Hello!
Hurricane Helene recently passed through Atlanta. We are still without power, but the sun is out and our city services are working hard to restore everything. We are fortunate to be able to work through these things with minimal disruption, unlike others. Good luck as you navigate through it!
I wanted to share some updates on our happenings, mainly to greet you and wish you well during my favorite season. Fall is also our busiest time of year at Balance Design, so if we don’t connect as much, you’ll know why!
First, I’m still working on sharing updates on my kitchen refresh soon (blog link). I’m waiting for some subcontractor estimates. Waiting for estimates is part of the process, and sometimes it can be quite frustrating. However, I’m also waiting for our best carpenter to give me an estimate for a custom bench in the laundry room, so I’m excited to work with him on a personal project. I promise to share some estimates and progress shots as we go.
The Bookshelves After the First Round of Styling.
Speaking of photography, I wanted to share some of our photography tips. Last Friday, we did a large photoshoot for one of our favorite clients in Druid Hills. It’s a two-day shoot, with downstairs last Friday and upstairs this Friday. These are long days, starting at 7 am and ending at 7 pm! A couple of days before the shoot, we styled the bookshelves in the spaces. This involved removing some books, creating a mix of vertical and horizontal books, and adding plants and accessories to the shelves. Shelf styling was quite enjoyable with Marilyn and Allie from our team, and we completed it fairly quickly. On these shelves, we sorted by shape, not color. These clients have so many wonderful books that you can tell what kind of people they are just by reading the titles (good cooks, well-traveled, nature-inspired, and progressive). On this prep day, we also scouted the shots we wanted to feature and shopped for vases and a few extra accessories.
Allie Holding her Favorite Flowers from the Shoot.
Next, we went to a wholesale flower company to buy the most beautiful flowers! I’ve found that we need to overbuy on the flowers so that the vases are overflowing and almost smack you in the face with their beauty. Allie and I had so much fun at Mayesh Cut Flower Wholesale. We found so many unique flowers that we had not seen before! Flowers can also help create the mood, so we chose sophisticated calla lilies in a round vase for the living room and more hippy dippy wildflowers for the mid-century dining room.
The Gorgeous (and Stylized) Front Porch!
Once the talented, award-winning photographer (Mali Azima) arrived, I walked her through the home and gave her my list of preferred shots. She tweaked those a little and then pulled out her phone with a sun locator app. She would then know when best to shoot each room so that the sun would be streaming through the windows at precisely the right time. I love working with Mali because of her ability to bend light (silks, filters, and gadgets) and her incredible attention to every detail. She also communicates in a way that tells you what she wants you to do without telling you what to do. (I took some communication notes.) For instance, she didn’t feel that we had enough on the porch coffee table, so she asked how I would feel about some more styling of the table to create a mood of wine tasting. We did that, and now you can imagine yourself hanging out on this huge porch, having some wine, and being surrounded by hundreds of plants!
Mali Azima Working Her Magic in the Family Room!
We did this process in each room, typically getting two shots in each space. One of the spaces I think will be my favorite shot was in the family room, looking out the tall iron doors onto the terrace that has a beautiful koi fish pond with a waterfall. The sounds alone were spectacular! Speaking of tunes, Mali brought her own speaker and playlist that ranged from the Clash to the Rolling Stones, to Bob Marley, and classical. It made the day more fun and allowed us to be fully immersed in the experience.
The Last Shot of the Day!
Allie and I were both exhausted when the day ended, but I cannot wait to see what Mali will give back to us in a few weeks! I will share those with you once they arrive. Please share some of your home photos with me, whether it is outside fall pics with your Halloween decor or it is an inside transformation that you recently made. I would love to see those and know what you have been up to. Happy Fall!
