Friday, June 20, 2014

Trouvaille Workshop Day One

Guys! I have been waiting patiently to share these lovely photos and it is finally time for the first recap of the Trouvaille Workshop. Hooray! 


In mid-April, I had the pleasure of attending Rhiannon's inaugural Trouvaille Workshop, a three-day hands-on experience hosted at The Amway Grand Plaza Hotel in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Upon our welcome to the Pinnacle Room, which had a picture perfect view of downtown, Rhi had chocolate covered strawberries and drinks waiting for the 25 attendees. 






After greeting Rhi and giving lots of hugs to all the faces we had already 'met' on social media, each lady found their place at the long white tables. Immediately a warmth filled the room as everyone was eager to learn from the guest speakers as well as our fellow attendees. At our place setting was a calligraphy nameplate from Laura Hooper Calligraphy, a custom Trouvaille branded clipboard from Idieh Design, an advanced copy of The Knot Magazine (with a Hey Gorgeous Events wedding featured!), and a darling gold striped notebook from B is for Bonnie. The ribbon bow was one of my favorite touches as it polished off the look. (My ribbon is now attached to my travel luggage and serves as a reminder of the workshop every time I look at it. It was far too pretty to throw away!)






Rhi kicked the workshop off with a talk about Five Things She Knows For Sure. From client experience to outsourcing tasks that you don't love to trusting your gut feeling, Rhi passed along invaluable insight and answered every question we threw her direction. As a long-time reader of her blog and Instagram feed, it was so nice to finally meet Rhi and trust me when I say she is even more lovely and down to earth in person. Her heart shined through, not only in her speech, but in every detail of the workshop. Girl crush, anyone? (Hand raised high!) 


Oh hey there! Sam and Brad from Bradley James Photography were the official workshop photographers and I loved having them around to capture every special moment. 


Jodi Bos of Gwyneth Paige Letterpress was our second guest speaker and her honest, raw conversation was exactly what my heart needed to hear. The world preaches a bigger business is a better business and Jodi is a living example that sometimes a business with one core focus is the best thing you can provide for your clients. As I learned at Making Things Happen, small is the new big and at the end of the day, relationships with others are the most important thing for your bottom line.

After our speakers wrapped up, it was time to freshen up and head to San Chez Bistro in downtown Grand Rapids for our Trouvaille welcome dinner. 




From the bistro's signature sangria to seven of the most popular dishes on the menu, the ladies enjoyed time to mingle and engage in meaningful conversation with each other. The understated florals were the perfect touch to enhance the bistro's decor and another goodie from The Caramel Jar waited for us at our place setting. Oh and a downpour couldn't rain on our parade (pun intended ha!).  




The perfect kickoff to an unforgettable workshop. Next up is a recap of day two. Stay tuned! 

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