the beauty collective :: january 31st

Aleah on left :: Rachel on right

I smiled when I saw these last two photos come through for the final installment of The Beauty Collective :: January. They each seem to be so quintessential Aleah and Rachel, respectively. If you've been following along with us this month, perhaps you would agree. Gorgeous shots to leave us with, ladies. Thank you!

As I did with Stacy and Casey at the end of last month's Beauty Collective, this past week I asked Aleah and Rachel if they would share their reflections and favorite photos from the past month with us.

Here are their responses in their own words:

Aleah:

I can't believe how fast the month of January went by! I've enjoyed getting out my camera each day this month and either already noticing and capturing something particularly beautiful (to me) in our everyday, or purposefully searching it out. I have to say searching it out was a bit harder because that also meant that I had been too busy throughout the day to catch real "in the moment" beauty. I would then usually be running into the 4:30 p.m.-and-on dusk hours (and literally running around trying to find something) without much natural lighting!

Those days that I did notice something or had a day slow enough to take the time to notice, those were my more meaningful days and probably better picture days.

What I was reminded of during this project was, again, to slow down and look, to see what is really around me! How I'd love to be reveling in those beauty moments all day long if I could take the time to really see each one of them. That would be a feeling of contentment!

Out of the 31 picture sets this month my favorite day has to be January 24th. Both Rachel and my pictures just went together so well that day. Just about the same lighting with an old feel to the pictures. Although the "fruit day" on the 27th made me laugh out loud when I saw our two pictures put together, but I didn't get quite the same emotion from that pair as I did with the school house/chalk board pair.

Hopefully some day we'll meet, Rachel! It's been fun to take pictures along with you and see your day through your photos. You've taken beautiful and intriguing pictures!

Thanks Kristen and Rebekah for hosting and for all the work that goes into this project on your end. It was a fun month!

~Aleah

Rachel:

My favorite photo pairings (I had to choose more than one) were “red” on January 11th and more recently “home” on January 24th. And yes, I made up their titles. :) The 11th was the day after we had some snow, and I love how Aleah and I both sought out warm, cozy things on that day. The 24th’s photos also evoked a sense of calm and comfort when paired together. And it was just a coincidence that we both chose images that showed the beauty of “home.” I think these are also my favorites because, to me, they sum up January: cold, but cozy, quiet and calm.

Overall, this project was challenging, but definitely worth it! As an elementary school teacher, it wasn’t always easy to find something around the school that seemed worth capturing. But that is also what makes looking back at the month’s photos so rewarding. There really was beauty all around me—I just needed to take the time to look for it.

I also loved the excitement of seeing Aleah’s photos each day. It was awesome when the two photos just “clicked” (see January 27th), but equally intriguing when our images had nothing to do with each other, yet somehow evoked the same feeling. I am honored to have participated in The Beauty Collective! Thank you!

:: :: ::

Thank you, Aleah and Rachel, for committing to this project so enthusiastically. When I approached you both separately to see if you would be interested in sharing photos during January, neither one of you hesitated. Both of you, not knowing who your partner was to be, responded with a joyful "Yes! I'm in!" and both of you said: "Let's do every day, including weekends."

So, we all have received 31 gifts from you both this past month--an extra dose of beauty every single day, during a month when many of us can really appreciate it! Watching your collaboration has been a joy, and we thank you and wish you both the best as you set out into the rest of this New Year. Thank you for sharing your gifts with us and inspiring us to notice the beauty around us, wherever we are!

Blessings to you both,

~Kristen

:: :: ::

Farewell, Friends!

As The Beauty Collective wraps up this month, I am also wrapping up my co-authorship of the Ten on Ten blog. It has been a blessing to share this space with all of you, and most recently to act as facilitator of The Beauty Collective. Rebekah was so sweet and gracious to ask me to come on board last spring to help out a bit, and it has truly been my joy to be here! I have loved getting to know more of you out there participating in this fabulous Ten on Ten photo project each month! Thank you to each one of you who allowed me to interview you, and a big shout-out to Mel, of the Larson Lingo for emailing me with the idea of setting up a linky for each month's Ten on Ten! Thank you, too, Casey, Stacy, Aleah, and Rachel for being the first gals to participate in The Beauty Collective.

As I pass the Ten on Ten torch back to Rebekah full-time, you still may see me around these parts now and then. As for now though, The Beauty Collective is on a break until the Spring, and if you know of a photographer you'd like to recommend for the project (or if you yourself are interested!) please email Rebekah at rebekah.gough@gmail.com.

Thanks again, Rebekah, for welcoming me into this space so warmly, and to all of you, for keeping company with me here as I've shared this little spot on the web with you! I'm looking forward to "seeing" you all on the tenth of February! Cheers, Kristen