We could not have had a better day, or a more wonderful connection.  I had such a great experience with Barb Stegemann, author of The 7 Virtues of a Philosopher Queen, and founder & CEO of The 7 Virtues fragrances.

Earlier this year, I was in need of something to do, it was the day after New Year’s and I had taken an extra vacation day.  So, in order to keep myself occupied, I thought I would go get my 7 Virtues fragrance custom blend box of fragrances and take some photos of them to post a little bit about them on my blog; you can refresh yourself of that story here.

I had wanted to do this for two reasons; the first being that I LOVE all of the fragrances so much and wanted to share it with everyone who reads my blog in hopes that they too would get some for themselves, and the second wondering and hoping that Barb would maybe see it, and want to connect.

Well friends, IT WORKED!  Within 2 minutes of posting my little story and sharing it on social media, Barb sent me a twitter message letting me know that she loved what I had done with the fragrances and wanted to get together to talk. I admit, I almost had a heart attack, “how in the heck did this work”, I thought, and I immediately called Teddy with excitement.  This is a perfect example of just going for it to see what happens, which I wish more people would do for themselves.  It really showed me that if you really want something, sometimes you just have to get out of your own way and put it out in the universe.  After all, what did I have to lose, I was home in my PJs sitting by the fire, and practicing my what I love. Worst case, I get some photos of a product I love and have shared Barb’s story with my friends.

We eventually connected, and photographing Barb has been one of my goals since I started to follow her a few years ago. Her motivation and empowering personality (even though indirect because we had never met) helped push me into pursuing a career in photography, and I was not going to stop until I made it happen.  Having the amazing support of my beautiful husband, Barb’s encouraging words resonating in my mind, and a bit of elbow grease was all I needed to put things in motion.  So, I needed to photograph her, to thank her for her part in my master plan.

After a little phone tag, a few emails, and one rescheduled attempt (because life happens), we finally connected to make the vision a reality.  Barb had explained to me that she was going to make a bold move in cutting her hair, and felt it was time for a classic bob.

So, with the help of the amazingly talented Jay Wells of Jay Wells Salon, and a little make up from me, we made the magic happen. Teddy spent the day with us taking some video so we could help tell the story of a small transformation, that would make a fun change for Barb.

Then, we came back to the studio for some wine and cheese, and most importantly, the portraits.  Barb’s husband Mike, even popped in for a visit and had a few shots taken as well; these two are so in love.