Your Special Day Weddings and Special Events

Shawn, no words can express how wonderful you are. You are a true pro at what you do and Jerry and I couldn't have asked for a better wedding planner. So many of our guests said "wow, this is the smoothest wedding I've ever been to." Thank you for making things happen and our guests feel so welcomed and comfortable. You made everything come together with ease and we are forever grateful to you for such a fabulous wedding execution. Thank you!

Shawn Schindler, lead consultant for Your Special Day Weddings & Special Events executed a perfect fairy tale wedding on March 2, 2013. She is a true professional and any question I threw her way she was able to answer with a smile. Shawn and her assistant valued my personal wedding items & decor like it was their own and that was a big deal for my family and I. While we were enjoying the wedding she was making sure all of my personal belongings were packed up & put away. When it was time to leave everything was in place & not a single item was missing. Shawn has also built relationships with many other outstanding vendors. This will ensure you a flawless event.

In a word, Shawn was fabulous! I am a retired Army officer, I know how to plan and execute large operations. However, that being said I have never planned a wedding for my only daughter! Quite honestly, I did not expect the range on emotions during this process. It became apparent to me in January (the wedding was in June) that I needed some help planning the finer details. I did a Google search and fortunately for me I found Shawn. It was one review in particular that stuck me, basically a mom wrote that she enjoyed her daughter's wedding day because Shawn took care of everything. When we met Shawn the bridesmaid's gowns had not been ordered. Shawn looked at my daughter and said, "This concerns me, you must get them ordered immediately!" The dresses were ordered the next day! We went over the list of vendors that we had already selected and Shawn gave a thumbs up on each one, again we were lucky to have made some good selections. Shawn gave me a list of vendors for those items we hadn't selected, it was very helpful. The florist, Expressions of Love was great! Shawn met us to select the linens for the reception. We had made some selections before she arrived. She said, "Those look nice do you mind if I pull a couple other items?" She came back with some tablecloths I would never have selected, again the right choice. As we left my daughter said, "Mom, what would it have looked like if Shawn hadn't helped us?" I told her it would have looked fine, now it would look stunning! I anticipated that there might be an issue with my daughter's hair, so I arranged with Shawn the day before the wedding for a hair dresser to be at the house. When she came home from getting her hair done, she was in tears. A call to Shawn and the hair dresser arrived earlier at the house! When my daughter left the house her hair looked great! My husband and I arrived at the reception site The Cotton Room about 45 minutes prior to the start of the reception. When we walked in Shawn came up to us and walked us all around. I know it was a busy time for her, but she took the time. It was so nice to walk around and see all of the little touches, honestly one of the best memories of the day. I know this is a bit long, but you need to understand what a truly wonderful job Shawn did. The day of the wedding I did not worry about a thing, because I knew Shawn would deal with any and all issues that came along. Shawn in a true professional! If you are looking for a wedding or event planner, look no further, call Shawn, you will not be disappointed. My brother-in-law said, "I've been to 45 weddings, this was the best one ever!" It was because of Shawn that my daughter's wedding is such a wonderful memory!!!

Shawn and her team are excellent. As mother of the bride, I wanted to enjoy the whole wedding process and not be stressed out. Shawn guided us through everything. My daughter's wedding was beautiful and so much fun. We had so many people tell us it was the best wedding they had ever attended! I'm so thankful for Shawn because I got to celebrate with everyone and didn't have to worry because she made sure everything ran smoothly. Worth every penny!

Shawn and her team were fabulous! I am so glad that we had her to keep track. My wedding day and the months leading up to it were stress-free and very few Brides can say that. Her attention to detail and experience are priceless and helped to create a beautiful, unique and personal wedding that both my husband and I will never forget. My wedding was an absolute blast and I've had so many people comment on how great of a time they had at the wedding. Without Shawn there is no question my wedding would be entirely different, she steered me in the direction of other vendors (caterer, photographer, cakes, etc.) who suited our style perfectly and provided wonderful service. She offered advice on where you can save and where not to skimp. To any future bride you hire Shawn and her team so you don't have to remember the details and can get lost in the moment. Just as you hire a photographer so you can remember those details that you lost in the moment.

My name is Anna and I recently married my best friend on June 12, 2012. I thought it would be overwhelming to plan a wedding in North Carolina, since my fiance and I lived in Southwest Florida. I searched online for local wedding planners in Emerald Isle, where we were planning the event, but the planner I read wonderful reviews on wouldn't even return my phone calls! Shawn's website, Your Special Day, kept coming up in my search engine, so I decided to send an email request for more information. Was I surprised when I not only received a response, but Shawn Schindler herself personally called me to discuss details and budgeting! Shawn was able to design a wedding in my budget (which I never thought would be possible), that was much more than I could have imagined on my own! On top of that, she took time out of her busy schedule to travel from Raleigh to Emerald Isle (approx 3 hr trip) over Easter weekend to meet with my mother and I and in-laws to personally get an overview of the wedding site and all plans thus far! Shawn arrived to our wedding weekend with her assistant Leigh Ann (sorry for any spelling errors), and together they organized the mischevious groomsmen, kept a pregnant bridesmaid and ailing guests comfortable, AND dealt with a very stressed-out bride! I almost wish I could do the whole thing over again, that's how wonderful it was! If any of you have any questions or concerns about Shawn Schindler or her services, just ask any of the brides who used her. I'm sure they will tell you the same thing I am - Your Special Day was the best wedding decision I made (apart from choosing an amazing husband of course;))!

A wedding what stress. Mom of the bride in New York, bride and groom in North Carolina. I was beginning to think that non of us would enjoy the day. Then I made a decision, and it was one of the best decisions I had made. I hired YSD for the day of. What a relief, Emily and Dawn did an incredible job of making sure that everything was on track and most of all that the bride was happy. I wouldn' hesitate to recommend YSD for anyone's event. Thanks girls you did an incredible job.

All I need to say is - yes, Emily at YSD is incredible. In a high pressure scenario like a wedding you want someone who is nice yet effective - Emily and Amanda were both of those things. If you are looking to get a wedding planner and are on the fence about it, don't be. I highly recommend haveing one, at least for the month of the wedding. I don't how my wedding would have gone as smoothly and be as enjoyable for myself and my husband if we had had to worry about all the things the planners dealt with. Get a wedding planner! Get the ladies at Your Special Day in Raleigh!

Words can hardly describe the joy and amazing peace our family had throughout the planning process and on the day of our daughter's wedding. As a mother who was told by doctors she would not have children, let's just say the marriage of our only daughter was a VERY BIG DEAL. Shawn has been a family friend for many years, and we completely trusted her to help us plan and organize the most special and memorable wedding day. The wedding took place this past weekend, and I'd like to share three things that any bride-to-be may find helpful to know. 1. Not only did Shawn recommend vendors, help plan the ceremony, nail down details, flow, reception layout, etc., but she labored behind the scenes with all vendors to help us with pricing and ensure all contracts were honored on the day of - as we simply basked in the beauty of the moment and enjoyed the celebration with family and friends. 2. A friend at Bible study asked me how was the whole planning process, and how was the wedding. With a huge smile I told her the truth, "It was absolutely wonderful - start to finish!" She said I am the first person who has ever said that, but that most people found it to be a very stressful process. 3. (This one is the most important and meaningful.) Our daughter, just before she got into the car to leave with her new husband, turned to hug me and her dad good-bye. With deep emotion she said to us, "It was the most perfect day! Everything was even more perfect than I had hoped it would be! Thank you!" And yes, there were tears and big hugs, as well as big sighs of contentment and gratitude. Shawn and Michelle made our daughter's special day even more special and memorable. Many of our guests commented on the beauty of the venue (Portofino Estates in Clayton), how delicious the food was (Unforgettable Food Affairs) and what a magnificent wedding it was. I highly recommend Shawn and her staff at Your Special Day - if you want a smooth-flowing, joy-filled and truly special event!

I am the mother of the bride. My daughter and her now husband were engaged in April and decided that August was the best time for them to get married. That basically gave us 4 months to plan an out of town wedding !!! To say I was panicked was putting it mildly ! My daughter and I were beginning to do some preliminary planning ( she living in Raleigh and I in South Carolina). We went into a bridal store in Raleigh to look at dresses and I asked about wedding planners. I was given Shawn's card and told that she was the best ! My daughter was not too keen on having any outside help because she had a vision for her day and didn't want someone else to plan it !! After two days of wedding planning, on the third day, I called Shawn at 8:30 am. After apologizing profusely for calling so early, I told her my situation and that I needed help with a capital H ! I felt an immediate bond with her and though she was leaving to go out of town that morning, she took the time to go through the process with me and calmed me down and assured me that the task at hand was not the impossible thing I thought it was !! I hired Shawn for day of co-ordination, but along with that came all the phone calls we needed to get advice and direction. She gave us vendor recommendations and feedback. My daughter had the most beautiful wedding ever....it screamed her personality and wonderful taste. She and her groom made all the big decisions for their wedding day and reception. Shawn guided me through all the other details.......for which I am forever grateful. Two weeks before the wedding my daughter and I and Shawn and our caterer sat down together to finalize all the details. After the meeting my daughter told me how grateful she was that we had Shawn to help us. Shawn was the glue that held everything together for us. Although my daughters plan was gorgeous, Shawn was able to suggest the finishing touches that completed the plan ! The week of the wedding Shawn took over all the vendors and any coordination that was left to take of. We were able to relax and spend that time together as a family. The wedding day went so smoothly with Shawn and Michelle's calm and professional manner. My husband and I were able to relax and leave everything to them. It was truly a blessing for all of us to have the day and evening in their capable hands. We were able to be with our famliy and friends and enjoy the moment. Calling her that morning was one of the smartest moments of my life !!

We talked with several planners before meeting with Shawn. We knew almost immediately she was the planner for us. She is friendly and professional. She makes you feel like you are the only person in the world and caters to your every need. We had a guest list of over 300. Her staff handled all the rsvps and made our day the most memorable day ever. Words can't express how much we appreciate everything that Shawn and her staff did for us. They are the BEST!

Having never been involved with planning a wedding we had no idea where to even begin with the process when I got engaged. With both my mother and myself having very demanding full-time jobs, we knew we could not plan a large wedding on our own. When we met Shawn, we knew she would be the perfect person to help us and we couldn't have been more correct! With Shawn's help, everyday leading up to my wedding was stress-free and my wedding day was no different. Every detail of the ceremony and reception was orchestrated perfectly. No matter what services you budget for, your money will be well spent with any help you receive from Shawn and her team!

I cannot begin to express my gratitude to Shawn and the rest of Your Special Day. They were so nice and receptive and are able to tackle anything! I had a somewhat complicated wedding (the dinner was before the ceremony-meaning that the reception hall had to be flipped completely over in a 20 minute time span for 250 people!!!) and she pulled it off BEAUTIFULLY. My whole family, my husband's whole family are still amazed at how well she handled everything. I highly HIGHLY recommend!

Emily was amazing. We had the wedding in our backyard. Emily worked out all the logistics of having a ceremony and with in less than an hour reception set up for 170 people in the same spot. She kept everyone doing what they were suppose to in order for things to run smoothly. We wanted sparklers at the departure but had so many people leaving early that she set up in a 5 minute window a fake departure in order to get the pictures we wanted. Her helper Leigh Ann was amazing jumping in to change my daughters diaper so my dress would not get messed up. They truly did everything and more to give me the wedding of my dreams. Thank you Emily and Your Special Day.

I would like to recommend Your Special Day's service to my friends who gonna married! Shawn and her team are very professional and considerate. I am working with Emily in most time. She is very helpful to organize the whole thing and always keeps all vendors on the same page. On my wedding day, I brought a lot of luggage and had so many things to set up. Emily and Angela kept everything under control and the wedding was jsut moving forward at a good pace. Thank you for making my day perfect!

This was my second daughters wedding. I did not have a wedding planner for my first daughter and I can truly say hiring this company was the best choice I ever made. Shawn was wonderful to work with. She was always there for me when I needed anything. I was able to enjoy this wedding in a way that was not possibe for me at my first daugters wedding. Shawn was very personable and I felt like I had been knowing her for years. At the same time she was as professional as they come. Since my daughter lived in Washington DC, Shawn delt with me most of the time but never forgot that this was Shannon's wedding and not mine. She maintained contact with the bride and groom at all times and was sure to facilitate their vision as well as mine. That is not easy to times when haveing to work with our scenario. She helped me to find venders that could also make our vision a reality. By profession,I am an interior designer so I know all about taking a vision to reality. It is not always the easiest thing to do, but Shawn never missed a beat. When it was time to turn all the details over to Shawn, she made it very easy for me. I am not use to giving up control of situations but I had the upmost confidence in Shawn. I did not worry about a thing from that point on. A couple of times I tried to interfere at the reception and Shawn helped me to go back to having a good time and let her take care of the details. Since the wedding I have had many phone calls, letters and cards from people saying that Goldsboro has never seen a wedding or reception like ours and impressed they were with all the details and how easily they seemed to flow. Believe me its not easy to put to cultures together and make it look like they go together. Shawn was instramental in that indeavor. Since my husband and his family is from India it was imperative to brings aspects from his culture into the wedding and reception. I gave Shawn all the details that she would be working with from the decorations to Indians who are all great photographers and she made it work. Never once did I get frazzeled and for me that is a great accomplishment and I owe it all to God and Shawn. What a great time I and many others had and I would recommend Your Special Day Weddings to anyone!!

There aren't enough words to describe how invaluable Shawn and Your Special Day were to us during the planning of our wedding. At the time I lived in New York, my fiancé lived in Ohio, and we were planning a wedding in Raleigh, North Carolina! Just the thought of planning this day was very overwhelming. As we began the interview process to find a wedding planner we found Shawn's website and decided to give her a call. From the first phone call, my husband and I really connected with Shawn! I shared my theme and ideas with her and she immediately went into "plan mode!" She was able to understand my vision and make our dream wedding a reality! Whenever we needed to fly down for some "power planning," Shawn made sure everything was organized and that all of our questions were answered! She introduced us to great vendors that were able to work around our hectic schedules! She stayed on top of everything...allowing us to focus on other important things! The day of our wedding was an absolute dream! When we walked into our reception room...we were speechless! Everything was perfect down to the tiniest detail! We started on time and everything ran incredibly smoothly! My parents were able to enjoy the day with me instead of running around. Having my family near made the day that much more enjoyable! My mom tells all of her friends "I didn't have to do anything, except be there for my daughter!" Our guests are still talking about how much fun they had at our wedding! We know that it would not have been possible without the hard work and dedication of Shawn and her team! Thank You Shawn and we can't wait to work with you again when we renew our vows...in 10 years (smile)!

I don't know how we can put into words what a blessing it was to have Your Special Day and Shawn help us plan our wedding! We are a military family stationed in Europe and were a bit worried at the thought of planning a wedding in NC from Europe! Shawn was amazing - she is truly a professional and an expert at what she does. She thinks of things that we would have never thought about and reminded us to do things that the blogs/websites will not tell you to do. She was ALWAYS available and easy to reach - even from Europe! She responded to our emails and kept us in the loop through the entire process - her goal was always to make our vision a reality and she truly succeeded. We could not have pulled it off without her, and knowing that she was there with her team on our big day removed so much stress that we did not need! A wedding is stressful for the bride and groom no matter what, but there are little details and hiccups along the way that you should not have to stress over - Shawn makes this happen! We have not only found an awesome event planner through this experience, but I do think we have found a friend. I would recommend (and already have) that anyone I know, regardless of budget and extent of help needed, contact Shawn first. She will put you at ease and offer great ideas no matter what you are looking to spend for your wedding! She is connected in the area, has a wealth of resources, and gets the job done! We love her and you will too. Thanks Shawn :)

Shawn and Your Special Day Weddings and Special Events were wonderful. My family and I didn't have to worry about a thing. Our wedding day was absolutely perfect thanks to Shawn! Hiring Shawn and her team was one of the best decisions I made!

My husband and I were married in May and everything was perfect. I had always thought that I would be able to do all the planning by myself. Right after we were engaged we went to one of the bridal shows, which can be pretty overwhelming. There was a girl (Kristen Trexler) who seemed genuinely interested in us and who wasn't trying to oversell the business. After speaking with her for a few minutes and finding out that they offer wedding weekend services, I decided that maybe I could use some help. Unfortunately Kristen wasn't able to assist Shawn with our wedding. Thankfully, another assistant (Emily) was just as helpful the weekend of the wedding. It was great that we didn't always have to get together, but that we could just touch base once in a while to know where everything stood. The week before the wedding, I turned over everything we had and all of our vendor contracts to Shawn and she took it from there. Everything was taken care of by Shawn and Emily. My family, who wasn't real crazy at first about using a planner, told us after the wedding how smart we were to have used Shawn because they were free to have a good time and not worry about anything. Thanks for everything!! If you need some help planning your wedding and you'd like someone real and down to earth, consider Your Special Day.