Something very special happens when you’re invited into someone’s home to witness a new family in the making. To be asked to capture a brand new, beautiful being….feels quite magical. To be allowed a glimpse of their new life & routine (or in the early days, the lack of it!). To witness the love, the smiles, the snuggles & the tears and to capture these for years to come. I don’t think I will ever take any of that for granted.
Thank you Alan & Tara ♥
All images © Allegria Photography
I have to admit I’m not a huge fan of the commercialisation of Valentine’s Day & I’m a firm believer in making things rather than buying them – it’s just so much more personal. It really doesn’t matter how small it is, people love receiving something handmade. It shows you care enough to spend the time & effort to make something especially for them. I realise that it’s not always easy to find the time to make something by hand, so with this in mind, I’ve picked out four really lovely, quick & easy DIY projects for you to try. These could be used at any time of the year. If you’re not into Valentine’s Day you could just save these for another time during the year when you want to surprise someone you love…..it’s so much nicer to get a little gift or card when you’re not expecting it!
FREE VALENTINE CARDS
via the wonderfully talented illustrator Samantha Hahn
JE T’AIME COFFEE CUP HOLDER
via Eat Drink Chic
MATCHBOOK VALENTINE
FREE VALENTINE LABELS
All Things Baby , Baby Inspiration , DIY Baby Ideas , DIY Kids Ideas
DIY Babies & Kids: Freebie Friday Downloads
Some beautiful free downloads for your baby’s nursery or child’s room. Just download, print and hang! All from the wonderful Handmade Home Blog. Just click on whichever prints you’re interested in & it will bring you through to the download. The first ones look beautiful framed and would make a gorgeous gift for a new arrival. Enjoy & have a great weekend.
Source: thehandmadehome.net via Aine on Pinterest
Source: thehandmadehome.net via Aine on Pinterest
Source: thehandmadehome.net via Aine on Pinterest
Meet Baby Jack …. a wonderful nine month old little boy we met recently. He was so full of life & smiles & so excited to show off his newly acquired crawling skills! I love the images of him smiling but I must admit that I’m drawn to the more serious ones …. his face full of wonder & his beautiful big inquisitive eyes … the whole world out there for him to explore.
All images copyright Allegria Photography
Introducing baby number 2 in our recent newborn photo sessions. This is baby Rosa & I think she might just be one of the most beautiful babies ever! Look at those lips, her tiny little hands & her almost translucent skin! She looks like a little angel. I will admit to being slightly biased as Nikki & Gavin are close friends of ours, but that aside I think you’ll have to agree she’s pretty adorable! I love how proud & protective her big sisters look! Welcome into this world Baby Rosa – we’re looking forward to getting to know you as you grow to become a beautiful little girl….
All images copyright Allegria Photography
We were thrilled to have the chance to photograph so many beautiful new babies over Christmas. We have three newborns to introduce you to over the next few days – the first of which is lovely baby Alex. Iwona & Krzysztof were very obviously over the moon with their new little boy judging by all the hugs, kisses & loving looks they were lavishing on him! He was very happy & chilled and seemed intrigued by the camera! Alex’s grandparents were due the day after our photoshoot so it looked like it was going to be a very happy Christmas for this new little family.
All images copyright Allegria Photography
All Things Wedding , Our Wedding Photography
Ellen & Karl: Wedding Day in Ferrycarrig Hotel, Co. Wexford
Welcome to our last wedding of 2011!
I wasn’t sure if I was going to have enough time to put together a sneak peek of Ellen & Karl’s wedding before Christmas but I reckoned they’d be dying to see some of the images from their day, so here goes….
Ellen & Karl got married in the Church of the Assumption in Bree & the reception took place in the Ferrycarrig Hotel in Wexford. The location of the hotel is stunning with sweeping views across the river Slaney. It was bitterly cold on the day so we didn’t get to go outside for long but there was a fantastic room with beautiful big windows overlooking the river where we got some wonderful naturally lit shots of Ellen & Karl.
Ellen & Karl, we had a really great time with the two of you. Your families were so friendly & welcoming – it made our job so much easier! Hope the skiing was great fun. Have a wonderful first Christmas as husband & wife!
All images copyright Allegria Photography
All Things Wedding , Our Wedding Photography
Valain & John: Wedding Day in Ballymagarvey Village, Co. Meath
Despite the bitter cold & rain Valain & John’s wedding was full of joy and happiness. They held their reception in the lovely Ballymagarvey Village in Co. Meath which made for a wonderfully romantic backdrop for the day. The house was a very welcome sight when we got back from St. Cianan’s Church in Duleek – the fires were burning, it was toasty warm and beautifully decked out for Christmas. With lots of nooks and crannies and a very cool little bar (which we had all to ourselves!) we were able to capture some lovely intimate moments of them both.
I had a lovely chat with Valain’s father during the preparations and he recounted very lovingly how Valain & John had met in the week of their first year in college and how they’ve been together since. Their love was so evident and I think all you have to do is look at that hug after they were pronounced ‘Husband & Wife’ – I think it says it all!
Valain & John, thank you so much for inviting Mark and I to be part of your wedding day. We hope you have a wonderful Christmas.
All images copyright Allegria Photography
All Things Wedding , DIY Home , DIY Kids Ideas , DIY Wedding Ideas , Our Life , Wedding Inspiration
DIY: Oisin turns Three & some DIY bunting ideas
I realise that I haven’t been sharing any of my own DIY creations so I thought this would be the perfect opportunity. Oisin turned three a couple of weeks ago so I decided I’d make some birthday bunting for him. I came across a very easy tutorial on Ruffled – a blog I love! You can find the tutorial here. I printed mine on canvas – only because we have a printer that can print on canvas and I thought it might last a little longer – but these would look equally cool printed on heavy card or photo paper. I was really happy with the results & Oisin seemed very impressed too!! What do you think?
All images copyright Allegria Photography
Here are another few ideas for using bunting. The first one is a free download from How About Orange for compliment bunting. It’s such a great idea! We all love to get compliments, so the next time you want to tell someone how fab or superb they are, just surprise them with a little bunting garland!
Image via How About Orange
I thought these next two would look amazing at a wedding or some other special occasion. I love the muted pastel tones of the first – it adds a somewhat nostalgic and vintage feel. The colourful bird bunting is just so beautiful and happy looking – I fell in love with it the second I saw it! It is made by the wonderfully talented people at Cake Ink.
Images (top to bottom) by Avery House via Project Wedding & by Cake Ink via One Lovely Day
These bunting cake toppers and decorations add a lovely celebratory feel. The garland on the first cake is made with vintage wallpaper – very cool idea! Etsy has heaps of cake bunting for sale or if you’re feeling inspired you could craft some yourself…Happy crafting. See you soon.
Images (Top to Bottom) by Scott Clark via 100 Layer Cake, via A Fete Beckons on Etsy
& by Avie & Lulu via Sweet Designs
Well there are only four days to go in the Weddings Online 2012 Awards! This is the first time we have entered a competition like this & it’s quite exciting. I know that many of you have voted for us and we really appreciate it – thank you! For those of you who have been planning to vote for us or for those of you who have only recently come across us & think we deserve a vote – now’s your chance 
If you’d like to vote for us, all you have to do is:
1) click on the WeddingsOnline link or on the banner below
2) enter your details
3) scroll down to the ‘Wedding Photographer of the Year’ category and choose Allegria Photography from the drop down menu.
It shouldn’t take more than 30 secs!
Thanking you for all your votes.
Aine & Mark
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