What: Fête 2022 Shoot
When: August 2022
Where: Room + Board, Daylesford
Who: Photography: Armelle Habib assisted by Sarah Wilkosz, styling by team SxC
Styling: Ally Rust, Elliane Budge (me), Emma Haddon and Erin Mellington
Styling Assist + support: Bonnie Kelly and Deb Schmidt
Model: Anucia De Boer - GIANT Management
Hair + Makeup: Melonie Santos
Hello hello! *is this thing on?* Hey, I’m Elliane and I’m a Customer Service Specialist here at
Sage x Clare. I’m also a bit of a newbie to the world of photoshoots, so who better to write a BTS than a set of
very fresh eyes? And what an incredible first shoot to be a part of. (Spoiler alert: I love Christmas.)
By now, all of you must know – we love Daylesford. Its beautiful homes, delicious food, and cool climate, have proven time and time again to be a magical combination for our
Sage x Clare shoots! And, when I say cool climate, I really mean it. You’ll notice in the photos to come that we were dressed very warmly for this photoshoot. As temperatures plummeted and the sun hid behind rainclouds, our amazing photographer,
Armelle Habib, brought all of the sunshine to the screen.
As we all began to arrive at the beautiful
Room + Board property of Lynda Gardener’s we took our positions on the gorgeous central couches, and promptly forgot that we were here to work, amid comments of “I feel like we’re in a tv show” and “please say someone brought cocktails”. These notions did quickly subside, however, when we realised the mammoth task ahead. First things first, let’s unload that van!
You can book this amazing accomodation here.
I’m pretty well versed in the moving house game, having moved at least 20 times in my life, so I’m no stranger to a well-packed van, but with this photoshoot we really took it to another level! Boxes of props, beautiful resin, vintage kid’s toys, a bicycle, racks of bedding and clothing, and a stunning Christmas tree, all managed to fit in this van. But as they say…what goes in…
So, in the short break of rain at about 5pm on the Sunday evening before we began the shoot, we unloaded everything into the house and discussed our first scenes for the next day.
Of course, this activity required sustenance and brain food – enter,
Beppe. We ordered a feast. The beautiful pizzas and pastas were almost definitely the reason behind our flying start in the morning!
The team stayed at Lewellyn House (where we shot our Camille collection last year) - you can book this accomodation here.
We awoke to some drizzle (see: a total downpour.) Fortunately though, our gorgeous, festive
Fête collection, with beautiful bright hues and bold patterns really brought the colour! As this was a two-day shoot, we knew that every moment mattered, so we all set to work; wrapping presents in our beautiful reusable gift wrap, made using excess fabrics from our bedding, setting the table for Christmas lunch, and of course, hanging
ornaments on the tree! Honestly, getting to do this twice in one year is a dream come true for me. I’m not sure what the opposite of a grinch is…but I’m that.
And then the fun began! Phoebe’s beautiful kids, Jude and Heidi, arrived to a Christmas wonderland and it was so sweet to see their faces light up! For this shoot, I baked some gorgeous little gingerbread hearts and shapes for the kids to decorate (in my previous career I was a pastry chef for nearly 10 years) and it was so special to see Jude helping Heidi to ice the gingerbread. Mind you, it did get very messy, but all the better for BTS action shots!
Shop our decorate range here and sleepwear here.
Featured: Our new resin range + dine range.
Featured: Uxbridge cotton bedding + sleepwear.
While these photos were being taken, Ally and I snuck out to the stunning Greenhouse to set up the kid’s cubby scene, and…did I mention it was raining?
(If you look closely you can see the rain on the roof…and let’s call them Santa’s footprints on the rug!)
Featured: Felt ornaments + Henry Fish Cushion.
It was around this time that the past chef in me realised we were nearing lunch time, and as I was on lunch duty, I ducked away to our gorgeous accommodation up the road at Lewellyn House to cook a feast to warm us all up!
Nothing like some roasted pumpkin with herby freekeh and broccoli salad to power us through the afternoon!
Featured: Didcot Nudie Towels.
Featured: Didcot Nudie Hooded Towels.
The entire afternoon had me dreaming of Summer (although at this moment in December in Melbourne…I still am), and even though we had to make a few adjustments, and bring some shots inside, we still captured such a bright and beautiful feel that reflected the Fête collection so well.
Oh, and after all of that? We managed to squeeze in some beautiful tablescapes with enough flowers to convince us it was Summer!
Featured: Fleur dine range + new resin.
Heidi having a quiet moment to herself in between shots. #ModelLife.
And on the second day of Christmas, our beautiful model Anucia graced us with her presence, as we set out on our second jam-packed day of shooting!
Featured: Colyton Towelling Robe - persimmon.
Shoutout to Vintage Posters Only for borrowing us these amazing posters.
Featured: Floris Pj Set + Lyme linen.
Another tablescape was to come, this time with one of my favourite things as centrpiece: Citrus! This centrepiece was so much fun to create, and came together really organically as it weaved its way down the table!
Featured: Hartland Check Tablecloth + new resin.
I promise I unintentionally dressed to match our tablecloth! Shop our dine range here.
And then of course…the hunger pangs came again. LUNCHTIME! While prepping Tom Kha Gai for 9 in the little space you can see behind me wasn’t the tightest kitchen I’ve ever worked in, it was a pretty hilarious time juggling bowls of prep and realising I’d planned a noodle soup that we didn’t actually have enough cutlery to consume. But hey, what’s a photoshoot without some resourceful thinking, and use of prop cutlery?!
I think lunch that day formed a core memory for me; sitting around on various cushions/chairs/the floor and all taking a moment to drink our spicy soup from spoons of varying sizes and laugh together.
I’m no stranger to putting a salad and a
cheeseboard together, but you really haven’t lived until you’ve made a salad outside, on the deck (literally…chopping board on the deck) and put it in the most beautiful salad bowl ever, only to see it become images as amazing as these?! You are AMAZING
Armelle Habib.
After an afternoon of setting, and resetting, the table it was suddenly over! And just like that, another
Sage x Clare photoshoot came to a close. I have to say, I know I’ve only been present at one of these, but I’m pretty sure it was the best one yet.
While we had all of our fingers and toes crossed for the sun to shine down on us, Mother Nature had other plans for our busy 2-day photoshoot in August. Instead, the rain came and kept us company for nearly the whole shoot, but the more I think about it, I suppose she was just giving us a heads up of what was to come!
This was truly such an amazing experience and I can’t wait for the next one! Autumn/Winter 2023, anyone?
With a whole lotta love, Elliane. Xx
Shop the Fête holiday collection here.
