Hanson {30 Before 30}

Yep, that Hanson. You know the one, "MMMBOP," that's totally my jam. So it has been my dream for years to see them and this year they're going on tour! FINALLY! My best friend and I got tickets to go see them in Maryland in September since that's the closest that they come to us. So I won't get to actually see them before my birthday, but I have taken the necessary steps so it still counts. I am so excited about seeing them for real, it's a dream come true. I know you're either dying laughing at me, or you're crying jealous. Don't worry, I'll be sure to take lots of pictures.

Yardsale {30 Before 30}

Guys, yardsales are so hard. We have been gathering up stuff for the last year - yes, literally a year - to sell in a yardsale. It was floor to ceiling in our basement and I'm talking furniture, clothes, books, art, plates, antiques...you name it, we probably had it. We got up at 5AM to start moving things outside and went until 3pm non-stop. I got my 10,000 fitbit steps in by 1pm which is unheard of (I usually can hit 4,000 a day - yay desk jobs). I got SO MUCH out of my house though! What didn't sell went straight to Goodwill so that it didn't sneak its way back into my house. I feel so much better now that it's done, my house is cleaner, less cluttered, I have my basement and garage back, and a few extra bucks in my pocket. The day of and the few days recuperating from the experience are super awful, but overall it wasn't the worst thing ever.

0 Inbox Messages {30 Before 30}

Is there anything more beautiful than an email inbox that has exactly zero things in it? I very often get to the point where I have over 1,000 UNREAD emails, not including the ones I read and didn't do anything with. It's stressful for me to know that I have such an overwhelming amount of things that I need to address. SO, I went through every email I had in my business email (personal is still a work in progress) and cleaned it out, filed everything that I needed to keep, deleted everything I didn't need, and am officially at zero emails! It feels super amazing even though it took days to make it happen. If you have a few days, I highly recommend decluttering your inbox.

C is for Cookie

C is for Cookie, that's good enough for me!

One of the main things you'll learn about me, is that I'm SUPER nostalgic. I blast 90's music during my sessions, wear super hero t-shirts, still binge watch Boy Meets World and totally have a crush on every single Hanson brother. So, when my best friend asked if we could do a completely for fun boudoir shoot, who else would we decide on but COOKIE MONSTER! He was my favorite Sesame Street character growing up (yes, while everyone else had tickle me Elmo's I had a tickle me Cookie Monster). No joke! He's real, and I still have him. We have been keeping this a secret for what feels like forever but now we can finally share it with you! We literally giggled the entire time but thank goodness for that giant mascot head she had on for making it not matter. Plus we got a giant order of my favorite cookies ever from For The Love Of Sweets. Seriously, if you haven't had them, go buy some right now, you'll thank me later. We hope that you enjoy viewing these as much as we loved taking them. If you have a super fun idea for a session, send me a message and we can make it happen!

Color Run {30 Before 30}

I only half-way completed my Color Run goal this year. We did go, and we finished it even though it was cold and raining but we failed with the running part. We got up early on a Saturday (on Scott's birthday) which is a miracle by itself, I'd rather just be lazy till at least 10 on weekends. I'm not a runner and it was miserable out so we just trudged our way through to the end. Then afterwards, we treated ourselves to Jack Brown's and a birthday beer before thoroughly showering (twice) to get clean. We plan to try the running thing again next year! It still counts as complete to me.

My Very Own Boudoir Session {30 Before 30}

Guys, this was so scary. I know I preach that everyone is beautiful but when it's you in front of that camera, even someone like me gets nervous. My goal was to lose 10 pounds and THEN do a boudoir shoot. However, those 10 pounds just weren't coming off - you know....pizza and tacos...so I went ahead with the boudoir session anyway. This amazing celebration of my body as it ages will be with me forever, and the experience was one of a kind. Being outside in a field (right next to a major road) was exhilarating and unique by itself, but having one of my favorite photographers (Carling Zhou) come in from out of town just to be there with me, telling me the whole time how great I was looking was awesome. I might not look like a super model, I might have some parts of myself that I struggle with daily, but I walked away from this session on top of the world. It's so hard to learn to love yourself, but I'm working on it. :)

Vintage Photography {30 Before 30}

Due to my immense passion for photography and the lasting impact that it can have even years later, I have dedicated some time to gathering up some old images of my family from decades ago to hang proudly in my home (now that I have a home big enough to do something like this in). My first piece is now hanging in my walkway between my kitchen and the entryway - something that I pass by multiple times a day to be able to enjoy. It is an image of my mom when she was a teenager, matted, framed and loved. It also serves as a nice conversation starter since everyone who sees it and doesn't know it's my mom already asks me how old I was when it was taken. Next up: an old Navy picture of my grandpa. Stay tuned.

Katelyn {Outdoor Boudoir Session 2}

Because she can't stay away and we weren't super prepared the first time, we went back out to the magic field with lingerie and tried again! This field - and this amazing woman - are incredible. There wasn't a bad picture in the bunch of them. We brought two of my brand new pieces for the studio and both of them are as beautiful as I expected them to be. This black bodysuit might just be my new favorite piece. What do you think of it?

Back Deck {30 Before 30}

When we first moved into our house (a year ago in June), we wanted to re-do the back deck so that we could host parties, cookouts and just lounge in the sun when it was nice. The deck was original to the house and hadn't had anything done to it in over 20 years so we wanted to get rid of the splintered old boards and replace them in addition to a quick spruce to the whole thing. Well, we enlisted my dad's help to do it and it has been a SUPER slow and difficult process. Not to mention that it was on hold for a few months during the winter with the snow and cold weather. The boards needed to be pulled up, new boards put down, the railings were old so they were all taken off and new put on. It has taken a full year, but I'm super excited to say that it's finally done! We officially have a back porch! Now if only I had furniture to put out there. Beach towels will have to work for now.

Kasey {Outdoor Boudoir Session}

And of course my wife came out to our field session. My beautiful best friend can't resist a good boudoir session. The jean jacket was a great - although accidental - addition to a super successful shoot. There is nothing better than a bunch of girls in a field uplifting each other and supporting them. It makes my heart sing to know that my work is about women celebrating themselves and facilitating such a positive environment. Keep it up!

Jewelry {30 Before 30}

I'm not a jewelry type of girl. I wear rings and necklaces but I'm one of those girls who forgets to put them on if I have to take them off to shower or sleep so I'll wear the same ring for 6 months then change it out. I have been on the search for a necklace that I can wear constantly, through showers and sleeping and exercise (if I ever decide to take that up) that had to do with photography. It was a struggle for me to find one that I liked, fit my personality, and wasn't going to be over the top photography. I found this SUPER cute, dainty necklace with a short chain that has a sweet little camera charm that is smaller than a dime. One other great added bonus that I wasn't planing on is that the chain, because it is attached the way it is to the charm, doesn't get turned around so my clasp is never showing! Score

Meet the Crew {Gear Guide} - Macro Lens

So I took the leap and got a macro lens! I've been wanting one for a long time for ring shots and the like, but couldn't find enough uses for it in boudoir to make it worth the investment. However, with tax time coming around, I wanted to make the most out of my refund and went ahead and purchased my very first macro! I've been playing with it for days taking pictures of jewelry, books, and most of all, annoying all 3 of my animals with super up close pictures of their noses whiskers and toes! My dog looks terrified of the camera in every picture, our outdoor cat hid under a car after a quick sniff of the camera, and our other cat just glares at me but will let me take as many as I want. I can't wait to get started using it during sessions!

Maker's Mark {30 Before 30}

After 3 years it finally happened! We broke open the famous bottle of Maker's Mark! You know the one. We used it in a photoshoot years ago and it has been sitting, lonely and dusty on a shelf in my kitchen ever since. I'm not a super huge fan of whiskey and it was bought specifically for the session so it ended up forgotten out of sight, out of mind. It felt so good to finally get it down, dust it off and crack that baby open. I may or may not have sang a little David Lee Murphy while we did it. "There might be a little dust on the bottle, it's one of those things that gets sweeter with time." No judgements. We even made some ice cream with it. YEP! Boozy Butter Pecan homemade ice cream. I know you're jealous, but I'll share.

30 Before 30

With less than 4 months until my 30th birthday, I am WAY behind on my 30 before 30 list. Heck, I don't even have 30 things ON my 30 before 30 list! But I'm determined to get 30 things on my list as well as cross off 30 things. If you have a suggestion for something that should be on my list, leave a comment and I'll see if I can add it! Let's get started!

1. Read 15 books
2. Purge my house and have a giant yardsale
3. Attend the Color Run and attempt to run (at least a little)
4. Finish stripping wallpaper and repaint our guest room
5. Organize my office to make it a place that I actually WANT to work
6. Finish watching every episode (on Netflix) of Shameless and OITNB
7. Lose 10 pounds
8. Throw out at least 30 clothing items I haven't worn in a year
9. Keep my orchid alive
10. Celebrate my new age with a boudoir shoot of my own
11. Attend a concert that I've always wanted to
12. Treat myself to something unnecessary, but wonderful
13. Clean out my inbox so that I have 0 messages in it
14. Invest more in my friendships
15. Hand out more business cards
16. Break open the Maker's Mark
17. Offer more unique products
18. Finally get a dainty photography piece of jewelry
19. Finish re-doing my back deck
20. Turn my basement into a craft studio
21. Celebrate July 4th with my family
22. Buy and paint a vanity for the studio
23. Hang old family pictures in my home
24. Spend a Saturday yardsaleing/antiquing
25. Send more handwritten notes
26. Pay it forward

Network More {30 Before 30}

I'm pretty much the worst about talking to people about my business. I'm always scared to bring it up or worried that they won't like it. Not because I've had a bad experience, just because I've always been a shy person. But you seem so outgoing and fun! Nope, I'm the most shy, introverted person you'll ever meet. So I've made it my mission to start being better about telling people what I do and why I do it. Starting with business cards. It's SO EASY to leave a business card for my waitress or hand one to a stranger in line at the grocery store that I overhear talking about pictures, feeling run down and needing to do something for themselves, or even just seeing an engagement ring and throwing a bridal boudoir card at her. Baby steps. I'm working my way to being that fun outgoing person that everyone knows because I truly want to be her.

Kelly {Outdoor Boudoir Session}

As promised, some more images from our amazing day in our yellow field! I'm always amazed at how comfortable people are with themselves. I completely snagged Kelly, she came with one of the other photographers but when she learned what we were doing, she jumped right in without hesitation and boy is she gorgeous! Working with other photographers and sharing the space, models and tips is one of my favorite things. Learning from some of the best.

Read 15 Books {30 Before 30}

I've always loved reading - for myself. I refused to read a book if someone told me to or a teacher made me, but for myself, I would pick up any book and just get lost. I have a giant closet FULL of unread books and it is my goal to read them faster than I buy them so that my closet becomes empty and they all move to shelves where they deserve to live with the rest of my already read books. Here's a list of the ones I've read recently

1. The Vow - Kim and Krickett Carpenter - WAY different than the movie. Like not even close
2. Lost in a Book - Jennifer Donnelly - About Beauty and the Beast! Belle finds a book in the library that is enchanted and takes her to another world
3. If I Stay - Gayle Forman - Girl in a coma who lost everything is trying to decide if she wants to continue live or not
4. Crash the Chatterbox - Steven Furtick - Learning how to block out the negative thoughts
5. The Zen of Zombie - Scott Kenemore - Not even sure, haha, it was semi a self help book learning how to live like a zombie
6. Through the Eyes of a Lion - Levi Lusko - How to find power through the worst pain you've ever felt
7. After Alice - Gregory MaGuire - Amazing Alice in Wonderland book by the author of Wicked
8. Nineteen Minutes - Jodi Picoult - Super amazing story of a school shooting and how 19 minutes can change absolutely everything
9. Salem Falls - Jodi Picoult - A man falsely accused and convicted of rape moves to a new town to start over and is once again, falsely accused
10. Small Great Things - Jodi Picoult - A beautiful story about a nurse accused of killing a newborn, a struggle of race in a 20th century hospital
11. You are a Badass - Jen Sincero - You've gotta read this. Just trust me
12. Two by Two - Nicholas Sparks - The struggles of a single father who just wants to do what's best for his daughter. Mixed, of course, with a Nicholas Sparks love story
13. The Best Yes - Lysa Terkeurst - Learning that it's ok to say no to something and understanding what your best yes is
14. Before I go to Sleep - S. J. Watson - A darker version of 50 First Dates. Woman can't remember who she is every morning, starts keeping a journal and things aren't adding up
15. The Angels Game - Carlos Ruiz Zafon - Sequel to The Shadow of the Wind
16. The Prisoner of Heaven - Carols Ruiz Zafon - Sequel to The Shadow of the Wind
17. The Shadow of the Wind - Carlos Ruiz Zafon - An exciting mystery about an unknown author who doesn't want to be found

Katelyn {Outdoor Boudoir Session}

A bunch of photographers in the area discovered this AMAZING field filled with yellow flowers and we took a group of models out to test it out. And holy potato chips Batman. There were flower crowns, bouquets, and a fair amount of sneezing. This girl is always up for anything and so what started out as a regular session turned into outdoor boudoir and I'm so glad it did! Keep watching for a few weeks worth of sessions here before the summer comes and it goes away!

Meet the Crew {Lingerie Guide} - Ruby Slippers

One of my very favorite items in the studio are my rhinestone ruby red heels. They were purchased as my bridesmaid's shoes for my friend's wedding and have migrated their way into the studio! They hold a very special place in my heart in addition to being a SUPER beautiful pair of shoes. They are a gorgeous red satin with rhinestones along the bottom and the heel. Perfect to give black or white lingerie a pop of color or to match with a red piece. Size 6.

Marcella {Boudoir Session Mini Series} Part 3

Continuing on in the Marcella mini series, we came to a Valentine's Day session. We broke out the red sheets and tried something a little different. As always, she was radiating confidence and was as beautiful as they come. The red sheets only come out for special occasions. If you are interested in using them, please feel free to request them and we can surely accommodate that!