Carmela Combs can't be stopped!! Holy crap, A Siren's Calling saved our sanity during wedding planning.
We didn't know anyone else in our situation: planning for and paying for our wedding essentially on our own. Stressed is an understatement. And those of you who have been through this know how much your patience deteriorates from Day 1 of wedding planning to one day before the wedding!
So, Carmela met us where we were at. We didn't know what we were doing, and she asked all the essential questions to assess what we needed. We had a two-day wedding to plan for: a Christian ceremony and reception, then a Hindu ceremony and lunch. Carmela already had experience with multicultural weddings, which was essential for us. She was comfortable taking the reins, creating a spreadsheet, then walking us through the rest.
We contracted Carmela for last-month wedding planning services; she was also available for unlimited questions and monthly Zoom calls leading up to then. We also contracted her for day-of coordinating for two days. Carmela offered us a great deal for her services. We were able to stay within a very cost-effective budget for a Bay Area wedding.
Her experience and brain were much appreciated; as I said, we were clueless regarding some of the details, and Carmela was there to help us brainstorm the best (and most cost-effective) choice. She even helped us budget.
On the week of, she took control of getting everything in order and ready for our big weekend. She fielded questions from guests and last-minute concerns. For example, our venue for the Christian wedding all of the sudden decided they didn't want us to have music. I called Carmela, and she immediately handled it! It was soooo nice to have her handling these stressful things for me on the most stressful week of my life.
On the day of the Christian ceremony, she showed up at the crack of dawn and decorated and set up EVERYTHING at the church herself. And it looked great! The pictures are beautiful. It was exactly as we wanted it. She also handled "herding the cats:" she told guests and vendors where to go. One less stressful thing for me to worry about, and I could keep my makeup intact 🙂 I didn't get any questions or concerns on my own personal cell. I can only guess that Carmela handled them all! I didn't have to worry about where guests were or if they were having issues.
Carmela handled timing of dinner, dessert, and the toast; she handled tipsy newlyweds and guests with grace, speed, efficiency, and professionalism. At the end of the evening, she broke down all the decorations and cleaned EVERYTHING. I was really impressed with her ability to "get her hands dirty." I didn't have to hire additional cleaning staff because she handled everything herself. It was wonderful to just go home and sleep afterwards and not have to worry about anything.
For the Hindu ceremony, Carmela did the same thing: showed up at the crack of dawn, set everything up, and made sure guests were comfortable and vendors knew where to go. This was the most relaxing day by far. She had handled all of the stress for us, the weekend was coming to a close, and it was time to just enjoy our time with family and friends.
Carmela, thank you! We will recommend you to everyone. We were so impressed with your willingness to go the extra mile. It's clear that you put your heart into your work. Amazing job, A Siren's Calling.
