Why I Created Unfiltered Retreats: Creating Space for Women to Simply Be
Updated: Oct 6
There are certain ideas that don’t arrive all at once. They start quietly— a thought here, a conversation there, a feeling that keeps coming back until eventually you realize it’s asking you to do something with it.
That’s a little bit how Unfiltered Retreats began. Looking back, though, I can see that the pieces were coming together long before I had a name for it.
It Has Always Been About Connection
At first glance, retreats may not seem like the most obvious extension of a boutique marketing agency. But when I look at the work I’ve done over the years, it actually feels like a very natural evolution.
Marketing has never been just about social media posts or advertising for me. It’s about understanding people, telling stories, creating experiences and finding meaningful ways to bring people together. Event planning has also been part of my work, and I’ve always loved taking an idea and thinking through all the details that turn it into an experience someone will remember.
When I created Lavender Lane Social Solutions, I wanted to build something personal. I’ve never been interested in cookie-cutter anything. I love creativity, storytelling, bringing ideas to life and, most of all, connecting with people.
Over time, I began feeling pulled toward another kind of connection: creating space for more honest conversations. That eventually became my podcast, Unfiltered with Love — a place where I talk about love, relationships, healing, growth, identity, vulnerability and all the messy, beautiful things that come with being human.
The podcast gave me a place for the conversations. But somewhere along the way, I started wondering: What would it look like to create the experience?
What if women could step away from the noise of everyday life for a little while? What if there were beautiful spaces where we could have meaningful conversations, try something new, laugh, rest, move our bodies, sit by the water, eat an incredible meal, connect with other women—or spend an afternoon doing absolutely nothing?
That question became the beginning of Unfiltered Retreats.
Faith, Growth and Finding My Way Back to Myself
My own journey has played a significant role in all of this. Like most people, my life has included seasons I never expected — change, loss, starting over, uncertainty, growth and a lot of questions along the way.
And through some of the most difficult and transformative parts of that journey, my relationship with God has been an anchor. There have been times when I couldn’t see where I was going or understand why certain things were happening. My faith didn’t always give me an immediate answer, but it reminded me that I wasn’t walking through any of it alone.
I’m also deeply drawn to wellness and spirituality. I’m a Reiki Master. I love yoga, meditation and those moments when something makes us stop and look at ourselves — or our lives — a little differently. Those things are naturally part of who I am, so they will sometimes find their way into the experiences I create.
But Unfiltered Retreats isn’t about telling anyone what she should believe. There is room here for faith. There is room for questions. There is room for your own beliefs, your own journey and your own way of connecting with something greater than yourself.
The point isn’t for everyone to experience these retreats in exactly the same way. The point is to create enough space for you to experience them your way.
You Are Not a Project That Needs to Be Fixed
This may be one of the most important things behind Unfiltered Retreats:
I believe you are already whole.
There is no shortage of messages telling women that we need to become better versions of ourselves. Be more productive. More disciplined. More successful. Healthier. Happier. Younger. Stronger. More enlightened. There’s always something else we’re supposedly supposed to fix.
I don’t want Unfiltered Retreats to be another place telling women that who they are when they arrive isn’t enough. You don’t need a retreat to fix you.
You don’t need to become someone new. Sometimes you simply need the space to remember who you already are — and find your way back to yourself.
Away from the noise, expectations, responsibilities and roles we carry every day, we can begin to hear ourselves again. To remember what we enjoy. To notice what we need. To reconnect with parts of ourselves that may have gotten a little quiet while we were busy taking care of everything— and everyone — else.
Sometimes we don’t need to become more. Sometimes we simply need to return to ourselves.
Wellness Can Include a Really Good Dinner
I love wellness. I also love beautiful hotels, incredible food, music, laughter, cocktails, sitting on the beach and having absolutely nowhere I need to be.
I see no reason to choose. 😉
Personal growth doesn’t always have to be heavy. Wellness doesn’t have to mean deprivation. And luxury doesn’t have to be superficial. Sometimes being cared for is part of the experience.
Sometimes connection happens during meditation. Sometimes it happens during an honest conversation. And sometimes it happens when you’re sitting around a table over an incredible dinner, laughing with women you didn’t know a few days earlier.
I want Unfiltered Retreats to have room for all of it: meaningful experiences and fun, reflection and laughter, movement and rest, connection with others and time completely to yourself.
A little depth. A little luxury. And plenty of real life.
Women's Retreats Don't Have to Look the Same
One of the things that excites me most about Unfiltered Retreats is that I don’t want to create the same retreat over and over again. Each experience will be thoughtfully curated around its own theme, setting and intention, with attention given to the details that make it feel personal rather than packaged.
I want you to feel cared for while you’re there. Not because every moment needs to be elaborate, but because every detail has been considered with intention — from the experiences and people I bring together to the setting, the meals, the little surprises and even the space I intentionally leave open for you.
I want to choose experiences because they belong there — not because they’re things a retreat is “supposed” to include. The facilitators, activities, surroundings and unscheduled moments should work together to create something that feels cohesive, thoughtful and special.
And while some Unfiltered Retreats may be luxurious in the traditional sense, luxury won’t always look the same. Sometimes it may mean a beautiful resort and an incredible dinner. Other times, it may mean waking up somewhere extraordinary, experiencing something you’ve never done before, or simply having an entire afternoon when no one needs anything from you.
What will remain consistent is the intention behind it. Every retreat will be thoughtfully created to feel special and personal — to give you the feeling that someone thought about the details so that, for a little while, you don’t have to.
The destinations may change. The themes will change. The people guiding the experiences will change. One retreat may lean more deeply into wellness and restoration. Another might explore creativity, relationships, spirituality, adventure, personal reflection — or something I haven’t even dreamed up yet.
Some may be quiet. Some may be playful. Some may challenge you to try something you’ve never done before. And some may simply give you permission to rest.
I want the freedom to keep creating, exploring and changing things up. But no matter where we go or what we explore, there will always be a common thread:
You.
Different places. Different themes. Different experiences. All centered on you.
The First Chapter: Return to Yourself
The inaugural Unfiltered Retreat is appropriately called Return to Yourself. It brings so much of this philosophy together in one experience: wellness, connection, beautiful surroundings, meaningful conversation, a touch of luxury — and something I intentionally protected when I began creating the weekend: space.
There will be experiences to participate in, but there will also be time when absolutely nothing is scheduled. Because I don’t want anyone leaving an Unfiltered Retreat feeling like she needs a vacation from her retreat.
I want women to have time to sit by the pool. Walk the beach. Book a spa treatment. Take a nap. Journal. Have lunch with someone they just met. Have a conversation they didn’t expect. Or change their minds and do absolutely nothing.
Return to Yourself is the first expression of Unfiltered Retreats. But it’s only the beginning.
Where We Go From Here
I don’t know exactly what every future Unfiltered Retreat will look like — and I don’t want to. Part of the beauty of creating something new is leaving room for it to evolve.
What I do know is how I want these experiences to feel: welcoming, beautiful, thoughtful and real.
A place where you can laugh, connect, explore, rest and perhaps hear yourself a little more clearly. A place where nobody is asking you to become someone else. A place where you are reminded that you were already whole when you walked through the door.
Because returning to yourself isn’t about finding some new and improved version of you.
It’s about creating enough space to remember who you already are — and to find your way back to her.
Welcome to Unfiltered Retreats.
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