Wanderlust East Coast Road Trip - Days 7ish-9
Boston - Baltimore - Boone
As sad as I was to leave the wonderful city of Boston, it was time to start the long drive back to Atlanta. I grabbed a coffee {a very very large coffee} and jumped back on the road. I drove all the way back to Baltimore & stayed with the Brose family for one more night. Sunday morning was Mother's Day and I got to spend a sweet breakfast with Tambry, who is one of the best moms out there, before I headed toward Roanoke, VA. I took a mid morning stop in Georgetown, right outside of DC, and grabbed a couple cupcakes at Georgetown cupcakes before taking my time and wandering through the Shenandoah Valley.
I stopped for the night in Roanoke, VA, took a little driving tour of the historic town & grabbed a burger before crashing into the cozy hotel bed. Since I still had about 2 1/2 hours of a drive left to my final stop, I was up at dawn & so ready for my last day away from home. Before I knew it, I was at Appalachian State campus housing and meeting my amazing photographer, Kevyn, for the day. She had assembled 5 amazingly talented and gorgeous students for our shoot, and when I walked in, Reilly and Hayley, were busy working on hair and makeup and Kevyn had a lovely breakfast spread with plenty of coffee laid out for us.
Once everyone was dressed and ready to go, Kevyn took us to one of the most jaw dropping places I've ever been. Moses Cone Memorial Park on the Blue Ridge Parkway has these stunning views that leave you speechless. While the rest of us stood on the plantation house porch soaking in the majesty, Kevyn grabbed Riley and got straight to work. She was the perfect model for the Breezy Boho dress and even added her own daisy chain spin.
Next up, we had the lovely Faith who just embodied classic Southern Elegance! We kept making "Gone With The Wind" remarks and she breezed down the gravel path daintily dragging her fingers across the white picket fence. Some girls are just born for a strapless ballgown!
Rachel was up next, and our Queen Susan look-a-like was just the perfect pick for a corset and tutu. Her steel blue eyes sparkled in the chilly mid morning mountain air and her coy smile shone.
Kevyn walked us all down the path and around a corner to the most adorable bridge and we even found some cows who were more than happy to photo bomb! {And yes, those are pants Riley is wearing...we used them under our super light and breezy skirt earlier in the day for a little extra warmth and coverage, but loved the alternative look as well!}
Meeting all these lovely ladies was the perfect way to cap off my Wanderlust tour of the East Coast. I stretched myself as an artist, explored and gathered as much knowledge as I could & was reminded that sometimes, even the best laid plans are better off just being plans and not the actual path you take. I spent the remainder of the day and my drive home jamming out to all the cd's in my old school leather bound case from my middle and high school days & taking stock of the past 9 days.
Now that this trip is 6 months behind me, I'm incredibly grateful that many of these artists, models and friends I met along the way are still in my life and I've gone on to do more projects with a few of them. That's the beauty of taking yourself out of the equation some times; to open up your ideas of how a dress should be styled and allowing someone else from a different skill set, background, environment or cultural upbringing take charge and dream up their own concept. When you collaborate with others instead of trying to beat them to all the jobs, there's no stress or competition involved and it becomes a joy to see your new friends succeed.
I'm back in Atlanta now, and back at the "grind" and loving where life has brought me. But, tales of this adventure come up weekly and I get so excited to share what I've learned, but more importantly, I love to brag on my new friends and show of their amazing talent to my little world. They deserve it.
This year I plan to keep on traveling - perhaps internationally. Stay tuned. My friends are talented and love taking pictures of my dresses & I love letting them!!!!