Ashleigh + Drew | Fairhope, Alabama

Hope you all had a very merry Christmas! I am back to some serious blogging this week to bring you Ashleigh and Drew's romantic Spring wedding in Fairhope, Alabama. I have worked with the groom's mom, Jane of Southern Calligraphy, for a few years now and was so happy she connected me with Drew's bride, Ashleigh. The couple, now living in Birmingham, are from Fairhope and wanted a sweet, southern wedding that was comfortable and fun for their guests. They wed at Fairhope United Methodist Church and had a fabulous reception at The Venue (just a block away from the church, I know their guests appreciated that!) The talented Dragonfly Photography captured their beautiful Spring day perfectly. Their wedding will be featured in an upcoming Spring publication that I can't wait to share soon. 

Loved adding some florals to their Spring wedding day! Their sweet and southern details were the perfect touch to their hometown wedding. The band was a huge hit, and the dance floor stayed full the ENTIRE night! Love when that happens. I look forward to flowering up a fabulous Louisiana wedding this Spring alongside Dragonfly Photography!

vendors: Dragonfly Photography // The Venue // Southern Calligraphy // JAM Cakery 

xo, Tori

"Nobody tells this to people who are beginners.."

How is it already March? I am so excited to have just finished my first event of the season, and two more to go this month! April + May are completely booked and then Summer brings a few more boat days + husband time. I hope to recap my time at SEE Sessions on the blog this week and give y'all a little "behind the scenes" look at some recent projects!

After much consideration, I am looking forward to reworking my services + team so 2016 dates are reserved only for full-service clients! This means, VAD will be your designer, through-and-through. You can add florals and/or stationery to this package or I can point you to someone fit for the job! I am only taking on one client per month at the most and a few creative projects that I curate, style and execute. After only two years of business, I've learned so much about myself. I invest SO much time, energy, money and emotion into each of my clients and projects. I am an open book, totally transparent and wouldn't change that for the world. However, that leaves plenty of room to go above and beyond without getting the credit or appreciation one deserves.  I know others with similar personality traits, in any industry, who go through the same thing. Here's to saying "no" more!

So thankful for Ashely Upchurch Photography for capturing some shots of me working on a recent collaboration for Cottage Hill Magazine.

“Nobody tells this to people who are beginners, I wish someone told me. All of us who do creative work, we get into it because we have good taste. But there is this gap. For the first couple years you make stuff, it’s just not that good. It’s trying to be good, it has potential, but it’s not. But your taste, the thing that got you into the game, is still killer. And your taste is why your work disappoints you. A lot of people never get past this phase, they quit. Most people I know who do interesting, creative work went through years of this. We know our work doesn’t have this special thing that we want it to have. We all go through this. And if you are just starting out or you are still in this phase, you gotta know its normal and the most important thing you can do is do a lot of work. Put yourself on a deadline so that every week you will finish one story. It is only by going through a volume of work that you will close that gap, and your work will be as good as your ambitions. And I took longer to figure out how to do this than anyone I’ve ever met. It’s gonna take awhile. It’s normal to take awhile. You’ve just gotta fight your way through.” -Ira Glass

That amazing quote was shared at SEE Sessions last month in Nashville and really spoke to me. I am sure other vendors can relate to getting "stuck", especially while trying too hard to create, make a living and stay busy. It's a tricky slope but we've got to stick with it!

xo,

T