life lately // studio progress

I've been quiet about our studio around here, but it is NOT for lack of progress!  We are almost at 100% and have even started holding client meetings there -- it's SO exciting, and a little surreal.

Here are some more glimpses of the studio space (via Instagram, of course).  :)

1. our sweet little washroom (I like to call it a washroom instead of a "bathroom" because I think it sounds fancier)

2. joelle's calligraphy for a quick in-studio photo shoot we did a couple weeks ago

3. amy's pre-wedding prep (i.e. huge flower delivery).  sharing a space with a florist is great fun!

4. leo is our resident carpenter and has built about half of our furniture: coffee table, cabinets, and community table!

5. snippets of our small private office space within the larger studio.

6. the "lounge" area, where I've held all my client meetings thus far.  I love it all.

And check out this rad little video tour that Joelle took of our studio!  I was skeptical about video on Instagram, but I will admit that it's a bit easier than switching over to Vine to post and view videos.  :)

weddings // BHLDN show

It has been a LONG time since I've done a "life via Instagram" recap around here!  And since I've taken way too many photos since my last post to share all of them with you here (trust me, you'd hate it), I'm able to pick a theme for my Instagram images to share.

Since it's technically Wedding Wednesday, I wanted to share some highlights of the BHLDN fashion show with you guys!  Last week, Joelle and I were invited to check out the new space where BHLDN's "shop in shop" (it's going to be on the mezzanine of the current Anthropologie store in Beverly Hills) will be located.  The grand opening is July 10 and I cannot wait!

I think there were at least four or five different dresses coming down the runway for which I leaned over to Joelle and whispered ferociously, "that one is totally my favorite!"

My ACTUAL favorite has to be this lovely gem right here (very Kate Middleton, no?).  There was also a close relative of this dress that was sleeveless -- also amazing.

Last week, BHLDN invited a bunch of bloggers and wedding folks to the new space to enjoy some light snacks, champagne, the Anthro store all to ourselves, and, of course, the newest release of gorgeous wedding gowns.  I was pleasantly surprised by how many new designs there are going to be. 

Anyway, on to the Instagrams.  Some of these are actually Joelle's or taken by other ladies attending the event -- all are linked to the original Instagram accounts from which they came.  :)

images from joelle duff, bhldn, and annadelores on Instagram

many more if you search #bhldnla on Instagram!

mani monday // on a tuesday.

As most of you know (or at least have guessed), blogging has been sort of on the back-burner for me.  Which means I forgot which day of the week it was yesterday, and I failed to schedule this li'l post about my peachy manicure in time for Mani Monday.

Better late than never?

And this is also a terrible photo.  AND, while I was searching for the bottle of color so I could tell you the name of it, I spilled OPI's Lincoln Park After Dark all over my floor.  This is the second bottle of LPAD that has broken on my bedroom floor.  It's a good thing the flooring is old, crappy, faux tile.  *Sigh*

Anyway.  This little chica is Clara from Julep.  I am a HUGE fan of peach lately.  Without realizing it, I went for peach when it came time to design my logo for this blog and my photography business.  And I just LOVE it.  Pairing it with gray just feels right for my brand. 

I also love peach paired with pretty much any other color for weddings.  Navy and peach is my ultimate favorite color combo at the moment.

Go visit Heather and check out the other manicures linked up for Mani Monday!  Who actually followed instructions and posted on a Monday.  :)

big decisions // new blog.

Okay, I KNOW I have been a pretty serious slacker with this blog lately.  I've been apologizing for months about inconsistency in blogging frequency, and of course you guys remember this post in which I debated the pros and cons of moving this blog into the "next phase" of my small business/self-employed life...

Heck, I'm even going to re-use the same graphic I created for that post!

After a lot of self-reflection, inner dialogue, and discussions with friends and colleagues, I've decided that I am definitely merging Anna Delores into a single, unified blog.  And it will most likely be located at this address.

But that's not all.

I initially reached out for BLOG ONLY design advice and assistance with transferring this blog's content to Wordpress and merging it with my photo blog's content (also in Wordpress).  So, only BLOG stuff.

I didn't want to mess with www.annadelores.com because, well, that's a lot of work.  And I'm comfortable with the back-end administration of my current website host, so I wanted to leave "well enough" alone.

But I'm really not a "well enough" kind of person.  When I decide I want to do something, or that it's time to make a change, I usually plunge head-first.  I was trying to mitigate that natural tendency in myself by taking baby steps with a website/blog overhaul, but here's the thing (well, two things):

1. It's actually a better financial investment to do it all at once.  If I hire someone twice, I'm paying for two different projects.  I'm also potentially hiring different people depending on the circumstances, so there's the opportunity for gaps in design flow and discrepancies with other nitty-gritty web design elements I know nothing about. 


2. I've been sitting on these ideas for months now.  I've had trial subscriptions to a number of other web design sites (like SmugMug and ProPhoto) to see how I felt about those hosts, and I just didn't have the time to test-drive them to my satisfaction.  And I've been unhappy with some of the limitations of my current website for awhile now, and I think I'm finally fed up enough to do something about it.

So I'm ready.  It's happening.  I'm going to pull the trigger this week.  I'm going to be MIA for awhile (yes, more than usual) but I'll pop back in to let you know when all the new goodies are up and running and ready for your enjoyment.

In the meantime, if you want to keep following me on Bloglovin', please do so by subscribing to the blog address that the new blog will soon occupy.  If that makes sense.  Just do it.

And thank you for your patience.  Those of you reading this post are definitely the ones who matter to me, because you're sticking it out while I struggle to figure out a direction for growth.  It truly means the world to me.

xoxo.

mani monday // coco

For this week's Mani Monday, I went pretty basic (but still a little sexy) with Julep's "Coco", a dark oxblood crème from their 1920s-inspired collection.

Sometimes it looks more burgundy-red, other times it looks more closely-related to a rich chocolate brown.  I LOVE shades that are so dark they're almost black if you don't look closely enough, and I think Coco is an especially seductive example.

Remember to share your manicures with Heather and me!

mani monday // nautical navy

I'm a little obsessed with the nautical-inspired fashion and colors that emerge in the approach of Independence Day every year.  Julep's June Maven box, with their "Nantucket Nostalgia" theme, hit the nail on the head with this one! 

I mean, they even included salt water taffy!  Yes.  And please.

I went back and forth on which color I wanted to try first (I know, first world problems).  I felt like trying a dark color, and I'm pretty much ALWAYS on board with anything navy blue, so I opted for Char.

And there was a big red bow ring I was eyeing at Old Navy yesterday that I think will totally complete this manicure.  So I'm off to buy it before I meet the lovely Alyssa Armstrong for coffee.

<center> <a href="http://annadeloresphoto.blogspot.com/search/label/mani%20monday" target="_blank"><img alt="Mani Monday" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDyuJ0DTJfa0RGwAtY5H5O68MQe3A3xYySv-NcYCuY-84UnQXAP8VMbin0BtVRBQ5Yefcwy_EPwie8Ieuj_pS0uLU0Gkbo4IwNng142BL0kMJlHnNmVxCXm_0LCkozVwB5Wx8aKcafQXQ/s1600/mani+monday.jpg" width="300"/></a></center>

Remember to link up with me and Heather (her Hello Kitty mani this week is the CUTEST!).