The Fete Blog

So usually Fête showcases the talents and lifestyles of wedding vendors, artists, photographers, all kinds of cool kids we love and admire. Today’s profile is at once none of the above and nearly all of the above. Nick Symmonds is more than a professional athlete– he is THE professional athlete. An American Dream story, if you will, who brought himself up the ranks from a tiny Division 3 college (Division 1 is the biggie. all those colleges you watch compete on TV) to become the National Champion in his event, the 800 meter. 800 meters is 2 laps around the track– 2 laps FAST. Nick has been the reigning national champion in this event, which is getting faster and faster on the U.S. and world level, for five years. He’s the pretty boy face of track and field and trust me, it needs one.

image via tumblr

But there’s more to Nick than just going out and running. He’s been a passionate and outspoken activist for professional runner’s rights (why do runners need rights? Just look at their paychecks compared to other professional athletes– footballers,golfers,  race car drivers even!); he dedicates time to charities. He owns a string of businesses in Oregon, where he lives and trains. He asked out Paris Hilton– and actually went on a real date with her! Oh, and he’s finished in the top five 800 meter runners in the world over the past few years– finishing 5th at this year’s Olympic Games. He’s one of my husband’s very best friends and former training partners (they even share a birthday, yikes), was a groomsmen in our wedding, and is one of the most generous people you’ll ever know. Meet Nick–>

For the non-runners out there, can you tell us what being a “professional runner” means? What exactly do you do?

Nick: It is an unconventional occupation for sure! Essentially, each year I train my butt off for nine months so that for three months I can travel around the world racing other men for prize money and glory! A good deal of my income comes from running these events, but the majority of it comes from sponsors that pay me to wear and/or endorse their products. My gear sponsor is Nike and I have been with them since 2006.

image via Randy Rasmussen

You’re a perfect example of the Great American success story– you’ve always been a great runner, but you came to professional running from a D3 school and through years of passion and hard work, have become one of the greatest names in US running. How did you get started in running and what kept you going through high school and college?

Nick: I originally started running in 8th grade when a girl I had a crush on said she was going out for the cross country team. I had no interest in actually running, but liked the idea that the boys and girls teams practiced together. I ended up tolerating the training and actually enjoy the competitions. A little success that season led me to run in high school, then college and beyond. I would say that now, at 28, I enjoy running more than ever before. It is a brutal sport, but it has given me so much and I am now finally mature enough to appreciate that.

What does an average day look like for you?

Nick: Most days are training days and those begin at 8 AM. I have a cup of coffee and a piece of fruit to wake me up and then head to practice. Our morning practices are the most grueling and last three hours. We burn several thousand calories during one of these practices so I usually rush home to fix a big lunch. I then like to spend my afternoons tackling emails, writing to fans, or making calls to coaches, sponsors, etc. More often than not, I will train again in the evening, either opting for a short run or swim before dinner. I like to watch movies and read and will usually do one or the other before bed.

You’re not just a runner– you’re a businessman with a successful franchise of tanning salons and you’ve become an advocate for runner’s rights. What sets you apart from your peers? What are three words to describe you?

Nick: I went to a DIII college so that I could pursue all of my interests. I was studying Biochemistry, had a part time job, played two varsity sports, was active in greek life, etc. I’ve never been good at sitting still and love having a long, productive day. This mentality of being busy from dawn till dusk stuck with me into my life after school. The life of a professional runner is filled with a lot of down time and I chose to fill that time with learning everything I could about business from my coach and mentor, Sam Lapray. I would say three words that describe me well are curious, passionate, and stubborn.

My favorite thing about you is that you’re never boring. You’re unlike other professional athletes, who work out and then go home and sleep all day– you have real interests and a life outside the track. What are your top five things that keep you sane, inspired, and happy?

Nick: I think it is important for athletes to have well rounded personalities with a diverse set of interests. Most professional athletes are only able to cash in on their talent for a few short years and once the dream is over it is important to have other things to look forward to. The things that keep me sane and inspired are literature, the outdoors, family, travel, and great food!

Looking back, what would you say/what advice would you give to your 20-year-old self?

Nick: I was really insecure at 20 and was always worrying about how the future would turn out for me. I wish I could go back and tell my younger self to chill out a little, enjoy the present a little more, and not worry so much about my ambitions. However, I acknowledging that it may be those anxieties that pushed me to be successful! Also, I’m pretty sure that my 40 year old self is going to look back at my 28 year old self and say, “Chill out!”. I am constantly trying to remind myself to live in the moment and enjoy each day for what it is.

A handful of our groomsmen– Nick is second from left! Photos by Jen Fariello

My perfect day is ______.

Nick: … spent with my family and friends catching fish, eating great food, and drinking beer!

image via NBC Olympics

What’s next for you?

Nick: I am currently training for the 2013 World Championships in Track and Field which will take place August 10-18 in Moscow, Russia. My next big trip will be to central Mexico in January for an extended training camp at altitude.

Follow Nick via his snazzy website; his Twitter; his Facebook; and his Instagram! All images, unless cited, courtesy Nick.

Words cannot capture how much I admire today’s lovely lady. If any of my past featured subjects are an indication, I am constantly awed by the modern Wonder Woman– gals who combine so many different subjects and interests and talents and make it all look effortless. There’s not much in the way of introduction to capture all the facets of Jeannine Lalonde Smith; suffice it to say she’s a newlywed, a local interior blogger, one of UVA’s Deans of Admissions, a DIY master, a social media guru, and the sweetest friend (true story: she reached out to me when I was sinking under last minute wedding DIYs and rocked out some yarn ball poms for me, majorly saving me from going insane). So without further ado– Jeannine!

photo by Jen Fariello

You are a local Wonder Woman– what does your everyday life look like?

Jeannine: I often feel as though I have my hand in one too many things and worry about my ability to juggle them all. Though I love my design blog and DIY projects, helping students through the application process is my priority, so my schedule revolves around the admission cycle.

I have four seasons in my life: travel season, reading season, visit season, and the summer.

During travel season, I’m either in New England for group programs with friends from UC Berkeley, Northwestern, and Johns Hopkins or I’m doing school visits or events in Northern Virginia. Those trips require early mornings and late nights, but they often bring me to places where I can stop at an interesting shop between appointments or squeeze in some blogging after hours.

My husband calls the next season the zombie season. I’m immersed in application reading from November until the end of March. Most of my days are spent staring at two computer screens for up to 12 hours. Reading season is an intense period for anyone in my field, but I’m also responding to students contacting me through social media channels during that time, which is a lot to manage. I gave up the idea of having a truly relaxed Thanksgiving years ago.

Once our decisions are released, the yield season brings thousands of visitors to the UVa Grounds as students try to decide if UVa is where they’ll spend their college years. As a true extrovert, I feed off the energy of crowds, so I love this time of year.

During the “low” season in the admission world, my days are a little boring. It’s the time when we reset to prepare for the next admission cycle, so I do a lot of reading online and I reach out to friends at other schools to see if we can improve on our practices.

What inspired you to start your blog, Small & Chic Home in Cville? What’s your favorite trend in interiors right now?

Jeannine: A blogger I love, Stephanie from Brooklyn Limestone, asked why I wasn’t blogging after I wrote a guest piece for her blog about my bathroom renovation back in 2009. I had started my work blog, Notes from Peabody, in secret in 2005 (people were a little leery of letting students see the nuts and bolts of our process) and didn’t think I could handle a second blog. I gave the second blog a try and it wound up being a great outlet. It also connected me to the design blogging crowd, which inspired me even more than shelter magazines and formulaic design shows on television did.

photo by Elisa B Photography

How did your appreciation for interior design and projects influence your wedding?

Jeannine: The design influence in our wedding started with the color scheme. I went to my paint fan decks and Pantone color charts to find the right shade of blue for our day. Marc definitely gave me a few amused looks when I obsessed over nearly identical shades because he knew I was enjoying obsessing over nearly identical shades of blue.

J. Crew’s wedding consultants, who operate out of Lynchburg, sent swatches of every blue fabric they had so I could find a match to the color I ultimately selected. From there, I focused on fabric. It sounds odd, but I love fabric and knew I’d be using it in a few different ways at our wedding. I loved a fabric called Vintage Plumes by Robert Allen and the jade colorway was a great match for the blue I had selected. I wound up using that fabric for our escort card board, as a background on some signs, and for the clutches that my friend, Michelle Duncan of ea handbags, made for my bridesmaids.

photo by Tom Daly

You created a healthy number of DIY projects for your wedding– where did you find inspiration for these very real projects (they were all so do-able! Not just those insanely unattainable projects you see crafted in magazines)? Do you have any tips for ambitious DIY brides?

Jeannine: Being a blogger is a blessing and a curse during wedding planning.  There is so much inspiration to take in through wedding blogs. My moleskin was full of notes and lists of projects I wanted to try. I was a bit intimidated at first. As a home blogger, I’m far more comfortable with a drill than a glue gun and I was convinced that my DIY skills wouldn’t translate to wedding projects. Early on, I relied on detailed tutorials to get me through projects. In time, I grew comfortable working without tutorials.

photo by Elisa B Photography

My advice to other brides to who aspire to do a lot of DIYing in to first think about why they are going to jump into their projects. So many assume that DIYing items is a way to cut the wedding budget and there are definitely ways to do that, but great materials aren’t always inexpensive. The purpose of my projects was to personalize the details at our wedding, not to cut the budget. In fact, my projects probably cost more because of the materials I selected (Robert Allen fabric was a bit of a splurge!).

For those who decide to DIY, I think a simple list and a realistic calendar are essential. I set a date by which all projects that didn’t require a headcount would be done so that the last minute items (escort cards, programs, menus) wouldn’t be stressful additions to my tasks in the three weeks before our wedding.

photo by Elisa B Photography

A few wedding questions: what was your “Wow” moment What was your overall design inspiration? What was the hardest thing to plan?

Jeannine: Is it terrible to say that I didn’t have a “wow” moment on the wedding day?  I worked on every detail of the day and was in frequent touch with my vendors. There weren’t really any surprises about the overall look, except for the fact that our ceremony was moved inside due to rain the afternoon of the wedding. My bouquet was probably my favorite detail that I didn’t design and I wish I had been able to hold it more than I did. It was a beautiful piece of art.

Jeannine’s bouquet, by Southern Blooms. photo by Elisa B Photography

I love questions about our theme or inspiration. Our theme was “wedding.” In the wedding blogging world, so many people assign a string of words to their wedding (elegant-modern-rustic-chic, anyone?) and I didn’t want to do it. If I liked something or thought a project was fun, I used it.

The hardest parts of the planning were related to our venue. We signed a contract with Pippin Hill before it was built, so we didn’t have many details about logistics. There were a few surprises, which we expected, but it all worked out in the end. An interesting side effect to signing a venue that didn’t exist was that many brides (and their mothers) were searching for updates online. Many found my blog while they were looking for information and some stayed in touch throughout their planning process.

photo by Elisa B Photography

You’re a brand new wife: has anything about marriage surprised you?

Jeannine: I was surprised by how my opinion about changing my name evolved after we got married. I know many women in academia who did not change their names after getting married. I always thought I’d do the same. After the wedding, I realized that I wanted to use my husband’s last name. I decided to keep my name professionally, but use his name socially. I like having the separation, especially when working with social media, which allows students to contact me at all hours and on any day of the week.

photo by Tom Daly

You have so many different roles and interests– what was the best advice you’ve ever received? Do you think it’s possible for ambitious women in their twenties and thirties to “have it all”?

Jeannine: Perfect is boring. No one actually gave me that advice, but it’s been my mantra for quite some time. In college and graduate school, I was so focused on doing things right and my fear of failure or being imperfect led to not taking advantage of some great opportunities. I don’t think I was very interesting or authentic as a result and I spent a lot of time worrying about how I was perceived, so I wasn’t always “present.”

Can we “have it all” in terms of fulfillment in our careers and happiness in other areas of our lives? Sure. I think we should all aspire to be successful in all areas of our lives. It’s great to be ambitious as long as our ambition doesn’t lead us to be obsessively competitive.

You have a friend coming to Charlottesville for the very first time. Where are three places you would take her?

Jeannine: The Lawn is an obviously first stop. It would probably take an out-of-town guest a little while to understand why I’ve loved my time at U.Va. so much, but spending time on the Lawn would probably plant a seed of understanding.

The Downtown Mall is where I decided I could live in Charlottesville when I visited for my interview. It feels a lot like Faneuil Hall in Boston, but Charlottesville has done an amazing job of keeping the mall full of local businesses.

I can’t resist taking every out of town visitor to Pippin Hill Farm & Vineyards, where we got married. I think that any city dweller can understand our love for this area when sitting on the patio at Pippin Hill. By the way, our attachment to Pippin Hill isn’t just due to getting married there. Growing up in the New York City area, I only saw farm animals at the zoo and we had fairs, but they never included livestock. Going to the Albemarle County Fair became a bit of a tradition for me when I moved here. I have so many funny memories of that fair. Pippin Hill overlooks the land where the fair used to take place.

photo by Elisa B Photography

Let’s talk balance: what are five things you absolutely need to keep you sane, refreshed, and inspired?

Jeannine: I feel as though you’ve been very generous with the offer of five things! The easy first answer is my husband. During travel season, when I’m not with him, I tend to veer into being a workaholic. I stay up too late and I’m sleep deprived.

Baxter – Our dog is an easy second. Though golden retrievers tend to have a kind temperament, Baxter is especially sweet and affectionate. He is a constant source of joy in my life.

Music – Music is a constant in my life. A song can bring back a specific memory or even an entire phase of my life.

Paint – I love all sorts of painting. I find painting, even painting a room, relaxing.

Food – Like music, I have many happy memories tied to meals.

My perfect day would be _____.

Jeannine: …spent with my husband and my dog and probably include a hammock and a beach… and probably a WiFi signal, too. I actually love being connected, probably because I have family and friends spread around the country.

photos by Jen Fariello

What’s next for you?

Jeannine: We’ve decided to put our condo on the market in the spring and look for our next adventure. I’ll probably write about that process. I believe strongly in living small, but I know that where ever we wind up, we’ll probably want a little more space.

There are so many ways to stay in touch with Jeannine! Follow her blog, Small & Chic in Cville | follow her on Twitter | Instagram | follow her Dean J admissions blog! | and the Dean J Twitter! | Pinterest! | Wedding Bee– she is Mrs. Mink! | And– her wedding on Style Me Pretty | All photos, unless credited, courtesy Jeannine Lalonde Smith

There are some people who are just so enthusiastic, so energetic, so much fun that they just infect you with happiness every time you see them; people who have smiles permanently on their faces, who never stress or sweat the small stuff. Wedding and lifestyle photographer Meredith McKee is one of those people– times a hundred. I have a huge smile on my face just typing her name– Meredith is not only one of the sweetest girls you’ll ever meet, but her talent and energy just absolutely blow my mind.

Not only is she a stunning photographer with the best personality in the world, she’s also a savvy business lady, an adventurer, and part of a duo so cute you literally want to wrap her and her boyfriend in bear hugs when you see them. After honing her photography and business skills in Charlottesville, Meredith has set off for a new adventure: capturing life on the West Coast, where she and her sweet beau have relocated. Look out America, here comes Meredith!

Meredith & Kevin, by Cramer Photo

How did you make the transition from student of photography & studio art to professional photographer? When did you know photography was your calling?

Meredith: Love to tell this story! So I used to collect postcards that my dad would send me while I was growing up. When I was in 8th grade my mom took my sister and me to New York City and I decided that I wanted to take the pictures myself instead of buying them on a postcard– I think that was the moment I realized I wanted to be a photographer!

My junior year of high school I started interning with Karen Woodard (Libby of Easton Events’ mom!) who was a wedding photographer in Virginia Beach– I fell in love and knew I wanted to continue shooting when I came to UVA. By the luck of the universe I got in touch with Sarah of Cramer Photo and fell even more in love with photography! UVA has a fantastic photography department that really focuses on the craft of film photography. Bill and Pam challenged me every day to think constructively about my work, and on the weekends I would get to shoot with Sarah! It really was the best of both worlds.

Why did you choose weddings to be your main photographic niche?

Meredith: Ah– weddings are such a unique world! I think I started out shooting weddings just out of circumstance, school during the week, weddings on the weekends; but I really grew to love the excitement and happiness that weddings exude! Weddings can be very fast paced, but every couple is so unique that there is always something different to capture; it is not rare for me to still tear up a bit during the first dance!

What was the most challenging aspect of starting your own business? What advice do you have to fellow twenty-somethings trying to strike out on their own in the business world?

Meredith: Finding balance is definitely the hardest part– it was difficult my fourth year of college to focus on schoolwork, start my own company and have fun! You definitely have to be a multi-tasker and love being busy.

I think if I were wise enough to give advice I would recommend being patient. Starting a business takes a lot of work and you won’t be a huge success overnight! Stay motivated, and don’t be afraid to ask for help. If you have the opportunity to do something you love– go for it! Be confident and proud of yourself.

You just made a huge leap– moving to the West Coast! What inspired your move and what are you most looking forward to about your new hometown?

Meredith: I still can’t believe it! I think the answer to both of those questions is Kevin, my boyfriend. Kevin is a West Coast boy at heart and we decided to take the plunge and have a new start out here! It is so beautiful in Washington and I love getting to document it!

If you could be photographed by ANYONE, who would it be?

Meredith: Okay…  at risk of sounding cheesy… If I could be photographed by anyone it would be Sarah, and Kevin and I got to do a “love session” with her before we moved– it was fantastic!

If you could photograph ANYONE, who would it be?

Meredith: If I could photograph anyone, it would be my adorable nephew – I cannot get enough of that little nugget!

My ideal day is _____.

Meredith: My ideal day would definitely include a lot of great food; starting out with an awesome breakfast and coffee, then ending with a three-hour meal at MAS Tapas… Throw in some wine tasting, maybe snowboarding… Cuddling up on a couch and watching some good TV and I’d be SET.

Top five comfort must-haves? What do you absolutely need in your life to keep you balanced, sane, and inspired?

Meredith:
1. iCal & LOTS of to-do lists
2. Pinterest & the long list of blogs I follow
3. Exercise
4. FOOD – food that tastes good & makes you feel good
5. Ice cream.

What’s next for you? What’s next for Meredith McKee Photography & Design?

Meredith: Good question! I was lucky enough to start working with online destination wedding resource, Borrowed & Blue, before I left Charlottesville, so I am still working with them & taking pictures whenever I can! I have a few weddings booked in Charlottesville that I get to come back for, and already have a couple of weddings lined up for next summer in Washington! I’m definitely excited to see where things are headed!

Follow Meredith’s adventures on her blog; on Pinterest; on Instagram; and on Facebook! All images by Meredith McKee; portraits of Meredith & Kevin by Cramer Photo!

 

I’d like to think that I am a part of a generation that is endlessly creative and savvy at creating small businesses and projects, all while traveling, giving back, and being all-around incredible. (In reality, every generation probably thinks that about themselves and their peers.) One girl in particular stands out in my mind as an exemplar of all the great things about my fellow twenty-somethings: strong and confident; creative to the core; combining hard work and passion to create a career and lifestyle she believes in. Keep an eye on her Etsy shop and put her on your craft project speed dial– as a world traveler, DIY expert, young wife, and maker, Maggie Best (nee Stewart) is one of the most fabulous, up-and-coming members of Gen Y.

You’ve been a maker ever since your early high school days– what were some of your first projects and what sparked your interest in sewing, textiles, and design?

Maggie: My first project ever was this wonky little felt needle book. So two pieces of felt. Flat. Stitched together. Four seams. It was awful. I made it at a friend’s birthday party and was so frustrated that I just couldn’t get it to look neat that I spent the entire party teaching myself how to sew a straight seam. I even missed out on the cake, I think– I was just so determined to get it right! I suppose my driving interest, therefore, was to be excellent at something. I wanted to be able to make whatever I wanted and make it well. Better than anyone else. But not in competitive way. I just wanted to be assured, in my own self, that what I had made, whatever it was, was excellent.

And then I’ve always liked clothes. For my 7th birthday party, I changed five times– ending up in a flowery party dress with a veil. So it was only the natural progression to begin making those things instead of buying them. It was very organic. I would get very specific visions of some dress or jacket in my head and could never find it in the store, so I taught myself how to make it. Thankfully, I moved on from needle-books to my prom dress, wedding dress, etc. and now I make or refashion a majority of my wardrobe. My aunt was a seamstress and taught me the basics, but then it was a lot of trial and error, plus one Home Ec class in high school, topped off with a healthy dose of internet tutorials.

You have an Etsy shop where you share headpieces, veils, all kinds of handmade floral prettiness. What are your plans to expand your brand and where do you see your work in five years?

Maggie: I’m still trying to figure out what “brand” means for myself. I don’t really understand the specifics of it yet, but I am trying. That being said, eventually, I’d like to have my own studio where my materials are strewn everywhere and I have to dig through them to find that one piece of silk or vintage brooch or the sharpest pair of shears. Is that a brand?

Floral headpieces at Maggie’s shop Flower Child Hippy Wild

I claim my personal “look” as GBGB—Global Bohemian Gypsy Badass– and it’s only natural that your brand reflects the things that you yourself enjoy, so I’d like to continue using global textiles, fair-trade feathers and other natural materials, vintage brooches, etc. but in new ways. In the remake of the movie “Yours, Mine, and Ours,” the main lady has this wicked studio where her stuff is spread pell-mell everywhere– and her husband cleans it up for her one day, thinking he’s being helpful. But instead, she comes home and is horrified that she can’t find anything anymore. Because it’s all in boxes. That is so me. So I’d like to have a studio with that vibe someday. A messy, luxurious studio where I am making brilliant creations made with feathers and silk and brooches. Preferably for the Duchess of Cambridge and Lady Gaga. In that order.

Your wedding was the essence of DIY– what projects did you tackle yourself? With DIY weddings all the rage, what advice do you have for ambitious brides who want to do it all themselves?

Maggie: I made my wedding dress, two headpieces, my veil, my husband’s outfit, the flower girls’ sweaters, the bridesmaids headpieces, 20 hand-sewn fabric flower & peacock feather boutennieres, 47 decoupaged wine bottles, a large chandelier sort of thing with a bamboo frame 5’ x 5’ draped with feathers and fabric and other treasures, the ring- bearer’s pillow, 150+ tissue paper flower poufs, the save-the-dates, the invitations, the table cards, the place cards, some hand-carved stamps for the envelopes, and a football- field worth of fabric bunting. It was a very ambitious undertaking and I probably would re- think things if I had to do it over again. I believe that is the standard lament for every DIY bride. But I had a ton of help– two friends would come over once a week and we’d watch Glee and eat McFlurries and get Modge Podge all over our hands for the bottles and shreds of tissue paper everywhere with the flower poufs. My dad made like 10 chalkboard frames that we wrote the seating chart and other signs on, plus he made these two stupendous photobooth backdrops. My mom and nana made 300 cupcakes. My sister made her own outfit plus our save-the-date and place card stamps. All of our wedding party helpers fluffed the tissue paper flowers, my aunt wrote all the signs out, and a friend did our flowers. And then, everyone showed up a day before the wedding and put it all together. It was a very communal undertaking. It was like giving birth, I think– hard, but then your community rallies around you and you are weepy with happiness and thanks for them and the final product.

My DIY advice would be delegate, delegate, delegate. Ask for help– which is hard for the DIY bride because the very fact that she is a DIY bride means she has control issues and is good at certain things and so therefore thinks that delegating is a waste of time because she could just do it better anyway so give me that flower arrangement/tablecloth/strand of fairy lights. But pick people you trust and then let them have at it. Without you hovering all around them! Because honestly, they know your standard of excellence, they have their own vision, and then they will rise to the occasion and beyond it. Also my husband, Justin, has saved me a million times throughout our relationship, but particularly during the wedding planning because he kept saying “What will people remember in 30 years?” That became our motto, so that when I started freaking out about not having napkin rings, he reminded me that no one—absolutely NO ONE—will remember napkin rings or a lack thereof in 30 years. And I was able to relax, release it, and then I was blown away on the day of because someone had come up with ribbons around the napkins. Brilliant!

You’re part of a unique set of people: someone who fell in love in high school, grew throughout college together, and ended up married. After going through so many experiences with one other person, how do you make it work? What’s the secret to long- lasting happiness in a committed relationship?

Maggie: Any relationship I admire and strive to be like says the same thing: communication and humor. Talk about everything, and be humble enough to laugh at yourself and with your partner at whatever life throws you. So that is what we’ve always worked on. When we did pre-marital prep work, our counselor told us that if you get good habits going at the beginning of your marriage, chances are, they will carry you through all the way. That gave me such hope! So we made it a point to start doing things well right away. Do something right the first time, and it’ll be easier to do it right the second time. And the 100398th time.

Communication, especially, makes you vulnerable and requires you to admit you are wrong. Which I obviously never am. But if I was, I’d have to admit it to Justin and then we’d have to work it out together. Communication requires you to talk about horrible things like money and schedules and grocery shopping– but then grace comes in and those mundane things are made wonderful. Anne Lamott is one of my favorite authors, and I just read this quote of hers (which I have in a sticky note by my desk now): “How much wilder and truer each holy moment is than any fantasy.” And so I guess those mundane things– the bathroom cleaning, the laundry, the bed-making– are made holy by you and your partner working at it together. It takes work, but it is so, so, so very good when you are in that groove together. I think our generation is in danger of missing out on how rewarding hard work is—but if you are going to work hard at something, if you are going to bust your butt at something, work at your relationship. Having a partner, being that intimate with and tied that tightly to one person can either be awful or so mind-blowingly awesome that you lose your breath sometimes. So I am trying to do everything I can in my own power to make the latter happen for Justin and I.

You’ve traveled the world, studied abroad, really experienced different cultures– what was your favorite trip and what advice do you have to aspiring travelers? What’s next on your travel bucket list?

Maggie: My two most opposite trips are my favorite. I loved my study-abroad time because I was young and with only one friend from home. We lived in India and went to Dubai in the United Arab Emirates, Sri Lanka, Ethiopia, and then I went to Uganda all by myself. It was scary and I had to rise to the occasion of having to do things alone, of having to be brave all by myself. But I tried so many things and grew so much.

Justin and I most recently went on our belated-honeymoon to a few places in Europe and that just blew my mind on a different wavelength. India was so outrageous and multi-faceted. It was an assault on the senses 24/7. But Europe is a different kind of wonderful—gelato in Rome (three times a day, obviously), and just wandering in Paris, and misty lochs in Scotland where they have signs saying to watch out for fairies. The places I went in Europe were much more orderly than India. Some would call it “sophisticated” or “developed” or whatever. And I guess by some standards it is. You had to look for that multi-faceted experience there; you had to dig beneath the surface for it. I had to find it instead of having it explode in my face like in India. Having Justin for the Europe trip and then even enjoying my sister joining us at the end was another different sort of fun. But I loved both trips. They both hold such huge spaces in my heart for different reasons.

My advice when travelling is a) eat everything, b) take precautions to drink safe water, and c) walk everywhere if you can. (If not, take the subway or whatever transportation other broke locals would take.) Also, pack light, for the love of all things holy. You will survive with just one bag. And your back and wallet will thank you! Next on my bucket list—I’m trying to go back to Scotland forever. Or at least two weeks. And then I want to do Southeast Asia: Thailand, Vietnam, Laos, etc. because their food is the best. Food is a very big driving force in my travels.

Who are your role models? What are your daily, must-read sources of inspiration, online or in print?

Maggie: Alexander McQueen makes me cry. I love his far-out, fantastical interpretations of beauty and his reverence for the female form. I have a fantastic book of his best pieces and then I’m always looking for more bits of that brand. And my parents got me this fabulous book of Alphonse Mucha’s work that I keep on my nightstand—I love his ethereal drawings and how they’re the perfect marriage of fantasy and technique. I enjoy a fashion mag every once and a while, usually Vogue, but sometimes they inspire me and other times they make me feel dissatisfied, so I have to be in-tune with myself to know when it’s appropriate to peruse them. And what the hell did I do before Pinterest? Nothing, obviously.

Inspiration via A Beautiful Mess pinned to Maggie’s board “Arts & Crafts”

I like looking at DIY blogs—I think my top favorites are OffbeatBride, abeautifulmess, and Gertie’s Blog for Better Sewing. I do love that Pinterest nudges me towards all different corners of the DIY-isphere, so I’m always on the lookout for the next good tutorial.

Above all, though, I am inspired by women. Particularly by women with different standards of beauty than my own. I studied abroad in India when I was a junior in college and let me tell you– Indian women have got the world beat on beauty. I am constantly blown away with how women all over the world take care of themselves and ornament themselves without the assistance of Vogue or Elle or Pinterest. Don’t even get me started on saris; I think they are God’s gift to women. They are a pain to wear, but the draping around the hips, the pleating that happens around your butt, the revealing of the lower back. Yes! Even the wizened old ladies who walk around my neighborhood look like queens in their saris and white tennis shoes.

The idea of “balance” is everywhere– what are your top five must-haves for balance, sanity, and inspiration?

Maggie: 1. Lots of prayer—breathing, reading, speaking. I am trying to increase the listening aspect of this particular practice.
2. My husband. He is the anchoring peg to my wheeling, diving kite.
3. Yoga.
4. Tea.
5. Travel– even if it’s just the next town over, it gets you out of your own little box and gets your mind moving again. Perhaps in a different way. Travelling even farther from home always puts things into perspective for me.

What’s next for you?

Maggie: I would like a creative, rewarding career making (possibly outrageous) things for people who appreciate them. Also, a tiny, historic house in Philly with manageable rent into which we can stuff our Gypsy Treasure Trove would be fantastic. And then, a baby. With a cherry on top, please.

Keep up with all Maggie’s adventures– abroad and in the craft room– on Instagram; on Facebook; on Etsy; on Pinterest!

Wedding images by JPG Photography; other image courtesy Maggie Best

There is nothing greater than giving back– but it’s one thing to throw wads of money at a cause, quite another to throw yourself, full force, into it. I love when people run races to earn money for a cause, because so often my world of running seems selfish. But to know that all your training, all the grueling mileage and lifestyle changes associated with marathon (or any length of race) preparation, is going towards a cause greater than yourself– that’s when the magic happens.

I am so excited that Erin McDermott of Erin McDermott Jewelry is running the NYC ING Marathon this year in support of the Robin Hood Foundation– a charity that works to defeat poverty in New York City.

“NYC and running are a large part of my life. Not only did I discover my jewelry designing passion there, but I also travel there often for my business as well,” says Erin. “I remember the first time that I saw the NYC marathon. I was a student at the Fashion Institute of Technology and was let out early from one of my welding classes to cheer for the runners. I remember standing in the sidelines and watching the runners fly by me. The look of sheer determination and wholeness in their faces awed me. At that instant I thought to myself, ‘One day, that will be me… not today, not tomorrow, but one day I will be one of those runners.’

In 2011 I ran my first marathon and it forever changed my life. The discipline and dedication required to to train and the accomplishment I felt after I crossed the finish line was incredible. By joining the Robin Hood Foundation team for this year’s marathon, I no longer will feel this accomplishment for myself, but for a greater cause.”

Erin is asking friends, family, and supporters for help raising $5,000 for Robin Hood. I’m so excited for her– I love when anyone gets excited by racing!– and I think her bodily sacrifice (hey, I’m not planning on running a marathon any time soon, those things are brutal!) is incredible. If you’d like to support Erin and Robin Hood– even just $5!– head here to donate!

**Last day to donate is October 25– the marathon is November 4!

Image 1 via One Extra Pixel / Image 2 via Pinterest

When I first met Will Walker, I was an eager intern at The Hook and Will was a young staff photographer. Our first assignment together– go to an auction at a defunct steakhouse off of Route 250 and see if anyone was doing anything interesting. Will snapped a few pictures and I met the guys starting up Boylan Heights on the Corner– and with that, a beautiful working partnership was born. That summer, Will and I hit up all the juicy stories (I mean, if restaurant auctions are juicy): we followed the Boylan Heights opening, we went to a bullriding competition, we broke the McIntire Park softball story. And I learned that Will was barely much older than me– and yet there he was, so cool and professional, wise beyond his years, but so passionate about his craft that he made it look easy.

Flash forward a few years and Will hasn’t aged a day– only become more of a staple in the ever-expanding world of photogs in Cville. His wedding work is classic, with a touch of experimentation (he trained under Jen Fariello); his landscape work is both dark and moody and beautiful and ethereal. Best of all? He’s down-to-earth, hilarious, and confident in his style. There’s not much better than that.

When was the first time you picked up a camera? How did your love affair with photography begin?

Will: From my early teens I was a skateboarder. Me and my buddies would ride all over town and as we got better, I wanted to start taking photos of my friends skateboarding so we could get in the magazines. I had these dreams of Skateboarder Magazine sending me on trips to exotic locales to photograph pro skaters. So I grabbed my dad’s old Minolta SRT-MC II and signed up for photography class in high school. It turned out I had a knack for photography. I would take photos of anything! Soon, I was taking more photos of train tracks, flowers, wildlife, architecture, and textures and less and less photos of skating or my buddies. I was 16 and my life was consumed by photography.

There was a photo contest “Our View” for all the high school students in the area. The winners’ images would be published in a book. I submitted a few photos and two of them were picked to be published. This further fueled my love and passion of photography. By this time, my photo teacher (who also shot weddings) had asked if I wanted to come along to a few weddings with him to see how I liked it. One thing led to the next and 10 years later, here I am!

You stand out so much in the Charlottesville photog scene because you started out at such a young age after trying out art school. Did that theoretical and technical art school experience impact your photographic eye? How does your age influence your style?

Will: One thing that really influenced me in my art school experience was figuring out what I didn’t like. I feel like I have a very clean sense of design and subscribe to the theory “if it doesn’t add to the image, take it out”. While I was in art school it seemed like there was a lot of chaotic, angst driven art around me. Young art students trying to say something with their work, but they didn’t quite know the language yet. I yearned for technical art classes on lighting, design, composition, and alternative processes. I wanted art professors to tell me why my images were terrible so I could get better. Instead, the courses were structured around student critiques and idea based assignments left open to interpretation. I was in a minority of students who thought that compositional elements and simple beauty were enough to make an image a piece of art, that didn’t have to represent anything or be ironic.

The one class that impacted my photography the most was my “perspective drawing” class. It changed the way I saw the world and honed my sense of point of view, horizon, and vanishing point. I still remember the professor’s name, Albert Epstein, and he was mean! If he didn’t like what he saw on your sketch pad, he’d rip it out and tear it up in front of the whole class and tell you to “Do it again!”. It sounds crazy, but he forced you to understand technical art.

I don’t know if age has influenced my style as much as the fact that this is all I’ve really done in my professional career. I knew that when I started I needed to pay my dues in the photo world and take advice and learn from more seasoned photographers. I really feel that at an early age my photography was influenced most by my employers and I very much consider that my education rather than art school. I knew that to be taken seriously as a professional, I needed to perform as one.

Your portfolio is packed with weddings, portraits, editorial shoots– you and I teamed up for a bull riding story years back!– and gorgeous landscape shots. Where do you think your innate strengths lie and where do you want to keep exploring and pushing yourself?

Will: That bull riding story still sticks out in my mind! It was such a dramatic memory. It was raining and muddy at night, we were literally in the bull pen with all the bull riders it was intense!

People tell me I’m a pretty gregarious guy so that definitely helps with people projects. I’m a complete tech nerd, so I know the ins and outs of all my equipment. I’ve been pushing myself lately to get a lot of emotion in photos. To take it past “wow what a nice picture” to “OMG that’s gorgeous!!!”. I’ve also been trying to think outside my norm. I never want to get in a rut making the same image but with different couples over and over.

You and your lovely partner Jess just got hitched this summer! How did going through the entire wedding planning process and wedding day influence your work as a wedding photographer? Do you approach shooting a wedding any differently now?

Will: Yikes! Good question! Well first off, Jess did an amazing job planning the wedding. She kept her sanity and really enjoyed herself throughout the process. I’m not sure if I approach shooting a wedding any differently now, but I definitely have a better understanding of what emotions are being felt at certain times… or at least I think I do haha.

BONUS! What was your favorite moment at your wedding?

Will: Jess is probably going to call me a sap for saying this, but we got married at the beach and they were calling for very high winds that day. At the time of the ceremony, as I was standing in at the alter and I see Jess for the first time, I realize there was no wind, it was in the mid 70s, and everyone was smiling. It was perfect.

I love this– “Just Will” from Martin Montgomery on Vimeo.

Favorite Cville hangout?

Will: Fridays After Five

We ask women this all the time, but I’m eager to hear your take– between running a business, being a newlywed, and having “you time,” do you feel balanced?

Will: Unfortunately running a business and “you time” are the same thing. I don’t really give myself too many days off even though I should. I always feel like there is something I need to be doing, and I feel guilty if I take an afternoon off to go do something fun. I did just take most of the day off for my birthday though! We’re really good about cooking dinner and sitting down and relaxing in the evenings though. That’s one of my favorite times.

What’s next for you? What’s next for William Walker Photography?

Will: Well we’re about to start building a house! My dad is a contractor and I grew up helping him over the summers, so we’ll be building the house together. As far as William Walker Photography goes, I’m excited to be booking more weddings than ever and I plan to continue to do that. As far as any other projects, you never know but I’ll be excited when they come along.

Find Will online– on his blog and on Facebook! All images by or courtesy of Will Walker / sweet wedding photo by Jen Fariello

As I made my way through college, I often sought out older female role models– strong women who were defining their own success, balancing work and relationships successfully, and having a fabulous time while doing it all. Luckily, my best friend Ariane and I were able to look to her older sister Quiana for inspiration– a graduate of Wellesley College with a thriving career in advertising in New York City, who was planning her own fairy tale destination wedding to her professional basketball player fiance. Not a bad role model at all!

Which makes today’s feature so much more exciting– I’m so thrilled to introduce you to Quiana, who is still blowing my mind with her incredible strength and inventiveness in a new stage of her life: bringing together motherhood and wifehood while creating her own career out of that destination wedding experience. With her online “wedinars” (wedding webinars, which are so popular nowadays with the rise of Alt Summit classes and the like), Quiana hopes to give today’s bride a leg up in what can be a doubly stressful process: planning a wedding and planning a destination wedding from afar. It’s so amazing to see such a strong role model for me and my friends jump into the wedding industry with such energy! But of course, we wouldn’t have expected anything less.

You worked in advertising before settling down, getting married, and becoming a mom… and now you’re part of the wedding industry! What inspired you to create your business, Destination Wedinars and what do you hope to do with it? How exactly does it work?

I started Destination Wedinars after planning my own destination wedding in Puerto Rico. I wanted to be very hands-on and didn’t hire a planner. While I had 18 months to plan my own wedding I realized not all brides have this amount of time, and I found so many of the destination wedding resources to be scattered all over the internet and in magazines. I decided to consolidate what I learned into a wedding webinar – hence the name “wedinar.”

I offer a 3-part wedinar to guide engaged couples through everything they need to successfully plan their own destination wedding. I give resources, including follow up planning documents, tips and advice from everything I learned during the year and a half I planned my wedding. Ultimately, I would like to take Destination Wedinars beyond just destination weddings and have general wedinars for traditional weddings via a branded online channel.

This concept of using the internet to aid brides planning weddings has exploded over the past few years– but blogs have long dominated the field. How does your idea of a “wedding webinar” expand the work of blogs? What challenges have come up with this format?

Blogs and social media are a fantastic resource and work in conjunction with Destination Wedinars; however there is a huge step from admiring visuals to execution. A lot of the images online are aspirational and often intimidating, but the goal of Destination Wedinars is not simply to present pretty pictures but empower brides by consolidating the “best of” the resources in the marketplace. When I was engaged I would have loved to have had personal reassurance from a bride who had successfully gone through what I was going through! Destination Wedinars guides brides through the process giving them the tools they need to do it on their own and helping them execute the awesome ideas they find online.

The wedinar format allows access to destination wedding-specific tools brides need consolidated in one location when it’s convenient for them. Beyond this format, I plan on bringing the wedinars to life via an online channel such as Ustream and being able to have experts on-air with me and so viewers can ask questions directly. It’s definitely all about adapting to the latest technology and increasing engagement!

Your own 2009 nuptials was a destination wedding– what was the biggest challenge you faced when planning a wedding from a different country? What is the most important thing brides need to know when planning a wedding from afar?

I was able to visit my wedding location several times prior to the wedding, but I know that is rare. My biggest challenge was feeling confident that I was making the right choice– there were so many options for everything, and I spent so much time researching to find the best of everything. It was overwhelming, but time was on my side to be able to do so. What really helped me was having on the ground intelligence– friends from Puerto Rico who were able to provide recommendations.

Many times online reviews for wedding venues abroad are lacking and vendor websites may not be up to par with what we’re used to for stateside. When you can’t be there in person thankfully technology allows you to make the connection you need– Skype and e-mail are the best! Also, don’t be afraid to use non- wedding resources to find information indirectly. I’m a huge fan of TripAdvisor forums for this.

What wedding trend are you loving right now? What trend are you ready to see end?

I adore the rustic, country chic feel that’s going on right now; it’s almost a reflection of the “back to-basics” trend that I see happening in our overall society. Weddings are getting more simplified, less over-the-top. I’m very much over the pick-up dress trend. Right when I thought it was ending I see it keeps popping up! I think there are more flattering dress options.

Before weddings, you were in advertising and you studied Psychology at Wellesley– how have both those fields influenced you work in weddings and your life in general?

I’ve always been fascinated by human behavior– what motivates us, makes us fulfilled, etc. Advertising and psychology definitely go hand-in-hand and ultimately understanding the psychographics of my clients is an important element of Destination Wedinars’ success.

After being a strong working woman and part of a happily married couple, you’re now a mom– how has that changed your approach to work?

I definitely have to multi-task a lot more! My business and my daughter were born at the same time– I entered the New York Public Library’s StartUP! business plan competition at the same time as I was pregnant, was named a finalist right before giving birth, and had to present two weeks after my daughter was born. I’ve been running ever since! It really helps that my husband is super supportive of my business aspirations. At times it does get overwhelming but knowing I’m the master of my own career now is so motivational!

That magical thing every modern woman wants today is balance. Do you feel like your life is balanced? What are your top five comfort must-haves that help get you through the week?

I’ve done a lot of thinking and blogging about this. The conclusion I’ve come to is that it’s all about sequencing. Certain areas of my life are at different levels of effort and priority at any given time due to life stage, personal issues, etc. Some things have to go on the back burner temporarily while others become more important.

My must-haves are:
-Quiet time – whether attending church, having devotionals or journaling, I just need to sit and be with my thoughts
-Pandora – I love good music to keep me motivated
-Google Reader – I scan through hundreds of blogs so I can keep up on trends
-Homemade food – cooking is relaxing for me and I make 99% of my family’s meals myself
-My BlackBerry – I’m old school and can’t type as quickly on a touch screen; it keeps me super organized, and I like that the model I have is slim– these new phones are so huge!

What’s next for you? What’s next for Destination Wedinars?

I’m excited to launch Destination Wedinars’ blog so I can create current content. This weekend I’m attending BlogHer’12 for the first time and while I’m there for Harlem Love Birds, my personal blog, I’m also going to be looking to glean information for Destination Wedinars as well.

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Check out Quiana’s Destination Wedinars and follow her personal blog, Harlem Love Birds (I love getting a glimpse at all her projects and travels)! Keep in touch via Twitter @harlemlovebirds! Upcoming Wedinars: Destination Wedding 101 on Monday, August 6, 10p.m. EST and Wednesday, August 8, 9p.m. EST (both classes are free!). Quiana’s three-part “Plan Your Destination Wedding” series begins on Wednesday, August 15th and runs 3 consecutive Wednesdays at 9p.m.EST. All images courtesy Quiana.

You know those SuperWomen gals, who manage to dominate multiple projects, run successful businesses, raise happy families, and look fashionable on top of it all? Lora Kelley– stylist, magazine maven, behind-the-scenes businesswoman, wife and mother– is exactly one of those girls.

Ron Dressel Photography

Besides her hair and makeup styling work, Lora Kelley is probably one of the more well-known wedding industry women in Charlottesville because she has her hands in everything: her husband Eric’s photography business, the Wedding Planner Magazine, photoshoot styling with Lynn Easton, ownership of the uber popular Para Coffee (all this besides being being friends and collaborators with every big name in the Cville’s wedding and creative industries. Not only does she have the “girl about town” thing down pat, but she’s also a genuinely fabulous person: strong, open, unreserved, always striving to push her career, her husband’s career, and the entire Cville wedding industry to a bigger and better potential.

You probably already know Lora in your Charlottesville comings and goings– but read on for a few special peeks behind the scenes of this local wonder woman…

Jen Fariello

You are involved in the wedding industry in so many ways– what was your first real foray into the world of weddings?

Lora: I would say the first real wedding I did was my cousin’s wedding in Philadelphia in 2006. Before that, I worked as a freelance artist for Laura Mercier and did primarily event make-up and taught people how to apply their make-up and what colors, etc looked good on them.

Eric Kelley Photography

Will makeup styling be your permanent go-to, or will you eventually move away from that aspect of the industry?

Lora: I will always, always be a make-up artist. It’s been in my veins since I was born.

On site for a Wedding Planner shoot.

You are truly superwoman– between your wildly successful makeup business, your work with Eric, being a mommy, being the managing editor of The Wedding Planner Magazine, and working on styled shoots, what don’t you do? How do you manage it all without going insane? Can women have it all?

Lora: Ha! No one has it all! I do what I do because I love my family, and I want to make sure they’re provided and cared for. I love my husband, and I celebrate the work he does… and I love being able to support him with the gifts God has given me as an artist, a wife and a mom.

I try to live a trifold life; that is– wife, mother, vocation. But… at the end of the day, my priority lies with Eric, Henry and the newest little bebe on the way.

For our family, we really function as a team. I could not do my work without Eric’s help. I also have a nanny for a few hours a day a few days a week. She is incredibly instrumental to our lives, and she’s really a part of our family. And I belong to an amazing community of people who support us and help us… life is not lived in a vacuum. Everyone needs help and more help and more help!

Styling by Lora, photo by Eric Kelley

What wedding trend are you loving? What trend are you ready to see fade out?

Lora: I am loving sleeves on dresses! How romantic! I’m not a huge fan of vintage washed photos. I’m kind of ready for that to fade out.

Styling by Lora, photo by Eric Kelley

Over the past few years, you’ve jumped into photoshoot and event styling– how did you get involved in that? What would be your dream shoot to style?

Lora: I had the incredible fortune to work with the amazing Lynn Andrews from Easton Events and almost all of the photo-styling I do is with them. They are such a talented group of creators and designers. Mostly, I love photo-styling because I love for photographers to be able to have everything at their finger-tips to make their work look the best it can and because event designers put so much effort into making beautiful events… I want their work be reflected that way in images.

I have to say… I feel like my dream shoot was the one I did with Eric and Easton Events and Beehive for Weddings Unveiled and Grey Likes Weddings. I’ll be hard-pressed to replace that with something better. It was the most fun I’ve had on the shoot… and I got to work with some of my favorite people. I feel really blessed to have had that opportunity.

Eric and Lora, by Sarah Rhoads

You are part of a powerhouse duo– the Kelleys are a force to be reckoned with! What’s the secret to a successful partnership– in love and in business? How do you keep your wedding work, Para Coffee ownership, and relationship separate?

Lora: Secret to a successful partnership… self-sacrifice. Both people have to be willing to lay themselves down for the other.. and it always starts with you. Almost every problem we’ve had, at the root is self-centeredness and an inability to defer to the other person.

And, after that… a good therapist and lots of communication. We see, with some regularity, Chris Martin of transformation counseling. He has been one of the largest blessings to us over the last year. Before that, we did pre-marriage counseling and spent a lot of time in Greg Thompson’s office talking through all the issue of business and married life! Putting two random people together and having them do work together is not easy!

I tell people that there is no separation between work and life! It’s all a mush! But you do need good boundaries to protect your family time from the incessant emailing and phone calls. We try to structure time specifically for family where the phone goes on silent and the computer is closed, and we’re just with each other. It’s so important.

Eric Kelley Photography

You and Eric are raising the sweetest little boy and– tada!— have another bebe on the way! What’s the most important thing you want to teach your children?

Lora: I want to teach them to love God, to serve others, to be gracious and kind, to be faithful and honest, to work hard and seek justice for those in need. To care for those less fortunate than themselves and to constantly seek wisdom… to read, to love music, to dance and laugh often in joy over beautiful things and to grieve the tragic things in life. To live spherically, holistically and three dimensionally.

Styling by Lora, photo by Elisa B Photography

My ultimate day ____.

Lora: … is a day with my family ending in a date night with Eric.

Eric Kelley Photography

What’s next for you? What’s next for Lora Elaine and The Wedding Planner Magazine and Eric Kelley Photography?

Lora: Life, life and more life!

I’m happy to be collaborating a lot with Eric this year and next for some really awesome shoots. We’re doing a lot of commercial and editorial work with various fashion and commercial companies, so that’s pretty exciting. The Wedding Planner Magazine is doing some fab things and I’m really excited to show everyone the next issue! Over all, we’re excited for our next little bebe to come to stay with us… and we’re excited for all the growth to come over the next few years. It’s going to be a good time!

Keep up with all Lora’s happenings: on Twitter @lora_elaine; Lora Elaine makeup styling; Eric Kelley Photography; and The Wedding Planner Magazine.

In Summer Weddings, we introduced you to nine “planning gurus”– fabulous coordinators, designers, and planners that make up the Charlottesville wedding scene (obviously this is not all-inclusive, but we reached out to the best of the best and featured whomever was able to respond). We asked each planner a series of questions– about what she thinks makes Charlottesville weddings unique, about what inspires her personally, about her own planning strengths and challenges faced in recent weddings. We then asked these ladies to create a Pinterest board for us– one that rounded up elements they’d be inspired by when planning a Charlottesville wedding. I was so delighted with the results– each planner really showcased her individuality through these boards!

The full piece is available on newsstands and online here– but here’s a glimpse at each planner we showcased and a little tidbit about their personalities. A planner is THE MOST IMPORTANT aspect of a wedding day, and finding the right one for you is key. Every planner here is capable of creating a perfect wedding, but each has a unique perspective and talent– one that will be just right for your Big Day!

Kyle Montgomery
A. Dominick Events

Why weddings? Planning weddings has always been my dream job. I love helping a bride and groom bring their vision to life and don’t know of a greater honor than helping a couple celebrate their love and commitment to one another.

See Kyle’s Pinterest board, “Inspired by Charlottesville,” here!

Barbara Lundgren
Barb Wired LLC Event Management

My tip for brides: First– breathe… Do not try to direct your own wedding weekend or leave it to family and friends. They should relax and enjoy the wedding with you. Instead, hire an experienced event planner, and enjoy the entire process!

Dickie Morris
just a little ditty…

Trend I’m loving: I’m so inspired by the brides and grooms who are writing their own vows. It seems like it’s happening more and more… and I’m absolutely loving it. You learn so much about two people when you hear them recite the vows they’ve written for their other half. The vows make you laugh, they make you cry, and they make you so proud to be a part of something that big. It’s really amazing to witness such testaments to love.

Amanda Gray
Ashley Baber Weddings

My wedding planning strength: I believe our work ethic and willingness to do what it takes to make the event run smoothly is our greatest strength. No task is too great, whether it is delivering nearly 100 balloons for a ceremony or taking the doggy ring bearer home during dinner– we want to make sure the bride and groom and their friends and family have a care-free event!

Scope out Amanda’s Pinterest board, “Burlap + Lace: A Charlottesville Barn Wedding,” here!

Crystal Whitaker
The Event Company

What’s been one of your biggest event challenges? My largest challenge last year was, hands down, when a venue double booked my clients’ wedding date. We were not made aware of the mistake until invitations were already sent and RSVPs were flooding in. We jumped into action, secured a new venue, and notified all the guests. The strength of our company lies in our dedicated team: a cast of individuals with years of experience who can effectively come together to formulate a plan and execute with efficiency and determination. A stressful situation turned into a spectacular event; one that surpassed their original expectations and was later published on a top national wedding blog.

Check out Crystal’s Pinterest board, “Weddings = Love,” here!

Cody Burke Grannis
Amore Events by Cody

My wedding planning strength: I think my personality is my biggest strength. When I am working with a new couple, I stress that what you see is what you get. I am organized and committed to delivering what my brides want, but I am also laid back and have a good sense of humor. Laughing is the best medicine for a difficult situation. I love what I do and I cannot hide my enthusiasm.

See Cody’s Pinterest board, “An Amore Wedding,” here!

Courtney Spencer
Merriment Events

My wedding planning strength: I can write a mean agenda and am constantly praised for how detail-oriented I am, but what really gets me out of bed and running every morning is design. I adore creating concept boards, sourcing product and working with creative vendor partners to make a couple’s vision come to life. There’s nothing better than seeing the reaction on a client’s face when she sees the room for the first time. Magic!

Find Courtney’s Pinterest board, “Charlottesville Wedding Inspiration,” here!

Lynn Easton Andrews
Easton Events

Trend I’m loving: A return to classics– inspired by Kate Middleton’s tailored glam.

See Lynn’s Pinterest board, “An Easton Wedding,” here!

Meghan Streit
Shindig Weddings and Events

Standout detail of a Cville wedding: Though no two weddings are ever alike, I love that Charlottesville weddings tend to be rich in details, with thought given to everything from the favors to the papers to even custom service apparel for banquet staff. I applaud the brides who demonstrate that “lovely” is built by many, many layers of designed details.

Drool over Meghan’s Pinterest board, “Inspiration for a Shindig-Style Wedding!” here!

 

Aren’t they all fabulous? So much talent and creativity in one little town! We are over-the-top lucky. See the full piece online here. All portraits by Jen Fariello, except Mrs. Courtney’s Spencer’s– that one’s by Katie Stoops.

Having a “wow” factor is everything– both in weddings and in business. Christin Healey and her husband Adam fell so in love with weddings after they got hitched– the process of planning, the inspiration behind the reality, the beauty of a wedding day– that they put together her love of creativity with his business savvy and voila! Borrowed & Blue, one of the prettiest wedding resources in Charlottesville, was born.

Borrowed & Blue combines vendor guidebook– with sleek listings and gorgeous images for a huge range of local wedding and event professionals– and blog, with real weddings, planning tips and advice, and vendor spotlights posted daily. The site itself is so elegant, clean, and gorgeous to look at, it serves as a model for all up-and-coming businesses looking to make a mark in any industry. When it debuted in early 2012, the wedding industry was impressed: the standard was “upped,” as Borrowed & Blue took the quality, taste, and style of local weddings up a notch. The site– and certainly the fairytale lifestyle of Christin and Adam– has certainly cemented its “wow” factor status within the wedding and events community.

Borrowed and Blue is the hottest new wedding resource to hit Charlottesville– it’s both a vendor guide AND a blog. What was the inspiration behind the site and the process of getting it put together?

Christin: The inspiration behind the site was planning our own wedding last year. I loved looking at all the beautiful wedding blogs out there, but it was frustrating not being able to use the vendors featured in the photos. My husband and I thought it would be fun to team up and build the site we wanted to use when we were planning our wedding. We also spoke with over 30 different local wedding vendors and many other brides to understand the needs of the wedding community and ensure we were building something unique.

Our big AHA! moment was the idea to showcase real Charlottesville weddings– with stunning, high-resolution photos– and seamlessly connect each wedding photo to a comprehensive local vendor directory. In this way, we fuse the inspiration phase, when brides are browsing through a lot of wedding photos, to the planning phase, when it’s time to start choosing vendors. We’ve been overwhelmed with the positive feedback we’ve received and the wonderful help and support the Charlottesville wedding community has shown us. It’s truly awe-inspiring.

You recently got married yourself– take us behind-the-scenes of your planning process. Was there anything surprising or stressful about planning a wedding? What was your favorite detail to work on?

Christin: Planning our wedding was so much fun, and for the most part very smooth. We choose our venue, Castle Hill Cider, after a very full day of searching. We stumbled upon it on a blustery January afternoon and it was still very much a work in progress. We had a very clear vision of how beautiful it could be and it certainly did not disappoint. The one surprise we had was that we picked September 10th, 2011 (9-10-11), totally by accident, and it was a little challenging finding vendors that were available. It worked out perfectly though, as we had amazing people that made our wedding possible and we would not change a thing.

My favorite detail was the tin can table numbers that my dad helped me build. It was a great DIY project– challenging, but such a nice memory when it all came together. Also, organizing the fire troupe, Scintillation, to perform later in the evening was highly memorable– they were simply amazing!

Charlottesville has become such a hotspot for destination weddings– what are some of the strengths and attractions of our area to the modern bride?

Christin: I think the major draw for the modern bride is having such breathtakingly beautiful venues paired with such incredibly talented vendors. Charlottesville is also still a small town, so it has that wonderful cozy feel to it– you don’t get that in larger destinations. We also have a vibrant downtown and so many activities for out-of-town guests, not to mention the University.

What are your favorite wedding trends right now– and what trend are you ready to see end?

Christin: To be honest I try not to follow wedding trends at all because I am a firm believer in having a wedding that reflects your own personality, no matter what the trends are. I think some couples want really glamorous, while others want a more relaxed, rustic feel.

Personally I love that bridesmaids are stepping out of the norm a little– black dresses, white dresses, mismatched and different tones of one color are all really beautiful to me. Every woman is so different and unique and your favorite ladies are no exception!

{A snap from Christin and Adam’s recent trip to Corniglia… insert wanderlust here!}

Women today are constantly on the search for “balance”– how do you combat creative fatigue and keep yourself refreshed and motivated?

Christin: Well, for starters Adam and I travel a lot. I love Charlottesville and it’s certainly our home now, but it’s so great to step outside of that and see what’s going on everywhere else. We gather so much information and also get so many fresh, new ideas that we can put into practice in our business. Our wonderful content manager, Maribeth, also keeps me balanced with all her help! I also try to get outside as much as possible and enjoy the beautiful area that we live in and are always talking about! So many great ideas and inspiration come from personal experiences and interaction with the community.

Favorite Charlottesville hangout?

Christin: The Secluded Farm Trails. For those of you that know where they are, you know what I mean… for those that don’t, it’s top secret.

My ideal day is ______.

Christin: My ideal day is going to the Farmer’s Market with Adam and our dog Virginia, getting a cup of Shenandoah Joe’s coffee and all the ingredients for a completely locally-sourced dinner– typically steaks from Wolfcreek Farms and local produce and cheese. Afterwards, riding our bikes from King Family Vineyards to Pollak Vineyards with a wine tasting on either end. Lastly, a home cooked dinner from the aforementioned Farmer’s Market, paired with a nice bottle of red on our roof top terrace in Belmont watching the sunset. It really doesn’t get much better than that.

What’s next for you? What’s next for Borrowed and Blue?

Christin: We just spent a month in Europe and are so excited to bring Borrowed & Blue to more destinations in the US, as well as internationally. Gaining an intimate knowledge of the destination is so important to us as we want to give our users the most comprehensive experience possible. Borrowed & Blue is focused on destination weddings, and making the planning process as fun and smooth as possible on all fronts. Adam and I are thrilled to have the opportunity to continue to work with Charlottesville vendors as well as brides. We are just beginning and can’t wait to see what’s around the corner!

All images courtesy Christin Healey; wedding images by Will Kerner

Get your daily wedding fix and search for your perfect vendors at Borrowed & Blue and “like” B&B on Facebook here!