interview with shae acopian detar of everything style

I'm so thrilled to share this with you! Shae Acopian Detar of everythingstyle.com is a very busy lady.. between photoshoots, modeling and styling, hanging out with prominent costume designers and getting featured in fashion magazines, she's definitely got a full schedule. So imagine my excitement when Shae agreed to answer some questions for all of us!

A lovely lady with an amazing eye and rare style, all photos shared today have been shot by and styled by (and some, even modeled by!) Shae. And, what's more.. Shae has only been behind the camera lens for a year! Her photos have a polished yet uniquely imaginative tone, thoroughly modern yet lovingly worn, almost from another time. And within every photo, there's a story.

This is what Shae had to say.

Hey Shae! Tell us about yourself and the beautiful work you create.

I'm a gal who's been in love with the same boy since I was 19 yrs old, which is nearly 13 years ago (we were married in 2005). My mom and dad are my best friends, aside from my husband, and my Shar Pei dogs Waylon (and Crumbles, who died a year ago) have been the greatest added joys in my life. I am constantly moved by nature, the mountains, the trees, the sky, and music.

Creating art is one of my most cherished forms of expression.. without that I think I would go crazy. And...volunteering is something that will always be a part of my life.. helping people in need is one of the deepest desires of my heart. :) I have a very deep faith that gets me through life's ups, downs and in betweens. All of that might just about sum me up. ;)

What does a typical day look like for you?

I'm more of a morning person than a night owl, so coffee in the morning and a walk with my dog Waylon gets me going. If I don't have a shoot planned for the day, then I am either planning a shoot, photo editing, scouting for locations or searching for clothing for the shoots. I'm going to begin a few workshop classes, learning how to make & edit videos, so that will be taking up some of my time in 2011. In my downtime, I am hanging out with friends and my husband in his music studio, listening to his new songs and occasionally singing back ups for some random projects.

You have such a knack at combining completely different eras into one outfit and making it look effortlessly lovely! Any advice for others desiring to do the same?

Awww.. well thank you. :) Advice.. gosh, I have no idea. I don't think about it too much to be honest.. I've never been a real fan of people advising others on how to dress. I think when I first started my blog I did a post on "15 ways to wear a skirt" or something like that and I cringe when I think of that blog post now. Style is all relative anyhow. I've been thinking of changing my blog name for some time now.. because "everything style" really is not the focus in my life. It doesn't sum me up as a person, it has nothing to do with my values, and it's not what I would want someone to think my photos are primarily about.

What inspires you?

My mom, Karen Acopian, is probably one of my greatest inspirations. She is so creative, so selfless, so strong.. and fun. She is the reason I fell in love with antiques and vintage.. she's amazing. My husband is ridiculously inspiring. The music he's been making the past few years is so breathtaking. His solo album, Bird In The Tangle, blew me away and he's been writing a lot of new songs that are just stunning. His drive and relentless work ethic and his passion for creating.. they inspire me to rise to the occasion, creatively, every single day. Being married to a hard working person, and such a creative person, like him.. it's just wonderful.

Music, nature, history and paintings are my constant go-tos when I am looking to be inspired artistically. Old tin-type photos, old paintings, driving through the mountains, looking up at the sky and seeing huge trees all around me, the desert, hearing coyotes cry out in the night, listening to music like Townes Van Zandt, Waylon Jennings, The Carter Family, The Louvin Brothers, Loretta Lynn, Neil Young, Porter Wagoner, Old Dolly Parton, Gillian Welch and George Jones, always bring images and themes to my mind for shoots.

When shopping for vintage, what kind of pieces do you look for?

Oh gosh, anything from the 1800's up through the 1960's. Vintage shopping is a fun thing to do from time to time. I'm not nearly as active at it as I used to be. It's nice to have a little Sunday stroll to The Rose Bowl Flea Market or thrift shops from time to time. I like to look for costumes for shoots, anything that will be dramatic and theatrical for a photograph. And I have a hard time passing up vintage men's oxford flats.. and hats. I have over 75 hats or something crazy like that. I've been collecting hats for so many years.. my husband gets overwhelmed by how many I have in the house. LOL, but the reason I own so many is because I buy them for around $4-$12 dollars, so.. it's hard to pass them up.

You recently made the switch from running a large online vintage business to focusing on a new love - photography. What brought you to this decision, and where has this new path taken you so far?

I quit Lullie Vintage about a year and a half ago, and I've never looked back in regret. I love vintage, but being a vintage seller was just not what I think I was meant to do. We did really well, and I appreciate all of the wonderful customers we had. It was a great learning experience. I'm glad I had the shop for 5 plus years.. but it was time to move on and write a new chapter in my life. I'm sooooo thankful I found photography, it's what I hope to do until the day I die.

Any exciting future plans or ventures?

Oh yes! The sky is the limit. I'm still completely new to all this photography stuff, I think I picked up a camera to pursue this craft about a year ago, so I haven't really done anything significant yet! I'm working on a coffee table book with Suzanne Ford Carafano of Spanish Moss this year.. we begin shooting next month. That may take us a while, but we're on it. I'll be trying to focus on portrait photography - photographing actors (not headshots, more dramatic location shots for magazines is my goal), musicians, writers, dancers.. you name it. If I could have my work in magazines like Vanity Fair, Interview, GQ.. this sort of thing.. that would be absolutely amazing. I'm also going to be painting more on my photos.. people have really responded to some of those pieces, so I will be creating more on that end. I'm going to work my butt off to create really good work, and hopefully begin to make a living off of my art. Wish me luck, I have a lot of work ahead of me! :)

Thanks so much, Shae! To stay in touch and find out about her future projects, join her mailing list here!