Simply Elegant Weddings

Susan Smith is extremely professional, knowledgable and fun to work with. She served as my wedding planner and coordinated the day-of logistics. Throughout the year-long process, she consistently offered sound advice as she helped guide my mom and I through the many decisions that come with planning a wedding. She introduced us to wonderful vendors and always put our best interests first. I could not recommend her more and I'm really going to miss just having her around to bounce ideas off of.

My husband and I would have been lost without Simply Elegant Weddings to help plan our wedding this past weekend (August 20, 2011). Susan and her team are absolutely fabulous, and thanks to them we were able to enjoy the entire wedding day without having to stress or worry about anything. From saving us tons of money by working with our vendors to fixing a rip in my wedding dress right before the reception, I could not have done it without Simply Elegant Weddings. Thanks Susan and team for everything!

We would highly recommend Susan for any wedding planning needs. We used Susan as a day of coordinator but that extended into so much more. She started calming our nerves about a month before when we met to tell her our vision. She got it immediately and offered great expertise on the final touches we needed help with. The week of Susan checked in with us and reconfirmed with all of our vendors, which took a lot of weight off our shoulders. She even came by to pick up items that she was going to set up the day of the wedding so we didn’t have to worry about bringing them the day of. The actual rehearsal and wedding ran perfectly thanks to Susan. We tend to be an anxious couple and family so we really weren’t sure how much we would be able to enjoy both events but ALL of us did because of the fabulous job Susan did. During the wedding we were not aware of time at all, Susan would calmly come over to us and let us know when and where to be for the cake cutting, first dance, etc. Susan exceeded our expectations throughout the night, examples include: steaming the bridesmaids dresses last minute, helping fix the brides dress when the groom stepped on it, and making sure every piece of the night ran smoothly for the bride, groom, and family. We can’t thank her enough for making our special night so perfect!

Since we lived in Wyoming and our wedding was in Virginia, it was important to us to have a wedding planner - my mom felt that if we didn't, and she had to make the important decisions for us, we might have felt that it was not "our wedding." With Susan's help, it was "totally our wedding!" Susan initially met with us to help us envision what we wanted our wedding to be; she helped us with our budget, and not only recommended vendors, but arranged for them to meet us when we were in town. Every recommendation she made was perfect for us. She kept us informed and up-to-date throughout the whole year, we never had to worry that we forgot something. My mom loved working with her as well! The week of the wedding was so stress-free, as Susan had contact with all of our vendors; she was with us at the rehearsal, so we knew exactly how the ceremony would go (again, no stress). The day of our wedding, she was at the hotel (where we were all getting ready) and made sure we were in the limo on time, and then at the church, making sure everything went as planned. At the reception, Susan took all of the responsibility from us, made sure we did everything we planned to do, and everything went according to the timeline she had set up - everything went so smoothly, and we had the best day of our lives! My parents feel that Susan saved them far more money than her fee, and we all feel that having Susan as our wedding planner was the best decision we made, (except getting married, of course!) and her help was truly priceless!!!

Without the slightest air of exaggeration, I can safely say that Susan was one of the most important elements of our wedding, and certainly the most worthwhile investment. Couples always think about food, wine, music, etc., but rarely anticipate how much of their time and energy on the wedding day will be expended on syncing all of these together, and ultimately end up missing out on most of their celebration. For us, Susan took this tremendous weight off our shoulders, and maximized our ability to participate. Both hidden away and ever-present, Susan's planning/coordinating experience is world-class.The term "day-of coordinator" is a misnomer, because, a few weeks out from our wedding, Susan took the reigns. Not only did she confirm the participation of all our vendors, but also guided us through the details that we would never have thought to consider, but together made a huge impact on the flow of the wedding day. And her participation did not stop at the conclusion of the reception, but rather continued weeks beyond as we tied off the remaining loose ends.Before my wedding, I was a skeptic. But my advice going forward, to any couple considering a day-of coordinator, is you're spending your time and money on one of the most important days of your life. Make sure you do what you can to enjoy it, and that includes involving Susan.

Hiring Susan was the best thing I could have ever done. I hired her as the "Day of Coordinator" but she was so much more. I warned her of my tendency to procrastinate and she called me and emailed me during the entire year of my engagement just to see how I was doing and how the planning was coming along. A few months before the wedding we would talk more and she would answer my questions on etiquette and give me advice on anything that was on my mind. She was always prompt with her responses and made sure that I had all the information I needed. She would also answer the constant emails my Mom would send her with her concerns and questions, of which there were many.She would meet with me at any location I wanted and as often as I needed, which was a huge help since I was going back and forth from Waynesboro, VA to Bowie, MD and Upper Marlboro, MD where the wedding was held .A Three and a half hour drive one way. Her flexibility was a huge help to me and relieved me of a lot of stress.She attended my reception the day before the wedding, at the last minute in MD and artfully directed my wedding party, which was not an easy task. She even came up with a great seating plan for the ceremony where my deaf and hard of hearing guests would have a clear view of the interpreter. She reviewed all my paperwork with me and double checked with vendors over the phone to make sure what we wanted and payed for would happen.The morning of the wedding she sent me a text to see how I was and I told her I was really nervous. She responded with "Take a deep breath and when the ceremony is over you will feel a lot better". And she was right. Everything went so smoothly that my wedding was truly about my Husband and I. The guests enjoyed themselves and more importantly my husband and I enjoyed our night with no interruptions from vendors or any staff workers.She dealt with last minute changes with ease and a lot of things she took care of without me even knowing what happened until afterwards. I have often told people when asked how my wedding day was that, "It was perfect and even when things didn't go as originally planned, it still was perfect". I know I can only say that because of Susan and the great job she did.

Susan was by far the best money spent for my wedding day. I hired her as the Day of Coordinator. But she was more than just the day. We met a few times, talked several times on the phone, numerous emails, just to make sure everything was in line the way I wanted. She was on top of everything. She made me realize things that I didn't even think about or would've overlooked. When it came closer to the wedding, I didn't have to verify or confirm vendors. Susan did that for me. She made sure contracts were in line, times were confirmed, etc. She took that headache away from me.And when it actually came down to my wedding, everything was perfect. I had the time of my life, no worries, carefree, enjoying my new husband, the guest, the food, enjoying everything. Which made me realize, Susan made that all happen. She made me be able to enjoy my day. I didn't have to worry about is the cake here, will the flowers arrive on time, are the tables set up right, what happens if it rains, when do I walk in, what time was the toast and cake cutting....and so on. None of these came thru my mind cause I had Susan. She made sure everything went smoothly and on time. Love, love, love her!

Susan Smith is worth every penny. That was what my friend had to say about her when she referred me to Simply Elegant Weddings by Susan. From start to finish Susan proved my friend right. We contracted her as a day of coordinator and it was the best decision. Susan really worked around our schedules and helped us immensely to pull together all the details. And kept us sane when we were faced with challenges. Susan and her assistant really helped make our wedding spectacular and gave us the piece of mind to enjoy the day. Thank you Susan!

Susan was simply outstanding. If you don’t want to worry about a thing on the day of your wedding, and if you want to be in good hands, then hire Susan. It’s as simple as that. We hired her to be our day-of wedding coordinator, but she was much more than that. She reached out to us months before our wedding so she understood our vision and what we wanted out of the big day. She recommended vendors for us and put us in touch with some folks we were having trouble reaching. She had several recommendations as to how we could achieve our vision, and frankly, all of them were spot on.We met with Susan several times before our wedding, and each time she was incredibly prepared and detailed. She was thorough on the follow-ups, and we never once worried about anything not running smoothly on the day of the wedding – that’s what Susan was for. She has managed a ton of these things and is prepared for any and every possible scenario that could go wrong, and if it does (it didn’t for us!), she will shield you from it so you can enjoy your day.Our entire wedding weekend was perfect. Susan oversaw the ENTIRE setup of our venue and made sure things were where they needed to be. She stayed until early in the morning to make sure that everything was cleaned up and returned to us. Susan took care of all the little things that we didn’t know existed, and were thrilled she could be a part of our big day. We relaxed, had fun, and enjoyed the weekend because Susan was behind the scenes making sure that everything fell into place. I can’t say enough positive things about her and her staff.

I can't say enough about Simply Elegant Weddings! Susan was amazing and great to work with. She was professional, flexible, detail-oriented and highly organized. She was also just a wonderful person and very easy to work with. She was patient and willing to go the extra mile to ensure my husband and I had a fabulous wedding! She reassured us and made sure we were satisfied with each and every vendor. She even followed up on an issue after the wedding with our venue. We highly recommend Susan!

Hiring Susan was the best decision we made in planning the wedding! We hired her for "day of" planning but she spent hours meeting with us before the wedding to make sure she understood our wishes and to help us make decisions about important details. She had great suggestions we had not thought of that contributed to making it a very beautiful and memorable day! On the day of the wedding she helped make sure everything ran smoothly and according to our plans. She was thoughtful, considerate, and very professional, and she helped my whole family enjoy a stress-free day. She was a pleasure to work with, and I give her my highest recommendation!

On a scale of 5.0 Susan Smith is a 10.0 We used Susan as the coordinator for the day but she was not the type of person who shows up on the day of and then try to get it all together. We met with her and she listened to what was the vision for the day and constantly called to find out how we were progressing with our plans etc. She has all the solutions to any wedding problems that you have and will make sure that your money is spent on the important aspects of the wedding.On the day of the event she was the angel - we had a problem with a lack of performance from the caterer and she was the person who literally "grew" the multiple hands and was running back and forth to make sure that the event ran smoothly and that it was a stress free day for the bride. I am a detailed person and Susan rose to every challenge and really was a God-sent to us. If you want value for you money then Susan is your person; if you want a stress free wedding day then Susan is the person; if you want a wedding planner/coordinator who will do whatever to make your day the most important day of your life then Susan Smith is the person to that make your day the most memorable day of your life.

Susan was extremely knowledgeable, effecient and a pleasure to work with. She is obviously very experienced at planning weddings. This was evident by her many great suggestions. She made the night that much more special for me, my husband and my family. I highly recommend using her for your wedding!

We cannot emphasize enough how highly we recommend Susan Smith. She is a FANTASTIC wedding planner and a dynamic woman whom we feel very blessed to have had helped us navigate the entire wedding process, from beginning to end. We hired Susan roughly one month after we got engaged, and now – one month after our wedding – we can wholeheartedly say that hiring Susan was the best decision we could have made in order to make our wedding the beautiful, fun, memorable and stress-free event we had always dreamed it would be. Even at our first meeting, we instantly clicked. Exuding confidence, competence and class, we immediately knew that Susan was the right person for the job. Always a consummate professional – no doubt one of the best in her field – Susan never failed to bring these same qualities into her work, always keeping us on track, answering any and all of our questions (big and small), and helping us bring our ideas to life with her vast knowledge of all-things wedding and her relationships with great vendors across the DC-metro area. We think it is important to emphasize here that Susan has a knack for understanding people and their visions, and given this quality, we had complete confidence in her advice and decisions every step of the way. Our wedding day could not have run smoother, and we know that we have Susan to thank for this. Finally, not only was Susan our advocate and confidante through the entire wedding planning process (providing the unparalleled support and attention to detail we were looking for in a planner), but in the year and a half that we have known her, we have also come to appreciate her as a genuine friend. If you are looking for an extraordinary wedding planner who will help you make your special day amazing, you should definitely contact Susan Smith.

I would recommend Susan to anyone planning a wedding. We used her services for the last couple of months and her help and advice made all the difference. She is the icing on the cake ( no pun intended!) I was planning this wedding for my daughter from Atlanta. How many plane rides does it take to realize that having a professional on the home team is a winning ticket? Susan met with the major vendors to make sure all of the details were in order; she met with the bride (my daughter) to discuss her needs and calm her nerves; she even drove way out for the last wedding gown fitting to be sure she knew all the details of her dress-for bustling. I called her countless times over the smallest thing-it helped to talk with someone who knows what the heck is going on. Her advice was honest and soooooo helpful.Susan also works well with other vendors. The private club we used for the reception has added her to their top 2 referral list for members. I have had family and friends comment on how professional and helpful she was to everyone. Susan stepped in at the Church and handled what the altar guild ladies should have done!! I was so relieved-this is above the contract -she took care of everything that needed to be done. Her work ethic is superior. Now if I could just get her to Lexington Kentucky where my son is getting married in April!!Last point but an important one: Susan answers her phone!! I tried 5 wedding planners in DC when i started my search-All had the 5 stars -well the other 4 went to 1 star in my book-they didn't bother answering or returning my phone calls. Need I say more???

Susan was a true gift! She was kind, sweet and understanding! She is amazing under pressure and we couldn't have done it all without her!!!!!! THANK YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Susan Smith of Simply Elegant Weddings is professional, organized, considerate, supportive, and made my wedding day more seamless and enjoyable than I could have ever dreamed. I was trying to plan a DC wedding while taking the Bar Exam and moving to NYC to begin my career as a lawyer. I first called Susan in a panic the Saturday before I flew out to take the New York bar exam (when I realized that I could not do the whole planning thing without help). She returned my call bright and early Monday morning before my flight and from that point consistently impressed me with her willingness and ability to make the wedding planning process fun and enjoyable despite my crazy schedule. She was able to arrange for me to meet with vendors on weekends so that I would be able to balance work with trips back to DC. She was extremely accommodating and made our weekend wedding planning excursions some of the most enjoyable parts of preparing for the wedding. The vendors that she recommended were top-notch and absolutely wonderful to work with. I felt that Susan truly built a team of vendors that were excited to help make my wedding everything I envisioned and more. And, I cannot say enough about the value of Susan's services on the day-of. The wedding day goes by in a complete flash, and because of Susan, I was able to soak in every minute without worrying about one detail. All of our guests were from out of town and she was able to coordinate transportation between the ceremony and reception venues as well as pace the events of the evening with graceful precision. Our guests raved about how effortless she made the day for all of them -- no one had to be concerned about the "when, where, or how" of the event.My husband and I greatly valued Susan's insight throughout the entire wedding planning process. She was extremely responsive to our needs and a pleasure to work with. Hiring Susan was simply the best choice we made. We would not have had the beautiful, elegant, and incredibly fun wedding that we did without her. We cannot recommend Susan highly enough to future brides and grooms.

Hiring Susan was possibly the best decision I made while planning my wedding. I used her and her vendors for flowers, catering, and transportation, plus Day-Of coordination. She very quickly learned what I was looking for in look and feel of a wedding, and she understood when I told her I just didn't care! She made me laugh and it genuinely felt like someone cared as much about the wedding as I did (and that's saying a lot)!As for Day-Of coordination, let me tell you a story. My mother became ill shortly before the wedding ceremony and only managed to sit through the ceremony itself before having to go back to the hotel and lie down for the rest of the evening. This left everything else to my loving father, who, while an excellent man, didn't know any of the details about the reception. Susan was amazing and she handled it like a pro. People were complimenting my father at the end of the night, telling him what an amazing job he did, but the truth is -- Susan was amazing! She kept the whole evening flowing, she gave great direction, and it was easy for us to enjoy the night.If I knew anyone looking for a wedding coordinator, I would immediately recommend Susan. She was worth every penny and then some. And she's an absolute delight to work with.

Susan was simply the best! My husband and I adore her. We wouldn't be able to pull off our wedding without her help. The wedding went very smoothly and very nicely. We got a lot of compliments on how beautiful the wedding was. Our only regret was not having her involved with the tea ceremony, she would have made the day better. She was my go to gal, every time a problem arise, calling her is the first step of the problem getting solved. She made my ideas come into play and made it even better. She helped me make the wedding of my dreams come into reality...it was simply elegant!

The wedding planner I had was VERY professional and understanding of what I wanted and not wanted.