This past January I had the pleasure of working with some great wedding professionals to put on my very first styled shoot in Virginia! Organizing a styled shoot, like planning a wedding, can be a lot of work at times. But they are also a lot of fun! We had the privilege to have our shoot published in Bellissima Bride Magazine and the Inspired Bride Blog, which we are very proud of! Below are some of my favorite pictures and comments from the shoot.

Our model Sara Simpkin was the Photographer, Kaytlin McCoy's sister. She volunteered her and her husband to pose and smile in the freezing cold for us. But we got lucky because, just look at her! She is drop dead gorgeous and was such a good sport through the whole thing. And we had amazing hair and makeup artists to bring this look to life. Holly Wells gave her the perfect red lip (which Sara was really nervous about) and Shanna Smith gave her loose curls to compliment the floral crown.

Fun fact about this cake. We were suppose to have donuts, not a cake for the shoot. But the vendor providing the donuts had to go to a last minute funeral on the day of the shoot. So I had to scramble to find a replacement option. That is when Sarah Blanchard at Fresh Baked Bakery saved the day with this cake! She was making it for me for a completely different shoot. But we decided to use it for this one. But it originally didn't go with our theme at all. So we had to make some small adjustments to make sure it all flowed together. And I think this cake made the shoot so much more unique!

These plates and silverware hold a special place in my heart because they belonged to my grandparents. My great grandparents gave this set to my grandparents as a wedding gift and my grandpa passed it down to me at my wedding. And they added such a fun pop of color to the table! And how cool are those succulents as a place card holder?

This gorgeous farm table and the other vintage pieces we used were donated to us for the shoot from Hanna Kappes at Shabby Love. Fun fact about this table: it weighs a billion pounds. Myself, Liz McNeil, and Kaytlin McCoy (the two photographers) showed up to the store to pick up the furniture thinking the three of us would have no problem picking them up. Ha! Were we wrong! We quickly had to call in the help of 3 strong men (our husbands) to maneuver the massive thing out the door!

Turns out burgundy flowers can be hard to come by in January. But the florist, Mary Jo at Gloriosa got her hands on all the burgundy flowers available in Roanoke and put these beautiful arrangements together for us. This part was fun for me because I was able to assist putting the flowers together and was given some loose flowers from the florist to add some finishing touches on site. The florist also provided some decor pieces like the taper candle holders, the pillar candle stands and napkins to help us complete the look we were going for.

The great thing about this photo and the whole shoot in general is this couple is a real married couple. And their love for each other was so real and overwhelming in every shot! Another fun fact about this photo: I brought my personal bottle of wine to fill glasses for the shoot but didn't realize how little was left in the bottle... So instead of filling all the glasses on the table, we just did a fun toasting shot. The key to styled shoots and this business in general is improvising!

This shot was one I envisioned long before the shoot began. I wanted to create a dreamy romantic atmosphere among the trees. And using Gloriosa's pillar stands to elevate my candles gave it the perfect look.

These photos are the printed copy of our published work in Bellissima Bride Magazine. You have no idea how excited I was when I received this in the mail!

This shoot was actually suppose to take place the month before. But because of weather, we had to push it back to January. Because of the change of the date, I had to make a lot of adjustments last minute to make sure it all came together how it was suppose to. But in the end, I think it came together better than I expected. It is so fun having a vision and seeing it come to life.

These are the vendors that contributed to this shoot:

Photographer: Kaytlin Lane Photography www.kaytlinlanephotography.com
Second Shooter: Liz McNeil
Models: Sara & Cody Simpkins
Event Design & Coordination: Garden Rose Events & Design www.gardenroseevents.com
Flowers & Rentals: Flowers by Gloriosa www.flowersbygloriosa.com
Vintage Furniture: Shabby Love www.shabbylovevintage.com
Cake: Fresh Baked Bakery www.freshbakedva.com
Makeup: Holly Wells www.hollywoodlimelight.com
Hair: Shanna Smith @stylesbyshanna
Hand Lettering: Sara Simpkins
Venue: Hamill Christmas Tree Farm
Photography Shadow: Kendall Hulbert Photography @kendallhulbertphotography