Palm Beach County – This is my hobby.

After dreaming and scheming for many months, it’s surreal to finally share Styled in South Florida Home Tours (SISF) with you.

I knew this project would involve lots of trial and error, which is uncomfortable for me at times, because I want to make everything I touch perfect.

I’ve been a communications professional for a long time, and I’ve collaborated on many video projects, but I’m no videographer.

Every SISF episode is shot on my iphone, and I’ve discovered more to tweak in my process with each tour.

So far, each host has been beyond gracious, talented, and lovely — but Diana Pierre-Louis, the host and designer featured in episode one, could not have been a more perfect first tour.

Aside from her fantastic sense of style — a relaxed yet elevated coastal vibe, unfussy yet chic — her presence, ease in front of the camera, and DIY genius made for perfect home tour content.

This should come as no surprise because she’s a marketing professional in addition to being a design guru.

I’m dying for her to have me back to show more of her space, not only because you’ll love to see it, but also because I have a more polished process.

Things I’ve learned so far:

–Mic placement makes a huge difference in quality. The audio in my pilot episode taught me this.

–I’d rather have the host sit alone for the interview portion. While Diana and I had a great conversation, I realized the strongest edit keeps the spotlight on the homeowner and their story. Making the host front and center became the priority for future episodes.

–Bring a printed checklist to each tour — there are tons of different shots to remember to get, and I’ve forgotten ones I didn’t think I could.

I know I’ll continue learning and refining as I go. Thank you for coming along with me on this journey, and accepting this project for each imperfection and inspiration it offers.

The first episode is being viewed far more times than I anticipated within the first two days — I am grateful.

Thank you for being here at the beginning. Stay tuned for more.

xoxo

Vanessa

The crowd faves at my daughter’s birthday party were Goodwill finds.

As you might have gathered by now, my baby girl is a princess. She wasn’t really given a choice – my husband had it decided long before she was born.

The moment she arrived he stuck a bow on her head – perfectly coordinated with her outfit, of course.

As she grew and became more aware, she leaned right into the princess role with ease and it was reflected in her clothes, accessories, and attitude.

She dresses the part as often as possible and has drawers stuffed full of princess dresses – some passed down from her older cousin, but most found during my thrifting trips to Goodwill.

Elaine’s birthday party wasn’t princess themed, but of course we knew she’d want to wear one of her dresses for the occasion.

We rented out The Schoolhouse Children’s Museum for the party and invited all her preschool classmates.

I decided to bring our collection of thrifted princess gowns, tiaras, and a vase of little wands (also found at Goodwill) so other girlies could be princesses too if they wanted.

We found this gorgeous Belle dress at Goodwill in West Palm Beach

As the kids arrived, before exploring the museum (which is a dream, by the way, Palm Beach County parents — run to take your kiddos if you haven’t been!), they immediately beelined straight to the rack of princess dresses.

It was a blast to watch how much joy this brought to the party — and it was such a simple add-on.

I thrifted the vase of wands and the basket holding the tiaras – don’t tell Elaine I gave most of the wands away to her friends!

When it came time to sing the happy birthday song, in true princess fashion, Elaine interrupted the festivities to announce to the room that she did not want anyone taking the wands home and they all needed to end up back in the vase. lol.

That’s our girl!

Last week’s thrifted ‘fits: