Angela Renai

Post-Holiday DIY project!

2011-01-07T14:15:00.003-06:00

So there I was in front of my google search engine. Thinking to myself that I wanted to buy a magnetic chalkboard. When low and behold what comes up in the listing? The always inspiring Design*Sponge of course! Why would I buy one when I have a tutorial on how to make a unique one myself? pfft. What a no brainer.

You ever have one of those "why the heck didn't I think of that" moments? This was definitely one of them. This brilliant DIY project was sent in to Design*Sponge by a reader a little less than a year ago (don't you just love looking through the archives of your favorite blogs?). But the idea isn't old at all, and I plan to try my hand at it.

So here goes my first DIY project of the 2011! I already have a gorgeous vintage mirror that would be great for this but it is too pretty to paint. So now I have a great excuse to make a trip to the junk store.

Let's hope I don't kill myself trying to cut the sheet metal. Maybe I'll just pay someone handy to do that part for me.

You guys find/do any good DIY projects lately?

-Angela

New Years + Old Years

2011-01-04T15:57:00.007-06:00

Where do I begin? So many things to say about ringing in this new year.

I don't think I've ever been this excited. This is going to be a bit of a long post...

This year I got to spend yet another New Year's with one of my very best friends, Chenoa.

Our third New Year's together in fact.

We have changed hairstyles, apartments, significant others, and Flaming Lips show seating arrangments...but our friendship still remains the same. She is one of those friends you can spend months away from but then when you see eachother again it's like no time has passed at all. I hope we get to ring in more years together.

This year we got all gussied up for our 3rd Lip's show in a row.

But this year was a special show.

This year the Lip's played "The Soft Bulletin" in it's entirety after midnight.

If you aren't familiar with that record, I recommend you go buy it now.

The record is one of the very few that will always touch me, there are songs about the fragile nature of life, overcoming adversity, dealing with losing someone you love, and maintaining your sanity through all the insanity that life has to throw at you.

And even with all those subjects, it makes you want to move on and conquer the world.

The show moved me to tears.

And even in spending time with old friends,

I got to spend time with a special new friend as well.

You might notice that all these pictures were all taken with an Iphone. Let me first apologize for the quality, but I also want to say that because the record and the entire night was so special to me, I decided not to bring my camera.

Some might think that decision was absolute madness considering how many photo-ops would be available at such a show. But I really just wanted to lay back and enjoy the show through my very own eyes and senses and not through those of my camera lens. I also got floor tickets and decided not to chase down VIP passes through friends or friends-of-friends or my old bosses at my internship. I just wanted to be a fan in the audience with nothing between me but people I love and gorgeous life changing music.

With all this being said. It is time for the good stuff... resolutions. And since I have this oldyear/newyear theme going here I might as well revisit some old resolutions. I was shocked at how uncanny some of them had become fulfilled... without being realized.

My resolutions from last year included:

Invest in more camera equipment. Check. Bought 2 lenses and a flash.

Journal everyday. Made some improvement but trying again.

Blog more often. ;) The quality of my posts have gone up.

Take pictures everyday. Trying this again one but once a week. Everyday is a lot of editing!

Get faster at editing photos. Check!

Don't settle for less than I deserve. In all matters of life. Oh man did I fulfill this one.

Explore doing freelance photography and design work more often. Check! Did my first weddings and other freelance.

Travel somewhere entirely new. DING DING DING! When I wrote this I think I had somewhere like San Francisco in mind. If only I knew what was in store...

My resolutions for 2011:

Write/Journal at least once a week.

Blog more often.

Get better/faster at web design.

Do more freelance work.

Cook more and shop locally more often. (maybe join a co op)

Run/do Yoga more often.

Save up for a new camera.

TRAVEL!

Spend more time with my grandfather.

Take pictures at least once a week.

Meditate meditate meditate.

Be in the present moment.

Last year was my first year to make any resolutions. And it worked out beautifully. I dont feel that resolutions are meant to be broken anymore. Or meant to be harshly followed. But can serve as a loose guideline for goals you want to at least come close to touching. Wish me luck!

A very Happy 2011 to all of you!

-Angela

Season Spirit.

2010-12-21T15:25:00.006-06:00

Has it really been over two weeks since I updated? This month has really flown by.

Well since this is the day before my 12 day weekend, I wanted to share some holiday festivities and some recent picture snapping.

After receiving my Grandmother's ornament collection from my Grandfather last year, I was all too eager to break out my tree and decorations again this year. So I dug out the charming boxes from the back of my closet, put on the cheesy christmas music, warmed up eggnog and got to decorating. I even baked some apples for the occasion. Not to mention I got to put up a new special ornament from my favorite non-christmas-celebrating person. (his first experience ever making a Christmas ornament). <3

The further I get away from my many years I worked in retail through college, the more I am becoming ok with kind of loving this time of year. I still hate the consumer over-spending side of the holiday. But I can't help but secretly love the warm drinks, fuzzy socks, time with family, oh and the food...cant forget the food. And I suppose I don't really celebrate the holiday in a traditional way but more in a cultural way.

Last year Oklahoma City got hit by the worst ice/snow storm so I didn't get to spend any time with my family because the roads were so bad. After being trapped in my car for several hours, I ended up spending the holiday with friends and friend-of-friends and making the best of it with Wii and wine. It was actually a great time, but I have to say I really missed having that time to goof off with my nieces and nephews and watch holiday movies with them. It's just not the same exchanging gifts in the summer that you didn't have the opportunity to give them at Christmas.

Well here is to hoping for drivable weather and good times with family and friends. I hope you all have a lovely holiday.

-Angela

Wednesday Inspiration.

2010-12-01T15:23:00.003-06:00

Just some lovely images to help you through the post-vacation mid-week.

a. I love brights that are appropriately integrated into fall. The brown belt is perfect.

b. Im pretty sure those are men's dress shoes. I'll take every pair anyway. Thanks.

c. Never ending style inspiration.

d. Taken from the adorable gal at Kansas Couture. A fellow bargain hunting thrifter.

e. After this busy week. I just want to curl up in a cozy chair just like that one and read.

-Angela

Gratitude 2010

2010-11-29T08:53:00.001-06:00

-Angela

Turkey Dai!

2010-11-25T08:52:00.004-06:00

Photo by Annie Schlechter.

Hope you have a great holiday!

The Sahara.

2010-11-23T11:34:00.005-06:00

Some entries don't need words.

-Angela

E+K

2010-11-22T16:22:00.004-06:00

Remember that wedding I said I was going to in the last post?

Well I never ended up posting these, but I took their engagement pictures last spring.

They were such a fun couple to shoot! They met at Oklahoma City University and their wedding was set at the OCU chapel. So naturally we had to get some fun pictures there with sidewalk chalk. After that we headed to the Paseo Arts district where we found that fantastic pink wall and played around with more sidewalk chalk. Last but not least they wanted to get the feel of Oklahoma City downtown, so instead of just walking around and taking pictures, they were good sports and let me take them atop a parking garage for some extremely romantic shots. She might have even overcome her fear of heights that day!... yeah maybe not. :)

Anyway they are a fun couple with a great sense of adventure so I am sure they have a fun-filled future ahead of them. Congrats guys!

-Angela

Mellah.

2010-11-19T15:45:00.005-06:00

Happy Friday everyone! Wanted to share a couple more pictures from my trip last June.

This was from Mellah (ancient jewish quarter) in Marrakech. It was established in the 16th century and is now populated mainly by Muslims. The narrow streets call back to a time before roads were built for cars. It was one of my favorite areas of the city, other than avoiding the scooters whizzing by.

Is it obvious I am longing for my vacation time yet?...

Ok ok enough longing, my plans for the weekend are:

-Finish up a photo project I have been working on for a long while.

-See David Sedaris at Borders!

-Celebrate the birthdays of my friends.

-Attend a wedding

-Celebrate more birthdays

-Other things I am probably forgetting at the moment, my brain is a little spent today

How about you guys?

-Angela

Thankful.

2010-11-18T14:26:00.003-06:00

Thanksgiving is coming up next week and I am already feeling thankful.

I took this picture last thanksgiving of my Grandfather who is now in his mid-eighties and I just feel so lucky that I am getting to spend another holiday with him. Because I credit him a lot in the formation of who I am today.

It is getting to be that time when one feels more and more pressure to tell the people you love how you truly feel about them, because who knows if you will have another chance. Not only because of maturing age, but just realizing that at any moment there are a whole myriad of things that can happen. Not even a millisecond of life is really guaranteed.

Nothing in life is really ever guaranteed.

I guess that is why sometimes I feel as though faith in an afterlife is really a cop out for not living your current life to the fullest, saying the things you need to say, being the person you need to be.

Perhaps that is a rather judgmental way to view it....

So let me back up to say that honestly, even if someone proved to me today that I would see everyone I love again, I would still want to go on living my life as though I might not.

We humanoids take things in life for granted far too much, especially people.

----

"And instead of saying all of your goodbyes - let them know

You realize that life goes fast
It's hard to make the good things last
You realize the sun doesn't go down
It's just an illusion caused by the world spinning 'round"

-The Flaming Lips

-Angela

Uh oh...

2010-11-17T09:01:00.003-06:00

So I think I am starting to miss Morocco lately. It started becoming obvious to me when I saw it start to creep it's way into my inspiration folder. First in subtle ways and then later in more blatantly obvious photos being dragged into my folder I keep full of endless beautiful interiors. I have noticed they are starting to drift away from being purely American Mid-Century Modern to having bits of ethnic patterns and ornate lines finding their way in.

I guess it's true that travel does change us a bit and broadens our views of what we find beautiful or inspiring wether we like it or not. You can try to come back the same person and hold on to your old ideas with all your might but it you will find its a pointless effort. You are indeed changed. I think this goes for many life experiences but especially for seeing a part of the world that is so different from your own.

Or maybe this is all just a sign from the universe that I need a vacation...

Is it thanksgiving yet?

-Angela

2011 Calendar Hunting

2010-11-16T17:57:00.005-06:00

This year it has been soooo hard for me to choose a new calendar. Being a bit of a design/photography nut I tend to get really excited when picking out my new calendar for the year. What would I like to use to count my days away?

a. Graph Paper Neutra Calendar by Oven-Door-Owl? I seem to like the gray and white neutral one, don't you?

b. Gorgeous letterpress calendar with animal illustrations by INK+WIT?

c. Beautifully designed decorative calendar by Beau Ideal?

d. Orrrr would I like the illustrated in-season vegetable calendar by Sia Design? Swoooon.

There are too many talented artists to choose from!

Which one do you guys like?

-Angela

Ps. Last year I had the 2010 version of This Andrew Zuckerman Calendar. Loved it.

Holiday Postcard!

2010-11-15T16:57:00.002-06:00

Happy Monday! I am having a particularly great day at work today so I thought I would share a recent piece I put together for our annual Christmas show. The look of this postcard we send out every year hadn't been drastically changed in a long while so I was thrilled that they loved this vintage inspired woodcut look. :)

Happy Monday everyone!

-Angela

A sad time for Oklahoma.

2010-11-11T15:49:00.006-06:00

This isn't a political Blog at all whatsoever.

But this IS a blog written by an Oklahoman about creativity.

Things like this seek to squash creativity, freedom of expression,

and appreciation of other cultures.

Well, silence hasn't always been my strong suit,

and I guess sometimes that isn't such a bad thing.

-Angela

OCU Undergraduate Viewbook.

2010-11-10T15:07:00.010-06:00

Hey guys just wanted to share a few of my favorite spreads from a recent job I did for

the university.

These are from a 32 page viewbook I did this summer, one of about 6 pieces I redesigned for Undergraduate Admissions. The idea was to give a colorful update that made sense as an evolution from the gorgeous pieces 3rd Degree Advertising did for us 2 years ago.

3rd Degree was definitely a tough act to follow as they won Gold Addys for the pieces, but as a cost saving measure we had to bring them in-house on this round. I gave many nods to the old design while adding splashes of color and photos as a change or evolution.

Redoing this series of publications was definitely one of the bigger challenges I have had in my career as a designer so far and I am so glad it finished well and that my clients

seem pleased.

-Angela

ps. That handsome fellow in the upper right of the dreamers & doers spread is my beau.

Watercolor

2010-11-09T14:20:00.012-06:00

I always thought I hated watercolor until my color theory teacher made me buy a set of gouache and forced me to use it for an entire semester. It was temperamental and difficult to use. I could never quite get the right consistency until after weeks of practice. I painted endless color swatches that were supposed to be as smooth and seamless as the swatches you pick up from the paint section of the hardware store. I hated her for it. But I slowly started loving the medium. After the weeks of paint swatches, when we finally got to use it in still lifes, it actually seemed very forgiving. When class was over I found it kind of zen to watch where the water bled to see what I could vaguely make out of the mess of water-stained chaos soaking into the thick textured sheets of paper. Defining the shapes or buildings or faces that I watched emerge in rapidograph ink.

These artists above make me want to break out my set again.

Don't wait for it.

2010-10-26T16:36:00.004-05:00

An inspiring quote about not waiting around for inspiration.

The past few days I haven't really been hit with a ton of it.

Although I am sure I just haven't been looking.

Stress tends to zap every bit of creativity out of my body at times.

It's something that I am ever working on.

Not waiting for that lightening to strike, but to create the lightening myself.

Well thanks for this, Chuck, I needed it today.

Moroccan Inspiration.

2010-10-21T10:32:00.008-05:00

I haven't posted anything about my trip to Morocco yet. But since the other day I posted some of my design work, I thought this would be all too appropriate.

This picture was snapped toward the end of my trip, we had just finished up a long trip to Erfoud, which is a several hour drive. I snapped hundreds of pictures but I kept being taken back by the creativity and art that was in the form of murals on school walls along the way.

When I saw the murals on this particular school, I made my boyfriend pull over so I could take a picture. I stealthily snapped some pictures and started walking back to the car when a small man walked over and started speaking Arabic to me, when it was clear I was not an Arabic speaker, he tried some French. But being the paranoid person I am, I tried to just hurry back to the car and ignored the man. I was in a hurry after all.

When I got back to the car he knocked on the car window and started speaking Moroccan Arabic to my boyfriend. I soon learned that he was the artist of the murals! All he wanted to do was sell me a drawing. Silly girl.

10 Dirhams (1 dollar) bought me this beautiful drawing. He said it was of a "shy woman" and an "emancipated woman" sharing peace together. I was so inspired by his persistence and the beauty of his work that I promised myself I was going to carry his message over to the states.

So when Islam Day came around at the University and I found out the panel was about women in Islam I thought it would be a perfect opportunity to reinterpret his message in the United States. The word in arabic there is "salam" which means peace.

It isn't hard to figure out why so many European artists spent years in Morocco to find inspiration. I wasn't even looking for it and it persistently managed to find me.

-Angela

108 breaths.

2010-10-20T16:36:00.010-05:00

108 Mala beads. A gift my boyfriend brought back for me from Singapore when we first started dating.

The number of beads on the Mala is meant to help keep track of breaths or mantras done when practicing.

Sometimes things come along right at the times we need them.

Just when you have lost faith in happiness, faith in kindness and compassion.

Life proves you all wrong.

You never saw it coming.

And it's better than anything you were planning.

I always thought that if something wasn't happening...

well then gosh darn it I would make it happen.

It is how I approach most things in life.

It works out well with a career, goals, dreams.

But there are two things I know for sure don't work this way.

Love and Growth.

I am glad I sat still in the quiet long enough to let them find me.

Counting my breaths.

Instead of continuing to circle the labyrinth in vain.

-Angela

Yep. Still designing things.

2010-10-19T15:23:00.010-05:00

1 color foil. 8 page mini view book for the Art Department located in The School of Visual Arts, Oklahoma City University.

You guys may remember This Post and a little later, This Post. Well, to continue getting over my stage fright about showing work, I decided to post up some photos from the second book I designed for the School of Visual Arts. I did this one last year specifically for the Art Department. They wanted something that was in the same vein as the first book but with a little more color and more photos of selected student work. I still am torn to this day about which book I like better, the first or second.

But... I was especially delighted when in July at a yearly conference my coworkers and I attend for the Oklahoma College Public Relations Association, that this booklet won Gold for the brochure category (and that the wrestling poster linked above, also won gold). It isn't why I do what I do, but it never hurts the ol' self esteem to be recognized for your hard work. And it certainly doesn't hurt when trying to get over being shy about your work.

Hopefully next year I will have even more pieces to enter that I am proud of.

-Angela

Goodbye Oklahoma Summer...

2010-10-18T18:12:00.006-05:00

I know summer has officially been gone for a few weeks now.

But I think today it finally really hit me.

When I woke this morning for work,

the sunlight that normally wakes me was just a little dimmer.

The sky is now overcast, and as I type I am glancing out my window to water droplets falling from gray clouds.

Looks like Ill be running in the gym today and not outside...

These photos are a couple weeks old, from the last actual weekend of summer. I was thinking I might go the whole summer without going to the lake, but at the last minute was invited to Lake Eufaula for a lovely weekend. We spent the whole day Saturday on the lake laughing and soaking up as many rays as we could, but were reminded of reality when Sunday morning we were greeted with jacket weather. We truly had enjoyed the last day of summer in the best way possible.

Well, I've never been good with goodbyes

so I just needed to say it one more time.

-Angela

Reminder.

2010-10-18T13:44:00.008-05:00

Sometimes it's good to leave reminders for yourself

around the house.

Happy Friday.

2010-10-15T16:52:00.004-05:00

Happy Friday everyone.

Someone asked me in the comments of my last post

...what I've been up to lately...

As I tried to summarize my answer I realized it isn't easy to answer such a question in a few sentences when you life has changed so much over the course of just a few months.

So maybe next week I can get to it all. Or maybe just a little.

All I can say for now is that I've been up to... growing.

-Angela

5 Remembrances.

2010-10-11T10:05:00.003-05:00

Sunday Storm

2010-05-18T17:50:00.012-05:00

(Photo by ~ Paige ~)

Living in Oklahoma, I am pretty used to extreme weather. But I had never seen anything like sunday. Only a couple of hours after the sky was sunny, the entire OKC area became under attack by golfball and baseball size hail. It seemed to come out of nowhere. Cars were demolished (no really, demolished). Runners became covered in welts and bruises while trying to protect their heads from falling baseballs. And homeowners that just put a new roof on their house after the last storm, had to face the reality that they must call their insurance company once again.

So my fellow okies, I guess this means spring is here.

In other news, I have a hugeeee deadline lurking around the corner very soon. So my posts this week might be a little sporadic. I attended a wonderful home cooked Iranian dinner friday night and plan to post pictures of that. But... until I get a spare moment, I will be working around the clock at getting many projects done. But dont think I wont be taking a breather to stop by a couple of favorite blogs to check out the new stuff. :)

So, have a great week everyone If I dont get to post before the weekend.

-Angela

Recent-ish Thrifting Scores

2010-05-14T16:36:00.005-05:00

I have had this photo sitting on my desktop for a while now and I realized I never blogged about my luckiest thrifting trip of all. :)

Clockwise from the upper left:

UNWORN brown maryjane VERA WANG heels (best. score. ever.)

Nikon mug :)

Danish style saucepan

Colorful vintage tulip bag

Brown leather breifcase-ish vintage bag

Wooden leaf bracelet

Brown brazilian leather wedge sandals

Unworn black Nine West flats

That was one of my best thrifting days to say the least. I haven't gone thrifting in a while since then because I've been so busy, and my funds have been tied up with other things. But I would like to go again soon. I miss sharing my finds with everyone.

What has been your best/favorite thrifting find?

-Angela

Desktop Cleanup - Marrakech Inspiration

2010-05-13T10:53:00.009-05:00

Lately I have been searching for images to see what I can expect photography wise in Morocco. These were a few of my favorites. Let's hope I can capture a few images a fraction as beautiful as these.

Expect more desktop cleanups in the future. :)

-Angela

Breakfast and 4day Workweeks.

2010-05-12T09:37:00.007-05:00

(Photo by Click.Capture)

I never eat breakfast. But now that we are having 7:30-6 days at work it seems like I have been having to force myself to. I have a giant coffee mug that I fill with cooked oatmeal, butter, tons of cinnamon sugar, and almond milk. It has been staving me off until lunch pretty well so far.

I am just hoping that these long days will be worth it once the 3 day weekend rolls around. I already have dreams of laying out in my backyard on fridays with sugary lemony boozy drinks and a book. But all these tornadoes and cloudy oklahoma days are ruining the enjoyment of my spring as of late. Perhaps I should do things around my house this friday that I have been putting off? Nah... I'll probably just take advantage of the cloudyness with a long friday nap.

What do you guys do on long cloudy days?

-Angela

Not always clean. Not always girly.

2010-05-11T11:44:00.008-05:00

Campaign for the NAIA National Wrestling Championships held at Oklahoma City University

I would say that most of the time my creative work is unapologetically clean, and unapologetically feminine. But this was a project that really forced me to grow in a different direction, so I thought I would share. For this project my concept was a fight club. I wanted it to reflect the blood, sweat and tears it takes to achieve athletic victory, especially in the case of wrestling.

Have you guys ever had any projects, work or otherwise, that really forced you to step outside of your comfort zone?

-Angela

Yes. I design things.

2010-05-10T15:20:00.005-05:00

Hello all. I have finally mustered up the nerve to post some of my design work, what I am most shy about. Here is a piece I did last year. I posted the cover on here a few months back but didnt want to post the rest for all to see. But now that I have finally gotten over a little bit of my stage fright about my work, I am happy to share this with you.

3 color foil. Deckle edge. 16 page mini view book for The School of Visual Arts located at Oklahoma City University.

For some reason, I never hesitate to share my photography work. But when it comes to design it has always been this thing that I am so picky and passionate about that it leads me to be shy about my own work. It is strange, most people that have become familiar with my blog just assume that I am a photographer, when it isn't even my full time gig!

Well hopefully there will be many more design posts to follow this one. Taking pictures isn't the only thing I am obsessed with, ya know. ;)

-Angela

What I found in my mailbox.

2010-05-10T14:31:00.005-05:00

(Morocco is next.)

-Angela

April 19th. Oklahoma City Bombing 15th Anniversary.

2010-04-19T12:05:00.007-05:00

No matter where you stand politically,

what happened 15 years ago today was a tragedy and shouldn't have taken place.

I was only 10 years old but the memory is so clear in my mind,

mostly because it's my first memory of wanting to help people I had never met.

I can't imagine what it must have been like.

Living here in Oklahoma City during this tragedy.

As much as I have a love/hate relationship with living in Oklahoma City I feel very attached to it, OKC is very much where I consider my real home to be.

I was in my hometown, 1.5 hours north of OKC, when this took place.

So, I was much more removed than people who grew up here.

But I rememember, as a girl scout, our troop preparing care packages to send to firefighters.

And feeling very upset and confused.

Just wondering how someone could harm so many innocent people...

...in the name of any cause.

My 10 year old mind just couldn't wrap around that concept.

It still doesn't really.

-Angela

ps. Sorry for the lack of posts. I am working on a redesign of the ole blog.

Debbie Millman.

2010-02-05T12:31:00.005-06:00

Had the pleasure of meeting the design hero of many last night, Debbie Millman. She spoke at the Montgomery for the Oklahoma City chapter of AIGA about the science of the human brain, why we have the need to "brand" things, how humanoids are reconnecting and rehumanizing technology with social networking, and about augmented reality and where she thinks technology is going with it. REALLY enlightening talk.

Above are a few pics of her, her book, a few brands in Sterling's portfolio, and us last night.

If you don't already know about Debbie Millman, here are a few facts:

Debbie Millman is President of the Design division at Sterling Brands, New York, host of the radio show "Design Matters" on DesignObserver.com, the Chair of the new Masters in Branding Program at the School of Visual Arts, a contributing Editor at Print Magazine, a design blogger for Fast Company and an author on the design blog Brand New. She is the President of AIGA and the author of three books: How To Think Like A Great Graphic Designer (Allworth Press, 2007),Essential Principles of Graphic Design and Look Both Ways: Illustrated Essays on the Intersection of Life and Design. (HOW Books, 2009). How To Think Like A Great Graphic Designer is currently in its fourth printing and has been translated in four languages. A sequel, How To Think Like A Great Brand Designer, will be published by Allworth Press in 2010.

Do you guys have any creative heros?

-Angela

Tree Tapestry.

2010-02-04T16:27:00.005-06:00

I love this new tapestry added onto the Urban Outfitters site yesterday.

As you may or may not know. I have a thing for tree silhouettes and textures.

I think this might go really well in my bedroom behind my bed or on my bed.

What do you guys think of tapestries? Do you have any in your place?

-Angela

Self Portrait.

2010-02-03T14:12:00.003-06:00

Sometimes you don't even need to be in the picture to take a self portrait.

Been reallllyyy busy the past couple days. But wanted to drop in and read a few posts from my fellow bloggers. Hope you guys are having a lovely week.

-Angela

Snow Day.

2010-01-30T15:42:00.003-06:00

Pics from yesterday. ;) The boredom in my house was too much and we decided to get out and take some pictures. Didn't take long before we were right back in the house and making another pot of coffee, though.

But man, snow produces some pretty flattering lighting. Gonna have to take advantage of this a little more.

Happy snow day!

-Angela

Snowed In.

2010-01-29T17:08:00.005-06:00

When I saw snow outside this morning, I decided to make something for breakfast to warm me up.

...and of course I had to capture a slice of beauty while the eggs were cooking.

Work was cancelled after all and I had all the time in the world.

Because there is nothing else to do but stay inside, edit photos, and have coffee with a fellow snowed in friend.

Just another extreme ice/snowstorm in Oklahoma. The weather here is always changing. Wednesday was in the mid 60s and beautiful.

I always have to have a little reminder of brighter times in my house though.

Call it anti-depressive living.

What do you do when snowed in? I think me and my friend are about to go romping outside in the snow finally. Maybe I'll get a few pictures of that too.

-Angela

Inspiration - Jessica Hische

2010-01-27T15:09:00.008-06:00

Wanted to share one of my favorite Graphic Designers with you guys.

Since I first saw her work, she immediately made me feel validated as a "girly designer".

Her work is imaginative, vintage inspired....

...ornate, detailed, quirky....

...and unapologetically feminine whilst being badass all at the same time.

She is even disciplined enough to have a blog featuring a beautifully detailed design of a drop cap. Every day. Designed just to beautify the blogosphere.

Makes me want to buy a beautiful letter pressed one just for my bedroom.

Find her websites here:

http://jessicahische.com/

http://jessicahische.blogspot.com/

http://dailydropcap.com/

Who inspires you lately?

-Angela

Testing out the 1.4 50mm Lens

2010-01-26T10:37:00.003-06:00

While I have been waiting for my new 1.4 50mm lens to come in the mail from B&H,

my very kind friend Joel is letting me borrow his.

I have been loving experimenting with it. Sunday was a lazy day of editing

photos and snapping a few pictures from the comfort of my fluffy bed.

This lens captures light sooo well! And the depth of field is to die for.

Only thing that has been difficult getting used to is the focal length.

I have to stand back a lot farther from objects than normal with this lens.

But it is so worth it.

Have you guys gotten any new toys that help you explore your creativity lately?

-Angela

New Year - Part 2 - Dark Side of the Moon

2010-01-25T15:37:00.004-06:00

Part 2 of the show. After Midnight. They played Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon in it's entirety. It was fantastic. There are so many more pictures on my flickr if you want to check them out. Just click on any of the photos to be redirected.

Some of my resolutions:

Invest in more camera equipment.

Journal everyday.

Blog more often. ;)

Take pictures everyday.

Get faster at editing photos.

Don't settle for less than I deserve. In all matters of life.

Explore doing freelance photography and design work more often.

Travel somewhere entirely new.

I don't normally believe in resolutions. Because I've always felt they were meant to be broken. But this year I thought I would give it a go. So I am starting out with just a few simple, realistic ones.

Happy late New Year.

-Angela

The New Year. - Part 1

2010-01-22T08:23:00.006-06:00

Just wanted to share some photos from my New Years experience.

For 2010, me and my bestie, Chenoa, decided to go to the show The Flaming Lips put on every year here in OKC for New Years. But this year was a very special year... a new decade!

So they decided that, after midnight, they would play The Dark Side of the Moon in it's entirety. It was sooooo awesome and I took a TON of pics. So many that it took forever to go through them all. But here are a few favorites from the first half. Click to go to my flickr and see more.

Happy (late) New Year! Hope you guys are having a good one so far. I can't believe we are almost done with the first month!

-Angela

Vintage Window Shopping

2010-01-19T14:02:00.005-06:00

Sunday I went to a little place in Bethany, Oklahoma called "The Rink" It is a HUGE Anitique mall/vintage store that used to be a hockey rink... but is now taken over by vintage/antique enthusiasts and the dreams of addicts like me.

Since I have been working on purging things from my place though, it was SO HARD not to buy anything. But I made a pact with myself.........which I soon broke by purchasing two postcards and a vintage scarf. BUT HEY! I didn't lug home a piece of furniture so.. progress!

Anyway...Here are a few of the things I was drooling over but decided not to buy *tear.

Sorry for the iPhone quality pics. I didn't bring my camera that day but then once I got there I decided I couldn't go without snapping a few low quality pics.

Mid-Century Modern Vanity. Swwwooonnnn.

Mid-Century Modern side table.

Vintage housewares.

Adorable Mid-century tins and bowls.

Pitcher/cup sets

Annddd The most painful find of the day. $45 perfect condition white leather Mid-Century Modern Chair. This thing is going to haunt my dreams. So cute. Chairs are my weakness.

You guys ever go thrifting and just... look? It was almost impossible for me. Find any good stuff? Let me live vicariously through your thrifting! :)

-Angela

Haiti.

2010-01-14T10:10:00.006-06:00

Hey guys, I've been neglecting the blog a little as of late, been rounding up some wedding photo clients and was sick for a while. Which you think would make me want to blog, but all I wanted to do was sleeeeeep.

Anyway, this business with Haiti has finally broken my silence. The news coming from over there is so frightening and heartbreaking.

I can't imagine what those people are going through.

My favorite Arcaide Fire song, "Haiti". Video Shot entiredly on location there. It's beautiful.

Anyway, I just wanted to tell you guys that, If you have the money, text 'HAITI' to 90999, and a donation of $10 will automatically be given to the red cross for relief efforts, charged to your cell bill.

Thanks guys, I am editing photos like crazy so there should be a big explosion of a photoblog post coming soon.

Please keep Haiti in your thoughts.

-Angela

Shoe Fetish

2010-01-06T11:11:00.007-06:00

Hey guys. Still editing my holiday photos.

But in the meantime I thought I would share with you a few of my lusts as of late.

If you know me well, you know I have a bit of a ...shoe problem.

Nude pump. Always a favorite. I adore these.

Very basic but I love the shape and how well they would match everything for spring.

Yes. I am already longing for spring.

Menswear inspired pump. And on sale! I think they would be cute with my work stuff.

Last but not least... My ultimate lust. Gonna keep my eye

on these to see if maybe they will go on sale. I lovelovelovelovelove

these mens style oxfords. <3

But...Unfortunately, during the crazy holiday storm I lost my debit card in all the madness.

So I am going to have to wait a few weeks before I can order anything! :(

Hopefully they dont sell out of my size! That would really bum me out.

You guys got your eyes on anything lately? I love window shopping.

-Angela

I'm back!

2010-01-04T09:20:00.004-06:00

Hey guys. I am baaaccckkk. Decided to take a little blogging break over my holiday after all. Blogging was getting to be a bit too much with the insane weather and other various holiday events. Will be posting about my post-apocalyptic christmas experience and about new years very soon. Just wanted to update you guys.

Hope everyone had a great holiday (or at least made the best of it. haha.) Now wake the eff up and get back to work you slackers! ;)

-Angela

Coffee Cupping.

2009-12-23T14:22:00.006-06:00

Coffee Cupping, or Coffee Tasting, is the practice of observing the tastes and aromas of brewed coffee. It is a professional practice but can be done informally by anyone or by professionals known as Master Tasters. A standard coffee cupping procedure involves deeply sniffing the coffee, then loudly slurping the coffee so it spreads to the back of the tongue. The coffee taster attempts to measure aspects of the coffee's taste, specifically the body (the texture or mouthfeel, such as oiliness), sweetness (the perceived sweetness at the sides of the tongue,acidity (a sharp and tangy feeling at the tip of the tongue, like when biting into an orange),flavour (the characters in the cup), and aftertaste. Since coffee beans embody telltale flavours from the region where they were grown, cuppers may attempt to predict the coffee's origin. (From Wikipedia)

Went to my first coffee cupping last night at Gray Owl coffee in Norman, Ok. I have to say, compared to these guys I know nothing about coffee. But it was fun trying all the different flavors out and learning that I could actually describe what I was tasting.

We would have several cups sat down in front of us, we would lean in and get a big wiff of the coffee, trying to identify what the flavors were just by the scent, then would quickly take a sip from a spoon and then jot down the first flavors that came to mind. Think of a wine tasting except wayyyy more cracked out by the end of the night once everyone was full of caffeine. My post-it was on the very far left, short and to the point. While the really knowledgable guy's was the one just to the right of mine that was long and detailed. Seemed as though I got mine pretty right on tho for a beginner. ;)

Are you guys really into coffee? Ever gone to a "cupping" before?

-Angela

Vacation!

2009-12-22T14:55:00.002-06:00

It starts in 5 mins! Can't wait!

My plans for the holiday:

Hang out with friends

Make some cupcakes

Drink lots of coffees

Visit the family in Bartlesville

Maybe paint a little

Work on putting my place together some more

Deliver these wedding invites I just finished

Blog a lil'

Austin, TX or Flaming Lips show for New years

Partay

What are your holiday plans?

-Angela

Housewarming. Handmade Herbal Bath Blend.

2009-12-21T19:23:00.006-06:00

Another housewarming gift I received this weekend.

Handmade Herbal Bath Blend. I loveee the adorable handmade label. But thennnn... Check out that ingredients list! First Ingredient...Cayenne! I am going to try it out tonight and see how it goes.

Looks like it could warm up more than just my house! :0

-Angela

Sunday Thrifting Finds.

2009-12-20T22:51:00.006-06:00

Man this weekend was a blast. Went to an awesome Christmas party last night and Chenoa and I had a lil sleepover. Woke up this morning and made some breakfast, listened to some tunes, and then we decided we wanted to go thrifting.

Best find of the day. A little Mid Century Table. Got it at Community Thrift for $15. Love.

Died when I found this print. I have a few other very similar prints. And if you know me you know I love "tree stuff" • Beautiful cream and gold vintage bag. with long shoulder strap.

Vanity tray. Been searching for one for a while and couldnt find one I really liked until today. • Pretty dish I found that I thought would be perfect for holding all my spare change laying around my house.

More "tree stuff". ;) Silver candle with tree bark texture. A great find for me. • Cute throw I found that perfectly matched my stuff. Bluegreen and Taupy color.

This was a hilarious find because I had been getting crap from my friends this weekend for my love of cheap Dunkin' Donuts coffee. Sorry frins but I think it tastes better than Starbucks charred roast. Anyway this was a perfect find to end a weekend. Love the cute 1970s style mug.

The little box was the new find. Bought it because it perfectly matched two other tins I had. I think it's going to hold recipes or tea. The taller one is currently being used for coffee filters. • Pressed flower decoration. If you havent noticed, I love having little elements of nature around my place.

Last but not least. This wasnt a thrifting find, but a housewarming gift from my friend Chenoa. A bottle of Fat Bastard Merlot with a cute little Kimono style holder. Loveeee it. :)

-Angela

Vintage Video Friday! Happy Christmas.

2009-12-18T19:12:00.005-06:00

Two posts in one day? Fancy That.

Happy Christmas everyone.

Tis' the season of Vitamin C.

2009-12-18T18:19:00.003-06:00

It all starts with that little itch. You know the one. At the back of your throat when you swallow. The sneezes you wishfully think are just allergies. Then a weird feeling of warmth comes over you followed by chills. Yep. You are starting to get sick. And I say.. I will have none of it.

Ever since yesterday when I got that first little feeling, I have been inundating myself with very high doses of vitamin C... via a mysterious fizzing elixr called Emergen-C....and it seems to be keeping it at bay...kind of. I am still feeling rather weak and not like myself but my weakness has not turned into the full blown plague just yet.

And plus... who wouldnt want to overdose on Vitamin C when it is flavored like Acai Berry?

-Angela

Reading Corner turned Christmas Corner.

2009-12-17T08:36:00.004-06:00

Remember that reading corner I showed you in the previous post? It has now been the home of my new xmas tree here for a while now.

I got the LAST white xmas tree at a Kohl's Black Friday sale marked down to $15 bucks. :) (originally priced $50)

A few people have brought that to my attention that this photo makes my tree look HUGE. So I need to point out that this tree is only 4 feet. It's my lil babytree.

The thing that makes this tree so special to me is that my grandfather, who is now in his mid-eighties, allowed me to inherit my grandmother's beautiful christmas ornaments this year. So based on when my grandparents were married, had children, and when my grandmother would have bought these; I am guessing these ornaments are from the 50s or 60s. Plus the look of them would tell me no different.

I've always hated Christmas for as long as I can remember working retail (since I was about 16 until just about a year and a half ago). Now that I actually have time off from work to enjoy family, giving gifts to the kiddos, and not having to fight off rude customers blaming me for ruining their christmas (because they waited until christmas eve to shop).... now Christmas is slowly starting to grow on me.

-Angela

For Shame! An update about the new place. Finally.

2009-12-16T16:27:00.007-06:00

Ok so I found a cute tapestry for Kathleen over at jeremyandkathleen and she told me she was going to link me in her next entry in order to shame me into updating. And ok ok I surrender. The shame has worked. I must update. ;)

Ok so some of you may have already seen this if you are friends with me on my flickr page. But for those 5 readers who arent.. I shall share the UNedited UNartdirected UNfinished pictures of my new place.

I have actually done quite a bit since these pics were taken and plan on taking some "after" photos once I am all done... or well.. finished enough to be ok with taking more pictures. (because if i waited till i was ALL DONE...it might not ever happen).

So here is the living room. I got rid of those ugly pillows that came with my sofa and the couch looks much better without them. Also got that picture hung and another tree picture above the tv. Dvd player is all hooked up and rearranged. All thats left is to look for some new pillows and a throw to go on the sofa. Probably will take inspiration from a color in that painting most likely. ;) After rearranging this room a zillion times. This just seemed to be the best arrangement for the living room. It is kind of an awkward space.

View from the sofa. Got some new pics hung on both sides of that mirror. Still can't get the pesky mirror to hang. Tree pic is moved above the tv.

Office clutter is all cleaned up now so I have a clear desk with my orange chair there. And that is an OUTBOX in that tupperware container. A huge one. That self portrait needs to be hung too. In the pic on the right, that little stand there is going to be painted teal and used to hold purses and shoes. Coathooks will be going on that wall. And ive now got a little bowl on that table for mail and keys. Landing strip is almoosstt there.

Love this little reading corner. And my dining room now has a giant paper lantern above the table. The bookshelves and the tinyness of my dining area makes my place pretty cozy.

I love my new kitchen. Its small but it gets the job done so well. If you saw my old one, you would know what a vast improvement this one is. And its so great to have a dishwasher again. You take for granted the little things. And yes. That door leads to a backyard.

It's the little things like wine, fresh flowers, and a welcome mat that make a place feel like home. Private fenced in backyard helps too. I've never had that before and I think its gonna be really nice in the summer.

Of course two of those boxes are still yet to be unpacked.. but wait.. ignore the boxes and look past to the pretty scarf collection...divert divert! :) To the right is my bathroom. The white curtain hides the stackable washer and dryer. I hate seeing washer and dryer sets. I must hide them. Those curtains have been used at my last 3 or 4 places for that very use.

And THIS is where all the action happens! (or lack thereof..ha) I definitely want to paint or put something on that wall behind my bed but i havent decided what yet. We will see. Would love to put some curtains up to so long as they dont interfere with the natural light.

Here is my rescued dresser. When I found it, it was completely scratched up and water damaged. Thats when I decided to paint it teal. I still have a whole gallon of that paint left so that is what the little shoe holder I mentioned earlier in the post is going to be painted. Anyone need some teal paint? The other pic is my closet and argyle obsession. The rest of my place has pretty big walk in closets but that closet happens to be kind of awkward. Still working on the most organized arrangement for everything in there. Decorative boxes/bins holding stuff? Shoe racks? All stuff to think about...

Of course there were pics of the unpacked clutter. If you MUST see the rest of my place you can click any of the photos to go to my flickr cause sorry but im not posting the embarrassing clutter piles that have yet to be unpacked.

But it seems there are always new things to be doing to a place. It is never finished. It is constantly an evolution of changing taste and needs. Then those little visions you have itching at the back of your brain just dying to manifest themselves. We will see how It comes along in the following weeks.

And despite my blogger lazyness. I will even try to update this thing once in a while.

-Angela

Thankful. Grateful.

2009-11-26T23:44:00.006-06:00

So many things I could list I am grateful for this year. The first? Being able to comfortably have thanksgiving at my Grandfather's house this year.

I am grateful for mismatched chairs, mismatched plates, mismatched serving dishes, mismatched styles of stuffing, but most of all... mismatched people.

I am grateful that they needed to figure out how to fit two extra dining tables in the living room. And for needing to pull out every chair we could possibly imagine could work for seating.

I am also grateful for perfect weather, open windows, and natural light flooding in.

I am grateful for having to fill so many cups with drinks. And for getting to spend another year with my grandfather, who is now in his mid-eighties. And has been my hero since childhood.

I am grateful for mischievous nieces and opportunities to give aunt-worthy advice.

For cherry pies.

And first attempts at sweet potato pies.

And having so many pies that they can only be stored in the laundry room and on top of deep freezers.

For actually having enough green bean casserole for leftovers this year. (it is usually the first one to be demolished within the first trip around the table.)

And for evidence of full bellies. :)

Other things I am grateful for this year:

A good job

Good friends

The sound of my big brother snoring in his chair right now.

My lovely, sensitive, mature, hilarious nieces.

A new place I feel safe in.

Friends that are fantastic enough to help me move into this new said place.

Male family members who gripe about me having a low tire... then air it up for me.

My camera.

My brother making me rocket fuel style coffee to cure my caffeine headache... at midnight.

My creativity.

The strides I have taken in healing some things within myself.

My nephews coming into town tomorrow evening.

My long day of black friday I have ahead of me tomorrow.

And last but not least. My grandfather allowing me to inherit beautiful, vintage, handpainted Christmas ornaments that originally belonged to my grandmother. It meant so much.

Happy Thanksgiving guys!

Photoblog Post- Maternity shoot with Loni.

2009-11-24T12:15:00.002-06:00

Hi guys! It has been a few days since I posted these on my flickr page but I thought I would share these on my blog as well.

A while back I posted up a preview shot of the maternity shoot I did with Loni as a gratitude post. Just wanted to share a few of my favorite shots from that day.

There were a lot of pictures taken but I tried up just upload a few of my favorites. Also there were some demi moore ish semi-nude photos that we had taken but to respect Loni's privacy I will not be posting those online (which is really too bad cause they were beautiful!).

Perfect Yellow flowers.

Pink heels and morning sun.

Baby gifts and Framed Ultrasound.

Sillouette. And Loni sporting a Canada hoodie. (her husband is Canadian)

Belly and Little Bing.

Cheese?

Bear.

So cute.

*melt.

-Angela

Vintage Video Friday! - Joni Mitchell sings California.

2009-11-20T16:27:00.004-06:00

Last night I took a bubble bath in my new place and listened to the entire album "Blue".

Hello all! I am backk! So happy to be in my new place and starting to get it all set up. Such a relief. Can't even tell you. No more lousy upstairs neighbors. No repairs to worry about. No flakey landlord. Sigh. of. relief.

So the moving process was such a whirlwind I didnt get to take any pics of my new place all empty. But as I get decorating going I will be taking photos and it would be lovely to get some opinions on what I should do. I have already unpacked the kitchen and the bathroom and gotten the living room started on being arranged. But my living room is kind of an awkward shape so i need help with how i should arrange it. But one thing is obvious already. The dreaded realization....

I must get rid of some stuff... (noooo!)

Next week at work we were given wed-friday off and i decided that monday and tuesday I am taking a couple of vacation days in order to unpack and get some mores stuff set up. It will be lovveellyyyy. And this weekend may be dedicated to going estate sale shopping for smaller versions of the things I must get rid of. :( Like my vanity. Small desk in exchange for full on vanity? Smaller Dining room table? Maybe. MAYBE.

Well I must go now. Have a very happy pre-Thanksgiving Friday!

MIA.

2009-11-11T12:53:00.006-06:00

The fridge is always the first thing I decorate when moving into a new place.

Mine is covered with postcards, pictures, and letters to spell out words.

I love how random yet orderly this one is.

I've got to apologize for not blogging at all this past week. I have been so busy with working, packing, and getting things ready for my move that I haven't really had much time to gather my thoughts enough to put together a post.

Friday is the day I get the key and can move little things in around the cleaning service. And Saturday is the big moving day! CAN'T WAIT. I will try to post up some pictures of the inside of my place while it is all empty and maybe post some pics as i move in and get all set up.

What do you decorate first in a new place?

-Angela

Blog Award!

2009-11-04T14:37:00.006-06:00

I have been nominated by Brianne over at BrianneLee for a Kreativ blog award! Thanks Brianne! Brianne has a really cool thrifting/fashion/shopping blog, you guys have to check it out. I think I may have been nominated for this by another blogger at one point but don't really remember and I don't think I actually tagged anyone in a blog entry or anything so here goes:

The drill:

1. Remember to thank the person who nominated you! (and link them from your blog)

2. Copy the logo and place it on your blog.

3. State seven things about yourself that most people don't know.

4. Nominate 7 other Kreativ bloggers. (and link to them too!)

5. Leave a comment on each of the lucky duckies blogs letting them know.

7 things about me:

1. I love thrift store, junk store, estate sale, garage sale, and antique shopping. Finding things that no one else has and making them my own is one of my favorite things in life. Things that are new make me yawn. Things from the 60s make me swoon.

2. I dont have cable. I have a small television that is strictly a "movie watching machine".

3. I speak a some french and want to learn more. I also really love french pop music from the 60s.

4. I have an obsession with socks and tights. Especially printed ones. I have them in all patterns and prints. I got more argyle than you could shake a stick at. I do have a hard time finding outfits i could wear them all with though. I guess i just like to have them there just in case? haha.

5. I grind my teeth at night. :(

6. I am a collector of things that borders on packrat. If I see a picture, postcard, a quote, a book, etc, that really speaks to me then I will collect it and keep it until I painfully force myself to part ways with it. My camera has made this easier on me. It is a little easier gain inspiration from the objects without owning them when you have a picture to draw from.

7. When I was 9 I wrote, illustrated, and bound my first book after asking my teacher to show me how. This began my love affair with creativity.

Ok now your turn. I tag:

Gratitude Days - Fun Work Projects.

2009-11-03T16:03:00.005-06:00

Brochure I just got back from the printer. 3 color foil stamped on deckle edge paper.

Hello to the 3 of you that read this. :)

Halloween was a blast. Hope everyone had fun!

Anyway, I've been having a kind of weird, stressful past couple days, with preparing for the move and all, so I just wanted to take a minute to be grateful for having a fun job. Especially in this economy.

I just got my fav project I have worked on so far back from the printer on Friday! A brochure for The School of Visual Arts. A school within the private university I work for. I am grateful because I was given so much creative freedom with it. I am always given quite a bit of freedom, but they really let me go pretty wild with this one. :) So it was super exciting to see the finished product.

Anyway, I normally try to leave work related things off of my blog but I had so much fun doing this project that I couldn't just keep quiet. Maybe sometime I'll get brave enough to post pictures of the inside and let all you fellow designers out there pick it apart. Haha.

Have a great day guys. Maybe gratitude will bring me luck and mine will get a little better. :)

-Angela

Vintage Video Friday! - Audrey Hepburn singing Moon River.

2009-10-30T11:49:00.003-05:00

As a homage to my favorite actress, favorite movie, and favorite song ever of all time. And my last year's halloween costume. Enjoy.

Ghouls Gone Wild.

2009-10-29T09:31:00.005-05:00

Halloween is right around the corner! But I've practically been celebrating all month long. It is my favorite holiday.

So for some reason in OKC everyone decided to have the Halloween events the weekend before Halloween, which kind of defies logic to me. But I was also secretly happy about it because I feel like I get to celebrate Halloween longer. :)

The only problem was the costume. I hadn't made mine yet! So at the last minute I decided I was going to participate in our Halloween Parade that was started by The Flaming Lips 3 years ago. This was the third year that, as a finale of the Halloween parade, they round up 1000+ people to dress up as skeletons and march the parade with flaming torches (with real fire), called "March of a Thousand Flaming Skeletons". While Wayne Coyne follows behind in a giant hamster-ball-like spacebubble. It's quite a spectacle if you have never seen it. And me and my friend Christa decided to be a part of it this year.

I managed to bring my camera and snap a few pictures. It was extremely dark at the parade so it was kind of hard not to get blurry shots, but some of the longer shutter speed pics came out pretty fun.

Needless to say, even friends we have known for years didn't recognize us.

Doing the make-up was a challenge and well, pretty fun.

The line when we got there was so long. Inside Wayne was commanding the masses of skeletons.

Standing in line for our torches, I snapped a couple of pics of the insane lights and inflatable costumes that were to be surrounding Wayne and his Spacebubble.

The floats ranged from the creepy, to the whimsical.

So did the costumes. (yes, that is me on the left.)

My torch.

Christa looking sinister. Along with the rest of the skeletons behind us.

Then of course I had to start playing with my camera. Long shutter speeds are too much fun when there are torches around.

Halos. And lines.

We were starting to march. This was our first curve around a corner. I loved the movement in this shot.

You can very vaguely see the crowd to the side. The walk was nearly 2 miles and the sidewalks were packed the whole way down.

Before I knew it, the march was over, so I turned around and snapped that picture of the skeletons walking towards me, going back as far as the horizon.

The photographers all gathered around to try to get shots of Wayne.

Then Wayne emerged from his Spacebubble, and was sped away in a golf cart.

So we walked back to McNellies to have a drink and plan the rest of our evening.

Happy Halloween guys. Hope you have a good one. :)

-Angela

Gratitude Mondays - Artistic collaboration with friends

2009-10-27T15:18:00.004-05:00

Kidnapped In Dreamy Llama Country. Click to see the photos. http://quickmechanism.com/kidnapping/

I am not good at this whole blogging thing due to my ADD inherited trait of getting my days mixed up. Oh well. I guess the whole point is to be grateful once a week right? :)

Anyway. I would like to say I am grateful for my friends affording me the opportunities to be part of their creative projects. For me, being creative all alone isn't nearly as much fun as having someone there to bounce ideas off of, have fun with, and occasionally i get to be the guinea pig, which is always fun.

My friend Derek Doublin took this set of pictures of me back in July. He tells me more are on the way, which I can't wait to see. He drug me out to Jones, Oklahoma to take these pics and it was a blast. Some were taken at the local swap meet, some in the middle of nowhere. I have to say, since I've been taking pictures for a while it was nice to be in front of the camera for a while instead of behind it. Derek is truly a wonderful artist and very good at what he does.

Derek also has a website and poetry blog:

http://www.quickmechanism.com/

http://www.upsidedownlawnmower.com/

Just another thing to be thankful for.

Vintage Video Friday! - Edie Sedgwick Singing

2009-10-23T09:44:00.003-05:00

She will forever be inspiration.