Portraits of Beauty

We all know that, technically, a wedding is about two people coming together and making public vows of their commitments to each other; but we all also very well understand that a wedding is about the beauty and style of the Bride! Sorry, guys, but it’s true.

Below are portraits of two gorgeous brides shot by the dynamic photography duo, Sangeeta and Monty from Kumari Photo & Design. They captured the elegance and effortless beauty of both woman perfectly!! What I find captivating about these photos is that both brides have struck a fine balance between traditional and 21st century bridal looks. On the surface, they both have contrasting styles as their accessories and lenghas are quite different. But, interestingly their make up is  similar: both brides chose a neutral make up route, which highlighted their best features and really enabled their beauty and style to shine through.

Both brides are absolutely stunning and are truly portraits of modern and chic South Asian bridal beauty–in my opinion anyway! Enjoy!

For more pics of both weddings, go here and here.

xoxo,

LBB

Happily Undead for Ever More…A Halloween Post-Wedding Shoot

We are coming for your braaaaaaaaaaaaaaaiiinnnnssss…….

Thanks to the amazing Monty and Sangeeta from Kumari Photography, their intern Vic, and the awesome Sherry Vanstone for helping to put together a fabulous shoot. Who thought being a zombie bride could be so fun, scary, and yet so glam? Thanks also to our amazing friend W for hooking us up with the beautiful shoot location.

Happy Halloween…muwahahahaha…

Looking for your braaaains,

Zobmie LBB

Cute & Quirky Vancouver E-shoot

First off, thank you to everyone that commented, messaged me, and emailed me and expressed your support for me. I’m still not 100%, but have tried to be more real with myself! It’s hard to break life-long patterns, and I think I might be ready to finally deal with them. Second, sorry for the long absence. I’ve been working a lot and falling asleep on the couch at 930 pm. Seriously.

But, enough about me! Today is about Sidra and Farhan–a super cute  couple and their super cute  engagement shoot. Their love story is one of my favourites–a long distance love story! Their friendship started 3 years ago when Sidra, a Toronto chick, worked in Vancouver; they kept in touch when Sidra moved back to Toronto and their affection and love continued to blossom. Vasia from Vasia Weddings shot their engagement pictures at various locations in Vancouver. I absolutely love the homage to Vancouver and Sidra and Farhan’s quirky sense of style. Enjoy!

I still have more to post about Bridalicious and The Drake Wedding Show. Will get to it soon.

xoxo,

LBB

Modelling is hard work.

Our engagement shoot was awesome!! It was a long day. Never realized looking good could take so much effort. We are pooped.

I will post more deets soon, but just wanted to give love to Monty and Sangeeta–you make an incredible photography team and shooting with you is a privilege. I seriously want to pack you up in a box and carry you around with me so I can show and tell the world how awesome you two are.

To Pam and Joy, thanks for making me (and J) look gorgeous. I was anxious before the shoot and you both helped me relax and enjoy the experience.

To Hamed from Awtash, thanks for offering us your fantastic space. The luxe decor made for some sultry shots. Thanks also for letting us move your furniture around, stand on your barstools, and sprawl on your gorgeous mosaic tables.

To Ashley and Jade from Shopgirls, your openness and patience was fabulous. thanks especially to Jade for staying late and having no issue with our mannequin dance party and blasting Jay Z and Alicia upon request.

So much fun.

And now, it’s time to dive into bed.

Xoxo,
LBB

Praying for my “smize”

Our engagement shoot is tomorrow!!

I’ve got my outfits ready, my hair accessories purchased, my jewelry organized, and my shoes packed.

Hairstylist is booked! Pam from Beauty Bliss is giving me a bridal trial/engagement shoot look. Wish me luck!

Joy David (aka makeup junkie) is doing my face. She was a third-degree referral (i.e., she was referred by Farah from Faces by Farah who was referred by Anjali from Rock That Look); I liked her portfolio online, so I hope it works out!

Tonight, I will pray to the Smize gods and hope that in the morning, Tyra, Jay Manuel, and Miss J will have bestowed upon me the elusive and awe-inspiring ability to SMIZE.

xoxo,

LBB

E-shoot confirmed!

After several emails, phone calls, and a few derailments, our engagement shoot date and locations are confirmed! Woohoo!

Choosing our engagement shoot locations actually involved a bit of work. Prior to booking photographers, J and I weren’t interested in engagement shoots. We thought they were a bit self-indulgent and we didn’t connect with the style of the photos–they involved a lot of frolicking and canoodling in parks. Not that there’s anything wrong with that–it’s just not us. Privately, we are very affectionate, but in public, around family and friends, we’re very casual. We are often at opposite sides of the room at parties! I just didn’t feel comfortable sharing that much intimacy in photos for others to see. However, through our photography search, we understood the purpose of the engagements shots: to get used to the camera and get used to your photoraphers’ style. Also, when meeting with Kumari and going through their photography, their engagement shoots looked like a lot of fun! They were quirky and creative , and J and I totally connected.

We knew we wanted something original and meaningful for us. We had some ideas–including a shoot at our high school (which we remember as a brown-tiled structure reeking of 70s-style architecture), but they didn’t work out for varoius logistical reasons. So, after brainstorming and bursts of inspirations, we decided on the following locations:

1) Awtash Cafe

Awtash is a Persian cafe/hookah bar that opened up recently near Kensington Market. My rommie, Z, went there with a small party and raved about the lush and luxurious decor–a lightbulb went off in my head. What a possibly great place to do our engagement shoot in! I checked out their facebook page and fell in love with the decor:

For more pics, check out the streets.to feature. I just love love love the rich colours, textures, and drama of the setting. The use of vintage furniture mixed in with the modern, sleek benches and ornate pillows is just…awesome. It will photograph amazingly! I also really liked this place because, interestingly, in one space, elements of J’s culture and my culture are also found–the embellishments, the shisha, the bold colours, the patterned tea cups and tea pots.

So, how did I get this place?  I just walked in one day after work and asked to speak to the owner. Because I was not exactly prepared, I was a little nervous, but hoped my charm would work! And it did! Hamid (the owner) was receptive to the idea and is charging us a very reasonable rental fee!

2. Shopgirls

Shopgirls is a boutique/gallery in Parkdale. My friend Wendy introduced me to this store a couple years ago, and I fell in love with it. It carries only Canadian-designed fashion and art. I have found a few great pieces there and have been purposely avoiding it since I got engaged–each time I go there, I am tempted to spend!

Not only does Shopgirls have great fashion and art, it’s also a GREAT space. It’s got a bit of a rustic, yet modern feel to it, which I think will photograph wonderfully. The artwork and displays add dimension to the space, contributing to its photographic appeal. I also like Shopgirls because of its focus on Canadiana–J and I are together because of this country and this city. The art and fashion combo also resonates with us–J’s the artist and, though I’m no fashionista, I do love fashion.

Asking to shoot here was really easy–I held a “Style Party” at Shopgirls for my 29th birthday, so I already have a relationship with the manager, Ashley, who is super friendly and approachable. I emailed Ashley a while ago, and she was completely supportive!! We are, again, paying a very minimal fee to use their space.

I think the shoot at Awtash will be more of the “high fashion” inspired shoot, and we’ll have the more cute, quirky shoot at Shopgirls, using the different merchandise, artwork, and sculptures for inspiration.

So, after this experience, a piece of advice to brides: if you are hoping for a unique engagement shoot, don’t be shy to share your ideas with your photographers and don’t hesitate to approach non-traditional places. For example, up and coming places (e.g., Awtash) love the exposure. Also, I’ve been finding that people, including strangers, are excited to learn about your upcoming wedding and appreciate being involved in in this wonderful time of your life.

Will keep you updated!!

xoxo,

LBB

Wedding Trends 2010: Brown Bride Style (Part 2)

Hey all,

Continuation of my previous post, Wedding Trends 2010: Brown Bride Style. The trends already covered: Vintage Styling; Sustainable sit downs; Fashion forward head pieces; Small, intimate affairs.

5. Wedding videos as cinematic events

My sister was married 11 years ago, and we have 3 (maybe more?) VHS tapes full of  wedding footage. It’s boring, uneventful, and did I mention boring? Mercifully, the unedited, 9-hour long wedding sagas of years past is no longer in vogue.

Click on the link below for the video highlights of a grand Sikh wedding by the amazing Phototerra team. They captured the energy and the scope of the wedding impressively well. (A little tidbit for the bhangra fans out there: Watch out for Malkit Singh–he performed at this wedding!!!!)

A  caveat if you’ve never been to an Indian wedding before: this wedding’s a bit on the extravagant end of the spectrum. For those of you coming to my wedding, it will (hopefully) be awesome, but not in the unlimited budget awesome kinda way this wedding was. Malkit Singh will be there, but in the itunes version.

http://phototerra.com/#Portfolios/Videos/Harmanjee & Brahmjot/1

6. Dramatic, tiered cakes

I’m not really feeling this trend. First off, I can’t eat regular cake (I’m allergic to wheat and dairy), and secondly, I think money can be spent elsewhere. Nonetheless, we are entitled to our opinions, and a beautiful cake is priority for many couples. Cakes are universal and can be easily adapted to meld with an Indian wedding.

Beautiful mendhi-inspired cake with gold ribbon. Kinda matches my reception lengha. Cake designed by Schockley's Sweet Shoppe; photo by David Schwartz Photography

Inter-cultural cake topper. How cute. (Image from Novelty Cake Toppers)

7. Bright coloured bridesmaid dresses

Us brown brides have got this one down–bright colours and Indian fashion are like Zack Morris and Kelly Kapowski: meant to be!  However…I’m not the biggest fan of matching Indian bridesmaids outfits. The hallmark of Indian design is its one-of-a-kind appeal, and it’s slightly disorienting to see 5 women wearing the same sari or suit. I’m also noticing many Indian brides dressing their bridesmaids in neutral colours, especially beige. With so many beautiful, vibrant options to choose from, why beige???

A cool take on this trend would be to dress your bridesmaids in different bright colours. For example, see pic below of a bride with her bridesmaids. The dresses represent the colours of a rainbow, and they go together beautifully. The overall look is fun, fashionable, and individual. Love it.

Image from Ruffled.com (photo by Joel Flory from Flory Photo)

And now, imagine a bride surrounded by bridesmaids in colourful saris. Pretty, no?

8. Alternative registries

Rather than registering at the Bay for towels or Williams Sonoma for flatware, many couples are creating registries for honeymoons, cars, even their wedding photography. These alternative registries are geared more so for couples living common law prior to marriage.

How do you brown bride-ify this trend? I dunno. Maybe make a registry for your gold wedding jewelry? That ish is crazy expensive.

9. Wedding night staging

For those of us who grew up watching Bollywood movies, seeing the newly married bride and groom enter their room with a beautifully decorated matrimonial bed was a common sight. A Night of Romance, a company based in Toronto and run by two South Asian-Canadian women, borrows from this tradition and specializes in romanticizing the matrimonial suite. Their “Bollywood Night to Remember” package uses South Asian decorative elements to create a sensual suite made for the likes of Abishek and Ashwairya.

That’s all for tonight, folks. I’ll be busy the next few days. My friend from grad school is getting married. I’ll be attending my first Ismaili wedding and I am so excited! It’ll be a fun time catching up with old friends and participating in general wedding awesomeness.

xoxo,

LBB

Chennergy: Amazing Photography

While engaging in my ordinary search for wedding inspirations, I stumbled across this extraordinary photography company: Chennergy. They are based out of the states, but as they say on their website: like VISA, they are everywhere you want them to be.

I obviously can’t post their pics on my blog, but make sure to check out their site!! Absolutely stunning.

http://chennergy.com/blog/

Engagement shoot brainstorm!!

Tomorrow J and I are meeting with Sangeeta and Monty from Kumari to brainstorm for our upcoming engagement shoot! I’m so excited. I remember how our ideas flowed at our first meeting, and I’m eagerly anticipating what creative ideas Sangeeta and Monty have been stewing in their photography cauldrons.

Because our friendship and love started in high school, J and I originally thought it would be a great idea to shoot there!! A high fashion shoot with our grungy high school as backdrop–love it!

I would love to go glam for the shoot. A lot of couples are going the casual, lovey dovey route…and that’s not really us. J and I are very affectionate, but the idea of my relatives flipping through a guest book of images of J and I canoodling and smooching in a forest or garden makes my tummy feel funny.

For the shoot, I am thinking of wearing this Karen Millen dress I bought in Boston:

Colourblock shirt dress designed by Karen Millen (image from: http://www.karenmillen.com)

With a turquoise or fuschia hair accessory, with possibly a fascinator:

Hair pieces by Mikki Rizvi of Ever Thine (my pic from The Drake Wedding Show)

Hair piece to die for! (Image from google images, courtesy of Titfer Designs)

With a pair of coloured heels, either turquoise or fuschia:

Hello, Manolo! (image from http://www.manoloblahnikshoe.org)

Speaking of which, I saw a pair of gorgeous turquoise satin sandals at Nine West that meshed with the outfit construed in my brain (can’t find the image of the shoes online). Unfortunately, the heels were a little too high. I could walk, but not for long. I’m wondering if I can take the heel down by 1/2 inch–they were so pretty!

As for what J will wear, um….we’ll figure it out! lol!

Sangeeta also asked J and I for our fave movies, albums, and books in high school. I hate that I have such a bad memory and I had to try really hard to come up with this list:

Movies:

Speed (I was OBSESSED with Keanu!!); Titantic; Good Will Hunting; The Lion King; In the Name of the Father; Dumb and Dumber; The Matrix

Albums–I don’t remember albums, but I remember artists:

SWV; TLC; Janet Jackson; Mary J; Boyz II Men; Green Day; Alanis Morisette; Whitney Houston (before the crack); Monica; Michael Jackson; No Doubt; Madonna; Mariah Carey (before she became Scarey); Toni Braxton; Spice Girls

Books:

Lord of the Flies; The Chrysalids; To Kill a Mockingbird; The Handmaid’s Tale; The Merchant of Venice. To be perfectly honest, I can’t remember what books I read besides what we were assigned in English class. I have a better memory of pre-high and post-high school faves.

Wish us luck!

xoxo

LBB

p.s. I still have to give you updates on my reception lengha and decorator!! I’m planning also to do a feature on Milni.net and A Night of Romance, along with a feature on online shopping for Indian clothes. Stay Tuned!

Say, “Cheese!”

Pic of old school cameras I took during a trip to Uruguay in 2008.

We have officially chosen our photographers! Yay! I honestly had restless sleep for two to three nights over this decision.

Our photography selection process was similar to our wedding planner and venue selection processes. We considered several options, chose 3 that looked most promising, met with the top 3, and chose the winner. No more shopping around. No more comparisons. J and I decided to keep our decision making process simple–we want to limit stress, confusion, and uncertainty. J and I are similar when it comes to decision making–we trust our gut. We go with our instincts. Upon reflection, I wonder if that’s what bonds us? Many forces (cultural, religious, familial, sociall) opposed our relationship, but there was an element, a feeling that drew us together and we heeded to it.

Sorry. Got a bit tangential there. Back to the photography selection. I’ll review our Top 3:

1. Phototerra

Phototerra is a photography studio originating in Montreal, led by principal photographer Michael Greenberg. He has won  several national wedding photography awards, and he recently took home a Grand Award at the Wedding & Portrait Photographers International event in Las Vegas. Another one of their photographers, Daria, is among the top 15 wedding photographers internationally. One look through their website, and you will understand why. They recently opened a second studio in Toronto and are looking to expand into the Toronto wedding market.

We first met Tally, Micheal’s sister and manager for Phototerra, at a wedding show in January at the Direct Energy Centre in Toronto. A mesmerizing, colourful Sikh wedding video playing on the widescreen TV caught my attention. I was awestruck by the camera angles, the edits, and the transitions between scenes. Tally immediately  greeted us in her friendly, open manner and sat J and I down. She asked questions about us, our wedding, and she showed us striking photography from a Sikh wedding. Their photography style was unique, and I was floored.  Tally’s enthusiasm for Sikh weddings was unexpected and she did not hesitate to note our contact information.  To say the least, she was not shy about following up!

J and I anticipated Phototerra’s costs might exceed our budget, but we both LOVE the work we saw, so we decided to delude ourselves: Maybe it won’t be so bad! We met with lovely Tally in the Phototerra studio in the Distillery District, where she continued to seduce us with additional work showcasing Phototerra’s magnificent ability to capture the colours,the people, the style, the traditions of Sikh weddings. Unbelievable. The pictures emoted. The pictures talked to us. They whispered in tantalizing voices: “Hire Phototerra! Who cares what the cost is?”

Unfortunately, our bank accounts care about the cost. If we had a few more thousand dollars to spare, we definitely would have gone with Phototerra. Alas, J and I were able to resist Tally’s temptations.

2. Darryl & Vicky

Darryl & Vicky have been shooting together for about 2 years now. They are based out of Toronto, ON. J and I actually have a tonne of small world connections with Darryl & Vicky–it really is strange how tiny our world can be. I have been following their photography for a bit, and I’ve liked what I’ve seen. We met with Darryl & Vicky at a Starbucks in good, ol’ Scarborough.  Their portraits are breathtaking. They have an uncanny ability to capture emotion and personality . Their photojournalistic (I think I just made up a new word) style is en pointe; they can really capture the feeling of the moment. There is also a certain…je ne sais quoi…about their pictures. There’s an element of cool, which probably has to do with the fact that Darryl & Vicky are just cool. Plain and simple. Their prices are also very reasonable, and they work with you to create a personalized package that fits with your budget. A definite bonus.

The only downside: they haven’t shot a Sikh wedding before. There always has to be a first for everything, and yes, sometimes you have to give the newcomers a chance. They might see something differently, they might capture moments that other photographers overlook. J and I really contemplated this–hence the restless sleep (well, at least for me. J seems to sleep without issue). Pure pragmatism helped me decide. J and his family are not Sikh. I (along with my family andwedding planner) will be explaining the process to them. I didn’t want to have to explain everything to my photographers as well. I didn’t want an extra thing to worry about.

3. Kumari Photo & Design

Our wedding planner recommended Kumari to us; she has worked with them in the past and had only good things to say about them.

Kumari is composed of Monty and Sangeeta, a husband and wife team and two photographic soul mates (as they describe themselves on their website). We met with them at their bright studio/home in Toronto just northwest of the downtown core.

There was an instant connection.

I’m not sure if it was the damask black & white curtain hanging in their front window (I LOVE damask), the fact that they’re vegan, their stairs without a railing, the cookies they baked us, or Monty’s relentless search for a dairy-free, wheat-free snack after realizing I can’t eat their homemade vegan cookies. Whatever it was, there was a spark. They asked us about our engagement story. They asked us details about the wedding day we hadn’t even thought about (detail-orientated–I LIKE!!). They asked us about our vision. They asked about our ideas. We chatted for over two hours! They have an artistic and slightly quirky style J and I appreciate. And we LOVED their work. They are also willing to take risks. Their ability to capture colour is fantastic and very important for Indian weddings. The amount and intensity of colour at Indian weddings is unlike a Western wedding, and it can be really easy to overexposure colour. I’ve seen several Indian wedding photos that are too yellow, or too orange, or have colours that slightly bleed or are not sharp. Kumari does colour well. Overall, though, it really was that instant connection and Monty & Sangeeta’s genuine interest in our wedding that won us over. Being comfortable and connected with your photographer is priceless. J and I went with our instinct and that gives us confidence that we made the right choice.

I will keep you informed about our engagement session. We already started brainstorming some great ideas!

I’ll try to put up my next post within a couple days. It’ll be about my favourite thing in the world (other than J’s smile…awwww): shopping for clothes!!!

xoxo,

LBB