Collaboration | Joules

At the end of last month I ventured up to the mountains for an annual apple picking excursion. 

If you live in Richmond, on any given weekend during the height of Autumn, you can count on your instagram feed being flooded by Virginia residents and their Carter Mountain apple picking photos. Us Virginians live by this tradition and though my trip was a little later in the season than usual, I still managed to come home with some delicious apples.

I absolutely loved wearing this coat from Joules during my little autumn adventure. I've worn it several times since then and not only is it warm but water resistant!
 (Which is kind of essential for someone who wanders around in the rain/goes sailing as often as I do). Definitely check out more of their coats and parkas. 
This one is another cute one in particular.
They have all kinds of lovely things though, go see for yourself!

Big thanks to my lovely friend Emily for shooting these photos.

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Outfit Details

Shoes// Urban Outfitters

Overalls// Thrifted

Vest// DIY

Cowl// From my shop

Bag// Need Supply Co

Purse// Urban Outfitters

Necklaces// DIY

Jacket// Joules (similar here)

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This post is sponsored by Joules. You can find their shop here as well as find them on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Thanks!

All photos shot by Emily Patton Photography

Things


This was actually a post from my instagram last night, but I decided to share it here on the blog today too.
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I spent this evening talking with a dear friend of mine about big things.
The kind of things you’d do if you could do whatever you wanted to do. The things you were made to do. The things you dream about doing. For me there isn’t much I’d rather be doing than talking with people about the things their dreams are made of. I love listening to passionate people talk about the things that excite them.

It in turn made me really excited for 2015 and all of the wonderfully cliche new year possibility that it brings.
2014 has been such a big year for me with doing a lot of things I’ve always wanted to do. 
Things that have excited me. 
Things that have scared me. 
Things that I’ve laid awake at night thinking about. 
And I want to continue this trend next year.
And I want you to too.
I want you to get that thing that gets you more excited than anything else out of your head and out into your life. The thing you lie awake thinking about. The thing that scares the crap out of you. 
You only have one life in which to do things. You don’t get another one to try again with. So don’t think about the “what ifs” and the “but hows” so much. Chances are if you can’t stop thinking about doing it, there’s a reason. So go do it. Because you should live a life doing things you love.

And I realize I just said “things” like 78 times but that’s the beauty of that vague word. That thing, it can be whatever you want it to be. You get to decide.

P.s. This photo is only related because one of the things that excites me most is traveling. And this is a photo from a plane from one of my trips this year. And so yea. That’s the explanation for that. 

Shop Local | Blackbird Tees

Small Business Saturday was yesterday, and so in light of that I thought it'd be a good opportunity to give one of my favorite small (and local!) small businesses a little shout out.

Blackbird Tees has been mentioned a time or two here on the blog, so you might be familiar with them, but even if you've already checked out their shop, you need to again because they have some awesome new stuff up! And I'm not just saying that because they asked me to model some of it. 
;)

Jody and Karl are the hard working duo behind Blackbird Tees which they run from a studio here in Richmond. They're pretty much some of the coolest cats around and not only make awesome apparel but killer blondies, have great taste in beer and are excellent printer fixers.
(Not so subtle shout out to Karl for helping me with my printer issues last week...)

No but really, they're pretty great and you should definitely hit them up for some Christmas gifts!
Plus, everything in their shop is on sale right now!

A few of my personal favorites...

Loose Fit Full Moon Tunic

Grizzly Bear Sweatshirt

Night Scouting T-Shirt

Geometric Maxi Dress

Full Moon Tote

Roam Sweet Roam Crop Top

Canoe Infinity Scarf

You Cook I'll Clean Tea Towels

Full Moon Sweatshirt

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Also find them on...

Facebook

Twitter

Instagram

All photos taken by Meagan Abell

Rosewood Clothing Co.

in

I've mentioned before that lifestyle photography is my favorite type of photography. 

Being able to capture real and raw moments organically as they happen.
Unposed, uninhibited.
Letting events and moments take their course and documenting them along the way.

Well, I got the opportunity to do a lovely little session recently for my friend Ashley.
I met this gal over the summer and we've already become steadfast friends. Her excitement for life and the passion she has for the things she loves is nothing short of infectious.

I do so love being around people who are passionate about what they do and are ambitious in a fast driven and on fire sort of way.They're the best kind of people to be around if you ask me.
I think it's partly because there's a special sort of aliveness you feel when you're in the presence of someone who is that motivated and excited about their life and doing good things with it, and it also inspires you in a similar way to pursue your own dreams and ambitions.

Ashley will be opening Rosewood Clothing Co, a shop for her curated vintage and handmade goods as well as consignment, on 16 W. Broad here in Richmond.

She doesn't have a set opening date yet, but I definitely can't wait to see what she does with her space and I'm so happy that I get to be apart of it's little journey as it comes together.
(And you may or may not be able to buy some of my knits in her shop once it's open... Stay tuned!)

Go follow Rosewood Clothing Co. on Instagram for updates and to be the first to know about the opening day!

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Interested in booking a lifestyle session of your own?

Let's chat!

Email me for more info: 

agirlnamedleney@gmail.com 

 

At Twenty Three

This year was a very big year of growth for me.

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//Things I Know At 23//

Stick up for yourself. Because very often no one else will.

If the answer is no right now there's a reason. Either there's a yes down the road or it wasn't as great as you thought it was.

It's okay to be a little bit wild.

Eating healthier really is better and worth the little bit of extra time and money.

That I assume far too much and too often. Don't always think you know what's going on, what that person's thinking, or how the story is going to end.

It's easy to make the mistake of thinking that you'll be happier with more.

Waiting for something isn't a passive thing.

Sugar really isn't all it's cracked up to be.

Unless it comes to donuts. Donuts will always be the exception.

There is no one you meet that's by accident.

It was acceptable to listen to Taylor Swift really loudly in the car with the windows down when you were 16, and it's still okay to do that at 23. Taylor Swift defies age and there will always be a Taylor Swift song you can relate to.

Driving stick is still just as hard as it was at 22. It might always be this hard.

Words. Words are very very strong. Be careful how you use them.

There is absolutely no one, no one as good and wonderful and dear and important as family.

It's okay to runaway sometimes.

Just know what you're running from.

Self pity is one of the most crippling and debilitating things you can experience. Only you can get yourself out from under it.

It's okay to keep some things to yourself.

Don't worry so much. You won't even remember what it was that got you so strung out this time next week. Or often, this time tomorrow.

It's so much better to live light instead of heavy.

Keeping Up

Photo Cred: Emily Patton


Not with the kardashians.
With my work schedule.
Okay, okay, bad joke. But it's late at night and I'm a smidge sleep deprived as of late.
And okay, it's not just work, it's life in general.
It's not that I'm stressed. I mean I am a little, but not overly so. Which is pretty unusual for me. I tend to get excessively stressed in these sort of times, with this sort of workload.

It's been quite the busy month, this month. As November always is. Especially with the shop. Orders have been flooding in and slowly piling up over the past few weeks. 
People are getting chilly and need to be knitted into warmth again.
Which, don't get me wrong, I absolutely love.
I've been busier than usual at this time of year with photography as well. 

There are portrait and lifestyle sessions, weddings, travel and heaps of other misc. photos that I haven't blogged, haven't edited.
I'm in the beginning stages of officially re-branding which is so very exciting, but also very time consuming. At least thoughts wise. It's actually mostly kind of all I've been thinking about lately.
There's also Christmas to think of.
Christmas.
I totally broke out the tunes the day after Halloween. I really wanted to on Halloween (there was a radio station here already playing Christmas music in fact) but I refrained.
But I've been googling nearby Christmas tree farms and thinking about decorations, baking Christmas cookies and wrapping presents for abosolute months now. 
And though I'm really really not in a hurry to get rid of fall, I do so so love the Christmas season.

I think this is just always the time of year when I get to that point of wondering how everyone else does it.
How do you run a business, two businesses really, and all of the many many things that entails (hello accounting on my desk from August...) while maintaing all of your various relationships, keeping your space and home un-hoarder like,  going to the gym, making time for leisurely things like reading, and let's not even talk about doing laundry. 
Plus all of the really big and really little in-between and not so in-between things.
Of course no one has it together, not all the way. 
It's all just appearances and there's always one area (or ten) where we all feel a little bit behind in. 
It is a bit frustrating to feel like you're always keeping up though. 
It always seems to be a bit elusive and out of reach.

Ah well.
Tomorrow is a new day.
And you can't do it all at once.
Life is still good.

Proper Words


Photo Cred: Meagan Abell 

"I am overwhelmed with things I ought to have written about and never found the proper words." | Virginia Woolf

Proper words.
How hard it is to find the proper words sometimes.
I've had quite a lot of thoughts about quite a lot of things lately.
Which is very vague and blasé really. To say that I mean. 
But I think I've just had one too many things on my mind to properly verbalize anything because it's all getting in the way of itself. 
I've especially been incapable of sorting things out in writing. Which is a bit frustrating since writing is usually how I lighten myself when I feel heavy with heaps of thoughts like I do now. 

This was all kind of a lot about nothing.
But I'm trying to get back on the blogging game, so I'm just going to leave these incomplete thoughts here for now.

Alex | Portraits

Meet Alex.

This wonderful lady flew in from Ohio a month or so ago to help me shoot my last two weddings of the season.
She's a talented photographer but more than that, a very dear friend.
I've posted about her a time or two before so you might recognize her actually.
I'm so thankful for the beautiful, authentic, and generous heart that she has.
Go like her new Facebook page because she's the bees knees!

Love you dearly Al, can't wait to see you again soon.

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Interested in getting some portraits of your own done?
Email me for more info: by.leney@gmail.com