West Hollywood Heatwave: A Retro 70’s Inspired Styled Wedding Shoot
The final project for the internship with Kristen Weaver Photography is to conceptualize a styled wedding shoot and collaborate with local vendors to help bring the shoot to life.
When coming up with the concept for my styled wedding shoot Kristen recommended looking at different time frames and interior design to try and pull inspiration from. After looking on pinterest for way longer than I would ever recommend, I came across this retro wallpaper that was being used as a backdrop. I absolutely loved how it looked and decided a retro 70’s inspired shoot is what I wanted to create.
After months of planning, and collaborating with many different vendors I could not have been happier with the outcome for this shoot.
Published in Every Last Detail: Chic 70’s Retro Weddings Ideas
Preparing for the Shoot
Typically for this internship you are paired up at the beginning with the person who you will be working on this styled shoot with. My partner left the internship after a few months of preliminary planning for the shoot, so I decided to start all over with a new concept that was all mine. I created a couple different pinterest boards of different ideas until I decided on a 70’s themed shoot.
I wanted to make sure that the styled shoot didn’t look too boho, I wanted to take a different, more retro route.
Here is how it all came together:
The Venue: Haus 820
As the planning process went on and I started figuring out exactly how I wanted the shoot to look, I knew that Haus 820 was the venue for me. I loved all of the natural lighting that the giant windows provided. The huge courtyard outside that was basically a blank canvas that really allowed all of the different colors of the shoot to stand out. Working with the ladies at Haus 820 was such a pleasure. They were super quick to respond to any questions I had leading up to and day of the shoot.
The Rentals: A Chair Affair and Treasury Rentals
I really wanted to create a lounge area that gave the look and feel that you were sitting in a living room in the 70’s. The ladies at the chair affair, Ann and Liz, were so incredible to work with. I was struggling the week before the shoot to find a rental company that was available (talk about STRESS). When I reached out to The Chair Affair they were happy to be a part of the shoot. They were quick to help me figure out what pieces from their collection I wanted to use.
Emily from Treasury Rentals works with Haus 820 often, so she felt like the obvious choice for other rentals such as the table top pieces. She was such a pleasure to work with. She was also very helpful in recommending other companies to collaborate with. Day of the shoot Emily showed up with a huge box full of goodies, from ring boxes to ribbons and was more than happy to let us use anything she had.
Stationary: Erica Group
I knew I wanted to use Erica Group for my stationary as soon as I started looking into different vendors. Based on Erica’s style I knew she would create something fun and different. All I did was send her my mood board, the imaginary couples names, and what all I wanted included in the invitation suite. Then Erica went to work, and she did not disappoint! I didn’t actually see the suite until the day of the shoot, so it was really exciting for me to finally see what she created based off of my mood board.
Floral: Ever After Vintage Weddings
Cassandra completely blew me away when I contacted her about collaborating on this shoot. After discussing exactly what floral arrangements I was looking for and sending her my inspiration she said she would send me a full list of deliverables. She sent me the deliverables that evening and it was exactly what I was envisioning and then some. I even told her it was like she read my mind (haha). Something I really loved about working with Cassandra is that she provided loose flowers and dry pieces for us to use for styling.
The gate backdrop with flowers on it was definitely one of my favorite aspects of this shoot. We were even able to remove the flowers from the gate and use them to create a flower bed for the model to lay in.
Cake: Shannon’s Sweets and Treats
Shannon’s sweets and treats has become pretty popular in the Tampa area and I love the cakes she creates. When I reached out to ask if she would be interested in collaborating I was so excited when she said yes! When deciding what the cake should look like we bounced ideas off each other for a little bit and finally came up with what we wanted it to look like. I shared my mood board with Shannon so she knew the vibe we were going for, and the color scheme I wanted. I knew that I wanted something simple yet different, and that is exactly what I got.
The Model, Makeup & Gown:
When it comes to the model, Lauren Allen with Modern Muse was more than happy to be part of the shoot. She has shot with Kristen before but this was my first time meeting her, and she was so sweet! She even brought her dad to the shoot so he can see all of the behind the scenes.
The hair and makeup artist for this shoot was Dorka Jones. I have had the pleasure of meeting her a few times before in the studio. Dorka and I discussed what I wanted the hair and makeup to look like, and she did an excellent job conveying that. I knew I wanted a soft curl with bigger curls framing the models face, and a more natural makeup with browns around the eyes to make them pop.
The gown is a Berta from The Bridal Finery. When we went to pick out the dress it was actually the first one that we grabbed, we instantly knew it was the one. The sleeves and lace flower details were everything I was looking for! The pearl hoop earrings were also from The Bridal Finery, they added the perfect 70’s touch.
Behind the Scenes
Gabby actually was our videographer for the day and did some behind the scenes for the shoot. I absolutely love how the video turned out. It captures all of the different vendors working to get everything ready for the styled wedding shoot. The video really conveys what all goes on to make sure a shoot turns out perfect.
Thank you so much to all of the vendors, Kristen, and everyone else who helped bring my vision to life! This was my first styled wedding shoot and hopefully not my last. Putting this shoot together was a huge learning experience, I will never forget the time and effort that went in to it.
