Occasionals Events

As the maid of honor for the bride, I had the chance to witness much of the planning and coordination with Emily, the wedding planner from Occasional Events. Unfortunately, the experience left much to be desired, and there were several regrets about hiring her. The bride’s mother had fired their original planner to book Emily after attending another wedding she had coordinated, but it turned out to be a decision we wish hadn't been made. From the start, things felt disorganized, and the stress of the wedding day was amplified by Emily’s lack of preparation. The wedding rehearsal was chaotic. It was a hot day at the end of summer, and Emily kept us all outside for much longer than necessary due to unclear directions, causing unnecessary mistakes and confusion. The bride’s 85-year-old grandfather was visibly struggling with the heat, yet Emily seemed more focused on redoing the aisle walk than showing any consideration for him. When the bride decided she didn’t want all 8 of her bridesmaids to stand up front during the ceremony, Emily was insistent that she would regret it, even arguing with us about it. She even suggested taking a vote on the matter, which left us all shocked—this was the bride’s wedding, not a democracy! Additionally, she interrupted the bride during hair and makeup to ask who was folding napkins for dinner—a question that could have easily been asked of someone else. Only the aisle walk was rehearsed, and after the ceremony, no one knew where to go or what to do. The cocktail hour re-entry for the newlyweds was another disaster, with constant changes on where we should walk, adding more confusion. One glaring moment of disappointment was at the end of the night when the parting gifts were not ready for guests to take. Family members of the bride had to scramble to put them out, and many guests missed out on them entirely. The sparkler exit was also poorly handled—Emily didn’t have the getaway car ready, and by the time it arrived, the sparklers were already burning out. To top it off, Emily and her assistant were seen eating before the bride’s parents, which felt incredibly disrespectful. The biggest issue, however, was Emily’s overall absence during the wedding. We rarely saw her, and she was not readily available to troubleshoot issues or guide the day smoothly. Her lack of presence and organization made the entire experience more stressful than it needed to be. In the end, we sincerely wish we had gone with a planner who was more organized and focused on making the day less chaotic, instead of adding to the stress. I wouldn’t recommend Emily for anyone looking for a smooth and well-organized wedding day.