Q&A Collaboration with Borrowed & Blue
We absolutely love collaborating with new friends in the industry and it’s always so appreciated when someone is interested in learning a little bit more about the people behind Sweet Root Village. Helen from Borrowed & Blue—the online planning resource that can help you plan Washington DC weddings—got in touch with us to learn more about how we plan weddings! As she says,
“Borrowed & Blue is the local guide to planning Washington DC weddings, but you’ll need a posse of awesome wedding professionals on your team to make sure your wedding goes off without a hitch. That’s where people like Rachel and Lauren at Sweet Root Village come in! These ladies are successful photography and floral experts based out of Alexandria, VA who travel all over the world for their clients’ weddings. Their elegant, highly curated style and attention to detail are just a couple of reasons why it’s easy to love their work—if you do a bit of scrolling through their portfolio, it’s easy to see why they’re so beloved! I approached Lauren and Rachel to answer some wedding-related questions so that couples all over the country have some fabulous insight into how to go about crafting their dream day.” Helen, Borrowed & Blue’s Washington, DC Market Specialist
Here’s our Q&A:
- Hello, Rachel and Lauren! Tell us the story of how you got into the event planning business.
We both grew up dabbling and pursuing various forms of creative ventures, we both tend to like things “just so,” stay pretty organized, and go after the things we want! We met in college while Lauren was working towards her sociology degree and Rachel was in the visual arts program studying graphic design and we became fast friends! Both of us had been interested in photography for some time and Lauren had been working in flower shops for quite a few years! A glass of wine one night and talking about the future and doing what we loved turned into a blog and a business that we never expected to become what it is and to mean to us what it does! It’s been a wild adventure!
- Describe your personal aesthetic in six words.
R: Romantic, clean design that inspires joy.
L: Warm and inviting, fresh and bright.
- What questions do you like to ask a couple when you meet with them?
R: We love to form friendships with our couples and so learning about them and their wedding is important to us. So besides all the normal talk of “what flowers do you love” and “what is the vibe of your wedding” and “what color are your bridesmaid dresses,” we hope to see conversation flow and get to know our couples outside of talk of their wedding. Getting to know them means we are more invested in their lives and more excited about their wedding day!
- What suggestions about wedding planning do you have for folks who are recently engaged?
R: Enjoy it! It’s an exciting time but it also comes with it’s share of headaches and stresses. So lean on each other and don’t sweat the small stuff. Decide what’s important to you and remember that throughout the entire planning process, it’ll keep you both focused.
L: Don’t worry about keeping up with the Jones’. Do what you want and forget about the “rules”. You’re making a new life together, so translate that into your wedding day!
- The 2016 wedding season is underway! What trends are you excited about?
R: Trends in D.C. can range drastically because there are SO many different types of people in the area, but I have been loving the rise of unique floral installations and and people thinking outside of the box in general when it comes to their wedding. I love being surprised at each event. We all have different stories and different ways of telling them and we love seeing those come out at a wedding!
L: I am loving all of the new linen, flatware, and tabletop rentals available now! Gone are the days of having just a white plate with gold charger as your only option for a place setting. While we LOVE the floral aspect of the tablescape, the place settings can make such a huge impact on the overall aesthetic.
- What is your favorite aspect of your job?
R: Walking through heaps of buckets full of flowers. They are in a space between worlds. They are a realization of the designs we’ve been cooking up in our heads, but they haven’t reached their full potential in an arrangement yet, and that’s a really exciting place to be.
L: I love the constant change. Every wedding is different and gives us the opportunity to think up some new creation. Not only are the weddings themselves different, but being a business owner is a constant changing role, which I love just as much as the art itself!
- What part of a wedding is your favorite (if you had to choose)?
R: That’s so tough! I really love the final moments lighting candles when a reception room is completely set and the few times that we’ve gotten to be present when the couple walks in for the first time and we get to see their reaction. It’s an incredibly good feeling!
L: My favorite, and equally most nerve wracking part of a wedding day, is handing the bouquet to the bride. There’s nothing like the expression when she sees her flowers for the first time. It seems like holding a bridal bouquet is when the wedding day gets real.
- In addition to being wedding experts, you’re DMV locals! Describe your dream day in DC.
L: It would definitely have to start with brunch at Eastern Market. The fried green tomato eggs benedict and blueberry buckwheat pancakes are a toss up for some of the best brunch food in the city. A stroll through the Botanic Gardens, followed by ramen at Daikaya and the Wonder exhibit at the Renwick Gallery would make for a lovely afternoon. Margaritas and tacos at Oyamel for dinner, and then on to a favorite local spot, Copy Cat Co, for a night cap! Oh and let’s not forget dessert at Ice Cream Jubilee. Sounds pretty perfect to me!
- Describe something that sets DC apart from other places you’ve lived.
R: Diversity. I’ve lived a lot of places and D.C. is definitely the most diverse of anywhere I’ve been and it’s probably what I love most about this area!
L: The fact that I have thousands of priceless pieces of art in my back yard makes this city pretty special. I still never get tired of seeing monuments and the Capitol everyday on my commute. Pretty spectacular!
We are so grateful that you’d take the time to learn a little bit more about us! And we hope you’ll check out Borrowed & Blue—it’s a great place to discover and book Washington, DC wedding photographers and so much more!
