VALLENTYNE WEDDINGS

I love weddings with unique and handmade touches. Rory and Lindsey’s La Jolla Cove wedding was so cool and filled with creative elements that really reflected the personalities of this artistic couple. Both the bride and groom are architects and you could really see their creative side in all the elements they brought together. All the flowers were done by one of my favorite florists, Natasha Rivera of Classic Creations who was the perfect fit for their romantic and modern style. Here are some of my favorite photos from the day!

Today I wanted to write about something great I found on Etsy.com….. of course, there are a million great things about Etsy, but I also just love to support and purchase from independent artists who are making things by hand. I think it goes hand in hand with the “buy local” movement and love to support these hometown design stars. It is also very similar to buying prints from your local photographer rather than taking the disk to a large online company and supporting a corporation…. but that’s a whole other story!

The beautiful pieces I want to share with you today are from The Little White Dresser and they are so cute and original! I love that the pieces are versatile and can be worn in different ways too… a headband can just as easily become an adorable belt for your wedding dress. I also really love when brides wear a veil to the wedding ceremony and a headpiece, flower, or other modern accessory to the reception. It changes up the look with minimal effort and maximum style:)

The Little White Dresser is the creation of Avishag Kopelman. She’s 26 years old, a full time textile design student and in her spare time she loves to create, sew, knit, crochet, paint, print, etc… Avishag lives in Tel Aviv and the sea is her favorite neighbor, sounds like my kind of person!

Here are a few of my faves:)

I think I am actually going to buy this one myself to wear when I shoot weddings!

**The above images are courtesy of The Little White Dresser:)**

These super cute pieces remind me so much of one of my favorite weddings….. after this New York wedding I got SO MANY emails asking about the headband this bride was wearing…. and she made it herself! Here is my photo of her that was published in Modern Bride Magazine!

I love to shoot at Quail Gardens in Encinitas! Not only is it five minutes away from my house, but the tropical, and varied botanical gardens are a gorgeous setting for a wedding….. it hardly requires any decoration because it is already so lush! Here are some of my favorite images… I loved the fruit theme they used! Jesse’s grandparents used to own their own fruit, farm stand and shop… This is what inspired Arlene and Jesse to decorate the already tropical area with a variety of fruits on each table… I love unique and personal wedding themes like this one!

I am so, so excited that one of my favorite brides is going to be published in the new Southern Weddings Magazine…. and she got a full page! What an honor that Southern Weddings actually chose this photo for their own magazine ad! Here it is, on the newsstands today!

Congrats Bree! You are adorable!

I came across Joy Thigpen’s work a few weeks ago on Jose Villa’s blog and I was so incredibly impressed! I was impressed, not only with her work but also with a new trend in weddings that is emerging… the fact that a wedding styling business like Joy’s exists signifies to me that we are about to see some wonderful new ways for a wedding to be styled and designed.

Jose Villa’s blog post was filled with beautiful imagery (as usual!) of one of Jose’s recent engagement shoots. The shoot was styled to perfection and the couple was adorable. I was so excited to click on Joy’s name and find out that some of this styling was actually thanks to her! Take a look HERE to see this beautifully styled shoot! You see, my photography roots are actually in editorial photography. Some wedding photographers start as newspaper photojournalists, some as portrait photographers, and others go straight into weddings as their passion, but I started off at a magazine as an intern and learned on the way. One of my duties was to help plan editorial fashion shoots. I would help to hire models, obtain location permits, coordinate with clothing companies, and also storyboard the photo shoots so our objective was clear on the day of the shoot. Much of this creative process I still use today in my weddings!

The point of all this background is that I learned through editorial fashion shoots, that each piece of the shoot is integral! This might be a surprise…. but, it is not just the photographer that makes the shoot amazing! Each part of the shoot is so important and this includes the models (or the bride and groom!), the hair and make-up artist, the chosen location, and at the very top of that wish-list for me, an amazing stylist! A stylist coordinates and lays out all the details that make a shoot gorgeous, and they do it in a way that looks natural and pulled together.

So what does this mean for weddings? And even for engagement shoots? It doesn’t mean sacrificing your own sense of style for someone else’s! It means having a professional stylist available to make your wedding or engagement shoot look AMAZING with a style that is your personality. The stylist just helps you to translate this personality visually. If you decide that you want to hire someone like Joy, she will act as your art director and/or stylist for their wedding and/or engagement shoot.  Joy sits down with the couple and goes through her bank of images together or walks through their home or closet with them, and it can definitely work over the phone and via email, too.

I am so inspired by this new category of wedding vendor and really hope to someday work with Joy! Check out some of her work and inspiration boards HERE! And, here is one Joy was kind enough to share with us today!

Images courtesy of Joy Thigpen:)