About Me
It was June of 2013. A beautiful circus- like, all white party tent pitched surfacing half of my backyard. Lantern lighting hanging on the interior glowing over ice blue peonies and silver dining ware. Professional portraits of my best friends and I hanging above fondue and champagne fountain aside ice sculptures, welcoming guests in their fancy summer dresses, while they sway their way into the party to a string quartet…. That’s not at all what my graduation party looked like. However, it’s what I told my parents I wanted. While they have always encouraged my creativity and vision, that party was just totally out of question and completely out of budget. “Who do you think we are?? The Kennedy’s??” my mom joked. The backyard BBQ party that I actually ended up having was probably way more fun than the one I had envisioned anyway. While there were no lavish ice sculptures, I did throw together some sailboat watermelon sculptures that sat on a fold up table below life sized portraits of my friends and I…. that we blew up ourselves at staples. Add in one of my dad’s famous bonfires and great playlist and I was reminded that you don’t need a huge budget to have a good time.
I went to school that fall for writing and journalism. However, I soon realized that what I was truly best at in college was being social, making connections, and bringing people together to create memories. What I was not so great at was sitting still and being lectured about Socrates and politics. I wanted to learn hands on and I loved to talk. So by graduation year I ended up knowing just about everybody in my graduating class. I became the person my peers went to, to organize holiday parties, to help sell tickets to events, and even organize a party bus here and there. I never once thought of any of this as work, it was fun and I loved it… and I also wasn’t getting paid for it. Time after time I felt honored to be a part of something that was important to someone. Parties are important. Parties and events bring people together and create memories that last a lifetime. Sure, writing for a big news station would’ve been important too, but let’s be honest parties are way more fun!
I spent some time after college nannying and doing what I do best, meeting more people and creating new relationships. The kids I spent my days with brought out my creativity and love for life. Eventually, I found myself working part time for pretty amazing women who own their own event planning companies. I admittedly structured a lot of my own company around them and what they taught me. They gave me the professional experience and confidence I needed to go off on my own. Soon those holiday parties hosted in college housing turned into surprise birthday parties at restaurants, engagement parties in beautiful homes, weddings and now my very own business, The Social Riot. It was my very first wedding where the bride had profusely thanked me with tears in her eyes for just simply doing my job, that I knew I found my niche. After the years of doubt, discouragement, patience and just not knowing who I was, I was an event planner. And finally like all of my friends, I felt like I was doing something with my life that was important. Being an event planner creates emotions and memories, it quite literally relieves stress and it is so freaking rewarding..
My goal with The Social Riot is to be everybody’s party planner. I aim to serve clients with the most elegant of visions to clients who envision explosions of colors, feathers and whatever they can dream up, all while working with any and all budgets because everybody deserves to have that one special day.
Sometimes I still pinch myself and can’t believe that I’m able to do what I do and turn my love of socializing, creating and loving into an actual career. Ironically, it’s those of you who socialized with me in return, let me into your lives, and became my friends that I owe this new career of mine to. So thank you from the bottom of my heart, The Social Riot is dedicated to all of you!
