introducing lovely clusters

today is usually reserved for etsy finds but instead i wanted to introduce you to lovely clusters, the recently launched, curated indie marketplace hosted by rachel of design lovely (based on maui) and vicki from simply hue. the idea for lovely clusters was the natural evolution of rachel's blog which is devoted to sharing a sweet fix of charming romantic finds (think anthropologie) discovered during her online wanderings.

as etsy and the many other online emporiums become crowded with sellers, it can be quite a time sap to click through page after page of possibilities searching for the perfect gem. luckily for those of us who swoon over pretty little things, lovely clusters edits out all the noise down to the most delightful handmade and vintage treasures. even better, you also have the option to fine tune your search by color or category which is how i found all of these lovely clusters-approved, island-inspired offerings.

designers interested in signing up will want to take a peek at the guidelines for more details. there is a limited complimentary listing plus a more expansive shop listing available for a small monthly fee. it does help to have an online shop, but if you need assistance setting one up, send a note to rachel who just happens to design websites during her day job.

p.s. be sure to click over to the design lovely etsy shop which is stocked with handmade note cards made by rachel.

portraits with a purpose

honolulu photojournalist david murphey, who splits his days between assignments for modern luxury hawaii and capturing island weddings, is donating his time and talent for the first ever portraits with a purpose, a photography project to benefit the hawaii chidren's cancer foundation.

in exchange for a tax-deductible $30 donation (which, fyi, is significantly reduced from david's standard sitting fee), you can book an hour-long session with the freelance lensman to snap a senior portrait, family photo, or professional head shot. you will also receive a 5x7 print for your kokua, however take note that additional prints will cost extra.

spots are limited so hele over to the reservation page for more details.

{via seasons of life}

online picture show

hanalei fence : belle etoile designs

one of my favorite pastimes is gazing at the array of point of views possible with a single camera click. a glance at a beautifully composed shot of something yummy or beautiful or far away always makes me happy.

whenever home, curiosity inevitably finds me in a gallery or gift shop to scout the souvenirs currently on offer only to leave disappointed at the lack of affordably priced options beyond the abundant inventory of turtles, dolphins, and wave after glassy wave.

so, for etsy day, i thought it would be fun to post a peek of how a handful of travelers to hawaii, cameras in tow, captured their island destination through a different lens . . . be it a dreamy beach scene or a high flying moment.

enjoy!

maui county fair : honeytree photography

dancing flowers : william dohman

mojito sun : bueller

p.s. have a favorite shot to share? drop me a note for a chance to have your photograph featured on h|h.

{update: lots of enthusiasm for the photo project, however i must kindly request that you provide a link to your website or flickr page. no attachments, please. mahalo!}

through the looking glass

floating

for the past year a photography technique called through the viewfinder (ttv) has captivated my imagination along with a growing community of online fans and enthusiasts. amateur and professional photographers capture modern day moments with a warm, vintage feel by first composing shots through an old medium format camera and then clicking away through the viewfinder with a digital camera.

it's a bit of a juggling act (and one i have yet to fully attempt) and, after an exhaustive search for beachy-type prints for my own walls, i happened across the recently opened etsy shop of maui photographer lisa brodzinski . . . after ordering them elsewhere. (murphy's law strikes again. sigh.)

while lisa studied photography early on, she only recently stumbled upon ttv and was instantly smitten with its dreamy nostalgic style. since her introduction to ttv, lisa has roamed the island snapping subjects from sunny beach scenes to moody rainy days along with a few sweet flower portraits and whatever else catches her fancy.

the appeal of ttv is that it seems to soften the edges of our 21st century go-go world giving everything a vintage glow like old photos stuck in the pages of forgotten family albums documenting midcentury life.

carry me

sugar beach

ocean breath

lisa's etsy shop stocks prints and photo blocks plus custom orders are welcome should you require something special. to celebrate the grand opening, order one item and save 50% off your second item through the end of october. and, to sweeten the pot, lisa is giving readers an extra bonus of 15% off their entire order just by mentioning h|h at checkout!

• expires: jan 1, 2009

in addition to her etsy shop, lisa's photos have become a popular souvenir at her family's kihei gift shop where maui readers can stop by to flip through the collection in person:

• where: jade's aloha souvenirs, 1941 south kihei road (kihei kalama village)

p.s. click over to the ttv flickr page and take a peek at the online gallery of snapshots from around the world.

a peek into hawaii's hidden archipelago

 

a few months ago, i had a chance to watch jean-michel cousteau's documentary, voyage to kure, which explored the rarely seen northwestern hawaiian islands. it's a journey that most of us will never have the opportunity to make, and, quite honestly, that's probably a good thing for all the endangered creatures that call this part of the world home.

you can get a glimpse of these rare specimans in archipelago, the latest book from photographers' david liittschwager & susan middleton. you will be amazed at what they found and their stunning photographs reinforce just how important it is for each and every one of us to do our part for the environment.

if you really don't think this matters, let me tell you how disheartening it was to see the animals that
died from ingesting all the plastic crap that clueless people continue to litter across the earth, as well as the tons of fishing nets that volunteers gathered up from the ocean in just one day.

bet you didn't know that this part of hawaii is like a whirlpool gathering up all the stuff that people, as far as thousands of miles away, have tossed into the ocean eventually finding its way into the ecosystem to the unsuspecting wildlife who make all this man-made stuff their next meal.

alrighty, off my soapbox. if you're intrigued you may also want to add remains of a rainbow, another book from l+m featuring rare plants of hawaii, to your book list.

photographs from archipelago are currently on exhibit at the kauai museum until oct 15th.