Posts filed under i take photos

guana

as many of you know, last weekend my family and i took a trip to the british virgin islands, a set of small islands near san juan. it's been wicked cold in the nyc. last week it was 9˚F, so it was nice to add a zero to the end of that number...

it was the first time i've ever seen waters so clear and blue. yes, i've been to the beach multiple times (thanks, cali), but to see water to pure was probably like seeing snow for the first time. it seems almost impossible. there was plenty of fruit-eating, sun-bathing, and sleeping. sleeping in has never felt so good. 

there was rain, but it was beautiful. it was the type of rain that you can swim in because it's so warm and soft. there was something about this place that made me tranquil, and i don't think i have ever had such an experience like that before. 

next week, exams start, so i guess this trip was a stress-reliever of sorts. i'm looking forward to that. not. 

have a lovely weekend everyone!

Posted on February 21, 2015 by izzy rael and filed under travel, videos!!!, i take photos and tagged travel.

yes. break.

shooting a special cake...

big scarf in steven alan home

pretty light in steven alan brooklyn

it's been a great week; a very relaxing, rewarding week. and it feels so great.

after christmas day, i began to shoot some new recipes i've come up with (and they're really, realllllly goooood, if i do say so myself). i think what's really great about writing recipes is that once you get an end result (hopefully positive), it's gratifying. i've been feeling a lot of that this winter break. plus, i get to eat all of my dishes, so that's nice too.

it's also been great to spend more time with my mom, dad, and brother; to be able to go out shopping or just talk during the day. i also get to cook with my mom again; that feels nice. everything that has to do with free time is nice. free time is nice. watching an entire harry potter marathon is nice. sleeping in is nice. 

break is nice.

oh god, i'm going to have a lot of trouble when school starts again.

enough of my crazy rambling. have a great week everyone!

Posted on December 29, 2014 by izzy rael and filed under blah blah blah, i take photos and tagged photographs blah blah blah.

the tree

personally, the merry holiday feelings do not begin until my family and i pick a christmas tree. in this sentence i effectively used diction; from the use of the word 'pick', we can extrapolate that izzy selectively chooses her trees, meaning that she rejects all other trees until she finds the perfect one. we once again witness the human condition to strive for perfection, even if that means hurting the feelings of poor trees in the process. 

BAM. english analysis studying done. QED. oh look, geometry studying done, too. 

this week is crammed with before-break tests, quizzes, and assessments– too many? never... but it's overwhelming at times. during my study sessions and work periods, i enjoy listening to covers of classic holiday songs and ballads to keep reminding myself that the winter break is near.

as i was saying before i went into my tree analysis, today we drove upstate to select the perfect arboreal figure. now in the Rael family, there's a lot that goes into consideration when choosing a tree: its height, its color, its fullness, its ability to fit in the stairwell, its scent, and other beneficial factors. we ended up deciding on a full, 11-foot tree with green pine needles and a blue-grey underside, while also having an extremely prominent pine-y smell. i say it's perfect. truly perfect. it's pretty bare at the moment, but it will be filled with ornaments by tomorrow morning.

let the holidays begin.

have a lovely sunday, everyone. 

p.s. below is the playlist that i listen to during the holidays. enjoy.

p.p.s. happy last consecutive date of the century.

Posted on December 13, 2014 by izzy rael and filed under playlists, blah blah blah, i take photos and tagged photographs blah blah blah music.

stress & friday links

let's talk about stress. 

as a freshman at a completely new school that is also completely unfamiliar, i have a lot of stress. stress = little sleep = anxiety about not sleeping = being unconfident about stuff. so therefore, using the transitive property, stress = not being confident about stuff.

i think that what's hard for me to fully understand is that struggling is part of being a teenager. that being uncomfortable when you don't grasp a concept or when you are around other people is normal.

although i am writing these statements now, i realize that even i haven't comprehended them yet. which kind of sucks, but i think i'm getting used to it. 

to all my fellow students: you will make it through. 

to all of my fellow non-students: you will make it through.

to myself: just stop freaking out.

 

okay. just had to put that out there.

on a much happier note, here my friday links for this week. 

1/ this kale + squash salad is definitely going on my "have-to-make-this-now" list

2/ i've never heard of a bostock before... but i think i need one. or four.

3/ can we all just agree that this can easily be the greatest flour shot of all time?

4/ i think this is very relevant. plus, ruby is one of my favorite cartoonists...

5/ can we just appreciate the fact that the newsroom season 3 is premiering next month (!!!!!!!!!! internally screaming !!!!!!!!!!)

6/ i think i am in love with the coloring of this movie

 

have a lovely weekend everyone.

Posted on October 24, 2014 by izzy rael and filed under blah blah blah, i share stuff, i take photos and tagged blah blah blah photographs link love.

i am fifteen

it's kind of hard for me to believe that i'm turning fifteen today.

the big 1-5– the year of the quinceanera (that i am not having).

i mean, it's just another year that i've been alive, in a quite literal sense. 

about 6 hours into fifteen-dom i realize that being fifteen is just like being fourteen. it's not like you're turning thirteen, your first "teen" year; or eighteen, your "last" "teen" year, and you're not celebrating your sweet sixteen, either. so i ask, what is it then?

fifteen. just fifteen. 

so instead of saying fourteen you say fifteen. that's basically it. you say you're fifteen and that you're a freshman in high school. that's all that you think has changed.

physically.

i don't feel different, i don't look different, i don't sound different, i don't know any different, but i know that i have changed, and will continue to change. and yes, that is both a good thing and a bad thing.

good in the sense that i am becoming more knowledgable and that there will be more opportunities for me.

bad in the sense that i am actually getting older, physically and mentally, and that i will have to hold more responsibility on my shoulders. but there's no stopping it. there's no stopping any of it. and i have to deal with it.

i went with a couple of my friends and my family to two of my favorite places in new york (state) to celebrate my first few days in fifteendom. naturally, i took my camera with me to capture the moments. 

i'll let the film give you a sense of the joy i felt on that day.

so to this i say, happy birthday, me.

may this sixteenth year of existence (and your seventeenth and eighteenth and nineteenth, too) bring you good and amazing things.

if you're reading this, i just want to say thank you. to all of my friends and teachers and classmates, i wish you the absolute best in the future ahead. i'll miss you all. 

Posted on September 26, 2014 by izzy rael and filed under videos!!!, i take photos and tagged videos photographs.

autumn

*click on the photographs to view larger

when you come to the realization that today is the first day of fall, it kind of just hits you. i mean, weren't we just in summer yesterday? weren't we still in the warm weather with the grilled peaches, corn on a cob, and hot breezes?

where did it all go?

it's not like i miss it with all my heart or anything. yeah, i do miss all the stone fruits, and the fact that i don't have to wear a coat, but there's just something so cozy and good-feelings-y about autumn. tea. pumpkins. squashes. chilly weather. big duvets. long pajamas. new wool hats. TEA.

all of my friends say they miss summer. i've missed fall. 

moving on...

it's been 2-ish weeks as a high-schooler. i feel these subtle changes arising. with age comes responsibility, but at the same time new opportunities. the other thing that comes with responsibility is homework. and no, no, i'm not complaining and/or ranting about homework. i'm just saying that the quantity of the (horrid) stuff is greater than it was last year. i have less time to really do the things that i love (i.e. recipe-making, shooting the recipes, posting the recipes, having more content for the blog, etc.) 

it's a pang in the heart, really.

in fact, i started writing this post at about 5:21ish in the morning. it's 5:52am, now. 

 

happy first day of autumn, everyone. 

Posted on September 23, 2014 by izzy rael and filed under blah blah blah, i take photos and tagged photographs blah blah blah.

a super exciting announcement + (almost) friday links

as all of you may or may not know, i'm doing a project with VSCO. (sneak previews above)

i, izzy rael, am going to be part of VSCO's Artist Initiative project. exciting, isn't it? for the next few weeks, i'm going to be creating, shooting, and writing a book of all things creative. 

that's all i am going to tell you.

you can see the official announcement on the VSCO journal here. stay tuned and watch out for specific photographs on my grid, using the hashtag #artistinitiative. 

but you're probably all here for the awesome links i'm about to share with you... so i will not deprive you further.

1/ izy, the purely magnificent, internet-famous baker, just released her own announcement for her new cookbook, Top With Cinnamon! woohoo! guess who's going to be first in line when you come to sign books in new york...

2/ i'm in love with this video for green kitchen stories' raw buckwheat & walnut porridge. 10/10 great.

3/ can i please just buy all of these ceramics? please? thanks.

4/ for my mum's birthday, (happy 39th, mom!) my dad and i grilled up this easy, yet incredibly sophisticated zucchini and ricotta flatbread. heck yes. 101% recommend before summer ends!

5/ where incredible graphics, doctor who, sherlock, and harry potter collide: my new fandom tumblr! i'm almost 15, i still get to do these things. dooweeooooooooooooooo.

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Posted on August 28, 2014 by izzy rael and filed under i share stuff, i take photos.

PDX

grapefruit rose + passionfruit-sichuan peppercorn sorbets at fifty licks 

papa + q

farm cabbage 

farmer girl

one of five dishes on the vegetarian tasting menu at racion

capturing light

downtown.

the berries we picked

book selection at table of contents

pick-your-own sunflowers

table of contents #selfie

well. it's been a great 10 days here in oregon with my family, and at jazz camp.

i've made relationships with people i will never let go of, and i'm one step closer to becoming an even better musician.

i finally made my way to fifty licks, a super small batch hip ice cream parlor in portland. they have a lemon-saffron sorbet cocktail with shiso leaf. (6 more years. 6 more years...)

we went berry picking at sauvie island farms. you can't really get a real farm experience in new york, right? i probably ate about 2 pounds of blueberries and golden raspberries. the aches were worth it. plus we got to sit in a vegetable cart. win.

while we were in downtown, portland, we made our way to clyde common in the ace hotel for brunch. and stopped to peek around the little shops around the area. 

the coolest shop of them all, which wasn't actually located downtown, was table of contents. it was so beautiful i wanted to cry. i was going to buy a pair of maison margiela hammer pants, but apparently "they are cool, but not cool enough for you", according to my mom. eh. fine.

we went to ración last night. my first tasting menu, and definitely not my last. it was good. great. fantastic??? right. it was the perfect finish to the end of our trip here in oregon.

i won't ever forget this one.

Posted on August 16, 2014 by izzy rael and filed under travel, i take photos.

Q.

my younger brother, Q, is quite an odd little fellow.

while we were staying at the hotel waiting for our apartment to be renovated, i wanted to capture him in his "natural habitat", meaning, taking pictures that describe his personality, character, and basically what he does 23 out of 24 hours in a normal day.

the light coming through our room window from battery park sparked my eye. snap here, snap there. move a little to the left, no the other left. and done.

i often think that silhouettes capture more than one's physical appearance. shadows, contrast, darkness all provide the mood of the photographer, and, quite frankly, the mood of the subject as well. 

after i took a few photographs, i tell him i'm finished. in an instant, he makes his way back to the only desk in the room, where his 2007 macbook pro sits; minecraft running. typical. so i took another shot.

Posted on July 24, 2014 by izzy rael and filed under i take photos.

papa, papa

this father's day was very special. a visit to dia:beacon, warm rays, a roberta's pie, a taco or two… it was very "rael family" sort of sunday. and i'm very glad i have an awesome dad to share it all with.

do me a favor, and call up your dad. if he's in the other room (like mine), or in another place, go ahead and tell him you love him. they don't get told it enough.

- -

here are a few visual snipets from today. we weren't really supposed to take pictures… but who cares

dan flavin / a retrospective

walking the sol lewitt

q + serra

me + serra

family portrait courtesy of gerhard richter

good night.

Posted on June 15, 2014 by izzy rael and filed under i take photos.

snapshots

hello fellow readers!

i swear i can feel summer in my bones! it is so close!

i'm slowly starting to stow away my heavy sweaters and gradually bringing out all of my fun airy dresses and shorts. it's quite a rewarding process, since winter was was horrendous this year.

the photos above are a few snapshots i've taken this week. a lot of green, no? greens make me happy. very happy.

Posted on May 28, 2014 by izzy rael and filed under i take photos.

this week in the city + link loves

hello! guess who's had one of the busiest weeks ever?

me.

so busy that i haven't written a blog post in over a week! 

so busy that i haven't baked anything this week!

so busy that i want to sleep all the time.

that kind of busy.

and yes, i know i am only fourteen years old, but it's pretty bad, okay?

 

but although it seems that i have no time whatsoever, i've taken a few photos here and there… (i guess i wasn't all that busy after all…) 

there was rain, and there was sun, and there were watermelons, and there were blossoms, and– well, you get the point.

and if you'd like to take a look at the few things that i've found interesting/note-worthy this week...

 

Posted on May 4, 2014 by izzy rael and filed under i share stuff, i take photos.

and i'm off!

if you are reading this now, know that i am currently away in new mexico for spring break! aahhhhh, spring break! for 10 days!!

also know that i am most likely taking wonderful pictures to share with you all when i get back, so BE. EXCITED.

 

anyways...

all new yorkers can say that last weekend was a good representation of spring in its youth. meaning that there was sunlight, WARM sunlight, (didn't really get that quite often), and there are people walking in the streets without jackets on. and if you go to union square, there are people walking in the streets with no clothes on. so as much as you should enjoy spring, BEWARE.

last weekend, my lovely family and i walked approximately 5-ish miles just strolling along the east-side of manhattan. lower manhattan that is. we made visit to our favorite shops in the lower east side/soho/noho/downtown area. 

let me explain that these photographs are not in chronological order, so i will explain each shop and/or moment with scattered numbers. 

#01. a lovely breakfast of fresh bread from eataly, a ripe avocado, and a balsamic rainbow cherry salad

#10. a walk to saturdays. the hipster surf shop that sells really good coffee (??)

#09. a very bold graffiti wall in noho

#03 + #04. shop flowers and water towers viewed while walking — water towers are very interesting to west-siders i must add

#02 + #05 + #07. one of my favorite shops with the most beautiful light: project no. 8 — find your gadgetry and trinkets here! and very photogenic plants!

#06. creatures of comfort. aka my inspiration behind my url: common comfort. it is the most elegant and amazing store and has the best clothing and bags and weird rain hats. aka my kind of store. (*izzy stop using AKA*)

#08. actually a picture of the brooklyn bridge from that week (NOT SUNNY.) when the new jersey forest fire smoke had settled over manhattan and brooklyn.

 

until next time, farewell! and have a fantastic (hopefully) stress-free week!

Posted on April 17, 2014 by izzy rael and filed under i take photos.

only in brooklyn

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yesterday (or a few weeks ago), we took a trip to williamsburg, brooklyn (aka the most hipster-y hipster place that i know in all of new york). if i could live anywhere else in the city, it would be here. 

first, we headed to breakfast; to a spot you’ve most likely have already spotted on this blog.

its name: reynard , [and to this day, it’s my (second) favorite brunch spot]. 
its location: the wythe hotel on none other than wythe street on the outskirts of williamsburg. 

any place with a choice of steel cut oatmeal for brunch is bumped up to the top of my favorites list. it just so happened that reynard is one of them, and i got just that. mmmm, creamy steel cut oatmeal with sautéed apples and cinnamon. even though we could easily make this at home, it was completely worth every penny.

after our beautiful, sun-lit breakfast, we made our way to the heart of williamsburg, where we visited a few of my favorite spots:

i think i will be coming here again, to explore new places. until then, stay tuned.

 

Posted on February 2, 2014 by izzy rael and filed under travel, i take photos.