Okay, real talk, if you want your bridal boudoir album in your hands before the wedding, your session needs to happen about three to four months before the big day, which means you want to be talking to us around six months out.

I'm Alisha, I own Ivory & Lace Studios in Kingman and I'm the one behind the camera, and this is the question I get from brides more than any other, usually right after they've realized the wedding is a LOT closer than it felt last month!

Why can't I just book a few weeks before the wedding?

Because your photos aren't done when we finish shooting, and honestly the part after your session takes way longer than the session itself.

Your reveal is its own appointment three to five weeks after your shoot, and it happens online over Google Meet so you're not driving back to Kingman for it, and that's where you see everything and choose what you want. Your digitals come to you that day, and printed products like an album take about eight weeks after that, so if you shoot a month before the wedding the album shows up after the honeymoon instead of on the morning of.

So what does the timeline actually look like?

Here's how I'd map it out if you were my friend asking me over coffee. About six months before the wedding you call or text us and we set up your consult call, which is where we talk through what you want and pick your date, and then around three to four months out is your session, and three to five weeks after that is your reveal, which is the day you order your album, and about eight weeks later it's in your hands with a little breathing room before the wedding.

If your wedding is closer than that, reach out anyway, because your digitals are yours the day of your reveal and we can talk through what's actually realistic for your date on the consult call.

Should I wait until I've lost the wedding weight?

This one is super common, and I'm going to tell you exactly what I tell every bride who asks me, which is that the person you're marrying is marrying you right now, and nobody flipping through that album is checking whether the last five pounds came off.

Waiting on the weight is also the fastest way to blow the timeline above, because "after the diet" turns into a month before the wedding really fast, and then we're back to the album showing up after the honeymoon.

What should I bring to a bridal boudoir session?

Bring your veil, anything white, ivory or cream, your garter, his jersey or his button down if that's your thing, and any piece of jewelry from your mom or your grandma you'd love to have in a few frames. We keep a client closet at the studio too, so if you get here and something isn't working we pull a piece that fits, and that's the end of that problem.

There's more about the bridal session itself on our bridal boudoir page.

Can my fiancé or my bridesmaids come?

Your session is yours and nobody else's, so friends and partners don't sit in on the shoot, because the second there's an audience in the room you start performing for them instead of settling in and forgetting about the camera.

The one exception is hair and makeup, so if walking in alone is the thing keeping you from booking, bring your maid of honor for the glam chair and she heads out before we start shooting. And if what you actually want is the two of you in front of the camera together, that's a different session and we do those too, it's our couples session.

I've never done anything like this, is it going to feel awkward?

Almost every bride who walks in here has never done this before, and you don't have to know a single pose, because posing you is literally my job and I'll tell you where to put your hands, where to look and when to breathe.

On a full session your hair and makeup is done here at the studio and takes about ninety minutes, and that's kinda the part that settles everybody down, because you get fussed over for an hour and a half before a camera ever comes out. We keep more than ten sets up at any given time so you move from room to room instead of standing in front of one backdrop, and by the second set most brides forget I'm even in the room, which is usually right when they start looking like a true baddie. You can read the whole run of the day on the experience.

How do I book my date?

If you've got a wedding date on the calendar, this is your sign to say yes to yourself and get the consult on the books, because the whole timeline above only works if we start early enough.

Book your consult call, or call or text the studio at 928-263-8229 and we'll find your date!

📍 Ivory & Lace Studios, 721 E. Beale St. Kingman, AZ 86401, serving brides from Kingman, Bullhead City, Laughlin, Lake Havasu City and Golden Valley.