Still life: Color Study

Hello. How has your week been so far? I’m not sure if it’s the shifting of seasons or just all the changes happening right now but I’m feeling a bit out of alignment, emotionally that is. Restless, impatient, moody, unsure…ugh I’m a bit of a mess. I’m trying to find resolve in some self-reflection but as many of you know – finding quiet time when you are at home with kids is rather scarce. However, with Chris traveling this week, I hope to spend some evenings painting. That usually does the trick and calms my spirit. We’ll see…

Anyway, wanted to share a still life/color study project I shot a little while ago. I find that most of my photo shoots just happen. One minute I’m cleaning my studio and the next, I’m arranging objects and snapping pictures. It always surprises me but the happenstance nature of it kinda works for me. This tiny rose was the catalyst.

Seeing color connections makes me happy and this vintage tin set the pretty palette.

Try doing this with pretty items around your home. It’s a great way to practice your photo and styling skills plus if your eye loves color like mine does, you will find this simple exercise very rewarding.

Flowers always seem to inspire me. Thank you little rose!

Hope you all are having a lovely week.

xo,

Ivy

P.S. To further facilitate my self-reflection I’m considering getting “The Desire Map” by Danielle LaPorte. Anyone checked this out yet? Looks seriously good. (I’m not the best with maps but one navigated by desire sounds right up my alley.)

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Happy New Year!

Happy New Year friends! Hope you all enjoyed the holiday season. We had a very merry time with family and friends but now it’s time to switch gears and get back to work! To be honest, it’s always bittersweet for me. Taking down the Christmas decorations, the twinkling lights and all the pretty trimmings of the season makes me a touch sad. Mostly, I think, because my family leaves and heads back to Montana and the house seems drab after all that glitter and shine.

So, to quickly beat the blues, I decided to do a sisterly photo shoot of my girls today. We have been blessed with crisp, cold days full of bright sunshine (very odd for Portland this time of year) so I figured I better make the best of it. The piles of laundry sat waiting while, Claire, Grace and I played in the gorgeous light. Grace even got into the art direction. She would notice the light change and say “Quick mom, you are losing the light!” Too cute! She directed some shots that I took of her…which I will share with you tomorrow.

So here they are…my six year old and my six month old. Sisters and hopefully, one day, best friends.

How has your New Year so far? Any goals or aspirations you want to share? Me? I want to cook more, read more and exercise more!

Have a beautiful Thursday!

Much love to all!

xo,

P.S. For those of you who are wondering…I am using Photoshop to edit my photos in addition to Rad Lab. I’m in love with Rad Lab! :) It’s a bit of an investment but so worth it and you can try it out for free.

May Flowers : Ranunculus

Hello there. How’s life been treating you? Despite the rain, we have had some lovely sunny weekends, one of which was Grace’s 6th birthday. It was a wonderful little family celebration and Grace had a blast.

Since the color pink was her first choice for party decor, I bought home bundles of ranunculus! One of my favorite flowers and a welcome guest at my table after a long gray winter! How can you not love all those ruffles?  To me, they are the next best thing to a peony, which by the way, are sprouting up in my garden! Can’t wait to see them!

After the party celebrations were over, I couldn’t help but do a little photo shoot with these wily blooms. Here are some May flowers for you…

I’m also in love with this beautiful vintage book – a recent find from one of my treasure hunting trips. Don’t you love pretty, old books?

Go treat yourself to a bouquet of fresh Spring flowers!

xo,