CarolineJoy Photography {BLOG}

Entries in Caroline Joy Photography (4)

Tuesday

23Feb2010

in my bag {personal}

Tuesday, February 23, 2010 at 12:05PM

I'm snowed in today (a lovely rarity for Texans) so, despite a sore throat, I'm feeling all cozy and inspired. The white snow outside is reflecting even more light than usual into my windows, and I just love the brightness of my little apartment. I think I may build a tent out of blankets in my living room after I press "publish" on this blog post. :)

I've seen lots of these "in my purse" blog posts floating around the internet the past few months, and while I've always enjoyed looking at them and reading them, I've never done one of my own. But today, with the given snow and perpetual indoors time, I thought this would be THE perfect time to try one of my own! Enjoy reading, and hopefully you'll get to know me a little better. :)

1. My purse: I am a clutch carrier to the end. Me carrying a big bag purse means I'll be knocking over lamps and glass objects in antique stores all day long. Really, I'm no good at big bags...they become dangerous on my shoulder. I've been carrying little clutches for about 5 or 6 years now. This little Fossil jewel was a Christmas present. It's deceivingly roomy inside, and I love how I can fit all my essentials inside (I really am a minimalist at heart). The Fossil designers knew what they were doing, because it usually serves as a great conversation piece as well.

2. iPod headphones: My sis-in-law gave me this cute yellow case to keep the wires untangled and out of the way. I believe she got it at the Container Store.

3. Phone: You now know my secret. I don't have an iPhone. I have a Sprint Instinct. I can't really say it's horrible, or anything, but I do know that deep down, I can't wait for my contract to be up so that I can run stand in line for an iPhone.

4. Hotel Pen: I've never been much of a collector, because I don't like clutter. However, I found my collector fix in middle school, when I decided to collect hotel pens. Practical, no storage, no clutter--perfect! I have about a million and trust me, I never have to buy new pens. Friends now bring me hotel pens when they return from trips, just because they know I have a thing for them.

5. Lip Balm: Nivea Lip Moisturizer. Basic yet amazing. It's all I ever use.

6. Wallet: There's no room for a typical wallet in my bag, so I use this little card case instead. It holds the basics. Scott got me this particular one from JewelWeed's etsy store. Check out her stuff...it's all so beautiful and eco-friendly!

7. Lip Gloss: On the very rare occasion that I wear lip color, I wear Almay. Really though, I pretty much threw this in my bag just to feel like a grown up. :)

8. Instant Hand Sanitizer: Another gift from my sis-in-law. It's the tiniest bottle you've ever seen, but it has lasted me a long time. What can I say? I don't really like germs.

9. iPod: Since I don't have an iPhone, I still have to carry my iPod with me. Old school. That's fine with me though. At least I can jam out anytime I want. And trust me, I do. :)

10. Keys: The best part about my keychain is how deceivingly macho it is. I have a dad who really likes to keep the girls in his family prepared, thus the swiss army knife, and yellow thing. What is the yellow thing, you ask? Well, if I ever drive my car into a lake or other body of water, I can break out my windows just by pressing it against the glass, AND (of course there's more!) I can slice off my seatbelt with the other side. Prepared. Yes.

So there you have it! Now it's your turn. :)

(And here's a photo just to prove that you that everything CAN indeed fit into my purse.)

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Friday

19Feb2010

sarah & chad {sneak peek}

Friday, February 19, 2010 at 4:22PM

Meet the most beautiful couple ever. And when I say beautiful, I mean inside and out. Wowza! I can't wait to share their entire session with you, and I especially can't wait to tell you what I learned about life from these amazing people. For now, let this happy, sun soaked photo tide you over. :)

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Saturday

16Jan2010

kiki & ken {sneak peek}

Saturday, January 16, 2010 at 11:24AM

Last week, I finished reading one of the greatest books I've ever read: A Million Miles in a Thousand Years by Donald Miller. If I can ever inspire you to do one thing, I hope it's to go buy this book and read it. I have such a respect for authors. Every blog post I make, I struggle to put my words together in a cohesive and meaningful way...So when I read an entire book of cohesive and meaningful words, I'm just amazed, and so thankful that some people in this world are gifted with writing!

I have this theory that no matter what job/career/vocation we have in life, we eventually start to think it's not meaningful. We look at other people doing seemingly bigger things, and compare, and think we aren't changing the world. Or we look at just how many other people in the world are doing the EXACT SAME thing we're doing, and feel like what we're doing isn't all that special.

I work with an amazing bookkeeper who has mentioned that she doesn't feel like she does anything important because her job revolves around repetitive daily tasks. I was slightly taken aback when I heard this, because to me, she's my saving grace! My business would be a giant mess if it weren't for her smarts and ability to come in and make sense of things. To her, her job was so familiar that she forgot that there are lots of people out there who are terrible at math and finances (like me) and need her help. :)

So, what I'm trying to say here: What you do is not meaningless. We are all blessed with different gifts, brains, talents; we all need each other. I'm so thankful for people out there who can write a powerfully thought provoking book, perfectly balance a budget, and all the other things that people contribute to society that makes my life the way it is. To all of you people out there, THANK YOU for what you do! The world really wouldn't be the same without you.

I had the awesome privilege of hanging out with Kiki and Ken for an afternoon, shooting engagement photos. I don't think I've ever asked for as many crazy poses and such as much as I did with them! K&K thank you so much for being SO FUN and up for it all! :) At one point, I had them run out into a field of super tall grass with their quilts flying back behind them (it was a freezing day!). I love, love, love the result, and had to share it.

The photo also made me think of a line from the book by Donald Miller (that you really need to go buy): "Intentionally create a memorable life...When we look back on our lives, what we will remember are the crazy things we did, the times we worked harder to make a day stand out." I've had tons of great conversations in coffee shops, but the conversations that I remember the most are the ones where I was sitting on the roof of my house watching the sun rise, or the ones where I was sitting in the hot tub of an apartment complex where we had to jump the fence to get into.

I'm secretly hoping that running out into that field like crazy created a memory for K&K. What will you do today to make your day stand out?

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Friday

15Jan2010

2010 creative & savvy wedding ideas

Friday, January 15, 2010 at 4:11PM

In case you missed it, last week I held a contest asking readers to send in their best DIY, money-saving, eco-friendly, or creative wedding ideas. Apparently all you blog readers are brilliant, and I loved all the ideas you came up with. This was so fun to put together! :)

Also, make sure to check out the top 5 ideas in the post below this one...Lindsey won our contest by getting the most votes for her awesome idea. Congrats Lindsey!

Get the most from your photos- Find creative ways to make the most of your investment in your photography by picking up a copy of the book Photos, Style Recipes from Pottery Barn.

Morning Wedding- A great way to save money for your wedding is to have a morning ceremony (esspecially if you chose to have a beach/outdoor wedding). You will also save money at the venue that you chose to have your reception at... you can save around $500 - $1000 if you chose to have a brunch reception. I just recently got married and chose this option because breakfast has always been my husband and I's favorite meal and it was a great way to incorporate who we are into our wedding. Plus, we saved around $1,000!! -Ruthie

Antique Touches- Someone told me about a wedding they went to recently that was travel themed. The couple decorated the cake/gift/display table with antique suitcases and pictures of their grandparents weddings. The guests filled out advice/well wishes cards for the couple on antique postcards and hung them on a tree. I just like the idea of antique suitcases every where. -Erin

Use What You Have- Borrow your mom's veil for your something old and something borrowed, it is great if you are going for a more vintage feel. Also, Wear your favorite shoes from your closet, if your dress is long no one will see them and it's one less thing to buy. Plus the shoes you have are more your style and will most likely coordinate with your wedding. -Courtney

Handmade Thank Yous- Instead of splurging on stationary, make your own Thank You notes using plain store-bought cards, and then stamping them. -Kristen

Music Savvy Tips- Since the love of my life is music...this idea is about music. I know so many of us girls dream of having an 8-piece band with cheesy wedding singer at our receptions, singing all our favorites and maybe one or two of our parents favorites. This is incredibly expensive! I'm sure you know. So, you downgrade to a DJ. He's got the radio voice, the records spinning...just one problem. Also moderately expesive. So listen up bride-to-be! Get on your computer and log onto itunes. Within a few hours, you can have a rockin' mix of your own. All you need to do is hire a wanna-be DJ friend (for cheap) and rent some speakers and you are on your way to a jammin' reception with all the perfect songs, sung just like you like them! -Cherith

Stay Organized- Probably the most important (and overlooked) way to save money for your wedding is to stay organized with a strict plan and budget. That way you know exactly where all your money is going. Invest in a good planner, with a section for budgeting, like this one from See Jane Work. See Jane Work also has tons of great and practical gift items for your bridesmaids, etc.

RSVP Online- Something that I'm doing to cut cost is....instead of paying double for stamps on the return envelopes for RSVP, I'm designing a simple business card sized insert with a 'check yes or no' type theme. You may call it cheap but....its gonna save money. All they do is send a quick email to (for example) wellbethere@gmail.com or sorrywecant@gmail.com. -Kristin

Photo Props- Just something creative and fun...smittensticks{dot}com

Use Your Village- We all know the charming cliché, “It takes a village to raise a child.” I would argue that it also takes a village to get that child married! One of my favorite money saving tactics has been finding the wildly talented people that are part of my life already and asking them to be part of this special time. My future mother-in-law is tackling my wedding dress alterations! Alterations can be just as expensive as the dress, so I was thrilled when she offered her services. Not only is it saving money, but she is glad to feel so involved and use her skills. She has two sons and no daughters so she loves to take part in all the girly stuff! -Lindsey

Giant Balloons- I'm stealing this from www.greenweddingshoes.blogspot.com...but it's such a GREAT idea! Here's what the couple, Kate & Andy, did - "Andy really wanted to use paper lanterns, but we couldn't hang them due to the gallery's super high ceilings, so I found the large white balloons, hoping they would have the same effect. We used twine for the strings and collected antique knobs and hooks to use as weights--" LOVE it!!! And absolutely love that they incorporated the balloons into their group photos!! The pictures on the greenweddingshoes blog speak for themselves. :) -Lezlie

Gather Inspiration from Blogs- I love finding unique ideas on different wedding blogs like Snippet and Ink, EtsyWeddings, and Style Me Pretty. -Megan

More Fabric Flowers- I'm penny pinchin' for this wedding. I'd rather spend less for the wedding and save more for our life together. Benefits: 1) Saves Money (no purchasing whole-sale flowers, keeping them cool, no design/arrangement fees & shipping cost) 2) Keepsake (I could keep them on my kitchen table in a snazzy vase for all of time) 3) It looks cool (this is the most technical reason of them all) 4) they don't die. -Kristin

Second Hand Shopping- I actually bought my wedding dress from a bridal resale shop in Dallas. While some brides might not want to have a wedding dress that someone else wore, I was totally happy with this option. It didn't bother me at all because I got an amazing designer dress for a great price! No one else had to know it had been previously owned (although I was so proud of it that I told lots of people anyway!). It looked brand new and totally perfect. -Jenna

Thrift Shop for Table Decor- Places like Salvation Army have old mismatched glasses and tins that you can easily turn into into the most gloriously quaint flower vases and centerpieces.