erin & bryan
i can pretty much guarantee that after you are finished looking through this post below, you will not be able to stop yourself from smiling.
Erin & Bryan naturally, and quite beautifully, have this joyous effect on
everyone -- from their bigger than life smiles, to their zest for life, to their unconditional love -- it is no wonder to me that the Universe joined these two bright lights.
i first met both Erin & Bryan when i documented her sister Allison & brother-in-law Matt's wedding in 2008 (to see that post,
click here!). i will never forget when i received one of the MOST cheery & thoughtful emails from Erin after
Allison & Matt's wedding. my heart was already deeply touched from the connection with Allison & Matt,,, so this extra step of kindness & gratitude just blew me away. this,
however, i quickly grew to know was just
Erin, being Erin -- a true kindred spirit filled with a most optimistic outlook on life.
in the midst of our many emails that followed, Erin spoke --- ahem,,,
gushed... about Bryan all throughout.
without ever having a conversation with Bryan, i already felt like i knew him. when the day came that Erin called me to tell me
'something' important,,, i literally screamed in excitement! i could hear her smiling through the phone line, as was i. my heart couldn't have been happier.
Erin & Bryan were married in the
awe!some city of Chicago (or as i used to call as a kid "Chikakago"
). the day began with the ladies getting dolled up at the great
Crowne Plaza Hotel. next, their heartfelt ceremony took place at the
First United Methodist Church at the Chicago Temple. after, we ventured around the city for some photo fun & ended at the gorgeous
Prairie Production for a night filled with great laughter, toasts, eats, dancing & grand celebration by all.
below are a
'few' top faves, however be sure to check out the slide show for even more at the end of this post!
Erin & Bryan!!! as i have expressed many times before, i feel the luckiest to know you and your families.
being in Chicago that weekend felt like being part of the fam -- thank you
again for your incredible warmth & hospitality. both
Danielle & i couldn't stop talking about how ah!mazing everything was & how much we adore you all. i wish you both a lifetime FILLED with the laughter & joy i witnessed and captured that day... when going through your images, i am reminded once again of the power & incredible beauty of the one thing that matters most in this world -- Love. ....and now i get to show you a bit of what
your love looks like!
hope you enjoy!! with great heart, love & gratitude, always,
ksen
Erin is
also the incredible talent behind her company,
Pulp and Honey (featured in
a previous post, as well!),,, therefore the mastermind behind all the brilliant details below
:
her dress. was. stunning :
and the bling! oh the bling...
Jenny from Scarlet Petal did a fabulous job :
the creative designer behind their pretty hair flowers is the talented Nichole Brown (
Coie is her company & you can also check our her
etsy shop for more work!) :
more of the lovely details...
Bryan's ring
:
laughter was a constant that day :
oh Erin,,, you are such a beauty!
the brilliant make-up artist that day was my dear friend
Rommy.
he will not only ROCK your make-up look....
...but also bring such great energy & laughter with him!
i *heart* this image :
yes. getting dressed really can be THIS fun!!
Erin was given gifts from Bryan, as well as her Mother & sister.
what i love most about this image is that there is so much going on. it is real, vibrant & full of heart... as simple as it 'may' be :
Erin,,, you . are . GORGEOUS!!!
to the church we go!
Bryan was all smiles as well that day
:
...and looking quite dapper himself :
sealed with a smooooch & smiles :
it's official!!!
and just a little bit of newlywed time...
i love this mini series of Erin with her fam :
the bridal party was a BLAST :
the new mr. & mrs.!!!
while Erin was getting bustled, i couldn't help but notice her up-do. so graceful & romantic
:
Erin's wonderFULL parents
:
the ladies
:
the gents! :
at Prairie Productions :
one of my top faves :
this image is how it actually looked that evening. no 'color' or texture was added. i it :
the Mc's :
can someone say yummm!?! yes please!
oh the details!!! Erin is truly such a talent :
... you know i
LOVED this wall!
their 'sa-weeet' cake was created by
Tipsy Cake in Chicago :
i absolutely love it when a client becomes a friend,,, & i feel so lucky to be able to say this about the radiant Allison & Matt :
love. everything. about. this :
their first dance as husband & wife...
father.daughter dance :
mother.son dance :
...and the dancing continued thanks to their awesome guests & great dj Mark Rankin of
DJ Chicago!
last, but not least... a few late-night romancy pics
:
***CLICK HERE!!!*** to view the slide show & see even more photographs from their special day.
wednesday's.whimsy:50 life lessons.part.II
as promised from
last week's 'wednesday's whimsy' post.... here are the remaining 25 life lessons from
Regina Brett, a columnist for, The Plain Dealer, Cleveland, Ohio, who wrote
50 life lessons. wishing you a happy, snowy & warm
"wednesday's whimsy".
ksen
***to revisit the first 25 life lessons, simply CLICK HERE!!!***mup.mondays : question one
....
aaaaand i am already
slightly behind the ball on my
mup mondays -- unfortunately, unless i pulled an all nighter yesterday (which i am vowing not to do this year!), there was no possible time to fit one in. so instead, on this gorgeously bright Tuesday, i bring to you
mup mondays a day late
. ...question number one!
Q. from Kristen :
How do I do a cool brown smoky eye (shadow/liner?) etc..and what products do u like to use for shadow that don't crease..I have issues w/ that. What tools do u use, I can't ever do that crease thing right w/ my almond shaped eyes.
A. from ksen :
a smoky eye can be done a number of ways & there are also many different levels of what people consider 'smoky'. however, i am going to do my best to break it down as simply as i can! below will be an example of a 'cool brown smoky eye'.
please note that the products used may need to be adjusted slightly due to your skin color tones!
first :
in my opinion, i believe that in order to achieve a great smoky eye easily (or any eye-look for that matter), your
number one needed tool is a set of fab brushes!!! brushes will make everything
SO much easier & also apply your products best. investing in a good set of brushes is essential & when you do, be sure to spend a few extra bucks on some brush cleanser so that you can maintain your brushes. if you do so & take the time to take good care of your brushes, they WILL last... leaving that investment to be not as costly when you stretch it out over the years.
however, with that said & knowing that we all may not have the master set of brushes of our dreams at home, i will try my best to help you create a smoky eye with
only 3 brushes!
second :
all the products that i use professionally & that are listed below are from
MAC. i can go into this subject more perhaps on another
mup mondays!
ok! here we go :
step 1)
begin with a good base. i adore MAC Eye Paints, as well as MAC Paint Pots. for myself, i usually use MAC 'Painterly' Paint Pot. i would suggest applying it all over your eye (from the lid up into the brow bone) as a base with the soft & fluffy MAC #217 Blending Brush. however, instead of a brush, you may use your ring finger to apply this product as long as you apply it gently!! both MAC Eye Paints & MAC Paint Pots go on easily & then set -- once set i always say you can
'cry, sweat, get rained on & your shadows will stay!' the key, however is that a
'little goes a long way' -- so no need to glob it up! in fact, with all MAC products it is pretty much a given that 'a little goes a long way'. you will always get the
MOST out of your products & be so surprised as to how long they last you!
step 2)
take MAC Stubborn Brown Powerpoint Eye Pencil (also glides on easily & then sets becoming waterproof) & line the top of your lid, as well as slightly 'hug' or round out the outer corner of your eye with a touch of the liner. don't worry about how 'perfect' your line is either because the next step will be to take the MAC #219 Pencil Brush & smudge the line well.
step 3)
use the MAC #239 Eye Shader Brush & apply MAC Tempting Eye Shadow (once again, this is just an example) as your lid color. then dip your #217 Blending Brush into your crease color, in this case i would suggest MAC Twinks Eye Shadow. place the round fluffy #217 Blending Brush at the outer corner of your lid & create the crease color by going back & forth like a sideways "v" shape. the softness of that brush will allow you to soften the color to your liking, as well as build the color by adding more to the brush & repeating the process. this brush will also allow you to shape the crease color around your eye to best suite your eye shape!
***
side note!*** if you used the #217 Blending Brush to apply your MAC Paint as a base in the first step, then you will need to use a clean & dry brush to apply the crease color! very important!
step 4)
take your #219 Pencil Brush and apply MAC Retrospeck Eye Shadow as an inner highlight to the inner corners of your lids & then a lower liner highlight underneath your eye.
ps. i LOVE this color. very versatile for so many occasions & looks!
step 5)
ever tried to do a smoky eye before & then thought to yourself,
'this just doesn't look right?' to me, this next step is one of the most important parts to making that smoky eye look 'complete' and the best part is, it is so simple! take MAC Graphblack Technakohl liner & line the
inside of your lower lid with it. it might go on a bit dark, however keep in mind that that is the tissue part of your eye so it will eventually fade a bit to a more subdued gray. this also helps make the white of your eyes pop, & in turn bring out the vibrant color of your eyes!
step 6)
at this point, you may go back in & vamp up the crease color or add more upper eye liner -- all depending on how 'smoky' you want to go. the very last step, though, is to pump up your lashes with mascara! this step
truly brings it all together. i would recommend a waterproof mascara if you are going to an event & don't want to worry about your look smudging, falling, etc. however, any mascara that you are comfortable with is key. make sure to place the mascara on both your top & bottom lashes in order to achieve more of a balanced smoky eye look!
i hope that all helps at least a bit.
happy tuesday!
ksen
below are two examples of smoky eyes with two different eye shapes. here is one of the wonderFULL
Tanya:
and another version of a smoky eye of the FABUUUlous
Nicole :
