The neon colors, the upbeat music, that hair. The 80s were a booming decade for music, pop culture, fashion, and expressing one’s authentic self. For Brooklyn Pride 2018 (back in June), I decided to embrace all the colors and crimped hair the era had to offer in an 80s-themed Pride party. Donations were taken at the door in support of the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender Community Center, which was established in New York City in 1983. All bartender tips were donated as well.

Everyone deserves a good hair day. Hairstyle is an expression of personal identity—but for homeless youth, especially those in the LGBTQIA community, care and styling can be challenging, confusing, and even inaccessible at times.

An LA-based non-profit, ProjectQ, is working to change that.

You made your to-do and invite lists, you’ve checked them twice. Vendors are locked in, the venue is booked. You’ve planned this amazing event. Now, it’s time to promote it. Whether your event is open to the public, or something more intimate (like a wedding), you want to create buzz and get guests excited. Today I'm sharing with you some of event management powerhouse Eventbrite's tips and tricks for making sure you pack a full house.

As wedding season is quickly approaching, the question for every big event is always “what do I wear?” While women’s clothing tends to be the focus of most fashion conversations, we’d be remiss to forget about the gentlemen. Contrary to popular belief, men often have just as many wardrobe choices as women do - especially when it comes to formal events. I had the opportunity to speak with the experts over at The Black Tux, namely Fashion Director Brice Pattison, to give you the lowdown on wedding attire for men.

Before I dive into the details here, I want to let you know what this post is NOT going to be. It’s not going to be your solution to having the wedding of your dreams on a budget. It’s not going to give you clever hacks on how to save money on your wedding in random ways. What it IS going to do is help you and your partner approach the budgeting process of your wedding in a more logical way so that you’re ultimately spending money on what’s important to you and saving money on what matters less.

Amidst talk of sister marches to the primary Women’s March in Washington, D.C. last January, four women joined forces to take a stand in Asbury Park. Daniele Fiori, Amanda Kane, Dallas Hlatky and Jennifer Lampert all wished to attend the Women’s March in Washington, but decided to plan a march of their own in New Jersey instead. What started as an idea for a walk to follow outgoing-President Barack Obama’s farewell address, soon morphed into a full blown solidarity march with over 6,000 participants. Across the nation people united like never before, creating an energy and momentum to get important conversations and movements started.

Despite the dismal winter we've had here in NYC (how many Nor'easters have come through this month?), these last few days of sunshine have reminded me that spring is just around the corner. To kick off the season, I had the opportunity to team up with a few other creatives to produce a very sweet tutti frutti-themed birthday party for Martha Stewart. The bright, vibrant colors of the decor gave a light-hearted, fun feel to the shoot and left me ready to throw a fruit-filled party of my own. I’m thrilled to share the details with you!

When I approached Michelle Edgemont about doing a small Valentine’s Day inspiration shoot together, I knew going in what our shoot would NOT be: pink and girly. Now don’t get me wrong, I love all things pink but I felt like Valentine’s Day was in need of some edgier, more sophisticated inspiration. Fortunately, Michelle was on the exact same page, with visions of a moodier, more editorial shoot on her mind. And I knew the perfect photographer to bring on board, Chi-Chi Ari.

The first time I had the pleasure of working with Alex, it was, admittedly, not paper related. I was in need of a real couple to model for a styled shoot I was working on, and knowing that Alex used to be a dancer and a model (she actually has quite the portfolio of wedding shoots she's modeled for), I decided to see if she and her husband would be game to play dress up for a day. And they were! (The photo below is from that shoot.) The first time I worked with Alex on something paper related was the Lisa Frank holiday party shoot I organized last September, and the experience was amazing. She used the same process for that shoot as she does with clients, and I remember being so incredibly impressed with how she presented everything at different stages. First came an inspiration board and color palette. Then I got to see preliminary sketches. From those sketches we chose the direction we wanted to go in and she then prepared initial proofs. We made minor tweaks here and there until we arrived at the final product. I just loved how organized and transparent she was with the whole process, and I immediately referred her to one of my couples, whose rainbow-themed wedding I cannot wait to share after it goes down this August. Since then, Alex and I have collaborated on a pop art-inspired styled shoot as well as the Out of the Box Challenge for Catalyst Wedding Co. Alex has recently re-branded her design company from Arobesque to Suitesmith and I could not be more excited to help spread the word. Below Alex shares the details on her new company and explains why she's not just a stationer, but more of a wedding branding pro.

Over the summer, I dedicated one of my Woman Crush Wednesday posts to Jackie Mangiolino, owner of Sincerely, Jackie and a wedding invitation and paper goods designer based on Long Island. One of the many reasons I adore Jackie is her unwavering strength, optimism and hope, even in times of great difficulty. Last May, Jackie gave birth to her son, Richie, at just 26 weeks into her pregnancy. She documented her journey on Instagram and showed so much resilience, determination and love when faced with such a challenging situation.

In search of a place for a quaint winter getaway? Or how about a venue for your wedding where family and close friends can stay on property? Then look no further than the brand new Hasbrouck House—a hidden gem tucked away in the small town of Stone Ridge, New York.

Now that 2017 is upon us, I, like many business owners, like to take time to reflect on the events of 2016. One of my favorite parts of that process is flipping through photos and catching up on last year’s weddings. One wedding in particular that stands out is Liz and Adam’s movie-themed wedding at the Museum of the Moving Image in Astoria.

Get out the tissues, folks, because today's Woman Crush Wednesday is a bit of a tear jerker (but happy tears, I promise!). I met Jackie of Sincerely, Jackie just about two years ago after Jaine from Brklyn View Photography suggested we meet. We immediately bonded over our past careers in Corporate America and how, as a business owner, there's no one to pat you on the back any more except yourself. Over the last couple of years, Jackie has been a sounding board, a confidant, a creative partner and a dear friend. And most recently, Jackie became a mom. To make a very long story short, Jackie was admitted to the hospital in May with severe preeclampsia and potentially HELLP syndrome. A week later, her baby boy, Richie, was born at 26 weeks old, weighing 2 pounds, 2 ounces. Over the last few weeks, I have watched Jackie exude endless strength, courage and optimism. I am happy to report that Richie is doing well so far and growing stronger everyday! I recently got to meet him and immediately burst into tears when I watched Jackie hold him. You can follow Jackie's and Richie's journey on Instagram.

Inspiration is a funny thing and can hit you at the most random times. The inspiration for this shoot presented itself over a year ago when Jackie, of Sincerely, Jackie, and I were prop shopping for a shoot she was doing at the time. We happened upon a shelf of vintage ice cream sundae glasses in an array of pastel colors, and we both immediately thought, we HAVE to do an ice cream theme styled shoot with sweetly fun, feminine details! Naturally, wedding season arrived and the shoot idea was put on the back burner.

It's sometimes hard to remember exactly how I first meet people and it took me a little while to backtrack to figure out how I first met Mikkel. And then I remembered. Ah yes, I Instagram stalked her. I had been a fan of her work and following her on Instagram for a while when one day she posted a photo that showed her wearing one of my favorite Kate Spade bracelets (the black Goreski glasses, in case you were wondering). I commented something to the effect of "I have that bracelet too!" and we decided that it was fate that we should meet. We met up for coffee in Long Island City (when she was still living in Astoria) and the rest is history! What I love most about Mikkel is her energy, upbeat spirit, photography talent, and, of course, her love of color! I also love that she asked to reciprocate the #wcw love and feature me on her site. You can find all of that goodness here.

When one of your dear friends who also happens to be one of your favorite floral designers asks you to be her wedding planner, you jump at the chance. When Juli, of Juli Vaughn Designs, told me she wanted to plan an intimate wedding in NYC with her closest friends, I knew that it would be nothing short of magical. And it totally was.

This week's Woman Crush Wednesday pick is none other than Sabine and Madin, also known as, our Barbie and Kendra! When I came up with the idea of doing a Barbie-inspired wedding with a lesbian couple as the models, I had no idea how incredible the shoot would be on so many levels.

You guys, it's National Doughnut Day, which just might be my favorite of all of the made up national holidays! To celebrate, I'm featuring the next installment in the Color Pop Cocktails and H&H Sips series, the Morning Bell Fizz. Enjoy these sweet pictures and the even sweeter recipe below!

Yesterday, I kicked off my Color Pop Pick series where I'll be featuring my personal favorites when it comes to parties, weddings and events. Today, I'm launching my Woman Crush Wednesday (#wcw) series where I get to sing the praises of and send lots of love to my fellow business ladies.

So without further delay, allow me to introduce one of the raddest business women around, Kate Schaefer of H&H Weddings. For those of you not familiar with H&H Weddings, it's a stunning LGBTQ wedding blog that showcases "his & his" and "hers & hers" engagements, weddings and styled shoots. Kate and I first met a couple of years ago at a branding workshop. The second she introduced herself and revealed that (a) she lived in Queens, and (b) had a wedding blog, I knew we were destined to work together. Needless to say, we became fast friends. Since then, Kate and I have discovered that we are the styled shoot dream team and can work together seamlessly both on the creative and logistic side of things. She's also there to give me a swift kick in the ass whenever I'm being too hard on myself. I can't sing her praises enough. So if you're an engaged couple looking for wedding inspiration or a company that wants to boost its presence in the LGBTQ market, Kate is definitely the woman to turn to.

For a wedding planner, finding a cool new venue is better than opening presents on Christmas morning. And finding one with a bright blue storefront practically located in your backyard? Well, that's priceless. Ladies, gentlemen, and engaged couples of the world, allow me to introduce you to Dobbin St.