Last Show Until OOAK

Just wanted to remind my clients and art lovers that my last show (until the One Of A Kind show at the Mart) will be September 17th at the Gralley. This is co-hosted by Uncommon Ground and St. Gertrude's. The event will be on Glenwood between Rosemont and Granville in Edgewater. Highlights are the artists (of course) music and great food. Always a good time and always a good turnout. This one lasts until 10:00p.m. !

The new catalogue should be up in October on the website. Visit : www.stellalily.com and go to the shop button. Final word...I just want to thank everyone who support my work. You have made my summer a busy one but also enjoyable!!

New Shows, New Art

This weekend I'll be in the Glenwood Arts Fest in Rogers Park (booth #80). There's always great food, music and creative artist at this show. The week after I'm in the Streeter Fest one block off the Mag Mile. This is a new venue but I think it's going to be a good show.

As you can see I've added new images. This is part of a group of horses from the Navy Pier carousel. I've also stocked up on Chicago images since I keep running out so quick at shows. Also, I have big news...I'm in One Of A Kind show at the Mart this December! How cool is that?! I'll be working my little thumbs off from now until then.
September shows:
Lincoln Park Art Faire--Sept. 10 &11th
The Gralley in Edgewater--Sept. 17th

Senior Portrait Time Again

Just a heads up (ha, ha) it's that time of year again to think about getting your senior pics done. I'm not talking about the one for the yearbook. No, no, no--I'm talking about the one you'll have a good time doing and be proud to pass out to friends. I'm crazy busy right now so if you want to do this please call soon!!!!

Fountain Square Art Festival

I'll be at the Fountain Square Art Festival and the weather looks very promising! I have a great location--I'm booth number 52 right on the west side of Sherman. Last week I ran out of many of my most popular images and have been working like a dog (funny, my dogs don't do a thing--who came up with that saying?) to restock. My advice is to come early to get the best pick!
Also, I just added The Lake In The Hills Street Market July 9th & 10th. This is a first time event for them and they have been preparing for a large crowd to attend. There will be an artist's tent, antiques tent, and a farmer's market tent. I'll probably spend every penny I make at this one!
Finally, just want to say Custer Street was a total success. Thanks to everyone who came by my booth. Met a lot of very nice people and I'll for sure be back next year.

Thanks for your support--see you soon!

Custer Street Fair

First, I'd like to say that the Andersonville Midsummer Fest was a blast! So many wonderful people stopped by the booth. I want to thank all of you!!! The crowd was so diverse and everyone was having a good time. I was so happy to be a part of it all.
This weekend I'll be in Evanston for the Custer Street Fair. My booth is located on Custer just south of Main #C60. Okay, the weather is a little iffy but I'll be there rain or shine (mostly shine I hope). I totally ran out of all the Paris, New York and most of the camera tiles last week but I've been working night and day to replenish.

See you this weekend :)

Summer Festivals

My first outdoor festival is this weekend and it looks like the weather might behave. Nothing worse than holding down a tent in a micro-burst! This weekend I'll be in the Andersonville Midsummer Fest (even though it's only June). The booth (PhotoAccents by StellaLily) is located between Rascher and Balmoral. I am displaying new items so come on by and see what I've been up to. Also, the fest itself is a lot of fun with bands galore and really good food (and drink)!
Here's a list of the confirmed shows I'll be in this season.

June 11th & 12th---Andersonville Midsummer Fest  (northside Chicago)
June 18th & 19th---Custer Street Fair  (Evanston, Main & Sherman)
June 25th & 26th---Fountain Square Festival  (Evanston)
July 15, 16 & 17th---River North Walk  (Chicago)
August 20 & 21st---Glenwood Art Fest  (Chicago)
September 10th & 11th---Lincoln Park Art Fair  (Chicago)

I'll add other dates as they come in.

Thanks to those who follow me and it's always great to see a familiar face!

It's Been Awhile

Ok, I'm really bad at keeping up with everything. I'll tell you what I've been up to in the next couple of posts. To start, I thought I'd share some pics of a cute family! The mother in the shot was one of my daughter's favorite high school teachers. She seems very happy with her new role as mom. That's right--mother's day is this weekend. Happy Mother's Day!!!!!!

Please stop by my website to check out the new store (www.stellalily.com) and check out the new facebook page for StellaLily. There's some black and white photos of New York City in the cold, ''COLD' month of January.

Pic Of The Day

Just thought I'd share a photo I took on a recent trip back home. I like driving through the countryside on back roads and seeing where I end up.

Hope everyone enjoys their weekend!

Baby Days In March

We will be having Baby Day events in the studio during the month of March. What better way to boost your winter mood than to spend a half hour playing with your baby and creating a photograph you will cherish. There is a small $25 fee to reserve your session and along with that you will also receive a 5X7 print. To reserve a date and time give the studio a call and we will set you up. Better yet, make a play-date of it and bring other moms and babies to enjoy the event!

20 Minute Headshot

I met Laura in a restaurant and learned she was a dancer. She's Italian and has only been in Chicago for a few months. I feel bad that her only experience so far, is Chicago in the winter--not fun for a sun lover! Anyway, I thought she would be perfect for testing my quick headshot session. It took all of 20 minutes to shoot and we had about 60 images to look at.

So, check out the special offers in March and April. There will be the 20 minute headshot session along with open studio for special all day events. Keep ya posted!

The New StellaLily Website is ready!

Finally, the new website is ready to go. It's been a long time coming but I think it's worth it. Shawnna Rovinsky, web guru / Rovinsky Design, has provided me with a custom site that works with the studio design and all printed material. Can't get that with a template! If you want something unique, want to work with a talented designer, and just need help with putting your ideas together--she's the one I would suggest. Look her up at www.shawnnarovinsky.com.
Now, back to the site. I have a few things to still do but I couldn't wait for everyone to see it. Please take a look www.stellalily.com and post your opinions.
I'll leave you with a photo I had the pleasure of taking last week.
Enjoy!

Peace, Juana

Etsy Shop

I opened my new Etsy shop yesterday under the name PhotoAccentsbySL. If you're not familiar with Etsy it's a place where you are able to sell and buy all things handmade. It's a great place to buy directly from the artist without paying extra in a retail store. Take a look at the site and see how easy it is to navigate and also visit my shop. I will be adding new items every few days throughout November.
Even though I love taking portraits I also like to use images to create fun items. I use my darkroom as a work space because it's dust free and quiet. No one bothers me when I have that door shut! I make things that I like to use and my hope is that you will like them also.
A big hit this summer were the teapot photo blocks and coasters. As my friends know I collect teapots for their shape and colors. I've recently photographed some of them and created what I consider mini art pieces. I'm amazed at just how many people are into teapots.
Below are just a sample of what you will be seeing in my shop.

Fall Colors with Lily

We're getting beautiful colors here in Chicago but it's been hard to enjoy them because of the weather. I think it's rained almost every day in October. I've had to shoot in the studio when we really wanted to use the changing colors for background. Yesterday we got a glimpse of the sun so Lily and I went hunting. I gave her a camera and of course I had mine. We only had about an hour of good sunlight. So armed with hot coffee we took off. We had a great time together sharing ideas about what makes a good photograph and basically goofed around. Thanks, Lil.

Isn't He Adorable?

Isn't he adorable is what my daughter says about this kid. It was G's (the little boy) grandparents anniversary and all the family members came into the studio today to get pictures taken. What a nice way to document such a special event. G danced for me, showed me what a ghost does (it's close to halloween) and how he can fly. We had a good time and took tons of pics. Here's a few quick one's from the shoot. Enjoy!

New Puppy

Who can resist a new puppy? I couldn't when a friend brought over her new puppy, Dana. Had to take a few pics even though I should be working on the DePaul University School of Music holiday card (which turned out great! Thanks K). Here's a sample of the cutie. Wish you could smell the puppy breath to go along with the photo.

Pregnancy Photos

E & M came in today for their pregnancy photos. I'm excited because I also get to photograph the baby (girl) when she arrives. If it's anything like today it should be a breeze. With the first shot taken we all decided we had it in the bag. The images turned out beautiful and it was such a pleasure for me to work with E because she was one of the first babysitters for my children. Now it's her turn and she seems so happy! Congratulations you two soon to be three.

Ravenswood Art Walk

Today is the Ravenswood Art Walk and my door is open to all. Nothing like a deadline to finish putting up photos. The front of the studio is now complete and I'm loving it. Now it's time to sit back and open the wine.

Actor Headshot

The following images are for an actor who is updating his look. I photographed him before and we worked together to create some edgy looks. This time we both agreed that casual would be good. (L) is very easy to work with even in the heat (a very hot day!)










Hope everyone is having a good summer. I'll be taking Stella to school next week and the studio will be closed. We'll be ready to rock and roll in September! See you.

Bus Stop Photos

Yesterday I had the privilege to work with another actor. We started in the studio but quickly went outside because of the glorious weather we were having in Chicago. We got so many different looks but the most fun was our experiment at the bus stop. K (the talent) was easy going and totally into the idea. People came out of their shops just to watch what was going on and also to thank us for cleaning the bus stop shelter. Here are just a few examples.








The following photos are from the regular shoot. K has the most beautiful eyes! I did not enhance them--can you believe it???!!!








Have a good weekend--I'm off next week with my daughter looking at schools. ROAD TRIP!

Testing Light

Last week I had the opportunity to test a ring light. Lots of fun but bulky. I'll give it another try at another time but I'm putting up some samples. Thanks Shawnna for modeling and being blasted by the first few shots.