Citrus Punch: a collaborative and creative shoot
It's about time I shared my most recent creative project with you all! And what better time than in the start of summer here in the northwest. Introducing: Citrus Punch. My latest creative and collaborative project that involved five other local and Seattle-based girl bosses that packed this shoot full of vibrant color and style resulting in a funky and colorful editorial with a citrus punch.
Despite being a full-time Art Director at Amazon during my daily 9 to 5 and blogging on the side, I also like to keep the creative juices flowing and stay inspired by executing my own creative projects. Especially when there is hours of sunlight to work with in the summer time! And when I get to work with other amazing creatives to make it happen, it just makes it that much better. This summer, one of my goals is to work on as many creative/editorial projects as possible in hopes of keeping myself inspired and have enough content to last me through the upcoming dreary winter months.
Citrus punch came to me one afternoon at lunch, while ironically, I was eating a mandarin orange. The vibrant color and taste of citrus got my creative juices flowing and I started concepting a mood board that evening. It included a punchy color palette, hints of still life and fashion/beauty editorial inspiration. I knew I wanted to incorporate a model and other creatives to execute my vision that was starting to come together.
Seattle-based photographer, Michelle Moore and I had been chatting for years (no joke) about working together on a creative project so when I presented her with the idea of Citrus Punch she was enthused! Not to mention, we were able to shoot in her incredible studio Larimar Studios which made the hunt for a shoot location obsolete. I knew I wanted to rally more creatives for our project to assist with florals, modeling, makeup/hair and prop styling, if possible.
One of the many advantages of social media is the fact we can use it to connect with other like-minded individuals and creatives on the platform. I posted that I was working on a creative project and on the hunt for a prop stylist, florist and makeup artist and was flooded with emails and DM's. I was amazed by how many people were willing and able to collaborate! I also found the majority of those that reached out to me were female. I thought it was important to showcase local, female creatives working together to make a vision come to life. And as a result, it made the project that much more impactful.
We landed on our amazing team of Seattle-based girl bosses with a wide-range of skills that we tapped into for Citrus Punch. Let me introduce you to our creative team!
Allison Wagner (me): Art Director. Production. Shoot ideation. Fun shoot fact: Read everyone's horoscopes during the shoot.
Michelle Moore: Photographer. Fun shoot fact: May or may not have confused a melon for a squash.
Lauren Michelle Day: Prop Stylist. Fun shoot fact: May or may not have used a large knife and rock in an attempt to open a coconut used in the shoot.
Ribicca: Model. Fun shoot fact: Can sing every lyric to every Beyonce song on the Lemonade album.
Carlee: Florist. Fun shoot fact: She is the bad ass owner of Rusted Vase Co., a floral design studio and shop located in the University District.
Mahlet: Makeup Artist. Fun shoot fact: Within minutes, she is capable of making skin look FLAWLESS. Also happens to slay at yellow eye makeup.
Our shoot consisted of a whole lot of improvising, bright colored backdrops, outfit changes, loud music we could dance to and FUN. We created and shot until we ran out of ideas and sunlight. I would do it all over again if I could! A huge thank you to these incredible women for bringing my concept to life and for being so collaborative and willing to create together. I hope you all enjoy what we came up with.
