Hidden Gems: Meet Ashley Lynch of Festoons & Flourishes

Today we’d like to introduce you to Ashley Lynch.

Hi Ashley, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
Festoons & Flourishes was founded in 2014 with the intention of producing unconventional one-of-a-kind experiences where innovative and artistic design meets flawless execution. With 15 years formerly in fine dining restaurants and catering prior to planning events, I wanted to put an emphasis on the importance of high-touch hospitality, placing enormous focus on creating not just a beautiful aesthetic but an incredible experience where clients and their guests feel truly cared for every step of the way.

Growing up in a family who moved all over the world due to my father’s job, my travels began a love
affair with exploring different countries, cultures, and histories (I’m definitely a history nerd). After graduating high school in the early 2000s and moving back to the USA to pursue a Fine Arts degree, I then plunged into restaurants and hospitality, focusing on fine dining and creative meal experiences. Working in the service and hospitality industry helped me learn that the most significant experiences for guests comes down to the importance of balancing excellent service and a unique immersive atmosphere.

In 2011 a restaurant co-worker asked me to help plan and coordinate a friend’s wedding and I jumped
at the chance. That wedding’s success led to other event opportunities, and in 2014, I launched
Festoons & Flourishes.

Today, F&F is a destination planning firm, based out of Detroit, producing both intimate and large-scale
events and weddings worldwide.

We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
There is never such thing as a ‘smooth road’.

Owning a business is hard. Owning and running a successful business in the wedding and events industry is even harder.

Although there are event planning degrees now, that wasn’t such a thing when I was going to school. And even now, I am not sure how much you would actually learn by getting a degree in this field. So much of what I know is through living this job every day and trying to do right by my clients for one of the biggest moments of their lives.

I love what I do…but it does not pass me by that there is a lot of responsibility on my shoulders…to my clients, their guests, my team, my vendor partners, and to myself and my family.

Although I try to avoid mistakes along the way, I have to be honest, the best lessons I have ever learned have come out of making mistakes and finding solutions to those so they never happen again. To me, failures are lessons. They only make you get better…you just can’t give up if you make a mistake.

Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
A Festoons & Flourishes wedding is where artistic vision meets hospitality.
Our focus is to create worlds that are reflections of our couples and what they love, all the while pushing creative boundaries and anticipating guest needs before they exist.

We believe that any event has the power to be an immersive experience. where guests can escape from the everyday and try something new. We tell stories by blending beautiful visuals, unexpected details, and high-touch service, with the goal of making our clients and their guests feel truly cared for and loved.

From the design elements you see and touch, the music you hear, and the culinary offerings you smell and
taste, we focus on the overall event, weaving every detail together – both large and small – to make each
wedding and event a feast for the senses. Simultaneously, our hands-on team of coordinators ensure that each and
every logistical detail is meticulously thought through to ensure a smooth and seemingly effortless flow to
the event days.

For our wedding weekends, we plan multi-day celebrations which include the wedding day and other events such as
rehearsal dinners, welcome receptions, farewell brunches, pre-wedding luncheons, walking tours, wine
tastings, spa days, and other activities to help you and your guests truly enjoy your time together.

We draw our inspiration from everywhere – world travel, art, architecture, interior design, fashion, and event design – but our primary source of inspiration has been and always will be our couples, drawing from their stories, family traditions, heritage, and personal styles. This has resulted in a diverse portfolio of celebrations where each detail is consciously crafted to the needs and styles of each client, creating a one-of-a-kind experience that is truly made for them.

Our approach to planning is collaborative, building strong relationships with our clients and their families
and developing a strong foundation of trust. As each of our Brides and Grooms are different and are busy individuals, our planning process is catered specifically to each client, helping us to personalize their unique planning path for what works best for them.

Pricing:

• Just as all of the couples we work for are different, all of the events our team produces have different budget requirements and are reviewed on an individual basis based on many factors, such as our couples’ wants and needs, location/venue, time of year, etc. Pricing available upon consultation.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.festoonsandflourishes.com
• Instagram: @festoonsandflourishes