Category Archives: Uncategorized

May 20, 2013

Little Adventures

On this weekends adventure to Washington State, even though it was just a day trip, it was fun to just engage in the energy of travelling, even if only for the short time.

One of the things I love about getting out of town is the unexpected, the in between moments. The bits of time in between plans where you can just look up at where you are and take a little self-care photo walk.

Just wandering around a town I don’t know makes me seriously happy (with my camera of course). Something about being in a place I don’t know brings up the energy of acutely noticing, of just seeing with new eyes. I especially love taking these little photo walks because while being in a car is a much easier way to travel, just getting feet to ground in a new place makes me really feel like I’m experiencing a place, not just seeing it rush by the car window. I had 2 little bits of adventuring at the start and end of saturday’s photo adventure and in each of those short stretches of time I went on a little wander just to see what might catch my eye.

In Bellingham, just after getting off the bus I spotted it, this patch of tall grass with yellow flowers across the street. I wandered over there and couldn’t resist putting down my iPhone and using the Gorillacam app…stepping into the frame to capture some photos of this day of adventure.

Then, off on the grand adventure away from the rain, through the mountains to the sunny forest that I shared a bit about in yesterday’s post. At the end of that beautiful day I ended up needing to change my travel plans and found myself taking the train home from a town I had never been to: Everett Washington.

After getting my train ticket I had some time to spare and while the town looked pretty industrial in that area, I felt drawn to wander around a bit on a photo walk. I headed up the hill and there it was, this gorgeous mural. It was kind of the last thing I expected to find in that moment. This week in Be Your Own Beloved we had been seeking out messages of love (hearts, words, notes) as reminders to cultivate self-love and I smiled big when I saw that there at the bottom it was…the words ‘You are Loved’. It was a beautiful reminder that wherever you are, there is indeed love. Here are a few more iPhone captures of that sweet little one city block photo walk in Everett!

Have you found that too, that sometimes it is the little in between moments, the unexpected explorations that really add something special to a trip?

May 16, 2013

Feeling the Fear (and doing it anyways)!

On Monday I had the opportunity to do a creativity workshop for the participants of this amazing program: The Self-Care Project.

I immediately said YES when Olive (amazing coach and one of the facilitators) asked me, because as you can probably imagine, that project is so up my alley. I’ve been craving to do more in person workshops so this was a great opportunity to do just that and to talk about self-portraiture as self-care to a group of awesome folks. There have been a few in person teaching opportunities coming my way locally, which has felt really incredible….because this work I’ve been doing for years has been SO online based. For it to cross over to locally AND in-person, not just from me making it happen, but from opportunities coming up is really making me happy.

So back to the workshop…

The day of the event came and along with it MEGA nerves. Now, I’m an introvert but an introvert who loves teaching (maybe its the introverted Leo thing) and feels drawn to do it in person.

It reminded me of when I first started teaching e-courses and how vulnerable it was to put it out into the world. I’m remembering those days and how while it isn’t easy-peasy these days to launch a new class, there isn’t that mega fear there was when I first started.

Here’s the thing I need to remember about that fear. That it is a sign that we are venturing outside our comfort zone, and that is a good thing!

Just like when I’m asking participants in Be Your Own Beloved to come face to face with their inner critic and to tell it:

“I’ve got this. Thanks for trying to alert me to something new and that I’m going outside my comfort zone, but I believe I can handle this, so inner critic…buzz off”

Within the many hours of the day 0f the workshop where I had to say this to my inner critic again and again I realized how much this is a place where there is room to grow, to really show up for myself and I plan to get brave and do it more.

The workshop felt awesome and I loved seeing how once I started, the nerves disappeared and made way for a lovely evening.

I’ve been dreaming of doing some more local Be Your Own Beloved workshops and this class was the spark I needed (yes even with the nerves) to get going on planning it. I’m even dreaming of bringing it to some other Canadian cities and then at some point bring it to the US too.

If you think your city would be one for me to add to the list as I dream up bringing these in person workshops on the road someday, spill the beans!

May 15, 2013

Truth Telling

Each time I’m running Be Your Own Beloved I take part in the class too. I’m so loving how each time I do, even though they might be the same prompts, I experience them differently.

I feel like its important for me to be right there alongside them doing this work as they are bravely engaging in the activities.

But at the same time I also am doing it for myself. Because this self-love journey is so multi-layered. Because these prompts come from my own healing journey and they aren’t meant just to do once and suddenly we see ourselves with love and the inner critic disappears. Because doing these same prompts again I’m amazed at how much new realizations emerge. New layers of the healing.

I try to take my self-portraits with my iPhone as I participate alongside the participants. In this class, more than ever, I really want people to not feel the need to take a ‘perfect’ photo. That it isn’t about having a fancy camera or even knowing how to use it. Its just about showing up in our own photos. Our inner critic can come out in reference to our self-image but also to feeling as though our photograph is ‘enough’.

Yesterday’s photo was one of those ‘digging in deeper’ moments for me. I shared this with the participants in the flickr group:

The truth of today is that I see tiredness in my own eyes, I see me but without a spark.

The truth of today is that I really wanted to retake this and not share it.

The truth of today is that I often do reshoot until I get one that I really feel like I can see myself with kindness in but that today I stopped myself from shooting more because I really want to share more of the ones in between, the ones that are outside of my comfort zones and really show up for you amazing #beyourownbeloved participants and not just with happy jumping photos and feeling sassy. So this is the truth of today.

Now, I think sometimes folks might think that because I do this work that taking self-portraits is easy-breazy, that I’m 100% comfortable with taking photos.

But its the opposite. While its not so much outside of my comfort zone to take out the camera and engage in the act of taking self-portraits, the work of seeing myself with kindness is ongoing and ever evolving. I’m definitely feeling the effects of years of doing this work and am seeing myself with much more compassion lately. Yet that doesn’t mean taking selfies is always easy (mind you….I do make sure I have fun amidst the work of self-compassion).

Like yesterday when I took that one and felt drawn to see her with compassion, with her tired eyes and a shot I might have normally retaken.

So I wanted to share this moment with you. The in between. The days when just showing up in front of the camera and telling the truth of the day is more than enough.

April 30, 2013

Being Your Own Beloved

A new session of Be Your own Beloved starts tomorrow and I can barely wait to send these love notes to the participants inboxes for the next 28 days. Love notes with a daily tool to try on the path to seeing themselves with kindness.

This course comes right from my heart, from all the tricks and tools I’ve been using along the way to healing my own self-image and learning to be kinder to myself. I first offered this class if February and I so hoped that these tools would resonated with the participants. What happened floored me. The experience changed peoples lives. I mean, I know these tools changed mine and that had been my hope but to see the transformations and unfolding that happened in those 28 days was amazing. I was a proud e-course mama and it has been truly an honour to offer this class.

This new session starts tomorrow and I’m adding even more powerful tools to the class (also because a fair number of people who took it the first time are back for more)!

We’re gathering in the Flickr group already for class, so I wanted to mention it to you in case you felt drawn to join us this time and to spend the next month in a beautiful community experience while at the same time focusing in on YOU and creating more self-kindness in your days and seeing yourself differently.

This is for you who don’t think you are photogenic and are never in photos but want to change that story.

This is for you mamas who need tools to reconnect with yourself.

This is for you who believe that you need to make changes before you take photos of yourself (let the love start now).

This is for you who want to change the story of the way you see yourself.

This is for all of us.

I wanted to share a few testimonials with you and experiences of some past participants and folks I’ve done Be Your Own Beloved workshops with.

Hear about Kyeli Smith’s experience of taking self-portraits in her amazing video and how her world was rocked by taking Be Your Own Beloved!

On her blog yesterday Andrea Scher shared a moment when she remembered a tool from taking Be Your Own Beloved and had a moment of self-kindness.

Read about the amazing Anna Guest-Jelley’s experience of taking Be Your Own Beloved here!

It has been really powerful to hear these stories of how the experience of taking a self-portrait each day for a month was for the month was for people and I wanted to share these with you as I have a feeling they might resonate with you!

Alana shared how the course affected her as a Mom:

When I became a mom, I felt like I took a step back internally, to let my daughter shine in front of me. At the time, I didn’t feel like I was shrinking, or playing small – I was completely wrapped up in how amazing she was. She was (and still is) the center of my life. Fast forward a few years and that piece of me that took a back seat wanted to be seen again. I wanted to be seen as a whole woman, not just as a mom. This reemergence had been happening slowly, over time, but it was taking Be Your Own Beloved that helped me to physically see myself again as a whole, beautiful, complete being.

There’s something deeply moving and heart-opening about looking at yourself through the lens of the camera. Vivienne taught the practice of self-portraiture in such a gentle way, it allowed me to release many of my fears and self-judgments and to see from the outside the shine I feel on the inside.

-Alana Sheeren

Here is also a glimpse of the experience that Rachael is presently having in the You are Your Own Muse class, but I wanted to share it today as I feel like it is one that people are experiencing in BYO Beloved too and that some of you might really relate to:

“I kept thinking that I would have to wait until I lost a lot of weight before I’d be happy with any photos of myself. With this now old mindset (thank you Vivienne!) I’ve done just about everything possible to remain out of photos – it’s really quite sad, as there is a gap of 10 years with very few photos of me. Vivienne – I am not exaggerating by saying that your class has been incredibly powerful and transformative for me, so thank you oh so very much for having this space for all of us to express ourselves and look at ourselves differently.”

-Rachel Krebs

Class starts tomorrow and its not too late to join in.

Gift yourself with the kindness and transformation that folks are having from being their own beloved and come join us!

April 23, 2013

Lets talk about Shoes!

Often when I post a photo on Flickr or Instagram that have my feet in them, one of the first questions is “Where did you get those shoes?”

So I wanted to create a blog post where I shared all that info (and can refer people to). I clearly have an obsession with pretty yet practical shoes and from the comments, I can tell I’m not alone!

And if you are wondering….why do people take so many selfies of their feet…or why might I want to? This post called ‘Why take self-portraits of your feet’ is for you!

So here they are….the shoes!

The Slippers

I think if I had to choose one pair of shoes that felt most me, these would be them. I first started wearing them years ago when I spent a few months in the SF Bay area. That adventure was definitely a pivotal point for me where I had a few months in a world outside of my usual to deeply dive into self-discovery.

As a big reader of Sabrina Ward Harrison’s books, I went down to Chinatown in search of some Sabrina-inspired slippers (that you so often see in her work) and I found this style of shoe which is even better than an indoor slipper. I was smitten. You can see my first pair in this pic (on the day I first got them).

I confess that a big part of why I take a yearly trip to the Bay Area (other than that my heart feels at home there and I usually need a mid-winter California break) is to stock up on these shoes! I wear ’em out pretty quickly with a lot of walking! I’m sure I could find them online too, but part of the fun of these shoes for me is the adventure to find them!

Camper Ballet Flats

I have a car-free life, so my everyday shoes need to be comfortable enough to walk for hours in (because sometimes I’ll go on grand walking adventures) as well as be cute enough for a selfie when the moment strikes!

I’ve always found that Camper Shoes meet that need. These ones from a few years back were also campers and had me hooked.

Fluevog Radio Kipo Boots

I got these boots earlier this year after yearning for a pair of boots with a light brown colour. For folks with big calves, boots can be hard to find and while I had coveted finding a taller pair someday, these ones caught my eye and are tall enough to be great with skirts or even skinny jeans tucked in but stopped just before my calves.

Fluevogs are amazing, a Canadian company but easily found in the U.S. too. They definitely don’t cater to the bigger calf part of the population but these ones worked and I love ’em. I’m prone to wearing out the heels of boots with all this walking, but I love that I can replace the heels on these ones and keep them lasting for a decade (as they were pretty pricey…I hope to make them last that long)!

Turquoise High Heeled Clog Sandals by Cape Clogs

This are an absolute favourite these days. I’m not that adept at wearing anything with more than a little heel, but I’m amazed at how comfortable these ones are!

You can see them on the Cape Clogs website but I actually got them through a website called Zulily that has amazing sales on lots of different brands I love. These clogs seem to go on sale there every few months for way cheaper than their website so I definitely recommend keeping an eye out for them over there!

Blundstone 500 Slip On Boot

While perhaps not my fanciest pair of shoes or boots, these are one of my favourites. I started to notice last year that pretty much everyone I knew wore Blundstones and started to ask why (okay, it might be very Pacific-Northwest-casual and maybe even a bit hipster to wear blundstones).

The response I always got when I asked that was “Because they last forever and feel amazing” and I was so craving a pair of good boots that weren’t going to wear out in one season so I went for it and I’m definitely a blundstones convert now.

It was SO painful to wear them in but once I did they are truly so comfortable. They are fully leather so I can walk through deep puddles as though I were in rubber boots and also they are my go-to boots to go hiking in!

Love them!

Dansko Clogs

Oh Clogs. I love the softness of the round toes, the mary jane style and the comfort of a pair of clogs. These ones are made by Dansko but there are really so many clog manufacturers these days that are equally fabulous.

I bought these years ago at a point in my life where I just felt really lost and like I didn’t know where my life was going. These shoes felt beautiful and hopeful and they still do when I put them on. I especially love when these shoes find themselves with love notes. That combo feels really right.

Dansko Sandals

These dansko sandals are one of my favourites and while they are super similar to my other ones, I wanted to share them with you separately as these are a pair that I thrifted for about $20.

Many of my favourite boots and shoes over the years are ones that i have found in thrift stores like the good will or value village. I’m amazed how often I see amazing shoes in thrift stores (especially clogs) and while they aren’t always in my size, once in a while (like this pair) they are!

So you don’t necessarily have to pay full price for amazing shoes!

Birkenstock Gizeh Sandals

I’ve always been a birkenstock kind of gal (its in my folk-fest-loving blood) but just got these gizeh style birks and now dream of having them in many colours (but am holding back for now because…well silver goes with so much)!

Something about having nearly bare feet is a simple thing that makes me ridiculously happy. I so wish I could wear these all year round. Wearing them in (if you aren’t used to thong style sandals) was truly unpleasant but like the blundstones, once my feet got used to them they became totally heavenly!

Miz Mooz Boots

These are the one pair of footwear I have that I got the most emails about…well, because they are something else! The miz mooz siri knee high boot is pretty dreamy.

There are definitely some pros and cons to these boots. The pro, with all Miz Mooz boots, is that many of them come in ‘athletic calf’ size which is a saving grace for us gals with big calves. Few companies do this and they need to start to. To have a pair of knee high boots that actually fit, well you can see why I was smitten! If you are more adept at walking in pretty tall heels, you might LOVE these boots but I soon realized after buying them that while they are babe-a-licious and would be great for a date (and one with minimal walking around), they simply are not practical for me.

I also (here comes the truth) think that they are way too expensive for the quality they are. While I am glad I got them, I would totally recommend taking the time to find deals when buying Miz Mooz. Lots of folks sing the praises of this brand and I think some of the flat boots are much more practical yet totally gorgeous! Here is a flat version of the same style that is so lovely.

There you go my fellow shoe-appreciators! Now, I definitely don’t think you need to have fancy shoes in order to turn the camera on your feet as it is such a great way to start inviting yourself into the frame!

Lets go document our world, one footstep at a time!