Hiring Kolena (for full wedding planning and design) was the first and best decision I made after I got engaged, and I could not recommend her more! I'm very type-A, so when I was initially interviewing wedding planners I wondered if I really needed a full planner/if it was worth the money, but after my first call with Kolena those thoughts evaporated--she is truly such a pro and hiring her was worth every penny!! And in retrospect, I could NEVER have done this myself, period.
Truly, from day one she was a wealth of knowledge, providing invaluable expertise and advice as she guided us through the daunting and expensive process that is wedding planning in Washington, DC. From touring venues, to generating a realistic budget for us (and then continuously working to ensure we stayed as close as possible to that budget), to coordinating with our vendors and creating the timeline, to taking diligent notes at the catering tasting, and helping us plan the rehearsal dinner, she was amazing. Kolena is experienced, professional, detail-oriented, personable, organized, well-connected in the DC metropolitan area, and has an incredible eye for design. I leaned on her a lot for guidance and opinions regarding the design portion of planning (e.g., the reception tables and floral design, as that is not my skillset), and I could not have been more thrilled with what she created--she brought my dream wedding to life.
She is super responsive to emails and messages, and was so accommodating in meeting us virtually/via phone and after 5:30 PM on work days. Also, she used AislePlanner as her planning platform, which I loved; the site allowed us to collaborate, provided me with very user-friendly tools for vendor info, RSVP tracking, creating the seating chart, etc., and her site was generally just a wonderful resource full of helpful lists and information. Other vendors remarked on how organized and on top of things she was, and many guests (of varying ages) remarked it was the best wedding they had ever attended. And while this wasn't the reason I hired her, she also was such a calming presence on the day-of.
Kolena was an indispensable part of our wedding. Because of her and her team, my family, my fiance, and I were all able to be stress-free and fully enjoy the week leading up to my wedding and the whole wedding weekend. Our wedding was a magical and flawless day, and I cannot thank the Blue Sapphire Events team enough. We loved working with Kolena!

Kolena was an expert in planning our wedding and made our multi-day celebration absolutely enjoyable and seamless. She was attentive to our vision, easily accessible through emails and video call, and experienced in choosing dependable vendors from the Baltimore/DC area. She helped us to design our beautiful ceremony and reception layouts and all of the table settings. We looked at many different vendors and really appreciated that she had worked well with young professionals who work full time. She was accommodating and able to meet with us after 5 or 6PM during the work week and she also participated with us on vendor calls to offer her insight. She was excited to help us plan a mixed Pakistani-Chinese-American wedding with unique cultural practices. We are so grateful to have hired her and we encourage others to do the same before she's all booked out!

Kolena is simply the best in the business for northern Virginia and DC weddings! We found her through a recommendation from our caterer, and after meeting her, we knew there was no turning back. She is extremely organized and knowledgeable about vendors, rentals, venues, and even has relationships with staff across many vendor categories in the area. She and her assistant, Nikki supported us with partial planning and design. They helped us navigate difficult decisions around budget and took all of the stress away when we had to order heaters 3 days before the wedding due to drastic changes in the forecast. A member of our bridal party uses a wheelchair and they coordinated thoroughly with the venue and made us feel comfortable about accessibility for all of our guests.

Nikki helped us deal with a guest who was seated at the wrong table in the middle of the reception discreetly and swiftly. Her assistant even helped our grandparents get up and down a long flight of stairs, which is far beyond the expectations of her role and made us smile.

We could go on and on… in summary, everything went off without a hitch, and we could not have done it without them. If you want to enjoy your day stress free, hire them!!
-Danielle and Brendan