Monday, March 22, 2010

Uncovering new areas of the yard - Garden clean up


New area as a whole

This is my first Spring living here and there are many unique areas of the yard. I'm spending time each day raking and uncovering areas that haven't been raked in years. Here's my new favorite little rock and tree outcrop.

Uncovering new little places

As I was cleaning up the layers of dead leaves I uncovered a little rock edge surrounding the outcrop. I can't wait to rake the inside of the area and see what grows there, perhaps add some nice shade plants.

Natural rock garden

Here's a close up of the "natural rock garden". Many types of moss and lichen add beauty and history to the rock wall. One thing I noticed when I moved to the North East (Connecticut, Massachusetts, Rhode Island area) were the natural-looking rock walls that have been built years ago, climbing the hills, almost randomly in the forests. It's nice to have some of my own little ones in my backyard.

The boys and Jeb the dog

And this is what the boys do to keep busy while we work outside. Great-Grandpa-Pep hooked up their Jeep Power Wheels with a really powerful battery. They can even pop some little wheelies! We had to weigh down the front with some sand bags. They love it and can roll over all the bumps and hills in the yard.

Monday, March 15, 2010

My Work Space / Good and Bad Photos for Etsy

Here is my humble little work area, a small desk in the house. Simply organized, it works great for me!
Materials kept in simple and inexpensive plastic boxes, all organized. Finished products in protective bags. Pliers right at hand.

My little workspace


After experimenting with the best place in my house for taking photos of jewelry, it's right here at the top of my couch by the window. I use textured scrapbooking paper from Michael's for the background. My macro setting doesn't capture the shine of the jewels so I have to use Manual focus which eats up my camera batteries like crazy.

My photo place

Here are the shots made with this set up:

Photo example

Photo example

Here is my example of a BAD photo. It has been cloudy for days and it turned out so blurry. I have 6 more jewelry pieces to photograph and I'm waiting for the sun.


I tried to use my white balance feature and this is what happened... a pink background! I have a lot to learn about white balance!


What do you struggle with while taking photos for Etsy?

Monday, March 1, 2010

Monday Etsy Shop Feature

I came across the cutest Etsy shop through Flickr, Mitsel8. She makes "Knobnets", handpainted knob magnets, and other cute decor, but let her photos do the talking! They are so bright and colorful!









Leslie's hand painted decor is fun and whimsical! They are all varnished to a smooth and glassy finish and are non-toxic and lead free. They would look beautiful in a children's room or on your fridge. Oh, and the Glitter Chicks are perfect for upcoming Easter!

Click on any of the above links to visit her shop!