And here she is… finally finished!
It hasn’t been just bricks and mortar. It’s been blood, sweat, tears, sacrificed family time, late nights, a huge monetary investment, three businesses to juggle, two small children shipped here and there, and one very, very tired Daddy Pig.
Where?
“You’ve moved studio???? Again?? You only moved into your last one last year,” people have been saying to me. “Why have you moved? The last studio was beautiful inside!” I received so many messages.
Yes, the old studio was gorgeous. It was the place where I was finally able to offer my clients the sessions I had always dreamt of – a beautiful curtain of light to capture your moments in an aesthetically pleasing and inviting space. It was Wirral’s first and only timeless, white photography studio. It was the place I grew my brand, became known for my white, natural photography style and established something completely unique to the Wirral and surrounding areas. However, it wasn’t perfect. And for a perfection seeker – I needed perfect for my clients.
My Wirral newborn photography studio based in … exactly the same place as the old. A place for me to do what I love – photograph your bump, newborn, cake smash or family in my natural, timeless style.
SO HERE’S OUR STORY…
For about a year I hunted high and low for a studio space. I couldn’t find one. I needed something easy to heat to a high temperature for newborns, completely private for maternity sessions, easy to park outside and something I could turn into a beautiful space for clients to relax in.
I never, ever planned ‘just a space’ to shoot in. It has always been about creating a calm and inviting home from home environment because it’s what my clients deserve. When you walk in I want you to feel at home. That’s exactly what we have created.
I’m a huge believer in everything happening for a reason and things appearing at the right time.
This was just that.
Tucked completely out of the way with private parking directly outside of the door, we purchased three units.
The tricky part was that they were in serious need of huge renovation work. It’s a good job my husband Jamie owns Wirral Joinery & Construction (you won’t find better).
The three buildings seemed perfect to run our three businesses from.
Two were connected storage units and the other a separate brick built building (an old stables around 100 years old). This one would be my dream studio but we needed to get the others done before we could begin on it.
Last year the connected units were renovated allowing Jamie to use one for storage and me to work from one temporarily.
The time could then be spent renovating the old stables – my space. I say renovating – hubs knocked it down and began again. This has all been on top of moving house and beginning a FULL renovation on our own home (we’ve never done things by half).
Insulating the studio was the most important part for me. I needed her to be easy to heat. If you’ve been at a newborn photoshoot before, you’ll know it gets pretty hot. I knew it would be pointless having a pretty studio if it wasn’t functional.
My first question when Jay told me he needed to pull the whole thing down was, “But what about the beam?”
He’s a good egg. When he rebuilt the roof he cladded the steel with the original beam….
and since he had some wood left over….
Built the kitchen worktops from it!!!!
It has always been my dream to have a kitchen space open and accessible for clients to use. When you’re here for your baby photoshoot, I want you to feel like you’re at home, to be able to get up and make yourself a brew or grab some snacks whenever you feel like whilst I capture moments with your newborn. And now I have one that’s functional and pretty!
The doors were positioned where I could find a slither of natural light between 10am and 1pm.
The toilet was built as small as it could possibly be to give me as much studio space as possible.
The electrics were positioned in accordance with which areas required the most heat and where my LED wall of light would be positioned. A huge thank you to Rob from @ for putting up with us.
To my darling hubs I couldn’t be more grateful for your hard work. A heartfelt thank you to you and the boys at Wirral Joinery & Construction for all the effort that has gone into making it perfect.
The final, final touches.
We took the kids (Theo – 3 years and Esmée – 18 months) on the final day. Total, utter carnage.
Jay told me I was crazy. I told him, “We finished the last one together so we’ll finish this one together”.
And just like that, she’s complete…
She’s spacious enough but cosy, easy to heat on cold, frosty mornings and bloody beautiful.
My little happy place.
I cannot wait to show her off to you.
Make sure you follow my updates on Instagram for sneak previews. Something very, very exciting will be posted soon!
…Or come and see for yourself! My Wirral photography studio covers newborn, cake smash, maternity and family. To check out the different studio sessions on offer click here. Clients travel from all over the North West for my newborn, baby, maternity and family photography including the Wirral, Cheshire, North Wales, Liverpool, Warrington and Manchester.
SHOT WITH PURE SOUL IN THE MOST BEAUTIFUL SPACE! I CAN’T WAIT TO WELCOME YOU!
Looks amazing Rachel, well deserved and well done! So lovely to see the progress photos.. it looks perfect! xx