West Coast Desert

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I’m home for the holidays! Which means back and forth from the bright animated lights of Vegas, through the desert landscapes and into California, exactly that but over and over again =) My family’s home is in Vegas, but they all work and also live in Los Angeles. I think they’re more of road warriors than I am. During my time in Los Angeles, I was connected with the beautiful yoga and artist behind Wolven|Threads. A line of yoga clothes that take you on a kaleidoscopic journey on and off the mat. Art, yoga, and kaleidoscopes? Sounds right up my alley. Above are a few shots from our backyard.. the high desert of Las Vegas. These photos were inspired by the kaleidoscopic nature of her designs, the trippy visions through these future eye lenses and in honor of the last full moon this month, in Gemini. A sign I definitely connect with <3 Happy winter full moon celebrations my friends!

Style Muse: The Bazaar Bohemian

This vibrant, brightly patterned goddess is Vanessa of Bohemian Bazaar. I was first magnetized by our same love for wandering threads, kaftans, huipils, and headwraps and was even more pulled in with her contagious uplifting vibe to connect with your true self. Project Tribe is her and her friend Luna’s manifestation of a community of women connecting to empower and inspire one another. It was born off a mission to provide a vehicle for women around the world to spread their inspiring stories and cultivate their uniqueness. If you haven’t met this whole earth goddess with her “gonna change the world” vibe.. then you should!

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The Electricity of New York

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Its our first night and I can’t help but people watch— I’m so fascinated by the contagious energy, the people, the lights and all its aliveness. Despite the cold, we took beers to our our balcony, walked out to the edge of our fire scape and stared out into the twinkling lights of the streets and its historic alleyways. Curiously peeking into windows, as if to get a glimpse of the people’s lives around us. One of my favorite things about our travels is the glimpse of the different lifestyles and the exciting paths that people have chosen to take. I love seeing locals in their element. Where they grab their morning coffee, their favorite bookstore, and the friends they’ve made at their frequent sandwich shops.  I think many of us can agree that it takes a certain level of grit and passion to make it out in New York. You constantly hear people tell you “ you don’t want to move out there it’s too expensive”, “its too crowded” “nothing is easy there” — yet so many still make the move there, and it inspires me just at the thought of bumping shoulders with the people who push past what’s defined as easy, or practical.  I love, love, love places like these, places that remind you how small you are and how infinitely large the world is around you. A place that makes you want to write in your journal, exposes you to the inspiring, the unsafe, the cold and the romance of discovering all its corners.  We wandered over to Brooklyn in hopes we would fall in love with its personality.. but only on our way out did I feel as if I have gotten a glimpse of its charm. But isn’t that the charm of places like these? The same charm that us junk and thrift store hunters seek? The thrill of the hunt is as gratifying as discovering its gems? Those willing to keep their eyes wide open and their heart seeking will indeed find it as a gem.

Hola Antigua!

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This town is breathtaking. Bright colorful history still radiating with its rainbow colored colonial buildings, and cathedrals sprawled out on cobblestone streets. Even the women’s traditional huipils are adorned with tropical birds, flowers, and vibrant patterns. My textile loving heart sang when the different villages gathered to bring their textiles to display. The huipils were as comfortable as they were artfully intriguing. I cant wait to share these vibrant beauties with you in the shop!

Film is not dead.

A few years ago, Aaron received an old Nikon film camera as a Christmas present from his grandmother. Since then it has been a travel necessity for us. Film has given us more thought behind each shot, as well as patience for developing the rolls. To our surprise, it has been much easier and more affordable to shoot with film overseas than in the U.S., where film has become quite hard to find and pricey to develop. I came across these amazing expired film shots by Tamara Skudies. These nostalgic shots were taken with Kodak Ektachrome 100 Plus film, capturing the essence of the Austrian landscape. WOW.

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Hmong Textile Inspirations

While living in Thailand, we found ourselves constantly in awe of the Hmong tribe’s weaving, stitching and batiking of textiles. After visiting the Hmong village and learning first hand the amount of skill and attention to detail that was passionately put into every thread, my appreciation grew ten-fold. My head starting spinning of ways to celebrate and share their amazing artwork. To turn them into pillow covers, skirts, curtains, … the works. These beautiful pieces are still on the top of our list of our most valued pieces that we carry. Seeing these amazing articles of clothing made from beautiful Hmong textiles has me wanting to get out my scissors and get to it!

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Shop our collection of Hmong Textiles here!

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Mountainscapes of Nepal

As I write this, I sit in Aaron’s childhood bedroom decorated in nostalgia. Baby faced photos, old sports jerseys, down to the DARE trophies. As I sort through our travel photos which feels like yesterday and lifetimes ago at the same time, I realize how lucid life is when we’re moving. How travel sparks something inside and can make you believe in magic again. I remember running free through these fields, dancing into the sky-high clouds, feeling like we can do anything we wanted, and we were doing it. There’s something about the mountains that bring a sacred energy and Nepal is no different. We found ourselves leaving the bustle of Kathmandu to retreat in the charming mountain town of Pokhara and hiking to a small village called Gachok. We were greeted with sparkling eyes and kids with their hands in heart center greeting you with a loud “namaste!” Lush fields stretch out in the valleys as they connect the mountainscapes. We witness the simplicity of the people as they worked the fields until the sun went down. During our trek, we were called down by a beautiful Nepalese girl and her mother who invited us into their home and prepared us a fresh cucumber salad from their garden. What little they have was all they needed, and it was what they offered us. I will never forget how this simple, yet large gesture of a cucumber salad can immerse me in gratitude long after our journey through Nepal.

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Forest Offerings by Karolina

is one of my favorite artists. Her art is incredible, always evolving into prisms of color and textures. From photography, to hand-made costumes, to her forest offerings, they all combine the beauty of nature with the playfulness and the kaleidoscopic trip of her art. Here’s a quote as she connects with the therapeutic elements of creating these beautiful forest offerings in nature.

“Finally a whole grid appeared on the southern slope of one Wise Mountain. A grid of geometrical structures, each was made with different intention, vibrating with different energies. And each was programmed to heal the land and to shift its vibration; it definitely does its work! During the time spent in the forest, I could get to know the inhabitants of my surroundings, cause in almost every location I had spent couple of days. The birds started singing new songs, melodies I’ve never heard before, and these were the happy songs. The neighboring trees seemed glad too.” – Karolina

See more of her art.

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A Handmade Home

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An inspiring story of a pair of young artists who was inspired by a vision of creating a space that honored the beauty of nature and captured the light’s essence. Nick is photographer and Lilah a clothing designer; who quit their jobs to build a space of inspiration. Both having an artist’s resourcefulness, they built their cabin for $500, using their own two hands and a u-haul filled with salvaged wood and windows.

“Light is so different in the morning, at noon and at dusk. We wanted to somehow build a house so that change happened in our living space,” Olson said. “It’s about being closer to living with the elements.”

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Snippets from Utah

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As we drive through Utah’s vast, infinite sky, layers of canyonlands sprawl out as far as the eye can see. I was spellbound by the colors that waved through the clouds and the deep red formations made me feel as if I was on Mars. We wanted to pull the car over every five minute to try and capture it, as if it was our way of preserving the beauty we were seeing. I remember wishing the drive through Utah would last until we got to our destination. It truly is a special place of high vibrations. It tugs at each person differently, making each person connect with a unique energy all their own. Some moments are meant to be kept, but I feel like our moments through Utah are meant to be shared. Happy Sunday <3