Skip to main content
Weddings
This vendor is popular with couples. Start a conversation

About

On WeddingWire since 2018

Ampersand Weddings and Events represents a beautiful reflection of grand orchestration! Under the parent company of Ampersand Entertainment, our wedding team offers full service weddings and partial planning services. We are based in Westlake Village, California, servicing weddings in all of Southern CA with a focus on Santa Barbara, Malibu, the central coast & Los Angeles. We also travel and do destination events! Our goal is to make your once-in-a-lifetime event the most meaningful, with great attention to detail and seamless event management that is always expertly executed.

Experience
Ampersand is owned by award winning producer, Karen Waldron. Karen brings a creative eye and years of professional experience in the event and entertainment industry. She discovered her passion for wedding planning while working in the film and television industry. Ampersand was recently selected for The Knot's Best of Weddings Award for 2024, & 2023 and honored to be a Wedding Wire Couples Choice Award winner for 2020, 2022, 2023 & 2024! We were also voted Malibu's favorite wedding planner for three years, from 2017 to 2019, with the Malibu Choice Awards. Nikki Visser has recently joined this family team as a lead planner and brings a great eye for style & 10 years of event expereience! We staff your wedding based on guest count, design, location and work consistently with the same planning team members so you can be assured, our events are detailed and well orchestrated.

Services Offered
Ampersand offers a wide range of wedding planning services for your rehearsal dinner, wedding ceremony, and reception. The company offers services for cultural weddings, religious and non-religious weddings, as well as destination weddings. partial and full-planning packages are available and include:

  • Budget analysis
  • Curated event design
  • Entertainment
  • Ceremony planning
  • Custom Invitations & Papersuite
  • Hiring of all vendors and overseeing contracts
  • Hidden gem locations
  • Strong industry vendor relationships for anything you need, I.e. Catering, floral, signage, rentals, music, photography, glam squads, staging, set design and lighting companies that are the best in the industry.

We manage all of your details, so you can be stress free and truly enjoy your engagement and the planning process!

  • Woman-owned

Frequently asked questions

Do you offer an hourly rate?

No

What wedding events do you provide services for?

Ceremony
Reception
Rehearsal Dinner

What wedding planning services do you offer?

Full Planning
Partial Planning

What weddings do you have experience planning?

Cultural
Destination
Elopement
Eco-Friendly
Non-Religious
Religious

How many planners are on your team?

As needed
illustration question

Any other questions?

Message vendor

Reviews of Ampersand Weddings & Events

5.0 out of 5 rating
WeddingWire Couples' Choice Awards 2024 Winner
5.0 out of 5 rating
41 Reviews
100% recommend it
  • Quality of service
    5 out of 5 rating
  • Average response time
    5 out of 5 rating
  • Professionalism
    5 out of 5 rating
  • Value
    5 out of 5 rating
  • Flexibility
    5 out of 5 rating
This AI-generated summary gives you a snapshot of the overall ratings and feedback from the reviews this vendor has received.

Review summary

Powered by AI

Ampersand Entertainment received glowing reviews for their exceptional service and stunning wedding planning. Reviewers praised the team, especially Karen and Nikki, for their professionalism, dedication, and creativity in creating glamorous and magical weddings. From attentive support in vendor selections to seamless execution on the wedding day, the team provided invaluable guidance and support. The venues were transformed into dreamy spaces, exceeding expectations and allowing couples and guests to fully enjoy the celebrations stress-free. Highly recommended for couples looking for a flawless and unforgettable wedding experience.

Review summary

Powered by AI
This AI-generated summary gives you a snapshot of the overall ratings and feedback from the reviews this vendor has received.

Ampersand Entertainment received glowing reviews for their exceptional service and stunning wedding planning. Reviewers praised the team, especially Karen and Nikki, for their professionalism, dedication, and creativity in creating glamorous and magical weddings. From attentive support in vendor selections to seamless execution on the wedding day, the team provided invaluable guidance and support. The venues were transformed into dreamy spaces, exceeding expectations and allowing couples and guests to fully enjoy the celebrations stress-free. Highly recommended for couples looking for a flawless and unforgettable wedding experience.

Suzanne
Suzanne F. Sent on 05/20/2024
5 out of 5 rating

Seamless, professional, responsive, creative, punctual, great communication, supportive, fun

Karen and Nikki are the BEST!! From start to finish the level of professionalism and excellence were top notch! They listened to what our daughter’s vision for her wedding was, recommended a fabulous variety of vendors, arranged meetings, walked us step by step through the details offering good insight and support, all from a great distance. The bride and groom live in NYC, my husband and I are in the process of relocating and remodeling a property in Florida, and the wedding was in Santa Barbara, so their role in the wedding was absolutely vital to creating a successful and stress free wedding! Cannot recommend them enough, highest praise possible. They are lovely humans, and you could feel the love and respect they held for us throughout this process. For me, as MOB, the highest compliment I can give is to say that I didn’t have to worry about ANYTHING all day, and could be fully present and enjoy every second with peace of mind. Karen and Nikki are excellent at what they do, they love their jobs and it is obvious!
J
Jordan B. Sent on 07/02/2024
5 out of 5 rating

incredible service provided by Ampersand!

We are absolutely thrilled with the incredible service provided by Ampersand! They truly went above and beyond to make our special day unforgettable.
From the moment we started working with them, they made us feel completely comfortable and supported. They joined our meetings with all of our vendors and even traveled to Palm Springs to meet us at our in person appointments, ensuring we asked the right questions and made informed decisions. Their guidance was invaluable.
On the day of the wedding, the venue was transformed into a glamorous, beautiful space that surpassed our wildest dreams. The attention to detail and the seamless execution were nothing short of magical. Everything went off without a hitch, allowing us to fully enjoy every moment of our celebration. All of our guests can’t stop talking about how perfect the wedding was & how they had the best time.
We were a little picky choosing some of our vendors but Karen and Nikki patiently helped us find the perfect vendors for all of our services.
Ampersand is a very family oriented team. Karen even met with both of our mothers and families to listen to their needs and make them feel heard and included.
We couldn't have asked for a better team to help us plan our wedding. Their professionalism, dedication, and creativity made all the difference. We wholeheartedly recommend them to anyone looking for exceptional wedding planners!
Thank you for making our day perfect!
L
Luke D. Sent on 12/28/2023
5 out of 5 rating

bacara wedding

Karen was so sweet and helpful with our planning process ! She had great recommendations for XO Bloom Florist and makeup artists as well. She is on top of her wedding planning and very responsive with questions or support along the way! We had the best day ever and it was a beautiful wedding
illustration message bubble

Are you interested?

Message vendor

Awards

41
WeddingWire Couples' Choice Awards 2024 Winner
WeddingWire Couples' Choice Awards 2023 Winner
WeddingWire Couples' Choice Awards 2022 Winner
WeddingWire Couples' Choice Awards 2020 Winner

Deals

Map

Other vendors in Santa Barbara for your wedding

Wedding Vendors

Responds within 24 hours