Reviews of AWE - Gulf Island Wedding + Event Planning (Event Planner)

George Grose

Angie planned and officiated our intimate fall wedding on Galiano Island. From our first meeting with Angie we knew she was the perfect person to run our special day. She has a great warmth that immediately puts you at ease and she's assembled a top class team around her. Our cake was delicious, my wife was thrilled with her flowers and the photographer made us so comfortable being in front of the camera. Leading up to the wedding we had a video call with Angie to run over particulars and then everything was managed by two main google documents, these proved a great resource and method of communication whenever we were unsure of something. We highly recommend other couples use AAWE for the best experience on their wedding day!

Chris Matthew

We met Angie for the first time when visiting our wedding venue at Bodega Ridge on Galiano Island. She was welcoming and informative, listening to what was important to us, commenting on what would work well, and offering gentle suggestions on how we could improve our wedding weekend. We quickly concluded that she would be a valuable ally to have advising us, and decided to engage her for AAWE’s Wedding Month Management services. That was one of the best decisions we made for our wedding. Angie was always a calming presence, handling our questions and requests with patience and empathy. We had a few phone consultations and plenty of emails back and forth, all of which led to us making informed choices and being well-prepared in the weeks and months leading up to our wedding date. She created a day-of schedule, kept that schedule on track, led our rehearsal, coached our officiant/MC, and kept everything running smoothly with our vendors, music cues, seating arrangements, etc. There are a thousand little things to take care of on the wedding day itself, and we’re so thankful to have had Angie taking the lead on all of that, keeping any logistical stress far away from us and our guests. We were able to relax and have an amazing time because she had earned our trust so fully. One standout moment was when my now-wife (!) and I got back from taking wedding party photos after the ceremony, and Angie met us just outside the venue with a plate of canapés that she had reserved just for the two of us. She anticipated that we wouldn’t have eaten much, and that this was a moment we could catch our breath and have a few bites. I asked her how she was doing and if she was stressed, to which she replied with a smile, “Are you kidding? I love this.”

Kris Alexander

Angie… Where do I even begin to thank you. From our very first meeting you were attentive, patient, excited and organized. I couldn’t have imagined a better experience. You were the only wedding trade that I chose without the mutual consultation, so thank you for making me look so good! After a conversation on the phone with Angie I felt so comfortable leaving her in charge of organizing our special day, as those that know me can attest, I hate giving up control and I like plan. Angie gave us the flexibility to do the things we wanted to do and was there to take it to the finish line. The number of things that you never even think of and all the little details is where Angie proved her worth 10x times over, and not only would handle them, but would exceed our expectations on what we ever could’ve imagined possible with the budget that we outlined for her. We chose to have a wedding on our own property, which was 5 acres of bare land on Galiano, when most people thought we were crazy, Angie was driven and so excited to turn our dream into reality, without someone staying on top of the details our day wouldn’t have been half of what it was. From the seat planning software, to the custom wedding checklist, to the portal for communications, budgets, invoicing and photos it made the process clear and allowed us to focus on the bid picture without getting bogged down by all the details. Now to the day of the wedding, Angie and her team (which includes her husband Mark who equals Angie’s amazingness) took care of everything to allow my Wife and I to enjoy the days leading up the wedding and not get caught up in the wedding craziness. Angie and her team were at the wedding all day however, had an amazing ability to not be seen. I have summed our experience up with Angie into one main thing that let me relax and enjoy this process not all get to enjoy. Whenever we met our chatted it was always referred to by Angie as “our” wedding, and I truly felt Angie was going to walk down the aisle with us as a tri-pod. To not have the feeling of well its your wedding, you choose was so refreshing, and we couldn’t have had a better experience. Angie, from the bottom of Ali & My heart, thank you for the incredible love, effort, and energy you brought to our special day, and I can’t wait for more Aperol Spritz with you and rounds of golf with Mark. I feel honoured that through your incredible work I have a wife and a new set of friends with you and Mark. Love, Kris & Ali.

Geneviève Lalonde

Aawe made our dreams come true. We wanted a small but special wedding and we couldn't have asked for better. Angie is extremely organized, responsive and ensures that all the details you might forget are taken care of. A genuine, kind person Angie is the friend, wedding planner, officiant you are looking for. We had our wedding at Bodega and things went so smoothly. Thank you Angie for helping us and knowing that we needed even when we didn't know what we were doing. All of your suggestions were perfect and made our wedding day that much more special. <3 Gen & John

Kristie McCann

We are so glad we had Angie's help. She was flexible (helpful in a pandemic) and thought of the details we hadn't. She had absolutely spectacular suggestion for our ceremony location as well! Highly recommend.

Irma Cehic

We were planning a small wedding with family and friends who'd be coming from near and far, so we wanted to keep our focus on spending that precious time with them rather than worrying about the details leading up to the day and on the wedding day itself. Planning a wedding is busy already, but during a pandemic, it just added a whole other level of worry and stress. So between that, and our aformentioned intentions, we were already sold on the idea of getting wedding planning/coordination support. However, when we booked our venue (Bodega Ridge) we learned their venue's Wedding Coordinator (Angie) also did wedding planning/coordinating so we thought it'd be an easy fit and offer smoother planning experience. We also had a very good gut feeling about Angie because she was calm and easy-going upon first meeting, and we needed her energy for worry-warts like us! After hiring her services, we quickly learned she is dependable, professional, an excellent and detail orinted communicator. She literally responded to EVERY email we sent within a timely/reasonable timeframe. She kept us on track about the important details, & helped answer any question (and if she didn't have an answer, because - covid, she made no false promises). When we felt stuck about certain decision points, she gently directed us to sorting out and learning what was important to us, and what we wanted, to help us feel good about whatever decision we were making. The online collaborative platform she got us using early on was a great tool. It offered lots of cues, checklists, budget supports, design spaces, etc., and ways to stay organized as long as a year out. She made sure we had all that we needed to do in advance so we could truly enjoy the wedding week at our venue. On the day of, she did the decoration set up and take down (including offering to do little details for us like harvesting rosemary sprigs to put onto our Reception dinner set up!), ensuring our Spotify music was lined up, and was awesome at keeping things move along the schedule even when we were swept away into the moment and needed extra time before moving onto the point in the day. She was flexible in adjusting any pre-scheduled meetings, and often went above and beyond to work with us. Angie also officiated our wedding, and we were so pleased! She threaded in personal touches, offered ideas and suggestions to make sure it was true to our style and ways of being. Angie's services were worth every penny and so glad we had her on board to keep the lead up and wedding week as stress free as possible, fun, safe (again, covid!) and memorable!

Lauren Oreck

Where to even begin with this incredible person?! We worked with Angie for a year leading up to our big day. She felt like family since day one and I can whole heatedly say she became family by wedding day. Angie executed our 3 day wedding weekend full of seamless and custom events for 140 people! She is calm, communicative, and responsive beyond measure. Working with Angie was a huge enhancement to our wedding year and the planning process. I will gladly provide additional details to any future clients about my experience working with her. Angie - you are a true gem. Thank you from the bottom of our hearts for creating the wedding and weekend of our dreams. All the best! Lauren and Mitch

Jarrett McKenna

We had an extremely positive experience working with AAWE to coordinate and plan our wedding. Absolutely worthwhile. Angie was able to keep us on track in our planning process through several meetings in the months before the event. She was always quick to reply to emails and made time available for calls whenever we needed them. She provided us with a great web portal for consolidating our scattered plans and became an essential contributor to our strategizing and documentation. Her tools, experience, preparedness, and kindness really made those weeks before the wedding manageable and tolerable. We felt supported and accommodated throughout the whole process. Angie made sure that our questions were answered and that our plans were well thought through. She worked closely with the venue to ensure our requests (even the strange ones) were honoured. I felt strongly that Angie was intent on helping us realize our vision, whatever it may have been. She was also an essential asset at the event - perfectly coordinating our guests, speakers, vendors, and venue so that we could enjoy the day without worry. I felt as relaxed as I expect any person could hope to be on their wedding day and I really credit that to Angie. We’re very grateful to have had Angie and the AAWE team to help us pull off our wedding. I expect to be recommending them for the rest of my life.

Ellen Bogoch

Angie! You gave my daughter and son in law the story book wedding weekend of their dreams, and therefore ours as well!!! We first contacted Angie Allen from Angie Allen Wedding and Events (who has partnered with Bodgea Ridge on Galiano Island) about a year ago. After traveling to Galiano Island to meet Angie as well as the owner of Bodega Ridge Jesse we felt relaxed and very sure of our decision to have Angie and Bodega Ridge host our wedding weekend. There was never a doubt about hiring Angie for full wedding planning. The costs of her services are invaluable and she shows her worth in every call, and all her hard work behind the scene. She lives in the area, and therefore her knowledge of the Island, the local vendors, and accommodation for our guests was very important. By nature Angie is thoughtful, kind and patient!!! We were in communication with Angie regularly for about a year. Never ending phone calls and video chats! She is a brilliant listener, heard my daughter’s vision, and turned her/our dream into reality. There are million little things that we would not have thought of but Angie took care of everything. From our custom wedding invitation suite, and website, Angie tracked all our 140 ish guests and send timely emails to remind everyone of Ferry Bookings, accommodations and special events we had over the weekend. Her thoughtful and informative emails to our guests were so appreciated. She was on top of every detail, with special seating and design software, our personal portal for communication, and budget tracking, vendor lists, custom timelines and more. We asked for much, and Angie never doubted anything we wanted to do. It was always “Yes I can make that happen!" Her team looked after every detail and we were able to enjoy the year in planning with no stress!!!!! She spent hours helping us put together our gift bags and then hours delivering them to all our guests accommodation! She came to Vancouver to help us pick silk for our chuppah and benches. Sourced and organized incredible local chocolates from Urge Chocolates. Another trip to Vancouver to pick up all our rentals! She communicated with all vendors to ensure they understood our vision - which they did perfectly! We had organized picnics, breakfasts, a challenging French Bistro dinner with custom requests, many things in-between and of course our beautiful wedding day and dinner. Angie and her team executed all seamlessly. Our wedding day was relaxing and calm thanks to Angie’s careful and detailed preparation, as well as her custom timeline which kept us all on schedule. She worked tirelessly with our Photographer, Videographer, Band, Dj, Florists, and Hair and Makeup. The vendors repeatedly told me how wonderful Angie was to work with. How easy she made the process for them. We just floated through the whole weekend, enjoying every minute. The wedding day was filled with thoughts of our beautiful children marrying. Angie from the bottom of our hearts, we can not thank you enough for making our dreams come true. Your kind and patient way, checking with us at the right moments, and carrying us all the way to the alter where our children glowed with happiness. You are simply amazing and incredible. We could not have done this without you! With everlasting gratitude, and love to a very special soul, Ellen Bogoch

Kelly Ward

It is hard to put into words how thankful we were to have Angie as the mastermind behind our wedding day, and we cannot thank her enough. When we decided to get married on Galiano, we knew the first thing we needed was to find someone to help support the process, and we are so happy we found Angie. As a local to Galiano, Angie’s connection to the community was key in planning an island wedding, as we knew there were going to be many little details that would need to be considered. With Angie, no detail was forgotten, and the day went off perfectly. From the moment Angie started working with us, she made her self readily available at any time to talk us through the process. Angie took the time to get to know us as a couple, but also as individuals. She listened to our vision, helped us determine our priorities and never let us lose site of this along the way. We were continuously amazed at her willingness to go above and beyond to do whatever it took to bring our vision to life. She never for a second made us feel as if anything was impossible or out of reach- she always found a way to make things work. If there was a will, Angie would find the way. Angie is a teammate in the truest sense, a professional and is an absolute pleasure to work with. Her incredibly calming personality made for a very stress free, well organized and fun planning process. Her calm energy is infectious and is something we realized was so instrumental in us enjoying our day. We easily entrusted her with every aspect of our wedding and are so happy we did. Perhaps the most special thing about Angie is the way she makes you feel as if your wedding is her biggest priority. Each time we met with her, knowing what a busy and in-demand person she is, she always made us feel that the only wedding she was focused on was ours, and that is an incredibly special feeling. Getting to know Angie while planning our wedding was such a joy for us. She has our utmost respect for pulling off all the magic she did to make our wedding day what it was. It was the best day, and we couldn’t imagine Angie not being apart of it. We cannot recommend Angie enough, and know that you will be so grateful you have her on your team!

Michaela Rolls

After getting engaged and deciding that we wanted to host our wedding on Vancouver Island, we came across ‘Bodega Ridge’ and set up a tour of the venue. From the time we arrived on Galiano Island, there was a sense that we had found a very special place that would carry with it a number of memories and return visits! This was further confirmed by our experience on the property, where a vision of our wedding day was painted through Angie’s beautiful descriptions! Angie became instrumental to our planning process, and wedding day. Having a destination wedding became a low-stress endeavor with Angie working on our behalf. She has great attention to detail, listens intently, and makes you aware of any details requiring consideration. She took our ideas and connected us to an incredible array of vendors, each of whom we would have chosen a hundred times over as they matched our personality and vision so precisely. As the day approached, Angie worked to ensure everything moved forward seamlessly - from organizing last minute food, to driving us to where we were required, to corralling the group to ensure we kept on schedule, Angie took the thought work of our day, which really allowed us to enjoy every moment. Her calm tone and confident demeanor allowed us to effortlessly entrust Angie with every detail throughout our wedding experience. Once we met Angie, we knew that we had found the perfect planner, and with that, the perfect venue, officiant, and team member. We would highly recommend Angie and her team, and can’t thank her enough for her role in creating beautiful memories of the most wonderful day!

Jason Burr

Angie is an incredibly calm, kind and organized professional, making our experience of planning and having a wedding significantly easier. She was always available to answer any questions we may have and offer her wealth of advice on all aspects of a wedding. She gave us the confidence and trust our day would run smoothly and the way we envisioned it. I would highly recommend Angie and her team for any important life event.

Michael F

We can't say enough about the outstanding job Angie did in helping us plan our extremely last minute micro-wedding on Galiano island! After our original wedding plans were derailed due to Covid-19, we reached out to Angie to see if it was possible to organize something last minute (in under 7 days) on the magnificent Galiano island for us and our immediate family. She went out of her way to coordinate last minute with vendors and help us put us at ease despite our ambitious timeline. Thanks Angie for helping us create such a special day on such short notice!

Ali Bayarsaikhan

I usually don't write reviews, but after receiving AWE's services I just have to say something to those who are planning an event or a wedding.... Choose AWE - Angie as your planner. You will get everything - efficiency, quality and cost effectiveness. Outstanding communication, clear scheduling & planning. Honestly, can't ask for more! Thank you AWE and the team. You went above and beyond. Wishing you all the best!!! Ali&Tsolmon

Sara Treloar

We chose Angie to help plan our wedding, because she came highly recommended by multiple people she had worked with at Bodega Ridge, as well as several couples who had hired her to plan their weddings. We had high expectations for her, based on these recommendations, and she managed to surpass all of them throughout the wedding planning process. She had excellent advice and recommendations for how to make our wedding personal and extra special. She was quick to respond to all of our questions and requests and she kept us on track with our planning timeline. By the time the wedding came along, we had complete trust that Angie would do an excellent job at executing our wedding. She was invaluable during our wedding weekend by serving as a point of contact for all of our vendors, coaching our MC and officiant, facilitating our rehearsal and rehearsal dinner, maintaining our timeline, providing onsite direction and providing behind the scenes orchestration of the schedule. Most importantly, she is one of the LOVELIEST, most thoughtful individuals and this shines through in all of her interactions. She went above and beyond in making everyone at our wedding feel special and well taken care of throughout the weekend. We are so grateful for everything Angie did to help us create and pull-off the best weekend of our lives! Thank you Angie – we love you!! Cory and Sara Matheson

Dori Rose

We chose AWE for our month of and day of coordination. When COVID and other life's challenges changed our plans/date we asked Angie and her team to jump in and finish our planning and take over the correspondence with vendors, etc. Immediately after, I'd wished we had asked her to do the planning from the start, Angie is a calm and positive guiding light in a very exciting/stressful time and it was such a relief to communicate with one person with knowledge of the industry who wanted to act in your best interest and make your wedding dreams come true! AWE's fees are very reasonable and Angie saved us money with our other vendors. The month leading up to our wedding and on our wedding weekend/day, we were completely hands off. Angie and her team kept us informed with any important information/decisions and took care of everything behind the scenes. I couldn't imagine our wedding without Angie being a part of it, It was truly a pleasure to work with her and get to know her over the planning process. We highly recommend AWE for your wedding planning and coordination! Dori & Brody

Nathalie Schotanus

We cannot say enough about Angie and the team she created specifically for us .. My husband and I had no idea how to go about eloping in another province especially on short notice when our original wedding plans had to be cancelled; but Angie made us so comfortable and relaxed and she made sure everything turned out perfectly ... she listened to our million questions, took care of all our concerns and turned all of that Into exactly what I was imagining for our perfect that - somehow Angie puzzled it all together even though I didn’t even know how to describe what I wanted. She connected us to Vendors that were above and beyond and to top it off Angie did the most beautiful personalized ceremony as our officiant !!! I would encourage anybody looking to get married on the dreamy Galliano island to look up Angie .. she took care of everything for us and made it stress free and seamless .. I cannot thank the Galiano Inn and Spa , Angie or all the many vendors that made our perfect day a reality .. Thank you !!!

Breanne Ramsay

Working with Angie was the best decision we made after pick Bodega Ridge as our wedding location and venue. Angie’s easy-going nature and energy made the entire experience out of this world. We were a COVID wedding that planned and had to re-plan our wedding in 2021, Angie was by our side answering all the tough questions and provided great insight along the way. Leading up to the wedding we had a few meetings, she ensured our Emcee’s were ready to go and answered all our questions. Her response to emails was timely and detailed which we appreciated given we were coming from Alberta and couldn’t pop over to the venue whenever. Since we were a COVID wedding we eloped on our original wedding date and had a friend be our ‘unofficial officiant’ at Bodega, Angie would have been an amazing officiant if we were not already legally married. She was everywhere and now where to be seen at the same time which was amazing. She ensured that our vision for the weekend happened. She helped with setting up and taking down our ceremony site and reception. We did not have to do anything other than be guests at our own wedding. When we showed up to the venue, Angie met us and we went through all of the items we had brought (Cabin gifts, favors, stationary, table décor, etc) and then we handed it all over to her, we didn’t see any of the set up or items throughout the weekend until we were departing and everything was nicely packed away and ready for us to travel back to Alberta. Angie truly made the weekend go off without a hitch, she was the point of contact for all our vendors and guest questions. Angie truly went above and beyond throughout the weekend. I truly don’t know what the weekend would have been like without her help and support. I feel beyond fortunate to say that we had an amazing stress-free wedding because of Angie. I would highly recommend her for anyone getting married at Bodega Ridge or any other venues on the west coast.

Linea Eby

Angie helped us with planning our elopment on galiano island. With her help she made our wedding day everything we hoped it would be- fun and stressfree. Angie arranged a team of vendors for us and took care of everything we needed (flowers, beauty, photography). She did an amazing job and I would recommend her to anyone.

Shazeen Tejani

Angie Allen is a wedding coordinator extraordinaire. We were first introduced to her when we were considering getting married at Bodega Ridge. She was so incredibly kind, patient, and thoughtful., and even took us on a virtual tour of the site when we couldn’t travel due to covid. When she told us that she also provides day-of/month-of coordination services, we knew she would be absolutely perfect for us. She took the time to always approach our meetings thoughtfully. She was always well prepared and knew to remind us of things that had completely flown over our head. And ladies, when you have bride-brain, she’s the gal you want by your side. She coordinated all of our cabin gifts (which were a HUGE hit with our guests), and always ALWAYS treated us to little thoughtful surprises that made us feel pampered and excited for the big day. On the weekend of, Angie effortlessly put out fire after fire and was always so quick to respond when in need. Her calm and cool demeanour is exactly what you need when you’re stressed, and with her by your side, you know things will go off without a hitch. Angie started as our wedding coordinator but quickly became so much more to us. In asking Angie to help coordinate our big day/weekend, we also gained a friend and family member for life. It’s pretty impossible to leave not absolutely loving her and the incredible energy she brings! Do yourself a favour and let Angie sprinkle a little bit of her magic on your perfect day. You won’t regret it! Thank you for all that you do, Angie! You’re truly spectacular! Love, Shazeen + Graeme

Sophie Wrinch

We could not be more grateful to have had Angie on our team for our wedding! After booking our ceremony at Bodega Ridge, we connected with Angie and felt so at ease and comfortable (even in the midst of pandemic planning!). She was so calm, flexible, organized, and accommodating, and thought of every detail to ensure our day was exactly what we imagined. Her advice and suggestions throughout the planning process were incredibly helpful and appreciated, and still she managed to make sure that we created a ceremony/event that represented “us”. When we learned that Angie also officiated weddings, we knew we needed to look no further. Angie helped us write a ceremony script that we loved, and her warm and kind nature made us and our guests feel comfortable and welcome from the moment we arrived. Choosing Angie to be a part of our wedding was one of the best decisions we made, and we are so grateful for the amazing experience and memories she helped us create. Thank you Angie! Sophie + Ben