The Posh Fairy Goes Under Water

006

For as far as I can remember, I’ve been fascinated with underwater photography. Maybe because it reflects a certain type of beauty that you don’t see everyday, and you definitely might not even know exists!

The work on this project was challenging as much as it was very exciting. I put the team together and was stuck looking for the photography equipment that we needed, rented some from a company and scheduled the shoot which had to be between 3 am and 9 am since the pool of Al Hamra Thermae would be open for members after that. The shoot was a while back so add to that, it was freezing! Unfortunately, Jalil and I weren’t happy with the results, and the shots were not a success. We had to stop, go home, and reschedule another early shoot. Meanwhile, look for better equipment.

About 3 weeks later, we were ready. With an excited team and killer equipment, we scheduled the shoot for the second time. Here’s a glimpse of what went on, and of course, the outcome.

emptyname-193

emptyname-203

emptyname-279

emptyname-150

emptyname-431

emptyname-77

emptyname-105

emptyname-127

EmptyName 450

– Art Director / Stylist: Joumana Soufi
– Photographer: Jalil Marvin
– Photography Equipment: TechSys Marine / AAB World
– Model : Sune Vantonder
– Makeup: Marvelous Makeup
– Location: Al Hamra Thermae

The Posh Fairy for H&M Conscious Exclusive Collection

photo 2

I’ve worked with H&M Kuwait team a few times before to conceptualize and direct shoots for different collections last year. And this year, I had the pleasure of working with them again on the oh-so-hot conscious exclusive collection that has been making headlines all over the world, and it’s SO worth it. Here are the shots.

photo 7

photo 6

photo 4

photo 3

photo 11

photo 9

CREATIVE DIRECTOR | STYLIST: Joumana Soufi @thesidetalk
PHOTOGRAPHER: Saleh Al Sanad @al_sanad
MODEL: JiaoJiao @jiaojiaoyao
WARDROBE: H&M Conscious Exclusive Collection @hm
HAIR: Aziza ‘Zizi’ Skaff – Blush Hair & Beauty Center @azizaskaff
MAKEUP: Amal Al Adwani @amal_makeupartist
LOCATION: Al Hamra Thermae @alhamra_thermae

Final Call For Application: Cartier Women’s Initiative Awards 2014

31577

The Cartier women’s Initiative Awards are looking for committed female entrepreneurs heading initiatives with the potential to grow significantly in the years to come. To apply for the 2014 edition, fill out the application form on www.cartierwomensinitiative.com. All applications must be submitted online in English. Application deadline: February 28, 2014 at 10am Paris time (CET).

31575

what can you win? Eighteen finalists representing the best projects worldwide will be selected in the first phase of the contest. They will receive coaching and media exposure and will be invited to France for the Finale week which includes a presentation in front of the international Jury, entrepreneurship workshops and the Global Meeting of the Women’s Forum. The six Laureates nominated for the Awards receive one year of coaching, US$ 20 000 in funding, media visibility and networking opportunities.

Eligibility Criteria
The business project to be considered for the Cartier Women’s Initiative Awards must be:
• An original for-profit business creation,
• In the start-up phase: between one and three years of operation,
• The main leadership position must be filled by a woman. The competition is open to women from any country, nationality and industry.

Application Form
The questions that feature on the application form are detailed below for reference:
– About the team: Contact details and resumes of lead entrant and team members.
– About the business • Executive summary of the business • Project development stage • Product or service • Sales and distribution strategy • Market analysis • Competitive environment • Management team • SWOT analysis • Impact of the business • Financials
– Appendix and supporting documents Logo, photos of the product, patents, articles…

Visit the link below to complete your application process:
www.cartierwomensinitiative.com

Good Luck!

Alnowair’s Focus on the Good Campaign & Photography Competition

focus-on-the-good

Alnowair is one the most uplifting initiatives in town. They continue to brighten our days with each and every campaign. Working hard to spread positivity and mental well-being among people for a better quality of living.

This month’s campaign is ‘Focus on The Good’; all of us face numerous situations daily, a few of which leave us worried, tense and stressed. Now, we have learned that the more we focus on our problems, the more they grow in our minds. But what’s interesting is that the same applies on the good things. The theme of the campaign is based around this fact. In order to avoid our problems from inflating out of proportion, and for the good to reflect more in our lives they want all of us to benefit from this simple practice:

Sun

Imagine that you are the sun, whatever you shine on will come to life, whatever you contribute energy to, will expand and grow in your life, and whatever you think about will blossom with your attention.

Our focus has a lot of power, when we focus on abundance, our life feels abundant, and when we focus on lack, our life feels lacking. It is purely a matter of focus. As we start looking for the good, our focus automatically is taken off the bad, and we feel so much better!

Focus

In order to know how to change your focus, you must first understand what determines it in the first place. Answer the following questions and notice how you feel.

Focus - Copy

Now try to answer some different questions:

Focus - Copy - Copy

Even though the second set of questions made you feel better about your life than the first, in terms of circumstances, nothing has really changed at the moment. What’s really interesting, you don’t actually have to have certain things happen in order to start feeling better about your life, you just need to focus on the right things. The way you feel is largely determined by what you focus on. What you focus on is largely determined by the conscious and unconscious questions you ask yourself on a regular basis.

Now, ask yourself the following 3 questions at the end of each day and look for the answers sincerely:

WWW

The science of positive psychology shows us that when we regularly reflect on what has gone well for us we get a burst of happiness, become more optimistic and exhibit greater levels of resilience. Positive emotions and optimistic thinking accelerate learning, broaden attention and increase creativity. Not only that, if you can sustain this frame of mind long-term, you’re more likely to experience better health, earn more money, have happier relationships, live longer, and overall, enjoy a better quality of life.

fog english

To promote the campaign, Alnowair are organizing an awesome photography competition! As We come across many moments in our day which leave a lasting impression on us. Moments that make us realize the goodness in something or of someone. Grab your camera (not mobile phone) and capture such a person/moment/object or whatever is your definition of goodness.

Competition Details:

The top 20 winning entries will be displayed in a week-long exhibition at 360 Mall in the beginning of October 2013.
The top 3 winning entries will receive an amazing prize and will be featured in 360 Mall as the winning entries.
Entries size should be 60×40 cms, 3888×2592 pxl (landscape or portrait).
Entries resolution should be 10 Mega Pixel, or more.
Entries file Format should be JPG.
Each participant can submit maximum up to 5 pictures each.
Entries should be submitted through email, to positivity@alnowair.com
Entries close on 30th September 2013.

For more information on the competition check the link, here, or follow Alnowair on Instagram @al_nowair. Good luck!

The Kayys Ramadan Collection ’13

The Kayys, a high end fashion brand based in Qatar, released their Ramadan 2013 collection photoshoot, and I fell in love, head over heels! Oh My! The beauty of those shots is indescribable! The garments, the flowers, the colors, the photography, the angles, the model; p.e.r.f.e.c.t.i.o.n!!! It’s amazing to see such level of work being done in the region. To me, this is so Vogue material. Well done girls!

001

002

003

004

005

006

007

008

009

0010

0011

0012

0013

0014

0015

Follow them on Instagram @Thekayys for more on the collection details.

Continue reading

Alnowair’s #iThank Campaign on The Month of Gratitude‏

It’s been 3 months since Al_Nowair has launch and it already has become one of the most popular and admired initiatives in town! The wonderful reception, the smiles, and the support has made this cause stronger and their beliefs more firm.

Al_Nowair’s newest campaign, which is running during Ramadan, the month of gratitude, is the #iThank campaign. We all have our share of bad days; we can get grumpy, sad or even angry. The trick to survive these days and be more resilient towards them is to be grateful. There are a gazillion reasons for us to be grateful, let’s start from our very own heart, every time our heart beats a miracle happens, every heartbeat thousands of mechanisms fall in the right place to combine and give us life!! Isn’t that reason enough for us to be grateful?

ithank newsletter pic1

Thank you – two words that unite, strengthen friendships, give expression to feelings, and most important two words that help us realize the importance of someone. Life can be busy, it can be fast. It can also be comfortable, easy and endearing. No matter how it turns out we all have someone to help make it all worth it, don’t we? This month let’s take some time off to find these people and tell them how grateful we are to them.

So pull out a piece of paper and write a thank you note or dedicate a post to someone who makes our life better, easier and way much cooler. And let’s mean it from the bottom of our hearts. The #iThank campaign is to remind us, inspire us and encourage us to feel and show gratitude.

ithank newsletter pic2

ithank newsletter pic3

As part of Al_Nowair’s drive to encourage gratitude they will be distributing free #iThank post-its at Caribou Coffee outlets later during the month, the post-its are a quick, cute, creative way of showing our gratitude towards something. It would be awesome if you experiment, go creative and discover your own way of saying thank you through the post-its.

Caribou-Outlets

With the simplicity of this campaign, comes the beauty of it. I have been noticing how technology has taken its toll on people, as it does bring people closer, but it also distracts people of the little things in life that matter the most, it takes us away from our family and loved one, even when we are supposedly spending time together. The nature of us humans has changed into a more systematic rather than affectionate, which is why in my opinion, this campaign serves the purpose beautifully during Ramadan, the month of gratitude. Here is the campaign video, giving you some ideas on how you can use your #iThank post-its:

IThank-Steps

As you can see in the above illustration, the last step on the campagin is to post your gratitude on the Thank You Wall: The iconic bridge at Marina Mall will be transformed for 1 week into the bridge of gratitude. Al_Nowair are building a 50 Meter long wall in the center of the bridge, all of you are welcome to go see it and write something you are thankful for on their #iThank post-its (which will be distributed by the awesome volunteers at the location) and stick them on the wall because positivity sticks!! This will be Kuwait’s largest ever yellow wall of gratitude!!! And it will be up for one week, starting July 14th, until the 20th.

Thank You Wall

ithank newsletter pic4

Kuwait Young Entrepreneurs: a Non-for-Profit Charity Exhibition

ce0c932cd65f11e2996e22000a1f98fe_7

Kuwait Young Entrepreneurs (KYE) is a non-for-profit charity exhibition for small Kuwaiti businesses that is going to be held during the Holy Month of Ramadan at the newly renovated Aladdin Center in Salmiya. The idea behind it is to create an open forum for Kuwaiti Entrepreneurs that are trying to start a business to showcase their creativity and innovation without having to gauge their wallets, and hence the non for profit nature. All are proceeds go to charity. Period.

The idea is simple, in order for them to weed out the undesirables there will be a process of elimination in which a handful of applicants are called back to present their business/project to a panel of judges, if they succeed in wowing the panel then only can they participate.

For more information, checkout the video below, or drop by their website, here.

Register Now for The Protégés, Generation 3: UK Edition

InstagramPost

A few of you may know that I have been a proud member of The Protégés, 1st Generation that took place in 2010. It was an amazing experience, a journey like no other during which I met wonderful, positive, and powerful people, be it the students, the mentors, and even the organizers. A very enriching exposure that opens the doors of limitless possibilities, self-development, and life improvements. It was truly an inspiring adventure that until this day has its soft spot in my heart.

proteges

After their first edition in 2010, The Protégés featured another edition, and now it’s time for the third! Generation 3, The UK edition.

The Protégés powered by KIPCO is an exclusive youth program for people between the ages of 16-24 that focuses on building an individual into ‘the individual’. The program looks upon different aspects of life such as: leadership, project management skills, elevated awareness and life skills.

The program is facilitated by Mentors who all specialize in different fields. This year’s mentors include: Shamlan Al Bahar, Rana Al Khaled, Abdulla Al Essa, Yarub Burhama, Mishari Al Mufareh, Abdulaziz Al Loughani, Abdulaziz Al Adwani and Mohammed Al Nugaimish; students will be guided by the mentors throughout the program, to learn first hand information to build on them and find their inner-self.

This year’s program is a 3-week adventure starting from August 12th in partnership with KIPCO, Kuwait Projects Company (Holding). The program will include 1 week in Kuwait and 2 weeks in the UK in association with the prestigious Kings College London. Through this experience participants will understand the meaning of having a role in society and be exposed to the feeling and hardship of what it takes to be successful.

dscn2542

dscn2619

dscn3086

img_8265

picture-1176

ARE YOU?

– Eager to learn
– Hard Working
– Charismatic
– Social
– Disciplined

The Protégés Generation 3: UK Edition could possibly have a spot for you in this Exclusive and life-changing experience!

Sign up now on theproteges.org

Registration closes on June 20th.

The Celebrate Exhibition

November001

Following a very successful exhibit last September 2012, The Celebrate Exhibition is back! Keeping brides, and those who love events, design and decoration in constant inspiration. Brides and people hosting events need many services; from planners to caterers to chocolatiers and beauty specialists, and also bed linens, dresses, and home accessories for gifts or for their new homes. The Exhibition will take place in the Al-Baraka Ballroom, near the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Farwaniya, March 5-7 2012, From 11:00 am to 9:00 pm.

The talented and world famous cake designer Sylvia Weinstock will be guest of honor; visiting the event, and giving a wonderful speech about her life and her company, she will be showing slides of her creations and discussing the bridal Industry. With so many cake designers and bakeries in Kuwait. Sylvia, would be beneficial to helping them all learn and strive to be as amazing as she is. Joining in at the event as well, will be the creative and Savvy founder of the prestigious “thebridalcircle.com” to speak about the online wedding industry and all of her great connections and experiences. The talks will be held in the Al-Baraka Ballroom on the 6th of march at 8:30 pm, and will be limited to those who reserve and book seats in advance.

Through out the event there will be 2 sessions of floral arranging courses taught by the very famous Jane Packer floral school of London. One will be held Tuesday the 5th of march at 6:00 pm and the second course will be 6th of march at 11:00 am. The attendees will be learning how to make a hand tied bouquet as well as a table arrangement.

For more information on the dinner event or the floral courses, you could email at info@celebrate-expo.com or call +965-9711 5881

November002