Rainy Sunday Afternoon

Still playing with digital scrapbooking elements and trying to get a handle on Photoshop Elements. For years I used PaintShop/Corel, so this is a bit of a learning curve for me. Since the weather has taken another turn -- remnants of Hurricane Matthew, I suppose, working its way up the coast -- it is cold and rainy today, probably in the low 50s. Good for the garden, not so much for us humans. 

These are some digital elements I bought from CottageArts, LLC, as well as some scans I made from old Dover books (copyright free), or old discarded books one finds in library sales. My next hurdle is to deal with clipping masks and family photos. Hopefully this winter I'll start work on family photos going back to the 1930s, putting small genealogy books together for our children. At this time only my mother-in-law is left from that generation. The stories and information that she retains will no longer exist if we don't archive them now and get them into print in case platforms change.

I used to love the Legacy magazine put out by Stampington and Co. - mostly dedicated to family memories and the layouts were beautiful. Now, when I can, I pick up Digital Studios by the same company. Unfortunately, the contributors rarely give one a step-by-step guide on how to achieve something similar. But I'll persevere; just a matter of breaking down the steps and using those beautiful brushes and other elements. 

I may even throw myself into the mix with Instagram -- been hearing so much about it these past months, especially the "book bentos" that are so popular. The problem is, there's not enough time during the weekend to accomplish everything one wants -- I often feel like the "weekend warrior" and then go to work on Monday exhausted!  

So when do I retire???  Not soon enough, I think!  ;-) 

October Entry:

It's been so long since my last entry -- summer is simply too busy and lovely to spend indoors. But now it's fall in New England and to sit at my desk and come back to my blog seems natural. I love this time of year mainly because it does make one pause and consider slowing down a bit before the push of the holidays arrives at one's doorstep.

Nature's palette also invites a new way of looking at things, the colors more muted like a delicate William Morris print. And don't forget the cooking! Ah, to make warm cheesy biscuits and fudge brownies, comfort food for sure.

So this afternoon I created this journal entry above, using a new digital pack from Cottage Arts, LLC. It seemed to present the perfect background for some thoughts.

Good to be back -- and hope to stop by and visit my fellow bloggers' sites, too.

Happy Autumn, happy October! 

Nothing going right? Go left!

Taking a break from painting. Taking a break from writing. Well, let's face -- I'm just taking a break from lots of things! The family gathering is over for the holidays; a great time was had by all. Today is quiet and the weather is changeable -- cloudy and cool, then the sun comes out and the humidity rockets. But I'm not complaining after the long winter and cold spring we've had here in New England.

I returned to my interest in digital photography and, more specifically, digital scrapbooking. I've been reading back issues of Digital Studio, as well as the current copy, and am intrigued by many of the digital artists and their works. I've tried this before but was always in a bit of a rush, so my attempts usually went bust. Also, although I have Photoshop Elements, I'm used to my old Jasc Paintshop. Not as powerful but it's a question of comfort. Someday I'll transition over.

With this image I was trying to work with my photos of flowers and was hoping to achieve a kind of mosaic effect that Donna Goar creates, which are awesome, but ran out of time. Still, I'm quite happy that I got this far -- at least for today.  The plumes and scrolls are from Anna Aspnes, a custom brush I created (compass), and a paraphrase from Georgia O'Keeffe.

When we try new things, there's always a learning curve; sometimes the curve is steeper than another.  And then my concern is, especially with digital images, that they are truly ephemeral, likely to disappear into cyberspace if we're not careful.  I think images like the one above would make a wonderful note card to send to someone you know who loves flowers and gardens -- and who does take the time to see a flower. 

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When in the fresh mornings I go into my garden before anyone is awake,
I go for the time being into perfect happiness.

Celia Thaxter (1835 - 1894)