Coffee Date with Caroline Logan

When I think of inspirational ladies, Caroline Logan comes to mind. This successful young wedding photographer started her business before she even had her learners' permit, and she just graduated from high school in May. She's a stand-out in the wedding photography industry because of her age, but after getting to know her better, I've started to forget that she is only 18; she's professional, wise beyond her years, and so very talented. Caroline's confidence and hard work have been an encouragement to me and she's one of my favorite creative ladies to follow along with.

So of course I couldn't pass up the opportunity to feature her for a Coffee Date. Get to know her better today, leave her some love, and follow along with her - this girl is impressive! 

What's in your coffee mug this morning?

Even though I sure love me a cute little coffee shop, I'm not a big coffee drinker just yet! So it's green tea with a lil bit of honey for me... my favorite! But pass a Starbucks and my car has a way of pulling in and ordering a Salted Caramel Hot Chocolate. Does that count as coffee? ;)

Give us a glimpse into a typical "day in the life" of Caroline.

Oh my! Right now, especially in the midst of wedding season, what my typical "day in the life" looks like changes each day. But no matter what the day holds, it always starts the same... a little Chobani yogurt + granola + fresh fruit morning fuel while I take some quiet time to study my Bible. It's the perfect way to start the morning before diving into a full day of work!

Lately I'm loving mixing my work environment up, whether that's working from my home office, or spending the day working from one of my favorite local coffee shops - it's fun to switch it up and helps me to stay inspired!

If I'm honest, I'd say I'm still working on finding a solid work-life balance as a business owner. While I'm grateful to run a business I genuinely love - some days it's easy to lost track of time and work way too late into the evening. But we're not created just to work, even if it is our passion. There is so much to life beyond that. People matter and it's important to make sure those in my life get the best of my attention, not just the rest of it. This is something I'm continually learning and striving towards!

You photographed your first solo wedding at 14 (that's wild!) How did you get started in the wedding photography industry and what business tips have you found to be helpful?

14 years old... I know! Sometimes I hear that and find it a little wild myself! Who knew what a journey that would start me on. It's been quite the adventure since then as I've continued to pour into building and refining my business and brand over the last four years. I look back to where I was then and it makes my heart smile to think of how many people believed in me, even then!

Someone told me early on that the best business tip they'd ever received was to simply love people. I've read countless business books from incredibly successful entrepreneurs, and yet that single tip remains my favorite of all. Sometimes I think we can get too caught up in business and marketing strategies in hopes that they'll propel our business forward in growth. And while they definitely can and do, loving people well and showing a genuine passion for what you do? Oh man, it's contagious.

One of my favorite verses is 1 Peter 4:10, "Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God's grace in its various forms." I always find this verse encouraging in times when I'm feeling overwhelmed because it helps me to turn my focus back to what matters and let the rest fall into place. It's a great reminder that this business is so not about me... it's simply a tool for me to love and serve others. And what a gift that is!

You just graduated from high school a couple months ago. What's next?

I absolutely love being a wedding photographer and there is nothing I'd rather spend my days now as a high school graduate doing! I'm not entirely sure of all that may be on the horizon as I continue to build and run this business of mine, but I sure am excited about the places it could lead me! With my graduation in the spring and my nineteenth birthday next week, I've been feeling so, so grateful for this season of life I'm in. It's human nature to continually strive towards bigger and better, especially as a business owner. I think it's great to have big dreams, and yet, I never want to get so caught up in those dreams that I miss the beautiful reality of where God has me right now.

I have a feeling wedding season can be super busy for you. How do you simplify and keep everything running smoothly?

Yes! Wedding season is definitely such a fast-paced, exciting time! I've always been the kind of girl that has a to-do list for her to-do list, so a key to simplifying and keeping everything running smoothly has been implementing systems that work for me and can help me stay organized! I write out my "Action Items" to-do list with the things I'll need to accomplish the following day on a notepad each evening before I shut things down for the night. This system isn't anything over the top, but I've found that the simplicity of starting each day with a fresh list is so key when it comes to keeping everything running smoothly!

Another thing that has been beneficial for me has been investing in organization. Sometimes it's so easy to skimp in this area and tell yourself to skip the cute office supplies aisle at Target... but I promise the prettier your systems are, the more excited you'll be to follow through and keep up with them! Implementation matters more than intention, so spoiling yourself a little bit in setting up a system that works is worth every penny!

What's something you've been loving lately?

Thank-you notes! It may be verging on an obsession - you would laugh if you saw my stash of them! There's something about pretty stationery I can't resist. I love how much power there is in positivity, and with a simple thank-you note we have the opportunity to tell sweet friends they matter. Like really, really matter.  I once heard it said to never suppress a generous thought, and I kind of loved that. Tell people you love 'em. Tell them they've impacted your life. Tell them you've noticed the way they earnestly care about people. Tell them they're making a difference. Don't just suppress it :)

And just for fun, if you could photograph any celebrity wedding, whose would it be and why?

Will and Kate, it's a no-brainer! Can I call dibs on their vow renewal?

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Follow along with Caroline

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Recent Coffee Dates

Our most requested printables...

...are now in the Elle & Company Library! 

With the newly designed 2015 Daybook Planner coming out this fall, I'm rearranging the shop and making some adjustments. I can't reveal what I've been up to just yet, but I cannot wait to share it with you! 

In the meantime, I've added a few of Elle & Company's most requested Daybook inserts to the Library. The Cleaning Checklist, Menu Planner, and Lesson Planner will no longer be available in the shop, but I know that they have been so useful to many of you. Now you'll have them at your fingertips without having to wait on shipping times (and costs!) Just log on to the Library, print them on copy paper, and you're good to go.

Spring cleaning doesn't have to take place once a year. Use Elle & Company's cleaning checklist in your Daybook and conquer your cleaning tasks over time! We've listed tasks you may not have completed lately (like cleaning the vents... can I get an amen?) and blanks to fill-in any that we may have left out.

How many times have you been asked, "What's for dinner?" Here is our solution: a meal planning printable to keep your kitchen simplified. Plan your weekly meals and create your grocery list all on one page!

For the teacher and the home-school momma: we can agree that we feel much better when we plan. What better motivation than an Elle & Company lesson planner to keep you on track? You'll find it's layout organized but also open to your signature teaching style.

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Are you a member of the Elle & Company Library? Sign up today for unlimited access to our growing collection of useful paper goods!

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Other recent Library additions:

10 Things I Can't Design Without

As a designer, there are several things in my day-to-day routine that I just can't do without. Here's a look at the 10 most helpful things that keep me on task and fuel my creativity. 

1. My iMac

Not only do I love the simplicity and compatibility of all Apple products, but Macs are the industry standard for graphic designers. My design software runs very happily on my "big Mac" and it's what I was taught to use in design school. The 27-inch screen is perfect for zooming in on projects and working in multiple windows at once, the interface is user-friendly, and color calibration and display are more accurate on my Mac, which is important for branding projects and print design. And let's be honest - it's the prettiest computer out there.

Once you go Mac, you never go back. 

2. Adobe Creative Suite

How did designers get anything done before Adobe Creative Suite came around? This software makes designing logos, editing photos, and laying out Daybook planners a breeze. Although I work in Illustrator 90% of the time, I subscribe to Adobe Creative Cloud so I can also access the latest versions of Photoshop, InDesign, and Lightroom.

3. Coffee

This is just a given. My morning cup (or three) of half creamer, half coffee helps me wake up, gives me something to look forward to when I sit down to design, and sets the "mood" for blog writing each morning. It's become so routine that I just can't work without it. 

4. Songza

Whenever Jake is doing a task - studying, helping me in the kitchen, reading an article - he has to be listening to music. And in the 2 years we've been married, he's started to rub off on me. I just can't get in my working "rhythm" without having some background noise. 

That's why Songza is genius. It plays the right music for any situation, whether I'm working in an office, going for a sunny stroll, or working out. My morning Songza choices usually go as follows: It's Tuesday morning. Play music for > Waking Up Happy > Peppy Indie Pop/Rock > Indie Morning. Or if I need a little extra boost, I may switch it up with Waking Up with Energy > Dance Pop Hits > Girls Just Wanna Have Fun. 

5. My Daybook Planner

I've always been a type-A, planner-dependent kind of girl, but having my own business and designing full-time has taken it to another level.

Because I have several design projects going at once, I have to stay organized to keep up with my workflow. As I'm coming up with timelines for my branding clients, I write down each deadline in my Daybook Planner, think ahead to which tasks need to be completed beforehand, and schedule days to complete them. I plan out blog posts 2 weeks ahead of time and pen them in, too, along with little to-do's for each one. It's extremely helpful to see tasks, events, client meetings, and deadlines all in one place. 

6. Pinterest

 Since I'm a visual person, it's helpful to have a collection of images to draw inspiration from while I'm designing. Before I begin a project, I usually jump on Pinterest and create a quick inspiration board. I look for images that are similar in color, style, and tone to what I'm hoping to design, pull them into Illustrator, fit them into a quick template, and save them all as one photo. I keep it up on my screen while I'm designing and reference it while I'm making design decisions during the project.

7. An organized desktop

I work with a lot of files each day, so my desktop gets cluttered quickly. Nothing stresses me out quite like not being able to find anything, and one of my biggest pet peeves is logging into my computer and seeing a screen full of little file icons. A couple months ago I reached my breaking point, so I created a background a few months ago that helps me organize all my files. It's simple design also motivates me to file things away each night before I log off my computer. 

8. Gmail

In order to design projects for clients, I have to keep in contact with them all. Gmail is very user-friendly and it's great for keeping up with and organizing incoming emails. Each of my clients has a color-coded folder, which helps me recognize which emails in my inbox need to be addressed first. I also like Gmail because it connects easily to Google Drive (for sending large design files) and Google Calendar (for more daily to-do's and reminders).

9. My sketchbook

Although I mainly draw everything on my computer, it's helpful to keep my sketchbook by my side just in case I have a quick idea that needs to be drawn out quickly. In design school, we were encouraged to draw 100 quick logo sketches before we started drawing out concepts on our computer, just to brainstorm and get ideas on paper. I think 100 can get to be a little time consuming, but it's a good exercise to start with. Even if I don't have a sketchbook nearby, I always end up with 5+ pieces of paper by my Mac covered in quick Sharpie sketches.

10. A break

I have a really hard time pulling away from projects. While it's good to get into a design groove, it's important to pull away and take a break every couple hours, just for sanity purposes. I've realized that if I've been working on a project for too long, I end up designing in circles and wasting time. Breaks allow me to relax, regroup, and have a fresh perspective on my design work.

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How about you? What are some things you just can't work without?

Weekly Truth

Brace yourself for what my best friend Jenny calls some "good conviction." This week's verse is easier to gloss over than dig into, because if we let it sink in, it's going to require us to change. 

"Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ." Colossians 3:23-24

"Whatever you do, work heartily"

I've found it easy to strive hard in some areas of life and not so hard in others. I'll work several hours perfecting every detail on a design project for a client, but that laundry? Oh, it can wait until tomorrow. Tasks that I enjoy are often easier to complete than not-so-awesome chores like cleaning the house or studying for a test. But this verse doesn't read, "whatever you want to do." Instead it tells us to work heartily in all that we do, whether the task is a pain or a joy.

"as for the Lord, and not for men"

Because the truth is that we aren't working to please our bosses or ourselves; we're working hard to reflect the patience, perseverance, and faithfulness of the One who provides for us. Even though it may get stressful and frustrating at times, work is a blessing from the Lord in and of itself. We should purpose each day to glorify God in all that we do; our efforts should be motivated by a respect and love for Him. 

"knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward."

While we might be working for wages, our families, or even a clean house, those rewards pale in comparison to salvation. No, we can't earn our way into heaven by our works, but we can reflect our gratitude for His atoning sacrifice by working hard in all we do. 

"You are serving the Lord Christ."

What a blessing it is to serve the One who gave His life for us! 

Whether you're sitting in a cubicle, chasing little ones around, or waiting tables this week, I hope this pretty little background motivates you to go above and beyond in all that you do.

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Recent Backgrounds

Monday's Letters

Dear Mr. Hooker, we've been told by a few kind people that we remind them of Chip and Joanna Gaines, so we decided to watch an episode of Fixer Upper. One episode turned into two, two turned into three, and three turned into eight. I don't know if it's the thought of renovating a house or the fact that our sense of humor is similar to theirs (or both), but I do know that we're hooked. 

Dear Molly and Brynn, your parents are vacationing in Charleston for the next two weeks, so they entrusted you into the care of your two favorite people (aka Jake and I). Here's to stuffing you full of dog treats, spoiling you with belly rubs, playing long games of fetch, and not having accidents on the hardwood floors. 

Dear Crystal, thanks so much for allowing me to design stickers, notecards, and fabric patterns for Little Bit Funky. Not only are your "hohos" adorable, but the purpose behind each one is precious. "A hoho is a creation especially made by me, for you. It's a quirky, purposefully wonky little creature that is here to remind you that YOU ARE LOVELY and you don't have to be perfect to be lovable." Designing for you was a joy! 

Dear Jake, you were so sweet to wake up early this morning and let the dogs out, but I have a sneaking suspicion that you helped them onto our bed while I was still asleep. Puppy facials aren't my favorite way to wake up, but the sound of your laughter is high on my list of favorite things. Just keep in mind that I know where you sleep, too...

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Past Letters

Each Monday I write four letters: two letters to my husband and two random letters to whatever else is on my heart each week. What originally started as a fun way to record events and funny stories pleasantly developed into a weekly habit of practicing thankfulness.