a little more boudoir . . .

One of my beautiful brides recently came over for a wonderful little boudoir session, the photos of which will become a lovely little album for her groom's wedding day gift . . . I can't thank her enough for allowing me to blog these images! There isn't a man on earth, I don't think, who wouldn't enjoy seeing this beautiful face in an album all to himself . . .

engaged!

My eyes are heavy and my belly is full and I'm one tuckered out little chica, but it is the season of engagement shoots and they deserve to be shown! I have quite few couples this year who aren't able to commit to an engagement shoot, so I thought I'd gather a few of my past favorites to remind you how fun and beautiful these shoots can be . . . enjoy!

wedding trends: necklines

I love me a little fashion, and I love me a little wedding fashion . . . and I know it can be hard to get just right, so I enjoy sharing with you some of my favorite trends . . . :) And tonight's trend post is dedicated to the oh-so-indecisive world of wedding dress necklines . . .

I will admit first and foremost that I have always been a sucker for the strapless dress. I am a very less-is-more girl. I will almost always only wear one piece of jewelry at a time, usually big earrings, and my staple outfit is jeans, some sort of black shirt, and either heels if I am going out, or flats if just running about. That said, the strapless dress is classy, beautiful and always in style, and so many brides choose it as a timeless look. This past wedding season, however, I came upon a few dresses that were so breathtakingly beautiful for their beauty and originality, while still oozing timelessness.

The beautiful Jade . . . I loved the neckline - and the backline was identical :)



Stephanie's dress was ivory and beige, completely comfortable and light, and totally her. She paired it with purple heels :)



Danelle's dress was the most original I'd seen this past year, and it was incredibly beautiful on her. It paired perfectly with her gun-and-garter combo she did for her police officer hubby:)



And Nicole went for a complete vintage look, which was so beautiful it just sets the standard for such a classic look with a twist. Peacock feathers even accompanied the flowers!



Happy Monday and Happy Shopping!

are you there, Spring? It's me, Mo

You heard it here first . . . I am the queen of Seasonal Affective Disorder. At this point in the year, if the sun ain't a shinin', I ain't a smilin'. I thought Hawaii would have prevented this from happening again this year, but true to my form, I spend my days staring out the window, tapping the glass, being all Miss-Cranky-Pants and blaming it on the weather.

With that said . . . I am very, very excited for Spring! I hate the mud and I don't enjoy the rain unless my plan for that day was to stay home with a good pile of laundry to fold and a good book to read, but even when those things are present, the smell of the air and watching things come to life slowly is really quite amazing . . .

I am truly beyond excited about this year's wedding season, personal plans, and sunshine coming our way. This month brings a handful of boudoir shoots, an engagement shoot, and my first wedding of 2011, and next month brings Walla Walla wine tasting one weekend, and a short trip to New York to photograph the marriage of one of my childhood best friends the next. June sends me to Detroit for a wedding, and in the midst of Montana weddings the rest of the summer, Joe and I are taking the girls on vacation to the Oregon coast. And among my August weddings, I am traveling to Wyoming to photograph a welcome party and rehearsal dinner, working alongside the amazing talent of Fresh Designs.

What else do I have planned, you ask? Well, we are pretty boring people around here. I am hoping to plant a small garden, purchase a lovely patio set, and paint the laundry room. Joe is planning on completing all of our landscaping, installing some type of invisible fence, and grow his practice with some wonderful new advertising.

As for the Shorties, they'll be turning 6 and 4. They have a beautiful new cousin, Sophie, who we hope to go meet in Denver very, very soon. They'll begin soccer and swim lessons this summer, learn to load the dishwasher, and practice tying their shoelaces.

I have lots of wonderful blog posts planned this week, so stay with me. :) Happy Sunday!

happy spring!

Happy Spring, everyone! If you are anything like me, you are craving sunshine, popping Vitamin D pills, and seeking out a tanning bed to try and get into the summer spirit . . . I am getting very anxious for consistently milder weather! And the very first day of spring this year, we got a beautiful, warm day . . . mixed with a beautiful, warm young woman who is a cellist, and needed some portraits for a guest stint with the Bozeman Symphony. A short and sweet photo shoot is today's blog feature. : )

Andree and her cello . . .



I have said it before, and I'll say it again - I am a sucker for beautiful, natural light. I encourage my clients to be patient with me for an engagement or portrait session that can be photographed in an evening light such as this . . .





Genuinely and seriously sooooo beautiful!



When all is said and done, this is the type of photo Andree is looking for . . . but she was too beautiful to leave alone. :)



I LOVE shooting commercial portraits and helping people better display themselves, their personalities, businesses and main loves in life, so please don't hesitate to check in with me to schedule a shoot of your own.

Cheers!

tablescapes: fresh designs at the double t

In quite a drawn out little blog series, I am so happy to finally be able to share the tablescapes and flowers of Angela Klotz, my most beautiful friend and super mom to 10 puppies right now . . . :)

Angela and I will finally be able to work together this year, which I'm terribly excited for because her flowers are magical, take-your-breath-away, and they photograph so beautifully . . . and while she calls herself Fresh Designs, don't be too fooled. Her designs are amazingly fresh, but they are equally as timeless.

Our shoot at the Double T River Ranch , as I've blogged before here and here, was a collaboration of one amazing chef, two photographers, three event planners, and two floral designers. Angela showed two completely different themes, two tablescapes that either would be a dream to sit down to.



See? Another beautiful table I would happily sit at and sip a mojito with my girlfriends :)



Location, location, location!



I absolutely love that Angela can take the most simple, popular flower and turn it into a completely unexpected, beautiful design . . .





I don't think there is a bad square foot of land at the Double T, but this girl knows exactly where to place her masterpieces so that the people who come to them enjoy the background and the light that Mr. Sun is giving off . . . this was Angela's second tablescape, and it blew everyone away. She brought in box after box of antique plates, stemware, silverware and vases and coordinated perfect little vintage flower arrangements.





I loooove these old, antique keys Angela incorporated into this setting . . . at her own wedding last summer, she had guests write their well-wishes on little notecards that were tied to old keys, and then all put into an old glass jar. And now she has all the keys to a perfect marriage :)





So many girls want a wedding designer and dream of tables set this way inside their reception . . . and I say, if you think about attempting it yourself, think just as hard about reaching out. There is a reason they are so good at what they do . . . I am not even going to point out how many things on those tables that were purchased at Michael's or an Etsy store. It's that they take what you want, within your budget, not theirs, and make something this beautiful. And if you have no idea where to even begin, they will blow your mind away with their creativity.

A huge thank you to the Double T for having us once again!

tablescapes, the double t and the leslie lukas

A while back I blogged photos from our fabulous Assets Weekend at the Double T River Ranch in Clyde Park, Montana . . . and have had yet to blog the fabulous tablescapes of my two dear friends, floral designers and event planners. Each girl deserves their own blog post, and tonight is Leslie's turn because she's one year older than Angela :)

The most lovely Leslie Lukas . . . she created two beautiful tablescapes, one with bright, citrusy colors, and the other a more earthy, organic decor. I loved both for entirely different reasons . . .



I looooove the blue this year! Leslie created a darling centerpiece in this beautiful bowl. Here's what's nice about choosing a centerpiece such as this - you can gift it to a parent or grandparent or someone special attending your wedding . . .



We were all about the idea of eating dinner in the middle of the road :)



But we'd be just as happy to eat dinner in a field of tall grass :) You see, we just love a good meal . . .





Leslie has these lovely little wood flower holder/candle holder/doo hickey things made for her in Ennis, Montana, where she lives in a perfect little house on a hill. Here is why she is a wedding planner and I am not: I recently suggested to a client of ours that she should display them with taper candles at her outdoor reception tables. In Montana. Where it is quite windy. Leslie gracefully pointed out the struggle with keeping tapers lit in the wind . . . woops!



Something blue . . .



And my favorite of this setting . . .



We started a little late in the day and kinda sorta started running out of light, but I l.o.v.e.d Leslie's riverside table. I am a sucker for terra cotta pots and turqoise!





Bucket List: Fold a napkin this way!



One last piece of eye candy for you :)



Cheers!