colleen merrill photography

29 weeks {colleen’s maternity series}

Colleen — Wed, 23 May 2012 03:51:39 +0000

easter eggs au naturale {personal}

Colleen — Sun, 08 Apr 2012 05:06:38 +0000

Every year around this time, Martha Stewart Living magazine features these fantastic Easter egg craft ideas. I always have ambitions to try them out, but I never end up doing it. This year, I finally decided to try something somewhat crafty with my Easter eggs. I found recipes for dying eggs using food products and I thought Olivia and I should give it a try. We made just four of the many recipes listed on the Better Homes and Gardens web site (yes, it’s becoming one of my favorite sites.) The article recommends that you leave the eggs in the dye overnight, but I don’t have that much patience. We left them in for about 30 minutes. The colors weren’t very vibrant, but that’s okay, Easter is all about pastels, right? I thought they turned out pretty, and so did Olivia.

shortbread brownies {food photography}

Colleen — Sun, 08 Apr 2012 04:56:11 +0000

A few weekends ago I made these brownies to take to a friend’s house. They turned out really yummy. I found the recipe on the Better Homes and Gardens web site. You should try it!

21 weeks {colleen’s maternity series}

Colleen — Tue, 27 Mar 2012 03:58:44 +0000

21 weeks…over half way!

{jeans: big star} {top: converse}

mmmm…donuts {food photography}

Colleen — Sun, 18 Mar 2012 00:02:07 +0000

This morning I was totally craving a donut. During the past 5 months of my pregnancy, my cravings have mostly been centered around salty, spicy, greasy food – cheeseburgers, fries, Mexican food and olives to be exact. This morning my sweet tooth kicked in, and all I wanted was a donut. Luckily, I had a package of Pillsbury Simply Buttermilk Biscuits, which can be transformed into absolutely delightful donuts! The ingredients in the dough appear to be minimally processed, so I don’t feel too bad about eating it.

I used the open end of a large frosting tip to make the hole in the center of the biscuits, and fried the donuts and donut holes in safflower oil. Then the fun began…I couldn’t decide on just one topping to finish the donuts off with, so I doused some in a cinnamon-sugar mixture, coated others in a simple brown butter glaze (butter, milk, powdered sugar & vanilla) + chocolate sprinkles, and topped the rest with a dark chocolate ganache (melted dark chocolate bits with cream stirred in) with a dusting of powdered sugar. Man were they good. Thankfully, Olivia and her friend Taylor were here to help eat the donuts, or I would have managed to devour all of them single-handedly.

for the love of cake {food photography}

Colleen — Tue, 28 Feb 2012 04:31:27 +0000

I love cakes and cupcakes. I love baking them, I love eating them, and I love photographing them. Last weekend I baked a four layer cake and three dozen cupcakes. I tried out a new Mexican chocolate cupcake – which turned out really delicious!

15 weeks {colleen’s maternity series}

Colleen — Sun, 12 Feb 2012 00:14:42 +0000

This is the first post in what I hope to be a recurring series on my blog for the next 25 weeks or so. My baby is due August 7th!

pants: green apple fitted flare sweat pant shirt: old navy

happy new year!

Colleen — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 00:31:57 +0000

Happy 2012! As my first post of the new year, my favorite subject, my sweet little girl…

finally finding time to blog…

Colleen — Tue, 06 Dec 2011 18:15:18 +0000

When my husband was deciding whether or not to attend a professional conference in Laguna Beach in December, I quickly made up his mind for him…cheap air fare and the fact that the conference started on a Sunday at the Ritz-Carlton made it a no-brainer for me. Oh, and I insisted that he let me tag along, you know, for moral support. Any way, we made an extended weekend out of it and this time away from the fridgid December weather in Colorado, and peaceful views out the french doors of the hotel room have given me the perfect opportunity to finally catch up on my photography blog.

I have had the opportunity to photograph so many wonderful children, families, couples, and events this year! This long weekend allowed me to catch you up on half of the year. I need another long weekend to finish up the year…maybe over Christmas.

mom’s birthday

Colleen — Thu, 14 Jul 2011 19:46:46 +0000

I love making birthday cakes, especially for my mom. Happy Birthday, Mom!