DIY – Alicia Heaney

Conceptual Portrait Shoot | Newport RI

Before the cold set in I wanted to do one more outdoor conceptualized shoot, and had the perfect model (with a theater background), with the perfect wardrobe ready to go (and the DIY floral crown)! One of my favorite kind of concept stories are ones that have some kind of meaning behind them. I think when doing this kind of work you should never start photographing without some kind of plan behind what you want to talk abut visually. The series concept is “Princess in the Abandoned Tower”, and lucky for us we have an abandoned tower to use in our availability. Brenton Point in Newport has a rich history from the Gilded Age of society, one of my favorite time periods to read about (I’m a huge book nerd). When looking around the estate “The Bells” it’s easy to imagine a stunning manor house by the sea, unfortunately it also suffered a fire in 1960 and was mostly demolished. Left standing today is the lookout tower (that you can climb to the top of for stunning ocean view) and the charred remains of the carriage house, horse stalls and all. Unfortunately is has also been vandalized by graffiti (not everyone adheres to “Take only pictures, leave only footprints” as most urban explorers do) but it is still one of my favorite places to photograph. When I first became interested in photography back a few years ago, this was one of the first places I explored. I love reading about history and was always a fan of the subject in school, so historical sites with an air of mystery sound like something straight out of one of my favorite fiction novels.

Handmade for the Holidays

Artwork

For anyone (like all of us starving artists here!) who don’t have a ton of cash to spend this season, and spend a lot of time stressing over what to get your family and friends for the holidays….don’t!

Crafty-ness to the rescue! There are a TON of great things you can make for your loved ones that will be meaningful, come from the heart and won’t break the bank.

Here’s how:

Think of who you are gifting. What do they love? What are their hobbies and passions? My mom and her boyfriend are ballroom dancers, they love to travel, and my mom loves lighthouses and sailboats, so a few years ago I made them this painting of them ballroom dancing by the sea!

2. It’s all about family! This is the season where you will see family and friends, eat lot of food, drink lots of wine, and be merry, not worry about your budget and if they will be disappointed if you don’t buy a gift. You can create perfect gifts for family, ABOUT family. Last year I made mini albums for my step-mom, Mémère, and sister of all of my nephews birthday photos for a whopping total of $18. Three people covered for $18! Win!

3. What would they enjoy? Maybe they aren’t enjoyers of any particular hobby or have any crazy passions (as a dancer, I get little ballerinas all the time, I’m easy to buy for!) but what would they enjoy? I did little mini paintings for my mom and sister last year of owls. Are they obsessed with owls like me? Nope, but they loved them anyway.

4. What are YOU good at? This is the perfect time to put your crafty skills to work, and if you don’t have one the perfect time to learn! Maybe you’ve always wanted to take up knitting, painting, calligraphy or floral decoration. Learn something new, and apply it to gifts that will be treasured because they were made with care and not bought. My Aunt even makes me amazing hand kit scarves, mittens and leg warmers every year!

And finally, remember no matter what, your family and friends will still love you if you don’t come down the chimney with a sack full of gifts. Use this time to expand your horizons, learn something new, and see their faces light up when you give them something handmade.

This years gift to my barista friend!

A custom painting for my airplane loving nephew

Happy crafting!

Alicia

DIY Flower Crown and Photoshoot!

Tutorials

I adore flower crowns, so when Kim and I decided to do a fairy tale style shoot at an abandoned building (think beautiful princess in a tower) I knew a flower crown would go perfect with her dress. I went to Michael’s because I didn’t have time to order one and figured they would have one. They didn’t. So I scoured the floral department in hopes I could come up with something myself. It actually came out pretty great and my client loved it as well!

Here’s how I did it:

1. Supplies:

Floral wire

Floral tape

Fake flowers and greenery

Simple right?

2. Cut floral wire into 3 lengths that fit comefortable around your head as shown above. They feel kind of flimsy alone so I braided them together to make a circle that was more sturdy. Braiding them was kinda tricky. I started by holding them together with one hand and awkwardly weaving them with the other hand.

3. Once the circle is complete, I wrapped one strand around the end of he other to hold it together, then used the floral tape to reinforce it and make it look cleaner.

4. Now the fun part, add flowers!!! Cut the flowers off their stems, but leave some stem behind (like an inch) because that’s how they will attach to the circle. I kept the leaves from the discarded stems too for additional fullness.

5. Get inturrupted by puppy kisses and snuggles!

6. Select a flower (I started with my big one because I wanted to nestle it with smaller ones around it) I bent the stem a bit right under he flower so the flower would be straight. Starting near the base of the flower, wrap the stem with wire (I guessed how much I’d need and trimmed it). It’s a little tricky to hold and start the wrap to be patient!

7. Next, cover the wire with floral tape so it looks nicer and elimanates the sharp ends.

8. Continue to add flowers and greenery as you choose! Be creative and have fun! When you’re putting flowers close to each other you have to weave the wire between flowers sometimes and it can be tricky.