My Final Editor's Note

My last Editor's Note since leaving Minnesota Bride came out in the Spring/Summer 2012 issue, which hit newsstands in January. It's one of my favorite notes I've written because I decided to just lay it all out and tell the reader exactly what I've learned about weddings over the years.

My old editorial director, Barbara Knox, once told me that the most boring Editor's Notes simply regurgitate the Table of Contents, so I've always tried to steer clear of recommending stories within the issue. It's better to write about stuff that the reader might want to learn about or find entertaining. My former editor at METRO, Chris Clayton, was excellent at that. His Editor's Notes were always full of hilarious, poignant annecdotes.

Alyson + Jesse

As the former editor-in-chief of three regional bridal magazines, I've seen many of weddings over the years. But never have I been so proud as to run the following story about Alyson and Jesse Newquist — Minnesota Bride's first ever same-sex couple.

I didn't want to make a big deal out of it, because it shouldn't be an exception to the norm, but, well, the United States hasn't exactly gotten to that point yet, and it is a big deal. You might even be wondering what took so long! It all boils down to equality — we only feature the best local weddings in the magazine, regardless of sexual orientation, but hadn't yet seen a same-sex wedding that met our standards. Until now.

Jesse and Alyson's wedding was absolutely gorgeous and full of creative, meaningful details. They even opened their own venue in the process! Check out Matt Burgess' wonderfully written feature on these inspiring newlyweds, with photos by Photogen Inc:

Grunge Bride

This is one of the last fashion editorials I did before leaving Minnesota Bride earlier this month, and it's now one of my favorite stories. Everything just came together, from the styling to the model to the lighting to the overall feel.

My art director, Janet, and I started with the photographer, Lena Lakoma. We knew that we wanted to work with her and knew that it needed to be in-studio. From there, we met with Lena and went back and forth on a concept before deciding on a relaxed grunge theme, inspired by a postcard-sized image Janet had torn from a magazine.

Once we had our concept down we knew we needed a strong model who could carry the story, since it'd be about her attitude just as much as it'd be about the clothes. I suggested Ashlee Walker from Vision, having worked with her before, and we all agreed she'd be perfect. And yep, she was. I'm so glad I got to work with her one last time before she headed to New York this winter.

Next, we needed to find a stylist who could handle the dichotomy of grunge and bridal — two concepts that don't exactly go hand-in-hand. Jahna Peloquin was a natural choice as someone who understands the recent grunge resurrgance and had already proven reliable in handling valuable gowns and accessories. She found really great pieces and had plenty of ideas ready to go.

For hair/makeup, we hired Fatima Olive, who was fantastic. I didn't have to give her hardly any direction at all — I just showed her Janet's sample photo, told her the vibe and she came up with the perfect rocker hair and punchy yet clean makeup.

It was such a great shoot. They rarely go so smoothly! I'm really proud of the way everything turned out and couldn't be happier with letting this be one of the last bridal shoots I organize.