Little Scraps of Magic

A Box of Crayons

Gypsy shoes? Check!

Color? Oh, yes!

Phil does the "leg work," so to speak, hunched over a keyboard, looking for places to explore...and then, off we go!

I need to 'fess up, here. Excursions to Frederick, MD, get repeated fairly often. The color captivates me - a world of color, each building a crayon in a box.

I love to wander through old towns; cookie cutter buildings rarely make an appearance. A liberal use of color does not offend or send the town's citizens scurrying away in horror.

Doors invite you to come closer and explore a bit, like this one, and ...

and, these, as well! Colors jumbled, begging to be sorted - or maybe left alone to play against each other.

A "Pop" shop. I'll admit it, I never called this stuff "pop" in my life. I never even heard anyone call it "pop," or at least not until I met and fell in love with someone from Pittsburgh. But, you know what? Even after 30 some years of marriage, I have yet to call this stuff "pop!" Nope, it's soda, down in Philly. Still like this sign though.

Hand me my camera, put me in the car, drive me to a great old town, and I'm in photo op heaven.

And, now, the brain cogs have engaged, and ideas are forming; I think I've got a plain for these pics.

Stay tuned!

 

Vintage Brunswick

This little display caught my eye a few weekends back...

 

Did a bit of Photoshop play and came up with this...

 

And, finally, this!

 

Linking up with "I Heart Macro" and "Macro Monday."

Strange Woman in Aisle 13

So...yesterday, my hubby asked me if I'd like to head toward Westminster to check out an antique mall. Seemed like a good way to spend one of my last days of summer vacation. A sort of final hurrah...

On our way, hubby blissfully added that the fact that you can find "Alphabets" there, and we would be stopping at that store.

Now, you need to understand that the man adores "Alphabets." Adores them. Relatives and friends have been advised to check out grocery stores in their areas, as well as any vacation spots.

Darling daughter orders them from Amazon (Yes, they're available through Amazon!) for Fathers' Day and birthdays.

The adventure began...

Sure enough...only one tiny section, way on the bottom shelf, but there they stood in all their glory.

Well, I needed a photo of something "blue" for Focus 52, and this fit the bill. So, I grabbed my camera and began shooting under less than stellar conditions, but shoot away, I did.

When I finally scrambled to my feet, I met the eyes of a store worker, one with a very quizzical look on her face. Was this woman taking pictures a corporate spy? Someone from a competing store? Or possibly, a whacko? She seemed to be leaning towards the last choice.

Notice the hubby had not given me one hint that this woman was standing there. Nope, he left me to explain it all.

Smiling and babbling, I gushed out that this was a favorite childhood cereal, not to be found in Northern Virginia or anywhere nearby. I informed her that it could be found on Amazon, and that a coworker told us we could find it here, and that we were so excited.

Darling hubby (and I use that adjective loosely, mind you) still said not a word.

She escorted walked with us to the checkout. Darling hubby quietly pointed out that her shirt color varied from the everyday personnel. In other words, she had power!

As we got into the car...with 6 boxes of this troublemaking cereal....he also pointed out that "he does not do bail," a phrase our children heard frequently.

Lovely man, huh?

Want to be I was conversational fodder for several folks yesterday?

Here's to August Break, Day 19!

Focus 52:27 - Celebrate!

As an older sister, it's my job, plain and simple, to guide my siblings! I do a remarkable job with my sister, Denise, and have cheerfully led her to spending lots (and lots and lots) of money, whether it be on cameras, lenses, books about how to use that camera and those lenses, and table landscapes. I gleefully point out anything she might be lacking.

We spent several days together this week and last, scouting places to amass goodies for her summer table vignette. Antique shops, Pier 1, Joanne's, The Christmas Store, shops in Chincoteague, - so many possibilities. We investigated as many as we could, and wow, did she create some magic!

Our tables change with the seasons, celebrating all that is special  to each. Pulling the odd bits and pieces together reminds me of a jigsaw puzzle, one of those where you really don't see the whole picture ahead of time. As you shift pieces here and there to see what fits and what doesn't, the magic begins to happen.

I've done a good job with her, don't you think?

Hop over to Focus 52 to check out the pretty eye candy, ok?

 

Scattered Thoughts

A journal page from about a month ago...maybe a bit more.

I had cropped and printed a photo I shot during one of our junking/antiquing walk abouts. I outlined with a finely tipped micron pen, and I fell in love with the effect.

I love bottles lined up along a windowsill, particularly those with a bit of a tint to them - pale blues and aquas, soft greens that call to mind the sea.

Light pouring through them fills a need inside me.

I journaled ideas as I sat and listened to a friend; my writing wanders up, down, and sideways, as I quickly sought space to jot down what she said, always being mindful that I still wanted to see those bottles!

I came home very cranky today; nothing major, just a ever growing heap of thinks to do, coupled with heat and humidity. I sat for a bit, catching up on a few blogs, but finding it hard to concentrate. But one message kept showing up - to find time to nurture myself.

So, the candle's burning, filling up the air with honeysuckle. A bubble bath ensued. I'm not touching the schoolwork; it will be forever there, no matter how much I tackle. I'm taking a bit of time to replenish the well, to just be, to relax, and to focus on what is good, and to figure out where I want to go with things and the steps to get there, to spend more time doing what I really really love. 

I'm claiming tonight for me.

She's a Cutie-Patootie!

She really lives up to being a cutie-patootie, doesn't she?

Wanderlust struck today, and off we went in search of adventure.

Discovered that Staunton, Va, being part of the "Bible Belt" closed up on Sundays. While we didn't get a chance to poke around in antique shops or funky one of a kind craft shops, we explored some very cool architecture, and wandered through an old cemetary.

A bit farther down the road, we discovered this antique mall, where the friendly folks didn't bat an eye at my request to take some pics. (Snobby antique places most certainly do...bat their eyes, that is!)

Stopped for dinner at a mom and pop sort of Italian place. I devoured lobster ravioli in some sort of to die for shrimp sauce.

Took the long way home, and I saw far too many mountains and cows. You would not believe the amount of cows between Staunton and Sprinfield!

Details to follow!

P.S. With very little to say about those cows, other than there were a LOT OF THEM!

Postcard Play

I love getting mail, especially "arty" mail, and the postman may keep the other stuff. As the saying goes, "The best way to get some mail is to send some," so when the opportunity occurs, I grab it.

One art goal this year is to use my own images, particularly the photos I shoot. They end up in journals, on journal covers, as greeting cards, and in this case, postcards. Aren't these gorgeous? I shot this photo after a trip to the farmers' market last August.

I printed it on some matte photo paper and then added some colored pencil here and there. Using a sharpie, I outlined various edges to make them "pop," and then added some embossed stamping. The embossing got a bit messier than I liked...the ink pad was so juicy, it ended up dripping a bit off the stamp and then catching embossing poweder that I wished it hadn't. I'll be working on perfecting that!

Tiny glass bottles always grab my attention, and one or more usually find their way home with me. I took this on VA's Eastern Shore in a favorite antique store.

I altered this photo as described above, and I reall like the looks of both of them. They'll be heading out in the mail tomorrow, along with some others I'll share in the next few days.

I enjoyed the process as much as the end product. I enjoyed pushing them to see what would happen, and I only ended up "ruining" one.

Happy Sunday!

Softly Glowing

Over here, you'll find many muses "glowing." I just spent several delightful minutes wandering through blogs, all "a glow." Just what my heart needed!

I had great fun wandering through past December photos, and have to admit that these few are favorites.

We'd found an old oblong sort of mirror in an antique shop and placed it along our table. We added our every growing collection of old blue Bell canning jars, some blue capacitators, some "snow," and some "crystals."

Filled with candles, they made magic!

I've learned a lot since I shot these, coming a long way. So, while not my "best," definitely some of my favorites!

Color, Color, Color...Part 2

 
He stood guard over a display of plates and glasses. I fell in love with the blues and greens...and touches of purple. Sadly, he was not for sale, or he may just have switched to guarding my art supplies.

 

August Break 2011

Day 24

Color, Color, Color !

 
Oh, my...love at first sight.

 

 
Color delicousness stacked and piled high.

 

 
They pretty much took my breath away.

What can I say? You know that some of them came home with me, don't you?

August Break 2011

Day 22