Meet Sarah Turner | Wedding Designer & Planner

We had the good fortune of connecting with Sarah Turner and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Sarah, what are you inspired by?
Every love story is different. Whether they are high-school sweethearts, met at the LAX Starbucks, or their co-workers set them up – somehow their worlds collided and they met. Oliva Willow is a combination of drive and serendipity. We are creators of memorable weddings and events for extraordinary people. We pride ourselves on our collaborative approach, focusing the design process on the couples unique love story and vision.

So simply stated, we are inspired by love. We want to know what the couples favorite date night spot, vacation destination and go to coffee order is. No detail is left unattended. Their day needs to be a true representation of them as a couple as it is a celebration of two best friends are finally promising to spend the rest of their days together, in front of the people they love the most.

But besides the love of the couple, we are inspired by using natures backdrop as the highlight of the wedding. Picture the ceremony with the Grand Tetons in the background, the aisle lined with poppies and guests sipping on hot chocolate as you walk down the aisle. Being a destination wedding planner, the first question we ask the couple is ‘where do you feel most yourself’. Some choose the mountains or beach, but some choose the little boutique hotel that they found while on a family vacation the first year they were dating. No matter where it is, we are inspired by the couples love for that location.

Oliva Willow is a luxury wedding and event planning firm based in the Midwest. We are a team of experienced planners who are passionate about producing soulful events that our couples (and their guests) will remember for a lifetime. Let’s start the marriage off the best way imaginable – with the party of a century.

Can you give our readers an introduction to your business? Maybe you can share a bit about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
I am eager to see where Oliva Willow grows in the next year, 5 years, decade from now. It is unbelievable that this is just the beginning as the amount of learning opportunities I have encountered in just a year of business, I could write 5 books about it. But while the future is exciting, growing up my father always preached to my brother and I that first you have to crawl, then you can walk, and then if you start running, you better be dang careful.

I hold on to that saying in every aspect of my business. While I am itching to see who Oliva Willow will be in 5 years, I need to take my time and nourish the business to stand for what I truly believe in. To be a business that not only helps design/execute a wedding, but leads the couple on the right foot as they prepare for a marriage together.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
First stop, Ramble Hotel. Grab a cup of coffee and cozy up on one of their couches. From there, head over to the Dairy Block in downtown Denver. An absolute favorite of mine. Check out some of the local boutiques and even grab a bouquet of flowers. If you are getting hungry, The Original, next to Coors Field is a must for brunch. The most instagramable interior design and the food quantities are massive.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
I can not stress internships enough. Challenge yourself. Get out of your comfort zone. Spend a summer learning from the best of the best in your industry.

During my sophomore year of college I decided to take a blind leap and apply for a wedding planning internship in Malaga, Spain. While I am bilingual, at that time I was not comfortable with wedding terminology in Spanish or simply how to conduct wedding meetings with Spanish speaking clientele. Pilar Martinez Eventos took a chance with a young 20 year old and invited me to spend three months with her team learning the ins and outs of what it takes to plan and execute destination weddings in the southern coast of Spain. Pilar displayed grace and patience while mentoring me into the wonderful world of destination wedding designing. After the summer spent with Pilar Martinez Eventos, the motive to start Oliva Willow started to come about. Forever thankful for the mentorship and now friendship that I have gained from blindly leaping into a summer internship in Spain.

Website: https://olivawillow.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/olivawillowdesigns/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/olivawillowdesigns

Image Credits
Becca Louise Photography Mallorie McBride Photography McKenna Holly Photography