Elsilu

Heather and her team at Elsilu were an absolute dream to work with! Heather was able to turn all of my wildest dreams of what my perfect wedding would be, into reality. When I told her I wanted an all pink wedding, Heather smiled and already had ideas ready. Every detail was beyond perfection and planned beautifully. Heather is such an amazing person to work with, and we have become such good friends. Throughout the entire planning process, Heather and her team were organized, detail oriented and very creative. When it came to the wedding weekend, everything was taken care of. My husband and I were able to enjoy every moment to the fullest. We cannot recommend Elsilu enough!

Do you ever dream of the perfect wedding for your daughter? Well, think no further! Elsilu Event Planning is the BEST you will find. Heather and her team are beyond over the top. Aside from her logistical mastery, expert advice, and calm assurance, Heather and her team made sure the entire weekend was filled with momentous events which got better as each day passed. She worked seamlessly with both families and absolutely no details were left out. All of our guests were so impressed with you. We thank God for guiding us toward you. It’s amazing see what we accomplished together and created a friendship. I truly cannot imagine having gone through the wedding planning process without Heather and local businesses. Heather is a superstar!! Carol & Bob G Parents of the Bride

Heather and her team (Kate and Charlotte) are exceptional at what they do. They work hard early on to understand the goals and priorities of both the bride and groom - whether it be budget, flowers, design. You can feel when someone cares - and they truly care. Their professionalism is second to none. They are easy to contact - we had standing weekly calls down the stretch leading up to the wedding. They also sat in on our calls with all of the other vendors - almost felt like your attorney was representing you on those calls - definitely gave us a sense of comfort, knowing Heather's team had our back and asked the right questions. Their wedding planning software was amazing - we used it to track guests' responses, map out the seating chart for both rehearsal dinner and reception, as well as budgeting and tracking upcoming tasks and due dates. For me, a real value-add from Heather was helping us (fairly quickly) narrow down one or two vendors to hire for things like flowers, DJ, photography. I realized early on that without Heather, I'd likely be interviewing 5 or 6 florists and still not knowing if I'm getting a good price or good quality. Heather listened to our needs - then recommended a vendor - the whole process was so smooth. You can't replace peace of mind, especially the week leading up to the big day. I can honestly say that I had peace of mind going into the wedding because I trusted Heather and her team. As previously stated - they plan weddings for a living and they are very good at what they do. Our wedding took place outside under a tent. Heather's team had the draping, linens, plates and silverware all set up beautifully the night before the wedding. That night (before the wedding) at 9 pm, the venue's sprinklers turned on and soaked everything, including the dance floor. The venue forgot to shut off the sprinklers! Heather's team didn't panic - they jumped into gear - understanding they had less than 24 hours to fix the mess. Rewashing and drying all the plates and silverware. They took the drapes and linens to get washed at the drycleaners. There's probably much more that we don't even know about. The most amazing thing is they never even told us about this problem until after the wedding. They kept all of the stress and anxiety surrounding the sprinkler situation to themselves because they didn't want to stress the bride and groom. I thought that said a lot about their team - understanding we had an enormous problem, knowing that they could fix the problem, and not sharing those stresses with the bride and groom until after the wedding. Hiring a wedding planner like Heather (and team) is analogous to hurricane insurance. This is the biggest party you'll ever throw. You pay some premiums leading up to it, then, when the hurricane (sprinklers) hit, they are there to clean up the mess and bride/groom are worry free. Heather, Kate, and Charlotte are more than insurance to us - they are friends. We rate them 11 / 10. We are blessed and thankful to have employed them to map out our special day. -AJ and Molly

Hiring the Elsilu team was hands down the best decision I made in my wedding planning process! From the very beginning stages to day-of execution, Heather & her amazing team never missed a beat. They are extremely talented in what they do and I knew I was in good hands from the moment we started working together. My vision came to life in ways I could have never even imagined! No detail nor logistical item was overlooked. They flawlessly executed not only the wedding itself, but all events surrounding the wedding weekend (rehearsal, welcome party, etc.) A few months post-wedding, and my husband & I are still receiving comments from our family & friends that it was the best wedding they've ever attended. We are forever grateful for the Elsilu team and could not recommend them more!

My husband and I had an INCREDIBLE experience with Heather, Cherell, and the rest of the Elsilu team. We had a vision for a September lakeside wedding at our summer home, and Elsilu knocked it out of the park. Every time we speak to a friend or family member who was there, they say how amazed they were by the wedding, that it was "the best wedding they've ever been to" and they loved how unique and creative it was. My mom, husband, and I keep saying we wish we could do it all over again!! Heather and the Elsilu team helped us incorporate many unique, personal touches, and they really thought of everything. Every time we had a question about logistics, they had a thoughtful, clear answer. They recommended fantastic vendors who were lovely people and excellent at what they do (photography, tent/flooring, chairs/tables, florals, foods, alcohol, etc.). Heather and Cherell were super responsive during the planning process, they felt like an extended part of our family. Heather was upfront about our budget and stayed within what we quoted. During our wedding weekend, I had 0 stress (as the bride!), and this was mainly due to how well-planned our events were. I feel that because of Elsilu's hard work and masterful planning, I was really able to enjoy every moment of the weekend! If you're looking for a fantastic planner, look no further! Elsilu is the best in the biz by FAR!

We hired Heather for our August 2022 wedding in my parents backyard. While it was a great day for us, we unfortunately had a negative experience working with Heather and the Elsilu team and we don't recommend working with her or her team. I think Heather is very capable of planning a great wedding - she just did not do so in my case. I spoke with her on the phone after the wedding and she agrees that she did not provide an acceptable level of service for our wedding. First, Heather did not show up to our actual wedding day. She sent two interns who had no idea what they were doing. The interns told me Heather was at another wedding. When I asked Heather later she said she had a family emergency. Unfortunately, I didn’t get straight answers from them on many occasions - especially during the week of the wedding. Second, we had multiple occasions where vendors showed up at my parents house unexpectedly and with nobody on her team around to show them where to go or how to get set up properly. This effort then fell almost entirely on us and our parents - not what we wanted to deal with during our wedding weekend. Additionally, vendors were coming up to me (the bride), the groom and our parents to get final payments during the reception. This is what Heather told me her team would handle. Third, there were so many small things that did not happen the way we had discussed with Heather. My husband’s aunt made us a beautiful cake and the interns “didn’t realize” that we wanted to do a cake cutting so they just had the caterer cut the cake without notifying us. One of our bus drivers just didn’t show up - leaving our guests stranded for over an hour. On so many things the interns would say “we didn’t know you wanted that” even though we had discussed it with them so many times. Fourth, Heather did not seem to care at all about our budget. I (wrongfully) assumed she was monitoring or at least considering our budget throughout the process. I asked many (x10) times to get the most recent version of our budget and she never sent it until 2 weeks before the wedding and we were 40% over our budget. I spent those two weeks trying to slash costs where I could but we were contractually locked in to so much at that point that there was little I could do. It just seemed like Heather cared more about getting great contracts for her vendor friends than trying to keep us in budget. I talked about all of this with Heather after our wedding and she apologized to me profusely. She said she just had too many weddings this past summer and ours “fell through the cracks.”  My cousin had already hired Heather for her wedding, but after seeing Heather’s performance at my wedding decided she did not want to continue with her. Heather made it very difficult to get even a small portion of their deposit back. Overall, it was an unfortunate experience. I still believe Heather can plan a great wedding (as evident with some of these other reviews), but she really failed to do so for me and I think that’s important for other brides and grooms to know.

“This was the best wedding I’ve ever been to!” We are still hearing this from our guests 2 months later. Our daughter had a vision for her cottage wedding in the woods. Heather listened, understood her vision, and made it happen. The results were even better than the bride and groom even imagined. We were thrilled with how everything turned out. Heather and her team took care of every detail, found great vendors, and made sure someone was with us from the rehearsal all the way through the wedding day. She negotiated better prices for us, and made sure vendors followed through. She is calm, easily accessible throughout the planning process, and we felt like she became a trusted friend. I became aware after the wedding, that there was a glitch, which was not Elsilu’s fault at all, but I never was aware of it because Heather and the team took care of everything. They are true creative professionals. I highly recommend them.

Elsilu is the best in the business! Heather and her team are so organized and thoughtful. I don’t know what we would have done without them. Our daughters wedding was absolutely beautiful and everything went so smoothly. I highly recommend Elsilu .

We worked with Cherell and Heather for a year leading up to Elena and Mark's spectacular wedding, which took place over Labor Day weekend. They were phenomenal partners. Elena and I commented every time after we spoke with them that we felt so calmed down and like they were so on top of every detail -- small, medium and large. They are creative, competent, enthusiastic, celebratory, thorough, experienced and just amazing by every measure. They truly are expert at their craft. They also gave us fantastic vendor options for flowers, photography, make-up, catering, a tent and related infrastructure that we needed, the band, decor and everything else. All of our wedding guests raved about Elsilu, and also about all of these special and unique aspects. They were responsive and tuned in and the wedding was magical. There is nothing but rave reviews to offer the Elsilu team.

Heather and Cherell were absolutely amazing to work with during our whole wedding planning process. They recommended some amazing vendors and were very good about communication. Our wedding day was absolutely perfect down to every last detail. Heather and Cherell we’re so calm and collective during the whole process that it made it such a joy to talk with them. My husband and I had an absolute blast at our wedding with no stress what so ever and I thank the whole Elsilu Event team for making that happen!

Thank you to Heather and Cherell at Elsilu for executing the wedding weekend of our dreams! Planning our destination wedding from out of town sounded daunting for us, but the whole Elsilu team made our planning experience easy, enjoyable and stress free! Communication was the most important part for us and we appreciated how prompt and timely Heather and Cherell were with responses. They understood our wedding vision and preferences from the beginning and we had full trust in their recommendations throughout the process. During the actual wedding weekend, the whole Elsilu team worked tirelessly to execute every detail and they didn’t miss a beat! I honestly don’t know what we would’ve done without them. We are forever grateful for their help, as it allowed us to take in the whole day without stress and truly enjoy the best day of our lives! We couldn’t be happier with our decision to work with Elsilu on our planning journey.

Heather is everything you would want in a wedding planner. She’s hard working, creative and a great listener. She’s fostered strong relationships with local vendors. You can tell people want to work with her. Most importantly she’s calm, cool and collected under pressure. If there were any fires during our wedding weekend, I never noticed because Heather handled everything quickly with grace and care. Heather and her equally talented colleague Cherrell spent countless hours listening to my vision and executed everything with precision. I am so happy we chose Elsilu for our wedding.

Can NOT even express how AMAZING Elsilu and everyone on their team was for my wedding! We got married in Bay Harbor at the Golf club, and of course, it started raining AS we were supposed to head outside for photos and the ceremony. Heather at Elsilu not only was prepared for this rain, she and the other vendors worked extremely fast and well together to make the ceremony just as beautiful as if it was a sunny day outside. If you are looking for a high quality, talented, organized, professional wedding planner, Elsilu is who you need! Heather is amazing and so is her staff, I got married 4 hours away from where I live and she assured me every step of the way that everything was/ will be taken care of, and it was! Heather and her team recommended the best venue for my rehearsal dinner, they are in great relationships with so many up north Michigan vendors that she also hooked us up with and I couldn’t have don’t it with out Heather and everyone else at Elsilu Events! They really did make my dream wedding come to life!

Heather and the Elsilu team are amazing! As soon as I spoke to Heather, I knew I was in the best hands. Her authenticity and kindness were felt immediately. It was a pleasure planning the wedding with her and navigating through bumps. The true character of a person is how they react when there is a problem and she was the best! I could not have asked for a more wonderful day and enjoyed the moment. My daughter's wedding was perfect! Heather shouldered the details and worry during the wedding weekend which was the best gift to me. Will miss working with Heather. xo

The VERY BEST decision we made! We truly don’t even know where to begin or how to sum up our exceptional experience in just a couple paragraphs. We hired Julie and the Elsilu team based on many glowing recommendations. They were highly professional throughout every stage of planning and truly took the time to get to know us – not as clients but almost like a member of their family. Julie was passionate, highly responsive, an advocator, a confidante and a true visionary from beginning to end. As a hands on bride, I was floored by how much experience they had with vendors, their ability to negotiate contracts on our behalf, their organization and aptitude to stay on budget, as well as their passion for making our vision come to life. So much so, that Julie walked our backyard (in the rain) in the event COVID restrictions shut our venue down – she always had another plan ready to bring to fruition calming my nerves throughout the entire process. She listened, gave us honest feedback and never hesitated when we shifted ideas. From stuffing save the dates to flawlessly executing a champagne wall; to even sitting on the floor stamping out a stain on my train before walking down the aisle – this team truly does it all !! I highly recommend the team to any bride and groom – I promise it will be the best decision you make. Thank you Julie and Elislu for making our wildest dreams come true. We are forever grateful for each and every one of you!

I would recommend Elsilu in a heartbeat. Cherell was an absolute joy to work with. She was incredibly organized, thoughtful, available at any time of day, any day of the week. She made me feel like we were her only client. She also made the process so much more enjoyable than it would have been on our own - a thought-partner to bounce ideas off of, a friend to share in the magic and joy of the pieces coming together for our special day, and it was a relief to know that she was always one step ahead. We did the partial wedding package, where they pick up all communications with vendors 3-4 months out from the wedding date and handle the timeline, and it was the best decision we ever made. Our hairstylist quit less than one week out and Cherell turned around a new hairstylist within an hour. It was incredible.

Hiring Heather and the Elsilu team was the best decision I made in my wedding planning process. I'm a professional event planner myself, so I wanted to find the right fit for my wedding in Bay Harbor. Someone who would help me where needed, but also allow me to make decisions on my own and support the vendors I had already chosen. Elsilu fit the bill perfectly. Their relationships with Northern Michigan vendors are second to none, making the planning process that much more seamless. I worked with their team over the course of 2.5 years while my wedding was pushed during COVID, and if I could get married again just to use this team ... I most certainly would. They were not only a wonderful resource but also became my friends. Like family, truly. Picking up the phone or texting Heather on what turned out to be a daily basis was embraced and mimicked on their end - never making me feel like I was asking too many questions or bothering them, even while they were planning other weddings all over the country. I did extensive research before selecting my planner, and found that Elsilu is the only team who is with you every step of the way from the initial phone call all the way until the day of your wedding. They don't hand you off to another coordinator and each of their couples is treated as if you're the only wedding on their calendar. My experience with Heather in particular was outstanding. But once I was introduced to Julie, Cherell and the rest of the Elsilu team who would help support my wedding day, I was equally impressed. They ALL have your very best interest and will work tirelessly to make sure you're happy. To this day I receive compliments from my bridesmaids on what a relaxed, stress free day my wedding was - and I attribute that to the professionalism, organization and hard work of the Elsilu team. Best part, I felt the same way. My wedding day was one of the most relaxing, enjoyable days of my life and I'm forever grateful for their partnership. If I could give them 6 stars I would.

Heather, Julie, and their team are absolutely incredible! They are worth every penny and go above and beyond for you. I initially hired Elsilu for the 6 week out planning but we quickly realized how overwhelming the planning process is and hired them to take over the design (best decision we made). Heather listened to everything we wanted and brought it to life. They also helped me save in a lot of areas where I would have over spent. Elsilu did all of the décor, and flowers and we couldn’t have been more impressed or happy! Again, they listen to your vision and make it happen. Elsilu made it possible for us to relax, be present and enjoy our wedding weekend. Both of our families thanked us after for having Elsilu there because they were able to enjoy the weekend as well. Thank you Heather, Julie, and team! Love, Nicole & Curtis

We hired this vendor since we were doing a destination wedding, and wanted somebody on location who knew the area. We had picked a location, but when my fiance arrived to see it they talked him out of it. We ended up choosing a more expensive location that they were familiar with. Heather provided several vendor recommendations outside the budget we agreed upon. I ended up finding and hiring the photographer, videographer, bakery, flowers, and DJ myself. When it came time to visit the venue, Heather had lots of questions for us (some that had previously been answered). We proceeded to go through them again, but basics like - "do you want a first look or not" had been forgotten. The menu we had chosen had also been miscommunicated to our venue. It was an awful experience. We ended up parting ways, and planning the wedding ourselves.

One word describes Elsilu, AMAZING!! Wonderful group to plan your wedding with, paying attention to every detail. Wedding ceremony and reception were so beautiful, everything from the gorgeous flowers, linens, beautiful table setting, creating a champagne welcome wall for seating, and so much more. They will take care of everything for you. If you hire them, you can enjoy your wedding and not worry about a thing, they are the best!!

Having Elsilu events plan our wedding was one of the best decisions we could have made- the only regret we had was not hiring them sooner. Heather and her team did a phenomenal job balancing our vision and budget, giving us realistic feedback but also finding creative solutions to bring our dream wedding to life. From helping us to identify and lock down vendors, to developing our timeline, her knowledge of our venue and the whole process was top notch. To cap everything off, the day-of challenged us with horrible weather prior to our outdoor ceremony/reception- Heather and her team managed to keep us emotionally grounded during that all, all while literally “holding down” our tent. Words cannot describe how much stress and time that Heather saved us, all while bringing together our dream wedding- We were truly blessed to have her and Elsilu events plan and organize our wedding, and would recommend them to anyone planning a wedding or future event!

Heather and her team were amazing every step of the way. We took a pretty hands off approach to most of the finer details of our wedding. So we were so thrilled with everything that Heather came up and the final product was nothing short of amazing! She was easy to work with and was so incredibly helpful. The wedding day went off without a hitch and the two of us literally had nothing to worry about the entire day. Seriously, hire these people. You will not regret it!

We originally didn't hire a wedding planner, but after postponing a year, we needed help. In hindsight, we should have done it MUCH sooner (if you are on the fence, do it)! :) Hiring professional wedding planners was one of the best decisions we made. In the spring, as mandates for indoor receptions were still pretty strict, we had to pivot to find a whole new venue, caterer, etc., and the Elsilu team (Heather, Cherell, and Katie) came with various options. Then when the restrictions changed again, they pivoted back to Plan A. The entire time they kept us calm by having a plan A, B, C, D, etc., and always kept us in the loop as they received updates from the CDC, state, venue, etc. Cherell was our main POC for planning and wedding day at BHYC, and she truly thought of everything! My mother-in-law kept telling me that my plans would go wrong and it would all be OK, but because of Elsilu and Cherell, literally not one thing went wrong (and if it did, they fixed it so quickly I had no idea). This team of women is so supportive and good at their jobs! We were so lucky to have them in our corner, finding solutions to big problems like needing a backup venue and flawlessly executing the little things like a Champagne Wall and Photo Backdrop of our Polaroid Guest Book. Thank you to this amazing team!!

Having professional planners who had connections with local vendors made all the difference for a smooth and wonderful experience for my daughter’s destination wedding. Julie and Heather helped us navigate a pandemic year delay and worked with the vendors to make sure that every detail was managed perfectly. Thank you!

We can't thank Elsilu enough for helping plan and ensure we had the wedding of our dreams! We were one of the lucky couples who had to postpone from 2020 due to covid and had to make numerous date and venue changes due to the pandemic. We met Heather and the Elsilu team 3 months before our wedding, after we decided to move everything to Northern Michigan. Heather and her team never once hesitated to take us on, even with a 3 month turn around time. We explored numerous venues with Heather and completely re planned our wedding within that time frame and was so ensuring and supportive that it could be done. Heather is so professional and truly knows all the ins and outs of the Northern Michigan, all of the right contacts and all of the best vendors. On top of it all, she really knows how to listen and build a personal relationship with her clients. She helped us prepare invitations, design the floral and meet with the florist, help with caterer, hair and make up, help with the cake, linens, design concept, all of the rentals, help with party favors and welcome bags for our guests, room blocks, transportation, the after party, and soo much more! She also communicated with all of our vendors to help ensure everyone was in the loop and on the same page. They seriously took all of the hard and stressful work out of our hands and helped us truly enjoy the planning process and most importantly our wedding day. On the wedding day, Elsilu was there to help with all the little details that you wouldn't think of if you didn't have a planner (making sure we had food and coffee in the morning, helping me bustle my dress, wiping down the ceremony chairs because it rained the morning of, having hairspray and qtips on hand for the wedding party, etc.) Our wedding turned out absolutely amazing and even better than we could've imagined. We had so many compliments from every single guest and we owe it all to Heather and Elsilu! Thank you so much for making our wedding dreams come true and for being the best planning team we could've asked for!

Heather, Julie & Cherell were AMAZING! They really made my dream wedding come true! We had to change locations because of Covid and they made everything run so smooth! I highly recommend hiring them to take all the stress away from your day and planning. I seriously can’t thank them enough for everything they did for us! They are also so sweet and I’m honestly going to miss texting them about planning my wedding! Also, shout out to Cherell because we left our videographer at the ceremony and she drove him to us so he could ride on the bus with us! They seriously went above and beyond! THANK YOU ❤️

Heather and team were simply incredible and I couldn’t imagine planning our wedding without her. She made the process so easy and simple and to be honest was a lot of fun to work with. I HIGHLY recommend using Heather for your big day.

I truly cannot say enough amazing things about Julie and her team at Elsilu! Our wedding day would not have happened without these amazing people. When I had my first phone call with Julie was the day I had my original wedding venue cancel on me due to Covid. From this day forward Julie saved the day every step of the way. From booking a new venue 3 months out from our wedding day, to booking a new catering company and all new rentals for the new space I cannot believe how amazing it turned out! We actually are so glad we had to switch spaces looking back. Julie was there to answer all my phone calls and texts throughout the whole planning phase, and even drove 4 hours down state to meet with myself and the rental company I used. When it came to the actual day, Julie was even more amazing than I ever even dreamed she could be! The weather forecast showed nothing but clear skies for over a week out from my wedding day and then crazy enough during the middle of my ceremony it started to thunderstorm and downpour rain! I was so upset since we had a completely outdoor reception venue with no tent. But, yet again, Julie and her team saved the day! For 2 hours they brought everything they could inside to save it and then dried down all the wet tables, chairs etc. multiple times until the rain finally passed and then re set everything back up! All my guests couldn't get over how amazing and hardworking everyone was. I will really miss working with Julie and talking to her all the time! I will always tell everyone I know Elsilu is the best of the best!

Elsilu was amazing to work with! My husband and I had to plan 3 weddings before being able to finally get married due to COVID. Elsilu was there for us every step of the way. Heather would answer my calls, questions and concerns any time of the day! I know a lot of wedding planners don't do that for you. I definitely felt like they genuinely cared how I felt and wanted the best for us. They went above and beyond. The day of the wedding was so organized, I didn't have to worry about a thing! They assembled all my of welcome bags and once I got to the resort, I didn't have to do anything! I would hire them all over again and I would recommend them to anyone! They travel all over, from planning my wedding in Michigan, Turks and Caicos to then Florida. Thanks Elsilu for making our wedding dreams come true!

The whole crew was wonderful to work with for our Up North wedding! Julie is an amazing coordinator and was very helpful with all the details. Loved our flowers and all her creative suggestions.

I am a cinematographer and I was a vendor at Elsilu’s last event in Key Largo Florida. Julie and her team were simply amazing. From the initial contact/booking she has been prompt and professional! Her timeline was flawless and kept the event well organized and running smoothly. As a vendor, Julie really made our lives so much easier while filming! She was such a pleasure to team up with and we hope to work more events together in the future!!!

Our experience with Elsilu was exceptional. This is the third wedding I have planned. We had a COVID wedding in late August for 13 after cancelling a 200+ person wedding. Our experience with Julie. Co-Owner, was far superior to our experience with the “national” big city wedding planner we’d hired for the big wedding (we come from a large city as well). My goal was to create a “jewel box” wedding as a miniature of the original big wedding and Julie oversaw every detail. DO NOT let the fact that she operates out of a small town influence your decision to hire her because she has close, long-term vendor relationships with large and small vendors across the state of MIchigan and Chicago. They obviously love working with her and performed beautifully. We were a priority with the vendors even though it was a micro-wedding which is a testament to her vendor relationships. She has handled huge weddings in the past (500 plus) and is a powerhouse planner. Some the things we loved about Julie: 1) Exquisite taste in design from the tabletop and florals to the overall look of the day/weekend; She listened very carefully to my daughter’s vision and it was beautifully executed. 2) Her fixed price approach and transparency in costs was so refreshing; she was incredibly generous with her time and extras; she went above and beyond; 3) She was on-site for 12 hours the day of the wedding and made sure every single detail was perfect. She even brought her steam iron and steamed out my daughter’s wedding dress and veil. She can tackle any mishap. 4) She was accessible without fail during the planning process and always responded immediately unless it was during a wedding; 5) fabulous staff support with people she’s known a long time. Most importantly, we fell in love with her personality, energy and kindness. There is not one thing I would have done differently and it was truly a perfect event. She could be running a big company but her love is making even a small event truly spectacular.

Heather and Julie are the dream team! They helped us so much through the process and became friends along the way! I couldn’t have navigated wedding planning much less through COVID without them! Their response time is amazing and the work they, especially behind the scenes for their brides is so appreciated. I would recommend them to any bride or anyone planning an event!

Where to even begin! Hiring Julie at Elsilu was one of the best decision we made throughout our wedding process. Nothing about getting married in 2020 has been straightforward or easy. But Julie was a total saint in getting us through a stressful, last-minute covid wedding. She helped us put together an at-home/backyard wedding that required lots of logistical considerations. She created the most beautiful, magical, and stress-free event I could have ever imagined. She is warm, positive, and so easy to work with. She is an incredible listener. And her local relationships (with other vendors) are incredible, which makes her a very effective planner. I feel like Julie worked tirelessly to bring our dream vision to life. And it was so magical. I cannot recommend her enough. She is a truly special planner with a heart of gold and immense talent and experience. No one better to work with in Michigan!

We hired Elsilu after having to reschedule our wedding due to COVID. They were super easy to work with, very accommodating and did an amazing job on our wedding. I feel like often people say that wedding planners are not worth the money, but in our case (after planning a wedding without a planner) they were worth every penny. They were there the entire day and day before to make sure everything went off without a hitch (I don't know if that is typical or just due to all the setup that was required). I wouldn't hesitate to recommend them to anyone. Thank you Heather and Cherell!

I *HIGHLY*, *HIGHLY*, *HIGHLY* recommend Elsilu for all of your wedding dreams. From our first phone call, I knew Elsilu was the one. The amount of knowledge and excitement these ladies illustrate for you as a bride is top notch. I did not have to create a Pinterest board in order for Heather & Julie to figure out what I wanted. I said the things I did not want / like and they were able to create our dream wedding. They are not going to waste your time with options outside of your budget. Everything they put together was an absolute dream. I had a classy, timeless ceremony and reception because of Elsilu. It was SO easy to communicate and plan a wedding with Heather, even during a pandemic. Not once did I stress about my wedding. Heather will keep you in the loop but not bother you with things that you don’t need to worry about. Heather will come to you with solutions and options, not problems. Everyone on the team was polite and went the extra mile. Whether you are near or far, if you are planning a wedding then do yourself a favor and let Elsilu be apart of your big day!! They were absolutely the best part of the planning process!

Talk about going out of their way to make everyone happy! Heather at Elsilu is a communication genius and during these difficult times that’s a real plus. They kept everyone informed and as a wedding officiant i appreciated being in the loop, feeling heard about my own Covid concerns and then having such a gorgeous site set up so beautifully.

Elsilu did a phenomenal job planning our wedding, and helped in so many ways to make our wedding day an enjoyable and special one, during which we made some of our happiest memories so far. Heather was our primary planner, and she excelled at communication, both giving us information and updates early and often, as well as being available to us, responding promptly if we had questions or concerns. She listened carefully to our vision for our wedding: (theme, design, ceremony) and came up with great ideas that fit exactly what we were looking for within our budget. Heather maintained a positive, can-do attitude despite the challenges presented by Covid-19. She did not bat an eye when we postponed our original plans for a wedding in Charlevoix with 250+ guests to an at home wedding in metro Detroit with 20 guests. Instead, she immediately offered to help us plan our min-wedding at no extra charge during the pandemic after already having done a lot of work for our originally planned ceremony. Elsilu was on top of the planning process from the start, and knew exactly what needed to be done and when, giving us a timeline and making us feel very comfortable with all of the logistics. We learned that they have many contacts with high quality vendors, both up north and in metro Detroit. Our original band canceled only a couple weeks before the ceremony, and Heather found us another group in that short timeframe that wowed everyone at the ceremony and on our livestream. In addition, we received many compliments about various aspects of our wedding: including our save the dates, floral arrangement, and farm tables and chairs. Elsilu took safety precautions seriously, and had their staff tested for covid before coming down state. On the day of the wedding, the staff dressed and behaved very professionally, carrying out countless tasks, available to help if needed while remaining in the background. We were very pleased with Elsilu and are already looking forward to working with them again for our large celebration next summer! We enthusiastically recommend them if you’re looking for five-star, full-service wedding planners.

Heather and Julie are amazing! My wedding was a dream come true. I am happy to call them friends. They work well together and are very responsive. They are truly full service! They know when it’s time to have fun and when it’s time to get to work. Our meetings were always enjoyable. They made the whole process for someone like me (cannot even plan what I’m doing this afternoon) super easy and fun.

Thank you to Elsilu Event Planners, Heather, Julie and staff for their outstanding work and attention to detail for our daughter's wedding at Bay Harbor. They coordinated everything from the meet and greet after the rehearsal to the brunch the day after the wedding. It all ran smoothly and was beautiful with unique features. Thank you!

I can absolutely recommend Elsilu for wedding planning. We initially were trying to plan our wedding ourselves (aka me) from 3.5 hours away. It was difficult to say the least. When I first met Heather I knew hiring them would be the best decision, and I was not wrong. Heather and Julie were my saviors. They communicated with me regularly, eased all of my anxieties and saved me money. They pointed out new ideas and helped my visions come to light. Our wedding at Bay Harbor Village was absolutely perfect, Julie was there all night to make sure not a detail was missed and all my items were packed and ready to go the next day, which was so helpful! Love these ladies!

Wedding planning long distance! It sounded rather simple at the beginning. Then reality set in. Bride and groom, along with their families, lived in three different states and one foreign country. None of us in our destination city. Throw in study abroad for the bride and schooling for the groom that would put him out of touch for weeks at a time. Add the normal angst associated with planning a wedding, which none of us expected to experience, and you have a recipe for, if not disaster, at least a melt down or two. Possibly an ulcer. Six months to plan a formal, destination wedding, rehearsal dinner, bridal shower... Secure venues, accommodations, photographer, florist.....find THE dress...not as simple as we first thought. The bride and groom were stressed. Moms were stressed. A weekend in Petoskey for the bride and groom and all of our difficulties were a thing of the past! The ladies of Elsilu stepped in and all became right in our collective world. These ladies are really angels in disguise combined with therapists, and champion negotiators. My first conversation with Heather felt as though I were catching up with an old friend. The process only became easier. Heather and Julie took over and took off! They knew what we and our children wanted almost before we knew ourselves. From the most minute detail to the big picture, the joining of our families was an exceptional experience. Our bride and groom relaxed, enjoyed, mixed and mingled, then danced the night away. We would have had a wedding to remember if we had proceeded alone. The addition of Elsilu gave us perfection. From arrival in Petoskey to departure, their signature abounded. No detail was overlooked. All events ran seamlessly. Our vendors were coordinated. We were able to enjoy this special time in our lives. Overall, our experience with Elsilu was phenomenal!

I am writing this as the mother-of-the-bride, but the bride & I feel mutual about our review of Elsilu. We must say that Heather & Julie (& Michelle) made the wedding day PERFECT! It was exactly the reason we hired Elsilu; so the day could flow seamlessly & perfectly. My daughter & I had actually personally arranged for all of the vendors ourselves, & had chosen to use Elsilu for the "Day-Of" & for "assistance w/all our vendors". But, I will say that Elsilu had all the vendors coordinated perfectly, w/detailed timelines several days prior to the wedding. Elsilu set all the tables up beautifully while the florist set up flowers, & the club/venue set up all their details...but Elsilu made it all come together. During the ceremony & during the reception, Julie & Michelle were on top of EVERYTHING...making it a wonderful, relaxed event for myself, & especially for the bride & groom to totally enjoy the entire event. I do want to add, for those who question renting table linens, I originally was thinking that this was not really worthwhile since the floral arrangements would be the focus. I was totally wrong, & I'm so glad that Julie & Heather suggested coordinated linens, that went so nicely w/the rustic decor of our venue. They also made arrangements for bringing in several farm tables to make up the head table, where it stood out beautifully in the setting, complimented also by their draping of material, & the florists' flowers & candle accents. The minimal cost for all the linens (in the scheme of the cost of a wedding)was TOTALLY worth it. It was really beautiful! We received so many compliments on all the decor. Having sung the highest praises for Heather & Julie, we would like to just make a comment, that may seem petty, but during the months before the wedding, we found worrisome & a little bit frustrating. We would often wait many days before we would get an email response from Elsilu. They told us they were best at text messages & would answer those right away. However, our questions were much too detailed to type on a small phone screen. We even would text & ask them to check their emails for our questions, since we knew they did not check emails regularly. Often we would still wait several days. Nothing was terribly urgent, but when you only have a few months to plan a wedding, every day is a countdown, w/deadlines & orders we needed to personally place or decide upon...so to us, we really got worried when consistently, several days would go by before we would get responses to questions. I write this so that Heather & Julie can understand that despite Elsilu's busy schedules, a bride & her mother always feel that their wedding is important, & replies to questions should always be sent at least within 24 hours. These delays made us very worried that this would be a problem on the wedding day...and at that point (w/only a few months before the wedding), there was no time to start over w/a new planner. Now, you know from the rave reviews we gave Elsilu for the wedding day (& the week before the wedding day) they did an OUTSTANDING job... but I will say that we did have some anxiety that could have been avoided if responses during the months prior to the wedding were more prompt. All in all, it was a wonderful day loaded w/fabulous memories, & Elsilu was a HUGE reason for that. We certainly recommend Elsilu for any future brides (& mothers)!

When we were interviewing wedding planners for my daughter's wedding in Harbor Springs, Julie was the only one willing to take the time for a face to face meeting. We were immediately sold on her outgoing personality and knew she was the one for us. Her willingness to meet often and accessibility via phone, email and text never wavered. She remained always available to us over our 15 month planning period and worked hard to make my daughter's dream wedding a reality. Julie, Heather and their team worked tirelessly over our entire wedding weekend and took every bit of stress and worry off of us so that we could enjoy every moment. We couldn't have pulled off such a perfect weekend without them.

Julie and Heather are the best! We were overwhelmed with how accommodating they were, especially when it came time for the events to unfold. Their recommendations for the wedding weekend were on point, and they worked extremely hard to make sure the day went off without a hitch. Bride, groom, and families did not have to worry about one detail which made for a stress-free and super fun evening for all. We would highly recommend Elsilu to anyone in need of event planning.

Talk about the best wedding planners! My daughter had her wedding September 7th, 2019. In Bay Harbor. Luckily they took it on and made it an amazing occasion! They were receptive to all of our needs and made the perfect suggestions to take it up a notch. I could not believe how kind they were about our last minute request. I would highly recommend contacting them the moment your Daughter/Son becomes engaged you will not be disappointed!

They were the best ever. I could not have done this without them !! Everyone I talked to after the wedding said it was the most amazing weekend and wedding ever !! Thanks to heather and Julie we pulled off the event of the summer !!!

Elsilu did an amazing job making our dream wedding day a reality!! Planning a destination wedding was harder than I thought and it was always so nice to know I had Heather just one call or text away who knew everything there was to know about an up north wedding!

Julie was so wonderful to work with! I lived out of state throughout my whole wedding planning process so I relied on Julie to help book most of the vendors. She made the planning process so smooth and was always there to meet with me on the rare occasions I was in Michigan. Julie fully decorated our venue and her vision fit exactly what my husband and I wished for. It was breathtaking to step into the barn and see all of the gorgeous details. The day of ran so smoothly, there was nothing I would have changed about it. Thank you so much Julie!

Elsilu was wonderful to work with! They were very knowledgeable and helpful in selecting some of the vendors as well as working so efficiently with ALL of them! I truly believe that EVERY vendor enjoyed working with each other... it was great teamwork led by Heather, who was constantly working behind the scenes the ENTIRE night! This was my first child to be married and I was treading new territory along with it being a destination wedding. There are a lot of small details that can easily be missed. I am confident that Heather’s assistance along the way is a significant reason that our entire family is still smiling 3 weeks later! It was a WONDERFUL night! Thank you Elsilu!

Julie and Heather made this day so easy! As the bride, their help was a blessing. Not only did they help to make our wedding day a breeze, they took care of all last minute details during the days leading up to our long awaited wedding date. This made our wedding week all the more enjoyable and I was able to RELAX! We as bride's want to simply enjoy this once in a lifetime event, and these ladies made that possible for me. Thank you Heather and Julie!

I would suggest to any bride and groom, to strongly think about retaining an Event Planner, local to the area of your wedding destination. Elsilu had a client this year who was almost at the church (on a Saturday afternoon) before they realized that they had forgotten to collect their Marriage License from the County Office. Elsilu went above and beyond, took charge and with their local connections they were able to retrieve the most needed, license from an office that was closed for the next two days. Elsilu's design and creativity is as great as their energy and determination . Elsilu saved the day! Thank you for always giving 150%.

I use to work with Heather for 4 years at Boyne Mountain. She use to do majority of weddings for Boyne Mountain and I would shadow and help her with every wedding till I started doing some weddings on my own that next year! I am so happy Heather & Julie started their own wedding planning company because this is exactly what she said she wanted to do for some many years. Both Julie & Heather will make sure all your ideas are brought to life and everything will run smoothly the day of the wedding! :) xoxo

I have had the pleasure of working along side Julie from Elsilu Events and am beyond impressed at how her, along with her entire team pull things together! If you are looking for that magical, once in a lifetime special day - calling Elsilu is a must! Thank you Julie for making my job easier and always being there with a smile and solution to every need!

Elsilu did an amazing job for us and our very elaborate wedding weekend. I am the Mother of the bride. My daughter wanted a destination wedding in Michigan. We had all kinds of ideas but weren't sure how we would be able to put them into place since we reside in Texas. Julie and Heather put our minds at ease and made this whole process exactly what it should be... An experience to remember, love and cherish! They come with a list of wonderful vendors tried and true to them. Flowers, photographers, specialty foods, music, cakes and desserts, etc. Every one of our vendors was over the top amazing in every way. Mainly because they love working with these two girls and their team. Any issue that may have confronted us was handled calmly and with assurance. And to our surprise was resolved. Our weekend was a 4 day event involving bridal brunch, golf tournaments, cookouts, parties, wedding, reception, brunch, and an after party. All ranging in guests from 380-420 people on any given day. Along with coordinating activities throughout the days, transportation and accommodations for guests and vendors! Pretty impressive to see for this hands on team and still they always appeared calm and happy! I could go on and on about this experience. Isn't that exactly how it should be? My wish for all future brides and their families is to be able to enjoy their special time no matter how grand or intimate your dreams are... Elsilu is the one for you!