A Life of Whimsey Just got a Makeover!

This had been in the works for quite some time. I was never really happy with my last makeover and my efforts to fix things didn't work at all.

Truthfully, weirdly, it made me not want to blog. I felt so depressed looking at my blog when a new post went up, that, even when I wasn't crazy busy and had a little time to write I just . . . didn't.

I've tried learning how to change up the design myself over the years with very little success. I seriously doubt that coding will ever be in my future.

So, what can a bummed out blogger do??

She can turn to the professionals!

I've also been mulling over what to do about my photography portfolio site and found myself on Etsy time and again, looking for a new logo, or marketing packages that could help me find a 'look' that I loved and could keep for the long haul, rather than changing it out time and again because I was never quite satisfied.

I've finally done it!

With a beautiful photographer's marketing package from Brydka at Studio Bee Kay and the fabulous web design skills of Rita over at CoffeeShop Designs I'm finally happy with both my blog design and my portfolio site. Brydka included a ton of elements in her marketing package including a logo, Blog Header (which Rita made into a slide show!) cool frames and a Facebook timeline cover. She also added pretty much anything I'll need for marketing once I'm ready to go from amateur to professional photographer. (I'm aiming for early next spring . . .)

It's all just so pretty and I'm pretty sure you'll be seeing me here more often. Don't forget to check out all the fun links on the menubar under my header. Rita did a fabulous job with that as well!

I'm a huge 'do-it-yourselfer' but sometimes . . . it just makes more sense to turn to the professionals!

Thank you ladies for giving me this  beautiful design and all the tools I need to 'do-it-myself' going forward. 

You are awesome!

So . . . what do you think? Do any of you find it more difficult to work in a less than appealing environment or is it just me???

Why I'm Weird and You should be Too. (The making and Inspiration of a Spring Nest)

I was chatting with one of the younger girls on my bus the other day, about being weird. She commented that someone she knew was 'weird'. I laughed and said we were all weird in some way. She smiled and nodded.

"I know I'm weird" I said.

She looked at me oddly and said" That's funny, most adults don't admit they are weird . . ."

So here's the thing about that conversation. Although we used the word 'weird', really, what we were talking about is how each one of us was made  by the Creator to be different.  To be unique.

I'm happy to proudly stand up and say "I'm weird." I like the things about me that make me different. They make my life interesting. And more fun.

 Once you let go of the notion that everyone should be exactly the same as everyone else, that is. . . 

I follow an amazing photographer named Heather over at Fairyography. I've always loved fairies and fairy-tales so her work really intrigues me.

A while back she commented on a session done by a photographer she admired, Kira Hancock Sanoja. She posted a link on Facebook from a session Kira did and one to to a session she did inspired by Kira's work. This one is Kira's and this one and this one show how Heather interpreted Kira's idea.

I loved the idea of a nest in a photo shoot and as I had my first newborn girl shoot coming up, decided to do one of my own . . .

Three woman, and a nest. Each one of us could have copied someone else's  idea of what a photography session using a nest looked like. Instead we each looked at the idea through the filter of our own individual 'weirdness's' and created something uniquely our own.

Wouldn't life be just that much more amazing if we all admitted we were weird and enjoyed that fact rather than trying to hide it???

Here's a little photo esssay on how my nest and shoot went, but be sure to click on the other links as well. They really are amazing . . .

Using Animoto to make a short video. Painlessly.

The past few weeks I've been fighting off a pretty nasty virus that my daughter Holly brought home. Thankfully I haven't gotten it as badly as she did but it sure has slowed me down.

 Which is one of the reasons I was so excited to discover Creative Live's  Photo Week. It gave me an excuse to hang out in my chair with a cup of tea for nearly an entire week.

The instructors didn't just teach, they inspired

 In one of the workshops the instructors talked about using Animoto to make videos for their client's weddings.

The minute the workshop was over I headed straight to Ainimoto to give it a try. I have always had making videos on my 'Learn how To Do' list so I was quite excited with the idea that I could possibly make one quickly and painlessly.

Here's what I put together at the spur of the moment:

It really was quick and painless.

I can hardly wait to make something using film and photos. Now all I need to do is learn how to make movies with my new Canon T3i  . . .

Don't you love creating something new?

A Little Summer Inspiration. . .

So I came across this beautiful video while visiting Mcmaster and storm.

The video was created for the summer release of Kinfolk magazine.

It's entitled An Ode To Summer.

And it is.

Click on this link and check it out. (Can't figure out how to upload a vimeo video to blogger. Any one know?)

Now I'm off to plan something special for dinner.

A picnic perhaps?

Picture via A True Edwardian/Victorian Tea Lover's Corner.

How do you think the boys (Henry included) would feel about a picnic like this beautiful one??

Do you think they'd love me enough to dress up??

And haul all the props to the picnic site???

Of course they would. . .