A Work in Progress

Black & White Wednesday: The Finale

2011-11-16T15:53:00.000-06:00

The black and white photo lab I've been doing wrapped up last week. I didn't shoot as many rolls of film as I would have liked to, but that about seems par for the course. I've never been much of a film shooter before, let alone developing my own film and making prints, so this was all new to me. My cameras of choice were the Diana (modeled after the 1960s classic medium-format plastic cameras), and some old cameras picked up at thrift stores and flea markets. They're pretty much basic point-and-shoots with minimal (if any) exposure and aperture settings, and result in soft lo-fi images with light leaks and edge vignetting.

Troy, who headed up the lab, worked with a guy who’s parents own a local wine shop. They offered up the wall in their shop to host our very own exhibit. So, we've spent these last few weeks making prints that we could hang at the show. I didn’t really have a lot of images to choose from, and ended up choosing some images from a roll that I shot out in the yard.

I didn't realize I had the number of exposures set for “16” rather than “12”, and I ended up with this funky overlapping on all of my images.

Troy convinced me that this was a feature, not a defect, and making it work to my advantage, I printed two images as diptychs showing the overlap.

My other print was just a normal cropped image.

Saturday night was our “Opening Reception” (photo courtesy of Troy Freund). The shop normally has a wine-tasting on the second Saturday of each month, so we already had a gathering for the show. Each of us were asked to give a little talk about out images, which I wasn't exactly thrilled about doing, but Denis said I did alright. We have an interesting assortment of subjects including a Civil War reenactment, nature shots, rainy night-time shots, barns, and Dia de los Muertos.

I think we’re all pleased with the the work that we have on display, and they’ll be there for at least the next month. Pretty good for a finale.

Something Really Scary

2011-11-01T09:40:00.000-05:00

For whatever reason, I did not go gang-busters with Halloween this year. (That is really scary!) I did, however, sign up for Val's Halloween swap, and this year's theme was Zombie Dolls. I got paired up with Little Messy Missy, whom I have done some very nice charm swaps with before.

Mmmm, a creepy Raggedy Anne? Maybe she should be called "Mauly". Definitely not the type of doll you snuggle up to for bedtime stories.

She also sent lots of sweet extras to accompany Mauly, although it appears she fed well before the trip.

I attempted to put together a nice creepy doll for Melissa, but after several failed attempts I ended up going with a pattern from the Zombie Felties book.

I tried to include some supplies for the potential of a Zombie Apopcalypse. It never hurts to be prepared, as even the CDC has put together a Zombie Survival Guide.

The truly scary thing, is that now that Halloween is over, Christmas is right around the corner, and I'm so not ready for that.

Sister's Weekend

2011-10-15T14:06:00.001-05:00

A couple of weeks ago, Carol, Karen and I had a long overdue Sister's weekend in NYC. And it was great...

Friday night after Karen and I got in, we hung out at Carol's catching up, ordering pizza, watching the boob tube. On Saturday morning we hit the diner for sustenance, and then headed into the city. Of course, we had to make a stop at Tinsel Trading, especially since I knew they would have their Halloween stuff out.

Afterwards we made our way to Times Square for the matinee of Follies. The story was not as light-hearted as we thought it would be, but it was still an enjoyable show. Our evening was also enjoyable as we met up with John for drinks and a fabulous steak dinner. My one wish for the weekend was to eat "good" food, and I certainly got that.

Sunday we did a small bit of shopping, as my sisters were gracious enough to indulge me in going to The Evolution Store and Obscura (from the SyFy channel Oddities show), to look for some unusual items for my upcoming Michael deMeng workshops.

I did bring my camera along, although you wouldn't know it based on the few photos I actually took. These were taken as we walked along the High Line on our way to brunch on Sunday.

We usually take a picture of the three of us, but when we remember it's usually when we're sitting down to eat. This time we remembered to take a non-eating picture along the High Line.

It's too bad that we live so far apart, as it's always a fun time getting together with them. Guess we just gotta plan that next Sister's weekend.

B&W Wednesday: Proof is in the Print

2011-09-28T21:41:00.000-05:00

I never realized how involved the whole process of making film prints is. Each week I've focused on trying to get one image printed decently. Last week I worked on an image that I took with an old Ansco Panda that I picked up at the flea market.

It's really nothing more than a plastic child's box camera from the 1950s. It has a TLR-style lens, and images are composed at waist level by looking down into the viewer. Of course, everything you view is in the reverse which makes composing quite interesting. In it I used some 620 film from the 1940s that I purchased on eBay.

So, my night's printing process ended up something like this:

10 seconds, straight print

Too flat looking, not enough contrast.

14 seconds with a #3 contrast filter added

A bit better, but still too flat.

20 seconds with a #4 contrast filter

Now we're getting somewhere, but almost too contrasty. Also, due to the age of the film, there are a lot of specs on the negative which really showed up in this print. The light leak along the bottom of the image is more evident as well.

21 seconds with #4 contrast filter. Additional 6-second burn to sky.

I wanted to fill in some of the sky by giving it a bit of extra time while trying to keep the building from getting too dark. Now the branches on the left no longer have the definition that was there from the previous print.

20 seconds with #4 contrast filter, and 3-second burn to sky.

My final print of the night, and I'm mostly happy with it. The branches still lack definition, but I think the blocks on the water tower show good contrast and definition.

And the crazy thing is that you pretty much have to go through this process with every single image you want to print. I suppose if you have a series of images that are taken similarly, you could use the image you were happy with as a starting point for the next images to be printed. Kinda tedious, but still interesting. This is why I'm lucky if I can get one decent print for the night.

B&W Wednesday

2011-09-14T18:12:00.000-05:00

For the past couple of weeks, I've been taking a B&W film printing lab. I've actually had to get out with the camera, and shoot some film. A few weeks back I thought the cemetery would be a good place to go. I shot these with a Canon AF35m 35mm point-and-shoot that I had gotten from my mother.

It looks like the film might not have seated properly, because some light leaks seem to appear along the sprocket edges. Or, I screwed up when I loaded the film into the developing reel. I've never developed my own film before, let alone try and make prints. So this is all a new and interesting experience for me. The fun (and aggravating) thing about film is that you don't know what you've got until the film is developed. I'm more okay with the images not being perfect than when I'm shooting film. Since I'm using low-tech cameras, I'm trying to embrace the imperfections.

Last week our instructor told us about an opportunity to have a small showing at a local wine shop. He told the owners of the shop that he would ask us if each of us would be interested in putting up 2-3 images. Everyone loved the idea, and now I have the dilemma of coming with some things that I think are not only print-worthy, but something I won't be embarrassed to hang in public. The guys in the class have been shooting for a lot longer than I have, and they're quite geeky about their cameras too. They'll usually come in to show-and-tell their latest acquisitions. It's pretty funny, and pretty interesting too, even if most of it goes over my head. I guess film's not quite as dead as most people thought.

Best-Laid Plans

2011-08-21T11:32:00.000-05:00

So, I've given up on the August Break daily photo.

I've really hated trying to come up with a decent picture every day, and most times I would procrastinate until later in the day, and then end up with a picture I wasn't totally thrilled with.

I've also been struggling with using the Instax, and getting the exposure setting right. Last Sunday we went downtown to see Jersey Boys and then walked a few blocks for a late lunch/early dinner at Water Buffalo. I snapped these two pics along the way, which one was over-exposed and the other under-exposed (same thing happened at the cemetery on Friday). At a buck a picture, it's getting to be a costly experiment.

But, I think I'm come up with a solution. Rather than trying to take a picture a day, I'm going to push myself to come up with a location or event to shot every week. If I use the Instax, hopefully I can figure the proper exposure setting for that location in one or two shots, and then shoot the rest of the pack at that time. I'm also taking a B&W film processing lab, so I've been using an old 35mm that was my mother's to shoot B&W film. This process should hopefully give me a roll to experiment with and develop each week, unless something else goes awry.

Reaching

2011-08-10T18:44:00.000-05:00

Even after gathering all that great inspiration for pictures, I'm coming up short in my images. I knew that little "I Voted" sticker wouldn't turn out, but I waited way too late to take anything else, and was at the point where I really didn't care too much anyway. Six Wisconsin state senators were up for recall elections yesterday, and the only thing I will comment is that I'm glad they're over and the commercials are off the television. I can only imagine how scathing the 2012 Presidential election advertisements will be—because it's always the other guys fault.

I took along three cameras with me today for any picture-taking opportunities. They all ended up staying in my bag, and so I quickly snapped some dappled sunlight on our freshly mowed lawn for today's last minute pic.

Mosaic Monday: Instax Inspiration

2011-08-08T21:44:00.000-05:00

I haven't been "in love" with the Instax photos that I've shot so far this month. It's a bit of a challenge for me because I can't zoom in close, and details don't show up all that well. I thought more pattern and texture would help, but it's not working so well. And I need to get better at determining shooting distance, up close isn't that close after all.

So I turned to Flickr for some Instax Inspiration:

1. mainliner, 2. 03-03-11-2010, 3. black hole sun, 4. polaroid donkey, 5. Imperial Beach Instax, 6. Scootahhh, 7. Untitled, 8. Untitled, 9. Fujifilm Instax, 10. under the stairs, 11. img125, 12. graffitti , 13. Amusement, 14. Green Door, 15. spring green, 16. Cafe Gratitude

I'm gonna keep the camera in the car, and keep my eyes peeled for more interesting photo ops than I seem to have around the house.

Blue Skies

2011-08-05T06:54:00.000-05:00

Whereas yesterday I was looking down, today I decided to look up...

Actually, I thought the cloud pattern was interesting this morning, so I grabbed the camera and stepped out quickly in my PJs to capture it. Only took 2 tries ;-) Starting the day off positively.

Path to Nowhere

2011-08-04T16:31:00.000-05:00

Did not do well with picture taking today. I burnt through 8 exposures before finally getting one that I was okay with.

The bad thing about the Instax is that it insists on flashing. So my indoor photos were getting blown out from the flash. I tried to soften the flash with some wax paper, but then the exposures were too dark. I went outside and shot in full sun...over exposed. Trying a shot in the shade, yeah, that seems to work. Grrr! I guess I get so aggravated because each shot costs money. Not like digital, which I think of as free. (At least I got the camera for cheap—$6 at Goodwill.) I know I need to embrace my mistakes, accept them, learn from them, and move on. And I guess that's what this daily process is for, taking me forward along the path.

"So easy even I could do it...."

2011-08-03T10:29:00.000-05:00

Didn't I just say that in my last post? Taking a picture a day for the month of August should be something even I could handle. Yet, this is pretty much the same thing that happened when I gave up on my Project 365 last year. I knew I needed to get a picture taken yesterday, but nothing was inspiring me. I waited until about 8:30 last night when I forced my butt up off the couch to take a picture of something. However, doing the whole analogue thing really requires more forethought, as evidenced by what I did shoot. Bleh!

So I cheated, and did a "do-over" this morning.

Denis had mentioned something about getting a croquet set, but I think it surprised him when I brought one home from the flea market a few weeks ago.

And I went ahead and got today's shot done and out of the way...

some Coneflowers and Queen Anne's Lace.

I'm kinda liking these mini Instax pics, that I think I'll do it for the entire month. I stocked up on film before going to Europe figuring I would take the camera along with me. As I was packing all my stuff, I asked myself if I really thought I would take it along in my daybag with my large dSLR. No, I didn't think I would, so it ended up staying home. Now I have lots of film to play with. Good thing since I wasted six exposures on my "experiment" last night. But then that's all part of the learning curve.

Taking a Break

2011-08-01T14:11:00.004-05:00

Yep, it's been nearly a two-month break since my last blog post. (In a funk, I suppose.)

But this is the break that I mean...

Susannah Conway hosts the August Break where you simply share one photo (or more) per day on your blog. Sounds easy enough that even I could handle it. Plus it will get me to post more frequently, even if I feel like it's a non-blogworthy day, and take more pictures. Although, I think I'm going to focus mostly on using film this month. I just shot my film for It's a Photo Swap!, so I'm in an analogue frame of mind. Plus I could use the practice in using these cameras to make every exposure count.

We were gone all of last week, and the dogs had to be boarded. Sure did miss those girls, and I think they're pretty happy to be home too (they haven't let me out of their sight for a minute), so I figured they would be good subjects for today.

Camera: Fuji Instax Mini 7
Film: Fujifilm Instax Mini Instant Film

La Dolce Vita

2011-06-11T10:01:00.003-05:00

The sweet life it's certainly been...

Denis had to go to Milan for a week, which means I got to go to Milan for a week. I have to say that Milan is fairly lost on me. I know there are a lot of people who would love to be in the Fashion Capital of the World, but then there's me, who's really not fashion forward in any way.

I did get to explore the sights, such as the impressive Gothic cathedral, the Duomo di Milano. It is the fourth largest cathedral in the world, with room for 40,000 people to fit comfortably inside. The cathedral took nearly six centuries to build and incorporates a number of contrasting styles, but, wow!, is it impressive. A recent cleaning has restored the exterior showing again the colors of the Candoglia marble.

Once you enter through the intricate bas-relief bronze doors, your eyes are immediately drawn up at the towering arches and pillars, and down at the exquisite inlaid marble floors.

Although the interior is rather dark, the sights are captured by the detailed stained glass windows depicting scenes from the life of the saints. The eight naves of the Cathedral are divided by 52—supposedly one for each week of the year—gigantic pillars topped by a series of niches with statues.

And some of the things that I thought were the coolest, are probably the creepiest (yeah, go figure). I thought the crypt was pretty amazing with so much incredible detail. There is a glass coffin of St Carlo Borromeo, once the archbishop of Milan, and later canonized as the patron saint of stomach diseases. A sculpture of St Bartholomew, who was skinned alive, shown wearing his skin around his neck. A small red light bulb in the dome above the apse marks the spot where one of the nails from the Crucifixion of Christ has been placed.

I can't believe that not once out of the three separate times I was at the Duomo did I remember you could go up to the roof! I'm really pretty bummed I didn't get up there. But then the cathedral is huge and amazing, and you discover something new each time you go.

Just outside of the Duomo is Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II, a high-end shopping arcade, featuring a metal and glass roof and detailed mosaics. It's sort of a connector between the Duomo and La Scala, the world-famous opera house. A statue of Leonardo daVinci, who spent 17 years in Milan as artist and engineer to Francesco Sforza and created one of his most well-known masterpieces during his time in the city, is in the adjoining piazza .

The Sforza Castle was originally built by the Viscontis, and later reconstructed by the Sforzas. (This is the family that Rodrigo Borgia had his daughter, Lucrezia, marry into hoping to get the support and protection from the family in Milan, for any The Borgias watchers.) The castle used to be residence of the Duchy of Milan, but was turned over to the city of Milan in the late 1800's and now houses several art collections.

I mostly wandered around by myself, stopping in at the Brera Art Gallery, which houses one of Italy's finest collections of medieval and Renaissance art. Napoleon is to be credited with obtaining most of the masterpieces from the area churches and monasteries, as well as an exchange with the Louvre. It's still an operating art academy and students were hanging out in the piazza.

I did take a bus tour one morning just so I could get in to see DaVinci's Last Supper at Santa Maria delle Grazie (grrr, no pictures allowed). According to the hotel concierge, to try and get a single ticket on your own, you need to book about two months in advance (or maybe he gets kickbacks from the tour company for every sucker he books). Any way it was kinda nice getting driven around for a change. I had done so much walking over the past few weeks, that my blisters had blisters, and I finally gave up trying to be in any way fashionable, and broke out the sneakers. I did walk over to the Triennale Design Museum where they had an interesting exhibit on furniture design. A favorite artist of mine, Piero Fornasetti, is supposed to have a couple of his designs there, but I must have not purchased the proper ticket for the permanent collection. I did get to the Fornasetti store where they had all of the licensed items. I would love to have a collection of his Julia plates, which he designed from the enigmatic face of opera singer Lina Cavalieri, but settled for a pillow for now.

My wanderings also took me by the gigantic needle and thread, a tribute to Milan’s work in the fashion sector. The Arch of Peace, featuring a bronze statue on top, the “Chariot of Peace”. It's construction began under Napoleonic rule, and originally the chariot faced France, but after the fall of Napoleon at Waterloo, the chariot was turned around to face the city center. And Milan's aquarium, with exterior decorations based on aquatic themes, arranged around the god of the sea. I got there at just as they were closing for lunch, so I didn't go inside.

That pretty much wraps up my week in Milan. I still have two more places to write up, and hopefully they won't take me three weeks to get to.

Prague, Part Two

2011-05-22T23:22:00.002-05:00

Leaving the castle, we took a "shortcut" which took us down through the gardens of Wallenstein Palace. The top of the terraced garden afforded some spectacular views of the city.

The gardens cover a huge area that include a pavilion where concerts are held, a limestone grotto with artificial stalactites (some formed with “faces”), an aviary, peacocks (some albino—which seems rather ironic since they are known for the colorful iridescent plumage) roaming the grounds, and an artificial lake. Copies of bronze statues, such as Michael Slaying the Dragon, have been recreated for the garden after the originals were looted by the Swedish army.

Across the river heading into the Jewish Quarter and Old Town, is the National Theatre. We were told a funny story about how the building was used as Nazi headquarters during WWII. It was ordered that the statue of composer Mendelssohn be removed from the roof because he was a Jew. The Czech workers weren't sure which statue to remove, so they took down the one with the biggest nose, which accidentally was the statue of Richard Wagner, Hitler’s favourite composer.

Then we wandered our way into the Old Town Square, which was a flurry of activity because the Prague Marathon was being run that weekend. There were stages and booths set up all over the square, and there was even a Chihuahua event happening with some 50+ chihuahuas in attendance. I was shooting higher trying to crop out a lot of the displays, but the square was interesting in the varying architectural styles, from Gothic to Baroque.

Probably the most notable landmark in Prague, after the castle, is the Astronomical Clock which draws crowds from sunrise to sunset. As the clock strikes the hour, there is a procession of the twelve apostles. Even the figures on the sides of the clock (Death, a Turk—a symbol of Lust, Vanity and Greed) are animated, and at the end of the procession the cock crows and the clock chimes the hour. The Astronomical Clock below shows the orbits of the sun and moon, the blue portion representing daylight, Roman numerals indicating time as we know it, and the movement of the sun and moon through the 12 signs of the zodiac. Supposedly, after the clock was rebuilt in 1490, the councillors did not want the clockmaker recreating this clock for anybody else, so they blinded him. A nasty bunch these Czechs can be, as a recurring theme throughout the tour seemed to be people tossed from windows. Denis decided he would not go any higher than the ground level while there.

We finally concluded our walking tour with our guide, and we were exhausted! We both crashed when we got back to the room, but I did get up and attempt a few night pictures of the river, Charles Bridge, and Little Quarter towers.

The next morning, after sleeping in a bit, we decided we needed an easier day. Because of the marathon, the city was pretty crowded and a bit tricky to negotiate with roads being closed off for the runners. The one thing I definitely wanted to see was the Mucha Museum. I was actually a bit disappointed with it being on the small side, but there were some interesting sketches he had done for various publications, jewelry, menus and restaurant designs. I should have gone to the Municipal House where he did some murals on the walls.

The hotel we stayed at was next to the Vltava River and the Charles Bridge. It was an excellent location being very centrally located, allowing quick access to the castle, or across the bridge to Old Town.

The bridge itself is an attraction with thirty statues of various saints, Christ, and the Virgin Mary are lined up along the sides.

The whole city is visual overload, with so many amazing details to take in. I know I missed so many things, that it will definitely be necessary to go back again. Even though we covered a lot of ground with the guide, we didn't spend any length of time at the locations as he wanted to get in as much as possible.

If for no other reason to return to Prague, is to get a chance to try a trdelnik pastry.

You could find them from street vendors, and they're made by wrapping dough around a stick and roasting it over an open flame until it is golden brown, dusted with cinnamon, sugar, or nuts.

Next time...

Czech it Out

2011-05-19T23:30:00.000-05:00

My first weekend in Europe, we went to Prague, which has been on my list of places to visit for a while. We had planned on spending Friday, Saturday and Sunday, but I screwed up the flights and booked a 9pm flight, rather than a 9am flight, on Friday. I guess it worked out for the best since I had just arrived the day before, and still was not quite on Euro time, but it did cut out some time to sight-see. Fortunately, Denis had met up with a friend in London earlier that week, and he recommended a tour guide to take us around the sights of Prague. We spent five hours walking with him on Saturday and got a whirl-wind tour of the city.

One of our first stops was a pedestrian bridge filled with “love locks”. Legend has it that when you find your true love you carve your names on a lock and lock it onto the gate. You then throw the key in to the canal. This canal is referred to as Čertovka (The Devil's stream) where this little gremlin was perched next to the old Grand Priory Mill water wheel. Just beyond the canal is what is referred to as the Lennon Wall. Once an ordinary wall it was created in the 1980's after Lennon's death as a memorial to John Lennon and his ideas for peace, but also served as a monument to free speech and the rebellion of Czech youth against the Communist regime.

Onto the quaint cobblestone streets of the Little Quarter, it is one of the most picturesque and peaceful areas in the city. We passed the House at Golden Unicorn, where Beethoven had a stay in 1796, and the Grand Prior Palace which was the seat of the Knights of Malta. This area has been heavily affected by several floods over the years from the Vltava river, and along the walls of the buildings are marks showing how high the water reached, about 14 feet high in 2002.

A quick tram ride took us up to Belvedere, the Italian Renaissance style Royal Summer Palace built by Ferdinand I for his wife Anne. In the small geometrical garden in front of the palace stands the Singing Fountain for the sound the water makes as it hits the bronze bowl.

Through the Royal Gardens is Ball Game Hall. The building is covered in Renaissance sgraffito, a form of decoration created by cutting a design through the wet top layer of plaster on to a contrasting undercoat. The sgraffitoes on its walls represent the four elements (earth, fire, water and air), the virtues (forethought, modesty, mercy, hope, righteousness and bravery) and sciences (theology, astronomy, geometry, music, arithmetic, rhetoric, dialectics and grammar). Even the communists left their mark on the building by placing a hammer and sickle in the sgraffito. The gardens were spectacular as thousands of tulips were in bloom, as well as home a group of birds of prey that have been rehabilitated.

Another grand palace showing the eclectic mix of Italian influence with tradition Czech design is the Schwarzenberg Palace. Another amazing building covered in unique black-and-white sgraffito, which our guide referred to the design as “envelopes”.

Then we finally get to Prague Castle...

Despite periodic fires and invasions, Prague Castle has retained churches, chapels, halls and towers from every period of its history. The Castle became the seat of the Czechoslovak president in 1918, and even the current president has an office here, sorta like the White House. One of the most impressive buildings is St Vitus’s Cathedral with it's towering Gothic spirals, Golden Portal mosaic and exquisite stained glass windows, including one by one of my favorite artists, Alphonse Mucha.

And I still have much more to cover...

Up and Atom

2011-05-15T10:24:00.000-05:00

Built for the 1958 World Fair, the Atomium is probably the most identifiable symbol of Brussels.

The design is based on an atom magnified 165 billion times. Each of the nine spheres that make up the atom are 60 ft in diameter and linked by escalators and stairs. You reach the top sphere via elevator which takes you up the 120 meter (335 feet) at a speed of 5 meters per second. Once at the top, you have 360-degree view of Brussels, and even the port in Antwerp on a clear day.

I've also been spending some of my time visiting a couple of museums including the Magritte Museum. The surrealist painter is probably best known for his "man in the bowler hat" paintings. A new museum opened in 2009 which is a much larger exhibit space than the old museum I visited a few years back. This museum is next to the Musées Royaux des Beaux-Arts, which I hope to get to before it's time to leave.

In All it's Grandeur

2011-05-13T12:41:00.000-05:00

The heart of the city, the Grand Place, this square is still the civic center and features beautiful ornate 17-century architecture.

The Hôtel de Ville, Brussels Town Hall, shows off it's Gothic splendor, complete with dozens of arched windows and sculptures. Its tower, 215 feet high, sprouts near the middle, yet it's not placed directly in the center. A colorful but untrue legend has it that when the architect realized his error, he jumped from the summit of the tower.

Just a few of the amazing details...

Maison du Roi was once the residence of ruling Spanish monarchs, but now is home to the Musée de Ville.

La Maison des Ducs de Brabant is a group of six guildhouses, and designed to look like an Italian Baroque palazzo.

This row of buildings includes Le Pigeon which was home to an exhiled Victor Hugo, and is said he wrote Les Misérables while staying there. Saint Barbara, the patroness of tailors, adorns the doorway next door at L'Ange which was once a guildhouse of tailors.

Trade guildhouses include Le Renard, guildhouse of haberdashers, Le Cornet, the Boatmen's Guildhouse with it's bow-shaped gable, and Le Maison des Boulangers built by the wealthy guild of bakers.

Of course no trip to Brussels is complete without a visit to Manneken Pis. On this particular day he was getting unveiled in his costume for the Fou du Festival du Rire de Rochefort, the opening of the comedy festival at Rochefort. A band and official spokespeople showed up for the big reveal. He has over 800 outfits which are kept at the Musée de Ville, and include a Santa suit and Elvis costume.

I know it may seem geeky, but I love finding out all of these little bits of trivia, and getting to know more about these amazing sites.

Out of Hibernation

2011-05-12T10:52:00.000-05:00

It's been so long since my last post that I've found it difficult to segue into starting up again. This spring has not been the burst of renewal that it should have been. The temps have been staying cool and damp, not encouraging any sort of activity. I've also been pretty busy with freelance projects, which is always a good thing, but tends to put personal projects on the back burner. And I just haven't had much free time for blogging, including visiting some of my favorite people.

Denis has some projects for work going on in Europe and instead of flying back and forth, he thought staying for an extended period would be beneficial. So I'm tagging along for the ride... Originally we had planned on spending three months over there and bringing the dogs, but it just seemed to work out better that Denis go over for a couple of weeks, I come over for a couple of weeks, and then he'll stay for a few more weeks before having to come back home in June anyway. Then depending on how much progress they make, he may go back again. As sort of a central point, he is currently basing himself out of Brussels. We had gone to Brussels for two days a few years ago, but I really don't remember much other than how cold and windy it was. So this is a great chance for a refresher and additional exploring.

The weather has been absolutely perfect, sunny and 70s, so unlike the weather I left in Wisconsin. One of my first discoveries was Place du Petit Sablon, a pretty park encircled by interesting ironwork, and along the top of the railings are 48 statues representing the medieval guilds of the day. The focal point of the gardens is a fountain featuring Counts Egmont and Hornes, who led a Dutch uprising against the tyrannical Spanish ruler, Phillip II, but later were beheaded in the Grand Place.

Across the street from the park is Notre Dame du Sablon, standing majestically is all of it's gothic glory. Legend is that a young girl from Antwerp had a vision from the Virgin Mary to take her statue to Brussels. The girl carried the statue down the Senne river and gave it to the crossbowman's chapel, which became a place of pilgrimage. Work started in 1400 to enlarge the church, but lack of funds delayed completion for another 150 years.

Making my way to the Grand Place, were the gardens of Place de l'Albertine, the carillion clock on the arch in the Mont des Arts (twelve figures from Belgian history move as the clock strikes the hour), buildings along Place de l'Albertine, Prince Albert, and statues in Mont des Arts.

The Cathédrale Sts Michel et Gudule, is the national church of Belgium and was only granted cathedral status in 1962. Work began in 1225 and continued over a period of 300 years. Even some of the modern architecture near the cathedral pays homage to the Gothic structure. One of the first shopping arcades in Europe are the Galeries St-Hubert. And interesting art finds include these dolls by Anna Heylen hanging in the window as well as a kitty cat cyclist.

Going through the hundreds of pictures I've taken is quite the daunting task. I guess that's why "real" photographers know their shot and don't have to waste time and shots trying to get the settings and composition. Maybe one day I'll figure it out so I don't have to wade through the rejects so much.

Good Things Come in Small Packages

2011-03-10T14:52:00.000-06:00

I finally caught one of Heather's Petite Inspiration box swaps before the sign-ups closed. And this was a good one too, with a Flea Market theme. I was paired with some spectacular partners that put together a couple of really fantastic boxes.

Jessica decorated the outside of her box with a Steampunk theme. Inside were so many wonderful photos, tags, buttons, gears, alphabet tiles, numbered ruler tape, and key.

My other box came so elegantly dressed from Jayme. Again so perfectly stuffed with all things that I adore like numbers, buttons, clock faces, jewelry pieces, velvet ribbon, glitter, metal trim pieces, tiny apothecary bottles, vintage ephemera.

They both sent things that I know I will put to good use in some future projects.

I made a pink "shabby chic" box for Jessica. Jayme's box was ripped off from one of the Advent Calendar tags by the 2 Gypsy Girls. They were a lot of fun to put together, and the best thing was that I already had all the fixin's, and didn't buy anything new. Good things definitely do come in small packages.

A Stitch in Time

2011-03-03T11:10:00.000-06:00

Or in my case adds about a hundred. I am not a sewer at all, but I've always liked the stitched collages that I've seen around. Linda from A Swap for All Seasons hosted a Mini Fabric Collage swap, and I thought this would be the perfect excuse to actually make one.

I was paired up with the lovely Hope, and she made such a stunning sampler for me. She did so much handstitching and embroidery, I am totally impressed. Plus all of the little elements that are so perfectly "me".

Some of the enchanting details like a glittered felt rose, crocheted "frame", mother-of-pearl buckle (swoon), sweet embroidered blue pearl flowers, and Hope's signature frozen Charlotte.

Hope told me that she liked creams and vintage sheet music and paper. At one of the local antique malls, a vendor had these old lace sample boards that I had been admiring for quite a while. I knew they would be perfect for this collage project, so I was glad to see that they were still there when I went back. I printed the sheet music and photo onto paper-backed fabric, which I ran through the laser printer. I stitched the sheet music fabric onto some burlap using my mother's old sewing machine. Poor thing never gets used, and now is stuck in sewing only in reverse. I really need to see if I can get it serviced if it won't cost an arm and a leg. Pearls from an old necklace surround the photo, and I added other bits as well. We didn't need to provide a hanger for the collage, but this old pearl sweater chain just worked so perfectly I had to include it. Since it just clips on, Hope can always do something else for a hanger if she chooses.

I didn't do as much sewing and embroidery as I had hoped, but it still was a lot of fun and I wouldn't mind doing some more stitching in time.

Curious Pharmacists

2011-02-28T14:39:00.001-06:00

I did mention that the purpose of this trip was an art workshop with Michael deMeng. Michael really does come up with the coolest stuff. This is his sample for the class made from an old dressing kit. The top is hinged and flips up where there was originally a mirror (more detailed pics at the link above). Love his medicinal bottles.

Michael doing the uszhhh!!! color wash demos. While he gets a lot of repeat students in his class, I think this class was about half with those who had never taken a workshop from him before. Of course Gary showed up because he has OCDD (Obsessive Compulsive deMeng Disorder).

Another trademark of Michael's workshop is the time on the last day of the workshop when the theme from "The Good, The Bad and The Ugly" gets played. Pencils down, times up... Everybody stops where they are at and Michael does a critique. The first time I heard this, my stomach lurched and I had heart palpitations. But Michael's critiques are wonderful, and he'll point out things that you didn't even realize were going on when you were working on the piece. You learn so much from all of the different pieces of artwork that is created, and how somebody else choose to design their version of the apothecary kit. And I have to saw that the art that was created these three days was really incredible. I felt so inadequate by the end of day two when I saw how everybody's boxes were shaping up.

The other thing that I like about attending the workshops is the collaboration with other artists. You can work all by yourself on the same piece in your studio, but to get a fresh perspective from somebody else walking by is great. To turn and ask the person next to you "What do you think?" and get reinforcement, or perhaps they say "I have this that would be perfect there" is something you don't get working alone. Truly a great group of artists.

My kit was originally an old first aid kit. I added cheese cloth to the front for some texture and to tone down the FIRST AID lettering on the front. But I was having difficulty incorporating the lettering that I ended up painting over it and adding a poison label. The photo is actually on a cigarette case that opens, so I hope to add some pieces to go inside for some more interactivity. While we were out shopping on Magazine street we came across a medical students journal in one of the shops, so Gary, Kelley and I split it and I've used it along the back interior of the kit. I also worked on a couple of miscellaneous bottles and test tubes as well. I'd like to make more deMeng-like bottles to put inside.

I work rather literally in my creations. I wish I could step it up and be more "outside of the box". Like Gary's piece...my brain just doesn't put a squirrel's skull onto a plastic doll's body with wings, and then a heart and snake lit up on the inside along with a shrine and skulls lined up like the catacombs. I wish I had a tenth of that "out-there" thinking. Ten percent is about it though, cause to me a squirrel's skull on a plastic doll's body is creepy. ;-)

And every workshop should end with a parade. This happened to be the weekend of the first Mardi Gras parade, the Krewe du Vieux, considered the raunchiest of the parades. I'm really surprised any of my photos turned out considering I was randomly shooting with my camera raised over my head. It was a fun time, and fairly crowded. I can't imagine what the parades on Fat Tuesday are like with wall-to-wall people. Claustrophobic, I'm sure.

What a shock it was to leave the 75-degree balmy breezes of New Orleans to return home to another foot of snow and 25 degrees in Wisconsin. (Is it Spring yet?) What a great trip and every moment was something fun and exciting.

Do do that Voodoo that You Do So Well

2011-02-25T18:26:00.000-06:00

As part of the workshop, Katherine booked some tours for us to get inspiration in creating our Apothecary kits. Our first event was a Meet and Greet Party at the Voodoo Museum. There was traditional New Orleans fare to dine upon including seafood gumbo, jambalaya, and a traditional Mardi Gras King cake. The person that gets the baby in their piece of cake is supposed to supply the cake for the next Mardi Gras party. We got to sit down with a voodoo priest who described the process of making a gris-gris bag for us. And Cinnamon, a voodoo queen, demonstrated the dancing and music of the traditional 19th century New Orleans Voodoo rituals.

The next morning was a tour of the New Orleans Pharmacy Museum. This is the site where Louis J. Dufilho, Jr., being the first to pass the licensing examination, made his pharmacy the first United States apothecary shop. This is normally a self-guided tour, but we were given some detailed descriptions of the contents of the cases on the lower level. It was very interesting hearing about the treatments that used to be considered standard to treat various ailments, such as blood-letting, injecting mercury, usage of heroin and cocaine. It was also common for the pharmacist to carry assorted voodoo potions, and people could come in and ask for them by number. Makes you wonder if that is the origin of "Love Potion #9"? A lot of the early drugstores had soda fountains, which often used lead pipes. Even the early makeup contained lead, and when they saw how bad it was, they switched to a paraffin wax. Wearing a wax-based makeup in New Orleans during the summer proved challenging, and led to the expression "Mind your own beeswax". (I've also seen it referred to colonial women who were in the process of making candles.)

The proprietor of the Voodoo Museum is a local New Orleans historian and he guided us on a Cemetery walking tour one afternoon. On our way to the cemetery we stopped at Congo Square and got some of the history about voodoo and jazz, jazz funerals, zombies, voodoo and the connection to Mardi Gras. At St. Louis Cemetery #1 is the tomb of Marie Laveau, a one-time reigning Voodoo Queen of New Orleans. Most voodoo queens are considered healers, and she is accredited with saving many lives during the yellow fever outbreaks that plagued the city. Even today, people will come to her tomb, and make their pleas for assistance. Although you are no longer allowed to mark on her tomb, people have taken to marking other tombs in the cemetery and leave offerings to her. In the Catholic church across the street is a statue of St. Expedite, and is said to represent Baron Samedi, the spirit of death in voodoo. However, he's known for providing fast solutions to imminent problems, and seems to have an affinity for pound cake.

We also went on a Ghost and Vampire tour (which probably is cooler at night, but scheduling just didn't work out to make that happen). Some of our haunted stops included the Bourbon Orleans hotel where a girl from one of the Quadroon balls is supposed to haunt, and there are reports of several childlike spirits cozying up to the guests. The Andrew Jackson sits on the site of a boarding school where five children lost their lives in a devastating fire in the late 1700's. Over the years, guests have reported hearing children playing in the courtyard in the middle of the night, despite the fact that the courtyard was deserted. And Muriels, where dinner is still served to the ghost of Pierre Antoine Lepardi Jourdan. There was also a stop at Lafitte's Blacksmith Shop where the infamous pirate is supposed to have hidden treasures. And the LaLaurie mansion, where a husband and wife cruelly treated their slaves, and were discovered chained to a wall in a secret attic. Since the house has passed onto new owners, something terrible has happened to those new owners, including Nicholas Cage who ended up declaring bankruptcy shortly after taking ownership.

So interesting to hear all of the tales of mystery and intrigue that surround this city. Certainly very rich inspiration for our creations.

"Yea...You Right, Alright!"

2011-02-24T16:05:00.001-06:00

What an amazing, fun-filled week I just had in New Orleans. Katherine from Valley Ridge put together a wonderful workshop with Michael DeMeng called A Place for Notions and Potions: An Apothecary Kit. How could I resist such an interesting workshop in such an interesting locale?

It was sensory overload with all of the sights, sounds, smells, and tastes that was experienced, and we certainly made the most of every minute. Even being there for a week, I only scratched the surface of all that New Orleans has to offer. Spending most of the time in the French Quarter, there was St. Louis Cathedral, buggies lined up at Jackson Square, a trip on the trolley, container ships on the Mississippi, residences decorated for Mardi Gras, colorful homes in the Bywater, and I was happy to see the Red Buds in bloom.

Plus there were all of the colorful and interesting things one will find along the streets in the Quarter.

Aside from walking everywhere, we seemed to eat and drink everything too, including Valentine's dinner at Emerils, praline bacon at Elizabeth's, shrimp po-boys, oysters, absinthe at Pravda, King Cake, redfish, bacon sundaes from The Green Goddess, bananas foster, gumbo, and of course beignets and cafe au lait at Cafe du Monde.

Phew! But there's still more to come...

Ten Things Tuesday: NOLA

2011-02-15T08:18:00.001-06:00

Outside my window...the streetcar is rustling by.
I am thinking...of the adventures for the day.
I am thankful for...the opportunity to take a wonderful workshop in a wonderful city with some wonderful people.
I am wearing...khakis and t-shirt.
I am creating...nothing yet, but big plans this week.
I am going...to breakfast at Elizabeth's, Thomas Mann's, Magazine Street Antique Mall, and as many other places we can possibly get to in one day.
I am reading...Black Heels to Tractor Wheels by The Pioneer Woman
I am looking forward to...our Meet and Greet party tonight at the Voodoo Museum
I am hearing...Kelley snoring ;-)
One of my favorite things...discovering new things.

Simple Woman's Daybook

My photo that I am sharing is truly terrible, but it's the only thing I have so far since I only had my iPhone camera with me last night. The Jazz Vipers at The Spotted Cat Music Club.

Strange Landscapes

2011-02-02T15:03:00.001-06:00

We went to bed last night with the wind whipping, pelting the snow against the windows and rattling the doors. It was interesting to wake up this morning and see the strange new landscapes that had been carved out.

There are several places with about four-foot drifts, while some places have been cleared completely.

Of course, it does make for difficult maneuvering...

I'm still waiting for Mr. Plow to show up so I can maneuver out of the driveway (although those drifts in front of the garage doors have been shoveled out).

The one good thing of all of this is that Punxsutawney Phil was unable to see his shadow (could he even see past his nose?) and Spring will soon be on it's way.

Ten Things Tuesday: The more it snows...

2011-02-01T12:02:00.000-06:00

Outside my window... snow is blowing (with the worst to come tonight).
I am thinking... about all of the things I should be doing rather than sitting here watching the snow.
I am thankful for... Advil Cold & Sinus (snow = sinus headaches).
From the kitchen... brownies (snow = comfort food).
I am wearing... sweats (snow = lazy).
I am going... to NOLA in two weeks (away from the snow).
I am hoping... to actually get something done today (other than shoveling the snow).
I am hearing... the silence of the snow.
Around the house... bits of Valentine decorations scattered about (and did I mention all that snow?).
One of my favorite things... seeing the bright pop of color the cardinal brings to the snowy landscape.

My picture that I am sharing...

Simple Woman's Daybook

Strike Up the Band

2011-01-26T23:35:00.001-06:00

Ana, my partner from the PhotoSwap this past summer, did a post the other day creating her own album cover. It looked like fun, so I thought I would give it a try...

Go to Wikipedia and from the left sidebar choose Random Article. The first random Wikipedia article you get is the name of your band.
Go to The Quotations Page and from the left sidebar choose Random Quotes. The last four or five words of the very last quote of the page is the title of your first album.
Go to Flickr and click on Interesting photos from the last 7 days. The third picture no matter what it is, will be your album cover
Using Photoshop or similar (picnik.com is a free online photo editor) to put it all together.

Here's my album cover for Can't Hear What They Say by The Hiding Place. (Photo by PollyWaffle)

Wonder how it will do on the charts.

Flashback Friday: Mamma Mia

2011-01-21T12:44:00.003-06:00

Mum's turn this week...

This photo was labeled "Me as a baby" (hee, hee—so cute)

Here she is on her tricycle...barely able to reach the pedals.

This is "Trixie, My Chickie".

And here's mum with Trixie. I'm not sure if she's crying, or just hiding her face. She never was a fan of having her picture taken, so maybe it's the latter.

I've been asked about my process for restoring, which I'll try and get a step-by-step written up for. Of course, each photo will have it's own challenges, and may need tweaks or additional steps. There's a great website, RetouchPro, that has lots of tutorials and tips for retouching and restoring photographs. But, I was also thinking that maybe some people don't have a scanner or the software, or the time and energy, to archive their photos. So, I'm wondering if this might be a business opportunity for me. Let me know if you think this is something you might be interested in.

I did have another thought for today's post title...Frigid Friday.

Wind chills down to -25˚F. Brrrr!

Photo Feature

2011-01-19T12:52:00.001-06:00

Yesterday I had on my list of snow day activities to take pictures. I had originally intended to take pics around the yard of snow covered items. But since I knew I wanted to include a photo of the orchid bloom yesterday, it turned out to be a photo shoot in and of itself.

My immediate thought for pictures were take macros, because it would be quick and easy. But that's what I always do, and they weren't giving me any "wow" factor.

Some people are able to create these great vignettes that make me wish they were displayed in my home. These images do not portray that feeling to me, and I really need to get better at creating interest with styling.

I also played around with some lighting techniques with just a clip-on desk lamp. The back-lit bloom is interesting, as well as some of the shadows created from the direct lighting.

So even though I didn't create a masterpiece of photographic art, it turned out to be a good exercise for me to branch out and try some new things. A small checkmark in the "achievement" column, I think.

Ten Things Tuesday: Snow Day

2011-01-18T10:54:00.002-06:00

Because the roads are still kinda messy, and I just don't feel like going out, ten things to do on a snow day.

Shovel out garage, mailbox, front walkway and plow sludge from bottom of driveway.
Clean off my desk.
Scan five pictures.
Dye some paper coffee filters.
Make a heart garland.
Take pictures.
Still try and figure out what to get Denis for his birthday (It's next week and I'm running out of time!).
Train with the dogs.
Bake a loaf of bread, 'cause I'm thinking it'll be soup for dinner. (Although a pan of brownies sounds sooooo much better.)
Put away remaining Christmas decorations that have been dumped in the basement.

I have a brown thumb when it comes to plants...I don't outright kill them all, but they never really flourish. I do have a soft spot for orchids since Mom was such an enthusiast and avid grower. I picked this guy up a couple of years ago, and it hasn't bloomed in a while, so I was really excited to see the buds appear back in November. I kept hoping they would open for Christmas, sort of a Christmas gift from Mom. But, when January rolled around I figured they had perhaps gotten bud blast, since I keep the plant near the kitchen window and it got too cold at night. On Sunday the first bud started to crack open. Yeah! Not sure if the other buds will follow, but I'm happy for the one bloom.

Hazy Shade of Winter

2011-01-17T15:53:00.000-06:00

Over at Christopher Robin's house, Eeyore has come calling. Christopher Robin asks him how he is feeling today.

"It's snowing still," said Eeyore gloomily.

"So it is."

"And freezing."

"Is it?"

"Yes," said Eeyore. "However," he said, brightening up a little, "we haven't had an earthquake lately."

Flashback Friday: Daddy-O

2011-01-14T16:36:00.000-06:00

I love going through all of these old photos and seeing my parents as children...carefree and inquisitive.

Bless my grandmother for writing the dates and places on the backs of the photos...

My father at 22 months, not sure if this is their backyard?

Up to no good I'm sure.

With Nana, he had just turned two.

Love the tricycle!

Nana wrote on the back of this one "Roy feeling proud in his policeman's suit. 3 years old." Looks like he's ready to nightstick someone.

This was taken at age 4 with Jim (whoever Jim is).

"Lake Lackawana, Father and Son Roy" Sept 1937

Yes, only a tip of the iceberg of the photo pile, but it's fun to flashback and preserve these memories.

Ten Things Tuesday: 1.11.11

2011-01-11T13:09:00.008-06:00

Sitting watching the snow swirl about...sorta like living inside a snow globe.
Miffed that Mr. Plow only plowed half of the driveway.
Can't wait to try out the new mattress tonight!
Trying to get my ducks in a row for some stuff coming up.
Laundry is the bane of my existence.
I hate waiting for service people to show up.
We saw Black Swan this weekend, and though rather disturbing, it was excellent and I thought Natalie Portman did an terrific job with the role.
I'm humming Middle of Nowhere by Hot Hot Heat.
I was doing okay with my 21-Day Challenge staying away from sweets until my husband brought home a huge Cadbury Dairy Milk bar last night given to him by one of his team members from the UK.
I only lost half of a pound last week. Better than gaining I suppose. But then with a huge Dairy Milk bar in the house...better have SlimFast for lunch.
One more for 1.11.11 (thanks Suz)...
Wondering what I should get Denis for his birthday...mmmmmm

Picture of the day...this is me trying to get my ducks in a row. Actually taken a couple of weeks ago since these little guys went into the kids pails with their Christmas money, but I figured it went with my number 4 item.

My Aim is True

2011-01-09T15:38:00.000-06:00

This week I've been thinking about my word for the year, achieve. First off, I am so touched by all of the comments that were left last week when I posted my word. I never in my wildest dreams would have thought that when I started this online journal three years ago that anybody would be interested in reading it, or even yet, keep coming back for more. Moving around as we have, it's been difficult for me to meet people and make friends, but through blogging I get to spend time with like-minded people that inspire and encourage me...so, thank you!

Now, while picking achieve as my word does pertain to actually getting stuff done, the real crux of choosing this word was so that at then end of the year I didn't feel like I had let it slip by. Our time is finite, and I do need to take a more active role in my life. (Yesterday's shooting in AZ really sorta drives this point home for me.)

Part of Ali Edwards online workshop for One Little Word is to create an album/journal to help keep your word cultivated throughout the year with her monthly prompts. I've been wanting to create an art journal for a while, and I thought this was as good an opportunity as any...I'd actually have something to journal.

Some of the prompts this month were to claim your word by defining it, expressing why this word was chosen, coming up with similar words, list some things that we "invite" to occur as a result of choosing this word, and a quote or two using the word.

And now I know why I never really got into art journaling...it was hard for me to just let go and put stuff on the page. I spent most of the week on these three pages. I needed them to look "pretty", like the cool journals kept by Michelle Ward, Tracy and Teesha Moore, and many others. I know this is contradictory to what people say about creating art journals—how it's about the process, and not what it looks like. I just have difficulty doing it that way. I would love to throw caution to the wind and make a mess. I even tried splattered paint on my quote page, but hated that I couldn't control where they landed. ;-) But I look forward to see where the process takes me and what I achieve.

Flashback Friday

2011-01-07T16:36:00.003-06:00

When we were in Florida, we went through a box of Mrs. Edwards old photos that Sandra had stashed in the garage. They were trying to figure out who a lot of the people were, but we were cracking up at some of the old images. Like this one...

They all look so young, and I love how everyone almost seems to be doing their own thing even though it's supposed to be a group portrait.

Denis' father would always tell tales of his "trolling" days, and how he and his buddies trolled around over in Tampa and Ybor City.

What a couple of delinquents.

Denis' mother had this photo tucked into one of here photo albums...

Almost as if she knew that Melrose would be her only grandchild from us. (Sure do miss that pretty girl.)

So, another one of my "achievements" for this year is to scan all of these photos that I have, color correct and archive. I told my sisters that I would do the ones from our mother years ago. I think I'll even burn extra discs for Denis to take a set into the office for off-site storage. For I would absolutely hate for anything to happen to the originals without any sort of back up, so I figured a Flashback Friday would help me move along on this project.

Carol sent me this one over Thanksgiving. She had taken me to the Bronx Zoo one weekend when I went to visit my big sis in NYC. (Check out the red pants and Little Orphan Annie tee...I so don't remember this outfit!)

Oh, those were the days...

Ten Things Tuesday

2011-01-04T18:27:00.000-06:00

1. Outside my window... A plane flying overhead
2. I am thinking... Oh, does my back hurt!
3. I am thankful for... New Zero-Gravity chair
4. From the kitchen... Garlic rolls
5. I am creating... monochromatic photographs
6. I am reading... Swimsuit by James Patterson
7. I am hoping... that I'm not coming down with a cold
8. I am hearing... 6:00 news
9. Around the house... Bins are scattered to corral Christmas decorations
10. One of my favorite things... Doggies laying by my feet

Picture of the Day... A light dusting overnight, although it sounds like a bit more may be on the way

Daybook prompts from The Simple Woman's Daybook

Goodbye, Cupcake

2011-01-03T15:08:00.005-06:00

One of the items I hope to "achieve" this year is to lose weight. I'm definitely one of those yo-yo dieters that will change my eating habits for a bit, take some weight off, and than put it all back on. I've heard that the weight you seem to come back to is your "true weight". Whether true or not, it's not a good number, and for personal, wardrobe, and health reasons I need to drop some lbs.

There is the observation that it takes 21 days to make or break a habit. I did a Google search to see who the original idea was attributed to, which turns out to be Maxwell Maltz in Psycho-Cybernetics from 1960. I also discovered that some dispute this as myth saying there isn't any research to back up this observation. Anyhow, 21 days does seem like a doable amount of time to try and change a behavior, thus I'm committing the next 21 days to giving up sweets. So no more scones, muffins, cookies, pies, candy, chocolate, etc. This will be tough for me because I always want something sweet after eating (in fact, I'm jonseing just looking at the picture of the cupcake, good thing it's one I took in May). I'm not going to do any calorie-counting or keeping track of food right now, as I'm just focusing on stopping the sweets, and hopefully as a result some of the other things will fall into place along the way. Part two of this challenge will be to add a third day of exercise to my current two days of cross training.

Perhaps I can provide Maxwell Maltz his necessary research for the 21-day observation. Although Rhonna, and many followers, have taken the 21 Challenge with great success.

All Talk, No Action

2011-01-01T17:47:00.000-06:00

I reread my Jan 1 posts from the last couple of years, and I realize I sound like a broken record. Even when Denis asked me about New Year's Resolutions and I said to "get s&*% done", he remarked "wasn't that what you said last year". It's the same thing year after year. I had picked out "achieve" as my word for this year, but will I really achieve anything? I know I'm the only who can make it happen, so what do I do differently?

I had thought about posting what I hope to "achieve" in the sidebar so it would be "out there", but then I felt like my whole 2011 would be one big To-Do list. Not really the motivation I was looking for. Ali Edwards', where I first learned about choosing a single word to focus on for the year, has a One Little Word online workshop to help remind/reinforce your word through out the year. Journaling and monthly email prompts will hopefully keep me on track. I am very fortunate, and I really shouldn't let a single moment go to waste. So on this first day of 2011, I'm pledging a year of less talk and more action.

Flashback Friday: 2010

2010-12-31T15:28:00.001-06:00

Oh my, another year has flown by. One of the neat things about blogging is being able to go back through the months and see what all happened...

In January, Denis celebrated a "milestone" birthday;
There was an impromptu trip to Hong Kong in February;
March was spent waiting for Spring;
During April I visited with Carol which included trips to MOMA, Tinsel Trading and BeadFest;
Memorial Day celebrations in May at the Indy 500;
Trying to keep up with my photography 365, including a Night Photography Class in June;
Fourth of July festivites with local parades and fireworks;
A stayacation in August which included local landmarks, a daytrip to Chicago, and the WI State Fair
Denis' Best Buddies Bike Challenge in September;
October was essentially one word...Halloween;
Waiting for winter in November;
and Christmas in Florida rounds out December.

A good year, even if I do say so myself. 2011 should prove to have some interesting moments, as each day is definitely worth celebrating. Happy New Year!

Motley Crew

2010-12-29T12:09:00.014-06:00

We had a really nice time getting together with Denis' family this Christmas. It probably worked out better that we went to Florida this year, rather than to my family in the east...or we would probably still be there.

On Christmas morning we drove up to Randall's house, and this little one did not want to leave the scooter that Santa had brought for her. Can't say I blame her, looks like a lot of fun and she was very cute on it.

This was the first time in quite a while that everybody was able to make it, including the nieces and nephews from Georgia. And as always when family gets together you know there is going to be the obligatory group photo...

A sibling pose together.

There is a website Young Me/Now Me where people submit old photos of themselves along with newly updated ones in the same pose. There are some pretty good ones, and I thought it would be funny to recreate this photo of Denis, Randall and Sandra, but they didn't seem too interested.

There used to be a time when the uncles had to pay money to get hugs from Carissa, so we needed to capture this one for posterity now that they come free. But it does help if you sneek something into her wallet...

And our bit of excitement over the weekend was these two getting engaged Christmas day.

(Don't ya hate when someone snaps a shot you're not prepared for?) We wish Shelly and Tony the best as they begin this new chapter in their lives together, although Tony did get to experience a bit of what this motley crew is all about over the weekend...

Handmade Holiday

2010-12-27T07:12:00.052-06:00

I didn't make many things this year, especially since the general request amongst the nieces and nephews was for money. There were a few items for the Vintage Stocking swap I did with Brandy...

I embellished a thrift store stocking with some vintage laces, burlap, and a vintage rhinestone snowflake pin. I tried to keep the color palette neutral with whites and creams, silver and mica glitters. Kraft paper and pattern tissue served as wrapping papers and then trimmed out with jute twine. I revamped a cloche ornament I found at Jo-Ann's with a new white deer and bottle brush tree, and added a glittery rosette and star to a bingo card. I bleached and covered with mica some bottle brush trees to top vintage blocks, constructed a mica-crusted snowflake wand, and a papier-mache pine cone box had a vintage ornament and bottle brush trim added to it. Once I got started getting stuff together I really got into it and could have kept going, but was already late in getting my box out the door.

And since I was sending a box for Matt, I thought would try and include a few things for Carol. I had been wanting to make one of those shadow boxes, sorta like Tim Holtz.

Funny thing is that she thought was a really great idea, and had already made one herself...

I like her box better

And the last thing I made was for Rachel's birthday, which is on the 23rd. I always thought that kinda stunk for her since it often got lumped in with Christmas. But we would be there with her to celebrate this year, and I thought a necklace would be nice.

But, instead of using beads I already had, I had to go to the bead store and pick some new things out. There's a bead shop downtown across the street from where I get my hair cut, so I tried there and picked up some stuff. Once I got home and started laying the necklace out, I decided I didn't like what I got. I still had a day left, and went across town to another bead shop and bought some other beads. The guy from the first shop had talked me into trying this beading thread, and when I got everything strung up I decided I hated all the white knots showing, and didn't like the beads I had just bought from the second store. So I ended up going back to the beads I bought from the first shop, and using the Softflex bead wire I already owned. And to make things even crazier than it needed to be, I did this all the night before. I amaze myself at what an idiot I can be. But it all worked out pretty well.

It's a Wrap

2010-12-26T09:17:00.092-06:00

wow! What a fun swap the Countdown to Christmas has been. All of the boxes have been really creative and wonderful. I wish I had been able to get around and see more of the 1,750+ boxes submitted for the swap. I did manage to find where a few of my boxes had landed. But here's a quick rundown of what I sent in...

To keep it interesting for me, I broke my boxes into sets of two or three, making each set similar. Of course there would be snowflakes, with beaded snowflake ornaments inside...

Cute little sisal wreaths adorn the next batch, with bookmarks in two of them, and a Santa pendant in the third...

Sparkly holly with scrabble tile ornaments inside...

Red birds and a snowman hold sets of earrings...

Red ric-rac and stripey paper set the stage for small garlands of music notes...

More snowflakes, with another scrabble tile ornament and a jingle bell garland...

Charming vintage-style embellishments hold holiday charms...

Musical evergreens reveal some vintage holiday pins...

And the last batch shows off some "crystal" ornaments.

From all of the boxes that I saw, I'm going to have to step-up my creativity for next year. Thanks to Linda for hosting and doing all of the hard work getting all of these boxes swapped out!

Merry Christmas!

2010-12-25T06:25:00.017-06:00

It's here, Day 25! And the final box of the countdown...

This snowman is spreading good cheer from the 25th box from Sophia. She included a lovely pendant with silver chain...a truly perfect gift for Christmas.

This has been a really fun swap, and I'm sad to see it come to an end. Thanks to Linda who hosted, and all of the artists that shared their creativity to make a beautiful and festive holiday this month. May your day be Merry and Bright!

24 Hours To Go

2010-12-24T06:24:00.011-06:00

Less than a day away now on Day 24!

And this second to last box comes from Angela and features the Magi's journey following the Star of Bethlehem. Inside she included a cute little bottle cap magnet with sweet Noël wishes.

Today will be spent sharing time with family, perhaps some cookie baking, and last minute prep for tomorrow. Should be fun...

Twenty-three Skidoo

2010-12-23T07:18:00.001-06:00

The days have definitely skidoo'd, since it's already Day 23.

But Santa has a big wink on his face, for he knows just one more night before he leaves on his worldwide trip. Valerie is helping his sweet tooth with some candy canes stashed inside this box. But, I'm sure he'll get his fill of cookies and candy tomorrow night. Maybe I'll leave him some Tums...

Catch-22

2010-12-22T12:08:00.004-06:00

Jolly is definitely a good word for Day 22. I'm nearly finished with my Christmas preparations, and just have a birthday gift to whip up for Denis' niece. So thank you Marie, for bringing me this cheerful word-of-the-day, and the glittery bottle cap magnet inside. Hopefully after hitting the roads and stores, I'll still be feeling jolly.

21 Jump Street

2010-12-21T09:15:00.013-06:00

I'm showing my age with this post title...

but I am jumping around at how cute this box from Sherry is. Uh, oh, I don't see my name on Santa's list...really, I can explain. But he's definitely gonna need those mittens around here. Although it has warmed up a bit since we've been getting some snow. I love how the snow transforms everything and makes the ordinary so sparkly and pretty.

Matchbox Twenty

2010-12-20T12:14:00.002-06:00

Eh gads! Day 20...

Erica came up with the most creative and cute set of boxes. I adore this wee "elf" wrapped up with red and green baker's twine and a jingle bell. And jolly snowman found his way inside the box to hang out on the tree.

Even though I don't have a lot that I need to get done in the next couple of days, I do feel that sense of being rushed and making sure that I have all of those little things on my list checked twice. So, let's see what I can get done today.

Ni-ni-ni-ni Nineteen, 19

2010-12-19T14:55:00.000-06:00

Day 19...really? Well judging by the amount of people running around today, we're definitely getting close.

Today's box is one of those ultra-cute "book" boxes from Michelle. I think it's so clever that she disguised all of her boxes to look like tiny books. And what inviting covers, makes you want to open them up and find out what's inside...why, a beautiful bird and key charm, in a perfect shade of blue. Only six more to go...

Enchanting Eighteen

2010-12-18T13:30:00.000-06:00

Day 18! We're really closing in now. Yesterday the clock over the fireplace came crashing down, so I guess you could say that time is literally "flying by".

This "pretty in pink" box is from Sarah, and inside she's put a cute little tag stamped and glittered with a Christmas tree.

And speaking of enchanting, in yesterday's mail I just happened to receive my Vintage Stocking swap box from Brandy. Part of me thought about waiting until Christmas to open it up. Naw, the anticipation was too much...

I'm so glad I didn't! My jaw hit the table as I pulled the tissue back. This is so beautiful, and exactly what I would pick out if I were in a store shopping for myself.

Brandy pays attention to all of the small details that truly make a statement, like the glittery bells tucked under the pine cones, lace ribbon, and feathery garland. And how cute is this polar bear ornament complete with lace scarf and welcoming wreath.

I love this snowflakes tag (I see a die cut I think I need), beautifully detailed, and then there's this incredible tin with it's rich embellishments that houses a scented candle.

These gorgeous ornaments are spectacular, and look wonderful on the table top tree I set up.

Pretty parcels adorned with glittery snowflakes hold tasty treats...chocolate and peppermint, yum!

These tags are so pretty, and will really dress up my packages. And snowflake slippers to keep my toes nice and toasty.

And I absolutely love this feather tree made from the same feathery garland that adorns the stocking. I had some extra smaller ornaments from my Shiny Brite wreath that look perfect on this wee tree. A truly wonderful swap that is putting me in the holiday spirit.

Super Seventeen

2010-12-17T12:59:00.001-06:00

Oh my, Day 17!

and "super" is this adorable box from Jill. Around here you can always use an extra pair of mittens, and that cute clip will help keep them from getting lost from one another...or pretty up a stack of bills.

I was a bit late sending off my Joli Paquet Vintage Stocking swap off to my partner, Brandy, but it's winging it's way to Texas. I was really nervous about swapping with Brandy, as she does amazing projects, and I knew there wasn't any way that I could make anything that would compare with what she does as a designer on the Joli Paquet blog. Here's a small sneak peek, and I'm pretty happy with my package, but let's hope I did alright by her. ;-)

Sweet Sixteen

2010-12-16T11:22:00.001-06:00

Day 16! Which means single digits 'til Christmas. Also means another cute little matchbox...

This one is from Amanda. Oooh, now this one is totally up my alley with the blingy snowflake and glittery ric-rac trim. Inside is this cute little gingerbread boy. Think he might like to come live in my gingerbread house?

I finished up the gingerbread house last night, and while it won't win any architectural awards in design, I think it makes up for it in charm. Denis asked me what it was for, and I guess it's not really for anything...but me. I also partly did it for my mom, since she was the one that gave me the gingerbread mold. My holiday decorating has sorta fizzled since we didn't get the tree, so I suppose this will just be one more decoration.

Fantastic Fifteen

2010-12-15T13:24:00.002-06:00

Day 15! Oh my goodness, you know what that means...

only ten more days of tiny prezzies! However, today I was fortunate enough to receive a box from JoAnne. Love the pretty Christmas fabric, and bright red velvet of the poinsettia. I also got one of those fabulous Scrabble tile pendants, and as lovely as it looks here on the tree, I do believe it would be better on a chain for wearing.

I made good on getting started on the gingerbread house. I picked up the Cream of Tartar for the Royal Icing, and will get the construction done tonight. It's been a long while since I've used this gingerbread house mold, and I thought I needed to bake one of each side. I was looking at the chimney thinking I was missing something, but knew I had baked all of the pieces. Well, I needed to bake one side twice, as the mold has two different house styles, one on each side. So I either have a house with dual personalities, or I can cover it up with icing and decorations. ;-)

Brizzie was very intently staring out the living room window this morning, so I went to see what had captured her attention. This little fellow was scavenging beneath the blue spruce out front...check out the snowy beard.

Phenomenal Phourteen

2010-12-14T11:47:00.000-06:00

Day 14! And it features a cute gingerbread man and his house by Becky. Inside, Becky has tucked a frosted gingerbread ornament. This little box reminds me of the gingerbread houses I made as a teenager. I've been meaning to make one lately, even bought some stuff at the store last week. So rather than saying "maybe I'll make one", I'm going right on up and get that gingerbread baking. Update tomorrow...

Bakers Dozen

2010-12-13T09:11:00.000-06:00

Wow, Lucky 13 already...and this lovely box comes from Nancy and features a sweet angel vignette inside. I really applaud Nancy for having the patience to cut out all of the branches and angel to make the inside three-dimensional. While working on the 25 boxes, patience was something I was running short of.

Feeling a bit stir crazy, we did manage to venture out in the snow and ice yesterday to see The Tourist. It was pretty good, and worth braving the icy roads for a small break from around the house.

Twelfth Night

2010-12-12T09:43:00.000-06:00

Did you know:

A group of twelve things is called a Duodecad.
Twelve is a composite number, the smallest number with exactly six divisors.
The average human has twelve cranial nerves.
There are normally twelve pairs of ribs in the human body.
A number of sports teams do not allow field players to wear the number 12 on their jersey because it is reserved for their supporters (i.e. the Twelfth Man at Texas A&M)
There are twelve basic hues in the color wheel; 3 primary colors, 3 secondary colors, and 6 tertiary colors.
Twelve men have walked on Earth's moon.
12 face cards in a card deck.
The number twelve has symbolic connotation in many religions.

Thank you Wikipedia

And today is Day 12 of the Countdown to Christmas Matchbox swap.

This lovely box is another from Cami, and has the prettiest ornament made from a vintage button and tag embellished with a sweet angel face.

We were fortunate that the warmer temps yesterday brought mostly rain (melting a lot of the snow on the ground), and then turned to snow during the night giving us about an inch or two. The blowing winds (gusts up to 45mph) will now drop the temps significantly. It's funny how yesterday was "warm" in the 30s, and just a few weeks ago I was trying to convince myself that 40's weren't "cold". Hope the birdies stay warm.

Eleventh Hour

2010-12-11T12:17:00.000-06:00

It sorta seems like the eleventh hour, as we close in on the big day (sigh!). But Day 11's box gives me great joy...it's from Amy and I love the simplicity of it, and I finally got one of those cute scrabble tile charms that everyone else has been getting.

So now we're just waiting for the snow to blow in...maybe we'll try to squeeze a movie in before the thick of it arrives early this evening.

Hang Ten

2010-12-10T12:44:00.000-06:00

Well, I actually hung 25 matchboxes, but it is Day 10.

Today's box is from Jan, and she was so creative with her little giftie. She took a jigsaw puzzle piece and I think stamped and colored a face, adding Glossy Accents or Diamond Glaze over the top to make it shiny, and adding a teeny tiny crown to the top of her head. Everybody has been really creative with the matchboxes. I was sorta afraid that I would end up with 25 pairs of earrings, but everybody really put their thinking caps on and came up with some wonderfully original ideas.

Another two-and-a-half inches of snow last night. Denis got home from his whirl-wind ten-day European trip just as the flakes began to fly. Another possible two to six inches predicted for tomorrow, so I'm thinking it may be smart to go get our Christmas tree today while there is a slight lull in the weather, and the temps are somewhat decent. Then I can spend the weekend inside, cozy by the fire, hanging "ten"-sel. (ba-dum-dum)

To the Nines

2010-12-09T08:13:00.000-06:00

This box by Angela is definitely decked out to the nines in it's red and green finery. The clip inside is a perfect match, and they both look so festive.

I'm so glad that everybody has been coming by to check out the boxes...it's been a lot of fun. I wish I've had more time to make the rounds. Where does the day go?

And Eight Tiny Reindeer

2010-12-08T08:23:00.000-06:00

Day 8! This is about the point where I switch from "I still have time" to "I'm running out of time".

Today's box is from Vanessa. I've been seeing her boxes on the other blogs and could hardly wait 'til I got to open mine. Now all of the boxes are wonderful, but Vanessa hand-crafted all of these tiny little mice, and the felt buttons, for the swap. How do you stitch up something that small? And the tiny little hat? Oh my goodness, my hands would just fumble.

One thing I did manage to get done this year is my Shiny Brite wreath. I've been wanting to do this for a couple of years, so I've been accumulating ornaments in blues, greens, and silver from eBay, flea markets, antique shops and thrift stores. I felt like I finally had enough in varying sizes to actually put it together this year, and I'm really happy with the way it turned out. Now, if I can just seem to get my other projects completed.

Magnificent Seven

2010-12-07T08:50:00.000-06:00

This has been a pretty magnificent swap, and here it is Day 7!

Today's sweet box comes from Pam, and inside were these adorable mini ornaments of Santa and a suspender-wearing reindeer carrying a tree. I love the aqua button on the red ric-rac trim. That color combo is really becoming a favorite.

Some people have commented on the photo frame graphics I've been using, and they can be found at Two Peas in a Bucket. The frame on this pic is from Rhonna Farrer's Christmas Transparency Kit. The other ones I have been using are Sande Krieger's Joyeux Noel Photo Edges. C'est Magnifique!

For Goodness "Six"

2010-12-06T08:44:00.002-06:00

Okay, I totally cheesed that post title...

but here we are at Day 6! This beautiful Christmas tree is from Kim, and inside she included the tiniest little bell dangling from a sparkly ribbon. So cute.

Thank you to all that left comments over the weekend. Doing the matchbox blog-along has introduced me to a whole bunch of new people. The winner of my surprise giveaway is Suz at Katsui Jewelry. It must be karma that Suz won because she and her family are going through a pretty difficult time right now, and I suppose they could use a little something to lift their spirits. I'm sure she would love some kind words at her blog if you have a moment.

Now if I can actually get something accomplished today, there may just be some goodness.

Give Me Five!

2010-12-05T08:10:00.001-06:00

Day 5! An American Lung Association Christmas Seal from 1941 featuring a beautiful lighthouse. I remember my mother putting Christmas seals on her cards, but I never see them anymore. Bonnie created this lovely box, and the sweet embroidered snowflake ornament inside. Somebody had received one of her boxes yesterday, and I commented that I am impressed with anybody who has the talent and patience to embroider anything. Maybe I'll get it together and try one of those cute samplers that everybody else worked on this past summer.

Don't forget...any comments left today will also count towards the giveaway drawing tomorrow.

Just "4" Fun

2010-12-04T08:44:00.001-06:00

Day 4! The one downside of doing this countdown is that it seems to be making the days go by that much quicker. (sigh!)

But today's cute box brought a nice smile to my face since it's from Cami at Creating Myself.

Santa's playing a flute (I used to play the flute), and inside the box it says "believe" (and I really do). She also included one of her beautiful vintage keys on a pretty ribbon. Now this box was rather timely since last night I snuggled on the couch with my two favorite pooches and watched Miracle on 34th Street. Love that movie, and it would certainly make a believer out of most.

So yesterday I was bemoaning the fact that I hardly had any presents to buy and wrap, so just for fun I decided that I'm going to have a little giveaway this weekend. I'm not entirely sure what this giveaway will entail, but I do have a couple of things in mind. We got our first significant snow overnight (only 2 inches), but still a good excuse to stay inside and make some fun things. So if you're interested in a surprise package, leave me a comment over the weekend and I will draw from them on Monday morning.

Third Time's a Charm

2010-12-03T08:56:00.001-06:00

Day 3! And this little beauty comes from Sophia at Blue Chair Diary. A welcoming wreath holds a charming paper clip, that not only looks good on the tree, but will be a pretty addition to my papers all year round. I'm really enjoying having these little treasures each day to remind me of the giving spirit of the holiday season. It's so easy to be overwhelmed by all of the hustle and bustle, but small gestures do mean a whole lot at making things more enjoyable and fun.

Yesterday I went to the mall to purchase the one present I needed to get. All of the great nieces and nephews want money this year, which is sorta nice since I don't have to run ragged buying, wrapping and shipping a bunch of stuff. And I also get that it's probably better they buy what they want rather than getting the "bunny suit from Aunt Clara", but it makes me sad that the excitement of gift-giving seems gone. And now I hardly have any presents to wrap, and I love to wrap with all of the pretty paper and ribbons. I had picked up some new paper at Target that I ended up returning because I already have several unopened rolls from years past. Sigh! Guess I'll have to find something else to get me in the Christmas mood.

Sweet Enough "2" Eat

2010-12-02T10:53:00.002-06:00

Yeah! I found my camera...

Today's countdown matchbox comes from Jenna over at CorgiPants (she's also the keeper of the swap list on SwapDex, a great way to find out about all of these wonderful swaps to play in). Her Peppermint Twist box contains this sweet gingerbread man ornament. A bit of trivia (courtesy of Wikipedia) is that the first documented instance of figure-shaped gingerbread biscuits appeared in the court of Elizabeth I. She had the gingerbread figures made and presented in the likeness of some of her important guests.

I have all of my boxes on a small tinsel tree I got in the "dollar" section at Target a few years back. And all of these small ornaments are filling in the rest of the tree quite nicely. I still haven't found any of the boxes I sent out, but it sure is fun looking...

Let the Countdown Begin

2010-12-01T12:59:00.002-06:00

Linda from A Swap for All Seasons hosted a Countdown to Christmas Matchbox Swap where we created 25 Christmas matchboxes with small gifts inside. It's a fairly well-known fact of how much I like to have little daily surprises, so this was a perfect swap for me. Although I have to admit it was a lot harder to put together 25 little boxes and gifts than I realized. Coming up with small gifts was probably the most difficult. Linda was great and uploaded images of her boxes and gifts to give some helpful ideas. All 25 of the matchboxes were sent to Linda for her to swap out amongst the 70+ swappers. Did she ever have a HUGE undertaking on her hands. Other than some snafus with her post office, it sounds like the swap went off pretty well, and fortunately she had some elves to help her out with all of the swapping and packaging. Linda has a list on her blog of all of the participants from the Matchbox swap, so we can all "blog-along" and check out all of the wonderful boxes each day.

Here's the matchbox for Day 1 created by Jenny of The Red Bulletin Board.

Inside of the box is wee silver glittered star.

My regular camera has gone MIA, so I've resorted to using my iPhone for these pics. It better turn up soon, or I'm going to lose it. Plus, I'm doing Tracey Clark's Picture the Holidays, and I need my camera.

And, I guess because I haven't posted in about four weeks, Blogger decides to act up. Hrrmph! Well, that better straighten itself out too, because I have lots to post coming up.

Frozen in Time

2010-11-02T10:10:00.001-05:00

The mornings are definitely getting frostier.

These last rose buds do seem literally frozen in time.

An odd juxtaposition...

of what was and what is to be.

And scenes like this add to the allusion of what's next...

for the "s" word has been mentioned in this week's forecast.

The only thing that doesn't seem frozen is time itself, as it keeps whirling by and I wonder where it went.

Tricks or Treats

2010-10-30T22:00:00.013-05:00

Time to ring some doorbells in search of Tricks and Treats...

The neighborhoods participating are:
Valerie - Yarnigras
Bev - Country Frog Creations
Amy - Flickr: Yma's Fun
Michele - Nook Cranny Gifts
Carol - Sugar Hill Farm
Sandi - Sam I Am
Laura - Tara Court
Mary - Tara Court
Stephanie - Scrap Fancy
Carla - CosmoGirl's Emporium

For my Trick, I was rummaging through the attic and came across an old dusty box wrapped up with twine.
Attached was a piece of paper that turned out to be the death certificate of Robert Halsey, who passed away in August of 1955. It seems he carried a secret with him most of his adult life.
Demon possession! Poor Bob!

This glittery cottage would be a Treat...
if it wasn't in need of pest control for those swarming bats. And, there is the matter of the smashed and boarded up windows. Oh, it also seems the current occupant isn't keen on encouraging guests either.

Ooooh, a Treat from the Sweet and Sinister Candy Company...
an assortment of insect confections to snack on.

The two treats I received included a coffin with skeletal remains,

and spooky quilted Halloween images perfect for the Dead Chic Decor look I was going for.
I really should have had better sense before blindly sticking my hand into this bag...But, I was lucky that I didn't get bitten or stung by any of it's inhabitants.

I was also lucky to receive a few extra tricks and treats that a couple of swappers sent in for me.
These woman really know how to hand out the treats (and tricks). I hope they will be visited by a bunch of ghouls and goblins this All Hallow's Eve.

I can hardly believe that Halloween is here! The kids will be round in just a bit, and I still have pumpkins to carve. It's now just a landslide into Christmas and the New Year. Eeks...now that is scary.

Feeling Witchy

2010-10-30T13:46:00.005-05:00

One other swap that I signed up for was The Great ATC Witch Swap hosted by Melissa. You were to create two ATCs to mail off to two people, and in return you would get ATCs from two different people.
I received some great cards from Misty (Witchy Legs) and Debbie (Best Witches). They're both so wonderful and nice additions to my small Witch ATC collection. Mmmm, perhaps I need to swap a couple each year and keep the coven growing.

And the last bits of Amy's Sweet and Sinister package include some items for frolicking about on All Hallow's Eve.
Fred was such a good sport and agreed to model this fantastic party hat for me.

And this pin certainly wins prize for Best in Halloween Spirit, just like Amy. I couldn't have asked for a better Sweet and Sinister partner to get me in the Halloween spirit, and prepare me for the Witching Hour.

For tomorrow the spirits arise, and tricks are played and treats are gotten.

Things that Go Bump in the Night

2010-10-29T18:27:00.000-05:00

Time is getting close for some real spooky fun. Yet, there are still some items to reveal from Amy's Sweet and Sinister package, such as this Ancient Cyclops Eye. It seems pretty sinister, but actually it's a ceramic ball that was used in municipal water systems. I would never look at that ball and come up with something cool and creepy like this.

Vintage book pages are printed with images of skeletons and skulls, brains and bats, black widows and witches. These would be cool hung up as a garland, or maybe used in a spell book.

And, this little Jack seems pretty innocent in the daylight...

but looks rather menacing as dusk approaches, along with the rest of the spirits starting to rise in preparation for All Hallow's Eve.

From ghoulies and ghosties. And long-leggedy beasties.
And things that go bump in the night, Good Lord, deliver us!

The Great Pumpkin

2010-10-28T12:40:00.006-05:00

On Halloween night, the Great Pumpkin rises from his pumpkin patch and flies through the air with his bag of toys to all the children.

Linus, It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown

One of my all-time favorite Halloween specials, which just happens to be on tonight.

This may not be the Great Pumpkin, but I think it's a pretty great pumpkin. Another project I wanted to do was make one of these velvet pumpkins with a real pumpkin stem. When I got my pumpkins this year, I picked up some of the broken stems that were on the ground just for this project. I also have a piece of embossed velvet that I think will look great. But have I done it yet?.... No, but they'll still look great after Halloween for Thanksgiving.

Amy also sent this great Capiz shell trinket box that was filled with vintage bits and bobs. I already have a project in mind that I'm going to use a lot of these on.

Now I'm thinking this title should be changed to The Great Amy.

Toad ya so...

2010-10-27T12:23:00.002-05:00

Yes, even more from Amy's never-ending box of goodies.
A jar of Dark Forest Toadstools, which are generally considered poisonous, although deaths are extremely rare. They are at their greatest potency when picked by the light of the Harvest Moon. Muscarine was long thought to be the active hallucinogenic agent that may attribute to hearing and/or seeing things, wild euphoria, dizziness, and mood swings. It's been proposed that the word toadstool comes from the German “Todesstuhl”, or death's chair.

Now unfortunately, this is where Amy has gone astray. Ask Denis, and he will confirm my dislike for fungi. Not that I'm phobic or anything, I just don't care for them. However, these may be worth trying...if I can get past the poisonous toad guarding the lid.

A Cure for What Ails Ya

2010-10-26T10:26:00.008-05:00

Tell me where it hurts, and I just might have a concoction for your malaise...
Amy pulled from her own private stock to add some necessary ingredients to my apothecary.
This particular jar contains eyeballs—perfect for so many uses. It's a great snack with it's smooth texture and crunchiness. However, it is an acquired taste, and some may be bothered by their food staring back at them. Cats seem to like to play with them, and as a good source of antioxidants, it has be linked to inhibiting cancer and heart disease. Some say it reveals knowledge not discovered in alternative ways; the all-knowing, all-seeing eye of Egyptian mythology.

In my current stock, I seem to have most maladies covered. Even the consumption of Witches Warts can be treated, as Wasabi girl slept through the night.
But we all know that chocolate is the cure for the common everything.

Now for Something Really Scary

2010-10-25T13:14:00.004-05:00

There's still much more to show from Amy...

Like these treat baggies (or are they tricks?)
I started taking my pictures for today and the camera battery died. While searching for the back-up battery, I got side-tracked and went off to do something else. Halfway through the other project I realize that I've left the items I was photographing on the dining room table. Uh oh, did the dogs get into them? Sure enough. One bag is completely gone, no remnants around. Bag two is gone, it's contents slightly marred with teeth marks. Third bag, untouched and still on the table.

I'm not sure if they didn't care for these wax candy bottles from bag two, or if I came in on them before they got too far along.

I'm really glad they didn't get into the bag with all of these cool doo-dads. Michelle Ward taught this year at Valley Ridge a Halloween version of the book I took last year. I keep thinking in the back of my mind that I'm going to get around to doing a Halloween book, and these would be great embellishments for it. I sure do wish I knew where Amy finds all of these neat things. I'm obviously shopping in the wrong places.

Okay, so what is not pictured are the Witches Warts (aka wasabi peas). And the scary part is that come one, two-o-clock in the morning, I'm going to be up with a certain dog whose belly is already starting to gurgle. I'm not positive who all partook in this mischief, but one seems mopier than the other, and is drinking a lot more water. I may have to switch around who will be wearing the "devil" costume.

Once Upon a Midnight Dreary

2010-10-24T09:23:00.020-05:00

Val hosted a really clever Halloween swap based on the stories of Edgar Allan Poe. How could I not join a swap for the king of macabre?

My partner Jenny picked the "Tell-Tale Heart" for her story. It took me a bit to get in the groove of the project, but in the end, it really came together, and I was very happy with the results. I knew I wanted to use a Poe book for my structure, and Michael deMeng served as huge inspiration for the overall look.
On the inside front cover I portrayed the young man that, while defending his sanity, confesses to having killed the old man who's "pale blue eye" haunts him.
I glued all of the pages of the book together, and cut out a niche in which to place the "beating heart" that lies below the floor boards, and drives him to confess his crime. The pages from the story in the book frame the niche.
I also included an apothecary jar of "eyeball" chocolates, a Poe optical lens pendant, and some eyeball tchotchkes to round out my Poe box to Jenny (running too late to take pics though).

This is the box I received from Laura, a cool cigar box wrapped with black and purple trims, Poe's gravesite pictured on front.
The interior view with decaying trees, tombstone, and ghastly creatures evoking the gloomy and mysterious atmosphere of "The Fall of the House of Usher", while Poe watches on.
Laura also included a cute treat bag...
filled with some yummy treats.

Laura's box will be perfect to "ponder, weak and weary" in the Poe's Corner vignette I've set up in my entryway.

Under the Light of the Harvest Moon

2010-10-23T15:50:00.002-05:00

This week the energies of the Full Moon will see us shifting and integrating many of the darker, shadowy aspects of ourselves. - Spirit Pathways

This shifty guy was protecting today's box. I think he had plans of spinning his web with some of the Mourning Grey seam binding.
Once again Amy put her magical powers to use, because when I saw the boxes she made for Speckled Egg's Black & White Petite Matchbox Swap on her Flickr album I was so envious of those women. I've been wanting to participate in one of those petite matchbox swaps but keep missing the sign-up dates. (Somebody needs to nudge me for the next one.)
Look at the cool pull on the side of the box...Amy's attention to detail is impeccable.

But can you believe all of the stuff that was in the matchbox...glittery die-cuts, Dresden trims, vintage chandelier crystal, millinery trims, old dominoes, rhinestone buckle, lenticular sticker, tickets for Wishes, a creepy black kitty, créme seam binding, and a vintage box of faux wax-style seals with an initial E.

This was certainly one bountiful Harvest for me.

Noteworthy

2010-10-22T15:17:00.002-05:00

This next package captured my attention because of it's pretty tag with my monogram on it.
But I'm totally blown away by the gorgeous notecards and envelopes that were enclosed.
My profession is as a Graphic Designer, and I didn't come up with anything as clever and beautiful as this! Oh, that Amy puts me to shame. Now, to find somebody worthy of receiving these beautiful notes.

A Charm of Powerful Trouble

2010-10-21T09:43:00.006-05:00

More sinisterly reveals...
I love the dyed cheesecloth. I picked some up in a dark gray at the dollar store, and used it all over the house draped over tables, shelves, and the mantel for spooky effects. Yet, this seemingly innocent parcel holds some wicked ingredients.

...shredded bats wings, reptile scales and some spectre sparkle. Now I'm seriously getting concerned that Amy has been using her magic powers on me (so far in a good way). How else would she know that I used up all of my shredded bats wings and was in need of some more? Reptile scales and a bit of spectre sparkle will also come in handy when conjuring some powerful trouble in just nine short days.

Eye of newt, and toe of frog, Wool of bat, and tongue of dog,
Adder's fork, and blind-worm's sting, Lizard's leg, and owlet's wing,
For a charm of powerful trouble, Like a hell-broth boil and bubble.

—William Shakespeare, Macbeth

Something Twisted

2010-10-20T09:05:00.006-05:00

Wreath \ˈrēth\
1: something intertwined or arranged in a circular shape:
origin:akin to Old English wrīthan to twist (writhe)

"Twisted" is an apt description of today's sinisterly reveal...
Here again, Amy must have picked my brain to see that I was thinking about a new wreath for this year. I've hung my arachnid wreath the past couple of years and was looking for a change. I had planned on making one (already had the stuff too), but just hadn't gotten around to it. Amy saved me from another UFO. I love the twisted vine with creepy berries, black gothic roses, black ribbons and tulle, and huge glittery spider. (Now Amy may not have a blog, but she does upload all of her fabulous swap items to her Flickr page)

I had asked Amy if there was a particular decor item she wanted in her swap package and she requested a wreath. So here is my take on the Halloween wreath for Amy.

I have to laugh at many of the comments saying they wouldn't be able to wait and open only one thing a day. Last year I did a 13 Days of Halloween swap where we sent our partners thirteen wrapped items to count down to the big day. I had such a great time with that swap, both giving and receiving, that I thought my nine-year old niece might like to enjoy the Halloween spirit too. I mailed out her package this weekend so she would have time to open one thing each day between now and Halloween. On Monday when she received her box...she opened everything! She didn't want to wait! Obviously, she is not blood related (Denis' sister's daughter's daughter), but it appears that I may be in the minority about waiting. Maybe I'm the twisted one...

Sinisterly Sweet

2010-10-19T20:54:00.004-05:00

or is it Sweetly Sinister? Either way...it's wonderful!

This is the third time that I've signed up for Kari's Sweet and Sinister swap, because a) I love Halloween and Halloween swaps, and b) the black and white, sweet and sinister theme is so darn appealing. This year I was paired up with ultra-fabulous Amy (she has not joined into the world of blogging...yet?), and she spoiled me rotten.

I opened up the box and started pulling things out, and it just kept going and going, like one of those trick magic boxes without a bottom. Seriously, how did she fit all of that into a flat-rate box? It baffles ~~the~~ my mind.

I really want to make all of this wonderfulness last, so I'm going to just open one thing a day between now and Halloween. The first thing I'm showing off is this cool paperback pumpkin. Amy must have sneaked a peek at my search history, because I seriously had planned on finally doing one this year. But hers is so much cuter than I would have done. Look at the adorable curlie-q around the stem...love it!
I definitely think this falls under the "sweet" category...wonder what tomorrow will bring.

Indian Summer

2010-10-18T14:06:00.001-05:00

The weather this fall has been really beautiful, unlike last year when the month of October was just gray, drizzly and cold. It just seemed to make winter last all that much longer. A few weekends ago we even had temps in the 80s, and the only clouds in the sky were the contrails left behind from the planes passing by. I convinced Denis to take a ride out to Holy Hill since I've heard it's a great spot for fall foliage.
The first resident on the hill was a hermit named Francois Soubrio. He heard about the hill when he was working as an assistant to a retired professor in Quebec, Canada, and found an old French diary and map showing a cone-shaped mountain in Wisconsin. The diary described how the author placed a stone altar, raised a cross, and dedicated the hill to Jesus's mother Mary. Studying these documents created a deep longing within Soubrio to come to the holy site, for it had been said he came in penance for the murder of someone he loved.
The local Indians and most early settlers called Holy Hill the big hill. After hearing the story of the black robe chief from the Indians, some of the Irish settlers dedicated the hill to the Blessed Virgin Mary as a special place of prayer. These Irish were the first to call this place Holy Hill. The name Holy Hill was first used formally by Father George Strickner in the course of his sermon when dedicating a log chapel as the first Shrine of Mary - Help of Christians on May 24, 1863.
Holy Hill stands as protectorate over an additional 400 acres of natural woodland. This acreage has been acquired by the Friars over a period of years for Holy Hill in order to preserve its contemplative atmosphere.
In 1879, a proposal was submitted for a new shrine at Holy Hill. The specifications for this new shrine called for 200,000 bricks. Getting materials up the hill was extremely difficult. Ordinary horse teams could haul only 200 bricks at one time. This would have meant a total of 1000 trips. Fortunately, enough fieldstone was found after leveling the hill to build the foundation of the church, and reduced the number of trips needed.You can climb the 178 steps to the top of the observation tower to view the Milwaukee skyline 30 miles away. We were there Sunday morning, and the tower didn't open until that afternoon after services.
There is another tale that describes a German priest who was recreant to his vows who came to America for penance. He found a reference to the hill in Marquette's diary and decided to take a pilgrimage. He became ill in Chicago, and was paralyzed. He reportedly found the hill, crawled to the summit on his hands, and was cured of his paralysis.
I can see where this would be considered a contemplative place for reflection and counsel. And I just found all of this stuff out because I like to add interesting little factoids along with my photos. ;-) Thank you Al Gore for inventing the internet.

So it seems that we weren't the only ones out and about enjoying the beautiful weather. We came upon a motorcycle gang, and I have to say, they were a scary bunch of bikers...
We maintained our distance from this group of Outlaws, not sure what their next move would be.
The warmer weather is giving way to more typical temps in the 50s and 60s. Our fall foliage is now past it's prime, with only about 25% of the leaves remaining. And I find it harder to leave the comfort of my nice warm bed each morning in the dark and cold...even though a certain canine is quite persistent.

Wordless Wednesday: Falling

2010-10-06T16:22:00.004-05:00

Biking Buddies

2010-09-16T09:10:00.000-05:00

He had been training for this ride for months, and although he knew what he was getting into, I don't think he really anticipated the full extent of it.
This past weekend was the Best Buddies Biking Challenge from Carmel to San Simeon along Highway 1. We brought Denis' bike on the plane with us so he would at least be familiar with his own bike to take on those hills and hairpin turns along the 100-mile route. Which of course presented the first challenge of the weekend, and that was reassembling the bicycle in rideable form.

Friday morning we got up to scout the course, and were afforded some spectacular views. It's been quite a while since we've been back to California. When people ask me where I'm from, I never really know what to answer. But there's just something about California that feels like home to me. In taking these pictures I noticed some specks in my viewfinder, and had a fit because I assumed that it was dust on my sensor and I wasn't sure what to do about it. Thanks to smart phones, we were able to look-up a camera shop in Carmel and take my camera in. Fortunately, the specks were just on the mirror, and with the purchase of a Hurricane Blower, they were displaced. By that time we could get Denis checked in for the ride and pick up all the necessary info. Afterward we thought we would continue our scouting trip of Highway 1, but our beautiful views had now turned to this...
So we decided to turn around and head back to Carmel and check out the mission.
Carmel Mission was founded in 1771 and is considered one of the most beautiful missions in the chain of nine missions that stretches along California’s Central Coast, and for more than 30 years was the seat of power for the missions.
In 1836, the Mission was abandoned and its lands were sold off, and quickly fell into ruin. After a couple of failed attempts, a research and restoration program was started in 1931 that brought the Mission to it's current beauty. In 1987, Pope John Paul II visited the mission as part of his U.S. tour. As a result, of his dedication, the Carmel mission church is one of the most authentically restored of all the mission churches in California.
The gardens are truly exquisite, and you can see where it would be a wonderful place for reflection, as well as host to a gorgeous wedding. The Mission was designed by a stonemason from Mexico City, and features Moorish architectural elements including a bell tower and golden exterior, and still holds services and a school.

Saturday morning got off to an early start as the riders needed to be at the start line by 7:00. After our scouting mission the previous day, Denis had picked out a spot along the road for me to meet him. As I sat waiting in the van, I was anxious for the first of the riders to appear, but was getting bored, so I looked around and started taking a few pictures. I had put the camera in "sports" mode, hoping it would be the best setting to capture the riders as they came by. I could see the pack coming down the hill and pointed my camera and started shooting. When the pack had kind of thinned, I quickly glanced at a few shots to see how they were turning out. Unfortunately, I had switched out of sports mode while I was bored, and ended up 200+ pics of this...
When Denis got to our meeting spot, he said he was doing a lot better than he thought he would and was going to continue on. And he kept on going past the next couple of spots where I had pulled over for him.
He really did an awesome job considering he just started riding a few months ago. This course is definitely not for novices. I wish I had gotten pictures of some of the hills and turns that make up this stretch of road (I guess I was too busy dodging cyclists). I'm in awe at all of the riders that took on this challenge, regardless of whether it was the 15-, 35-, 62- or 100-mile segment.
Tom also rode along in the van with us. Team Manpower getting ready to take off for the last segment of the course.

As I'm heading towards the finish area, I pass the Piedras Blancas Elephant Seal Rookery. They are usually on the beach from December to April for birthing, breeding, molting and rest. They usually spend eight to ten months a year in the open ocean, diving 1000 to 5000 feet deep for periods of fifteen minutes to two hours, and migrating thousands of miles. This group is mostly young males that are molting.
This little guy has obviously been well fed...even though they tell you not to.
I knew that I really needed to get a move on in order to get to the finish area if I wanted to see Denis come riding in. Of course I made a wrong turn, and ended up pulling into the finish the same time as Denis, so all I got was a quick (blurry) shot out the window.
Once you reach the finish, they have showers, massages, (ice packs for certain celebrities), food and drinks for the riders. After all of the riders have completed their rides, there is a huge party across the street at the Hearst Ranch with more food and drink, entertainment (Natasha Bedingfield was performing), and awards. This year they set a new record raising nearly $4million for this one event. Denis' boss was the number five top overall fundraiser, and Team Manpower was the third highest fund raising team. That's actually pretty incredible considering they only had 20 riders, and the number one team had almost 100 people, and the number two team had 60.

The party went on until 9:30, but it had already been a long day so we headed out a bit early with some additional team members. We probably should have checked the GPS for another way to get back to Carmel, but didn't, and ended up taking Highway 1 back...in the dark...and the fog...barely able to see past the hood of the car. It was a white-knuckle ride the whole 3-1/2 hours it took us to get back to Caarmel. Driving through that was the strangest sensation, essentially wearing blinders, not able to see anything on either side, or anything farther down the road than a few feet ahead. Not an experience I hope to repeat. However, he is already talking about continuing training, and getting ready for next year.

Mosaic Monday: Rainbow Connection

2010-08-30T20:10:00.008-05:00

1. The Big Red Barn, 2. Behind the Red Door, 3. Red in the Face, 4. Flowers are red young man, 5. Paint the Town Red, 6. Do the Funky Chicken, 7. Orange Crush, 8. Second Season, 9. The Calling, 10. Oranja Glad..., 11. ...I Didn't Say Banana, 12. Do Not Cross, 13. Fields of Gold, 14. That Cool Refreshing Drink, 15. Desperately Seeking Susan, 16. Punch Buggy, 17. It's Not Easy..., 18. "...through the veil of the mist”, 19. "I think that I shall never see", 20. “Praise the ripe field not the green corn”, 21. ...Do I See, 22. Blue Jay Way, 23. Blue Prints, 24. Blue Blazes, 25. "It was a blue letter"

I think I'm officially throwing in the towel on my Project 365. Taking a "meaningful" picture every day is just something I'm not feeling. I had hoped to at least break 300 images for the year, but I don't think I can even reach that goal now. By giving myself a weekly theme, I thought it would help with "what should I take a picture of?". But even topics as generic as "red", "orange", "yellow", "green", "blue", and "purple" proved to be a struggle this month. I didn't even get to the purple portion, and ended up shooting a couple of the pictures together on one day to catch up. Not that I'm going to stop taking pictures, but I think I'm just going to let it happen, rather than force it.

Someday I'll find it...

I'm in the Mood

2010-08-28T07:21:00.012-05:00

for Halloween...

So, I think it's time to get ready to Trick or Treat...
Care to come along...

You will be sending two treats and one trick to be swapped out. At least two of the items need to be handmade. The third item can be store-bought, or you can make all three items. It's your choice as to what you make/buy for tricks and treats. Please do not send any food items. There's no way to know what food allergies your recipient may have.
We will actually be Trick ’r Treating in Bloglandia, so everyone who joins must have a blog, a Flickr/Photobucket account, or a way to display photos on the web, in order to play.
Please mark which items are treats, and which are tricks. And since on Halloween you never know what you're going to get or whom from, don't put your name, email or blog on any of the items or their wrappings. That will be half of the fun when we go Trick 'r Treating.
All tricks and treats need to be to me by October 8th. Any packages received after that date will be returned to their owner. The timeline really needs to be adhered to in order for everything to go as planned.
Be sure to pack your items well, and remember that I will be reusing these boxes for return shipping. Also include $8.00 for return postage. Even though it may not cost that much to mail to me, when I mix all of the packages up, your return package may be larger and/or heavier. International spirits are welcome to play too. We'll figure out what international postage will cost for you, and you can send that amount through PayPal.
I will take sign-ups through October 1 (flwave at hotmail dot com), as long as you can get your items to me by October 8.
When all of the packages are received, I will go through and randomly swap out two treats and one trick for each participant.
Your return packages will be sent to you by October 12.
Everyone should receive their packages with time to photograph your trick and treats.
By October 30, please post pictures of your Trick and Treats. Post what you made, as well as what you received. Try and plan ahead to get your post ready. You can always upload early and schedule it to post on the 30th.
On October 31, we'll make the rounds Trick ’r Treating looking for our goodies. I will have the links to everyone participating posted on my blog, so start Trick ’r Treating there.

IDEAS: Have fun...be creative...
Treats - altered journals/notebooks, banner/garlands, photo albums, ornaments, candles, apron/kitchen towels in Halloween print, pendants/bracelets/earrings, party decor, felt/yarn pumpkins, glittery decor
Tricks - specimen jars, spell books, gag gifts (fake bugs/eyeballs/vampire teeth), masks, creepy portraitures, altered urn, casket basket, drink recipes w/ spooktini glasses, favorite scary movie, stuff from Martha's Bad Things

I think I have most of the details covered, but let me know if you have any questions. Feel free to post the swap badge on your blog, and be sure to let anyone you think would be interested about the swap. Should be a spooktacular time!

Or maybe some of these other fun swaps interest you...I know they did me.
Artsy Mama's annual Sweet & Sinister swap and Halloween project blog (sign-ups through Sept 1 or 100 participants)

Val's (Yarnigras) very clever Edger Allan Poe Altered Art Swap (sign-ups through Aug 28)
Hope to see ya in the neighborhood.

Wordless Wednesday

2010-08-25T11:06:00.003-05:00

Wisconsin Cheese, American Gothic and Funnel Cake

2010-08-13T09:13:00.013-05:00

Denis decided to take some much needed time off last week. We had originally planned for vacation time for the last week of August, but when the reservations were made we didn't know that Denis would be riding in the Best Buddies Bike Challenge in September. So we found ourselves with a week with nothing to do, and so just sorta putzed around...

I needed to shoot my roll of 120 film for the PhotoSwap, so Denis spent the day riding around Milwaukee with me to get some local landmarks to show Ana a taste of real Wisconsin "cheese". (And yea! all 12 exposures turned out, but I really need to work on getting leveling my horizons.)
One of the reasons Denis needed a break was some major software upgrades happening at work, and we all know how resistant to change some people can be. The Chicago offices were amongst the most vocal complaining of issues, so he figured he could pop into an office and see first-hand what they were experiencing, and we could also take the opportunity to visit the Art Institute. Even though you could see these works of art in any book or on the web, I like getting to see them upclose, and actually see the brush strokes, textures and mediums used by the artists. As we wandered through the various collections, I wondered what all of the different artists would have to say about each other's work, i.e. Rembrandt commenting on the simplicity of Rothko's modern abstracts, while his work has an amazing amount of detail, and his use of light and shadow. I could imagine them arguing with each other, "You call that art?".
After the museum we walked across the street and had lunch at the Park Grill restaurant, which is in Millennium Park. There are several pieces of artwork on display, including the Crown Fountain. The fountain consists of two 50-foot glass block towers at each end of a shallow reflecting pool. Obviously, an ideal gathering spot for youngsters on a hot summer day. Faces are projected on LED screens and water flows through an outlet in the screen giving the illusion of them spitting. The artist designed the piece so the faces had water spouting from their mouths as a reference to the traditional use of gargoyles in fountains, where faces of mythological beings were sculpted with open mouths to allow water, a symbol of life, to flow out. Or maybe just a way to cool off.

The Wisconsin State Fair started last Thursday, and I thought it would be a good opportunity to go shoot some pictures that weren't just around the house. It was actually smaller than I thought it would be for the state fair. I figured there would be more rides and games, but what it lacked on the fairway it made up for in the food stalls. There definitely was plenty to choose from and we only wandered the first few rows. All of the items "on a stick" must have been in the back of the fairgrounds because we didn't see any of them, and missed the chocolate covered bacon.
And of course you couldn't miss all of the various animals that were participating in the fair...baby ducks and ducks that look like they are wearing powdered wigs, Clydesdale horses, funky chickens, sheep in hoods (they all had just been bathed and groomed in preparation for judging), cows of all sort of shapes and sizes, and even bunnies. I really wanted to see the pig races, and we kept watch of time for the next show, but in getting through the pig facility we got turned around and missed the area where the races were being held. Oh, well, maybe next year? I did get that funnel cake though.
And a trip to the movies to see Salt rounded out our week of staycation.

Mosaic Monday: Picture Summer

2010-08-02T07:31:00.008-05:00

1. It's been so long since I've seen the ocean, 2. Splish Splash, 3. Center Stage, 4. Rocket's Red Glare, 5. Hits the Spot, 6. I Can See for Miles and Miles, 7. My Favorite Weed, 8. "...the sight of the stars makes me dream.", 9. Having a Ball, 10. Star Wars, Nothing but Star Wars, 11. "Never be afraid to sit awhile and think.", 12. Juicy, 13. The summer wind, came blowin in..., 14. "My sun sets to raise again.", 15. Head in the Clouds, 16. A Fungus Among Us, 17. Tiny Bubbles, 18. Jump for Joy, 19. Toh-mah-toh, Tah-may-toh, 20. Out of the Blue, 21. Rock Lobster, 22. Skip Out, 23. A human being is only breath and shadow.~Sophocles, 24. Aim for the Moon, 25. Pear-ly Noticeable, 26. the earth laughs in flowers~e.e. cummings, 27. You Spin Me Round (Like a Record), 28. Getting My Feet Wet, 29. Dog Days of Summer, 30. What's the Buzz?

Wrapped up July's photos by following along with Tracey Clark's Picture Summer e-class. As a grouping, with tiny little thumbnails, they don't look so bad, but I did struggle with some of the prompts and the picture that I ended up with for that day. Which brings me back around to posting bad images just for the sake of posting something for that particular day. I know I just need to look at the big picture (ha-ha), and that this is really an exercise in learning the camera better and improving my skills...but it's difficult when I review the day's images and don't like what I see. It's just me and my impatience for immediate results. I did get POTD on Shutter Sisters 365 for the beach lifeguard image...so I guess it doesn't all suck.

We're getting into the dangerous time of the year...holiday swaps. Linda at A Swap for All Seasons just posted her fall swap yesterday...
I did try to resist, but how could I pass up mini matchboxes...and then a daily reveal of what those matchboxes contain starting December 1. Sometimes I really struggle with getting in the holiday spirit, but I think this will be the remedy for that this year. And I have two whole months to get my matchboxes done...knowing me, I better start now.

Developing

2010-08-01T12:16:00.013-05:00

Perusing SwapDex, as I do quite frequently, I saw this post for a PhotoSwap where you would shoot a roll of film and then mail it to your partner. Rhianne had links from the previous year's swap where there were so many wonderful images, and I thought it was pretty cool to get a roll of film from a stranger having no idea what was on it.

I've always liked the randomness of the lomo photographs with their light leaks and vignetted edges, so I bought a Lomography Diana+ Camera at Urban Outfitters a year or so ago and started a roll of film, but never had it developed. I thought this was a perfect time to break out the camera again and play.

I was paired up with Ana Erb who shot with her Holga, Claudette (love that her camera has a name, and that she made her some fun accessories to take her around town with...I really need to do both for my Diana). Well, Ana's package arrived this past week with her film, and it was so fun just opening the package.
The envelope was a bubble-wrapped map of Florida (Ana's from Tallahassee), and the front part of the map featured Lakeland where Denis and I first lived when we got married (something Ana had no idea about). So I knew we were off to a good start... Inside Ana included a polaroid of Claudette, and her film was packaged up with it's own bag wrap. Cute!

These are the amazing photos that Ana took...

I love how they turned out and the subjects are all so interesting, especially the masked figure peering out from curtains. The images sort of remind of some of the opening scenes from True Blood with their rural abandoned feel.

Shooting this way is very much outside my comfort zone since I can't "see" what my images look like as I take them, or have the chance to post process them. I went ahead and shot a test roll that I developed at the same time as Ana's roll, and I'm really glad I did since there were a few "blank" exposures. I'm gonna need to be extra careful with my shots, and also making sure that the shutter isn't get flipped in my bag. But that's sort of the excitement about giving up control and just seeing what appears.

Someone else in the PhotoSwap group has a blog about the Diana Mini, and I think I'm quite smitten with this little camera. It shoots 35mm film (more easily accessible and able to get processed), and you can shoot these side-by-side images (sorta like I have Ana's displayed here), which would give you 72 exposures on a 36-exp roll of film. Plus it's in miniature...so cute...and I can stick it in my purse or camera bag to have with me all the time.

Another swap development are images of the crown that I created for Jen...
I used a ductwork collar and straps from the hardware store as the base, which I colored with alcohol inks, and antiqued by brushing over the edges with a brown inkpad. I added Jen's trademark burlap, some metal trim from an old vanity mirror, vintage trim and rhinestones, and topped it off with a thrift-store drapery finial. I created a case for the crown, in case Jen needs to travel with the royal jewels, a vintage-inspired necklace, chandelier drop, and included some other "crown" goodies all wrapped in a turquoise bucket. I really sorta amazed myself as the crown came together and was happy with it's final turnout.

One final development is signing up for a Marie Antoinette Charm swap that is being hosted by Molly, one of the fabulous Steampunk Charm makers. That should tie me over until it's time to start up with Halloween...Trick or Treat anyone?

Fit for a Queen

2010-07-15T17:40:00.006-05:00

When I saw that Molly was hosting a Crown Swap, I immediately knew I had to join in. She paired me up with Jen at Tatertots and Jello, and I was very excited and nervous all the same. Jen posts all sorts of cool tutorials and diy's on her blog, and all of the really talented people link up to her. I hoped I would be able to come up something that would knock her socks off, like she does mine when I tune in to see what she's been up to.

So yesterday when a box graced my doorstop, I couldn't wait to tear into it. But I restrained myself and took out each piece of paper and folded it off to the side, and then slowly begin to unwrap the smaller items.
Like this fabulous tassel...beautifully done in ribbons of aquas and tans, topped by a beautiful shell, and of course donning Jen's trademark burlap. It goes perfectly with the shell wreath on the front door that I made last year.
And this neat burlap bracelet decked out with a Paris cabochon and B&W ribbon, and a very pretty aqua star.
Mmm, a nice white lantern with votive...is there a theme going on here?
Why even the chocolate bar matches the scheme. But saving the best for last, I was blown away as I pulled the tissue back from this beauty...
a glorious sea-inspired crown just perfect for a Mermaid Queen. How regal it is in all of it's intricate and charming details.
A glittered sand dollar serves as the focal piece and is backed with lace and burlap, glittered sea pods and kelp just pop off of the aqua polka dotted background, ruffled silk ribbon with smaller shells circle the rim of the crown with just a hint of more burlap peeking out, aqua and gold tulle billow out the top with sparkly bits, and then it's tied up in the back with this gorgeous ombre silk ribbon in blues and greens.
Jen must have done the Vulcan mind-meld thing on me, because she created a swap package that was so completely "me". Look how the colors match my tablecloth and walls! How did she do that? Well, however she did it, she certainly made me feel like a Queen with her thoughtfulness and creativity, and I'm glad I've gotten to know her past stalking her blog.

Mosaic Monday: America the Beautiful

2010-07-05T09:45:00.006-05:00

While Denis logged some miles on his bicycle for the upcoming Best Buddies Challenge, I headed to Cedarburg for a slice of pure Americana. The annual Fourth of July parade delivered everything you would expect...
color guards and fire trucks; Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts; marching bands and rock bands; beauty queens, weathermen and Elvis.

There were also cyclists, dogs and horses; cars (even those shaped liked shoes) and tractors; flag twirlers, dancers and cheerleaders; and of course later that night, fireworks.

Not a bad way to celebrate our country's independence and freedom.

Full Steam Ahead

2010-07-02T11:51:00.009-05:00

My mailbox has been so boring as of late. I had been receiving fabulous packages with amazing creations in them, but sadly all of the packages have been received and sent back out. What an incredible group of artists participated in the Steampunk Charm Exchange I hosted. They all did such fabulous work, and how each one interpreted Steampunk, and their use of items that inspired them was really spectacular.

Without further adieu...
Tina - Patina Marie

Suz - Katsui Jewelry

Sandy - Sew Revived

Sandi

Pam - Frippery

Molly - Material Gal Molly

Melissa - Little Messy Missy

Melanie - A Day in the Life

Marcy - Queen Marcy Originals

Luz - She Flies with Her Own Wings

Karen

Carol - Sugar Hill Studio

Anna - Anna's Minis and Junk

Angie - Hopemore Studio

These are the charms that I did. I knew I wanted a steampunk charm bracelet, but didn't think I could come up with enough designs to fill it out. Doing a swap would help me get a number of different pieces to fill a bracelet with. Of course, as I started working I did come up with several ideas, but found some copper discs and gear shapes at Bead and Button that I ended up using for most of my charms. I still have some other things on my workbench to finish up as well.

A Thank You package I sent to each of the participants with some chain and tassel to get them started on a bracelet or necklace.

This really was a fun swap, and I hope I get a chance to swap with these wonderful artists again.

Just Beachy

2010-07-01T17:09:00.006-05:00

Okay, no more slacking off with the P365...

Today is day 1 of Picture Summer with Tracey Clark, and today's prompt was to shoot whatever it may be that says summer to us. Growing up in Southern California, the beach is what summer means to me (and I have the skin cancer scars that say it too).
We usually tried to get to the beach by 9:00, so we could get the free parking spaces at Zuma Beach. Loaded down with beach chairs, towels, magazines/books, soft drinks and snacks, and the essential boombox, we layed out all day til about 3:00. That usually got us home at 4:00, which was just enough time to hop in the shower and dash out the door to be to work (Del Taco) by 5:00. We usually would go 3-4 times each week. I even wanted to get a personalized license plate that said "a la playa" (to the beach).
Our summers pretty much revolved around the beach. If it we weren't there tanning during the day (and judging who was the tannest), it was for nighttime picnics. You could always find somebody to go to the beach with.

Now living in the Midwest, you would think it would be difficult finding a beach to photograph.
But since Milwaukee is along the shores of Lake Michigan, there actually is a beach. It struck me the first time that we came here how ocean-like Lake Michigan is, since you can't see across to the other side. I guess Bradford Beach wasn't that nice a few years ago, but the community has really made an effort to clean it up and chase off the riff-raff. Now you'll find it crowded with families, sunbathers, volleyball players, jet skiers, and kite surfers. It's actually a very nice area to go hang out and spend the day, and they usually have various events scheduled throughout the summer.

Feeling the sand squish between my toes today brought back all of those fond memories of hanging out with fun friends, and when the only worry was getting the best tan.

Mosaic Monday: Into the Night

2010-06-28T12:34:00.002-05:00

June has been such a blah month for me taking pictures. I've been pretty unmotivated, and other than my Nighttime Photography class, I really haven't taken any pictures. Fortunately we had two field trip sessions during the class to get out there and shoot. So since the class meets downtown, we hit the streets for some auto trails, the riverwalk for nighttime reflections, and even down to the museum for building shots. The night we went down to the museum happened to be the mayors' meeting at the museum, so they actually had the "wings" up that night, which we got to watch close up. As we were shooting, two police officers showed up on horseback to the open area we were set up in. Turns out, FBI along the rooftops called it in that a bunch of people with cameras have shown up and they should probably check it out. Hee, hee. I did try out some "light painting" shots as well. I'd probably like to redo the guitar shot so my light strokes aren't so wide and cartoonish. But it's been fun, and I have some tips for fireworks shooting that I may try out this weekend.

A Little B&B

2010-06-18T16:30:00.006-05:00

Last week was the Bead and Button show here in Milwaukee. They offer some 200+ classes during the week, and then a huge merchant's show for shopping over the weekend. I signed up for Creating Hollow Forms in Color: Enamels and Exploration of Resin: Creating Transparent Jewelry with Susan Lenart Kazmer, and also a Wild and Crazy Bangle with Tracy Stanley, who I took a class from in April at Beadfest.

First class was enamels. Since I already have the kiln and set up for fusing glass, enamels seemed like a natural progression in working with metals. You can either kiln fire, or torch fire, the enamels onto the metal. I had much better luck firing in the kiln, and it goes pretty quickly ramping from 1200 up to about 1550 degrees. The cone-shaped piece I tried torch firing and my enamel kept flaking off, probably because I didn't heat the metal properly. My only gripe with the kiln is when trying to get enamel on both sides, your previously enameled side will stick to the trivet in the kiln. Then there's the extra work of having to grind off the burrs from where the enamel stuck. My kiln has a bead door on the side, so I'm hoping that pieces, like the cone, can slide on a mandrel and I can rest the mandrel on the trivet and not the enameled piece. Now I just have to get some enamels and play.
While in class, Susan looked at me and asked if I had taken a class with her before. Back in 2001 at Art Continuum in Ohio, I took Susan's Talisman Bracelet, so I was fairly surprised that I even looked familiar to her. That was quite a while ago, and I'm sure quite a number of students ago.

I also signed up for Susan's resin class. I was kicking myself because I guess I didn't go through the class schedule well enough. Susan had taught a kiln-casting glass class the previous two days that I really would have rather done, especially since I'd just done resin with Jill at Valley Ridge. So, I poured a few more bezels...
coated a few more resin papers...
and made a few more molds...
I thought that it was interesting that Susan had brought some unique items to place in the resins, like spices for adding color. In the round mold, I added Paprika to give it the orangey-red color. This was the first time any of the molds were used, which are generally toss out pieces because of all of the bubbles, but I kinda like the effect.

And she also showed how to create this pod shaped piece (mine doesn't do it justice). The resin paper is actually glued on with E6000, but the pieces can be worked with either wet or already dried resin papers.
The Wild and Crazy Bangle was kinda tricky starting out since you begin with about 5' of wire to begin the initial form, and are essentially weaving the wire around itself, creating swirls and loops and coils along the way.
I'm not really happy with how it turned out, as I think it looks too wide and chunky on my wrist. I added the wrap of teal beads trying to fill in some of the holes, but other than the addition of color, I don't think it did anything for the bracelet. My hope is to try and make another one, because I really don't think I will wear this one.

The show floor at Bead and Button is amazing and overwhelming. There are over 350 exhibitors, ranging from individual bead makers to the large jewelry suppliers, with beads and metals, beads and tools, beads and findings, oh, and more beads. They offer a preview night on Thursday for attendees to start shopping before the public. I knew there were a couple of things I was looking for so I figured I would try and get those out of the way. I really didn't get through much of the show those couple of hours, since the few places I did buy stuff from took quite a while to get rung up. I figured I would go back on Friday, and try and avoid the weekend shoppers, but that didn't work out as hoped. I did make it back on Sunday, and it wasn't as crowded as I had expected. Perhaps most of the die-hard shoppers had spent all of their money. Maybe I missed out on some of the things earlier that were in short supply, but I probably wouldn't have been diving in there to get them in the first place. Plus, I can always order it online later. Although there are some things I may not realize I "need" until I actually see them.

As usual, it was a good time, and I definitely got my fix of beads...until next year.

Mosaic Monday: P365, Merry Month of May

2010-06-07T14:09:00.004-05:00

Another month shot to hell...where do the days go? But on the other hand, it seems like May was so long ago. Sigh...

Nothing extraordinary photography-wise this month. My one challenge was the race, which I posted about last time. I'm actually very unmotivated to take any photos, and am pretty tired of the flower macro that is so easy to fall back on. I did start a Night Photography class this month, which I think is going to be pretty cool. So expect to see a lot of black images in the mosaic next month.

There are a couple of things I've discovered that I'm hoping will give me a creativity boost. The first is Creativity Boot Camp, which actually started yesterday. Could be just the thing I need, and I'm thinking of taking these two weeks to kick start some art journaling, which I've been saying I want to do for a very long time.

I also saw these online workshops by LK Ludwig that look interesting, both from a journal and a photography aspect. The iPhone workshop seems pretty cool, and I'm thinking maybe it will get my brain to look at things differently using the phone's camera vs the dSLR.

And then Tracey Clark is hosting a continuation of the Picture Spring workshop with Picture Summer beginning July 1.
Should be just the kick in the pants I need...well, we can only hope.

Start Your Engines

2010-05-31T19:21:00.017-05:00

A few months ago while attending a conference, Denis won a trip to the Indianapolis 500 which is held annually over the Memorial Day weekend. It seemed like a nice little getaway for the long weekend, so off we went.

My mom was a big Indy car fan, and I remember her having the race on the television while cheering for Mario Andretti, Al Unser, Rick Mears, and usually booing AJ Foyt. My personal favorite was Gordon Johncock because of his hot pink racing car.

We dropped the dogs off late Saturday morning, and headed down to Indy. On Sunday morning when we awoke, they were already talking about parking at the racetrack was already full, and where you could go to find alternate lots. Not a good sign since the race didn't start until 1:00. So my brilliantly clever husband called the concierge to find out about booking a car service to take us to and pick up from the race. Talk about money well spent...we got dropped off near the gate entrance, met him back in the same spot, and was whisked away before all of the roads were closed to incoming traffic. Good call.
The event, billed as "The Greatest Spectacle in Racing", is one of the oldest, and considered one of the three most significant, motorsports events in the world. This year was the 94th race, and has taken place annually since 1911 at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway except for 1917-18 and 1942-45 during America’s participation in world wars, and covers 500 miles/200 laps on the famous 2.5-mile oval track. Stadium seating capacity is about 250,000 people, and infield seating raises that capacity further to an approximate 400,000.
The pre-race ceremonies featured Florence Henderson singing God Bless America, Jewel singing the Star-Spangled Banner, and Jim Nabors singing Back Home Again in Indiana. Naval F-18s did the fly over, and release of the balloons signified that things were about to get underway.
Jack Nicholson served as the honorary starter throwing the green flag as the official start of the race.We prepared ourselves for a day in the sun with SPF-100 lotion, hats, sunglasses, long-sleeve shirts, and ear plugs, and it was a scorcher at 93 degrees, a record-breaker for the Indy 500. (But I guess that's nothing compared to the 130 degrees temps on the track.) About an hour after race-start, the sun finally had moved enough to put us in shade which provided some relief. Our seats were near the start/finish line, across from the pits, and fairly close to the track. Unfortunately with the barriers set up, and the tight seating situation, photo opps weren't the greatest. And quite frankly, at 200+ mph, the camera couldn't keep up either. I have lots of blank track shots, partial car shots, and shots of the people's heads in front of us.
Fortunately, with the camera set to burst mode, I could snag a few images here and there. I had done some research prior to going about what shutter speeds to use and such, but didn't seem to have any luck getting those great shots with the cars frozen and the wheels blurred. And forget about trying to pan...just way too fast for me. Anyhow, I think the pit stops were some of the more interesting aspects of the race (and it was the one thing we could really see what was going on). It's amazing what those crews get done in a matter of seconds, and each and every second counts. Danica Patrick was booed for publicly criticizing her crew for her poor performance during the qualifying run the previous week.

And when they're all done servicing the car, the drivers get the heck out of there as fast as they can.
Which is what we did trying to beat everyone else out of the place. We had heard that it can take three hours to get out after the race, so it just worked out to have the car service pick us up early. We did miss the end of the race when that spectacular crash happened in the last lap. It just amazes me that the driver only suffered a broken leg after his car went flying up into the fence, and literally disintegrated as it crashed back onto the track, narrowly missing the head of the driver of the car it originally hit. We also missed seeing Ashley Judd congratulate her husband, Dario Franchitti, for winning the race, after he led 155 of the 200 laps of the race.

While going to the race was fun, I think I'd much prefer to watch it on TV. Being in the stands has a limited viewing perspective, and we ended up watching a lot of it on the large monitor anyway. Racing isn't like watching other sports live, where you can usually see most of playing field. But I can say that I've been there, done that, and passed on the t-shirt.

Alphabet & Zahlen

2010-05-22T15:14:00.000-05:00

LaWendula hosts a monthly paper exchange with each month being a different theme. In March, the theme was Alphabets and Numbers, and since I love paper and I have a thing for typography, I just couldn't turn this swap down. For each paper swap you collect papers during the month based on the theme that you think your partner could use in collage, or various art projects they may be involved in.

I was paired up with Cynnie from Germany, who creates in watercolors, acrylics and bookbinding. She handpainted and stamped this wonderful set of papers, each one so vibrant and textured. I can definitely see using some of these sheets in the future in book projects and as covers.

She also included a whole bunch of beautiful napkins which work so perfectly in collage for the transparency they lend. If my room wasn't such a disaster still, I would be whipping out the gel medium and slapping stuff on canvas.

A huge package of trims and phrases, and alphabet stickers. Cynnie was recently in a "Pink Stinks" swap, so she threw in some of her pink collection with this swap too. That could be fun...a swap based on color. Mmmmm!
And then there's all of these postage stamps, a sweet bookmark, and stickers, and vintage flowers, and notepads with my initials.

I'm a magazine junkie (although I have gotten better), and she sent this German home and garden magazine. Even though I can't read it, there are some wonderful images and projects to "ooh" and "aah" over. The typography spread has perfect things that fit in with our alpha/number theme, and oh, what lovely garden spreads.

I loved getting my package from Cynnie, and it was so interesting getting it from someone outside of the US. This way we were able to mix it up, and I got some cool stuff I normally wouldn't see or have ready access to, and hopefully Cynnie got some cool stuff from me...ein, zwei, drei.

Meet Henry

2010-05-20T19:16:00.001-05:00

Henry has lived under the front stoop of our house ever since we moved in almost two years ago. We've always maintained a proper social decorum, keeping our appropriate distances. This week I noticed that Henry had a friend. Having one snake is one thing, but I thought two snakes could soon lead to a dozen, and I really didn't want a bunch of squirming snake babies at my front door. So today I had Henry, Henrietta, and Jr (yes, a third one) relocated. They certainly didn't go willing, and the wildlife guy had to be quick to catch them. So we bid farewell to Henry and wish him luck in his new surroundings.