Our Wedding Album!

I finally did it! Got my butt in gear and ordered our wedding album! I had it 95% done for the past 2 or 3 months but procrastinated finalizing the files. Let's blame the weather. 

I can't say enough how THANKFUL I am for these incredible photos by Sharalee Prang. I put so much work into our wedding day and she captured it in a way that still makes it seem surreal! What I absolutely love about her photography is her aptitude to capture "the important stuff." She didn't miss any of my work-intensive details, but she also didn't miss a single ear-to-ear grin from my loved ones! Every time I look at this album I get this feeling that no one wanted to be anywhere but at Saar Bank Farms on that beautiful cloudy august wednesday. THAT is a good memory for a bride! 

Here are some of my favourite spreads (cozy on my hand-made wedding blanket from my maid-of-honour)! 

At the back of the book I included a spread with our wedding verse (Philippians 2:1-4) and the song I chose to walk down the aisle to, "Something Beautiful" by NeedtoBreathe. And here is where I admit that I just saw my own typo. I can't believe that. You'd think I'd have made enough mistakes to know the importance of editing by now!!  Ahh well, it wouldn't represent me without a typo...

I printed via Blurb, a wonderful option for superb quality photobooks. They aren't that fancy (as far as binding options, and they don't lay flat) but the print is excellent, and they offer a variety of high-quality papers in different finishes. My favourite part is that they allow professionals to submit custom made designs and ensure colour correcting! I knew my files would be well handled. I am sure that using their automatic options would also be a great way to go. I built my book in Indesign/Photoshop and imported  a pdf. If you want to see the whole thing...here's the blurb book viewer! 

Vanderwel Wedding Album by Laura Vanderwel | Make Your Own Book

Cuba: $20 for One

I'm excited to share this project! Not only because it was a fun print piece, but also because its an ongoing project at Insight for Living Canada.We've been working in Cuba for the past 3 or 4 years in a variety of ways. First we sent down books for discipleship, then we sent down more books for pastors and leaders, then we had conferences for those pastors and leaders based on the books! And we're not stopping! More conferences are planned for this november and possibly next spring. 

The kind of feedback we've heard is incredible. We had to get someone to come in to translate all the letters we received all the way from Cuba-we had no idea that putting our office contact information in the back of the books would lead to all that feedback! The conferences offer the chance for pastors to dig deeper and explore things like purity, perseverance, and passion in leadership. Cuba is home to a quickly growing church and many leaders have little or no formal training. To read more about the conferences and how you can help (as well as some of the letters from Cuban pastors), visit here.

The new campaign, $20 for One, is aiming to send 2000 pastors to the next set of conferences. Each $20 donated equals out to one more pastor attending, and one more church congregation growing in the truth of Christ! 

June Insights Magazine: What's over the hill?

Another favourite! I feel so, well, happy when I think about this issue. I think its the colours. I somehow pulled of the "bright for summer" look I was going for in the June issue, even though the weather here didn't really participate. I shared some photos of my fun cover project back while I was working on it, because I just couldn't keep it in! Click HERE to see the full digital issue and read the articles. Or just get the cliff notes version below, with some of my favourite images.

Published Ad

Since its going to be a while before I get around to blogging about my wedding (which was everything I've ever dreamed of by the way!!) I thought I'd get back into blogging slowly with some photos of an Ad that was recently published. We submitted it over half a year ago and then I forgot all about it. Its nothing mind-blowing, but it did come out really nice! The only slightly weird part is that its a publication for funeral homes, full of ads of recipients worthy of donations and estates. We have a program called "Lifegifts" that allows those who support our ministry to name us in their Will.

Illustration Happiness :)

Yesterday was a good day. You know why? I've been illustrating. I'm working on another piece for Insights Magazine and as usual its been a wonderful blur of a few hours creating a new piece. Its funny...I never set out to illustrate, but I'm finding that I enjoy it more than anything else I get to do at my job! Almost more than using my new work camera. ALMOST. So here are a few screen shots of what I'm working on. Keep your eyes peeled for the finished digital issue, or sign up to get it in print (for FREE!!) once a month. Not just to see the work I do, but to get a good dose of solid biblical teaching in an engaging format.