4.3.13

February: Monthly InstaDiary

Not going to lie, this month has been CRAZY! It honestly flew by right before my eyes! Excited for the semester to finally be closing in though! SPRING BREAK STARTS WEDNESDAY HOLLLA!!!

At the beginning of the month I found the sickest mirror piece on the side of the road... decided to keep it for future crafting purpose ;)
Had the Pleasure of Shooting this gorgeous babe! 

It's officially my one year anniversary with bangs.... my hair has since then been a zillion shades of purple, pink, blue, and turquoise and has grown back out to the length pictured on the left... I'm a mess. haha

Put the finishing touches on my signature logo! 

Zooey is one word; PERFECTION. Couldn't have enjoyed the weekend I spent just relaxing and watching New Girl. I'm not gonna lie... I'm not really rooting for Jessnicka.. 

Found the most perfect flower walking through campus and had to take her home! She lasted for a good 2 weeks without water! Such a trooper! 
^WORD.

If my eye is the window to my soul... what do you see here?

So in love with my leopard bells! This was before a ballet class.

Do you do yoga? No? Get up... right now. stop reading my blog and go stretch your beautiful bones!

Melanie Audet shot this photo of me doing my thang on the way to Jacksonville Fl. Lovin' the light refraction from the lens onto my eye! 

Love being in the studio! Ballet has been my savior this semester!

Sometimes... you have to go to serious lengths to get the shot that you want. ;)



I mean... didn't you dress up for valentines day??

Eternally in love with my Arnhem Cherry Blossom Songbird Kimono!


My mom always sets aside interesting things for me to shoot with, and she found the prettiest vintage wedding dress with daisy bell sleeves! :'D


Sneak Peek to the Collab shoot I did with Wings Hawaii Jewelry! CANNOT wait to finally edit these photographs and share them with you! They are absolutely perfect!


Added a new dreamcatcher to my wall! My lovely sister sent me the bottom right one from Germany!


Started planning for my Pandeia Collaboration!


CELEBRATED MINT CHOCOLATE CHIP ICECREAM DAY!


Rockin' my Wild and Free Hawaii one of a kind Tank! 


So there actually is a story behind this! I've been inspired to do research on a barbie photo shoot and found these three barbies! They reminded me so much of me and my best friends back home I had to make a Barbie CD cover! I miss singing with my girls so much!


I've been pretty obsessed with recognizing the majesty of God through nature this month. It seems to be a reoccurring theme that has been really encouraging me! This flower was a photo I snapped of one of those moments! ... meanwhile... Kaci was inside the Cafeteria smuggling out dinner for two! ;P

Found some old fringe leather vests that my aunt gave me a while back! My wheels have been spinning and I cannot wait to use them in a shoot!

One of my best and extremely talented friends Heather Hartley painted me! :'D

Sometimes you just gotta have a self photoshoot... Location Scouting on Campus!


Mermaid Inspiration all day every day! <3

Check out my Blog post on my supes awesome friend Cole! You'll love his guest blog!!

So glad I had the opportunity to take dance shots of this mega babe! She's so talented, I don't think the shoot could have gone any better! :'D



Remember the rose friend I made? This is her a few days later! Still shining bright!


I just wasn't ready to let go of the flower so I arranger her on my dresser with my jewelry!



And lastly, I just started watching the Face.... Just go watch it! I'll Eternally be inspired by Naomi & COCO. 


I'm beginning to fall in love with my insta-diary, cataloguing my month helps me to see how many beautiful things in my life I have to be thankful for. The people who connect with me on Instagram inspire me to be a better artist and photographer. They make me want to get up every morning and create and recognize the blessings around me! If you aren't following me on instagram already, please do! I'd love to get to know you and to be inspired by you! 

IG: @ToriRayPhotography


xoxo
Tori Ray
Keep Swimming lil Mermaids <3

LINKS


3.3.13

The heart of Pearl. Love. Jewelry; a Collaboration


A few months ago I made contact with Pearl. Love. Jewelry asking them if I could use some of their jewelry designs to build my fashion photography portfolio, thus was the birth of this collaboration. Upon receiving their package I couldn't wait to get the creative juices flowing to produce a shoot that Tara and Emily would love! This is the final product of that shoot! Be sure to read the exclusive interview with Pearl. Love. Jewelry below, their story is so inspiring! 











|| Model: Kaci Palomino | Accessories: Pearl.Love. Tahitian Pearl Designs ||

Exclusive Interview with Tara and Emily; Owners of Pearl. Love. Jewelry
[my comments in lavender ;) ]

Who is the face behind Pearl Love?

We are two sisters, Tara and Emily, who grew up together on the East Coast and now live on Oahu, Hawaii and in Virginia. We grew up in the late 1970s and early 1980s, crafting, creating, and exploring the outside world. Tara has a very unique story.  She had a decade plus long corporate career that came to a screeching halt a few years ago due to a chronic illness.  The end of that career coincided with the birth of pearl. love.  The company is a labor of love for both of us, but a bit of salvation for Tara throughout her healing, which makes it even more special to us J


What is the back story behind Pearl. Love.? How did you guys get started, and why pearls?

We got started by accident … we had seen pearl and leather jewelry while traveling and either didn’t love the styles or didn’t love the prices. We ordered supplies, flew to the Cayman Islands for a family vacation, and spent long afternoons in the sun experimenting with the pearls and leather cord. At the end of the trip, we had a selection of necklace and bracelet styles we loved and we were hooked. 

We started out making jewelry for our friends and ourselves. We used to spend time in the summers in Montauk, New York and that first summer of pearl. love., we spent our days at the beach making jewelry and our nights cruising around town dripping in pearls. One day we wandered into the cutest boutique and met the owner, who was interested in selling our jewelry, and a business was born! We started with that one shop in Montauk that literally bought the jewelry off our bodies and the rest is history. Emily’s move to Oahu coincided perfectly with our decision to expand and develop an online store. [Their story is so inspiring to me, it's incredible how things fall into place when you are doing something you love with the people you love!]

Why pearls?  Well, we are outdoorsy people and both love the ocean. It was natural to want to associate our jewelry with the ocean and nature.  We love how exotic and raw and natural the Tahitian pearl is and we thought leather was such a unique way to make Tahitian pearl jewelry more wearable. We have continued to build on our original styles and have been incorporating some new materials, such as silk cord and turquoise, as pearl. love. grows and evolves. [Exotic & Raw are the EXACT words I would use to describe the tahitian pearls! They are so stunning and I've gotten so many compliments on mine!]

Where are you guys based?

We are based on the North Shore of Oahu, Hawaii. Our headquarters are with Emily on Oahu, while Tara provides support from Virginia (and visits Oahu as often as she can). The North Shore is an easy place to live and design. [I bet!] In the summers, it is a deserted idyllic tropical paradise and in the winter, the town is flooded with the whole surf industry, which brings a totally different scene.  Fast, exposed, and fashionable. Our natural surroundings are constantly inspiring us; we are also inspired by the surf culture of the winter months on the North Shore, the various places we’ve lived and vacationed throughout the world, a few favorite blogs and magazines, and our richly developed interior worlds that make us who we are. We both have something inside of us that pushes us to create and share our visions that are born from the inspiration that surrounds us. [To me, this is what makes you guys so intriguing to me! Your travels and location mixed with your interior worlds. Everyone has their own experiences and this is what makes your unique designs one of a kind! I feel so privilege to be a part of your journey!]  

What are your current favorite companies?

-       Free People, Spell & the Gypsy Collective, Sugarhigh Lovestoned, Stone Cold Fox, Brandy Melville, and a little J Crew mixed in. [YES YES YES YES AND YES!! absolutely in love with all of these companies!]

What would be a dream come true for the company?
Tara: Honestly, each step we’ve come to and each accomplishment has been a dream come true. If you had told us 5 years ago where we would be today, we would not have believed you. That being said, to have even one style sold by Free People would truly be the pinnacle of “dream come true” for us! [I can definitely see that happening, it would be such a perfect fit! Their buyers would go nuts over your designs!]

Favorite Quote?
Tara: The secret of health for both mind and body is not to mourn for the past, not to worry about the future, or not to anticipate troubles, but to live in the present moment wisely and earnestly. –the Buddha

Emily:  “I saw that my life was a vast glowing empty page and I could do anything I wanted.” - Jack Kerouac

[There you have it folks. Get out there and LIVE!]

Ideal vacation spot?
Tara: Hawaii, to visit my sis and my friends, to revisit old faves and explore new areas followed by a few weeks exploring Tahiti, Bali & Thailand. 

Emily: Tahiti.  I’ve never been and I’d love to get a crew together to go down there to cruise around and check out some pearl farms.  Life in Puerto Escondido, Mexico isn’t half bad either ;)

[I'm trying to plan a surf/photography visit to Hawaii soon! My step father grew up there and my rents plan on buying land eventually. I've never been, but just hearing people talk about it makes me itch with excitement for the day I step foot on the North Shore! All the other locations sound on pointe as well!]

Anything else you'd like to share with my readers? 

We feel so lucky to get to create a product that people love and want to wear.  It is a very satisfying, fulfilling feeling and it really makes us feel connected to each other and the rest of the world. The distance between our customers and us melted away once we developed an online presence. We are so excited and grateful for the friends we’ve made and the customers we’ve met through our website and social media. We are looking forward to new adventures together, with pearl. love, and with you!



Tara & Emily have decided to do a giveaway JUST FOR YOU, my blog readers & IG followers! This Pearl Love Giveaway has been posted on my Instagram!
IG: @ToriRayPhotography
To Enter: Repost the image, tag & follow my gram and Pearl. Love's, then Hashtag #PearlRayGiveaway!

[so you know what to look for]

I highly encourage you to connect with Pearl. Love. Jewelry!
Instagram: @Pearl_Love_Jewelry


xoxo
Tori Ray