Friday in the Afternoon

Since wedding season is right around the corner... Preview of bridal shoot starring Miss Alison and wonderful accessories from happenstance designs. More photos coming soon!

The Shattuck Plaza, mid-morning

Long, long ago, in a galaxy not so far away... there was a girl named Amanda who was brave enough to leave her hair in the hands of a hairstyling novice on the day of her wedding. Amanda dreamt of a Star Wars themed wedding where guests could dance the night away and sit together at tables named after Jaba's Palace and the planet Tatooine. Here are a couple of photos from Amanda's early morning adventures amid alien styling products before her intergalactic celebration.
My first bride daring enough to wear RED (and I mean, AR-EE-DEE) lipstick! So perfect. Can't wait to see more pictures, but I guess I'll have to until they get back from their honeymoon that is sure to be out of this world (well, at least out of this country)! Thanks for the before and after pictures Hazelle, and for being such a great assistant! You clean brushes like no other Jedi can!

The Organized Bride

Deanna the Great (and Nate)! Put an event planner in charge of her own wedding and you get quite the production. All of these amazing moments at the Piedmont Community Center in California were captured by the talented Amy Carr. Deanna kept her August wedding simple with navy suits and navy bridesmaid dresses. Pops of red roses brightened up the design but her amazing wedding party was what really kept things exciting.
The morning started out at the Claremont Hotel in Oakland complete with cheese, fruit and mimosas (among other treats). The air was fresh and the lighting was nice and bright. The atmosphere was so positive with moms, cousins and sister-in-laws-to-be sharing funny stories about the bride and groom.
We kept Deanna's look simple and classic. As a catering manager for California Rose Catering in Berkeley, she's around weddings all of the time. In spite of all the eclectic ideas she's surrounded by at work she went with a very traditional style for her own wedding. Deanna has witnessed the trendiness of the cupcake bar, the birdcage veils and signature cocktails, but at heart she's a traditional bride. Since she's a pearls and veil kind of gal I did my best to keep the look timeless with soft pinks, a structured eyeliner, soft lashes and lots and lots of blush since her wedding and reception were both outdoors.
I love Deanna's table settings. Instead of table numbers she handmade cross street signs in green, familiar to those of us living in the East Bay. And nothing was more sentimental than Deanna's dress, a reconstruction of the very dress her grandmother wore.
I'll end the post with something sweet- instead of the traditional wedding cake, a cutie pie with some tasty tarts!

Would You Workout Before Your Wedding?

They did! Denielle and Drew's black and white wedding took place at the Hotel DeAnza in Downtown San Jose on a sunny summer day. All these great moments were captured by Denielle's cousin, who does photography for LifeAsWeAre. Check them out! They specialize in the Wedding Movie Book and customize a great final piece, almost like a personal magazine of the wedding. Can you believe they worked out together before getting ready that morning? Now that's commitment. Her healthy lifestyle really paid off... you can tell how amazing her skin is in the pictures! Everything about her just glowed. We designed a really simple, classic look and used a half strip of lashes instead of a full set. They were subtle but still brightened and lifted the eyes. A touch of shimmer rolled on with a fluffy brush lit up the tops of her cheekbones. Denielle had great angles on her face and an amazing smile. I had so much fun working with her! I love the little corset holding the lilies together. And look at Denielle with her cutie pies!
Congratulations! These parents of twin boys are a real classy pair. Denielle looked amazing and really inspired me to get back into shape and drink lots of water. She really is a super momma and a stunning bride!

Shout out to Denielle's bridesmaid Diem who has started her own catering company. A wonderful chef who has worked at Le Colonial in the city, Diem is a really organized, sweet little lady who can cook you up some tasty eats! Contact Diem for all your catering needs and visit her website to see her super cute logo!

So we met in a bar...

... no really, we did! Actually, it was the restaurant/bar where I worked as a waitress. It's been exactly two years since we first met and we've been inseparable ever since. What better way to celebrate than with a little photo shoot? My good friend Clarice of Happenstance Designs helped to style me since I had no idea what to wear. Thanks Claire for all the beautiful accessories!
I also wanted to do this as practice to see exactly how much make-up I would need in photos. Who knew that my skin would photograph so pale, especially in outdoor lighting? If I had to do it all over again, I would have used more blush and bronzer to create more dimension on myself, since I have very round cheeks! I would have also added thicker eyeliner for more frame on the eyes. I've found that it's much easier to do make-up on others where I can step back and look to see if more or less is needed. In spite of my lack of coloring, I was really happy with how all the pictures turned out. It was fun to wear lashes and play dress up for a bit.
Hope you enjoy some of the fun moments we had while shooting with Paul Bothwell. He's awesome! I love the splashes of blues he captured. Kevin and I have a fun life together and Paul helped us convey that in our photos. Thanks to Kevin for being such a good sport and keeping me smiling throughout the two hour long shoot (and every single day too!).