Dirty Little Secrets

It's not really a secret per se, but I have a few addictions that I feel I need to acknowledge for the sake of full disclosure.

I am woefully addicted to shoes...no really, I need a 12 step (pun intended) program.  My latest loves are strappy high heeled sandals.  So far I've acquired 2 pairs of brown, 2 pairs of black, though technically one of those is a wedge heel, so it doesn't really count right?!  And I'm still on the hunt for a pair of white and maybe some coral colored ones...I think I need an intervention soon!

I thought I had beaten my addiction to footwear, only to realize that it would likely be replaced by a handbag addiction, so for now I will stick with shoes because I find them on the cheap, and I've not been so lucky with finding dirt cheap handbags!

My other not so secret addiction is to flowers.  According to Mr. Tide, who has been doing a lot of genealogy on my side of the family, I'm descended from some fairly notable royals, so I blame them for this particular affliction...and now that I think about it, maybe for the penchant for shoes as well?!

The other day I was having a Marie Antoinette moment as I looked around and noticed that I had 5 separate vases of flowers all around me, and I was in scent heaven!

If someone were to peek through my windows, they would see me sniffing the wind like a bloodhound, soaking in every single bit of their delightful fragrance!  The peonies have been especially fragrant this year, and one small bouquet made almost my entire house smell like a French Palace...minus the negative 18th Century smells! :)

And I have been known to walk visitors around my yard (sorry family and friends) to make them smell each variety of rose in our garden, while giving them a running commentary of what "I" think each one smells like.  It usually goes something like this..."oh, see that one, it smells like Pez candy!"  Thankfully, no one seems to mind too much...it's not as though I'm saying, "hey, wanna smell something weird?!"

So that's the deal...my deepest, fashionably darkest, and smelliest secrets revealed!  I could probably go to therapy or try and break my addictions on my own, but why on earth would I want to do that?!

I'm off to bed, where it just so happens I can open my windows and have the smell of my New Dawn climbing rose waft into the room since it is growing up the wall by the window on my side of the bed.  

I think my ancestors would be proud...happy that I can still appreciate the finer things in life, all these generations later!

Remembrances

Remembrances of those who went before us, and laid down their lives for us.

Happy Memorial Day Weekend!!!

Worth The Wait

Aside from my family, friends, and pets, there are few things I love more in this world than flowers.  I think it has something to do with the fact that my mother loved flowers and that one of her closest friends was a florist, so flowers were always an important design element around our house.

Flowers were used to adorn the exterior of our house, and inside they held a place of honor atop antique and vintage tables made of cherry, walnut, and tiger maple.

People used to stop and tell my parents how beautiful their yard was, especially in the spring when it was dressed in the latest finery of daffodils, tulips, cherry and plum blossoms, plus an array of other colorful blooms.

And on the farm property we own, my father decided to plant a half acre of Cosmos one year in shades ranging from deep fuchsia to white with just a hint of pink.  It was a show stopper, and something I intend to attempt at my own home this year...I have a bag full of Cosmos seed that promises to cover an acre!  All I need is someone to plow up the area and I'll be set to create my color explosion.

But of all the flowers my parents, grandparents, and friends all nurtured over the years, roses were never at the top of the list.  Sure, we had ramblers that managed, against all odds, to find their way into the nooks and crannies around various outbuildings, but formal roses just weren't on the menu for my family.

And yet my mother would drool when we visited historic homes and their formal rose gardens.  But I think she saw her house as a more humble abode, not worthy of such a prim and proper flower.

I think I likely had that notion for many years as well, until I met Connie of Hartwood Roses.  One short email exchange, or better yet, an in-person convo and visit to Connie's beautiful gardens will convince even the faintest of heart to grow roses.

There is just something about a rose that is unlike any other flower, and I'm a devoted fan of LOTS of flower species, but I am now addicted to roses!  Maybe it's their scent, or it could be their gorgeous shades that change as they mature and later wane...I don't know, but I do know that I love them.

I also love that their blossoms last well beyond my beloved peonies, lilacs, cherry blossoms...the list goes on and on.  And it is no surprise that royalty have prized, perfected, and pursued these delicate flowers for centuries.  I now join their ranks of admirers, and I bought 2 new David Austin rose bushes yesterday at a local nursery.  I had just left the nursery when my sister texted me with a picture saying she had also bought a David Austin, her first, just a half hour before at the same nursery.  I told her congratulations and gave her the "now you've gone and done it" talk, knowing she too will turn into one of those crazy rose loving gardners! :)

Some things need to be anticipated, like a big bunch of rose blossoms to grace your desk as you work, or a bowl of fresh, ripe strawberries grown organically and locally!

Maybe if we had these things at our disposal all year long we wouldn't appreciate their flavor, their scent, the magical impact they have on our senses.  Worth the wait?...you betcha!

Other things I've been waiting on that are now here...

1. Peonies

2. Hummingbirds

3. Lightning Bugs (just a few so far)

4. Sleeping with the windows open at night

5. Wearing shorts and flip flops

6. The smell of freshly mown grass

How about you, what do you wait for each spring?

In Good Company

Last fall I received a lovely email from one of the editors at Artful Blogging asking if I would like to be featured in their spring 2014 issue.  I was on deadline at the time, and had too many things on my plate, so I politely declined and let them know how appreciative I was that they even asked!

Much to my surprise, instead of saying "ok thanks, see ya later," the editor asked if I would consider being in the summer 2014 issue instead as it would give me more time to write my piece.  I immediately said yes, and though I still wonder why the heck they picked me...let's face it there are some truly Artful blogs out there, that blow mine WAY out of the water, I am so thankful they did include me.

When I received my contributor copy a couple of weeks ago, I was tickled to see one of my images on the cover.  If you've read my blog for awhile, then you know how much I LOVE tea, especially the Laduree Marie Antoinette tea I picked up in Paris, so I was thrilled to see that they selected that image for the cover.

The spread inside the magazine didn't disappoint either, and they did a great job of grouping my images together to compliment the story.  I was also super excited to see that Mr. Quinn and Misty Belle made the cut...I wonder if they'll start getting fan mail?! *winks*

I have to say that the Summer 2014 Issue of Artful Blogging is full of beautiful images, talented artisans, and inspiring stories that have introduced me to a whole new group of talented folks I might never have found on my own.  I am in very good company in this issue!

Thank you Artful Blogging and your wonderful staff for letting me be a part of your beautiful publication...I am humbled and appreciative!

The weather here today is beyond gorgeous, and I wish everyday could be just like this!  My neighbor gifted me with some lovely Persian Lilac blossoms and with the windows open and a cool breeze blowing through, my entire house smells divine!!!

I hope you all have a wonderful weekend!

Happy Mother's Day

A little flower love is being sent your way to say...

Happy Mother's Day! xo

Motherhood

This is still one of my all time favorite images I have ever taken.  I don't know why, there's nothing extraordinary about it, and I've even featured it here on my blog before.  

I think it may have something to do with Mother's Day fast approaching that makes me feel connected to all creatures who are mothers.  And this year we are once again gifted with a nesting pair of bluebirds in our backyard box.  The female bluebird is steadfast in her quest to turn those 3 tiny blue eggs into successful young bluebirds, and later, productive adults...not unlike ourselves as we raise our young.

My own mother will have been gone 10 years this August, and though I fair well with it 99% of the time, I can't help but think of what a wonderful influence she was on me in so many ways, and how I wish she could see the things I've accomplished, both personally and professionally.  I know that she can see me and my accomplishments, I feel her all around me, but to pick up the phone and be able to tell her that I'm older and wiser now, that I get some of the things about her that would, on occasion, drive me batty, would be priceless.

We sometimes take things for granted, like being able to tell someone how much they mean to you, or even how much they drive you crazy!  The assumption is that that can wait until later, but often it can't.  My mother was fiercely loyal, a worrier by nature, and someone who would have laid down her life for any one of her children...these are just some of the traits I inherited from her.  I am also too mouthy for my own good sometimes, opinionated, and a bit overbearing...also some traits I can attribute to her...but ones I cherish none the less.

I stumbled across this wonderful video tonight as I was surfing for nothing in particular, though somehow I think I was meant to see it, meant to share it!  I know it's a few days too early, but then again waiting until Sunday may just be too late, so I want to wish each of you who have taken on the demands, the worry, the sleepless nights, but most of all, the indescribable joy of being a mother a very Happy Mother's Day!  It's not a job that everyone wants or that some should tackle, but it is the most important position I have or will ever hold!

You can watch the video by clicking HERE as it won't let me embed it!

Purple Haze

The rain and wind haven't let up for days here, and although it makes it hard to get outside to mow the grass, the spring flowers are loving life these days.

The lilac bush we planted last spring is rewarding us with a handful of blossoms that smell like heaven.

And columbine flowers in shades of deep purple and magenta are spreading like wildfire in our front flower bed, even with the weeds trying to take their place.  Hang in there columbine...when the rain ends we'll come to your rescue!

I ventured out during a break in between downpours today to cut a few of these lovely blossoms to brighten my house and fill my senses.  There is nothing quite like the scent of a fresh lilac bloom...it makes my heart skip a beat and reminds me of my grandmother who loved lilacs as much as I do.

I think flowers are medicine for the soul.  And though I would probably never fill my home with purple or even lavender furnishings or accessories, I still love the color and enjoy having my own little purple haze each spring as these regal colors fill my garden, and ultimately my vases.

Do you have a favorite color springtime blossom?

Behind the Curtain

Most of the photos I post on my blog have very little manipulation done to them in Photoshop, Lightroom, etc. while others get more of the full "treatment."  I have no qualms about talking an image and playing with it until I get the image on screen that lives in my head.

My last post, which featured pics of dandelions, had almost no tweaking done to each image.  I think I made a small adjustment to the contrast on a few, while most were just cropped so that the image showed more detail of my subject.

Yesterday, while sitting in my bedroom, I noticed the bluebirds happily landing on the big iron plant hook next to our fence and so I grabbed my camera in hopes of capturing one so that I could create a composited image with some cherry blossoms I shot more than a week ago...see photo above.

I can count on less than one hand the number of non HDR, true composited images (two or more images merged together to create one) I have created since I began taking pictures, but every now and then I have to urge to create one.

It's not that I think combining images is bad, or less than other artistic forms of photography...though some snooty, photography types might beg to differ...the truth is that combining images, when done well, is time consuming and hard!  At least for me it is, so until I dramatically improve my skill set, I will stick with single images for the most part.

So, a happy bluebird obliged and I was off to the races to create a bluebird and cherry blossom extravaganza! :)

In order to combine images...you have to first start off with really good quality pics.  Even if you plan to add layers, use actions, etc. to create the finished image, I believe that there is no real substitute for good original images.

In the picture above I have cut and copied the bluebird from the original picture, rotated and cropped the original cherry blossom picture, and combined the two...all using Photoshop.

As you can tell...it looks like a photoshopped image...the bird has way too much sunlight on it compared to the blossoms...and the whole image looks very cut and pasted.

The next thing to do is to soften the edges of the bird to make it blend more seamlessly into the other image, and to mess with the exposure levels, temperature, saturation levels, and contrast levels to make the two images appear more as one...but it's not there yet...it needs layer masks and other tricks to help the two images marry one another.

Time for a few texture layers to be added, all the while, adding and removing the texture from various parts of the image to make them recede or pop out more from the image.  Here, the bird is still too bright and his left claw is way too in focus compared to the out of focus branch he's standing on...so still more work to be done.

More actions and many more layers later...I probably have 30 to 40 separate layers on here by now, and a multitude of actions...but I'm getting closer to what I want.  It looks less photorealistic...check. The brightness of the bird is now gelling better with the paleness of the cherry blossoms...check.  And I've added some decorative swirls and distressing to make it look more vintage...check.

When I say actions...I don't often use the pre-packaged actions sold by various companies, though I have used them in the past, I find they don't allow me to fine tune things as much as I sometimes want.  I prefer to make my adjustments by hand, using various software, to achieve the results I want...but if you find that you love pre-set actions, then go for it!  The beauty of photography, or any art form, is that there is no right or wrong!

In this final image I am pretty close to the image I had in mind before I even snapped the bluebird shot, and I'm pretty satisfied with the finished product...though I often go back in sometimes weeks or months later and play a little more...just for fun.

The only difference between the last shot and the one before it is the addition of a french script overlay from one of the documents I brought back from the fleamarket in Paris.  I laid it on top of the image and then erased 100% of it off of the blossoms and the birds so that it appears to float in the background.  

I spent a few hours on this...and had I been going for perfection I could have spent days on one image...something the real pros of photo compositing easily do.

I hope that if you are nervous about trying your hand at any type of art, especially photography, that you will explore all forms of it and throw back that curtain to see what you can learn from behind it taking on what might seem like an impossibly hard thing to master!

This post is dedicated to my dear, dear friend Jim "Papa Jim" Williams who lost his long battle with cancer on Tuesday night.  He will be remembered as an amazing...husband, father, grandfather, friend, police officer, gamer, gentle giant, and above all else, gentlemen!  You will be missed my friend, more than you know!