Always faithful to make a bride’s dreams come true, Arlene Barba of Semper Fi Events has taken event planning and wedding coordination to a new level of passion, creativity, and professionalism. While Barba seeks to design a unique experience for every bride and groom, her skills in the wedding industry and her own recent nuptials have led her to become a specialist in many fields, from décor to disc jockey entertainment to hairstyles and makeup. Now brides can benefit from a business that covers every aspect as Semper Fi Events delivers stress-free planning for truly customized weddings.
“I don’t consider myself a wedding coordinator because I just don’t coordinate,” Arlene Barba, owner of Semper Fi Events, said in a recent interview with Bridal Spectacular. “I consider myself almost like a wedding specialist. … I have to know every detail when it comes to the wedding. [I] become decorator, planner, designer. [I’m] all of the above.”
In this wedding specialist role, Barba consistently learns the latest trends while also staying in touch with classic styles. This way, she can offer a breadth of designs and wealth of knowledge to a variety of brides. But while information and coordination are Semper Fi Events core attributes, brides also benefit from Barba’s fun personality and passionate desire to help brides every step of the way.
“I like to be very hands-on throughout the entire process,” Barba said. “[I’m] always faithful to passion, always faithful to creativity.”
While Barba can take a bride’s wedding from start to finish, Semper Fi Events also provides an easy, entry-level, planning opportunity. Rather than hire complete coordination, brides can simply schedule a one-time consultation to select vendors and establish a wedding budget according to their needs.
“Budgets vary now with the economy, and sometimes people just need to know how to fit everything in and not forget certain things,” Barba said. “One of the first weddings I did last year, the bride forgot postage and a limo. Thinking all of the big elements, she kind of had that all. Then she was like, ‘Oh my gosh. Postage. Oh my gosh. Limo. Where am I staying the night before?’ These are small things that brides don’t budget, and those are big chunks.”
Fortunately, with Semper Fi Events, all the small details and grand-scale items will be included in a budget to avoid any surprises later.
But budget isn’t the only area where Semper Fi Events excels. Barba also assists brides with decisions for their wedding days, from décor design, supplies, and set-up to selecting bridal makeup that won’t melt beneath reception uplighting.
“You got to be jack of all trades,” Barba said of her position at Semper Fi.
While Barba, who comes from a military family, isn’t a Marine herself, she understands the core of the military slogan and Latin phrase, semper fi.
“The Latin meaning of ‘semper fidelis’ is ‘always faithful,’” Barba said. “I thought: ‘You know what, that’s a perfect thing for my passion for my planning company. It’s to be faithful to my clients, faithful to the passion that I have, faithful for the creative aspect that I believe in. Not to just jump on any moving trend, but to make it … what the bride really envisions.”
With Barba’s own memorable wedding on April 25, 2010, she now understands the importance of making brides’ dreams come true more than ever.
“I’m completely sympathetic now,” Barba said. “I feel like, you know, people are always afraid for anything to go wrong. [But] that makes the best parts of the actual wedding. So I’m able to say now instead of ‘Look for perfection’ or ‘It’s going to be a flawless wedding’ I sit there and tell them really in all honesty, ‘A flawless wedding is the wedding where everything went wrong and you didn’t know until days after the wedding.’”
Barba has her own share of these experiences, most notably the moment her husband dropped her ring at the altar.
“In a Catholic church where they don’t make any noise, everybody was giggling and laughing. And I’m like: ‘This is what makes your wedding. These memories to look back on,’” Barba said.
With this understanding, Barba has been able to encourage brides to embrace every moment of their Las Vegas weddings.
“It takes off the edge a little bit,” she said. “Like, ‘Yeah, it doesn’t have to be perfect. If they can fix it, I’m good.’”
Fortunately with Barba at the helm to fix any issues and with advance planning to prevent problems, brides won’t worry on their wedding days. Rather brides will revel in the moments that truly matter amidst the dream weddings they’ve designed through Semper Fi Events—a coordination company that’s always passionate, always creative, and always faithful.
For more information about Semper Fi Events, please contact by phone Arlene Barba at 702-400-6439 to schedule an appointment or by e-mail at [email protected].
To learn about additional Las Vegas wedding coordination companies, please visit the official website of Bridal Spectacular.
Author: Allyson Siwajian © 2012
Photographs: first and second image by Allyson Siwajian, third image by Chris and Alicia Purdum of Orange Soda Photo