Winning Streak

I'm a bit embarrassed to 'fess up to how many blog giveaways
I've won the past couple of months.

I mean, seriously...I've made out like a bandit, a
nd this past week was no exception!

My latest win came courtesy of
my sweet and beautiful friend Kate of Salvage Dior.

I entered her thankfulness giveaway a couple of weeks back,
and look what arrived on my front door...

Firstly, this gorgeous burlap pillow, which was handmade
by one of the dealers at Kate's antique mall, Country Roads.

I don't know that I've ever shared
my gorgeous Carol Hicks Bolton couch with y'all! 

Bought from Mr. Tim Bolton himself
at the iconic Fredericksburg store, Homestead...

And Kate also tucked in a couple of these
fabulous glass candlesticks, complete with darling wine cork candles...

Thank you, Kate!

Having you as a friend is the best prize of all!

Off now to play in my booth for the afternoon!

Have a wonderful Memorial Day!

Puppy Love

Doggie baths!
What better activity for a lazy Summer day?

Especially if you're the one wielding the camera
and not doing any of the actual dirty work?  ; - )

Ladies first!

~Belle~

Husky Fact Number One: Most Siberian Huskies don't like water.

Our two are no exception.

 

Still, when a little lands on your tongue, it ain't all  bad!

"Don't forget the rear bumper, dad!"

And always be prepared for a photo-op for mom...

One down, one to go.

Havoks's turn!

Typical boy, he isn't sure a bath is such a good idea...

Still...

who knew?

that doggie shampoo

caused such intense bonding?

Enjoy your families, honor our heroes.

Happy Memorial Day!

Sublime Beauty

It's no secret to regular readers of this blog
that I am seriously enamored with photography these days.

I am crazy, head-over-heels, can't get enough of it, in love with my camera!

But I'm not so sure the feeling is mutual.

My Nikon D5000 taunts me, daring me
to take the training wheels off and see just what he can do given the chance.

I'm getting there, slowly but surely.

And there's no better incentive to get better behind the lens
than to gaze upon the sublime beauty that awaits you at my friend Denise's blog,

My Vintage Gardens

On her glorious BLOG and in her equally glorious Flickr Photostream,
Denise effortlessly takes our collective breath away
with image after image, each one more ethereal than the last.

I'm just going to let Denise's other worldly images do the talking.

Sit back, relax, prepare to swoon...

Well, was I right or was I right?

If you haven't met Denise or visited her gorgeous
BLOG or Flickr Photostream yet, head on over and say hello!
Not only is she incredibly talented, but she's also one of the nicest gals you'll ever meet!

My Vintage Gardens

Let her know I sent you over....Happy Memorial Day Weekend!

Just a Little Photoshop Fun

Happy Early Memorial Day Weekend!

Still feeling a bit under the weather, and itching to do something creative,
I decided to work a little digital magic on one of my existing photos.

You'll recall the post I did a few days ago
featuring my wonderful bentwood chair?

Well, I thought it would be fun to play a bit more with that image,
and brush up on my Photoshopping skills.

Now mind you, I use the term Photoshop somewhat loosely,
when in reality I alternate between at least half a dozen photo editing programs. 

I just think it's a tremendous amount of fun to play
and tweak and let my imagination take over!

So....let's get started!

Do you think that I printed out a copy
of my photo and then created this flowery vignette?

Think again!

All digital. Isn't that amazing?

Here's the original image...

But where else can I take this?

Hmmmm....

But wait!

Let's stick my boy Havok in the same book!

Original image...

and voila!

 

The Literary Husky, First Edition.

How about my watch face, then?

Original image...

And through the magic of digital wizardry...

Cool beans, right?

You want to have the same fun?

Go HERE and play!

Happy Friday!

How Can We Miss You...

if you won't go away?

That is what I am certain y'all are saying to yourselves right about now.

Here's the facts...

I'm sick.

Like, coughing, sore-throat, stiff-neck, laryngitis-y sick.

Ugh.

Like light-sensitivity, can't stay upright for more than a few minutes sick.

But as a medical professional, and a card-carrying, charter member of the

~Better Living Through Chemistry Club~

I doped myself up with a veritable, life-giving cornucopia 
of healing pharmaceuticals and did one of the few things
that could make me feel alive again...

(and this is gonna sound weird and counter-intuitive to anyone without an artistic, creative bent)

I grabbed my camera and started to create

 I snapped a few pics of a favorite ironstone pitcher,
some vintage plates with absolutely delicious crazing,
and with a dash of chippy wood and other assorted background textures to add interest

And then I played

the original image

I tinkered with lighting

and hues

and zoom

and texture

ta-da and the end.

I'm a bit frustrated in that I fear I'm still better
at the photo editing part than the actual picture taking part.

True confession?

I'm still a little scared of my brand new, bad boy, all-the-bells & whistles camera.

I'm still shooting almost exclusively in auto-mode,
as I simply haven't had the time to dig deeper and learn
all I need to know about aperture, shutter speed, f-stop, ISO,
and a whole buncha other terms which are still largely Greek to me.

But there's time.

I just wanna be the best at everything I try to do, like yesterday.

Not a good trait.

so......

back to bed now!

Thanks for letting me come out and play for a bit,
and for indulging my proclivity towards true confessions and stream-of-consciousness rants.

Y'all are the best.

xo  smooches!!!  xo