Katie Daisy also has an Etsy shop where you can purchase some of her lovely prints & patterns.  She is also in the process of creating her own fabric line called “Going to Montana”.  I can’t wait to buy some for miss Ella’s room!  You can see some samples on her Flickr page.

Have a sunny day, everyone! : )

I want to give a shout out to pishposhes on Etsy for the use of the awesome headpiece.  I absolutely LOVE it–along with everything else in that shop!  I’m happy to say I will be creating a stash of some of these great items to have on hand for our sessions!  So you will be free to use them as you wish if you book us!  Check out her shop!

More to come from Leslie’s session along with a bunch from our Boudoir Event!

Keep those submissions coming for the “Cute Kiddos Contest”!  We’ve really enjoyed seeing your adorable children : )  I will posting some of our kids soon, as promised!  Now it’s off to take my little miss to dance class, and then we are headed out for a consult.  Let the crazy busy season begin!

The left side of my face is currently swollen up in two different ways.  My jaw looks like I have a golf ball in it, and my check up to my eyebrow looks like a bee stung me and I had an allergic reaction.  All from 2 root canals–well, mainly one that ended up having a problem.  A problem, they say, that will go away in a year.  Did you hear that?  A YEAR!  So… let’s solve the initial problem by creating an even bigger, more painful one.  Seriously, if someone has a spare pair of dentures, I would pay you for them.  Free session, maybe?!

Okay, okay… enough complaining.  I’m sorry, I’ve been doing a lot of that lately.  I’ve realized severe, agonizing tooth, mouth and jaw pain for  about a year can really change your personality and your overall outlook on life.  It’s a terrible thing, and I’m always trying to remember than I’m not really this pissed off at the world… it’s just the pain talking.

Now, on to some info about ae photography.

The Boudoir Event was wonderful.  I had so much fun and only had severe tooth pain during one session (sorry Kaitlyn).  Every girl was so easy to work with, and it was such a joy to work with so many old clients again.  The thing that I enjoyed the most was seeing a room full of old clients, spanning from the past two years or so… all getting to know each other.  It was strange and exciting!  Each girl had a different style from the last, and they were all so unique!  It was like a dream event.  I have decided to do one every year.  The next one will be either in December or January and will stilled be geared toward a Valentine’s Day gift for you guy.  I created 4 albums for 4 different girls–all for their guys…. and they all were so neat.  Everything has been such a rush, that I had no time to photograph the albums for you to see :/  If any girls who received an album would like to send some of their own photos in to share with us, that would be excellent!  Thanks again to all the girls who came.  I hope you had a good time getting pretty, playing dress up and acting like models for the day!

I also really REALLY want to thank my two greatest friends, Rachel Streit and Jessica Sena.  Rachel is an amazing stylist who did such a great job on every girl.  I was so impressed.  Because of her amazing job during such a hectic event, she will continue to be the stylist I use for any type of event or mini session. If you are getting a mini session done and would like a stylist present for hair, makeup and help with clothing–contact me, and we will make sure Rachel is there.  Jessica played hostess and helped all the girls with clothes, kept things in order and answered questions.  She was a lifesaver.  I didn’t realize how much I would need a “hostess”…. goodness, if she was there, I don’t know what I would have done!  It was a very, very busy day!  A huge photo post come!  Of course we have to wait until after Valentine’s Day!  ; )

I spoke about the Etsy designers that provided clothes for the girls to use if they chose to, but I never got a chance to post a list of the great shops so you guys could take a look.   I really appreciate each and every one of these designers and the fact that they were willing to trust me with their work. After receiving the pieces, I was able to see first hand all the hard work and amazing talent that came from each of them.  You won’t be disappointed if you purchase anything from the shops listed below!  You have my word!

FEATHERS and FRILLS

LOVES MARIESSA

DOGHEAD & FLINTOCK

EMPRESS JADE

PRICILLA DAWN

PLUM PRETTY SUGAR

GAIA CONCEPTIONS

BROKEN GHOST COUTURE

DISTRACTED BLACK RABBIT

PISH POSHES

L.A. NATIVE

MS. WOOD’S KIMONO BOUTIQUE

DECIDUOUS SOUL

LOVE AT FIRST BLUSH

THREAD RARE

CHAIN REACTIONS

CIARA OBSCURA

TWIN SYNDROME

A few photo blog posts are scheduled for this week, and then we will be getting back into the 2010 weekly blog post schedule I laid out awhile back.  I’ve just been way too busy to even think about doing all those posts!  I look forward to getting back into it, though

Just picture the pink one above on a sweet cake like this:

Name + Esty Shop:
Abigail Halpin :: http://missavocado.etsy.com

Where are you located?
Southern Maine, near the ocean

How long have you been making the toppers?
I started making the toppers in 2008, following a few months of trial and error prototyping.

When did you open your Etsy shop?
I opened my Etsy Shop Summer of 2005. I was still in school at the time and had just taken up crocheting, so was looking for a venue to peddle my wares. As time went on though, I switched the focus of my shop to art.

Where did you get the idea to make the toppers the way you do?
I’d read an article about a wedding that used a vintage paper wedding cake topper to decorate cupcakes with and was really inspired. I went hunting down vintage toppers online and decided to try designing my own version. I was intrigued by the idea that it was relatively flat and would be easy to store after the wedding.

How many colors/styles do you offer?
Each year I’ve designed a different style. In 2008 I’d designed one that had a 1930’s feel, this past year I featured toppers that were more in keeping with the bright colors of the ’50’s and did offer color customization for brides with this option. For 2010, I’ve just started sketching ideas.

How much time does it takes to make each topper:
Initially I draw the topper, scan and then digitally color. Once printed, I create the crepe paper background, add glitter, a veil and other embellishments, then cut out each bride and groom. Not including the illustration time, I’d estimate each topper takes about an hour to assemble, plus drying and pressing time.

Advice on planning a unique wedding:
Be true to yourself! I helped my sister with her wedding a few years back and everything from the boutonnieres to the dress was made by a family member. It was a lot of work (and definitely not for everyone), but the wedding fit my sister and brother-in-law to a “t.”

And here is a lovely cake idea for the fushia topper:

And for the green:

That last cake is stunning.  Wow.  I love it.

As a little “goodie” to our readers, Abigail is offering free shipping for one cake topper to the first person who orders and mentions our blog post!  So head to her Etsy Shop and order one!  I hope I see some of these lovelies at our 2010 weddings!  Thanks, Abigail, for sharing your sweet toppers and advice with us : )

All cake photos copyright theknot.com