if.net

I just got back from Naples, Florida, from the A Jaron Jewelry photo shoot!  When Shiela from if.net called to tell me I won the contest, I was thrilled.  This was something that somehow called to me, I visited the website and fell in love with the jewelry.  Well, the experience exceeded my expectations.  It was sooooo much fun!  This is one of those things where everything just fell into place, like it was meant to be.  I've posted some photos that my husband took while we were there, and I'll put together a little behind the scenes video and post that soon, too.  Here's how it went:

We flew American Airlines to Miami, then switched flights to get into Fort Myers, which is the closest airport to Naples.  Southwest times just didn't work out, so I'll save my ticket coupon for some other trip.  I brought my husband Greg with me so that he could shoot some video for my site... and also help me carry the luggage!  I packed two bags, and of course, airlines charge now for checking bags - but I needed all my makeup and hair stuff, and extra clothes and shoes.  To make the weight even out, I put out clothes in one bag, and my hair dryer, straightening iron, make-up and toiletries in the other.  Very efficient, or so I thought...

We actually arrived in Miami about 5 minutes early, but there was another plane in our slot so we had to wait on the runway.  Turns out the other plane was an international flight, and it had a no-show passenger with checked luggage, so they had to go through all the luggage on the plane to find that particular bag and take it off the plane.  Took an hour before we got another gate and got off the plane.  Because we were late, we missed our connection to Fort Myers, and had to hang out at the airport for another couple of hours.  Ate some bad chinese food and had a beer, made the best of it.  Finally got on the tiny plane and landed where we were supposed to be.  Went straight to baggage claim - and guess what?  One bag was there - but the one with all my makeup was LOST!  Oh, noooooo!  American said the next flight in was at 6 pm the next day... and my photo shoot was scheduled for 10 am the next day!

Resourcefulness kicked into high gear, we picked up our rental car, and found a 24 hour CVS.  I loaded up on  essentials (I didn't even have toothpaste!) and got to the hotel at about midnight.  We chose the La Quinta Inn because it was centrally located, and cheap, and the price included breakfast.  It was actually very nice - they had remodeled recently.

The next morning, Amanda (http://www.ajaron.com) picked us up at the hotel.  I love this woman!  She is beautiful, talented, creative, and full of great energy.  She toured us around Naples, which is a lovely city, and took us to our first location, a gorgeous model townhome.  The townhome is brand new, and staged with minimal furniture to show for potential buyers.  The look is clean and contemporary, a terrific backdrop for a photo shoot.  Amanda brought tons of designer clothes for me to wear - and trays and trays of her amazing jewelry.  The team included Chris Barrett, a young and very talented photographer, and two videographers, Mark and Daniel, who are working on both a video "look book" and a bio piece for Amanda's website.  And Greg was there taking video and photos, too, so we really were covered and didn't miss a beat!  Where was Billy Bush?  We should have been on Access Hollywood with all the media we had going on!

The shoot was really fun - I felt very rich and decadent dripping in jewels, it wasn't hard to get into glam-mode! We shot in the townhouse in the morning, took a quick break for lunch, shot some video for CoffeyTalk.tv, and then headed outside to shoot some more photos.  We stumbled upon a really cool looking beach house, and the owners came out to see what was going on in their front yard.  They gave us permission to shoot, took us around back where they had funky painted furniture and they even let me change outfits in their bathroom!  They were so sweet, it was one of those "right place, right time" situations you could only luck into.  We were all having a good time.

Then we went to the beach to shoot more video - it was really cold, unseasonably so for sunny Florida, so even though I brought my swim suit there was no way I was getting into it!  We wore jeans and sweaters, and enjoyed the soft sand barefoot.  As Amanda and I walked along picking up sea shells, the crew shot video.  At one point, a flock of seagulls came around, probably hoping for food, and hung out with us so close!  Amanda's husband and twins (the cutest kids ever!) came out to meet us, and then we all headed to a local restaurant for dinner.

Dinner was wonderful!  Grouper is a local fish, and I had that - yummy!  I sat next to Alanna, Amanda's darling daughter, and colored with her pretty much the whole time.  Alanna and her brother, Willem, are really creative, like their mom, and super smart.  We all drove over to 5th street for ice cream - I had a marshmallow covered with caramel and dark chocolate - wow!  Then home to sack out and watch all the drama on The Bachelor.  That's another blog.

Luckily when we got back to the hotel my suitcase was there!  I felt much better having my own make-up and I could actually straighten my hair for the next day's shoot.

The next day we went out to the yacht club in Naples and spent our time aboard an amazing yacht.  Tons of great shots, and again, lots of fun.  Amanda has such beautiful pieces in her collection - there's a ring that looks like a crown that I totally fell in love with. And her signature pieces are these beautiful flowers that show up in rings, earrings, necklaces, bracelets, so that everything really goes together so beautifully.  I especially love her long sterling strand necklaces intersperced with flowers beaded with little pears - oooh la la!!!  What's great is you can wear this jewelry every day - whether you've got on jeans and a tank top, or a cocktail dress - it's elegant, and yet casual, and it feels so good against the skin because it's made from beautiful stones.  You can mix and match and come up with so many great looks - and we tried to capture that in the photos.  And I feel beautiful wearing every piece because I know they make me look good! :-)  Amanda ordered us a terrific lunch and we ate aboard the yacht.  We shot some more video, and called it a wrap!

Afterwards, we stopped by the grocery store and picked up some food for dinner at Amanda's house.  I made my Sunday Salad for the family, Greg helped, and it was a big hit.  The kids were wonderful, and we made it back to the hotel in time for American Idol.

The next day, Amanda left chocolates and a thank you note for us at the front desk - so thoughtful!  I am very grateful to if.net for bringing us together - I have a new friend, and she is FABULOUS!

We flew Delta home, with a stop-over in Atlanta, and now I'm catching up on everything.  I feel like I just came home from vacation!  Quite a whirlwind, and I'm looking forward to seeing the finished product, Amanda Jaron's first print catalog!