outside Social House, pre-demo
As a blogger, this isn't my first first post, but it definitely feels like the most momentous one. In the past, I've jumped right in (how about this little throwback?), inspiration a-swinging, because - let's be honest - firsts can be more than a little awkward. In this case, though, I think a true, heartfelt introduction is in order. I also feel like it might be the right time to finally get a little personal.
Six years ago, I was in the midst of planning my wedding. I was also 9 years into a corporate career I didn't love, living in a city that I just couldn't get used to (sorry, Miami - we can totally still be friends), and, because I was marrying the most supportive man in the world, also thinking about making some pretty huge life changes. You know, in addition to the whole getting married and moving thing. If you're a fellow wedding pro reading this, you can probably guess the chain that followed: Eric and I got married. I fell in love with weddings. I met some amazing and inspiring people in the industry, and I dabbled in wedding-related side work which increasingly became second-full-time-job-work. I decided that this could be my Next Big Thing. And I jumped.
One of things that drew me to this industry was that I felt I could make a difference; that I had something to contribute. Not being able to find a venue and vendors in South Florida that felt like "us" led my fiance and I to NYC to get married, and was also my personal driver in starting Floridian Weddings with Becca in 2011. With both us coming from more urban perspectives, we felt there was a local lack of pros with the style we were looking for, and knew we needed some kind of platform to showcase the talent when we found it.
Becca, Desi and I on the Floridian Weddings roadtrip in 2011
And find it, we did. There are some seriously creative, talented, fun to work with and passionate-about-everything-they-do pros here in Florida (including my partner in crime, Desiree) which brings me to my next leap: the one you came here looking for. Social House is a combination of the venue I couldn't find when I needed it, a physical home for the like-minded creative talents that we've spent the last three years searching for and showcasing, and a space for all of us to create our Next Big Things. It's my hope that this project is one more thing that I can contribute: something new, that's lacking in this area, and that helps talented people succeed in the areas they are passionate about.
Thanks to Eric's expertise and contacts, in July we bought a sweet little building on Lucerne Avenue in downtown Lake Worth, and began working on the plans to completely transform it. The scale of this thing is pretty huge: everything is getting ripped out and redone, we're putting in a full commercial kitchen and turning the back lot into an urban oasis. It's already proving to be the craziest thing we've ever done, but I guess by now it's pretty obvious: I kind of love it that way. (And mega props go to Eric for not only putting up with me but also jumping right in, head first). We're aiming to be open before the end of the year, and I'll be sharing our progress here on the blog.
we're totally transforming this baby!
We're so grateful for all the excitement and support we've received from family, friends and our future 'house'-mates. Thank you, thank you, thank you! You know the grand opening party will be epic, and we can't wait to see you there.
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