Can you believe it all started with a hurricane?

Ask most Wedding Coordinators or Event Designers how they got started and undoubtedly the majority of the planners will reply with a carbon copy answer. They’ll more than likely drift into tales about coming to the rescue of a friend or maybe even their own wedding adventure. And yes I admit it, upon reflection, I too can see how the idea of planning weddings may have been planted in my fertile subconscious after my own wedding but the question I’d like to ask you is - “How many of those weddings were orchestrated flawlessly after the Governor issued a state of emergency?” Perhaps I’m getting a little ahead of myself. The story actually begins at the end of several months of physical therapy.

I knew my boyfriend truly loved me when he, without hesitation, selflessly took care of me as I recovered from an accident that broke both ankles – leaving me with 9 screws and a metal plate in my right ankle and in a wheelchair for a number of months. This was emotionally devastating for someone like me who was not just proud of her independence but waved it around like a banner every chance she got. Looking back I now realize that it was a great opportunity for a borderline “Control Freak” like me to learn when to ask for help, allow the people I could rely on to shine, and dismiss the toxic elements in my life that I could not depend on. The other blessing of the experience was the closeness and trust that matured between my boyfriend and me. For months my therapy steadily progressed; taking me from a wheelchair, to walking with crutches, to walking with a cane, and finally learning to stand and walk independently again. By the end, we both knew our relationship would never be the same again.

My independent streak was certainly bent but not broken as my boyfriend discovered after his third proposal received a joyful “yes”. Like most soon-to-be Brides I found myself gradually shifting gears from the blissful glow of “being engaged” to the practical process of planning a wedding. This was a task I felt more than qualified to take on. After all, over the years I’d researched and facilitated scores of training classes, organized company picnics, coordinated a casting call, and worked on a number of exhibit openings. From being a Caricature Artist at Busch Gardens Williamsburg while earning my degree in Fine Art; to working with the Virginia Symphony, Young Audiences of Virginia, The Virginia Arts Festival, The Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation, and Portsmouth Museums - I’d honed my skills at the finest venues in the state. I thought, “How hard could it be to plan a wedding?”

So, where to begin? I, like most people, had attended my fair share of weddings in the past. I’d witnessed the many long-standing wedding traditions. I’d noticed the unique twists that some Brides and Grooms incorporated into the event to express their own personalities. In fact, I think most of us have all laughed, danced, eaten, and enjoyed the fun-loving gathering of friends and family (old and new); but rarely do we take a moment out of the midst of the celebration to deconstruct each component involved in putting it together. So I began this project like I would any other project – I researched.

I began by dragging my poor Fiancé to Bridal Shows to see what was out there, get ideas, and meet local vendors face-to-face. And I soon discovered there was no shortage of shows to attend. From large and lavish Bridal Shows hosted in crowded hotel ballrooms with oceans of vendor booths; to a quaint little “open house” style event at small local bed-in-breakfasts with an afternoon luncheon theme designed to showcase their services. With each show, I became introduced to the dozens of elements involved with “the wedding experience”.

Now it was time for the first two (of many) major decisions- choosing when and where. More specifically, it was time to narrow down the wedding date and find an available location for the ceremony and reception. Truthfully, I had always dreamed of an elegant and ethereal outdoor wedding with a reception by the water and the Norfolk Botanical Gardens was an ideal location. So, my fiancé and I began skimming over my newly purchased Farmer’s Almanac for a timeframe that forecasted suitable weather for an outdoor wedding. I then asked myself, “What are the most popular months for weddings?” I soon discovered that the most popular months for weddings are from June through September - so why not September?

The wedding research continued. I picked up every bridal magazine I could find, attended every seminar offered, and drank in volumes of every bridal planning book and article I could read in order to learn as much as I could about wedding etiquette, roles and responsibilities. The research gradually transitioned into development as my years as a public relations specialist, trainer, educational interpreter, and facilitator were harnessed to develop a “Master Bridal Guide” used to organize dozens of contact lists, timelines and schedules, budgets, worksheets, bridal party guides (roles and responsibilities), directions and instructions, and illustrations (yes, I drew up diagrams of the wedding site, wedding rain site, and reception site).

Over the next several months I tracked every aspect of the upcoming event – the signing of contracts, payments, remaining balances, vendor confirmations, and appointments with bridal shops, cake makers, DJs, photographers, and more. At this point, my simple little “Master Bridal Guide” had swelled to enough to fill a (and this is no exaggeration) massive 4” 3 ring binder. Comical smirks would curl across the lips of my bridesmaids as I walked into to the bridal gown shop and handed them each newly updated “Bridesmaids Version” of the guide. Little did any of us realize that those same “Bridal Guides” that seemed like overkill at the time would end up being the key to orchestrating a fabulous event despite overwhelming obstacles.

The busy months continued to dance by until I soon found myself just a couple of weeks from my wedding. I continued to juggle the vendors, appointments, and bridal party members from as far away as Baltimore. And of course, there was the matter of my personal life and romantic relationship all with intense organization and well-controlled balance. Was this a wedding or the greatest show on earth? Then it happened - I got the phone call that would begin to change my focus and all those months of planning.

“So, do you have a rain site?” asked my Mother who obviously didn’t see the computer-drawn site diagrams I had created and kept in my Master Bridal Guide. “Ummmm, yeah”, I replied with a slightly surprised and curious tone in my voice. I paused hoping that she would reveal some enlightening clue as to what prompted the questions and I braced myself for her reply. “Oh” she began as if she was attempting to shrug off the previous question, “I was just wondering what you were going to do about the storm.” Now, I had already scheduled in my timeline to check the Weather Channel’s 10 day forecast to determine the likelihood of us utilizing the rain site we had already reserved but, after hanging up the phone with my Mother I quickly checked the weather 3 days ahead of schedule. It was at that moment that I was introduced to Tropical Storm Isabel.

I remained calm about the approaching storm, in fact, I actually joked about it with friends. A friend at work even went so far as to place a small sheet of construction paper, folded to look like an invitation reply card on my desk with a handwritten message inside saying “Isabel’ and a checkmark by the line reading “will attend”. The Monday before the wedding I found myself extremely busy making my confirmation calls to the vendors, reviewing contingency plans, checking account balances, and calling guests to confirm attendance. Wednesday was the day before the now Hurricane Isabel was supposed to hit and by the afternoon I had divided my tasks into two major categories – “Prep for the Wedding” and “Prep for the Hurricane”.

I was in full-blown final countdown mode for the wedding - My contact lists were updated, I’d called to check with the tuxedo shop to confirm the pick-up options for the “tuxes”, and I shopped for some basic Hurricane supplies. Like many Hampton Roads residents, we didn’t see the coming storm as “a big deal”. We’d seen similar storms roll through the area before with little to no inconvenience, but the first sign that this storm may cause some complications came when I went to a local Spa for my pre-wedding massage, wrap, and facial that evening. I arrived at the customary 15 minutes prior to my beauty appointment and was greeted by the news that the Spa was unable to get in touch with the young lady who was scheduled to do my facial. I was a little disappointed shrugged it off and resolved myself to take advantage of the other treatments in anticipation of the big day.

Thursday - the day of the big storm. Just imagine the scene, it’s late at night and the storm is raging outside. The power is out and I’m sitting at the dining room table, surrounded by the soft flickering glow of candlelight. What would be a lovely romantic night for my fiancé and I to cuddle up on the couch was spent assembling handmade “chair-shaped” place cards while listening to the only station we could pick-up on the radio. While we watched the rising water submerge the deck in the backyard and creek towards the house my handsome soon-to-be husband was worried about the specifics of the home flood insurance. I, however, was busy calculating in my head how many “high surfaces” were available in the house to place decorations, gifts and favors on in case the floors flooded.

The next day, as with most storms, the weather was lovely. The sun streamed and glistened across a cloudless crystal blue sky - then the first phone call. 8:20 am, the Norfolk Botanical Gardens. I remained calm as was informed that “the Gardens” sustained tremendous damage, and flooding, and was closed by the state - they would not be open for our wedding. My mind began to race, thinking “Well, at least we have the reception”. 8:40 am, the hotel on the oceanfront called. The news seemed to unfold in time-lapsed slow motion. The hotel has also sustained damage and flooding, in fact, the ballroom we were to have our reception in had become a storage room. To make maters worse, the entire Oceanfront stripe (like 2/3s of the state) had lost power and would not be able to cater the event even if they was granted occupancy by the city. 8:50am I stopped crying. A funny thing happened – that once the flickering spark of independence blazed forth and I thought about all of those people who I loved, trusted, and could depend on during my recovery. I’d overcome far larger challenges.

“I’m not going to do this, pull it together!” I commanded myself. I immediately switched into problem-solving mode and began analyzing the situation and potential solutions. “The hotel will honor our reception at a later date, proper etiquette allows for a post-wedding celebration – we’ll just have a wedding celebration another day. His parents are flying in – we can just have a small wedding in the backyard”. My mind continued to formulate and outline an alternate wedding plan. I began to focus on creating a decorative design plan to transform our backyard into a wedding ceremony site. The first step was to get decoration supplies. “O.k.,” I thought to myself “Chesapeake General Hospital is on Battlefield Blvd. The odds are good that they will get power to the hospital first. All right, what stores are near there? Hmm, Walmart is on Battlefield. Odds are good they will be on the same power grid as the Hospital.”

My future husband and I immediately hopped in my car and raced to the local Wal-Mart. Swarms of customers buzzed around the store and while everyone else was grabbing water, batteries, and canned food off the shelves, I was flying through the home and garden department trying to find candles, vases, and drapes of fabric.

We arrived back at the house and I began sketching up new designs for the backyard; all the while working through my phone lists, contacting my bridal party, trying to touch base with vendors, and keeping the vital element of communication open. Staying calm, focused, and open to alternative solutions was key. This organized flexibility was met with an incredible blessing. At one o’clock in the afternoon, I received another call from the Botanical Gardens. This time I was told that the “Gardens” was still closed to the public but they were going to be able to open for this private party. The Rain Site was going to be available but they were also working on clearing out the Renaissance Garden, the garden we originally chosen for our wedding.

An hour later I received another phone call from the hotel on the Oceanfront. A wave of relief washed over me as the Sales and Catering Manager told me that half of the Oceanfront strip had power and half of “the strip” still didn’t and they were on the side that did. She went on to tell me that they were working on cleaning out the reception hall and would be able to host our reception. I continued to juggle phone calls to my wedding team (my bridesmaids) throughout the evening. Our chosen wedding site was confirmed, the reception hall was confirmed, and the cake maker received power at 10 pm that night and was able to make a scrumptious cake. Severe flooding and blocked roads prevented our string trio from performing at the ceremony but a sound system was available through our reception DJs – they told us “Just provide a CD and they’d take care of the rest”.

Were there still other obstacles? Certainly, not too many brides would spend their wedding day driving around with their wedding dress in the back seat trying to find a beauty shop that had the power to have my nails and hair done. And I had to quickly train my good-spirited soon-to-be sister-in-law on how to be a last-minute Directress because my original Directress was stuck in Atlanta. All of the elements may not have fallen into place in the order I originally anticipated but they still fell into place.

So, How do you have a fabulous wedding during a class 5 hurricane? During this hectic time I learned 10 key elements to planning a successful wedding (despite the challenges):

Vision – Create a clear idea of the wedding and outline it.
Preparation – Research every aspect of making your wedding.
Organization - You can use timelines, and schedules, clip pictures out of magazines, Pin images on Pinterest, create a mood board, or put together a folder (or 2 or 4) but be sure to write it down.
Manage your time – Make sure you actually schedule enough time to dedicate to planning so you don’t have to feel rushed.
Flexibility – Keep an open-mind and be open to change. Did you know that Chocolate chip cookies, onion rings, and ice cream cones all came about from mistakes or plans that had to be changed at the last minute? No matter how well you plan and try to foresee potential problems new concerns may pop up and that’s o.k. The best way to overcome roadblocks is to be open to change – especially if it means letting go and changing your plan.
Creativity – Try to think “outside the box”. You may have to think of an unusual solution in a pinch.
Focus – Don’t panic when unexpected situations arise; just stay focused on the task at hand.
Positively – Let go of negativity. Forget the old saying “What can go wrong, will go wrong.” Instead, be positive. You can’t control everything so just trust that “What can go right, will go right”. Have a good sense of humor, be thankful for your support team, trust the people you’ve chosen to work with, and remember it’s going to be ok.
Communication – Create updated phone lists of your wedding party members, wedding guests and all of the vendors (Caterer, Reception hall, Limousine Company, Tuxedo rental shop, etc). Make sure you’re bridesmaids have a copy too just in case you need to start a phone tree.
Prescriptive – Remember what’s really important. At the end of the day, you are marrying the one you love. You’re starting a new chapter in your life and you’re sharing it with the people who you love and who love you. Everything else is just icing on the wedding cake!

Oh, there is a #11 key takeaway a minute out to enjoy it”. You won’t believe how fast this day will fly by, faster than you can imagine. Remember, it’s your special day so have fun!

I hope these takeaways offer valuable insight to anyone planning their wedding. So, how did all of this lead to an event design business? It circles back to that original question, "How did you get started?"

The truth is, after the excitement (and relief!) of our big day settled down, I realized three key things about the wedding planning experience.

First, planning a wedding isn’t like organizing a company picnic or a holiday party. There's no committee meeting months later to reflect on what worked and what didn’t. This is a deeply personal, emotionally charged, perhaps once-in-a-lifetime event. No matter how prepared you think you are, having real support for your vision can make all the difference.

Second, as an artist, I’ve always been captivated by the creative process—especially in design. Whether it’s fashion, interior, packaging, or architecture, the “Design Process” is prioritized in every industry… except weddings. It was clear to me that artistic principles and thoughtful design techniques could be game-changers in wedding design.

Finally, even with my background in art, I felt like I was holding back. I knew from personal experience how powerful art integration could be in bringing visions to life. It takes "what ifs" and turns them into real, breathtaking moments. I realized that if I could use my gifts to help others experience that, I wanted to be part of it.

After three years of research, study, and unwavering support from my husband, I launched Vivid Expressions LLC in 2006, and I haven’t looked back since. It’s been my mission to bring that same level of artistry, creativity, and passion to every event, design, and experience I touch.

So whether you're a bride seeking to bring your unique wedding vision to life, a planner looking for fresh design inspiration, or a creative entrepreneur ready to tap into your artistic potential, Vivid Expressions LLC is here to support you. From creative consulting to custom art and design services, and even coaching programs, we’re dedicated to helping you craft unforgettable experiences. Let’s make your vision a reality, together.