finding my dream dress: personal || dfw engagement & wedding photographer

Even though my wedding was over 3 months ago now, I'm still excited to reminisce about that lovely fairytale-like day to anyone who will let me.  So I thought it would be fun to do a post about my wedding dress that was a somewhat unexpected dream come true ;)
Most every girl dreams of the dress she will marry her prince charming in, and I was no different.  I wanted it to be unique, feminine, princess-like, and a little bit old-fashioned.  It needed to be poofy and lacy, like something out of anne of green gables, (you all knew that was coming, right?!) unlike any other dress I'd ever worn or ever would wear because I only get to do this once!  But I realized after years of shooting all kinds of wedding dresses and looking at some online that actually finding one that matched my expectations would be difficult.  My suspicions were confirmed after a day of wedding dress shopping with my mom, sisters, and grandmothers, where I tried on dress after dress that all looked the same and didn't have the "feel" that I was looking for.
I had already been voicing thoughts like "I'm sure I'm going to have to design something, because I know exactly what I want and I probably won't be able to find it on a rack somewhere..." and after that day of shopping my mind was made up: taking a simple, basic dress and redesigning it to fit what I was looking for was what I wanted to do.  But after quite a few disasters in high school when I wanted to "design and make my own formal" for different events, my mother quite understandably started having heart palpitations at the thought of another disaster, this time involving my wedding dress.
I was so priviledged to be able to find my dress at The Blushing Bride Boutique and work with the ladies there on my design.  I can't sing their praises enough, they were so helpful and fun to work with the whole way through!  They worked to help me find that perfect princess style dress to start with, and then their seamstress/designer transformed it into my dream dress!  

Unfortunately the only "before" pictures I have of my dress were taken with an iphone, so please excuse the low quality :)

These were the two inspiration pictures that I narrowed it down to, as examples of what I wanted the dress to look like for my seamstress to see.  It was amazing to go in every few weeks for a fitting and watch the dress take shape as she created every detail that I wanted!

inspiration photo's taken from here & here.
It took weeks of tweaking and sizing, but eventually it was finished.  She removed the purple belt and added a softer/flowery white sash to blend with the dress, and add the bow that I wanted on the back.  She redesigned the top of the dress to have a sweetheart shape, and added a french bustle to the bottom.  But my absolute favorite part was the delicate lace top/sleeves that she added to the dress.  I cried when I went in for my last fitting and saw how perfect it all was.  It was every bit as flowy, lacy, and anne of green gables-y as I could have ever wanted! Thank you Kristin Partin for these pictures from our wedding day!





So girls, don't be scared to go out on a limb to create your own dream dress!  I can't recommend The Blushing Bride enough, so if you live in the DFW area they're the people to work with, they'll take excellent care of you!  If you don't live nearby, I would also highly recommend Espoir Bridals, based in NY who specializes in custom made dresses!
Much Love, Jessica Shae

2012 wedding favorites || dfw engagement & wedding photographer

Putting these end of the year posts together is an enormous task, and I'm not exaggerating when I say that I start out with about 300-400 pictures that I want to post and then somehow have to narrow that down to the 70-ish pictures you see here.  It's probably my favorite post of the year though, because I get to wander back through all the fun times that were a part of my year, and fall in love all over again with my clients, their stories, and one of the happiest days of their life.
I used to think that photographers talking about their "ideal" or "dream" client was just photographer lingo that didn't actually mean very much.  But after three years of shooting weddings, and having the chance to shoot alongside around 12 different photographers in that time, I can honestly say that tell a difference between what I would say is my "ideal" client, and other photographers "ideal" clients.  Fortunately I've been surrounded by clients all year long who are exactly the kinds of people I hope to work with for the rest of my life.  Couples whose weddings/stories/lives make me giddy with joy and feel blessed to have been able to play a small part in their day.
My goal for this year was to slow down and shoot a little less, knowing that the year would probably hold big changes for me ;)   I was hoping for 10 weddings, and was blessed with just that!  Between getting engaged, planning a wedding, getting married + becoming a wife, I was grateful for the slower pace and breaks that I was able to take in order to soak it all in.
At the end of every year I love to look back and remember all my favorite things about the weddings I shot, so here are a few of them--list style :)
-- I shot in 7 different states this year

• Texas (3)   
• Mississippi (1)
• Georgia (1)
• Illinois (3)
• California (1)
• Oklahoma (1) 
• Wyoming

Which added 4 new states to my list of places I've shot.  (my goal is to shoot in all 50 someday...I'm currently up to 15) -- 8 of the 10 weddings I shot had an outdoor element to them, either their wedding or reception (or both!) were outdoors--which made this natural light photographer oh-so-happy :) -- 3 of the weddings were backyard weddings or on their families property and I loved seeing the way these couples used a location that meant so much to them for their wedding day. -- Favorite Venues/Locations

• Indoor: Starline Gallery, Harvard IL
• Outdoor: The Roth Estate, Nevada City, CA

It was a lovely year in so many ways, and I'm so very grateful to the couples who welcomed me into their lives and into their stories.  The trust you give me as I document these momentous occasions for you is not something I take lightly.  It is because of your trust and encouragement that I get to continue to do what I do!  Love you all!

Because I know that unless the Lord builds the house they labor in vain who build it, all credit and glory for any successes I've had in my business this year must ultimately go to Him! "For of Him and through Him and to Him are all things, to whom be glory forever."

Much Love,  Jessica Shae