On Sunday March 3, SobeSavvy.com hosted an invite only event in Raleigh, NC called #ScentandSipEvent. It was a great opportunity to toast to our womanhood, a chance to network with other female Bloggers/Influencers in the Triangle [Raleigh/Durham,Chapel Hill,NC] and celebrate the spirit of female friendships, just in time for International Women’s Day/Women History Month!

We are making Herstory! | Photo Credit: Samuel Holt Photography @samuelholt

INVITE

The “ScentandSip” idea came after receiving an exclusive Galentine’s Day invite to an event being held in Miami,FL. I notified the event organizers/PR my desire to collaborate/host an intimate event. Despite the weather, I was happy to have the support of Girl Bosses who are making herstory in Raleigh,NC and beyond!Leslie Heigh ~ SobeSavvy.com, @SobeSavvy
Anna Haddock ~ @annakhaddock thecoffeetableblog.com | Photo Credit: Samuel Holt Photography @samuelholt

VENUE

This event was held at the very stylish AC Hotel Raleigh in North Hills [Read about my staycation there>>here]. The AC Hotel has quickly become THE place to stay and play. Beautiful public spaces, awesome guest rooms and a now iconic rooftop bar, Level 7, is what most know about them. What you may not realize is that the AC Hotel also has four meeting/conference rooms that can be booked for your next event! My event was held in the Corella room and which came set up with 4 round tables covered in black tablecloths and 5 chairs per table. The room had plenty of lighting and gorgeous artwork on the walls.

Whether you need a room with audio/visual setup or a traditional corporate setup, they do it all. Our event room also had great floor to ceiling windows with wonderful views of the North Hills area. Another selling point is that you can have catered food and drinks included with your event space booking/contract. We had small bites selected by the Chef at AC Hotel Raleigh and conveniently set up in the room. Everything was so very tasty and paired well with our sips.Bruschetta, Crabcakes, & Bacon Wrapped Scallops ~ Oh My! Delicious Small Bites from AC Hotel Raleigh| Photo Credit: Samuel Holt Photography @samuelholt

SCENT

Many years ago hubby and I were fortunate enough to have spent a month living in Paris. It is there that we discovered diptyque. We had never heard of this unique brand nor were aware of their amazing and exotic scents of candles. Our favorite ended up being Jasmine. We brought a few home and all our friends asked “what kind of candle smells THAT nice? Fast forward and now diptyque is world renowned for not just their high quality candles but for all of their fragrance based products for the home and body. Each guest received a gift bag which included the fragrance/shower oil called L’Ombre dans L’Eau. I would describe the scent and floral,fruity and exquisite!

#ScentandSipEvent gifts from diptyque | Photo Credit: Samuel Holt Photography @samuelholt

SIP

Chambord, is a mainstay at top shelf bars and is made in the Loire Valley of France. This liqueur uses red and black raspberries with Madagascar vanilla, citrus peel, honey and cognac. This combination can be traced back to the 1600’s when Louis XIV drank Cognac with dinner. This versatile liqueur is used to make cocktails from many different spirits. The featured cocktail was the Chambord Royale and here is the recipe for you to enjoy!

Sips and Smiles with Danae Edmonds, ~ aspiringco.com, @aspiring_co | Photo Credit: Samuel Holt Photography @samuelholt

Vilarnau Cava, a spanish sparkling wine, was also introduced to guests.

Made near Barcelona,Spain, Vilarnau provided two types of wine: Brut Reserva and Rosé Delicat. Both are aged over 15 mos in bottle, not tanks. This part of the fermentation method also guarantees the bubble to be more effervescent for a much longer time in your flute than other sparkling wines. I recently shared Five Things to Know about Vilarnau Cava and have found a new bubbly to celebrate with!

I was honored to have Maxine Lee, CSW {Certified Specialist of Wine} to present the wine and chat with us about sparkling wines. She shared with us the difference between Champagne and sparkling wines is the orgin. Champagne comes from Champagne, France anything else from anywhere else is sparkling wine.  To learn mpre wine fundamentals, follow her @drinkgoodwithmax for her Wine Q & A on Monday nights.

#SobeSavvyGiveaway

Everyone loves a giveaway, so I had every guests drop their business cards into a box and at the end of the evening I drew 3 of them as winners. They all won various giftcards from three businesses in North Hills: Firebirds Wood Fired Grill, Kings Bowling and The Cowfish Sushi Burger Bar. All places that I enjoy going to with my family!Congrats to Jen Lawrence ~www.jenoni.com, @JenOni_Inc , Kiara Ruth @KiaraRuth, Anna Haddock @annakhaddock | Photo Credit: Samuel Holt Photography

SobeSavvy Tip: Hit up the Dollar Tree and create your own DIY Selfie Station. String up some garland for a backdrop, grab some wall decals as signs, bring your own fun and strike a pose!

#ScentandSipEvent DIY Selfie Station | Photo Credit: Samuel Holt Photography @samuelholt

I am very thankful to guests, grateful for partnerships with brands and businesses who participated in sponsorship of giveaway. Special thanks to the staff at AC Hotel Raleigh who made my guests and I had everything we needed. Many thanks to Sam Holt of Samuel Holt Photography for doing such a wonderful and professional job capturing the event!

#ScentandSipEvent Sam Holt @samuelholt | Photo Credit: Barry Heigh, SobeSavvy.com

WATCH my YouTube Video photo recap of the #ScentandSipEvent. Photos by Sam Holt. Video Edit by Leslie Heigh, SobeSavvy.com

https://youtu.be/mv1B_4IU9F0

Cheers! Thanks for reading!

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