Dressing Meredith

Time to play dress-up! I'm 34 and it's still one of my favorite things to do, especially with my friends. This particular friend, Meredith Hopping, is six feet tall and uniquely beautiful. She has porcelain skin, dark hair and striking features. And there's so much more than meets the eye! "Mere," as I like to call her, is a classically trained opera singer, a gifted wedding and event planner, an intense God-lover and an amazing friend. She's one of those rare finds, where knowing her is knowing someone who will always be there to back you up, lift you up and push you forward. Mere shares her gift of writing and her incredible journey on The Hopping Home.

mere and eleonore bay (2)

The afternoon kicked off at my house with a bare-faced Meredith (who showed up with coffee, thank goodness!) and our fantastic photographer friend, Julie Ann Johnson. Julie is one of those women who has never met a stranger. She has an energy unmatched by anyone I've ever met, and an incredibly strong call to help others. From the moment I met her, we were collaborators and thinking of what types of projects we could create together. She supports me like we've known each other for years, like all women should support each other. She's a passionate advocate for visually impaired children, a talented blogger of Life Astonished and she loves to tell stories from behind the lens.

julie ann Johnson

Mere is headed to an afternoon wedding this weekend. She wants to look young and fabulous, of course! The wedding is casual and the last thing she wants to be is over dressed. Most importantly, whatever she wears has to be breast-feeding friendly. Her husband, Nate, is co-officiating and her five-month old Francesca River, is her date for the wedding. Mere and I established a budget, and then I went shopping. And this is what I found:

grey shirt dress, brown belt,

maroon & hot pink bird scarf,

various leather bracelets

 

 

a beautiful canvas

  

a little Bobbi Brown ballet pink for mere's lips

 

 

adding the scarf, we tried it a couple of different ways

 

we tried several belts to get the best look

 

  

 the bracelets

 

 

the look

 

 beautiful fall colors, perfect for a fall wedding

 

between the boots

 

 This process started way before shoot day and included a couple of missteps regarding the dress. The grey shirt dress was the third option. (giggle) We started with a mutually agreed upon maroon dress that Mere later decided was more her mom's style. (shoot face) Second, we tried a beautiful cobalt blue dress we both loved, but it was the wrong size. When I took that back, the store was out of the right size and the closest one was in Kansas City. I don't like to drive to south city, much less KC. (crying) That's when I found this super fun, step-into-fall grey shirt dress that met all criteria. (woohoo!) The look just came together after that, adding the scarf, a vintage gold necklace, various leather bracelets and Mere's belt and boots.

 

 

mere and francesca at the wedding



 

 

happiness abounds