My fiance and I chose two separate venues for ceremony and reception, both which did not have coordinators or planners. We were clueless as to where to begin and were very fortunate to have friends recommend Leslie Scotto.
We got in touch with... Leslie probably 8-10 months before our wedding. Our first meeting we felt right at home with Leslie and hired her for day-of coordination. Leslie is approachable and makes it a point to get to know the couples she's working with, which is why I think she's so good. If she didn't make an effort to get to know the couples she is working with then there's no way she would be able to create a ceremony reflective of the couple.
Leslie is detail oriented, organized, and on top of everything. She is resourceful and if she does not know the answer to a question she finds out. She investigates prices and vendors in order to find the best bang for your buck.
About halfway through the process Leslie introduced us to Kristin, her assistant, who would be handling day of coordinator since Leslie had another event. Initially my fiance and I were nervous b/c Leslie handled everything herself, but were 100% pleased with Kristin. She was efficient, friendly, genuine, and CALM, exactly what you need as the wedding approaches!
Leslie and Kristin were amazing. My fiance, my parents, his parents, and I all agree that the success of the wedding was due to their creativity, results not reasons attitude, organization, and calm demeanors. Besides deciding to get married, it was the best decision we made during the wedding process!!