Friday, July 30, 2010

not too late

FYI
it's not to late to sign up for class
it starts monday august 2
i highly recommend it
marie is an excellent teacher
and in four weeks you will learn
tons of techniques to
sepia, vintage ,texture effects, frames
and layer and clipping masks
camera raw and actions
brushes, filters and layers
and fun projects to combine
all that you have learned
plus a bonus of goodies to use in your work
see some of our class work here
it's a great community of people
inspiring and having fun

the videos are wonderful
easy to follow and understand
i learned so many tip and tricks that i never knew about

Tuesday, July 27, 2010

playing around

with a little time today
i found a bunch of photos
taken a few weeks ago
all of telephone poles
they where just so grungy
above
a pole completely covered in tape
a few tweaks in ps and it looked
like a great background layer

then i found one of my statue photos from paris
some greek letters and a page form a math book
a few more texture layers
one from shadowhouse
lots of playing around
i must have tried every blending mode
and finally came up with this!
i wish i had time to play all day


Friday, July 23, 2010

new blooms

after the heavy rain last nite
and this morning
when i went out to access the damage
and discovered something new
i planted this hydrangea three years ago
this is the first time it has bloomed
-----------
above, my photo with a mask from shodowhouse
using the difference blending mode

Tuesday, July 20, 2010

being inspired

after looking through carmi's
i've been inspired to finish working on
my paris photos so i can make one myself
just as a keepsake to remember my trip

i'm on day 10 from my 12 day trip
and have over 5500 photos to go through


i'm hoping i'll finish this weekend
and then it will be the challenge on picking
my favorite 100 or maybe 200


all the photos above where taken
of the opera garnier




Sunday, July 18, 2010

country grunge

everyone knows i love texture
grunge of any kind
so last weekend on our country road excursion
we spotted this tractor museum
it wasn't open for business
but the front was filled with old tractors and parts
i was in grunge heaven!!!

there was so much
i couldn't take the photos fast enough!!!


i take a lot of these types of photos
they make great texture layers in photoshop

here's one quick example
on the left part of a tractor and
on the right the roof of the museum
with the textured added
i used the overlay blending mode
set the opacity at 60%
and used the eraser to scrub away some areas
around the windmill
it just give the sky a little interest



Friday, July 16, 2010

my new favorite book

the next best thing to having your own personal
tour thought paris with carmi
is having a copy of her book
i received my copy in the mail on my birthday
and have been enjoying it
each morning with my coffee
it is over a hundred pages of beautiful photos
a day to day guide through the neighbourhoods
trips and tricks on everything
places to stay, favorite shops,
flee markets and antiques, jewelry, fabric,
guided tours, attractions and the metro,
anything an artsy girl would need to know
with websites and phone numbers
it will definitely be in my bag for my next trip
but for now i can enjoy the memories
it is the perfect companion for anyone
traveling to paris

Tuesday, July 13, 2010

weekend shopping part 2

on sunday we spent 3 hours at the flee market
the prices where unbelievable!!!
i found all this lace and door pulls
for only $10


this metal drawer was filled with tin plates
door pulls and hooks
i pick up once piece and asked how much
$5 ," for one piece, no thanks"
"that's for the the box"
a steal at double the price
there was at least 20 pieces in there!!!



i collect kodak camera's
this one came with the three light meters
all for $10!!!
and the books where amazing
the encyclopedia of furniture circa 1930's
1896 illustrated catalogue of
jewelry and european fashions
from marshall fields and co.
and
1902 edition of the sear, roebuck catalogue
1162 pages of images and prices

all three book $5
------
it was a good haul!!!


Monday, July 12, 2010

weekend shopping, part 1

it was a wonderful weekend
and early birthday celebration
for ludgera and myself
we decided to take a drive down to rochester, ny
and visit the fine art store
when you google encaustic supplies
you get to their shop
when we arrive we were lucky to meet
cathryn bevier their encaustic specialist
i bought several enkaustikos products
which i'm looking forward to trying out
slick wax for cleaning your brushes
and xd wax medium used to create a glass-like topcoat
i also got some metal eyedroppers and a slotted brush
----
above a shot from the local coffee house-- java
very cool place with tons of art everywhere

after the art store we ended up at
hobby lobby where i found some cheap bezels
and some christmas stuff
(yes i said christmas!!!)
next stop joann's for some yarn,
crochet book and quilters iron
and a quick espresso for lu at barnes and nobel
and we where on the road to bufffalo
well sort of.........
we missed the cutoff to the highway and
figured we would just take the country roads back!!
the skies were blue and no traffic


we found several yard and barn sales
and lots of antique shops
at gibsonville
we met owner nancy walcott
who specializes in caning, rush and splint seats
i found 3 rusted tins filled with metal parts,
hinges, door pulls and hooks
plus some really cool barbwire
------
above, shots from nancy's store
gibsonville antiques and restorers
5864 gibsonville rd., leicester, ny
585.658.3164

one of the houses we stopped to take a look at




some of the stuff i found along the way
and at the flee market the next day
i will post more tomorrow

Friday, July 9, 2010

finaly some rain

it's been pouring rain since late last nite
and today the humidity is bearable
the grass is greener, the birds are enjoying
all the puddles
and my garden is looking very lush
-----
above , i love the way rain sits on
the lady's mantel

inside i've been busy with the invitations
double sided silver paper with matching envelopes
black matt and linen invites
wrapped in velum
with the corners punched
all tied up with a shear black ribbon with tiny dots



25 finished
and 25 just need the bows tied

it's been awhile since i've done this kind of work
i'm really happy how they came out
and most importantly
so are the bride and her mom!!!





Thursday, July 8, 2010

keeping cool

with the heat still rising
thank god i have and excuse to be indoors
i'm making 50 wedding invitations
and they need to be done by tomorrow
both my printers have been on overdrive
25 sheets of sparkly linen paper
2 invites per page
25 sheets for the directions
plus rsvp cards and hotel information
good thing i have beanie the inspector on the case
-----
above, beanie trying to figure out just how they work
paper in here, more noise down there and
i'll just help them out here!!!
as both printer are on the go
i was busy cutting the sliver and black paper
for the invites
and 50 sheets of velum to wrap them up with
and beanie was busy guarding the printer
i needed a box to keep things organised
all i could find was a flat from the case of water

which bean used as a fort
finally she settled down and fell asleep
now i get to work layering, wrapping
and adding ribbon
i'll post the finished ones tomorrow

Tuesday, July 6, 2010

it's like a heat wave!!!

with temperatures in the 30's
(and with the humidity
it feels like 40 celsius)
it was a good day to stay inside....
going through some old photos
i came a cross my
winter file folder
it wasn't that long ago we where
wishing for warmer weather!!!!
----------
above, one of my photos from
earlier this year
i added a few textures
and using the color dodge and
color burn blending modes

Sunday, July 4, 2010

relaxing in the garden

at the end of an extra long weekend
it was nice to really enjoy my garden
i even got in a nap
-------
above, a few things blooming
today in my garden
coral bells, foamy bells, hosta
beebalm, echinacea, hydrangea
and lilies

Thursday, July 1, 2010

happy canada day!!!

to all my fellow canadians
happy canada day!!
-------
photo taken in my front yard
on my i phone and i added a mask
from shadowhouse creations
--------
and what would canada day be without
a little stompin' tom??


 
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