Next in our Creative Chat series, we are featuring Hazen & Co. founder and owner Taylor Turner. We collaborated with Taylor last spring when we launched our Chinoiserie Garden Collection, which features art by Shanna Masters that Taylor originally commissioned for her wedding paper. As part of the collaboration, Hazen & Co. created a beautiful coordinating bracelet set inspired by the artwork in the collection. Be on the lookout for a future Real Weddings post highlighting Taylor’s stunning 2019 wedding along with her vision for Shanna Master’s romantic garden scene art. In the meantime, we enjoyed catching up with Taylor to see how she stayed busy riding out the stay-at-home orders in her hometown of Dallas. We are thrilled to hear that her beautiful flagship Hazen & Co. store has been able to reopen its doors as some of the non-essential business bans are being lifted! Continue reading for our Q&A with Taylor below.
What is currently inspiring you?
I find myself currently really inspired by beautiful tabletop pieces and tablescapes. From the flatware to fine china, the flowers to the linens, I’m having so much fun playing with color and texture on the table.
What is one positive to being at home for you during this time?
My newfound love for tabletop has spilled over into more meals around the table for the Turner family. This has been a great joy as it creates a time and place for us to enjoy a meal together and share in meaningful conversation in a beautifully and thoughtfully prepared place.
How are you practicing:
Creativity? At Hazen & Co. we’re striving to be more creative than ever. From our approach to meeting people where they are, to our messaging, to our product mix, we are doing our best to thoughtfully and creatively address every element of the retail equation. This comes by way of many virtual “roundtable” meetings and team text brainstorms!
Kindness (towards yourself and others)? Fresh flowers are my extra little treat these days! They provide an instantaneous reminder of the beauty and hope in each and every day! In an attempt to love others well, I’m doing my best to call and check in with people. It’s not in my nature to just pick up the phone to call people, but these days, I think it’s so helpful to have people with whom we can engage in meaningful, vulnerable conversation. I’m confident this will be a life-long endeavor for me, so this season has been a sweet opportunity to dive in head fist.
Discipline (your work, your health, your routines)? Over the course of this season, I’ve confirmed that putting on “real” clothes with jewelry, makeup and all is a game changer. It makes you want to be your best self! I’ve also tried to get outside. Dallas’ spring has been exquisite (such a gift!), so I’ve been intentional about enjoying time outside, be that working from the patio or going for a quick walk around the block after dinner. From the beginning, I was determined to have positive habits come out of this season, and while I can’t quite call them habits, I have certainly learned the value of these two things.
Name one item in your home that is bringing you joy or that has new meaning in this time? The Adirondack chairs in our front yard have brought such unexpected joy! With the days lighter longer, we find ourselves sitting outside after dinner where we often run into our sweet and fun neighbors who are on walks. Having that interaction (from 6 feet apart) has brought a sense of community during this time for which I’m incredibly grateful. I’ve also worked from our Adirondack chairs quite a bit, and they’ve been so unexpectedly conducive to getting things done!
We’re seeing a surge in physical correspondence as there is always something special about receiving a hand-written note and people now have more time. If you were to send a physical note to three of your Instagram friends, who would they be?
@TaelorFisherFineArt, @SaraFayEganEvents, and @CaitlinWilsonDesign. Each of these amazing three ladies is a dear friend who I have missed seeing during this season. Not only are they personally precious friends, but they have been the most kind, supportive role models for me and Hazen. I’m confident there are no words that can accurately describe my gratitude for them, but a hand-written note would be a good place to start!
What are three of your favorite items or patterns currently on Dixie’s website?
The Chinoiserie Garden Collection, of course!
also the Garden Tea Collection by Inslee Fariss
and the India Block Print Collection by Gina Langford
