Our testimonials: Weddings in 2012
RACHEL AND TRAVIS, USA
Florence, 6th October 2012
As someone who lived in Italy for years, and fell in love with the country and my now husband in this magical place, I knew one day, we would be married in the city we adore and called home; Florence.
I also thought, having dealt with my fair share of Italian bureaucracy in my time abroad, that planning the wedding would be easy enough considering I speak the language and know intimately all the locations we would consider for our ceremony.
I embarked on this journey with my fiancé and an arsenal of close Italian friends to help me sort out the legal hoops…and was quickly overwhelmed! I soon realized that in order to cover all the legal bases, I needed help. I needed someone whom I could trust, that would put my mind at ease and make sure that when the ceremony ended, I would be married to the love of my life, without any drama from the authorities back in the USA. So, I began the long process of interviewing wedding planners. I was discouraged at first, as I spoke with numerous people all the while thinking I just wasn’t sure about any of them, until the day I called Mascia and Chiara. From my first conversation with them, I knew these were the right people! They were so clear about what they would do, what I needed to do, and the entire process, that it was obvious that they were the ones that could help us plan the wedding of our dreams.
What I didn’t know was how invaluable their help would be, or how perfect our wedding would turn out and I am so grateful! I firmly believe our wedding would not have been as amazing as it was without Mascia and Chiara’s support every step of the way. They were knowledgeable but not overbearing (we lived in Florence for years, the last thing we needed was someone to tell us what we “wanted” in our “home” city!), and they made me feel important and taken care of from beginning to end. Now, weeks after our wedding, I have the most beautiful memories, of the most wonderful day of my life, and when I look back, I am so happy we found them.
Not only are Mascia and Chiara fantastic at what they do but they are kind, caring people that I will always hold close to my heart.
Siete fantastiche!
Grazie mille per tutto!!
Rachel and Travis
Michelle and Chris, UK and USA
29th September 2012
Hi Mascia and Chiara,
We've been wanting to write you a proper thank you for everything you did for our wedding for some time but unfortunately haven't had a chance to do so until now. You did such a fantastic job at every step in planning our wedding and welcome evening. You anticipated our every need and were always available for advice and questions! It is still hard to believe that you were able to plan the perfect events in less than 6 months. The venue was perfect, catering/food/band were amazing, and David was an excellent photographer. Also I would like to pass on my thanks to the lovely Pamela for doing a wonderful job of making the ladies look our best!
Our guests were amazed by the two beautiful events you two arranged as well as taking care of the travel and accommodation for everyone coming from the UK, USA and further afield. We had so many compliments about the venues and food and that everything was beautifully planned thanks to your meticulous planning and organisation.
Through being to weddings of my friends I was expecting to be stressed or have some last minute hiccups but this did not happen. The weather on the big day was changeable and although your plan B set up was not needed in the end, it was this approach that enabled us to just relax and enjoy the day with friends and family. Throughout this process working with you both was like planning a wedding with great friends with a wealth of contacts and local knowledge. As we both work full time we put our trust completely you to take care of everything and what you created was so much more than what we could have imagined. Rest assured we will be telling anyone planning to get married about our experiences with you in Tuscany. Hopefully we'll be back as guests someday!
Thanks again and we will keep in touch!
Michelle and Chris
Julia and Paul , Germany and Ireland
Santa Croce church and Villa Dianella, 22nd September 2012
We had the most amazing day ever, thanks so much to Mascia, Chiara and Sara for making our dream come true. You did a fantastic job and helped so much on the day, we didn't have to worry about anything and were able to just enjoy the ceremony, the reception, all our friends and family and the amazing food :) All our guests really enjoyed the wedding, some even said it was the best wedding they've ever been to! I loved the flowers, so say a big thank you to Barbara, and everybody said my hair looked amazing, thanks to Pamela!
It's so sad that it is all over now and we are back in rainy London, but we will definitely come back next year for our anniversary!
Can't wait to see all the pictures!!!
Hope you are well, all the best for you and thanks again,
Paul and Julia
How are you? Do you still have many weddings now?
We are back in London. Sniff very sad it's all over now! But it was such an amazing day, thank you soooo much!!!!!! You really did a fantastic job! Can't wait to see the pictures, do you know when we can get them? Have a great day (it feels like winter here...)
Julia
Kirsty And Brian, UK
Anchiano, Vinci, 22nd September 2012
Hi Chiara,
Hope you are well, it was lovely to finally met you. We want to say a big thank you for helping to organise the most important and happiest day of our lives. We couldn’t have asked for a better service and we were extremely impressed by your quick response to all of out enquiries and emails. We were looking for a small intimate ceremony and you put in such dedication with every small detail with what we were looking for.
We had such a special and relaxing day starting with my make up and hair styled followed by some lunch before getting my dress on to leave for Vinci. It was lovely when we arrived and go out the car to see you and Giuseppe the photographer there to greet us. The ceremony was so lovely and we are so glad you suggested the venue at Leonardo Casa Natale in Anchiano. Getting married outside on such a beautiful, sunny day was magical.
Following the ceremony we had a great meal at Borgo Allegro restaurant which you also recommended and booked found for us, the staff were so friendly and made us feel so welcome.
We will send pictures when we received them from the photographer.
Love from
Kirsty and Brian xxx
Camilo and Vanessa, Usa and Colombia
Certaldo Alto, 19th September 2012
When my wife and I started with the crazy idea of doing a destination wedding, we felt overwhelmed with the amount of tasks we needed to complete to make our dream come true all the way from USA. First things first, Tuscany was our first choice as we thought it was the only place could meet our expectations. We wanted a small, beautiful, romantic, special, and unique location for our big day. Once we decided to move forward with the plan, and after a whole lot of research on what was needed to make out of our wedding a beautiful experience, we found and got in contact with Happening. Oh boy, let me tell you we felt very confident from the very first time we spoke over the phone we had found the professional, yet warm people we needed to make it happen. Did we mentioned we had a private wedding? Yes it was, only bride and groom, but we still wanted a beautiful ceremony with all the details a traditional one would have. Happening team took care of every single detail. Hotel, venue, flowers, music, hairdresser, dinner, transportation, and the most painful part, they walked us thru the paperwork process. We want to emphasize how important their help was overcome the Italian bureaucratic processes. Our five cents to your Tuscany wedding, follow their instructions and you will be fine and happily married at the end. As we said before, we had no family members or friends with us, yet, we never felt lonely. Mascia, Chiara, and Sara were there for us to make sure everything went according to our wishes and as we dreamed. We cannot thank enough the Happening crew for their outstanding efforts to make our big day an unforgettable and magic experience. Their expertise and professionalism made out of our initially crazy ideas of a destination wedding, a beautiful reality hassle free.
If you are thinking about a destination wedding, do not hesitate to contact Happening to make it happen!!!
Mascia, Chiara, and Sara thanks again for the great memories
Thanks
Camilo y Vanessa
Laura and Michael, Ireland
Santa Margherita Ligure, 15th September 2012
Hi there please see message below!
Thanks do much for an amazing day!! The service provided was excellent and every little detail was taken care of. Would highly recommend this company to anyone thinking of getting married in Italy!
CLARE AND JAMIE, UK
Chiesa di Monteriggioni and Il Defizio, 7th September 2012
Ciao Chiara,
thank you so much for your message this morning, we had a magical day, it was so perfect & we can't thank you enough for making it so special.
We're very tired now, the party finished at 3am!!
Thank you again will be in touch soon.
Ciao!
xxx
SASAN AND NAZ, Uae
Castello di Tornano, 1st September 2012
Dear Mascia,
Naz and I wanted to thank you and Chiara for organizing our event. It was impossible without you both. Everything was perfect (catering, reception) and everyone had a great time
We will send you some pics as soon as they become ready.
All the best and thank you again!
Sasan and Naz
Hannah and Ryan, Uk
Villa Dianella, 30th August 2012
Dear Mascia, Chiara and Sara,
It has been crazily busy since we got back from Italy so I'm sorry that it has taken a little while for us to email but we wanted to say the biggest thank you for everything you did in making our wedding the most amazingly special day we could have wished for.
It goes without saying that there is no way we could have done it without you, we wouldn't have known where to start! From the moment we contacted you, we just knew that Tuscany was the right choice and that you would help us arrange everything in a way that would be personal to us and our guests. Villa Dianella was absolutely stunning and it was so lovely having the ceremony outside and then the reception in the same venue, it made things so easy and relaxed for everyone. The food was out of this world and so was the wine (very big reasons we wanted to get married in Italy in the first place!). Everyone is still buzzing from it and so many of our friends keep telling us how it was the best wedding they've been to! Everyone thought the whole day was intimate and beautiful and very 'us', a bit different and very personal.
From the moment we first made contact with you, you were professional and organised but also so friendly and put our minds at ease about everything. You made the whole process so enjoyable and fun rather than stressful and it was so nice that on the day itself we didn't have to worry about anything at all, you took care of everything! I really don't know how we could have done it without you and can't thank you enough.
As you know, you were recommended to us by friends who arranged their wedding through you a couple of years ago. We are now we are trying to get everyone who is not yet married to marry in Tuscany so that we can come back again as guests (as Christoph and Christine got to do this time!).
We hope you are all well and you're still enjoying good weather. London has suddenly become freezing and we'd give anything to be back in Tuscany, drinking nice wine and eating delicious food outside in the warmth! We will definitely come back and visit at some point so will get in touch.
Thanks again. Wishing all three of you all the very best.
Hannah and Ryan x
Dear Mascia, Chiara and Sara,
we wanted to write and thank you so much for all of your help planning our wedding and being special to make everything run smoothly on the day!
We truly had the most amazing few days and our wedding was absolutely perfect to us- we definitively couldn’t have done it without you!
Take care,
Sending best wishes from London
Hannah and Ryan xx
Leanne And James, UK
Lucignano and Castello di Modanella, 21st August 2012
Hi Chiara,
Thank you so much for everything you did for our wedding. We had a fantastic day and can't stop reminiscing about it. The photographs taken by our guests have started appearing on Facebook so we can see how much fun people seemed to have. Lucignano town hall was stunning. We were so pleased with the gift! Everything at Modanella was brilliant (especially the cake!). We adore that place. We stayed up dancing and eating pizza until about 4.30am. It was the perfect day.
Everybody loved you by the way! How's the foot after the bee sting? I hope it cleared up ok.
We're coming to the end of our honeymoon now. The weather in Sorrento has been mixed - we've had more rain than sun but we were spoilt in Tuscany with the very high temperatures. Our favourite things to do our laze around, drink good wine and eat lots and lots of food so we've been doing plenty of those things down here.
Just to let you know, the meal at L'Olimpo at the Bernini hotel in Rome was superb. We had Chateaubriand which tasted great, although the portion sizes were huge. We were so full that we could barely breathe on the way home. The views from the terrace were incredible. You could see right across Rome and its famous sights. I would definitely recommend it (quite expensive though!!).
Anyway, thank you again for all you did. Stay in touch and we shall have to let you know next time we're in Tuscany!
Arrivederci and ciaooo!
James and Leanne
Rose and Philip, Uk
Villa Il Castagno, 9th August 2012
From our very first contact with Happening I knew Chiara and Mascia were going to be fantastic. From that moment they truly were!
We were amazed with plans that went into our first visit and that all our requirements had been considered so we could narrow down our choice of venue. I am still so impressed.
Chiara and Mascia kept in regular touch and were happy to answer my silliest of questions and made me feel so relaxed about things. They provided options based on things I had seen and made everything so straightforward.
Our day was stunning and everything was as we could have hoped. Mascia - you were brilliant. You kept our hot and bothered guests entertained during the ceremony. It made for such a relaxed and personal experience for all.
The real proof of how perfectly planned our day was came from my friends. A couple of things 'cropped up', silly things and they were gobsmacked at my indifference and laid back response. It is so unlike me. That was down to Happening!!! I wasn't worried about a thing.
We and our friends had a simply fantastic time. I could not have asked for more.
Thank you! Xx
Hayley and James, UK
Siena and Dievole, 20th July 2012
Ciao Chiara!
I hope you're well?
We're so sorry we haven't been in touch sooner, we've missed being in contact with you! We have attached a few photos, as you requested. Hope you like them :)
Thanks to you and Mascia for providing such an amazing service, the ceremony was so beautiful and all our friends and relatives complimented Mascia on how well she conducted the service. We had the most incredible day and it's all thanks to you both! You were amazing!
Grazie mille xxx
Best wishes,
Hayley and James
Karen & Iain, UK
Vinci and Podere Jana, 26th June 2012
Ciao Ladies, we hope you are well and that the weather has cooled own a little since we last saw you?
We are back in the UK after a lovely few days in Santa Margherita and here it is only 15 degrees and has rained most of the time :o(. Tomorrow we are back at work :o( but we have some wonderful memories of our amazing holiday, wedding and honeymoon and we are having a party on 21st July to celebrate with even more friends and family to look forward to.
We both want to thank you so much for everything that you did, the whole day ran so smoothly and that was all down to you and your organising - we could not have asked for better - everything was perfect. Please also pass on our thanks to Barbara at the florists (they were beautiful as was the table for the meal - thanks Chiara!); to David who was fantastic (and even managed to enjoy a bet on the football! - we can't wait to see his photos), also please thank DEA Party and the chef and all of their team, everyone was brilliant, as was the food! Also, everyone at Podere Jana was brilliant, especially Ginluca - it set the tone for the whole holiday and wedding day - the pizza evening and breakfasts were amazing too!!
If you would like to use this as a testimonial on your website, please do and if you would like some photos to go with it I would be more than happy to send you some! Also, if you have any other English clients who would like to get in touch with me so I can sing your praises even more, or offer help and advice now that we have done it, please feel free to give out my email address.
Once again, we can't thank you enough, you made our special day so much much more special than we ever dreamed it could be. We are going to learn Italian now so that we can keep coming back to your wonderful country and speak Italian! If you ever come to England please let us know, it would be wonderful to see you again.
Gracie, gracie, gracie,
Karen & Iain Dixon
Stefano and Radoslava, Italy and Bulgaria
Castello di Vincigliata, Fiesole 2nd June 2012
Ciao Mascia e Chiara!
Come state? We just came back from our honeymoon and wanted to write you this email to thank you again for the unforgettable wedding.
Not even in our dreams we pictured something closer to the actual wedding day: everything has been wonderful and perfect from the beginning until the end, and this because of your immaculate organization with the supervision of Caterina :)
Our parents and friends were speechless: the wedding ceremony, the reception venue, catering, music, flowers, photography, fireworks, etc. were simply stunning.
Everybody was complimentary about how delicious the food was and how immaculate the service was. The sorbettini, the meats and cheeses during the buffet were the best we have ever tried! The wedding cake was so beautiful!! Convivium really surprised us! It was huge! :)
Chiara and her band were really really good! The music in the church was so touching and emotional! The jazz repertoire we selected during the aperitif was played extremely well and we got a lot of compliments. And the DJ was great! He had a huge selection of songs and everybody had a great time on the dance floor!
Gianluca also did an amazing job with the flowers and the decoration of the tables and made the whole atmosphere all the more beautiful!
And for David - what can we say? He is the best photographer we have ever seen! Cannot wait to get the photos! :)
We can write much more, but words cannot describe how magical everything was thanks only to you. It was a dream come true. Our most beautiful day of our life.
Thank you so much again and be ready for another Giambelli's wedding: the little brother wants the two of you for his wedding!
Grazie di cuore,
Stefano e Radi
Carissima Mascia,
come sta? E la sua piccolina?
Grazie, i dvd sono arrivati e le foto sono davvero stupende, un grandissimo lavoro!
Le abbiamo viste ovviamente noi in anteprima (in questo istante mentre le scrivo me le sto copiando sul mio pc così le posso vedere sempre) ma abbiamo raccontato ai ragazzi quanto siano belle.
Il matrimonio era davvero da sogno e voi siete state splendide, mi spiace che sia passato tutto così in fretta!!
Spero di venire presto a trovarvi, ovviamente col grande capo Alfonso!
Un abbraccio
Marina
Della and Phil, Uk
Certaldo, 24th May 2012
Phil and I just wanted to say thank you so much for all your help and organization of our wedding. We had such a beautiful day and everything went so well.
So - GRAZIE!! If any of our friends decide to get married in Italy I will be pointing them in your direction!
All the very best
Della and Phil xx
Paul and Carin, UK
Firenze and Villa Il Salicone, 5th May 2012
Ciao Chiara and Mascia,
Sorry for not writing sooner the time has flown by since May
we would like to thank you both so much for organising
Our special day it was the wedding we always dreamed of and our friends and family
Fell in love with Florence much the same as we did when we arrived.
Your service and attention to detail was really what made Happening the number one choice
It really took the stress away and nothing was any trouble, you had everything under control from day one, from The first day we met you made us feel so welcome and took away any stress and nerves.
The venue we dreamed of was a true tuscan villa surrounded by cyprus trees, vineyards and breathtaking views, Villa Il Salicone was to us the perfect place and will always hold such wonderful memories. Nicolletta the owner made everyone feel welcome and part of the family.
The home made cooking and their wine was a particular highlight for everyone!
Please also pass on our thanks to the caterers, everyone said it was by far the best food they had ever had at a wedding and we completely agree!!
We still haven't tasted profiteroles like it.....
The flowers looked incredible and the tables where beautifully presented, so elegant, simple and just perfect.
Once again thank you ever so much for making our special day become a reality
We just could not have done this with out your knowledge and expertise
We will be back to Florence next year and it would be lovely to see you both again to reminisce.
Much love to you both
Paul & Carin Sharkey
ADAM and CAROL, Usa
Firenze, Villa La Vedetta, 28th April 2012
Mascia,
So great to hear from you! We are both grateful for your help in making our day so incredibly special. The venue was more beautiful than we could have imagined, and we were so happy with how the wedding went. From the moving ceremony to the intimate dinner, the day seemed to move effortlessly forward - thanks to your professional demeanor and warm presence.
We didn't quite know what to expect when we began the process of planning a destination wedding via email, but we knew we were in good hands from the beginning. It was so great meeting you finally, and sharing in our special day.
We would recommend Happening with the highest of regards.
Love,
Adam & Carol
Jason and Clara, China
Villa Rospigliosi, 16th April 2012
Ciao Sara,
glad to hear from you. We may want to come to Italy again early next year. May need your help again for the visa of Clara.
Please see if the below message is good to you:
I wish to express our appreciation to Happening for the good arrangement of our wedding ceremony in Italy. The arrangement has been very well planned and with lots of good suggestions, such as the beautiful chapel and romantic dinner. The hotel that you suggested is also very good location with reasonable price and excellent service. Father Liston was so nice to be able to meet with us in the morning of the day and gave us a meaningful blessing. The last but not the least, the great photographer David has been helping us to keep our precious moment forever.
I will highly recommend Happening to our friends who would also like to come to Italy for a romantic wedding.
Best Regards
Jason
Justin and Anita, Usa and Canada
Firenze, 5th April 2012
We had the best experience ever! Chiara was extremely helpful, organized and professional. If you think it’s difficult to get married in Italy your wrong. Chiara and her associates put everything together for us making the process as easy as possible. There expert advice saved us countless hour of research trying to find halls, churches, photographers and romantic places for dinner. We couldn’t be more pleased with how everything turned out. Your Special Happening made the process as stress free as possible allowing us to enjoy beautiful Tuscany!
Thanks again Your Special Happening! We couldn’t of had our dream wedding without you.
Ciao, Justin & Anita Cardella
teresa and Paul, Ireland
Fiesole, 29th March 2012
Hi Chiara,
How are you? Well I am back to work. It’s raining here…..and cold. :-(We had a wonderful time last week, we couldn’t have asked for a better Day, it was amazing, just unbelievable Day.
We want to thank you and Mascia so much for all your work, so professional and patient, just a pleasure!! We are hoping to travel to Italy next year for the anniversary and of course the Giro!! We hope to visit you and Mascia (and Little Catherina as well).
Ciao
Big thank you,
Teresa & Paul xx
Hi Chiara/ Mascia,
Just to add to Teresa previous email. We would have no hesitation in recommending you to any potential Irish customers :-)
Also if You are in town (Ireland, please let us know as we can come visit you).
Slan (irish for goodbye, but only temporarily)
Paul & The wife 'Teresa'
ps: Mascia tell you husband my bikes are very jealous of Teresa getting loads of attention these days, he will understand....ha ha ha ha
To Mascia and Chiara,
Our wedding would not have been complete, without the support and love of our family and friends.
We sincerely thank you for celebrating our joy and for being a part of our lives!
We want to thank you from the bottom of our hearts from making our day so special! Lots of love!
Teresa and Paul xxx
We had the most amazing day of our lives in Florence, Italy (Mar. 2012). The day flew by without as much as a hic-cup. The little church was stunning, the grounds of Villa Di Maiano where we had our reception was something out of a fairy tale. We were blessed with such good weather for the whole week and in particular on our big wedding day. Six months on and our guest still raving on about the place, food, wine, weather....so much so we've had their friends say how spectacular it all was and have been asked how we found Villa Di Maiano.
This is all down to two very special and patient people - Mascia and Chiara at Happening. We met Masica at the Wedding fair in Citywest in January 2011. From day one they were so friendly and accommodating to our needs.
We just turned up on the day and the rest was just amazing. They had every detail organised and planned to perfection. We couldn't have asked or wished for more. They took time to Skype and email us when ever we need to talk to them. So we cannot thank them enough for delivering such a humble, stress free and highly professional service, they turned the big day into a wonderful and lasting happy/ joyful memory for both us and our guest. Again thank you. We highly highly recommend this great team -'Mascia and Chiara from Happening.
Sometimes it is hard to place your big day into someone else hands, but rest assure the best thing you can do is let Mascia and Chiara take care of everything, just sit back and enjoy looking forward to your big day......We would do it all over again in heartbeat.
Unfortunately, we have to hope and wait that someone will invite us to a Happening wedding - Platinum service!!
Lot of love
Teresa & Paul xxx
Katie and Thomas, USA
San Baronto, 18th February 2012
Hello from the US!
It is so great to hear from you all! We had the most amazing wedding and stay with you guys! We honestly could not have asked for a better wedding, location, or trip in Tuscany! We were so appreciative of all the hospitality and of how much easier an care free your company made planning an Italian wedding for us. We had our dream wedding because of you guys! The location wad everything we had ever dreamed of and was so very romantic! The food was to die for! We felt so welcomed and comfortable the entire time we were there! The bike trip that was arranged was a tour of a lifetime of Vinci and Florence. We could not of asked for better tour guides or a better way to explore Florence! Thank you do much for all you did for us and for helping make out wedding more than perfect for us! The pictures by David were amazing! He is so very talented! We truly enjoyed his work and our time spent with him on our wedding day! Like you all he had such a welcoming heart and great personality! If anyone at all was looking for the most amazing an perfect wedding in Tuscany I would more than recommend you guys!!
As for us, we are song GREAT! We have had so many great blessings this year! ......The most exciting news is that this coming up November we are expecting our very first baby! We are more than joyed and so thankful for our honeymoon blessing of a little baby! Italy was so great to us and we still thank the Lord every day for the wedding and honeymoon of a lifetime! An now we will always have the best souvenir, our baby!
We send many thanks and prayers your way,
Thomas and Katie Hilvers
