

My daughter's wedding venue was enormous but after Beatrice and Virginia put their touches we had a…read morebeautiful and intimate setting. I was so impressed and the compliments continue to be positive. I wasn't sure if anyone could take all of my daughters eclectic finds and transform them into her vision but they did. Thank you so much for everything you did to make my daughters wedding the most amazing occasion Kimberly mom of the bride

Thank you Virginia Wolff! Virginia did an incredible job for our wedding floral this past July!…read moreVirginia and her team really understood our vision and they are truly experts in their field. Virginia accommodated any last minute changes I had -- they changed the type of greenery used in the arrangements a couple weeks before the wedding without any hassle. They provided great suggestions and recommendations. They were able to work within my budget while providing a lot of "bells and whistles". She is also incredible thorough and stayed at the venue until every table was set and every candle was lit to ensure everything looked just perfect. I would highly recommend Virigina Wolff floral for any event!