tilt | things i love thursday

• christmas things...  cookies, hot chocolate, snuggling under warm blankets with my baby, having amazing christmas photos taken by my good friend katie estes, time off from work, everything about christmas [other than the stress of trying to find perfect presents for everyone without spending my life savings]
• my good friend katie estes moving back to town so i finally have someone to make art and amazing photography with...  her stuff is in her new place, but she won't be living here for over a week and the anticipating is killing me.
• my photography being shown in places [floyd tattoo and arts gallery in my old hometown floyd, va and the photocopy club exhibit in brighton, uk] and a couple of my photos were featured in the recent food issue of apricot magazine [pg 46-49]
• the updated version of blogger.  i was using the old version forever and karly and i have a blog together called chaque-semaine and every time i touched it i ruined the whole thing, switched to new blogger and no more issues.

i've been focusing on trying to earn some income on photography lately so sorry i have been absent here..  i have been updating my photography blog but lately it's been mostly family holiday photos.  i'm going to try to be a better blogger i promise!  i have a really amazing photographer feature queued up for next wednesday [december 14].  and now that it's cold i don't want to go outside which means less pictures and more time in front of my computer screen.  christmasy posts coming up soon.

and yes, my boyfriend is more than a foot taller than me and my baby's hair is made out of cotton candy.

tilt | things i love thursday

negative nancy gotta check herself and do a things i love thursday blog post... things that rock:

• friends: standing up for me, motivating me artistically, and telling me to stop acting like i'm still in high school... and coming over to play with my baby
  
• talking to strangers i want to take pictures of [this one is thanks to friends too], joli wouldn't take no for an answer when i said i liked this girls shoes and style. i gave her my card, she added me on facebook, liked my page, and said she'd model for me sometime
• people like chaque semaine already, or maybe those people are just me and karly that are totally digging it, but it took me a while to build up the kind of traffic we have gotten over there with only two posts so thank you guys for checking it out
• thursday is mcdonalds day and i got a monopoly piece for free coffee burning a hole in my pocket
• occupy wall street. i wasn't even paying attention, yeah it's been going on for a month, i'm so out of the loop, but it's moving to see people taking a stand at a point where we are all feeling hopeless. and seeing other countries follow gives a different perspective because you feel like they aren't dealing with the same issues, but everyone is.
• taking pictures for me > taking pictures for other people [there are some exceptions like the engagement photos over the weekend, that was the BEST couple ever]
• freckles... on faces, shoulders, clavicles, and fingernails like above... need to try that asap

i need your help folks... what's a good spooky dessert for a halloween party that isn't the graveyard dessert [that one is already taken]? it's a work place emergency, it needs to be amazing, my reputation depends on it!

tilt | things i love thursday

• faux bridal portraits... click through for more on my photography blog

• good gifting... my boyfriend's birthday is next saturday. once upon a time i had a bunny named charlotte and she liked to chew cords. she chewed through two of my boyfriend's lava lamp cords [he was just my roommate at that time]. so i've decided for his birthday he is getting a replacement. also he was obsessing over the coffee mugs a few months ago, i like to give him a while to forget that he wanted something then buy it for him as a gift :]
  

Lava Lite 2116-4002 Classic Lava Lamp, 14-1/2-Inch, Black/Clear

Bodum Bistro Double-Wall Insulated 10-Ounce Glass Mug, Set of 2

• that floaty feeling you get right before a bad cold [but not the cold that i know will be here shortly since i've been floating and rambling and not knowing what's going on like a crazy person for 2-3 days already]
  

things i love thursday

• my baby




• gossip girl thank you a million times to joli for letting me borrow season 1 and soon season 2!




• sleep, can i have some please?




• "business meetings" with old friends, yummy meals, and seriously talking business somewhere in the midst of the catching up :)

other cool things:

• building official photography website, no you can't see it, so not ready yet!

tilt | things i love thursday

• taking pictures. the wedding i shot last weekend went smashingly, i almost want to cry looking at the photos because you can just feel the love. it makes editing hard, i'm only about a tenth of the way through. i just want to take pictures, all the time and always. all day every day.
  
• growing things of substance in my garden. just took rosemary, sage, and basil to share with my coworkers this week, sharing is nice.
• brushing my teeth.... seriously, i can't stand dirty teeth. nothing quite like that minty flavor and running your tongue across freshly cleaned teeth.

• mail! ask and you shall receive... earlier this week i received a telegram from secia of petite insanities :] thank you so much secia, you are too kind! i wish the photo was better, but i had to use my phone to take it.

• dogs... they are for real the best pets ever. they are super social and don't shit in the house and mine is nice enough to eat all of the food that the baby throws in the floor so i don't have to clean it up.
• talking to janae on the phone... because we miss her and she doesn't get online often enough!
  

tilt | things i love thursday

• my new camera [canon 7d] has been ordered and will arrive on monday... finally, finally i bit the bullet and placed the order now my anxiety about shelling out the cash has evaporated

• i'm brainstorming an idea for a photography theme/project which has me pumped up to get out and take pictures. i'll give you a hint, it is directly related to the "curiouser and curiouser" etsy treasury i created yesterday when i thought that my head was going to explode from inspiration overload. [i'm going to do a whole inspiration post about it this weekend].

• found a writing gig for a site that actually wants me to write about photography, hopefully it works out and they are legit!

• this picture by karly... because my grandma's name was gladys

AND

• finally the article that i wrote inspired by dori has been accepted for publication... here's a preview:

How to Find Models: A Guide for Photographers

Finding good models for your photography projects can be extremely tricky, especially if you happen to live in a small town. Sadly, not all of us have beautiful friends willing to sacrifice their time to be the model for your latest photography project idea and you will need to go in search of willing subjects. Below I have listed some methods for finding models for your photography.

Obviously, offering monetary compensation will pique more interest from models than unpaid gigs. If you have a strong concept or a unique style of photography, many models (especially the ones who are just starting to build up their portfolio) will be willing to do TFCD or TFP photo shoots. TFCD is an abbreviation for "Time for CD" meaning you are exchanging a CD or DVD of images for their modeling work. TFP is short for "Time for Prints", these are two acronyms that you will see used all over the place when searching for models and you will find yourself using frequently if you are not already.

[keep reading]

• oh and i almost forgot that it is thursday and that means we are going to mcdonalds today, yay! i haven't had mcdonalds in like 2 weeks now, i'm having french fry withdrawal!

tilt | things i love thursday

• playing in the garden. i've been spending so much time with my flowers this year. the part that makes me the most happy about it is that i've only bout a handful of flowers, most of them have been started by me from seeds and clippings and plants make me so much happier when i get to see them grow from babies!

this is my neighbor's allium plant... it's like a giant purple dandelion and i love them. if you have any wisteria seeds i will happily trade you some allium seeds and/or some lavender seeds [when they turn to seed]. for real, i'm in desperation for some wisteria seeds people!

• when people "like" my facebook page for my photography
• days off from work... which i will be getting a whole weeks worth from july 11-15 and i hope to get a lot of picture taking and fun activities squeezed into that week
• the salem fair... not that i've been yet this year, but the plans are in the works
• there's only one more month till my birthday, fuck yes!
• using my pinterest boards to coordinate photoshoots. i love being able to send a link to someone i'm about to take pictures of so i can get an idea of what they want to get out of the shoot and so they have some ideas for photos other than what they would get at the sears portrait studio.
• this quote:
  

  “life is like photography. you use the negatives to develop.”

leave me some fun comments please, some links, some ideas, some inspiration, whatever. ideas for things to do with my glorious week off from my mind numbing day job!

oh and dori, if you are reading this, i got your comment and i'm going to write a big huge long bit of advice in response to your question, but it will take me a little while to get it all together!

tilt | things i love thursday

summer is officially here... and if that isn't something to love, i don't know what is! i dream of going to the beach this summer and if we could make it to florida that would be even better, but we haven't started making any vacation plans yet.

here's some things i'm loving this week:

art student owl... they always crack me up and i if i could go back in time to high school i would have went to art school despite being discouraged and told artists don't make any money. because who really cares if you don't make a fortune if you love your work and have pride in it. thanks for the advice guidance counselors, you suck! shit, that wasn't positive, sorry.

essie's nice is nice... i finally see what all the fuss about essie nail polishes is. this stuff stayed on flawlessly for a week and a half which is better luck than i have ever had with a nail polish. seriously, i garden, take care of a toddler, and swim, i'm usually lucky if my polish stays on for one day. plus this shade of lavender is perfection and it looks great against my skin tone.

jeans that fit... i've lost 25 pounds this year. and nearly 50 from what i weighed when i was pregnant last may. this week i finally bought a pair of pants that fit me and i was extremely happy to see what size i am now!

anthropologie plates... well anthropologie anything really. get in my freakin life. these are the natural world dessert plates and ladies-in-waiting dinner plates.

and some awesome links that i have bookmarked this week. mostly diy and photography stuff:

• how-tuesday: sailor's knot bracelets
• call of the wild: behind the scenes... i want to make a pin hole camera cap like theirs soon. i assume it will be similar to my dslr holga lens so i haven't rushed out to get a new body cap yet.
• 15 tips for the best underwater photos ever
• how to make cinemagraphs
• jasmine star's advice on posing models/real people
• how to get them talking about your art

i also made a facebook page for my photography this week. which apparently i should have done long ago because within minutes of creating the page i got a gig lined up for this weekend. plus it's way easier to share photos there than trying to coax people to my tumblr.

tilt | things i love thursday

this week i'm loving:

• flowers and playing in the garden

• custom fabric... apparently this website called spoonflower will print up your design for you! or you can buy ones they already have like this one called mad science:

• "hair prettys" as my grandma gladys used to call them

i am madly in love with this airplane one... if any of you know where i can find one like it please let me know!

and totally separate from tilt... i need to announce the winner of last week's summer reading giveaway!

sécia from petite insanities was the winner. thank you to everyone who entered!

tilt | things i love thursday

[via karly]

peonies:


black and white photos of statues:



words:

• the only way to deal with an unfree world is to become so absolutely free that your very existence is an act of rebellion. | albert camus

• tell me, what is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life? | mary oliver

• the more i see, the less i know for sure | john lennon

• your handwriting. the way you walk. which china pattern you choose. it’s all giving you away. everything you do shows your hand. everything is a self-portrait. everything is a diary. | chuck palahniuk

• don't cry because it's over. smile because it happened. | dr. seuss

arrested development:


pet appreciation:

tilt | things i love thursday

summer, warm weather and sun in general. when will it stop raining? i feel like i'm bursting at the seams with inspiration lately only to have it melt away in the rain like sugar.

the sweet old ladies in this tim walker photo... i can't dye my hair crazy colors because of my job so one day when i'm old and my hair is white or grey anyways and i have nothing to lose, blamo finally i get the lavender hair i've been dying to have for ages now!


pretty much anything that is chevron print

this quote i found about karl lagerfeld forever ago that still amuses me ever so much:

i have this idea that karl lagerfeld is covered in a layer of soft, grey powder, like a moth. and it’s this powder that keeps him alive. and so that’s why he’s always dressed in those high-collared shirts and leather gloves. it’s to keep his powder safe.

i also have this theory that he hasn’t actually pooed since the early 80s. instead, i think he passes little satchels of dust, which come out once a day, already tied up in antique venetian lace ribbons. and he keeps them all in a special room in his basement - a dimly lit chamber with all the little dust bundles lined up on shelves in chronological order. i believe it to be one of the most heavily-guarded rooms in the world. to be granted access inside is virtually impossible to anyone outside the most upper elite of society. it’s paisley park’s secret inner sanctum, the bunker in bohemian grove where 9/11 was planned, then largerfeld’s poo-dust satchel museum. in that order. [via]

flashbacks to yesteryear... and an apparently there was a psychological reason that i was so in love with justin timberlake. his hair was made of ramen noodles, my life force.

Create a playlist at MixPod.com

eagles of death metal

tilt | things i love thursday

• my annoying neighbors have finally graduated and are moving themselves and their 15 couches from the porch far away from me. i'm considering having a going away party for them without inviting them! :] here's hoping the residents of that place aren't as bad or worse!

• dandelions + fire + gifs

• french bulldogs are my new obsession... i want one so bad, they are so sweet with their little mushed faces and stuck up ears. plus, i'm pretty sure my little pup monster would love another furry little friend to play with!

• blunt cards

tilt | things i love thursday

my bunny finally found a new home with two little girls who will give her much more love and attention than i ever could... plus they are planning on changing her name to sparkles [or maybe sprinkles] which is much nicer than charlotte. it's like she is getting a whole new beginning!

over the knee socks

sparkles

butter toffee flavored blue diamond almonds... the wasabi and soy sauce flavored ones are also good and from what i saw on their website apparently they make them in chili and lim


this video for "ah!" by oval rocks my world... for the ballerina i never was [tiny violin]... movement, imagery, dirty floor, love it so much

getting out of town this weekend to go to washington dc... i'm going to go shopping at h&m and ikea for the first time ever and i'm SO excited!

tilt | things i love thursday: earth day edition

joli told me that i should include more of my own photography here so i made sure to throw in some of my most springy, earth day-ish photos from my last couple rolls of film :]

here are some things i love this thursday that are green in honor of earth day tomorrow!

• turning off the lights when i leave a room [this includes the restrooms at work]
• recycling
• the solar panel and energy star appliances in my house
• composting things instead of throwing them away. less trash and after a while you have the most amazing super soil at your disposal. we have the earth machine which came with our house, but you can make one out of an old trash can... did you know you could compost this stuff?

1. rabbit poo [rabbits are seriously THE most eco-friendly pet, read more about it HERE]
2. news paper, junk mail, paper towels, and any other non-glossy paper
3. drier lint
4. coffee grounds and the filter
5. the obvious stuff: old fruit, veggies, expired bread... just about anything other than meat and other fatty items and poo from other household pets [other than rabbits]

• my recycled coffee mug [which is also recyclable]
• walking to work instead of driving
• planting herbs and veggies in my yard + the cherry tree in our back yard
• reading magazines online instead of the print version [or on our nook color]
• donating prints to the virginia tech environmental coalition... if you are in blacksburg, friday there is a silent art auction between squires student center and the graduate life center at donaldson brown on the virginia tech campus. the proceeds are for the environmental coalition on campus. i donated a stack of 4x6 prints and they have donations from many other artists and local businesses. come by and check it out between 10am and 4pm on april 22! you can find more information on the facebook event.