One Good Thing: Throw Pillow Combinations

A new series started this week over on the Mix & Match (my e-design biz) website's blog called "One Good Thing" where I share a favorite quick design tip or trick. I figured a lot of y'all over here might appreciate the post since this week's topic helps solve a common decorating conundrum: how to mix throw pillow patterns so they look cohesive. I put together five super combos to help show you how to mix patterns.

You'll have to head on over to Mix & Match to see the full post, but you can check out a preview of the combos below!

I've got lots of ideas up my sleeve for other posts in the "One Good Thing" series, but if you have any suggestions, I'm all ears! Feel free to leave a comment on the Mix & Match post or email me at chaney@mixandmatchdesign.com.

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DIY Large Scale Art & A Few Styling Tips

(Note: Modern Masters provided the Pale Gold metallic paint for this project, but I was not otherwise compensated. All opinions are my own, as always!)

Art. It's a key part of making a room look finished, adds style and personality, and can unfortunately cost a pretty penny for good, quality pieces. I'm all about investing in beautiful pieces that you love, but sometimes that's just not in the budget.

Enter DIY art: the affordable alternative that lets you flex your creative muscles as well! Making art can be totally fun and therapeutic even if you're not what you'd call, ahem, artistic. You can make some beautiful stuff for your home. Promise.

I talked about a bunch of options for DIY-able art here, so if you're ready to take a project like this on, try my idea below or check out the other ones in that post.

In our dining room update earlier this week, I mentioned that I created these two pieces of large scale art for one of the big ole blank walls in there. Here's where they are:

(*Side note: ugh, I just can't handle that brass chandelier - it's high on the list to replace!)

Let's take a closer look at those two pieces. They're super simple to make.

Here are the supplies I used if you'd like to try your hand at making some of your own:

• Royal blue acrylic craft paint
• Modern Masters Pale Gold paint from their Metallic Paint Collection
• Craft paint brush - I used a fat round one
• White poster board - yep, nothing fancy here! If you mess up, it'll only cost you about 25 cents to start over.
• IKEA Ribba frame - these are the 24"x35 3/4" size and the poster board fits perfectly in it

I decided to make two patterns: one "U" pattern and one "V" pattern. I sketched these out on a smaller scale first to make sure I liked them and then just went right at it. I chose blue as the predominant color and gold as an accent color, adding it in randomly when it felt right. I was inspired by the mud cloth and shibori looks that are so popular right now and wanted the patterns to look more on the imperfect side. I think I achieved that! 

Plus, perfection is overrated sometimes. ;)

After the paint dried, I popped them in the frames, securing them to the mat with washi tape at each corner.

I like how these two complement each other in color and style, but that the patterns are still distinct from one another. Also, that Modern Masters Pale Gold paint was the perfect metallic touch - it ties the art into the nearby kitchen pendants and the overhead lighting in the living room, all of which helps make these rooms look cohesive, but not matchy matchy. The gold paint is such a dream to work with: it goes on smoothly and is a true metallic with beautiful reflective qualities. Open floor plans can be tricky sometimes!

I had a lot of fun figuring out how to style these pieces for photos - styling is always a trial and error process for me - and thought I'd share my process as a fun little bonus for this post! I even made a gif for it - I think that's a first for MRFB! If you can't see the gif, just scroll down. The photos are there individually too.

I started with two stacked stools from our bar area and topped them with a potted succulent (jade)...

Added a second potted succulent...

Brought in a dining room chair...

Then a pillow...

And finally, one more plant for good measure.

I'm not an expert styler by any means, but I've learned a few things that are important to make vignette look great:

1. Always include something living - either a plant or flowers.
2. Vary the textures. Here I've mixed in metal, wood and soft fabrics.
3. Gather items in groups of threes.
4. Mix up the height of objects.

I hope you'll try some DIY art! It's a fun project that can totally transform a space.

Have a great weekend, y'all!

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Quick Organizing Tip: Label Cords With Washi Tape

Sometimes it's little things that can make a BIG difference in keeping our lives in order. Today I want to share an organizing tip with you that has kept my husband and me a little more sane when it comes to cords and chargers. We have what seems like an endless amount of these in our house - is that true for your home as well? iPhones, Kindles, iPads...the list goes on. Each one of those has a charger to go with it and it's easy to lose track of which one belongs to which device (or whose device), especially when many look identical.

So I thought to myself, wouldn't it be great if there was a way to easily tell them apart? 

Then it hit me: washi tape! Why not assign a pattern to each person and/or device? That way, you always know who that iPhone charger belongs to that's plugged into the living room wall, or whose earbuds are sitting on the kitchen counter without even having to ask. My husband used to accuse me of stealing his earbuds all the time (in jest...mostly :)) before we started labeling them and now it's easy to tell which ones belong to each of us.

All I did was add a little washi tape "flag" to the cord area and now it's easily identifiable. We even have a couple of extras that don't belong to anyone in particular and they have their own pattern.

The photos in this post show two examples. In the one below, the two on the left with the stripes are mine, and the two on the right with the gold are extras.

This washi tape labeling system is also really, really helpful when you're traveling, especially if you're staying at someone's house or traveling with others. No more questioning whether that iPhone charger belongs to you or if you're accidentally stealing it from your host! That can get awkward real quick... ;)

So that's my quick organizing tip to kick off the week. Do y'all have any little tricks like this that make a BIG difference to your lives?

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11+ Creative Uses For 3M Command Strips

I hope y'all had fantastic Labor Day weekends. Can you believe it's already September?! (Pssst - Don't forget to download the September iPhone calendar here!) I decided to savor every last bit of my day off, so there was no post ready to go up yesterday - oops - but I'm here today and I've got a good one for you!

To me, September signals the transition from summer to fall. The change in season, plus the whole "back to school" thing that's happening right now gives me an itch to get organized and get our house in order. A fresh start, if you will. Anyone else feel that way? And you know what one little thing can be super helpful in getting organized? 3M Command Strips*. They can be used in all sorts of ways all over the house and can be especially handy in rentals and dorm rooms since they won't damage your walls or other surfaces. I love these little guys and a whole bunch of 'em just arrived on my doorstep last week - can't wait to put them to good use!

How To: Transform a Dated Brass Light Fixture With Paint

It’s finally time to get back to some projects here on the ole blog, y'all! I’ve missed spending time creating, and I’ve missed sharing my DIY adventures with you over the past several weeks while we’ve been in moving/transitioning/settling mode. Thanks for bearing with me and the crazy.

Since we’re at my parents’ river house for the next couple of months, I’ll be taking on a few projects around here. I finished a simple one this weekend that I’m pretty pumped to show you since it made a huge difference in the look of our bedroom - at least in my humble opinion! Our bedroom here had a dated brass light fixture for overhead lighting. 

How NOT to Advertise a Rental on Craigslist

These days I'm constantly on the hunt for our future Philadelphia home so naturally, I'm spending a LOT of time stalking Craigslist. I'll be the first to admit that I'm pretty picky when it comes to what I'm looking for, but I'm also more than willing to look past the ugly and/or crazy that you find in Craigslist postings to find that diamond-in-the-rough that might fit our needs perfectly. That being said, I've come across some pretty crazy-looking and straight-up unhelpful ads in my hunt and I'm just so curious what these people were thinking when they put their listings up!

I thought it would be fun to put together a list of a few "suggestions" on what not to do when it comes to advertising rentals on craigslist - complete with a few demonstrative screenshots - if you're actually trying to rent a place out to reasonable humans. ;) Please tell me y'all have experienced some of these things when you've been house hunting on good ole Craigslist!

{P.S. There's a heavy dose of sarcasm in this post, so please take my comments with a grain of salt!}

Don't post pictures that make you look like you had too much to drink when you took them.

You may think it's artistic, but it's making the rest of us motion sick!

Don't write in all caps. 

There's no need to yell.

Don't not include photos. Nearly every phone has a camera these days, so there's no reason to say, "Sorry, no photos," in an ad. It's not hard to snap a few pics and put them in the post. Many people skip contacting the person about the place if there isn't a single photo.

And while you're at it, proofread it before you post. 

BUT. Don't post a random photo that has nothing to do with the home just so that the little "pic" word shows up next to the post's link in the listings. 

Flowers aren't going to make me want to see your apartment. Sorry!

ALSO. A little mess is ok in photos, but if it looks like a tornado just went through your kitchen, you might not want to use that one.

Oh, that's the KITCHEN. I see it now. There's a fridge... and cabinets and a sink...I think?

Don't use a crazy string of random symbols in your listing title. I'd rather have some additional information such as "Gorgeous, Pet Friendly Two Bedroom with In-Unit Washer/Dryer," than a string of ##### or %%%% to try and get my attention.

And lastly, there's no need for scantily-clad women to grace the beautiful counters of your brand new kitchen. Let those pretty granite countertops and glass-front cabinets speak for themselves!

So! If you're planning to throw an ad up on Craigslist anytime soon, I hope you'll take these helpful hints to heart. Think before you post, y'all! Ha! ;)

What crazy ads have you come across on Craigslist?


P.S. It's day two of the Spring Parade of Homes! Catch a few beautiful home tours today!

Monday
Thrifty and Chic / Lovely Etc. / Making Home Base

Tuesday
The Happy Housie / House by Hoff / The Blissful Bee

Wednesday
Bigger Than the Three of Us / Cuckoo4Design / Just a Girl and Her Blog

Thursday
Rain on a Tin Roof / May Richer Fuller Be

Friday
An Inviting Home / Primitive and Proper / Place of My Taste

10 Handy Photography Tips, Tricks & Tutorials

I don't know about y'all, but when I read blogs, one critical thing that'll keep me coming back for more is good photos. Sure, good writing is important too, but if there are great photos, I'm much more likely to closely follow or subscribe to a blog.

Since I am *ahem* a blogger myself, I'm always looking for ways to improve my photography skills. I figure if I appreciate good blog photos, YOU probably also come to a blog looking for good photos. I'm not a pro by any means, but I have learned quite a bit over the past few years, which has made a big difference in my photography. I'm guessing there are at least a few of you out there who have an interest in photography as well, and maybe you're a blogger looking to improve, or maybe you're a mom who'd like to take better photos of her children, or maybe you're intimidated by some of the technical terms and so you find it hard to learn from "real" photography books.

Well that's about to change, because I've pulled together 10 super handy photography tips and tricks from some really great blogs. They've done all the hard work of breaking down the technical stuff into easy to understand, bite size pieces. There are some more "advanced" techniques in this round-up, but don't let that scare you! There's something for everyone including:

• Sharpening your basic skills
• Shooting food or small DIY projects/crafts
• Using window light to your advantage
• Using artificial (but natural-looking) lights when you don't have natural light

And one more thing - all of these tutorials and tips are written with the DSLR user in mind. If you need some help knowing what equipment to buy, you can check out what's in my camera bag.

So here's the list. If you'd like to pin the composite image of all the tips so you can reference it later, just hover over it and click the P button that appears :).

Remodelaholic | How to Photograph Your Space Like A Pro

Pinch of Yum | Artificial Lighting Tips For Food Photography

The Tiptoe Fairy | DIY Soft Lights For Blog Photography

On Sutton Place | 10 Photography Lessons Learned the Hard Way

Say Yes | Craft/DIY Photography Set Up Tips

Craftaholics Anonymous | Product Photography Tips For Crafters

Nicole's Classes | 5 Tips For Getting Crisp Photos

I Heart Naptime | Photography Tips

Bright Bazaar | 10 Basics To Improve Your Photography

Blue Cricket Design | Shooting With Window Light

Happy photo-taking, y'all!

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linking up to: DIY Showoff, Rain on a Tin Roof, Home Stories A to Z, Uncommon Designs, If It's Not Baroque, Liz Marie Blog, Blissfully Ever After, Design, Dining and Diapers, Crafty Scrappy Happy, Craftberry Bush, The Shabby Creek Cottage, Tatertots and Jello, Serenity Now, It’s Overflowing, House of Rose, Love of Family and Home, Dear Creatives, Madigan Made, First Home...Love Life, Simply Dream and Create, Whipperberry, Sparkles and A Stove, Making Home Base, Naptime Creations, Remodelaholic, Work it Wednesday, Living Well Spending Less

How To: Remove Sticky Labels From Glass

Sometimes, it's the little things.

The little victories in life that make you want to do a happy dance, tell all your friends about and shout from the rooftops. My little victory this week? Figuring out how to remove those super annoying sticky labels/stickers from glass...without breaking off all my fingernails, cutting myself with a razor blade or buying any gunk-removing products. I seriously doubt that I came up with this idea, but I also didn't go search Pinterest or Google for "how to remove labels from glass," so I'm just going to go ahead and pat myself on the back for this little solution even if I wasn't the first to do it. :)

The reason I was super motivated to figure this out was because I had a large glass jug I wanted to reuse (it held cider originally), but it had a GIANT label on the front that needed to go. I took one look at it and knew that it would be a bear to remove if I tried the ole peel and pick method, so I decided to try something using things I had around the house and guess what, it worked. Beautifully. And no fingernails were harmed in the process.

Here's what you'll need if you want use this method:

• Hot water
• Dull knife
• Vegetable oil or similar
• Paper towel
• Dish soap

Step 1: Place the jug in the sink and let hot (as hot as your tap will get) water run over it for a couple of minutes.

Depending on how big the label is, you may have to rotate the jug around. The hot water melts and softens the label's glue/adhesive and make it easier to remove.

Step 2: Scrape the label off with a dull knife.

The label should come off in large chunks with gentle scraping. You shouldn't have to scrape hard. If you do, return the jug to the hot water again to melt the glue a little more. I had to do this once to be able to remove the entire label easily.

There will be plenty of glue left over (don't panic!), but all the paper should be gone after this step.

Ahh glue! (I panicked.)

Step 3: Pour a small amount (about a quarter size) of vegetable oil onto a paper towel and rub it on the leftover glue.

This step takes a little bit of elbow grease, but again, you shouldn't have to work too hard as long as you work quickly while the glue is still warm! Rub in a circular motion until it looks like most of the glue is gone. If it starts to feel dry when you rub, add more oil to your paper towel.

Step 4: Wash jug with soap and warm water to remove the oil.

Once it's clean, check for any leftover residue. If you're clean, you're done. Hooray!

I think it only took me about 10 minutes to do this, and the label was huge! I hope this helpful hint will save y'all some trouble and heartache when you find yourself needing to remove some annoyingly sticky labels in the future. You're welcome ;).

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linking up to: DIY Showoff, Rain on a Tin Roof, Home Stories A to Z, Uncommon Designs, If It's Not Baroque, Liz Marie Blog, Blissfully Ever After, Design, Dining and Diapers, Crafty Scrappy Happy, Craftberry Bush, The Shabby Creek Cottage, Tatertots and Jello, Serenity Now, It’s Overflowing, House of Rose, Love of Family and Home, Dear Creatives, Madigan Made, First Home...Love Life, Simply Dream and Create, Whipperberry, Sparkles and A Stove, Making Home Base, Naptime Creations, Remodelaholic, Work it Wednesday, Living Well Spending Less

August Project Round-Up

***Today is the last day to enter the house number sign giveaway from Ramsign. Go to this post to enter. All you have to do is click one button for an automatic entry!***

I can't believe September is here! August was a whirlwind - we were out of town literally every weekend this month, including Labor Day weekend, so I can't wait to have a few weekends at home to get my head on straight (i.e. actually clean our apartment among many other things! :) ). Did anyone else have a month like that? Since we were out of town so much, I didn't get to work on many "big" projects last month, but I've got a bunch of ideas swirling around in my head, so I'm hoping to tackle a few of them soon now that things have calmed down a bit.

Before August is distant memory though, I wanted to take a look back at some favorite posts from the past month. If you missed anything, this is a great way to catch up!

I've been loving coral this summer, and couldn't resist including that color in the stool makeover I did for my parents at their river house. The coral and white looks so crisp together! Talk about the power of paint. Oh, and a cute dog doesn't hurt either.

I continued my quest to define my style - this month in the kitchen and the bedroom. I'm pretty set on the style of my kitchen (classic white), but I'm a little more torn on what I want the look and "feel" of my bedroom to be. Head on over here to weigh in on my dilemma.

A super fun series I did this month was "5 Days of Book Page Crafts." The most popular of the five were the garland and the wreath - were those your favorites or did you like one of the others? I've made it easy to follow the series if you'd like to go back and see all the tutorials. At the bottom of each post, starting with Day 1, there's a link you can click to go to the next project in the series.

I love finding new uses for old things (see: book pages above), and the twig and paper flag centerpiece I made last week out of an old newspaper fits nicely into that category. Another thing I love? Simple, quick projects that have a big impact. This one is that too. Have a party, bridal shower or birthday party coming up? Boom. Centerpiece. Done. In about ten minutes. 

Annnd lastly, after we took our awesome trip to California (hitting up LA, Route 1, San Francisco and Napa Valley), I shared a post about my favorite packing tips. I managed to squish eight days worth of stuff into a carry on because I despise paying for checked baggage...and I hate waiting at baggage claim. Go ahead and call me a penny pincher and impatient. I'm ok with that :). If you want to see how I did it, head on over here.

How was your month of August? Are you as sad as I am that summer is "over" (even though the weather strongly goes against that notion in DC right now)? I'm slowly coming around to the idea of fall, which I love, but I am a summer girl all the way. Le sigh. I will say that I am SO GLAD football is back though. Don't even try to talk to me when my Tigers (of the Auburn variety) are playing. If you need me, you'll find me screaming at the TV :).

If I Were Going Back to School...

Happy day-after-Labor-Day y'all! When I was growing up, this was always the first day of the new school year (though I know many of you started back in the middle of August!). It always makes me a little nostalgic thinking about it. So just for fun, I thought I'd throw together a round up of items I'd snatch up if I were headed back to school this fall. I also just plain love school and office supplies - in fact, my family still jokes about how giddy I get when I go to an office supply store, stationery store, or even just see a closet full of office supplies. It's kind of ridiculous.

And heck, who says school supplies are just for people starting back to school? I may have to pick up a few of these for myself just 'cause. :)

|| 1 | Desk Organizer || 2 | Magnetic Clothespins || 3 | Russel + Hazel Binder System || 

|| 4 | Eight Days a Week Planner || 5 | Magnetic Hooks || 6 | Metallic Card Holder || 

|| 7 | Gel Ink Pens || 8 | Sticky Note Memo Cubes || 9 | Sticky Tab Dividers || 

|| 10 | Fabric Thumb Tacks || 11 | Desk Storage || 12 | Ikat Lunch Bag ||

Oh. Em. Gee. Love this stuff.

In case you're looking to stock up on school or pretty office supplies for yourself or your kids, here are my favorite stores and websites to browse (and where many of these picks came from):

See Jane Work
Martha Stewart Collection from Staples
The Container Store
Organize.com
Poppin
Target
Paper Source

Do you have a favorite source for school or office supplies? I'm always on the hunt for good sources!

Happy Tuesday!

Top 10 Packing Tips {To Avoid Checked Baggage Fees}

Having recently returned from our eight day vacation to California (read about it here, here, here and here), packing for a long(ish) trip is fresh on my mind. I'd consider myself to be a pretty seasoned traveler, and I've become especially good at packing for trips in carry-on sized luggage over the years. I fly a pretty decent amount each year and make an effort to pack lighter and more efficiently each time. I'm a tad competitive, so this is a fun little game I like to play against myself. :)

{Side note: This is a text heavy post. I'm info-centric today, y'all! Sorry if you were hoping for pretty photos of my carry on bag, ha!}

I have enacted a personal rule that I'm not allowed to check a bag on a flight unless I'm traveling for over a week. A week you say?! Yep, a week. To some of you, this may sound crazy, but let me let you in on a little secret: you don't need to pack as much as you think you do. And even though our California trip was eight days long, I still packed only a carry on bag. Boo yah.

Another reason I've enacted this rule for myself? Avoiding those pesky checked baggage fees (budget conscious traveler here, y'all) and the awful possibility of the airline losing my bag. Not paying the fees is my own little rebellion against paying upwards of $50 round trip in fees that many airlines charge. I'm already paying enough on my ticket alone; I don't need to pay extra when I can just pack efficiently and leave a few non-essentials at home.

It also saves time in the airport. No more waiting in line to check a bag on the front end, and you don't have to waste your time at the baggage carousel once you get to your destination, or when you're tired from a trip and just. want. to. go. home.

So how do I do it? I've come up with a list of my top packing tips to share with you today. I hope this will help you avoid some of those annoying checked bag fees too, which really start to add up if you're traveling as a family!

Top 10 Packing Tips:

1. Before you open a drawer or closet door, make a list of what you need based on the number of days you're traveling, activities planned, and the weather report.

2. Pull out everything you need, and then put back anything unnecessary. 

Make your clothing multitask. For example, you probably don't need a different pair of pants/shorts/skirt for each day. Instead, decide on a couple of go-with-anything bottoms and mix them with a selection of tops. Dresses are also great for travel if appropriate for the climate and activities because they don't take up much space! Mix and match people.

And one of the best parts about traveling? No one, except the people you're traveling with, will notice if you wear the same items multiple times. I promise. Sorry to burst your bubble, but they also probably don't care all that much :).

3. Use accessories to change up the look of an outfit. 

If you're worried about variety, bring a few colorful scarves or pieces of fun jewelry to vary your look. This way, you'll get the variety you crave without the bulk of extra clothing.

4. Be picky about what shoes you actually need. 

I took four pairs of shoes on our California trip, and you know what? I only actually needed two. Shoes are often bulky and hard to pack. Quick tip: if you're taking running shoes, stuff your socks into their insides to utilize that "dead space." Plus, you also won't have to go digging for them later.

5. Find out if you'll have access to a washer/dryer where you're going. 

This can obviously be a game-changer. You can pack even lighter!

6. Don't bring a hair dryer. 

For me, this is a hard-and-fast rule unless I know absolutely that I won't have access to one, and know I'll have to blow dry my hair. Hotels always have them. If it's not in your room, ask the front desk. I do often travel with my flat iron since it's much less bulky and I get the same effect of blow drying once my hair air dries.

7. Keep a quart size bag filled up with travel size toiletries handy at home. 

That way, you'll always have those things ready to go and you can just pop them into the outside pocket of your bag. You'll have to pull them out when you go through security, so keep them accessible. 


8. Use your "personal item" as overflow space and for your in-flight essentials. 

This is the item you can bring on board with you in addition to a larger suitcase. I usually pack a tote-sized bag for my personal item and bring a small purse (which I tuck into my tote during boarding to avoid dirty looks from the security people/gate agents). My laptop or iPad, a couple of magazines, a sweater or jacket, and a snack go in the tote. I try to leave a little bit of extra space in case I decide to buy something in the airport or while we're on our trip. You can push the limits on the size of this bag, but double check with your airline on the maximum size because some can be picky and make you check one of your bags (the horror!).

9. Invest in a quality rolling carry on. 

I don't mean spend hundreds of dollars, but go to a place like TJMaxx or a department store (I've had great luck with huge sales at Macy's) and get a lightweight suitcase that has quality construction. I got a Diane Von Furstenberg suitcase from TJMaxx for around $40 three years ago and it's held up great. If it's made to airline carry-on specifications, you should have no trouble fitting it easily in an overhead bin. That'll save you a few stressful moments on the plane ;). I much prefer a rolling bag to a duffle-style bag. I find it easier to drag than carry one through those long airport terminals (sometimes I wonder if I'll ever get to my gate).

10. If you happen to be flying an airline that doesn't charge for a bag (i.e. Southwest or JetBlue as of the publishing date on this post), feel free to check one if you want!

I still generally chose to carry on even with that option available so I don't lose time on either end, or risk having the airline lose my bag.

And that, my friends, wraps up my top tips for packing a carry on!

So tell me, are you with me on carrying on as often as possible? Or are you firmly in the checked bag camp? No judgment here :). It's all about doing what works for you! Do you have other packing tips that I missed?

Have a great day!

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linking up to: DIY Showoff, Rain on a Tin Roof, Home Stories A to Z, Uncommon Designs, If It's Not Baroque, Liz Marie Blog, House of Hepworths, Blissfully Ever After, Design, Dining and Diapers, Crafty Scrappy Happy, Craftberry Bush, The Shabby Creek Cottage, Tatertots and Jello, Serenity Now, It’s Overflowing, House of Rose, Love of Family and Home, Dear Creatives, Madigan Made, First Home...Love Life, Simply Dream and Create, Whipperberry, Sparkles and A Stove, Making Home Base

Fourth of July Photo Shoot and Tips for Portrait Photography

Happy Tuesday, y'all! Today I'm talking photo shoots. People photo shoots specifically. I've got a few tips and tricks for you on capturing great moments on camera. Since y'all loved my outdoor photography tips, I figured I'd share a few on portraits too. And I'm going to use our Fourth of July spontaneous photo shoot that I previewed in this post to help explain some of these tips. I know you've been dying to see a bunch of photos of me and the hubs, right? No? Well humor me anyway :).

Obligatory disclaimer: I know I always say this, but I feel like I have to mention it again...I do not claim to be a professional photographer. In fact, my mom took all these photos (she's got a great eye! I just chose the camera settings.). These are some helpful things I've learned along the way by simply practicing. Feel free to take or leave anything you read here!

If you're curious about what equipment I use, here's what's in my camera bag, but you don't need fancy equipment to use these tips!

Tip number 1: Blow dry your hair before a photo shoot. Just kidding. That's not actually the first tip. I just figured I'd throw it out there since my hair is soaking wet and in its all-natural wavy state in these photos - not what I'd do if we were having a "real" photo shoot, but this was for fun and completely spontaneous, so there you go. Imperfection's ok with us.

Actual tip number 1: Timing is key. Early morning and late afternoon have the best light for photos. Avoid the harsh middle-of-the-day sun. We took these when there was about 3 hours left of daylight and it was magnificent.

2. To blur your background and make your subjects pop, turn the aperture down to to a low f-stop. Most of these were taken on f/2.8.

3. Get the whole family involved, which for us included grabbing our dog, Jackson, for a few photos. He's the real star of the show.

4. Catch posed moments as well as candids. People appreciate having both.

5. Make sure the light source - ideally, the sun :) - is in front of your subjects so the light hits the front of their faces. If you imagine your subjects are at the center of a clock, with 12 straight ahead of them, keep the light source between 10 and 2. This helps avoid weird/harsh shadows. Also, if you want to avoid squinty eyes, don't point your subjects right at the sun (12 on the clock).

6. Experiment with angles. This can add some fun visual interest to a shot.

7. Coordinate clothing, but no matchy-matchy. The Fourth of July gave us a great excuse to put out our red, white and blue clothing, but you can see the colors don't match perfectly. Oh, and my personal preference is no all white outfits...but that's totally my own opinion.

8. Focus on your subject's eyes - especially if you're working in manual mode and have your aperture set on a LOW f-stop. On my camera, there are some red dots that light up in the viewfinder on what the camera is focusing on. Make sure one of those dots lights up near your subject's eyes. Some point-and-shoot cameras will have boxes that appear around subjects' faces when you press the shutter button halfway down. Use those to your advantage.

9. Change up the scenery. Take a few photos in one place, then move your subjects to another location. In our case, we took a few shots sitting on some steps, then moved down to the dock for others.

10. Have some fun with it! The more comfortable your subjects feel, the better the results. Help them let loose and enjoy having their photos taken!

Did I leave anything out? What are some of your best tips for shooting portrait photos?

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