Practice Makes Perfect

I'm currently working on my photo editing skills. Which also involves figuring out my photo editing style, so to say.  I got my reluctant model of a little brother (teehee) to let me take some pictures of him earlier so I could work on my editing. Luckily he agreed. ;) This photo is my favorite so far.

Here's the original...

And the edited version...

Taken with Canon Rebel T1i and edited with Photoshop CS4

And the black and white version.

Edited with Photoshop CS4 and Picnik

What do you think?

You can expect to be bombarded with photography posts from me over the next few days. ;) I also have some jewelry and a few other projects I've been working on that need to be posted. And I'm serious about posting this time (like you've never heard that one before :P). But really, stay tuned!

Busy Bee

Sorry for the lack of posts! I have been working hard on a bunch of bracelets and such to sell at a local homeschool conference! I'm really excited. :D So, that explains my absence. ;) I have some pictures I'll get up in the next day or two. Until then, here's a picture of some chainmaille earrings I made!

My New Chalkboard

I'm in total design mode. I guess that's what I get for digging out all the 'This Old House' magazines and reading them.....repeatedly. :D So, I have a couple projects I'm going to work on for my bedroom over the next few weeks. This is the first.

Last week, when I saw the can of chalkboard paint (this stuff is AWESOME) sitting out, I decided I was going to get rid of the old bulletin board (that I haven't really used at all for the past few years) and paint myself a chalkboard. Silly me forgot to take a 'before' picture.

First I had to remove the hooks that had been holding the bulletin board and fill in the holes. Then I taped off my rectangle.

Excuse the weird lighting of my window on the right side...haha. 

After I had taped it, I painted.....obviously. ;) This is the only picture I got after I had painted....it's terrible and blurry and the color is off. :P

(Haha, and one of my dresser drawers is open :P)

Then I picked out some trim and my dad cut it, painted it white, and nailed it around the chalkboard painted area to make it look like a framed chalkboard. I love the way it looks...and it's always fun to write on a chalkboard. ;)

Coming soon: Revamped Desk Chair!

Vintagey Earrings

"Hey, is this a post about jewelry?! Wow, took you long enough."

Hehe, I don't really believe that any of you are reacting like that as you read this post. But if you are, I have nothing wrong with it. Well then, shall I get to the point? Yes? Ok, then. Note: I know vintagey is not a word, but 'Vintage Earrings' didn't have the same ring as 'Vintagey Earrings'.

I made these earrings...a while ago, haha. But I just got around to taking the pictures today. Oh wonderful DSLR was very successful at his first jewelry photo shoot. It took me about five minutes to get good shots of three items...that would have taken me 20 minutes with my point and shoot IF it was behaving. ANYHOO. I got some awesome things on clearance a few months ago that were vintage inspired. For these earrings I used brushed-brass looking ear wire and findings, a purple glass bead, and a little dangling gem charm. I love the way they turned out.

It's been REALLY warm here recently...mostly above 80 degrees, sometimes as high as 90 though. I'm not sure if I'm enjoying it or not....I love warm, but not hot. I HATE hot. But I do love sunshine....and afternoon thunderstorms! Oh, the afternoon thunderstorms are wonderful! They're one thing I do love about summer. :D 

By the way, Have I ever mentioned I love vintage stuff? Well I do, so now you know. :D

What Caught My Eye

A 'Do Not Enter' sign...

My friend's awesome belt...

The bright yellow 'No Parking' painted on the asphalt (the word parking was covered in cracks filled with tar, so I just took a picture of the no. ;)...

This long red fence surrounded by sweeping grasses on a clear day...

Cookies, just out of the oven...

This lovely orange flower...

Tuesday night's sunset that made for awesome bokeh...

And in other news...

My desk has reclaimed itself for it's original purpose. You see, since I got my new desk a few years ago, it goes between stages of being an area to work on school and an area to do crafts. It's been recently converted from the latter to the former.

That first picture was taken quite a while ago....it was a mess when I converted it to the "school work desk."

But where'd all my craft stuff go you ask?

Most of it is right there in that storage bin under the desk. The rest of it is on a little shelf next to my desk.

If you guessed that I haven't been doing much crafting, you're correct! :P I do have a stock of things I haven't posted about though, so those should be coming soon. :) In the mean time, I'll be posting more photography....because it doesn't require a work surface. Haha. 

Please excuse the bad lighting in the photos...my bedroom is a TERRIBLE place for photography and I decided not to edit them before posting.

Just a few pics...

While you're waiting for me to put together some crafty posts, I thought I'd share a few of my recent photos. :)