January 24, 2012

Personal | Favorites

So… I had this grand idea to blog the office reveal today, since the floors are 99% done and I finally got my chairs back from the upholsterer. But I ended up shooting a newborn in my office last night (meaning everything got moved around) and I decided last week to finally order a giant canvas to hang over the sofa…. so I’m cleaning up & hanging new goods before I blog  it 🙂 Instead I’ll chat about some of my favorite makeup things. I’m a girl who likes to sleep as late as possible, therefore I need a fast routine in the morning. I work a lot of long days and need my makeup to last as long as possible without wearing it too heavy. Here are a few of my favorite items to help it last! 1. Ulta Makeup Primer This is for all over your face…. just like you prime before painting, prime before applying your makeup too! I put this on after a little moisturizer, and before foundation. 2. Benefit F Y… Eye! This is primer made especially for your eyelids. I don’t wear a lot of eyeshadow (although I’m trying to more!), but I hate it when I put it on and it proceeds to crease…. this product will keep your shadow from creasing. Just put a little on your fingertip and smooth it over your lid, keep your eyes closed for a few seconds to let it set and then apply your shadow!. The last thing isn’t anything “necessary” and certainly isn’t part of my morning routine…. but I have a small obsession with Essie nail polish! I love the colors, and it seems to last a lot longer than other brands I’ve tried. The only drawback is it takes FOREVER to completely dry. It will seem dry after a few moments, but if you rub it, you’ll have a mess. So you need a time where you can sit still… I like to do it right before I go to sleep, this way I can position myself with my hands out of the covers and fall asleep while they dry.   What are your favorite products??
January 19, 2012

Wedding | Heather & Graham

  The Friday after Christmas Jeremy and I made our way to Fort Mill’s Magnolia Room for Heather & Graham’s “wedding” and I say “wedding” because they were actually married back in the spring at the UNCC garden because Graham’s deployment date was moved up. I love these next two… my view is on the left & Jeremy’s is on the right 🙂 One of the funniest things about this party…. the cardboard cutout of the groom…. Graham’s best friend was married while Graham was deployed, so they had a cutout made of him to be a “groomsmen” in the wedding! Cardboard Graham was quite the hit at their own reception.   Venue: Magnolia Room Cake: Cake Lady Jill DJ: Sean McGee Florist & Caterer: Sandy Deese Makeup: Shane McCaleb Dress: New York Bride & Groom (Allure) Shoes: Badgley Mischka Tuxes: Mens Warehouse
January 18, 2012

Class | Camera 101

  Did you receive a DSLR for Christmas? Or maybe you’ve had it a while….. do you always use it on “P” or an “Auto” function??? Did you know that by using it this way, your camera is making ALL the decisions for you? Do the terms ISO, shutter speed, f-stops, focus, and light meter scare you?? One of my biggest pet peeves is seeing people use their high dollar cameras on auto (we see this at EVERY wedding we shoot!!). You can get much better photographs just by learning about what different settings do and how to manipulate them. We will also touch on lighting, what’s good, bad and ugly! I happen to be a Nikon & Minolta (now Sony) shooter, but Dana MacKay will be with us part of the day to help out with those of you who shoot Canon!   So here’s the info! Where: My office in downtown Davidson When: March 31st, 10AM-4PM Perks: Lunch provided & a goody bag 🙂 Price: $125 Who: Limited to 6 people!   You’ll need to have a DSLR camera, at least 1 lens, a memory card & charged battery because we’ll be practicing our skills 🙂 Once you have signed up, you will receive a questionnaire to complete. Wanna come???? Sign up here!  
January 17, 2012

Personal | Cruise Vacation

Back in December Jeremy & I took off on a little long weekend to board a ship in Florida and head for the Bahamas! We needed a get-a-way after a very busy wedding season, and thought this was the perfect way to do it. There were 2 stops planned, Nassau and CoCo Cay…. we didn’t get to get off at CoCo Cay due to really rough waters (their isn’t a port there, so tender boats have to come get you off the ship). We had a wonderful time exploring Nassau, though. We decided to walk through some of the less touristy parts of town, and ended up seeing a massive funeral….. not what we thought we’d see! Unfortunately I didn’t take as many photos as I’d hoped, but here are a few 🙂   These first 2 are from the Cape Canaveral Sea Shore, Playa Linda. We’d LOVE to go back to Nassau to shoot a wedding 🙂
January 24, 2012

Personal | Favorites

So… I had this grand idea to blog the office reveal today, since the floors are 99% done and I finally got my chairs back from the upholsterer. But I ended up shooting a newborn in my office last night (meaning everything got moved around) and I decided last week to finally order a giant canvas to hang over the sofa…. so I’m cleaning up & hanging new goods before I blog  it 🙂 Instead I’ll chat about some of my favorite makeup things. I’m a girl who likes to sleep as late as possible, therefore I need a fast routine in the morning. I work a lot of long days and need my makeup to last as long as possible without wearing it too heavy. Here are a few of my favorite items to help it last! 1. Ulta Makeup Primer This is for all over your face…. just like you prime before painting, prime before applying your makeup too! I put this on after a little moisturizer, and before foundation. 2. Benefit F Y… Eye! This is primer made especially for your eyelids. I don’t wear a lot of eyeshadow (although I’m trying to more!), but I hate it when I put it on and it proceeds to crease…. this product will keep your shadow from creasing. Just put a little on your fingertip and smooth it over your lid, keep your eyes closed for a few seconds to let it set and then apply your shadow!. The last thing isn’t anything “necessary” and certainly isn’t part of my morning routine…. but I have a small obsession with Essie nail polish! I love the colors, and it seems to last a lot longer than other brands I’ve tried. The only drawback is it takes FOREVER to completely dry. It will seem dry after a few moments, but if you rub it, you’ll have a mess. So you need a time where you can sit still… I like to do it right before I go to sleep, this way I can position myself with my hands out of the covers and fall asleep while they dry.   What are your favorite products??
January 19, 2012

Wedding | Heather & Graham

  The Friday after Christmas Jeremy and I made our way to Fort Mill’s Magnolia Room for Heather & Graham’s “wedding” and I say “wedding” because they were actually married back in the spring at the UNCC garden because Graham’s deployment date was moved up. I love these next two… my view is on the left & Jeremy’s is on the right 🙂 One of the funniest things about this party…. the cardboard cutout of the groom…. Graham’s best friend was married while Graham was deployed, so they had a cutout made of him to be a “groomsmen” in the wedding! Cardboard Graham was quite the hit at their own reception.   Venue: Magnolia Room Cake: Cake Lady Jill DJ: Sean McGee Florist & Caterer: Sandy Deese Makeup: Shane McCaleb Dress: New York Bride & Groom (Allure) Shoes: Badgley Mischka Tuxes: Mens Warehouse
January 18, 2012

Class | Camera 101

  Did you receive a DSLR for Christmas? Or maybe you’ve had it a while….. do you always use it on “P” or an “Auto” function??? Did you know that by using it this way, your camera is making ALL the decisions for you? Do the terms ISO, shutter speed, f-stops, focus, and light meter scare you?? One of my biggest pet peeves is seeing people use their high dollar cameras on auto (we see this at EVERY wedding we shoot!!). You can get much better photographs just by learning about what different settings do and how to manipulate them. We will also touch on lighting, what’s good, bad and ugly! I happen to be a Nikon & Minolta (now Sony) shooter, but Dana MacKay will be with us part of the day to help out with those of you who shoot Canon!   So here’s the info! Where: My office in downtown Davidson When: March 31st, 10AM-4PM Perks: Lunch provided & a goody bag 🙂 Price: $125 Who: Limited to 6 people!   You’ll need to have a DSLR camera, at least 1 lens, a memory card & charged battery because we’ll be practicing our skills 🙂 Once you have signed up, you will receive a questionnaire to complete. Wanna come???? Sign up here!  
January 17, 2012

Personal | Cruise Vacation

Back in December Jeremy & I took off on a little long weekend to board a ship in Florida and head for the Bahamas! We needed a get-a-way after a very busy wedding season, and thought this was the perfect way to do it. There were 2 stops planned, Nassau and CoCo Cay…. we didn’t get to get off at CoCo Cay due to really rough waters (their isn’t a port there, so tender boats have to come get you off the ship). We had a wonderful time exploring Nassau, though. We decided to walk through some of the less touristy parts of town, and ended up seeing a massive funeral….. not what we thought we’d see! Unfortunately I didn’t take as many photos as I’d hoped, but here are a few 🙂   These first 2 are from the Cape Canaveral Sea Shore, Playa Linda. We’d LOVE to go back to Nassau to shoot a wedding 🙂