On Wednesday we had a fantastic day at the Ekeberg Restaurant – on a hill overlooking the city and the fjord – only 5 minutes from where we live. Photographer Eivind Røhne picked up model Alex Eissinger/Sweden Models at the train station Oslo S as she arrived by the Airport Express Train – flying in from Copenhagen – while hair and make up artist Sissel Fylling drove the short distance to the restaurant. As usual Sissel wanted to cut the model’s hair, and since this is the second time around for Alex she let Sissel do exactly what she wanted to do. Just as the rest of us do… My husband was the photo assistant, technical support and also the paparazzi according to Eivind. He has taken these two first photos of us on the veranda at the restaurant above, and me still planning the outfits below. I had borrowed 4 amazing wedding dresses and a fringe skirt from designer Judith Bech but used only two of them in the end.

First, I booked the photographer Eivind Røhne, then hair & make up artist Sissel Fylling, followed by model Alexandra Eissinger (An American living in Malmø in Sweden) and last, the restaurant. Everyone could do the same date to my immense relief. I finished knitting and sewing in buttons the night before the photo shoot with at lot of assistance from sample knitter Grete Jenssen, aka ma9 on Ravelry, who knitted the last jacket in just 8 days. You can see the back of it in the photo below: It is one of four designs to be included in the Norwegian magazine Familien Håndarbeid out in March, before they are test knitted and published in English.

I must admit I cannot remember what Eivind was explaining at this point in time, but I can assure you we had plenty of laughs throughout the day! A total of 9 garments were brilliantly photographed, and for me they came alive on the gorgeous Alex with beautiful hair & make up by Sissel and passed the quality control unlike seeing them on myself. As usual we did test out a number of possible photo settings like Alex standing in the high window sill – too much light; sitting on the floor – too tight a dress; sitting on a chair with a curtain behind her – too much like a portrait. In the end we used the veranda a lot, the window in the large “Festsal” and the back stair case outside.

Above you can see the view from the veranda facing the other side. All these windows are opened up during the summer and give a spectacular view of the fjord and the city center. You might recognize the fringe skirt from my previous photo shoots – this time in a light tan color – I have borrowed the black one, twice already from designer Judith Bech. The jewelry is borrowed from Kaja Gjedebo Design just as last time. I had also borrowed shoes from Monica Stålvang but ended up using two of the pairs I bought for the photo shoot of my book; both by Danish shoe designer Camilla Skovgaard. We had hoped that both dress designer Judith Bech and former Made by Me editor Mary-Ann Astrup would join us, but with pneumonia (it did not help that Judith had her plane ticket ready), nor did plenty of work for Mary-Ann, they did not make it. However, the rest of us had a great lunch at the restaurant and finished well in time before the light faded in the late afternoon. Thanks to brilliant team work! I cannot wait to see a selection of all the photos Eivind took!