I Think Spring is Here!

Happy Friday Everyone!

It is officially Spring YAY! (But of course it is still raining here in the PNW and has been every day but one in March so far, oh lucky us! :(

But this intrepid Photographer (He! He!) could stand it no long, hopped into her SUV and went out determined to take photos in between the down pours :)

I wanted to share with you what I found :)

Well, first here are a couple of shots I took at home, these are some of the Roses from my Birthday Bouquets :)

"Past Pleasures"

Oh, it is definitely time for a Tea Party (could we do a virtual one!)

I LOVE the paint stroke feature on Paintshop but just for playing around :)

This Bluebell shot (above) is from last year but I decided to cropped it a bit (below) What do you think?

"Bluebells"

This Buddleia shot is also from last year. I have been experimenting a little with Photoshop, I have it on trial right now and just added a warmer filter, I like it.

And then I hit the road :)

(Original)

I think you can tell it is overcast but it gives a lovely background to these Magnolia Buds :)

Added a warmer filter :)

These 2 are from last year. I cropped them as I wanted to see what a longer narrower format would look like and then I added a little redder colour to one and a little sepia tone to the other :)

"Magnolia Blooms"

Original Shot!

Then cropped and a warmer filter added. Can't decided which I like the best.

"Leaving"

I LOVE these old suitcases, they were in a window display in downtown P.Town!

These Daffs look like they are trying to escape :)

I LOVE this fence, the pattern and textures, amazing. It must stretch for 3/4 of a mile or more around this property.

This just cracked me up. You can tell they have been "Just Hanging Around" for a long time 'coz they have grassing growing out of them :)

(Original)

Then I went to the park and took some shots of the trees reflected in the water (just as it started to rain again!)   

Added a little red tone to all 3 of these at different levels, I like them but.........

I like this one in sepia tones the best :)

And just to prove that occasionally the Sun does shine in Oregon I grabbed my camera and took a shot of the brave Daffs in my Garden (yep, that is a bit of blue sky there in the background in between those white fluffy things :)

Let me know what you think! :)

Hope you all have a lovely Weekend!

Happy Painting/Creating! :) T.

My Little Piece of Ireland and Love For Japan.

Happy St. Paddy's Day Everyone!

Well, as some of you know I am a Brit. and proud of it. I was born in England into an Irish Catholic family and have fond childhood memories of large family gatherings, trips to Ireland and many visitors from Eire to visit us.  My life now, living in the PNW of America, is in sharp contrast to my earlier years. So, every year I take out my little brooch I bought in Dublin, Ireland when I was 11. I saved my pocket money for nearly a year as spending money for our trip to visit relatives. As soon as I saw this brooch I was smitten. How could I go wrong with 2 lucky Horseshoes and 2 lucky Shamrocks glistening away.

Every year our relatives in Ireland used to send us a box of fresh Shamrock to wear on St. Patrick's Day with our harp pin and ribbon with the Irish colours. As a child It felt like a very special day, going to Catholic schools, everyone was wearing something in the colours of Ireland. Of course, Mass was a prerequisite but the fun started in the evenings when there would be lots of Shindigs to go to.

Fond memories all brought back to life by a tiny little brooch bought by a little 11 year old Girl, way back when!


Today as we celebrate one Country's heritage we also keep in our Hearts another Country's suffering, it is hard to fathom and harder still to shake the sense of helplessness in this overwhelming crisis. But I believe we can all help in so many ways. Here are a few things I found this week where I have been able to do my small part.

There is a new shop on Etsy Love for Japan where you can buy and donate items to raise funds for Japan. This was set up by Christen Strang at Letter Happy Thank you so much for doing this.

Yesterday, I received an email account statement from United Airlines, I usually delete these straight away but a little caption caught my eye and so I clicked on it and a few seconds later I had donated some of my frequent flyer miles to the Red Cross. I LOVE this programme and other Airlines do it too. You can donate so charitable organizations can fly their personal where they are needed. Here is a link to United (charities page)


One more thing. Ever - Ours and Utterly Engaged have set up fund raising for Japan and asked all Bloggers to have a blogging day of silence tomorrow Friday March 18th as a sign of respect for the suffering in Japan.  

As we watch in numbed sadness at the images coming out of Japan I still hope everyone can

Have a Wonderful Weekend!

 

Happy Painting/Creating! :) T.

An Amazing Giveaway!

Happy Tuesday Everyone!

Guess what, it is pouring with rain here in Oregon again today, so I thought I would brighten our day with a pretty Spring Blossom photo :)

Now to the Amazing Giveaway :)

Super Talented Photographer Elle Moss from fPOE (Female Photographers of Etsy) has created TWO stunningly Beautiful Treasuries full of the amazingly talented Ladies of fPOE's work, for some lucky person to win.

Isn't that wonderful :)

 "If you need some art for your spring decorating, imagine winning either of these. Two winners will be selected to win 16 items each (prize value of each is over $240!)" (from fPOE blog post)

All you have to do is click on the treasury (links below) and leave a comment.


One comment per person and you can comment on both treasuries.


Winners will be announced in 2 weeks (March 28, 2011)

Win Treasury #1: CLICK HERE


Win Treasury #2: CLICK HERE

Good Luck Everyone!
 

Happy Painting/Creating! :) T.

Oh, What a Night!

Happy Friday Everyone! :)

Well, we are truly grateful that the Tsunami that was headed for the Oregon Coast was mild. Our Son is a counsellor at ODS (Outdoor School) right now at the coast and so they have spent a rather disturbed night with Tsunami sirens going off all the time and moving the campers to higher ground. Not much sleep and now, they are just waiting for the All Clear, so they can come home. :)

As I watched the news last night with the live shots of the Tsunami in Japan I was overwhelmed.

We are truly saddened by the tragedy in Japan. We are keeping them in our thoughts and our hearts go out to them :)

As I switched on my Computer this morning I thought maybe some photos of the beautiful Purple Crocus in my Garden would bright our lives a little.

I change the colour on this one photo, which one do you like the best?

1). Original shot, no changes at all.

2). Slight brightness and contrast added.

3). A little Colour Balance

4). Colour Balance and a Little Colour Mix

5). Just Colour Mix.

Leave me a comment and let me know :)

If you are interested to see some lovely SEWIING photos check out my blog post on fPOE (Female Photographers of Etsy)

Have a wonderful Weekend :)

Happy Painting/Creating! :) T.

International Women's Day!

Happy Tuesday Everyone!

International Women's Day is a global day celebrating the economic, political and social achievements of women past, present and future. In some places like China, Russia, Vietnam and Bulgaria, International Women's Day is a national holiday. (Seems to me like a wonderful reason to have a NATIONAL Holiday, think we could pull that one off here in the USA???)
 
2011 is the Global Centenary Year!


The first International Women's Day event was run in 1911.

For more info. on International Women's Day here is the LINK to their website.


At first I thought I could really think about celebrating the day but then I watched this video;

After watching this video and listening to Dame Judi Dench's dialog I have to admit that I am thoroughly depressed and wonder if we will ever reach true equality.


So what do you think?

Do you feel woman have true equality?

Leave a comment and let me know :)

Join in the Debate at We Are EQUALS

Happy Painting/Creating! :) T.

WooHoo, More Rain :(

Happy Friday Everyone!

First off I really want to say a BIG "THANK YOU" to everyone who sent me such wonderful B.Day wishes. You Guys ROCK!

I had a lovely Day even if it was raining :)

And so, It is too funny, as I was browsing my blog roll before posting today I stopped by my Blogger Buddy Kelli at Bug Miscellany Blog and she has posted about the weather in the PNW this week and that is exactly what I was going to post about today :)

Seriously, it has been raining so much I don't remember the last time I saw the Sun, did it move and not tell me???

This is what I have been looking at all week!

click on images for larger photo (of course you want to see more rain (He! He!)

Rain thru the dining room window, looking towards the West and the coastal range (nope, can't see any Mountains there :)

So, I am so, so grateful for the beautiful flowers my kids had delivered for my B.Day! At least I have some lovely colourful brightness in the house :)

Close up of the lovely miniature Roses :)

Gorgeous guys, thank you, lyl :)

So, thank you everyone, for making my week, extra special :)

Here are the Flowers my Hubby bought for me for my B.Day, if you missed Tuesdays post :)

Hope everyone has a Wonderful Weekend!

Happy Painting/Creating! :) T.

HAPPY B.DAY TO ME! :)

HAPPY TUESDAY EVERYONE! :)

TODAY'S MY B.DAY! YAY ME! :)

Here are the 2 dozen Roses my Darling Hubby bought for me :)

And a lovely Bunch of Daffs :)

I just wanted to wish all of my Blogger Buddies from Wales a very Happy St.David's Day these Daffs are for you :)

Hope everyone has a Wonderful Day!

Happy Painting/Creating! :) T.