The Greens Styled Family Shoot

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The Greens are one of the cutest families on THE planet, and I had the opportunity to help conceptualize and style them for their family photo shoot with Session Nine Photography.

The Greens are dream clients because they were imaginative off the bat. Meghan wanted a fairytale-like portrait session, and of course, Session Nine and I were all over it. Now, we're not talking dragons and Harry Potter. We're talkin' the Princess and the Pea and forest nymphs - whimsical, beautiful, airy.

Check out this Pinterest board to see what I mean, http://pinterest.com/alexandraevjen/fairytale-family-shoot/

Once all parties were on the same page, I visited the Greens' home to pick outfits. We didn't find EXACTLY what we had envisioned, so instead they decided to do some shopping and Meghan decided to make vests for her boys and an INCREDIBLY cute romper for her daughter Brynlee (Check out Meghan's clothing line for kids!). Isn't she the cutest?!!

After a lot of picture messaging and emails filled with links to clothes, Meghan and Justin found their outfits and them some!

The perfect location for this shoot was the amAZing Rio Salado Audubon Center. It's a nature preserve smack in the middle of Phoenix. There's never anyone around, so it's easy to set up a scene.

I hope you love the photos, and I hope this encourages you guys to think outside of the box for your annual holiday photo sessions! You can see even more photos on Session Nine's website, click here.

Please email me if you would like some help picking out your outfits for your photos, alexandra@avestyles.com. I would be happy to help!

Oh Land

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Music + Fashion + Dance + Circus + Future = Oh Land. I heard Oh Land for the first time driving in Jason and Jessica's car several months back, and LOVED it the second I listened to "Son of a Gun." After that day I couldn't remember the name of the artist, and I just forgot about it. Thanks to Pandora, Oh Land popped up, and I immediately looked up the website.

Well, I'm head over heels now. Lady Gaga move over!

Nanna Oland Fabricious (a.k.a. Oh Land) is a Danish singer-songwriter that also happens to be a trained ballet dancer and BEAUTIFUL! She incorporates incredible performances into everything she does. She also happens to be a daughter of an organist and opera singer, so OBVIOUSLY this gal has talent. haha!

Check out her music and her gorgeous fashion photos!

Pink Preview

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Here's a preview of a photo shoot that I got to contribute to for ELIZA Magazine.

This shoot was all about pink in honor of Breast Cancer Awareness Month.

You'll probably catch more sneak peeks along the way if you follow Eliza's blog or follow Executive Editor, Summer Bellessa on Instagram!

Photographed by Tracy Rasinski, Makeup by Heather Wilson, Styling by Alexandra Evjen, Hair by Annabelle Jones, Model Briana with Agency AZ, Scarf H&M, Makeup Sephora Breast Cancer Awareness Collection, Glasses Cinzia Designs

Pinterest Meals

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I've talked plenty about how much I love Pinterest, and it's pretty obvious how it's impacted my business - I can create inspiration boards for styled shoots, for clients, hone in on my personal style, etc. What you may not know about me is that I don't enjoy cooking or baking. It's just something that tends to stress me out mostly because of timing everything perfectly. BUT there are two things that have made it more enjoyable recently:

1. I LOVE my spacious kitchen and appliances.

2. Pinterest meal ideas!!!

I have plenty of cookbooks on my shelves, but either I just don't have the right ones or I'm not selecting the best recipes because I haven't really LOVED anything I've made from them. Even AllRecipes.com has failed me plenty in the past.

So, I was reluctant to pin recipe ideas to my Pinterest board, but after seeing some super yummy meal ideas in my feed I decided to give some of them a whirl. I'm sure glad I did because EVERY single recipe I've tried has been fantastic. No joke! I'm thinking it's because people tend to pin the best of the best.

So, although this has NOTHING to do with fashion, this has completely changed my personal life and I had to share it with you. Here are some of the recipes that I have come to adore, and my husband and dinner guests can totally attest to them!

Apple & Brie Melts - Um, need I say more? With this recipe I actually use wheat bread and a bit of honey instead of apple butter.

Tastes Like Lasagna Soup - I made this last night is it's dreamy good! Instead of bits of lasagna noodles I used campanelle. It looks just like mini lasagna bites and is easier.

A Healthier Spinach Artichoke Dip - THIS IS THE BEST DIP IN THE WORLD. I love spinach artichoke dip, but it's so terrible for you. When I saw this recipe I was intrigued by it, but I thought it would taste terrible because it's less fat. NOPE! It's AWESOME! I used the Greek yogurt option and skim mozzarella cheese. Oh, and make sure to use the white wine. It really makes the dish to me. I served it with pita chips.

Lemon Parsley Chicken with Couscous - I'm Greek, so I obviously love lemon on everything. haha! I also enjoy couscous, and it's one of those super easy things that make a dinner more special over something like brown rice or pasta. It's ridiculously easy and fresh tasting.

Autumn Chopped Salad - Salads are an easy go-to for me because I know I can't screw it up. I actually microwaved my bacon to make it faster, and it came out extra crispy. Perfect!

Baked Lemon Pasta - Okay, so this recipe isn't so great for you, but it's SOOOOOOOO yummy. Another one of those dreamy yummy ones that looks super pretty for dinner guests.

I'll be sure to share more as I discover them! In the meantime you can follow my recipe pins here, http://pinterest.com/alexandraevjen/recipes-to-try/.