When I was choosing my 2018 studio ambassadors, I came across a really special application from a remarkable family. I was so excited that these amazing women, grown and tiny, wanted to represent the studio, and I knew that they would be absolutely perfect.

Mama bear, Jacquie, writes the loveliest blog called The Sweeter Side of Mommyhood. The blog began as a way to update friends and family on her middle daughter, Grace’s, journey. Grace was a beautiful little babe, born prematurely, who faced a world of struggles and health issues that left her with profound hearing loss. (You can read Grace’s story here.) People outside of Jacquie’s circle began to follow along with her blog and root for little Grace, which allowed the blog to blossom into what it has become today: a gorgeous, little mix of personal anecdotes and stories of motherhood, combined with crafty ideas for home decor and entertaining your little ones, recipes, and ways to be creative in your everyday life.

Our portrait session together took place not long after Grace’s successful cochlear implant surgery. So, I definitely wanted to get a good image that highlighted them and told her story, in a way. But, let’s not forget the rest of the crew! Sally, the youngest, is a spitfire, full of sass and personality in a pint-sized package. She also has vision issues and wears the tiniest, yet chicest glasses (she’s also a brand rep for Jonas Paul Eyewear). She was over-the-moon excited to have “princess hair” for the portrait session and was infectiously bubbly and joyous on set. The eldest, Lilly, is so sweet, incredibly intelligent, and the most nurturing, patient big sister you could hope to have. I was so impressed with her poise and maturity, as she balanced posing beautifully for her images and keeping an eye on her army of little sisters. Even the bitty baby of the family, Olive, joined the girls for a portrait of all four of them together!

In order to make this session extra special and magical for these lovely ladies, I enlisted the help of my favorite collaborators, Airheads Balloon Art. They created some giant balloon clusters for me in the perfect color palette to match the wardrobe that I had selected and the overall vibe of the session. Last, but certainly not least, Deanna Machi gorgeously styled the hair of all three ladies to “princess” perfection.

If you’d like to learn more about what it’s like to experience a portrait session at POSE PGH, don’t just take my word for it! You can read Jacquie’s blog about their session here.

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Have you ever met someone in the course of your life that seemed to just immediately... "get you?" I absolutely had that serendipitous sensation the moment that I first met Dr. Erin Issac.

Dr. Erin is a pediatric dentist with a gorgeous office in Shadyside called Winning Smiles Pediatric Dental Care. After connecting on Instagram, we had a coffee date where we spent the whole time chatting about our philosophies and approaches to working with children, which turned out to be incredibly similar: focus on creating a positive space and a luxurious, personalized experience for children in a situation they might not normally see in that light, and it will lead to much better results and much happier kiddos. Dr. Erin approaches dentistry for little ones in a manner that makes me wish that she could have been my dentist growing up. She has an incredible waiting room complete with a two-story playroom designed to look like a ship, abundant toys for amusement, complimentary WiFi, and a tea/coffee beverage station for the "big kids." Treatment is done in private rooms that have television screens mounted to the ceiling, so your littles can watch their favorite movies or cartoons while Dr. Erin is doing her thing. The only thing that the space is in need of is some beautiful wall art, and since I love a good blank canvas, I knew that this is where I could help out!

A few months ago, we got together at the studio, and I photographed our first set of kiddos with adorable, "winning smiles," as well as a new head shot for Dr. Erin. We'll be getting together to do another round of these in the coming months, and once everything is completed, these are going to be printed as large, sleek, modern acrylic prints and hung in the waiting room and exam area. (I'll be sure to share some photos of the space once everything is finished and hung!) In the wintertime, I'm going to be revamping the POSE PGH print and product line, and I'm most excited to include more acrylic prints and options. The acrylic block portraits I currently have available have been so popular, so I know that you're just going to LOVE the gorgeous acrylic wall art that I've been having samples created of behind the scenes.

A HUUUUGE "thank you" to the kiddos who modeled for us and their amazing mamas: Bella + Sylvia, Charlie + Whitney, and Davina + Colson!

Here is the first round of images that we created. I'm looking so forward to the rest!