Alchemy in Exile: Building Art, Magic, and Momentum From a Hotel Room

There’s something unintentionally poetic about running a three-part creative business from a hotel room with décor that isn’t bad, just… sparse. When you’re a maximalist at heart, minimalist hotel walls feel like you walked into a room that forgot to get dressed. It shouldn’t be a functional workspace, but somehow it is. It shouldn’t feel magical, but somehow it still does. Maybe that’s because creativity blooms wherever it’s forced to. Maybe it’s because transformation never waits for the right room. Maybe it’s because the place is next to an airport and the constant hum of jets is basically a battle soundtrack.

Or maybe it’s because when you’re one booking away from filling the final spot in a transformation-themed calendar, life is already leaning toward the symbolic.

Right now, my world exists in this limbo: half home, half hotel, fully committed to showing up for the art that keeps unfolding around me.

And exile hasn’t slowed me down at all.

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Let’s start with the biggest fireball I’m juggling. The Alchemy of Her is almost full. I’m literally one booking away from completing the year-long transformation calendar that has been absorbing all my attention (in a good way) for months. Twelve months, twenty-four women, each photographed to tell a personal story of power, rebirth, reclamation, softness, strength, and the deeply personal transformations women navigate.

Every time someone signs on for this project, they’re not just booking a session. They’re joining a tapestry. They’re becoming a chapter in a visual anthology about what it means to grow and evolve.

The wild part? The project launched right before my apartment flooded and my studio was ripped apart for repairs. Perfect timing, right? But the momentum didn’t die. Women kept applying. Sponsors keep showing up. The vision kept growing even while my life got shoved into unexpected corners.

Now, with one slot left, the calendar is about to be whole. If you’ve been waiting for a sign, this is it. If you’ve been circling the idea but hesitating, stop circling. Come claim your space.

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Hotel exile won’t last forever.

My apartment and studio are being repaired and refreshed, and even though the timeline has been messy, it’s finally moving. Floors. Stairs. Walls. Every inconvenient thing you can imagine. It’s been slow, frustrating, and surreal, but the payoff is coming.

Once I’m home, the studio will feel renewed in the ways that matter most: comfortable, intentional, and fully mine again. It won’t change Soul Sessions (those always take place outdoors, in forests, parks, beaches, or anywhere nature breathes), but it will give me my home base back for the Alchemy project, editing, product photography, and the foundation that keeps all three branches of my business moving.

The space may have been torn down to bones, but it’s coming back stronger. Honestly, so am I.

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Hotel life doesn’t stop the work. Art does not wait politely until the drywall dries.

This weekend, I have two Soul Sessions on deck, each with their own emotional texture and magic.

Session One: The Rainbow Mirror - This prop is like photographing light that remembers how to dream. It bends color into something tender and surreal. The session using it this weekend is tied to reflection, healing, and stepping closer to the truth of who you really are rather than the version the world demanded.

Mirrors don’t just reflect. Sometimes they reveal.

Session Two: The Winter Window - This prop is the complete opposite tone: crisp, white, delicate, and ethereal. A winter scene without cold fingers. A sense of stillness that feels like a held breath before transformation clicks into place.

The beauty of Soul Sessions is that they don’t require a studio. They thrive outdoors. Forest paths, beaches, parks, open air — the world becomes the set. Even during hotel exile, these sessions keep unfolding in spaces that feel alive.

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Meanwhile, my fiber world has its own heartbeat. The Laci Cardi sweater is nearly finished, which is honestly wild considering the amount of chaos orbiting my days right now.

I didn’t build out the structure — the pattern did that — but I did modify it. I added front panels. I worked the fabric until it draped exactly how I wanted. Now I’m adding sleeves, and she’s almost ready to be worn by her rightful owner: me.

This project has been grounding. Row by row, stitch by stitch, one soft place to land when everything else feels unpredictable.

And yes, custom cardigan orders are open. If you want a Laci Cardi of your own, you’ll need a soft tape measure so your piece fits you perfectly. Grab one before you message me — it’ll save both of us time and make the process smoother.

I also wrapped up all the charity beanies for Sarah’s Peculiar Perlers, which felt like tying off a season-long loose end. Creating something warm and comforting for someone else while living through my own displacement was a weirdly healing experience. A reminder that art is service, too.

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Running multiple businesses from a hotel room is not glamorous. It’s not curated. It’s not the vibe anyone chooses. But it has sharpened me in ways I didn’t expect.

It’s made me more adaptive. More intentional. More stubbornly creative.

Everything I’m building — my photography projects, my crochet line, my skincare line — is still moving, still expanding, still thriving. Not because conditions are ideal, but because the work matters enough to keep going.

Hotel exile isn’t pretty, but it’s proving that momentum doesn’t need perfect conditions. It needs commitment, resourcefulness, a sense of humor, and apparently a Google Drive full of documents and spreadsheets holding my entire life together. ChatGPT is doing a good portion of the heavy lifting too, let’s be honest.

No taped-up project notes on the wall. Just digital chaos and an airport outside my window.

Why does all this matter to you? Because maybe you’re hovering on the edge of your own transformation. Maybe you’ve been waiting for the right moment, the right season, the right version of yourself to appear before you act.

Here’s the truth: conditions rarely perfect themselves. But transformation? That shows up anyway.

So if you’re a model thinking about joining The Alchemy of Her, this is your last call. There is one spot left. One. And it belongs to someone ready to step into a story of becoming.

If you’re drawn to Soul Sessions, the energy this season is unmatched. Every session feels like a reclamation.

If you’re a sponsor, your support matters more than ever. My timeline is shifting, my workflow is bending, and partnerships genuinely shape what this project becomes.

If you’re dreaming of a custom crocheted piece or running low on infused skincare, both arms of my business are still open and running strong through all this chaos.

And if you’re simply watching, cheering from a distance, every bit of encouragement helps more than you know.

This is your invitation:

• Book your Soul Session.
• Claim the final Alchemy of Her calendar spot.
• Become a sponsor.
• Order a custom crochet piece (and grab your soft tape measure first).
• Pick up infused skincare.
• Share the work if it resonates.

Transformation is contagious. You’re welcome in this world I’m building — even from a hotel room beside an airport runway.

Exile won’t last forever. But the art born from it? That’s here to stay.