I started in this business shooting kids and it’s really what I love to do…where my heart is….so I am returning to my roots.   I am excited about the possibilites of refocusing just on the little ones in our lives.  I love to create a scene and let them play.  My philosophy and style are very photojournalistic, provide a fun environment and let them be. 

As a result of  these changes I will be making a few changes to pricing and packages too, so if you are planning on scheduling a shoot, please make sure to check those out.   Pricing and Session Info

Throughout the month of August I will be running a special for children’s shoots…$75 for the sitting fee.  Sitting fee includes 1 8×10.   Spots will go quickly, so email me at tammy@tammymitchellphotography.com if you are interested. 

Along with regular shoots I will be offering a few “themed” mini shoots throughout the year where I will set up a great scene and the kids will be invited to come and play.  I am SUPER excited about these!!!  It will allow me to combine my love of design and party planning with my love of photography!!  Stay tuned for details of the first theme shoot coming in Sept.  It will be a back to school shoot…details and session information/sign-ups coming soon!!

Here’s a little taste of what’s to come.  A “fake birthday” I had the pleasure of creating for a client last week…watch for these shots in your local craft store and even on HSN and QVC!!

have a great day!
-t

The blinged out pretty little girls stand…

We just let this little one play to her hearts content with the lemonade bowl.  Needless to say she was covered in the pink sticky goodness by the end of the shoot, but she had SO much fun!!!

I absolutely loved the idea of the ghetto looking boy lemonade stand looking like he had just set up shop right next to his sisters.  The spray paint, duct tape, the frog and the toys IN the lemonade pitcher were a crack up.  See what I mean??  The details were PERFECT!

 I wouldn’t call these the best pictures I’ve ever taken, but I do have to say they are my favorites.  I talk all the time about shooting a ton so that you have a story to tell, and here is a perfect example.  If I only had one of these shots it just wouldn’t be the same!   It was the end of the shoot and we were trying to get these three little balls of spunk to cooperate for one last group picture.  Well, they weren’t too interested to say the least!   Mom had brother hold the frog and had the girls stand near him (they weren’t too fond of the frog when he was out of his cage)  I just kept shooting rapid fire, simply because when you’re working with a squirmy group of kids, it’s the best way to guarantee a few great shots!    Mom instructed the three to stand there and say cheese, but brother had other ideas.  Now that I look back and these pictures it just makes me laugh.  You can see him concocting the idea all along.  Check out the devilish little smile in the first picture as he holds the frog.  Well, on the count of three he flung that little frog directly at his sisters and then, as they screamed, he laughed, clapped and jumped up and down in total delight.  It was absolutely hillarious!!!

thanks so much for another memorable shoot, pam!!

have a great day!
-t

You know me, when somebody says party my brain goes into overdrive!!   When planning a party I always think about a theme first.  Whether that theme is a color palette or a style doesn’t matter….just something that makes bringing everything else together easier.  I immediately thought of a vintage baby boy theme since I have some cool vintage glass plates and cups that I have been DYING to have an excuse to use, so this was perfect!   You can find them pretty easily at most antique stores.

I found this cute little shop online, Pretty Little Studio, that makes the most adorable vintage baby flashcards and all kinds of fun stuff.  I had her custom make some invitations for me and I think they turned out SO cute!!

We served simple breakfast foods that were yummy…a parfait bar with yogurt, fresh berries and granola, bite sized cinnamon rolls and other pastries, and a yummy drink.  To go along with the theme I made a little label for each food item

I just made them in photoshop and printed them out on cute scrapbook paper.  I also made one for the gift table:

Now my favorite part…the favors!!   John thinks I’m crazy because I spend hours making things like this, but this is honestly the most fun part for me.   These are very easy and inexpensive to make, but they are time consuming.  If you have the time and love to be crafty then these are perfect for you!

to make the giant cookies find the recipe here

for the bags you will need:

a roll of parchment paper

thread

a sewing machine

ribbon

a hole punch

pinking shears

any deocrations you want for the bags

Cut parchment paper into 6.5×14″ strips.  fold in half and stitch the sides up using a colorful thread and a zig-zag stitch.   trim off the excess on the sides with the pinking shears.  slip a cookie into the pouch.  fold the top of the bag over and punch two holes at the top about an inch apart.  feed the ribbon through the holes and tie into a bow on the front sideof your bag.  decorate as you like.

like I said, pretty easy, just time consuming but I think the result is WELL worth it!

It’s easy to do this for any shower boy or girl, or even if you don’t know what it is just make a mix of boy and girl vintage tags!   It would also be cute for a little girl’s birthday party if you played some vintage games and added a few more decorations and changed the food a bit!

Hopefully that gets your creative juices flowing for your next party!

Have a great day!
-t

Andy has Friday off for his birthday (at least that’s what he thinks…actually it’s for Good Friday, but when you’re 7 it’s more fun to think it’s for your birthday! ) so I’ve been trying to come up with some fun Easter ideas todo that day.  Here are a few of my favorites so far:

from Ladies Home Journal the bunny pop…if you don’t want to go through the hassle/mess of making rice krispie treats omit the first four ingredients.  Pre-made rice krispie treats make these a breeze!!

Ingredients

•    Vegetable cooking spray
• 10  cups Rice Krispies® or any crisped-rice cereal
• 2  packages (10 oz each) marshmallows
• 6  tablespoons butter
• 1  lb semisweet chocolate, melted
• 1- 1/4  lbs white chocolate, melted
•    Red food coloring
•   30 popsicle sticks

And finally, Andy came home with one of these today and I was in love.  John has a REAL weakness for these things.  I don’t particularly care for them, but when I saw this idea I HAD to share it because it’s pretty stinkin cute best of all there’s a free download so you can make your own!  Download them here

I’ve got a few more things up my sleeve…stay tuned!

Have a great day!

-t

I think these last several years of attending and shooting elaborate parties have taught me that kids are really very happy with the simple pleasures.   Sure, they love bounce houses and ponies and magicians, (and I love to plan paties like that!!!) but put a table full of goodies in front of them and let them decorate a homemade cupcake and they are JUST as happy.  Just something to keep in mind for those of you planning birthday’s in the near future…that would be me.

Enjoy this gorgeous party!

Mom attended to every gorgeous detail…LOVE the white hydrangeas in a lime green ribbon wrapped box!

the butterflies on the straws…Stunning!

cute little bowls to hold the goodies courtesey of Anthropologie

the darling birthday princess

a finished masterpiece

i LOVE the lighting in these shots…YUM!!!  after decorating cupcakes the kids gathered to make bead necklaces on PIPE CLEANERS.  Genius!!  For little kids they stay stiff enough for them to feed the beads onto…great tip to remember!!  You can then twist multiple strands together to make a necklace that’s long enough.

Hope you’re feeling inspired to plan your next event!

Have a great day!
-t

This year my valentines have taken on a beach theme.  I didn’t really plan it, I was just working around things that I had around the house.  I’m fortunate in that both of my kids are at small schools with teeny classes…so I can make slightly more elaborate things without breaking the bank.  I definitely wouldn’t be doing these things for  a class of 35, but they are fun for the special valentines your kids may have.   The other thing I love about these is that they are both great for boys.  Girls are easy, because they can give things that are in primary colors and nobody thnks anything of it, but boys are hard.  So much of the valentine’s stuff out there is pink and purple and mushy.  I’m happy to say these are BOTH great for the little guys (and gals) in your life.

i dig u

i hit the dollar bins at michaels and found some cute shovels to make these with.  Here’s what you’ll need:

-inexpensive shovels

-small clear bags of some sort (clearbags.com is a GREAT source for celophane bags of all sorts.  you have to buy them in bulk, but they are relatively inexpensive and i use them for EVERYTHING!!)

-candy(i bought cady that had wrappers that were in primary colors so they would match my shovels…something to think about.  it’s a sickness…I know. )

-ribbon

-cut out heart shapes (an extra large heart punch or die cut machine of some sort works great for these!)

-alphabet stamps (or you can print on the paper with your computer before you punch out the hearts)

-a hole punch

-scissors

-tape

1. put you candy in the bags and seal.  punch two holes at the top of the bag about an inch or so apart.

2. string ribbon through hole on the right

3. place candy bag in your shovel and wrap the ribbon around the back of the shovel handle.

4. pull ribbon from behind shovel handle through the hole on the left hand side ofthe candy bag to bring the ribbon together in the front so you can tie a bow.

5. cut out your hearts and stamp with “i dig u”

6. tape hearts to front of candy bag

7. hand out and enjoy!

have a ball, valentine

supplies:

-beach balls

-tags

-ribbon

-string (i used embroidery thread)

-tape

-hole punch

these are super easy!  i found my beach balls at walmart for 77 cents each.  my ribbon is from a giant spool at costco and the tags I made in about 5 minutes in photoshop…good news…here’s a free download of the tags for your own use!

Have a Ball

1. take beach balls out of their package and roll up.  tape into place.

2. tie ribbon around balls

3. cut out your tags and punch a hole in the top

3. use the string to tie your tags around the knot in the bow to secure them to the balls.

done!

Hope you have a happy valentine’s day!!

-t

Grab some scraps of paper and ribbon, some tape and a heart punch and you’ve got yourself some homemade valentines in minutes…

Thanks to inchmark for the cute idea!

Have a great Thursday!!

-t

Pictures and tutorial courtesey of Skip to My Lou one VERY crafty girl and blog.  You will LOVE it.  She has all kinds of wonderful tutorials for you, especially if you’re not a lazy seamstress like me!!!

Problem is, I’m too lazy to make all the ones I have seen until now.  I found the perfect, cute, easy to make with little sewing tutorial.  Since I am a fake seamstress this works out well for me.

You need three pieces of wool felt 6″ X 16 1/2 (pocket), 5″ X 16 1/2″ (outside), 5″ x 16 1/2″ (inside). Another plus about the felt from Prairie Point Junction is that the sheets are 12″ X 18″.  Not only are the felt sheets at the craft store not as durable they are too small for this project.  I thought about using the felt on the bolt, but again I was wanting something that would hold up to little hands and it seemed too thick.

Take the 6 X 16 1/2 piece (pocket) and fold it in half length ways. Lay it on top of the 5″ X 16 1/2 (inside) piece. Starting over 1 1/4″ from the edge stitch from top to the bottom on the pocket piece. Then continuing stitching every 1″.  Back stitch at the top of each stitching line to reinforce.  You will end with 1 1/4″ on the other side.

If you want the outside of your roll to have any embellishments make them now on your outside piece. It would be beautiful to use some of the felt scraps for applique or do some embroidery.

Place the pocket piece that you just sewed on top of your outside piece (wrong sides together). The pocket piece might be slightly smaller from all of the stitching of the pockets —-I just gave mine a little stretch (gently) to match everything up. Pin to keep it all in place.

On the right edge at the middle insert a 30″ piece of ribbon folded in half. Insert the folded end about 1/2 an inch.

Sew all the way around the outside 1/4″ in from the edge.

A nice blanket stitch would dress up the edge or you can use pinking shears (make sure they are for fabric and they are sharp). Be careful when you come to the ribbon you will have to do each side separately.

Note:
I doubled the pocket to make it sturdier and give the crayons extra padding to make them stay in.  This seems to work well, however you could always use a 3″ X 16 1/2″ piece for the pocket.  I would sew a ribbon across the top edge for extra stability before I make the pockets.

These would be cute valentines for your little ones!!
I’ll post pictures of mine when I get around to actually making it. 

Have fun!!
-t

Materials:

1. Paper punch I used a heart for valentines, but with the number of punches on the market, the possibilites are endless!!
2. You can use any papers ou have on hand for this craft. Vintage sheet music looks really cool for a more elegant versin. You can find it at flea markets, thrift stores, yard sales or etsy.com.
3. Ribbon
4. Glitter
5. Scissors (if you have pinking shears those would add a fun look too)
6. Clothespin or binder clip
7. White Glue (I use aleene’s tacky glue, elmer’s would work fine too I’m sure)
8. Hole Punch
9. any fun embellishments to hang from the ribbon

Directions:

1. Roll one sheet of paper into a cone shape, gradually working with it to get it to taper off to a point. Glue with a thin layer of tacky glue, using a clothespin, binder clip or paperclip to hold in place until dry.
2. Punch or cut heart shapes from coordinating paper and glue around rim or down the front seam of the paper cone. To create three dimensional look, I folded my hearts slightly in the middle so that they stuck out from the cone,   Apply a thin line of glue along edge and hold in place for a few seconds until the glue begins to dry.
3. When completely dry, apply white glue to desired areas and dust with glitter.    4.   Punch a hole on each side of the cone and thread ribbon through holes to hang.    5.   Fill with goodies and enjoy!

Obviously you can make many different variations of this.  Just think of the posibilities.  How cute would these be made in the theme of your choice, hanging from the backs of chairs as place card holders.  So fun!!

enjoy!!

-t