Events by Emily, LLC

Fantastic experience: Emily and her team are the reason I, the most anxious, Type A bride, stayed present and enjoyed every second of my wedding weekend – full stop. From the moment we started working with Emily, I knew she was the only person I trusted to bring my vision to life. During every step of the planning process, she was incredibly thorough, patient, and decisive in the moments she sensed I couldn’t be. If you’re an anxious bride taking on the lion's share of planning, she is the ultimate brainstorm partner, reality check, and hype woman. This unwavering trust allowed me to go into our wedding day with complete confidence that if something went wrong, Emily and her team would handle it seamlessly, without me knowing – and they did. Just last week, I was cleaning up all the wedding paraphernalia I unceremoniously dumped in our guest room. To my surprise, I found an entire box of glass cloches and taper candle stands (integral to my tablescapes) that, unbeknownst to me, never made it to the venue. Instead of coming to me day-of to tell me a box was missing, Emily and her team made it work and executed my vision so beautifully I didn’t notice the missing taper candles. While this might seem like an innocuous example, I hope it speaks to brides who are afraid the success of their wedding day hinges on them not dropping a single ball. You will drop a ball, but if you hire Emily, you won’t notice.

Fantastic experience: I can say without a doubt that working with Emily for full service wedding planning was the best decision we made. It’s hard to put into words just how amazing Emily and her team were to work with all throughout the process - from pre-wedding, to the day of, to post-wedding. My husband and I both work full-time and were fully in the process of a home renovation while also moving, and the thought of planning a wedding on top of that was just too much to imagine. Then we found Emily!! Emily quickly got everything beautifully organized and brought to life the vague ideas that my husband and I had, and she also patiently and thoughtfully guided us through each decision we had to make- all while being just so incredibly considerate and thoughtful about each detail and the vision we had in mind for our day. & when we saw all the details brought to life on the day-of, I could not believe just how gorgeous everything was. What originally drew me to Emily were her beautiful designs and uniquely keen eye for detail - the events she plans are just absolutely gorgeous, and ours was no exception (it still takes my breath away to think of how beautiful it was!). But Emily offers so much more than an eye for design - she is thoughtful, organized, and understanding and made our day run even more smoothly than I could’ve imagined. Because of Emily, I never had one ounce of stress throughout the wedding day - we were able to just float through the day and enjoy it all while Emily thoughtfully and calmly kept us on-track, all while being mindful of the details we wanted to pay extra attention to during the day. We had no moments of stress during our wedding day, and we have Emily & her amazing team to thank for that. & then when we got to the venue and saw everything brought to life, I was just blown away by how beautiful it was. You will NOT find better planning and event design than Emily & her team, and I truly cannot imagine what we would’ve done without them. I’d give them 10000/5 stars if I could!!!! If you are thinking about hiring Events by Emily, it would be a true mistake not to. We would have been absolutely lost without Emily and are so grateful to her and her amazing team!

Fantastic experience: Emily and her team were the best. We loved working with both her and Dana. Seriously one of the best decisions my husband and I made during planning our wedding was having them running the show. We both work full time and I would have gone crazy with all the details and decision making without Emily assisting. She was flexible with our busy schedules and helped bring all my vague ideas to life. The final product was better than we could have ever imagined! We seriously had the wedding of our dreams! I was initially drawn to her design style, but she and her team offer so much more than just good taste. Her connections within the wedding industry were so helpful to narrow down and make decisions easier. Every time we told another vendor that Emily was our planner, we heard we were in the best hands and they could not have been more correct! She is knowledgeable, organized and down to earth. You will not regret hiring her!

Fantastic experience: We couldn't be happier with our wedding planner Daniel from Events by Emily's team! Our wedding was 55 family members in our home and Daniel helped us plan a very meaningful day. He connected us with excellent vendors - all who were professional and wondering. Daniel was a great listener who earned our trust immediately. He was able to turn our ideas into a vision and reality. I would highly recommend working with Events by Emily!

Fantastic experience: Our biggest goal for wedding planning was to not be stressed out – a nearly impossible goal, but one that we succeeded at because of Events by Emily. As our full wedding planner, Emily was there to help us navigate everything from choosing a venue to making sure everything ran smoothly the day of. She worked with us to build a vision of what we wanted our wedding day to look like and then helped us make that vision become a reality. Our favorite parts of having Emily as our wedding planner: - Her and her associate Rebecca would provide us with a couple options of vendors for each part of our wedding (i.e. venues, florals, lighting, hair and makeup, officiants, etc.). These recommendations were based on our vision for the day, but significantly narrowed down the sheer number of vendors out there to a list that was a LOT more manageable than just searching on the Knot. They were also based on positive experiences that Emily has had with these vendors in the past, which is incredibly important (can you imagine your hair and makeup person not showing up on your wedding day? Not on Emily’s watch). If we didn’t like any of the options or wanted more options, Emily and her associate Rebecca were happy to provide more options. - Emily went with us to the majority of the vendor meetings and asked questions that we wouldn’t have even considered asking. - When we had a question or wanted to add something, all we had to do was email Emily. No tracking down each individual vendor, having to follow up by phone, etc. Emily was our go-to person. - On the day-of, we were able to just enjoy our wedding day and not worry about logistics or who was going to set up the centerpieces or whether all the vendors knew where to go to set up. It never crossed my mind to worry about anything other than getting married to my best friend because I trusted Emily completely to make our vision come true – and she did! The Events by Emily team was there for us every step of the way, making wedding planning not the stereotypical stressful nightmare but instead a fun process leading up to the best day of our lives. Emily was kind, responsive, supportive of our vision (always making sure that our voices were heard above all others), and on top of everything the whole way through. We are so happy we chose to hire Emily as our full-service wedding planner and highly recommend Events by Emily to anyone considering doing the same! (Photography by Laura Memory Photography)

Fantastic experience: We had the most fantastic wedding experience working with Events by Emily. Emily and her team helped us plan our Bridgerton/English garden inspired wedding this past June at the Duke Chapel and Hope Valley Country Club as well as rehearsal dinner and Sunday brunch at the Washington Duke Inn. One of the reasons we chose to work with Emily was because of her experience with floral design and indeed, her ideas along with Bowerbird Flower’s made for the most enchanted wedding. We appreciated that Events by Emily was always quick to respond to our questions, were respectful of our budget, and alleviated so much wedding stress. On the day of, it was really helpful to have the Events by Emily team checking in on us frequently. All of our vendors recommended by Emily were amazing!! We truly think our wedding was carried out flawlessly and was the perfect celebration of our love story. B & T

Fantastic experience: We used the full service package and I can confidently say that choosing Emily & Rebecca was the best decision we made during the entire wedding planning process. From beginning to end, they listened to all my worries, answered my endless questions, and kept me calm and focused. We live out of state, so their help was invaluable in identifying venues and vendors and basically planning everything while we weren't there. They know the BEST vendors, and it's clear how much the vendors love them and love working with them which makes me whole planning process and day of feel so much easier and seamless. While planning, I felt like I was never able to fully verbalize or even visualize what I wanted, but Emily took my endless ramblings and created the wedding of my dreams. She knew exactly the look and vibe I wanted even though I was often indecisive and bounced around from idea to idea. Aside from the incredible job both Emily and Rebecca did, they're both just really nice and fun to be around. I am sure the day of our wedding was stressful for them, but you would have never known. They were both such calming and steady presences for us throughout the day. Everything went off without a hitch and it's truly all thanks to them. They gave us one of the best days of our lives and I could not recommend them more. Hire them!

Fantastic experience: We used Emily's full service package for our wedding and it could not have been a better experience. I live out of state and work busy hours, and she was always flexible to either meet with me over Zoom or work with my parents in the area. Emily is extremely organized and always kept me on track. She was able to connect us with amazing vendor options and gave us her honest opinions. I came with a rough idea of what I wanted my wedding to be, and Emily was able to turn that into a full-fledged reality. She seemed to know what I really wanted even if I didn't say it! Everything went so smoothly the days leading up to and the day of; if there was anything that went wrong I certainly didn't know it!

Fantastic experience: We honestly can't say enough good things about Events by Emily and are so grateful to Emily and Rebecca for making our wedding so easy, fun, beautiful, and memorable. Emily listened to our hopes/dreams/concerns and manifested a wedding my [wedding-shy] husband called "the most fun contiguous 6 hours ever." She has amazing taste, is extremely organized, has connections with all the best vendors, and is super easy to get along with. I was a largely absentee bride during the planning process because of my work schedule and Emily did basically everything for me - I completely trusted her to get everything just right, and she did. She navigated all the usual last-minute additions and family personalities with total aplomb and made the wedding experience absolutely delightful for our (many) out of town guests. 15/10 would recommend and if we had to do it all over, we would do it with Events by Emily every single time.

Fantastic experience: We were married in October of last year and I can honestly say that without Emily & Rebecca's help, the day would not have been as incredible as it ended up being. (Not even close) From first contact all the way through to post-wedding, Emily was amazing to work with. She was the voice of reason when we had ideas that were obviously unrealistic, while simultaneously working all angles to make sure our wedding dreams came true. If you are reading this review because you are considering hiring Emily for you wedding or event, then just know that you would be making a huge mistake by not doing so. She is truly amazing at what she does and will make your event incredible and smooth. Thank you to Emily and Rebecca for everything :)

Fantastic experience: Rebecca Gonzalez from Events by Emily was my wedding planner, and she was amazing! So responsive and prompt. Given wedding planning can be such a stressful process, having her help with timeline, floor plans, logistics, coordination, and emotional support, I feel that she went above and beyond. I highly recommend her services.

Fantastic experience: Emily and Rebecca are incredible at what they do and as an added bonus, are fun to be around. Our wedding went off without a single hitch, many thanks to their guidance and meticulous organization. I never felt stressed the day of the wedding knowing I was in their very capable hands. We had an amazing time and LOVED working with Emily and Rebecca!

Fantastic experience: My husband and I hired Rebecca as our wedding coordinator and it was one of the best decisions we made in planning our wedding at Duke Gardens! We chose the event management package, and started working closely with Rebecca about six weeks before our wedding day. She quickly got up to speed with all our vendors, and worked with us to ensure that no detail was overlooked. Her calm, upbeat manner, professionalism, organization, and incredible attention to detail made her wonderful to work with. I fully expected to be very stressed out the week before our wedding day, but thanks to Rebecca I felt relaxed and could enjoy the anticipation knowing that everything was taken care of. On the day of our wedding she made sure everything was set up exactly how we planned it, and didn’t miss a single detail. She also did a beautiful job getting everyone in the wedding party to be where they needed to be and keeping everything on schedule. I can’t think of a single thing about our wedding that could have gone any better, and that is due in no small part to Rebecca and Events by Emily.

Fantastic experience: genuinely an amazing team - would recommend to anyone and everyone! We had such a great time at our wedding thanks to their help.

Fantastic experience: We got to work with Rebecca for our downtown Raleigh wedding as a month-of coordinator. She made those last few (hectic!) weeks easy for us. Easy to work with, highly responsive, professional, and truly loved being a part of our wedding! We would choose Events by Emily again if we had to do it all over.

Fantastic experience: Emily was easily the best decision we made in planning our wedding. We knew we needed the full service option because we would be overwhelmed with all the decisions and logistics. Emily made the planning process so easy that we never felt overwhelmed at all - even with rescheduling due to Covid! People kept asking us if we were feeling stressed with planning - especially after having to delay the wedding - and the answer was always: nope, Emily’s got it handled. Once we made a decision, she took care of the rest. In the planning phase, she laid out a detailed timeline and walked us through all major decisions so that we never had to worry that we were missing anything or falling behind. Her experience with local vendors made our decisions SO easy. Rather than researching a million options, we could just choose from a few quality vendors that Emily selected based on our price range and vision - and they were all fabulous! She also was not afraid to steer us away from ideas that weren’t aligned to our vision, and we knew we could trust her experience about what tends to work well and what doesn’t. In the execution phase, we essentially didn’t have to think about a thing. She took care of coordinating all logistics and made sure the day ran smoothly. We and our families were free to just enjoy it and know that everything was taken care of. No running around, no set up, no responsibilities - everything we needed was taken care of. We had a huge bridal party of people who are already married and/or have been in dozens of weddings, and they all said Emily was the best planner they’ve worked with. We could not recommend her highly enough. She’s an absolute lifesaver!!

Fantastic experience: Emily and her team were an invaluable asset throughout our wedding planning process and on the day of our big event. When initially evaluating wedding planners, we really appreciated the option for “partial wedding planning” that Events by Emily offered as we had already done some planning but still wanted support and coordination. It ended up being the perfect package for us! Emily provided exceptionally helpful suggestions at every step of the process – from vendors to design ideas, timelines, details, and more. She has great relationships with many of the vendors in the area which helped us put together a team that was aligned with our values and was able to beautifully execute our vision. Emily, Rebecca, and Erin seamlessly managed all of the moving pieces on the day of – including seemingly little things like making sure that we ate and that all our personal items made it out of the venue at the end of the night. Beyond that, Emily was truly a joy to work with. She quickly learned our style and aesthetic and helped us make decisions that aligned with those. She was incredibly organized and provided tools to keep us organized. She was a calming advisor as we navigated changes due to COVID-19 and eased our day-of jitters. She answered our endless questions and provided expertise from her many years in the industry. And, most importantly, she ensured we felt cared for and supported. We would absolutely recommend Emily and her team!

Fantastic experience: Bringing Emily and her team on board to plan our wedding kind of felt like cheating: wedding planning is supposed to create lots of stress and drama; Emily made it organized, chill, and fun. Like anything that is casually perfect, the simple, natural, low key elegant wedding we envisioned actually took great skill to execute. We don’t know the industry but imagine Emily is a bit of a unicorn: exceedingly organized, great taste, laid back, dry humor, and an uncanny ability to know what you need – materially, psychologically (!) – when you need it. It was the perfect wedding, and it wouldn’t have been possible without Emily.

Fantastic experience: Our venue required at least a day-of coordinator, and at first we begrudgingly hired one. However, after our wedding, there is absolutely no way we would ever consider doing it without the help of Events by Emily! For people looking to hire just a day-of coordinator, they truly went above and beyond. The reason we selected them is because they specifically stated that they view the day-of job as starting a month out, and that certainly rang true. We worked mostly with Rebecca, and not only was she extremely responsive, detail-oriented, and thoughtful, but we really feel like she was invested in the outcome of our wedding. Her and Emily have worked with so many Durham vendors, and so they both knew all the questions to ask to make sure we had planned everything, and took care of issues we hadn't even thought of. They made it so easy for us to focus on everything else. Both Rebecca and Emily were such a delight to work with, and we felt like we were in capable and caring hands both leading up to the event and during it. Some of our guests have said how smoothly the wedding ran, and that is very much thanks to the professionalism and quality Events by Emily brought to the table. We would hire them again in a heartbeat, and I hope anyone getting married in the Durham area considers doing the same!

Fantastic experience: Emily was amazing. She helped us actualize our vision for our son's Bar Mitzvah and it went off without a hitch. We wanted to make the night special with games and cotton candy and she found and coordinated the vendors. We could relax because we knew Emily was on top of everything. We can't thank her enough for helping us throw the best party with low stress. I highly recommend Events by Emily if you want to feel like a person is thinking of everything and coordinating it all so you can relax a bit. Thanks again, Emily for helping us make such amazing memories!!!!

Fantastic experience: Emily and colleague Rebecca are the dream team. They were super organized, knowledgeable about a variety of customs and traditions and - most of all - SO invested in all the work, planning, and care to help make our day really special. Even when they had to remind us a time or 3 to knock out tasks here and there We’re told that it’s uncommon for the bride and groom to actually enjoy the whole wedding - well we wouldn’t know because everything went perfectly!

Fantastic experience: We originally arranged to work with Events by Emily for our wedding in September 2020. Due to the pandemic, we had to postpone our celebration until August 2021. Emily was so accommodating with all the changes we were forced to make. Rebecca was an absolute pleasure to work with when planning the reception. Her kindness, flexibility, and positive attitude made the experience wonderful. 10/10 would recommend! Thanks for everything!

Fantastic experience: We hired Emily (and Rebecca!) for the month-of package and honestly don’t think we could have pulled off our wedding day without them. Our day was perfect and exactly what we had hoped for, all thanks to Emily and Rebecca’s attention to detail, thoughtfulness, foresight, and experience. Our wedding was non-traditional and Emily and Rebecca were so supportive in rolling with us to help us bring our creative vision to life. On our wedding day, we were able to relax and fully enjoy ourselves, knowing that every detail was attended to. Highly recommend!

Fantastic experience: If you are newly engaged and considering whether it is worth it to spend money on a wedding coordinator, stop thinking about it and do it! Better yet, book Events by Emily. Upon first meeting Emily, I immediately connected with her and knew that she would work tirelessly to make our wedding perfect. I was struck by her calming and relaxed nature. These personality traits carried through the COVID pandemic. She was always a phone call or text away to help me navigate the planning process. When the month of coordination actually started, she and her assistant Rebecca seamlessly picked up where I left off and brought our dreams into reality. I cannot adequately express what she and Rebecca mean to me. They are both so incredibly organized and structured. They ensured that we did everything we needed to do to make sure the wedding day went smoothly. This means a lot when planning a wedding during a global pandemic. Emily thought of everything to the last detail. She is truly the best in the area and invaluable. I cannot recommend her enough!

Fantastic experience: Working with Emily was a dream. We contacted Emily about 2 months ahead of our 15-person wedding and feel incredibly grateful to have had her help with planning and day-of coordination. She kept us on track without being pushy, was on top of every detail and made our day flawless and stress-free. All vendors who Emily recommended over-delivered. We whole-heartedly recommend Emily's planning and coordination services. She is a top-notch professional and genuinely kind person.

Fantastic experience: We contacted Emily about her month-of coordination services for our intimate wedding and could not be more thrilled with her work! Besides being professional (as others have mentioned), she is warm, funny, and relaxed…basically everything you would want in a coordinator. Planning a wedding from afar can certainly be stressful, especially during COVID, but Emily was amazing and truly helped alleviate that stress. We ended up having to postpone our original date and Emily was more than accommodating; she helped us contact all of the vendors and sort out a new date (for two months later) within 48 hours. Her attention to detail was fantastic—she asked us questions about various ceremony and reception elements that we had never even considered. We also really valued her organization skills, particularly with timelines, sharing design/reception setup ideas, and keeping us updated with the latest North Carolina restrictions on small gatherings. Additionally, it was comforting to know that she was in frequent communication with our vendors; we didn’t have to worry about anything “falling through the cracks”. Emily worked to ensure that our wedding was truly representative of us—nothing about it felt forced or unnatural in any way. Our families are still talking about how beautiful and seamless everything was, and we can’t stop reliving the day through photos! Lastly, we appreciated how much thought she put into the safety of us, our guests, and the vendors, including bringing extra masks, wipes, and creating the most elegant, socially-distanced reception setup. Thank you, Emily!

Fantastic experience: I'm a wedding photographer and while I haven't had that much opportunity to work with Emily, I know I want to work with her again and again. She is so focused and on top of all the details of the wedding day. She's a calming presence too, so if you think you might be anxious at your wedding, having Emily there to ease the stress is a must. She's also fun to be around, and as the other vendor who's at your wedding the whole day, I find that pretty important. I want to be able to enjoy the planner's company. If you're questioning whether you should even have a coordinator/planner, I can tell you that wedding days work without planners, but they are definitely more work and stress, and having someone as awesome as Emily on your team makes everything so much easier, so if you're on the fence, go for it. Hire Emily. She's worth it!

Fantastic experience: The best wedding decision we made, besides getting married, was hiring Emily as our full-service wedding planner. Full stop. We were planning a wedding in Durham, NC from a distance away and making vendor meetings was problematic. Emily designed an event that felt like us, without infinite vendor meetings. She is patient, detail-oriented, and an incredible resource. Emily pulled off a huge, fun and fancy, but unstuffy party. It's hard to walk the line between fancy and un-stuffy but Emily pulled it off! After a year of planning, the day-of was perfect, if there were any mishaps, we don't know them. We were able to sleep well every night, knowing Emily was in our corner.

Fantastic experience: Hire Emily for a Perfect Event! Emily was our "day-of" planner and she did a fabulous job! She is a perfect mix of sweetness and business and knows how to handle all kinds of people and situations. We are a same-sex couple, so she had double bride duty for our event! Emily went into action a few weeks before our wedding date and made sure all the vendors and details were in order. She scheduled meetings and calls with us beforehand to go over everything, including the littlest details and was so patient and reassuring. She coordinated our rehearsal and was able to wrangle our very large and diverse group without a single drop of sweat! Our wedding day was seamless and perfect. I've never felt more taken care of. We were blissfully unaware of any kinks or issues. She handled every step, ran interference when necessary, brought us drinks and dinner and perfectly oversaw the entire timeline. She managed to do all of this while simultaneously being inconspicuous, unassuming and non-intrusive. We can't recommend Emily enough. She's a solid, detail-oriented professional with an empathic and artistic side. In addition, she is completely accepting and LGBTQIA inclusive. She definitely should be at the top of your list of vendors for your event!

Fantastic experience: I had the pleasure of working alongside Emily at a wedding in New York last year. When she contacted me upon moving to Durham recently, I was so happy to hear from her. She is truly talented at what she does + I already can't wait to photograph more of her awesome events here in North Carolina. I'll be working alongside her this Fall in Hillsborough, and am looking forward to knowing that my clients will be in good hands!