So many great things to celebrate after this weekends ahmazing Romantically Modern Chicago Wedding at the beautiful Greenhouse Loft in Logan Square.  Collaborating with some of the best wedding vendors in this great city is just the beginning to creating a day

of incredible wedding day memories. A BIG thanks to the following talented people for creating such a perfect wedding day for Christy and Luke this past weekend. Here is just a sneak peek of their beautiful wedding day- cheers to creating many more happy memories!

Wedding Venue: Greenhouse Loft / Bridal Attire: Hayley Paige, Vow to be Chic, The Black Tux / Florist: Flowers for Dreams / Invitations: Pixie Chicago / Catering: Big Delicious Planet / Bakery: Sweet Mandy B’s / DJ: Gusto Paz / Videographer: Plan A Studios / Photobooth: iMG Photobooth

Come meet Joe and I on September 22nd at Artifact Events along with 50 other awesome wedding vendors (including NINE local breweries) at Wedtoberfest!

This event is an exciting alternative to the wedding planning process that combines a casual wedding show with all the fun of a beer festival. We are so excited to have been selected for this years show.

So be sure to stop by our booth, preuse our collection of heirloom wedding albums and other printed goods, and tell us all about your exciting wedding day plans! Be sure to get your tickets before this show sells out -see you there!

We were thrilled to see one of our most favorite weddings we shot last summer featured on the Artfully Wed blog last week- we couldn’t wait to share a few highlights from Chris and Crisselda’s beautiful boho Chicago rooftop wedding! We had a beautiful bright summer day to celebrate alongside Chris and Crisselda’s nearest and dearest. Paired with a dream team to work alongside of making this romantic and bohemian Chicago style wedding one that will forever be one for the books! A special thanks to Naturally Yours Events for helping to pull the best Chicago wedding vendors to help make The Rudd’s wedding day a day to remember for a lifetime. Check out the Artfully Wed blog post for more details on this fab celebration!

Event Planner: Naturally Yours Events

Event Venue: Ignite Glass Studios

Lighting: Atmosphere Event Group

Floral Designer: Becca Blue Flowers

DJ: Cage and Aquarium

Cake Designer: Elysia Root Cakes

Bakery: Insomnia Cookies

Cinema + Video: Old North Film Co.

Photobooth: Glitter Guts

Heirlooms + Extras: Nimble Well

Catering: Paramount Events

Design + Decor: Shadowbox Dreams

Summer in Chicago is finally here and my Chicago family sessions are officially in full swing. The clouds parted just in time for my photo session with The Barkers last week. It was so great to meet them at the South Pond in Lincoln Park while all the trees were at last in full bloom.  And little Ava was the center of attention sporting her adorable jean jacket, espadrilles and the best smiles that had us all laughing out loud. There is nothing quite like summer in the city with family!

Seth got down on one knee this past weekend during sunset on the lakefront to ask his girlfriend Morgan to be his wife! It was the sweetest most perfect way to pop the question. Their evening started with an hour horse and carriage ride around the city and ended at the lakefront with roses, a ring, and lots of sweet cuddling. Congratulations Seth + Morgan!! All this planned by the awesome duo that is The Heart Bandits.

Love is all around today- can you feel it?  I like to think that love for each other should be celebrated on a daily basis.  It’s the little things that add up like daily hugs and kisses in the morning with your loved one or cooking dinner together while sharing a bottle of wine. Or my favorite when Joe folds my laundry or makes the bed in the morning- haha- these little nuggets of daily love are what keeps love alive and a daily celebration of appreciation! May you celebrate with your love(s) today and for the rest of the year! xox

When Jamie reached out to us after seeing our feature on Wedding Chicks I knew that we had found our ideal client!  When we first met with Jamie to talk over initial wedding day details her energy and passion for her wedding day was what got us excited to work with her and her fiance Chris. That and the fact that they were having a ceremony overlooking Lake Michigan at Illinois State Park Resort was a huge bonus ( psst: we LOVE outdoor ceremonies!) A big part of the start of their relationship revolved around bike riding along the lake front so Jamie made sure that their engagement session AND wedding included her beloved beach cruiser in one way or another! It’s always such a great feeling to walk into a venue and just know that all the work the couple has done has really paid off and that it looks like THEIR wedding!

From morning until evening Jamie and Chris’ loved ones came together to celebrate the joining of two amazing people. We couldn’t have asked for a more fun, creative, and friendlier couple to work with!  Its always a huge honor when a fellow photographer (Jamie is a talented children portrait photographer) invites us to photograph their love story. Here are a few kind words from Jamie:

” I am also a photographer and finding my perfect wedding photographer was tough because of my own artistic visions and high standards, then I found Liz & Joe, the answer to my photography wishes!!!  Liz & Joe were amazing at bringing both my visions and theirs to life in such a gorgeous way…and I am AMAZED at how they brought my fiancé (does not love getting his photo taken) out of his shell! They really loosened both of us up so that we were natural and could have SO MUCH FUN….and we feel so lucky that we can call Liz & Joe new friends, they’re that great!! ”

Thank you Jamie + Chris for inviting us to photograph such an amazing day!  We wish you a beautiful marriage and many more dirty dancing solos! Love you guys 🙂

Wedding Ceremony + Reception: Illinois Beach Resort

Flowers: Balmes Flowers

Cake: Sweet Discoveries

Catering: Illinois Beach Resort

Hair + Makeup: RC Beauty

Dress: Gigi’s Closette

Thanks for joining me for my newest monthly blog series I like to call- Friendor Spotlight. Every month I will be highlighting a different Chicago wedding vendor to add to the creative conversation, inspire, showcase the many talented ladies + gents in and around Chicago and to encourage others to lead with love and intention everyday.

Please welcome Emily Talsma of Emily Rose Flower Crowns to February’s Friendor Spotlight series. I met Emily last year while shooting her brother’s wedding in Chicago. She was in the wedding party and the bride was wearing one of her custom flower crowns. I knew right away that she was someone I needed to connect with and I’m sure glad I did because after our first coffee meeting we found out that we are neighbors and in fact only live about 2 blocks away from each another!

Q: Where does your inspiration come from?

Emily:  I am so inspired by my grandmother, Evelyn Ruth. She wore red lipstick every day, wasn’t afraid to be bold in her style (hello, high heels and fur coats!), and was kind to everyone. I feel a little bit of her genes in me every time I prance around in a flower crown. Also, I’ll never forget the words Jodi of Giving Tree Photography said to me when I was first starting my businesses: “Always be a little kinder than necessary.” That inspires the heck outta me. I want to be kind. More than successful, I want to be kind.

Q: What pushes you to keep creating your best work?

Emily:  When I was getting married, I could not find a flower crown that I liked (or really any at all!) and felt like I had no choice but to make my own. When I make my crowns, I make them with my future clients in mind and try to create things people would actually want to wear on their wedding day – crowns that are aesthetically beautiful and tasteful but are also high quality. I make sure my crowns won’t fall apart + choose nicer flowers that look real in photos because that’s what I would want!

Q: If you could give your younger self one piece of advice what would it be?

Emily:  Don’t be so hard on yourself.

Q: When you need to unwind/get away/escape where do you go and what do you take with you?

Emily:  I’m the weirdo that unwinds by cleaning or creating something. It’s weird because my job IS creating stuff so it’s sometimes hard to separate work from “life” (but I guess that’s not a bad problem to have, right!?). As far as “getaways”, Michigan will always have my heart. Beautiful uncrowded beaches + wineries with free tastings + the nicest folks around? Count me in.

Thank you so much Emily!  If you would like to connect and learn more about this wildly talented lady feel free to reach her here:

Instagram: @emilyroseflowercrowns

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Emily-Rose-Flower-Crowns-340167592828844/

As I was wrapping up part of my client welcome gifts this weekend I thought it would be a fun and easy diy label to share on the blog today. I loved creating these cute labels to help add a little sweet personality to my otherwise plain plastic bags.  There are 6 labels that print on 1 Avery sheet of white full sheet labels. Once a label has been cut it measures about 3 1/2″ x 3″. So basically after you cut these from the sheet they act as stickers that can adhere to almost any material- pretty neat!  I filled my baggies with a handful of assorted Ghiradelli treats that my clients are sure to enjoy  as part of their welcome packet.

These handmade details are small but impactful ones that align with my value to shower my clients with personal attention and make them feel special right from the beginning!

Step #1: Download your label here.

Optional Step: If you are Photoshop savvy open the file in Photoshop, select the border color and replace it with a color that matches your brand color.

Step #2: Place your Avery 8 1/2″ x 11″ sheet down or up in your printer (according to printer setup) + Print as many as you need.

Step #3: Cut out labels + stick them to paper, plastic, or any branding material you wish to give a little life to. Enjoy!

If you are a small business owner in the market for a new printer I highly recommend this all in one (scanner, printer, copier) wireless Canon printer.  This has been a true workhorse for my business this year in helping me create custom labels, gift cards and pricing sheets. I love that it comes in white (non eye sore) and is compact enough to fit on my office shelf without having to pull it out every time I need to print something (the printer feed is located in the front).  To top it off it doesn’t cost an arm and a leg either. Love that it is also wireless and I can print documents from my ipad or phone too!

I can honestly say that we work with THE best couples. Thankful for this great wedding review from one of our amazing 2015 couples Michelin & Will. They were married at beautiful http://www.qasbasilica.org/ where Michelin’s mother and father also held their own wedding ceremony at as well. Their elegant reception was held at the Intercontinental Hotel in Chicago. Such a special day for this couple that we were so honored to be a part of. Here is more from the bride:

 “Planning our wedding from a far was a bit of a challenge. We could not have a face to face meeting or see everything in person. Liz & Joe were the absolute best at working through that challenge. When we first decided to consider them as our photographers Liz was great about emailing us materials. When we were pretty sure they were what we wanted they set up a Skype date so we talk through our expectations in detail. A few months before our wedding they set up a meeting with us on a weekend when we were in town to discuss last minute logistics. They also put up with viewing our engagement pictures that we had done in Philadelphia (where we live) so I could show them what I believe are our best angles.”

“On our wedding day they were amazing. It was a long, HOT day and their energy kept us going. We were really ready to get into the air conditioning at some points throughout the day but they encouraged us to get a few more photos, which I am VERY grateful for because they turned out amazing. They captured every moment I wanted. Whenever I wanted to snap a photo with a group of friends they were right there. The photos are unbelievably beautiful, my husband and I, as well as our family and friends look like our best selves. Liz & Joe had their work cut out for them capturing difficult subjects: small children, our beloved dog, and our big families, but it all turned out great. We are a relaxed couple – we do not take ourselves seriously and I really think all our wedding photos capture who we are and what the day was to us. I could not be more thrilled. They are the BEST!”