TUESDAY TRUTH: COURAGE

24

Here are two lists I wrote for Kurt in honor of his 24th birthday. 

First, 12 things I love about you:

1.  You are a man of integrity.

2.  You would rather read a book about theology than watch TV.

3.  You look really good in sunglasses ;)

4.  You are a poet and no one else knows it (except me!)

5.  You are really, really patient.

6.  You’re an awesome “Kuncle” to our nephews and you love kids.

7.  You hurt when I hurt and you rejoice when I rejoice.

8.  You are a great listener and you genuinely care about people.
9.  We make a pretty good team!  You truly are my other half.

10.  You actually don’t mind my glitter obsession.

11.  You’re not afraid of responsibility.  Rather than complaining about a situation, you do something about it.
12.  You are an amazing husband and my best friend!

Second, 12 things I have learned about you this year:

13.  You LOVE anything that’s pumpkin-flavored.

14.  You dig cooking shows.  I actually learned this about myself too, so I’m glad it’s a mutual thing.

15.  Although you don’t like to play video games, you still enjoy playing your Gameboy. Specifically Mario Tennis, haha.

16.  I don’t like the way you cook eggs. But you pour a mean bowl of cereal ;)

17.  Your new favorite activity is disc golf.

18.  You don’t mind driving really long distances. And you don’t mind me singing loudly on said road trips… or at least you haven’t complained about it yet ;)

19.  We’ve definitely got the same sense of humor. And I think you can read my thoughts...

20.  I am getting a little closer to really understanding that you love me unconditionally.

21.  You appreciate my home decorating skills.

22.  You love it when I cook for you and will eat anything I make for you with a grateful heart.

23.  You believe in what I can become and you believe that I am capable of achieving things.

24.  I wouldn't be who I am today without you and God's amazing grace.

12 + 12 = 24! 

Happy birthday to you, my darling love!  P.S. What a cutie pie!

THURSDAY THOUGHT: BE HAPPY. BE BRIGHT. BE YOU.

Hello and happy Thursday to you!  I've really enjoyed getting back into blogging and I've loved reading all your awesome comments this week.  Thanks for reading!  

Today I'd like to share this lovely Be You art print from Sugar Paper, as a short and sweet little thought for the day.  The right font can bring me so much joy.  And, as you can tell from my logo, I am seriously loving me some gold.  Shine bright like a diamond!

This simple message describes exactly how I want people to feel with I photograph them:

If you're interested in being photographed by yours truly, please contact me! :)

YASMIN SARAI PHOTOGRAPHY: BRANDING WITH WATERFALL CREATIVE

Lately, I've been learning about the importance of branding.  It's more than just a logo.  And prior to going to the Sitehouse GO LIVE Workshop with Promise Tangeman to create my website, (which I wrote about here!), I knew I needed help with developing my brand. After a little online research, I stumbled upon an up-and-coming graphic designer, whose style I fell in love with and who I felt could help effectively communicate the look and vibe of my photography business.

That designer is Joanna Waterfall of Waterfall Creative.  She is super creative, talented, and totally cute!  Joanna shares her lovely art, recent projects, and fun finds on her blog almost daily, so be sure check her out!  After seeing her art style and reading her blog post, Branding - More Than a Logo, I knew we would be on the exact same page and that she would be a perfect fit for me and for what I needed.

Isn't she cute?!                                                  Photo by Kristen Rogers

Now, what is branding?  Here is my little metaphor to explain: if photography is a gift, then branding is the beautiful wrapping.  Your brand is what gives a client the first impression of your business, reveals your unique style, and sets the tone of your work, in order to hopefully attract your ideal client.

Some of the words I want people to associate with my brand are: classy, cute, clean, sparkly, stylish, youthful, fierce, light, fresh, and fun.  Above all, I want my brand to communicate the most unique part of my business: me!  So the first thing I did was create an inspiration board, collecting patterns, typography, graphics, and colors that scream me! I then spent some time thinking about my personal style and taste, thinking about clothing and accessories that appeal to me and the vibe I want my brand to evoke.  Joanna was able to take all my ideas and create something amazing! Thus, I'd like to officially present to you: my new logo!

When I first saw it, I believe my response to Joanna was "It's perfect! Yay!"  In addition to my logo, I also wanted an emblem/motif that captured one of my favorite things: bows!!!  So she also created the cutest little bow for me.  I love it!

It's just so cute and represents my love of pretty little details.  After settling on the logo, Joanna sent these lovely business cards over, making me feel so official.  Here's the front:

 And the back:

I'm in love!  I also received these cute little stamps: 

 Fun!

I'm so pleased with everything!  The colors, the design, the attention to detail!  And this is just the beginning... I know that as I continue developing as an artist and as a business, it will only get better.  I'm totally inspired!

Now, who wants some pictures?!?!  Let's connect!

Love + Glitter,
Yasmin

ETSY FINDS: COLORFUL RETRO PRINTS

I love how creativity can be just a click away. I recently found a fun Etsy shop filled with dozens of fun posters with cute graphics and clean typography. I am a fan of good graphic design, and these posters are totally cool, so I thought I'd share a few of my favorites with you guys! Of course, if I like it, it must have involve love, photography, or chocolate so you're guaranteed to see a little bit of that and more below.  (Justin Bieber isn't the only one who loves eatin' fondue, ya know!) 

The super sweet shop can be found here! And I'll be adding these to the Christmas list ;)