Travel and Vacations

Behind The Scenes Draper James Trip

This past December I had the opportunity to be a model shooting Draper James spring collection! Such a dream! Never in my wildest dreams did I think I would have the chance to do this! When they first approached me it was bittersweet because I just found out I was pregnant, and I thought to myself surely once I tell them the brand will decline my participation.  After all it isn’t a maternity clothing brand, so I talked myself out of it.  I had prepared to tell the brand sorry I can’t participate I am pregnant.  Let me also say this is our 4th baby and I am not small so I knew the baby would be poppin by that point.  BUT it is so important to have friends that give you sound advice.  I told my blogger friend the situation, and she instantly told me “Taryn DO NOT take yourself out of this, tell them you are pregnant and let them decide. They want you for who you are!”  Well after telling the brand how honored I was I then told them I was pregnant.  To my surprise they congratulated me and still wanted me to go on the trip!! I knew right there that this was a brand that was going to be amazing to work with.

If you are not familiar with Draper James you definitely need to be! Their pieces give so much southern charm vibes and all of their items have so much character. What’s even bigger than that is the company was founded by Reese Witherspoon!

I was excited to go on this trip! I am so grateful to the entire Draper James team! There was not one member that wasn’t amazing, and had such great conversation.

The shoot took place at The Park on Saint Simons Island, which was the coolest location ever! It gave off some retro and feminine vibes! The place is owned by two sisters Bryce Brock & Kelly Revels which they also own an event company.  Basically two boss babes and just so inspiring! Not only did we shoot at the Park SSI but also got to stay there in their adorable villas, which made it easy to get up in the morning and start getting ready for the shoots!

I wanted to share details of the trip and take you along my first brand trip!

My Draper James Trip

Day 1

Upon arrival we got settled into our villas, I got to meet the team and the other fellow bloggers Caroline and Maryam that I would be shooting with.  Both were super amazing! We wouldn’t be shooting that day so it was just our outfit fitting.  The entire DJ team had all of my proposed outfits planned and I had to get fitted for them, and then photos in the outfits to be prepared for each shoot day.  Sidenote: I had never done anything like this before so this was definitely a pinch me moment.  After that we then ended the night with dinner and getting to learn more about the DJ team.

Day 2

SHOOT DAY! This was our first shoot day, and was going to be the longest.  We had our call time for 7am for hair and makeup (Eek!!).  After hair and makeup I went to get dressed for my first look.  Once dressed I had the hair and makeup team do their final touches.  At this point I officially felt like a model because in between scenes I have the team fixing my hair and clothing. LOL! I need this for all my shoots!  We did the bulk of our shoots at The Park.  Once completed there we had a quick lunch break and headed over to our next location The Vine.  With this being my first time shooting for a brand I didn’t know what to expect.  Everyone was so encouraging and helpful.  It made it easy to get comfortable and rock it out.  Which was a relief because I was super nervous, especially with being pregnant and wanting the brand to have successful looks from me.

What I was most impressed with is the production team would create amazing scenes where it made it easy to interact and look great.  We shot a few more looks at The Vine, and wrapped up the day about 4pm.  FULL DAY! We got to eat some good food at The Nancy and really just enjoy each other’s company.

Day 3

I knew this day would be busy because we not only had to shoot, but I also would be flying out that day. I had to cut my trip a day early and get back home because we already had our family ski trip planned.  We started another day with a 7am call time, and jumped in with hair and makeup.  Let me also say I was nervous about this because I am very particular with who does my hair and makeup, even with my picky nature I have to say that team did great!  They allowed me to share my feedback to make me feel and look my best.

We jumped into our Valentine’s Day scene that took the production team quite some time to pull off the beautiful tablescape. Plus we were battling rain.  Thank goodness we did the bulk of the looks Day 2 because rain was not on our side.

It is no joke trying to get 6 women looking and 2 children, but we pulled it off. This day wrapped up early so we could grab lunch and allow me to pack. I was so sad to say goodbye to the team and fellow bloggers, they truly made the trip so much fun.  It went by so fast and soon enough I was headed back to my crew to get ready for our red eye the next morning for our ski trip.

Again, I had no clue what to expect with this being my first trip I am modeling for a brand. I also had some insecurities with the fact that I was not my smallest AND pregnant. After being on the trip I can’t believe I was ever worried, they made me feel great! I think that is what made me love the brand more was how the Draper James celebrates some many sizes.  Even with their sizes they offer such a wide array of sizes to really be inclusive.

Shop the Spring collection below

 

I am grateful for the opportunity.  It is a testament to NEVER talk yourself out of something that you were truly meant for.  I hope this is the first of many opportunities like this! Stay tuned for the next collections I will be in that launch in February and March.

Which items from the Draper James spring line do you like most? Let me know in a comment below!