The Simply Elegant Group

ions with our planner, Lisa, they made every detail so clear and seamless. Lisa was down to earth, very understanding of my concerns, and was helpful in every way. There is no way our wedding day would have been as smooth and stress free without her and the SEG!

I cannot recommend Ashley and Simply Elegant enough!

n schedule and was always available to answer any questions we had if not in person by text or phone call. It was such a pleasure working with Ruslana and The Simply Elegant Group - I would highly recommend them to anyone planning a wedding.

navigate a stressful situation. We had to cancel and move things around last minute. Her team coordinated with all the vendors allowing us focus on each other and get through the day. I am so glad we invested in a planning service.

edding a reality. We are based in New York City and having to plan a wedding in another state on top of it being in my husband’s home turned out to be a bigger challenge than we ever anticipated. From the moment we met Danielle at the end of October, we felt so much more at ease with our decision to take on this challenging planning process because of her calm, reassuring, and realistic optimism that she brought to our meeting. We knew that we could turn to her for anything and she would provide an affordable/easy solution that immediately calmed our panic. Fast forward to the actual wedding – We don’t know what we would have done without her there. She made the day go by seamlessly, helped us with every small detail (she steamed my dress and cleaned my ring!!!!), and communicated with all of our vendors, allowing for my husband and I to focus on the happiness and love that surrounded our day. We are forever grateful to Simply Elegant Group for pairing us with Danielle and we know that whoever gets to work with her in the future will feel as lucky as we do!!!!

sly with our vendor team. We could not have been luckier to work with her! Gina and her assistant Nina kept everything running smoothly during our wedding so my husband and I could enjoy every minute of our big day. I cannot rave enough about this group! Simply elegant and Gina truly made our day so special!

ep in to support with coordination the few months before the wedding and the wedding day. That's where Abbe came in. :) From vendor communication and building out a day-of timeline to making sure our rehearsal was completed and fixing my bustle, she was there for us whatever we needed. I was able to enjoy a stress-free, perfect wedding day because of her, and I didn't need to put any of those tasks on my family or bridal party so that they could enjoy the day, too. If you're considering hiring SEG, I would definitely recommend it.

wedding for us all. I can't recommend her enough to other brides in the Lake Geneva/Lake Delavan area. We truly had the best weekend and Madison helped make it possible! We are forever grateful

fore our wedding and she helped us stay organized, create a seamless wedding day timeline, communicate with vendors on last minute details, and last but not least, implement all the plans we had put together on our wedding day. Our wedding day was absolutely beautiful, and we are very thankful for Simply Elegant Group, especially Nina, for helping us achieve this!

ves!). In particular, Ali helped us with photography, floral, and catering. All three of these vendors that she secured for us were a perfect fit and we were beyond pleased with their services. My husband and I weren't local to the location of our wedding, and while this could have made things complicated or stressful, with Ali it was all a breeze. I would enthusiastically recommend SEG for any of your event needs, specifically Ali if your event is in Chicago!

eel comfortable and like everything was under control. Hailey had a perfect personality for our large wedding party and was able to wrangle the group throughout the weekend and kept everyone on schedule and where they should be. I'm also very grateful for the services that SEG provides throughout the planning process. We started working with Hailey at the 60-day mark, but in the months beforehand she was still available over email or a video chat as a resource. SEG also has a preferred vendor list that provide discounted rates or perks for working with them. This made other vendor decisions really easy because I knew they'd be trustworthy and do a good job, and also received a discount! I would highly recommend SEG.

ing whether I even needed a coordinator. (For anyone currently debating the same, trust me, it makes a HUGE difference!). After deciding to move forward with SEG we were assigned Ruslana as our planner. 2 months before the wedding (right when things were starting to feel totally stressful and overwhelming), she stepped in and really brought everything together! Lana provided us questionnaires which got us thinking about things we NEVER would have thought of, and helped us put together a detailed timeline of the entire day to keep everything on track. Through SEG we also gained access to their online portal, Aisle Planner, which has a TON of useful tools (checklists, inventory trackers, emergency kit ideas, etc.). On the day of the wedding, Lana was a total lifesaver. She handled everything from coordinating our vendors, to taking all of our inventory over to the venue & setting it all up, to helping out with my 3 and 6-year old flower girls while the rest of us were getting ready. Having Lana there really allowed my husband and I (and our families) to enjoy the day more, because we knew all of these things were under control and we didn't have to worry about them. I am so grateful that we made the decision to hire SEG/Ruslana and would highly recommend them to anyone planning a wedding!

rs and truly took the stress off of us. Day of- she made sure every single thing went perfectly, and she made our vision come to life! At the last minute, we needed a ride to our couple portraits and Ruslana didn’t hesitate to jump in her car to make sure we got where we needed to be (all while making sure the venue looked like a dream!) We cannot recommend her enough!!

all of our vendors, answering all our questions, made sure my husband and I were feeling good about the process, kept us on top of our "to-do", and remained consistently responsive. The day of the wedding, every single vendor, my friends and my family came up to me to compliment Ruslana. She was on top of EVERYTHING to the point that we truely got to enjoy our day. Our day was perfect and that is all thanks to Ruslana!!

k goodness we decided to - there were a lot of logistics that could have been a big issue without Gina’s guidance! She taught us so much! Examples of things she helped us with: - Devloping comprehensive list of inventory for wedding to ensure we were able to get everything we needed to and from the venue and set up - Developing day of timeline and holding us accountable to it! - Helped us plan ahead for potential challenges and troubleshoot things beyond our control - Coordinated our team of vendors seamlessly throughout the day - everything ran super smoothly, and we were able to fully enjoy our wedding - Perhaps most important of all, she helped us catch and fix a LOT of blind spots we would’ve missed otherwise! Examples include an error in a contract we had (for only half the beauty services we needed), changes to timeline and activities to ensure we could get all photos we wanted and have time to enjoy the festivities, helping us find ways to change our travel to / from the venue to maximize time and minimize risk of delay, helping us realize we should order food for everyone to enjoy while getting ready, making sure we had a dedicated room for beauty services, sharing recommended gratuity for each vendor category with us, the list goes on and on…. Would highly recommend working with Gina!! You don’t realize how much you can benefit from a day of coordinator until just before your wedding - I feel so grateful that she allowed our friends, family, and both of us to be present in the moment and enjoy our wedding!

ding planning is stressful, but those last couple of months, weeks, and days before are CRAZY! Working with Lindsay ensured that we were able to enjoy and savor the moments leading up to our wedding and that the day of our wedding was stress free for us, our friends, and our family, and we were able to enjoy ourselves instead of worrying about logistics. Lindsay was super fun to work with and SUCH big help during the entire process.

Leading up to the big day, we had several check-in meetings and calls with Lindsay.  We found her to be very connected, supportive, knowledgeable, and perhaps most important, calm!  Lindsay always made us feel like it was all going to be fine and she had everything under control.  She also had great ideas and was super helpful in thinking through our big day. Lindsay has worked with so many vendors in Chicago and seems to know everyone, which helped tremendously.  On the big day, we really didn't have to worry about a thing.  Lindsay made sure the venue was set up perfectly and that the day went off without a hitch.  She was so good at every turn.  When things got a bit off schedule she lit a fire under people and also helped adjust things a bit behind the scenes (we found this out later).   Terrific person and terrific company, we can't recommend them more enthusiastically!

ever have a place in our hearts as we remember our special day for the rest of our lives. We truly thank The Simply Elegant Group for delivering such a perfect wedding planner.

day of our wedding, everything ran so smoothly and we could totally focus on being in the moment with all of our family & friends rather than worrying about all of the details. You'll be in great hands with Simply Elegant - they are a dream to work with!!

Of course there were moments of stress and uncertainty throughout that endeavor, but we navigated those challenges none the worse for wear, both emotionally and financially! There is a zero percent chance that would have been true without Lindsay. Not only did she take charge of that entire process and execute every aspect of it flawlessly, but she played the role of friend, confidant, attorney, and therapist as well. The only change we had to make from our original date and plan was the venue (not a small change), and lo and behold, Lindsay actually helped us upgrade! The day of was perfect in exactly the way you dream your wedding to be the perfect day. We were able to be fully in the moment the entire day because everything was well thought out, planned for, and taken care of. We had one minor logistics issue that was an error by a transportation company and Lindsay tackled it immediately without hesitation. It didn't affect our day at all, but we might have been in scramble mode without Lindsay. Lindsay and SEG come with our highest recommendation. Working with her was without question one of the best decisions we made throughout 19 months of wedding planning. She knows how to make your vision for your fairytale day come to life, and she also knows how to use her ample experience to nudge you in the right direction if you are unsure about anything. We are grateful for the many times we followed her advice on details both large and small! We simply can't imagine wedding planning without Lindsay, and we can't thank her and SEG enough for going above and beyond what was asked of them every step of the way.

ly Elegant to do the job!! 2020 and 2021 were roller coasters for brides, grooms, planners, and everyone in the wedding industry - we were all just trying to make it work 1 day at a time. Unfortunately since our engagement lasted so long our original planners ended up leaving the industry but Simply Elegant did not let our wedding planning suffer. Lindsay stepped in to provide the best customer experience from there. Every single vendor we hired knew Simply Elegant and Lindsay and had nothing but excellent things to say about this dream team, and for good reasons. The day was more perfect than we could have imagined and all thanks to the tight ship that Lindsay and the Simply Elegant team run!! I have recommended them to all of my friends/family who are getting married this year : )

uld start helping me plan in April. Find someone more professional and trustworthy.

responded by saying to call them, repeatedly. They never answered the question about packages. Four email chains asking for their packages and pricing and they would wait a few days to say just call. If you can’t even answer that simple question, how are you going to treat a couple once they book! Edit, once I sent that last email, they finally responded back. I was able to receive the pricing information and now am looking through packages and will be making a decision on who to go with.

t was going to be a very busy year, so we wanted to knock as much planning out as possible as soon as possible. Our planner agreed to help us get things moving quickly, so we signed a contract. She let us know the first thing to do is hire a photographer. We told her we’d like a local photographer and she said she’d send us some options. For 6 weeks, I kept reaching out because I hadn’t heard anything. She responded with a list of photographers who were hours away each time. I finally found a local photographer myself and asked for a call with our planner. During the call, I expressed displeasure in her responsiveness as well as the fact we hadn’t made any progress for 6 weeks. I felt like I was having to keep her accountable instead of the other way around. I asked her to keep us apprised of quotes, etc. so we knew the ball was moving forward. She offered to send us weekly updates, so we knew what was going on. 6 more weeks went by, and I hadn’t heard from her at all. I reached out and told her we’d like to end the relationship as it had been 3 months and she’d accomplished nothing. We hadn’t received one quote from her over the 3 months. She apologized and said she’d been busy, but that she would let her supervisor know and they would reach out to us to take care of the deposit reimbursement. I finally heard back from Simply Elegant Group a couple weeks later, and they told me the deposit was non-refundable and I wouldn’t get any money back. I’d paid $3300 up front. That amount included auto gratuity and half of the accommodations for the weekend of the wedding, both of which were not being incurred now. I brought this up but was told again that I would not be refunded. At that point, I asked to speak to a supervisor, but did not get a response. After two weeks of requesting a call to discuss the refund, I finally reached out to my credit card company and disputed the charge. Several days later I was contacted by the managing director at Simply Elegant Group, Lindsay Mackey. I explained the situation and she said she’d get back to me. A few days later, I told her I would drop the credit card dispute if we can decide on a reasonable reimbursement amount, but she refused to talk to me unless I dropped the dispute. I requested a call with her to discuss it several times over the next few months, but we’ve now been going back and forth for 4 months. She refused to get on a call to discuss the re-imbursement repeatedly, unless I dropped the dispute. I was hesitant to drop the dispute without an agreement in place, but I finally did so we could just get it resolved. Lindsay then completely stopped responding to my e-mails. I finally threatened to get my attorney involved, and she responded that they’d refund $1500 of the $3300 paid. So, I paid $1800 for them to do absolutely nothing but cause stress for 7 months. Absolute brutal experience

hley let no stone unturned and did everything in her power to make our day seamless - including vacuuming up in front of a fireplace so that we could have the first look of our dreams without getting ashes on my dress. ABOVE AND BEYOND! You will not regret using Simply Elegant Group's Ashley to make your planning and day extraordinarily fun.

sure our wedding day ran smoothly. She not only eased our anxiety but also made sure our parents enjoyed the day. We so much appreciated her knowledge of the wedding industry and her attention to detail. We are so grateful Abbe was our day of coordinator!

us through all options, all our vendor searches (and renewed contracts) and everything in between leading up to both big days. Gina is extremely knowledgeable, organized and genuine. I highly recommend Gina and SEG to any future couples.

helpful throughout our whole planning process and on the day of, I knew she had us covered and I was able to relax and worried about nothing. I would highly recommend Danielle and SEG!

for every aspect of the wedding (vendor suggestions, timeline efficiencies, decor ideas, etc). Not only did Hailey keep my husband & I on track, but also our wedding parties & vendors. My entire family raved about how amazing she was and on top of her game all day. She was very accommodating throughout the planning process & day of, and anticipated things way before they happened! Hailey's calm demeanor is exactly what I/everyone needed - that is no doubt her super power! Lindsay was our Assistant Coordinator & also stole the show - she was able to jump right in & knew all the necessary details the day of. She's also a professional at tying a bowtie :) SEG is the exact superhuman support & coordination that you need to make your day go EXACTLY as planned!

e, Hailey was involved months before our big day. She was beyond attentive to our needs right from the start. Whenever we had a question, she was there day or night. Once the big day had arrived, Hailey was perfect from start to finish. She worked very well with my "needs to help out with everything" mom, and our venue staff. The day and night went by so smoothly, I do not remember being stressed in the slightest. I could not have asked for a more thoughtful, professional coordinator. I encourage anyone looking at the Simply Elegant Group to request Hailey as their planner. Hailey A. made our wedding day simply perfect.

all my requests, stayed cool under pressure, and was so detail oriented so that I didn't need to be. Most importantly, because of Danielle, I had 100% confidence that everything on my wedding day would be perfect and handled, and it was. 10/10 would recommend working with Danielle!

: The Before Times. This is when we first met with Gina and SEG and knew they would be a huge asset to planning our wedding. Little did poor Gina know that she would be with us for a full two year journey that required pivoting our wedding plans 3+ times. Gina handled everything with grace and positivity, always providing recommendations and helping make tough decisions. She's also extremely organized, and very clearly cares about every couple she's working with. So much so that I have already recommended her services to a friend of mine that is getting married in Chicago in January. We could not have managed to get this through pandemic-induced wedding stress without our wedding planner and friend, Gina.

uld have asked for. From day 1, Ashley was on top of everything. She is an extremely organized, dedicated and overall kind person. She is extremely thorough and professional with her work - to the point where every single one of my vendors even commented on this. Most said they had worked with great planners in the past, but that Ashley went even above and beyond the best. Every step of the way, Ashley was there to provide input, answer questions, and alleviate any stress. The day of the event, she was absolutely phenomenal - I honestly had 0 stresses the entire wedding day because of Ashley’s preparedness. Anything I asked for, she had done in the matter of seconds. Overall, I do not think the day would have ran or smoothly or my wedding would have turned out as great as it was without Ashley’s guidance. Furthermore, she provided a nice compilation of pictures and videos after the wedding of moments we otherwise did not have captured without a videographer. I would 100% recommend Ashley to any bride - whether it’s for help from day 1 like myself or for day of services. She was the definition of the perfect wedding planner. I never thought I’d say this - but I truly miss her weekly / daily emails and working with her!

beginning where we had to switch wedding planners, but it was the best switch. We had Ashley Lytel (Carpenter) as our wedding planner. She was incredible, to say the least - so easy to work with, so organized, and made the wedding planning process stress-free. She guided us every step of the way, was in contact with all of our vendors, and helped us make smart decisions with her years of experience. On wedding day, we knew that we had nothing to worry about because Ashley had already taken care of it. My bridesmaids kept asking how I was so calm and my response was "because I know everything is all good." Even one of our groomsmen said, "Ashley is like Mary Poppins, she has every random, little thing that anyone could possibly need." She is one of a kind. One of the best parts about working with Simply Elegant overall is their preferred vendor discounts. We saved a lot of money on floral (which is usually the most expensive), décor, photography, and a photo booth. Thank you Ashley and the Simply Elegant group for making our wedding day perfect! We couldn't have done it without you!

l and supportive through this whole process, and she really held us together despite all of our stress! She was extremely detail oriented and we could really depend on her to make sure everything was set and done. We had the best day and really owe so much of that to Ashley. She took care of everything on our day, so that we and our families could relax and enjoy. Could not have chosen a better wedding planner!

r! Abbe Gould also helped us on the day-of and was absolutely phenomenal. We got married at The Kimpton Gray hotel and she had so much knowledge of the venue and was a total asset to making the day go smoothly. We were on-time with our day and everything went perfectly. Hailey and Abbe were magicians and literally handled everything for us and we couldn't be more grateful.

ery single moment and not worry about any logistics! They answered so many questions leading up to the day and posed so many of their own about things we would never have considered! Their attention to detail really ensured that we had the day of our dreams and didn't miss anything! We were planning our wedding from out of state, and SEG was extremely helpful with giving us a "home base" to send packages. They helped assemble welcome bags and day of decorations, and the reception room came together better than we could have ever imagined. Their "we've got this" attitude when any hiccups pop up will keep any stress at bay. It's clear they have a ton of experience with big events, but they'll never make you feel like your concerns are silly! They are a joy to have around on the day. You won't regret spending money on this!!

a control freak, the very detailed timeline she created was such a stress reliever for me. I was so happy she was coordinating my wedding, because I knew everything would go off perfectly and I did not have to worry. From the minute she arrived at our pictures till the end of the wedding, she was working non stop and was so incredible! I can't imagine how this day would have functioned without her help, and we are so happy she apart of our wedding day!

me find the vendors I still needed (who were all perfect) and was so much help on the day of the wedding from organizing the wedding party, setting up the reception room, and making sure all of our gifts were back in our room after the party. Thank you Abbe and the simply elegant group for everything!

d came extra prepared on the wedding day in a way that made us feel completely at ease.

putting together our timeline and making sure we knew what we needed to do! She took so much stress off me, my husband and our families. On the day of, she made sure everything went off without a hitch - we really had no issues and I credit her for that! Having Ashley there allowed us and our families to just relax and enjoy the day, knowing that she was on top of the timeline, on top of the details and making sure all the vendors were doing what they needed to do. In addition, Ashley is the best to work with - she is incredibly kind, calm, professional and truly cares about you. She goes above and beyond to make sure your wedding day is great and we are so grateful we had her for our day!!

will forever be thankful to her for taking so much stress off of me before and on our wedding day! Thank you thank you thank you for being there for us!

ative and gave great vendor recommendations. Mandi is exceptional. She really went out of there way to make a a couple feel so loved, supported and ran a great event! I would highly recommend Mandi and The Simply Elegant Group.

uld highly recommend them.

we wanted and more! Jordan and I didn't have to worry about a single thing the day of, and Hailey went above and beyond working with our vendors and adjusting our schedule accordingly! We are so thankful and grateful for all of her hard work, and we highly recommend using SEG and Hailey if you are getting married in Chicago!

team to be successful. Then a week out, she provided us and all the other vendors with a timeline for the wedding. The day of the wedding, she was fabulous to work alongside. She was very friendly and helpful. It was clear to me that she was dedicated to making Faris & Hallie's wedding an unforgettable day. I highly recommend working with Caitlyn. On behalf of the team at We Livestream Weddings, thank you for the wonderful, collaborative experience.

and follow through ensured everything went off without a hitch. I would absolutely recommend them for your wedding.

day went perfectly thanks to Gina's thoughtful and organized timeline. We could truly enjoy the day knowing that she had all of the details and logistics covered!

gant for making sure our wedding was so perfect. I had zero stress!

without an officient 10 minutes prior to the ceremony. Danielle kept us calm, explained our options, and ultimately ended up officiating our wedding. She is organized, thorough, and always with a smile on her face - no matter the situation. She was there for me (the bride) when I felt overwhelmed. She kept everyone on time throughout the day. She worked behind the scenes to make sure everything went off without a hitch. Hiring Danielle and SEG was a worthwhile investment. I would recommend them to anyone currently planning a wedding. Thank you SEG, and Danielle!!

your date. Katie was even available for some quick calls and questions ahead of the two week window. One of the best parts about working with Simply Elegant Group is that you get access to their planning portal (aisle planner), which helps make the entire wedding planning process SO much easier. You get access to this as soon as you book them and it was truly my bible throughout the planning process. It keeps track of all information needed for your wedding and has a to-do list broken out by month, so you know what you need to focus on when. I wouldn't have even known some of the things I needed to do if it wasn't on that list. Honestly, just the fact that I had this portal was worth the money! The bonus was having Katie with us the day of. It just made for the best possible day. We were not stressed about the timeline or anything that needed to happen. We knew Katie had it covered. She was professional, organized, and overall just a joy to work with. You spend a lot of time with your planner leading up to the wedding and on the day of and we were so happy we had someone we not only trusted to make our day run smoothly, but also that was just fun to be around! Definitely recommend using The Simply Elegant Group and if you can, ask for Katie :)

re on the fence about hiring a planner, DO IT NOW!!! You will be stress free and able to enjoy your wedding! It is seriously worth every single penny!!

s two months prior to the wedding and we were so impressed with how organized she was and how quickly she got all of the vendors on the same page. We did the venue walkthrough with her a month prior to the wedding and she asked a lot of good questions to make us feel comfortable. On the day of, she was great and really helped keep the day organized and took a lot of pressure off of us. She took videos and pictures throughout the day that we were able to enjoy before getting our professional photos and videos back. We also loved that we got discounts through SEG and used some of their preferred vendors. Would highly recommend!

ress free for us! We felt she truly cared for us and wanted our day to be exactly as we always dreamed it would be. Highly highly recommend without condition!

so so helpful with everything leading up to the wedding day. For example, my decor company almost bailed on me at the last minute but Kelly swooped in and figured out a way to make it work so we didn't have to change decor companies. She planned every detail of our wedding day so perfectly and she was also able to anticipate things that could go wrong and her "planned flexibility" made it so that even if there was a hiccup it didn't affect anything negatively. I cannot sing her praises enough and I would highly recommend SEG to anyone who is planning a wedding! SEG was also affordable and allowed us to stay within our budget, and was by far the greatest value of any company I found during my research. Kelly and SEG are amazing!!!

ing day came true. It went absolutely perfectly and and she made sure the day went so smoothly! It rained a little on our wedding day but Hailey made sure we got pictures before the rain started. She kept everything so organized and was a joy to work it. Everything happened on time and all our belongings were packed up at the end of the night and put in either our car or bridal suite. As the bride I didn't have to do or worry about anything! I HIGHLY recommend using Simply Elegant for wedding planning/coordination.

venue and that was easily the best decision we made throughout the entire planning process. We booked SEG for day-of coordination but Lindsay did so much more than that. When we had to postpone because of COVID Lindsay was there to help, when I had a million questions she graciously (and patiently) answered them, and as our big day finally approached she took over all of the complicated scheduling and confirming and coordinating that I definitely could not have handled myself. The only thing I would have done differently is I would have hired SEG to do more of our planning - because I know they would have crushed it and it would have been worth every penny. If you are getting married hire SEG!

nd The SEG helped us contact all our vendors and make sure that they were all available for our new date. In a very emotional and stressful time this was so helpful to have off our plate. Once our wedding date came closer this is where Hailey stepped in and helped us with the timeline, keeping us on track with what we needed to have done, contacting vendors, and sending them the timeline so we were all on the same page. On the day of the wedding I wasn't stressed because I knew that if something were to go wrong Hailey was there to take care of it. She kept us perfectly on schedule and the day went so smoothly. She set everything up at the venue and helped clean everything up at the end of the night so that we didn't have to worry about it. She even came to our house the next day and helped us set up for a BBQ we were having for our out of town guests! We cannot thank Hailey enough for all of her hard work! She is so positive, funny, organized, and a dream to work with. I strongly recommend using The Simply Elegant Group (and Hailey specifically!) to help make your wedding day go perfectly- you will NOT be disappointed!!!

non-negotiable for me. I know myself well enough to know that nothing would have otherwise been done. I’m incredibly indecisive, I always want to see all the options, and I always want input – which does not work when you’re going online to look at the 5000+ photographers in Denver (and that’s just one vendor). So I knew I needed to find someone I could put my trust in to understand what I was looking for, show me a few options that would fit my desires and budget, and help me evaluate and choose one, as well as someone who would keep me on track in terms of time. The Simply Elegant Group was wonderful to work with, and I truly don’t know how we would have gotten through our wedding without them. I actually had a bit of a rocky start, but they made it up to me and then some. When I first started with SEG, I was assigned a planner who I wasn’t entirely happy with. She did help to some extent, but I felt like things weren’t moving as quickly as they should, etc. I was then told that she was leaving SEG and I would be assigned a new planner, which I felt okay with – I think she already had one foot out the door when we started working together. The next planner I was paired with seemed to be pretty good, but we had barely started when I found out that she, too, was leaving SEG. I was starting to become concerned and frustrated, but Lindsay got on a call with me and said that this was definitely not normal and they were pairing me with someone who they were sure wouldn’t leave – Ashley Carpenter (now Lytel). This completely changed everything. Ashley was on top of everything from day one. She was with me every step of the way, calming me down when I was anxious, getting me back on track when I fell behind on my to-do lists, assuring me that everything would come together. She understood what I was saying and wanting, helped me communicate that to vendors, and answered my many, many, MANY questions (sometimes more than once, since I forgot!). Then, of course, came COVID. Ashley supported us in all of our decisions to postpone and to alter what we were comfortable doing in the midst of a pandemic. She helped coordinate with everyone to find another date that worked, she reached out to learn about changes in policies at our venue along the way, and perhaps most importantly, she was a much-needed emotional support during all of this. I cannot tell you how many people – vendors, wedding party, and guests alike – noted to me how wonderful Ashley was. On the day of the wedding, she was there whenever something was needed. There were a few small things that didn’t go as planned, but she was like my fairy godmother turning mice into beautiful white horses. How she managed to be in 10 places at once I will never know (as an avid Harry Potter fan, I’ll just pretend she had a time turner). I would never have been able to pull off a day like ours without a planner. This became even more true in the COVID era. Ashely’s attention to detail, unwaveringly calm hand, emotional support and understanding, quick adaptiveness, and deep knowledge of weddings and event planning is probably the greatest gift I got for my wedding (secondary only to my husband, perhaps).

s change our date with all of our vendors. She is SO organized, communicative, sweet, and literally the wedding planner that you dream of. So many friends and family members were so impressed with her at our rehearsal and our wedding, it was so apparent to everyone how amazing she is at what she does. When she walked in the door when I was getting ready for the big day, I knew everything was going to be okay :) Example of how amazing she is: I wore a tiny religious medal safety pinned to my bouquet that my mother wore on her wedding day. After our first look pictures & pictures around the city, I then realized the medal had fallen off my bouquet. I told Ashley I had lost it, if she could keep an eye out for it, but I was sure that I would never see it again. As the night went on, she came up to me with the medal- she found it!!!!! That was just one of the many, many, many amazing things she did for us throughout this process. If you are trying to decide if you need a wedding planner, DO IT and spend the money. You will be so happy that you did, because I truly cannot have imagined doing this without Ashley. She made our day such a dream, and I am forever grateful and feel so lucky that we had her.

she and Austin made the big day go so smoothly for us and our family. We could not recommend her and her team’s services enough! The discounts we received from working with SEG were well worth the price of the package plus the top-notch and professional coordination and planning services they provide!

Gina worked very hard to coordinate all of our vendors and reschedule a date for us and attempted to minimize our anxiety as much as possible. We had the wedding day of our dreams and we owe much of it to her. Her level of organization and attention to detail can’t be beat (and this is coming from someone who is hyper-organized herself). My husband and I have very busy work schedules and did not have much time for planning, but Gina did all of the hard work for us. We worked with her for almost 2.5 years and got to know her well and she is so kind and supportive and really goes above and beyond for her couples. We could not recommend her enough!

n track with our timeline and made sure everything was delivered to our venue and set beautifully. She was prepared and helped everyone during our special day. She listened to any special needs and was very kind to work with throughout the whole day!

y initially and had a good conversation. We had a tight timeline so we had to make a decision quickly but also other day of coordinators were booked already. We signed a contract, for day of coordinator, for our wedding on September 5th that stated open and unlimited email communication two months out from wedding, 3 core meetings (initial timeline, final walk through and final timeline). When July 9th rolled around, 4 days after our 'two month' start of communication and we still hadn't heard from SEG, I emailed Lindsey. I didn't hear back from her after waiting 4 days and sent a follow up, as we had no idea who our coordinator would be and hadn't heard from anyone since signing the contract. My first email communication with our day of coordinator, was July 23rd. That was frustrating but I understand that this was a busy year for weddings, so I gave them the benefit of the doubt. Our final walk through didn't include our band/DJ, which caused a bit of a hiccup in our planning and missed communication/cues that needed to happen with all parties (venue, caterer, band/dj and planner). The information we had to relay back and forth across all parties was ridiculous and made us feel like we were doing all of the work. The day of the wedding, we honestly didn't know if follow up calls or emails were made to all of our vendors to make sure they were ready to go for the day. We didn't receive an email or confirmation the week of the wedding to verify that all vendors were set. It was also very challenging to setup time to talk with our coordinator the days leading up to the wedding to try to confirm and finalize any remaining action items. The day of was a bit hectic and I'm glad we had someone to keep the timeline set but honestly, the coordinator didn't live up to our expectations as far as communication and proactiveness in the day. One example is that the band requested for the father daughter and mother son to come up for the dance, but they started going before we had everyone ready - my mother in law was no where to be found as this was starting. It was disjointed and I felt like we missed out on a moment. I understand the wedding industry is extremely busy, however it feels like we weren't given the attention needed for the amount of money we spent, the details in the contract and time we still had to spend in coordinating. We were disappointed.

as well as coordinating everything on the big day, was so wonderful.

ommend everyone planning a wedding to high SEG.

e words to describe what an absolute LIFESAVER Kelly was for us. After postponing, we made the decision to invest in a planner, and it was the BEST investment we made. Do not hesitate to do this. My only regret is not getting a larger package and doing this sooner. We got the 3 month package, and I simply cannot I think of what our wedding would have been like without her. She made the entire process so seamless, and was the contact person for all of our vendors. We had a last minute change in ceremony site (26 hours in advance) and she handled it perfectly, and everything (and everyone) got to our ceremony without missing a beat. She re-worked our entire timeline, contacted all of our vendors, and flawlessly pulled everything off. She was with me the entire day and night, and made sure everything was running on schedule. She worked endlessly and late into the night in order to make our night absolutely perfect. We simply would not have had the wedding day of our dreams without her. Simply Elegant group was amazing to work with from the beginning, although we did the 3 month package we received access to an online site with the most extensive wedding checklist I have ever seen in my life. As someone who is type-A and thought I could do everything myself, I am so thankful that I hired them. I can say without hesitation I had no stress on my wedding day, or even the entire weekend. Their team is amazing and they will make sure you have the wedding day and weekend of your dreams.

She clearly loves what she does. She made the day perfect.

erything we did. The day of our wedding was so flawless. Our entire bridal party said so many positive compliments about how organized and on time our day was. She knew exactly what every minute by minute should look like on our wedding day and made my entire family feel relaxed. Madison also responded quickly with any question I had. Without Madison our day would of not been as fun as it was!

ey's help every step of the way. There is absolutely zero chance it would have come to life like it did without her. Ashley doesn't skip a beat. I thought I was detail oriented, but she brought everything to another level. Ashley understood our vision, and would anticipate our questions before we even asked them. It's hard to properly express how amazing she was to work with. Not only is she amazing at what she does, but she is truly a kind person who we genuinely enjoyed spending time with. We cannot recommend SEG and specifically ASHLEY enough. She went above and beyond, consistently exceeding all expectations. We are so thankful to have had the opportunity to work with her. Thank you for everything - we couldn't have done it without you!!

due to the pandemic, and when it came time to buckle down and actually PLAN round three, we realized we needed help. We live in Chicago but all of our guests were coming in from the East Coast, so we wanted to make it a painless and enjoyable experience for them. Enter our planner: Danielle McMillan. Danielle is a Rockstar! THE best communicator, super sweet, funny, kind and proactive. Every step was a breeze with her - from the intro call, to creating the timeline, to meeting in person. She was always there to answer my anxious spur-of-the-moment texts, calls and emails. She communicated with all of our vendors (and even chased when she had to). On our actual wedding day, she showed up like Mary Poppins, with a bottomless bag of tricks, and a trustee sidekick/assistant, Nina, who was an absolute doll. The dynamic duo executed our day without a hitch and my fiancé and I were able to just show up and do what we wanted to do: HAVE FUN. Danielle and Nina made sure our vendors showed up and set up on time, got tipped, coordinated our ceremony and even made sure we had a drink in our hands at all times. The two most touching aspects of all is they had plates of appetizers waiting for us after the ceremony to make sure we both ate, AND they entertained my nieces (flower girls) with SUCH patience and care- even despite their most epic of meltdowns. We also had peace of mind knowing that all of our personal effects were delivered safely back to our hotel room after the wedding (and BONUS: our mini fridge was stocked with wedding leftovers!). SEG is worth their weight in gold. I can't thank Danielle and Nina enough. I'd recommend them a million times over!

ng to cover every detail of the timeline, vendor management and to ensure that our vision for our special day became a reality. People always say that "something WILL go wrong on your wedding day, and when it does you'll have to roll with it" But honestly, nothing went wrong. It was a PERFECT day. And we have Gina to thank for that. She and Madison, who assisted on the day-of, made me feel like I could soak up every moment of fun while they calmly wrangled people, kept us on time, ensured all of our details were accounted for, oversaw that our room setup was on point-they even ran to grab me slippers when my shoes started hurting. They were part of the family that day! I wholeheartedly recommend Simply Elegant Group if you want your wedding to be executed flawlessly.

ur big day. If you want a planner that is professional, creative, and organized, Simply Elegant is for you.

enny! If you think you don’t need one like we did, stop, and trust me you do! Madison thought every detail through, was so friendly and helpful the months leading to the wedding. The day of she was efficient and kept our day moving and coordinated with all of our vendors. The biggest thing for us was our timeline and she made that a breeze! Do yourself a favor and get this girl!