A fresh vibrant valentines day styled shoot with BLoved events at Berkeley Fieldhouse.

The style shoot was inspired by Pantone’s Top 10 Spring 2015 colours, primarily “Strawberry Ice”. What was the original spark for you with this idea?

When I saw the colour tone for “Strawberry Ice”, it was fresh, vibrant but romantic. From there, I brainstorm various themes that could fit within the colour scheme and Valentine’s Day was very fitting.

I chose the initial Valentine’s theme and expanded it from there as I started designing the various elements of the shoot.

 

How did you choose the compatible colours to pair “Strawberry Ice”?

I wanted “Strawberry Ice” to pop out and therefore, chose complimentary colours that would not take away from it as our main colour pallette. Blush and ivory tones were a natural fit that worked well to compliment and neutralize the pink undertones.

When you are designing an event do you start with the colour pallette or does it spring from other sources, like a theme or a literary reference?

Honestly, sometimes it starts off as a colour scheme, but usually it springs from a theme or an overall feel that I’m hoping to achieve once all the design elements are put together.

Through the style shoot you maximized the natural attributes of the Berkeley Fieldhouse venue, primarily the natural lighting and open concept layout. How did you accomplish this?

The Berkeley Fieldhouse oozes natural lighting and an open concept layout, it made it easy to set-up our style shoot near the windows at the back so that we could optimize the natural lighting and since it was an open space layout, we were able to set-up different vignettes for our ceremony area, dining table reception area, and so on.

Choosing the right photographer that knows how to best capture that natural lighting was also crucial in ensuring we could get the crisp, natural lighting photos we wanted from the shoot.

If this was indeed an actual wedding rather than a style shoot what would you add or subtract from the design?

I wouldn’t change anything.

One of my objectives in designing style shoots like this one is to give brides inspiration and show them that they can achieve the same design effect.

The pink palette if done in a certain way could be “too pink and glittery” and lose the beauty of the original inspiration of the colour. How did you manage to capture the beauty of the pallette while grounding the design and not losing its balance.

To be honest, I was worried it would be “too pink” initially! But once I started selecting the various design elements and leveraged neutral tones of blush and ivory in the flowers for example, or even the plate setting, I knew this would help ground the overall colour palette without feeling like the pink was overwhelming. Being at the Berkeley Fieldhouse and the large white walls also helped us balance the colour tones overall.

When you work with clients do they often use style shoots as points of inspiration for their events?

Not necessarily, it really depends on the clients and what their wedding vision is. I always try to draw on their interests/likes and use that as points of inspiration, and from there we then develop a theme and a concept design that we can build upon every element of their wedding.

The florals were so harmonious and complementary. What was the process for selecting the bouquet and table florals?

When I put together the concept board for the style shoot, I already had a florist vendor in mind that I wanted to partner up with for the shoot. I knew they would produce beautiful flowers that suited the theme and style I was going for, and once I approached Ping Twig and explained my vision, they understood immediately and clearly did not disappoint. Their florals were soft, romantic but modern and minimalist, they were beautiful and really pulled the table setting together nicely.

The style shoot had a fun playful element to it especially in the shots of the couple holding the cake – their expressions were very animated and interactive. How did you achieve this?

We had a light-hearted atmosphere on-site with all our vendors and models who joined us. Plus our photographer, Sandy Tam is such a pro at making our models feel at ease, and gave them direction to let them be naturally playful and light-hearted.

What would be three words to describe the feeling of the space on the day of the shoot?

Bright, open, adaptable

You used the white rustic wall very effectively with the graphic heart decor. This set of photographs also hinted at what a stylized ceremony could look like. What were your ideas behind this sequence of shots?

Since we had such a vast white canvas wall to work with, I wanted to leverage it and really let the colours of the paper floral decor pop from it. It was probably one of the bolder elements that stood out from the shoot.

The photographs had a feeling of a documentary feel to them even though it was a scripted shoot. Was this achieved through improvisation on the day of?\

Yes absolutely! Again I attribute this to our photographer, who helped guide our models through the thought process of getting married and the emotions they would go through.

The beautiful set up with the heart marquee is well placed in front of the french doors. In these shots the outdoors become a significant part of the composition and beautiful template in the pictures. Was this attribute of the outdoor urban space a big draw to choosing this venue for the shoot?

Yes! If it were warmer when we did the shoot, I would have taken some outdoor shots as well.

What would be the picture you would choose for a poster for this shoot and what would the tagline be if it was a romantic comedy?

Picture attached. Tagline: “Cheers to forever love”

Throughout the process of the style shoot what were things that went beyond your expectations – in a good way?

Seeing it all come together on the day of the shoot. Planning and designing the shoot, choosing the right vendors is all part of the puzzle, but seeing it all together always puts a huge smile on my face.

Event Stylist & Planner: BLoved Events
Photographer: Sandy Tam Photography
Venue: Berkeley Fieldhouse
Flowers: Pink Twig
Wedding Cake, cookies and macarons: Le Dolci
Flower Wall Backdrop: Pulp Function
Stationary: Ferris Wheel Press
Table linens: Linen Closet
Hair & Makeup: Blush Pretty
Wedding Dress & Veil: Blush by Hayley Paige via Sash & Bustle
Bride’s jewelry accessories: Anne Sportun
Groom’s suit: Zara
Models: Breanna & Brendan via Spot 6 Management
Heart Marquee & Heart Seating: Pulp Function