Events By Merida

wedding, but a big, fun party with a little wedding thrown in there and Merida was the perfect partner to make that dream a reality. During our two years of planning, Merida was always available for all questions, happy to discuss any ideas, function as a sounding board when needed and just be a guide through the craziness that can be planning a wedding. When our original caterer and DJ fell through, Merida was right there to provide recommendations for new vendors who would be on board with our vision. She was instrumental in helping us to orchestra the party aka wedding of our dreams! Though Merida was a superstar leading up the big day, she really shined on the wedding day! She was there to ensure everyone was on time, had shirts/dresses camera ready, things ran smoothly and just be a calming presence on a hectic day. From our perspective the day went perfectly…if anything did go wrong, Merida made sure we did not know about it and that the day still went on as planned. She far exceeded our expectations…she even let me wipe my sweaty face on her shirt! Working with Merida was incredibly fun and enjoyable! We would get married every week/month/year, if it meant we got to have Merida along for the ride! Words can not fully convey how thankful we are for Merida and all that she did to make our wedding day the best day ever!

nd always had our best interests at heart. There were many challenges we threw her way, including difficult family circumstances, decor that didn't 100% go as planned, and a dinosaur ring bearer. She was a calm presence, while also keeping us on time, and was a beautifully kind human being throughout the whole process. Honestly, we cannot image that the day would have been as great without her and her team.

Merida to anyone looking to have a unique, beautiful and stress-free wedding day!

she is on top of every detail. She is funny and keeps a wonderful easy energy going when things can start getting tense during crunch time. We would work with her for every event if we could and we recommend her to all clients!

roughout this process. We immediately hit it off in the interview process and the one thing that truly differentiated her and sold us is that she would help us execute on our unique vision and not some Events By Merida cookie-cutter experience; and boy did she absolutely deliver! We got her for the entire package (full vendor recommendations all the way to day-of execution) and we could not be happier with her partnership throughout the process. Probably one of the best things about her is that she took the time to TRULY understand us as a couple, our idiosyncracies, what we wanted out of our wedding, and our goals and took the necessary time to vet vendors that she thought we’d fit with. Did it sometimes take longer than my impatience wanted - no doubt… but in the end, she was right about everything. She helped us evaluate between two venues, and picked out candidates for DJ and photographer (among other vendors we didn’t care as much about that we just went with our preferred partners for flowers and transportation). We connected with both the DJ and photographer IMMEDIATELY and they were the best partners throughout our experience. We only had to interview one other person in each catgory before picking them; Merida TRULY understood us as a couple and found the EXACT RIGHT people for us. There are a lot of other positives to note but to keep this review a manageable length, I’ll end to say that her day-of execution was flawless, she kept our vendors in line, stuck to our timeline, and ensured me and my husband, and our friends and family, were all properly taken care of. Not 100% of every touchpoint was always positive, as no one is perfect; sometimes we had to ask for things more than once. In the end of the day, however, we hired someone who became a friend, who understood how quirky we are, and how to find people who perfectly executed on our vision where we got a LOT of people saying it was the most fun, most personalized, etc. wedding they’ve ever been to; we owe a lot of that to Merida!

hout the whole process. I sent Merida about 100 texts on the day of the wedding. She answered Every. Single. One. I get overwhelmed by the big picture and hyper-focused on small details. She really helped keep me on track and sort out what was important and less important. I didn’t think I needed a wedding planner. We got engaged in February 2022 and bought a house in October 2022. By the time we were moved in (January 2023) I was starting to feel overwhelmed about putting a house together, working full-time and planning a May 2023 wedding all at once. The money we spent on Merida is the smartest $$ we spent on the entire thing! She’s has a sweet nature about her—a calming energy but can be firm when necessary. Merida was recommended to us by friends of ours who got married and used her services. Everything they told us about her was true! She is excellent! I feel like Merida is our very good friend now that we’ve spent countless hours on Zoom calls with her helping us navigate our way to a damn near perfect wedding. She kept us on budget and on schedule and laughing and having fun with her over the months she worked with us. Love Merida! Highly recommend!!

nded Nikki Cohen, owner of Mayfaire Moon, to make my dress. Nikki was extremely late for every milestone towards completing the dress and often changed things without consulting me. About two months before the wedding, I discovered that Nikki was making me a skirt and a top instead of a dress. I told Merida that I needed my money back. Merida convinced me that she would make sure that Nikki stuck to the plan going forward. The next fitting went well and I thought the problem was resolved. I was supposed to pick my dress up a week before the wedding, but it wasn’t ready. I went anyway to see the progress. It was MacGyvered together with VELCRO. Merida again convinced me she would get it fixed. When I picked it up three days before the wedding, the places where there had been velcro were sewn instead, if poorly (corners sticking up). Because it was now too late to replace it, I insisted Nikki fix the worst of it and took the dress. When we arrived at the venue I took my dress out of the garment bag, and a piece of the dress fell off, because it was STILL stuck on with velcro, and the velcro itself wasn’t properly attached. Merida neglected crucial aspects of our ceremony, including the placement of fire-based heaters and religious ornaments, despite promises that these things were being handled. Misplacing the ornaments made it hard to tell which flowers needed to go to which tables for the reception. The heaters were not only religiously significant, but sitting in the cold was a danger to elderly guests. Merida attempted to pull curls out of my hair without consent. I had explained how hard it was to keep curls in my hair several times, but she wanted them to be looser. Merida ignored instructions to ask inappropriately dressed guests to change or leave despite earlier promises to do so. Merida had the venue set up for the cocktail hour outside - in the cold with no heaters - in the area where we needed to be taking pictures. Then, she insisted we take the pictures while people stood around shivering and staring. We had discussed that we only wanted to take a few posed photos, but Merida repeatedly pushed us to take “individual photos with everyone” and didn’t stop until my partner told her ‘no’ multiple times. Merida resisted when asked to correct the issue with the flowers and ornaments by getting the flowers to the correct tables, but when we insisted that this was religiously very important she told us she would handle it. We found out later the ornaments were never put on the tables. I can’t imagine any reason for refusing to put these on the tables except a complete disdain for our religion. During the first dance the DJ kept putting on the wrong song and Merida couldn’t be found. Finally my mother-in-law got the DJ to put on the correct song. During the toasts, the wine for the first toast, which was a separate charge in addition to being culturally important, was never poured. When it came time to cut the cake, there were people standing up, blocking the view of others sitting in their seats. I asked Merida if she could walk over to the people standing and ask them to be seated. Merida just refused without giving a reason. There were so many more problems but I can't fit them all here.

t or musicians, Merida recommended great vendors for us and helped us review all the pricing and contracts. Whenever we had etiquette questions (frequently), Merida helped us navigate tricky situations with the guest list and other sensitive matters. The whole time, she helped us stay positive and joyful about the planning experience - even while we were planning from two different continents and neither of us lived in the city where we were getting married. Where Merida and her team really shined was in the final few weeks of high-stress planning leading up to the big day. Merida helped us make sure no detail was missed. And day-of, Merida and Laura were absolutely invaluable. The whole day went so smoothly because of their expertise. We couldn't imagine having planned a wedding without all of Merida's help. We recommend her enthusiastically!

en I came to her with a very specific aesthetic in mind, she had a stellar team of vendors that made it come true. When I was stressed and anxious, she was there to calm my anxiety. Hiring her was hands down the best decision we made for our wedding. Merida listens to your ideas, respects your budget, was very easy to get ahold of for any question, and does it all with a great sense of humor. If I could get married again I would, and hire Merida because we had so much fun creating the big day.

so supportive of all our unique ideas while steering us in the best direction to plan a flawless wedding weekend for us and our guests. She came to meetings, helped handle difficult vendors, and kept us on budget. She and her team took care of everything to make sure our wedding was everything we ever wanted- even handling our dogs during the ceremony and photos. So glad to have Merida in my life! Plus her rate was very low for all she did for us.

etail that came her way and made sure that we were covered even after our wedding. We had a problem with our venue during our honeymoon and she made sure to jump in and take care of it all. John and I loved having Merida and Laura as our team for the day. I knew I made a friend for life :) Thank you Thank you Thank you!!

When we hired her, we already had our venue and photographer but she helped us with the rest of our team and we could not be more pleased. She is incredibly professional but also was really there for me when I was dealing with some personal family issues with my wedding which I greatly appreciated. She also constantly reassured and checked in with me throughout the process and answered my many questions and emails in a timely manner. In the days leading up to our wedding she went over timelines with me multiple times and made sure everyone knew what they were doing at the rehearsal. The day of, she made sure we were running on time and we were often ahead of schedule because of all the built in time that we had for our itinerary (that she helped us put together!). She also kept our very large wedding party on time and was in constant communication with our other vendors. She also steamed my veil and dress and all of my bridal party's outfits in record time. There was not one thing I had to worry about on my wedding day from set up to break down and I am so so appreciative of her and her hard work. She truly helped us have the wedding of our dreams and she really helped bring our vision to life. We are eternally grateful!

alls with vendors to let us know what we should be thinking about and asking, and that it was the right match for us. On our wedding weekend she met us out of state with her assistant to make sure the rehearsal and wedding day went smoothly. Many people said that ours was the best wedding they’d been to in years, and it’s all thanks to Merida and her expertise and hard work. Thank you Merida!!

or our 2022 wedding. Immediately, she put me at ease, and knew we had to have her. We almost chose a different venue, but decided not to as we couldn’t have her there. Over the years, we were back and forth many times, and loved how well we got along. She checked up on me leading up to the wedding, to make sure I was doing okay; Which was so appreciated! From the very start of the wedding day to the end, she had it together!! And I mean super together. She had a kit of anything you could imagine, and we used so much of it. She also answered all of my questions easily, as I had a lot of them, as well as everyone else’s questions. She steamed all the girls dresses, helped with my shoes and bustle, and did more than I could begin to list. She checked on us a perfect amount during the whole day, and always made sure we were fed, hydrated, happy and rested. I also love how she can be firm with others when needed, to stay on schedule. It was exactly what we needed so we were on time! Not to mention she and I clicked, and I felt so comfortable being around her! So was my whole bridal party and family, they all loved her and thought she was incredible too. Her assistant David was also amazing, and we are appreciative of him as well! He saved the day when we left the rings and letters in our airbnb, (which is now funny looking back). Overall, having Merida was such a fantastic decision, and I will miss planning with her so greatly! My running phrase is, everyone needs a Merida. We are so lucky we had ours and are forever grateful.

and securing what we needed for the big day. From keeping me organized, accountable, and on top of everything for the big day, to coming all my appointments and being the best advisor while being mindful of our vision. I can say without a doubt that without her help the wedding wouldn’t have gone so smooth. She stepped in when I wasn’t able to given the field I work in. She took tasks off my plate and executed crisis management off and on throughout the experience. Most of all, she made this one year of planning exciting and helped us enjoy our engagement. Bonus- Best Vendors-because of her network, and top notch expertise and professionalism in the field. Grateful for everything she did for us and our family! Thank you Merida for everything. I cannot thank you enough.

of my emails in a timely manner - helping me make decisions regarding floral & decor, event design, day of timeline, as well as communicating with vendors about these decisions. On the day of, Merida flawlessly executed every single plan we had discussed together and it felt like I had a friend taking care of my best interests on my wedding day. Not only did she make sure all of my DIY decor was exactly where it should be, she also steamed all of the bridesmaids, MOB, MOG dresses as well as made sure my dress and veil were ready to go! She also kept on checking in with me to make sure I was ok/had everything I needed and magically appeared whenever a question or concern popped into my mind. I'm sad that I won't get to see her smiling face anymore and highly recommend her to anyone looking for an incredible planner! Thank you Merida!!!

t wanted to book our venues and vendors right away since so many weddings were going to be rescheduled for 2021. Merida made it really easy for us to pick our venue and vendors because she knew most of the wedding vendors around Philadelphia. We can’t thank her enough for her recommendations with our vendors because they were all wonderful. She gave us her honest opinions and insight on the vendors we asked about and that really helped with our planning process. Now for the big day we all nervously waited for. Merida and her assistant came first thing in the morning with her wedding kit that had everything we needed for any emergencies possible. She came fully prepared, even a sewing kit for the wedding dress if it ever ripped. Our ceremony was scheduled to start at 5pm but it was raining intermittently all day. I really wanted the ceremony outside because our venue had a beautiful garden. Merida coordinated with the venue director and our caterer to make adjustments to the ceremony schedule and the seating layout. She was running around everywhere working with everyone to make this ceremony happen outside. I was really worried we had to move it indoors but Merida made it happen. Merida even had the clear umbrellas on standby but thankfully the rain stopped. She was really prepared! Throughout the whole day, we really relied on Merida. She absorbed all our stress and worries so we could enjoy our day. We had a little hiccup with the rain but it all worked out in the end. Thanks to Merida and her assistant Alyssa, our wedding day went so smooth and perfect. We wouldn’t have changed anything on our special day, all thanks to Merida. 10.10.21 Dana and Michael

da and her team stepped up and did everything from keep us on schedule, deal with some anxious family members in their *not so best moments*, set up out donut table, and much more. We couldn't be more grateful for her and if you're unsure if you need a wedding coordinator - YOU DO, Trust me, just do it and don't look back. Merida's got you!

r our original wedding pre-COVID (which was supposed to be in May 2020), and then navigate with our vendor to secure a rescheduled date (August 15, 2020). When that didn’t pan out, she then helped us navigate our “third time’s the charm” date – June 18, 2021. She helped us manage vendors, a tough but magical venue, and perhaps most importantly, our sanity. Our final wedding day was better than we could have ever imagined, and while I never thought I’d say this – it was worth the trouble that it took to get us there. While Merida wasn’t able to be there for our wedding day, our day-of coordinator was amazing and seamlessly carried out the vision we had been discussing for years (literally). Thank you and thank you again!

leading up to the wedding (there were many!). We had to deal with a few last minute hurdles on the day of the wedding and Merida handled it all with calm and grace. She was SO helpful -- her emergency kit is clutch AND she spent the time to help pin up the hem of my dress when my bustle left it far too long and we needed to do a choreographed dance. She took the time to make sure I was doing okay throughout the day and that I didn't need anything. I never felt so looked after as I did on my wedding day, and my husband says the same thing. Hire Merida for your event, you will not be sorry! - Lindsay and Mike

itch and the best part was that we relied heavily on Merida to make that happen and she exceeded our expectations! It was a beautiful wedding and we can't thank her enough for helping make that happen!

e services Merida provides cannot be matched, hands down.

made great recommendations for vendors. I don't know how we would have done it without her!