Shakespeare&Co has always been love

(...)

Penso que nunca mais subirei até ao degrau com que me vejo nítida,
Malditas mãos dos perdidos que me seguram os pés.
Recebi uma música que é a tua mais triste,
E aí percebi que nunca soubeste o que me ser.
Foste hóspede da minha casa e dormi contigo enquanto frio tinhas,
Mas chegou o calor e as mãos derreteram-se.
Juntam-se vidas e separam-se mortes,
Quantas um corpo pode aguentar é que é a cruz.
Não tenho saudades de muita coisa,
Pensei que teria mais ao longo dos dias
Mas esses tornaram-se longos de mais para isso.
Tenho um copo de whisky na mão direita
E não pouso a caneta porque aqui o tempo é dinheiro.
Time is money.
Quero para mim o inexplicável desta frase,
Tão oca quanto as pessoas que cá andam.

(...)

Sara da Costa Oliveira

"The World"

My best friend has just finished one of the most beautiful and incredible things (a puzzle) I've seen in a long time.

It's simply superb! Congratulations to whom gave it to you - it's quite of a gift - and to you for the beautiful masterpiece you came up in the end. Need/want one of these for my house (who doesn't?!)!

"The World" at your feet, literally.

Photos: José

My kind of blue(s) at Côte D'Azur

Looking at you on the water, alone, at dusk, on that very last day, filled me with great joy!

Kind of Blue - Miles Davis

 

The Golden Hour

I'm not a professional photographer whatsoever (but I also don't think we need to be professional to be whatever...).

However, I've always been fan of meaningful and "good" photography (whatever it means) and what I believe I have is something I'd describe as sense and sensibility: the ability to always look for different angles for the same possible shot (except when the unexpected happens - which sometimes happens to be the best moments and shots too), good light, some macro details and, the most important to me, to be a good observer... Most of it, based on a trial and error experimentation. So, other than this, when it comes to technical tricks and knowledge, I must admit my ignorance.

Nevertheless, I'm very demanding with photography, mine and with others in general, and when it comes to light - which is known to be a crucial element in photography - "if there's one thing that can make or break a photograph more than any other, it's lighting" - the so called "golden hour" is my favorite thing in the world! See here & here & here.

Not that professional explanations are important to me, since it's been my favorite moment of the day since forever (for photography or not), even before I knew it had this official name, but below I'll post two somehow definitions and share some photos I took today, at dusk, along my "golden" street!

Source: PetaPixel

"The golden hour, sometimes called the "magic hour", is roughly the first hour of light after sunrise, and the last hour of light before sunset, although the exact duration varies between seasons. During these times the sun is low in the sky, producing a soft, diffused light which is much more flattering than the harsh midday sun that so many of us are used to shooting in."

in Photographymad

"The golden hour is the period of time the color of the sky goes from red and orange to yellow or, as its name suggests, golden tones, having a warm color temperature. Lighting is soft, diffused and with little contrast, since the sun is low in the sky.
Due to the type of light that exists during this period of time, that doesn’t produce strong shadows and harsh lighting, it’s ideal for landscape photography."

in PetaPixel

Pateira.

Easy living

This sunset shared with incredible people will be kept in my mind and heart forever as one of the best moments of my life. Good people, good conversations and good music will always amaze me.

As for the rest, I think I could go on and on and on on how lucky I know I am with my life!...

"And, in the end of the day, your feet should be dirty, your hair messy and your eyes sparkling"

Photos by Andreas

Backyards, cinema and other stories!

Words, photos, backyard and beauty all from Kelly Framel.

Around here, we fervently believe in the power and importance of upgrading the everyday: making every meal an occasion, applauding a sunset, opening our home to friends and filling it with a lot of love and fun. It’s this ethos that inspired us to collaborate with Ecco Domani Wines on some summer entertaining ideas; their brand is built on the same tenets we ourselves live by. For us, living every day like it’s your last means celebrating life in the moment: putting your best foot forward, wearing a pretty dress just because, using the good plates, living in harmony with nature, and taking care of the ones you love.

For the past year and a half, we’ve divided time between New York City and Amagansett, a quiet little hamlet nestled between The Hamptons and Montauk on the easternmost tip of Long Island. Our time in the city is filled with momentum: industry, appointments, takeout and crowded restaurants ~ everything in inverse of the languorous days we spend in Amagansett. It’s a life with distinct yin and yang ~ a fantastic balance. Out East, happily ensconced in our little cabin in the woods, the rest of the world really fades away. In every direction, we’re surrounded by trees; we wake up under a canopy of leaves, glistening through the skylight above bed. You can almost hear their branches sing. The retreat feels endless, and it’s a cathedral we’re always loathe to leave. So we entertain at home, make every day festive, and lure friends into our little dreamworld so that we rarely have to abandon it.

We’re surrounded by fisherman and farmland, fresh produce only a bike ride away. If you pop by at lunchtime you’ll likely find seared tuna tacos served alongside heirloom tomatoes and watermelon salad, for dinner, ceviche. The afternoons in between are spent poolside, and we rarely go inside again until it’s time for bed. Why should we? In lieu of lawn furniture, our grassy backyard is littered with sun-faded rugs, oversized pillows, Moroccan poufs and a random assortment of stuffed jungle animals. Friday night is movie night. We pin a white sheet to the clothesline and pull a few rugs and a projector up around it. Word has spread quickly that if you mosey over to our place at sunset, you’ll be just in time for the evening show.

It’s the easiest, most impromptu of parties. We never know who exactly will drop by or how many friends they’ll bring, but it really doesn’t matter. There’s plenty of room around the fire. Popcorn is constantly exploding from our stovetop (it’s the simplest thing to make endless quantities of, then elevate with a sprinkling of herbed salt), and as long as we have plenty of wine and fixings for s’mores, then we’re pretty much in business ~ whether 2 or 20 roll up for the flick!

 

Photos: The Glamourai

25 things you DON’T need to do before you die

I found this article quite interesting for the rule breakers. Not that I'm a fan of BuzzFeed whatsoever, but I think these, apparently simple, 25 things point out good and important ways to see life, with which I agree and somehow let them "rule" mine... Moreover, they are also a reminder for me to be more patiente, tolerant and respectful with other people lifestyle.

1. You shouldn’t feel pressure to see, watch, read, or listen to anything in order to feel “cultured.” Love what you love, and explore the arts in whatever way that makes sense to you.

2. Your body doesn’t have to look a particular way.

3. You don’t need to have sex before or after a particular point. You do that when you feel it’s right.

4. You shouldn’t feel bad about having “too much” or “too little” sexual experience.

5. You don’t have to find love by any particular point. It happens when it does, if you’re open to it.

6. You don’t ever need to define your sexuality. It can be a fluid thing.

7. You don’t have to have sex at all.

8. You don’t need to be in a committed relationship at any particular point in your life.

9. You don’t ever need to get married.

10. You don’t ever need to be a parent.

11. And if you want to be a parent, it doesn’t have to be your biological child.

12. You don’t need to achieve major success by a specific point in your life. Success can come early, or late in life. And it’s something you have to define for yourself.
 

13. You don’t need to buy specific things to prove you’re an adult.
 

14. You don’t need to travel all over to be worldly.
 

15. You don’t need to have a career. You don’t have to define your life by your work, and you don’t have to feel like you need to do the same work all of your life.
 

16. You don’t have to be ashamed of any excess or lack of body hair.
 

17. You don’t have to be friends with everybody.
 

18. You don’t have to like what everyone else likes.
 

19. You don’t have to please everyone.
 

20. You shouldn’t ever feel like it’s too late to change your life.
 

21. You don’t have to let your mistakes (or successes) define you.
 

22. You don’t have to know everything.
 

23. You don’t need to drink or do drugs to have a good time.
 

24. You don’t need to be religious or spiritual. You don’t have to feel bad about being religious or spiritual either.
 

25. You don’t need to correct all of your flaws. It’s OK to be human.

Source: BuzzFeed

More here & here.

The white shirt issue, part II

Photos: Garance Doré

More here.

Blurred photos for blurred lives

Not sure about the purpose of showing blurred photos here, imperfect ones captured in perfect moments. I think it's all about reminding ourselves about the purpose of life - mine at least.

I now understand that all my life I've been dealing with it in a trial-and-error basis and it took me 25 f*cking years to become what I am. I've been a very lucky girl - true that - my struggles are nothing comparing to what's happening around the world (firstworldproblems?!), but anyway, I'd like to address these thoughts mainly about mental growth.
I never refused to learn and grow, I've always been open to all the experiences that came to me and allowed them to change me, because I believe we, on ourselves, are no final destination. I allowed to choose the best of each and every experience and learnt with their mistakes, so I can accept more easily and be a better person. I'm not static, the girl I was 10, 5, 3, 1 years ago is no longer the girl I'm right now. My soul is the same, and it's portuguese - doubt not -, my honest and contagious smile is still easy to get, but the way I feel about life and howI deal with it is different. Call it vulnerability, I call it growth. I feel stronger than ever, confident than ever, because all this trial and error process helped me to know better what fits me and what fits me not, learnt to say "no". Remember that!

I also always choose to confront my not-so-good-moments, I never tried to escape, I took decisions when I had to and I didn't wait for the sun to come, I cried when I needed to, and, guess what, I found most of the answers when alone.

I have no admiration for people who refuse to grow and stay stuck in themselves, in old ideas, most of the times based only in opinions and pure judgements and nothing solid that is worth being stuck on. But then again, the way I deal with life, and consequently, with people, changed - I no longer care for them, except when they cross my path... In fact, we shouldn't consider other people's opinion especially when they never walked your path or a path with you. I believe each one of us should do and deal with life the way one wants, but be aware that there are no standards and no such thing as "normality".
My world has changed, my rules also changed, but the only universal truth I believe here is truly that "your freedom ends where my freedom begins".

Shall my mottos resonate in your mind:

"Beautiful things happen when you distance yourself from negativity."

"Let everything happen to you: beauty and terror. Just keep going. No feeling is final."

"All the variety, all the charm, all the beauty of life is made up of light and shadow."

"Be your own person, in your own body, living your own life."

"I want to be around people that do things. I don’t want to be around people anymore that judge or talk about what people do. I want to be around people that dream and support and do things."

"Make sure you don’t start seeing yourself through the eyes of those who don’t value [comprehend] you. Know your worth even if they don’t."

Other than that and to the photos below: sand under my feet, wind in my hair, salt on my skin. And yeah, life could be as easy as this, but people just tend to complicate things and occupy lives with problems they think necessary they need in order to live...

Antibes, France.