Erica May is helping you figure out how to dress your family. Your entire family. Enjoy!
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We have had a lot of questions lately on our new facebook page Wardrobe Wednesday {where fashion meets photography} lately on how to coordinate a group of 5 or more for pictures. It is definitely more challenging to coordinate a wardrobe for a larger group but it is possible! I recently had my very own extended family session which was photographed by another Wardrobe Wednesday contributor, Lindsay Horn. I was in charge of coordinating my family’s wardrobe and the pressure was on to find us some great outfits! I am lucky in the fact that my mom and sister live close by so we could all go shopping together which helped but it would be possible to coordinate from a distance too. It is so worth it to take the time to coordinate your clothing. And try to stay away from all wearing the same color as it makes you all blend in together and it does not create any depth or interesting features. I doubt you all sit around in black t-shirts at your family gatherings so why wear it to a photo shoot? Here are a few key things to remember when trying to put your wardrobe together.
1.) Choose 3 or more colors to make up the color scheme. It is a lot harder for 5 or more people to not be too matchy when there are only two colors to choose from. For our group we chose Burgundy, Blue, Browns, and Denims. As you can see that leaves a lot of color choices for the group to pick from. Having everyone incorporate two or more colors makes the group look well rounded and pulled together.
2.) Layer, Layer, Layer!! Instead of everyone wearing a solid color shirt mix up the color by layering. This allows two people standing next to each other not to blend in and adds a lot of dimension to the photograph. Layers and textures can add a lot to the ensemble.
3.) If you can, choose a centerpiece. It is always easier to decorate a room when you have one colorful piece (whether it be artwork, a vase, a chair, etc…) and the same goes for photo shoots. In our instance we only had one child in the photo so we choose his outfit for the centerpiece. We bought him a colorful outfit and then pulled all of our colors from that. If you don’t have children in the photos you could always use a colorful scarf or jewelry to be your centerpiece.
4.) Dress the hardest people first. Women’s outfits are usually way harder to find than the guys shirts so dress all the women first. That way you can wait and see what colors you need to fill in and buy the guy’s shirts last. After we bought my mom’s outfit, we bought my sister’s outfit, and then we bought mine because I am the least picky about clothes =P.
5.) Don’t forget accessories! Belts, jewelry, shoes, and scarves are all great accessories for adding a splash of color that you might not be daring enough to wear all over.
6.) Have fun with it and try not to stress! Try not to wait till the last minute to do this either that way you are not stressed out and you have time to shop for bargains or hard to find items. You don’t have to spend a ton of money. Most of our clothes came from Kohls, Dillards, JcPenney, and Baby Gap.
Shopping Guide (from left to right):
Only a description and store is provided on this Shopping Guide since items were purchased more than a month ago. Although you may not be able to find the same tops at these stores you can very easily find something similar.
My husband:
Brown Undershirt from Kohls
Denim Polo Shirt from JcPenney
Jeans from JcPenney
Me:
Brown sweater from Kohls
Burgundy Top from Eddie Bauer
Jeans from Kohls
Boots from DSW shoes warehouse
Dad:
Burgundy Shirt from JcPenney
Jeans
Mom:
Camel Cardigan and Navy tank from Coldwater Creek
Jeans from Coldwater Creek
Tristan (cute adorable little man):
Shirts: Baby Gap
Jeans: Baby Gap
Shoes: Cranberry Converse from footlocker.com
My beautiful sister:
Shirt and Belt from Dillards
Jeans
My Brother-in-law:
shirt from Kohls
Jeans
