5.04.2011

Guest Blogger Moni!

This spectacular & stylish posting is by my dear friend and fashion guru,


Monica Hartvickson.   
Thank you so much Moni, this is perfect.


May I also note that she was the stylist behind my big studio shoot at the beginning of April. Here's an example of one of the many outfits she put together. Click HERE.  She's a genius!


She will be the 1st of a few guest bloggers that I have(I always consider these lovely ladies Queens of Fashion and my personal go-to's for any special occasion) to share their fashionable ideas.  Haute Mama Jesse is up next :)

MY 3 SENSE FOR YOUR FAMILY PHOTO STYLING by Moni
When it comes to styling the family for a photo…no matter the season … a family photo will always involve COLOR. 
The Big question - What color to wear and coordinate with all?


1st SENSE - NOT TOO SOLID…

Lets place white, black, khaki and denim on the back burner for a bit…  I don’t want to rule them out just yet… but lets consider something different for a moment.

Think plaids, stripes, polka dots or any print, on 1 – 2 members of the family and build outfits for all others off those colors…
For example, a 4-color plaid (red, black, crème & green) – some wear black, some wear red or green.  Crème is ok here too…it will not wash out, especially when others are wearing brighter colors.  Also light colors look great in black and white photos.

Another example is an argyle sweater with 4 colors.  This was especially the case in one of my most recent family photos.  My father in law wore an argyle vest with bright blue and fuchsia among other colors, but these were the perfect colors to build outfits for the rest of the family. We used the bright blue and fuchsia for the family outfits.  Everyone else wore denim on the bottom.  It was a picture of perfection for the beautiful fall crisp morning (white and grey were our pop colors here).
If you prefer solids, think brights like some of the images above & below:
2nd SENSE – POP ACCESSORY



Also a great contributor to color and pop in the family photo is a bright colored accessory, likes shoes, a hair bow/band, jewelry, tie, etc…have fun with this and this can actually tie everything together.
3rd SENSE – BACK TO BASICS     

Khaki and denim are great for pictures – especially when you need to figure out what bottoms everyone wears.  There are lots of options with denim and khaki.  They are timeless and always crisp. 
Navy is great too!  Its like black and white and goes with anything…any time of year!

Chambray is great in spring and summer

Solids are best for black and white photos, but a sharp print, stripe, plaid or polka dot will stand out!

My all time favorite place for outfitting is JCrew – and its great for the whole family.  Most of the pics in this write up are taken from the JCrew website and inspiration. 

A tip - at JCREW.COM you can enter the color name, pattern or print and it will pull up different outfits on their website that match your color search.

Good luck…

Now… smile pretty!

xoxo, Monica