Sip With Me

To end our wedding series, we thought we’d have some fun with Aaron’s fiancé and Ioanna’s now HUSBAND!

Since Michael is Canadian and Nathan is a teacher, we thought we’d put them to the test and see how they say______.

Testing both pronunciation and actual word choice, we pulled out crowd favorites like water fountain, sherbet, caramel, crayon, and more! Find out how the four us agree or disagree on some Canadian favorites, and learn how good we really are at compromising with our significant others!

Disclaimer: this episode was filmed live, off-site and without editing. Audio quality may be impacted!

This week we’re diving in to all things FASHION, specifically bridal fashion, with fashion stylist, Kennedy Bingham! Also know as “Gown Eyed Girl”, she’s an influencer and stylist based in Los Angeles who left her job in finance on the hunt for an avenue into the fashion industry. Since then, Kennedy has helped hundreds of brides find their perfect look, managed multiple luxury showrooms, and grown to be one of the largest content creators in bridal!

Join Ioanna for this riveting conversation with Sydney on her journey into the industry, insights on bridal fashion trends present & future, and a round of bridal rapid fire!

This week we’re diving into everything photography with this week’s guest, Sydney Marie! She is a photographer and wedding “expert behind the lens” of Sydney Marie Co. who has shot over 150 weddings. She celebrates the imperfect moments and finding the beauty in the natural flow of your wedding experience.

She’s also the author of “Foundry: The Wedding Guide”, the ultimate wedding guide for the modern bride to be, in which Sydney takes you through it all: the ups, downs, mayhem and mishaps, passion and tears to guide, energize and celebrate your story unfolding! It was unbelievably helpful for Ioanna and we know you’d love it to!

Her couples are her passion & priority, and it shows in the final product. Check out all her work and Guide at the link in our bio!

This week we cross the pond and dive into all things BRIDAL DRESSES! Suzanne Neville is a British award winning fashion designers of evening wear, bridal gowns and couture wedding dresses with shops in London and Cheshire Manchester! Her gowns are handcrafted using the techniques of contemporary couture and her silhouettes vary to encompass a full range of inclusive sizes, always using only the finest silks and hand embroideries. Suzanne’s love of structure and pattern cutting has earned her the nickname ‘Corset Queen’ for her incredibly flattering silhouettes.

In this episode, we talk about how she started her career, 2022 bridal trends, the pandemic’s impact on the dress industry, and MUCH MORE!

This week we are diving into all things VEILS with the owner and CEO of Tailored Tulle, Katie Valleau.

Katie makes modern, intricate veils and accessories for the fashion forward bride. In this episode, we talk about the process behind her handmade veils, how she started her business during the pandemic, and MORE! She also shares with us her favorite cocktail, the Passion Fruit Habanero Margarita! https://www.etsy.com/shop/TailoredTulle

The wedding is over, but we’re not off our wedding kick yet! This week, we’re featuring Jen Glantz the founder of Bridesmaid for Hire, a 3x author, podcast host, and creator of The Newlywed Card Game & The First Years of Marriage Newsletter!

The idea is really what it says- she’ll be your everything Bridesmaid. Need a bestie? She’s got you. Need someone who will get the dance floor full? She’s got you. Need someone who will be a shoulder to lean on during the big day? She’s got you covered! We chat about how she came up with the idea and why it’s actually so genius. She’s been to weddings all over and has seen it all. She shared with us some of her favorite wedding experiences, all about her own wedding and much MORE! Jen also tells us about her game, which after hearing about Ioanna and Aaron both purchases to play with their husbands.

She also shared her favorite drink of choice, a Root Beer Float, one of which we could really use after our eleven hour flight back from Greece (with extra ice cream)!

Pop the champagne! Ioanna is MARRIED and as of this episode airing we are likely still dancing because Greek weddings go until 5:00am!

In honor of Ioanna's wedding and because she is currently on her honeymoon, we continue our wedding series this week with one of our faves in the biz, Celebrity Event, Wedding Planner Extraordinaire, and Château genius Melissa Andre, of Melissa Andre Events.

She has attracted and worked with a roster of A-list clientele, from some of the most respected global brands to top celebs including Drake, Victoria Beckham, LouisVuitton, Google, Instagram, and MANY MORE. She’s landed on BizBash’s List of the Top Event Designs in North America, and Special Event Magazine’s List of Most Fascinating Women, as well as interviews and features in InStyle, Forbes, People, Billboard, GQ, and many more.

Per her website,

"Creative Consultant Melissa Andre is renowned for distinctively whimsical designs with an unexpected edge. With a signature style that juxtaposes dreamy scenes with avant-garde sophistication, she seamlessly blends her diverse references to revolutionize the look, feel and way people interact with brands, events and products. She brings her unique and distinctive aesthetic to every project, capturing a sense of modern timelessness with elevated, unpredictable design solutions."

Melissa tells us all about how she started in this industry and worked her way up through various twists and turns. She shares what it is like executing events for some of the worlds most influential people and how she draws on pop culture, fashion, and personality to make her events above the gold standard. Plus, learn the MADco. Method, which is her and her team's perfected planning and execution process and checklist which has been refined over 15 years of learning.

She also is opening a damn Château so of course Ioanna and I got super off topic and talked to her about that because it is incredibly amazing! Hear about that and what it's like restoring what is literally an old castle.

We end with a walk down the aisle to play some MADco rapid fire to learn Melissa's dream collab, her favorite venues, go-to workout, and favorite cocktail!

Read more about Melissa and her many ventures at: https://melissaandre.com

Cheers, Ioanna! We love you!

She shines bright like a diamond!In episode 2 of our wedding series, we’re diving into all things DIAMONDS with the owner and CEO of The Clear Cut, Olivia Landau. She’s a diamond expert, GIA Graduate Gemologist and 4th generation jeweler with experience at Tiffany & Co and in the diamond wholesale industry!

Together with her husband, Kyle, they started The Clear Cut. The Clear Cut empowers “a new generation of consumers to create their perfect hand-crafted diamond engagement rings and more”. The business model works more fluidly, smoothly, and transparently than Diamond ring purchasing has in the past.

We talk with Olivia about the five C’s, how to find your perfect engagement ring or wedding band. Plus, why TCC model works and why our generation is demanding a new kind of diamond transparency and buying experience! Plus, a shimmering round of rapid fire to find out some of Olivia’s fave diamond related info! https://theclearcut.co/

We are kicking off our bridal series with a local Chicago vendor who captures the most amazing moments during a wedding! Myra, also known as Buenas Vibras Photography on Instagram, pens herself as a photog “for tequila lovers wanting a stress-free wedding”! When she told us she likes to do a tequila shot with each couple, we knew she was Sip with Me ready!!

Mayra aims to capture the most raw moments of your wedding. She wants to see the hype and feel the good vibes. She also wants to capture you:

“I love your melonin! Your skin needs to look just like it does every day. I take pride in making sure I pay attention to the details of who you are. My editing style is natural to true. Meaning, you are are going to look just like who you are. No funky colors, no melonin changes, none of that”.

Mayra joined us to discuss how she got into the business and where she draws her inspiration from. We also got to discuss the Chicago wedding scene and what it’s like building a client base from scratch. She also shared her Puerto Rican influence and more.

We also had fun playing rapid fire (no, we didn’t take tequila shots beforehand, but we wish we did)! Mayra shares her favorite wedding, best food she’s had at a wedding, and her favorite cocktail!

Read more about Mayra at:

style is natural to true. Meaning, you are are going to look just like who you are. No funky colors, no melonin changes, none of that”.

Mayra joined us to discuss how she got into the business and where she draws her inspiration from. We also got to discuss the Chicago wedding scene and what it’s like building a client base from scratch.

We also had fun playing rapid fire (no, we didn’t take tequila shots beforehand, but we wish we did)! Mayra shares her favorite wedding, best food she’s had at a wedding, and her favorite cocktail!

Read more about Mayra at: https://buenasvibrasphotography.com

Cheers, Chicago!

Booties at attention! Whether you’re a member of the Sip with Me Army or the Booty Army, do we have a guest for you!

Nearing 4 million subscribers on YouTube and over 700 million views, Caleb Marshall is accomplishing so much for himself and changing the lives of so many, including Ioanna and I.

Also known as “The Fitness Marshall”, Caleb is a fitness and dance pop star who has been frequently described as the “modern day richard simmons meets Britney Spears”!!

Perhaps what makes him stand out is his charismatic, loving, and inclusive personality. Caleb’s true colors and values show through his art and it has been refreshing for his millions of fans around the world to see someone be authentically true to themselves and their passion, especially during covid lockdowns.

Caleb has done so much with his career both pre and post-pandemic, including touring, launching an inclusive activewear line, appearing on hundreds of media platforms, getting shoutouts from the biggest A-list celebrities, and winning awards. Caleb is also joined by his manager fiance (Miance), Cameron, and his back up booties, who help teach the world how to work it one view at a time.

Caleb chats with us about his storied career and his move from small town Indiana to LA. Hear how he got into dance fitness and what inspires him to stream into all of our homes every week.

We get to look at how he makes his dances and what the filming process is like. Plus, his AMAZING proposal story and a look into the past to find out how how we are connected from our college days!

We end the episode with a Britney Spears worthy round of rapid fire to find out some of Caleb’s favorites and his go-to cocktail when dropping it at the clubs!