Lifestyle & Aesthetic

The candy-colored of retro beach movies beckons me this time of year. Those soft oranges, pale peaches, and frosty sea foam green tones dance in technicolor. When I first watched Beach Blanket Bingo, my mom offered me the VHS saying something about them making "so many" of the films. The Beach Party genre, from Gidget to the aforementioned Anne Funicello and Frankie Avalon series, still hold water as an aesthetic — like a tiny time capsule of the candy-colored dreams of the mid-sixities surf culture. The campy atmosphere and unbelievable plots create a charm that always feels like summer to [...]

While the 1995 remake of Sabrina wouldn't make any favorites list for me, I enjoyed dwelling on her trope-y transformation during a recent rewatch. In a less gritty and dramatic retelling of the Audrey Hepburn classic, Julia Ormond appears as the titular Sabrina — daughter of the chauffer to a wealthy family. They live above the garage and we first see her happily wiping down the family's Rolls Royce. They scene is lit by the glow of party lights nearby, as the lavish affair draws Sabrina's wistful attention. She watches from the trees as her longtime, unrequited love David seduces [...]

Every time I wander through a thrift store or antique shop, my eye picks up on all the yellow-browns. It's a comforting color, the warmth of age. You find it in old pine furniture, brittle bakeware, and fantastic, faded clothing. It's a happy, nostalgic tone that makes me feel hopeful. Mimosa Pantone 2009 is exactly that color. How the Pantone Color of the Year Impacts Design Every year, Pantone's announcement  influences visual trends. Sometimes, the impact is quick. Other years, you only see the tone in high-concept designs. Of course, it always inspires people in the creative business and we [...]

“The photos stirred feelings she couldn't quite frame in words, and this, she decided, must mean they were true works of art.” ― Celeste Ng, Little Fires Everywhere There are two ways I classify photography in my mind. The first are moments that you happen upon. This happens alot with photojournalism, sports photography, but, you also find it in nature photography and everyday candids. Then, there are the moments that you create, you see this often in event photography (particularly weddings), portrait photography, and fashion photography. Whenever I'm shooting, I think about whether I am there as an observer or as a [...]

The snowdrop symbolizes hope as the birth month flower for January. Like the white snow that often surrounds the bud, it's often linked to innocence, purity and sympathy. A thin stem, slim leaves, and a drooping bell-shaped head — usually white — characterize the flower. Part of the Galanthus genus, snowdrops are bulbous perennials that belong to the Amaryllidaceae family. They were first noted by Greek botanist/philosopher Theophrastus in the 4th century BC. He called them “white violets.” Around that time, the Greeks created an extract that, when ingested, they used to alter consciousness. For example, in Homer’s Odyssey, Odysseus [...]

I've never had a chance to work consistently with a beauty client — nothing more than ghostwriting buyers guides and roundup posts. But, I have always felt that food and beauty are so much the same in the way they tease cravings through color, texture, and shape. Good makeup just looks mouth-wateringly yummy. My perfume-free, sensitive skin life feels like a diet from the most visually-indulgent products. The peak of makeup indulgence is lipstick, in all the deepest, milk-chocolate shades that I lusted after from my pre-teens. Red is always sexy but, chewy, brick red is unstoppable.