Meet Lizzet Reyes & Karen Cosme | Co-founders of Riant Soul Event Co.

We had the good fortune of connecting with Lizzet Reyes & Karen Cosme and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Lizzet Reyes & Karen Cosme, what led you to pursuing a creative path professionally?
Liz:

Growing up I was always the “artist” of the family. If it involved being creative, I was doing it! Drawing, painting cooking/baking, singing, interior designing my Barbie’s dream house. All through high school I dreamt of becoming a fashion designer, then in college I ended up focusing on art design and graduating with an emphasis in photography. I then married my high school sweetheart, became a young-ish mother and focused on raising babies…but I never stopped creating! I noticed whenever I wasn’t feeling like myself it was because I wasn’t making something. So I began designing signage and party goods for small businesses and events. At some point I realized how much I enjoyed not just being a part of events, but planning them from start to finish and decided “what the heck, let’s do it!

Karen:

I grew up in an artistic household. My whole family has always been musically inclined. Growing up around singers and instrument players I just naturally gravitated towards dance. However, I took our love of art and dance to new heights! As a young adult I began dancing professionally even going on tour as a background dancer for some big artists. As I got older, however, I realized the lifestyle of a professional dancer wasn’t what I pictured for myself and the rest of my future. So I put away my dancing shoes and started a family. I became a mother and a wife, but the urge to be artistic and create remained! It runs so deep in my soul that I began looking for other outlets, thus I realized, aside from my love of dance I had from a very young age always been drawn to interior design and decor. This admiration is what led me to follow a career in event planning, as it allows me to incorporate my passion for interior design and be as creative as my heart desires!

Alright, so for those in our community who might not be familiar with your business, can you tell us more?
Riant Soul was born from our mutual love of designing one-of-a-kind events. We both put our heart and soul into our work, truly committed in giving our clients their dream events and then some. We started our event planning businesses separately and when our paths crossed we began bringing each-other on board for one another’s projects. After regularly working on events together for months it just made sense to merge our companies into one. Our name holds a special place for both of us because it is a combination of our original, individual business names. What sets us apart from others is definitely our passion for mixing our individual styles – a maximalist and a minimalist – to create a perfectly balanced, modern and unique event. Nothing in life comes easy, especially when it comes to business. We are not only entrepreneurs, but wives and mothers as well. Balancing work and home life has been our biggest challenge, learning when to say no and leaning on our family for help when needed is what allows us to continue doing what we love and not lose our sanity!

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
Such a tough question, there is so much beauty to see and fun to be had in LA! We are both boba tea and coffee enthusiasts, so our itinerary would definitely include stops to our local favorite Boba Cha Cha who makes some of the best Thai Tea ever and Tortoni Caffe located in Sherman Oaks for a delicious latte accompanied by one of their Argentinian empanadas! All day trips would include: a day at the beach of course! Either Manhattan for it’s laid back surfer vibe or one of Malibu’s many beaches for their cliffside views and tide pools. Another must-do: a day at Griffith Park! Starting with a light brunch at the Trails Café (you must try their handmade apple pie and hand-pressed almond milk + coffee), followed by a hike up to the top of the Griffith Observatory, which boasts some of the best views of the city including a glimpse of the Hollywood sign.

We think it’s safe to say a trip to LA warrants an excursion to City Walk – an outdoor shopping mall adjacent to Universal Studios Hollywood – another touristy yet fun thing to experience as part of an Angeleno itinerary.

Late night calls for dinner at Kinnara Thai, our go-to Thai spot in Van Nuys, CA. It has an upscale vibe at an affordable cost. Not to mention you can pair your dinner with a nice glass of wine.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
It truly does take a village, and our village consists of our family! We each have our own husbands, children and parents that we’d like to dedicate our shoutout to. They are our motivation and our pillars of strength when doubt creeps in.

They hold down the “fort” when our business requires our full attention. They make us want to be not only great mothers, wives and daughters, but successful business woman.

Website: riantsoulevents.com

Instagram: @riantsoulevents

Facebook: Riant Soul Event Co.

Image Credits
Photographers: @lizzgalphotography @wanderingfreephotography @alyssahunterphoto @symboll