art explosion,

sweater, H&M trend, jeans, topshop - loafers, zara - bag, vintage

ive been in heaven!! literally. the one thing i always missed in holland was buzz. art, music, fashion buzz. but there has been so much going on this past month! 

there was fashions night out, artifest, stedelijk museum opening, and of course UNSEEN. i got so excited that i volunteered to work there for free [crazy i know]. 

the fair had everything any artie fartie person would want to see; lectures, screenings and photography displays of some of the best galleries in the world. 

while wandering through the photography maze, in revere of all the talent i couldn't help but wonder why pictures of other people appeal to us. what is it that intrigues us about seeing a picture of someone else doing something, whether it be ordinary or extraordinary? 

for me personally, its a combination of feeling part of something bigger, belonging to something as well as wanting to believe in the fantasy of photographs.  although i loved UNSEEN my preference goes out to museum exhibitions because the art on display usually has some thread of underlying message to absorb. 

to love or not to love,

there are those lebanese who love their country and those who dont. 

i am one of those who loves lebanon owing to literally everything, even the smell of car fumes when you open your windows in the city, because it smells like home. i'm oblivious to so many of its flaws because i experience so many amazing things every time i visit. i feel that many people are driven in such a creative way which really inspires me. its something that is missing in london, where everything is so big and needs to be so commercial for it to be considered a success. 

my sister pointed out to me that many of these exciting projects are possible here because there are so little restrictions. another person said that living there in general can be such a pain in the ass and yet another person told me that the country is doomed anyway so there is no future. 

i love that i'm oblivious to all the imperfections of lebanon, it is probably the only way to really enjoy everything it does have!

anyway, i got a little side tracked with my thoughts there. i really just wanted to show you two amazing stores i visited! orient 499 and maison de l'artisan beirut. it is quite pricey and i've heard by word of mouth there is a 'market' called basta where you can find these kinds of things cheaper. but still, great for ideas and eye candy of course.

OH and! i just started a facebook page. i'm a little nervous to go so public... but oh well here it goes.

FACEBOOK!
TWITTER! 

'glasstress' exhibition at the beirut exhibition centre

papercup bookstore in achrafieh, beirut

this time around its been a world wind of discovering new things in my favorite city. many people think im in love with beirut because of its posh boutiques but trust me, it isn't the reason. i love it because i feel this city pulsates life. i feel there is entrepreneurial energy created by the youth and the bold. everything here is possible, a lot of bad but also a lot of good things, it's exciting. 

papercup is hidden in a back alley of gemmayze and has THE best magazines, comics and coffee table books [in my opinion] in beirut. everything is translated into english and french. one of my favorite comics is kiki de montparnasse [and i dont even really like comics].

must do's in ibiza:

explore the secret beaches, swim in the blue waters of formentera, go to the hippy market's (i didnt but i wish i did), lounge at blue marlin

thats all i got my friends, and i loved it ! 

I guess summer SHOULD be THE perfect time to be blogging about my wanderings and such but in reality it really isn't! This should be the time in which I'm taking fabulous pictures in some awesome clothes I've stumbled upon (I.e. some vintage Balenciaga from Barcelona) while being fabulously tanned. However, proper Internet is probably more scarce than vintage Balenciaga and well, I've also been busy with a project called THE ROOM (www.theroom602.com). Thus, unfortunately, not much time for ze blogging. But since I have a crapload of awesome pictures I want to share I'm going to, well start the sharing!

Anyway, I'm going to stop blabbering now. These are some snaps I took in Istanbul, a city that captured my heart by the way. U feel like its what Beirut could've been (in a really really far fetched way) if there hadn't been 20 or so years of war and that inspires me.

bond street, london

pam & i on our way to the 10 year anniversary of sumosan

i do really miss the exciting london days, where there is always something happening

pam: sunnies, ASOS - blouse, vintage - bag, zara - shoes, alexander wang

me: dress, zara - shoes, acne - bag, vintage - necklace, vintage

some places i captured while wandering the streets of paris

merci concept store, le marais + vintage, le marais + lebanese, saint germain apartment, st. germain, jardin du luxembourg