Magen is here and we have been busy doing outdoor activities all weekend since the house is slightly chaotic and all afternoon Josh has been working on blazing trails for us on the land. I wanted to show you a short video of it!
We painted the “farm room” a few days ago this pretty color…
My little sister, Magen, is coming into town tonight and I decided to decorate the room for her so she wouldn’t feel like she was camping in our house. I am still waiting on my BED from IKEA and Josh will need to refinish the floors in this room and then WAHLAH! It will be another room complete.
I bought this 1940’s Royal typewriter off of Craigslist in Lubbock for $50 and with a few extra typewriter ribbon’s from Ebay I have been writing a letter a day on my new letterhead (see that below) and love it! There is just something about hearing a loud clunk each time you type something and I can’t get enough of it!
I really like this pouf that I bought from Pier 1 here in Stillwater the other day, it’s quirky, impractical and RED!
The bathroom is coming along nicely, Josh spray textured the walls today and will be starting the tile tomorrow.
My new letterhead, envelopes and business cards that Brent Holloman designed for me with my rooster logo from Into The Darkroom. My new blog is in production and will be done sometime soon!
July 29, 2010 - 6:14 pmAmanda - Oooo, it's coming together! Man, you guys work fast!
July 29, 2010 - 6:44 pmkrista lucas - holy moly, i LOVE this room!!! you're totally inspiring me to get off my behind and actually decorate our home... :)
July 29, 2010 - 7:39 pmdavina - Ummm....that room is gorgeous and I, of course, LOVE the colors! I need you to come and decorate my house...and I'm dying over the hardwood floors and the design work by Brent.
July 29, 2010 - 7:39 pmdavina - I need one of those red poufs!
July 29, 2010 - 7:58 pmMelissa Copeland - AHH!! this room is B-E-A-UTIFUL!! What is the name of that wall color?!?!?!
July 30, 2010 - 8:27 amMiki McCurdy - Yeah - love the blue! what is the name of it?
July 30, 2010 - 9:54 america Sledge - Opening your blog is like opening a present! It's so thrilling! And...YAY for impractical!
July 30, 2010 - 11:56 amEvie Perez - This is awesome Lauren!! I love how everyhting is coming along. This house is looking great! Keep on posting pictures :)
July 30, 2010 - 3:37 pmTina - I saw that fun, red pouf at Pier 1 last night too! It looks adorable there. I'm still trying to think of where I can make it fit in my house.
July 31, 2010 - 9:40 amJobrina Hofleit - So adorable!!! I too gotta know the paint color!!!!! ;-)
Wednesday, July 28, 2010 at 11:31am Posted in Me, Seniors
Since moving to Stillwater last week I have been having friend dates about every other day. I have met some really neat people that I think I will be great friends with! Amy came into town last night from Enid, Oklahoma where she is a photographer. I first met Amy at Love Affair in San Diego and for the last several months we have been talking about how we are both moving to Oklahoma and how we would have to get together. I took her to my new favorite Italian place, DaVinci’s, and then to my favorite ice cream place, Orange Leaf, and then my favorite place to be in the whole town of Stillwater, Lake McMurtry! We drove around and she let me practice taking her picture around that area. I am telling you what, I am not used to taking pictures around sunset or around a ton of trees and I had to really think about what to do! My high noon sun wasn’t there to comfort me:)
Ahhh yes, this is the entire reason that we moved from Lubbock. Trees and rivers. Lubbockites, aren’t you jealous?
July 28, 2010 - 11:33 amryan - lovely images. i particularly like the light in the 3rd(?) image...the one with the purple dress amongst the rocks.
July 28, 2010 - 5:43 pmpatty b - okay, so you've got trees ... but we've got .... uhmm ... dirt and .... beautiful sunsets and .... Sugar Brown's! YES, of course we're all jealous! Miss you girlie!!
July 28, 2010 - 7:59 pmnancy m. - AMY YOU LOOK GORGEOUS! GREAT JOB LAUREN AND ISN'T NICE TO MEET NEW FRIENDS FOR LIFE! BEST OF LUCK TO YOU ON YOUR MOVE!
July 28, 2010 - 8:17 pmAmy - aww! these are so cute! i had a blast .. anytime girl! it was fun getting to know you more. hope to do it again sometime.
July 29, 2010 - 7:32 amashley o. - you work the sun beautifully! and amy makes a great model!
July 29, 2010 - 1:34 pmrebekah - beautiful images!! looks like you girls had fun! so glad you got to hang out. would love to meet up with both of you sometime!!
Wednesday, July 28, 2010 at 11:06am Posted in Weddings
This was my first wedding in Oklahoma! It was so exciting to be somewhere new and GREEN! Too green actually, because about an hour before the wedding was going to start all of the humidity in the area turned into a dark rainstorm and we had to move the wedding indoors. The wedding was at the Marland Mansion and this place would have been a great venue for a wedding even if it had to be in the basement!
July 28, 2010 - 12:50 pmChelsea - LOVE this venue! Super good job.
July 29, 2010 - 8:52 amBarbara - Lauren, your photography never ceases to intrigue me. It's beautiful and I adore your work.
July 29, 2010 - 11:48 amJessica Canaday - I remember watching you shoot thier engagement pictures!The wedding shots are beautiful :)
July 30, 2010 - 8:39 ammelanie pittman - Gosh this is a gorgeous venue for a wedding!! And yes I am jealous of the lake you have to float around on that is not brown "like a buffalo" :)
Josh and his dad are hard at work on the only full bathroom we have in our small house on Doty St. They ripped it to pieces last week and after the plumber left around lunch today (to move all of the plumbing over a good 2 feet) they are re-sheet rocking it! Josh says that he should have it finished by the end of the week by the time my little sister, Magen, comes to visit us.
Here are more pictures of the house this week as requested by a lot of you! It will look much worse before it starts looking any better…
Ick, the kitchen will be the last remodel of the house since it will take the longest.
The Kitchen plan: 1) paint the cabinets white 2) New beautiful hardware from IKEA 3) Butcher block counter tops 4) HUGE farmhouse sink 5)gorgeous mosaic tile backsplash 6) new oven 7) new floor tile
The Living Room: After I saw how disgusting it looked in the last post we decided to tidy up the place for the next picture. This room hasn’t had much work other than take off the trim and rip out the green carpet.
The Farm room looks much nicer today than it did when we bought the house. Josh put a fresh coat of primer, new baseboards and soon to be refinished floors!
We are painting this a light greenish blue tomorrow.
Drum roll please! Here is the gutted bathroom, it can only look better from this day forward.
Here is the only improved picture I have for you today, my cutesy backyard.
July 26, 2010 - 2:54 pmChelsea - Oh my gosh, are those trees?
July 26, 2010 - 3:26 pmAmanda - Eeeep! The backyard looks a-may-zing!
July 26, 2010 - 3:40 pmJillian - I'm so excited for you! Everything's looking great!
I'm shopping for butcher block countertops, as well! Have you found the best place to purchase them? Suggestions?
July 26, 2010 - 6:38 pmLauren Clark - Jillian, we are getting ours at IKEA! It should cost us about $400
July 26, 2010 - 10:37 pmjamie - love that purse! oh yes and the house :)
July 28, 2010 - 6:46 pmdavina - You make remodeling look so fun! :)
July 29, 2010 - 5:36 pmpaula - Are those spoons on that hanging thing? If so, I love it!!!
A few days before I moved to Stillwater Sylvia came over for a Brainwash! Katie was our lovely model and we had a great time that day. Here are a few of the favorites!
And After! Josh has made this room absolutely BEAUTIFUL! He sanded the floors, retextured the walls, primed and painted 2 coats to seal off the old smells, put in new trim and a new light! The color in this room is just lovely and I have never painted a pink color before in any of our houses, but now I am a believer in pink. This is Valspar’s Rose Madder found at Lowe’s.
Here are the chaos rooms:
Living room, ick. At least I have one room that is finished and has no clutter.
The Master has been painted and we setup our furniture last night, but it still needs some sprucing up before I reveal the finished room!
We are working hard to get this house done in a month, and I will be back to work in the internet world off and on until the end of August when I come back full steam!
July 21, 2010 - 2:27 pmCayce Noble - Looking FAB! (particularly the picture on the wall ;))
July 21, 2010 - 2:29 pmEvie Perez - I love the color. I would of never thought to paint my walls that color, but girl it looks good!!! I can't wait to see the rest of the house. What a fun adventure!!!
July 21, 2010 - 2:30 pmLindsay Weidenhammer - I LOVE these pics! You have great taste!!!! Where do you get your inspiration?
July 21, 2010 - 3:06 pmkrista lucas - WOW girl!! i need to hire you two to design my home! :) you're inspiring me to paint the rooms i've been thinking of painting for the last year we've lived here... :)
July 21, 2010 - 3:22 pmAshlan - Looks awesome!! Where did you get those yellow curtains?
July 21, 2010 - 3:40 pmabby g - you guys are amazing!!!!!! I can't wait to see the whole house!!
July 21, 2010 - 3:47 pmGinny Corbett - WOWsers!!! I LOOOOOVE it!!! You guys rock :D
July 21, 2010 - 5:28 pmKirsty - you guys have done an amazing job, the before and afters are totally inspiring. Well done
July 21, 2010 - 6:29 pmdavina - Oh baby! That looks fantastic! I love the rose madder...whatever...color! It's gorgeous. You have some mad decorating skills. :)
July 21, 2010 - 9:47 pmLauren - Does Josh have a manly beard? :) The house looks SO much better already! Can't wait to see it when it is all finished! Its weird that you don't live in lubbock anymore. Tell Josh, Peter and I say, "Hey! and GREAT work!"
July 21, 2010 - 10:22 pmKelly Beane - It's looking so fab already! Adorable office and I love the grey in the master. Josh must be working like a mad man!
July 22, 2010 - 6:56 amChris Scott - I'm laughing at the 2nd - 4th photos because as I look over them, I can pick out ALL the stuff from IKEA. It's almost like looking at one of their catalogs. Glad to see you found a space to make it work.
July 22, 2010 - 3:36 pmRobyn Lee - Love the progress. I enjoy seeing pics of people making a house into a home (at least for a while). I would love to take an older home and do some resprucing!
July 22, 2010 - 4:48 pmJenice - It's looking great Lauren!
July 24, 2010 - 7:48 pmJaimie Dee Photography - Wow. GREAT WORK! I just stumbled onto your blog today and am so happy that I did! Your work is so inspiring, so much creativity! Good job and keep it up! :)
I have lived in Stillwater for 2 1/2 days now and wanted to blog about some of my experiences so far…
- I was offered a job this morning at Chipotle because of my “personality”
- A small frog was latched onto my window while we were painting the master bedroom
- A guy at Best Buy told Josh that his friend spent a fortune on wedding photography. That fortune was $1500. I think I might need to market to bigger cities:)
- The humidity is giving me mild acne.
- There are no turning lanes and I am bound to have an accident or two each year.
- I guess we live on the poor side of town, but for the first time this is really, really fine with me.
- Our house will be the prettiest on the street!
- I have already met a new friend! Kami was in a wedding I photographed last September in Lubbock and she was jogging down our street last night while we were getting out of the car and yelled me name when she saw us, she only lives 2 blocks away! It was neat to see a friend already.
- I bought 5 OSU T-shirts for $3 each at Wal-Mart this morning. I’ve never been a huge college football fan, but I guess I will start this year.
Well that is it for now. I will post pictures soon!
July 21, 2010 - 1:52 pmJaclyn Marie - Welcome to the reality of being a wedding photographer in a small town...No matter what kind of reasonable number you throw out there, people gasp in shock at the price!
July 21, 2010 - 2:11 pmAmanda - That about sums up Stillwater for ya!! And, yes, your house will be the prettiest on the street! ;)
July 21, 2010 - 2:30 pm~abi~ - haha! love it! as a transplant to oklahoma myself, i predict that you will grow to love it! :) :)
July 21, 2010 - 2:49 pmMackenzie - we just relocated to Springfield, Mo (4 hrs from you) from Tx and the humidity may be the death of me! hang in there though!!
July 24, 2010 - 8:22 amdesirae - ha ha! :-) welcome to oklahoma! we can be pretty cheap. LOL
I am hearing the music from all of those drama movies in my head right now, you know, the “DUN, Dun, duuuuuuhuuuuuun”. I can’t believe that I am writing my last blog post to you from Lubbock this morning. It was over 9 months ago that Josh and I decided to migrate and sink some serious roots into his hometown of Stillwater, Oklahoma.
I am sad, but excited, but a little more sad this morning. Everything that is familiar and comfortable is surrounding me this morning… my mom’s house, this “big city” in the middle of nowhere, the people I run into every day and my family. I have been looking forward to getting up to my new house and see the progress on it along with my doggies who I haven’t seen in a month! Josh is going to be a nice face to see also:). I have to tie up a few loose ends in the morning and then I will head out around 8:30 with my Nissan Cube packed to the brim with computers, cameras and new decor that I picked up at the Pottery Barn outlet in San Marcos last weekend. Josh will have two rooms completely ready to decorate on Tuesday and you should be sure to know that I will post pictures as soon as I take them.
I plan on coming back to Lubbock for a few days of sessions each month so if you want me for senior, family or engagements then be sure to contact me!
Onward and upward with this more scary than usual journey of mine.
Oh, also, I have taken up tennis in the last two weeks. That is all that is new with me for now. I will have my office set up by the end of the week and hopefully will be online so be watching for new photos of the house and more “me” posts than normal since it will take a while to start doing sessions up in Oklahoma!
July 18, 2010 - 10:55 amCristina Bearden - Good luck with the move! Enjoy all the trees ! I remember how excited you said you were when you saw how many trees there were going to be. Have fun!!
July 19, 2010 - 8:41 pmKelly Beane - I hope everything goes great Lauren! I'm sure you guys will settle in just fine. Love seeing the process of the land so continue to share. Welcome to Oklahoma!! :)
July 19, 2010 - 10:12 pmrebekah - how exciting, lauren! the Lord will always provide where He leads, right?! :) have a safe trip tomorrow. and WELCOME TO OKLAHOMA!!!!! :)
July 20, 2010 - 8:35 amgrace - There are some nice people in Stillwater to meet too! I know you will love it :) Adventures in marriage are so fun!
July 21, 2010 - 8:46 amDixie Dobbins - Hey Lauren Congrats on the move and all that is coming with it. I follow you a bit here and there and just love what you do!
Keep being you and i look forward to seeing some pics of the remodel, etc! God bless and keep your eyes on him!
July 21, 2010 - 8:49 amDixie Dobbins - Oh I saw some cool red coffee tables at BIG LOTS in Wichita Falls, TX the other day that for some reason made me think of you and they were only $30. each! Bright Red (Texas Tech red, or Rooster Red how ever you look it. ) and made of wood.
Just saying.... :-)
July 17, 2010 - 7:02 amKat Forsyth - How lovely is that graffiti?? I don't know if I tell you this often enough (or ever), but I LOVE how bright and happy your photos are. They're like photographic sunshine :-)
I have known these girls since they were born. That is hard to believe since they are 15 years old! I would have to say that this is the longest friendship with anyone I have ever had, and I make myself feel old saying ” I knew them when they were just babies”. These three girls are so special to me and I was so glad to spend my birthday night at their house in the TINY town of Chatfield, Texas before heading to Wimberley for my wedding the next day. Their family is who I met my husband through and for this I am eternally grateful. Hannah wanted me to take some “model” head shots for them while I was there so we went out into the barn for some good light on that cloudy day. Their dad is the preacher at the Ennis Cowboy Church and let me tell you, if you are in the area you have got to stop and see what God is doing in this church, seriously.
Josh met me in Dallas for 2 nights last week to celebrate our 5 year anniversary and my 25th birthday. He didn’t tell me the location of our hotel because he said it would give away the surprise destination he was taking me on our anniversary… he did tell me to bring walking shoes though, and this gave it away. You see, we have already been to all of the zoos and aquariums in the metro area and the only reason I would need shoes would be to go to SIX FLAGS! I know that this might not be the prime spot for your 5 year anniversary getaway, but it was for me! I squeeled with excitement like a kid when he did tell me that the address on “six flags road”.
When I got in we went to watch Eclipse (the third time for me) and then headed to my first Texas Rangers game! It was so much more fun than I ever imagined, you see, I’m not a big sports fan and the last baseball game I went to was in the middle of the summer in St. Louis when I was 6. I remember sitting there bored stiff watching everyone around me eat cotton candy while I sat there sweating it up with no allowance left to buy any goodies. This time it was much more fun, especially since Josh talked my ears off the entire night (it was his first time to see me in more than 2 weeks!).
The next morning we got up and went to Six Flags bought the Flash Pass gold (spent a hefty $210 on our tickets and the passes) and started running around and riding every ride we could get on. I had a blast and screamed more than a normal scared person would on every loopty-loop ride.
When we finally tired of sweating and pulling a few G’s (I had to fight to not blackout on the Titan!) we decided to go to my favorite restaurant in the DFW area, Tillman’s Roadhouse. I went to Tillman’s with the Love Affair girls last time we were in Dallas and it was the neatest experience with amazing food and beautiful decorations. This is how I would decorate a restaurant if I could. I had the best 25th birthday and 5th anniversary ever and I love my husband more than I have my entire life. He is perfect.
I also found out that I am part Seminole Indian this week and thought that was very cool since Josh is part Choctaw!
July 12, 2010 - 4:17 pmdavina - Lauren, Happy Anniversary and Happy 25th Birthday! What a perfectly Lauren birthday. I love it. I can just see you running around trying to get to every ride in the park! :)
And Tillman's...I'm so glad you got to go there. It really was fantastic when we all went together...I hope we'll get to go again. Seeing that delicious food is making my mouth water...
HAPPY 25th!! and 5th!
You are a wonderful friend. I'm so glad that I've known you for some of those 25 years.
July 13, 2010 - 9:19 amKari - Six FLAGS OVER TEXAS?!?! That is my favorite in the whole world! I was born in Dallas, and we went as much as we could. I never got tired of the rides either. :)
And, I totally blacked out on the Titan... actually the last time I went I had a huge headache from all the rides... and the next night my lungs were hurting when I breathed in. (I'm only 20 why was this happening to me?!?!) I decided that would be the last time I rode rollercoasters LOL. Not worth it!
Anyway, y'all are so cute!
July 14, 2010 - 8:03 amLucy - Lauren, congratulations on your anniversary and happy late birthday!! Best of luck with everything! Thank you so much for sharing your precious heart with us. God bless you!
July 15, 2010 - 11:39 pmBrandy Malyn - Sounds like a bunch of fun!!! I'll have to try that restaurant the next time I'm in the area. I think after not really getting to see your husband for awhile you really do appreciate them when they are back...happy 5th Anniversary!
July 20, 2010 - 2:01 amKristen Peelle - Oh man! If I had known you were in Fort Worth I would have had you shoot my babies. I was in town with them for a wedding that weekend. Do you travel to DFW for family photography?
July 26, 2010 - 1:15 amBill Gellerman - Hey Lauren,
I love love love love love love love love the post about your anniversary. Thanks for sharing. I was at a wedding on Sunday where I teared up, and yes I am guy, at the maid of honor's speech. Her only sister. It was amazing and she was bawling...Anyway...I am tearing up now, it is amazing to meet that person that makes everything better just by being there and it is awesome to witness testimony about that happening. I wish you and Josh 500 more years if you can manage that and if not the best of whatever part of those that are left. Take good care in OK and keep bloggin, we love to read it!
by Lauren Clark
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