captured moments + smily rain

[via]

hello again : )

am coming here with a big smile cause I read the comments on the {previous} post

just a little while ago... thank you so much.

it's everything but a typical thank you...

I feel that you connected with me

&

to say the truth, I have momentarily not a very reasonable explanation

for the happiness that it brings me...

 still since it does so,

I only wish you to know that it does : )

so this post was originally prepared in order to share with you

{the collage} put together by me yesterday,

combining some of {my favorites pictures} from friends & contacts on flickr.

there seem to be some people to whose work I'm constantly drown,

not only for the visually delightful images,

 but also & mostly

cause of the moments that are captured

&

 the personalities of the people themselves

as they are expressed through their on line presence...

 there is nothing that attracts me more

than  looking at an image I can loose myself into...

 such images, I tend to believe, are always images

which capture reality as it is,

feelings, moments, passions,

and are not made per se,

or else in purpose,

rather

they are the outcome

of being tuned to our inner selves

and our realities around us.

 from top to bottom & left to right,

enjoy the fabulous work of:

~ Cindy

~ Cindy Taylor

~ Krista

~ Doreen 

~ Theresa and

~ Cindy 

when you have some time to spare or maybe nicely invest,

you can take a virtual visit in their photography streams,

portofolios, websites and/or even some of their shops.

All you need to do to access the links is to visit

the {profile} information of each respective person

much like to my own linked here as an exaple

......................................

on another notice,

as I took a refreshing evening walk in {Verna Park} a while ago

and just before we had dinner,

 all that came to mind is that

 this rainy season to be approaching

 is going to give me the chance

 to wear my favorite

pair of grey rubber boots, with silver details 

{promise to make a close up picture, they are really brilliant!}

bought during our Christmas trip / vacation in Rome

this past Christmas,

for the only reason that it was raining so heavily

and I had only brought leather boots!

was happy to find them reduced to half the price, too...

so here is me during one of our walks in magical Rome,

posing in front of my favorite object to photograph:

doors!

please do not take me wrong

when reading the label of the pictures

"Travelling & fashion stories with Ivy"

I do not consider myself any fashion icon,

it's just that I take a lot of pleasure in dressing myself

and combining my wardrobe's clothes

and usually like to be photographed when in outfits

which were put together easily

& made me feel very comfortable 

in them

am temporarily leaving you with this 

picture which is named:

"Smily rain"

and am actually 

promising & planning to post pictures from {this trip}

as there are tones of beautiful ones,

which were never shared!

hope your Fridays have been really lovely!

will come in a short while, 

posting about a part of our day yesterday

worth of mentioning ~

xx

~ going grocery shopping?

good morming ladies & gentlemen perhaps, too?

happy Friday to you all!

this is a post mainly for ladies, still there ain't no reason that men cannot enjoy... 

 after all styling is a universal issue

you could pass some advice to your ladies, how about that? 

{of course I know that they look super perfect since they are yours  but a little inspiration never hurt anyone... right?... see my point? ;) }

so, let's say that we ladies, need to go GROCERY SHOPPING

one thing is certain: we need to be : c o m f o r t a b l e 

however, that doesn't need to be correlated with:

a.  looking as if we are going to the gym, packed in training shoes

b.  neither does it mean, that we throw just anything on & go out

and then again if you are thinking of any of the following,

I'd strongly, while very kinldy, advice not to:

a.  put on make up & especially go out with smoky eyes + red lipstick

neither in a combination, 

nor sepateretely one of the two

{we are going out to pick up just a few goodies after all, right?}

b. balance on high heels, despite our magnificent ability in walking like a cat on them

c.  spend hours in front of our wardrobe figuring out what to wear

d. come up with a very different, eye catching outfit

{life is not an editorial}

e. grab any tote to carry our groceries with

..................................................

wonderful... 

now that we are done with the basic NOT TO DO  list ,

how about proceeding with the TO DO  one?

for the record, amaware that gorgeous & stunning do not exactly describe my looks

in the picture below

&

actually this is exaclty the reason it is shared here

it just happens that some days we are less fit than others,

more tired or whatever...

all phases of real  life,

so, let's see what could work for a stylish & simple outfit

put together in a second:

a. a light cotton, knee length dress

in a colour & shape that charms our body shape

{I got mine last year from h&m online during the summer sales & paid 1/3 of its anyway low price}

b.  a practical Tote shopping bag with some nice details, 

{like the adjustable, practical & pretty leather handles}

somehow matching our outfit.

I got mine {here} 

&

 actually consider it 

one of the best {few} buys I made since 2011 launched.

 I'm carrying it all year round, 

thank's to the choice of jean like fabric, which fits every season

{doesn't it look gorgeous {here}?

~ a cotton scarf/schawl in a neutral colour

{ this one is from h&m current Spring collection & am absolutely adoring it.

it can also be worn as a mini skirt like {here} + a headband like {here} }

~ a pair of comfly flat sandals with nice details like these:

{these ones were found in Greece at Pull & Bear}

~ one accessory, my favorite one is my wooden bangle

~ a descrete ring we usually wear

~ no make up but perhaps some rimmel on eyelashes

~ hair in a pony tail for convenience unless it is short

&

~ last but not least:

let's put on a S M I L E !

: ) 

ready to share with the people you'll interact

&

remember that this world out there only brings back to us

the input we ourselves offer...

want to be treated with sincerity, respect & kindness?

find these traits within yourselves

& 

share them with the world!

others do not seem to get the message?

their problem + sadness ; )

................................

well, that's about it my dears...

how about suggestions from your side?

... and  how are you? 

what are your plans for the day & weekend ahead?

have you had a chance to enjoy some very favorite accessories of mine

{I posted about yesterday}?

 and do your know that today we are going to begin celebrating here 

&

the next post is all about the give away I have been promising

&

other wonderful chances for you to enjoy things from our shop?

oh yes, indeed!

so I might as well go,

cause the preparations are still going!

have a delightfully stylish, happy & productive Friday,

till we meet here again

xo

magic x 3 ...

the 3 magic pieces of Spring / Summer:

1. a mini off white, cotton, trenchcoat with nice details,

2. a fabulous everyday bag

3. an easy to wear pair of chic & fun sandals

......................................................................

1. -> where is my  T r e c h c o a t   from?

Berska, bought in the spring season of  2007

{€50}

-2. > where is my cotton & leather handle {adjustable} T o t e bag  from?

Fabric & Handle ordered this year, 

after I discovered their website + shop,

 thank's to Ez's Creature Comforts

{about €30 with shipping}

3. - > where are my cork & grey cotton fabric S a n d a l s from?

our local C&A store, bought on 50% discount just a day before

 we set off to our mini vacation on Kos island

{€7}

....now that is no crazy amount for an outfit, is it?

take also into consideration the multiple ways a trenchcoat can be worn

& 

notice that I chose my bag in a jean like fabric & camel handles,

so that it can be easily worn all seasons

and with many clothes...

in fact there's hardly anything in my closet that doesn't fit to it!

..................................................................

so, before I go on sharing some fashion & styling tips,

let me just make this little bit of information clear:

have fininshed no fashion school

&

certainly have no aspirations of becoming a model,

especially since my 40s are just a couple of years around the corner ; )

I hope you see my point in here...

but...but...BUT!

I think everyone is allowed to LOVE STYLING, right?

cause I do.

...and I also hear a lot of compliments quite often,

as much as I notice that lots of my girlfriends are often

 inspired /influenced by the way I dress myself :)

so except styling interiors or products to be shot,

I have - like forever! - been in love with

good styling in general...

fashion included...

and perhaps having spent hours & hours reading editorials & magazines might have

left a mark on me...

I rarely do in the meantime, 

as there is plenty of inspiration on line,

and I generally do simply prefer to concentrate on what makes me feel better.

...and now you'll come asking & wondering?

what is "good styling"

and who defines it?

well, I could start making a list of wonderful famous people,

actors & actresses,

models & fashion designers

stylists and so on and so on...

and we'd find a lot of common people we both adore,

you and I together...

but instead I'll state that quite possibly "good styling"  could be an entirely personal matter,

which still follows a couple of guidelines...

though mainly, good styling is all about knowing WHO YOU ARE

for me "good styling" is:

~ classic, while inspired from modern trends

~ alltogether rather minimal

~ totally focuses on brigning out a person's nice physical characteristics

~ while "hiding" something less nice

~ its first & most important purpose is to make a person  HAPPY

~ and be "one" with the person herself/himself

~ avoiding giving a feeling of "what am I dressed like today?"

~ or "who do I want to look like"?

~ well, guess what? I'm simply every day & time myself!

~ and if I'm in any position to give a little Tip is to actually encourage you 

to invest time in figuring out who you are....

yes...trully!

{a domain I hope I'll be able to help you in the future by organising 

self knowledge + self acceptance + personal styling seminars}

despite what some of you may believe, I'm currently not a wealthy lady,

which means that if and when I do, I shop very, very carefully.

the truth is that in the past I have been a rarther excessive shopper.

bad habbit I must admit...

but something saved the situation and me:

since about the last ten years, I've been understanding what suits me,

what does me a favour & therefore am relieved to say that there are almost no bad buys to 

recall, neither quality speaking, nor stylishly speaking.

phewww....

what does this mean?

shopping in my own wardrobe is a fact that happens every major season of the year,

...and how does it take place? 

well, by actually reinventing my wardrobe! 

either by wearing some pieces in a different way,

or by adding a new accessory or two...

now, last but not least,

I couldn't forget to mention that caring for & loving our clothes

is involved in good styling, too.

how?

let's suppose you are a person who loves little details, like ruffles for example...

 in that case, you'd either have to have the time & appetite to iron them

 or invest some money in having them done for you

still, my personal opinion is that when we take care of our clothes ourselves,

this somehow adds to the whole image...

I tend to believe that every action we do carries energy...

and putting some effort into

cleaning, ironing, folding and arranging our clothes in our closets,

 somehow makes them more ours...

so it's more probable that our clothes won't "wear us"

but we will actually wear them

....well, I guess it's time to get of that trechcoat and slip inside my nighty as it is already late here...

hope you have enjoyed this post...

I feel really nice incorporating some of my personal ideas about fashion + styling here on 

Domestic Stories

how do you feel about it my lovely readers & friends?

...and how is your Friday evolving?

have you had time to enjoy any JOYful simplicities?

c u right here, quite soon!

have a great start into your weekends ~

&

 ...do put a little love, fun & lightness in your life, would you? ; )

{indeed... you guessed right... new of my curated treasuries on etsy ; )}

......................................................................................................

P.S: the only reason I'm holding my sandal  in all the shots above is actually to be able to show it to you, as the mirror the shots were taken in front is obviously not long enough, still the lighting is just perfect, thank's to its position close to our large window...

.................................................................................................

Concept + styling + photography: all performed by Iro - Ivy Nassopoulos for Domestis stories with Ivy 2011

~ minimalistic dreaming

Teusday evening...thank you all for your very kind comments about {the little feature of mine} in Lohas magazine, which has made me very happy.

Both the feature itself, sharing it with you and then receiving your warm response.

I'm so glad to be back {here}...{here}...

{there}...and {there}, too.

...saying goodnight with two pictures that are growing under my skin since I saw them a while ago on {Pinterest}:

a minimal bedroom in Greece photographed by Vangelis Paterakis

and the airiest of dresses in my favorite {non}colour, nude

originally posted {here}

Sweet dreams...

Style Stories: rock my world!...gently, please!

Goodmorning :) 

I hope you've all had joyful weekends!

Mine could have used a little bit of more sunshine around, but I'd rather not complain.

 Have you had the time to follow the links mentioned on Friday and find yourselves among champagne, colours and cool places? 

I hope you did and enjoyed as much as I did!

Speaking about colours, you must know by now how much I love a natural pallete, greys,

tranquil blues combined with earthy beiges & pastels, too.

Since about a week know, I' ve been undusting the shelves of my etsy shop....

and boy! has there been lots of dust to take care of!

As you may understand, doing such a job is not exactly my happiest routine, 

eventhough I'm always pleased with the outcome.

So what do I do to cope with this? 

I engage in small "games" in the vastness of etsy world,

called Etsy treasuries,

in order to make the ride more pleasant and worthwhile.

I take my detective glasses and set out to discover beautiful items for homes and our lives.

Modern and vintage items for home decor, utility objects,

incredibly pretty and affordable fine art photography prints,

clothes and acessories

and then...

have them arranged together so that they make up a unique sum

of what is usually 16 objects.

It's something like a mood board, cause all of the items featured each time

could be part of a room, a home & a person living in it.

It's like making a Style story.

For example, chek out this treasury recently put together under the name

"Rock my world...gently please!"

I can picture clearly a woman dressed in her 50's dress, 

wearing such glasses when she wants to read,

under the light of this industrial chandelier,

dressing her little daughter in a grey dress like this,

{which is actually mummy's blouse}

who helps her in the kitchen using these scoops from natural wood,

takes her notes in "ruler notebooks", 

while she speaks on such a phone, 

serves her girlfriends tea from such a teapot,

decorates her home with prints and photographs like 

this, this, that and this one,

and sits her guests in a garden with such chairs.

Oh!..and reminds herself of life's qualities 

by displaying such words 

to match with her repurposed

pencil holder

Wishing you lots of fun visiting the links!

In the meantime, I'll have to set off for a busy day and return here in the evening.

Have a great day.