Just not in the loop..

I learn something new every darn day! Sylvia pointed out that there is a Polariod site that converts your images to Polariods. I'm sure they even add the correct shadows. If you are interested, here is the site: Polariod Project.  It's even ranked one of the top 100 sites on the web.. really, I need to get out more..

Thanks Sylvia!

Polariods

I have been admiring images poised as old Polariods. Some are taken with actual Polariod cameras, some are digitally created with a dash of creativity. A bit of my childhood is encased in Polariod film and surrounded by that telltale frame of textured white. Most of it though is on slides. A painful process of transferring my childhood memories to digital is ensuing..

These images are old slides that I had scanned into my PC. (my scanner has a built in feature to do that)  I also scanned in an old Polaroid and edited in Photoshop, and overlaid one image on the other.

 

I realize the slight dark shadow that you get from an original Polariod is missing around the image, but for what it's worth, I think they came out pretty well.  I think you'll be seeing more of these in the future, perhaps with a bit more work to make them look more authentic. 

If you would like to play, you can find the above blank Polariod frame over at my other blog, The Vintage Moth. 

xoxo~

Abbie

Update on Saturday, February 27, 2010 at 8:46AM by Abigail Mooney

I learn something new every darn day! Sylvia pointed out that there is a Polariod site that converts your images to Polariods. I'm sure they even add the correct shadows. If you are interested, here is the site: Polariod Project.  It's even ranked one of the top 100 sites on the web.. really, I need to get out more..

Thanks Sylvia!

Two girls

My MIL gave the girls (my daughters) two antique prints (in their original frames) that she and her mother had bough at a local auction years and years ago.  I was going to paint the frames white, as although they are old, they probably don't have much value to speak of. Once I started to take them apart to clean, I just couldn't do it. I thought perhaps the prints were from an old calender or perhaps they were promotional images that were so often given with products at the turn of the century, but when I got them opened they had the original plate title and even written in pencil near the top it said 'Rustic Frame' in fancy script. They were intended to live in these frames. As they are. They aren't quite tramp art frames, but do have a similar feel.  I'm not crazy about the guilding around the edge of the wood, but that's what they came with.

I cleaned the glass, removed the years of dust and grime and due to some water spots and old tape stains on the frame paper, I cut two sheets of scrapbooking paper to mat them. (acid free) I just laid the scrapbooking paper over top, so I didn't disturb the hundred year old print. I think the next time I'm out, I'll look for some pink paper with white polka dots but for now these peices work fine. the nails that are used to hold in the thin piece of wood in the back are actually hand-hewn. Very neat! So for now, they hang above the rocking cradle that their grandfather made them.

If you would like to print your own, while I had them out of the glass, I (of course!) scanned them in for you! I also made copies of the back plates because those are fun too.. the only thing that bothers me a tiny bit is the sensual, somewhat suggestive positions the little girls are in, (almost as if they were 20 not 5) and that the artist called them 'Pets'.  Ahh.. well. A different generation. Isn't it awful that I scew them like that? Such a cynical world we live in now. But, really.. take a look. It is almost like they were made for Lewis Carroll. :)

 

Oh well. Do with the images as you wish.

xoxo~

Abbie

Thirty-five

Today is my 35th birthday. It really doesn't phase me too much. I don't feel any older, just a bit more in control. I do notice that time seems to go by faster now.  I also find myself suffering from the 'what am I going to be when I grow up' plague quite abit lately.

Aaahh.. well. I'm sure whatever is planned for me will pop up in time. Today was very nice. Spent the day cuddled on the couch with my girls (one of whom has quite the cough/fever) and watched Mary Poppins. I love Dick Van Dyke! Chitty Chitty Bang Bang is another favorite of mine.

For my birthday, once I can find one (they seem to be out of stock everywhere in NH right now) we are getting a Wii. I have heard great things about the Wii Fit Plus and want to try it out. Also, we played one at my brothers at Christmas and it was really fun!

Hope you are having a great weekend! Time to get back to doing nothing!

xoxo~

Abbie

New images...

Where have I been? what have I been doing? I have been trying to hold my life together and not loose complete control of things. I had such a great January! Was getting things done, cleaned out (mentally and physically) Bought new clothes, yadda yadda yadda. But February has lost me. I'm back to staggering around, just getting my head around the laundry and dishes seems hard enough. I had a brilliant stroke of genius in January and now, I'm at a loss and not quite sure where to go now. Or how to go... damn. What happened to my momentum?? Anyway.. I have been trying to take photos. I got some great portrait shots of a friends child, but I can't share them here.  (privacy, I try not to show any images of my children or friends here) BUT how do I add them to a possible portfolio? hhmm.. thinking on that. Objects.. I have been photographing lots of objects. Roses. I really don't like roses. Wild ones, I LOVE. Cut, long stem, just not that crazy about them. Flowers outside- love them! Flowers inside- not so much. I bought some roses for my MIL and myself on Valentine's. (My husband doesn't buy me any because he knows not to bother)  Took some photos and voila. Eeyaahh. Fairly good photos of things I don't really like. :P Why do I bother? But, I do have to say, I love the contrast, the colors, and the texure. It's really neat LARGE. (you can see it larger on my flickr page)

 I have a thing for yellow right now. I had a thing for yellow last winter too..

This year it's a bit more high contrast.

 I also have been driving around.

The above shot is the road from town towards our house. I drive it almost everyday. No wonder this time of year I get into a funk. Not the most gorgeous route in the books. And the weather has been foolish. Too warm and no snow. For a month. No snow. We had two inches fall last night, the first time it's snowed in almost a month. In New Hampshire.

Hope your lives are a bit more 'normal' than mine, although, if Florida is getting snow, and New Hampshire is not.. we REALLY might want to take another peek at that Global Warming thing. ;) And is there ever a 'normal'?

xoxo~

Abbie

One World One Heart Giveaway

Last year I participated in the One World One Heart global giveaway organized by the fantastic Lisa at A Whimsical Bohemian.  This year is no exception and I almost missed the deadline! Hop on over to my OTHER blog, THE VINTAGE MOTH, to enter! Good luck!!

Rag Dolls 2 Love

Mary Page Jones, who lives in Vermont, had an idea and goal to create 200 rag dolls for children whose lives have been traumatized by war, natural disasters, and disease. Rag Dolls 2 Love has grown to an organization that has sent out over 30,000 dolls to countries around the world. If you can run a sewing machine and have some materials you can help too!

My mom had seen this site either on the news or in the paper and since she doesn't have internet access asked me to print out the pattern for her.  I think I have found yet another project. :) This one just seems so rewarding. You need to follow the pattern and directions as the dolls are universal. Meaning, they don't represent an ethnicity or religion. The dolls support and love children of any religion and origin. Absolutely brilliant and simple in its design, the doll instructions are easy to follow.

Please check out the site.. such a peaceful project and you know exactly where your hard work and time is going to end up. In the arms of a child who could really use a big hug and loving heart to care for them.

xoxo~

Abbie

Making me happy...

 

 Things that are making me HAPPY:

(my husband and children are permanent fixtures on this list) 

1. Endless possibility

2. Big dreams

3. Starting at page one

4. The Bees Knees Peanut Butter with Honey

5. An organized house

6. The Bloom Project

7. The Happiness Project

8. Tying up loose ends

9. Getting up early

10. Having my meals planned for the week

11. Making an appointment and keeping it

12. My mega multivitamin pack for joint health from GNC

13. The sun is shining

14. Figuring things out

15. Planning my daughters quilts

16. Being on time

17. Keeping a list

18. Crossing things off the list

19. My new lipstain/gloss

20. Learning how to hem my jeans so that you can't tell I did it

21. Adding a tbsp of salt to my humidifier

22. Putting the laundry away as soon as it comes out of the dryer

23. Waking up to a clean house (I pick it up before I go to bed)

Things that are gunking up the works:

1. Eco-friendly dishwasher detergent. I have tried so many and have yet to find one that works. (it would be nice to not have to wash the dishes twice. Once in the dishwasher and again when they come out.. that is not very eco-friendly.)

2. Imaginary limitations that I set on myself or my abilities

3. My ear infection

What is making you happy?

xoxo~

Abbie

Went for a drive..

I went for a drive today. 

And this is what I saw. A door. Locked. 

A sign. Perhaps warning that on this property security cameras were present. I'm pretty sure my camera was the only one there today.

   

A gas pump. Fill 'er up.

A pair of eyes. They were looking at me. I was looking at them. 

 

I went for a drive today and remembered to take my camera. I have to do that more often. Both, 'to remember' and 'to go'.

Thank you Amanda, for reminding me 'to go'.

xoxo~

Abbie

Scissors, pincushions, and flowers!

 I have been playing with fabrics and papers. (surprise.. they are my most favorite things!) Below I wrapped a recycled can in a fabulous red and white cotton. Just used an Elmers gluestick, but Modge Podge, double sided tape or a glue gun would work too.

The glue bottle (you can tell the brand by the orange tip) I wrapped in some pretty stationary paper from Cath Kidston.  Also used my handy dandy gluestick. (I acquired the paper from the fabulous Melissa as she was purging her stash.) The pretty crocheted flowers (above and below) and the Happy Home needle book also came from Melissa.

 

I also stitched up a lanyard of sorts for my tiny scissors. Using a strip of trim, a crocheted flower and a vintage button.

 Now I can clip it up between my scissors. The 'frames' above, are more sheets of the above mentioned stationary glue 'stuck' to my wall. :)  They help protect the wall from stray scissor tips (I am not a gentle crafter), it helps me find the nails easier and they are really pretty! (the glue sitck will just wash off with a sponge once I want to take the paper down.)

The last project I tackled over the past few days was to make myself a jumbo pincushion. You can see the two pin cushions I now have side by side. :) It's huge and I love it! I used a six inch diameter lid as a pattern. Cut two circles of fabric. Then using a pliable measuring tape I measured around the outside of the circle and added an extra inch in length to that for the side panel. (21" x 2" rectangle) Sew right sides together. Long side of rectangle to edge of one circle, then sew the other circle to the other side of the rectangle. It's not as confusing as I make it sound! :) The vertical opening in the side panel that is left is just the right size to push stuffing through. A lot of stuffing. I stitched up the small side seam and added a button tuft to the center. It holds all my pins, some needles, won't tip over, the needles won't go all the way through and I can't miss it!

I'm almost organized/picked up enough to get the girls quilts started. For their birthdays (both in June) I'm making them quilts for their beds. Now that they are both in twin beds, I'd like for their bedding to match. I hope to also make some curtains, some sweater pillows, pillowcases, a pendant bunting, and add some shelving. They don't spend anytime in their bedroom, but as they get older, I know they will. (hope they will..) 

xoxo~

Abbie