Impact Tip - baby gifts!

Next week I will be in KY with no internet access so I am doing my Impact Tip this week. I just wanted to share some of the great baby gifts we have gotten that are the ideal green baby gifts just in case you are looking for some ideas for a baby shower or a new little one in your life!

We got these great baby socks from our good friend Emilie of Emilie Inc. that are all organic cotton, we wear them all the time! Also, these awesome shoes from my good friend and old college roommate, Clare. She made these!! They are all recycled materials and she has many more designs. I can't wait to get more for the other babies coming soon and more for Ayla too :) Check them out at her etsy site SewSleepy gifts! And she made this little toy that will be great for when Ayla gets a little bigger.

Molly Grace's Shoots Candace & Erik

I am so looking forward to shooting Candace and Erik's wedding in Febuary because it will be at the Stadium Club at US Cellular Field. So naturally a baseball field is significant to this couple, and Erik is a High School baseball coach too, so we absolutely had to do some pictures on a baseball field. I had such a fun time with these two and look forward to more with them this winter!

Molly Grace's Shoots Kristen & Oliver's Wedding!

I was so excited to photograph Kristen and Oliver's wedding! They hired me back in June of last year, I photographed their engagement session in November and alas, the day of their wedding arrived.

Ceremony: St. Joan of Arc
Reception: Arrowhead
Flowers: Ocie
Video: REM Video Productions
DJ: Sounds Abound

Such Beautiful Details

I love this shot of Kristen


A group shot that was worth traveling through the weeds for!


Such an awsome toast by the best man, and brother of the groom!

Love the Dancin! Love this little girl spinning!

Beautiful :)

Jenica and David

Jenica and David had a french themed wedding at Marche in the West Loop. I love the french and the culture so this was a real treat.

Getting ready: W City Center Hotel
Make Up: Rachel Reiman
Ceremony: St. Francis Xavier
Reception: Marche
Flowers: Suzanne Connor Design
DJ: Elite DJs
Cigar Rolling: Cigar Catering

Not exactly what you want to happen when the maid of honor is holding the bottle! I love this shot as I wandered outside the sanctuary I caught a glimpse of the reflection of their initials through the glass windows at the front of the church framing the couple perfectly in the background! And a special treat, there was a photo booth at the wedding with real film prints so while everyone was eating, we took advantage. So big thanks to Jenica and David for some of our first family photos and my mom for bringing Ayla down during dinner :)

Molly Grace Shoots Julie & Gerald!

What fun to have a wedding on a Monday! What an awesome way to begin the week and first of day of the rest of your life. I was so anticipating photographing Julie and Gerald's wedding for the experience of witnessing the rich Chinese culture and traditions. We had such a great and full day, a ceremony, a reception, followed by a tea ceremony and a delicious twelve -course Chinese dinner. Julie and Gerald and their awesome families were so fun and welcoming to me and Arron as we joined their family for the day and celebrated with them.

Make up - by none other than the amazing Sonia Roselli
Reception - by the gorgeous and beautiful Chicago Illuminating Company
Ceremonies - by the well spoken Terrance Brady
Flowers - by the fabulous Flowers of Paradise
Music - by the jammin' Toast and Jam
Food - by the well presented Food for Thought
Love the details!

Gerald's first look at Julie!

The custom of the Bride exiting her home, Julie's grandmother giving her blessings by throwing rice and pennies on the bride.

What an amazing friends and family Julie has, everyone is helping her bustle.

The tea ceremony, Gerald's Dad got the first sip.

Ah, what a beautiful bride and an adoring groom


Julie and Gerald and their families toasted each table!

Impact Tip -7 things you can't recycle

Some of you may have noticed the missing Impact Tip last week, I do apologize. I was in Tahoe with no internet, but I am also realizing how challenging it is to have a brand new baby during the peak season so I am going to limit myself to a new impact tip every other week through the fall in order to balance being a new mom, an educator, and photographer! Thank you for your understanding!

For this week, my mom sent me an interesting article that reminded me that sometimes we think recycling is as easy as plastic, glass, and paper, but there are a lot of things that can't be recycled and tossing them into the bins can actually slow down processing at recycling plants or even cause harm to the employees so I want to share those with you.

Seven things you can't recycle:
1. Plastic bags: these can serious slow downs because they have to be removed one by one. However, many grocery stores will not recycle these for you so save them for your trips to the store and keep them out of the recycle bin.

2. Plastic bottle caps: These are a serious hazard to plant employees as the caps trap air in the bottles and they can explode. Be sure to take the caps off before you recycle but don't worry, the little plastic rings are fine.

3. Frozen food boxes: These boxes contain a plastic layer in them which prevents them from being recycled.

4. Soy milk cartons: These containers contain a layer of foil and plastic which is hard to separate and can't be recycled.

5. Random plastic items: I have been guilty of this, thinking if its plastic, its recyclable but you really have to make sure to look for the triangle logo and then be sure that the number corresponds to one that your recycling center accepts.

6. Glass not from containers: If you are recycling vases or glasses during your spring cleaning, think again. These containers are meant to be used over and over so they have glass with a higher melting point. Give them away instead of tossing them in the bins.

7. Shredded paper: Now this seems like something that should be recyclable, after all it is paper. But these little shreds most often fall through the cracks and can clog machines costing valuable time and money to repair. Shred only what you need to and recycle the rest.

I hope that is helpful and for any other questions about recycling, consult Chicago Recycling Coalition.

Colleen and Tom's green wedding in Tahoe

As many of you remember, last year in celebration of my new brand, I held a contest for the most green wedding. After several entries and thousands of votes, Colleen and Tom were chosen by popular vote. A huge thanks to Carmen Salazar who came out to help in my still-recovering state and of course Aaron for pushing himself to help cover what I could not.

Last weekend, their wedding was finally here. Here is a link to Colleen and Tom's site where they list their green ways: http://tomco.nearlyweds.com/blogs/index

For a quick review:
* Vintage postcard invites instead of the traditional multiple-cards-within-envelopes-within cards-plus-tissue-paper scenario
* Guests received DIY carbon offsets, and we are going to plant trees on our friends' property while we're there.
* Some favors are organic, ethically-traded, and a portion of their cost goes to protect species, habitat and humanity.
* The bride's engagement ring originally belonged to Tom's grandmother Edna "Teddie" Shoaf.
* The bride wore a vintage dress, vintage shoes, and a veil worn by her mother and aunt.
* Bridesmaids are choosing dresses they will wear again.
* Rehearsal dinner will be held at Mamasake, a Cal-Asian sushi restaurant, which uses an eco-friendly fish supplier, uses organic ingredients when available, and offers numerous vegetarian and vegan choices.
* Reception food: quality veg options and organic wine
* Flowers were organically grown
* They chose sustainable items for the registry.
* Bridesmaid's gifts included handmade grocery totes, seeds, and old books upcycled into journals
* Ceremony and reception were at the same venue and the ceremony was held outdoors.
And some more pics of the day, I love this shot of Colleen while she is waiting for Tom to get out of her bridal suite :)