Behind the wedding scenes
2 wedding planners share insights about their craft
By Deneb R. Batucan
THE blushing bride stands at the end of the aisle, ready to take her first steps towards forever. The groom waits for her patiently by the altar. As their hands touch, the atmosphere is electric. Bride and groom, standing by the altar, ready as ever to say their promise to each other—the promise of a lifetime.
Weddings are picture-perfect moments and could easily be a person’s most memorable day. But making that one day glorious and memorable takes months to achieve — not to mention the million things to do before the wedding day.
It’s a lot, and sometimes it could be stressful. Thankfully, there are wedding planners in the metro whose expertise could supply you with the most wonderful wedding day and a memory that would last forever. SunStar Weekend talked to two wedding consultants who have made countless couples’ weddings a success.
Tonette Carcel-Senerpida
Events and Wedding Consultant
TCarcel Events Planning
Tonette has always love seeing happy people, and weddings have the happiest people all in one roof. Straight from college, she joined the hotel industry where she works with the events department. “I realized it’s where I want to be and it’s what I want to do for the rest of my life,” she said.
She decided to do her own events and wedding consultancy in 2013 and since then she has made a lot of brides and grooms the happiest on their wedding day.
There are so many things to consider when planning a wedding, and for Tonette, it helps to have patience as sometimes all the things planned could definitely go awry. What keeps her in the business is her genuine friendliness to her clients and most especially to her supplier. “You need to be a team to make the most magical and successful weddings ever!” she said.
Planning with Tonette
In planning a wedding, the ideal timeline should be six to 12 months prior to the set wedding date. Tonette says that the couple must first identify the theme that they both want and the working budget. That way, they can identify the right kind of suppliers and look for the perfect venue for the wedding and reception. With a keen attention to detail, Tonette always reminds couples of one important thing that’s often taken for granted: to enjoy one’s wedding.
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Steven Sasam
Creative Director
Green Concepts and Events
Steven has been in the wedding planning business since 2005, but it was in 2010 when he officially established Green Concepts and Events. He gets a ton of satisfaction in planning weddings, or any kind of event, for his clients. “And to be able to take on that task, with possible road bumps, say a parent is getting too involved or a possible situation with a vendor, is how you truly show your worth,” he said.
Being able to translate a couple’s vision of their dream wedding brings out Steven’s creative side. And being in a business where he does what he is most passionate about is a lot like baking his own cake. “And I get to eat it too!” he said.
To him, there are five traits that a wedding planner should have: passion, knowledge, detail-oriented, a good problem solver, and most important of all, patience. “A great wedding planner is adept at remaining calm and friendly amidst the chaos and stress,” he said.
Steven’s Way
In planning weddings, Steven has a 32-point wedding timeline, wherein couples are consulted at every stage: from developing a vision for their dream wedding a year before the big day to composing a day-of-wedding timeline a month before. This way, it is not a case of handing over total responsibility to the wedding planner. Some weddings may require more planning depending on a lot of factors like venue and number of guests as well as the wedding elements that need to be coordinated. But with Steven’s way, couples can get much peace of mind.
