Well, it’s been a crazy busy week and now I’ve got a three-day weekend to enjoy! What have I been up to? (These are the prettiest parts, mind you, not all the tedious things I’ve been occupied with.)

1. Evening after-dinner walks with some dear friends who are moving away (so sad).

2. ‘Tis the season for Pulse sand volleyball.

3. & 4. Apparently spending a lot of time on this gazebo, photographing my feet.

5. Classic Colorado Columbines.

6. No filter here, folks.  This is a legitimately ridiculous sunset.

7. Color Run in Denver – can’t wait to share more photos of this…what a fun time!

8. This hair tutorial. Of course, her’s looks way cooler.

Happy Memorial Day – enjoy the fabulous weather.  So thankful for the day off, and for everything it stands for!

(Find me on instagram : @bellatheball)

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  • instillariMay 27, 2012 - 3:41 pm

    nice pictures. I love your flower shoes!ReplyCancel

  • stannabelleMay 27, 2012 - 7:17 pm

    Wow! Where did you find columbines? I was hiking in Blodgett and thought I saw one but it was something else 🙁ReplyCancel

  • stannabelleMay 27, 2012 - 7:18 pm

    PS I found you by googling myself. haha my name is Annabelle Minturn and I used to live in COS and was just there yesterday 😀ReplyCancel

    • Annabelle MintzMay 28, 2012 - 10:44 am

      what a coincidence! COS is a great place, but I must admit that I found the Columbines in someone’s yard. I think it’s too early in the season for them to be blooming up in the mountains.ReplyCancel

  • Meghan JohnsonMay 28, 2012 - 2:21 am

    I love everything about this! I really look forward to these posts. Your photos are lovely individually, and arranged together like this they create a rainbow of … well, pretty!

    I second the other comment about the flower shoes, they’re adorable. I’m looking forward to hearing more about the color run, too!ReplyCancel

    • Annabelle MintzMay 28, 2012 - 10:46 am

      Thanks Meghan, you are so sweet 🙂
      I am almost done with the Color Run photos, the post should be up tomorrow (Tuesday).ReplyCancel

  • Moments… « Beautiful GeometryJune 24, 2012 - 5:09 pm

    […] the first two photos, I feel almost weird calling this post moments of pretty like all the others – wildfires are definitely a dangerous and tragic kind of […]ReplyCancel

Yesterday, I shared some of my favorite color photos from this past (gloriously green) weekend in Garden of the Gods.  I had trouble narrowing it down, so I decided to post round 2 today: my favorite black & white shots!

Our recent hike took us on the Palmer trail (we crossed the street from the main parking lot and turned left) which loops around and then connects to the Central Garden trails (aka the paved ones).  I don’t think I’ve ever hiked this way before and I enjoyed that you were hidden from the road and most of the pedestrian traffic.  Even though the main parking lot was packed, we only passed six hikers on Palmer trail, at the most.

The trail was an easy climb and it was really well taken care of – as long as you keep an eye out for leftovers from the horseback trail rides, you are good to go!  We even saw a few younger kids (maybe 6-8 years old) hiking with their parents.

Do you have trouble taking photographs of landmarks?  I feel like they are so well known that it’s hard to take a photo that stands out; they all start to look the same.  For me, seeking out the less-traveled paths helps a little because it puts you at a slightly different perspective.  You can still tell it’s the landmark that everyone and their brother have photographed, but hopefully you’ve captured a bit of uniqueness.

Of course, the great shots are great for a reason.

Do you have a famous landmark where you live?  How do you photograph it, or do you just avoid it?

Filed in:Everyday Adventure | Travel
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  • Meghan JohnsonMay 22, 2012 - 9:27 pm

    These shots are great, Annabelle. As much as I love color, sometimes in black and white, forms and shapes stand out more due to the contrast. And I also have trouble with landscapes some times! I try to mix it up like you said: take an unconventional path, shoot close-up details, look for quirky things.ReplyCancel

  • Cabbie NotesMay 22, 2012 - 11:03 pm

    Love your last photo of Garden of the Gods. It’s been years since I’ve visited there, but your photo brings me back. Thanks for the memories. Cheers.ReplyCancel

We’ve been having some perfect weather lately – incredible sunshine and equally lovely rains.  Normally, I’m a sunshine person all the way, but the last few rains have been most welcome for two reasons.   One: it makes the perfect soundtrack for lazy mornings cuddling in bed.  Two: it is ridiculously, vibrantly, unusually GREEN.

In the four years I’ve lived here in the Springs, I don’t remember greens like this – there are rare moments I even imagine myself back in the Midwest.  My husband and I have been taking full advantage and spending some time in one of our favorite spots (albeit a “touristy” one – pretty sure most Colorado Springs postcards feature this landmark).

But really, what more can you ask for?  Scenic views with mountains and red rocks, an extensive mix of paved and dirt trails (stick to dirt to avoid, well, everyone else) and all a short drive from home.  This isn’t the first time you’ve seen Garden of the Gods on this blog and it surely won’t be the last (in fact, tune in tomorrow to see my favorite black & white shots from the last few days).

The easiest spot for the paved trails is to park in the main parking lot (pull off 1) but there are tons of pull-offs along the drive and I’d recommend finding another one – Pull Off 1 can get very crowded and as a result, so can the paved trails.  The photo above is from my favorite pull-off and there is rarely more than one car stopped there.  There’s really a lot more to this park than what you see on the postcards.

See why I don’t mind the rain?  I love how the mountain gets all snow-covered and the foothills turn bright green and flowers are popping out like champions.  It’s like nothing else and I know the more it rains, the longer all this will last!

This is as close to a postcard as you’re going to get from me today – a great photo of my love from our hike yesterday.  Wish you were here!

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In the search for simplicity and paring down my possessions into what I really love/need/use, I discovered Kendi’s 30×30 challenge and fell in love.  If I’m right, this will be my 4th round?

The basis of the challenge is to pick 30 items and make 30 different outfits with them over the course of 30 days.  I’m also refraining from any shopping during this month – I feel like it’s important for me to focus on being grateful for what I have and make the most of it!  So if you follow me on twitter or instagram (@bellatheball), you’ll likely be seeing daily updates, but every Friday I’ll post that past week’s outfits.  If you want to see how a previous challenge I did turned out, see my winter challenge recap here.

If you count, you will notice that I left one wild card open – it’s a little bit of a safety (you never know what will come up!) but once the spot is filled, that item stays in the mix for the rest of the 30 days!

Anyone interested in joining me?  I know it sounds kind of crazy, but a lot of us have more than 30 things in our closets and hardly come close to wearing everything that’s in there.  When I picked my items, I included a few closet orphans that I want to find ways to actually wear (or they’ll go to someone who will wear them after the challenge), a few things I’m loving lately but may be a little bit crazy or hard to style, and a few basics that are easy to remix.  My goal is to look at my closet more creatively and get some inspiration for the pieces I do have, instead of getting caught up in what I don’t have or wish I had.

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Also, just want to give a shout-out to the awesome Go Chic or Go Home community – if you’re not a member and you like fashion/clothes, you should definitely check them out.  It’s like Cher’s closet from Clueless – you can upload pictures of your clothes, organize them into outfits – and it makes this 30×30 Challenge way easier to keep track of.  Plus everyone I’ve met on there is super sweet and full of good ideas.  You don’t even have to be a fashion blogger (I certainly don’t consider myself one by any stretch).  Let me know if you request an invite!

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The breakdown:

4 dresses: Grey floral (American Eagle) / Pink ruffles (Madewell) / Red Tribal (American Eagle) / Chambray (Old Navy)

2 skirts: Striped (Shop Kempt) / Green (somewhere in Australia)

6 pants: Cargo skinnies (JCrew Factory) / Skinny jeans (Ross) / “The weekend jeans” (Buckle) / Leopard jeans (Target) / Red jeans (Forever 21), Jean Shorts (Old Navy)

7 tops: Grey tank (Target) / Lace tank (JCrew) / Bird tank (H&M) / Pink Tee (Target) / Striped Tee (Gap) / White Tee (H&M) / Gingham Shirt (JCrew Factory)

5 layers: Navy vest (Target) / Orange cardigan (JCrew) / Dolman sweater (Target) / Moto Jacket (Shop Kempt) / White Blazer (JCrew Factory)

5 shoes: Gladiators (Madden Girl via DSW) / Pink oxfords (Zara) / Red Converse / Leopard flats (Target) / Floral Flats (Rocket Dog via DSW)

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Well, yes, I’ve already talked about my great need for walks in my creative life.  But today I’m talking about a different kind of walk, one where your camera is more important than your company.

These are some of my favorite photos that have resulted from just walking with my camera and attempting to see things through the lens instead of my own eyes.

You notice different things when you’re being intentional.

I walk a lot slower when I’m with my camera, and look places I wouldn’t normally look if I was just on a leisurely stroll.  And I’ve discovered some cool things – like these ice patterns, I can’t explain to you why I love them so much but it’s probably one of my favorite photographs.

This particular path I’ve walked and run probably dozens of times – yet when I really looked at where I was going, instead of taking steps by memory or habit, it was almost a completely new path.

(Aside: isn’t it great how plane trails in clear skies look like shooting stars? Favorite.)

If you’re feeling a little burnt out from your routine, I’d suggest looking at your surroundings with fresh eyes and a new intention.  If you’re a painter, look for color; if you’re a sculptor, look for shape and texture.  Even if you aren’t a photographer, there’s a lot worth learning when you look through a pair of eyes that isn’t your own.

Never stop exploring!

Filed in:Inspiration

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