The Start of Beginning..

Last September, I went to this conference called STORYchicago Basically, it's a conference for creatives aiming to give 'fuel for the creative class' and it an experience more than it is a conference. It brings together creative practitioners who aren't necessarily known but have made their mark on the industry behind the scenes. While I was at STORY, I was introduced to a few people from Portland who were involved with a venture called Dream Year.

Dream Year was created by Ben Arment who is a huge believer in people and dreams. He basically mentors people around the world in helping them fulfill their dream. At the time I was working as a nurse and finding myself frustrated with my lack of creativity. But I had a dream for fashion. To create it, support women's value and beauty with it and to spark up a personality. I was encouraged to sign up for Dream Year and it took about 3 months of praying about it when I finally put in my application a week before it closed. Two weeks later, I found out I was accepted.

So here I am! It's May and I'm well on my way in starting up this fashion design business. For the last couple months, I have been working on my branding, my vision and my designs. I'm finally to the point where I can start materializing my outfits and start the production aspect of business...

SO. With all that said, I want to invite you into my process. Here. Right now. With this dinky little blog....

The 'Age of Sail' was the period in which international trade and naval warfare were dominated by sailing ships. This is a significant period during which square-rigged sailing ships carried European settlers to many parts of the world in one of the most important human migrations in recorded history.

The Age of Sail::: A way to start new. To refresh oneself of a tyrannical system. To seek an adventure bigger than themselves. To get away from all that hurts and holds..to feel there is something to prove of oneself.

This is where my mind lands on a question. What do we strive for? It's an inner frustration we never relieve and it sinks us to complacency. To compare. To prove.

We become a routine because we don't know what else to do or how to. Or is it that we don't know what we really want? Are we truly honest with ourselves when we say that it's ok to work a dead-end job our whole lives cause benefits are good or we get a raise every month. What are we waiting for...or did we give up?

Where did your hopes go when you were a child and you looked at stars and thought you could touch them? You became bigger than you really were. You had hopes and desires that you thought would lead you through your lifetime. Desires change but that youthful hope is still there.

I say 'we' cause I am guilty of this myself. I'm done with striving and comparing. I'm living in the Age of Sail, living the adventure and loving it, knowing that God knows my desires. Doors will open when the time is right.

Don't get complacent. It's okay to start new. Money isn't everything. Do what you love. what you want.

We have nothing to prove.

Fern.

I'm not usually into ink drawings but this is intracately beautiful.

Check out Brett Manning's art.

Phones and Flowers..

Check out this biz based in Portland called MapleXO She makes amazing jewelery out of skateboard scrap. She has also teamed up with desgin company here in Portland as well called Grove and creating Iphone4 cases out of Skateboards that were sold with a limited supply awhile back. Grove has beautiful Iphone cases marked with art from artists around the world all printed on carved bamboo.

AND This chick, Lotie is from France who did the art for this commercial. A garden in the city. I love her way of shaping her art.

Miller Clean Streets from Lotie on Vimeo.

Humour.

Let's be honest...

I am horrible at wrapping gifts. It's like being back in kindergarten. I cannot princess up an inatimate object if photography depended on it. If wrapping presents were an art, mine would definately be abstract and absolutely make no sense to the observer.

Sundance Shorts...

WASTE LAND Official Trailer from Almega Projects on Vimeo.

This is a super interesting doc that was filmed over about three years. This artist Vik Muniz went from Brooklyn to his native Brazil where is found the world's largest garbage dump located close to Rio De Janero. Designated self pickers "catadores" are who the story revolve around. The initial intent was to "paint" the catadores with garbage which revolved into photographic images of themselves out of garbage.

Obselidia - trailer from Zak Mulligan on Vimeo.

AND this just looks like an interesting short and beautiful cinematography. These are both films that were in the Sundance film festival. Two very different but interesting on the same level to me.