2015: a tiny review

2015 was the year i jumped ship and moved to the states. and while it wasn’t what i thought it would be (it never will till i becoming a working songwriter really) i’m really happy for all the things that did happen.

if i could name this year the year of anything, it was the year of ‘tools'. by that i feel like it’s equipped me with life, career and adulthood’s necessary evils and i feel more prepared than ever to face the impending year. bring it on bit- 2016.

but the biggest lesson i learnt this year above all was permission. the permission to be who i am and do what i love. it hit me the other night with my ny girls that I’m suddenly around people who are genuinely so supportive and open minded and i felt like i could be both anything i wanted and myself. i didn’t realise how much of that i needed. despite my alien status here, i don’t feel like one. and that is for the first time ever. i no longer feel like apologising for myself anymore and that is a new level of freedom i didn't know existed. new york and the people in it are kinda awesome like that.

so thank you 2015. you weren’t what i thought you would be, but you were what i didn’t realise i desperately needed. i'm prepared not just for 2016, but beyond. let’s do this.

love and peace sign,

maia

my nyc corner v2.0

home decor was something i discovered i loved just a year or two ago. making the space you live truly yours is something that is so important to me. for me, home has to feel warm and comforting, but also inspiring since it's the place where i both live and create/work.

i live in a tiny, tiny room in manhattan but i'm a big believe of what you have, but what you do with it. i'm not super practically minded, so there are some things that might feel like odd choices but sometimes it's more about how something feels than functions that i find more important to me. so here are some little snippets of my space! some of my favourite things are fairy lights (but of course), the curtains, my girl-stuff window, and the odd trinkets here and there. of course being me, this was the second configuration this space and i reconfigured it again a few weeks ago so a little update may be in order.. :D

love and peace sign, 

maia

october and out

31 days of october and i manage 7 photos, 1 of which isn even mine (from facebook :D ). naice.. october went in a flash for me. on one hand i was working in my music cave, on the other i had two of my best friends stay with me for a total 7 days altogether, several birthdays and my first halloween! time bloody flies when loved ones are around! but here are a few snaps to try and remember this quick fire month.

i finally had a saturday off and had a gander at the forte greene markets. man were there some lovely vintage pieces in there #goals. it got me excited at the idea of dressing "genre" that i like, even if it doesn't seem like my usual garb. fashion shouldn't be restrictive. being in the quiet brooklyn air was beautiful and somewhat healing, away from the closet-packed manhattan. 

i finally caught up with my one close creative friend delia and having her encouragement and insight was just what i needed. we recently made a pact to check in with each other every three weeks to make sure our large right sided brains are kept in check. our first check in was a week ago, and i'm grateful we can be a team for each other's solo projects. i also took her to one of the few cool places i love and that is 11th street bar. kenny is an awesomely kind barman there and i'm still buggin him to give me a gig :D 

at the back end of the month my girl jen stayed with me before her swanky business convention in LA. having her around let me play tourist again and what's more, it was so grounding. we've known each other since the early days of high school and she's seen me through all my sh.. crap and is still around. props. we had our first american halloween bash and i almost had a melt down hours ahead, struggling to making fairy wings. lucky for her collected calm and mi-goreng making abilities while i freaked out with two wire coat hangers. we came through in the end and had a whale of a night! she also found a new admirer which was just SO FUN for me to watch! :D (and no it didn't eventuate.. damn.)

what a breath of fresh air october was. now back to november. thanksgiving is one sleep away for me as i write this!

love and peace,

maia