Do you have a song? Nate and I have a few. We wrote love letters to each other in the form of song lyrics for a long time (and still do every now and then). One of our favorites was called You Are Mine by our favorite band, Mute Math. For some reason, this image reminds me of it. You can hear it for yourself here.

*We are working behind the scenes on an updated version of our blog. Blog 2.0, if you will. Bear with us as posting will be light for the next week or two as we work to get everything transitioned and ready. We've been wanting to do this for a while and finally got the chance. The new blog will have lots of new features (including having Nate writing more!), a new look, and will make it easier for you to read along and comment. :)

Just a quick sneak peak of our soon-to-launch How2 site. Thank you to everyone who came out last Sunday to our first clinic. We had such an AMAZING time and can't wait to do it again.

...coming soon ;)

Celebration | Florida

A few months ago I had the pleasure of meeting Trisha Hay. We actually met because we had both contacted Liene Stevens and were trying to help her set up a workshop here in Orlando. (Which, if you are an entrepreneur, you should attend!) Trisha is an extremely talented graphic artist who's resume includes Disney, the Engage conferences, Sean Low, and soon... a new logo for us! ;)

In her spare time she runs the oh-so-delightful blog, Black White Bliss, bringing gorgeous design inspiration to the screen every week! When Trisha and I met up again for a local mixing of young professionals we knew we had to schedule a personal portrait session for her to get some new bio pictures for her website and blog. Her husband, who is talented architect (how cool are they as a couple? I mean come on!) also joined in to get some frames for himself. And since we did both their sessions at the same time, we forced them to take a few cuddly shots together. ;)

You can follow both of them on twitter here:
Trisha Hay
Brandt Hay

Black White Bliss ;)








Personal Portrait Sessions are a great and budget-friendly way for you to get some fun, professional updated photos of yourself for your business, website, resume, or just because without the price tag of our regular portrait sessions. Fill out our contact form at the top of the page to learn more to to book your own!

photo du jour, a nod to the oh so talented Jeff Newsom

In leu of Five Senses Friday, I thought I'd sing you the ABC's instead....

A - Age: I'm 24. Nate is 26. I've decided that I'm going to have a big birthday party this year (quarterlife crisis and all). And rum cake. Definitely rum cake.
B - Bed size: Queen. One day I'd love to upgrade but right now buying a new mattress is low on the priority list. (Directly under file receipts and go to the dentist.)
C - Chore you hate: We both hate vacuuming. Which is handy since we just moved into a condo with zero carpet. Victory dance!
D - Dog's name: Between the condo association's rules and our busy schedule, we just can't swing it right now.
E - Essential start your day item: Coffee with delicious creamer. My favorite is the Belgium Chocolate Tofee. Nate likes Vanilla.
F - Favorite color(s): Right now I'm loving jewel tones and neutral earthy colors. Nate loves royal blue.
G - Gold or Silver: Neither of us wear a lot of jewelry.
H - Height: I'm 5'3 and Nate is 6'2.
I - Instruments you play: Nate is an amazing drummer. Melt-your-face-off-amazing. Not even kidding.
J - Job title: CEO ;)
K - Kitchen wish list: A magnetic knife strip. Those are fancy.
L - Living arrangements: Currently in a small condo in downtown Orlando.
M - Moment you'll never forget: Nate stealth-proposing on our cruise ;)
N - Nicknames: I just realized that I haven't called Nate by his old nickname in about a year. What happened to that?
O - Overnight hospital stay: I've never been in the hospital *knock on wood like 15 times*
P - Pet Peeve(s): Double standards. Can't even stand em. Oh and passive aggression, seriously just tell us what's wrong.
Q - Quote: "When life hands you lemons, make grape juice. Then sit back and watch the world wonder how you did it." That was my daily mantra for over a year! I still love it.
R - Right or left handed: Right.
S - Siblings: Me-None Nate- 1 sister
T - Time you wake up: Too early because Nate sets his alarm to go off every 15 minutes starting an hour and a half before he actually needs to be up. (See the coffee response listed above)
U - Underwear: Under there!
V - Vegetable you dislike: Okra. Nate hates green beans. Even though I make the most AMAZING green bean casserole, he refuses to eat it. Seriously people, it's divine.
W - Workout style: Running, wii fit, yoga
X - X-rays you've had: Teeth? I don't know about Nate. Does that make me a bad fiance?
Y - Yesterday's best moment: Nate cleaned the kitchen (which was a war zone) and made us both the most delicious pasta dinner ever. There was a picture on twitter.
Z - Zoo favorite(s): We both love animal watching. And taking our cameras! Zoo date anyone?


Love and FRIDAYS,
Becka & Nate

If weddings were Anthropologie, the stationery would be the window displays. And we all know how good those are.There are so many styles out there right now and I thought I'd share three of the most popular with you today from some talented friends of mine...

(images from the artists, clockwise from top: Anna @ Rifle Weddings & Events, Sarah & Lisa @ Orange Blossom Ink, Laura @ Immeasurablymor)


The first (we'll start at the top and work our way around) is a hand painted style. Anna Bond of Rifle Design creates these exquisite masterpieces by hand, crafting whimsical scenes customized for the bride and groom. I am head over heels in love with everything she does. I love the style, the storytelling, the romance of it all. Le swoon.

Second is a more modern, but still custom, look. This set was designed by the ultra-talented team at Orange Blossom Ink. I adore the arrangement of words in this invitation and the pop of color in the envelopes. I love when graphic designers create intricate designs just by the arranging of words and I think this is a perfect example of something chic, modern, and fun.

The bottom design was sent to me from one of our oh-so-fabulous upcoming brides, Emily. It's a perfect example of another popular style which is to include your engagement images in your stationery. Emily had her "Save The Date" cards designed using the images from her downtown engagement session. Laura from Immeasurablymore did a great job of incorporating Emily's wedding colors and the historical feel of the wedding location into these.

Now I need to get to dreaming up an idea for Nate's and my stationery. Do I even need one if our wedding is going to be out of the country? Maybe I'll make one for our party when we get back. Give me some ideas people! And go check out those amazingly talented artists' sites!

Want more? Here are two more of my favorite graphic artists currently designing for weddings and other events (that means you baby shower, baby announcement, bridal shower, bachelorette party, etc...)
. Mew Paper Arts
. Ashley Brooke Designs


Love and eye-candy,
Becka & Nate

Yesterday Nate called and asked me if I would go to the store and get some ingredients to make chocolate chip walnut cookies with him. It was an unusual request because, while I adore baking, Nate has never really asked to bake anything with me. Cooking, yes, but baking...not so much. "Why babe?" I asked. "Because I want to do something different with you tonight."
That was enough for me. I decided to pick up provisions for ice cream too. We have an ice cream maker but have never actually made ice cream from scratch.

Quality time ensued...

"Can I mix it now?"
"No you can't mix it with all the flour in it. You have to use the wooden spoon."
"Why?"
"Could you imagine what it would look like to put those spinning beaters in this bowl of flour? POOF! (I then begin miming an epic flour explosion with my hands and face.) Is this your first time baking?"
"No, I baked with my mom when I was little."
"Was your favorite part mixing with the beaters?"
"No, she wouldn't let me do it."
"Why?"
"Because I always made a big mess."
"Makes sense."

"Did you like the ice cream and the cookies?" I asked.
"They were my second favorite." He replied.
"Which one was your second favorite?"
"Both... My favorite part of the night was just spending time with you."

We thought we'd share the ice cream recipe because it was really fantastic. It is from the show Everyday Italian by Cutie McCuteface, Giada De Laurentiis.

Ingredients:
2 c. whole milk
1 c. heavy cream
3/4 c. sugar
4 egg yolks
1/2 tsp. vanilla
1/2 c. Nutella

1. In a saucepan combine the milk, cream, and 1/2 cup sugar over medium heat. Cook until the sugar dissolves, (about 5 minutes).

2. In a medium bowl beat the egg yolks with the remaining 1/2 cup sugar using an electric mixer until the eggs have become thick and pale yellow (about 4 minutes).

3. Pour 1/2 cup of the warm milk and cream mixture into the egg mixture and stir. Add this mixture back into the saucepan. Cook over very low heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture becomes thick enough to coat the back of a wooden spoon, (about 7 to 10 minutes).

4. Place a strainer over a medium bowl and pour the warm custard mixture through the strainer. Stir in the vanilla and Nutella until it dissolves. Chill mixture completely before pouring into an ice cream maker and follow manufacturer's instructions to freeze. (You cam make it without an ice cream maker. Just pour the mix into a container and freeze 6-8 hours, stirring every few hours.)



Love and desserts,
Becka & Nate

Do you remember Bonnie and Steve? How can you not? Their lovely faces were splattered all over our blog and website for months! Not only did we shoot them 4 times. (Yup, 4) But we shot them out of the normal order, causing much confusion amongst our avid blog readers. (Do we have avid blog readers? Are you there? Chirp. Chirp.) We shot a bridal/day after/trash the dress session with them in St. Augustine. Then we shot an engagement session for them and their pups in Baldwin Park. Then we shot their wedding reception in Celebration (they eloped in St. Lucia all private-like). And lastly, we shot their after party later that night. The other day I received an email from Bonnie asking for our new address because she had something she wanted to send us. What? For us? I've been like a kid waiting for Christmas, checking the mail everyday for the surprise. And finally, we got it...

I squeeled with delight as soon as I saw the buttons of the darling packaging. Nate looked at me in confusion. "Those are Anthropologie buttons!" I squeeled again, "I'd know them anywhere!" (I imagine that I respond to Anthropologie buttons the same way most women respond to the infamous blue Tiffany's box.) An engagement gift?! Bonnie and Steve, you melt my heart with your thoughtfulness!

stock image from anthropologie.com


How absolutely and utterly fantastic are these towels? There are three and they are embroidered with little birds falling in love, getting married, and then having little birdlets. I just love them. Related: Anthropologie revamped their website recently. It looks great. Check it out: Anthro.



Love and presents,
Becka & Nate

SeaBreaze Point | Disney Boardwalk | Florida

From Chicago to Orlando they came. With purple and pink flower petals. With a quick hello from Donald and Daisy Duck. A violinist was playing songs from my childhood on repeat and I found myself humming, "A whole new world..." as I heard the shutter clicks and I realized how much I wanted to watch the movie, Aladdin. Too bad I only have it on VHS. We don't have a VHS player. (Do they still make VHS players?)

Seriously though, when I think of my childhood, I think of Disney movies. I had (have) them memorized. Prince Charming (Or Prince Eric, he was my favorite) and a doe-eyed girl. A damsel in distress or a strong-willed princess (Work it Jasmine!) Disney was a big part of my formative years. So it's fun, now, to see it come full circle. From imaginary childhood worlds, to this romantic and magical day when two new friends become one and we get to capture it for the ages. One day, their grandchildren will look through these images. They will laugh at how old the fashions look and will say "Grandma, you were hot!" and they'll giggle. A little girl will swoon and say "Grandpa, it's soooo romantic!" And then maybe they'll ask to watch Cinderella, because Disney is now on their brains. And a new generation of dreamers and lovers of love will begin to grow.

Donald cracks me up in this one...












Mouse shoes by Marc Jacobs









Ceremony: SeaBreaze Point, Disney Boardwalk
Coordinator: Amy Riendeau with Disney's Fairy Tale Weddings
Reception: Bluezoo Restaurant
Gown: Jasmin Bridal, House of Brides, Chicago
Hair & Makeup: Patricia LeJeune

Hello loves! It's Friday and Nate and I couldn't be more excited! We get to see Nate's family this weekend to celebrate his Dad's 60th birthday and he's been talking about it all week. He loves getting to go home to St. Augustine and see his parents, sister, and nephews more than anything. I know part of him wishes he lived closer to them so he could see them all the time, especially the boys. He loves his nephews so much and would literally quit his job and stay at home playing xbox and volleyball with them all day, every day if he could. He's gonna be such a cute dad one day. I digress...

It's Friday and I'm excited to bring you volume 2 of Five Senses Friday. (I'm really starting to like these). Basically, 5 Senses Friday is just a summary of the best things from the day or the week. I jumped on the bandwagon after seeing it on Modish, who got the idea from Abby Try Again. ;)

touching:
The bubbly blanket separating the lava hot laptop from the skin of my legs. This is day 2 of working in the living room. After 3 14-hour days in the office I needed a change of space. Sue me. (No don't actually, I don't want to deal with that crap.)

seeing:
An overnight bag, open but unpacked. New clothes, shoes, and accessories (What? Target had a big sale. Don't judge me.) are making it hard to decide what to pack. It kind of like when you go grocery shopping when you're hungry and then you get home and can't decide what to eat because just want to eat everything.

tasting:
Corn risotto with fresh grated parmesan cheese and melted goat cheese. Eating in season is something I'm trying to get better at, which means that I can't just limit our veggie intake to zucchini in our pasta. The other day Publix had this corn risotto recipe as a sample (since their corn section overfloweth.) and Nate and I loved it. I've added a few of my own personal touches (hello cheese!) And yes, you may all now begin to refer to me as the "domestic goddess" because this stuff is that good.

Fresh Corn Risotto with Parm and Goat Cheese
4 ears fresh corn
1 32 oz box organic veggie broth
1 c. arborio rice
1 c. diced onions
2 tbs. unsalted butter
1/2 tsp. dried basil
2 tbs. fresh grated parmesan
1/8 c. crumbled goat cheese
Salt + pepper

1. Remove the husks and silks from the corn. Slice downward to cut off the corn kernels. Place the corn in a large microwavable bowl along with the veggie broth, onions, rice, butter, and basil
2. Cover and cook 10 minutes. Stir.
3. Cook 10-15 more minutes, until rice and veggies are tender.
4. Stir in cheeses and salt and pepper to taste. The rice will thicken as it stands. Serve warm.

hearing:
The documentary The Business of Being Born playing via Netflix on the TV while I work. It's amazing. Every woman should watch it. It was really interesting. Nate watched it with me and we just kept looking at each other and musing, "I didn't know that. Oh my gosh, that looks so peaceful! That makes sense." And no, I'm not pregnant.

smelling:
Coffee. I just started a new pot and the warm scent is filling the space. "2nd pot?" you ask? Why yes, it is. Because the new Italian Sweet Cream creamer we got is just that good.

Happy Friday everyone! Happy weekend! Best wishes to all the photographers out there capturing weddings this weekend and to the brides and grooms saying the big "I DO". We'll be thinking fond thoughts of you while we relax with our family and play Killer Uno! (That's totally a lie. The thinking about work part, not the Uno part.)

Leave us a little note to see when we get back to the office! :)

Love and weekends,
Becka & Nate

"You've got to get out of the house and do something." Nate and I have the same argument every few weeks. It's cyclical. Because so is my patience. While I love owning my own business, running the show, and getting to make my own schedule, most the time it seems that my schedule ends up being: work from when you wake up till 2am. And that's no good. When we are coming down from the busiest time of year, it's a necessity for me to be working that much, there's just that much to do. But all that work and a lack of play makes me a grouchy girl and Nate has to deal with the full force of my cabin fever every evening when he gets home. I think it's the struggle of every work from home business owner. It's tough to get outside of the 4 walls of your office. It's tough to maintain relationships with people who can't understand why you haven't left your iMac in 14 hours. "Just say that business hours are over." They suggest. They don't understand.

So when my dear new friend, Trisha Hay, the creative genius behind Trisha Hay Design and the author of Black White Bliss told me that she wanted to have a young professionals get together, I was all about the idea. As far as I knew, there wasn't any sort of get together like this in town. Most the networking groups are filled with older, very established business owners and the entire meeting is solely for getting your name out there amongst the others. A vision developed for something less "What can you do for me?" and something more "We're in this together".

Anna Bond, of Rifle Design, hosted the first meeting at her soon-to-be open to the public studio in Winter Park. Nick of Mama's Sauce print shop provided some amazing baked goods from Davis Bakery and gave us a tour of the Mama's Sauce back of house, showing us all how intricate of a process letter press printing really is. And he ran a short run of these adorable little cards designed by Anna:

Other young professionals in attendance included:
Sarah and Lisa of Orange Blossom Ink
Fiona of Anavi Ink
Grace of Grace Edmands Calligraphy
Ashley of Ashley Brooke Designs
Monica of BoomBox Bindery

I was so excited to get to see some of my friends from the Blogging Bootcamp again. We're becoming quite the little bunch :)





After the get together ended a few of us spent the next few hours chatting over Gurtzberry about business, life, and Robert Pattinson. I had such a fantastic time and I'm so thankful that I've gotten to know some of these young women better recently. It's such a wonderful feeling to sit down with someone and have them completely understand what you're going through. Starting a business is a crazy rollercoaster ride. And making new creative, business-savvy friends who understand it all is priceless.

Ocala | Florida

We got to meet Sarah and Roger this last weekend at their home in gorgeous Ocala (which takes much longer to drive to than google maps led us to believe, sorry guys) for their big red barn engagement session. Both Nate and I were excited because Sarah had made our lives easy by deciding on a theme for her portraits and even finding the perfect barn to shoot at! (Thanks Sarah's friend's neighbor!) Can I please, for a second, tell you all how much I LOVE having some sort of theme for these sessions? It doesn't have to be anything super detailed, even something as simple as a big red barn can give us such inspiration and can keep all the images cohesive. I am so in love with these frames from their session. It doesn't help that I'm listening to my "I love country" playlist while I edit these. Now I'm all nostalgic for horses, homemade cornbread, big open fields, and rugged old barns... le sigh....

Yeah, we know... "GQ called and they want Roger back" ;)


The good stuff...


I can't lie, I'm really excited about this one...


Sexy legs...


Oh FAVORITE! FAVORITE! FAVORITE!



I can't get Nate to listen to country music but I still sneak it while he's gone and I'm at home working.
And in case anyone is curious, here is my "I Love Country" Playlist, for your listening pleasure:

.Bad Things / Jace Everett (True Blood theme song, hello yum!)
.Nothin' Better to Do / LeAnn Rimes (Because I like the sassiness)
.Flat On the Floor / Carrie Underwood
.Last Name / Carrie Underwood (This one cracks me up)
.Down in Mississippi / Sugarland (A favorite since freshman year of college)
.Save a Horse, Ride a Cowboy / Big & Rich (How can you not love this?)
.Honky Tonk Badonkadonk / Trace Adkins
.Boondocks / Little Big Town
.Kerosene / Miranda Lambert
.Rough & Ready / Trace Adkins
.Jacked Up / Gretchen Wilson
.Tim McGraw / Taylor Swift (I'll admit it, she tells good stories)
.Before He Cheats / Carrie Underwood
.Moments / Emerson Drive
.She's Everything / Brad Paisley (Swoonsauce)
.Want To / Sugarland
.Stay / Sugarland (Sugarland may be my favorite country band)
.Would You Go with Me / Josh Turner (His voice is like butter!)

JW Marriott Grand Lakes | Orlando | Florida

I would love to write something eloquent and amazing to describe these two and their elegant sage and champagne colored wedding but the words just aren't coming. I can't do it justice. Laura and Chris are so genuine, sweet, fun, go with the flow, and trusting that I can't even sufficiently explain to you how wonderful it was to be there to document their day and be blessed by their friendship. They completely trusted us with their photography and that freedom allowed us to really get creative and have fun with their images and we are so excited about how everything came out! We had such a wonderful time celebrating with them and with Laura Pennington, The JW's senior event manager, at the wheel, the day went off without one delay or hitch. Seriously people, she was a whirlwind of smiling efficiency! The entire staff at the JW were perfection. They even whipped me up my own fried green tomato sandwich since the regular vendor meal had turkey in it. How's that for being amazing?! Thanks JW! It was delicious! Our favorite wedding DJ's, White Rose Entertainment, spun beats all night long keeping everyone shaking their tail feathers and the ever impressive Lee James provided all the gorgeous floral arrangements.

I love this...


Little details..






Studio222 Photography officially supports bromances










Mmmm...drama...




Hello fiery sunset, it's nice to have you joining us tonight...




:)






I love every one of these...


Hm, decisions, decisions...


Steamy...


Hello handsome.




Goodnight!