Who is Amanda and the Diamonds and Details team?
Diamonds and Details features the talents of owner and Lead Planner Amanda Dabbeekeh and her team, Wedding Day Assistant Maygan Henzie and Wedding Day Assistant and Wedding Day Coordinator Stephanie Braceland. After interning with the top wedding planning companies in Philadelphia and earning her certification in Professional Wedding Planning from Temple University, Amanda started Diamonds and Details in 2009. Maygan started with Diamonds and Detail in 2012 an intern while in college and after graduation, transitioned into a full-time member of the Wedding Day team. Steph is the newest face to Diamonds and Details team but has been a fixture in the Philadelphia wedding industry working as a 2nd shooter with a well-known Photographer. After working with the company for 1 year as a Wedding Day Assistant (and will continue to help as needed), she now is excited to work with her own clients as a Wedding Day Coordinator.
When did you first realize your passion for wedding planning, and how has this journey cultivated you into the planner you are now?
I have always been the “go-to” girl for family and friends when it came to planning parties, events, and even vacations. After college, I worked in human resources, but always felt I wasn’t utilizing all of my skills, especially my need to be creative and detailed oriented. After planning my own wedding and realizing how much I loved all aspects of putting wedding day together and with Wedding Planning becoming a new and growing career option at the time, I decided to pursue the job full time. I started my training interning with several of the top wedding planners in the area as well as getting professionally certified from Temple University. This experience and education is and was extremely valuable as it has brought me to where I am today – 10 years of planning weddings and events and a growing business!
How would you describe your style of wedding planning? What is it you do that is unique?
I would say my style of wedding planning is very client centered. I personally only take on 1 wedding a weekend and a limited number of full-service planning clients a year so I can be available as possible for client needs. Even with my wedding day management clients (also known as “Day of Coordination”) I try to be as accessible as possible as they plan their weddings. Our company is unique as we allow all of our clients to have open communication with our team from the date, they sign their contract up until wedding day (whereas some companies only work with clients 30 or 60 days before the wedding).
What is the process like for couples who want to book you for their wedding?
For couples interested in working with Diamonds and Details, they usually reach out to us by email to inquire about availability and pricing. If we are available for their wedding date, we like to schedule a phone call to talk in more detail and see if we are a good fit on both sides. If a client is interested in working with us for customized planning services (which usually involves more time invested on the planning side and a larger investment on the client side), we offer a complimentary 1-hour consultation to meet in person and talk further. If everything clicks, we get really excited that we get to add the details to wedding day and we move forward and sign a contract with the client! The process is very stress-free and easy, which is how we want the planning experience to be with us as well!
What do you love most about planning weddings?
My favorite part of planning weddings with clients is definitely seeing all the details come together on wedding day. During the planning process, I love that initial stage where I am trying to match the perfect vendor to the client’s needs and wants and really getting to know my clients and their personalities. (Matching the client with the perfect vendor on the very 1st try is the best feeling!) Overall, just being able to work with so many different people at the same time is a really cool experience to have professionally.
What other locations do you cover in addition to Philadelphia?
Besides Center City Philadelphia, Diamonds and Details works in the Philadelphia suburbs – King of Prussia, the Main Line and West Chester areas specifically. We also love working in Lancaster, PA as Amanda went to college and lived in the area for several years and has a lot of established relationships with vendors and venues in the area.