meet our photographers: Adrian Photography

When B and I moved to Kamloops one of my first "to do's" was to network with people in the Okanagan wedding industry.  As fate would have it, Jon + Jenny Adrian crossed my path and agreed to meet with me to chit-chat about the comings and goings of their industry.  They invited me to their home for coffee and after a couple of hours I left knowing I had met two very special people.  Three years later, I'm ecstatic to call them our wedding photographers and - more importantly - friends. 

Last Sunday my two B's and I spent the afternoon laughing with the two J's on Okanagan Lake.  They also managed to take the odd photo of our little family and Ben and I are so thrilled with the results.  A big, big, heartfelt thank you to Jon + Jenny for being so awesome.

Visit Jon + Jenny's site for more of this session and their contact information.  They're also on facebook should you "like" their work.

we're getting hitched!

Apologies for being MIA. My excuses? A fantastic holiday to Oregon (more to come on this subject) and an exciting proposal (much more to come on this one). That's right, Ben and I are engaged. We're in the process of letting this all sink in and bask in the excitement + love + awesomeness that is all around us.

I promise, I have an arsenal of posts that will be surfacing shortly. Until then... Happy Monday, friends.



(photos courtesy of the fantastic b&w booth at Ace Hotel, Portland).

In case you were wondering:
a. yes, I am excited about my ring
b. yes, that's our dog in the first strip, and
c. yes, Bauer was allowed in the booth. I asked.

Emilie & Daryl: Engagement Shoot

Very shortly, I will be sharing the beautiful wedding of this girl and this guy. It's quite something so don't stray too far...

In the meantime, I wanted to share the lovely collection of engagement photos that Emilie and Daryl had taken (by Emilie's talented brother Dylan) in Point Grey.


I love the lighting and the style of Dylan's work. Amazing job.

PS: Emilie and Daryl, you're freaking adorable.

(Photos by Dylan Yee).

sunshine + summer loving.

Every once in a while a collection of engagement photos makes me stop and smile. In a world full of props, poses, and prima donnas, simplicity is significantly underrated.

Give me the beach, a couple in love, and a cozy blanket at sunrise and I'm on board. This engagement session - captured by the talented Scarlet O'Neill - is lovely.



(Photos by Scarlet O'Neill).

M & J's Wedding-Party-Party

My new favourite photo of M & J (taken during the Nearly Wed Game)

Whew! What a party. We danced, we sang, we wined, we dined, all in celebration of Matt & Jen! It's safe to say that M & J's Wedding Party Party was a smashing success; as was the blind wine tasting. SO... as promised, here are the details of how this was executed (in case you would like to host a blind wine tasting of your own)!

Pre-Party Planning:

Guests were sent electronic invites (via cocodot) and asked to bring a bottle of red or a bottle of white, per couple. The Catch: the bottle of wine must be $12 or less.

Day-Of Set Up:

Bottles were bagged, tied with raffia, and numbered as they arrived and then arranged at the tasting stations.

All bottles (red + white) were originally going to be in the craft paper bags; however, during set up, J's mum raised a very valid concern regarding the fact that the paper posed an issue for chilling the whites. For this reason, we opted for black plastic bags for the whites so they could be chilled on ice up right up until the tastings. It proved to be a very important executive decision. Thanks Linda!


The Tastings:

Guests were given a disposable (+ recyclable) wine glass to pass through the whites and reds and their leisure. We did not assign the wines in a specific order; guests were therefore free to try all red, all white, or a combination of both. After each tasting, the guest placed his/her initials on the line that best described his/her feelings for that particular wine (our five point scale ranged from "I would only buy this for someone I didn't like" to "I would bathe in this, daily"). Guests had the ability to record their favourites (and least favourites) on a separate piece of paper they could leave with.


The Big Reveal:

Once everyone had finished tasting, the bottles were revealed (we kept the bottles with their "numbers" in case guests wanted to see how they scored a particular wine or make their final notes). We were quite pleasantly surprised with the overall consensus of the tasting results; these will be very helpful for M & J when they select the wines for their reception.


I have to send mad props to Alanna and Sam and Jessica who put this fiesta together. Big Love, ladies.

. . .

In case you were wondering... our party's top pick was "Soft White" by Bear Flag Wines. Not only does it have a rad label, it's also "bathe-worthy."

Sam & Brock

He liked loved it so he put a ring on it.

I'm SO excited to announce another 2011 wedding: Samantha and Brock! The two just returned from a romantic European holiday and they came back engaged!

SO much inspiration to come for this fall wedding. Stay tuned...

Isn't this sign perfect? Another friend - coincidentally also named Sam - greeted the newly engaged couple at the airport with this sign. So sweet.

Sam B. you are now my go-to for all future sign-making.

An Engagement Party + Link Love

B and I are hitting the road early this morning to head to Vancouver to celebrate M + J's engagement! We're very excited to celebrate two of our favourite people with good food, silly games, and bling wine tasting! The guest list is chalked full of fantastic people; the night is sure to be divine. Tomorrow, the rest of the bridesmaid crew and I are heading to Washington with J to try on bridesmaids dresses. Woot! I'll share more about the blind wine tasting next week.

What are you up to this weekend, friends?


Some of my favourite links from the web as of late:

• Wedding dress inspiration, galore! The second dress is magical.


• How to use BLUE in your wedding. Swoon.


• What.a.party. You had me at confetti.


• A gorgeous Banff Wedding. Isn't that car fantastic?


• Upside down Pear Cake? Yes, Please!


• You don't need to be a kid to enjoy a donut on a string.


• I LOVE these Art Deco wedding invitations via here + here.


• You should buy this album.

'The Notebook' Engagement Shoot

The Notebook. A film that made us smile, made us cry, and made us swoon.




Now considered one of the top love stories (& 'chick flicks') of all time, I find it incredible that no one has ever thought to style engagement photos after this classic until now.

The innocence and pure essence of the film is captured in this adorable couple so beautifully by Montreal's blushing bride studio. (More of this sexy yet sweet photo shoot can be found at Green Wedding Shoes).

If you were to style a photo shoot after any film, what would it be?

Ice cream + TOMS + Summer Lovin'

I couldn't resist posting these adorable shots by Jamie Delaine.

Happy Thursday.

Mike & Jaime

I am so thrilled for one of my oldest and dearest friends, Jaime and her new fiance, Mike! These two are a riot; I can't wait to begin the planning process with them. {I'm tearing up just thinking about how happy I am for both Jen & Jaime}
I love you, girls. xo.

Valentine Photo Shoots

I'm really enjoying the fabulous Valentines-themed-posts that are filling my head with inspiration + love. However, I feel like V-day has crept up on me this year. {Am I alone}?

I'm in the mood to spread the love {before love day passes} and I thought it was a fitting time to share some of my favourite Valentine-styled love shoots. I'm particularly loving:

Heart Confetti...


{photos by Simply Bloom Photography via Green Wedding Shoes}

Heart Balloons...



{photos by Sarah Yates}

... & Fields of Hearts.



{photos by Stephanie Williams via Love and Lavender}


There is something about hearts and the colours of Valentine's day that make me feel like a fourth-grader again. Happy Love Week, folks. Go and hug someone special.

Kelowna Photographer: Wedded Bliss

I was very excited to find this.little.treat on the Wedded Bliss Blog this morning. I wanted to share some photos from their engagement shoot to show of the photographic talents of this Okanagan based photographer and the sheer adorableness of our Canadian Bachelorette and her fiance.



{Wedded Bliss Photography}

Renee did such a fantastic job on these. I just love how casual and playful and in love J & E look. {I'm sure she'll be contacted to capture many "Jillian-and-Ed-styled" engagement shoots in the very near future}.

More of their shoot can be found here.

Jessica Luch

If you're a regular reader of this blog you are probably aware that I have great pride in the works & accomplishments of those I am lucky enough to know in my off-blog life. The next person I'd like to feature in my "spreading the love" series is an amazingly talented and up and coming graphic artist and equally fantastic photographer. I have been lucky enough to watch the growth and development of Jessica Luch, the photographer, over the past couple of years. Her eye for the perfect shot is astounding. Most recently, her beauty and studio portfolios are just too brilliant not to share with you. I love her style: it's raw and real. The ultimate beauty of each subject (portrait or still life) just radiates through her aptly styled shots. Enjoy.

Beauty.







Studio.




In addition to the style of work featured here (& of course graphic design), Jess is available to for couples and pregnancy shoots. To see more of her amazing work + for contact information check out her website and behance.

Grazie Mille to Ms. Luch for letting me share these beauties.
xo.