It’s been quite some time already that I’ve had a bee in my bonnet, and found myself wanting to set up a styled shoot to satisfy the hankering to do work that I’m not being commissioned for. After approximately two years of self employment, and upon hearing the good news of my friend Roberta‘s gloriously photogenic belly … I called in a few favours and spent a Sunday with a team of creatives, so talented in their individual fields, that our styled maternity shoot didn’t stand a chance of being anything short of the delight that we feel it is! With Roberta adorned in fresh flowers and shades of copper, yellow and black, Sam and Luka (our excitable and highly indulgent canine models) fitted with customised yellow leather collars crafted by Mia Swanepoel, and Elzanne Lappop creating the magic she does with hair and make up … well … I’m a little lost for words. I’ve heard the expression “it takes a village” many times, but I don’t think I’d quite understood the true meaning of this phrase until I saw Adele Kloppers sitting for almost three hours stitching flowers to fabric and painting Roberta’s nails. Nadia Niemann carting energetic Boston’s in and out of the venue for the almost four hours it took us to start shooting. Astrid Gerbhardt hitting pause on being a celebrated artist, to do the catering for us all. Roberta and Elzanne powering through an entire morning of hair and make up, and Mia filling in every possible gap from providing the venue (Cape Town East City’s, The Hostel) to hand making dog collars, managing people, flower arranging, assisting the photography, helping Nadia pose dogs, washing dishes and more than likely doing a million other things that I didn’t see. I couldn’t possibly put an accurate value onto the role that each and every one of these people played on that Sunday, and I hope very much that you will all enjoy the fruits of our labour as much as we enjoyed the labour that created the fruit. All my love, Claire xxx

venue: the hostel | model: roberta de lilly | hair & make up: elzanne lappop | boston mom: nadia niemann | boston models: sam & luka | custom dog collars: mia swanepoel | floral cape: adele kloppers, mia swanepoel, claire nicola | art: astrid gerbhardt