Friday flowers...hyacinths

I know, hold onto your seats people, two posts in one week!

This is for Liz, a good friend who regularly checks my blog out and noted to me that I hadn't posted much lately.

Seeing as this image is a beautiful flower, it's for you all really. Thanks for dropping by, even when I'm being a truly hopeless blogger!

It has been so cold and dreary here in Hobart this week. Today looks like being clear, so that's good. I bought this pot of purple hyacinths last Friday from a local supermarket. I just couldn't walk past them. That big stem on the right snapped off overnight.

Don't you think this pic has a bit of a Scandinavian feel? I overexposed the image to capture the light and make it all feel nice and fresh. The funny pink basket is a Japanese paper Airvase. I like them a lot but never know what to do with them!

Well, time to jump in the shower and go off to the salt mines. Have a great Friday and a fun weekend. I'm working, but thems the breaks.

xx

Friday flower

It seems like such a long time since I have done a Friday Flowers post. At one time I think it's about all I managed to do!

This photo is one that I manipulated with the Snapseed App, the original being part of a group of deconstructed or reconstructed rose shots. I should post the whole lot as I do like them.

I've said it before, I love flowers at every stage of their lives.

Wishing you a happy weekend.

xx

Artist? Photographer? Stylist?

What do you call yourself? Other than mother, wife, sister... Is it your profession? The role in which you make your wage, or more of a hobby?

 

I've been thinking a bit about this lately. I've always hesitated to call myself an artist, though really I think I always have been one. Yes, I studied art at Uni and have a Bachelor of Fine Art and a Diploma of Education, but does that make me an artist? Is it when you sell work? I always remember a tutor at a big art forum I attended stating that you were only an artist when you had published your own book. That didn't work out so well for Van Gogh or Monet, at least not in their lifetime. What a silly woman! Too big for her boots if you ask me :)

Can I call myself a photographer? It's funny, at work (in my role as Gallery Coordinator) I get asked all the time if I am an artist. I always hesitate to say yes. Why is this? And then when I do say yes, I get the follow up question, "What do you paint?", as if all artists are painters and other art forms are not as valid. I find that fascinating.

What about other titles...Gardener? Yes, I think I'm one of those. Stylist? Maybe? I'm not sure. I do always joke at work that I am a 'turd polisher'. We get such a variety of artwork and in a massive range of competencies, but somehow I manage to make pretty much all work look good. Not sure that title would look so good on my resume!

 

Do you have thoughts or opinions on this topic? I'd love to hear them :)

xx

My 7vignettes win

I was so thrilled last week to be the winner of an online photograph/styling competition. Many of you will have heard of or participated in The Interior Addict's Instagram 7 day vignette challenge, run by Jen Bishop with guest judges. I think this was the fourth month it was run. I have been taking part since the beginning and really love the challenge of setting up little vignettes based upon the theme of that day.

Here are my photos...

Above, the theme was "favourite" - some of my favourite things on my mantelpiece

Above, "layered"

Take two shot of "layered"

"gifts"

"soft"

"rough"

"secondhand"

above was a little shot I posted to say thank you for all the lovely comments I received throughout the challenge and below was another thank you after I won the comp!

I was so surprised! Really! SO chuffed too as it allows me to think that what I do is ok. It's so nice to have other people appreciate my images. It really does bring me a lot of joy.

As my prize I was given a gift voucher to an online store. I did a little shopping and will be back this week to show you what I purchased. I'm really excited about it!

Thank you to Jen for hosting the comp - it is so much fun! And thank you to Louise Olsen from Dinosaur Designs who was the judge who chose me!

x

ps I did it again, a whole week between posts. I was so busy at work last week and had no time for anything, but have some posts coming up. Phew!

Bits and bobs... bunnies

Time for a bits and bobs post and I never realised how many bunnies I have in this house!

Aren't they cute? There's a couple I made, others friends have made, a mini lego bunny with carrots and a tiny chocolate bunny who actually survived being eaten.

I've never had a bunny as a pet. I would rather like one! I'm not sure what Molly would think. Lyn and joked yesterday about getting a bunny and calling him Stuart (Rabbit Stu). I'm not sure I could do that, the poor thing, but there would be no way I'd make any bunny into stew.

I hope you had a nice, peaceful Easter. We watched some movies, visited family, spent time in the garden sorting out the compost and doing some pruning. Still more gardening to do though :)

What did you get up to?

xx

Pale

 

It's always a good idea to start off the week with something pretty to look at. I took these photos a few weeks ago and shared on Instagram, but I like to see them a bit bigger so here they are.

I love the subtleties of colour and the sense of fragility.

 

Yay for a short working week this week. I do love Easter as I find it's a nice quiet time. Not to mention the chocolate...

Well, have a great week my friends. I hope you like these photos and I will be back with a couple of Easter posts.

xx

Changing seasons

The days are really changing and it is starting to feel a lot like the cooler months are coming. There is a freshness, a crispness to the mornings and the sun is coming up later.  I took this photo on Tuesday. We got up early, as usual, but the sun was just on her way. And yes, I intentionally blurred it!

We really did had a good summer here in Hobart. Often we feel like we miss out, but there were a lot of days we complained about being too hot and that maybe we need an air conditioner.

Soon we will be complaining that we are cold. I do like that about Tasmania, we really do feel the seasons. We get to wear summery clothes and we get to wear comfy long boots in winter (one of the best things about winter). Which reminds me, time to get the chimney swept and a few loads of firewood ordered so we can get the fire going.

Do I have a favourite season? No, I don't think so. I like each one for different reasons.

Do you have a favourite? 

Those of you in the tropics, do you miss the seasons?

xx

Friday flowers ...fading roses

Yay for Friday. This week has seemed a little long, but then I still have a weekend of work to go.

Looking at these beautiful roses makes me feel better.

I take so many photographs these days that I forget what I have shown you all. In fact I am realising now, there are some other shots I should have shown you before these ones, which are when the blooms were almost a week old, Oh well.

I love the frailty of these blooms, with ruffled and slightly bruised edges to their petals.

I could photograph them all day!

I hope you are all well. Anything good planned for the weekend?

As I mentioned, I'm at work, so have some fun for me!

xx

Bits and bobs ... tea

I really want to get back into doing more Bits and Bobs posts this year as it's something I  really enjoy. This shot was part of the February 7 Vignettes photo challenge on Instagram. I shot it for the 'kitchen' theme.

 

We have a little old teapot form a local junk market, a pretty and very tiny tea caddy, a T2 teabag, a box of teabags and three beautiful pieces that my dear old Auntie Ila used to own - her teacup, a small spoon and tea strainer. I love owning these :)

 

I am definitely a tea girl. I think I drink about 2 or 3 coffees a year. It's just not my thing. I love the smell of it but there really is nothing like a really good cuppa, especially first thing in the morning (says she sitting here on the couch with the computer and her second cuppa for the day).

 

So, are you a tea or coffe drinker?

xx

Victorian Chocolate Sponge Cake

A few weeks ago I cooked this lovely Victorian Chocolate Sponge cake from a recipe I found in the latest The Simple Things magazine.



 

It was so easy in that all the cake ingredients were just thrown in a bowl and mixed, then thrown in the oven. The icing was a little fiddly (used 2 saucepans!) and perhaps not completely necessary, but looks nice in pics, so I suppose that's important :)

It is a recipe I will have to make again soon. In fact, it's Lyn's birthday next week and he loved it, so it might make a good birthday cake.

As you can see, I had a bit of fun styling these photos  a la "What Katie Ate" style and I'm pleased with the results. I quite like this 'styling' caper, it's a lot of fun.

Hmm, not sure I can wait a whole week until I eat this cake again...

I hope your week is going well.

xx

Friday flowers...blue

I have been enjoying using my new camera at every opportunity. Suddenly I have so many photos to show you all!

I picked these blue/purple flowers recently and photographed them on a black background. I could snap away all day. So, here we have a tiny viola, lobelia, a cornflower and a salvia bloom. I adore blue flowers and our front yard is full of them.

Well, it has been a busy week with events on at work and my market to get ready for. I'm pooped! Tomorrow is a day off and then Sunday I'll be busy at the market. Then Monday means I have to attend to all the mess I have created during this week!

I hope you all have a lovely weekend :)

xx

Floral moodboard - jan/feb

I'm joining in with Karin and Asa with a January/February garden moodboard.

 I suppose I'm cheating a bit as this beautiful tree isn't growing in my garden, though I can clearly see it from my backyard.

It is a Red Flowering Gum, Corymbia ficifolia also known as Albany red flowering gum, and previously known as Eucalyptus ficifolia. Confused? Isn't it beautiful though.  I adore the way it shows it's buds at the same time as open blossom and the big gumnuts.

I have many more pics which I think I will share next time.

Thanks for dropping by!

xx

7 vignettes challenge

A few weeks ago I took part in a seven day photo challenge on Instagram, run by Jen Bishop of Interiors Addict. It was so much fun! Each day there was a new theme to create a vignette for. I met lots of new people and got to view some truly stunning shots.

So, I thought I would post them here..

Day 1's theme was Nature and I took the above and the below shot. I was quite pleased with the one below.

Day 2: colour (above)

Day 3: Fun

Day 4: Flowers/plants. Gosh, I was so happy with this shot! It's OTT but I like it that way :)

Day 5: Mementos (above and below)

Day 6: Side table or coffee table

 

Day 7: kitchen

Jen was so kind to feature two of my images amongst her pics of the day.

I was so chuffed! Below are screenshots :)

Another challenge starts this coming weekend and no doubt I'll post it if I get my act together!

Have a lovely week!

xx

Friday flowers - Bleached beauty

Phew, it's Friday! These last few days back at work have been a chore!

So, here's some Friday Flowers. I took these pics of some beautiful delphiniums with my new camera, intentionally over exposing them. I'm really happy with the results. I'm even thinking of printing up one big.

Hopefully you are all up to something fun this weekend. I am still at the salt mines but thems the breaks :)

xx