'Relax & Indulge' raffle for Sick Kids Hospital Edinburgh

More fund-raising for Sick Kids and this time, with the help of some amazing businesses.

Last week, I was asked by a previous Blast Off client Nicola to photograph her family again, this time in a special place.  Nicola and Stewart were celebrating their 10th anniversary and decided to celebrate it in style at their wedding venue Airth Castle (quite topical as today is my 14th anniversary!)
This year has been a year to really test those vows of marriage for the Haddows, as their youngest boy Frankie was struck down by a virus, leaving him paralysed from the neck down. Rehabilitation has been tough on the family and they have had to make many trips to the Sick Kids Hospital in Edinburgh.

After the session, I was sitting in my car thinking..... more fund-raising is needed for this amazing hospital, which continues to help other Blast Off clients like Frankie, and also Alex F, and was great help for Evie before her passing. So I thought, at this time of year, as the kids are about to go back to school, what would mums and dads like Nicola and Stewart like? A wee bit of pampering? Of course!

So NMP bought a £30 voucher for the beautiful spa at Airth Castle Resort. Who wouldn't like a facial or massage, and a swim in their amazing pool?

Since then, other local businesses have been very generous in quickly donating vouchers themselves.

All you have to do to win one of these amazing vouchers is the following;

1) Donate minimum of £2 to the Blast Off Sick Kids Hospital Just Giving page, making sure you put your Facebook name on your donation. The money goes directly to the Sick Kids Hospital.

2) On the Nikki McLeod Facebook page, there is a pinned post about this raffle; comment ON THAT THREAD ONLY with your choice of voucher you would like to win. Each £2 donation gives you one entry, you can donate as much as you like but only one entry per £2 donated - for example, a £10 donation will give you 5 entries, so you can apply for 5 vouchers of your choice.


You can gain an extra free entry into the draw (for any voucher) by PUBLICLY SHARING the thread with your Facebook friends (you first must have made a minimum of £2 donation, and then you must share it under PUBLIC, as I won't see it otherwise and therefore you won't gain an extra entry).

It would be really great to donate at least the target of £100 to Sick Kids, we are already 1/3 there already after #eyesforevie. Let's do it!



'RELAX & INDULGE' for Sick Kids 

VOUCHERS
Please note that not all vouchers are full price for treatments etc, you may have to pay extra to complete the treatment.

1) One £30 voucher for the spa at Airth Castle Resort & Spa, near Falkirk; can be used for part payment to any spa treatment - at the moment, they have a summer special for £28 until the end of September, meaning you could get a free treatment without any further payment!

2) One £30 voucher for Simply Make Up & Beauty, Dalgety Bay; can be used for part payment to any beauty treatment; nails, facials, massage and more from the wonderful Emily!

3) One £10 voucher for Loopy Lou's Nails & Beauty, Dalgety Bay; can be used for part payment to any beauty treatment at my next door neighbour!

4) One £30 voucher from Dalgety Bay Chiropracter Clinic, Dalgety Bay for a new patient consultation by the lovely Vicki!

5) One voucher value to be confirmed from The Remedy Rooms, Edinburgh; CACI Endermologie, Decleor Body & Face, Eye Spa and much more!

6) One £20 voucher for Jem Therapies, Cowdenbeath; OPI nails and more!

7) One £40 voucher for 'Beauty By Carrie', Rosyth for a luxury manicure and pedicure in your own home (only available in Rosyth, Inverkeithing, Dunfermline, Dalgety Bay and surrounding areas)

8) The Clubhouse, Dalgety Bay have very kindly donated a bottle of wine; the ultimate indulgence!

9) One £35 voucher for 'Beauty By Carrie' (a different one in Rosyth!) for a Dermalogica Express Facial and Back Massage at her home based studio

10) 2 x 'Actiderm' free inch loss wrap treatment, designed for home use from Caroline Kechida

and of course, I am happy to indulge you at the studio with a £30 voucher towards a fun Blast Off Portraits session!!

So at the moment, I have £150 worth of vouchers to give away, and that will be more once I find out what the Remedy Rooms is donating! Can we at least attempt an equal amount to Sick Kids??

So all you mums and dads looking for a little relaxing when the kids go back to school, or anyone needing a little self-indulgence, for just £2, you could win a voucher and help Sick Kids!

GOOD LUCK!

T&CS
Closing date 23th August 2013 6pm.
All winning vouchers must be collected from the Blast Off Portraits studio by appointment only.
All names will be drawn 23rd August with winners announced 24th August.
Entries only accepted by above rules, judges decision is final.

"The Eyes Have It" and Dalgety Bay & Hillend Gala.... for Evie......

I have been looking to do some more fund-raising through the Blast Off studio once more.  Over a thousand pounds was successfully raised for CHAS when the very first Blast Off studio opened in the Play Planet (link here).  This time, Blast Off Portraits is fund-raising for an equally important childrens charity.

Several Blast Off Portraits clients have been treated in the Sick Kids Hospital in Edinburgh, which is the chosen charity for this year's Blast Off Portraits fund-raising.

Young lads Frankie H and Alex F are both currently undergoing continuing treatment at the Sick Kids.  Gorgeous Evie Byrne had treatment over the past year for a Wilms Tumour, but sadly passed away last month.

With their parents permission, Blast Off Portraits is now fund-raising for the Sick Kids Hospital in two current ways.

DALGETY BAY & HILLEND GALA

Blast Off Portraits will be at the annual Gala at the Sports Centre in Dalgety Bay for the first time, with the BLAST OFF BOOTH!! Fun images with silly props are available in the booth, to make silly photos from the end of the procession to the close of the Gala. Individuals, groups, couples, children - anyone can be photographed!  All images taken will be displayed as low resolution, water-marked (not for printing) images on the Nikki McLeod Photography Facebook page within a week of the Gala.
Cost - £2 per image per person, with £1 going to the Sick Kids Hospital.


INSTAGRAM "THE EYES HAVE IT....FOR EVIE" COMPETITION

For a while now I have been wanting to update my front page image of Blast Off Portraits and have always wanted to use an image of someone with amazing eyes! So now I am on the look-out for the most amazing eyes!

Do you have amazing eyes, like Jamie Lee?

If so, why not enter the Instagram competition.

Take a selfie, or an image of a loved one (any age), upload it to Instagram, making sure you mark your image with the hashtag #eyesforevie.

I will choose who I think has the most amazing pair of eyes that I would like on my website!

The winner of the competition will be invited to the studio for a mini session to get that perfect shot for the front page of the website.

It's FREE to enter and be in the running for winning the top prize, BUT if you make a donation to Sick Kids via my fund-raising page, you will be entered in a prize draw to win the following prizes;

- a voucher for a Standard session fee at Blast Off Portraits, worth £60 (session fee only, no products)

- a £15 voucher for the Clubhouse, Dalgety Bay

- a voucher for one child's entry into the Play Planet, Dalgety Bay

Make sure you put some sort of contact information in the comments area of your donation to be eligible for entry into the prize draw.


T&C's
Entries close 26th June 2013. Open to UK residents only and all entries must be correctly tagged to be eligible for entry. Judge's decision is final. Mini session prize is a 15 minute session with immediate viewing of images, products available for purchase at the viewing. Entry into prize draw is only feasible if contact details (email, mobile number or landline number) are put in comments of your donatation of the Just Giving page.

Let's raise money in memory of Evie....

'Freebie Friday' results

Many thanks for all those who entered 'Freebie Friday', lots of returning clients as well as new names, lots of entries for some prizes and not so many for others. It's been fantastic to give instead of receive this month and I hope you all enjoy your gifts.

WINNERS drawn at random were;
'Play Planet' vouchers - Louisa Davidson, A. Stewart
iPhone case - Carol Syme
'Clubhouse' voucher -A. Mitchell
iTunes vouchers - A. Finnegan
'Blast Off Portraits £20 voucher - not claimed
'Back Again' or 'Blast Off on the Streets' session - Emma Lategan

Vouchers being sent out today!

FORTY FRIDAYS!!!

July 2012 can only mean one thing for me...

That big birthday when life is supposed to begin.... ARGH!!

Well to cheer me up, I have decided to make other people happy.  So for the month of July, I am running special offers - 'FORTY FRIDAYS'.

On each Friday in July, there will be TEN special offers for Nikki McLeod Photography, Blast Off Portraits, "breathless" by NMP, and 'Pamper & Pout' - a grand total of forty offers!

Check in to this blog every Friday in July for 'FORTY FRIDAYS'!

WEEK ONE - Free cupcakes from Candi's Cupcake Boutique! Now closed.

WEEK TWO - Free session, & £20 vouchers for 'Blast Off Portraits' closing date Thursday 19th July 5pm. Now closed.

WEEK THREE - Two free sessions for 'breathless by NMP' or 'Pamper & Pout' and 8 £20 vouchers closing date Thursday 26th July. Now closed.

WEEK FOUR - 'Freebie Friday' - a ton of awesome different prizes, and you can enter as many times as you like!

BIRTHDAY - 40% discount off the 'Family Collection' for remaining 2012 new wedding bookings with NMP

Proposal story competition WINNER

Unfortunately like all competitions, there can only be one winner.


This story really made me laugh, and is so sweet too!


"To give a bit of background I chatted Iain up on a night out 9 years ago. We dated for a month and it fizzled out and we ended up with other partners, got back together 3 years ago, and had our little girl June 2011, bought a wonderful family home in December and found out we're expecting again on Iain's 30th in January.


This year has been pretty epic and I decided to propose! (my mum proposed to my dad 24 years ago).


So me and Casey got our art attack on - we made a card asking daddy to marry mummy and presented that to him this morning with a cup of tea!
He said yes!


:) xx "

Well done Kimberly (and Casey!)

Contact me on nikki@nikkimcleodphotography.com and we shall organise your complimentary shoot!

Proposal story competition - runner up #3!

Chris & Kathryn's story is so adorable!


"Chris and Kathryn lived 3000 miles apart--he in Edinburgh, she in New Hampshire. While Kathryn was in the UK for a holiday to visit, Chris planned to propose during a weekend trip to Paris. How romantic!

Chris planned to pick up the ring from an antique shop in Battle, East Sussex and convinced Kathryn that a historical visit to the Battle of Hastings battlefield (where William the Conqueror defeated Harold II in 1066) would be a fantastic way to spend a Saturday. At the end of their educational tour, Kathryn and Chris found a place to rest their feet, which turned out to have a perfect view of the ancient latrines. 

Pretending he desperately needed to find a toilet, Chris ran off to the antique jeweler down the road and picked up the ring. Now he would just have to wait until they reached Paris to propose. Or so he thought.

Upon his return to Kathryn, Chris was green and sweating. The ring in his pocket was making him mighty nervous. Concerned Chris was suffering from food poisoning, Kathryn began to fuss over him. Instead of admitting he had eaten some dodgy chicken at lunch, as she had expected, Chris blurted out: "I love you! I want to spend my life with you! Will you marry me!" Kathryn, of course, said yes. It didn't matter whether he proposed in Paris or on near some smelly latrines on an ancient battlefield, Chris was the one for her. "

Proposal story competition - runner up #2!

Lisa is another runner-up!

"Here's the story of how my wonderful husband Mark proposed to me.


It was our 1 year anniversary, he planned a lovely night in as I had said, if I was ever getting engaged, I wanted to do it in private, didn't at the time like being the centre of attention.  He had planned a three course dinner in his mum's house (at the time, we both lived with our parents), which consisted of his home-made chicken noodle soup, macaroni cheese and yummy chocolate fudge cake.


We had dinner whilst listening to a love album he'd bought especially for the night.  After dinner, he cleared away all the plates then when we sat down all snuggled up on the couch, he told me how much he loved me and how all he wanted to do was spend the rest of his life with me.  He then got down on one knee and asked me to marry him, which I said "yes" to immediately and 6 years later, after saving, we finally got married on the 28th May 2011."

Proposal story competition - runner up #1!

I had such a fun time reading the proposal stories yesterday, sent to me by email and on the Facebook page.

Some of them really need to be read by you all, so here comes the runner-up's.................

RUNNER UP #1

Deirdre

"I proposed to my boyfriend Ally of nearly two years tonite!

I went to his house holding a poem up that I wrote for him and I held 3 'I Love You' balloons, while playing 'Just say YES' by Snow Patrol.

I presented him with a ring engraved with 'Marry Me 2012' - he was stunned and said yes!

CONGRATULATIONS on your engagement Deirdre! Have fun with the wedding planning!

LEAP YEAR COMPETITION - best proposal stories!

It's Leap Year, so all you ladies in love can pop the question!

Nikki McLeod Photography would love to hear your stories of how you (or he) proposed!

The best story wins a complimentary photo shoot of you and your loved one in South West Fife before August 1st 2012, with Facebook-ready images of your session.

Tell me your story today either on the Nikki McLeod Photography Facebook page, by email nikki@nikkimcleodphotography.co.uk or here on the blog, just leave a comment below!

Closing date midnight tonight 290212.

Good luck!

"Win your wedding photography" with NMP!

It's been busy busy busy at NMP, I feel like I am designing albums in my sleep at the moment, such is the joy of a busy summer season!

I have so many amazing weddings still to blog, but before I do, I would like to announce NMP's 2011 "Win your Wedding Photography" competition!

This competition has been a success at NMP, this year's winner had an amazing wedding, it was even sneaky-peeked featured on OffBeat Bride in the States!  Gillian's wedding will be blogged in full soon on here............... at some point, promise!

In the meantime, it is time to find a new winner!

Do you, or are you a bride getting married in 2012? Are you looking for a fabulous, fun, funky wedding photographer for your big day? How about having Fife based photographer Nikki McLeod Photography as your prize?

Easy!

WHAT YOU WOULD WIN.....

- a pre-wedding chat at the studio in Fife 1 month prior to your wedding

- coverage by Nikki from the getting ready stage of the day to the start of the meal 

- a post-wedding slideshow première of your images

- 3 months online proofing of your images, for all your friends and family to view

- a book-bound coffee table album with the first 20 images included, with the option to upgrade your album

HOW TO ENTER

You can enter yourself, or enter a friend or family member who is getting married.

All you need to do is email me on

nikki@nikkimcleodphotography.co.uk

before October 13th 2011 (NEW CLOSING DATE!) and telling me why you, or your friend/family member should win; it could be for any reason; a lovely story of how you met, a heart-breaking story of how love won through the odds, funny or romantic proposals, whatever!

You MUST include the following details (any entry without any of the following will be immediately disqualified!)

- bride & groom's names

- wedding date (2012 weddings only sorry!)

- wedding venues (ceremony & reception)

- a recent photo of the couple

On October 14th, I shall pick three finalists whose story shall be posted here on this blog. Then on October 14th, I shall post all three stories on my Nikki McLeod Photography Facebook page; the winner shall be the couple who get the most votes on their story on my Facebook page. Obviously the best stories will have a better chance of getting the most votes on Facebook so make sure you give me a good story!  This year, the votes on Facebook shall be the only ones counted towards the entries, so get all your friends and family registered on Facebook, so they can vote for the winner!

RULES

- I shall consider any 2012 wedding anywhere in the world BUT any wedding outwith East Central Scotland shall be subject to travel and accomodation costs to be paid for on signing a contract to secure your date. Obviously dates I am already booked on cannot be considered.

- You must send your email to nikki@nikkimcleodphotography.co.uk with the following information; names of the bride and groom, wedding date, wedding venue(s), contact telephone number for the bride or groom, and your blurb as to why this couple should be considered - anything missing from the above list will void that entry. A photo of the couple is also a must! An email will be sent within 48 hours of receiving your entry to say firstly if I am available and secondly if your entry has been considered, and if the wedding is outwith East Central Scotland, how much the travel/accommodation fee will be.

- You must not already have a professional photographer booked and NMP will have free range on the wedding day to photograph the day the NMP way, and use the images in advertising, promotion etc. 
- The couple will have to sign a contract within 1 month of winning the prize, accompanied by a £100 booking fee, which is refundable at the slideshow première or can be used as a credit towards an upgrade on the album (non refundable if contract is subsequently cancelled for any reason by the client).  If there is any travel/accommodation fee to be paid, it also must be paid with the contract and is non refundable.

- Any client already booked by NMP cannot be considered.

Dead easy! Looking forward to hearing the stories! GO!!!!!

COMPETITION - free tickets to a pamper event!

I am interrupting this wedding for some great news! WIN!!

The Scottish Wedding Directory are holding Top to Toe Event on Sunday 15th May at The George Hotel Edinburgh 2pm - 6pm.

A girls styling afternoon open to all ladies involved in your wedding with style advice, wedding stands, a complimentary glass of fizz, canapes & a beauty treatment for all.

I shall be there talking photographs of the day.

Fancy winning a ticket worth £10 (and an extra special prize)?

Easy question to answer to win!

Name any venue Nikki McLeod Photography has photographed a wedding at.

(Tip - look on this blog for answers!)

Send your answer to nikki@nikkimcleodphotography.com before 5pm Monday 2nd May.

Good luck!

Lynseys Designs commercial shoot - part one

In 2008, I had the distinct pleasure of photographing the stunning wedding of Meaghan and Brent at Falkland Palace.

The beautiful bridal jewellery was skillfully handcrafted by the amazing Lynseys Designs in Glasgow. Last week, Lynsey came through to the (new!) studio for a commercial shoot of some of her new designs.

Lesley Jane Make Up did an amazing job on the hair and make up for our three "models" of the day, all girls who had entered the model competition last month. Pamela was the winner and Lisa & Fiona fantastic runners-up.Lynsey was stylist and shoot co-ordinator for the day, it was awesome to see her beautiful work on gorgeous ladies.
The following images are the first images which will be seen on Lynsey's website soon. I am sure there will be more soon!

COMPETITION - free shoot! Be a model bride!

Would you like to
- wear beautiful handcrafted bridal hair accessories and wedding dresses for the day

- have your hair and make up professionally styled

- be fabulously photographed & appear on a professional website as their model!

When; Friday 4th March 2011, 10am up to 5pm, but your stint will be 3 hours maximum, sometime in that timeframe

Where; Blast Off Portraits studio in Dalgety Bay

Oh and you must have long hair!

Email me a photo of yourself to nikki@nikkimcleodphotography.com, with your contact details

Closing date 10th February; surprise prize for the winner!