Photoshoot :: In Some Way, I'm There With You

As I began typing this post, my little cousin Olivia was soaring through the air on the way to her new home. I say "little"--Olivia's been taller than me since we were tweens and, if I'm being honest, I look up to her as much as she might look up to me. We've spent our lives growing together, and I'm so proud of the intelligent, passionate, radiant human being she's become. It seems like not so long ago that we were singing Beatles songs in silly opera voices and making each other laugh with obnoxious fart noises--and look at us now! Well...okay, we still do that sometimes. 

My point is, I love Olivia more than I describe. She is honestly my favorite person in the world, and, as I've mentioned before, my number one inspiration for portraiture. I'm so glad we had time for one more cousin photoshoot before she moved away to start her fantastic college adventure--as always, it was a day filled with creative inspiration, meaningful conversation, delicious food, and hilariously immature jokes. Oh, I'll miss you, cousin. :)

"When we love, we always strive to become better than we are. When we strive to become better than we are, everything around us becomes better too." — Paulo Coelho, The Alchemist

Song of the Day:

London Thunder, Foals

Style :: Basically

On the very long list of Things that Izzie is Passionate About (including the likes of animals, films and TV shows and books, art, food, and music), fashion is pretty darn high.

I remember when I refused to wear anything "girly". I was a bit of a tomboy as a kid, but that was somewhat inevitable since I grew up idolizing my older brother. I had my hair cut short and would not willingly wear dresses or anything with lace, frills, and bows. I liked animals, Pokemon, books, and my gameboy. I suppose it seems a little incongruous that little Isabel would grow into big Izzie, who now pores through fashion magazines and blogs and strokes overpriced clothes longingly in stores. 

But really, fashion isn't about being feminine, and it's good to be opinionated about what you wear, because that means you are staying true to yourself. So good on you, little Izzie. 

Fast forward ten or so years. Here I am, eighteen years old, unafraid of wearing makeup or growing my hair long (though I still like Pokemon and my gameboy games.) I'm still not a huge advocate for frills and bows, but I can understand the merit of a white blazer in my wardrobe. 

If I had to describe my style, I'd say "simple, comfy, and a little funky". This outfit summarizes that pretty well: a comfy, loose basic tee with distressed boyfriend jeans, a funky, but classic combination of stripes and leopard print, and a white blazer to tie it all together. Voila! 

Well, there's that! I have a lookbook.nu account now, so I'm feeling inspired. Fashion posts will be a new addition to this little blog of mine.

What do you all think?

"Don't compare your chapter 1 to someone else's chapter 20."

– thedailypositive.com

Song of the Day:
Sahara part II, Bear's Den

I am in love with this band. Gah!