Now, for my family and friends that weren’t able to be there, here is your virtual tour. Dad: This is for you! I love you and missed you more than ever last night. I can’t wait to hold your hand and walk you through the studio this winter.

The front entrance…a big thank you going out to Shawn Bright at Signs in One Day for rocking our sign and window decals! You guys are the best!

We are looking forward to having this area landscaped by our friends, Beth & Mike, so stay tuned!

Here I am with the kiddos…this was approximately 30 minutes after my nervous breakdown. I pulled it together, but on the way to the opening I was sweating bullets and silencing my children after the boy karate chopped the girl in the neck “on accident.” The screaming in the car sent me over the edge…I almost came undone…but thankfully they could see that I was literally teetering on the edge of sanity and we had a nice, quiet ride to the studio with lots of deep breathing exercises.

I didn’t like the light there, so I asked Brandon to take another shot. Please excuse this picture…I included this for one person, and one person alone: Tashia Webber: “Does my hair look okay?” Gosh, I missed you last night!

Back to the tour (sorry!)

Here is the view from the entrance:

Another angle, showing our awesome dividers from Ikea that separate the shooting area:

Here’s a view of our sitting area & packaging station, where orders are boxed up & ribbon-tied:

My favorite chair ever…and the bathroom, which I named “the detail room.” All of the pictures in there are wedding details: shoes, dresses, flowers, rings…my favorite things!

Shooting area…not the best picture I’ve ever taken, but I wanted my Dad to have a full view of the place!

This is the viewing area, where clients come and comfortably view the photos from their session. I love offering the capability to view pictures in a large format, rather than being limited to the computer screen!

Here is our office…it is adjacent to the viewing area. Now that we put yellow accents in the viewing area, I am determined to find yellow office chairs. If you see any, please let me know!

Before everyone arrived, our dear friend Jeff presented us with the MOST amazing gift ever. EVER. It’s a Dave Matthews Band gold record, framed, engraved and dedicated to us. The lyrical quote is absolute perfection: “Turns out not where, but who you’re with that really matters.” The thoughtfulness of the gift was overwhelming…I cried…and Brandon got choked up too, you can see it in his eyes in this picture:

Thank you, Jeff & all the folks at Way FM. We are extraordinarily blessed to know you. And we love you!

I couldn’t believe the generosity of my friends, my heart was bursting last night. Here are some of the gifts we received:

Thank you to: Karen Cubler for the gorgeous (& functional!) silk bouquet from Jan at www.rentyourflowers.com. Thank you, Sharon Brotherton for the fabulous purple bouquet…Patty’s Flower Shop made a gorgeous design! And to Patty herself: thank you for such a sweet, fragrant bouquet…you are so generous, and of course…I love your work. Shout out to Bonnie! Thank you going out to Jennifer and David Rodriguez of Jaz-Mar Photography for the flowers and for being there to snap a family picture! Your grace is an inspiration, we love you guys! Thank you to Glen & Lizette…you have encouraged us from the beginning and we will always treasure your wedding memories. We love you! And finally, thank you Donlyn Turnbull for the treasure find…a vintage camera…something I have been wanting but never thought I would find! You have no idea how special that camera is to me–I can’t wait to use it for an engagement session!

p.s. you know I had to write on the cork and add it to our collection…if you don’t know about our collection, click here: corks

Thank you to Elba Plaza, of Jewels by Park Lane and to Kristen Pell of WAY FM for contributing giveaways…they were fabulous!

I am still floating on cloud nine from all of the loving support lavished upon us last night. I truly can’t express my grateful heart, I am so emotionally overwhelmed by the encouragement and kindness of you all! There are just no words to describe how blessed I feel…if I could wrap my arms around you all and give you a great big bear hug right now, I totally would! Here is a virtual one: (((hug)))

Here’s my favorite new family picture from last night, courtesy of Jaz-mar Photography:

Phew.

After things cleared out, Brandon and I took some time for a little dancing…and the kids snapped some pictures. These images are blurry and precious, kind of like the entire day!

If you missed the event, it would be my pleasure to give you personal tour! Thank you for stopping by the blog today.
Love, Stacy
www.setfreephotography.com

Here she is: Welcome to the world, sweet girl!

I had to rock the white chair again. And the orange scarf…hey! it’s a new combination!

I think I commented on Rielyn’s eyelashes a bit much during the shoot. Okay, I went overboard…I just couldn’t get over how long they are. Is it wrong to be jealous of a newborn? It just doesn’t feel right.

The awesome hat and diaper cover above were made by the very fabulous Braidy Joy! She has a display in the studio and is now accepting custom orders…check her out!

This was our last pose and I love it. La-la-love it in color, in the vintage style, and the black and white versions. You might recognize the suitcases…I can’t stop loving them. THANK YOU, Josh Comer. I will return them someday.

Congratulations to Mike, Jaime, Payton and Averie Love. (I instill on calling Averie by her first and middle name. It has such a ring to it!) Your family just couldn’t get any cuter…how blessed you are! Thank you for letting me spend time with baby Rielyn, she is pure perfection.
Much Love and Affection,
Stacy

ps. be sure to become a fan of Braidy Joy here: facebook
have a great weekend, everyone!

www.setfreephotography.com

I am going to introduce each cake below, but it won’t nearly be as funny as the way Jen puts it at www.cakewrecks.blogspot.com. She has a way of talking about these cakes is so witty and clever…it’s pure hilarity.

This just rocks…it’s white-out for cakes. Who would buy this?

I love it when cake decorators write the instructions on the cake:

Wedding wrecks are so sad. Here is the inspiration photo given to the baker:

And here is the wreck:

But my favorite, my absolute favorite wrecks are misspellings. I don’t know why, I just laugh the hardest over these: (I’m laughing now)

So I am going to stop here because you really need to view these at the Cake Wrecks site to get the full appreciation of the wreck. Be sure to leave Jen some comments on her website! Better yet, be sure to keep your cameras handy when you visit grocery stores and bakeries so you can send her some wrecks It is one of my life’s goals to find a wreck for her!

Jen recently published her best selling book! Check it out here: book Go Jen! You rock!

Thanks for visiting the blog today, and I hope you’ve had a laugh!

Jen: Thank you for letting me share your site here on my leetle old blog. I am so thankful for you…I am a much more relaxed & smiley person due to your writing & wrecks. You have a gift, and I am thrilled that you are sharing it!
Love, Stacy

This wreath is screaming my name…you know me and orange & turquoise…we are one. These colors define my studio and I want this for the front door. I want it bad!

Ahhh the giant flower. It’s so fabulous, it’s close to stealing my heart. But I shall remain true to orange & turquoise.  Oh but that enormous pearl…swoon!

I have no adequate words to express my love and adoration for the following wreath. I die.

Okay, lace…roses…and pearls! What could be more feminine?

And finally, the wreath that gave this post permission to be on the blog on Wedding Wednesday:

Seriously, how would you feel if you found that on your door to go along with a proposal? And a matching ring? I know how I would feel, and my answer would be: “Yes, please!”

There are so many wreaths that I love for different reasons…I can’t help but share more:

But wait! There are more than wreaths at ItzFitz! Check out these hairpins, brides! And what a fun way to tie your wedding colors into your receptions tables, with these napkin holders! A photographer’s dream!

For more information, contact Jen at her shop, www.etsy.com/shop/ItzFitz. You can commission her for a custom order just in time for the fall! And think of the Holiday possibilities! *off to check my paypal balance*

** Be a Fan of Itz Fitz! on Facebook! **
http://www.facebook.com/ItzFitzShop

**all images copyright ItzFitz

Thanks for stopping in, I hope you have found a great resource for something fun today! Be sure to check my archives for more Wedding Wednesday posts. I promise to bring you lots more goodies now that the kiddos are back in school.

Have an idea or a product to submit for Wedding Wednesday? I would love to blog all about it! Email me here: stacy@setfreephotography.com

Peace, Love & Shopping on Etsy,
Stacy
Set Free Photography™

Erin & Brian,
Congratulations…it is such a pleasure watching you become parents. Erin, you are a beautiful mother; the joy was all over your smiling face! Thanks to all three of you for letting me be a part of your lives!
Love, Stacy

I thought some reflection was appropriate today, so I am posting about our summer time fun. I’m reflecting on the time we spent together, the sleeping in and the fact that time flies. I have never wanted a pause button for life more than I do right now.

We played the game of Sorry alot–did you know that Sorry is “The Classic Game of Sweet Revenge?” Aka: Brandon and Stacy forget all strategy and ruthlessly try to knock each other out, even if it means handing the game to one of the kids!

We have this fun vintage box version, it’s the second in our collection of vintage games. Brandon has hopes and dreams of filling a shelf with every vintage version he can find.

Here are the sweetest hands and feet ever…oh how I already miss them running around the house. It’s so quiet here. And serene. And there is no fighting. No whining or constant requests for snacks. hmmm why was I crying this morning?

And finally, after weeks of defeat, victory is mine:

Welp, thanks for humoring me this morning as I wallow. I just never thought time would go so fast, even though I would be rich if I had a penny for every time a complete stranger in the grocery store would see me holding my babies on my hip and say “enjoy that, it goes so fast!”

Love,
the sad, reflective, sorry-winning Stacy

www.setfreephotography.com

Alison was prepared with coordinating shoes for each outfit…aren’t these cute?

She rocked this outfit–I love the color!

The picture on the left might be my favorite! I caught her laughing and I love her expression!

Alison, I hope you have a memorable senior year and wish you every happiness and you start planning your future. May God continue to bless you!
Love, Stacy

Mya reminded me of my daughter so much…maybe it was the hair…or the cheeks. Or, it could just be that baby fever that keeps coming ’round. Either way, I would have loved a picture of my daughter rocking the orange scarf…Mya pulled it off quite nicely!

There just are no words to introduce this next shot. I won’t even try:

*sigh* I just wanted to hold her and hold her and pretend that my babies aren’t so old. I mentioned the baby thing to Brandon again. Not. gonna. happen.

Max & Sam: Congratulations on such a perfect little one. I’m so happy that I got to meet her!

Suzy: I am so happy to have met you and that you were a part of our shoot. I hope these pictures help cheer you up while you are missing sweet Mya. Have a safe trip home!

Love, Stacy

Set Free Photography

The collection:

(and she still has more at home! a girl after my own heart!) Have I ever told you that my hubby has forbidden me to buy anymore handbags? Clearly he doesn’t understand me the way Kirsten does!

One of my favorite pics from the entire shoot: Kirsten nailed the pose, the smile, the outfit…it’s all fabulous. And you now how orange makes me swoon!

Kirsten, I think you are so very beautiful! I had a really hard time narrowing down the pictures for your sneak peek–there are so many great images. I loved working with you (and your purses!) I hope your senior year is blessed, and that you follow your passion for interior design!
Love, Stacy | Set Free Photography®

Thank you for stopping by the blog today! I’m so happy you took a moment to check out my work!

www.setfreephotography.com

I should mention that I am a natural-nail girl.  I have tried acrylic and gel…and I always went back to my natural nails.  Then they would break, and I would cry.  (right, Pam?)  Shellac is available at Studio RK Salon in Fort Myers. They are my favorite!

Here is a link to a youtube video with more information:   shellac

And I leave you with a special reminder! There is a bridal show coming up at Germain Arena on August 15th at 1pm! Set Free doesn’t have a booth there, but I encourage you to go and check out some of my favorite vendors, Lace & Roses Bridal and The Plantation Golf & Country Club. Oh! And be sure to grab a catalog from Lace & Roses, where you will find my work on the pages, as well as this ad:

Thanks for stopping by today!
Love,
Stacy | Set Free Photography™

www.setfreephotography.com