This week’s happys go to:

-Launching my new blog! Yay! It was a huge stress relief to FINALLY see it go live on Monday, and I am SO thankful for all the sweet words and encouragement that so many of you have sent me over the last few days.
-Starbucks’ Iced VIA. Love that stuff.
-Having my awesome Aaron accompany me to a session this week. I’m trying to teach him a little bit each week, and he’s seriously getting good! Maybe I’ll have a permanent second shooter pretty soon! :)
-Getting all of my new packaging & marketing materials in the mail!!!
-Scoring 4 shirts, a pair of pants, a dress, a cardigan, and a vest at Goodwill for $26! Thrifting for the win!
-Being able to say that I’ll be in Florida in 47 DAYS!!!!! :D

 This  week’s sads go to:

-The disaster that  is our guest bedroom/my office at the moment. I literally have to jump over things to  get around.
-The amount of laundry that  is currently waiting for me in the hallway. :(
-This is more shocking than sad, but both of my parents  got iPhones yesterday. I await about 800 confused/frustrated phone calls from them.
- The Bachelorette, and how all those ridiculous guys have already sucked me in. Don’t judge me, Internet.

HAPPY WEEKEND! :)

 Ps… Here’s a peek of some of my new packaging/marketing goodness! (Taken with VSCOcam for the iPhone4s)

She brought favorite pair of shoes, and I loved them! Coach + leopard print + high tops??? Yes, PLEASE!

Molly, you can even make space heaters look good.

I spent about our entire shoot coveting her hair.

It was almost if someone had drawn these adorable little hearts just for us. Major score!

Despite the fact that she seriously injured her arm long-boarding a few months ago, she still loves it and wanted to incorporate it into her pictures.

Remember Ashley? They’re great friends. :)

I miss the beach. :(

Molly, can I please have your face? My gosh…

These next 3 are my favorites…

Texas girl. :)

Happy Wednesday, Internet! :)

I loved shooting their engagement pictures earlier this year in St. Augustine, FL. Here are my favorites…
LOVE morning sessions!

Liza, you are a hottie.

Love this!

They are just so precious… It kills me! And geeze, Liza… Carrie Underwood much??

They do NOT mess around when it comes to kissing. :)

Raise your hand if you think they’re going to have beautiful, blonde children… Hand raised. :)

Love ya’ll… Less than two months to go!!!! :))))

Having a wedding helps you realize a lot about yourself… Specifically what you LOVE. Aaron & I’s wedding (oh yeah… I got married 2 months ago) was completely Do-It-Yourself, and my mom, bridesmaids, and I made almost every decorative detail that was at the wedding. My favorite detail, by far, was the doily bunting that Aaron & I got married under…

This inspired the heck out of my new logo & other marketing materials because this bunting (and doilies in general) just wouldn’t get out of my head! Yes, I am a grandma. I love it so much and have it hanging all over our apartment!

I was stoked to have a new logo that I felt represented me and the style of my photography, but then I was forced to acknowledge what I’ve known for a while: I’VE NEVER HAD A BRAND. Sure, I’ve got a great logo now… And I can even put that logo on sticker!!!! Doesn’t that mean something? No, self. No, it does not. Yes, my logo and other marketing materials are VITAL, but I can’t just depend on those to “brand me”. That’s when I stumbled upon a little post from Katelyn James about “Brand Boosters”, or anything unique that photographers choose to include in their social networking that gives people a glimpse of their personal life and a potential connection. Everything about this post helped me realize that I needed brand boosters, so I came up with a few for myself:

1. I’m a newlywed and just had a rustic barn wedding… I love anything antique!
2. My husband Aaron is hott, holy, and hilarious.
3. I’ve recently become obsessed with everything PEACH, but, ironically, I’m not a fan of the fruit.
4. I like to buy old junk & revamp it for our little apartment of newlywedded bliss. I’m all about that DIY!!! :)
5. Aaron is a youth pastor, so we’re always surrounded by students.
6. I’m addicted to coffee.
7. I’m about as girly as one can get.
8. I recently moved to ARKANSAS (still can’t believe it) from my home in sunny Florida.
9. I’m kind of a giant weirdo, and I talk to myself a lot. Hi! Hi. :)
10. I love Jesus more than anything or anyone else.

These things, along with awesome visual branding, are how I can make those connections with potential clients, other photographers, and new friends. Obviously, this post doesn’t mean I have arrived, but I definitely think it’s a start… I’m really excited to have branding & visual marketing that actually represents me! AND I even have brand new Facebook Page to match!!!

I’ve been so excited about the relaunch of my blog that I decided I HAD to give away some awesome stuff to three awesome people… I guess that’s just the Oprah inside of me.

$75 Riffraff gift card – Since moving to Arkansas, I’ve fallen head-over-heels in love this little boutique called Riffraff. I say “little”, but Riffraff is far from that. With over 20,000 likes on their Facebook page, I think it’s safe to say that they’re around to stay, which makes me SO HAPPY. :) The first time I walked in the door, it was like all my Pinterest hopes and dreams had come to life all around me, and that’s because the boutique features the work of local Northwest Arkansas artists… They sell everything from bold jewelry to funky lamps to chevron inspired apparel, and I could seriously buy it all. And the best part is that you can buy in-store OR through their Facebook page!

There are THREE ways that you can enter to win one of these awesome prizes: Hellooooo great odds!

1. Comment on this post telling me what your favorite brand is and why it’s your favorite. No, extra points will NOT be awarded for answering ‘Kelsey Tice Photography’, but I WILL probably like you better. :) If you’ve never commented before, know that you won’t immediately see your comment because I have to approve it first. And do not forget to include your email address!
2. ‘Like’ Kelsey Tice Photography on Facebook!
3. Share this post to all of your friends on Facebook! Be sure to tag Kelsey Tice Photography in your post though, or I won’t see it!

That’s it! The winners will be decided by a random number generator and will beannounced on Thursday, May 17th on this post, so you have three days to enter! :)

***updated to add winners***

CONGRATS to…
Renae Styles Burt on winning a $75 Gift Card to Riffraff!
Riley Snell on winning a Walk In Love. item of her choice!
Courtney Stewart on winning a session + extras with me!

I will be emailing ya’ll this afternoon to get your information!

Congratulations if you actually made it to the end of this incredibly long post. Happy Monday! :)

I was utterly obsessed with the INCREDIBLE belt on Kristin’s gown.

This is definitely a favorite from the day.

Their closest friends and family waited on a dock while Kristin walked to meet her groom…

Every time I shoot a First Look, I fall in love with them even more. It is seriously SUCH an intimate moment that you just can’t experience in any other way. Plus, I got to snap some shots of Kristin & Phil at sunset, which is obviously the best lighting ever. :)

Favorite #2.

They had such a fun bridal party. :)

Favorite #3.

Kristin, you are BEYOND gorgeous. Like, for realll.

After pictures, Kristin & Phil separated while waiting for the ceremony to begin.

Such a beautiful bride & proud father. :)

This was one of the most emotional ceremonies I’ve ever experienced. There was not a dry eye in the house, including me.

And Mr. & Mrs. Freo were just a little bit happy to be married. :)

Such a sweet idea…

And the party began!

Happy 2012!!!

Congrats, Mr. & Mrs. Freo! :)

They are super precious together and wanted to take advantage of the beach, since they had just moved from the North. Here are my favey-faves…

Totes my fave :)

Sarah was an absolute blast to shoot… She is so full of life, has the longest lashes ever, an infectious laugh, and has a heart that is even more beautiful than she is. I know. That seems impossible. Oh, and she is going to Florida State for college, so she basically couldn’t be anymore perfect. :)

2. When you get to the last two months of your engagement, you should probably start making decisions. Like about the wedding and moving to Arkansas. If you don’t, your bridesmaids & mom will have to conduct an intervention with you to get your butt moving.

3. God’s grace covers all… Something I’ve always known, but now I’m learning His grace in new ways.

And because every post is naked without a picture, here is how I would describe my life at the present:

And on account of the fact that I hate horses so much, this is saying a lot.

What I love so much about this little book is that its basically like a Twitter journal. I cannot even tell you how many times I have resolved to journal everyday. Probably every year since like 2001. I have an absurd amount of journals that are empty, with the exception of the first 3-5 pages. I know, Internet. Just pathetic. My excuse at the end of the day was always, I’m too tired to write about my day! BUT I never seem to get too tired to tweet. I mean, it’s 140 characters. A zombie could handle that. With the One Line A Day journal, I have 5 lines to fill every night before going to bed. Five… That’s like 25-30 words! I can pretty much always handle that. Each page is divided into 5 sections for one date… You just fill in the year. I’m so excited to get to 2016 and be able to look back on 4 years, one day at a time. Also, just a bonus… It’s a super adorbs little book with the prettiest gold pages.

So #34 of 101 in 101? Checkkkkk! :)

Its Friday, Friday! :)

Brides, can I just give ya’ll a little tip real quick? You have a dress that cost you somewhere between $500-$2000. You want me to take pictures of said dress, and for good reason! Invest in a nice hanger! Seriously. It doesn’t have to be some fancy one that has ‘Mrs. ______’ on it. Although, those are my favorite. Keri didn’t do anything over the top, but the nice wooden hanger with a cute bow made her dress pictures look about 120x’s better. Okay, rant over.

I couldn’t get enough of all of the gorgeous florals from Kelley’s Bloom Room…

Their gorgeous reception was held at The Winterbourne Inn.

Best dance party. Ever.

This was the most epic cake smash I’ve ever witnessed. Don’t get any ideas, Aaron.