Believe It or Not!

During a regular final consultation with a bride today regarding her wedding this Sat., Kristen (the bride) requested a special photograph. If I should see a ladybug, then please take a picture of it. Kristen shared the connection between her grandmother, who is watching from above, and family members encountering a ladybug at pretty much all family events and even at times when people are in need or happy moments. There was even one when John (the groom) proposed to her! This is such a touching connection. For those of us who believe or not in signs or guardian angels (which I do!), we can't deny there's something extraordinary, unexplained events and phenomena that has happened to each one of us at some point in our life time. Some more than once. Well to make this story short, I later went to work and what did I find on the passenger seat??!!! Grandma! I'm sorry but you seem to not be able to reach the pedals and steering wheel there! I KID YOU NOT!

DIY Chalkboard Wedding Favors and Decorations

There are so many great wedding favors and decorative items that you can turn into chalkboards. Whether you want to paint, spray, dip (wine glass stems), labels or chalkboard paper rolls, these items will sure be a big hit on your wedding day! Below are some of my pins from my Pinterest board.

WINE GLASSES: You can buy them at your local dollar store. These wine glasses would be great for guests to take home.





DIPPING WINE GLASSES INTO PAINT METHOD: Here Deb Thompson with Just Short of Crazy gives some tips and steps for dipping wine glasses into chalkboard paint.
Chalkboard Wine Glasses Tutorial - Just Short of Crazy


SPRAY PAINT WINE GLASSES METHOD: Here's tips on how to prep and spray chalkboard paint on your wine glasses by Handimania TV.



There are many more items that you can create:





My favorite is the wedding chalkboard sign for your photobooth:





Now just in case you're thinking that you're not artistic enough to do this, then here's some help. To start, you need some chalkboard fonts. If you don't have any in Word or Photoshop, you can download some for free from www.1001fonts.com:
28 Free Chalk Fonts · 1001 Fonts


Type and print out your message to your desire size. You may need to print several pages if you want larger size lettering. Then, cover the back of your papers with chalk as suggested by Sincerely, Sara D. You are making a carbon paper with the chalk.





Next, place your printed papers with the chalk covered side down on the chalkboard sign. Use tape to secure the printed papers in place and trace the letters with a pencil/pen. Remove the papers and you should see a chalk outline of your message. Now use chalk or chalk pen to trace and color the lettering. Now that wasn't bad!

Please visit my Pinterest board to see more pins of items, supplies, ideas and tips that can be turned into chalkboards. Wishing you great success and hope you will have fun making them.

Elizabeth and Patrick: Wedding April 18, 2015

I had the pleasure of photographing Elizabeth and Patrick’s wedding on April 18^th.  There was a 60% chances of late afternoon rain.  So I kept my fingers crossed for the rain to come once we are inside at the reception.  On my late morning drive to the Union Bluff House in York, ME, the weather was gorgeous.  The sun was out, but not too harsh.  The ceremony took place at 1:00pm at the PavilionGazebo Ellis Park located on Short Sands Beach with 100+ guests sharing their special moment.  Patrick’s uncle, Arty (his only Pilipino uncle… LOL) had the honor of marrying them.  It was so relaxing working with Elizabeth and Patrick.  They were more concerned about including loved ones in their photos and being able to spend more time with their guests in sharing their special day.  Patrick even made a shuffle board table for his guests to enjoy at the reception!  Elizabeth was a stunning bride in her beautiful dress!  And her Maid of Honor, Chelsey, knew just how to get her to smile by saying the keyword, “makeup”. 

It was also a pleasant surprise to see a familiar face, Christine, the manager and head florist from York Flower Shop!  We know of each other from the school department band community in Rochester.  York Flower Shop did an amazing job with all of the flowers.  Elizabeth’s bouquet was so pretty and held out throughout the day!  This was also my first time to work at Cape Neddick Lobster Pound.  I never knew they did weddings there.  Their staff was very pleasant and accommodating and food was delicious.  It’s the perfect place for a harborside style wedding.  We all enjoyed classic rock music by Night Rockers, a band in Maine and settled our tummies with cupcakes from Rossi’s Italian Bakery after our dinner.

Wishing Elizabeth and Patrick all the best!  Thank you for having me be a part of your special day!

To view more photos from Elizabeth and Patrick's wedding, please visit my website or Facebook.