Creative Director specializing in Photo shoot direction Content creation and social media assets.
Cocktails: 3 ingredients or less...Your next soiree is in the bag
As an avowed wine drinker and red-wine enthusiast, I've always found cocktails a bit intimidating. A few dozen dinner parties, and many cocktails later however, I've decided to create a solution for this dilemma and take the 'dark & stormy' plunge into finding easy signature drinks. I've gathered the most simple cocktails I could find, with ingredients you probably already have around your house and compiled them here.
photo via tulle&grace--simply charming socials
As an avowed wine drinker and red-wine enthusiast, I've always found cocktails a bit intimidating. Having guests over for a dinner party or late-night gathering was always accompanied by a big glass of wine or whiskey on the rocks. To me, cocktails were just too fussy. Many of them required having a fully stocked bar or hard-to-find liqueurs and ingredients to create them, a bit of a put-off for me. A few dozen dinner parties, and many cocktails later, however, I've decided to create a solution for this dilemma and take the 'dark & stormy' plunge into finding easy signature drinks. I've gathered the most simple cocktails I could find, with ingredients you probably already have around your house and compiled them here. These 3 ingredient cocktails are a beginner’s guide to mixing drinks and are four drinks that I think you should serve at your next soiree.
Number 1: Grapefruit Mimosas with sage:
What trip to the spa or late morning Sunday brunch would be complete without the iconic Mimosa? Bright and fizzy champagne, golden hued with delicious orange juice--the perfect antidote to Saturday night's over-indulgences. This recipe is a gourmet twist on the classic brunch cocktail.
Ingredients:
Champagne
Fresh grapefruit juice lightly sweetened with simple syrup (sugar & water) or already sweetened store bought grapefruit juice
Sage leaves (optional)
Instructions:
Fill a champagne glass ¾ of the way full with champagne. Add a splash of grapefruit juice.
Feeling fancy? Slightly bruise sage leaves and drop into the bottom of each champagne flute for an herby aroma.
Number 2: Dark & Stormy
The Dark & Stormy is a spicy, super gingery cocktail. It's usually served with a lime wedge and a good dosage of rum in it and if you're a fan of ginger ale, then you'll love this alcoholic version.
Ingredients:
Ice
Lime wedges
Ginger beer
Dark rum
*one ounce of dark rum for every three ounces of ginger beer
Instructions:
Fill a glass with several ice cubes, and squeeze a lime wedge over the ice. Pour ginger beer over the ice and then slowly pour in the dark rum, if done correctly the rum should sit over the ginger beer like a 'storm cloud'.
Garnish with a lime wedge.
Gently stir before drinking.
Number 3: The Cognac Sparkler
Another easy cocktail, the Cognac Sparkler only requires two ingredients: Cognac and hard apple cider. Its soft apple-y taste and warm overtones from the cognac, give this drink a real comfort appeal. This would be a perfect pairing with a cheese board and some spicy apple chutney!
p.s if you want to go even more apple crazy first pour a small amount of fresh apple cider, then cognac, then top with hard apple cider.
Ingredients:
1/2 ounce (1 tablespoon) cognac
3/4 cup chilled sparkling hard apple cider
*optional fresh apple cider
Instructions:
Pour the cognac into a chilled Champagne flute. Top with chilled sparkling apple cider. Serve.
Number 4: The Pared down Margarita
As you all know by now from my previous posts, I love tacos. And what goes better with tacos than a perfectly salty, citrusy, iced margarita? This recipe is no exception. Top notch ingredients and simple preparation will make this your go-to margarita recipe.
INGREDIENTS:
FOR A SINGLE MARGARITA:
1 1/2 ounces tequila, silver or reposado
3/4 ounce freshly-squeezed lime juice
Agave nectar, maple syrup or simple syrup for sweetening, if desired
Ice
*lime wedge and salt for rimming the glass
For a Pitcher (16 glasses)
3 cups tequila, silver or reposado
.5 cups freshly-squeezed lime juice
Agave nectar, maple syrup or simple syrup for sweetening, if desired
Ice
*lime wedges and salt for rimming the glass es
DIRECTIONS:
Add tequila, lime juice and Cointreau to a cocktail shaker, and shake or stir until combined. Taste, and if you would like it to be sweeter (most people do!), stir in a half teaspoon of agave or simple syrup until the mix reaches your desired level of sweetness.
Fill glass with ice. Pour in the margarita mixture over the rocks. Serve immediately, garnished with an extra lime wedge if desired.
Pitcher instructions:
Stir tequila and lime juice together in a large pitcher until combined. Add your desired amount of sweetener (I would begin with 2-3 tablespoons agave) until the margaritas reach your desired level of sweetness.
Fill the glasses with ice. Pour in the margarita mixture over the rocks. Serve immediately, garnished with extra lime wedges if desired.
Parting words of wisdom:
Cocktails can be simple. They don't have to be complicated concoctions involving elderflower cordial and candied thyme twigs. Sometimes, they even go better with certain dishes than wine does. So, if you're looking to mix things up a bit at your next dinner party, try serving one of these to your guests.
Here at Autumn Wood Creative HQ we're wearing our comfy sweater, listening to Johnny Cash croon and dreaming of hot days and sweet tea.
As always, if you need help creating your next photo shoot, catalogue, editorial campaign or cookbook, we're here and would love to be a part of it! Stop by our Contact us page and send us an email!
Inside the box: seller Spotlight On Teak & Twine (Copy)
'Gratitude changes everything' A phrase that is imprinted on just about every piece of packaging that luxury gift purveyor Teak & Twine sends out. And who wouldn't be grateful to receive one of their custom, and carefully curated boxes? Each box is brimming with hand-selected, beautifully designed products and an unbelievable attention to detail.
'Gratitude changes everything' A phrase that is imprinted on just about every piece of packaging that luxury gift purveyor Teak & Twine sends out. And who wouldn't be grateful to receive one of their custom, and carefully curated boxes? Each box is brimming with hand-selected, beautifully designed products and an unbelievable attention to detail.
When the doorbell rang last week for the postal service man to bring up my packages, I ran down the stairs to meet him, quickly signing for the long awaited box. It didn't disappoint. A thick linen-paper wrapped box with silver embossed lettering, opened up to a perfectly co-ordinated all white box filled with beautiful products; I was smitten. Teak and Twine has made it their business to scout out hard to find, small batch artisanal goods. Whether it's pink Himalayan sea salts, artisanal lavender honey or delicately scented, hand-poured candles, this company is bringing thoughtful gifts to a whole new level.
Based in Destin, Florida and shipping to all of North America, Teak & Twine's boxes cover everything from wedding gifts to house-warming gifts. Each one is cleverly named to convey a certain idea or aesthetic and with adorable names like the all blush-pink Peony Box or the home-centric Hearth box, you'll be tempted to buy them all! If you have an idea or a special event that they don't carry, you can even contact their team to have it customized to include specific items or even by your favourite colour.
In case you're thinking that this is just too many good things in one package, Teak & Twine isn't just about pretty things, they really believe their mantra. They make sure to include socially conscious products in their boxes, like The Prosperity Candle, a company who employs women refugees to help them earn a living wage, and they devote a percentage of their profit to charities that help disabled war vets.
As a photographer and creative director with a business of my own, I'm always looking for something new and fresh to offer clients or to add to my own little stash and this checked all the boxes. It was so thoughtfully arranged that it felt like an intimate friend had sent it to me and I can't rave enough about the level of detail and the pure aesthetic appeal Teak & Twine offers.
So if you're looking for something unique for a friend or you just want to send yourself something, this really is a little box of perfection.
Parting Words of Wisdom:
I agree with Teak & Twine's motto, 'gratitude' certainly does change everything, and when we start from a place of gratefulness everything seems special and unique. Sometimes it's important to slow down and remember who and what your grateful for and maybe sending a thoughtful gift is the perfect way to do that. Besides, like I tell my little boy every night before bed, there is only one of each of us.
Over at Autumn Wood HQ we are sipping on some of Six Depot's coffee and trying to ignore all the rain and snuggle down in a comfy hoodie while reading Domino's latest issue. As always if you need a photographer or creative director for your next photoshoot, catalogue or lookbook we're here for you and we'd love to hear all about it!
How to connect with Teak & Twine:
Check out all their amazing options here at www.teakandtwine.com or you can find them on facebook here: Teak& Twine
Q&A: What is a prop-stylist and 3 ways to help you style the perfect Instagram photo:
Have you ever wondered what a prop stylist does, or how to style a scene for your Instagram, Facebook or blog? Since launching my photography company here in Montreal, I frequently get asked what I do, how I compose a shot and how prop-styling works. So, to answer all those questions, I created a blog post talking about just that. Here is a little background info on what I do and how to create a balanced, dynamic photo from the ground up.
Have you ever wondered what a prop stylist does, or how to style a scene for your Instagram, Facebook or blog? As a photographer with a background in prop styling, I’m constantly asked how I compose a shot and how prop styling works. So, to answer all those questions, I created a blog post talking about just that. Here is a little background info on what I do and how to create a balanced, dynamic photo from the ground up.
Q: What exactly is a prop stylist?
A: A prop stylist is someone who provides, styles, arranges and makes the 'goods' look beautiful in a shoot. As a prop stylist, you are responsible for all the objects that you see in a photograph. That could be something as big as a table, or even a kayak (yes, this really happened to me once) or as small as a dessert spoon. You have to make sure that all the objects in a shot work together in creating the right aesthetic, story and backdrop for whatever the shoot is about.
Q: How do you style photographs:
A: When I style photographs, whether for a magazine, advertisement or social media content, I try to follow some basic rules:
1. Select items that help you tell your story, but don't overload the shot. Sometimes that means if the shot is about, for example, cookware, I don't fill every surface with an object. You may only need a lovely linen dishtowel and a wooden spoon to tell the story... and not the measuring cup, stacked plates and silverware.
Rule of thumb: Take a look at your shot and make sure you need all the elements and maybe remove one. Like Coco Chanel said on accessorizing, "Before you leave the house, look in the mirror and take at least one thing off." The same goes for styling your photo.
2. Create some sort of common thread to draw the shot together. I'm a really colourful person, so oftentimes for me, that is the thread I use to tie it all together. Colour can be a really emotive way of telling a story visually and it's relatively easy to create a photo that feels complete when all the elements are in the same colour family. It could also be texture, time period, or subject matter (i.e., all kitchen related).
3. Leave negative space around the main focus of the shot. This goes along with number one, but also hearkens back to art school or even geometry, for that matter, where you were taught all about the golden spiral or the rule of thirds. This is a simple way of composing a shot that is visually attractive because of proportions. In composing a photo in this manner, you focus all the content into a concentrated area of the photo (the corner, for example) and the negative space radiates out from it. Below is an example of using the golden spiral to compose a shot.
4. The last thing I do when composing a shot is what I call: building a foundation. This is where I focus on the key elements of my shot and slowly build up, adding various elements one at a time. Below is an example of how I "build" a shot:
Q: What if I do all these things and my shot still doesn't turn out right or I just don't have the time to do all these steps:
A: Hire me! I recognize that creating dynamic, on-brand product photography, lifestyle content or social media posts is really hard and that's why I'm here! I love what I do, and I love working with awesome brands and individuals to help them create stunning photography that really connects people to their brand.
Drop me a line and I'd love to discuss how we can work together!
Over at Autumn Wood Stylist HQ, we are currently sipping some delicious Italian espresso and listening to Katie Perry... just don't tell anyone, Ok?