After Wedding Shoot

I'm sure you thought the wedding posts were over by now. I've taken you through 28 posts, detailing everything from the moment I woke up to our Seattle skyline finale. But, I loved my wedding so much that I found a way to drag out it all the way until the next weekend, with an After Wedding Shoot and a Hometown Reception.

The biggest reason for having a semi-TTD (I hesitate to call it such because there weren't any activities that even hinted at trashing since I had to wear it in front of family and friends the next day), was to capitalize on the chance to do a shoot with my mom, Denise Andersen. I didn't realize how much pride I would feel each time someone came over to my married apartment and said "I love this picture, who took it?" I've watched my mom practice her craft for years, and after years and years of taking pictures she can do some really fantastic stuff (as evidenced by my bridal portraits in Rome).

That Groom made one last huge sacrifice, and took these pictures with me on our honeymoon. My advice to you if you are considering the same thing? Prepare to look a little puffy from the gastronomic indulgences you will be making while taking your ultimate vacation. One night we sat in our bed and ate a huge wedge of cheese with crackers and finished it off with an enormous piece of chocolate cake. No wonder our faces look puffy in most of these photos.

If you remember, there are no photos taken inside the temple, and because of this I had no pictures of me wearing my mom's wedding dress and veil from the wedding day. After working so hard to lose 50 lbs over the last 3 years, I was happy to find I could even squeeze myself into the dress at all. My mom had something like a $400 wedding, and she hated her dress, but I'm in love with the meaning behind it.

My mom would probably like me to point out that her sister is the one who added those 80's puffed sleeves to the dress. It was much simpler when she wore it.

You'll notice that the neckline on the dress is pretty low. When I put it on in the temple I wore this turtleneck insert thing underneath. I didn't worry about how awful it looked though because there were no pictures, and it wasn't really about the dress anyways. :)

The lace on the bottom is my very favorite part of the dress.

After a few minutes posing in a dress so tight I could barely breathe, it was time to change into my lovely Evelyn once again.

I hate this pose I am doing (I did it a lot on the wedding day too, what was I thinking?), but I think That Groom looks dashing and debonair.

We took these photos at Cave B Inn at Sagecliffe, a winery/resort I worked at for a few Summers. I love this room just off of the tasting room, with huge unfinished stones for walls.

Apparently That Groom didn't get the joke that I was laughing so enthusiastically at.

We have this one hanging in our dining room. I look at it and smile every time I sit down to eat.

I'm completely in love with this property (have your wedding here, it's gorgeous!), and I had a lot of fun dancing around in my wedding dress in the same places I used to carry room service trays loaded down with heavy plates and bottles of wine.

I'm thinking about printing this photo on canvas for our living room, but I can't decide what version I like best.

Version 1:

Version 2:

Version 3:

Can you see why I am completely in love with this property? The view outside each of the cliffhouses are breathtaking.

We gathered some of the wedding decor suitcases and used them as props. I thought they were a nice subtle addition that didn't take away from the sweeping views.

Look how filthy my dress is! And look how cute my shoes are!

I won't lie, I love having my picture taken.

Then it was time to do a veil change, switching to a longer more dramatic veil that would blow in the wind nicely.

It really tickles when kisses my ears.

Quite possibly my very favorite. My mom's assitant almost threw herself off the cliff trying to get the veil to float for this shot.

And one of the last shots of the day, and my mom's favorite from the session!

You can see my mom's favorites at deniseanderse.com!