Shortly after my husband and I were married 33 years ago, we chose to build our life and home on a knoll in the middle of a timothy and alfalfa field in a beautiful valley between Millerton and Pine Plains. An incredible find for two young settlers. We knew it then and in retrospect, we now realize how very timely and fortunate that decision was for us. Surrounded by fields, forests, wildlife, farmwife and very few neighbors, we relish what it feels like to be part of this landscape throughout every season, in both pleasant and extreme weather, from a foot and from above in our tail wheel airplane. My husband—aviator, woodsman and a naturalist from a very young age, landed his dream when he first touched down in this field to see if it was long enough to comfortably land an airplane. Once confirmed, it was our green light. For me, although a Brooklyn girl, I embraced this wild and remote life (with him by my side) in hopes that we could raise a family and create our idyllic homestead filled with animals, gardens and a studio that would allow me to start my own design business and for us to start a family (to included 2 and 4-legged little ones) as he flew around the world and around this property, taking care of it all.

I also love big skies. It's no surprise I married someone who feels the same and spends just as much time in the sky as on the ground. My eyes, even as little girl, sought shapes and patterns in the distance, searching to spot a moving dot, grabbing binoculars to get a closer look and to my surprise seeing a bear on the ridge or a fox popping through tall grass flushing mice or a newly born calf opening its eyes to the sight of it's mother licking it from above. It’s always been a visual scavenger hunt for me, to look for patterns and life in a landscape. Here we have it all and if you're like me, getting up before the sun, gives you the best advantage in watching it all come into focus.

Be it my two braying donkeys calling me in a morning  song for their breakfast, or the soft sound of geese wings flapping just overhead as the fly in formation in search of a landing place, or the subtle buzzing of a hummingbird hovering within feet inspecting my floral shirt to determine if I am in fact the garden or not. These are the little moments I treasure, in between my intensely busy and demanding days and these are the moments I find become a part of how I look at my work and where I find inspiration. ​

Since landing here on this property, I have worked as an artist, starting my graphic and package design business soon after we signed our mortgage papers and life got serious. Years later, as a mom, a caregiver and anchored in our community and local volunteer efforts, my work expanding to a new found outlet, event planning coupled with design.
(Side note: I know I should be painting these landscapes at sunrise or sunset but that is my retirement plan. I’m still too busy enjoying my many spinning plates for such contemplative artistry).

As a designer, and one who started creating art long before computers, my childhood prized tool kit consisted of a 64 pack crayon box, PlayDoh, tempera paints, chalk (for sidewalk art, of course) and a poster board from the candy shop on the corner. As I got more serious, my tool kit expanded to a set of Derwent graphic pencils, a box of Cray-pas, upgraded paint brushes and several tubes of gauche, a blank page (layout pads, watercolor blocks and bound books), my coveted Pantone book, a collection of objects that inspired (not Pinterest pins), books, magazine pulls, ribbons, fabric, buttons and also looking out at the surroundings. In fact, I still like to work this way, very hands on, before I delve onto the keyboard with software programs, internet searches and all the advantages of technology.

​Observation...where my eye lands
Even in the fast clip of my days, when my head is down and I'm intensely engaged in the mounting uptick of my inbox, there are moments in nature that call to me right from the window above my monitor. Suddenly the sky shifts, or a distant row of shrubs is calling out or a dense flock of birds land in the tree and it no longer looks dormant. What is it in this very moment that stops me in my tracks? That’s when I know I need to slow down and just “see” AND take note.

​The Effect of Light
It’s amazing to watch light shift in a split moment as you look into the horizon OR from season to season. Colors can intensify or become quiet because of the light befallen on it or leaving it. In late September after the fall equinox, the depth of the color appears to be so much more dramatic and saturated as dusk settles, the blues in the sky are cobalt approaching back and blue and the landscape so intensely warm and glowing. Even when you grab your phone to capture the drama, it’s not the same as just being witness to how captivating this palette can be before these colors dissipate and the sky goes dark after the last glowing sliver of pigment.  In an event space, I am always aware and appreciative of how light will change a space as the outside light shifts. Of course, we light candles before guests are invited into the reception, but those candles continue to change in themselves as well as the glow they cast on the guests well into the night. We call light "magical" for a reason. Understanding and appreciating the constant shift is so important in the process of developing a concept with a lighting vendor and your clients. 

​Color Stories
They are everywhere waiting to be discovered! I squint and it seems clearer to my eyes what colors are pronounced and what color are subtly influencing what I am seeing and what I like about what I am seeing. For instance, even in the dead of winter, there is so much color simply in observing the variety of tree bark, standing live or fallen dried to the ground. In the spring, when the trees are budding, that clean, pure intensely citron green always stops me in my tracks. It’s not the leaf budding as it appears in view of the green grass at the foot of the tree. I realize for me, that it’s the spring leaf green juxtaposed with a certain sky blue. That’s the color story that feels like it could be the perfect spring table setting. This snapshot—the napkin laid on a plate and then the linen tablecloth they rest on. And we haven't even introduced flowers yet!

​Texture
The layers are so important to creating interest and life. To witness not one but many of one particular object creates a concentration that can be so powerful be it full color or monochromatic. For instance, seeing a massive bed of ornamental grasses with plumes can evoke and inspire how one could apply rattan into a space as a backdrop or a lighting moment.  

​Scale
Size matters! Nature can be bold or ever-so subtle, each in its own perfect way. So, you must ask, how do I want proportion to call attention to a moment or a setting? Quietly or loudly. 

​Contrast
Juxtaposition of color or tonal values can influence the way a space or setting feels. Nature at its best can be both soothing and jarring just in how color relates to other colors and tonal values surrounding it. If you look closely at examples in nature, how these environments make you feel is very telling. After a snowstorm ends, walking into whiteness. Sitting in a hot-toned midsummer garden verses a warm-toned fall or cool-toned spring garden. Walking through the canopy of woods in the dormant winter verses the lush overgrown summer. Feeling these contrasts in natural spaces give you insight when it’s time to envision and create moods for event spaces. 

​As a designer and event planner, aside from the multitude of skills one needs in order to land a successful experience for clients and guests, I feel so fortunate that how I see, feel and cherish natural environments influences how I work and what I hope matters to our clients. I can’t imagine it any other way. In the Hudson Valley there are opportunities galore for event teams to buildout spaces at venues and in both tamed and untamed private properties. It’s exciting work! When I am driving out in this gorgeous countryside to meet clients and vendors, I literally have to pinch myself (and keep my eyes on the road!).

I have had a few vendors joke with me about how I work, where I work and how they perceive me but I take it as not only as a complement but as validation that operating from my centering place, even when I need to climb a mountain to see it through, is where I am at my best.

“Paula, when on my way to meet you for a site visit, driving down a really bumpy, rocky, steep, narrow road with dust in my rear view mirror, feeling semi-lost, with my GPS no longer working, no cell coverage, asking myself... 'Is this really where we're doing this, where am I?', I know you’ll be standing there at the end, smiling wide with your orange tote bag in hand, ready to show me the perfect level grass clearing where you intend to start our conversation and getting this event off the ground.”

I chuckle to myself and think...'Yes, this is what I consider a very good work day and yes, you get me." Here is where the best of adventures begin…nothing set on paper "yet", outside away from all the clamor and availability, most likely without cell coverage so no iPhone ring tones every time it thinks you need an alert and best of all, where my heart and soul feel at ease, peaceful and most comfortable. That is of course, until we start up the generators to get the party started, for another blog.."Powering Through"!

I'd like to thank all the clients who feel as I do and have taken the leap to host parties in the landscapes that they adore (with me alongside) and for the many vendors who have followed my lead into the wilderness even when Mother Nature dealt us a wild hand of weather during setup, run-of-show or breakdown. I feel very blessed in so many ways to be amongst you and look forward to more adventures and opportunities in bringing people together and making lasting memories out and about in these gorgeous parts.

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​When we begin conversations with our clients about their event, this topic is up front and center even as they insist that “their” day will be sunny and bright (and just the right seasonal temperature!). I smile and think about how I will delicately and honestly navigate the next bit of sound advice.

​And although I’d like to agree with them, I have no magic wand. I politely guide them through a pro-active mindset behind a rain plan “now” while highlighting the increased odds of pulling off success regardless of Mother Nature’s decision on their day. With an action plan, we can truly claim to be unflappable, and their day will be perfect and potentially stress-free, regardless of how the sky behaves.

​As my personal point of reference, I always call to mind my “fearless-leader-moment”, our first “Hurricane Wedding”. Rachel and Mitch’s wedding at Glynwood with far too many vendor teams to count, an intense week leadup watching every weather report and reaching out to my aviation weather resources and pros as we anticipated the storm’s touchdown spot-on-the timeline of their ceremony. Steadily guiding the vendor team with confidence through strategic email updates that provided facts and substantiated claims that with all certainty, this wedding would not be postponed was a true test of my nerves.

​And we did it with so much success! Yes, there were many, many umbrellas in play, lawns saturated beyond absorption, mud that permeated layers upon layers of straw laid down for pathways, tent canopies filling to the brim with pockets of rainwater that needed emptying with a wide broom back on a 15-minute rotational schedule to keep from collapsing the tent and a change from drenched clothing to dry, every 2 hours. I’m not sure if Rachel’s wedding dress ever returned to a true white on the hemline. Her fresh out of the box personalized never-white-again sneakers had no idea what how they'd be broken in within minutes of hitting the ground.

​This was so extreme a day but with it brought an incredibly attitude of victory for our couple, who’s first test of their marriage allowed them to rise above, embrace the challenges (that they had no power to change) and make the very most out of it. They realized that our plan had allowed their show to go on and that if could be as beautiful as they hoped it would be. Our planning supported them and allowed them to shift and focus on what was truly the most important part of their day, the love, so much love surrounded them. And the icing on the Carvel ice cream cone, was a total bragging point for all the years to come when their wedding day story would rightfully include, “…AND WE SURVIVED a HURRICANE on our wedding day!”
 
In my observation, this couple out of all our couples had THE BEST time of their lives at their wedding, drenched from sideways rains and non-stop dance perspiration… they simply let go and let be. I must believe that this point of reference will always be monumental benchmark when married life tests. 

A Roof Over Your Head...
TENTS
  
1 | Outdoor weddings need a "contingency tent" for any part of the day that you hope to enjoy in open air.
 
2 | Book contingency tents with your tent rental vendor very early in your planning process, so you are not disappointed when you call, and they have none left in their inventory. Expect to pay 50% of tent rental to hold the tent for your event and to pay the balance of 50% if you end up using it. 
 
3 | Don’t waste your time checking weather months before your wedding. You have more productive things to do in so far as wedding planning. Look at weather one week out. Be prepared to decide on your contingency tent, by early week-of. Your tent rental vendor will provide their cut off day for making this decision. 
 
4 | If you insist that you want to wait and have the tent delivered and installed closer to your day, just in case the weather clears, expect to pay surcharges for a specific delivery window and make sure this will not affect other vendor load in schedules.
 
5 | If you have the tent delivered and the weather clears the day before your event, don’t expect the rental company can return on the morning of your event to take it down. “If” it is an option to return, there will be a substantial overtime fee AND it will need to be discussed in advance with them, your venue, and other vendors. Day-of is not the ideal day to be adding big movement swings.
 
6 | If the week is wet, place tent sides down to avoid wet furniture and grass. The only time to rethink this is if the winds or humidity/heat will be high. Often in these conditions, you want partial air to flow even during a storm.

​Climate Control
HEATERS + FANS
​
1 | Back to contingency planning. Depending on the season, you should plan to add heaters and fans to your rental order if you have a tented event. In New England, with such unpredictable weather patterns and swings, you could need either in the spring and fall seasons.

2 | For hot summer days, hand held fans are an excellent way to keep guests comfortable. Place them on your ceremony seats or have a basket filled to the brim on the reception table for the taking.

3 | Another hot and stylish accessory, parasols! Guest love these and they are so easy to hold along with a cocktail. Such fun for photos. 

Singing in the Rain
UMBRELLAS
 
1 | Review umbrella options on Amazon Prime to get a feel for what can be ordered to be shipped domestically. Plan to order within the 30-day return window because if they are not needed, you will send back in original packaging for credit.
 
2 | Some venues have umbrellas left from other events so ask if you can have access to them and how many they have.
 
3 | Some rental companies or vendors rent them, just ask before purchasing your own.
 
4 | Types and quantities

• 1 umbrella per 2 guests 
• Large, clear umbrellas for you and your bridal party for photo walks. For photos, clear is perfect since it does not block the background, allows natural light to the faces underneath and raindrop texture is visible and captured..it's really looks romantic in photos, really!

​Moving Out of Harm's Way
EVAC PLAN
Don’t be shy to discuss a plan of action with your client and vendors ahead of time if a potentially dangerous weather situation is forecasted on the event day. Your role as a planner or host is to have the answers even before you need them. Sound information will avert panic on day-of and ensure that necessary steps can be taken in a moment’s notice to get guests to a safer location until a storm blows over.

​Last but not least, remember...
THINK POSITIVELY
Rain is good luck for a couple so if it's unavoidable, embrace this good fortune, let go of any unrealistic expectations and have a blast anyway...this day is once in a lifetime, and nothing should dampen that blessing.

Excerpt from:
Lucky in Love: Traditions, Customs & Rituals to Personalize Your Wedding
by Eleni N. Gage

​R A I N
"If you're getting married in a location where wet weather is likely (many gorgeous venues are significantly cheaper in the rainy off-season), embrace the idea of rain as a symbol of washing away the past, showering you with luck, fertility, and blessings from above, and strengthening your union because a wet knot is harder to untie. Adopt the umbrella, a common nuptial image, as your own. In Finland, through much of the twentieth century an escort held ice over the bride's head as she went door to door collecting her dowry, making it a popular motif for Finnish weddings today in Tibet, Buddhist honor the White Umbrella Goddess as a sign of protection: in New Orleans, parasols make a joyous appearance during a second line parade."

​For the last two plus weeks I’ve been immersed at my computer pondering photo selections that tell the story of each event, respecting privacy while unveiling the love and beauty that each day holds. In this process, I am reliving joy-filled days and feeling intoxicatedly by all the love. It’s only in this time that I can fully appreciate our photographer’s captures from every angle and the true perspective of the celebration.

​During event days, my focus is on the moment-to-moment management and staying one step ahead of each next happening. Within the landscape of an event, as vibrant and alive as it is, I am not an observer but instead actively participating through my closeup lens at details and everything or everyone  that requires my attention. I do catch charmed glimpses that stop me for an instant to pause, smile and often cry a happy tear, but not until now do the endless special connections and relationships amongst our couples and their guests appear to me in full color. A glance, a touch, or a deep embrace…sheer joy, fun and connections that unfold from early getting-ready settings to the late-night glowing fire pits against deep slate night sky. The ability to look at each photographic image without ANY distractions is blissful, no longer forced to work on a side column to-do list or respond to the ping of endless mounting emails in my inbox. This is the very best end of year gift I can give myself. It triggers poignant recollections of my relationship with a couple, mini replays of conversations and decisions that had direct effects on the outcome of the day and it also further enlightens me to who they are and why they are and where they came from. 

tThis immersion and closure have the same gratification as holding the last piece to a very large puzzle. Under close inspection you consider every piece as you build, and understand first-hand how it feels, and where it needs to land, step by step. Once this last puzzle piece snaps in, the feeling of completion is just so good, right? In fact, often after a 12 to 18-hour day at this process, I go to bed and re-dream the event as well as our couples and families. These are sweet dreams unlike the ones I have the night before an event when my brain is reckoning with the tasks that await me. The commitment of time it takes to see this end of year process through impacts my soul as an artist and as a people lover. It also is the jet fuel that propels me into the new event year with confidence as we get ready to do it all again. On New Year’s Eve, I finished our last gallery cataloging and that was reason enough to celebrate what an event year we had and what an thrilling event year we have ahead. ​

The teams we build for each client are never the same, each one as unique as the vision. This affords so many opportunities to strengthen existing relationships or to build new ones, and in many cases…even new and dear friendships are forged as we lean into the tasks at hand and get to know each other on deeper levels getting “sh*t” done. I am blessed to be flanked with so many dedicated and talented people, who give so much to us when we ask and even when we don’t ask. Thank you thank you…you know who you are. 

​​Speaking for myself, my team and all the vendor talent we enlist for an event, it goes without saying that we are well versed in creating inviting and gorgeous festivities filled to the brim with culinary, musical, and aesthetical details (and so much more!). This environment is the platform and our teams, and their energy are the conduit to allowing the magic to happen.

In closing, ​I am so grateful to all of you that touched my life, hands, and heart in 2023. The year started in challenging ways as I watched my dear dad fade and leave me while looking just ahead at the daunting and robust event year that I was navigating. The company I kept with clients and vendors supported me in gentle and caring ways that kept me going and lifted my spirit when I wanted to retract. This work that I find so very gratifying refilled my heart and uplifted me with each moment of joy and happiness that was celebrated together. Love most certainly heals. 
 
With all my heart, I thank my personal team, you and your teams and our valued and dear clients that made each event come to life in so many beautiful and memorable ways. To the photographers that I was graced with this year, thank you for being everywhere and more, spotting the nuggets in each moment. You amaze me and your work delights me. 

My New Year's gift to all…
A quote I found along the way in my mindfulness practice, lives pinned to my bulletin boards above “both desks”.               A compass point when the seas get rough and the challenges build. I hope it can be appreciated, embraced, and perhaps passed along to another bulletin board or finds it's way on yours. 
• 
“May I live with compassion, with grace, with insight, with integrity, with love.
​May I live each moment at a time, doing the next right thing,
​whatever that may be.”

My heartfelt wishes to each of you for a new year filled
with joy, optimism, positivity, excitement, and anticipation and SO many blessings sprinkled with lots of love.
 
XOXO
Paula 

Although working alongside of our clients on the planning and management of their event is our primary objective, we pride ourselves in focusing on printed and often, handcrafted details, starting with an invitation suite that reflects their personal style, their event vision, and their budget. We believe that the first impression a guest receives in a beautifully crafted envelope with the perfectly appointed postage stamp (and hopefully their names elegantly handwritten in ink with a calligraphy quill), should be opened with delight and express all that is to come along on the celebration day with a heartfelt sense from the couple that says...

The conversation begins with Digital vs. Print
Getting our clients focused on their guest outreach, starts with the pros and cons of digital verses mailed invitations. If our clients want to communicate digitally, they will most likely use their wedding website or software designed specifically to send and track. Great options for this DIY, eco and budget friendly invite process that also saves production and mailing time are Paperless Post, Evite and Punchbowl, to name a few. If clients cherish paper and tradition as much as we do, we talk about the variety of options available in creating a suite—a collection of cards that are mailed together to invite your guests to your celebration, be it a wedding, mitzvah or milestone. 

Defining the Direction
As a designer over the course of my career, I am well versed in the many ways to work through a creative process be it wholistically or in combination with other resources. Understanding our clients personally and their end goals, allow me to guide this process seamlessly. 

1 | Stationary Lines
Not every client wants or needs to start from scratch in terms of design, even though we are ready and eager to work from a clean slate. They may find it easier and more convenient to focus on stationary lines that exist and ones in which they can add customization. We work with several lines to offer these options and also partner with local stationary shops that have more extensive collections with a broader range of styles. There are also online options that allow clients to build out their suites based on designer created stock art and who can also offer some customization with their lines. Minted, Zazzle, Shutterfly and The Knot, are among a few. If this is a path that our clients take, we support their process in an advisory and resourcing role to ensure that they land comfortably in budget and styling.

​2 | Illustration Artists
Researching a perfect fit can be time consuming. There are event-focused artists that can work directly with clients or planners to create custom watercolors, collages and line art. They have a process that guides from organizing the plan, through custom execution to printing and imprinting guest names. Each artists has a their own particular style and strength. We can work with clients in resourcing the perfect fit and once the process is underway, we are on the sidelines to assist with proofreading, scheduling, and making sure all the details have been addressed graphically. 

3 | DIY
For clients that have the ability, talent, time, desire or simply need to cut costs, we applaud their willingness to take on the challenge of creating their own suites. We are always happy to act in an advisory role, offering proof reading and making recommendations on stock and processes. 

4 | Our In-house Design Studio @ Your Event | Paula Smith Designs Inc. 
Visit Paula Smith Designs Inc. Portfolio
 
I have personally spent my career designing both graphics and packaging for retail and wholesale high end markets. I understand the level of details it takes to make an impression and to align with a client’s vision. With a range of illustrator resources, a keen understanding of typography, the ability to resource uniquely curated detailing, I am comfortable starting with a blank slate, and taking the process through to production processes that elevate, be it embossing, letterpress, die cutting and utilizing unique closure with materials such as ribbon, wax seals (or other less traditional methods) and of course, incorporating the art of writing, hand lettered calligraphy throughout the suite. 
 
We pride ourselves with knowledge, resources, and the ability to create bespoke suites. Extending a customized design that originates with a suite and carries the theme through to other elements is a luxury and an artist-planner’s dream project.  

The Line Extension

Once invitations are on their way to guests, we expand the conversation to the line extension. How do we carry the aesthetic from the invitation suite regardless of how we arrived at the design (stationary line, illustration artist, DIY or in-house creative) and extend graphics and production methods to other components that will be used for guest welcomes through restroom hospitality baskets? With care, consideration, intention, strategy and technical wizardry.
 
Some of these are optional, some are required, and it has much to do with each couple’s vision and how their unique day is being presented. Whichever path they chose to arrive at their invitation suite, we are well versed in leveraging design and extending through the components so that the collection is unified and cohesive throughout all visual art components. 

• Guest Reception Cards

• Menus
• Ceremony Programs
• Signage: Welcome, Seating, Directional, Signature Cocktails, Table Identifiers & Restroom Hospitality Signage
• Weekend Schedules & Maps
• Welcome Bag Hang Tags
• Personalized Favors
• ...and whatever else our clients feel is suitable for their day and expression (like a phone lockdown cubby so guests can be fully present at their ceremony).

We’d love to start a conversation even if you are not one of our event clients.
•
Partnering directly with couples who have DIY events in the works or are working with a planner are just as welcomed. If you feel we can support this creative aspect of your event, we'd be delighted
​for you to be "our" studio guest.
| Contact Us |
•
Wishing you all the best as your celebrations unfold!
May they be filled with all the details that make each guest truly feel like your guest of honor.
​
Warmly—Paula

​LOVE is truly at the core of our efforts! We literally LOVE all that it takes to guide a client through the planning process to arrive on their celebratory day focused on each other, their families, their guests and not all the logistical to-dos swirling in their orbits. We also LOVE our couples and their families. When we meet, we literally know nothing about them until “their” love story starts to unfold in our conversations and as we begin to understand their vision in creating their perfect day. In this getting-to-know warmup and the adventure that we are now contracted in together, we soon have a snapshot of their bigger story…their families who have supported them to this day, their best friends who will toast (and perhaps roast) them and often that special person in their lives that will be honored to marry them. All the loves in their lives come to the surface to complete their story. It’s “their” circle of love that truly becomes our focus as it not only defines who they are as individuals and as a family but also so much of their decision making as they create a day with their loved ones in mind. It’s not always about them (although it is) but more often than not, their concerns lie in making it feel special for each and every one of their guests. This extension and expressions of love are yet another testament to how incredible it is to work when LOVE is at the core of it all. 

We received many personal thank you notes that we cherish and keep in a special place in a studio bin. Lovely emails also popped up in our inbox with heart emojis the week after. Our couples also took time to share their experience with Your Event and to write a multitude of reviews that earned us both The Knot "The Best of Wedding 2023 Award" and Wedding Wire "Couples’ Choice 2023 Award" last month. We are forever grateful to them for completing our love stories with 5 stars reviews and so many personal notations describing their happiness and how they were able to enjoy their day to the fullest because of our caring efforts, attention, and hard work. 

​Nicole + Kwame | 5.21.22

​At our first meeting, our walk through the property at Gather Greene focused keenly on deciding where you would say your vows. That was more important to you than floor plans and a million other details. And so I understood you both from that moment forward. Watching you as you imagined that moment...priceless! “Will it be the woods or will it be on the ridge?” We walked back and forth. You took your time on this decision (your answer came weeks/months later). Yet it did not truly seem to matter where you stood and pondered this moment to be, you never stopped beaming at each other ​as if you were already there, saying “I do!”

Brittany + Kyle | 7.17.22

​We were all together for the first time for your rehearsal ceremony. It was immediate when I witnessed your connection that you balanced each other perfectly. 24 hours later, it was even clearer. Your energy, Brittany, whirled you throughout the rooms with your guests, dancing and celebrating, with such spontaneity and in each joy-filled moment. Kyle,  your calm and easy breezy energy, stood steady but a smile never left your face, even when you stood alone for that moment that Brittany was footloose and fancy free. At one point you said to me, “Where is my wife, I can’t find her, AGAIN?” And you smiled even wider. Then in a flash, off you both went to jump into the pool for your personal big splash, full dressed. ​Your fun and folly were contagious…what a life ahead you will have! 

Mackenzie + Will | 8.20.22

Being at Fairfield Farm was truly where you shined so brightly. I could see that this special place was an extension
of your lives and homes, representing not only natural beauty and but sheer comfort. You fit like a puzzle piece on that land, and it was very apparent that your loving and supportive family, and community completed your landscape puzzle in the most perfect way as they surrounded and celebrated you in a place that held such special meaning to all.
Beautiful day, beautiful couple, beautiful love story of two families meant to be one!

 Noa + Noah | 9.9.22

Standing in the wild field imaging your day was literally like starting a landscape painting on a canvas that had a light wash of sage green laid in waiting for the next strokes to be added. There was a creative energy from the first uttering of “What do you think about this…., Paula?” You felt it long before we could see it and then you blossomed there. Dancing in celebration, and as comfortable throughout your day as if you were on an afternoon hike in the wilderness. It was so evident how deeply ​in love you were with the company that shared this day of creation with you.

Ran + Jon | 9.10.22

Your quiet nature and fierce determination to make decisions was delightful to work alongside. But you sparkled and lightened the minute you walked onto the property at Hancock Shaker Village (and when you talked about hiking!).
We entered the Round Barn on that very frigid winter day greeted by two braying mini donkeys, a small calf and several sheep, all looking up at us to say “Party, what party?”. And you said, “I hope they will be at the wedding!” We were equally charmed by their antics and not bothered at all by their smell. I knew from that moment that you both would make the most of your wedding day embracing all the wonders that this treasured place held and that
​we were meant to make it happen together.

​Kate + Chris | 10.14.22

The “always-beginning” and never-ending love story...ours! From the first call with you Kate, I got your heart. We talked for a very long time but most of the conversation was about how excited you both were to be bringing your families together for this union and celebration. Every decision from that point on was about them, not you. When I met you Chris, I could see that you too were all heart, all giving. You waited for what felt like forever for this cherished day and as in most cases, you now know so well, the best things are worth waiting for. Our time together had a few replay buttons, but it was a great song indeed,  and one that I will always reflect on with gratitude and joy. You, my dears, will always be so dear to me. 

Tanya + Arin | 10.15.22

When you joined me in the studio for our first meeting, and we talked about the many ways that you would personalize your day, I knew you were about creating an environment that reflected not only your style but your heart.
You curated each moment of the weekend with such love and intention. Details abounded, spreadsheets filled, boxes stacked, pumpkins rolled and yet on your day, it all fell into exact order…your order. I could see throughout the process of collecting treasures from your finds here in the Hudson Valley and in the city, that you had started building your life just as you would continue to as husband and wife—a beautiful life, a treasured life, a life that brought
so much joy because you were sharing it with the people in your life that you treasured above all else.
Your sentimental ways won my heart from the first hello and your first happy tear when we hugged. 

Amy Julia Becker Book Signing Cocktail | 4.24.22

​A book brought us together and when I read it, I knew it was intended, “To Be Made Well”. Your husband reached out to talk to me about making a special moment for your book release and reading, one that was beautiful, one that would delight you and require you to do nothing at all but appear and share your story with the community. Talk about love!
We met that afternoon for the first time, moments before your fan club appeared. I listened, I paused, and I reflected. 
Forever grateful for your wisdom, spiritual reminders and for personally being present with you and your blessed family.

Mika's Bat Mitzvah Into the Wilderness

Meeting you and your family to discuss what “your” vision and theme would be for your Bat Mitzvah was beyond refreshing. We had three things in common from the get-go…our love for the wilderness, flowers and graphic design.  
Our adventure was inspiring and wonderful from Day 1. I loved that you conceptualized your logo, we had joined as creative minds and provided a final drawing that I could produce for “your” branded day. I loved that you understood color. I loved that you got what a tablescape could be with imagination and wanted yours to be magical and incorporate details that mattered to you. When Mother Nature delivered the perfect weather day to shine light on all that we created on your land, and all that your land had to offer, it was truly a gift to watch and be grateful for. You are quite the remarkable and talented person, Mika! I can only imagine the adventures you will create in your life. 

Natalie’s 1st Birthday | 8.27.22

Even beyond the Mai Tais, our love of bright color, family-focused, being moms and creating togetherness,
we had a lot in common—we worked efficiently, effectively and with intention. The focus on creating fun for little ones
was as important for the big ones. Making sure that in our exuberance of party planning, decisions were kept in check for
a day that felt real and not excessive or pretentious. Seeing Natalie in her little white grass skirt dancing in the kitchen as she grasped the cabinet handles to stand upright was “the best” last look at the close of day before I headed home. 

Karianna + Reuben Engagement Party | 9.24.22
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I loved our time together creating a clear-as-crystal vision of your engagement. You knew “exactly” how you wanted this kick-off to your life together to feel and you picked the perfect setting for “you”. It was so easy for me to step in, guide and manage this intimate night of celebration with those closest to you. Knowing you already from our professional work together made this a special honor for me. It was so wonderful to be with you both at the very beginning of your love story. I can only imagine the how the rest of it will unfold. 

Max’s Bar Mitzvah
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Supporting you through Max’s special day was an honor. Your vision of a more casual, intimate yet gorgeously well-appointed afternoon on your property was heavenly. I could see on that perfect sunny afternoon that welcoming guests
​to your home to enjoy all its wonders gave you as much joy as it did the kids running and playing freely,
without any orchestration, just being. 

Washington Montessori Graduation Celebration
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Joining in this communal collaboration was so heartwarming. As a parent and former PA President and volunteer mom, I can truly appreciate the saying that “it takes a village” and your village was a delight to be a part of. You at the helm with the other parents onboard, set the stage as if laying out all the ingredients of a recipe on the counter, measured and ready for me. I simply had to step in, combine, stir, bake and plate. Such fun and so heartwarming to see the graduates and families under one tent,​ no masks and celebrating a proud and well-earned milestone together.

'Everything But Water' Corporate Retreat
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Working with you to welcome your colleagues to the Hudson Valley was hospitality-focused at it’s best. What’s not to love about where we live, right? Sharing it, all the better! Yet your vision of packaging experiences, really made for the warmest of welcomes. It was an honor to manage the itinerary and make sure it all went according to plan so you too could enjoy the fruits of your labor and being with your team.