There are few things that will make your guests feel more welcome than a completely customized gift waiting for them at their hotel at the start of your wedding weekend. And, if there ever was a source for stunning welcome gifts it’s D.C. based Marigold & Grey!
Jamie Kutchman launched Marigold & Grey just over a year ago when she knew it was time to leave the corporate world in order to dive headfirst into being a creative entrepreneur. Along with her Operations Manager, Katherine, Jamie designs creative baskets filled to the brim with the most luxurious of products, and we love that Marigold and Grey has made serious waves in the wedding industry and on Instagram! From workshops to weddings, just engaged brides to bridesmaids-to-be, each and every basket is filled with locally sourced items for you to completely customize your gifts or choose a pre-made option that’s just waiting to be shipped to your recipient.
With a penchant for creative gift-giving made easy, we’re thrilled to welcome Jamie to our Styled Day series! From time spent with her sweet dogs, Lewis and Clarkie, to a peek inside her creative process, let’s go behind-the-scenes with Marigold and Grey!
The best thing about running a creative small business is that each day involves some level of designing, styling, marketing, selling, strategizing, executing and tons of relationship building. I just LOVE it! Even though I’m exhausted at the end of each day, my mind is active and my heart is full so I know I’m right where I need to be.
5:30-6:30 Eyes pop open with mind already racing. Reach over and grab phone and check for any urgent emails and social media goings on.
6:45 Consider working out but instead I jump in the shower, get dressed and put on makeup. Okay, I admit, this routine doesn’t ALWAYS happen this early in the day. But I have been making more of an effort to get dressed in something other than yoga pants with hair done AND makeup on every day whether I’m going out for meetings or getting dirty in the studio. If I don’t do this first thing, the day gets away from me so early is best.
7:15 Walk my pups, Lewis & Clarkie!
7:45 Time for the morning Instagram post, usually announcing the day’s blog post, a press feature or an example of our work.
8 – My Operations Manager Katherine arrives to the studio with greenery in tow. She has just come from the floral wholesale warehouse. These are for later in the day so stay tuned! After calming the pups down from being over-the-moon happy to see Katherine, we make it down to the studio and review my calendar for the day. She makes sure my ADHD brain is focused and ready to tackle the day!
8:30-10 Katherine puts the finishing touches on an outgoing gift order while I work on custom gift designs to send along to clients for review.
10-11 Katherine and I clear all of the furniture out of the living room to prep our outgoing gift order to be photographed. Here’s where the fresh greenery comes in. We snip sprigs of greenery and attach to each gift before taking the final shots. We save the greenery for JUST before the order goes out to keep it fresh.
11:30 Our delivery driver arrives to pick up the order headed for three DC hotels for a wedding this weekend. Always sad to see our gifts leave. We get so attached! Katherine handles getting the gifts out the door while I’m on a call with a bride learning more about her vision for her wedding welcome gifts.
Noon Katherine heads out to run business errands while I get some fresh air with the dogs out in the yard. I then grab a quick bite to eat while checking social media simultaneously. I post a picture on Instagram from the order that just went on its way.
1-130 Interview a prospective intern. Goes very well and I hire her on the spot!
1:30-3 Review samples for two different variations of holiday gifts we’ll be sending along to our clients and industry contacts. Being in the gift business, I feel a huge pressure to get these just right! Katherine is back and we scrutinize our recipient list to make sure we haven’t missed anyone and crunch the final numbers and add to our budget. Yikes. The list is long this year.
3-4 I create a gift for a styled shoot with a local wedding planner and get it ready for tomorrow while Katherine fills online orders.
4-630 Katherine leaves for the day. I pop upstairs to say hi to my husband Jeff who also works from home. We chat about any significant things in our day and decide roughly what time we’ll do dinner. Then I return to emails and blogging.
630-830 Break for dinner out!
9 Here’s where I hope and pray for a second wind! If I get one, I work on gift design revisions and any remaining emails and unfinished blog posts. I also do the evening Instagram post!
10:30 Walk the dogs one last time, usually with Jeff. I love walking the dogs together. It’s so funny seeing my brawny husband managing a little, fluffy, white dog who likes to charge ahead at a million miles an hour.
11 Get ready for bed then either read a book to get my mind off of work, text friends, and/or check my personal social media accounts. Put earplugs in to insure a deep sleep and usually pass out just before midnight.
