Thee Baby Owl

I had the utmost honor of photographing one of the instructors that helped me begin my pole journey. This is Rachel also known as Baby Owl. You may have seen her killing routines on the internet, maybe you’ve taken one of her classes or you may have been introduced to her streaming Joseline’s Caberet. We came together to capture some sensual, ethereal flexy goddess stuff and I’m super proud to share how well of a muse Rachel is. I of course had to chat with her about how my pole teacher became the badass she is today.

So Rachel, are you from Florida? What about your parents?

yup ! born in miami, raised in hollywood , fl! my moms from peru & my dad was born here, his family is cuban

Where did the name Baby Owl come from?

my friends in high school called me that . cuz my eyes are big so they just called me owl & i got obsessed with owls so i started using that as an IG name

Tell me about your pole journey, how did you begin?

i was tired of working & not doing anything for myself i wanted to do something different so i googled & signed up to the first pole studio that popped up & never looked back since

What made you decide you were going to make a commitment to pole?

it was so challenging! i wasn't flexible or strong but i wanted to be & i knew the only way to do that was to keep at it so i decided to put my all into training

And at what point did you make the decision to become an instructor?

i actually wanted to teach yoga ... so i thought. the owner of the pole studio id been taking classes at noticed i was coming pretty often & that i loved it. she offered me a gig & that was that !

Please give us some of your Flexy Goddess tips! How do we increase flexibility or is it something you have to be born with?

For sure not something you gotta be born with. As long as you have that drive & motivation, put it towards your goals & you'll see the changes . Put time into stretching , be patient , enjoy the process (:

Lastly, where do you see your pole future going? What can we expect from the Baby Owl next year?

One thing I would really like to do is perform more often, hoping this year brings me those opportunities so be on the look out (:<

You can catch Ms. Owl on Instagram or Patreon where she shows you the ropes on all things pole and flexibility training.

1-800-Griffiths

Because after a while your family is my family. So we celebrate birthdays in Wynwood

The twins take on 11!

Thrift God JP

I came together with my friend JP with the idea to photograph the Thrift God himself. With his mega skills to give mint condition vintage clothing, shoes, collectibles and vinyl records a new life it was only right that I let you know this man and his thrift mountain did not come to play. A few of my favorite shots are here for your viewing pleasure but hit this link to check out the whole gallery. I was curious about JP and his thrifting journey and how it connects with his music so I picked his brain a little….. Scroll down

So where are you from? Are you a Florida native?

Most of my family is from Haiti, both of my parents were born there. They moved here to Florida at an early age for a better life. I was born in West Palm and I’ve lived here all my life.

How did you first get into thrifting?

I first got into thrifting early 2013, i picked it up from seeing my grandma shop at goodwill & other thrifts around the city growing up so i naturally gravitated to that type of shopping early. 

What do you look for when picking out items?

Typically i look for pieces from the early 90's-00s because that era of fashion to me was the best in my opinion. 

What was your favorite find ever and what are you hoping to find in the future? 

 I've had a couple crazy finds but I’d have to say my favorite would be this vintage Coogi sweater I came up on at a goodwill in the middle of nowhere. 

One piece I've always been hoping to find is a Tupac or Erykah Badu vintage rap tee that's one thing for sure I pray to find & keep a lookout for I step into a thrift. 

How has thrifting inspired the music you make?

I feel like music & fashion go hand & hand so that's an element I always try to bring out in my music, thrifting has def inspired a lot songs & ideas when it comes to my process I made a whole project titled ‘Thrift Lord’ off the strength of me being inspired by this whole thrift lifestyle I'm into. 

What can we expect from you in the near future creatively?

 You can expect more music, visuals & modeling for more brands based out in south fl. 

What are your plans for your thrift hustle long term?

 My plans are to one day go on a road trip state to state with the homies just to hit different thrifts & rah shops I think that would be a pretty dope experience & I know for a fact we'd find some crazy rare pieces. I would also like to maybe even open up my own thrift store in the near future. 

What's the origin of my name where does ‘cozyboyheartbreak’ come from?

Cozyboyheartbreak is another one of my nicknames that I go by. I learned about the whole cozy wave from a$ap yams so I started using it in my vocabulary more then most of my friends would always refer to me as a cool chill cozy type of dude so its just something that always stuck with me that i thought had a nice ring to it. 

You can listen to JP’s latest EP T R a N Q U I L on apple music with the link here