just excuse me while i sit and stare at them for a while.

photography by NFE Design

blue spot butterfly dress juliet’s closet

lace leg warmers huggalugs

ps: someone asked ~ she has no makeup on, just beautiful sunset light :)  hair done by me!

Who  would have thought that one little baby boy could bring so much happiness into so many people’s lives! From the minute we knew of your existance we fell in love. Every heartbeat we listened to, every little face we saw, and every tiny kick we felt made us more excited to welcome you into our beautiful world. To finally hold you in our arms and hear you take your first breath was the most special and surreal moment, and every minute since we thank our angels for giving you to us.
From your acrobatic facials, to your tiny little cries, you make every day so much better than the last. We cannot wait until that first hug back so we know that you know just how much we love you!
Santino, you’ve started our own little family.. let the days of smiles laughter and love begin… You are one very special little man…

All our love today and always,
Mum n Dad
xoxoxo

friends, please meet Santino ~ 12 days new.

Santino’s newborn photos shoot by NFE design

click here to see full portfolio

click here to follow NFE Design on facebook

instagram is a lovely place, minimal words and loads of gorgeous photos… a way to share snippets of your every day life, and see what friends, family [and strangers] are up to in their corner of the world in a slightly more condensed format than facebook.

the gist of it, if you haven’t seen it, or haven’t really used it that much is you snap photos on your iPhone and apply a variety of filters to the images and then upload them to instagram [and facebook, twitter etc also at the same time if you like]

it is a great way to look at the world around you in a different way.  from differing angles and perspectives. to see beauty in the mundane. to document the day today activities of your life.  i am in the process of putting together a book of the first 4mths of our year, a combo of all the instagram pics, our photo shoots, and some of the blog posts i have written… so excited to get it complete and back in my hands…  the aim will be to do one three times a year!

my favorite way to shoot images on my iPhone is using hipstamatic.  being a professional photographer i love that hipstamatic gives you perfectly imperfect images straight up.  no desire to photoshop and fix and edit…  they are what they are :)  i will occasionally use some of the filters within instagram, but also just recently the fabulous team behind my favorite adobe lightroom presets have created an app called vsco cam.  you can also check out a cool video on how to use it here

if you want to follow my adventures on instagram you can search for Renee Bell or notforeating_naybel or follow via followgram here

and here are a few of my latest instagram uploads… behind the scenes at the Juliet’s Closet photo shoot

snuggling up in bed at night… ugg boots… scarves… tights… boots… gloves… lots of layers… hot showers…

and the absolute bestest thing!  covering up bad hair day’s with a beannie :)

love love love!

in celebration of winter, a little photshoot.  it was cold and it was windy, but loads of fun!!!

what do you love [or hate] about winter?

Minime Laura leather boot

Quince Sacha blue denim dress

Sudo firewire leggings – eclipse floral

gloves and scarf we have had for a few years now – cant remember where they are from.

photography NFE Design

so perfectly depicting of the little being that visited my studio.

so much personality.

so much hope.

so much excitement for many more days to come, of his lucky parents staring at this face and watching it grow…

friends, please meet Santino…

photography NFE Design

it is a gorgeous dress!!! i think it was just a cheap one from Target – but I certainly got my money’s worth!!!  these pics from Jan 2010…

recently i had to convince her that it was time for the dress to retire, so imagine our excitement when we spotted this gorgeous dress below at the Juliet’s closet Launch party a few weeks ago…  it is blue [her favorite colour] it is flowery and girly and she loves it!!!

so excited that we found a suitable replacement… the old party dress can now be passed on to another lucky little girl!!  or, maybe we will keep it, i’m not sure i could bear to let it go…

if you want to check it out her new dress – you can purchase the dress here from Juliet’s Closet.  the boots, tights and purple undershirt are also available on the Juliet’s Closet website now…

and, some pics of Liana wearing it, when we were out to lunch for my birthday last week :)

yoga with Claire tonight has made me deliciously energetic and floaty… been cooking and baking and cleaning and writing and it’s very close to midnight… if i were pregnant may be called nesting, but i am not. so i think “you will most likely be tired in the morning” is what it is called… fun though ? — at Verve For Life.

so i am a little delerious maybe, and getting tired and coming down off my ‘yoga high’…

but a few things…. i realised today that i had forgot to share these pics that we took for juliet’s closet last month… so here i am sharing :)  according to Megan this dress has been incredibly popular so if you want one for your little girl [or for yourself if you think you can squeeze in] then you better visit this page asap and grab yourself one…

secondly, i was giggling a little and smiling lots while looking at these photos at just how much Liana and i miss each other when we aren’t together… every morning she bounds out of bed and greets me with the biggest smile you could possibly imagine, every day at school pick up she races into my arms almost bursting at the seams to hug me.  none of that cool and casual ‘i’m too embarrassed for hugs and kisses with my mum” from this little girl!  if i leave her at mums, even for 10 minutes while i go to the shops to get something, she greets me when i return like i have been gone for 10 weeks.  she is always so enthusiastic and so genuine in her greeting. argh, i love it SO.MUCH!  so tonight she went for a sleep over at nanny’s so i could go to yoga, and have a bit of a break… all good in theory – nice to have some peace and quiet.  but i rang her this afternoon to see how she was, how can i resist?  i mean, it has been a whole 6.5 hours since i have seen her.  and then rang again on my way home from yoga to say goodnight and ask how her evening was. and i was very tempted to drop in there on my way home just so i could have a hug goodnight… and i will see her tomorrow before she goes to school and we will behave like we forgot what the other looked like…

haha – i love my life, and my girl!!!  lucky i have so many photos of her to look at – i can hardly forget what she looks like!

photography NFE Design

dress juliet’s closet

flowers sapphire designs

what else to do but stop along the way and go for a quick run along the lake.

now, let this be clear, i am not a runner.  for one i am incredibly clumsy, so it wouldn’t be surprising at all if i tripped over my own feet, secondly i have bad ankles and knees so if i wasn’t actually tripping over my big toe or getting confused as to which is left and right then it is quite common for either my ankle or knee to just decide that it has had enough for the day, and literally just collapse.  not nice!

but anyways, a run was the plan.  or at the very least a little running and a little walking in between…  you would think, given the size of my wardrobe that i would have tights that are full length, but nope, turns out i have three pairs of 3/4 length and nothing at all to keep the bottom half of my legs warm.  besides leg warmers, which i did seriously consider…  so, off i set on my run, very impressed with myself for even considering it, let alone actually getting in the car!  and the combination of the intense cold on my legs and my nose and my ears and the burning in my chest was kinda weird.  and kinda cool and exhilarating.

so, my excuse for not running too much was of course time, since i did only have half an hour, but also i didn’t want to be too sore for yoga… and i must say once i was breathing regularly again and i got to class, i actually felt really awesome.  i felt much more centered, and relaxed and able to go deeper into my poses because my body was already warm.  so there you go!  i’m not sure if exercising before yoga is a very “yogi” thing to do, but i might try it again sometime… maybe once i get some long tights…  or once it is summer again.

btw, class was with Amy at Verve for Life ~ fabulous!!!!

a pic from along the way…

so, while on the topic of yoga, Liana has been learning at Verve for Life also…  this afternoon while admiring the gorgeous sunset on our way home Liana was dancing about so i told her to show me a few of the poses she has been learning…

and here you go :)

all photos taken with hipstamatic for iPhone

i LOVE how much the light and colours changed just in the 10 minutes we were there!!!

when she looks this adorable dressed in red stripes and flowers who can resist!!!  who says you have to be matchy-matchy?  i love the contrast of this shirt and dress, i love that Liana shares my quirky taste in clothes and i also love that we went searching through the cupboard for the two-sizes-too-small converse because they were red and would work perfectly in the photos.  5 mins to squeeze her feet into them but we got there eventually – all in the name of art!!

skirt and top are both from Juliet’s Closet

i hope you all had a fabulous weekend!! i had a lovely birthday and am truly grateful for every message, hug, gift and phone call that i received, i have some of the most amazing friends and family that anyone could wish for!!!  i will share a bit more about my birthday, and some pics tomorrow, but for now some pics to enjoy and i am off to bed to warm up… i think winter is nearly here!!!

so what was so different about these images?  well this was the first time i had taken the plunge and used blue as a feature colour while photographing a baby girl.  not a big deal in the grand scheme of things,  but i know that Charlottes’s mum and dad were a little apprehensive when they saw me drag out a blue hat and blanket.  the bow of course reasured them that yes, i hadn’t forgotten that little Charlotte was in fact a girl.  lucky for me (and them), my clients trust me and so i was left to continue on with the shoot.  as you can see from the images below, blue is totally Charlotte’s colour and her parents were so happy with the “blue” images that the first one has even been printed up in a HUGE canvas for their wall.  during their order session they told me that they loved this particular series of images so very much!

i guess this is all proof that sometimes it pays to think outside the box.  it also shows my clients that while you may think what i do during a shoot is sometimes a little odd, there is always a reason for my madness.  have faith in me and my knowledge in what colour combos will look good and which textures will photograph well and in return you’ll find yourself with stunning images for your collection.  and worst case, they will look awesome in black and white!!!

now, enjoy Charlotte wrapped in blue but still as girly as can be.

photography NFE DESIGN

for now, i will have to be be satisfied seeing Liana wear this dress… it has definitely become her new favorite!!

model: Liana

photography: Renee at NFE Design

outfit: Sudo Violet Whisper Dress available at Juliet’s Closet

flowers: Sapphire Designs

First time mum-to-be, food challenged, pet-obsessed born and bred Newcastle TV journalist trying to find her feet in a whole new world.

learn more about Kate and her journey over the coming months here as part of our real life. real stories series…

Week 2

I can’t believe Aria is only 2 weeks old. In the haze of late night/early morning feeds, I struggle to remember what life was like without her. I do remember being able to watch a whole tv show without rewinding and replaying it 3 times and eating when I was hungry rather than when I had a brief opportunity, but only just!

What I have discovered during this last week, is all the books I read during my pregnancy lied or were heavily dusted in a sugar coating! They lead me to believe all babies do at this age is eat and sleep (in 3-4 hour blocks mind you). Aria obviously hasn’t read these books. Maybe she takes after her mother and likes to march to the beat of her own drum, or more likely, these parenting books are based on the exception not the rule. I am only just starting to realise that it’s not her that has to get into a routine at this early stage, it’s me! I have caught myself waiting for her to wake up, rather than quickly doing what needs to be done while I have the chance, because you don’t know how long that window of opportunity is going to be open for. The one book I am still searching for is Aria’s instruction manual. You’d think after all these years of evolution, babies would emerge from the womb with a personalised manual.

It’s also taken me two weeks to realise I’m not pregnant anymore! It’s only just occurred to me that I can sleep how I want, on my back, on my stomach, however I please. I still haven’t completely removed the pillow fortress from the bed yet, it’s just too comfortable. I can eat soft cheeses, runny eggs and deli meats. It’s liberating! I also thought it would be liberating to wear my old clothes again. I was wrong about that too. Bottoms are fine but tops are a whole new problem. I was dragged against my will (that’s the story I’m telling) to buy new clothes that I can safely breastfeed in. I’ve gone from accommodating one giant bump on my mid section to two other bumps on my chest! I did learn something valuable from that shopping trip though, Aria is going to be a great shopper. Two and and a half hours in the pram without a peep. This is where you may find me over the next 12 months, wandering around the shops with a content baby.

Did I mention Aria smiles? I know what you must be thinking. It’s not possible at two weeks of age and Kate clearly needs more sleep. I must admit when mum thought she spotted a smile I had the same reaction, but it’s true, the community nurse even saw it when she was here. No, it’s not your regular smile, it’s like the face you get when you let out a hearty laugh, just without the noise. But I’ll take it and it will be forever marked in the baby book as her first smile. That’s the only record that counts right?!

“It’s both everything I expected and nothing like I expected at the same time. It’s a joy and a steep learning curve! ”

~ KATE H. Mum to Aria, 10 days old.

Charlotte, mum and dad’s everything….

I enjoy playing with mixed textures and creating my own prints. I started billynmoo when my daughter was born and made things for her, her friends and friends of friends – and so it went from there. Any excuse to sew, paint, or create something and i’m there!! After studying fashion design I worked for a bridal designer and then an interior designer so learned lots of tricks with a broad range of fabrics and products. I also love theatre design, so try and incorporate all these elements into my kids clothes.

Alicia loves a challenge and one of her favourite things is to design to a brief.  collaborating with others and coming up with something original to achieve a specific outcome is what she finds inspiring.  this drive to create something different is what makes Billy n Moo clothes stand out from the rest.  her choice of materials and textures is unique and beautiful and her talent in design is absolutely mind blowing.

As is the case with a lot of businesses and individuals, the environment and  her impact on it,  is also something Alicia keeps in mind when designing her clothes.

I am passionate about reducing our impact on the environment. Where possible, I choose local produce, or grow my own, support small and local businesses, and try and eat healthy non processed foods. In my BillynMoo range, I choose organic and eco-friendly fabrics, preferably things manufactured in Australia, and either print my own or choose Australian designed where possible.

here are a few questions that i asked Alicia recently….

how would you describe yourself in three words: creative, caring, stubborn

how would your best friend describe you in three words: creative, talented, loyal

how would your partner describe you in three words: beautiful, perfect, magnificent.

what is your biggest vice? the thing you absolutely cant say no to? chocolate, chocolate, chocolate!

what smell makes you smile? Mangoes. They remind me of family Christmas as a child.

describe your ultimate day… My ultimate day is spending it on the beach with my family. Warm enough to swim, but cool enough to stay all day. I would be wearing a loose organic cotton beach dress over my swimmers, there may be a band playing in the afternoon and when we have our dinner of colourful salad and fish.

which cartoon character would you say you are you most like? Angelina ballerina – because I love to dance!

where did the name billynmoo come from? My gorgeous girl Macy is ‘moo’ to her dad and I and ‘billy’ came from my little brother Wil who is grown up now and lives in New York, but I will always see him as my baby brother who we called willy woo!

one day Alicia hopes to be famous for “being me”  and with talent, drive and determination like this lovely lady has, I’m pretty sure it’ll happen.  In the meantime I’m just happy to call her a friend and to have the opportunity to work with her and to photograph her delicious designs.

Alicia of Billy n Moo…

a peek at some designs photographed last month….

and a gorgeous new skirt and top, photographed just recently….

you can see all of the recent photo shoots we have done with billynmoo here

you can contact Alicia here hello@billynmoo.com

and you can follow billynmoo on facebook here

the flowers used in these photos were designed by Rach at Sapphire Designs

they absolutely take my breath away.

looking into them makes me remember.  everything. every little moment. every adventure. every giggle. every private joke. every tear. every hug. every time one of us has said ‘i love you’. every tantrum.  every little thing that she does that is so “her”. the feel of her hand in mine.  the way she sits up with a start and smiles this massive big smile when i sneak into her room in the morning before she wakes.

looking into them makes me dream. of every moment after this one right now. where i will look into these eyes again. and remember. and smile. and forget to breathe.

i stare at this face. into these eyes. ten, twenty, fifty times a day. almost every day.  i photograph this face at least once a week. then i stare at a digital version of these eyes, of this face.  and i print a version of this face and hang on my walls or place in albums, or scrapbooks. and i see these eyes again every time i walk past the wall that they hang on.

every time i see something different. a new depth.

this beautiful outfit is available from Juliet’s Closet.

Hooded Batwing Dress in navy stripe

Black skinny Jeans

which is kinda weird, but i’m game if you are :) i figure that i write about so many other people, and my bio pic on my website is a year or so old, so unless you are friends with me on facebook, you might not even know what i look like…  and therefore you wouldn’t know that i “got my hair did” this week.  and i am loving it.  very Astro Boy!  does anyone remember Astro Boy?

anyways… the hair.  i do love it.  but anyone that says short hair must be so easy has clearly never had short hair.  waking up looking like you just put your finger in a power point.  not sexy. the poor courier drivers doing the early run that come ringing my doorbell at ungodly hours… especially in winter, when my fluffy brown dressing gown also makes an appearance.  and you cant tie short hair in a ponytail if you are having a bad hair day.  not if you are 32 anyways. when you are 2, those cute little sticky up ponytail bits on the top of your head are cool.  not so much now…. i do have quite a few hats though!

but, i digress.  so, today i decided i shall share a pic or two of me. and my cool new hair.  cool is all relative of course.  i think it is cool, so that’s all that matters!  what else can i tell you about me? well i like to keep up to date with politics and take long romantic walks on the beach. actually, nope. neither of those things are true. and i think this is the wrong place for that kind of bio?  politics?? bleh. vomit!!

how about i just share the pics?

ok, three words to describe myself?  stubborn. busy. messy

stubborn, because, well i am! busy, because i always have a very long list of things to do. but also i love to be that way.  i bore easily.  i can’t sit still.  i can’t actually sit through a whole dvd without pausing at least once.  lol.  messy, though i sometimes wish i was a bit more pedantic about tidying. i am very good at tuning out things i don’t want to be reminded of.  in my head, my house is perfect and clutter free. it is beautiful.  and i always say that messy and dirty are different things.  the house isn’t dirty, just messy :)  but i do love cleaner day!!! oh the joy of clean mopped floors. and fresh sheets.  i sometimes leave the dining chairs on the table for a few days, just to maintain the feeling of “just cleaned house”  that is not weird at all. or lazy.

i asked Liana and she said beautiful, photographer, loving… isn’t she a treasure!!! and i like that beautiful came before photographer.

a few things not many people know about me… my hair is actually blonde… hence the frequent trips to hairdresser.  keeping this look maintained is hard work!  i don’t know why i prefer dark, i just do.  proof that you always want what you don’t have.. to all those brunettes out there who spend a fortune to make their hair blonde.. want to trade?

i don’t like hot drinks. or any hot liquid actually. and the smell of coffee makes me want to hurl.  so when i say “lets do coffee”, really i mean you have coffee and i will have a glass of water. and i will usually bring my own because tap water makes me very ill.  i do like cake though.  even though i shouldn’t eat it on account of lactose and gluten and all those nasties i shouldn’t have…

i am bad with actually following through with tasks.  i have ideas.  lots of them.  too many for one brain to handle and they just spew out of me at random intervals.  we moved here nearly 2 years ago and i still have boxes to unpack.  clearly we don’t need those things. whatever they are.  there is a large framed print sitting against the wall in my bedroom. on the floor.  has been there since the day we moved in.  it just needs a simple hook to hang from which i am quite capable of doing.  i even have a large box of picture hooks in the next room. and a hammer.  i will do it one day.  i also collect photo frames.  i buy them all.the.time.  i clearly have no shortage of photos to display.  i just never actually hang them on the walls.  one time i did hang a whole photo wall of frames on the assumption that the hanging was the hard bit and once i had them up i could easily decide what pics to put in each frame and get.it.done.finally.  that was before christmas.  a few months before christmas, actually.  the frames are still empty.

anyways that is enough rambling for now… happy friday evening my friends!!

if you have a question you want me to answer for you then write it below. and i shall answer in a blog post soon!

Ben is more perfect than we could have imagined.

Every tiny feature is gorgeous and we love just watching his every little expression and movement.

 

welcome, sweet baby boy. it was a pleasure to meet you!

yesterday we received a divine package of girls clothes from Juliet’s Closet… i am going to share more about this brand, what they do, what they stock [and why] later, plus of course the images… but for now a quick shot from the iPhone while we were trying the clothes for size…

if you would like to purchase this dress for your little girl (sizes avail are 8-14) you can check it out here!!!

if you are based in Sydney, or feel like a drive and have little girls aged between 7 and 14 then please check out the details below of the Juliet’s Closet launch party to be held next weekend in Oatley.  Liana and I will be there and we would love to meet you!!