In this post, you can read about my experience at Joy Thigpen’s styling workshop, where we were given amazing materials to work with to form our own bouquets.  This was my first experience putting together a bouquet to be photographed.  We even did a little foraging on our own, which was another first for me.

Joey Kennedy shared these beautiful photos that he took and I wanted to share them with you.  I love the first image of Joy Thigpen teaching us about how she creates one of her gorgeous bouquets.

I hope to be dabbling with flowers more and more… so here’s to the first of many more bouquets to come!

I want to share the results of this process in hopes that it will be a source of inspiration to others.  It’s my goal to post an inspiration board that I’ve designed at the beginning of each month.  This board is one that I worked on with a future project in mind.  I call it “french countryside.”

1. honey of a thousand flowers via ruffled blog 2. Tec Petaja 3. Tec Petaja 4. Francine Zaslow

You can’t really go to school to be an event stylist.  It’s something instinctual.  But you can learn ways to improve your talents and increase your skill set.  That was my goal for attending Joy Thigpen’s styling workshop.

We had 3 gorgeous days at Serenbe.  I met some amazing people and I’ve since had a hard time putting into words everything I learned and felt that weekend.  I didn’t really think I could respect Joy anymore, but now I respect not only her work, but her heart.

The workshop was the first of it’s kind.. focused on styling and creative direction.  The information presented was invaluable, but even greater than all the practical application was the inspiration Joy gave us to follow our dreams.

Joy’s encouragement stirred up some BIG changes for my business.  Truly, the weekend was nothing short of a gift!  And since I’m certainly not a photographer, I am so grateful to Rylee Hitchner for sharing these gorgeous images with me.  I am so impressed with Rylee and can’t wait to work with her again this year!  If you aren’t familiar with her work yet, get to know her.  She’s a beautiful person with so much talent!

We also put together bouquets… I was pretty nervous about this part of the workshop since it was my first stab at a bouquet, so I’m just excited it didn’t fall apart!  We all had 10 minutes to style our bouquet photos with the Rylee.  Here is how my first bouquet turned out… what do you think?

With any business, especially a creative one, I think it’s normal to evolve.  When I started my business, I felt like it was important to give it a name.  As I reflected on where my business is now and how I want it to grow, I realized it’s more important to brand my it as myself, because I am the brand.

Even though I will always need to have assistants to help me and vendors that I work with regularly, any project that I’m a part of is under my Creative Direction.  And while a lot of what I do is indeed “planning,” it’s much more than that.  I consider myself a designer, artist and event stylist first and foremost.  I take care of the logistics in order to execute the design and make sure that it’s implemented as it was intended.

When I attended joy thigpen’s workshop in February (which I’ll post more about soon), I walked away full of inspiration and direction that affirmed my thoughts on needing to rebrand lovebird style.  So today, I’m beyond thrilled to introduce you to my new brand!

It’s more personal and holds a lot of meaning.  What I truly value in life is a part of who I am and how I live, including how I work.  You’ll see my work evolve over the next year to align with what I value.  And this rings true for the work I do for my clients.  It’s my desire and personal goal for all of my clients to have an event that truly represents who they are and what they value most.

This quote seems to sum it up for me and maybe it will resonate with you…

You are what your deep driving desire is.
As your desire is, so is your will.
As your will is, so is your deed.
As your deed is, so is your destiny.
-Brihadaranyaka Upanishad

So when I set out to have someone design my new logo, I asked one of my current clients to help.  I am thrilled to have a bride behind my rebranding because not only is she talented, she has experienced first-hand how I work and what I do.  A special thanks goes to the lovely Jessie Parker who designed my beautiful new logo!

On that note, I’m incredibly thankful to be working with some of the best photographers in the industry this year!  It’s important to me that I work with people who share my values and style.

I can’t wait to share what I have been working on to launch the new and improved jessica sloane event styling & design.  By this time next week, lovebird style will officially switch to jessicasloane.com.  I hope you continue to follow me on this journey… and thank you for your support!

An unlikely pairing, but we put ghost chairs with a farm table.  The table runner was a sheer linen that was light and airy.  We incorporated herbs in simple bud vases filled with Spanish lavender and a sprig of rosemary at each place setting.  Kraft paper escort cards that read “eat, drink and be married” were tied around napkins with twine.  One of my favorite elements were the wine goblets that were round and modern, playing off of the modern silhouette of the ghost chairs.

I had so much fun at Cedarwood’s Style Show meeting new vendors and couples!  I’m excited to be offering special styling services for Cedarwood brides this year.  Some of the services I’m offering are styling engagement sessions, providing initial style direction before a bride has their planning session and detail development to help with implementation.

I want to give a special thank you to Kristyn Hogan and Krista Lee for the beautiful photos!

Thank you to Green Wedding Shoes for featuring our work and the amazing team of vendors who collaborated with us!  You can check out the full post here.

I’m starting to think we need to form a Pinterest-aholic Anonymous.  It really is that bad and I know I’m not the only one!

Pinterest has become the inspiration standard (almost overnight), especially in the wedding industry.  Brides are pinning away, tons of ideas and visual inspirations for her big day.  What makes Pinterest so amazing is that it takes away the need to flip through a million wedding magazines and gives the bride a place to categorize all the things she loves… and it’s free!  I find myself using it more and more frequently to assess what my clients like and don’t like.  However, I’ve started noticing that brides feel that what they put on their Pinterest board is in fact what their wedding will look like.

Being inspired is the first step, but it can’t be the last step.  Executing your inspiration takes a well thought out plan and someone who can pull it off.

What inspires us can’t always be replicated in the same exact way.  Say that you see an image of gorgeous sheer draping in a barn (that was taken from someone else’s wedding) and you decide you want the same thing.  That’s great, but what if your reception isn’t in a barn?  Let’s say it’s in a tent.  That changes the entire look and there are things to think through… like how the draping will hang or what will it hang from?  I know this may sound like common sense, but it seems to be a common problem!  We see a picture and think we can and should do the same exact thing.  And you totally can, if you have someone who can execute it.

I aim to take what my brides see and love, make a design plan that pulls from that inspiration, but is personal to them.  I want my client’s to have a wedding that makes sense to who they are and their individual style.  So whether you have a planner or not, make sure your planning doesn’t stop at pinning.  Take your inspiration, make it cohesive and personal and then make sure you have someone who can make it happen on your wedding day!

Happing pinning!

I recently had a meeting with Cedarwood to plan out ways we can continue to work together and I’m excited to share a little about our plans this year!  I’ll be co-designing a table at Cedarwood’s open house on March 3rd.  I’ll be there to talk with Cedarwood brides about the services I offer as an Associate Designer for Cedarwood.  Some of those things include engagement shoot styling and wedding styling upgrades.

So check out all this eye candy that is on Style Me Pretty today from Kristyn Hogan of my first collaboration with Cedarwood last fall… it’s a good one!

The quirkiness of the Metal Museum made the aesthetic a bit more whimsical, which helped set the tone.  The lawn ceremony lighting was amazing… it was if Sara and Reynolds were literally glowing!  The twig arch with the old white library in the background, served as the gorgeous backdrop.

Guests feasted on Memphis-style fried chicken and BBQ and were treated to a full candy and dessert bar, with take-out boxes for the road.  Overlooking the Mississippi River, everyone danced the night away to the sounds of The Downtown Band.  The music was so good, I even joined in!  It was definitely memorable for everyone there.

A big thanks to the girls at Wedding Chicks for featuring Sara + Reynolds’ wedding here!

all photos by claudia kay photo

Holley is from a little beach town called Manasquan in New Jersey.  She came to Nashville to go to Belmont University, where she majored in music & music business with a minor in dance.  She remained in Nashville after graduating in 2009 and is an independent musician and songwriter.  She released an EP last year called “Odd Place To Be” and recently toured the East Coast.  She is currently working on several new recording projects!

Holley’s song “Always Be” has been used in at least 100 wedding and engagement videos. She’s a top selling artist on a website called The Music Bed, that licenses songs to wedding videographers and independent film makers.

Since graduation, she has worked at record labels, artist management firms, and started her own graphic design business, H. Maher Designs.  She’s a genius designer with a lot of projects for musicians, small businesses, weddings, and book covers for independent authors.  And you bet she can design a killer wedding invitation!

Holley even recently wrote and illustrated a children’s book entitled, The Incredible Airgonaut.  She works part time as a nanny and loves kids.

She’s a perfect fit for Lovebird Style because she’s addicted to wedding, fashion, and craft blogs… and is an obsessive DIY-girl like us!  We are beyond thrilled to have her as part of the team this year.