behind the pages of weekend handmade: creating atmosphere (part 3)

While at work on this book, there was one word I kept coming back to again and again: atmosphere. When I talked to Melanie and Sarah (the amazing graphic designer), and Thayer and Karen (fantatic photographer and photostylist), I used it over and over again. I didn’t mean to be so repetitive, but that was my default word to describe all the intangibles I hoped to create: A texture that evoked the feel of a lived-in weekend. Pretty without being precious. Creative but attainable. Familiar but still aspirational.

I guess in a lot of ways, I imagined the book as the very best version of a weekend in my life. Crafts! Dinner outside! A picnic on the beach! Only with better clothes and lighting. Of course, the stunning location didn’t hurt: a little wooden beach cottage at Stinson Beach.

When we started, the projects themselves dictated a direction for the photography and design. But there are so many opportunities for it to go off track. Or – in my incredibly fortunate case – for it to get even better. Much of this had to do with the photographer Thayer Allyson Gowdy, who is wondrously skilled in capturing the big set-ups as well as the sweet, small moments.

all photos by Thayer

For months, I saw the images and layouts on-screen and then in lo-res for copy checks. When I finally received a bound copy, I turned the pages and proudly realized that we achieved those intangibles. The feel, the photography, the graphic design – yes, I’ll say it one more time: the atmosphere.