color palette: secret succulent garden

Mom planted a bunch of succulent cuttings in this pretty Italian wall well we had around the house. Who knows where we pick up all this stuff?!?? Love the color palette: verdant green, spring, rhubarb, stone and flame.

behind the scenes: wedding invitation photo shoot

I spent nearly all day last Friday prepping for Saturday morning’s wedding invitation photo shoot. The light is best in our home kitchen (we love to shoot in natural light), so we have to transport everything from the studio on boards.

Unfortunately, we had a very rare rainy day on Saturday, so the light wasn’t that great. We had to pull in lights to get the shoot finished. Normally, we’d just postpone the shoot, but our friend Adrianne Smith delivered some amazing flowers and special boutonnieres, and we wanted to use them before they wilted away. 

Here are a couple of quick peeks. I’m still sifting through the hundreds of photos to find the handful that will end up on our website.Our WONDERLAND invitation, shown flat printed in a truly classic black and pink wedding invitation color combo. Adrianne made a beautiful classic white anemone boutonniere for us, and I think they complement each other perfectly.

Our PACIFIC BEACH invitation, shown flat printed in one of my all time favorite color combinations for wedding invitations: yellow and gray. Adrianne made a charming yellow feverfew boutonniere for us. Isn’t it darling? I love boutonnieres. I tried to convince John to wear it around the house after the shoot was complete, but he said it didn’t go with his holey sweatshirt.

from the prop closet: travel souvenirs

Using souvenirs from my travels in photo shoots gives me a legitimate reason to save ephemera from my trips. The M button is from a visit to the Met in NYC last spring after the National Stationery Show.

Photo ©Delphine

color palette: puppy love

I pulled inspiration for this soothing autumnal color palette (full of soft taupes, pinks and greens) from one of my favorite photos of all time: a portrait of a toddler with her puppy. Photo by the extraordinarily talented kids photographer Jessica Davis Photography.

2011 desk calendar by delphine

As promised earlier, here are some final shots of our new Delphine 2011 Desk Calendar. Photo styling by Delphine intern Caleb Jones and the Delphine team. Photos by Delphine intern Courtney Yee and the Delphine team.

 

I hope you like the calendar! If you love it please buy one ; ) You may purchase it here. What’s your favorite month?

sneak peek: 2011 calendar photo shoot

Today I'm going to let you peek behind the curtain to see how a seemingly casual, effortless photo like the one above actually comes together. It's a looong process. First, we do some brainstorming about the story we'd like the photos to tell. Delphine intern Caleb Jones came up with the idea that the calendar photos would be the story of one person's desk throughout the year. The calendar, pen box and cute birdie prop would stay in the same place each month, but all the goodies around it would reflect how a person's desk, and life, changes from month to month.

The second step was to start pulling props from our giant collection of ephemera. A step I call:

It looks like a giant mess, but truly we have a plan!

 

Next, we create a tray for each photo, dividing up props for each month's photo. We throw everything we can think of that would go with the month's image. 

Then the exciting part: we prop a month and look through the lens. Then we edit, edit, edit ... taking away lots of distractions so the star of the photo, the calendar, can shine.

 

Invariably, our toughest critic comes by to check out the scene and give the final Meow approval.

I hope you like our new 2011 desk calendar! I'll post a few more final photos later today.

from the prop closet

Another behind the scenes peek at a photo shoot. This one uses one of my favorite props: rolls of stamps. I have always been fascinated by state flags and I just adore these stamps.

Photo: delphine

from the prop closet

Another behind the scenes sneak peek at a photo shoot we're working on. We found the blue feather in the studio after a traumatized bird was carried in by our cat. I picked up the French change tray at Anthropologie a while back.

photo: delphine

from the prop closet

A little behind the scenes sneak peek at a photo shoot we're working on. I love my star confetti and foil bird props.

photo: Delphine

in the press: a casual italian inspired reception

Many thanks to Weddings Unveiled for posting all about the Italian-inspired "Vino e Formaggio" shoot that Adrianne Smith and I designed (and captured stunningly by Jennifer Dery). Please head over to Completely Unveiled by Weddings Unveiled blog to read all about it. Meanwhile, here are a few of my favorite photos from the day.

That's my kitty, Ajax, checking to see if the cheese is ripe.

Stunning floral arrangement by Adrianne Smith Floral Design. Featuring the star of the show: gorgeous café au lait dahlias, garden roses, and oranges fresh from our backyard.

Grazie to everyone who helped with the photo shoot. You know who you are ... big big hugs to each and every one of you. xoxoxo.

The Scoop: EVENT DESIGN and STYLING: Adrianne Smith (www.asmithfloral.com) and Erika Firm (www.delphinepress.com)

PHOTOGRAPHY: Jennifer Dery, www.jenniferdery.com

CHEESE and CATERING: Dolce Pane & Vino, www.dolcepaneevino.com  

FLOWERS: Adrianne Smith Floral Design, www.asmithfloral.com

MENUS and PARTY FAVORS: Delphine, www.delphinepress.com 

VINTAGE PROPS: Sainte Béatrice, www.etsy.com/shop/saintebeatrice

in the press: classic tea party bridal shower

Many thanks to sweet Cyd for posting all about the classic tea party bridal shower that Adrianne Smith and I designed (beautifully shot by Jennifer Dery Photography). Please pop over to The Sweetest Occasion to read about our little adventure.

I used our new Charleston Stitch design for the invitations in our mai tai and dull silver inks.

Our sweet stir sticks add a pop of color to the table. And mmmm, those Cupcake Love cupcakes were so pretty and delicious.

I love the sweet tendrils in the centerpiece Adrianne Smith designed. So romantic, the dahlias and roses mixed together!

You can see loads more photos and read all about the inspiration on The Sweetest Occasion.

Special thanks to everyone who helped make this shoot possible. Especially Jennifer Dery, who was able to capture the romantic spirit so perfectly with her amazing eye.

CREDITS

EVENT DESIGN and STYLING: Adrianne Smith (www.asmithfloral.com) and Erika Firm (www.delphinepress.com)

PHOTOGRAPHY: Jennifer Dery, www.jenniferdery.com

CUPCAKES: Cupcake Love, www.cupcake-love.com

FLOWERS: Adrianne Smith Floral Design, www.asmithfloral.com

GIFTS: Dreamy, www.shopdreamy.com

INVITATIONS and PAPER GOODS: Delphine, www.delphinepress.com 

PARTY FAVORS: Delphine, www.delphinepress.com

VINTAGE PROPS: Sainte Béatrice, www.etsy.com/shop/saintebeatrice

color i love: electric blue

J'adore the electric blue color that Gwyneth Paltrow is wearing on the cover of the latest Vogue (August 2010). Personally, I think electric blue is the only great thing about the "new wave" revival. How does she manage to always always look oh so chic: polished but not stuffy; on trend but not, you know, trendy; classic and fashion forward at the same time?!?!! Also, I'm in love with her kitchen:

You can read the article about Gwyneth Paltrow on Vogue.com. Photos by Mario Testino

from the prop closet

Just a few little trinkets from our prop closet: a sweet peach and yellow butterfly, a darling mini guava teapot, and a few rolls from my growing japanese washi masking tape. I love the green and white stripe tape, of course.

wedding photog crush: will keeler

Looking for non-traditional, non-cheesy, non-crazy expensive wedding photography? Will Keeler is your guy. He's LA based, but don't fret if you don't live in Lalaland: he does travel outside of Southern California. His style is raw & real, yet maintains the romance of the Big Day. Love it.

photo by Will Keeler.

spring in the air

It's a sure sign of Spring when the California Poppies are in bloom.