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It’s her again. This is now the third appearance of Jenna on my blog and she’s anything but ordinary. She first came to me by way of her engagement session. Then she came highly glammed up as one of my vixens. And here she is again, 3 months shy of her wedding date and looking as sophisticated and gorgeous as ever.

Her bridal session took place at the romantic and pastoral estate otherwise known as Falcons Hamlet. Touted as a ‘Versailles’, it would be hard to argue that it isn’t reminiscent of the French countryside.

We played along with Jenna throughout the estate, taking advantage of the rolling hills, the river, the Queen’s stables. What made the shoot so unique was the fact it was the first time we got inside the palace for a bridal session. The all marble interior in all it’s grandeur was perfect for pictures. And who would’ve thought the bathroom would illuminate Jenna with such gorgeous light!

I greatly look forward to her July wedding at The Highgrove on Laurel Lake in Fuquay-Varina. Let’s make it 4 posts on my blog, Jenna!

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Well, my gorgeous May bride took me up on the option to host her bridal session at the newest venue in Clayton, NC Falcon’s Hamlet  which this past weekend also played host to the wedding of DJ Mike Morse and Lindsay Frahm.

The gorgeous day, albeit blustery, proved to be a hair challenge, but in my eyes worked for her certain tousled, loose hair style light and billowy dress which often took to the wind. We took advantage of the pastoral scenery which made for some stunning backdrops. 

The one thing I totally dug about Nicole is the fact that she really heeded my advice, did her homework, and watched America’s Next Top Model. I tell all of my brides to do this. Sounds silly, right? It really helps my brides to understand how to exude sexiness. She was soft putty by the time she got to me. She was easy to direct with body angles and for giving soft and also edgy facial expressions. 

What’s left are some timeless images; a true depiction of how she felt the day of her bridal session, confident, sexy, and happy!

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The Falcon’s Hamlet, the ultra-exclusive brand new venue in Clayton, NC launched it’s first event yesterday and I was honored to be asked to document it for them. I was doubly honored that it also happened to be the wedding of Mike Morse and his bride, Lindsay Frahm.

The event went off without a hitch under a gorgeous blue sky day. From an outsider’s perspective, one would’ve never known that it was the Falcon’s Hamlets first event. Supported by the staff of Triangle Catering, one of their preferred vendors, the day was flawless.

Mike and Lindsay married to a standing crowd of 250+ guests whom enjoyed champagne while gathered around Falcons Hamlet’s spray fountain pond; the couple’s ceremony site.

Immediately following the ceremony the guests enjoyed the culinary stations hosted on the East and West terrace’s of the palace. The toast led off by Bob Dumas of the G105 Morning Showgram with a strong supporting, might I add theatrical role by Kentucky Kristen and a light-footed guy sporting a rainbow twirly ribbon, otherwise known as Jon, proved to be the entertainment of the evening as they sang, interpretively gestured, and danced a personal rendition of Bette Midler’s The Rose. My only two questions are 1. Jon are you for hire outside of weddings? And 2. When did Triangle Catering’s finest hors d’oeuvre, macaroni and cheese croquettes become a good toasting drink? All I kept thinking was someone get the man a drink!

For more information about Falcon’s Hamlet, to take a tour of their estate, or to have your wedding hosted there, please visit their site, www.falconshamlet.com

Also special thanks to Touch of Class Limo’s for their top notch service and for giving my sore feet a lift back to my car later that evening. Thanks Willie, Nick, Rick, Tony, and Steven, I believe?!

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Well, this was a Vintage Vixen first for me; party of 4. This gorgeous foursome came my way by the referral of Elaina, one of my Valentine’s Vintage Vixens. Elaina became a motivated advocate for my company sharing her album with her friends and associates and shortly after doing so had rounded up 4 of her co-workers to also pursue a Vintage Vixen’s session with me and also collected valuable Referral Rewards for these sessions.

And so they came last week . . . with their closets. No lie, they have more props than a costume store. They were prepared and I totally dug that about each one of them. We had a firefighter’s wife, a hunter’s girlfriend,a sweet little polka dot frock,  and one with a sporty jersey for a fresh look. And everything in between. 

The party was fun and lively. A little wine helped quell the nerves, but the girls quickly found that there was nothing to be nervous about. It was just plain old playtime.

These parties are fun! So gather up your friends. July promises a month chock full of vixens . . . .Hot! Hot! Hot! . Announcement to made shortly about the promo!

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Cherish and Christopher, or Greg as I prefer to call him (smile), have a story that dates back to preschool, WHOA! Cherish admits that even during the awkward adolescent years when she was as ‘skinny as a rail and he was as chubby as ever’ that they always caught each other’s glances and were attracted to each other.

It wasn’t until the later years, (known as high school) that the romance blossomed. Blame this one on the yearbook and afterwork dinners and a movie. A short break-up separated the two in college, but the mutual admiration of each other took hold as they realized that they were meant to spend the rest of their lives together. 

The rest of their lives begins later this year in December. Our engagement session happened last week at the Falcon’s Hamlet, the newest estate and venue here in Clayton, NC. The country, farm setting was not out of character for the two as Christopher and admitted to me that he indeed is a farmer of many trades. 

The session wouldn’t have been complete if it weren’t for my favorite moment captured as the two local German Shepherd’s sidled up along Cherish and Christopher for a good back scratch. Check out the pictures below.

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John and Wayne came to me by way of one of my husband’s co-workers, Karen. Got to love referrals! Our initial consultation was out at one of their favorite spots, Brixx Pizza at Brier Creek. The first thing that comes to mind when I think of them is ‘warm fuzzies’. You know, the type of people you just have an instant connection with and you hope they say ‘yes’ to your services. And the feeling was instant when I sat down with them. Due to my nosey nature with all of my initials, I want to know all about them. They’re interview sessions. I really try to gauge a good sense of who people are during these meetings. 

I loved how Wayne really revealed so much of his sentiment for John and how he fell in love with his blue eyes. The two have been inseparable, well . . . . after Wayne had to work to capture the glances of John, so the story goes. The two are accomplished members of the Duke Chapel choir and have spent time traveling throughout Europe singing. We connected on so many levels and so much humor and sincerity was shared. I was expecting nothing less than a fantastic photo session with them. Well, I kind of fell short of that : P

It was literally the Stacy Borelli variety show. Between breaking a sweat chasing batteries( I know you know what I’m referring to J+W) and tripping over my own two feet, I think I really had to let go of some inner-goofy during that session. It wasn’t nerves. It was just pure buffoon!

Their Duke Chapel Holy Union Ceremony will take place in August. An entirely new experience for me, I embrace all the diversity that comes my way. 

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Well, this session truly was an honor for me. This brightly adorned chickadee drove a long 3 hour drive from South Carolina to have a session with me to commemorate her newly rekindled relationship with her violin. A grad student at Winthrop and also working had left Angela a little disconnected with her passion; her violin. Recently she picked it up again and now plays with a friend. 

Our session began, well . . . dry. Not in humor. The weather. We strolled the grounds of the park; paused for some moments in the wet grass. Yeah, we get down and dirty for my sessions. I had her laying in hay first off. Were visited by a very friendly ladybug. The pictures are priceless! I believe in signs. Happy things happen to happy people and from the vibrancy in her wardrobe, how could Angela not be happy! The magenta feather hair clip was icing on the cake for me. Love the frothy details.

We ended our session a bit damp, to say the least. Drove a few miles down the road to an amber-colored field of whispy things (not sure of their technical name) and ended our session with a car dodging stroll in the road. In all honesty, it was a perfect session! With the simple fact that Angela came equipped with props, style, and a sense of adventure, well that fuels me as an artist. Bring it on!

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