Archive for 'Vendors'
Dazzling, sparkling, and, INSPIRING. That pretty much sums up the ISS experience in Mexico. The luxurious event, held in Cancun, Mexico, was filled to the brim with exquisite details, expert speakers and an electrifying atmosphere. It was absolutely amazing to shoot and participate in such a creative, fun-filled environment. I can’t thank Stacie, founder of Inspire Smart Success, enough for trusting me with such a huge endeavor. Each day was filled with so many unforgettable details and experiences. It’s hard to pick a favorite from the event, but shooting the fire-dancers during the Blanco Party was definitely a thrill! Everyone at the event was warm and welcoming and we built an instant bond. I can’t begin to describe and count the immense talent behind this event. The gorgeous paper products created by Tifany of Gourmet Invitations, the beautiful cinematography of Ryan and Eric of Epic Motion, the unparalleled service by the staff of Now Sapphire resort, just to name a few.
Last summer I had the privilege of attending ISS-Orlando as a guest and it was an incredible experience but it could never have prepared me for what I experienced in ISS-Mexico. I must admit that shooting this event was not an easy task, especially without my amazing second-shooter (aka: my hubby) but I couldn’t have done it without the help of Karl & Nanette of Luminaire Foto. We had a blast together (you’ll see a bit of the fun in their photobooth at the end of this post) and it was a blessing meeting both of them.
Besides making new friends and sharing unbelievable experiences together, here are some mentionable highlights of my time in Mexico:
-Almost (accidentally) throwing Mike Colon off a lifeguard tower, this one to be exact. (Thanks Austin for the snapshot, priceless memory and thank you Ana, our talented model)
-Preston Bailey complimenting our work and autographing his book with, “Mariana & Khaled, you both have an amazing eye.” Yes, right at that moment life couldn’t get much better.
-Rooming with Krystyn of Bridal Beauty Chicago. I had never met her before and instantly felt like she was family.
-Christopher Confero and Clayton Gray. LOVE them both to the moon and back.
-Opening my dinner invitation on Day 2 to find that it was with Sonny Ganguly…you know, the guy that created Sony. (I guess it’s a bit of an inside joke).
-Working closely with Sandie (Stacie’s mom), Rachel, The Jens and the rest of the crew. They did a phenomenal job and it was such a pleasure.
-Getting to know Ceci Johnson. I met Ceci before in Miami last year and I’m thankful I had the opportunity to chat more with her in Mexico. She’s a big inspiration and I absolutely love her work.
-Tajin Seasoning. Lisi Korn, although we didn’t get to hang out as much as I would have loved, a big thank you for introducing me to the delicious seasoning. I finally found it in Tampa and use it on everything!
-It was hilarious and fun to spend time with Dana Larue and her hubby, Hunter. The monkey showing his ‘affection’ to Hunter was probably one of my favorite memories.
-Riding the van from the airport to the resort with Youngsong Martin and getting to know her and her hubby was a great experience.
-Traveling with my airport pals ❤ Petronella, Eddy and Marilyn, Eileen and her hubby, Brad.
-Meeting Kathy Romero. I can’t describe what a wonderful and inspiring woman she truly is. It’s no wonder why her beautiful face is gracing the cover of the first issue of ISS Magazine. I might even have to create a blog post to feature her and how she’s motivated me in many ways. Kathy…We’re.On.Fire.
There are just too many memories to list, but I’m grateful to have had the opportunity to work with and share amazing memories with such a wonderful group of top-industry professionals. Wishing 2012 is full of much success and happiness for each of you!
If you haven’t attended yet, I highly recommend you check out and register for one of the upcoming ISS events!
Wanna Lounge
Oh, Cancun. I left my heart there. Also my voice, ability to walk and thanks to your amazingness, I’m working today in my comfy pj’s. Covering the unbelievably gorgeous events at Inspire Smart Success Experience over three days could easily equal to covering 6 weddings in the same time frame! I can’t wait to share all the details and images of the last four days!
I met a fabulous group of talented and super-inspiring individuals that have become friends I will treasure forever! Many of the things I was able to do were beyond my imagination, such as ignoring my fear of heights and climbing a wobbly wooden tower with a stunning view of the Caribbean Sea to shoot with Mike Colon- only to almost push him off, accidentally of course. Oh, and lets not forget eating apples with lime-cajun spices (Thanks Lisi), and much, much more! Expect a jam-packed blog post with all the details, beautiful images, and my thoughts on this unforgettable experience!
A HUGE thank you to Stacie Ivers Francombe, Rachel Saito, Jennifer Warwick-Lewis, Jennifer Fisher, Christina Springfield, Shay Bell, Tifany Wunschl, Karl Rouwhorst, Nanette Dorbeck, Ryan Koral, the wonderful staff at Now Sapphire Riviera Cancun and everyone that helped make ISSE happen!
For now, enjoy this little preview brought to you by Epic Motion!
Inspire Smart Success Experience {ISSE} Cancun, Mexico from Epic Motion on Vimeo.
As unreal as it feels, Kismis Ink is just a couple months short from its 2 year anniversary. It’s mind-boggling that in such a short time, we’ve had the privilege to work with amazing clients, vendors, build a stronger business and travel quite a bit this year. An ‘Alice in Wonderland’-inspired wedding in Georgia, a new Mr. & Mrs. session in Vegas, an intimate courthouse wedding in Miami Beach and we are looking forward to our first international wedding at the exclusive Nachi Cocom Beach Club in Cozumel, Mexico this November!
As we are getting closer to year-end, I recently took some time to revisit our 3-5 year business goals and realized that we met most of the goals listed already! That just makes more room to add some new goals, but I’m thankful and excited for what’s in store for 2012 and beyond!
This time last year, I was conceptualizing a gorgeous wedding editorial with the help of some super-talented vendors. It was our first creative editorial and we were humbled with the support and trust we received from local and international vendors. It gives us such pleasure to share that a selection from our first wedding editorial can be found in the inspiration galleries of Grace Ormonde and the editorial has been selected for a 3-page print feature in another one of our favorite magazines to be released early next year!
I am eager to share the images, details & absolutely stunning creative film by Tampa Wonderworks Film but we’ll have to wait until after the publication comes out.
A huge thank you to everyone that has supported, believed, and worked with us. We put our heart into everything we do and we’re blessed with your relationships.
I admit it. Receiving UPS packages and snail mail MAKES.MY.DAY. Since I was a teen one of my favorite times of the day was when the mailman came. It ignites a ‘Christmas morning’ feeling in me, every time. I even fantasized about becoming a mail-person…or an elf. So, you can imagine how much I love this part of my job. But, what I never expected was to open up the packages and fall even more in love with our clients’ wedding albums.
To see their unique wedding story spilled across the beautiful pages and hold these memories in my hand makes me all sorts of happy. Delivering wedding images on a disc could never give me that same feeling. Never. Clients trust us and hire us for our artful eye. Our visual interpretation of their special day. A day full of dedication, love, happiness, and endless hours of preparation.
These gorgeous books allow us to pull everything together and complete our vision. Albums are the tangible reward of all the efforts, love, happiness, and endless hours of preparation that are part of the wedding story.
Thank you Graphistudio for your amazing customer service, your quality, and your dedication to making sure we have the best to offer and our clients are happy. A huge thank you to all our clients for trusting our vision for one of the most important days of their lives.
Here are a few images of Yomi & Matt‘s lovely wedding albums.
We could not be more thrilled to be a part of the bay area’s first edition of CRAVE Tampa Bay, the ultimate guide to finding unique women-owned businesses in the Tampa Bay area. It was such a beautiful experience, getting to know more about our community and meeting such talented women! I look forward to sharing each shoot and featuring the amazing women I photographed in the next few blog posts. For now, be sure to visit their web pages and get to know more about each one. Sheri’ Taber of Peak Performance Group, Sara Stonecipher of MISRED Outfitters, Michelle Jennings-Wiebe of Studio M, Jennifer Aguiar of Aguiar Plastic Surgery, Soozie Lazenby of Urban Coast and Heidi Bundy of Heidi Bundy Designs.
The CRAVE book launch party was so much fun and a perfect way for everyone involved to meet and get to know one another. Christy Schutz and Nancy Vaughn did a fantastic job and there were so many fabulous businesses that were part of the book that helped contribute to an evening full of delicious food, raffle prizes, and much more! We had a chance to meet with Melody Biringer, a true business start-up junkie (we are talking 20+ businesses!) the master-mind behind this awesome project that inspires the community to connect and build each other up. Melody’s cheerful personality is contagious, so much so, that within 5 seconds of meeting her, I was standing around with 4 other women I didn’t know (yet) and she was snapping a phone pic of our bright-manicured toes!
We look forward to seeing the CRAVE wave throughout the bay area and supporting the talented women in this community!
Sponsors who made the CRAVE book launch such a success:- Cafe Dufrain
- Carrie Wildes Photography. Art. Design.
- Jam Entertainment
- The Grand Beauty Spa
- Posh
- Intensity Academy
- Marketplace Interiors
- Pupcakes
- Sassy Cucina
- Schakolad
- Urbancoast
- The Web Decorators
- White Book Agency
- Working Women of Tampa Bay
- Zyr Vodka
