2nd QUARTER BAWN EVENT | GUILD HALL AT PIEDMONT COMMUNITY CHURCH
Click on the Image to See the Flash Slideshow
Click the image above to view the flash slideshow.
I am proud to say that I hold the privilege of photographing the 2nd Quarter BAWN Event at the majestic Guild Hall at Piedmont Community Church. The venue itself was breathtaking and once all the pros had done their work, the grounds were transformed into a magical wedding venue.
As a wedding photographer, I just love the different angles, perspectives and rooms that are all within a few steps of each other at Guild Hall. At Guild Hall, you have the luxury of convenience and the opportunity for each part of your wedding to look like it was shot at a different location.
So what is BAWN you ask? BAWN (The Bay Area Wedding Network) is a group of wedding and event professionals who wish to promote growth in the wedding industry through education, networking and building strong relationships among peers. BAWN events are for the benefit of the wedding and event industry and are produced by Marie Rios, Owner Creative Occasions and Gwen Helbush, President of Where to Start, Inc. Wedding & Event Management. BAWN events are intended to provide networking and educational opportunities, as well as, the opportunity to build and strengthen relationships between event professionals.
The Team
the photographer | natalie wi | allure west studios
the planners | marie rios | creative occasions // gwen helbush | where to start, inc. wedding & event management
the invitation | sabrina moyle | hello!lucky
the calligraphy | michele papineau | papineau calligraphy
the rentals | jennifer khan | blue water party rentals
the piano | frederick hodges | frederick hodges music productions
the band | benjamin wanicur | golden gate jazz trio
the videography | jonathan metcalf | metmedia creative digital video & multimedia
the chocolates | deirdre stewart | scharffen berger chocolate maker & dagoba organic chocolates
the service staff | susan sheinkopf | the party staff, inc.
the sound | michael peterson | weddings with michael peterson
the beverage service | madeleine amodeo | best beverage catering
the furnishings & floral design | selyca medford | blueprint studios, the studio collection
the lighting | megan woods | enhanced lighting & sound
the lunch & service | alicia slater | global gourmet catering
the venue | carol leslie special events | guild hall at piedmont community church
the staff | kristjan gavin | in good company meetings & events
the sanctuary florals | orna maymon | ornamento, llc
the centerpieces in guild hall | paige benjamin | passiflora designs
the centerpieces in the courtyard | constance shrecengost | sunshine flowers
the cake | judy chadwick | true confectionse cake | the display cake was a four-tier square cake finished in ivory fondant and decorated with white chocolate draping edged in copper luster dust and white chocolate roses edged in claret luster dust with dark chocolate leaves | cake was chocolate butter cake filled with Espresso Bavarian Cream and Bittersweet Chocolate Ganache
the education | shawn jackson, esq. | california business development center
WHICH PEN?
So now that you have your beautiful new guest registry, you’re wondering which pen to use.
I suggest using an Extra Fine Point Sharpie, pictured in the foreground here and not to be confused with the Ultra Fine Point Sharpie, pictured in the background. The Extra Fine Point Sharpie will leave smooth lines and will not bleed through to the other side of the page.
Scatter a few extra on the table. I can guarantee that you’ll have a crowd over the book.
AN URBAN GUEST REGISTRY
I am addicted to Asuka Books right now. Here’s the latest. A guest registry I designed for Marilyn & Danny using images from our San Francisco Engagement Session. Our contributing author, Melissa Napoleon, penned a beautiful poem to compliment the pictures.
Marilyn and Danny will use their book as a guest registry at their wedding. They will be married on May 17th at the luxurious Hotel Valencia located in European-inspired Santana Row.
A STATELY COFFEE TABLE BOOK
Ever since Carolyn and Michael’s Asuka Coffee Table Book arrived the other day, I long to open it and turn the thick silky pages.
This is one of our custom designed coffee table books in which we use our images to illustrate a story told by the bride and groom.
Carolyn and Michael were married at St. Peter’s Catholic Church in Washington, D.C. and held their reception at Belle Haven Country Club in Alexandria, Virginia.
ALLURE WEST STUDIOS PUBLISHED IN BRIDES NORTHERN CALIFORNIA
ALLURE WEST STUDIOS IN BRIDES NORTHERN CALIFORNIA
Gabrielle Feuersinger of Cake Coquette and I are in the Spring/Summer 2009 Issue of Brides Northern California! See us on page 128.
CUSTOM DESIGNED COFFEE TABLE BOOK
Custom Designed Hard-Cover Coffee Table Book
Here are a few of my favorite pages from a hard-cover coffee table book that I designed for Carolyn Kearney and Mike Stone’s wedding.
I asked Carolyn and Mike to to send me some of their thoughts and feelings from their wedding day and I incorporated those quotes into an elegant coffee table book that supplements their feature wedding album.
On the day of the wedding, I met Carolyn in her hotel room at the Ritz-Carlton, Pentagon City, Arlington, Virginia and was absolutely floored at how beautiful she looked. She had her hair and nails done at Elizabeth Arden’s Red Door on Pentagon Row and was preparing to slip on an exquisitely feminine strapless Melissa Sweet at Kleinfeld A-Line, French Lace wedding dress.
Bella Figura’s Classic Calligraphy Eco-Friendly Wind-Powered Letterpress Invitations and delicate florals from Brookhill Florist fit perfectly with Carolyn’s historical D.C. style wedding.
Carolyn and Mike were married at St. Peter’s Catholic Church on Capitol Hill and after the ceremony, we closed off C Street at 3rd and took some surreal shots of Carolyn and Mike and their wedding party with the Capitol as their backdrop.
We headed over to Belle Haven Country Club in Alexandria, Virginia for the reception. Here, Carolyn and Mike were led into the cocktail hour by a bagpiper and were introduced for the first time as husband and wife on the terrace overlooking the green.
After their indulging in their delectable Alexandria Pasty Shop wedding cake, Carolyn and Mike left through a gate of sparklers and paused for a romantic embrace before whisking away in their getaway car.
We photographed Carolyn’s brother’s wedding 5 years ago at the Ritz-Carlton at Tyson’s Corner, Virginia and since their wedding, are proud to say that the Kearneys have been part of our extended family. We love watching their family grow and are honored to be a part of it as it happens.
ALLURE WEST IN SPECIAL EVENTS MAGAZINE
ALLURE WEST STUDIOS IN SPECIAL EVENT MAGAZINE
I recently photographed Kristjan Gavin, President of In Good Company Meetings & Events, for his feature article in the February issue of Special Events Magazine titled Hospitality Starts Here.
In his article, Kristjan discusses the hospitality experience and challenges each of us to take a step back and reflect upon our own projections.
How many times have you stepped off an airplane and proclaimed that you will never fly that airline again because of the flight attendant’s terrible attitude? Or how many times have you gone out to eat and left a meager tip because you felt the service was subpar?
What we each have to come to realize is that change begins within ourselves. If we are not happy with a particular situation, the first finger pointed must be at ourselves. If you find yourself in what you feel to be a compromising situation, take a deep breath and ask yourself how you can carry yourself differently. The slightest change in your own attitude could make all the difference in how another person treats you in return.
So as a wise friend once told me, change comes from within.
ALLURE WEST IN TODAY’S BRIDE
TODAY'S BRIDE WINTER 2009
I’m proud to announce that we’re in the Winter 2009 issue of Today’s Bride. Images #3 and #4. Image #3 is a centerpiece designed by Spiral Hand Floral + Event Design and image #4 is a centerpiece designed by Hunt Littlefield. Both of these beautiful arrangements were featured at the 2008 ISES Gala at the City View Metreon in San Francisco for which I was the PR Co-Chair and Photography Co-Chair.
ALLURE WEST IN GENTRY
ALLURE WEST &CAKE COQUETTE IN GENTRY
I photographed this beautiful Vintage Bird Cake made by Gabrielle Feuersinger of Cake Coquette at Forest Hill Club House in November and here it is featured in Gentry’s February Bridal Issue. Gabby drew her inspiration from a vintage handbag that had jade and gold beads making a partridge in a pear tree relief.
WEDDING WALKERS
Wedding Walkers
This morning I went for a 6-mile walk with Stacie Tamaki of The Flirty Guide (see us on the Flirty Guide), Lea McIntosh of Lea McIntosh – Extraordinary Events & Weddings and Lea’s sister, Christina, who was visiting from Sacramento.
We met at 7:30 am and walked the Los Gatos Creek Trail in Campbell. It took us a little over 2 hours to walk 6 miles, but it literally felt as if only minutes had passed. It was such a great opportunity to catch up and share ideas while doing something healthy for ourselves.
After our super calorie-burning walk, we indulged ourselves in a sumptuous breakfast at Stacks in Campbell. While Lea was smart and ordered the yogurt sundae, I went with the crab crepe. Well, the way I see it is that it evens out and makes it as if I didn’t walk or eat this morning. Sound good? Works for me!
DILEK SEZEN CITY CLUB SHOWCASE
Dilek Sezen is one of the amazing Union Street professionals I’ve gotten to know quite well since we started working on the Union Street Wedding Ring. She is most certainly a true professional and I admire her passion for her work and her drive for her business.
This is a slideshow of her highly successful showcase at the City Club in San Francisco.
Next time you’re on Union Street, please do visit her at 1757 Union Street, First Floor, Suite 2 (follow her signs down the alley).
OUR NEW BUSINESS CARDS
We have a lot of new things happening this week! Check out these new cards Suzie McKig of Twig & Fig :: Couture Invitations designed for us. She was a dream to work with and knew exactly what we needed to spruce things up a bit.
Here are some pictures I took of their store at 2110 Vine Street in Berkeley:
OUR NEW WEDDING RINGS
I’ve been holding up lines everywhere these past few days since I just can’t seem to stop admiring my new wedding ring!
I asked my lovely friend and Union Street Wedding Ring colleague, Dilek Sezen of Dilek Sezen Objet D’Art, to design these beautiful rings for us using my original engagement diamond.
I just love how the rings feels and looks on my finger and Jung has been raving about his ever since he slipped it on.
These exquisite rings sit atop an elegant arrangement created by my other lovely friend and Union Street Wedding Ring colleague, Mandy Scott of Mandy Scott Flowers.
By Recommendation Only Picture of the Month
We are proud to announce that we have been invited to join several other top professionals in the bay area on By Recommendation Only and one of our favorite images from Jenn and Greg Clapp’s wedding at the Grounds for Sculpture in Hamilton, NJ is featured as June’s Picture of the Month.
By Recommendation Only was developed by Johanna Kaestner, who conceived, authored, and published the first series of By Recommendation Only books, covering the party and wedding industry in the Greater San Francisco Bay Area. Her expertise in this endeavor stems from more than 16 years researching the party and wedding industry.
Johanna interviewed me in our Union Street studio and the morning flew by as we looked at pictures and shared stories about our professional and family lives. I especially enjoyed connecting with Johanna because not only is she a wise business woman, but she is also a wise mother. There is a delicate balance between maintaining a successful business while raising a family and I hope that when my children are grown, I can look back and say that I cultivated each with grace and finesse, just as Johanna did.
Our New Studio!
We moved into our new studio space on Union Street last weekend and are celebrating our one week anniversary today! What an exciting week it’s been. I love being on Union Street and feel so inspired and motivated here.
Our new address is 2088 Union Street, Suite 3, and we’re located on the corner of Union and Webster, above Armani Exchange. We’re just down the street from some other amazing industry professionals: Mandy Scott Flowers, photographer Gene Higa and photographer Ann Hamilton.
The view from our window, overlooking Union Street:
Our 7-year-old, Lawrence, painting:
Looking up at our studio from Union Street:
Our 5-year-old, Aiden, painting:
Here’s where the kids and I broke for lunch:
Aiden waiting patiently for lunch:
Lawrence playing with his sister, our 3-year-old, Isabella:
The kids love Union Street:
Isabella painting:
Jung and our babies in our new studio:
A sneak peak inside:
New Blog!
We’ve moved our blog from Blogger to WordPress, simply because of the advanced ability to customize the look and feel of the blog. We do, however, have to learn how to make all of these changes, so in the meantime, our archives and about us pages don’t work yet, but will be coming soon.
Promises and Pearls 2008
A few days ago, we had the privilege of photographing Promises and Pearls, a bridal soiree, co-created by Michelle Barrionuevo-Mazzini of MB Wedding Design and Events and Beverly Yip of Especially Yours Chair Covers at the San Francisco Design Center.
This is part of one of the showcase tables Michelle designed:
Michelle’s beach-themed table:
I was especially drawn to this showcase table. It was a black and white theme loaded with fresh, spring greenery. The florals for this table were done by Leah Gagne and Rafael Campos at Spiral Hand Floral and Event Design.
Exquisite jewelry design by Carrie D. Mader:
This is my lovely husband, Jung, presenting our family portrait session to the lucky raffle winner along with Michelle and Beverly.
The showcase tables were a collaboration between Michelle of MB Wedding Design & Events, Leah Gagne and Rafael Campos of Spiral Hand Floral and Event Design, Hartmann Studios (who provided the rentals, draping and accessories), Impact Lighting through Hartmann Studios, Marizette Paperie and Beau Coup Favors.
Hartmann’s new chandelier:
Cake by Gabrielle Feuersinger of Cake Coquette:
Kevin Chin and Patrisha Lee admiring the B&W themed table:
Super cute potpourri sachets by Beau Coup Wedding Favors.
This is me with Carl Mindling, The Only D.J., one of the first friends I made when we moved to California:
Cake designed by Michelle and implemented by Kelly at Glass Slipper Gourmet:
Guests enjoying themselves:
His parents are very efficient and are looking into his options early:
Beverly and her family:
SFDC at night:
What a great evening! We made so many new friends and really enjoyed being a part of such a spectacular show.