Lily and Jeff
This year I have had exactly zero amount of hours to blog anything. I didn't even look at the last blog I posted before this but I'm 90% sure it was something from the winter time... last winter... or maybe even the one before that. My goals for myself this year were to blog more because I LOOOOVVVEEEE my couples and I love making pretty things. Nonetheless, I also love being a Mom and little man has shifted my main focus of my waking hours. Actually he's shifted my sleeping hours by giving me horrific dreams every now any again but I hear that's just part of Mom life... yay Mom life!
This year I have also made a lot of friends through a lot of shoots. One of my other goals was to get out there and meet as many people in the industry as I could because who doesn't like showing up someplace and seeing a familiar face?! This goalI stuck to. I jumped at every opportune that came my way. It was incredibly overwhelming and the Mom guilt was real but I know I needed - as a basic human instinct - to keep some semblance of my pre-Mom life and I also know I have a business to run. So why not combine the two? Incase you haven't caught on by now, I love what I do and 9 out of 10 times it gives me life!
A few years ago I met Susan Padron who is an amazing personal stylist. I'm not even kidding you when I say that when this woman walks out of her house she is just flawless. I bet she's even flawless in her own home whereas I am sitting here in maternity sweatpants, a drool and snot covered tank top, and a sweater that could home a small village. I've told her numerous times that I consider my sense of style as "homeless chic". Susan however has been a huge part of some shoots I've been on throughout this year by providing some amazing pieces and this shoot was no different! What started as a trade ended up being one of my most favorite shoots of the year because I was (semi) in control! I've seen enough weddings this year to know that I wanted to go someplace I've not yet seen pictures be taken.
I have also had the pleasure of meeting the wonderful and super amazing Emily Dimant. When I say this girl knows how to beat a face, I mean it! Emily has this ability to keep the natural beauty of her clients while working her sorcery to get them photo ready. My favorite thing about Emily is that her clients don't walk of her studio looking like they smashed a cake into their face. Emily reached out to me and fueled this whole thing by taking on an assistant who needed headshots. Naturally a trade was created and it took off from there!
The last factor I was missing after I booked Lily and Jeff to model was florals. I was undecided as to whether or not I wanted to incorporate them because I knew we would be wandering around the city and it's also a lot to ask for in the middle of wedding season. Luckily for me, Bridget of B's Events and Florals showed up! You know the best thing of having a florist near your home town?! She drops me off wedding leftovers and I LOVE it. I currently have the bouquet she made for this shoot broken up into different vases and the succulents in a window to try to propagate themselves. Wouldn't it be fun if they did and I could gift them back to her?! The reality is that I will kill them, but for now... I can pretend!
So who did I find as a couple? I was so focused on what I wanted everything to look like that I knew I had to find a women who would slay in my dress and I wanted a married couple. a lot of times when I want a real couple I usually end up settling on something or another albeit date, location, time, personalities, etc. This was not the case with Lily and Jeff! While I had never met them before today, we have crossed paths with many of the same vendors so it was almost like it was meant to be. On top of that... there was no settling! They were giggly and in love which is exactly what I was looking for. They are so warm as people in general you can't even tell that the wind was gusty and the weather was chilly. While Susan and I ran around the city behind them in our jackets, they were nothing but willing to shed their layers to create magic with me.
Ok, Ok... enough of my ramblings, lets get to the good stuff! But before I do I need to shoutout Lovely Bride, Philly for lending us this beautiful Sarah Seven gown, and Sticks and Stones for their perfect addition of edgy yet sophisticated jewelry!
Okay I lied… I’m not finished rambling. I swear I tired… a little… okay not really. I need to share with you all my goals. It is a rarity that you get to do something in Philadelphia that hasn't been done already. Or even hasn't been done 300 times. I wanted to do something different than I have been doing all year and maybe even different then most people would think of. Never in my life do I think I would be able to convince a couple to walk across the Ben Franklin Bridge with me in their wedding attire but ya'll.... look at these! This is why I wanted to so badly! You know when your driving and think that would be a fun place for pictures but then your smacked back to reality? The thoughts of Well maybe we can pay an upper to drop s in the middle. It doesn’t look too hard to climb up that ladder. Is that even legal? You can do anything you want until you get yelled at for it. Ugh… fair enough reality, I guess I’ll keep this as a pipe dream. Not today! I did it! I reached my goal and I'm so in love with everyone who trecked out her with me to make this happen! <3
