The Modern Boutonniere

Buttoneer, bootawnear, boutonier...??? Ok, I was never THAT bad at spelling the dang thing, but I never got it right on the first attempt!

Since being asked to photograph 2 weddings(so far!) this summer I have been a flurry of excitement! We only got married just over 3 1/2 years ago, but so many things in the wedding world have changed! For the better I might add... And I'm catching myself doing a little too much research on the whole wedding topic. "Hey babe, can we have another wedding? Maybe we should renew our vows every 5 years or so!" Yep. I'd love to do that. (it'll never happen.) I can hear him cringing in the next room!

Boutonnieres for example: They used to just be flowers; maybe a little greenery added in and a touch of ribbon. Nowadays you'll see grooms and their boys sporting feathers, wire spirals, even buttons! And I LOVE it! It adds so much personality and authenticity to the whole day!

I think brides need to branch out and look at the different options. And guess what? The more modern boutonniere can easily be cheaper than your traditional flower one! Bonus!

Here's a few pictures of The Modern Boutonniere:

The boutonniere on the bottom left has to be my favourite of the bunch. I love the simplicity and elegance of it. The copper spiraled wire makes it that much more!

Hope this helps you brides out there who are wanting to put a modern twist to your special day!

Photos courtesy of Etsy.com

Relief is...

Tuesday, March 23rd. 4:27am - wake up with horrendous sore throat. ugh.

5am - Matt's alarm.

5:09am - alarm(he hit 'snooze')

5:18 - "

5:27 - "

5:30am - my alarm - outta bed...COFFEE!

That's pretty much our daily wake-up schedule. Why not just set the alarm for 5:30am you ask? I dunno...ask Matty! Anyways, waking up with a sore scratchy throat is never fun. And since I'm trying to get better @ this whole blogging thing, writing more than one a month, I though you might like to see my days menu! {insert sarcasm here} On to it then...

My relief is:

this goodness...

mmm...Echinacea tea...gotta add honey though!

of course.

people always make a fuss about Buckley's. it's not that big of a deal! c'mon!

Vitamin C. goes without explanation.

yup. Halls. a staple for coughs.

So that's that. My goal is to try and get a blog up every other day...let's see how it goes! Until next time...~C

Sneak Peek!! - Mallory Jean - Portraits

.....stay tuned for more!!

Cute Couple Questionnaire

I snagged this couple's questionnaire from a fellow photographers blog http://addilayphotography.blogspot.com/ Thanks!

It's such a cute way to share about Matt and I!

♥ What are your middle names? Emma and Trevor
♥ How long have you been together? in total?...6 years. wow!
♥ How long did you know each other before you started dating? 4 years...kind of.
♥ Who asked who out? I think it was a mutual thing...but I(Claire) am pretty sure I asked the question.
♥ Whose siblings do you see the most? umm...we see one of Matt's brothers every now and then. Used to see his little sis a lot, but she's in Mississippi now. :(
♥ Do you have any children? No, no kids yet... jeez, why does everyone keep asking that!? one day.
♥ What about pets? well, does a Japanese fighting fish count?? her name is Luna, she's mostly blue with some red colouring. Matt got her for me right after we got married. We can't have a dog where we live, but like children...one day!
♥ Which situation is the hardest on you as a couple? money.
♥ Did you go to the same school? no. Matt was home-schooled for most of his schooling life in Langley. I went to public school in Northern Ireland and then in the Okanagan, BC.
♥ Are you from the same home town? No...I was born & raised in Belfast, Northern Ireland, until I was 8. Then my family moved to the Okanagan. Matt was born & raised in the Lower Mainland. I moved here when we got engaged.
♥ Who is the smartest? hmmmm...I think it depends on what the subject is. But Matty's very knowledgeable!
♥ Who is the most sensitive? Me! I will cry about anything...that's how I deal.
♥ Where do you eat out most as a couple? SUSHI!!!
♥ Who has the craziest ex? I think that's a tie...but if we had to pick...hmm. ???
♥ Who has the worst temper? Matt.
♥ Who does the cooking? Me. Occasionally Matt will. But it's me.
♥ Who is more social? Matt. I tend to be quiet until you get to know me.
♥ Who is the neat-freak? unfortunately, neither of us.
♥ Who is the more stubborn? hmmm...I think that's a tie
♥ Who hogs the bed? Matt. I am constantly waking up pulling the blankets back over to my side, or shoving his elbow out of my face!
♥ Who wakes up earlier? We both get up when the alarm goes off @ 5am. yes...5am! After hitting the snooze button 7 times though!
♥ Where was your first date? Our very first date.....hmm...I honestly can't remember! It was either the little Greek place in Princeton during a summer @ camp, or ABC restaurant in Langley.
♥ Who has the bigger family? Immediate family or extended? Immediate - Matt. He has 2 older brothers and a younger sister. Me, I have my baby brother. But if we're talking extended family, then i take the prize on THAT one!
♥ Do you get flowers often? mmm...no, but I'd much rather have a pair of shoes, or a shirt or something instead! hint hint!
♥ How do you spend the holidays? We never really know. It gets decided before Thanksgiving. This year, we're going to my mum's for Christmas dinner though.
♥ Who is more jealous? Me. But I try to hide it...not well.
♥ How long did it take to get serious? Not too long. We had both been in rough relationships previous to our getting together, so we were both just waiting for God to send along the right person. And it just happened to be perfect timing!
♥ Who eats more? Also, sadly, debatable.
♥ Who does/did the laundry? We do it together...pause for the "awwwwwww!". yep. we take it to the laundromat!
♥ Who’s better with the computer? Definitely Matty.
♥ Who drives when you are together? Always Brandon. I think he lacks faith in my driving! Maybe that's because I don't have a license! :P

But What Will I Wear?!?

Suggestions on what to wear to your Engagement Shoot:

~ Wear something you are comfortable in. If you're not comfortable, it will show in the photos. 2-3 outfit options/changes are best; they give variety and a selection if you change your mind at the last minute and want a different look.

~ Think about layering clothing. With the unpredictable weather we get here in Vancouver, you never really know what's going to happen!

~ It's best not to wear very tight clothing that will restrict your movement in any way. We usually walk to different locations & may have you sitting on grass, laying down, hopping over rocks, etc. Practice moving around in your clothing before making the selection.

~ Wear something you love and make sure it's YOU! Try not to wear something you are going to wish you hadn't worn in a few weeks when looking back at the photos.

~ A bit dressier than normal can be flirty & fun, but make sure it's still you! All about you baby!

~ Wear clothes that are complementary in style & colour. But don't be too "matchy". For example, you could both wear 'spring' colours or different shades of blue.

~ Wear clothes that have the same level of "dressy-ness". Don't dress up and have your fiance wear their everyday jeans and tshirt.

~ Have clothes match the location and season of the shoot. If you aren't comfortable it will show in your pictures. Don't wear shorts and sandals if it's a Fall/Winter shoot, or a thick sweater and jacket for a Spring/Summer shoot.

~ Large patterns/florals/stripes/etc are a No-No. The backgrounds of photographs generally have a lot of texture and colour, so patterns etc will make the shot too busy.

~ Wear shoes you love, and that you can comfortably walk in. Bring along flip-flops to walk in if you want to change into stilettos etc for the actual picture taking.

~ Jewel-tone, solid colours are best! Along with neutral colours. For example, ladies could wear a bright coloured top or dress while men wear dark-wash jeans and a neutral button-down top. My fave picks for ladies - bright yellow, jewel-tone greens, purples, blues, and pinks! They give that pop of colour and look amazing in photos! Men - complement your gal by choocing a nice solid colour top in a complementary shade like dark blue/navy, browns, black etc.

~ Have a dressier clothing option as well as a casual one. Examples: Dressy - ladies in a bright spring dress, men in jeans and a button down shirt or light-knit sweater. Casual - both in jeans with complementary white/light coloured tops.

Other things to remember:

~ Leave your purse/bag behind. We can carry keys, small wallets, and a few necessities in our camera bags. Exception if you are bringing along extra outfit options where we will be walking to locations.

~ Feel free to bring your dog(s) along on the photo shoot - we LOVE dogs! But please have a friend come along to watch him/her while we are taking other shots.

~ Plan on having a good time. Think of it more as a date, and less of smiling at the camera. Natural smiles are different than forced smiles...and we want to see you glowing!

~ If there is something you want us to avoid photographing, it helps if you let us know in advance. That way we can work with you to keep the scar/tattoo/etc out of the pictures.

~ Ladies - please do not use the Engagement Session as your "trial run" for your wedding up-do!! Keep your hair casual, easy and romantic. The less fuss the better. There may be some wind(you never know in Vancouver!) and all that hard work making your "do" perfectly set can all be blown to the wind. (pun intended!)

One last thing:.......I promise!

~ Please, please, please...feel free to let us know of any poses you would like to incorporate into the shoot. We love getting suggestions from our clients! A little "foot pop" during a kiss? I think so! Definitely! Bring.It.On!

Over and Out

Claire

Kylie & Steve - White Rock Couples Shoot

Kylie & I met @ Camp Tulahead, I can't remember if it was 2003, 2004, 2005.....hmm. Well, it was YEARS ago! She was a counsellor and her camp name was Flower. After spending weeks upon weeks together, we never really kept in contact over the years, that is until Facebook emerged in the world. After sending out a Facebook plea, looking for models to put in front of our camera, Kylie came forward and offered her beautiful face! She married Steve a couple years ago, and these two are too cute for words! We headed to White Rock for some sun-shiny beachy photos. Thanks for helping us out guys!