NSWE Events

ertise, proactivity, and attention to detail, I never had to worry about the big (or small) stuff. What struck me about Megan beyond her professionalism, was her ability to listen. She wanted to curate the experience of my (now husband!) and my dreams and she did just that. It was a privilege to work with Megan and I truly could not have envisioned a more perfect day. Thank you Megan and team for everything you did for our family.

iends who had previously used her and we were thrilled from our first meeting. Instantly we felt relieved and well guided. Megan was amazing in merging my husband's and my visions for our big day as well as providing amazing recommendations with vendors, locations, and more. The vendors that she has connected with were all amazing as well. During COVID I was nervous about managing any delays or what would happened with postponements (which we didn't have to do thankfully), but non the less she helped us with the contracts. After all of our preparations, the wedding day was PERFECT! Our vision really came to life and everything we wanted was ready to go. Megan was also a fierce defender of our vision- helping to ensure that the day was stress-free. Honestly, I cannot praise her and her team enough for everything that she did. Our wedding was a dream come true thanks to NSWE!

vendor relationships are amazing, and she manages every detail flawlessly. Her system and processes are unparalleled, and she knows exactly how to take the stress out of an oftentimes tough (and in our case long) process. We are Chicago-based, and planning our destination wedding from afar would not have been possible without NSWE. Megan brought our mountain dreams to life, and we are forever grateful :)

. Megan was amazing and really made this process easy! She had a detailed plan for me that guided me through every action item that needed to be done and which ones I would need to do specifically. She connected us with the most fantastic vendors based on our budget. We had the most beautiful wedding that was one of the best days of our lives! I still can't believe that came together so perfectly. She is a true professional and just really fun to work with!

guidance, attention to the littlest detail and candor helped get things done in the most efficient and thoughtful way possible. Her openness to work with a range of vendors and ensure the day went smoothly was so appreciated! Right off the bat, she understood our needs and wants right away and executed to perfection!! We are so thankful.

and beautifully executed. She helped make all of the planning so fun and never stressful! We knew we were in the best hands and that made the whole experience so enjoyable! We LOVE Megan and North Shore Weddings and Events!

limited budget. Friends and family are still raving how beautiful our wedding was. She will make sure everything is beautiful, organized, and make your dream wedding come true.

us how the wedding planning was going and if we were stressed out, and I always told them that honestly Megan was making it so easy for us that we were actually enjoying it. Shes the best!

great when can we get started!" I would not have been able to have the wedding of my dreams without her. She is organized, empathetic and has has incredible relationships that deliver value far beyond what you can pay for. She is also working on my brother's wedding and I would recommend her to everyone!

les feel, Megan's professionalism, direct-ness, and accountability were life savers. She was available at all times to speak with us about anything wedding related. She offered amazing vendor suggestions for everything related to the wedding. She kept everything we needed to "check-off" cleanly organized. And most importantly, my wife and I got to fully enjoy our wedding weekend without having to worry that everything we had planned with Megan would go off perfectly. Could not recommend more.

ne because it's the saying "you don't know what you don't know" is so true in this case. From contract negotiations to vendor recommendations to the day-of bridal party scheduling Megan did everything to a tee! There were so many tiny details that she took care of that I didn't even think about. I would've definitely missed a lot of critical pieces had I not worked with her. Also, she is a joy to work with and made the planning process really fun!

ke our special day everything we could ask for and WOW! was is worth it. Megan and her team were phenomenal! When the rain threatened our outdoor first look photos, bridal parties photos, and outdoor ceremony, Megan was on top of every detail to help reorganize and even find the only 30 minutes the sun appeared to have us married under a blue sky! I have and will continue to recommend North Shore Wedding & Events for anyone planning a wedding or any special day.

. The relationship she has with other vendors in the industry is unparalleled. She never once steered us in the wrong direction or recommended a partner she would not use personally. She takes the stress out of all the planning and coordinating and makes sure everything runs seamlessly. Hiring Megan was the absolute best decision we made during the planning process and we would recommend her to anybody for any event they are planning.

and easy to talk to, impeccably organized, well-connected, creative, and driven. She makes sure that her events are perfect, and she did an amazing job with my 2018 July Millennium Park wedding. She is, without a doubt, necessary to any bride to have the most wonderful day, and I couldn't recommend her more!!

ible vendor recommendations. Her knowledge of the industry is unparalleled. If I could give her 10 stars I would!! Megan was instrumental in allowing us to enjoy the process instead of stressing out about it. We were able to be super involved in every decision, while having the guidance of a true professional. Not to mention, she is so much fun to work with! On our wedding day, she and her assistant made sure everything went smoothly and wonderfully. I would definitely recommend North Shore Weddings & Events for any special event!

that we had her organize our second daughter's wedding two years ago which was held in VT. Again, she did such a wonderful job that we asked her to plan our youngest daughter's wedding weekend this past July ... another amazing wedding! Three different and lovely weddings that could not have been more perfect for our three very different daughters. I cannot recommend Megan more highly ... she is the very best!!

compliment is that every vendor I spoke to (Band, floral, venue, photography, makeup, hair) all said how wonderful she is and that she is highly regarded in the industry. As soon as I mentioned I was using North Shore Wedding & Events, vendors immediately would thank me! Thats how awesome she is to work with. I recommend using Megan from the beginning and heres why...the process of planning your perfect day can be overwhelming. Megan is extremely confident and knows exactly what to do and keeps your organized. She even saved me money in the process because she knows whats needed and whats not. She always made sure to keep me on budget and has an excel spread sheet you will be thankful for. She was so much fun to work with and I felt like I was planning a wedding with my best friend. Everyone loves her and so will you! Thanks Megan for making our wedding a time in our life we will never forget.

ff went above an beyond to ensure that our wedding went off without a single hitch. If you want/need help with ANY event, North Shore Weddings is the way to go! Megan is brilliant, thoughtful, kind, and hard working. She is nothing short of spectacular!

th of coordination. Throughout our process, Megan listened to our wishes, offered her candid opinion and helped make suggestions that ended up saving us many hours of our time and money - even on a few of our contracts that were signed before we had hired Megan. Megan's expertise is unmatched and she went above and beyond to make sure every detail was executed flawlessly for us. We got married at Cafe Brauer in May, but did the bulk of planning remotely from NY where we live. With Megan's support, we knew we were in extremely capable hands and she was always available for support for even the tiniest of details, at nearly any hour. I've attended several weddings as a guest where Megan also planned (how we originally found out about her genius). I must say that no matter the venue, bride and groom's preferences, or how crazy the day may go, EVERYTHING is always streamlined, enjoyable for guests and most importantly - a true celebration of the couple's love.

rything we need, but stay conscious of our budget! Hiring Megan was the best decision we made to make our day streamlined and stress free. She was easy to communicate with throughout the planning process and was on top of everything every step of the way. Her coordination with the vendors was so helpful and really took a lot of stress off of my husband and I and our family members so we could simply enjoy not only the Wedding day but the entire week before when many final details need to come together. Even if you may be on the fence on whether you need a planner or if it can fit into your budget I would say it was some of the best money we spent; and Megan did a great job of helping us fit it into our overall budget. Our wedding party and family were also very appreciative of her organization for the rehearsal so everyone could be on the same. I cannot recommend her highly enough and I cannot say enough amazing things about her!

eel like a dream come true! She is incredibly organized which took and a lot of stress off my shoulders. For instance, she was in touch with all the vendors making sure everything was ready. I felt like I didn't need to worry about anything at all on our wedding day and even the weeks leading up to it since she had everything under control. Instead, I just got to enjoy the process!! On top of that she is also so sweet and enjoyable to work with and has excellent advice about all aspects of wedding planning. Thank you so much Megan--we couldn't be happier with the memories from our wedding day. Finally, I highly recommend you have Megan design some of your printed materials (programs, place cards, hotel cards etc) because ours ended up gorgeous and very affordable. THANK YOU!

nalities of the bridal couple with elegance and taste. North shore has managed weddings for two daughters and WOWED our guests each time.

idea what I was doing, so her direction and input was invaluable. It took a lot of stress off of me and our wedding turned out beautifully. On the day of our wedding I really didn't have to worry about anything, which allowed me and my family to enjoy everything fully. I would recommend NSWE to anyone.

egant, beautiful, breathtaking, and crazy fun wedding they have ever attended. We could not have done it without her. She is incredibly knowledgeable, starting with organizing all of the things we would need, proposing great ideas and little touches (e.g., a bourbon bar that was a huge hit), suggesting incredible vendors (the band, caterer, florist were all flawless and I could not imagine them being any more perfect), keeping us on schedule and on-track, and making sure the night went smoothly and without a hitch. I would not change a thing and could not even imagine a more amazing wedding.

efficient. Megan is extremely organized, has incredible communication skills, and made every activity and task fun and exciting. The end result was truly magical and I would not have had the most perfect day without Megan running the show. She has relationships with the best vendors, and expertise in the space, and was always there to give an honest opinion and insights. The best quality about Megan is that she was truly a friend through the entire process and was always honest and looking out for our best interest. Megan was able to execute exactly what I was looking for and I could not have done it without her!

alls with her even though we were only using her for the last six weeks before the wedding. She even helped me design my invitation. She also did all our printing which was an incredible help. She was fast and always on top of it. her timeline was perfect and we were always ahead of schedule! I would 100% recommend Megan to any Bride.

her attuned sense of style and gift for creating elegance, something that I greatly wanted for my black-tie wedding at the Armour House. Megan is also open to everything, and is a truly good listener; there were some aspects of the planning process where I knew exactly what I wanted, and Megan allowed me to have that agency with grace, but for those aspects where I was clueless, she presented options before me that spoke to me, showing that she was keenly aware of my desires. She also did a fabulous job of managing the budget, presenting me with a highly detailed, multi-dimensional spreadsheet immediately in the process, as well as a proposal that listed three suggested vendors for each needed item. This tightened list of choices allowed me to choose what I wanted to splurge on and where I wanted to cut back, all while remaining on budget, and not impeding my busy work schedule. However, Megan’s acts as an individual largely outshone her skills as a planner. She was a true friend, and not simply in the sense of being a joy to spend time with. I needed more than a friend; with my mom living out of town, I needed an advisor and guide—an emotional support. Megan easily slipped into all those roles, accompanying me to appointments when I needed her, giving me space when I wanted to do something alone, but always being only an email, phone call or even text away to offer me help at any moment. A highly illustrative example of how Megan’s kindness and support reached beyond the role of a planner was when my plans for picking up my dress the day before the wedding fell through. I got married over Thanksgiving weekend, and living in the northern suburbs, I panicked in tears when I found out that my arrangements for having my dress picked up in the city had backfired—and on Black Friday. With a million appointments that day, and my own family busy with getting into town, Megan instantly stepped up, offering to not only pick up my dress, but also brave the mania of shoppers and figure out parking the day after Thanksgiving. Coming back to my apartment to find my dress lusciously draped over a chair certified Megan as a savior. She demonstrated this same selfless resolve during the actual event. The whole thing went flawlessly from start to finish, but a transportation issue that occurred during the rehearsal dinner, which Megan wasn’t even meant to be involved with, found her showing up at the event regardless to direct traffic outside, as well as recruiting a second assistant for the next day, lest the same issue should happen at the wedding—which it didn’t thanks to her. Megan Estrada of North Shore Weddings and Events is a true professional. Her business background in the hotel industry makes her a poised and effective negotiator, and gives her a sense of calm that is all-encompassing in everything she does. Her creativity is able to glean elegance and fun into luscious and personalized settings, and her pristine work-ethic combined with an eye for beauty left all of our guests saying that they had never been to a wedding so beautiful, and they’re still talking about it. I truly love Megan, and people about to embark through this consuming yet exciting process could do no better than have an ally like her at their side.

in our budget. From her business model to the way she stayed in contact with us was truly appreciated. She allowed us to be as hands on as we wanted and had many ideas to save money. Her knowledge of contracts and her background in catering really helped us get the most from our vendors. I look forward to my sisters getting married so that we can work with Megan again.

that has to do with her! She listened to what we had to say and executed it perfectly. We couldn't have asked for anything more.

unny, smart, laid back and the consummate professional. Megan made planning my wedding fun--she introduced me & my mom to some outstanding vendors, she helped to guide us in making our decisions while always respecting my vision as the bride, and helped to keep us organized and on top of everything--especially towards the end when a seemingly million and one details pop up--Megan was always there to make sure that we had everything in order. One of my favorite things about working with Megan is her postive attitude and that she is a genuinely kind person. Megan is always so respectful of everyone that she works with--all of our vendors had only good things to say about their experience working with her. I can honestly say that our wedding this past December (12.13.14) was the best day of my life in large part thanks to Megan and all of her help in planning the wedding of my dreams. If I can offer any future brides two pieces of advice it would be as follows: 1) Hire a wedding planner--this will by far be the best investment that you will make out of all of your wedding expenses. 2) If you do hire a wedding planner, I HIGHLY recommend North Shore Weddings & Events--Megan is such a wonderful person and she is an extraordinarily talented professional, she will help to turn your vision into the wedding of your dreams too!

ing planner. After meeting with several planners, I couldn't have been luckier to find Megan Estrada. I knew within 5 minutes of meeting with her that she was the right planner for me. She worked with me to develop a custom planner budget since I had already done some of the leg work. All other planners I met with either offered full planning service or day of service. Megan works differently and is willing to create these custom plans based on what the bride really needs help with. Megan went above and beyond in every aspect of her role. She never pushed the most expensive options on me and always came up with solutions to for on my budget. She was always readily available and provided exceptional guidance. My wedding was absolutely beautiful and beyond my expectations. I can't say enough about Megan and what an amazing wedding planner she is. Look no further - she is the best and you won't be disappointed.

eld my hand the whole way. I was impressed with her communication with not only myself, but with all of the vendors we used. She recommended vendors as well as became comfortable with a few vendors I was adamant on working with. At one point a vendor needed pick up service for rentals and I was too busy to get to it. Megan organized another vendor to pick up what we needed to make the night perfect! You will need to trust her when it comes to big decisions on your big day. Megan knows the business and can navigate her way through a flawless event. I recommend North Shore Weddings and Events. Thank you to Megan and her team. It was a night to remember!"

we were planning the wedding from out of town. She explained to us from the outset why she does "month-of" instead of "day-of" coordination, and it made sense at the time but proved to be particularly sensible as the wedding approached. While the specific benefits that Megan provided are too innumerable to list, I'll briefly describe what we told everyone else who asked about our decision to hire a coordinator: it was the difference between an incredibly fun, relaxed wedding day, versus a stressful day that we would have to manage ourselves. My wife and I did all the foundational planning ourselves, and about 6-8 weeks before the wedding turned over all the vendor relationships to Megan. All of the supplies and materials needed for the big day we packed up a few days beforehand and Megan picked it all up on Friday. When Saturday rolled around we were as relaxed as could be. Megan set up everything at the reception venue and no one from the bridal party to our parents needed to do any of the heavy lifting, leaving us all to relax and enjoy each other’s company on the morning before the wedding. When we arrived at the reception after the ceremony, everything was perfectly set up and ready to go. We actually hired NSWE for a few extra add-ons, like transportation planning, and seating chart, and everything was handled perfectly. A few key takeaways: 1) I would not be surprised if Megan and NSWE cover their own cost in savings they can get from vendors, particularly if you use them for the more extensive planning packages. This was the case for us with the transportation planning that Megan did. 2) We didn’t want to burden ourselves or parents with logistical planning on the day-of, and NSWE absolutely accomplished that goal for us 100%. 3) Despite not hiring NSWE for the full wedding coordination, Megan was an incredible asset to us at every point in the process (long before the actual month-of) and was extremely responsive throughout. And 4) Megan helped immensely by being our advocate with vendors and also family members, helping to communicate our wishes when it would have been difficult for us to do so. Final recommendation: The month-of coordination was easily some of the best money we spent on the entire wedding in terms of making it an enjoyable experience. We’ve all heard horror stories about the stresses that come up on the big day and we had zero of those, despite fully expecting them. Megan and NSWE made that possible.

nt, and being our contact with all our vendors. Megan is very knowledgeable about the wedding industry and helped us find a great venue and vendors. She worked hard to make our event run smoothly. There were some overall communication issues in terms handling vendors and stressed family members. Overall, she helped us plan an event that we were very proud of.

gan and North Shore Weddings and Events. I live in California but planned my wedding in Chicago and Megan not only helped me plan one of the most beautiful weddings ever, but helped me plan it on a budget and without any stress. I'm an overwhelmed with gratitude for Megan and North Shore Weddings and Events. I would recommend Megan to EVERYONE looking for a coordinator. She was not only affordable, but knowledgeable, pleasant to work with, funny and just plain awesome. The saddest part about my wedding being over is that I don't get to work with Megan everyday.

ent above and beyond to help us pick our vendors, plan the details, and gave great advice. Megan answered my emails right away, and coordinated all communication with the vendors. She organized all our invoices, and created a personalized wedding binder which included a timeline and budget. Each detail added to the wedding, she updated to the budget and timeline and emailed it to us right away. Megan is very knowledgable of the North Shore area. She was able to save us a lot of money by negotiating with vendors. She kept our wedding under budget, and had great ideas for DIY projects. She even helped us make the projects. Megan is outstanding, and her work is simply perfection. Words cannot express how thankful we are for her. Any bride would be lucky to have Megan plan their wedding day.

ments, to going over contracts, we never had to worry about anything. We were able to enjoy the process and the day of to it's fullest because of her. I would recommend, and have recommended Megan to everyone I know that is planning a wedding. She was the best decision we made. Thoroughly enjoyed every minute of working with her.

ails of wedding planning together and I was feeling overwhelmed. Hiring Megan was such a huge help - I actually wish that I had sought her out much earlier. One of the best things about Megan is that she helps you plan the wedding of your dreams without breaking the bank. She was incredibly professional and had much knowledge about the wedding industry. She helped us save money several times by working with our vendors to get us the best deals possible. Having her as a wedding planner made me feel like I had an advocate when dealing with wedding vendors - which made me truly appreciative because wedding vendors can be very expensive! I had so many questions for her, and she was always quick to respond and help me problem solve when necessary. She is very detail oriented, and constructed a timeline for our ceremony and reception that took everything that had to be done into consideration - including things that I never would have thought of on my own! She also had a ton of great ideas for DIY touches to make the reception feel more elegant without us having to spend a lot of money. The day of the wedding was incredible. Everything came together beautifully and because of Megan, I felt like I was able to enjoy myself at the wedding. I got to celebrate with friends and family, just like I wanted to, because Megan was taking care of EVERYTHING behind the scenes. I can't say enough good things about Megan's services. She went above and beyond to make sure everything was great. My husband and I got so many compliments on our big day. I have already recommended to several friends who are getting married and will continue to do so!

leaving me unable to see out the coordination of key details, venue design, and last minute vendor choices. Megan stepped in and went above and beyond what we originally hired her for: she lined up all of my vendors, attended design consultations at the venue, came up with all of the décor for my ceremony and reception, came up with a precise rehearsal dinner and wedding day timeline, made sure everyone was where they needed to be, and the list goes on. She truly does it all and she does it well. Not to mention, she is very well-respected by vendors and maintains great relationships with them. She made my dream wedding a reality and I cannot thank her enough for that.

went above and beyond the call of duty. She helped me with so many aspects of planning, dealing with vendors and calming my nerves during inevitable wedding crises. Hiring Megan actually saved me money because she was able to assist me with vendor negotiations. The treatment and pricing I got from some vendors when I contacted them on my own vs. having Megan contact them on my behalf was night and day. Having her on board made the difference between my wedding being a stressful disaster to being a perfect beautiful day that I actually got to enjoy. If I had one thing to do over for my wedding, I would have hired Megan at the beginning of my wedding planning process. It would have saved me hundreds of hours of stress and meetings and emails and research. Even if I had to cut my guest list to afford Megan's planning services, I would have done it. If you are planning a wedding, do yourself a big favor and hire Megan!

e wanted and what our vision was for my daughter's wedding. She is a bright young woman, with great communication skills and adept at multitasking and negotiating with vendors. Through meetings with her and looking at my daughter's Pinterest boards, she quickly grasped what type of wedding we envisioned. We received a very professional folder from her at our first meeting and she continued to provide excellent written, visual, and verbal communication throughout the entire time. From the beginning, she patiently guided us through the long, emotional, and joyful process of planning a wedding. Megan had great recommendations for all the vendors we needed, and ones within our budget. The best part is that she negotiates with the vendors to get the best price, and the best value/product! In meeting with the vendors, she knew what questions to ask and was "our voice" for the difficult situations. With her experience she was able to determine what is reasonable and customary, and that was invaluable! Signing contracts for a venue, caterer, band, florist, photographer, videographer, harpist, jazz duo, linens, etc. can be daunting and confusing and she was always "on the ball" with options, suggestions, advise, etc. Luckily for us, she has a critical "eye" when checking contracts. In the last few weeks before the wedding I felt so at ease knowing that everything was under control, and that if last minute things popped up (and they did!) Megan would keep us informed and calmly handle it for us after getting our input. We were thoroughly able to enjoy ourselves at the wedding and reception, because she was in the background making sure everything was done the way we wanted it. The wedding was more perfect and beautiful than we imagined it could be, and our friends and family are still talking (a month later) about how beautiful and wonderful it was! Megan played a vital role in making that happen!

anging appointments. Megan was very organized; she provided various excel spreadsheets to detail our budget, guest list, and wedding timelines. I planned my wedding while living out of state and she was great at communicating with both my mom and I. She was always on top of all of the details, and would include us and our visions every step of the way. She even helped print and organize programs, place cards, and charity cards. On the day of my wedding I felt calm and relaxed, because Megan oversaw the timeline and details. She did so much behind the scene, I know I can't give her the credit that she deserves. My wedding was beautiful, and elegant. It was everything I had dreamed of and more. I HiGHLY recommend her! All of the vendors commented on how organized and thorough she was too.

and always, always a smile on her face. She never lost her composure and was completely up front with us - what we could or couldn't do, what the cost was going to be. Megan listened to the wishes of the bride and groom (and the MOB!) and was so creative in bringing their vision to fruition. Her list of vendor contacts was endless and, quite frankly, saved us a bunch of money. THE BEST MONEY I SPENT WAS ON MEGAN ESTRADA!

Not only did she plan but she made the ceremony programs, placecards, etc. Megan also has some great recommendations for vendors such as DJ, photographers, makeup artists, and florists. We ended up using her recommendations and were very happy. My mom and I both work full time jobs so hiring Megan to help with the wedding was the best decision we could have made! The wedding went so smoothly...it was a great day!

ed with them!