Preppy Chic

Spring Cleaning & A Time For Change

stephanie — Mon, 18 Mar 2013 14:00:46 +0000

After trying to figure out what fires me up and doing a lot of professional & personal reflection, I have decided a little “online” spring cleaning is necessary.

This Friday will mark the TWO year anniversary of The Preppy Chic Blog & the launch of my event planning company Preppy Chic Events. Over the past two years, the blog has evolved into a mix of weddings, wedding inspiration, real events, lifestyle, fashion, travel, etc… However, as I mentioned in this post, I also run a health & fitness blog called Cupcakes to CrossFit. Recently, it is becoming too difficult and messy to manage two blogs at once causing the Preppy Chic Blog to stray away from its original intent: a place of wedding & event inspiration + wedding planning advice + showcasing my company’s work.

Because both blogs cover elements that now overlap, I have decided that I am going to merge all the lifestyle elements of The Preppy Chic Blog into Cupcakes to Crossfit and keep all things weddings & events here on the blog. From now on all the fashion, travel & eats, business, etc… can be found on Cupcakes to Crossfit. I am not going to delete any of the previous posts, but if you want fresh new content, please make sure to follow along at Cupcakes to Crossfit!

In the meantime, there might be a little bit of shuffling, updating and rearranging, but I think it was the right time for change.

{via}

Wednesday Words: Things That Fire Me Up

stephanie — Wed, 13 Mar 2013 17:01:37 +0000

I’m so sad that I couldn’t make it to Making Things Happen 2013, which starts today. Last year, this program changed my life, my company and my vision of the future. It really gave me the opportunity to dig deep and reflect upon what I want and how to get there. In one of the exercises, we wrote down a list of things that fire you up because this is the source of passion and motivation in your life & business.

Lara Casey (the EIC of Southern Weddings & the founder of Making Things Happen) wrote: “DO more of what fires you up. When you are living out your passion actively – not just thinking about it or planning when you’ll do it, but DOING it – life happens. Real, full, life. DO more of what fires you up. When you are actively doing the things that make you come alive, you find an endless well of creativity, giving, love, energy and inspiration. Life gets richer in the best ways possible. Write a list of all the things that fire your heart up and post it where you can see it all the time! Then… DO them.”

So I thought I’d share my list of things that fire me up…

So what FIRES YOU UP??

Download a blank “things that fire me up” sheet by Emily Ley, HERE (rainbow), HERE (blue ombre) or HERE (pink ombre), print it and write down all the things that fire YOU up!!! I hang mine in my office right next to my computer as a daily reminder to help keep me going!

{real event} Baseball Themed Bar Mitzvah

stephanie — Mon, 11 Mar 2013 15:00:42 +0000

One of the best parts about being an event planner is helping my clients come up with fun ideas & designs for their event and then watching the vision come alive! Bar Mitzvahs are so much fun because they’re usually themed, full of personality and have lots of room for creativity with the goal of having fun and celebrating!

This party was definitely a blast. Although the overall theme was baseball, we wanted the event to be modern & classy vs. cheesy & themed so we tried to incorporate baseball elements without going over the top. The final color palette: navy, lime green and white with pops of yellow & red. STEMS floral design did a great job of blending classy and baseball with the wooden box centerpieces & baseball filled vases.

I think the highlight of the day was watching the guest-of-honor and his mom dance because it was such an endearing moment. The kids danced the afternoon away with energetic entertainment from SpotlightLA & devoured the Sweet Lucies Ice Cream & “concessions stand.” Let’s just say 5 minutes into the party the candy centerpieces were completely empty!

{venue: portofino hotel | event design, coordination & candy station: preppy chic events | photographer: graham & graham photography | florals: STEMS floral design | dj & mc: rocky from spotlight la | lounge rentals: del rey rentals | linens: designer specialty linens | invitations: where’s the party? | ice cream cart: sweet lucie’s}

Spring Forward

stephanie — Sun, 10 Mar 2013 23:47:36 +0000

Happy {almost} Spring! The sun is out, the days are longer & the time just sprung an hour forward! I can almost feel summer on the way too I hope you had a wonderful weekend!

{via pinterest}

Wednesday Words: Creating Momentum

stephanie — Wed, 27 Feb 2013 15:00:26 +0000

I can’t believe February 2013 is almost over! The year is flying by so quickly! I also can’t believe it’s been almost 2 years (this March) from when I started this blog. What started off as a place to showcase wedding inspiration & real events and other random stuff about me and my company has really become more of my brain dump and personal journal. I realized I think it’s time for me to really sit down and figure out the direction for Preppy Chic.

Since the beginning of 2013, I have been doing more soul-searching to really try to figure out where I’m headed in my business, career and life. I love what I do, but there are a lot of things I still want to accomplish, which is making me scattered and all over the place. From focusing on wedding & event planning and building that business, to trying to figure out a direction for this blog, to attempting to maintain my other health & fitness blog, to launching a new startup, I basically have entrepreneurship & business a-d-d and spreading myself thin. I admit that I am an extreme overachiever and I need to remind myself exactly this:

{via}

This quote really struck a chord with me because I put so much pressure on myself to be everything that it leads to stress, disorganization, and loss of focus. Don’t get me wrong, I am 100% committed to all my clients and my work, but sometimes the pressure is overwhelming.

So what are my next steps? Like natural evolution, I think it’s time to make some changes in my business & blogging. Instead of writing about what I thought I should be as a wedding & event blogger, I think I am going to start writing about things I love… like fashion, business, and entrepreneurship… to give readers a little bit of insight to who I am. I want to do more destination weddings with Preppy Chic Events because I love travel & think intimate weddings are so special. I want to work on my startup that I think will really help make the wedding & event industry more transparent.

I love this article by Whitney English on creating momentum in your business because it’s so true. It’s very similar to what I learned in Making Things Happen: making a list of action steps. Action Steps have to be “physical, accomplish-able in under a couple of minutes and they have to be realistic.” It requires breaking down a big project or goal into manageable tasks that will allow you to reach your completed project (check out Lara Casey’s article on it). Right now I’m working on creating actionable tasks that will lead me to my final goal. For example, buying a DSLR and an instruction book. Simple easy task physical that will help me to create the food & fashion images I want to help build my blog. I definitely makes getting to where you want to be a lot more realistic!

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Spring Arrivals from J.Crew Factory

stephanie — Tue, 26 Feb 2013 13:30:34 +0000

I’m obsessed with the navy, green & bright colors from J.Crew Factory’s new arrivals. Right now they have 30% off all the new arrivals which is a great way to revamp your closet for spring! Here are some of my favorites picks.

{ 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 }

Wednesday Words: Love

stephanie — Wed, 13 Feb 2013 18:11:54 +0000

In honor of Valentine’s Day tomorrow… today I’m inspired by LOVE.

{prints via 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5}

From Cupcakes To CrossFit

stephanie — Tue, 12 Feb 2013 20:41:08 +0000

As I mentioned, I have another blog based on Fitness & the Paleo Diet called From Cupcakes to CrossFit. Check it out and LIKE it too!

Today I wrote a post on Ellie, the new fitness & activewear ecommerce company that launched last week. For those interested in activewear fashion, check it out!

{images from Ellie}

Mint + Gold

stephanie — Mon, 11 Feb 2013 19:16:32 +0000

I tried to resist, but mint (seafoam) whatever you want to call it, keeps appearing in front of me and I am in love. This weekend I ran across this tote at Lululemon and just had to buy it!

It had mint striped lining & grey straps {the instagram photo doesn’t do it justice} along with all sorts of fun compartments for dirty workout clothes, a computer, yoga mat, etc.. I blame the lack of sugar & carbs in my blood for my rash shopping purchase. For those who don’t know, I also have another blog called From Cupcakes to Crossfit. My fiance & I have been eating Paleo off and on for over a year now and I am “trying” to do Crossfit, while also continuing with my yoga & pilates.

Anyway, I digress… I love watching the fashion trends because a lot of what happens in the wedding industry is closely related to the newest fashion trends. Wedding trends tend to be a few months behind fashion, but there are a lot of overlap. Last Fall 2012, I bought a pair of mint skinny jeans from J.Crew & a mint dress from H&M and this Spring 2013, I’m seeing mint / seafoam appear EVERYWHERE, from weddings to all the fashion blogs! So how do you incorporation mint & gold into your life?

From head to toe…

Mixed with patterns…

On your feet…

Wedding Place Settings & Paper Products…

Bridesmaid Dresses & Evening Gowns…

Wedding Desserts…

{source: BHLDN skirt & j.crew sweater {via atlantic pacific} | j.crew pants {via a little dash of darling} | kate spade heels {via classy girls wear pearls} | place setting {via Ruffled} | place setting {via SMP} | wedding invitation {via SMP} | bridesmaids {via SMP} | dress {via tumblr} | karen caldwell tulle gown | erica o’brian cake | mint macarons}

Wanderlust

stephanie — Thu, 24 Jan 2013 19:39:48 +0000

The last week in LA has been gorgeous, but now the rain has finally arrived. Sitting inside when it’s cold and rainy makes me want to travel to someplace tropical and warm. In 2013 I decided that I missed traveling and I wanted to do more of it. I used to be a management consultant, so traveling for work make me dread getting on an airplane for personal travel, even if I knew I was going to someplace fun. For years I would travel outside the country or to a tropical island, but over the past few years that has slowed down and now I am itching for a new adventure… perhaps for our honeymoon?

Here’s to dreaming of where I should go next…

{via 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5}

Wednesday Words: Keep Dreamin’

stephanie — Wed, 23 Jan 2013 22:31:05 +0000

Maybe I’m a dreamer, but it’s what helps my imagination and creativity… and it’s what keeps me going in life. So keep on dreamin’…

{via}

Road to Wedding Bliss {infographic}

stephanie — Tue, 22 Jan 2013 13:00:50 +0000

I love this infographic created by Wedding Paper Divas on recent engagement statistics. Did you just get engaged? Check out how you compare to other engaged couples. As a recent engaged woman, I am definitely in the 74% majority of couples who at some point said “let’s just elope”.

What I thought was extremely interesting is the average amount of time couples spent per week planning their wedding… 40% spent 10-15 hours over the course of an average of a year! That’s at least 520 hours (or 21.666666 days) spent on nothing but wedding planning!!! Now, I know I’m a little biased, but imagine the amount of time you would save if you hired a wedding planner! I know most of you think it’s not in your budget, but time value of money people!!! It just makes logical & business sense, so think about it.

{via Wedding Paper Divas}

Ana + Joe :: engaged

stephanie — Mon, 21 Jan 2013 19:05:00 +0000

We’re looking forward to the first wedding of 2013 this weekend! This one is going to be a beautiful intimate winter wonderland themed wedding in Palos Verdes! Ana & Joe are an extremely creative and talented couple. The groom is an accomplished chef and is in the process of starting a new mobile wood fire pizza venture called Vella! I can’t wait to check it out! Here is a peek into some of their engagement photos by On Location Photography.

Wednesday Words: Inspiration for a New Year & a New You

stephanie — Wed, 02 Jan 2013 20:54:45 +0000

I don’t believe in New Years Resolutions. Mainly because I feel like I’m setting myself up for failure. No one wants to fail right? Instead, I make decisions to try harder, do better, take action and strive to be the best me I can be every day.

{via etsy}

Although I don’t make resolutions, there are some goals/actions I’d like to work on for the New Year:

Health & Fitness {I have a wedding to get ready for}
Organization {I love my new notepads & action book}
My Business {I want to marry tech & weddings/events in a new different way}
Traveling {It’s one of my passions that I haven’t embraced in the last few years}
Balance {Spending more time with those who I love and cherish}

I realized in 2012 that life is short and goes by so quickly. If you don’t take action, take risks, live in the present and dream, you will ever reach your potential. So to start of 2013, I thought I’d continue my Wednesday Words with some inspiration to help kick off a productive, successful, motivated year!

{top to bottom: minna may | marilyn monroe | eleanor roosevelt | successful people | life is short}

2013… Let’s Do This!

stephanie — Mon, 31 Dec 2012 18:23:35 +0000

Happy New Year’s Eve!!!

It’s been a crazy, fast & interesting 2012. There were sadly more downs than ups (especially with the passing of my grandpa). I can’t wait for 2012 to be over because I know 2013 is going to be an amazing year (because I’m getting married)!!! Cheers to 2012 being over (& the world not ending) and time to celebrate the coming of 2013!!!