Last year, I was given the incredible opportunity to shoot the ML Monique Lhuillier Spring 2021 Lookbook. This fabulous brand has long been known for its whimsical sense of fashion and was created to reflect Monique Lhuillier’s love of relaxed yet modern dressing The design sensibility speaks to a younger consumer who wants to feel fun, flirty, and confident!  

I rarely receive opportunities to direct full-scale shoots. So, when ML’s team reached out with another opportunity to shoot content for their Fall-Winter 2021 “See Now, Buy Now” collection, we said yes!  Everything turned out beautifully, which felt like a big win considering the difficult year we all faced in 2020. 

I enlisted the help of my long-time friend, collaborator, photographer and art director, Chelsea Anne, while I essentially wore all the other hats (model, stylist, assistant stylist, production coordinator, hair, and makeup artist, etc…). Between us two, and over three days of nonstop shooting in Palm Beach and Miami, we managed to capture 17+ looks and endless beautiful moments. We anticipated bad weather, humidity, shipping delays, permitting issues, you name it…but everything went smoothly and miraculously came together in the end. 

There are so many advantages to having a smaller team, I won’t name them all…but it’s been through my experience of having to wear “all the hats” that I’ve learned the most. At one point during our shoot, Chelsea said, “this has gone really well…too well” and while it did start raining immediately after, I like to think it’s because of years and years and years of hard work. At some point, shoots become easy… 

To evoke a festive holiday spirit, we selected locations around Palm Beach that were reminiscent of parties I’ve attended in the past. The remainder of the looks were captured at the historic Villa Woodbine in Coconut Grove, Miami. (It’s a wedding venue!)

Both collections combine the perfect blend of elevated day dressing with luxurious evening pieces. The Fall 2021 collection is the perfect balance of modern femininity and easy elegance. Inspired by nature’s color progression, it features a range of botanical references and flourishes. While the Fall / Winter 2022 ML Monique Lhuillier collection incorporates the romance and fluidity of Art Nouveau florals. The perfect looks you can wear to brunch, a bridal shower, and an intimate night out. My favorite was this one…which was quite possibly the lightest gown I’ve ever worn! It felt like pajamas! 

ML Monique Lhuillier’s Fall collection is out now, and the Winter collection is slated to release November 1, 2021. Click here to view… These are the kind of silhouettes that will make you want to grab a petite bouquet of flowers, your fiancé, and head straight to the courthouse for an impromptu civil ceremony…or throw a catered dinner party in your backyard “just because!” 

Thank you, once more, to the ML Monique Lhuillier team for trusting us with yet another project!

Xo, Stephanie 

Photography by Chelsae Anne