Yes, The Princess Project wants you, and the fabulous, unused dresses collecting dust in your closets. The charity collects formal dresses (bridesmaid, formal weddings) and gives them to high school girls from lower income households to wear to their proms. The charity is located in the San Francisco Bay Area.
This year, they are collecting dresses February 8th through 14th at various drop off locations. The dresses must be from 2002 or more recently, and need to be cleaned and on a hanger. The following are the city locations:
SAN FRANCISCO:
Crossroads Trading Co.
1901 Fillmore Street, SF
Hours: M-Th 11am-7pm; F-S 11am-8pm; Sun 12pm-7pm
Irving Street
555 Irving Street, SF
Hours: M-Th 11am-7pm; F-S 11am-8pm; Sun 12am-7pm
Market Street
2123 Market Street, SF
Hours: M-Th 11am-7pm; F-S 11am-8pm; Sun 12pm-7pm
Bar Method – Financial District
3 Embarcadero Ctr
San Francisco, CA 94111
Hours: M-F 11:30am – 6:30pm; Sat 9:30am – 11:30am
Bar Method – Marina
3333 Fillmore Street, SF
Hours: M-Thurs 6:30am to 1:30pm (closed 1:30pm – 3:30pm) 3:30pm – 8pm
Fri 5:30am – 1:30pm (closed 1:30pm – 3:30pm) 3:30pm – 6:30pm
Sat 6:30am – 1:30pm
Sun 8am – 1:30pm (closed 1:30pm – 4pm) 4pm – 6pm
The Blue Jeans Bar
1827 Union St
San Francisco, CA 94123
Hours: M-Th (11am – 7pm; F-S 11am – 7pm; Sun. 12pm – 6pm)
Marc by Marc Jacobs on Fillmore
2142 Fillmore Street (b/t California St & Sacramento St)
San Francisco, CA 94115
Hours: 11am – 7pm
Presidio YMCA – Main Post Fitness Center
63 Funston Avenue, SF
Hours: M-F 5:10am-10pm; Sat – Sun 7am–7pm
They also collect accessories, jewelry and shawls, but no shoes or make-up. It’s an easy way to get those bridesmaid dresses out of your closet and to the right people!
You can get more information at www.princessproject.org. There is also an opportunity to volunteer on distribution day, and help the girls put their outfits together.
So please spread the word and get involved because every girl out there deserves to look fabulous!
Oh how I’ve needed something positive and funny especially after a day like today! While I would LOVE to blast a rant about how crappy and negative my day was, I have decided to focus my time and energy on something positive instead. Who likes a Debbie Downer anyway? Truth is not every day is a struggle like this one but sometimes I need to remind myself of a few things: a) I heart wedding photography for all it is and isn’t (and that is that), b) I’ve never experienced nirvana but I imagine the closest feeling that can compare is when I’m behind the lens c) this too shall pass d) the heat of wedding season is coming close – keep excited because it will be here before I know it. So to keep my spirits (and chin) up I am posting a reminder of some of my favorite moments from Weddings 08 including a note to Mr. Negativity himself.
Dear Mr. Negativity,
Thank you for making my day suck. Your attempt wasn’t half bad. You certainly winded me and got me this time around. That’s quite alright I’ll just keep moving on track as scheduled. However, I am preparing myself as I expect you’ll be throwing curve balls here and there because you are a nasty existence. But here’s the thing Mr. Negativity: the joke’s on you. If you pay close attention to the photos posted below, you’ll see that you definitely missed quite a few. Can you tell these people are having a smashing time?
Sincerely,
RizzaRiz. [Rr.]
PS: Be Happy!
Imagine this. You are one of two in a litter. Your father is named after famous jazz pianist Thelonious Monk. In turn you and your sibling are named after famous Armenian composer Komitas Vardapet and American jazz bassist Charles Mingus. The humans that chose you only had plans to bring one of you home but when they saw how inseparable you were, they decided to take you both. You live in a lovely home in the Berkeley hills. Your human parents love you, take you for long walks and sign you up for obedience school. They entertain you with music that sometimes includes drunken Peruvian men who howl back and forth at each other. You love it and you howl back. The job for the rest of your days is to be adorable, cuddly and to love your humans because that is what dogs do. If you ask me life is good if you’re anything like Komitas + Mingus.
It was great meeting the both of you. I am sure you will do wonderful things throughout your life of leisure. Please keep in touch. Your biggest fan, [Rr]
Proof that Komitas + Mingus are not the same dog.
Bri is hands down one of my favorite people on this earth. When I first broke into photography she graciously agreed to be my subject for several hours. We had a great time trekking to the coast for a lovely Life Session where we laughed. And laughed.
I was sad to learn of Bri’s plan to move back to SoCal early last year. When she announced that she was coming back I couldn’t help but let out a big “yee haw!” So I’m dedicating this post to Bri for taking part in a cornerstone of my career. It wasn’t until my Life Session with Bri that I understood the importance of connecting with my subject and just learning to have fun! Bri – thanks for being a fabulous and willing subject. For that I am showing the world once again what a beautiful person you are! Welcome back buddy! Rr.
If you’re not already on Facebook then you don’t know what you’re missing . You never know when one connection leading to another connection will eventually lead to you. Getting caught up between running a business, editing, and second shooting last year I managed to somehow forget the importance of those connections. So I sort of (ahem) fell off the face of the earth. Since Facebook I’ve successfully been able to reconnect with old friends even estranged cousins.
One face that I am most glad to see once again is Marlene’s. We met while I worked at an art school where she took up Media Arts + Animation. I think where I am today has much to do with how I found the students and faculty to be so inspiring and Marlene would be no exception to that. Not only is she everything wonderful under the sun, but she understands my obsession with Red Sonja and generously bequeathed issues 1, 2 & 3 from the first batch ever set to print to yours truly. And for that she is eternally cool. Not only she is insanely talented, but she is also down-to-earth, generous, cute as all heck and extremely knowledgeable on just about anything. Be warned though and do not be fooled by that charming smile, she kicks some serious butt at World of Warcraft on a given day.
Oh, and to see just how insanely talented she is, you can check out some of Marlene’s work here. For now, our quick ‘Life’ session minutes before losing light…..
A random passerby was kind enough to let us borrow his dog for the shoot. Isn’t he adorb?
Marlene blows a few kisses into the cold, bitter air. Yes, it was freezing!
You’ll find quite a menagerie around the complex where our session took place. Marlene randomly spotted this beautiful heron and the opportunity was far too amazing for me not to shoot. Isn’t he lovely?
Marlene, thank you SO much for a fun and fantastic shoot! Cheers to a new year, new friendship and a fantastic future ahead! The universe is listening! Rr.
2009 is going to be SUCH a good year. I can feel it. The last two years and the events leading up to now are what I call my Northern stars. It’s a reference to that old Rascal Flatts song and how things happen when you are destined for something. My work is something I feel I am destined to do – scratch that – something I have to do because it is my everything.
The exciting news about the new year is that there are more challenges and things to work on than I can ever be adequately prepared for. Seriously! One I’d like to share is that this year I definitely plan on blogging more frequently, blogging bigger and blogging better. I feel it’s a great way to stay connected and keep inspired! Storytelling and writing have never been my strengths but now here is an opportunity where I can change that.
Last year I shot some fantastic weddings alongside a pool of brilliant and talented photographers for some amazingly brilliant couples. But what next? I’d like to stray us all from the thought that once the wedding is all said and done then the perception is such that one can say ‘that is the end of that’. Something I’ve never quite explained on this blog is that you never EVER need a reason to have your photographs taken. Photographers have different ways of describing these sessions, but I call them ‘Life Sessions’. It’s simple, generic and yes perfectly put. ‘Life Sessions’ can be two best friends who both managed to stay friends for years, the proud owner of a Labradoodle or a couple celebrating their golden anniversary. Because life happens.
I decided I’d include a favorite ‘Life Session’ to spice this post up a bit so it’s not just a boring block of text. Cheers to everyone to a great start into the new year!
Below: TTD session with Lauren whose wedding I second shot at Ruby Hill Golf Course, Pleasanton [April 2008] for photographer Jennifer Hosler of Candid Moments Weddings.
by rizzariz
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