More on Joan with Five Grain Events! Missed Part 1? Click here to catch up! And yes , she’s as friendly as she looks!!
What is the thing you enjoy most about your job?
I think the fact that when I’m doing a wedding, I get to be an integral part of one of the best days of that couple’s life…and knowing that I helped them lose all concern about everything except having an incredible time. It’s a really cool feeling.
Who, if anyone, encouraged you to pursue your dream?
Well when I was considering leaving my full-time job, I thought about it a lot, but when I actually said it out loud I was surprised that my husband was on board! Then I talked it over with my parents and my in-laws and they were all really supportive. I think if I hadn’t gotten such positive feedback from my family it would not have been such an easy decision.
Besides weddings, planning and events… what does your heart ache for?
Well, my degree from college is in vocal performance, so I LOVE singing. I wouldn’t say my heart aches for it, though, because I have lots of outlets for singing: I sing with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra as well as the Wicker Park Choral Singers (and brides and grooms can hire me to sing at their weddings if they have me as a planner!).
If I had to pick an ache I guess it’d be travel. I adore travel and wish I had more time to do it!
Anything else you’d love to tell us about??
Hmm…well I guess I’d just encourage all brides and grooms to look into getting a planner or day-of coordinator. Of course it’s my job, but I really believe that having someone acting as a stage manager for the day will be worth your investment and then some. 
Oh, and also that Jessie’s awesome!
Joan and Maureen from Bon Moment and hosting a Tweet Up downtown Chicago July 15 for Wedding Industry peeps. Eric and I will be there and would love to meet, greet and be merry with you! The location is still TBD, but stay tuned via Simply Jessie Twitter or through Joan’s Twitter. You can also find Five Grain Events on Facebook !
Know someone perfect for this series? Click here to let us know via twitter!!
Our Muted Love Woodland shoot was featured on Ruffled! Thank you thank you to all the wonderful vendors! If you’d like to see more of this inspiration shoot, click here to go back to the post on the blog!
Elizabeth Anne Designs is one of our favorite blogs and we were thrilled to have Lauren and Matt’s beautiful day featured!! If you’d like to see more of this wedding, click here to go back in the blog and have a looksie.
In keeping with the natural melancholy aesthetic of shoot, the film by Put Down the Bourbon was shot in an dramatic raw perspective with an original music composition by Paper Door. We didn’t want a smooth over-produced video but the edges a bit unkempt and an intimate perspective into this bride’s waiting. Muted Love. from … Continue reading
I am so very excited to bring you this Woodland Inspiration Shoot. A group of talented vendors got together wanting an inspirational shoot void of pastels and pretty pinks to bring imagery to the bride with a love of nature and the beauty in the barren winter months. Katie from Jayne Weddings first hatched this … Continue reading
One shot as a fun Sneak Peek to what I will be posting on Thursday!! Katie from Jayne Weddings , Kelly from Fleur and I got together to brainstorm a wedding inspiration shoot that was void of pastels and appealed to a love of nature and the barren months of winter. This gorgeous dress was … Continue reading
This week started my yearly class at Chicago Botanic Garden teaching Macro Photography in the greenhouse. It is always a welcome change of pace for me to communicate the technicalities of the camera, meet new students and spend some time away from the computer. I wander with my class in the green humidity and it relaxes … Continue reading
Thanks so much for featuring me, Jessie. Love working with you–hopefully we’ll be doing a wedding together soon!