Wedding Planner Brunch in DC

This past week I was in Washington DC on a business trip and about a dozen or so fab wedding planners from the area decided to meet up for brunch on Sunday.  Several of them hadn't met each other before, so it was fun getting to know each other and catch up with people who actually understand the unique challenges and daily grind this job presents. As such, we met up at around one o'clock and ended three hours later!

Here are some photos from a collection of our cameras.  You'll notice that we are clearly not a group of photographers getting together for lunch, so please forgive any blurriness or poor lighting.  We'll stick to planning awesome events and referring great photographers. Hey, at least we know our strengths, right?

right to left - first row: Sara from Bella Notte, me from Blue Orchid Designs and The Smart Planner, Andrea from A&H Events, Isis from Posh Events.  second row: Vicky from Event Accomplished, Kawania from Howerton+Wooten Events,  Maria from Ritzy Bee, Lakendra from Affairs with Elegance.  back row: Letetia from Simply Beautiful Concepts, Laura from Wish Special Events, Stephanie from Ayr Hill Events.

Laura from Wish Special Events (formerly Soiree Special Events) and me. Laura hit the town with me on Friday as well and we had a great time.  She also gave me the cutest eco-chic and reusable java jacket for my coffee cups as a surprise birthday gift.  I tote it around in my purse and have used it several times over since Friday.  Thanks, Laura!

me, Isis from Posh Events, Lakendra from Affairs with Elegance and Laura. You'll notice the empty mimosa glasses and blackberries and iphones on the table - very possibly the most important tricks of the trade.

Laura, Sara from Bella Notte, and Stephanie from Ayr Hill Events (and the gal responsible for nailing down our brunch reservation - thanks, Steph!).

These ladies have decided to keep meeting regardless of whether I'm in town or not, and I am so excited about that.  I'd encourage you to reach out to other planners in your area and just meet up every so often for lunch or happy hour.  There doesn't need to be an agenda and having friends in the industry who work in your specific niche is far more important than some skewed view of competition. 

Thanks for a great Sunday brunch, ladies!