Feature Friday: Say Yes to What’s Next {Book & Home Tour}

I’ve got a fun post to share with you today. A book review, plus a bonus home tour of a gorgeous home in Atlanta. I haven’t met Lori Allen in person, but I know she’s a lovely lady because I’ve met her daughter, Mollie, through my years of blogging. Mollie is in the marketing arena and I’ve worked with her a few times as a blogger. So when Mollie asked me about sharing her mom’s new book with you all and I found out she is Lori from Bridals by Lori here in Atlanta, I knew this would be a fun share.

Get to Know Lori:

Lori Allen opened Bridals by Lori just two weeks after graduating from the all-female Columbia College in South Carolina. Four decades later, she is one of the world’s foremost experts on bridal couture and the central figure of TLC’s reality show ​Say Yes to the Dress: Atlanta​, filmed onsite at Allen’s bridal salon and shown in more than 120 countries. Her multidimensional platform as a bridal couture expert, successful female business entrepreneur, TV personality, and breast cancer survivor has made her a sought-after speaker and top-tier media voice for outlets like CNN, ABC’s ​Good Morning America,​ NBC’s ​Today​, and the ​Wall Street Journal​. She resides in Atlanta with her husband, Eddie, not far from her daughter and her husband, son and his wife, and three grandchildren.

Lori is an accomplished woman and she’s just written a new book, Say Yes to What’s Next: How to Age with Elegance and Class While Never Losing Your Beauty & Sass. I’m going to drop a link to Amazon so you can find it there if you want to order it as well! (affiliate link provided):

What a great title for a book that I know we can all relate to! Lori is just a couple of years younger than me and she’s a beautiful lady. I had the chance to ask her a few questions so I’m going to share those with you too, as well as give you a full tour of her beautiful Atlanta home in Sugarloaf. It’s a stunner and I know you’ll enjoy it too!

Also, I’ve got a fun giveaway with Lori’s book. I’m allowed to give away 5 copies of her book to 5 of my readers, so stay tuned at the bottom for the giveaway. I can’t wait to read the book and I know you all will enjoy it too.

I had heard of Say Yes to the Dress, but I had no idea that Lori was the star of Say Yes to the Dress Atlanta, filmed at her Bridals by Lori showroom. I have never seen the show, but I’m going to start taping it!

Here’s my interview with Lori:

How did you get started in the wedding industry?

My mom’s twin sister, Aunt June, who I talk about in speeches and in my book, Say Yes to What’s Next, owned a successful bridal business in Birmingham, Ala. I always loved to visit and was fascinated by her growing business. In college, I decided to major in business and minor in fashion merchandising so that I could follow in her footsteps. I worked at a bridal salon while in school and modeled bridal gowns. I’m fortunate that I knew exactly what I wanted to do with my life. Upon graduating, with a small loan from my parents and uncle, I started Bridals by Lori in Sandy Springs, Ga.– not far from our 25,000 s/f location now.

Did you always know that is what you wanted to do?

I knew I wanted to get into the bridal business from an early age. As a child, I used to play dress up in my mother’s bridal gown. My family would get up on Saturday morning and I would have the bridal gown on—with fake flowers—watching cartoons. My time with Aunt June solidified that passion.

How did you get involved in the TV show, Say Yes to the Dress Atlanta?

I received a call from TLC in 2008 about expanding their already popular show Say Yes to the Dress from New York to Atlanta, and the first season aired in 2011. I started Bridals by Lori in 1980, and we had grown into a successful bridal salon in the heart of Atlanta and had recently moved into our current mega salon location. I was a little nervous about being on TV, but I knew this would give the store great exposure and it was a platform for me to share what we believe in so passionately at Bridals by Lori: every woman deserves that special moment when they see themselves in the perfect dress and they feel beautiful and confident. I had no idea the opportunities that being on the show would open up like sharing my breast cancer journey and being an advocate for women over 50. It’s been a wild and blessed ride.

You have shared about your breast cancer journey in a very candid chapter in your book. What’s the best advice you can give women who have gone through or are going through breast cancer?

If you are in the midst of your battle, lean on your support during this time. As someone who has always been independent, this didn’t come easily for me. There are so many people around you who love you and want to be there for you, lean on them. Also, lean into your faith. My faith and the hope it brought me were instrumental during my battle. If you are a survivor, take this second chance at life and make the most of it! Find new hobbies and interests, don’t sweat the small things, enjoy time with family and friends, and treat yourself! You have overcome a difficult journey that no one should have to go through, but you have defeated cancer and you are stronger because of it.

What is the best advice you can tell women about taking care of themselves in our senior years? {You look great by the way! we are close in age and you are just gorgeous!}

Thank you so much! You are gorgeous, Rhoda, and I love your fashion suggestions. In the Self Care is the New Black chapter of Say Yes to What’s Next, I dish on the importance of self-care and not feeling guilty about it. I take time every morning to do a devotional, enjoy my coffee, workout, spend time with my puppy Chloe, and just breathe. My life is crazy busy, like many of you, and before I share myself with my staff and film crew and everyone else, I need to just be quiet for a while and that’s okay.

What is your favorite space in your home & did you recently do some updates to your house? 

Southern Hospitality is one of my favorite decorating resources, and I just love your style. After my breast cancer battle, I felt run down and like I just needed a fresh start. I had spent weeks and months recovering at home, and I started to get sick of looking at the same thing every day. Once I started to feel better, I couldn’t wait to celebrate my new beginning by renovating our beloved Atlanta home. I selected more soothing paint colors for each room like Benjamin Moore Hush and brought in more antiques that told a story. My interior designer helped me mix modern fabrics and clean lines with gold gilded frames and family photos. The outcome is a home that helps me relax, surrounds us with peace, and also showcases treasures that mean a lot to our family. I just love it!

What can they expect to read about in your new book, Say Yes to What’s Next?

Writing and publishing Say Yes to What’s Next is one of the biggest accomplishments of my life, because I truly pour my heart out on each page. The book is about empowering all women, especially women over 50, to embrace their lives and take control in areas like marriage, self-care, finances, and friendships. It’s part memoir and part life guidebook. The book will make you laugh, cry, and really think about some difficult topics like caring for aging parents. So far, the book is receiving great reviews, and I love the stories I’m hearing from women about how the book inspired them to embrace or improve areas of their lives.

How important is your faith in your business and family life?

Faith is a huge part of my life and that definitely shows up in my business and family. With Bridals by Lori, I believe in treating everyone with kindness and respect because we are all equal and we are all important in this world and in God’s eyes. With family, Eddie and I are both strong in our faith, and it has gotten us through the good and the bad times in life. We wanted our children to also grow up leaning on their faith for hope and encouragement. Hope to me is the natural evolution of faith. I thank God every day for allowing me to survive cancer, and I work to fully live out the purpose He has for me.

Wasn’t that a fun read? Even though I haven’t met Lori in person, I know we would hit it off. I love seeing successful women who are still showing up strong in midlife and beyond. There’s a lot of living to do yet and I know I want to live my life to the fullest as I’m sure you all do too. We can’t stop and give up, there is so much more out there for us to experience and also our wisdom can be shared with others. That’s what keeps me blogging and continuing to share my life online with all of you!

Enjoy the rest of Lori’s beautiful home tour and then go to the bottom for the book giveaway! I know you all will enjoy reading Lori’s book, Say Yes to What’s Next. 

Isn’t Lori’s home absolutely stunning? I knew you all would love to see her home and to find out more about her and her new book that’s just been released.

I have 5 copies of the book, Say Yes to What’s Next and 5 of you will win. All you have to do is fill out the Rafflecopter widget below. If you can’t see it on mobile, you may have to do it from a laptop or desktop computer. Leave a comment here on this post, telling me what you are saying yes to at this time of your life? 

For me, it’s saying yes to more adventures and traveling with Mark. We are so looking forward to that more as our crazy year comes to a close and I hope next year will be better for traveling. We have so much we want to see and do together. How about you? What are you saying YES to next?

Fill in your name and email in the Rafflecopter Widget below and leave your comment on this post! I’ll choose 5 winners in a week! 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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