june favorites

YIKES! June was a crazy month. I had three weddings, countless graduation parties, (including my little brother's!) three of my best friends' birthdays, a couple of protests and lobbying opportunities, and a prom. (Not mine, but you know.) And also, I'm on vacation right now! Whew. I can't believe how quickly this month has gone by. It's kind of unbelievable actually. Just a few more weeks of wedding season left, then I can finally breathe again. Due to all of the craziness, I didn't post as much as I wanted to this month but regardless, here were a few of my favorites:

June is infamous for being full of weddings. I can attest to the truthfulness of this statement. I loved this vintage garden wedding and this glamorous wedding in Maryland.

I only had time to make one cocktail this month but it was certainly a good one. The summer isn't over just yet, (in fact, isn't it only just beginning?) so you have plenty more time to make this refreshing Mint & Honey St. Germain Cocktail

I was so honored when Food & Water Watch asked me to photograph the March Against Monsanto Rally in my home city of Philadelphia. You can see some pictures and read about it here, with even more photos here.

I made my first DIY in who-knows-how-long this month, one that I am very well pleased with! See how to make it here. I still get so many compliments whenever I wear it out!

This month was one of the rainiest that I can remember. Because of that, I wore jeans and tee shirts a lot but when I felt like dressing up, I did it right. Check out two of my favorite outfits from this month here and here.

I had the privilege of taking pictures of my little brother and his date before his prom, which was such a great experience! You can see those photos here.

Vacation is wonderful. I've been forcing myself to not take as many pictures because I need to just rest and relax but I did break my own rules and take a few, which you can see here.

Last but not least, I was thrilled to have Carts Before Horses stop by and share a little bit about themselves and their EP. They were even kind enough to throw in a free download! Check out their post and definitely make sure to download the track. It's fantastic.

Hope you have a great rest of June! See you in July.

xo,
e.m.

home away from home

Little details have the amazing power to turn a house into a home. That's all I have to say this morning, I'm off to the beach! Hope you all have a great day.

xo,
e.m.

carts before horses (& free download)

My favorite part of being on "the interwebs" is getting to meet all sorts of beautiful and talented people. A couple of my favorites that I've found in my adventures thus far are sisters Lauren and Elizabeth Reisig and their band Carts Before Horses. I fell in love at first listen with their witty melodies and ethereal harmonies. I asked Lauren to share a little with you guys and here's what she had to say:

My sister, Elizabeth (Beez) and I started Carts Before Horses in September of 2012 after spending the summer street-performing in our small town of Oxford, Michigan. We loved playing music together and wanted to keep it going so, we decided to start writing our own material and doing something more serious with it. It wasn't until after a friend asked us to play a benefit concert for his non-profit that we wrote our first song, “Pipe Dreams,” however. Because of this, we joked that we put the “cart before the horse” when it came to getting started and that is how we got our name!  Since then, we've opened shows at some well-known Detroit venues for national acts such as Jenny Owen Youngs and American Opera and had the awesome privilege  of recording our first E.P., “Allegories” with another Detroit artist, DL Rossi. 

As far as influences go, we say that fellow “sister-band” Eisley taught us everything we know about harmonizing and, they have probably been our biggest influence. We also draw a lot of inspiration from “folk-rock” artists such as Sufjan Stevens and Iron & Wine as well as greats like Carole King and Carly Simon.

Overall, we tend to be drawn to and gain a lot of inspiration from artists who write very honestly about their life because we tend to do the same. Most of our songs are written about relationships (romantic and otherwise) that we have or have had in the past. “Caulfield,” the song available on the blog for free download to Lark & Lace readers, is what Beez describes as her “last angst-y high school” song about some struggles she had with friendships during that time while “Brave” is my take on overcoming self-doubt in order to make room for new love despite being hurt in the past.

Currently, we are playing a few small shows and taking some time to write more. We're really excited to hopefully keep the momentum going and record more soon. We're very excited about the future and to see where this takes us. 


I can't get enough of this duo and can't wait for a full-length album. (And an East Coast tour... ladies?) They were kind enough to share my favorite song off of their debut EP, Caulfield, which is available to be downloaded here. If you're like me, you'll find yourself singing it quite often.

xo,
e.m.

p.s. To stay up-to-date with what Carts Before Horses is doing, follow them on twitter!

bro bro goes to prom

My little brother went to prom with one of his friends last week and I had to share some photos because he looked quite handsome. (Oh, and his date looked pretty great as well.) You never see the young ones looking so classy for prom these days. When I see a lot of prom pictures, I think to myself, "goodness, where did the rest of her dress go?" Not the case here, these two were ravishing. Oh, and yes ladies, he's single!

xo,
e.m.

beetlejuice


I love Manhattan because I can wear things that I'd get weird looks for in a small town like the one I grew up in. I also hate Manhattan because I ended up walking around Union Square in bare feet at 1AM because I tripped over a sewer grate and broke one of my shoes. (My beloved Jeffereys, yes.) I found out the hard way that no matter how clean the sidewalk may look, there are tiny little shards of glass everywhere. It's okay NYC, I still love you. Just let this be a lesson to all of you who may be reading this...
xo,
e.m.
Pants/ F21, Blouse & Blazer/ H&M, Hat & Bracelet/ U.O., Necklace/ ModCloth, Bag/ Michael Kors, Sunnies/ Old Navy, Shoes/ Jeffrey Campbell

beach necessities

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I've been M.I.A. these past few days because I've been getting ready to leave for vacation next week. Like almost all East Coasters, we're going to the beach! (North Carolina's Outer Banks, to be specific.) Growing up on the coast, going to the beach (or, as we from Jersey like to say, "going down the shore.") is a part of life, and since it's such a family thing growing up, packing one's own beach bag for the first time is a rite of passage. No, seriously, the first time I really felt like a woman was when I packed my own beach bag to take a day trip in Ocean City, NJ with some friends while I was in high school. I forgot the sunscreen and came home looking like a boiled lobster. Not a good look. Anywho, I'm on the hunt for a new gigantic beach towel and a good book to read but here are a few things that I certainly won't be heading to the beach without this summer. (Oh, also, the bathing suit above is the first suit I've bought in almost four years. Intense, right?)

xo,
e.m.

Opinions are my own. I'm not being compensated for mentioning the items listed above. (Although it'd be nice, right?) *Gratuitous winking emoticon.*

a glamorous summer wedding

Last weekend, CJ and I traveled down to Maryland to photograph this beautiful couple's big day. (Look familiar? You may remember them from this engagement session from last December.) The venue was breathtaking, as was the bride. Every detail was so classy and doesn't she look like an old school Hollywood starlet? I'm so blessed to work with such incredible brides and grooms. I say this all the time but I really do love my job!


xo,
e.m.