About this vendor
We only take one event a weekend, allowing us to offer personalized service, customized designs, and impeccable events. On the day of your event, our coordinators are the first to arrive, the last to leave, and always there to ensure you enjoy your day.
Details
Destination Weddings
- Destination Wedding Packages
- Destination Wedding Planning
Planning
- Budgeting
- Day-Of Coordination
- Destination Wedding Planning
- Full Service Wedding Planning
- RSVP Tracking
- Wedding Website
Wedding Activities
- Getting Engaged
- Engagement Party
- Rehearsals & Parties
- After Party
- Bachelor Party
- Bachelorette Party
Reviews
Your trust is our goal. Our community relies on honest reviews to help
you make those big decisions with ease.
5
out of 5.06 reviews
Erin Drake and Enlighten Events was the absolute best decision we made for our wedding.
I researched and interviewed nearly 15 wedding planners. Erin promptly responded to my init...
ial email, and she was the only one who suggested an in-person meeting. During our first meeting, we had a great conversation – Erin was friendly, professional, and made me feel like my wedding was just as important to her as it was to me.
After our meeting, Erin and I started working together on planning our wedding. My husband and I decided to have a small civil ceremony at the D.C. courthouse followed by a reception for friends and family the next day. Erin was involved in entire planning process. She helped find all our vendors and finalize all contracts. She would accompany us on all appointments. When we were deciding on vendors, you can see that Erin has excellent relationships with a variety of wedding vendors in the area. Erin also designed our décor for us by drafting a proposal with various options and price points. We appreciated the different options Erin provided because they gave us flexibility in our choices and allowed us to stay within our budget.
Throughout the entire planning process, Erin would keep us updated and answer all of our questions. She even answered a number of questions from my parents with the same promptness. Because Erin has been in this industry for a number of years, she has a number of creative and innovative ideas to get the most out of your budget. For example, instead of shooting engagement pictures, which was a part of the photography package we selected, Erin talked to the photographer to use that time for pictures at our ceremony. We now have beautiful, professional pictures from the ceremony, without having to hire a separate photographer, because of Erin. When it came to decorations, Erin entertained all my ideas, no matter how often they changed, but made sure our décor was realistic within our budget, consistent, and keeping with our overall tastes. No aspect was too small for her – Erin even found a way to incorporate our two cats, Thor and Loki, into the reception by renaming the signature cocktails after them.
On the days of our ceremony and reception, Erin was amazing. For the ceremony, Erin reconfirmed our appointment, held on to all of our paperwork, and took videos of the entire ceremony. Most importantly, Erin absolutely saved the day when the zipper on my dress broke one hour before our ceremony. As my husband and I drove down to the courthouse, Erin jumped in the car with us and sewed me into my dress with dental floss. She stayed calm the entire time, which helped me stay calm. By the time we showed up, no one could tell there was anything wrong with my dress. Without Erin, I do not know what I would have done.
The day of our reception was stress-free and fun, all because of Erin and her staff. Erin was responsible for managing all the vendors and the set up at the venue, which let my husband and I to spend time with friends and family. Erin even arranged for lunch to be delivered at the hotel where we were getting ready. My husband and I were able to see the venue all decorated before our guests arrived, and we were amazed by what Erin created. It was exactly what we wanted. Throughout the evening, Erin kept things moving. She helped create the exact atmosphere we were going for. My husband and I had an incredible time, and we would not have changed a single thing. We owe it all to Erin.
when I started planning my baby girl wedding, I knew I was going to be hands on, because I wanted it to be perfect !! I am an a very detail oriented organizational junk, so I tho...
ught I could do it all, but very quick I noticed if I wanted to really enjoyed my daughter's wedding I needed it help. But who can a mother trust to hand over her baby girls day? where would I find someone that will really care as much as I did about the little details ? who could I entrust the day my daughter have been dreaming about since she could remember? didn't think I could find one, I interview a few before I found Erin, by the time I did I was very discourage, I read the reviews and I was impressed, but still didn't know what to expect, until that first phone call!! the connection was instant! Erin has this positive vibe about her ! she makes you feel like you have known her forever, and as soon as I started telling her about my daughter's vision she got it ! she understood, and I hired her as the wedding day coordinator!! Erin at Enlighten has a passion for what she does, even way before the wedding day, months before she started helping me ! sending me vendor list, and budget sheets and answering any question I had and if she didn't know right then, she will find the answer and get back to me! but I always got my response! Erin made my daughter's day so special, because she worked at it as if it was for her!! you know dedication when you have a planner that refuses to let you make a decision that she knows by her experience that is not going to please you at the end of the day , my daughter didn't care about having floor length table clothes, and neither did I, Erin so professionally insisted over and over that we had to use them, we gave up and did it, I AM SO HAPPY we listen to her!! the reception looked AMAZING! I sent her pictures and she made sure everything looked just like my daughter had dreamed it ! she was hands on from the begging to the end!! making sure everything was flowing without a problem, she took the stress of the wedding day and put it on her shoulders ! the day of the rehearsal at 10:00 PM we had a bridesmaid and her family that couldn't stay in the hotel they had booked, I needed an emergency gate pass so they could stay at our house inside the resort and I texted Erin and 10 min or so later it was done!!! Everyone in the wedding party and my family fell in love with her and her staff ! she listened to all of my concerns, and make sure every single one of them was addressed! She went above and beyond of what I needed! and I will forever grateful for her commitment and love for her work because that made my daughter's wedding a beautiful one !! of all of the decision I had to made during this process Hiring her was the best decision I made !! I really recommend her , because for her you are more than a customer, you are someone with a dream and she will take that dream very seriously, thanks to her I was not only able to enjoy my daughter's wedding day but my baby girl saw her whole vision come to life!!! THANKS ERIN!!
Three months to plan a wedding? NO PROBLEM!
My wife and I were engaged in August of 2016. We are both in our mid-30’s and had agreed that if we could somehow pull it off, we d...
idn’t want to wait until spring or even a full year later before getting married. After all, why wait when you know it’s right?!
After we found our venue (Capitol View at 400), which was available for the 2nd weekend in November, we knew we needed to find a planner who could help us pull it all together and relatively quickly. Fortunately for us, the event coordinator for the Capitol View at 400, Delmy Palmer, strongly suggested we reach out to Erin Drake of Enlighten Events, and as they say, the rest is history. Erin was the right fit for us from Day 1, and we couldn’t have been happier with how it all unfolded.
Erin was a consummate professional. She was reliable, meticulous and detail-oriented with a wealth of knowledge of local vendors and a breadth of experience with many different styles and tastes. We immediately knew we could trust her timing, her work, and her style. She always went the extra mile to communicate where (and when) to focus our time and energy, which was vital given our short window for pulling it all together. She kept us to task, which included lots of timelines, but she did all the heavy lifting. We both have busy jobs, so this was a huge relief for us both. She was receptive to our ideas and was able to meld her own tastes alongside of ours with ease and fun, helping to create a wedding that was elegant, relaxed, romantic and eclectic. It always felt like a collaborative effort. She provided us with helpful to-do lists and guides to keep track of our status, and we rarely went a day without trading emails and phone calls.
From start to finish, Erin created the perfect ambiance for our ceremony, cocktail hour and party. She personally decorated the wedding venue. It was intimate. It was warm. It was beautiful. She introduced us to our photographer, caterer, officiate and DJ, all of whom she emphatically endorsed and ultimately proved to be the perfect choices for us. Erin personally collaborated with a florist to bring us gorgeous arrangements, bouquets and boutonnieres. She also suggested the perfect rehearsal dinner space. Erin was always thoughtful to our budget and found creative solutions to any challenges that arose. She knew where to spend to get the best results. We couldn’t have been happier with her work. And she's an absolute pleasure to work with! She's warm, funny, super down-to-earth…and not to mention, a little powerhouse capable of maneuvering a truck through the narrow streets of DC and unloading it on her own!
We are so grateful to Enlighten Events for helping us create the perfect wedding weekend, and we’re confident that you won't regret hiring Erin and her wonderful team!
We hired Erin for day-of coordination because she was a great value compared to many of the other companies we looked at. From the day we hired her, about 4 months before the wedd...
ing, she was super attentive and helpful. We really think she was the best money we spent for the day. She was available, always found any answers she didn't have, and was able to find us great deals. Enlighten also did our flowers and decor, and everything looked perfect. Erin worked great within our limited budget, especially for the DC area where everything is very expensive. I would highly recommend to anyone!
We worked with Erin. She was a delight! Very sweet, professional, patient and creative. She was point on with the flowers and set-up of our wedding. She created a beautiful settin...
g for us within our budget. I felt she went above and beyond for us in capturing the exact look we were going for. She helped with our timeline for the day and managing it as we moved along. She was personal and helpful to our guests. She was a pleasure for the venue coordinator to work with. She was extremely punctual in responses to us and deadlines. She was incredibly reliable and we trusted her with our vision for our wedding day! Thank You Erin!
There just aren't enough positive things I can say about my experience working with Erin at Enlighten Events. Erin has a passion for her role in your wedding and consistently went...
above and beyond to share ideas, create helpful documents and timelines and guide me through every step of the wedding process. Her dedication helped me plan a destination wedding in Charleston on a budget that was more beautiful than I could have imagined. From phone calls, emails, encouraging rental vendors to custom make us a stage, and even providing her own supplies for me to use simply because she knew it would make a big impact and that I would love it. Erin has great taste, and I trusted her completely with my vision for the day.... and she absolutely over delivered. When a thunderstorm came through at the exact time of our outdoor rooftop ceremony, Erin helped me feel comfortable and confident in our back up plan and pulled off a completely new ceremony plan and set up decor in just minutes... Truly the sign of a pro. A few of my bridesmaids were recently married and they commented all day about how impressed they were with Erin and how much they wished their planners had been as organized and friendly as Erin and her team. What stays with me even after our wedding, is not only her dedication and hard work, but her personality and willingness to help. Planning a wedding can be stressful at times, and Erin was always there with a helpful ear to guide me and help me make decisions that I only trusted her to help me decide. She has a positive energy that she brings to every step of the process, and is someone I hope to stay in touch with for years to come. I spoke with many other planners before deciding on Erin, and while some services seemed to care more about the budget and ultimately how much money they would make, with Erin it was much more about her passion and true love for creating beautiful memories for her clients. While this review is mainly about their planning services, I just have to note that Erin was also my florist. She truly listened and collaborated with my vision to deliver the most beautiful bouquets, table centerpieces, ceremony arch and so many other details.. all while I could tell she was genuinely having fun and enjoying bringing the details to life. The hands down best decision I made in the wedding planning process was hiring Enlighten Events, and I wholeheartedly encourage other brides to choose their team to work with while planning their special day.
Contact
374 Mutual Drive, Charleston, SC
Enlighten Events International