Blue Sapphire Events Reviews
Reviews
We're all about trust. Our community relies on honest reviews to help you make those big decisions with ease.
-
![Anne]()
Anne Sent on 12/15/2025Hire Kolena!
I cannot say enough good things about our experience working with Kolena. We partnered with her for full-service planning, and it was the best decision we made for our wedding. Kolena is professional, organized, and very responsive. The first time we spoke to her, she already knew what time the sun set on the day of our wedding and was working backwards on a timeline. We were sold!!
Her finance-focused style was exactly what we were looking for. She is calm and just knows her stuff. I found myself asking her "...what do normal people do?" and she had such helpful, non-baloney answers for me.
She is also incredibly talented at design (and thank God, because I am not). Our tables were beautiful, but she also found smart ways to keep costs down, such as only renting more intricate linens for one-third of our tables.
Stop looking and hire her! Best money we spent, hands down. -
![Rachel]()
Rachel Sent on 11/11/2025Kolena was the best money we spent!
Planning a wedding from halfway across the world would not have been possible without Kolena and she really showed us what a difference a good planner can make for your wedding. Our priority was to make things simple and easy for guests, and we chose Kolena because her approach aligned with that goal.
From the beginning, she really helped make the vendor selection process easy and, as someone who frequently gets overwhelmed by choices, it gave us peace of mind knowing someone in the industry had experience with and could vouch for the various vendors we considered. Kolena also helped us make tradeoffs to get what we really wanted for our wedding and cut costs where we could to stay within our budget range. We both felt really relaxed throughout the whole planning process, most often asking if there was anything more we should be doing but Kolena always had everything handled (even with an 8+ hour time difference!).
Kolena also has a great eye for design and attention to detail. We got so many compliments from guests on how beautiful our wedding details were - it was all thanks to her.
We really realized how amazing Kolena was at her job the day after our wedding, when we were reflecting on the best parts of the day. Our Wedding day went smoothly, and Kolena took care of all of the small details that we might not have thought of. Catering staff followed us around cocktail hour to ensure we got to eat plenty of the food we'd selected. The polaroid cameras we used for our guestbook were never out of film. We had not asked for any of these things and yet Kolena made it all happen. Kolena allowed us to soak in our special day and we did not have to worry about a thing because we knew she was on top of it. Cannot recommend her enough! -
![Sarah]()
Sarah Sent on 07/21/2025Professional, Patient, and Invaluable: Kolena Was Amazing
We had the absolute pleasure of working with Kolena and Blue Sapphire Events as our wedding coordinator, and we couldn’t be more grateful for her support. She was incredibly knowledgeable and brought a wealth of experience to the planning process. Kolena offered so many practical tips and helpful recommendations that made a real difference, and her calm, professional demeanor helped everything run smoothly.
What really stood out was her patience and attention to detail. She always took the time to listen to our questions and concerns and guided us through every step with kindness and confidence.
We would highly recommend Kolena to anyone planning a wedding. She’s a true professional and a joy to work with. -
Madalyn Sent on 06/02/2025
Kolena Crushes It
Hiring Kolena was hands down the best decision we made while planning our wedding. From day one, she was organized, calm and incredibly responsive, somehow always five steps ahead of everything. I'm a "type A, control freak" bride, and trust when I tell you she managed everything far better than I ever could. I truly mean it. Kolena listened carefully to our vision, brought creative ideas to the table (literally), and worked tirelessly to make sure every single detail was perfect. She has a fantastic team of vendors she recommends, which when you're just starting off can seem impossible to navigate on your own, and yet it was so smooth with Kolena's help.
On our wedding day, we didn't have to think about a thing. She handled it all with such grace and professionalism that we were able to be completely present and soaking in all the love of our friends and family, without a single care about what needed to be done next. Our day was seamless, stunning and so full of love, and that is entirely thanks to her. My mother and mother-in-law couldn't stop raving about her, we honestly cannot imagine what we would have done without her.
If you're lucky enough to book her, know that you'll be in the absolute best hands. She didn't just help plan our wedding, she made magic happen.Thank you SO MUCH, Kolena. You are such a blessing. -
-
![Catherine]()
Catherine Sent on 12/17/2024Best Decision!
Kolena was our best vendor! She was knowledgeable, professional, and exceptionally helpful when we needed to find other vendors for our big day. On the day of our wedding, we had peace of mind knowing that everything was taken care of by her and her staff! We highly recommend her as a wedding coordinator / planner! -
Emily Sent on 11/27/2024
The best!!
I can't say enough positive things about Kolena! She was incredibly helpful, organized, and truly went above and beyond to make our wedding day perfect. From the very beginning, she listened to our vision and brought it to life with such attention to detail. Her recommendations were spot on, and I’m so glad we trusted her expertise—everything came together beautifully! The best decision we made was choosing to work with her. I honestly don't think we could have had our dream wedding without her. I highly recommend her to anyone looking to have a stress- free and beautiful wedding! -
-
Juliana Sent on 03/10/2024
Kolena is the best of the best -- HIGHLY recommend!
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! -
-
![Danielle]()
Danielle Sent on 02/08/2024Perfect day conductors
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 -
![Les]()
Si Sent on 12/10/2023Highly Recommend Hiring 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! -
![Amanda]()
Amanda Sent on 08/11/2023Wedding perfection!
Kolena was our day of coordinator for our June wedding. From the very first meeting, Kolena was incredibly detail oriented. She helped us create a realistic timeline, coordinate with our other vendors (DJ, photographer, florist, venue, etc) and finalized our bus transportation timeline. Her communication throughout the planning process was amazing - she would reply to each and every one of my emails promptly! On the day of the event, Kolena and her team were incredibly professional and took care of all the little details. We had an amazing time at our wedding which was only possible because of Kolena and her team. I cannot recommend Blue Sapphire Events enough!! -
![Honeywood]()
Honeywood Sent on 07/07/2023She is the planner that you need!
Where do we even begin? Working with Kolena from Blue Sapphire Events was an absolute dream! We had provided the tent and rentals for her client's wedding and leading up to the event, she was nothing short of amazing. She is super communicative, organized, and easy going. It takes someone special to be able to manage multiple vendors and create a backyard wedding from the ground up, and Kolena did just that. Thank you for being so great to work with! -
![Caroline]()
Caroline Sent on 12/20/2022Fantastic Day-Of Wedding Coordinator!
Kolena and her team at Blue Sapphire Events was the perfect choice for our Day-Of Coordinator! We had a church wedding with a reception at Meridian House in downtown Washington DC, and Kolena helped handle the complicated transitions and timeline with ease. Whenever we had questions about the wedding planning process, budget, vendor recommendations or cohesiveness of the day, Kolena was there to immediately steer us in the right direction. Her calm demeanor is most welcome, and we genuinely appreciated the professionalism she brought to our wedding planning journey. If your hope is to have a beautiful, seamless day and not stress about how it will all come together, we would highly recommend Kolena and Blue Sapphire Events! -
-
Trish Sent on 10/30/2022
The best planner!
Hiring Kolena was the best decision we made for our wedding! She was there from start to finish- from helping us choose a venue to dropping off our items at our hotel room at the end of the night, she was outstanding. She was friendly, professional, and efficient. Any questions we had, we knew she'd be able to find an answer or solution. We got to completely enjoy the day because Kolena and her team had everything covered. She was the best planner! I couldn't imagine planning our wedding without her! -
-
![Bridget]()
Bridget Sent on 12/10/2021Perfect Choice for our Rural Wedding
Deciding to work with Kolena was the best decision we made in our wedding planning. We hosted our wedding reception at a very rustic family summer camp and it was no easy feat turning it into a beautiful wedding venue. From our first phone call with Kolena I felt like she understood exactly what we needed help with and was up to the challenge of working in a non-traditional wedding location in rural Virginia. We hired Kolena for Day of Management and logistics planning, but she did so much more than that. Our first walk through at the venue was in March for our September wedding. Kolena was always responsive to emails, even in the midst of planning her own wedding! She made sure to be present for meetings with other vendors and worked closely with the catering team to make sure everything went smoothly. Kolena’s calm demeanor throughout the planning process was reassuring to me, my fiancé, and our parents. When the day finally arrived, I felt confident that Kolena and her team would be able to execute everything perfectly and handle any unexpected situations. We could not have been happier with how Blue Sapphire Events made our wedding vision into the most perfect day. I would recommend their services to anyone. -
![Casey]()
Casey Sent on 11/24/2021Responsive, supportive, and amazing month of coordinator!
Kolena was an absolute pleasure to work with - she went above and beyond in her role as the month-of-coordinator for us. She had great advice, and even before the 'month-of' she was accessible and happy to answer any questions or do proactive outreach to other vendors. She did the walk-through with us, and was able to help paint a picture of what decor would look good with our space (she was a huge help to me here). Kolena uses a planning platform where I did a lot of my organization, like a seating chart and RSVP tracking, which was a game changer for me. On the day, Kolena was critical to the success of the day. We had a lot of DIY decorations and setup, and she handled it all. I told her the general vision, and she took care of it and actually had better ideas for where things should be than I even envisioned. When it came time to pack up for the night, she had already done all of the hard work, which was a huge relief for me and my family! I will HIGHLY recommend Kolena to my friends! -
-
![Raeana]()
Raeana Sent on 10/13/2021Kolena kept our day on track!
Kolena was excellent at keeping our day on track and making it one to remember! She even helped us navigate the COVID postponement and argued in our defense with the venue when they tried to charge us a rebooking fee. Kolena went out of her way to help us in the months and days leading up to the wedding even though we only hired her for "day of" services. I would (and have) highly recommend her services! -
![Lynaya]()
Lynaya Sent on 10/10/2021Great to work with!
Kolena is very professional and excellent at communicating with our other vendors. The scheduling, ceremony, and reception all went smoothly thanks to her and her team. All of our guests commented on the beauty of the ceremony, the organization and they had a wonderful time. Kolena was also patient with my many questions the week of the wedding. -
Monika Sent on 10/04/2021
More than 5 stars
I can’t say enough great things about Kolena. My husband and I originally had booked our planner through the venue where we were getting married. A variety of things led to us canceling that and going out to find a separate wedding planner. From the moment we booked Kolena, we felt like a priority. She made us comfortable, understood exactly what I was looking for, and walked us through her whole process.
We were one of the couples who had to postpone their wedding due to COVID, but working with Kolena made the process so much easier. She communicated with us regularly due to our extra months of planning, helped us put out fires that popped up due to poor communication from our venue, and was open and honest with me when I asked her opinion on adding specific items to our wedding. Not to mention, she did this while also planning her own postponed wedding. Her calm demeanor made us feel so much better, and really helped ease our stress during what may have been an overly stressful time to plan a wedding.
One of the biggest benefits to working with a wedding planner, especially someone who is independent from any venue, is that they will work in YOUR best interest, not in the interest of the venue. Additionally, Kolena’s extensive contacts helped us fill the gap with vendors that we still needed- all of her suggestions were great and she worked within the budget parameters that we gave her.
The day of our wedding, Kolena and her team worked super hard, and I can truly say she executed my vision exactly. We literally got to have our dream wedding- everything was exactly how we wanted it.
If we could give Kolena and Blue Sapphire Events more than 5 stars, we absolutely would. I will never NOT recommend BSE to anyone I know who is going through the wedding planning process. People often say no one cares more about your wedding than you do, but I can promise you that Kolena cares, and it shows up in everything she does. -
-
![Maddie]()
Maddie Sent on 07/24/2021Best of the best!
We hired Kolena the owner and lead coordinator at Blue Sapphire Events in 2019 as we were planning for our 2020 wedding. COVID had other plans for us and we ended up getting married in 2021. Kolena was amazing during the entire process and went above and beyond to help us make sure everything was squared away with our postponement. She took the time to reach out to us during the really hard times and we appreciate that more than we can say. She was amazing handling all of our vendors and just making sure everything ran perfectly on the day of our wedding. There was not one single moment where we felt stressed out or as though things weren't being taken care of. Thank you, Kolena for taking care of us and making sure our dream wedding came to life. It surely did and we could not recommended Kolena and Blue Sapphire events more if you're looking for an awesome planner for you big day! -
![Jennifer]()
Jennifer Sent on 11/28/2020Yes to Blue Sapphire Events!
Kolena Thomas and Blue Sapphire Events were incredible. Kolena was so organized and on the ball. She took care of so many logistics, such as coordinating with all the vendors, so we could focus on the joy of our wedding.
Kolena went above and beyond to make our wedding happen. She was flexible as we had to make big changes during the pandemic. She was also creative in helping us maintain the spirit of the wedding we want, even as it had to be downsized.
Her expertise, organization, and kindness helped make our wedding a day we'll always remember. We highly recommend! -
![Morgan]()
Morgan Sent on 10/04/2020Hire Her Immediately
We hired Kolena for day-of coordination and I will forever be grateful that we did. She was so incredibly easy to work with and was incredible at her job. Everyone, including the hotel and other vendors, was incredibly impressed with her timeline and management of all of the details for the day.
I will forever be grateful to have the peace of mind during my wedding day that someone had all of the details and setup managed - my mom and bridesmaids were all shocked at how calm I was during the day, and I think that is due, in large part, to Kolena and her calming presence. While I know a friend could have helped coordinate a part of things in a pinch, I am so glad that we hired a professional to manage the day-of.
She helped manage timeline, setup, tear down, and everything in between. Would highly recommend, she’s incredible!!! -
Adam Sent on 04/12/2019
Executed our vision to perfection
I can give Kolena my highest recommendation. Originally we started with a different wedding planner who we found unresponsive and uninterested in the planning stages of our wedding. Fortunately we found Kolena through a referral from a friend.
From the moment we engaged her she responded to all comments and questions promptly and professionally. Her vast wedding knowledge was essential during planning. She often raised issues and concerns that we had not even considered. Kolena handled our sometimes difficult vendors with ease. The day of the wedding came and went with absolutely zero issues, a miracle. During the ceremony and the reception she held all vendors to a strict timeline and ensured that my wife and I did not have to do anything other than enjoy the wedding. Weddings can be stressful, but Kolena exudes a naturally calming presence that results in a no stress event.
The wedding was located on a small island in the Bahamas with no cars. Kolena facilitated the movement of 59 guests and vendors via golf carts from the ceremony on a beach to the reception at a resort over two miles away.
After the wedding I had three separate couples ask me for her information. We cannot recommend Blue Sapphire Events enough. We are forever grateful for the tireless work done to ensure our day proceeded as planned. -
-
![Tara]()
Tara Sent on 01/31/2019Professional, Creative, Organized Partner
Kolena was a pleasure to work with and helped bring the vision to life. She seamlessly executed a reception and seated dinner for 400. From planning to day of coordination, she was professional and a true partner. She is service-oriented and operates with grace under pressure. Most importantly, she is friendly, outgoing and has amazing relationships with her vendors. Choose Kolena to help make your special day unique, memorable, and stress free! -
Stacey Sent on 01/20/2019
Exceptional Experience - Highly Recommend
Kolena provided exceptional service for my wedding on 9/2/18. From the venue selection all the way through coordination of the day-of activities, Kolena was professional and extremely knowledgeable regarding all aspects of the wedding planning. She arrived for our venue selection appointments fully researched and prepared with a huge binder full of information that she has carefully gathered about each venue and had lists of questions to ask at each one pertaining to flow of events and uncovering possible hidden costs that I would not have thought of! Before entering each venue she summarized for us the major points, pros and cons, and kept us right on track at each of our appointments. The entire process can be so overwhelming, especially when, like me, you have no experience planning any events whatsoever. However, I felt very taken care of and at ease working with Kolena because she has so much experience in the industry and isn’t afraid to ask questions and advocate for her clients. She let me focus on the fun, creative aspects of the wedding planning process while managing all of the necessary budgeting and timelines in the background. She was very knowledgeable and helpful when it came down to decision making and prioritizing to help me stay within my budget. I was blown away when presented with a detailed weekend schedule down to the MINUTE coordinating all necessary events of my wedding day, making sure everything stayed on track. She knew how to make sure everyone was where they were supposed to be when they were supposed to be there so I could focus on having FUN on my wedding day. It is so nice to have a professional to handle vendors the day of your wedding and KNOW that if anything goes wrong it will be handled without having to involve friends and family. Again, I highly recommend Kolena as a wedding planner. Her professionalism, passion, knowledge, creativity and attention to detail is truly unmatched. -
Are you interested?
Are you interested?