Garters and Hairvines

So it's friday and almost everyday this week I've been hoping for the postman to bring me the lace I ordered from Etsy so I can start making bridal garters.  Yes there's absolutely no craft that I won't try.  I'm assuming it's not going to arrive today either which is a little disappointing but it's ok.  I've decided to turn my crafty urges into another direction.

A while ago I decided to cull a lot of my old products that I make for Wedding And Gems as I wasn't happy with the photo's.  This meant a lot of my own hairvines got the chop.  So since I can't make the bridal garters that I desperately want to try out, I'm going to extend my collection of hairvines.  I have a small collection at the moment, most of them quite short so they can highlight different sections of the hair, but I want to make longer ones.  My idea is to make them a length that can go around the entire head like a headband, with the option of tying them with a ribbon, for that pretty look.

I can't wait to get started, I just need to get the kids organised and sent to school :)

How my facebook fans inspired a blog post

Sometimes I just post a wedding related photo on my Facebook page and ask the fans for their opinion.  This picture got quite a few responses and prompted me to think about how important colours can be at your wedding and how some chose to view colour from another perspective then just aesthetically.

This is the dress in question posted to my Facebook page - took a screen shot with some of the comments the fans left.

It prompted 2 thoughts, in which wedding venues would this colour not work and what psychological implications does the colour green have.

You can read the entire blog post over on the official Wedding and Gems Blog here.

If you want to influence future blog posts, products and her about special offers from bridal accessories come join me on Facebook here - Wedding And Gems on Facebook.

Wedding Tiaras - Photo Shoot

Last week was probably one of the most eventful weeks I've ever had.  I started the week by passing my driving test.  I'm 33 so I decided it was time to learn to drive so people would stop looking at me like I'm a weirdo.

This however was an non event compared to what was to come mid week with my first ever professional photo shoot for Wedding And Gems.  Usually I do my own photography but I find trying to capture the sparkle of Swarovski crystal really difficult. Plus I wanted to be able to show people what my creations look like when they're being worn. So I contacted Luke from Luke Richards Photography and he arrange for the lovely Carla Monaco to model. 

I intended to take my own camera to the shoot to show you some behind the scenes photos but I actually forgot the camera. Duhhh! 

I know we've probably all caught the odd episode of America's Top Model and have a rough idea of how photographers and models work together to create amazing images, but to see that close up and to actually have some input was pretty awesome. I really did feel honoured to be part of that creative process. 

Seeing my handmade bridal accessories being worn (and worn so well) really made me see my creations in a brand new light.  Normally I just see them as an object, nothing more than the raw materials and invested time but on the model, they became something else, something that I could be really proud of.

I'm still looking through the hundreds of photos I received from Luke and a week later I'm still looking at them in awe.  I really couldn't have found a better photographer or model.  I think I declared things as "perfect" a number of times and it was one of those days that I'll look back on in years to come and still have a big silly grin plastered to my face.

Carla is really as beautiful as she looks. She's really down to earth, friendly and easy to chat to. It was a pleasure to meet her. I've focused a lot on Carla in this blog post but Luke deserves a mention too. He was easy and fun to work with. No hidden extras and no fuss. I don't have a photo of Luke to share, so I'll link to his website instead. Luke Richards Photography