Back in January, one of my good boss lady friends asked if we could have a Skype date; during our session, Bonnie shared with me her vision for illume retreat. She opened up her heart about her desire to create a retreat centered on rest – a safe haven for creative women to grow their craft & leave rejuvenated and excited for the next chapter of their business.

Well, friends, she created it! Just a few short weeks after that Skype call, she began texting Laura and I sneak peeks of the website (it’s stunning, don’t you think?). Registration opened in the spring for the very first illume retreat & I can’t believe the October gathering has already come and gone!

A few months into her planning, Bonnie reached out to me about the behind the scenes logistics & set-up during the retreat. I offered to assist in any way I could, and was very humbled when she asked me to attend as her right hand gal! You know me, I love being behind the scenes & actually find it harder to sit back & relax in an environment when I KNOW there’s lots to do!! Assisting Bonnie was so much fun, and I loved playing a small role in her incredible dream!

From the minute the attendees arrives at Travassa, they were spoiled a bit. From the amazing guest rooms to the relaxing pool escape, every aspect of the resort fit the brand of illume to a “t”. Bonnie had asked me and Katie to room to together, and I’ll admit, I was a bit nervous to meet someone who I had looked up to for some long… and then ROOM with her! We shared some incredible late night conversations, though, and some funny roommate stories (picture hallucinating dreams of spiders & stomping in the middle of the night!).

The retreat kicked off with a beautiful Welcome Dinner in a gorgeous section of the resort. Not only was the food incredible, but the styled details Bonnie planned were beautiful! Every attendee received a copper mug, with a hand-lettered fabric by Parris Chic Boutique tied around the handle! The flowers by Bristol Lane Flower were organic & fabulous.

Day One of the retreat held so much goodness it’s going to be hard to not make this the longest blog post ever! My sweet friend Laura of Paper & Honey kicked off the retreat with her incredible talk on fear. Then we heard from Shay of Love, the Nelsons on tips for infusing personality into your brand, and then Bonnie on creating your authentic brand; before lunch, I know the attendees had already been given so much amazing content!! We had a delicious farm-to-table meal, and then had a wonderful hands-on session lead by Ellen of Westcott Weddings! This lady knows her stuff & I loved hearing her presentation on styling & then being able to spend some time styling ourselves!

We ended that evening with dinner at the incredible resort restaurant, and then a surprise campfire session complete with s’mores & vintage rentals from Loot Vintage. Ara Collective also provided gorgeous blush blankets for everyone to snuggle up under (and it made for great plane-ride comfort!). This campfire session was intimate, real & raw. We were able to share heartfelt fears, business struggles and get to the heart of why we’re here & why we’re doing this “business owner thing”. It was amazing.

Day Two kicked off with more incredible content from 3 very sweet speakers: Bonnie spoke on finding balance within your business and your life, Jenna gave her talk around the power and how-tos of social media and Katie left us all feeling challenged & uplifted with her talk on legacy. We had another farm-to-table lunch, and I was honored to provide florals for the tables (those peonies though!). We ended the retreat with a hands-on calligraphy session led by Laura.

It was a retreat experience I will never forget and I am so encouraged by Bonnie’s heart for her mission. I’m so blessed I was apart of the inaugural illume retreat as Bonnie’s right hand gal.

As if ALL of that didn’t make this blog post incredible, I’ve got ONE more thing to share!!! Spring 2016 illume retreat dates were announced yesterday, with registration opening on Friday at 9am CST!!! Bonnie has invited me to attend again in April, but this time I’ll be leading a talk titled Battling Overwork & Overwhelm: Simple Steps to Win Your Life Back. I can’t wait to back in Austin, TX this Spring for 3 full days of rest, relaxation and life simplifying tools. I hope to see you there:)

xo! kat

All photos by the incredible Shay of Love, the Nelsons!