Ladies, you are beautiful “works of art”!

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Mark your calendars, ladies!

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May 20th downtown Camas will be hosting one heck of a party to benefit women who have breast cancer. It all started when our beloved friend and neighbor, Krista, was diagnosed with breast cancer. She is a true warrior (as you can read here on her blog) and we couldn’t be prouder of how she is taking the bull by the horns to get well. In her honor, we will raise money for the Kearney Breast Care Center at SW WA Medical Center and Breast Friends in Portland.

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Come out and play! Yours truly will be hosting a photo booth with tons of fun accessories for you and your girlfriends to pose in. Can’t wait!

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What do a very inspiring three legged dog, a parrot/dog friendship and two fluffy white balls of joy have in common?

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They all came to see us this week during “Paws…for a Cause”! We will have some very, very fun images to share with you this year. I’m salivating to get to the editing so I can share them with you. Just a hoot!

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Spending time with this muffin makes me want to be a better person…to have such an incredible attitude and love for everyone when dealing with cancer and a missing leg…one of the most special dog sessions ever for me.

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Lots of laughing during this session—wait until you see the rest. I can feel myself grinning while working on these.

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Rebel has come before, but this time he brought his buddy, Indie, who is equally fluffy. Bar none, two of the best trained dogs ever to come to LBI—they’re the pooches of Brenda Veldink, owner of My Home Buddies (a pet sitting service). She is awesome if you’re in need of a sitter. Her number: 1-360-834-BARK (2275)

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More to share later…I’ll just post as we get further into the fundraiser, so check back often. We have some wonderful pets who need rescuing who will be featured. One that just might be perfect for your family.

Along with our move…we are re-branding ourselves with some organic colors. The job Tracy Feno from Inspired-Interiors has been doing in the new studio space is beyond fabulous—I’m so excited to show it off!

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What will it look like?

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Shhhhhh….we can’t tell until the new year…

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…but we can offer some random hints.

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You’ve already met my special girl, The Settee, from Joe at Barn House…

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Me at the Monticello Holiday sale stuffing a random architectural object into my mini van…not sure where it’s going,

but all I know is that it is Fab. U. Lous.

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Some glossy inspiration along the way…..

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I realize this seems a bit hodge-podge…but even I can see it all coming together with the touch of Tracy’s magic fingers….just fabulous!

We’re moving out of downtown Camas on the 14th and will be ready to roll in early January (think good thoughts for me b/c I’m tired just thinkin’ about it).

Lara

I got an email today from a gal at  Professional Photographer magazine. They are doing an article about the survivor book, “Hope Stories” for the February issue!!! Woo-hoooooo!!! Can you hear me yelling over here?

I read this glossy from front to back everything month. It’s one of the “millions” of glossies that are smashed into the Blair box each week, but I truly get excited when it comes…to be in it is a dream come true.

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These were the original images submitted—I hope they make it in there….you all have seen them before, but they’re still my faves!

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I’m hoping this exposure in Pro Photog will prompt other women to come forward to be photographed—I’m starting book 2 in the spring.

What a gift this process has been!

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The moving job is slooooowly,

but surely coming along. How can it be that I have accumulated so much crap-o-la in just three years in this space!? Can anyone tell me this?

Sigh…

Double sigh….

As I was shifting boxes from one end of our new space to the other, I was pleased to hear a knock on the door…

It was the upholstery fairies!!!

They were carrying the jewels I have been waiting for…white slipcovers for the wingback chairs I “garbage picked” (it wasn’t really out of the garbage…just the curb)

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and…

Drum roll, please————

My Barn House settee I bought from Joe~

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I had tears in my eyes thinking about all of the places this little gal is going to go with me…the Magic Forest, the beach, the street, the wheat field, our new camera room…I saw it all flash before my eyes. I was embarrassing myself in front of the magical fairies who transformed this shabby lady into the swan that she is! The best part of it is the fabric on this beauty is a precious suede that can be wiped clean…yes, you heard right…WIPED CLEAN with a cloth and water. Brilliant! Considering all of her travels in the future, this will come in quite handy.

The fairies were Naomi’s Finishing Touch Upholstery, btw (their blog and site are coming soon…you can snag their card at Camas Antiques)—Naomi and her hub are FAB at what they do.  Can’t wait to have them do some more dreamy projects.

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I took “before pics” today (pretending a smiling Nate Berkus was standing there with me admiring the potential of it all…is it wrong to be so in love with a gay man?)…will post the “befores” with the “after images”, so ya’ll have to wait!

Happy Thursday~

What an awesome event Erika, Laura and Wendy put on this weekend for CARRA! It was really fantastic and I was so proud to be a part of it. Our fearless leaders are below….some of my fave “photo booth” images after.

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Hope to see you there next year!

CARRA MASQUERADE BALL

I am excited to participate in this wonderful event to raise money for the Childhood Arthritis and Rheumotology Research Alliance. We will be taking portraits of families in their costumes at this fabulous event.

Event info: October 18th, 6:00-9:00 pm at Prune Hill Elementary in Camas

Register for tickets here:

CARRA Costume Ball(receive 5 free raffle tickets when you register on-line!)

Okay, sweet dog owner friends across the nation~ Drum roll, please….here is the official Tour Dog Portrait Schedule for 2009~

These tour brochures are officially all over Portland…today was a big day! Thanks to my pal Randy at Invisible Fence for helping me get this done. You’re the best! Also, thanks to my Seattle dog business owners who are helping us promote the two days we’ll be in Seattle. New York dog friends—you rock, simple as that. Who else who be on the horn right after the newsletter came out booking session appointments? Love the efficiency of our East Coast buddies. ‘Very, very excited to see all of you again…especially my poster-child, Bogey (the harlequin Great Dane that is in many of my brochures..the most gorgeous dog ever). We’re considering adding a tour stop in the early fall in Houston, as we have some friends down there who are very involved with the Humane Society and we would love to be a part of their fund-raising efforts.

On an unrelated note, this was just a hilarious image I found in my dog-image web trolling—Gibson is the tallest dog on the planet. He stands 7′2” when on his hind legs! Wow! Even Oprah looks speechless. He is licensed therapy dog. Can you imagine all of the happy faces when this big guy came around? Just awesome.

World’s smallest dog (about the size of a candy bar) is named Brandy.

(image courtesy of the O site)

Important FYI~ The first hand-ful of clients to schedule their Tour sessions receive an original piece of LBI dog art. Take a look at the calendar, give Mary a call at the studio (834-4814) or email us and let’s square you away. We’re thrilled that we will be able to reach so many people this summer through this event. Come play with us!

More dog beds. This time from a company called Beyond the Crate. These are their images from their site. Just over-the-top sleeping quarters for your beloved! So fun!

Howl at the Moon is a fab store in Vancouver that caters to our canine friends. Check out this awesome bowl! What dog doesn’t want to drink out of that?! Especially a court jester of a dog like Daisy, my beagle. This store also has wonderful edible treats for your companion.

We are so excited to announce our event to showcase our new survivors for the “Hope Stories” book. Large prints of these amazing women and the book itself (yay!) will be on display. We’ll be sending email invites out–keep a look out. Just wanted to let our clients and friends who’ve been inquiring know that we have a date. May 17th from 3:00-5:00 at Majerus Physical Therapy on 164th.