Scarlett & Bell

Fantastic experience: Mercedes at Scarlett & Bell was a dream come true! She was incredibly patient, kind, organized and creative. We came in knowing nothing about what it would take to plan a wedding with only a vague idea of what we wanted. She ended up guiding us expertly through the process and helped us orchestrate a wedding weekend that was truly personalized in every possible way! We did a 3 day wedding celebration with the ceremony on the last day and Mercedes was with us every step of the way, from finding 5 food vendors, our venue, hair & makeup, our excellent florist, photographer, band, and more. Mercedes went over every detail with us and was easy to communicate with, tailoring the process to our preferences. She got us to stick to our budget and was wonderfully organized throughout. Given that we had a destination wedding, Mercedes was particularly invaluable in helping us navigate the different time zone constraints and cultural norms, and narrow down the seemingly endless list of possibilities. Mercedes was involved throughout the whole wedding weekend, from coordinating vendors to bustling my dress, while seamlessly fitting in with our guests - many of them thought she was another one of our friends at the wedding. Seriously, we could not sing higher praises for Scarlett & Bell. (Photography credit @Lianne Mackay)

Fantastic experience: I can’t explain how incredible Scarlett & Bell was during our power hour session! I highly recommend their services to anyone getting married. We are from the USA and are planning a destination wedding in Scotland so meeting with Mercedes was incredibly helping and reassuring. It made wedding planning exciting and fun! Mercedes came to the session having reviewed the Pinterest boards I sent, my long list of questions, and had reviewed the websites of some of our vendors. She packed so much information, advice and research into our short session. I cannot imagine a better wedding planner!

Fantastic experience: Mercedes was amazing! We set up a Power Hour for a destination wedding in Scotland. We are so excited to continue working with her and loved all the ideas she pulled. Even with just the hour call and follow up email, she was attentive to details and really set us up for success on our planning journey. Thank you so much!

Fantastic experience: Words can’t describe how much I loved planning my wedding with Scarlett & Bell and how wonderfully our day went because of Mercedes’ hard work, expertise, and foresight. As an American couple, it was imperative that we had someone on the ground in Edinburgh who had relationships with vendors, was familiar with venues, and could help execute a wedding with nearly 60 people traveling in. All of our worries were put at ease when we started working with Jenny, and then Mercedes, as they walked us through every step of the planning process. Booking our venue sight unseen was definitely a concern for me, but all of that concern washed away knowing I was in such good hands. What is a very stressful time for some, I thoroughly enjoyed because of the support, kindness, and professionalism of the Scarlett & Bell team, and our day truly went off without a hitch. Not only that, Mercedes is such a genuinely nice person who I will miss working with every day. For those looking for a wedding planner in Scotland, you’d be remiss to choose anyone but Scarlett & Bell for the job.

Fantastic experience: We had the absolute privilege of working with Mercedes, of Scarlett & Bell, for our wedding in Scotland, and I can confidently say she is the best planner you could ask for. From day one, she was calm, collected, and brimming with confidence, which immediately put us at ease. Every vendor she recommended was top-tier—proven, reliable, and a perfect match for our vision. What truly set her apart was her ability to instinctively sense our anxieties before we even voiced them, and she always had the perfect solution or reassurance. She anticipated every stressor and handled every detail with grace, even when it came to managing the unique needs of our families and the occasional challenges that came up. Our parents were equally impressed by how smoothly everything was managed. Now that our big day is behind us, I'm genuinely sad that we don't get to meet with Mercedes regularly! We consider her a friend now and are so thankful to have had her by our side during this journey. If you're planning a wedding in Scotland, look no further—she's simply the best.

Fantastic experience: I'm not being hyperbolic when I say that our wedding wouldn't have been the same without Scarlett & Bell. Mercedes was the first — and ultimately most important — vendor that we hired. While planning a destination wedding adds a layer of complication to wedding planning, we felt from day one that we were on the same page as Mercedes for the vision of our wedding and that she was the one we wanted to collaborate with to achieve that ambition. Hiring S&B not only gave us an experienced planner who was there every step of the way, but also opened the door to her network of trusted suppliers that helped round out the team that made our wedding weekend everything we wanted and more. As with any wedding planning experience, there were hurdles and adjustments mid-planning — including a wedding weekend that was historically rainy (even for Scotland) — but we always felt that Mercedes had a plan b and plan c for every situation. On top of all of the professional accolades that makes her great at her job, Mercedes is also a genuine and lovely person. She exudes a warmth and calm that made every call a joy over the two years of planning, so that by the time the wedding weekend came to be, we didn't have just a planner by our side, but also a friend.

Fantastic experience: We knew that having a wedding Scotland was going to be very challenging to plan all that way from LA. Luckily, we found Mercedes at Scarlett and Bell. She was very attentive, organized, and detailed oriented. Mercedes made sure that we were on track for our June wedding. Coordinating with vendors, caterers, florist, and entertainers felt seamless. Joanne and I couldn’t ask for a better wedding planner. Having Mercedes help plan our wedding was the best decision we made. Our special day was perfect thanks to Mercedes and Scarlett and Bell. John and Joanne

Fantastic experience: We had S&B plan our wedding in Scotland, while we were living in America. The planners did an amazing job and gave us a wedding that surpassed our wildest dreams, all the while being in a different time zone. Hats off to them!

Fantastic experience: We started planning for our 2022 wedding in the heart of the pandemic, and had decided to throw caution to the wind and get married in Scotland with some of our closest family and friends. When we looked for a wedding planner we wanted someone who not only knew their stuff, but would help us connect the dots on this adventure. And, most importantly, we wanted someone with the right personality for us. Mercedes of Scarlett and Bell crushed it on all fronts. She was always available whenever we had any questions, and was quick to assure us things were going according to plan whenever we were feeling stressed. On top of that, she was on top of everything all the time. She never missed a deadline with us (and we never missed one with her) and I cannot express enough how stress free she made our experience on the day of our wedding. To add to that, the styling of the day was absolutely on point. We were so impressed I cannot even describe it. Mercedes nailed every one of our ever-changing wishes, even when time seemed short and the situation dire. All of her vendor recommendations were excellent, and she helped set us up for success on every step of our planning journey. She even helped us get everything sorted for our rehearsal dinner, our stay, and many of our friends question and concerns. We couldn’t have asked for a better planner. Thank you Mercedes and Scarlett and Bell, you helped make our dreams come true and we will be forever grateful <3 Much love from Lee and Em

Fantastic experience: As a USA-based bride and groom getting married in Edinburgh during a global pandemic, our international wedding planning obstacles seemed insurmountable. Yet with Mercedes we were able to find the venue, caterers and florist that represented our tastes and values, on budget! Her knowledge of the local Edinburgh vendors and methodical approach to planning over two years resulted in the most memorable day of our lives so far- we attribute it all to her. And when we met on the day of the wedding she was the loveliest and most competent person. We would highly recommend Scarlett&Bell!

Fantastic experience: I found Mercedes in 2020 to help my partner and I plan the wedding we had always dreamed of. We are based in the US and she was everything we could have asked for in a wedding planner. Due to the pandemic, we had to postpone and she made the changes without a missing a beat. She was professional, kind, thoughtful and swift with ALL of our needs. I could not have asked for a better wedding planner and feel so grateful out paths crossed for this special day. If you are looking for a someone who can create the most perfect wedding, Mercedes is your girl!

Fantastic experience: Though I was the mother of the groom, I had a wonderful experience working with Mercedes for our recent wedding weekend in Scotland. Because we are from the USA, Mercedes planned both rehearsal dinner, wedding ceremony and wedding reception. She arranged for the caterer, florist, musicians, photographers, transportation service, etc. No detail was too big or small--She exceeded all expectations! As an event planner, I appreciate her attention to detail and follow up. I strongly recommend Mercedes for all your event planning.

Fantastic experience: We started working with Mercedes and Agnes as our "3 month coordinator" about a year before our wedding. We are based in the US and planned to travel to Scotland only once during the planning process. They kindly offered to help us before the contract officially started, frequently setting up Zoom calls, providing recommendations via email, and even meeting us in person when we were visiting Edinburgh. Mercedes is amazing/lovely/wonderful/SO sweet, but this review is mostly about Agnes and Jenny, who were supporting us on the ground throughout our wedding weekend. First, they are two of the nicest and funniest people in the world. You want people around you on your wedding day that you can trust to allow you to relax, and these two definitely fit the bill. My family still talks about how much they LOVE Agnes, almost a month after my wedding is over! Agnes and Jenny expertly handled supplier issues, helped coordinate a timeline with A LOT of moving parts/locations, and kept us laughing the entire time. Also, the contract ended at the time the wedding was over, and we had some miscommunications of vendors taking things down at the wrong times - Agnes helped me deal with that (while I was on my honeymoon) even though it was outside the scope of our agreement. Our wedding was beautiful and we, along with all our guests, had such a great time. I truly think these ladies have chosen the best career ever for their skill sets - their organization and warmth is unparalleled. I highly recommend the entire team at S&B.

Fantastic experience: My band recently played a wedding at Gilmerton House which was organised by Mercedes. It was a joy to work with her and her team. They were super organised and super friendly in the run up to the event. There was no stress on the day/night and everything ran perfectly smoothly which is the ultimate sign of a well organised event!

Fantastic experience: We hired Mercedes early in our wedding planning. She was incredibly helpful in the planning process and invaluable on our wedding day making sure everything went smoothly. There were a couple of bumps in the planning road she helped solve and was reassuring when stress started to mount as the big day crept closer. As vendors and their contacts/management were changing, she was a constant we needed to bring it all together. Easily the best money we spent. Our wedding was quite relaxed and non-traditional but everything went like clockwork thanks to Mercedes.

Negative experience: A terrible, unprofessional experience. When we decided to postpone our destination wedding in Scotland due to the risks of covid and international travel restrictions we informed Mercedes. She, however, didn't bother to inform our vendors, or update us that she hadn't. Three weeks later vendors started contacting us directly asking about our "upcoming wedding". It was as if they didn't even know she existed as our "planner" at all. We ended up rearranging it all ourselves. She was also not able to make our revised date and, despite her contract saying otherwise, refused to refund us even a penny. Even going as far as to say there was no reason for us to postpone. Ultimately, we had to threaten legal action to get some of our money back.The work she did decide she wanted to do for us was, to put it mildly, underwhelming. I'd find a more competent and professional wedding planner for your day. She caused a great deal more harm than good as our wedding "planner". Update after the reply to this review: The reply gives the impression she was involved in moving the original date in July - she wasn't. The reply gives the impressions she was hired solely for styling work - she wasn't. The reply gives the impressions (and Mercedes' said explicitly) that Covid presented no reason to postpone the wedding - one friend, two bridesmaids and two groomsmen all got Covid the week of the wedding. The reply gives the impression we had agreed to a £200 refund - we hadn't. At least there's an understanding that not updating vendors for three weeks was an error. I genuinely hope Mercedes learns how to act more professionally, changes how she works and treats clients. Good luck.

Fantastic experience: Mercedes did an amazing job planning our elopement in Edinburgh! She brought together the most wonderful group of people to bring our ideas to life and with that gave us a wedding that was exactly as we hoped it would be. The preparations went very smooth. Via Skype and with the help of Pinterest we showed her what we had in mind and she came back to us with multiple options to look into. It was all very relaxed and a fun process. We were almost sad it was all over. On our wedding day we were so happy to finally meet Mercedes in person and have her as our witness. She had been there all the way leading up to this day and it was so nice to have her with us. A part from being our witness she made sure everything ran smoothly. We had no worries at all. Besides planning our wedding she also provided us with the best suggestions for restaurants and things to do while were in Edinburgh. It all made for a great experience!

Fantastic experience: Choosing Scarlett & Bell was one of the best decisions we made when it came to our wedding. They were so friendly and professional and really listened to thoughts and ideas, making them come to life.These ladies were professional from start to finish, and were always just an email or call away to answer any questions or concerns. The wedding day itself was perfection and even our guests commented on how attentive and friendly Mercedes and Agnes were throughout the day. I cannot recommend this company enough...they really are wedding fairy godmothers!

Fantastic experience: Hiring Mercedes was the best decision we made in terms of wedding planning. She is awesome! She made us feel relaxed from day one. She recommended wonderful local suppliers and suggested ideas that made our wedding "ours", while even making the process of planning actually fun. As for the day of the wedding, we basically just showed up and it was perfect. Mercedes took care of everything! We cannot be more thankful, and we have no idea what we would have done without her.

Fantastic experience: I hired Mercedes to plan my wedding in Scotland (as I am located in the United States) and was absolutely blown away by the level of service that she provided. She was warm, professional, super responsive to emails, made me feel genuinely cared for and expressed a personal investment in my wedding. She had a bevy of unique vendors in her arsenal, seemed to instinctively grasp exactly what I was looking for, and then provide a tailored list of providers for my choosing. It was pretty much perfect, and the cost for her services is beyond reasonable. Unfortunately, due to Covid we tried to reschedule the date, and then ultimately scrap our Scotland plan. Mercedes was there every step of this heart wrenching process and I never regretted getting a chance to work with her. She is a truly lovely person who, to me, sets the standard for what all professionals in this industry should strive to be.

Fantastic experience: I'm the kind of guy who never reads the instructions and will spend hours looking for something in the supermarket rather than asking where it is, so I never thought I'd need a wedding planner. I was totally wrong. I can say without a doubt, Mercedes and co were integral to making our wedding perfect. All our friends said, "make sure you take a moment to enjoy the day" and that's impossible if you assume the role of events co-ordinator. Neither my wife nor I lifted a finger on the day and never once did we have to chase anyone because something wasn't where it should be. The planning process was stress free, with Mercedes contacting vendors on our behalf, including the things we never considered. She was always available and our time planning together was always a lovely evening over drinks, rather than board meetings filled with admin. I know most of us look to cut costs where we can when getting married but I'd urge everyone to make the budget stretch for Scarlett & Bell. If you want to avoid memories of nagging caterers and locating photographers, they'll ensure you only look back at the special moments you shared with loved ones. How can you put a price on that?

Fantastic experience: Our perfect day was so perfect all down to Mercedes. Hands down the fairy godmother that every couple needs for planning their big. Mercedes has a wealth of knowledge in the industry and some spectacular ideas too. I can say confidently that our special day wouldn't have been so successful if it hadn't been for all the professional help Mercedes. Couldn't recommend Scarlett and Bell highly enough to any couple planning a wedding. Thank you so much Mercedes. Dawn and Ollie

Fantastic experience: As a fellow supplier to the wedding industry we love working with Mercedes and her team. They really give 100% and have great creative vision for their weddings, and most importantly care about the service they provide. I always recommend them if you’re looking for a planner for your bug day!

Fantastic experience: 10/10 would absolutely recommend! We knew that when we wanted a destination wedding in Scotland, we needed a planner. After interviewing a few different options, Mercedes at Scarlett & Bell was our clear, standout favorite. She really connected with us on our vision, made us laugh, gave incredible suggestions, and acted as our most trusted partner throughout the entire planning process. She was always available to meet with us, even to just chat about non-wedding related things, which meant a lot as we were all trying to navigate through the ever-changing COVID restrictions. While we ultimately had to audible to a state-side wedding due to COVID, the impression Mercedes left on us is one we'll never forget. In fact, we've opted to have our 1-year anniversary in Scotland and will be leveraging her expertise once again for the occasion. There's a lot of tough decisions one has to make when planning a wedding. Choosing Scarlett & Bell for your planning needs isn't one of them.

Fantastic experience: Booking a good planner is one of the most important pieces of planning a wedding - especially when it is the destination kind involving vendors from other countries. Mercedes of Scarlett & Bell ended up being a superstar for us Americans who have never traveled to Scotland. She put us at ease for the early stages of planning, (even helping us figure out a good wedding date) and then Covid-19 hit and everything in the wedding business was flipped upside down. Mercedes handled our postponement and rescheduled a 2nd version of our wedding with such grace and professionalism despite the circumstances. We really felt like we were well taken care of and she truly cared about our wedding day. As we are now approaching our rescheduled wedding date, Mercedes again exceeded our expectations by being so honest with us regarding her ability to provide us with the best services she can offer for our elopement. Due to her no longer servicing the area in Scotland we are planning to elope in this year, she referred us to another amazing elopement planner to carry out the rest of the details. That effort speaks for itself how much Mercedes cares about the quality and service she is providing. We will certainly miss her personality and professionalism for our wedding day, but will never forget how much she already had a hand in our planning process thus far. I highly recommend booking Scarlett & Bell!

Fantastic experience: I think booking Scarlett & Bell was the single most important thing I did to save my sanity whilst planning a wedding! We'd booked our venue in Edinburgh which we loved but it was a DIY job and we lived 450 miles away in London. I was confident I could do most things ourselves (spreadsheet geek alert), and I'd researched and booked most of the major elements, but then I found Mercedes from Scarlett & Bell whilst browsing through LoveMyDress, just as it was dawning on me how many things needed to be done behind the scenes both in the run up to and on the actual wedding day. Turns out I didn't want to be fixing last-minute decor problems on the morning of the wedding when I should be getting ready, or cope with turning around the main hall from the ceremony space to dining tables when I wanted to be having a celebratory drink with my pals! We also didn't want to ask our friends to have to do it either, because we wanted them to relax too. From our very first email exchange, I knew Mercedes would be a dream to work with. Amazing communication, immediately understanding our vision, and full of brilliant ideas (not to mention a great sense of humour) - she was our gal. On the day itself, it seemed as if there were five of her: she somehow managed to appear everywhere, always a constant calming presence overseeing the smooth running of events. She was thoughtful, calm, and always with a smile on her face. If you're in any doubt about booking her, don't be. It was the best money we could have spent!