RAINY DAYS

Spring is a time I look forward to. The beginning of another season. Time for something new and yet for me this is a reminder of loss.

The month of April for the past couple of years have always been heavy. April reminds me of loss of my brother and there is this air of constant grief that is surrounding me. My siblings go through it as well. We have learnt to lean on each other for support that way. A casual check in. An “I love you.” text.

I promised myself that this year, rather than sink in the grief of it I would rather swim in it. Find a way to breathe through it all. My prayer was to also find strength to celebrate the moments that make life full and be fully present.

Sometimes I think, you really get what you profess and confess. And that the law of attraction is alive and around us. Creating for me is a divine experience. Everything is well thought out from ideation to completion. It could be a new recipe I’ve I am trying out. Or testing out some new paints. To working on a new look for this blog

My focus was a bright color that would scream spring! Maxi dresses are very feminine however, once you throw on a blazer, it shift the silhouette and gives it its own identity. A play on masculine/feminine in dressing. Talking about playing, I have been doing a lot of that and I find it restorative. I read Brene Brown’s The Gifts of imperfection and cultivating Play was a fabulous chapter. Why? Because we don’t make enough time for it. We are on adulting mode as our default setting. Any form of fun and play is frowned upon. To this I say no. Gah! The importance of play brings you joy, laughter, happiness, and evokes a sense of inner peace. You only need to look around you and what is going on in the world to understand that.I think this Global Pandemic has shown me the importance of cultivating things that bring you joy. I spoke on it on the last post and I will be singing about it through this year. We are all connected. We are hurting, we are grieving, we live in a state of constant trauma that my friend even mentioned that it’s beginning to make them numb. To be numb is to be reprieved of feeling and responsiveness. To be deprived of the power of sensation. Like a domino effect, numbness will deprive you the endless joys that this world has to offer.

The weather chose to give us rain, a shoot had been schedule and thus a shoot came to fruition. I danced in the rain, skipped, tangoed and waltzed with the umbrella because the wind would not let me prosper, laughed so hard at it that at some point I used the umbrella as an accessory. I felt the rain on my skin, the wind blowing on my bald head, and the hem of my dress got wet as I skipped over little puddles. IT FELT AMAZING! GLORIOUS and I felt very much alive!

I look back at these pictures with so much happiness because of the memories they evoke. They are those who get rained on and there some of us who feel the rain.

Arthur outdid himself. Extremely calm and composed in these weather elements because we don’t cancel shoots, we flow with them. Rain or shine. Here’s to celebrating everyday moments that make us feel alive and full.

Also Happy 4/20 to those that partake ceremonial herbs :)

Photography: Arthur

Instagram: Snipes_studios

Website: http://snipesstudios.com

Thank you for stopping by.

Dress: Staud Clothing

Blazer: Madewell

Shoes: Adidas

Bag: Ralph Lauren

Sunnies: Ray Bans

Umbrella: Borrowed from Fuza :)

NEW SEASON

I have been laughing a lot recently. Perhaps it’s in resistance to what’s happening around me. In the world because this year feels long already. I lost someone I dearly loved this past February. The grief of it felt like an abyss. It still hurts writing about it. We all have lost so much in so many ways. With loss, any loss, I find that I am constantly reminded of all the other losses. The grief finds a way of magnifying. It feels strange coming back on this pace. I have gotten used to journaling on paper. I did that when I decided to hibernate for some time. Regroup, think, then get back up. And in the hibernation, I started cultivating joy in little ways.
For things that I enjoyed in the past but kinda sorta stopped doing because life was moving to fast. Things like writing, cooking, painting, walking.... in one of my photographic styling classes, they termed that as “INGing” the things we do that brings us pleasure.
I love using the word cultivate because in essence, you are constantly toiling. Plowing.
I found a definition that really rings true on Google

Cultivate - to improve or develop with careful attention, training or study : devote time and thought to.

Ahhh that hit home. Some days are easier than others but the only way to be in those moments of joy, is to constantly work on it. Like a muscle. The things that bring me joy like working out, mediating, sketching, painting, walking, reading, have been gems for me. My way of praying and connecting to a superior power. I have been thrilled to be back on here writing and creating. We are back shooting with Arthur, earlier readers may recall some dope work we did together in 2016-2017. We both have grown in our artistic expressions and I can’t wait for you all to see what we have in store. There is a newness in the air. It feels really good. Like taking a deep breath in nature. As the seasons change so do we. May we be aware we are shifting just like the wind.

This shoot was done at my dear Fuza’s place. The décor is extremely divine and the art well curated. We have been indoors for quite sometime now and creating spaces that feel like home is what a full life calls for. Here we talk, vibe, create, paint, laugh, dine, partake in ceremonial herbs, and now take photos.

Thank you Fuza & Anunay for opening your space for this shoot. We had a grand time.

Welcome back my dear reader. We have great things in store for you :)

Photography: Arthur Hylton

Instagram @Snipes_studios

Website: http://snipesstudios.com

PATTERNS

I took this snaps with my iPhone a few months back. This is my first post of the year…. somehow it still feels like an extension of 2020 but we move. We resume back fully. A bit on the black and white because I have been heavy on it and wanted to try something new. Color will be back… soon :)

May you have the COURAGE to break the patterns in your life that no longer SERVE you. Was the inspiration behind this shot. If there is one thing last year taught us, is that breaking patterns is so important. Uncomfortable, but important as we usher in the new.

A MISSIVE TO 2020

Dear 2020,

I started this year with so much joy! And I choose to end it with the same note.

For me this year has been about CULTIVATING joy, against all odds. Cultivate because sometime I literally have to dig it out and remove weeds constantly. I read my HAPPY 2020 post and what a WOW! Looking back and reading where my mind was at that period in time. Not knowing what you would be the most memorable and unprecedented year of them all. I pen this to you from a place of gratitude. I am alive. My loved ones are alive and to the ones we lost this year, may their souls rest in eternal peace. You took so much from us and yet, you gave as a lot. A lot to think about.  A lot to ponder on. We had to digest some things and deal with others that gave us indigestion. Lawd!

Remember how we used to count down the days?  Ah 2020! You have really felt like a whole decade! A rollercoaster that I can’t wait to get off but even with getting off, I have to remember that there still an ongoing circus in the world. Not sure what we shall come across. So we are treading lightly as if walking on eggshells. Not touching anything, washing hands constantly if we do. Maintaining  6 feet apart and hoping we survive it all.

My insta poet friend Kimani said it so well –  “When this year started, we were talking “2020 vision” and that’s what happened. Through it all, everything became clearer.

Thank you for making things crystal.  Au revoir 2020!

To my new readers, welcome. Karibu. To the ones who been on this ride - I appreciate you for rocking with me this long. I am talking 2012! Whewww

Happy and Healthy 2021!

These images were taken a few days after a snow storm. This fit has also been my winter uniform. Thermals, sweats and a Hoodie. I sometimes throw on a beanie on my baldie, or where a cap with a scarf. I might dress up to usher the new year on because , my love for fashion still remains.

Hoodie: Mgenge True

Sweats: Men’s’ borrowed - never returning back if you know what I mean. :)

Coat: BB Dakota

Scarf: Chanel

Cap: Polo

Bag: Trader Joe’s

Shoes: Adidas

Masks are mandatory in New York. I took it off for the purposes of the shoot.

Images: Mariam Hurston