a lifetime

an artist focused on preserving and preparing a natural piece of art... inspired by nature, created w.nature, and eventually... decomposed back into nature.
i was in awe of his work and taken aback by his acceptance of the fate of his masterpiece... a fallen forgotten log built with cypress wood that represents craftsmanship, conception, and creativity.

i look to this piece of art as a guide in what i aim to do when i design...

look to nature.

extract elements from nature.

utilize to design garments.

portray moments from nature through the use of textiles and minerals.

a reflection

our shadow is a reminder of who we are... it is a looking glass that tells the truth.  we cannot hide from our secrets or our insecurities.  we rush through each day taking only enough time looking at ourselves to fix our hair.

. 

the sun escapes the clouds and comes through the tall buildings casting down its glory leaving a black mark of who i am on the pebble ground.  i stop in awe and look at myself.  who am i? what am i doing? when will this all make sense? where am i going? why am i doing this? how will i make it happen?

.

i wish i had the answers, but i can only go forward in hope that each day i will get closer to the person that i want to be, the person i will be, and the person that i am.

i wish grace upon the searching souls.

all who you know...

when i think about it, my story thus far has been guided by the people that i know and who i have met.  granted w.out hard work i would have not produced what was expected from me.  if we do not branch out and grasp every opportunity that is presented the journey comes to a stop.

it is the connections that we create and nurture that dictate where our choices and chances take our life.  it is the interaction and contact w.others that expands our knowledge and provides experiences that inspire our minds.

we are destined to be connected to one another.

inspire the inspiration to inspire

i intended to just show up. speak. answer some questions. and leave.

little did i know one little question would trigger a little girl to be inspired to design a dress which would inspire my own mind.

speaking at my old stomping grounds i was asked by a little girl, "what inspires you?" i told her to just look around.. that is what inspires me.  a small puddle, a blowing curtain, a falling flake.  another girl spoke up, "when i'm swimming i look up to the light streaming through the water and the ripples... that's what inspires me."

"that's it" i told her.

she came to me when i was done to show me the design of her sketch.  she told me that she would "crumple up shiny see-through fabric and bunch it up like you do for tye dyeing and lay it in the sun to bleach out, then apply it to the dress."  my jaw dropped. 

uncovering through little minds the endless possibilities of creativity...

finding your own way...

pursue some path, however narrow and crooked, in which you can walk with love and reverence.  -h.d.thoreau straying from the tracks and veering towards the light... it is frightening and requires courage... but that is when the adventure begins...

frozen fog fallen to the ground... scattered towards the new journey.

do not go where the path may lead, go instead where there is no path and leave a trail. -r.w.emerson

standing alone

it is only as a man puts off from himself all external support, and stands alone, that i see him to be strong and prevail.

                                          -emerson

a very small world.

a change is taking place that has brought me into the city of chicago...

this afternoon i found myself walking down state street... i felt alone even with the bustling crowds surrounding me.

out of the corner of my eye i saw a flash of long red hair... i had seen that hair before... i had photos of that long red hair.  while catching up with this stranger i awkwardly caught a glimpse of her face.  she was the model from ford that wore my couture pieces for a photo shoot last month.

sometimes this big world that we live in has a way of reminding us just how connected we are...

i needed that... a way to know that i am never alone walking on the cold pavement. 

snowed in...

the snow falling outside my window... keeping me away from the city... i step outside into brisk air...

the path winds through a world of white...

a single stem left over from the warm summer days stands still...

a world where nothing else seems to matter and there is nothing greater than hearing the soft sound of the snow falling...

never enough

i could watch the sun set every day and it still wouldn't be enough.  i am mesmerized each time and taken aback in awe.  the sky takes on a life of its own... like it has been holding back all day and then right before it leaves it gives its all...  the trees and brush are silenced into a shadow and left till morning.  i wish i could see every sunset...