Ooooh, this such a fun day for me! I am delighted to get to finally share these pictures with you. Many, many thanks to 100 Layer Cake for featuring the surprise!
Dave Lapham, one of my favorite photographers, and I have been working together for a while. Late last fall, we met for coffee to chat industry items and he mentioned he was preparing to propose to his amazing girlfriend Juliet. He knew he wanted to do something a little more creative, and asked me if I wanted to be involved. I eagerly volunteered, and told him to just to keep me posted. We spoke off and on about the upcoming proposal- and then, in late January, he sent me a text saying he was buying a ring. He quickly followed with the fact that he needed to propose soon. Since they were dating long-distance at the time, her next visit was the only opportunity for another two months.
Her next visit was in 6 days. Ready, set, go!
The next 6 days were a whirlwind- I threw together a mock styled shoot, convinced Juliet that I ‘desperately’ needed an extra set of hands, and organized a ‘team’ of vendors (with a few fake thrown in there- just to throw Juliet off). I recruited Matt & Sara from Penny & Finn to help with photography as well as Lisa from Wish Vintage Rentals.
Here’s a shot of the “print materials” for the shoot (I had to make sure Juliet would buy it!):
Be sure to check out the rest of the story out here!
I thought it would be fun to explain a bit more of the design behind the shoot as well, since it was tailored to my unsuspecting helper. 🙂 When talking to Dave about the design, he mentioned the following things:
1. Juliet loves traveling- and they really love to go on adventures together. Hence the “Oh darling, let’s be adventurers” nod. I also incorporated the globe and some vintage books about traveling, just to round out the aesthetic.
2. Juliet loves Italy, and Dave was originally looking at proposing on a sailboat. Because of the time constraints- proposing on the water simply wasn’t feasible. So, the next best (although not necessarily logical) thought process was to bring a sailboat to the shoot. I used old scrap wood and scrap fabric to create the sailboat- and loved the finished result!
3. Juliet is a fan of all things vintage (talk about a girl after my own heart!). I knew that Lisa’s selection would be perfect, and I had a ball selecting all sorts of fun items from the warehouse to use in the shoot! Her vintage chair selection is wonderful- and I loved that these two make a “his” and “hers” set:
4. Juliet loves lavender, and while we couldn’t get fresh lavender within the week, I did want to incorporate its natural color palette. I loved how the soft femininity of the florals were balanced by the natural, masculine wood elements.
5. Juliet also loves cheesecake, so I picked up one up on the way to shoot, along with blueberries and a bottle of sparkling grape juice. I loved how simple and understated the dessert looked on the table. Unbeknownst to Juliet, the ice that I ‘forgot’ to grab for the ice bucket was just enough time to sneak Dave behind the tree.
I couldn’t be more thrilled to have shared in just a small part of Dave & Juliet’s forever story. It truly was an honor- and I loved being able to celebrate with them!
By the way, Juliet said yes.
Congrats, you two! I can’t wait for your wedding day!!
