A Vibrant Celebration of Culture For Hispanic Heritage Month Styled Shoot with Alpacas

This shoot was featured on Green Wedding Shoes! 

La Visión

(the vision behind)

“Each year, Americans observe National Hispanic Heritage Month from September 15 to October 15, by celebrating the histories, cultures and contributions of American citizens whose ancestors came from Spain, Mexico, the Caribbean and Central and South America.” At least this is what you’ll find if you search Hispanic Heritage Month. If you’re like me you may have never even heard of this before and possibly thought Cinco de Mayo was the only time Latinx culture was celebrated in the US. Despite the fact that Cinco de Mayo was only significant towards one portion of Mexico and was not in fact Mexicos or any other Latin American countries independence day.

 I was thrilled to learn that there was another time dedicated to celebrate Latinx culture and people, but also extremely disappointed that it wasn’t more widely acknowledged. Most people have heard of Dia de Los Muertos, the literal translation being the day of the dead. This celebration is a sacred time meant to commemorate Latinx ancestors and the beautiful lives and culture they have all contributed to creating.

 One of the things I love about our country is how it can be a mixing pot where many unique cultures come together. I believe now  is the time to learn how to lift each other up because of our differences instead of allowing them to drive us apart. Now is the time to learn how to respectfully show appreciation for different cultures without taking away credit. Because each heritage brings so much richness and beauty to our society.

 I have spent a lot of time this year dwelling on the beauty of our differences and how I would like to give due credit and include all different cultures to be shown on blogs and in magazines. Representation is important, couples should be able to find themselves when looking for wedding inspiration but they should also be able to find vendors that feel like family. For this wedding I didn’t want to take the Latinx culture for granted by only using their products but I also strove to use as many Latinx and BIPOC owned businesses as possible. I want you to see what I see a beautiful culture belonging to an amazing group of people who often go overlooked but deserve to be in the spotlight. 

  Bella es mi cultura.

La Inspiración

(the inspiration)

Together, we aimed to make this a beautifully vibrant shoot, inspired by Mexican culture and colors. When we met with our lovely, strong, and very real Latina couple (Ivy and Terry of The Rebels, check them out on YouTube!) we were ecstatic to find that they wanted to incorporate both their heritage along with touches of their own gothic style. We really wanted to represent the second generation American Latinx children, with a combination of culture and decor. We even paid homage to some of the cultural significance of Chicano culture with the vintage car.

When we first went looking for all Latinx owned businesses to be a part of this wedding shoot, we quickly realized that there was a huge shortage of latin vendors in the greater Portland community. So it was very important to us not only to put together a beautiful shoot, but also to give an opportunity for the vendors (owned by BIPOC) to really let their work shine.

Los Detalles

(the details)

Every detail of this shoot was carefully curated and chosen to highlight the beauty of the Latinx culture and traditions as well as show off Latinx vendors’ work. First, I want to give special recognition to our photographer. She is extremely talented and also recently has created the first Vendors of Color list and community in the PNW.The elaborate braids, reminiscent of another strong Latina Frida Khalo, were expertly executed by our hair stylist Cristy Jean. The Calovera decor and Rebozo provided by Jennifer, owner of Via Raiz all artisanal decor, were handpicked by her and ethically bought from artists in Oaxaca, Mexico. The yummy Polvorones table full of Mexican candies and Pan Dulce (sweet breads) were provided by Courtney of La Reinita. A beautiful jacket was provided by amazing Latina designer Myriam Marcela who also runs a non-profit that provides funding for Latinx designers and seamstresses.

This shoot came together in honor of Hispanic Heritage Month. We sought out to make this a beautifully vibrant shoot, inspired by Mexican cultural and colors. We even paid homage to some of the cultural significances of Chicano culture with the vintage car! Every detail was carefully curated and chosen, from the elaborate braids reminiscent of Frida Kahlo, to the calovera decor, and even the yummy Mexican candies and conchas or sweet bread on the dessert table!

We chose to work with a real-life couple in the form of Ivy and Terry of The Rebels on YouTube. It’s one thing to put together a beautiful shoot, but we really wanted to take it another step further and worked almost exclusively with Latinx vendors! We really wanted to take the time and make the effort to highlight the hard work of the vendors that goes into putting together a styled shoot of this caliber.

It was important for us to not only put together a beautifully styled shoot, but also to give a voice and opportunity for the vendors to really let their work shine and speak for itself.

Vendor Details