Bella Wish

Hipstamatic Anthro

My absolute favorite store is Antrhopologie. It's extremely rare that I walk out with anything as most of what they carry is out of my budget, but whenever I see one it calls me and I have to walk through it's doors.

As much as I would love to have unlimited funds to spend there, the store itself is not about purchasing anything for me. I can simply gather inspiration from taking photos, flipping through the books and journals, carressing some of the yummy dresses, housewares and aprons and simply being immersed in it's romantic vibe. Each store is like a movie set of my dream home... and dream closet.

Years ago a male friend of mine who was starting a clothing line once asked me what it is about Anthro that makes us girls so giddy. I didn't know how to express a simple answer to his question except to say that their entire team from buyers to marketing, merchandising, art direction and photography have captured and created the fairy tale lifestyle dream for many of us. Everything about it is unique, yet signature in style.

So I thought I would pass his question on to you. What is it about Antrhopologie that fills you up with its seductive treasures, lustful images and evocative dreams?

Hipstamatic Mama Mia

Jimmy wanted to play with the Hipstamatic too.

Sunset People

Clearly I have not been able to leave August Break mode so I thought, why stop now?  I'm really enjoying posting tiny views of my days and might stay in this space of sharing for a bit.

With Isabella starting school tomorrow (!) and a few upcoming deadlines, pictures may be telling the story here for the next couple months.

Also, I am just starting to read Women, Food & God. I predict it will take me until 2012 to finish it since I am reading it much in the same way Snoopy read War & Peace - one paragraph a day.

Have any of you read it? What were your thoughts?

twenty two weeks ~ post bath

 

 click on photos for larger images

Jimmy is calmed by water.

Sitting in the bottom of a pool or lake relaxes him.

Not swimming, just sitting.

When he dons scuba gear and dives into ocean water, he finds home.

Each time I place Mia in her bath I see this exact same calmness wash over her.

I see so much of him in both our girls.

This makes me smile.

hipstamatic produce

 

if you are what you eat, and you eat colorful produce, does that make you a rainbow?

sprite

I've become completely obsessed with my Hipstamatic photo app. As much as I love my Canon, or mommy's toy as Isabella calls it, I find it frustrating to try and carry it in addition to the bags I travel with for my two little ones whenever we leave the house. Not to mention I usally have Mia in her carrier which adds to the challenge of trying to shoot with an SLR. I know some parents who are able to do it, I'm just not that coordinated.

I love my big camera madly, but being able to  easily travel with my iPhone and know that what I see with my iPhone will look completely different than how I see with my SLR has opened up some new ways of how I look at things.

Being able to capture moments outdoors with my iPhone, and loving the effects of the Hipstamatic, leave me just as excited as having my big camera with me.  What I love about the Hipstamatic is that it's accessible to everyone, there is no pressure of settings such as f-stops and white balance, no post-processing, it's just purely all about the play. I get all squealy and silly sometimes when I see how one of the photos comes out. I realize this makes me a huge dork, but I embrace it.

I hope you aren't too sick of them yet because seeing as I have challenged myself to take 1000 photos with it I will be playing around for quite a while. Don't worry, most I will just post to my newly created Flickr account.

These ones of Isabella that I took yesterday I just had to share. To me, she just embodies the qualities of a sweet faerie sprite and something about the one with her being bathed by the sunrays captivates and inspires me. And although its not what many would call a great photo, or even a good photo, I just love it so. It reminds me that no matter what people may say that there is no right or wrong way to take a picture, there is no right or wrong camera and no matter how many tricks you might have up your sleeve that the magic is always in the light.

These photos have me thinking that there is a faerie tale story wishing to be told as inspired through these images. A story of a tiny faerie girl living in a magical sprite-filled world. If any of you are feeling inspired and playful  I would love to hear your fun and silly deas of the story taking place here, perhaps based on a sprite of your own... please share if any fun ideas come to mind.

breathing space

star lights in Mia and Isabella's room

I was sitting in the middle of a crowded playground a few days ago feeding Mia. Jimmy had taken Isabella to ride on the train and I was surrounded by noise. Obviously living in a large city means I can't escape this external noise and even in a city as wide open and vast as Los Angeles, it can feel a bit claustrophobic at times.

Mia is very sensitive to sound and was having a hard time relaxing into our normally peaceful feeding time even though she loves being outdoors and feeling the breeze on her skin. To soothe her, I tried to shift my energy by closing my eyes and focusing on my breathing as a means to relax us both.

While in this state I had a vision of myself being quiet and still while movement was in fast moving film all around me. Conversations, laughter, helicopters, traffic, children screaming and live music all competing to be heard at once, visually represented in swirling, blurry, primary colors in motion.

I don't even know why I am sharing this story really. I suppose it got me thinking about how I am craving softness and breathing space in so many areas of my life.

I am deep in the process of redefining the space in our home for as long as we remain here. Turning it over, upside down and shaking it all out as a means to welcome deep breathing, imagination, flow and play. This same redefining of space is also something I am craving to create in my work, creativity and my blog as well... turning it all over, upside down and shaking it out to reveal an aesthetic that is more authentically in alignment with who I am.

The vision I have always had for this space is one of expression, connection, healing and the journey of rediscovering the artist within me and giving her wings. This blog was born out of being so out of focus that I just needed an outlet as a way out. My favorite spaces tend to be those that incorporate clean and simple design with a focus on raw and natural beauty, connection and personal expression. I strive for this in my own spaces (here, and in my home) but notice that I can easily fill my spaces with noise and clutter and find myself with no room to breathe. When I do this I find myself out of focus with my deepest desires and intentions.

As part of this redefining of space one of the things I am releasing is Vegan Wednesday. It was a fun idea but if I am being truthful it doesn't fit in the bigger dream I have. Even though I just started this series, I was quickly starting to resent the time it was taking from some other areas I want to nurture.

Part of the larger dream for me is structuring my life in such a way that I am able to fill it with only those things which connect me with peace, joy and a deep sense of contribution and fullfillment, and releasing the rest - a continuous experiement in trying on what works and what doesn't.

I don't mean this to sound overly dramatic and I am not saying goodbye to sharing recipes altogether on my blog, after all food = connection to me, but am just trying to create more space in my life for things to happen a bit more organically, authentically and from a place of feeling inspired rather than from a place of self-imposed obligation.

We are all given the same amount of hours in each day and I am simply adjusting how I use my time. How do you create breathing space in your life?