Shark Attack!

WEARING: ANIMAL HEARTED 'PAWS' TANK TOP | TOP PAW™ PET HALLOWEEN SHARK COSTUME

Duh nuh. Duh nuh. Duh nuh duh nuh...

I love Halloween, and what I love even more is dressing MaQ up in all sorts of absurdities. Last year we were Cowboy & Indian. I have several ideas for this year, but have yet to make a final decision. To get into the Halloween spirit, I decided to play around with a tank top I got from Animal Hearted with the word 'PAWS' on it, a hilarious reference to the movie, 'Jaws'.

I am actually terrified of sharks, finding them to be one of mankind's most primitive and powerful creatures on Earth, I'm like that African American woman who made a video that went viral about the growing concerns of shark attacks. "When you go to the beach, go to the beach. Not the ocean! That's home to the sharks." Don't get me wrong, I love the ocean. I love to boogie board. I love the taste of salt. BUT, I'm now more aware of it. So instead, we played with sharks on dry land (and with one land shark in particular)... !

Look at my baby shark! Isn't this the cutest shark dog costume?! We found this one at PetSmart when we went looking for something that would go with my 'PAWS' tank top. Here we are together, having the grandest time. Photo shoots are never a dull moment with this guy. ::: Heart Literally Melting :::

What I love about Animal Hearted is their apparel and gifts save animals! 25% of proceeds from every order go directly to help animals in need. What a win-win for everyone! I love this clothing company! Check them out at www.animalhearted.com for all their adorable products!

I have to say it's a kinda hard finding dog outfits for a XXL dog like MaQ who is about 100lbs! Even somewhere like here in NYC, the majority of doggy costumes are intended for smaller sized ones. But dang it! My pooch likes to play dress-up just as much as his mommy! ;)

Yup. You heard it here first. Sharkies playing against other sharkies. Only in different forms. LOL! MaQ is always such a trooper with these kind of shoots. I think he just loves spending time with me just as much as I love spending time with him! Or maybe he does, in fact, enjoy being ridiculed... tee-hee!

Whoops! The costume came undone while playing. I love adding candid shots with portrait shots to make it more engaging. They're like behind the scene shots, where you can see what's going on during a shoot. With us, they're always so much fun and a pleasure to do!

Clearly, we never have an entertaining time. This fella makes me smile every single day and just for that, I'm grateful for every day spent with him. You betcha #iflmdog! ♡♡♡

Looking for a dog photographer? Or need some pet portraits done? How about a fun Halloween shoot like this one? Please go to my Contact page for further details on how to reach me!

Are you a dog costume company that carries much larger sizes for dogs like MaQ? We NEED to link up! Want to suggest your ideas on what our Halloween costumes should be this year? We would LOVE to hear from you! Like, share and/or comment below.

Love & xx's,

maQ + suz

SHOP THE LOOK

Happy Birthday, MaQ!

It's my boy's birthday today! In honor of turning '3', I made him 3 doggy burger sliders with a few unseasoned french fries! I know, I know. Say all you want, but my boy is only turning 3 once, so you betcha he got spoiled! :)

I made the burgers as healthy as possible for my pooch. No seasoning on the ground beef, and because he does eat raw meat in his diet, I just grilled them in a cast iron on each side for a couple of minutes, then layering those bad boys with sharp cheddar cheese. The buns are potato rolls and the only addition to his dinner is lettuce (which was of course his least favorite.) LOL! And he loves french fries so I threw in a couple as a side. Oh my goodness, am I something else or what? Whatever, I love my dog!

Don't worry. My boy did not have any Stella Artois. Even though he is technically 21 years old in human years now, I still did not allow my fur baby to consume any beer. It was just a fun prop to go with his birthday meal! Doesn't he look so happy? The camera loves him!

He's never had a burger before! As you can see, he really seemed to dig his dinner! Heck, if it was my birthday and someone presented me with this, I'd be happy myself! Ha ha ha! I love to give MaQ all different experiences in life, and both being foodies at heart, chowing down on some good ole' American burgers is one of them!

So many whiskers! I just love that big black nose!  ♥ ❤ ❥

Happiest Birthday to my guardian angel and my best friend. I am forever grateful for you, faithful pal. Thank you for being my everything. Your unconditional love can move mountains and your loyalty is profound. You enrich my life and make it so meaningful. I love you with every fiber of my being and I am so glad we are together, doing all of it and more, side-by-side. To you, McQueen. I hope you had a wonderful day!
Thanks for stopping by and joining in on our celebration of life and love!

Love & xx's,

maQ + suz

First Street Graffiti

This week's graffiti is at the First Street Green Art Park, filled with lots of new and colorful street murals. I wanted to first start with a photo of all the many faces of MaQ, in reference to the Global Freedom Exchange Mural behind him. This mural was created last week by 24 female activists from around the world. It was led by artist and activist Panmela Castro. The women had been on a two week mentoring program advocating the stop and prevention to all human trafficking where they met with government officials to "discuss best practices with NGO leaders, provide donors with knowledge about funding needs and the best mechanisms for support, and learn about collaborative approaches to working with local law enforcement." (firststreetgreenartpark.org) During this graffiti workshop, the group discussed the issue of trafficking and then picked up spray cans to express their conversation through the mural. Just like my pooch, there are 4 different faces and I only took a photo with one of the faces to demonstrate this symbolism, as the message is clear: Hope. Change. Love. Justice. And that one voice mantra. We all have it, and we all should be allowed to use it when we feel necessary. And with that one voice, this is where we can get the change, the hope, the love, and the justice we all humanly deserve.

Look at my fur baby! I love this shot of him because not only does he look handsome (of course, he always does), but because his head stands for the letter, 'L', in 'LOVE', becoming a part of the mural. What a lover boy. I never get sick of photographing him. I mean, can you blame me? ;)

A little farther down into this area, we stumbled upon this amazing peacock! This art piece is by D. Gale. partnered with the Centre Fuge Public Art Project. I don't think I have ever seen a graffiti peacock since I've been in New York. This one is so spectacular, you have to see it for yourself! Don't they both look so fly?

The last piece is an Hiss Art mural that's just weird and authentic. Kitty cat, kitty cat, where are you? Clearly, MaQ loves 'em. Ha ha! This was on the end of a gray trailer, where the peacock is also displayed around the side, and this trailer is used as a temporary office for workers on the Houston Restoration Project and the 2nd Avenue subway line. The trailer always exhibits new murals, but since we've haven't been around here as of late, and that we've never blogged this section before, what better day than today? :)

Hope you had fun stopping by! Guess who's got a birthday coming up?! My boy is going to be 3 years old on Thursday and I can't believe it! Where does the time go? When you're having too much fun, I guess. Stay tuned for more adventures coming up soon!

Love & xx's,

maQ + suz

Weekly Graffiti Art

We're catching up on our weekly discoveries of graffiti art in New York City! And boy, do we have some goodies!

You ain't nothin' but a HOUND dog, cryin' all the time! ♪ ♫

I can't find the above artist, but I do enjoy HOUND's blatant big letters. maQ especially did. ;)

Buff Monster's obsession with the color pink, eyeballs and seemingly melted ice cream are all the rage. I never get tired seeing his work! Look at maQ owning this pyramid! His murals are always with so much confidence and radiate with happiness! Even my dog can't help but smile. :)

Next is Jack Aguirre in collaboration with The 100 Gates Project at Sticky Rice on 85 Orchard St. This man has talent! What an incredible illustration. If you don't know about The 100 Gates Project, please go check them out. It's 100 security gates all around the city painted up with beautiful graffiti art each by a different artist. I think this is really great! We are definitely keeping an eye out for more when we we're on our daily walks as of late. 

Jerkface! Need I say more? I love Marvin the Martian, and this guy's work. He's always doing animated characters, like other Looney Tunes' characters, The Simpsons, Ren & Stimpy, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, and so many others! He almost always does his walls with a collage of the same character and this affect is clearly shown through different expressions and movements. Such dope work.

Billy The Artist is all contemporary and we love him! I do get a Keith Haring vibe in some of his work. Just gorgeous color and design. I particularly love this shot of my boy. maQ was looking a little bashful, given a small crowd quickly grew to watch this spectacle. Ha ha! Bystanders are always impressed with us and will even sometimes comment about it. It normally entails of how much control I have of maQ or how calm and mellow he is during a shot. He is a lady killer, the girls gush over him all the time! When he was a puppy, it literally took me an hour to walk around the block because people stopped me every step I took, squeaking and gawking over how cute he was! <3

Do you know of a graffiti art piece we haven't been to that you think we should check out? Comment below! We love hearing from our readers!

Happy Thursday!

Love & xx's,

maQ and suz

Graffiti Wednesday

Today, I'm sharing with you some of our most recent graffiti art discoveries from our daily strolls around the city. We go everywhere, and when feeling extra blue, I tend to walk it off until I feel better. With my loyal companion in tow, New York City, my city, has a way of turning shitty times into a temporary escape. Whether it's forgetting about the horrible day you just had or even though you've been living in this city for nearly ten years, you can still fall into its energy and get lost in that kind of aura. This place is my home and never fails to keep me moving, both in my heart and in my feet. New York, even though you are one bad, bitch, I still love the fuck out of you. Thanks for always keeping it real.

Looks like maQ's newest #wcw is Jenna Morello's Lioness in Little Italy! Roar! ;) In all seriousness though, I believe the artist did these #forCecil, a male Southwest African lion who was killed in North Zimbabwe by a Minnesota dentist. He was 13 years old. A painting of Cecil can be found to the left of the lioness. We missed out on this shot since there were a lot of people working around it during the Little Italy festival.

This new piece at the Bowery Wall on Houston Street is by the incredibly dope artist, Futura Dos Mil. This mural is titled, "Nuance", and at first glance, is a flurry of subdued emotions. The lines and symmetry are all over the place, yet at the same time, everything is perfectly in place. How could that be?

nu·ance // n(y)o͞oˌäns// noun

• a subtle difference in or shade of meaning, expression, or sound.

It is really beautiful to see. This installation is extremely large in scale and with the play of light and shadows, it's actually quite breathtaking.

Adam Dare's 'Love is Love' is the polar opposite of Futura's piece, but just as awesome. That's what I love about art. No matter what it is, or in what style or technique, if you feel something from it, anything really, then it matters. It's important. Kind of like love, in it that if you really love someone, then this too, in fact, matters and is important. Regardless of who you are, and even more importantly, who they are. We can't help but feel what we feel.

“And in the end,
The love you take,
Is equal to the love,
You make.””

— The Beatles

Lastly, I leave you with Hektad's hearts of hearts. His work never fails to remind me that it's all about love, but just like anything else in this world, no matter how you try and do it, it won't be perfect. When it comes to matters of the heart, you have to constantly keep working on yourself and with others. It's about that joint effort to make it work. Remember the give-and-take rule, kiddies. If one person is trying and the other isn't, it'll never be enough. 

Love & xx's,

maQ + suz