The husband of a dear friend passed away three weeks ago. It was a difficult experience made more so by the fact that none of us had ever arranged a funeral service or cremation before and had to work within a restrictive budget.

What was reassuring about finding GreenHaven is that they are upfront about their costs, and clearly set out what you can expect, as well as the optional extras available. They currently have packages ranging from $1820 to $4250. Their website is well laid out, which made it easy to understand and showed that they have the right sensibility for such an event.

From the first contact, Carly was calm, friendly, organised and understanding. She made everything easy. She always responded in a timely manner to phone calls and emails, and kept us up-to-date with how things were going.

She came over early to get the paper work sorted, so she could pick up the husband's body the next day from the Coroner and start preparation for the viewing as soon as possible. At the same meeting, the chapel was booked, and all that remained were for us to inform family/friends of where to meet. What a relief.

She also arranged to pick up clothing for the viewing and, at that meeting, spent time with my friend to discuss his life, her favourite memories of him and the songs she wanted played at the service. Carly then put together a moving and fitting eulogy and ceremony service in record time, which we were able to edit and refine prior to the service.

The service was held less than a week after the husband's passing, and was conducted by both Carly and her husband Tim. It was lovely, and almost everyone was deeply moved. We had chosen to organise the flowers ourselves (though they offer this service too), but they set up candles and put together a video photo montage of my friend and her husband's life together.

Carly had also developed memorial cards with the husband's picture and the words "In Loving Memory", which everyone could hold during the service and take away to keep. GreenHaven's contact details are also included on this card. I think everyone took away a card as a keepsake; there were hardly any left in the stack by the end of the service. (Tip: Check the placement of the image and words on the card before they go off to the printers to ensure it is laid out exactly as you wish.)

Though my friend's home is rather far from town, Carly arranged to personally hand over the ashes there, and spent a bit of time with my friend before she left.

All in all, we were very pleased and very grateful for the excellent service we received. Highly recommend!

Approximate cost: $2950

It would be hard to find friendlier, lovelier people than at The Commune. The proprietor of our original wedding venue sadly passed away, with the venue shutting down, two and a half weeks before our wedding! We madly called around and Tony, the proprietor of the Commune, was simply fantastic. From the very beginning, he showed himself to be sympathetic, organised, experienced and charming. His wait staff were also attentive and well-trained. We had a detailed wedding schedule where they provided champagne at the Conservatory in the Fitzroy Gardens, followed by a three-course meal at The Commune, and not only did they keep to time, but they kept us to time and provided lots of lovely attentive service the whole evening through. They also have lots of different options for different budgets. As ours was a surprise wedding and we were doing everything out of our own pockets, we had to keep things reasonably affordable, and Tony was able to provide quality offerings with great service. The venue is simply gorgeous too and works very well if you want candlelight, intimacy and a jazz band (which is what we had). They also have a more formal dining room upstairs and various other function options. The location is also very central and easy to get to, which is great if you have people coming from many different directions. Very satisfied customer!

Dan Gassin (Piano), Carlo Barbaro (Tenor Saxophone) and Ben Robertson (Double Bass) played at our wedding and were simply wonderful. They charged standard rates, but were worth every penny. We had organised a CD to be played in between sets, but when the venue's CD player broke down, the trio actually played the works they knew from our CD. They were punctual and efficient as well as patient and friendly. A very classy part of any event if you can get them - highly recommend!