remind yourself

while mal and i are going through our re-identity of our business, i found this gem to be super appropriate.

via {pinterest}

happy monday!

xoxo,
kat

back to the drawing board

hello friends!
in an inconvenient turn of events...it seems that a company exists with the name that we had chosen. we 've been informed that legally, we would be fine to stick with our name...but would that be a good business decision?

we've landed on a resounding "no."

so our new fancy business cards will be recycled and we're headed back to the drawing board! (this time around, we will be sure to do a proper web search before letting our excitement get to us)

after getting over the initial disappointment, we're excited to be brainstorming again.  at least this time, we're starting with some ideas and strong preferences for what we're looking for in a name.

one thing we really loved about our previous business name was that it was distinctly southern without being overt or overbearing. we've been brainstorming southern associations, words, phrases and images and are hitting some roadblocks.

so we'd like to turn to you all for help: when you hear the word "southern" what are some of the things you think about? what comes to mind?  if you're from the south...what are some experiences that you had growing up?

we'd love to hear comments or suggestions from you - anything you have to say will surely be helpful!

in our southern spirit: thanks, y'all!
mallory + katherine

don't hold back

via {here}

i learned something incredibly valuable yesterday. you won't get anywhere if you hold back. let. yourself. GO.

xoxo,
kat

celebrate good times!

via {here}

after thursday's excitement, i thought the novelty of the feeling would wear off quickly with my insane schedule. however, i'm happy as a clam on a sunny day! having worked weddings before, I thought this would be a high-five moment and move on. however, i've realized it is SO important to celebrate milestones and reaching goals.  

Why have goals of reaching for the stars if you're not going to enjoy it once you've grabbed them?

i found myself delighted that mallory was beaming as much as i was :) yes, we made a bit of scene at open eye cafe (our favorite work spot), but why not? celebrate! celebrate the small things, the medium things and the BIG things! life is too short not to.

i think we will revel in this a bit more and then quickly move on toward our next goals!

cheers!
xoxo,
kat

our first client!!!

our apologies for the photo quality but we are just so excited we can hardly stand it!

today we booked our first wedding AND got our business cards in from moo! as soon as we get our business license approved, we'll reveal our name!! for now, we're celebrating at Open Eye Cafe in Carrboro with a bottle of champagne.

hip hip hooray!

love, mal

small business start up resources!

we've been working away on our business plan these days. doing so, we've found some great resources that are really directing what our end product will look like and we want to share!

to start - we found the SBTDC: the small business and technology center. it focuses on North Carolina but i'm sure there must be resources like it in other states. once we've got a strong outline of our business plan - we have every intention of taking it by their office for a consultation. they also offer different types of courses and training series. a particularly interesting one for us so far is about business plans! ...the best resource so far has proven to be a really awesome start-up guide!

we've also been utilizing the BizPlanIt.com site that provides a free virtual business plan guide. i just tried to access the site and for some reason it's not coming up for me. if you're interested, i've already downloaded the virtual business plan and would be happy to share upon request! it's also found on facebook.

if you're starting a business plan or if you're just updating it, these are great! if you're working without one - there are a lot of resources that highly suggest them. if anything, it'll help you think through everything you're doing.

good luck!

<3 mal

perspective

everyone needs it. and i got some this december.

it was great to take about a two and a half week break and take some time for myself, my family, and my friends. it's so important to have that kind of time in your life and i am very fortunate that both katherine and i both believe in it. during our first goal-setting session, a definite focus was ensuring that we never get too wrapped up in work to appreciate the things and people around us.

i got to catch up with old friends, i made some new ones and appreciated every minute of it!

on the last leg of my trip, i spent about 6 hours driving by myself on an incredibly scenic route through virginia and north carolina - hwy 81. i had mountains to my left and, eventually, a sunset to my right. i honestly had no idea that there were so many mountains in our state (aside from the blue ridge) and it was great to see. the sunset was my very favorite color of sunset! i wish i'd taken a photo of it, but this one isn't too far off.

i hope all of you out there had the opportunity to take some time to reflect, and if you didn't, that you make some soon!

i'm back, refreshed and ready to get back to working on the business plan! can't wait to share more about it!

<3

5 tips for prolific living {via Elsie}

elsie {of a beautiful mess} is one of my favorite finds of 2010. her outlook on creativity, life and business reflects much of what we are striving to achieve!

she posted yesterday about tips to leading a prolific (and full) life. i certainly noted the basics, but you should read the entire article with her thoughts on each tip.

2011 is around the corner and what better time than now to start setting goals and following through? i really take these tips to heart and will bring them up often to myself {and spunk. readers} in the coming year. these are applicable to anyone! so get busy ;)

who's ready to take on the new year? shall we cheers to the great journey ahead? i think so! *clink, clink*

xoxo
kat

turn can'ts into cans

Our friend, jacin {lovely little details}, blogged this inspirational image yesterday and i couldn't help but pass it along.

via {here} : source unknown

2011 has BIG things in store for all of us! great, wonderful, scary changes are on the horizon and i'm trying to remind myself to enjoy the ride :)

i hope you all will take 2011 by the reins and hang on! it's going to be a wild ride...

big thank you again to jacin for sharing this!

xoxo,
kat

life's too short...

via {here}

A lovely tweet this am, from the lovely Alison, of The Knotty Bride...food for thought! Being planners, it's difficult for us to not be critical of every little detail. However, I think this is excellent advice for the everyday situation. If we sweat the small stuff, we'll all go insane. And well, we don't want that, now do we? :)

xoxo,
Kat

we said you'd see some cameos...

this is chewy! as he should be, he is getting plenty of rest over the holidays. now it's my turn!

<3 mal

unexpected inspiration

at my parents' home, i've been helping around the house and had TLC's What Not To Wear on the television in the background. stacy and clinton were doing their thing helping someone find their voice in their style. they were working with someone who was having difficulty articulating exactly what that new point of view when stacy said, "you have to let go of whoever you were and let yourself become who you are."

i love it! i think there's a lot to be learned from reflecting with this statement. i'm excited to see what it might mean in my life!

<3 mal

change for the better

via {here}

The lovely Marissa Kloess shared this today on Twitter :)

xoxo,
Kat

vlog #3: on a mission

vlog #3: on a mission from Katherine Hollander on Vimeo.

in our research, we found an article that lists three keys to a meaningful mission statement.

• Pass the Mother Test: A mission statement must be a concise paragraph describing what your company does and for whom. Show your mission to your mother, if she does not understand it, start again. (julie & jennifer, we fully intend to see this through...get ready.)
• Self-Igniting: Your mission is for you and your business. It does not have to be an earth moving statement. It can be whatever inspires you. (for the record, we plan on moving the earth.)
• Value Alignment: Forget the money. A meaningful mission goes beyond the dollars and cents. If your small business is creative, focus your mission on creativity. Try to be what your core competency is. (in these financial times, we have no choice but to focus on our creativity - so that works out!)

we also listed some of the top values we want to express through our mission statement. 

• energy
• detail
• passion
• creativity
• believe
• collaboration
• captivate

here's a draft of our mission statement. again, please repost, retweet and share with EVERYONE! we value ALL opinions. get our your red pens and hold nothing back!

"To collaborate with energy, map out the vision and bring a captivating event to life!" 

 thanks!

mal & kat 

clarity

feeling a great sense of clarity and rejuvenation this morning on beech mountain. sometimes when i am feeling stuck in a pattern, the best thing to do is get the heck out of town. change your view. change the perspective you have on your surroundings. breathe in NEW air. happy weekend!

xoxo,
kat

"let it dough!"

beautiful creativity!

check out the rest of this hilariously doughy and creative post at the ny times

top ten by preston bailey

if you don't know who preston bailey is, well i must say you're missing out. he is a force to be reckoned with! preston is one of THE top event designers...in the world...ever. okay, you get the picture. i've heard before that if you want to be the best at what you do, you must learn from the best. preston bailey is someone that i try to emulate in my professional career and in my life. you can learn more about preston's awesomeness {here}.

this past week, on his personal blog called "inspirations & transformations", preston posted each day about his Top Ten! i want to highlight some of the ideas that struck a chord with me.

{monday} tips for getting clients: number seven is an idea mal & me have voiced about a thousand times already in our planning. "Make it your business practice to call back all your clients after each event and ask them what you could have done better. This can be your best learning tool, not to mention giving your clients a chance to vent."

{tuesday} best ways to market & promote yourself: both being journalism majors, marketing is a part of the business we both find extremely important. number seven on preston's list builds strong relationships with local media groups. "Once you identify what market you are in and who your clients are, create a promotional campaign. This could be as basic as calling your favorite local magazine or newspaper once a week and offering them three special ideas or designs to publish."

{wednesday} what to leave behind in 2011: number eight on preston's list, mal and i are already finding to be very important while putting together goals. Leave behind "Creating unreasonable deadlines to accomplish your dreams. For instance, you'll only get that huge first wedding when someone is actually getting married, not when you want it. So, patience plus action is the key to your dreams."

{thursday} mistakes in business finances: number nine on this list is something i'm sure we will come across down the road. "Never and I mean NEVER, give a price to your clients before completely understanding what you are committing to. Regardless of whether a potential client is pressing you to give them a price on the spot, if you are not sure, tell them you will get back to them. And, of course, do this sooner rather than later."

each of these lists are chock full of amazing advice and information for people just like us! one of the reasons i am so excited to get into this industry is that the majority of professionals are out to lend a hand to and support other professionals. i firmly believe preston's business tactics could be applied to many industries aside from weddings or events. preston's posts this week have been a huge guide for us! we hope you will check out the rest of his top ten posts {here}. who do you look up to most in your industry? tell us in the comments! :)

xoxo,
kat

branding competition

we've got a name...now comes the fun part! branding! as a first step to finding a brand, we're looking for a)inspiration, b)design services that meet our budget (which, as of now, is non-existent) and c)great folks to work with! 


in an effort to really come out with a bang, we've both submitted into a competition to win a mini-branding session with lara casey and emily ley! it would be complete with a consultation session with lara and then the creation of a brand board with emily. we're incredibly excited about this opportunity and it would be a dream if we could work with them! 


check out my submission below to see what we're going for! 

<3 mal


Live The Dream. That's what I want to happen in 2011! 

My business partner and I have been working on a business plan for a few months now, but we have been training for this business our entire lives. With lots of individual experience in our back pockets (and even more energy), we are ready to work in cahoots! 

We're excited to jump in (head and feet first) to the event planning industry on our own. Just this evening, we came up with a name for our business(!!!) but we've decided to keep it tip top secret until we can make sure it's paired with a great branding. Both graduates of a school of journalism, we understand just how much a brand can make or break a business and we want to make sure that we take extra care to create one that tells people who are and what we stand for. We have lists and lists of exciting adjectives and phrases we could use to represent in our brand but haven't quite figured out how to integrate it all.

Our latest goal-setting session for 2011 included developing a brand, making it out to industry trade shows, exploring our (and our clients'!) creativity, polishing our business plan and mission statement, and building relationships with potential clients and our local business friends.  We would love for one our first relationships to be with the two of you and even more, we'd love to show you just how far we will take our new brand! 

Here's to a new year full of exciting opportunities! 

be true.

via {here}

inspiration for today? check!

xoxo,
kat

keepin' it classy

as tempting as it was, no, "keepin' it classy" is not the new name of our business.

i'll tell you what though, choosing a name is really difficult! there are so many things that we wanted our business name to convey: what we stand for, creativity and fun but also dependability, the ability to work with lots of event types...and so much more!

what we discovered when we started to brainstorm is that a majority of words we were interested in are used by other companies or we already had strong images already associated with them. we tried to use stream of consciousness to get great ideas from the depths of our minds, but when it came down to it, we were stuck!


that's where our great friend kate kryder came in! we needed a friend who could help us sort out the good ideas from the bad ones and who could push us along in our search for a name.

kate, who happens to be a fabulous co-worker of mine, has a mean creative streak! we appreciate her time, her brain, and of course her willingness to help, you can see her pictured to the right with her sweet new pretty pony reusable tumbler (we are big fans of the reusable tumbler around the office)!

thanks, kate!

<3 mal