Archives for May 2017

Dawn of Summer

05/28/2017 By Sarah 3 Comments

In the days where the breeze still chills the air, but the sun grows gradually warmer and heats the earth, I find myself feeling more and more free. Each day I’m waking up more inspired, with a desire to wander aimlessly and explore new places. I feel a bit lazy, yet motivated. Nostalgic, but inspired by new things. It’s the affect that the dawn of summer has on me, and I feel slightly reborn every time it comes around. I’m braver, returning to this same season from the year before, and the year before that, and so on. Only this time I’m older and chasing new passions. Or sometimes the same passions in new ways. I know what I want even better this time. So I feel the glistening hope of a new summer to further develop who I want to be.

Being an artist and Aquarius, I exist on a constant timeline of improving myself. Whether as an artist (and its many forms), spiritually, intelligently, or with my physical body and health. I’m always moving forward and chasing whatever is first on my heart. When summer rolls around, I feel it as a time to review who I am and improve on it, especially my work and art. I’m so wrapped up fully into what I do that it really is me. And sometimes when I’m in these transitional periods where I’m developing a new style or changing my workflow, I get anxious. I’m completely energized by my inspiration and wanting fulfill it, but I am what I am creating, so as the transition in my work takes time, I feel like an incomplete person. Eager to figure out who I am going to be and what it is that I want. I know what I want, but my entire self is wrapped up in making it reality. In making this new season of myself, and my new desires, take flight.

The seasons in California are much less noticeable. There’s no division between them, as we sort of just pass from one to the next without much noticeable difference. It’s my first full year in a warm climate, so I find myself looking harder for signs of the new season. Flowers growing from the cracks of the canyon walls, cactuses blooming in pink and yellow, birds waking me up with their sweet song in the morning, and the scent of the air as it cools in the evenings. The new season has me searching for those little signs, and so I feel myself being more fine-tuned with nature and myself, leading me down this path of self re-discovery and awareness.

I finally picked up paints and supplies the other day. I’ve been trying to force myself to have time for other creative outlets, which is hard to do with my work lifestyle. I have a major background in art of all kinds, being raised by an abstract painter, professor, and director for a father. I’ve been drawing since the age of 2, and taking photos since I could hold a camera (the first being an old polaroid camera). I was nurtured to explore my artistic desires, allowing me to develop my artistic eye. I was a ballet dancer from age 3 to 19, which many don’t know about me. I was on the verge of becoming a professional dancer in NY, but gave it up to have a life with room for more than one passion. And so my entire life has been dedicated to exploring creativity and expression. It is what I live for, and seek on a daily basis. I’m a high-functioning inspiration seeker (which I just made up the term), looking at the world around me as influencing my art and creativity. So every part of my day can be inspiring or draining for me, as it is all being munched on by my brain to take in and affect my art and work.

I find myself having to slow down, for my own work and for client work, as I’m constantly juggling the need to please myself and many other people and clients. With everything I handle on the daily for my job, it takes away from my ability to truly create fully inspired work. So I always feel 50% incomplete, waiting for that time I can fully emerge myself into my creative workflow (sans the business woes)and develop that artist that I only get to be when I have free time.

Summer promises things that I find I have to chose to go after, otherwise the days slip away and another year goes by. So, I guess what I’m saying is, here’s the dawn of a new summer that I’m looking forward to. With days I’ll be exploring my creativity and the next season of myself. I’m excited for what’s to come!

PS- this is an unreleased shoot from last summer… even though it feels like we shot it just yesterday!

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JSL Travel Guide: Printemps

05/23/2017 By Sarah 4 Comments

It’s about time I share everyone’s favorite outfit from my Paris trip on the blog! I know some of you miss my good ol’ boho days, so styling a dash of Spell Designs for Paris was a must. Especially since their collection Blue Skies, set in Paris, was released at the same time!

To give my boho look a Parisian twist, I styled the Spell luxe lace skirt with a delicate and fashion forward sheer top- a lace bralette underneath. I was really loving the cream x black color scheme, and found the tall black boots to really pop under the light skirt. These lace-ups with the round toe were one of my go-to boots for Paris. They could be style almost any way, and brought a retro MOD or vintage flair to any look. And of course, I had my tiny Bebe purse full of all my necessities, and topped off the look with a black beret. It was such a fun look to run around Paris in, and I think I got my photo taken by tourists more than the sites around me, haha!

If I love one thing about Paris, it’s that people are really impressed with fashion and will take notice when you stand out. Everywhere I went, I got asked to stand in photos with tourists and Parisians alike. Or they sort of just nonchalantly stopped to take photos of me while I was modeling… I learned to not feel awkward about it, even though it sort of threw off my groove, but just take it as a compliment!!

I wanted to get an iconic rooftop view of the city, but not deal with the crowds and long waits at tourist locations like the Eiffel Tower or Arc de Triumphe. So we scoped out one of the best “secret” spots to grab a bite to eat, sip on a cafe or wine, and catch a panoramic view of Paris. If you didn’t know about the Terrace of the Printemps yet, now you do! Not only do you get to ride an escalator up 9 or so floors passed every designer brand and pretty store displays, but you get to arrive at such an amazing low key spot to relax! And of course, take amazing photos!

Afterwards, we descended back down to the busy streets on the hunt for dinner. I always felt like there were too many cute cafes and not enough time, so I was pretty picky about which ones we decided on eating at. We stumbled upon L’Arcade Haussmann, glowing with warm light from the inside and happy chattering people sitting outside. I decided it was a must, because the vibes were so good.

We ordered Tomato Mozarella & Pesto salad, a cheese plate, a big bowl of French Onion Soup for me, and steak and fries for Josh. FYI- steaks in Paris are not really a thing, so they are more often than not, stiff and tough! Be sure you order carefully. Best recommended for an actual tender steak would be the Steak au poivre- which is made with fillet mignon. Otherwise you’ll feel like you’re chowing down on a stiff leather boot…! Honestly, steak in Paris is more so for American tourists, so you might just not even order one at all! The most common thing in the city is to order wine and cheese. That’s pretty much what they live off of, and we were happy to adapt to that diet!

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Summer is a Season of Self Love

05/22/2017 By Sarah 3 Comments

With summer around the corner, I’ve had a desire to cleanse and renew. From health to the products I put on my body, to my personal style and photography.

I’m really going after the areas of my life that need tended to. Stresses and my insane schedule have left me pretty down for the count, and my health has taken a bit of a bashing because of it all. In times like this, I have to re-establish some of my core values, such as my self-worth, what I find my identity in, and what will keep me healthy and happy. Working to please everyone else NEVER ends up doing you any good. I work and exist in an industry that constantly takes away from my peace of mind. Wether it’s fighting to stay confident in myself and my work, finding the time to do what I love and makes me fulfilled, knowing my value and value of my work, and putting myself out there every single day, a lot of the time with nothing in return… it can be extremely taxing. I am constantly churning out content. I’m constantly putting intense amounts of energy into making that content my own, while also something inspiring that people will enjoy. And a lot of the time I have to please clients and jump through tons of hoops. And then there’s the whole stress of the Instagram game in general, and trying to constantly reach my audience, like Hercules swimming through the sea of souls to reach his Margaret. It feels pretty much equally exhausting, and probably will have the same aging effect on me!

I won’t lie, I have meltdowns. I worry abundantly. I brainstorm 24/7. I research and learn with my husband as much as possible. I try to nurture my inspiration in the free moments of the day, often late at night. I chase down whatever inspires me and I use that as fuel to keep me going. When I’m so busy doing all the things, I lose a bit of myself. Or maybe a lot. Each season provides something so different for me, I’m literally always on my toes, with very little time to decompress from the new or stressful experiences. Which is where I’ve been finding my health suffering because of it.

So, without going into too much personal stuff, I just wanted to share with you how, after spending today doing some research online and some soul searching, I’m feeling a renewed inspiration to… well, basically, to “treat myself”. Not to make it commercial like social media has, but to literally tend to myself. I’m not a super machine that can run 24/7 at 100%, none of us are. And when you never stop, I’ve come to realize that you can’t really heal properly from the things that have torn a little bit of you here and there. Sometimes life doesn’t seem to let you stop… I just gotta take another gig to pay the bills. I just have to please this client. I just have to put sleep on the back burner to get this edit done. I just have to not have a life for this week, and this next week, and now months have gone by… all so I can make shit happen so my world doesn’t collapse in around me.

Well…. drama aside… I finally took the time to find out what it is exactly I NEED. And, no surprise, it has a lot to do with mental healing that will then become physical healing. When your life in constantly spinning out of balance, it will begin to affect you more and more. And you have to deal with it before it gets so bad that you stop one day and ask how you got so messed up. I’m stopping myself now, and asking what I need to do to put myself back in balance. I’m excited to explore these new avenues of healthy lifestyle choices and share them with you!

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Over the Rainbow

05/17/2017 By Sarah 3 Comments

The gingham days are in full swing, putting me in that summer state of mind. Obviously picnics come to mind, and sunny wanderings under blue skies. I took to exploring the California landscape, stumbling upon this endless field of gold. It reminded me of my childhood in Illinois, running through expansive cornfields with my neighborhood friends and collecting wild mulberries that stained our hands purple. The gingham trend is so nostalgic to me. Somehow we all ended up on the same bandwagon when it came to this print, making it a rising trend for this spring and summer. To me, it’s so French Riviera / French Countryside. Or maybe we are all just subconsciously channelling Dorothy… maybe I don’t even mind!

This Vetiver Collection dress makes all my gingham dreams come true. Paired with my faithful french market basket, a straw boater hat, and little black shoes, you can go wrong for an adorable vintage look. Give me all the baskets, I can’t get enough and I’m starting a collection. But I’ll have to share that with you in another post. Get these outfit details at the bottom of this post!

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A Touch of Spring

05/13/2017 By Sarah 1 Comment

Under every girls clothes is the lingerie that makes her day. Haha, I just made that up on the spot, but isn’t it so true? I start my day with an outfit idea in mind, and my whole look depends on what lingerie I’m going to wear. Wether it’s lacey and I want to show it off, or it’s nude so I can hide it under sheer whites, it’s probably the most important step in making sure your outfit works. Nobody wants to see panty lines or bra straps hanging out. So to me, styling my lingerie is really important in my outfit building process.

If you’re a lingerie loving girl like me, then you probably have lots of options that still never feel like enough! A set for every mood and whim, and every outfit that can or ever will be. Okay, that’s a lot of lingerie… did I mention I’m a huge lingerie fan?

Enter: Bia Boro, the bamboo underwear brand that “draw on musings of travel and diverse cultures spun together to create a sense of adventure in the wearer’s mind”. These intimates are extremely soft and stretchy, making them the perfect go-to for when you just want to feel comfy AND sexy. And get this, they’re made from a Bamboo-blend that’s Hypoallergenic, Thermal regulating, Breathable, and offers UV Protection. And they make matching men’s! I’m feeling so fashionably eco-friendly.

I’m wearing the Nenufar Bralette & Brazillian, and the Marmol Bralette & Brazillian in size XS.

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