Winter Date Idea

This post is sponsored by Coca-Cola.

Our schedules get packed with extra events and gatherings during the holiday season, and it's easy to let the important things like date nights, family time and alone time fall by the wayside. Here is a sweet holiday date night idea for you and your special someone that will put you in the holiday spirit and keep you connected through the hustle and bustle of the season.

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Pack a winter picnic in a cooler such as this American Retro Cooler from Coca-Cola. I included popcorn, a baguette, cheese, a pear, two candy canes and two bottles of Coca-Cola. Grab two cozy blankets to help you stay warm, and head to the ice rink. Skate until you are tired and hungry, and then enjoy your winter picnic as you watch the other skaters. If you plan your date in the evening, you can take a ride around and look at the lights to finish your date.

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If you want to look special for your date, try wearing a sequin top with jeans. It's comfortable and festive. You can even paint your nails a metallic color to complete your look. I used Coca-Cola's OPI "My signature is DC" color.

Photos by Melissa Jill Photography; Styling by Alex Evjen of A.V.E. Styles

Modern Holiday Table Design

This is a sponsored post in collaboration with Coca-Cola.

It's the most wonderful time of the year. The season of parties and entertaining is upon us, and I'm sharing with you a simple, modern table design that you can put together in 20 minutes. You don't want to have to spend hours crafting away and stressing over details. You just want to create memories that will last a lifetime in a beautiful space.

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I'm the first one to admit that I get anxiety over entertaining. My insecurities rise to the top, and I start thinking about all of the things that I need to do for my house to look "perfect." Here's what I have learned, fresh greenery and candlelight is really all you need. You don't even need to pick a trendy color scheme. Stick with neutral shades and metallic accents, and you will have yourself a picture perfect set up.

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Here's what I did:

1| Buy linen fabric at your local fabric store. Fold it and lay it across your table. It's okay if it has raw edges. To clean up the ends of your runner, slide a napkin ring through the fabric and place some greens for a pretty touch.

2| Lay branches cut from your trees or nearby woods about a foot each. I used a mix of magnolia branches and evergreen branches. I even placed them in my chandelier.

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3| Buy some sprays of berries at your local grocery store and place them in small vessels or votives along with some more evergreen or fresh herbs like rosemary. Place the vessels throughout the centerpiece. I used four.

4| To add some height, place candles through the centerpiece as well. I used some vintage brass candle holders I found at Modern Manor.

5| Forget the placemats. Just place simple white dishes on your table.

6| Roll up your napkins and place them in your napkin rings. I found vintage brass napkin rings that matched the candlesticks.

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7| Place water and wine glasses on your table. I really love these Coca-Cola Reidel glasses. They have a beautiful shape, and they are so comfortable to hold. I even placed a classic Coca-Cola bottle on the table to add a pop of holiday red.

If you want to get crafty and go the extra mile without getting super stressed, try a couple of these personal touches:

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1|  Write out the names of your guest on a tag and glue to cinnamon sticks on either side. Just hold tight for a few seconds after you glue them and start on the next.

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2| You can also take a piece of black construction paper and write a special word with a chalk pen and pin it to the back of your chairs. Cluster any leftover greens you may have or cut some more off of your trees. You'll see a mix of the magnolia branches, rosemary and berries in this bundle. I found burlap ribbon at a local craft store and glued the paper to it.

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Don't miss out on the special moments by putting perfection ahead of your family, but don't feel like you can't have a beautiful experience for your guests either. Share, connect and enjoy the process. Work with what you can find in your yard or at your local grocery store. If you want to get crafty that's great too, but go the extra mile after everything else is set.

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So glad my dearest girlfriends could join me for this special moment. Each one of these women has helped support me in my career as a stylist, as well as my other roles of a wife, mother and friend. I am so thankful for each one of them.

Styling by Alex Evjen, A.V.E. Styles Photography by Melissa Jill Photography Florals by Hoot and Holler Calligraphy by Katie Sterbenz Design

Get the look: Drink glasses from Coca-Cola Vintage glass rim glasses from Modern ManorWhite plates from West Elm Dinner napkins from West Elm Napkin rings from Modern Manor Vintage candlesticks from Modern Manor Chandelier from Restoration Hardware Linen chairs from Cost Plus Wold Market White faux fur from IkeaVotives from West Elm Table from Chairish.com

Editorial Blink Shoot

This past weekend I had a the privilege of leading a styled shoot for photographers from all around the country attending Blink Conference. I centered the concept around contrasting color. Check out a snippet of the pin board below.

With big hair, a bubble gum pink backdrop, a killer model and some bold clothes you really can't go wrong.

Bright green, black, gold and white were all colors that went will with the pink back drop, but they also pop in natural settings.

I jumped in front of the camera once or twice to show off some sequins and my "This is my party dress" tank from Junk in the Trunk Vintage Apparel. You can pre-order your tank or sweatshirt starting today!!! Click here.

Big thanks to Ryan Walsh Photography for these photos and Savage Universal for the seamless backdrop.

Hair and makeup by Miriam Kenly and Jaclyn Cipolla from Leidan Mitchell Salon. Styling and art direction by A.V.E. Styles.

Look 1: Black off-the-shoulder top from Junk in the Trunk Vintage Apparel, tulle skirt from Lulu*s

Look 2: Faux fur coat from H&M, gold pants from H&M

Look 3: Green jumper from H&M

Look 4: Sequin jacket from Anthropologie, tank from Junk in the Trunk Vintage Apparel, and pants from Macy's.

Smoke & Shadows

Happy Halloween! In honor of the spooky holiday my dear friends Ale Vidal, Stephanie Neiheisel and I decided to create a shoot around the idea of smoke and shadows featuring this to DIE for dress by Fame & Partners.

The most glamorous ghoul of them all is a vampire. They are always depicted as wealthy - living in castles, wearing intricate jewelry and sporting bad ass black hair. With the golden details of this unique top over a slim, satin black dress - Stephanie portrayed a vampire living among the smoke and shadows of darkness.

Rarely as a stylist and art director do I get to be theatrical with my concepts. Instead it's always creating to sell something or someone. In some ways what I do with commercial styling can be see more as smoke and mirrors over something like this. Obviously, thought and planning went into the concept, outfit and makeup for this shoot. Sometimes with "lifestyle" shoots they can appear "effortless," but in reality they are just the same amount of effort - sometimes it's even MORE planning. Doing that as a profession day in and day out can take a tole on your perception of reality causing high expectations of myself and for others.

The world of content creation and Pinterest is a world of smoke and mirrors. Though a lot of the imagery can be achieved on your own much of it can't. My advice is to always remember that a lot of the content is purely inspirational and creates a dream world like television. Take it with a grain of salt. Don't let it kill you! (mwahahahahaaa). But seriously...don't let it suck the life out of you like a vampire.

Photography by Ale Vidal Styling and concept by A.V.E. Styles Makeup, hair and modeling by Stephanie Neiheisel Dress from Fame & Partners

Young, Wild & Free

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Last week I shared a beautiful brand film for Jessica Daniels captured by Ale Vidal. Today, I'm sharing some images that Jess took the day of the shoot.

Jess really wanted to portray a girl who is adventurous and a free spirit for her brand film. A clothing brand that I really feel like embodies this is Free People. Thanks to Frances Vintage, we were able to work with all Free People clothing for this project. I'm in love with both of these dresses. The soft, flowy material was perfect for motion and further emphasized the "free bird" quality.

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Generally, I stay away from a black and white palette, but because this dress had a lot of detail and because we accessorized her to a great degree, it worked really well. Plus, the mint VW bus Jenny brought to the shoot created a bright pop of color for a background.

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Braids, natural makeup, stacked rings, a hat, booties...These were all of the details that came to my mind when I thought about this girl. Don't you just want to be friends with her?! Lea did such a great job of portraying this character.

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All in all this is my favorite shoot to date. It was just a joy to get lost in the details. Below is a little behind the scene pic of me and Ale creating a moment on set with Lea. If you haven't watched the film, go watch it here.

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Photography by Jessica Daniels // www.portland-vancouver-senior-portraits.com  Styling & Art Direction by Alexandra Evjen // www.avestyles.com

Hair by Jenny Strebe // www.theconfessionsofahairstylist.com Make up by Stephanie Neiheisel // www.snmakeupartist.com Model // Agency AZ (Lia Briehl) // www.theagencyaz.com Clothing and accessories supplied by Frances Vintage // www.francesvintage.com Calligraphy, hand drawn details by Alyssa Hodson