Today marks my two year anniversary for LAMA. It’s also my dad’s birthday (Happy Birthday Dad!!) Three years ago I was jogging around Lake Merritt with my trusty sidekick Miles, when I suddenly had the crazy notion to start a company called LAMA. Don’t ask me why, I can’t explain where the thought came from. A year later, a job in SF left behind, thousands of miles traveled, six months lived in Berlin, and hundreds of conversations regarding my sanity had, I opened LAMA on July 15th 2008. Two years later, this is what I’ve learned:

- Being an entrepreneur is one of the most challenging things to be even for the most driven people. It is a 24/7 job. Literally. I think of LAMA all of the time. It’s not always the healthiest relationship and I often wonder if there are other business owners that don’t constantly think about the status of their work, but for me, LAMA is always on my mind. When LAMA suffers, I suffer. When LAMA is thriving, so am I. It’s a constant roller coaster of highs and lows and maintaining a healthy relationship with my work has been and continues to be a struggle.

- Working alone is REALLY difficult. A lot of people don’t know this (because I’m reluctant to say) but I run LAMA alone. No co-workers, no interns, no one. I am the head of marketing and pr, the head buyer, head of customer relations, warehouse manager, etc. During the holiday season, I stay up all night packaging shipments to make sure that everyone has their order before Christmas. It’s tough and it’s lonely and I wish I had a partner (anyone interested?) I hope to find someone(s) to join me in this journey.

- The challenge of starting and maintaining a business creates the unique experience of truly getting to know oneself. For me, it’s been overwhelming at times to look at myself in this mirror. On one end, I have realized that I am stronger than I ever imagined. I have done things and accomplished things I never imagined were possible for me. I have overcome, I have persevered, I have surprised myself and everyone around me. On the other end, I have seen my faults, experienced my shortcomings, and witnessed by downfalls. There have been times when I hardly recognize myself. For me, however, as difficult as this process has been, I am grateful for the deeper understanding I have of who I am. The good and the bad. Understanding my limitations makes me feel more human.

- Constant change is healthy and necessary. As someone who loves routine, this has been especially challenging and frightening for me. I am always fearful that if I change things too much, I’m going to lose what I worked so hard to build. I have realized that with business, there is no such thing as comfort and stability. Things shift and change all of the time and you just have to shift and change along with them. If you don’t, then you’re stuck. So, with this realization made, I’m ready to make a big shift with LAMA. I don’t know exactly what that is yet, but I’m taking the necessary time to try to quiet my life as much as I can to listen to that little voice inside with the answers. The one that told me to start a company called LAMA in the first place. I hope everyday when I wake up that today will be the day I can hear that voice. I think I’m getting really close.

Although this has been the most challenging three years of my life, I don’t regret a single moment of it. Win or lose, LAMA or no LAMA, bankruptcy or financial success, I went after my dream and I can move on with my life knowing that. I can look back someday and say that I did something special and meaningful no matter what the outcome is. That, to me, is worth everything that I have been through and continue to go through. I feel so fortunate to be able to say that and I am forever grateful to the people that have made that possible for me. Looking back on all of it, the biggest lesson I have learned is to allow the people who love me into my life. To share with them my feelings (the good and the bad) and allow them to support me. No one expects me to be perfect, in fact, I think they feel more connected to me knowing that I’m not.

I know I just returned from one, but I can’t seem to get vacation off my mind. One of my favorite places to visually vacation in is the Hotel Home located in Buenos Aires. I love the mix of ethnic elements with modern design pieces. It’s truly an interior design gem with room after room of inspiring spaces.

I’m back at LAMA HQ today after spending the last four days cruising around the Pacific Northwest. It was a fantastic mini but much needed getaway to a gorgeous part of the country I’ve never visited before. While it’s still fresh in my mind, I thought I would share a few iPhone snap shots I took throughout Portland and Seattle.

Multanoma Falls outside of Portland

Seattle Skyline seen from Upper Queen Anne

St. Honore Bakery in Portland (incredible!!)

“Ruca” the sweetest Seattle pup!

Public Market in Seattle

Market Fruit

Market Fish

Glass Painting by Portland artist Ryan Birkland

Spain Jacket I wore to watch the World Cup. Viva España!!

In case you were wondering, I used the Mill Colour app on all of the shots above. I highly recommend this app if you haven’t already downloaded it. It’s a personal favorite!

This morning I woke up in beautiful Portland, Oregon. I have to say, I’m loving this change of scenery. Before I head out and enjoy my weekend exploring the Pacific Northwest (I’m heading to Seattle tomorrow!), I wanted to share this weeks’s Friday I’m In Llama by UK based artist Kiley Victoria. I love her sweet work.

Enjoy your weekend everyone! I’ll certainly be enjoying mine.

I’ve been a fan of artist Alex Noriega for some time, but I am most captivated by his recent project entitled “Stuff No One Told Me.” Alex, an illustrator from Barcelona, Spain with “poor spelling and grammar skills,” has decided to combine his illustrative talents with the wisdom he has gained over the years to create this daily and delightful series. I adore his sense of humor!

To view more of Alex Noriega’s work, be sure to check out his flickr page.

For the past year, Mexican artist Hugo Martinez Tecoatl has been covering one of Los Angeles’ oldest buildings with “an elaborate array of murals vibrantly splashed across 4,000 square feet of space.” Sleeping on an old piece of carpet inside the building and earning only $100 a week, this once highly paid and well trained artist has taken on a new mission in his career to tell the story of the Mexican people.

In his words,”I want Mexican youth who may not know their story except for the color of their skin to see this and know we have a marvelous history. We are different, and you can feel it when you walk in here.”

Located in Boyle Heights, CA at the Casa del Mexicano, Hugo Martinez Tecoatl’s incredible artistic achievement is nearing completion and is a must see if you’re in the Los Angeles area. I’m planning a trip to Los Angeles later this summer and hope to snap a few of my own shots of Hugo’s incredible work! I highly recommend checking out the full story over at the LA Times. It’s just a little inspiration for your Wednesday!

*photos courtesy of the LA Times

The first day back after a long weekend is always a bit slow for me, so today I thought I would share the simple and beautiful artwork of Santiago Salvador. I love when art is just delightful and amusing without being overly complicated. Salvador’s work has been the perfect thing for me to stare at on this slow morning back in the office.

I hope everyone had a wonderful 4th of July weekend!

This week’s Friday I’m In Llama image was pointed out to me by my good friend Ben. Aside from being a pretty cool guy, he also happens to be the co-creator of my favorite new site Pinterest. Aside from being an endless source of visual inspiration, Pinterest has been an awesome way for me to connect with some amazing people with similar interests, or “pinterests”, as myself. To me, the social side of Pinterest is one of the best components of this site and I adore posting and reading comments left by my newfound Pinterest pals. So, without further ado, here is my Pinteresting offer to you… drumroll… I’m giving away ten invites to join this incredibly cool and incredibly exclusive new site!! All you have to do is leave me a comment with your email address and if you’re one of the first ten, the invite is yours. Yippee!! Once you’re on, come follow me! Happy 4th of July!!

A while back, I came across the gorgeous image below (via Apartment Therapy) and was intrigued by two things; the incredible “shipping container city” located in Cholula, Mexico, and the fabulous chairs scattered throughout this shot!

Determined to track them down, I spent some time surfing around the web until I discovered them over at Innit Designs. Aside from the incredible retro design and cheerful colors, I was excited to learn a bit about the history behind them. According to “legend”, “this style of chair was conceived of by a French tourist on the Caribbean coast of Mexico circa 1940’s. She was lounging in a solid back chair sweating her nalgitas off in the Caribbean heat. She asked herself, why with all these Mayan hammocks around do they not make a chair with the same technique?” Poof! These awesome chairs were born.

These definitely belong in the backyard of my dreams (*sigh* someday!) To check out the rest of the collection, head over to Innit!