our_vision.jpg

NOTED

"WIDELY RECOGNIZED WEDDING AND
EVENT EXPERTS ON A NATIONAL SCALE."

Led by impressive word-of-mouth, Marina Birch and her team have developed an international presence and continue to be widely recognized wedding and event experts on a national scale.  Frequently tapped to provide design and planning advice to media outlets, Birch Design Studio has also been highly celebrated in the media.

"THE SOPHISTICATE, WITH A PEDIGREE NOT UNLIKE THE WELL-HEELED CLIENTS SHE SERVES."

Marina Birch has been called “one of Chicago’s most in-demand wedding and special event designers” by CS magazine, awarded by Modern Bride as “one of the Top 25 Trendsetters”, named “one of the most innovative people in events” by Bizbash magazine, and described by Chicago Magazine as “the sophisticate, with a pedigree not unlike the well-heeled clients she serves, Marina Birch is not your typical wedding planner”.  In addition, Marina Birch was handpicked by Town & Country magazine as the only Chicagoan, and one of a select national few, to serve on their coveted Wedding Advisory Board.

 
 
 

From Our Clients

Praise | Enter New Reviews
"YOU AND THE BIRCH DESIGN TEAM ARE MASTERS OF YOUR UNIVERSE!”

"YOU AND THE BIRCH DESIGN TEAM ARE MASTERS OF YOUR UNIVERSE!”

“You and your team of specialists, magicians, mind readers and Olympic class handlers continue to amaze me with your calm, efficient attention to every detail and professional yet very personal service during the entire journey. You had my complete confidence from the start and by day-of you and your team were trusted and highly regarded members of our family.  Our special day was everything we hoped for, planned for, prayed for and MORE - you and the Birch Design team are masters of your universe!”

“YOU DON’T JUST DESIGN EVENTS, YOU CREATE MEMORABLE EXPERIENCES THAT YOUR CLIENTS WILL REMEMBER FOR A LIFETIME…"

“YOU DON’T JUST DESIGN EVENTS, YOU CREATE MEMORABLE EXPERIENCES THAT YOUR CLIENTS WILL REMEMBER FOR A LIFETIME…”

“Clients may be the wrong word to use, because the people that hire you become family.”

"EVERY VENDOR WE WORKED WITH LOVES HER."

"EVERY VENDOR WE WORKED WITH LOVES HER."

“One of the best things about Marina was that she listened to what we wanted to do and brought us many ways to approach each item on the list.  Our wedding was at our beach house in Michigan, and we had two events: a rehearsal dinner BBQ on Saturday night, followed by the wedding the next morning.  When we started planning, we didn't realize how huge of an undertaking it would be, and Marina led us through the process with a very gentle hand.  Every vendor we worked with loves her - including one who originally refused to work with a wedding planner.”


“YOU CREATED AN EXPERIENCE THAT I LITERALLY COULD NEVER HAVE IMAGINED!"

“YOU CREATED AN EXPERIENCE THAT I LITERALLY COULD NEVER HAVE IMAGINED!”


“You created an experience that I literally could never have imagined! The fabrics, images, messages, colors, music, flowers, and food. Not to mention the static guard, the earring clasp, the chalk, and the throat lozenge ....I could go on and on... I cannot express enough my appreciation for your successful efforts to create the fantasy that my daughter had hoped for.”

"MULTIPLE PEOPLE HAVE TOLD US IT WAS THE SINGLE BEST AND MOST FUN WEDDING THEY HAD EVER BEEN TO..."

"MULTIPLE PEOPLE HAVE TOLD US IT WAS THE SINGLE BEST AND MOST FUN WEDDING THEY HAD EVER BEEN TO...”

“WOW is all we can say. WOW and WOW and THANK YOU…We are typing this email on our honeymoon to send you and your team 1 million thank you's from Montenegro where we are still beaming from our wedding. We have repeatedly discussed what an amazing, wonderful job you did helping us throw an absolutely perfect day You helped make the weekend an expression of the two of us with a real focus on the guests' having a great time which was what we cared about the most.”

"IT WAS MAGICAL…AS WE SAID ON SATURDAY, THE BEST DECISION WE EVER MADE WAS CHOOSING YOU."

"IT WAS MAGICAL…AS WE SAID ON SATURDAY, THE BEST DECISION WE EVER MADE WAS CHOOSING YOU.”

“We are still reeling in amazement from the wedding.  We can't stop talking about it (and neither can our friends and family!).  It was magical…as we said on Saturday, the best decision we ever made was choosing you (and we were saying this in the context of all of the decisions we have ever made in our entire lives…).”

 
skinner_8.jpg
 
 

From Our Partners & Vendors

Praise | Enter New Reviews
"WHAT SETS MARINA APART IS HER STRONG UNDERSTANDING OF HER CLIENTS' VISION..."

"WHAT SETS MARINA APART IS HER STRONG UNDERSTANDING OF HER CLIENTS' VISION..."

“What sets Marina apart is her strong understanding of her clients’ vision, the overall objectives of each event, the willingness to do the unexpected, and to treat each event as though it is the last event she will ever plan.   She drives the overall vision and execution of each event with all of her vendors with such professionalism that you want to do your best.  But more importantly, she values our input and experience. She realizes that she isn’t the expert on everything and that is why she partners with individuals and companies that have her client’s best interest in mind. Not only am I proud to partner with her, but my team knows her events are something special and deserve the best to match what she has created.  What I love most about working with Marina is that she has pushed us to be a better company and we now look at events as more of an experience for each and every guest.  She has done this with many other vendors and event partners throughout the years.  When I speak with other vendors, they all feel it is a privilege and honor to work alongside her and her team.”

"SHE CREATES EVENTS THAT EMBODY HER CLIENTS' STYLE ON A MUCH DEEPER LEVEL THAN THEY WERE CAPABLE OF ARTICULATING..."

"SHE CREATES EVENTS THAT EMBODY HER CLIENTS' STYLE ON A MUCH DEEPER LEVEL THAN THEY WERE CAPABLE OF ARTICULATING..."

“Event designers tend to have a particular and almost immutable personal style…there are the rare few who have an enviable fluidity to speak almost any visual language and do so at the same level as those who spend a lifetime defining it. Marina is one of them. “. I have no doubt that she could design an event for Mies van der Rohe as readily as she could for Louis XVI.  There are a fair amount of people who can build/design/execute whatever a client specifies. That turns out not to be the hardest part. 

The true challenge lies in helping a client articulate and define those amorphous dreams, and this is where Marina really distinguishes herself from other successful people in her crowded field. She creates events that embody her clients' style on a much deeper level than they were capable of articulating.”

"SHE IS A... CREATIVE GENIUS THAT HAS PAVED THE WAY FOR THE FUTURE OF LUXURY EVENTS..."

"SHE IS A... CREATIVE GENIUS THAT HAS PAVED THE WAY FOR THE FUTURE OF LUXURY EVENTS..."

“What is perhaps most striking about Marina is that behind the facade of her magnificently impressive portfolio and successful company, is a woman as humble as she is kind and a creative genius that has paved the way for the future of luxury events.”

"THERE REALLY IS NO ONE BETTER TO DREAM UP DREAMS AND CONCOCT IDEAS THAT HAVEN'T BEEN DONE BEFORE."

"THERE REALLY IS NO ONE BETTER TO DREAM UP DREAMS AND CONCOCT IDEAS THAT HAVEN'T BEEN DONE BEFORE."

“There are three things that I feel distinguish Marina from the rest of her counterparts:  
1) Imagination– If there is one thing that places Marina on her own in this industry, it is her design expertise and creative capacity. There really is no one better to dream up dreams and concoct ideas that haven’t been done before. She is the first to suggest taking doors off their hinges, to insert a band of serenading violinists around a ceremony, to build out different floor levels in a hotel ballroom.  
2)    Luxury – Marina is incredibly adept at not only offering a luxury service but understanding the luxury client, two factors that are rare in the saturated market of event planners.  The key is that she is brilliant at offering magnificence, yet there is a casualness in her overall manner.  
3)  Altruistic – More than any other partner I can think of, Marina has long been a proponent of letting the professionals do what they excel at.  In the best of ways, she is a partner, making suggestions where they are needed, yet being generous and benevolent in the process.”

"MARINA BIRCH IS THE PROVERBIAL EYE OF THAT STORM, A CALMING FORCE IN THE FACE OF ALL THESE CONSTANTLY MOVING PARTS..."

"MARINA BIRCH IS THE PROVERBIAL EYE OF THAT STORM, A CALMING FORCE IN THE FACE OF ALL THESE CONSTANTLY MOVING PARTS..."

“Finite deadlines, tight installation schedules, emotional clientele and several last minute curve balls, all converge to create a perfect storm in producing a high end special event.  It takes a special set of talents to manage all of these elements and pull off a flawless event.  Marina Birch is the proverbial eye of that storm, a calming force in the face of all these constantly moving parts and personalities.  She brings along with those calm and level headed management skills, an impeccable sense of design and creativity to bring her clients' visions to life.”

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
6.jpg