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Quince with RSBP Events and Pezz Photo
PHOTO CREDITS: PEZZ PHOTO
Yippee! Love when I get photos to share. This one was put together without much time, but I thought everything turned out wonderfully. It was also one of our first times working closely with RSBP’s Brooke Palmer. Brooke is an AMAZING person with not only a knack for putting great productions together, but along with her work in the nonprofit industry and public relations’ clients…she truly does it all.
Some details about the Quince: okay, before we start, can we just pause for a moment and say STUNNING. Natalie’s parents made sure to cover the details, from the breathtaking floral and event design, to the entertainment, everything just came together to create an evening I don’t believe Natalie will ever forget!
Oh…and when I say entertainment, I mean, ENTERTAINMENT. The Beach Girls5 made an appearance and their performance was the highlight of the evening. Well, next to our dessert table, of course 😉
Enjoy!
Vendor Credits:
Dessert Table Concept and Styling: Chic Sweets
Event Planning: RSBP Events
Venue: The Florida Aquarium
Photography: Amy Pezz of Pezz Photo
Draping, Entrance & Chandeliers: Conceptbait
Lighting: Baystage
Floral: Botanica
Furniture and Linens: Nuage Designs
Couture Dress Designer: Anglo Couture
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Colorful Bird Inspired Dessert Table by Limelight Photography
Hello Everyone!!! Hope all of you had a great 4th of July weekend. Honestly, am I the only one wondering why every weekend isn’t a 3-day weekend??
Well, luckily, I have literally spent the entire afternoon soaking up the loveliness of this gorgeous wedding by Limelight Photography. And of course it helps, that you have our seriously, drop-dead gorgeous bride, Amy, who just happens to be one of the most sweetest people I have ever met. Amy approached her day with such style and personality, you can’t help but fall in love. From the very beginning, there was a vision and every detail of this dessert table was thoughtfully crafted and designed so that the table was a true expression of Amy and Brook’s personality.
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World: Meet Baby Preston
This picture was taken by Baby Preston’s big brother, Spencer right after we found we were going to be parents to a BOY. I seriously still can’t believe it. A boy!! My third!! Spencer, was so excited the whole week, just knowing he was to the doctor with Mama. Funny part is that although he was in awe at first… after 10 minutes he was so ready to go and get out of there. That is just how our Spence can be, Baby Preston will meet him soon, five more months to be exact.
Life these days has taken a whole new level of balance. As I’ve finally seem to come out of my first trimester morning sickness, I’ve learned to give my body some rest and just take some time out to pause and step back. That is a whole lot easier said than done since my whole life to this point has been running, working on Chic Sweets, being a mother and wife. But trust me, even in the midst of feeling exhausted with feet more swollen than I’m willing to admit, I could not be more blessed and everyday I look in the mirror and I’m still in awe that I taking care of something so precious.
So before (we) rest our head to sleep, just want to share some thoughts for my little nugget.
*My Dearest Baby Preston: I cannot wait to hold you, cover you with TONS of kisses and have you share in our crazy life. I can’t wait to tell you that you can be ANYTHING you want to be in your life. I can’t wait to show you that will grow up to do something that drives you, that sets your heart on fire and that you can be just like your crazy Mama and graduate from UF doing one thing only to find that your path leads you to something else. Preston, we love you so much and in 5 months I will get to tell you everything that fills my heart and so much more.
Have a good night, my little nugget. Watch those kicks 😉
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Real Wedding: Yellow and Black Damask Table by Lifelong Studios
Image Credit: Lifelong Studios
This next dessert table is proof that inspiration can come from just about anywhere. And in this bride and groom’s case, it was all about the incredible black and yellow palette with modern, whimsical detailing. For me, I was also inspired by one of my dearest role models, Amy Atlas. A few years ago, Amy’s black and yellow damask-prink dessert table was one of the first times I stopped dead in my tracks and told myself, “wow, that is amazing!” Amy is the queen of desserts, and if you haven’t already, her Sweet Designs blog is a must-read.
In terms of overall design, Ally and Ryan were not afraid to “go there” and the result was a gorgeous, graphic inspired affair. Photographed to perfection by Life Long Studios and styled by Staci Mandikas and team over at Unique Event Design, you will love this wedding.
For a link of the complete gallery on Lifelong Studio’s blog here.
Behind the Scenes Notes:
1. Ugh! Why couldn’t I have filled the milk shots before the shots were taken?
2. Towards the end of the wedding, wedding planner Staci Mandikas grabbed our black, Ikea frame, we pushed the dessert table out of the way and had an impromptu photoshoot with Ally and Ryan. So. Much. Fun.
Vendors:
Dessert Table Styling: Chic Sweets
Tissue Poms: Pom Tree
Linens: Connie Duglin
Event Design and Planning: Unique Event Design
Photography: Lifelong Studios
Venue: Lange Farm
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Branding and Growth
Hey Everyone! Wow, cannot believe it’s a long weekend and we have no wedding–sooo looking forward to a much needed breather. So although I have a lot of blog goodness stored up in my head, one of the things I wanted to talk was branding. Now that I’ve been delving into this process/journey head on, I’d thought I would share some helpful tips that I’ve uncovered along the way. **Note to self: not an expert here! 😉
1. Be Yourself: Chic Sweets has come such a long way from when we started. I look at myself back then and can only smile–I thought I had it figured out. Who we were, what Chic Sweets was about, the image I wanted out there. I would spend hours scouring the internet ohhing and ahhing over where I could be. However, one of the biggest pieces I was missing in all of this, was myself. Being myself through my work, blog, social media intercation, color palette and anything that I put out there. When I started, I found myself working off the inspirations of other’s and realized at one point…wow…this is not me. I hardly caught myself doing it. Who am I? I love classic looks, no fuss, clean lines. I’m all on board for simple color palettes with a splash of a bold color. I’m a perfectionist for the details and aim to always bring myself out through my work. I’m also a wife and mother, love doing both, always challenged by finding a common balance in all of it. So in taking the time to redefine my brand, I was somewhat challenged in bringing everything together. Until (light bulb moment) I thought wouldn’t it be great to bring both aspects of my life together and that is what culminates into my brand?
Finding “The One”: So if you’ve decided you want to take your brand to another level, next step will be to work with someone that can take your feedback/inspirational boards that will bring everything all together. This, of course, can be free or costly. Check out Proof Branding; Making Brands Happen; Studio Snyder; or my own designer (shameless plug) Karrie at Karrie Pyke Designs, for a professionally designed logo, blog or site. I spent a lot of time going through portfolios from various designers, getting references, until I found one that I felt was the best match from an artistic and of course, financial standpoint. I’m all about the baby steps so instead of doing everything all at once with Karrie, we first worked on our Logo and took things from there. This was great because I didn’t feel the anxiety of being contractually held to a designer if things didn’t quite get off to the right start.
***Let me add this as a final thought: Don’t rush the process! As you can see I’m still using a Blogger template and my site was designed by my amazing brother just to help me get the ball rolling. Both have definitely filled my need up to this point. Starting a business is not easy and three years ago I wouldn’t have been able to define Chic Sweets the way it has evolved now. It wasn’t intentional at the time, but now I’m more than happy I took my sweet time before jumping into all of this.
The Design Process: This is where you need to really look into yourself and where you want to be. I literally took a half day, went to a quiet place, grabbed a large cup of coffee and just put various inspirational boards together. Whether it be just various fonts, pictures, colors. The more I felt like I could share with Karrie, the better she could see where I was coming from. When we finally put my final brand together, it came from a constant inspiration board that I was continually updating and changing. Cool colors, clean, modern, designer, mom of 3, family, etc. And so my amazingly, patient designer took those concepts and turned them into something I felt comfortable (happy) with. Yeah, I know, not easy. Be prepared, this is not going to happen overnight. Your designer will need time and you’ll also take some time out of your schedule to review the changes, mock ups, drafts, etc.
So, again, this is my journey as it evolves and grows and I wanted to share with all of you a bit of where I was coming from. Super excited to see my redesigned blog and site launch and nothing feels better than keeping the momentum going. Hey, I’m making things happen here 🙂
