Live Art Wedding Guest Favors

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Gone are the days of wasting money on wedding favors no one wants. I say, give your guests a wedding favor they'll treasure, or just skip it and put the money towards something else in your wedding budget. 

If you've been dreaming of live event painting to incorporate more fine art in your wedding and want to engage & entertain your guests, live watercolor & calligraphy are amazing ways to do it! 

 

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Introducing... live wedding guest portrait painting!!

Not only does this provide entertainment during cocktail hours & after dinner for those guests taking a break from the dance floor, it also gives your wedding guests a favor they will take home & frame to remember your wedding fondly forever. 

 

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I engage with all of your guests by having them sit with me for 5 minutes while I paint their portrait in watercolor on 5x7 fine art watercolor paper. If they're shy & would rather not pose for me, I can take their photo & paint it when there's not a line & they can come back for it later in the night. 

It can either be added on to any of my other live event services or I can paint guest portraits for the duration of your whole wedding! 

 

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Another way I offer awesome guest favors is by doing live calligraphy on demand!! Guests love watching calligraphy live and often hang around to ask questions or just watch as I hand letter other guests' favors as well! 

They get to pick whatever they'd like me to write & watch their request come to life before their eyes! Yes, I'll even calligraph swear words as lots of groomsmen request! 

This custom experience often leaves guests asking if they can really keep it because they just can't believe they get to! 

 

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What starts this experience is a watercolor portrait of either your wedding location or the flowers you're using in your wedding. I then create prints of your artwork that I will eventually calligraph live for your guests to take home. 

Ink normally dries in one minute (so it won't get all over their fancy attire) & normally guests hang around chatting for longer than that! 

 

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I love engaging with your beloved friends & family while exposing them to something they don't get to see every day.

This experience is one your wedding guests will remember as unique to your wedding, & they'll have the paintings to remind them every day of how much you love them. 

 

 

Ranch / Glamour

I live for juxtaposition. It's where the spark of something new & interesting generally occurs in art. Generally when you think of a rustic ranch, glamour is the last thing that comes to mind. 

So when Mitra of Be Wed told me her words for the mood of the shoot were 'Ranch' & 'Glamour' I fell in love. She showed me her color palette of magenta, gold and Pantone's Color of the Year marsala and just said GO. A special kind of magic happens when someone gives you just a taste of art direction & then says run free like wild horses. My best work is always created this way. 

It requires a lot of trust from clients & wedding planners to work this way- so Mitra gets mad props for giving me that space to create what my dreams are made of.

Love Flowers Watercolor Calligraphy Vines Greenery Pink GoldWedding Vows Backdrop Watercolor Calligraphy Scroll Chair Backs

Watercolor Gold Foil Wedding Menu Place Cards Magenta Calligraphy
Menu Watercolor Calligraphy Wedding Vines Pink Gold Place Setting Table
Table Number Watercolor Calligraphy Pink Gold Hand Made
Wedding Watercolor Calligraphy Suite Invitations Map Vines Magenta Pigment & Parchment Vintage Stamps Gold Wax Seal Velvet Ribbon
Gold Wedding Cake Square Sign Topper Lettering Calligraphy
Escort Card Calligraphy Vines Watercolor Pink Feathers Sequins Rose Gold Ampersand SF Flowers
Escort Cards Place Calligraphy Leaf Illustrations Gold Pink Modern Magenta
Bar Signage Sign Menu Gold Marsala Calligraphy Watercolor
Bar Sign Menu Wedding Calligraphy Gold Pink Marsala Vines Greenery Signage
Wedding Vow Calligraphy Scroll Watercolor Backdrop Chair Backs Romantic

This shoot was a day full of fun. Mitra popped the Champagne when we finished and Jolene of Batter Up Cakery let us dig into her delicious gold marshmallow cake! It's tough being a wedding vendor sometimes.

Botanica supplied the gorgeous vintage rentals. Gold utensils- say what!?! The Linen Bar brought the bling & rounded off our shoot with her glamorous metallic linens. Ampersand delighted us all with the garland & blooms they sent from San Francisco! This was all shot on location at the beautiful Lawley Ranch in Woodland, California (near UC Davis). Vendors came from all over the Bay Area & Sacramento.

All these beautiful photos lovingly taken by Lanny Nguyen Photography. For more photos and words about Mitra's inspiration click the button below!

Sapphire Blue Romance

This is probably the most romantic suite I've illustrated & lettered. This shoot is full of varying textures and old world elegance.  Since I was born in the best month (*cough* September), I'm a sucker for sapphire. So, when Samantha approached me to be a part of her shoot, I couldn't resit!

 A sapphire ring my grandmother gave me looks just like the one in this shoot. I remember she told me it looks just like the engagement ring Princess Diana had, which always tickled me pink. 

Blue Calligraphy Greenery Watercolor Silk & Willow Hand Made Vintage Stamps Pigment and Parchment Velvet
Sapphire Wedding Bride Flower Up Do Romantic Vintage Sun Quote Calligraphy
Calligraphy Menu Wedding  Accordion Foodie Bride Groom Brush Lettering Blue Sapphire Hand Painted
Table Number Wedding Garland Hand Painted Wreath Greenery Velvet Green Grey Watercolor Gold
Sapphire Ring Bride Blue Silk Ribbon Spool Hand Dyed Romantic Up Do
Bridesmaid Gift Card Calligraphy Jewelry Earrings Blue Garland Wreath Sapphire Cameo Ranunculus
Place Card Setting Greenery Wreath Garland Gold Plate Blue
Groomsman Gift Boutonniere Wedding Cake Black Ranunculus Silk Ribbon Calligraphy Card
Wedding Blue Velvet Table Centerpieces Wood Gold Place Setting Greenery Event Design
Wedding Menu Calligraphy Brush Lettering Accordion Blue Sapphire Hand Painted Silk & Willow Pigment and Parchment Lettering
Blue Ivy Velvet Wedding Bouquet Sapphire White Bride Groom Greenery Ranunculus

I dip dyed the RSVP card and place cards in silver ink on paper with a deckled edge. That was a first and it ended up being a really interesting texture combo. I also hand painted some cobalt brush lettering on my first accordion style menu. They were all done on luxurious paper made by hand from recycled t-shirt cuttings (by the amazing Silk & Willow). I am always thrilled with the results of my work on Silk & Willow paper. I can always count on a styled shoot for pushing me to experiment. 


There is nothing like tufted velvet is there? It is always a pleasure to work with Audrey Chaney of Botanica for her floral expertise & lovingly kept up vintage rentals. She's currently expanding her business to move down the coast to San Luis Obispo. They're so lucky... They get Audrey & the Pacific Ocean!! Le sigh. 


Photography & Vision by Samantha Kirk Photography.  Design & Coordination by Jenn Robirds Events. Shot on location at Vizcaya in Midtown Sacramento, California. Click the Style Me Pretty button to see the entire photo collection & for more from Samantha about her inspiration!