It’s a new year. Do you know what that means? Time to get reflective about the last one. Usually January is a time of reflection, closure, and celebration so we are ready to begin the next chapter. But 2020 has been a helluva ride and gratitude is the muscle we have to keep on flexing to remember that those moments can be found even in the most challenging of times. So here we are, pumping iron in a heart-fueled manner, and we would like to share with you what we are most grateful for in the year of 2020.

A YEAR OF TRANSFORMATION UNDER PRESSURE.

In our 2020 team launch meeting back in January, we had so many grand plans. This was going to be the year of teamwork — training and collaborating in the field with our incredible clients to help them execute their big ideas. We had every experience on our event dockets, from morning 5ks to acrobats, rooftop oysters to farm-to-table lakeside roasts, and we were PUMPED. We were even more excited to work in bigger teams of Tapestry hands to make the experience of running events more joyful and holistic. And then the pandemic turned our schedule upside down. Lock down procedure and safety precautions quickly told us that our plans were bunk and that we would have to change our intention in order to be of service to totally new and shifting wedding expectations — expectations that would likely span more than one season.

We could have easily broken down or walked away from the potential of 2020, but we knew we wanted to show up for couples however we could. So, we did the hard work of listening to press conferences while our industry was either ignored or ill-addressed; of sifting out how to stay in compliance with each successive reopening and lock down; of scheduling extra time with our clients to create custom decision-making timelines and aid the postponement process; and of figuring out how to serve pivoting couples looking for heartfelt, intimate celebrations within a short timeline. Instead of doubling up our onsite efforts, we used our dynamic team to develop new and more efficient planning tools for our couples; write helpful articles and guides on our blog; create a toolkit of resources for pandemic couples; maintain and update our planning portal; revamp our website for easier navigation and information sharing; and reduce our communication turnarounds and response time. We bit off A LOT and, standing here today, we know the depth of our strength. Our 2020 season was forged in fire, and we are proud of how we met the new and unknown.

A YEAR OF VALUES-BASED DECISION MAKING.

If 2020 hasn’t challenged you to dig deep for what you value and how to act accordingly, then you definitely aren’t living on Planet Earth. Everyone has had to sacrifice seeing people they love, let go of  much anticipated plans, and revamp the routines that shape our lives. It’s been uncomfortable, heartbreaking, and jolting. In all of those uninvited feelings, there has been a lot of grappling to figure out how to take action aligned with our values. A small example: You can no longer call someone up and ask to drop in on them because you love them. You now have to check your state or county’s gathering rules, ask your friend about their bubble and possible exposure, share your two-week social history as well as that of any roommates or partners, determine whether you feel safe gathering on either end, establish whether testing is a part of your precautions and follow through, self-quarantine, and then if all is clear, maybe on the day of your scheduled visit you both will feel comfortable to occupy indoor or outdoor space together, six feet apart, with masks on. And to think… that used to be a one-text exchange.

Long story short? No action during a global pandemic is easily decided or taken. We have to be aware of how the decisions we make affect others and their loved ones. Our ripple effect is deeply felt and has to be completely considered. While the work is harder, and while we’ve certainly gotten tired of how much extra there is to consider, we know it’s one of our greatest teachers. We know that if we start thinking about the ripple effect of our actions, we are forced to see the race, gender, and income inequalities that exist in our industry, the waste produced by one-time events, and the mistreatment of Mother Nature. We are forced to sit with those realities and reflect on our role in creating them. We have to look at our ripple effect. With that reflection, we have stepped into knowing that we can do something about these issues through our decisions and actions as individuals and as a business. This past year has been about recognizing our values and our personal power, doing the work of self-education, and leaning into evolved, community-conscious action that realizes our intentions. Our new Values page on the website is where anyone can reliably check in on where we stand and how we’re taking action, and we’re damn proud of it.

A YEAR OF PASSIONATE SELF-DISCOVERY + EXPANSION.

You may have noticed that we have some new faces in the Tapestry family! We started the 2020 season with a team of five and are now proudly rocking a team of nine. Are we crazy? Maybe, but that’s not the point we are making here. ;) We took the opportunity of the shutdown to pivot responsibilities and build our company resources over the course of the 2020 season. Because of that, we were able to upgrade and streamline our planning process while providing ongoing training to our team. Each member has learned the Tapestry planning and execution process intimately and seen it in action in the past year. With continued training in 2021, we will step into the season with a team full of coordinators ready to support events and grow into full service planners by 2022. They are excited to spend the off-season hopping on client planning meetings and adding more beautiful heads and hearts to support each couple’s journey. Get to know our expanded team here!

One of the greatest parts of our developing company ethos is to listen for our team’s passions and give them the space and opportunity to lean into their interests. We have incredible women working in content management, resource development, blog authorship, portal resource upgrades, client gifting experience, execution optimization, financial resource creation, and officiant training. Some roles are married together with planning and coordination training, others are special projects and solo ventures. We believe in our team to lead the development of Tapestry’s current and future gifts and we are out here exploring to provide couples with a more complete and holistic launch to marriage. We are confident when we make the promise: The best is yet to come (and, babe, it will be FINE).

Our intention with this reflection is to not go all Polly Positive on the world and paint 2020 as “the best year evahhh!” But we do believe in the power of a gratitude practice to reflect back with compassion (and a little bit of distance) and distill something worth learning. Our team has been a gift in the past year — probably one of the greatest gifts of them all. On a personal level, having a team has kept me (Kate) grounded and balanced. Being with the challenges presented by a pandemic, grappling with the emotions that arise in response, and witnessing one another through trying times in community has made a world of difference. We care for each other, and I severely underestimated how much I would need to be seen and held by others in order to get through these times with my creativity and my sanity and my joy for this work.

We have witnessed one another navigate changes in our jobs, education, community, and personal life. Some of us have cancelled our own weddings, others have had to rethink the trajectory of our careers. We have stood by one another, witnessed all the rigor brought on by the pandemic, and (through video chat) held each other's hands and hearts tenderly through it all. We are grateful for the team dynamic that has hosted all this growth and change and are excited to introduce you to our expanded ripple effect through their involvement.

— Kate, Tapestry’s Creative Director