Happy 126th birthday Eiffel Tower!

So this beautiful old lady celebrated her 126th birthday this week and I'd like to add she doesn't look too bad for her age, does she? I've been looking for a blog to share with you for Our Random Blog Thursday and I discovered that I had missed blogging about this trip last year probably in the whirlwind of work and upcoming wedding season. ;-) This has given me great chance today to treat myself to a hot latte and reminiscence about those three gorgeous days I spent in Paris last year; wondering around the city; sampling local coffees and deserts and taking lots and lots of photographs.

If only I could capture the smells of lovely little corner bakeries; sounds of  'mental' local traffic and warmth of fresh spring air that I remember when I look at these photographs.

Hope you will enjoy this small selection of my travel photographs from France and remember you can click on the first picture and view them in high-quality slideshow.

Je'Taime

Karienne xxx

Gok Wan, frizzy hair & few snaps of Liverpool...

Hello lovelies! :-)

It's not very often you casually bump into a celeb getting of the train and when that celeb  is one of your favourite Fashion experts you have no other option but to stalk him across the whole train station (not embarrassing at slightest!!!! ;D ) and ask him for a photo. 'Sorry Gok for putting you on the spot but you handled it like a pro. :-)' 

The rest of the trip was ok too. :-) Little bit of shopping, visiting the Beatles Story museum and strolling around The Albert Dock. The spring is finally here, days are getting longer and creatures like me are finally waking up from their winter hibernation which means only one thing - my travel bug is awake too. :-)

If you have never been to Liverpool before, YOU need to go and visit! Hope you will enjoy these few photographs of this gorgeous city. :-

Love Karienne xx

Our Egyptian Adventures...

Being completely honest, Egypt has never been on the list of my dream destinations. Having visited Tunisia few years ago and going home very disappointed, I didn't want to visit any other similar country where being 'harassed' on every corner or having to haggle in the shops is just normal part of everyday life. What's changed, I have got not idea but something shifted inside of me and I have learned to accept this strange culture - strange to us of course. Maybe it's all the different countries I have visited in the last few years; or maybe it's just my age and experience; but I couldn't help but fall in love with this mad place, where driving at night with the lights on is banned by law; riding a camel to work or for work is absolutely normal, so is having 4 wives (!!!) and drop whatever you do 5 times a day and go pray to the mosque. I am not going to lie, there were moments when we'd get annoyed by street sellers trying to drag us in their shops but when you get to know people and you hear their stories about the life in Egypt and learn how little they earn, you can't help but feel for them. Because let me tell you, the life in Egypt is anything but easy.

I don't want to bore you for much longer because I've always been better with my photographs than words so if you'd like to know how I really feel about Egypt now, keep scrolling down... :-)

Our journey from Gatwick to Sharm El Sheikh...

Namaa Bay Beach. If you visit Sharm, you must visit this bay! Namaa Bay is a social centre of Sharm with beautiful beaches (Entry from 25EGP) but also many souvenir shops, caffes, clubs and restaurants.

The view of the pool in our hotel - Dive Inn Resort. 

Il Mercato - nice little shopping centre with numerous shops selling handmade souvenirs, fridge magnets, antiques and you can also find McDonalds and Starbucks here. :-)

Al Mustafa Mosque in Sharm El Sheikh.

Here's an interesting fact for you. Men are going to love this, girls not so much! Man is allowed to marry 4 women at one time here in Egypt! Once he is married he can marry someone else without his wife's consent. If a man wants a divorce it's not a problem but if a woman wants to go her separate way she has to prove that her husband is a bad man... And him marrying someone else is not a reason to divorce him! On the plus side husband has to treat all his wives the same and divide his time, money and love fairly.

Heavenly Cathedral. The most beautiful church I have ever seen. Every inch of these walls is covered by magnificient  paintings of Biblical stories! My eyes have never been so busy! :-)  This cathedral has been built recently and it took 2 years to paint the interior. The work was completed by 2 painters and 18 assistants 

The Cathedral is as one would expect of a church in the orthodox tradition. For Christians who enjoy modern interpretations of the biblical story, sacred art, and the unique flavor of Arabic Chistianity, it is a must see. There is beautiful stained glass and well done appointments in wood and stone.

 The Old Market.

Il Mercato, as you can see places like this really come alive at night time with the hustle and bustle of tourists strolling around and domestic shopkeepers trying to earn their bread.

Snorkelling in the Red Sea. This was really an amazing experience. We've spent all day sunbathing on the deck of this boat, exploring breathtaking corals in the Red Sea, sampling some more delicious local cuisine. The wind in our hair, sunshine gently kissing our skin and feeling of absolute freedom, need I say more? :-)

No visit to Egypt would be complete without riding the camels, visiting the dessert and enjoy warm welcome in a bedouin tent. :-)

And lastly Dolphinia! It's been my partner's dream to swim with the dolphins and holidays are for fulfilling your dreams, aren't they? :-)

If you'd like to see a short video from our holiday that I have put together click here. :-)

Thank you for visiting our blog! Hope you've enjoyed my little travel guide. If you're planning to visit Egypt and have got any questions, please don't hesitate to get in touch, I will gladly point you in the right direction.

Lots of Love, Karienne xxx

My 10 best moments of 2014!!! {by Karienne}

2015 is literally just a couple of hours away and before I get dressed up for tonights celebrations, I'd like to reflect on this year for the one last time. Choosing my 10 favourite moments and their photographic representation has been a bigger challenge than I anticipated but I will try to keep it short because ain't nobody got time for mahoosive blog posts. :-) Especially not today!

So here we go...

10 - My trip to Malta and Island of Gozo in February 2014...

Malta is a warm, friendly place with amazing food, rich history and beautiful coastline. I travelled alone and I spent a week exploring this island, meeting new people, getting lost and just enjoying the sunshine. Booking this trip alone was inspired by my favourite book of all times by Elizabeth Gilbert - Eat, Pray, Love - just thought it would be worth mentioning...

9 - 3 days in Paris in March 2014

The view of the Paris at the night time from the Eiffel Tower photographed on a very crisp evening.  I need to go back there to taste more of their delicious food and put a love lock on one of the bridges with my boy.

8 - Sizzling hot getaway to Barcelona in June 2014

The weather was sooo hot and we've had the best (although slightly expensive :-)) time in Spain. We must have walked around 10 km every day and then eventually decided to take a bus tour around the main landmarks. Two very culture packed days followed by way too many sangrias and mojitos and lazy day on the beach Barcelonetta.

7 - The Capital of Poland - Warsaw in July 2014

My boyfriends happens to come from this beautiful city so I've had the best tour guide I could ask for, on this trip. Warsaw and I, it was love at first sight (same as with Michal :-) )!! The historical town centre is buzzing with  life in it's countless bars, small cafeterias and restaurants. Also meeting my new family and getting to know them was lovely.

6 - The Wedding of the year, Poland 2014

As much as I love my job, sharing the most important day with this couple has been an unforgettable experience. Almost 18 months of planning and the day has finally arrived!! Monika and I, were up at seven having our hair done together and I crushed in my hotel room at six in the morning on the next day.  Hand on heart, I have never eaten and drunk as much on any of my all inclusive holidays as I did on this day. Holy Moly Guacamole, you could feed whole Africa and drink under the table half of Russia with the food and drinks we were served. ;-) Thank you for this day!

5 - Spending time with this girl...

We've been through so much with this girl. We partied every weekend of 2013 away and we've traveled together to Paris this year and I just have so many great memories with this lovely human being. ;-) Even though she lives hundreds of miles away now, she will always be in my heart and I know I will see her soon. 

4 - Home sweet home - Slovakia August 2014

When you live on the other side of the world and your old friendships and every interaction with your family; depend on the existence of social media, whatsapp and skype, you treasure every moment when you can see them in flesh, hug them, touch them, laugh with them. That's why every visit home, even though I don't go very often is a very special occasion. The world is so big and there's so much to see, just not enough time... :-)

3 - The Bedroom envy...

Originally, I wanted to find a nice photo of me and my great business partner and friend Lizzie, however we didn't seem to be taking many selfies this year (note to self : fix the lack of selfies in 2015) so I have decided to choose my favourite wedding moment this year instead. As you can imagine, in this job we are very blessed by meeting the most amazing people and visiting some truly stunning places so this is not to say I have enjoyed other wedding any less! But! ...walking into this romantic, elegant bedroom, decorated with shabby chic wallpaper, vintage furniture and scattered with  lot of small treasures, was a photographers heaven! :-)

2 - Last time we saw the sunshine this year - Turkey, October 2014

More sunshine, sea & cocktails. :-) We did a lot of sightseeing too. This photograph was taken in the ruins of Pamukkalle. I'd just like to add that I am too lazy to carry tripod with me and tourists generally take very blurry photos so all of my photos of us are taken from fences, benches or bins around the world. :-)

1 - Meeting this boy & falling in love with him... 5th March 2015 :-)

Now he can never say he doesn't remember our anniversary :-) but jokes aside... Meet my best friend & my soul mate. He annoys me occasionally but he also makes me smile every day. We share the same dreams, work towards the same goals and I hope we grow old together :-) Love you babe. xxx

So those were the highlights of my 2014 and I truly wish I could share more with you because I have so many great memories from this year but it's time to close this chapter and start another bestseller. :-) I hope you all have an amazing start to 2015! I hope you fill every day with moments of love, laughter & happiness and that you stick to your New Years Resolutions! :-)

My NY resolutions for 2015 are:

• Start wearing the costume jewellery which I am obsessed with buying but never seem to put it on!
• Find more time to play! My life at the moment is work, work, work, ... work... holidays. Work... more work work, wooork and holidays and I'd like to change that next year and steal little moments of time for myself to read a magazine, meet friends for coffee or go for a walk on Saturday morning instead of cleaning the house. :-)

Fingers crossed I will stick to it and you will too. :-)

Lots of love in 2015,

Karina xxx

Still not sure if UFO is real? :-)

Been editing all day our beautiful (even if I say so myself :-) )wedding photographs, but thought I'd resist posting a sneaky peak for today and share this cutie with you instead. Shot in my garden while I enjoyed the sun for 5 minutes today. 

Love Karienne xxx

Getting over my baby-phobia… :-)

When Elizabeth and I, first started our photography business I wouldn't even pick a baby up. That was over four years ago now, it's funny how much times change… My baby phobia has become a memory when my nephew Alex was born and although I still don't get broody thinking -I really want one too (unlike my 'baby-snatcher' business half Liz), I think babies are adorable and over these last few years I've developed love for working with families and capturing their memories. Photographs, I am sharing with you today were taken at my recent visit back home in Slovakia. Kristina, beautiful mami of these gorgeous little human beings is one of my  oldest friends, and I think she's been posing for me when I first took photography up since we were 15. Yet, again, how much have we changed? I remember us strolling around the park, me in my hippie outfits(or goth? - losing track of which phase of my life I was going through.)and Kristina with her slightly boyish sporty look. And look at us now! :-) We've both grown into women, each of us following her own little journey through this life. I've been there at her wedding, when her first baby girl was born and now I went back to welcome her little son into this world. Looking back it feels unreal… Kristina you have got such a beautiful family and I am so proud of you, of what a wonderful mum you are!

Anyway, back to my baby-phobia… :-) I've always found it hard to work with kids, because it's not like they would listen, is it? So I found a little trick how to get around their excitement of being photographed and me completely being out of my comfort zone because noone listens to me haha… :-) hashtag controlfreak 

So here's my little tip for those photographers who suffer from children-phobia too. Make sure you have plenty of time to do the shoot. Spend first half an hour just chatting to the parents, have coffee, eat some cake, play with the kids, let them show you their toys and get to comfortable with you… have your camera by your side the whole time, so it doesn't spark their curiosity too much when you start shooting… and then when everyone is comfortable with the situation, off you go, you can shoot them now. :-) 

This might not work for everyone, but I found it works for me. I understand it's harder when you're getting paid for certain amount of time, and sometimes you just need to get things done but certain things in life can't be rushed…

I hope this little blog helps anyone, and if one person gets back to me saying they've tried this little technique and it worked I will be over the moon. 

Enjoy your day!

Lots of love

Karienne xxx

And here are few backstage shots from my iPhone… :-)