Serious Play

Shooting in Low Light

So, this morning I awoke to see the coolest moon.

 

It was only a sliver, and yet, I could see the whole sphere.

I tried to get a shot of it from my bedroom window where I stood, but there were too many trees and power lines in the way. So I threw on my coat over my PJs and dashed outside.

The sun was just waking up, so the horizon line became lighter with every frame I shot. The sky was nearly cloudless and a few stars were twinkling. I stood in awe of the various shades of blue. 

I am far from a photographer, but still proud of the shots that I got. I did not have a tripod, so instead, I steadied my camera against the garage wall to get this shot in focus. This shot is SOOC (straight out of camera). I have a Canon Digital RebelxTi and shot in Aperture Priority mode at f1.8, exposure at 1/2, and ISO at 200 (probably should have been more, but I didn't want a grainy photo if I tried to enlarge it).

I had my 50mm f1.4 lens on when I ran outside and in hindsight I wish I had grabbed my telephoto lens, but all in all, I love the outcome.

 

All I know about photography I have learned from Karen Russell at Snapshots of a Good Life. I took her Photographer's Workshop back in 2009 and recently purchased her 60 pg lesson called Making the Shot: Low Light Shooting. It has all been worth it.

 

With these skills, I feel ready to capture my family around our lit Christmas tree this year.

How about you?

 

 

 

New Look

 
So, I am trying out a new look to my website.

 

As mentioned, I have been taking a class to learn how to make improvements to my blog. This class has been a challenge! I have had to think a lot about the purpose and my goals for this blog. Who do I want my audience to be? What is the future of my blog? What is my 'brand'? What should I choose as my blog banner?

This last question is the one that has had me working the hardest. I designed several banners before I chose this one, as seen in the photo at the beginning of this post. I really wanted to use a color scheme to direct my design, but nothing was feeling just right. I settled on the film strip idea as it speaks to what I want my blog to be about. I am not sure if this is it yet, but I had to put up something because I was getting behind in the class. What do you think?

Most of the improvements are small and barely noticeable visually, but I hope you will see a stronger purpose and vision when you visit my blog from here on in. I have put a lot of thought into it. It may change a little over time, but the feel will stay the same.

I am here to share what I love to do...photography, documenting through scrapbook layouts and mini albums, as well as share a little of what life is like at my house.

Enjoy.

 

 

So...just my luck! I have been playing around with my new banner and new look all night. It is saved and shows up in my preview, but is not showing up on my actual blog. So I am attempting to problem solving this one...please bear with me!

 

 

 

Takin' a Little Blog Break

So, I am starting this class today with Elise Blaha to improve my blog.

 

I have been tempted by this class in the past but put it off, telling myself that I am too busy. I am busy. I have two teenaged daughters who play volleyball every night, including weekends and we are still 2 months away from the first one getting her drivers license! I am busy.

However, this class tugged at me and suddenly on Thursday last week, I just did it...I signed up. I didn't even really think about it. Elise had posted that there were a few spots left and I just jumped in. I don't regret it. In fact, I think it is serendipitous. I am busy, but I am going to do this! 

This year I have been participating in Ali Edwards' One Little Word class as well. The word I chose for the year is REALIZE, as in 'make it happen', 'get it done' or 'just do it'! One of my goals, while working through the year with my word, has been to learn how to improve my blog. So here I am...making it happen! I know the results for my blog will be worthwhile, but it will also be worthwhile for me personally to accomplish this before the year has ended. Go me!

So, having said all that, I am taking a little break from blogging this week to work on this class. When I return I hope to dazzle you with a new blog look and feel. Not sure how long this will take...a few days perhaps. The class runs for two weeks but I am hoping that I will have something to show for it before the end of the two weeks. 

Please bear with me as I take a few days off from my regular postings to pursue this little goal of mine! Thanks!

 

 

 

Back To School

So, I am back to school.

 

For 15 years I was a classroom teacher. I taught nearly every grade from k-12 as well as French and Spanish. A few years back I needed a change...and the perfect opportunity came along. I work at a private school and we provide in-house professional development for our teachers. So, I was invited to be part of the team that leads this! I am no longer in the classroom, but still teaching...only it is teachers now.

Anyway, as I am transitioning back to school I am seeing a variety of Back to School classes for scrapbookers...

 

Learn Something New with Shimelle

Design School at 2 Peas in a Bucket

The Good Life with Amy Tan

The Art of Composition with Tracey Clark

 

Oh, which ones should I take this time...?

 

 

Scrapbook on the Road | Pt.3

So, here is the final installment of my Scrapbook on the Road.

 

I am noticing several albums popping up on blogs of people who want to create while on vacation and not wait until returning home! Here is an album prepared by Shimelle before heading out on her trip!

 

I know that the trading card pockets are gaining popularity in the scrapbooking world, especially with the addition of the Instax Mini cameras and how perfectly they fit into these pockets. I am always on the lookout for non-scrapbooking products that can be used for scrapbooking. With the trading card pocket pages in mind, I discovered these smaller pocket pages too! These are designed for holding the slides (that all of my childhood pics seem to be on), so they are a smaller pocket that is about 2x2. 

At this point, I am not sure what I will be putting in these little pockets...the trip will dictate, but I am excited by the possibilities!

This one is a simple page from my stash (Basic Grey again) that I cut to size and rounded the corners.

On the back of that same blue page, I adhered two envelopes I found at an office supply store. Over top of the envelopes, I used some printed packing tape from Michaels, a date stamp (also Michaels), a black metal arrow (dollar store) and a punched butterfly (Martha Stewart).

While pulling out items from my stash, I was attracted to the cardboard packaging of one of the sticker packs that I was using. I decided to pull it out (even though I have not finished using the stickers!) and use it in the album. The front side (not shown) is a lovely pale blue grid. The back had all the marketing info, but I added these word stickers and painted over the whole thing to hide the marketing words. This is another idea from Ali's class.

This is the final page in my album and I love the potential that it holds. The idea is to use the alphabet as a journaling prompt to gather ideas from the trip in ways that I normally would not. For example, depending on what we do, I could write "Giggling all night long" for the letter 'g', or " Drinks by the pool" for the letter 'd'.

Due to a lack of space for a title, I adhered the chipboard piece (Stampin' Up) with a punched heart and it also serves as a tab for turning the page.

This alphabet idea comes from Amy Tangerine and the class that I took of hers at Big Picture Classes.

And that is it!

I must say that I am excited for the potential of this little album. I have left it fairly wide open and I plan to just let the day and how I feel dictate how I use the pages.

You can also see my previous posts about this album here... Pt. 1 and Pt. 2.

Any questions? Feel free to leave them in the comments section below and I will be happy to answer them for you!

 

 

Scrapbook on the Road | Pt.2

So, here is part 2 of my Scrapbook on the Road album...

I found an old ledger book with unused pages at Value Village for $1, so I added one of those! I also found the greatest vintage stamp set at Pottery Barn a couple of weeks ago. The telephone stamp here is from that set. You will be seeing more of that set in the days to come, for sure!

I knew that I wanted a few envelopes to gather stuff on my trip. I bought a cute card and envelope set a while ago and loved the shape of the envelopes, so I pulled it apart and used it as a template for this envelope. I simply traced it on patterned paper, added a punched scalloped circle and an epoxy sticker... 

I then added some velcro to hold the flap closed. It is attached to a plain white piece of cardstock because I did not want to lose space inside the envelope by punching my holes directly on the envelope.

I did buy this paper new (Life of the Party by Basic Grey) because of the woodgrain effect on the back (as seen below).

This is a page from a chipboard album that I covered with paper and painted the back (seen below).

This page was an experiment. I had a paper doily from the dollar store which I trimmed and adhered to a thick transparency page. The glue (gel medium) does show a little around the edges, but I am okay with it...really.

I made another page for collecting memorabilia on my trip. This one is also from Basic Grey - Wanderer (okay, I did pick up a few travel-themed papers). I started with a 12x12 paper and trimmed the city skyline to give a fun effect, then folded the bottom up a little to form a pocket. Next, I folded the resulting page in half, which gave me a pocket on both sides of the finished page. Finally, I stitched along one side and across the bottom. This left me with another pocket in the center. I am pleased with how it turned out and cannot wait to fill it!

Once again, it feels like I've been going on and on, so I am going to stop there. But I do have a few more pages that I will share with you this week so stay tuned...

 

 

Scrapbook on the Road | Pt.1

So, I have been working on my Scrapbook on the Road album and I love it!

Really, it is whatever I felt like doing. I added ideas from Ali Edwards' class and some from the Amy Tangerine class that I took earlier. And some ideas are my own.

I started by covering some chipboard with woodgrain drawer liner! I found it at my local dollar store and immediately loved it because of the woodgrain look. It is extra awesome because it is sticky-backed (for literally lining your kitchen drawers with), so I simply adhered it to the chipboard, folded over the edges and then adhered patterned paper on the inside to cover the edges (as seen below). For now I have left the cover blank. I am undecided as to how I want to do my title. I will keep you posted on it!

Inside, is a mix of papers and things that I put together randomly. I really tried to use items from my stash rather than buy more stuff. I am one of those who buys pretty things and then does not want to use them up, or else I am saving it for a project that I will never get to! So with this album, I really wanted to dig in my stuff and use it!

This page is cream cardstock with a few painted chipboard pieces glued on. Since this is the first page of the album, I am hoping to do some kind of intro for my trip but I'm not sure yet if it will be words or pictures!

I love how this one turned out. It is one of the ideas from Ali's class. I simply put positioned letter stickers on chipboard and painted the entire thing to have a monochromatic look.

Oh yeah, in case you are wondering about where I am going...Tulsa, Oklahoma! Every couple of years, my female cousins (there are several of us) get together for a weekend and we rotate to each others' houses each time. We are all here in Canada, except for one, who graciously flies up to meet us for each gathering. Over the years she has been asking, "When are you going to come down and visit me?" So, this is the year!

Eight of my cousins and I have saved up our pennies for two years and are flying down to Tulsa in mid-July. So, this album is made with that trip in mind.

This is another page from Ali's class...it is an actual pattern adhered to an acrylic page with Gel Medium. I love that it is semi-transparent.

Here is another chipboard page that I painted. The back is covered with patterned paper.

If you follow Ali Edwards, you have probably see this before. I love her unevenly lined journaling pages...or 'line stacks' as she calls them. Here I used a Sharpie marker to draw the lines and added some stickers from the "Love Elsie" line of products. I told you I had quite a stash of saved items!

I have used this technique before and repeated it here. I used letter stickers for the words and the flower shape is a piece of chipboard. Then, I sprayed over the top with my Glimmer Mist from Tattered Angels. When the stickers are removed, the image remains. Simple and pretty, I think.

This yellow page is one that I ripped from a journal that I have and I added some stickers from my stash along the side. I think they are from Making Memories?

Here, I cut a baseball card pocket page down to size and sewed a bit of paper along the edge in order to punch the holes. Right now I have these pics in the pockets, but I be taking them out before I leave for my trip.

So, there are quite a few more pages, so I have broken down the album into a couple of posts. I will share more with you tomorrow!

 

 

Scrapbook On The Road Class

So, I have purchased Ali Edwards' online class called Scrapbook On The Road.

 

I will be working away at it this weekend as it looks like there will be nothing but rain here! I have taken a few of Ali's classes before over at Big Picture Classes and have been very pleased with the amount of information and inspiration that Ali provides.

Essentially, this class walks you through the foundation of a mini album for you to take while you travel. By having the pages in the album before you go, you simply record your journaling on the road and print out your pics to add when you get home. It sounds so simple and quick! I'm in.

Typically, I share a similar style of scrapbooking to Ali, so I do not expect this class to disappoint. And really, who can argue with such a reasonable price? She offers video tutorials as well as printable PDFs. These are already printed off and tucked safe in my binder, ready for me to go through this weekend. I can hardly wait!

What are your plans this weekend...other than Father's Day (I almost forgot)!

Enjoy!

 

 

Self-Paced Scrapbooking Class

So, I have signed up for another online scrapbooking class!

I know, I know, I am terrible at finishing these classes and why would I take on another, you ask? Well, my One Little Word this year is REALIZE. This means that I am going to make it happen! You watch me.

After reading about this class on the Big Picture Classes website, I decided to go for it. Since it is a self-paced class by Amy Tangerine, there is no pacing to keep up with. There is no time limit. There is no pressure or stress. Only information... and I love learning!

Immediately after downloading the class, I could browse the several projects that are featured in the class and decide which one I want to attack first. I already have decided and since our Spring Break is coming up next week, I see this as the perfect unscheduled time to work on a project or two!

I was surprised at the amount of content and inspiration that was included in this class. As I mentioned, there are a few different projects to choose from. All of them include a downloadable PDF file which I can view online, or print out to keep. Some of the projects also include a video demonstration of the project or technique. It really is fabulous.

If you head on over to the Big Picture Classes website now, they are offering this class with a promo code that will save you an extra $5 on the purchase of the class. You should give it a try... and then let me know which project you choose first!

One Little Word

So, another year is beginning and I can honestly say that I am ready for it! I am not a resolution-maker like so many others. In fact, my 2010 resolution album sits unfinished. I did think of it a few times throughout the year, but really didn't deliver on the resolutions that I had made, so had very little to submit to my album.

This is typical of me. I am a dreamer and planner. I am curious and love to learn. I have drive and motivation and a ton of good intentions, but I seem to have trouble following through and executing the plan. I have several unfinished albums and projects in my craft room. Not only that, but I have signed up for several online classes as well and not been able to see them through to completion. So, when Ali Edwards announced that she is offering an online class called One Little Word, I was filled with mixed emotions. 

Ali's class is about resolutions, and I am not good at resolutions. But it is only One Little Word, not a list of 10! I cannot live up to 10 things, but only one word...perhaps. I have a weakness for taking classes, because I love to learn, however, my track record for completing classes is not good. Putting these two facts together made me realize that perhaps this is just the thing that I need to help me with both resolutions and completion of those resolutions.

It was then that I chose my word for 2011...REALIZE. Not like suddenly understanding, but as in completing, making it happen, just doing it! If I take this class and focus on realizing all of the things that have just been dreams and plans and intentions, then I win! So I am doing it.

Another factor that sealed the deal for me was that I already had the album and page protectors that the class was suggesting. I had purchased this album back in November when I was debating on the format for my December Daily 2010 album. It was a sign.

So, I am off on another adventure. A discovery of creativity, self and challenge. Here begins 2011.