Georgia Sprague knew from an early age exactly what she loved: weddings and event planning. In kindergarten at Beach Elementary School, she dressed up as a bride for Halloween. By age six, she had mapped out every single birthday party until her Sweet 16 in a journal. At seven, she planned a surprise party for her mom, delegating tasks like bringing milk and Zachary’s pizza to other family members (her first-ever “vendors,” as she likes to say).
These moments are among Sprague’s earliest memories of her budding interest in event design. At the time, she did not realize it could become her whole career. But now, she has turned this passion into her profession, founding her own business, Georgia Louise Events, and working as the lead planner.
“I’ve always wanted to be an event planner,” Sprague said. “It’s one of the earliest jobs I can remember saying I wanted to do when I grew up.”
However, Sprague said that event design always felt so “unattainable,” like a dream job that was just as out of reach as becoming a movie star.
Growing up, the only other career she was interested in pursuing was teaching, just like her mother, Jessica Sprague, who taught at Beach Elementary School for 23 years. Every summer, Sprague helped set up her classroom, realizing that she liked all the details that go into mapping out a school year more than the actual teaching.
“I had this epiphany when I was a little older that I didn’t really want to be a teacher, I just really wanted to set up a classroom,” Sprague said.
So, after years of planning out birthday parties and her dream wedding well in advance, Sprague decided to pursue this professionally. In 2023, she graduated from UC Davis with a degree in design, with a double concentration in graphic design and brand development, and began assisting luxury wedding planners while also working a full-time job. In October, the opportunity arose to start Georgia Louise Events when she was in between jobs.
Wedding planning brings together Sprague’s passions, she says, including creative design and detailed planning, and her fondness for hopeless romance. She tackles the job from her design and brand development background, thinking about guests’ first touchpoints to their last, making sure each one reflects the unique love between each couple.
“When I get couples that want to make each little moment special and representative of them, it makes my design heart happy and it also makes my hopeless romantic heart happy,” Sprague said.
One of the main challenges of wedding planning is bringing clients’ visions to life. When working with each couple, Sprague said she is always looking to figure out: “How do we accurately make your guests feel the love that you feel?” And through small details — like printing handwritten notes on napkins for a couple who loves to write them — she finds meaningful ways to make it happen.
“Giving the guests a peek into their relationship in a way that feels authentic is so special to me,” Sprague said.
Although Sprague has only worked in the wedding industry for a few years, it feels as if she has been prepping for this job for a long time — ever since she dressed as a bride for Halloween and helped set up her mom’s classroom at Beach.
“I’ve been planning for this business my whole life,” she said. “It’s something that comes pretty naturally to me, and it’s all fallen into place and picked up a bit faster than I had anticipated.”