It Was Just a Bowl on the Table…
NAPERVILLE - WHEATON - GLEN ELLYN - ELMHURST - GENEVA - ST. CHARLES - BARRINGTON - BARTLETT PHOTOGRAPHER
The Offering by Alicia Staley Johnson
Hello, friends,
This past week was full in the best way.
I spent several days in the studio photographing headshots, which I genuinely love. There’s something so satisfying about helping someone feel confident and seen in a simple, powerful way.
We also started a small kitchen remodel. Nothing major — just enough to stir up dust, move everything around, and remind me that change always looks a little chaotic before it comes together.
My beautiful daughter Delaney celebrated a birthday (how that keeps happening so quickly, I’ll never understand).
Add to that, several days spent with our grandson plus a sleepover. I just love our time together. He keeps us feeling young and excited.
And a very special moment of the week was going with my soon-to-be daughter-in-law to her ultrasound appointment. Sitting there together, watching his tiny heart flicker on the screen… it’s hard to put into words. It was one of those quiet, grounding moments you don’t forget.
It was a week of projects and progress.
Of celebration.
Of growing things — in our home and in our family.
And somewhere in the middle of all of that, I kept thinking about something simple sitting on my mom’s table.
An antique English bowl.
A handful of buckeyes gathered one by one. Nothing dramatic. Nothing monumental. And yet, it felt like it held the entire story of where we are— what we keep, what we pass down, what we choose to notice.
This week’s essay, A Bowl of Buckeyes, is about that.
About ordinary things that carry extraordinary meaning.
Soft Focus: A Bowl of Buckeyes
Most times it isn’t the grand moments that stop me.
It’s almost always something small.
Quiet.
Almost easy to miss.
My mom has an antique bowl on a table, with a handful of buckeyes resting inside.
The bowl belonged to another life before it belonged to us — an old English piece, softened by years of use, its surface marked by time in the most beautiful way. Inside it are buckeyes my mother gathered one by one, not in a forest or along a trail, but in the most inconspicuous of places: the center courtyard of a large outdoor mall.
Instead of shopping, she paused.
Instead of moving from store to store with a list in her hand and a clock in her head, she bent down and collected the beauty that caught her eye. She chose buckeyes over errands. Not because they were useful. Not because she needed them. But because they were there — and they were beautiful.
I love that about her.
There is something quietly powerful about choosing presence in a place designed for distraction. About noticing the small, ordinary wonders tucked between the noise. She didn’t rush. She didn’t explain. She didn’t justify the pause.
She simply stopped.
When I run my hand through this bowl, I feel it immediately — the cool weight of each seed, the smoothness worn in by nature, the slight variations that make every one unique. It’s grounding in a way that pulls me out of my thoughts and back into my body.
I find myself breathing more slowly.
This bowl of buckeyes has come to symbolize something deeper for me — a reminder to pause before life insists on it. A quiet invitation to slow down, to notice, to let the simple things be enough.
So much of our world urges us forward. Faster. Fuller. More. We learn to measure our days by productivity, by how much we accomplish, by what we can cross off next.
But these buckeyes ask a different question.
What if the point is not what we finish… but what we feel?
What if the things we keep saving for later — the walk, the rest, the creative spark, the moment of stillness — are meant to be lived now?
I think about that often, here at Our Cozy Compound. About the rhythms of a life shaped not just by what we do, but by how we move through it. About how art doesn’t always hang on walls — sometimes it lives quietly in bowls, in light, in objects passed from one generation to the next.
Standing at the table, I notice how the light catches the curve of the porcelain. How the dark buckeyes rest against the worn pattern beneath them. How something so simple can hold so much meaning.
This is the artful way of living I’m learning — not polished or performative, but intentional. Rooted. Attentive.
So today, instead of rushing past this moment, I let myself linger. I run my hand through the bowl once more. I think about the things I tell myself I don’t have time for — and then I choose one small thing to make room for.
Not tomorrow.
Not someday.
But now.
Because sometimes a bowl of buckeyes is more than a bowl at all.
Sometimes it’s a reminder that life is already happening — and all we have to do is stop long enough to notice.
WHAT I’M LOVING THIS WEEK
Inspiring Follow: @JaeSukkim
Every time his work floats into my feed, I smile.
Jae Suk Kim’s dancing “Susu” girls wear flowers like fashion — skirts blooming into gardens, petals twirling into fabric. It’s playful and elegant all at once. Whimsical in the best way.
He’s a fashion illustrator and art director working between Seoul, Singapore, and Sydney, with features in Vogue and Harper’s BAZAAR. But what I love most is how his dresses don’t just hang — they dance.
If you need something light and lovely in your scroll, go follow him. It feels like spring in motion.
What I’m Loving: Anthropologie – Terrain Carbon Steel Pruners
I cannot wait to get back into the garden this spring — especially with all of my Christmas gifts waiting patiently to be used.
These Terrain Carbon Steel Pruners from Anthropologie feel almost too pretty to get dirty… almost.
They feature carbon steel blades and a smooth French beechwood handle. They come tucked inside a wooden gift box (which makes them feel extra special), but they’re not just for show. They’re solid, weighty, beautifully built — the kind of tool you’ll reach for again and again.
There’s something about using well-made tools in the garden. It makes the work feel slower. More intentional. Like tending instead of rushing.
Now if spring would just hurry up.
Local-ish Love: Toni Patisserie & Café
If you’ve been around me for any length of time, you know I’m always chasing little pieces of Europe close to home.
Toni’s is one of them.
The Chicago Tribune once said it serves “a slice of Parisienne life,” and that feels exactly right. Marble. Dark wood. Bentwood café chairs. The soft hum of conversation. It feels like you should be journaling in the corner with an espresso.
Toni Marie Cox opened the patisserie in 1994 after studying fine arts and spending time in France (she even helped open the Disneyland Hotel in Paris). You can feel that artistry in the pastries — they’re almost jewel-like — but it never feels fussy. Just beautiful and thoughtful.
If you need a little Paris without boarding a plane, this is your place.
Order something flaky.
Sit by the window.
Pretend you’re on the Left Bank for an hour.
You deserve it.
51 S. Washington St., Hinsdale
Photo Tip: Keep It Simple.
One of the biggest mistakes I see in senior sessions — especially for guys — is overcomplicating it.
Too many layers. Too many props. Too much “trying.”
Grant’s Chicago session is the perfect example of why simple works.
A crisp white button-down.
Well-fitted denim.
Clean lines.
Great light.
That’s it.
When you simplify the wardrobe, you let personality and expression do the work. The focus shifts to posture, hands, jawline, eye contact — the subtle details that communicate confidence.
Notice in these images:
• Relaxed hands (never stiff or forced)
• Slight bend in the elbows to avoid a rigid stance
• Shoulders angled instead of squared flat to camera
• Soft, direct eye contact
Guys don’t need a lot of direction — they need clarity and confidence. If they feel comfortable, the images look effortless.
And effortless always photographs well.
with love and light,
Alicia Staley Johnson
of Alicia’s Photography
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