shetoldstories

Haven:

At my office, we've created a little haven where the birds can gather....

It's a sweet comfort to hear the little guys pecking on the seeds all day.

Because "all business", 6 hours a day, bores me to tears.

a ribbon at a time:

snow and other happenings:

OOOh, it snowed. Just a lil bit but I'll take a dusting over nothing :)

I had a chance to get in front of the camera today:

What I'm looking forward to:

-New, cute items coming to my print shop. I love the photos & inspiration cards I'm putting together! It's all coming soon. (March)

-I'm still debating on the flower show in Philly. I want to go / don't want to go. I'm so up in the air on that one.

-I had three people put in for lottery tickets to the Kinfolk dinner in Brooklyn. I'm crossing my fingers that one of us 3 win. Or maybe all of us?!!

-And finally a fun girls weekend in NYC with Thea. I'm so excited that our paths have crossed & totally looking forward to hanging out with her and our cameras in the city. 

not there yet:

If you were here I'd make you a steamy hot milk with your very own belgian chocolate on a stick to swirl yourself a cup of comfort.

We would move to the couch where the light fades just so through the curtains. You with your cocoa, me with my coffee, and I'd ask you 'for reals... how are you doing?'

You'd probably laugh and we'd chat for a while about this or about that and eventually the tables would turn and you would ask the same of me.

And I'd wonder if it was safe to remove my shield of armor and allow the stories that sit behind that wall to spill out into the open. I'd worry about giving them a voice, giving them space, about listening to them become more real as I speak them. 

I don't know what that would feel like yet. I know it would feel good to have my chest less tightened up with these tales. 

So we would sit, and maybe ... maybe I would crack open the well, and it would all be out in the open. Maybe.

I haven't teetered over that fine line yet.

I'm trying though.

Texture: February Free & Easy:

For Kim Klassen's Texture Tuesday.

Available as a desktop wallpaper! Choose your size, click the link, then right-click & save the pic.

1600 x 900 wide

1280 x 1024

1024 x 768

weekending:

The little girl.. ain't so little anymore..

After a quick photo session on Saturday morning, I decided to spend the weekend in my home. The week was a busy one and my house & family were left to fend for themselves when it came to cooking & cleaning. They did alright, but damn did I ever have to pick up the pieces come Saturday. 

I got into my grove with the music playing, and soon enough the laundry pile got smaller, the dust bunnies vanished, a hearty & nourishing meal was cooking on the stove top. I even had enough free time to get out and enjoy the crisp, fresh air of winter (ooh has it been a lovely winter here in NJ).

 

Before I share pictures from the weekend I have to tell you that I have a spread in the newest edition of Artful Blogging magazine. Yay!!

It was awesome to hold the mag in my hands and to flip through the pages of each beautiful feature before landing on mine. Mine!! 

It's been a goal of mine to have my work published (see a couple of posts down) and what a great feeling to be able to tick this one off the list. Drop me a line if you've seen it!!

 

Ok.. some photos from the weekend:

Yeah, yeah.. It's not crunchy or sugar-less, but it was the best damn tasting smoothy I've ever made with 5% fruit juice!

My sister, doing her thing! I was so happy to be there and document it for her. She is an amazing, crazy talented - makeup artist. The before & after shots are sick!!

My friend Liz Kalloch took this shot of me working with Jen Lee a few weeks back in Central Park. That was such a great day. I'll be sharing more photos from that day soon.

Finally, this is how I settle in and regroup. I got home from the park with Z & Angie and immediately lit up my dolce gusto machine. Every good day should end like this.

I'm weekending with Amanda.

a beautiful Monday:

I'm enjoying a spicy cup of tea on this beautiful afternoon. It's beautiful because I am home from a busy day at the office and getting ready to settle in with my feet up & a good book in hand. God, Mondays have been a drag lately.

So before I go, I wanted to share 2 exciting things with you!

This week at 52 Photos Project there is a fantastic line up of creative artisians featuring their made with love products.  Today's featured artist is: Liz Lamoreux.  I love what this lady creates. I also love that a portion of the proceeds from her heart.full collection go to two hospitals to help families who have children in the NICU/PICU. Go on over to learn more about the message behind her collection and to have a look at her featured showcase.

~Also~ My print shop is open again!  I try to rotate my prints seasonally so this time it's all about winter. There's a big selection of 5x5's & some other goodies, as well as 5x7's & 8x10's that I'll be adding tonight.  Right now you can save 15% off your entire order by using the code: WINTER  That ends on Wednesday morning.

Happy Monday, peeps!

The Long Road Home: available in the shop. Click for a larger view.

where winter has brought me:

This season seems to have brought two opposite extremes to my days. I'm either out enjoying the bitter cold winter, cavorting with friends at coffee shops -or- inside cooking, nesting, and relishing inside the calm of a quiet evenings.

Over the last couple of weeks, the topic of my creative business has come up over conversations with friends. I found myself sort of floundering when trying to explain what the business end of what I do looks like. 

And so I've been sitting with this for a while, trying to figure out what changes I could make that would polish me up a bit.

What I've come up with is: nothing.

I don't know how to box and package what I do. My work is so very personal and from such an organic place. I can't see myself saying 'stand this way' or 'look off into the distance like you're deep in thought'. I just don't work like that.

I don't have a stack of paperwork for clients to sign or catalogs to order leather bound photo albums. What? What is that? I feel like I have no idea what I'm doing when I imagine what 'professional' looks like.

I just know that I feel pulled to create & capture the essence and aura of another ... and I can't put that into a package. I do it the only way that feels right to me, from inside, from the purest place. That's really the simplest way for me to describe my creative process.

Now.. how do I put that in a shiny box with a pink bow on top? I have no idea so I'm leaving it be. The way I work doesn't have to look like or measure up to anyone else's.

That's the truth.

Sometimes it means I'm not the right fit for a client. And that's ok.

How did I even get to talking about this?

I guess maybe because I feel like in some ways it humanizes me. That it somehow relays that I don't have my shit together. And maybe that I don't like associating the words 'professional' or 'business' with my work.

And that sometimes it means saying NO so I can recharge my batteries because when I do that I work from a much better energy space.

I do have some definite goals for this year. I'm about to share those (if only to stay accountable to myself). These are big creative dreams of that I could lose an entire afternoon thinking about... 

-I definitely would like to have my work published. I'm halfway there. My work will be featured in a magazine this coming Spring. I'm really excited about that.

-Beyond that goal, I would love to have my work published again .. and again ... and again. Because I don't want to keep it all to myself, I want to see - experience - capture - and share so, so much. The world is so BIG and sometimes I feel so small in comparison (in size, not value). I feel like maybe I'm not alone and photography allows people to engage, to dream bigger, and to desire more. 

-I want to publish one or more of a series of photo books, like coffee table style. Something that you would keep close and look through while you're curled up on the couch with a cup of coffee for inspiration or for no reason at all. I will most likely self publish these books or keep myself open to the idea of some fabulous company wanting to publish it on my behalf.

I don't have a clue how to make any of this happen, by the way. But I'm definitely open to exploring how to.

What I'm really digging is seeing my work in my hands and putting it up on the my walls. Oh my God, what a good feeling. I only recently started putting my art & work on the walls. (I know!!) Some of you leave lovely comments on my posts & my photos ... and that has been so gracious and kind of you. It's why I keep a few prints for sale on rotation.. just in case you want one.

I'm excited to share what I've been working on this winter. My print shop will reopen on Jan 30th with a very special collection of images that pull you deep into this season. There may or may not even be a series of photos on bamboo, ready to hang on an empty wall. We'll have to see. Here's a small peek of what will be available in the shop.

So this piece of writing went places I never imagined it would...! I'm gonna press publish now...

kitty Kat came over:

Kat stayed with me last weekend.

When we connected online last year, I *knew* we would meet one day.

photo by Kat

I didn't have expectations. I opened up my heart & door to this girl who 'got' me just as I 'get' her. The weekend flowed. She blended right in with my family ~ she is now one of us. Easy, comfortable, yiny & yangy. The kind of weekend I've needed for so long. The kind of real life connection I've been craving.

me by Kat

Thank you Kat for getting me.

For seeing me.

For hearing me.

For a lovely weekend.

For being you. Love you.

open to it all:

Texture: Grey Day Stone by Kim Klassen 

I open my heart to your life and your stories each time I sit down in this space and allow myself to breathe in your words.

I lift up the blinds and sit next to the window. I watch the sun expand her paint across the sky as she rises, and I am open to the possibility that this day will bring me.

I open the door to my home and envelop you with love, with food, with blankets, with me as your companion.

There is an open room in my heart that will hold on to your sadness when you let it spill. There are also jugs of laughter on reserve, waiting for when you need a good belly laugh.

I look for open doors and new passageways because this is the only way I know how to live.

Heart. Eyes. Home... Open.