mell bell and wanda News flash friday faces

News Flash Friday- October 2018

Halloween Costume Contest

What are you going to be for Halloween? Be sure to enter our online Halloween Costume Contest. You could win a FREE boudoir or pinup session with us or some other fantastic prizes. The rules are simple, and all ladies 21 years old and up are eligible to enter.

1. Post a photo of yourself in your costume on Facebook or Instagram now through October 31st
2. Tag mellBella in your post on Facebook- mellBella Boudoir & PinUp Photography or Instagram – mellBella
3. Add the hashtag #mellbellatrickortreat2018
4. There are 3 categories and prizes: Overall (wins the FREE session), Scariest, and Sexiest (have other awesome prizes)

We’ll announce the winner after Halloween! Can’t wait to see what you come up with.

Rockabillaque 2018

Are you ready? It’s almost time for the 6th annual Rockabillaque at Park Circle in North Charleston from 11am-6pm on November 10th. Bring your friends, and come check out the vintage car and bike shows, live music, or enter one of the contests: Pinup, Tattoo, Beard & Mustache, and more. mellBella is proudly sponsoring the Pinup Contest again, and this year, we’ll be judging it too! So grab your pearls, wear your best pinup look, and rock on down to Park Circle. We’ll also have a booth there to check out our pinup photography too.

Center for Women NEW Conference

C4WNEW is the Center for Women’s 2-day event on November 15 & 16th bringing inspiring fresh ideas, relevant and useful knowledge, and innovative thinking to curious and ambitious women in South Carolina. This event will ignite professional growth, personal transformation, and economic development. mellBella will be there as part of their ME TIME Marketplace with specials ONLY available for those attending. AND you can still purchase the She’s My Hero Calendar at this event.

Get your tickets at: Center for Women

mellBella Fun Fact

Looking to give back? Some of our favorite local non profits/charities to support are:

One Eighty Place ends and prevents homelessness one person at a time, one family at a time.
Florence Crittenton Programs of SC provide education, counseling services, medical care, social support, and a safe haven for at-risk, pregnant and parenting young women in need.
People Against Rape (PAR) is a sexual advocacy program offering free support and services for survivors of sexual assault.
YWCA Greater Charleston is dedicated to eliminating racism, empowering women, and promoting peace, justice, freedom, and dignity for all.

We’ll be posting some more about them and their Christmas Wish Lists coming soon!

She’s My Hero Event Highlights

What a whirlwind! On Wednesday night at Boone Hall, we had our BIG reveal at the She’s My Hero Calendar Launch Party to benefit the Center for Women. The weather threatened rain(and lots of it) earlier in the day, but we said RAIN or SHINE… it’s on! It turned out to be a warm evening with a cool breeze outside where guests enjoyed the marsh view on the Cotton Dock and the delicious paella, tacos, and noodle dishes from the Dashi Food Truck. Throughout the night, guests enjoyed the music and the magical lighting from Lowcountry Entertainment. Lovely flower arrangements in purple and white from Petaloso decorated the tables, and Justin Wham Weddings and Events helped coordinate, set up, provided the cozy seating area near the fireplace, and made sure the stage and the whole space was beautiful along with the rentals from Eventworks. And who doesn’t love something sweet? Sweet Lulu‘s Bakery, Cocktail Caravan & Pedal Pub brought the wine, sangria, and a mouth watering selection of mini desserts.

Here’s just a quick look at some of the highlights:

It was only fitting that our Emcee was Erin Keinzle of Lowcountry Live, as she helped announced the contest that started it all back in February. At the event after welcoming everyone, Erin introduced Lisa Dabney, Executive Director of the Center for Women, who talked more about what the Center does for women in business and their upcoming conference in November. Then, we (Wanda and Mell Bell) shared some personal stories and the WHY behind this whole event– to celebrate women, of course and tell their struggles and their stories. We also thanked several of the sponsors, such as Skirt Charleston whose mission is to celebrate and empower women with attitude.

And finally, it was the time we have been waiting for ALL YEAR LONG… revealing the hero photos to the women in the calendar and the whole world. Their reactions were heartfelt and priceless as they saw themselves as their heroes for the first time! The calendar sales opened, and the silent auction continued NOW with the canvas portraits of the Heroes as part of it.

100%… yes all of the proceeds of the silent auction and calendar went directly to the Center for Women. And at the end of the night, we raised almost $5,000, and it’s still climbing!

The fund raising continues as The She’s My Hero Calendars will be on sale for $20 each through the Center for Women. Get your calendar at their conference at Trident Technical College on Nov 15 and 16th or contact them for more info.

mellBella Photography, 2018

She’s My Hero- December

As we come to the end of the calendar introductions, we couldn’t imagine a nicer person than Jennifer to end the year with. Meet Jennifer. She will be December in the She’s My Hero Calendar. Jennifer succeeds at two demanding jobs. She is a hardworking RN AND an incredible wedding coordinator. She has been married to her sweet husband, Brian for 4 years. They absolutely love and spoil their awesome dogs! Jennifer’s hero is someone she’s know her whole life and is very close to her heart. Thank you again to Paperdolls Wedding Hair & Makeup for creating the final hair and makeup look in our calendar. It was perfect!

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When Mell Bell and Wanda created the She’s My Hero Project back in January, we wanted to raise awareness and funds for the Center for Women, meet and team up with fellow businesses (especially women-owned ones), and tell the stories of local women to bring together, inspire, and celebrate women. We got to meet so many new people and work together to take our BIG idea from a dream to a reality through this year long project. The journey has been difficult but worth every minute. We hope you will join us at the celebration and reveal on Wednesday, October 10th from 6-9pm at Boone Hall.

mellBella Photography, 2018

She’s My Hero- November

Meet Mell Bell. She is 39 year old Mom of a 7 year old daughter. Mell meet her husband in college at USC. She is the Co-Founder of mellBella and has been with Richard Bell Photography for 13 years and a professional photographer for 10 of them. Mell Bell is very passionate about Humans Rights and Equality. Just wait until you see who her hero is, think way back for this one! Thank you again to Sarah Pearson Artistry for going back to the 1800s for the hair and makeup styling.

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The She’s My Hero Calendar Launch Party to benefit the Center for Women is next week! We’ve been keeping the calendar TOP SECRET, and on Wednesday, October 10th the BIG reveal will happen at Boone Hall from 6-9pm. However, we did give exclusive information to Skirt Magazine. Be sure to check out their October issue in print or online for some sneak peeks.

mellBella Photography, 2018

She’s My Hero- October

Meet Wanda who is representing October in the She’s My Hero Calendar. Wanda has been married for almost 30 years! She got married at 17 to her high school sweetheart, has 4 daughters, and 1 newborn grandbaby. She loves Alice in Wonderland, tea, good music, record collecting, and tattoos. She perseveres and always has a plan. You may recognize her from her work at mellBella Photography (that’s us) and our brother company, Richard Bell Photography. Thank you so very much to Sarah Pearson Hair & Makeup Artistry for her time and skill in getting the makeup just right for Wanda’s hero. Her hero is a modern day fictional character who uses her strength and intelligence to save her community.

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The She’s My Hero Calendar Launch Party is next week! As part of our Silent Auction, we will have 12 professional canvas portraits, representing each woman from calendar, up for bidding. We want you to be there and celebrate with us. Get your FREE tickets at:

And be sure to check out the October issue of Skirt Magazine! There will be some sneak peeks into the heroes.

mellBella Photography, 2018

She’s My Hero- September

Meet Sherry. She is a 37 year old mother of 4 children including a set of twin daughters. She works as a full-time Bookkeeper/HR Rep AND a part-time college student! She loves her family and outdoor activities. And if you love corny jokes, she’s your kinda friend! She about to be married this November! Her hero has a truly incredible story of perseverance and strength. Thank you so very much to Sarah Pearson Hair & Makeup Artistry for creating this lovely look to honor her hero.

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October 10th is just around the corner, and if you haven’t gotten your FREE tickets yet for the She’s My Hero Calendar Launch Party, now’s the time. Get Your Tickets HERE

Our brother company, Richard Bell Photography, will be documenting the whole event through photography and videography. To add to the evening, they are bringing their Gifyyy Photo Booth–a super fun Photobooth that takes animated Gifs and texts it to you to share on social media. We love the Gifyyy so much! Here’s one the Wanda and I created at a wedding a few weeks ago.

Be sure the check out our Silent Auction Sneak Peak Album, and we’ll be posting more photos there next week. We only have 3 more introductions to complete our calendar, and we just approved the final proofs of the She’s My Hero 2019 Calendar at the printer’s today. Shout out to Daniel and the team at local printshop, Knight Printing and Graphics! They have provided such a great experience, and we look forward to picking up the final product before the BIG EVENT.

Tag Archive for: center for women

Posts

Halloween Costume Contest

Rockabillaque 2018

Center for Women NEW Conference

mellBella Fun Fact

100%… yes all of the proceeds of the silent auction and calendar went directly to the Center for Women. And at the end of the night, we raised almost $5,000, and it’s still climbing!