| Kaylee + Jake | Decatur IL Fall Engagement Photos |

I cannot tell you how excited I am for this lovely couples wedding day this fall. I’ve had so much fun working with them so far and everytime they’re in it’s nothing but laughs. This week Kaylee’s momma popped by to pick up their guestbook and we chatted for at least 30 minutes and that was just for pickup day so I know their wedding day is going to be amazing.

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We wanted to work in some fun personal pieces into their session so that lovely quilt their sitting on was Kaylee’s grandmothers and we added in coffee cups from black iron as that’s where these two had their first date. I love telling the story of couple’s beginnings during their sessions and adding throwbacks to their family history is even better.

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The beauty of downtown Decatur’s Christmas lights helped us round out this session. They love the holiday season so it was a great chance to work in that magical time of year for them to enjoy all year long!

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Friends and family you’ll get to see even more of Jake & Kaylee’s images at their wedding when you get to join in their legacy by signing their guestbook which is filled with even more sweetness from their engagement session.

Follow us on Instagram and Facebook to see more soon.

| Brittany + Woody | Decatur IL Engagement Session |

I get to show off this lovely couple today. Brittany and Woody were a blast to photograph and not only did I get to spend the afternoon with them but they brought along the family to enjoy the occasion with us too.

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A fun tweak to their session was that they changed their wedding date after we’d photographed with these signs soooo I flexed my photoshop muscle and changed 9.22.18 to 6.23.18. Unfortunately, that date change also means I won’t be spending their wedding day with them but it was so fun to get to know them a bit on session.

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Be sure to tune into our Instagram and Facebook to see who else came along on their session (hint, it might be a PUPPY!!).

| Jamie + Mike | Married! |

Today, I get to share Jamie & Mike’s wedding (album) with you all! I cannot tell you how much I loved working with these two. You might remember their super fun SNOW engagement/family session… well their wedding day was quite the opposite weather-wise but still full of even more fun and love. These two got the perfect sunny spring day (which was good since their ceremony was outside at the beautiful Fletcher Park Pavilion.

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Ceremony: Fletcher Park Pavillion

Reception: Mt. Zion Convention Center

 

 

| Styles & Smiles | Consignment Boutique Mt. Zion, IL | Small Business Features |

The Details: Styles & Smiles Length of time in business: 2 Years

Hours: Tuesday – Friday: 10:00am-5:00pm Saturday: 10:00am-4:00pm Location: 205 Debby Drive, Mt. Zion, Illinois

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Tell us about your business….what do you do? Styles & Smiles is an upscale clothing boutique featuring new and gently loved apparel, shoes, purses, and accessories for men, women, and children.

What makes your business unique/special? Styles & Smiles is not just another resale shop. We take pride in making the client experience one they will not forget. We personally assist you with all of your fashion needs and will help you find the perfect outfit for any occasion. We provide style with a smile!

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What item/service on your menu or in your shop do you just love and think everyone needs? Name brand clothing at an affordable price and top notch customer service.

In what way have you gone above /beyond in the past for a customer? We appreciate our client’s demanding lives and never hesitate to come in early or stay late to help accommodate their schedules. On occasion, we have even delivered! We also work closely with local charities and donate a great deal of clothing to help support causes such as the Cinderella Project and Northeast Community Fund.

What was the coolest thing you’ve ever had a client do for you? My clients are amazing. One of our special clients, Shirley, brought me an amazing gift one day, a guardian angel. It sits right in front of my store.

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What tool/equipment/or other vendor could you not imagine doing business without? Why? I can’t imagine business without our customers. THEY are our most important vendor! Without them, we would not have the awesome styles and great inventory that we do!

What other local businesses do you love? Why? I can’t imagine a day without Krave or the Black Iron. We love our iced coffee drinks and sweet treats! They keep us energized and help keep a smile on our faces!

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Introduce us to your STAFF: Lori McDaniel is our styling and marketing expert. Lori is a Decatur native and a student at Millikin University. She has extensive background in sales and marketing and flair for design… AND… Lori is an energizer bunny! 

Tell us about you? Why did you choose to do what you do? I am recently retired after years in the world of finance. I Love style, I love to shop, and I love to make people happy. I have always wanted to own my own business, so when the opportunity came up to buy Styles & Smiles, I thought it would be a great way to fulfill my dream, so here I am. 

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What are you passionate about outside of your business? My three grandchildren, Avery, Piper, and Jace, and my children, Clint and Nicole are the loves of my life. When I am not at the store I am enjoying time with them. 

Describe your perfect day… My perfect day would be waking up around 7am to a beautiful sunny day, enjoying a cup of coffee, and chatting with my daughter and grandkids about what we should do for fun. I would bop into the store and see that it was in great hands with my staff, so if I wanted to check out and go fishing or to the zoo or park, I would. About 6pm, settle back at home and hang out with the kiddos, enjoy all the love and the laughter, then sit back and say, “yes, life is good.” 

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See the latest news and items available from Styles & Smiles HERE

See our other past small business features to connect with more businesses in our area:

See more on our Facebook Page and follow us on Twitter @sjanephotog, Instagram @sjanephotograhy, and Snapchat @sjanephotog

If you’d like to have YOUR small business featured for FREE on the SJP blog (or know a small business we should feature) you can find details HERE! These features are 100% free and we’d love to feature you next.

| Payton | Argenta-Oreana High School Senior Model | Class of 2018 | Decatur, IL |

The first of our class of 2018 senior models to make their debut on the blog is our very own Ms. Payton!

2017-08-17_0003You may remember her first moment in the SJP spotlight way back for her sophomore year prom when she won the Neuhoff media prom package which included a prom-day shoot with her date Austin (and we included him in a few of her senior portraits too)!

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From there it wasn’t long before Payton was working as my assistant and modeling for me on a few projects including our parachute dress class in downtown Indianapolis with the Reset Conference. She’s even charmed our own little #BabyB and got to be her swim lesson teacher at fairview pool this summer!

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So basically Payton has become a pretty awesome part of the SJP family (at home and work!) so it seemed fitting she be the first one up on the blog to kick off the class of 2018’s senior year.

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Do you guys remember the ‘trash can image’ ?!? Austin joked when we got out of the car at the park that we had a great location right by the dumpster soooo I accepted that as a challenge to create something fun by it and this was the result:

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Things have been BUSY around here all summer and I have SO many awesome things to show you from all our seniors… so let’s not wait! Check out all of Payton’s favorite images right here right now.

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This year Payton was even named All American Cheerleader! Big congrats for kicking off your senior year with such an achievement.

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And don’t forget to head over to her facebook album to give her some love.