Mood Board: April 2018
Progress. Growth. Forward and upward momentum. These are the main themes going on in April (for me). To use visual metaphors from this board, I feel like I am emerging from drowning in my own murky pond (of painful self talk and depression). Like a plant, I'm growing, reaching for the sun, the light again. This is thanks to an amazing care team of doctors, therapists, family, and friends. Without support, encouragement, and help, this return to health wouldn't be possible.
The predominant color in this moodboard is green, which I view as the most "progressive" and the most healing color. It's the color of growing plants, of traffic lights that mean "GO"! Neutral hues and blues are mixed in for a "warm, human feel" and a "sense of flow, like water", respectively.
All of this to say, this moodboard represents a lot of ground traversed and progress made.
Pink dress: This little ditty is crafted by none other than (the house of) Alexander McQueen. The label walked a bunch of "upgraded undergarments" down the runway for their Spring/Summer 18 show and it gave me so much joy. A lot of the trims or darts you see on the outside of the dress are (in my understanding) homages to old school corsets and hoop skirts, at least in appearance. SO COOL. It's like they stripped away the top layer of the dress and/or replaced it with tulle (for transparency) so you can see the "bones" of the dress.
Painting with lily pads: This painting is called "World #37" and is by Ruud van Empel. I came across this on Instagram and was so intensely moved. It's hard for me to find words to truly express how I feel about this piece. The light is reflected so perfectly off the skin, off the the water, and then there are the lily pads— so bright, but doubling as a disguise of sorts for this young person swimming amongst them.
Woman in tan suit: I went down a Rashida Jones rabbit hole recently. I spent a few hours watching various television shows and movies that she's appeared in and then also Google searching her for the coolest, most "her" photos and interviews. I stumbled upon the coolest shoot she did for Porter Edit. This shorts suit was one of the outfits included. I'm all about the shorts suit, by the way. I'll just wait for San Francisco to warm up to rock one (if it ever does...?).
Seated woman in trench coat: This is the second outfit of Rashida Jones' shoot for Porter Edit that I fell in love with. I'm ALL about that trench coat life (so this outfit was giving me all the YASSS feels). I cropped her face out (whoops), but she has the most serene smile on her face as she sits there cross-legged. It reminded me of meditation. Which I've def been partaking in lately. Because mindfulness helps a lot with the stress of life!
Ornate floral hair: I adore this hairpiece for Reem Acra. In certain photos, it looks like there are lights in it because it is absolutely GLOWING. Then again, that just may be ladies in Reem Acra shows. Those gowns have a tendency to make people look like princesses. (If you can't tell, R.A. is one of my favorite designers.) Also, the delicate flowers have this beautiful vulnerability that I really aspire to cultivate in my life.
Woman in long teal dress: This amazing teal dress isn't even the focus of the initial photoshoot this was shot for— it was actually a Vogue shoot for "topcoats" featuring Doutzen Krous and her gorgeous family. I love this mix of royal blue plaid and teal eyelet; it's something that I never would have thought could be pulled off, but it really looks stunning. A lot of things in life are like that. Take this as your life sign: take more fun (non-life-endangering) risks.
Most awesome hair ever: This amazing smile, topknot, and general hair glory was brought into my life by ManRepeller, but belongs to @beatrizzwilliams. Every time I look at this I smile. This is the life that I want for my hair, but as a basic white girl, it's never going to get. So I will live vicariously through the vivacious beauty of Ms Beatriz. I bow down.
Flower car: Okay so I may have audibly gasped when I first saw this photo on Ryan Norville's Instagram. Her pink jumpsuit gives me Glossier showroom vibes and this CAR FULL OF FLOWERS is just a stunning street art piece, regardless of it's final destination (it's on the street for this photo, hence street art, being appreciated by all the lucky New Yorkers there to experience it). Then my whole life started to bloom once more, and I decided that this photo needed to become a metaphor for my life and manifest itself onto my moodboard.
Circle with lace: While this may look kind of like a moon or a little halo, this is actual a cropped closeup of a lace Alexander McQueen dress. The intricacy in the lace detail is so ornate and beautiful. A poor comparison would be a crocheted doily, but then escalate that to wedding dress levels.
Peach tulle mountain: Sometimes hiding is necessary, sometimes being extra AF is necessary. And apparently when both are needed simultaneously, this Giambattista Valli gown has gotchu. This is a legit MOUNTAIN of tulle, but it also seems really easy to just disappear in the collar and ignore humans. Plus, a "safe space" bubble is ALWAYS maintained because humans cannot get physically close to you given the radius of the skirt. Muahahaha. Genius.
Star emoji: This has been one of my favorite emojis lately. I like to use this to indicate that someone is a star, or a particularly extraordinary star in my life, as connoted by the little extra sparkles surrounding it.
Woman laughing on bench: Oh, my favorite celebrity and Instagrammer, and obviously a constant in these moodboards. This month features Tracee Ellis Ross radiantly chuckling in an off-the-shoulder rainbow-patterned dress while perched on a bench for a shoot in Redbook. HER JOY IS CONTAGIOUS. Look at that giggly woman (or better yet, watch any of her cheeky little videos she makes) and try to hold a straight face. If you can, you have a very different sense of humor than I do. C'EST LA VIE. She's just gonna keep appearing.
Patterned yellow dress: This "headless woman" is actually also Tracee Ellis Ross. I really appreciate the more organic pattern on this dress and the corresponding color scheme. If I could rock mustard and camel as well as she does, I'd own a dupe of this dress in a hot sec. Also. I'm just gonna say it. Gurl. Good boob day. Let's appreciate it.
Backgrounds:
Giant leaves: I did quite a bit of cropping of a photo that originally appeared on @apartmenttherapy, then copied and mirrored it so I got this amazing "open book / mirror print" effect OF PLANTS! I've been super overboard obsessed with plants lately, especially greenery. My room (finally furnished and decorated after months of waiting) is now home to eleven plants that I care for with all the affection of a mother to a dog or human child.
Home with a bunch of plants: So plants are a common theme in my life and also in the apartments featured on @apartmenttherapy. The second photo I used was a hallway with more mahogany colors with greenery throughout the hallway and string lights draped from the ceiling. I don't know how practical it is as a living space, but omfg is it amazing in photos. Plus, SO MUCH OXYGEN! (Because, y'know... plants.)
More greenery, with staircase: I can't get enough plants. Palms and ferns are arguably some of my favorite kinds of greenery. Turns out, there's a thing called the "Palm House" in Vienna. My former co-worker's girlfriend took the most beautiful photo of it and posted it to her Instagram, and that's where this photo came from. So hat tip and much thanks to her! 💚