Fun in the sun

What an amazing sun-filled weekend I had! I hope the sun shone for you too. I spent a good part of it hanging out in The Phoenix park with my hubbie as well as a spontaneous picnic with photographers Aga and Mary who covered their rug with tasty goodies. Aga even brought an ice-filled wine chiller for her *huge* bottle of wine. Awesome. Pity I was driving!

All this clock-changing and unexpected sunshine got me thinking about having fun and how we need to make room for lots of it in our lives! My two friends planning weddings this year definitely have it on their priority list.

These photos all made me smile. I've even started a 'Fun' board on Pinterest. Do you think weddings can sometimes be a bit too serious? Have you fun things in mind for your wedding? Please share x

Image credits:
Top: Tandom themed wedding. Photo by Rachel Thurston. Wedding feature via Green Wedding Shoes.
Middle: 'Not too serious' girly shot. Photo by Studio Castillero. See the full wedding.
Bottom: Peeping out. Photo by James Moes. See also my feature on James.

a thousand words - James Moes

Great photographs tell a story by capturing a moment in time. In this series, I am asking some of my favourite wedding photographers to describe one of their cherished photographs. My inspiration is the book Photography Speaks: 150 Photographers On Their Art. This book features a number of iconic photographers who share some personal reflections about one of their photographs. Although I don't yet own a copy of the book, the idea captured my imagination and is the inspiration for a new series of guest blog posts with photographers.

Today we're off to Seattle to meet James Moes, whose work I so admire. James trained in fine art and graphic design before settling on Photography. In his words, "While comfortably sitting on the fringes of the wedding industry, James is proud to be a photographer of love & marriage; beauty & dreams; curiosity & stillness."

This portrait of Todd & Claire and their dogs deserves a long gaze. Below James tells us why he loves this image.

Nothing clever. Nothing cute. But everything in its right place. The bride and groom and their beloved dogs, at the entrance to a cave nearby the family cabin (where the celebrations took place), with light softly coming in from the west. A perfectly restful first family portrait.

The longer I shoot weddings, the more I appreciate a classic portrait. One that even hearkens back to early large format photographic portraits where the subjects would have to stand still for a slow shutter speed.

Yes, I still I treasure the in-between moments, the surprises, the subtle exchanges, some good lens flare, and a thrilling dance party. And yes, I still will take some more experimental portraits (as I did with Todd & Claire on their wedding day: in a canoe on the lake, with fireworks & the resulting smoke) … but the image I keep coming back to is this. A classic wedding portrait. No shame in that.

James, this image reminds me of an old oil painting, which reveals its layers of emotion and detail the longer you look at it. It is both tranquil and animated at the same time. I love it. Thanks for being a part of this series.

For more information, visit James' website. I'm deliberately not linking to the full wedding as I like how this image stands alone. You'll find the full album on the website though!

This is part of a series which is archived on the blog. Please leave your comments below - I'd love to hear them.

Rangoli bride, Ruth.

An email in my in-box that made my day! Ruth - thanks for getting in touch to share some photos of your wedding. Your kind words mean a lot.

Ruth was looking for a headpiece with an antique, pearly feel. No sparkly rhinestones here! I combined some pale gold and silver beading with cream Swarovski pearls. The design was based on a vine form with beaded leaves. I love how soft the piece looks against the delicate lace. You look gorgeous Ruth.

You can see more photos of Rangoli brides on my Facebook page and website.
 
Ruth's photos were taken by Michael Crean.

Meeting goldsmith Eva Dorney

I spent a totally relaxing afternoon a few weeks ago, visiting Goldsmith, Eva Dorney. One of the things that Eva does is to recycle old pieces of jewellery into new designs. Yesterday, Barbara told us about her treasured 'new' ring which Eva made. Now Eva is going to tell us about what is involved in commissioning a piece of jewellery.

Eva, can you tell us about how you designed Barbara's ring? (Read the previous post about this ring.)

Barbara's new ring, re-modelled from a selection of old jewellery

Before we sat down, Barbara flicked through a portfolio of my previous work on Facebook to see what designs caught her eye so that we had a jumping off point when we met. She showed me the material she had to work with and we talked over what would be possible and how we could adapt her favoured designs to incorporate her stones. Barbara was looking for one ring to replace her wedding and engagement rings so the idea of two bands that were connected really worked. When I had a pretty clear idea of what Barbara would like, I sent her away and I did some very rough drawings from which to choose her favourite.  Design in hand I set about pricing it up and with budget agreed I started the job.

Why do you love re-modelling old pieces of jewellery?

Certain jewellery holds great sentimental value, but it's not always wearable as it is. I love to be able to give people a way of adapting that jewellery and making it their own. On a number of occasions I've taken an old yellow gold ring that's belonged to a customer's Mum or Dad and put it as the lining on a new white gold or platinum wedding ring for them. No one else can see it, but the important ring is still there right next to their skin. I think that that's just lovely. I think that jewellery deserves to be worn.

 Silver gold and diamond wrapped ring

I'm also a fan of remodelling from the point of view of recycling. As a total hoarder I know there are loads of people out there who have a lot of unloved jewellery, odd earrings and broken bits and bobs languishing in drawers, but they don't know it's even possible to recycle it. Until they take the decision to do something with it it's just junk, but then with a little heat and effort it can be made into something fabulous that they'll enjoy wearing everyday. I love the transformation and I love to see the look on peoples faces when they ask 'Is that mine? That can't be my gold. Sure that wasn't worth anything.' It's really gratifying and it's great to give old jewellery a new lease of life.

The last reason I favour remodelling old pieces is purely economic. Gold prices have reached record highs over the past few years and the cost of new gold jewellery can be prohibitive so recycling has never made more sense. By using your own metal you get to keep the value of your gold and turn it into something precious at a fraction of the retail cost of the new piece and with sentiment intact.

Pink Tourmaline ring from Eva's collection

What is involved in the process?

First I go through all the pieces to make sure everything is gold and is suitable to be remodeled (some things are of greater intrinsic value as they are or are simply too lovely to melt!) and then I weigh the metal. Usually we'll talk over designs and I'll do some sketches for them to choose from or adapt. When we've settled on a design I'll guestimate the finished weight of the piece and calculate how much extra material if any is required to make it. At this stage I'll give a quote to do the job and once that's approved I'll go ahead and melt the gold and start to work the resulting nugget into the finished piece.

What advice would you give to someone who is considering having their jewellery re-modelled?

Don't melt stuff just for the sake of it. If you think you'll wear it again or you know someone who would, then it might be nice to explore that avenue first, but then be brave! If you have a lot of material something like a bangle is relatively labour effective, so while the resulting bangle would be very high value it doesn't cost the earth to make. Light earring or chains on the other hand may not use much material, but are labour intensive and so don't offer the best value for money. That said almost anything is possible when remodeling so it's always worth asking the question.

Gold bangle made from re-modelled metals

How can people get in touch with you?

I'd love to answer any queries and can be contacted on [+353] 87 795 6321. You can view some of my designs on my website or Facebook page.

Thanks Eva - this process really appeals to me. I love the idea of lining a new ring with an older layer too, so you can keep it close to your heart. Jewellery holds such strong memory and emotion and I think it's still there when the piece is remodeled. You are just adding to the story of the piece.

Has anyone got any questions for Eva? Please leave her a comment below and be sure to check out her website for more details.