No Erasing, Only Alterations.

I've been an artist my entire life. I won my first art contest in 4th grade. For me, art was just something that came natural. I never had to work at it, but I had a grave passion for it, nonetheless. In high school, my art teacher took our erasers and told us that a real artist would never have a use for one. Of course, that took some adapting, but to this day, I understand the lesson. Thus, I've been inspired to share my latest experience.

Last night, I had the brilliant idea that I was tired of my "straight, yet boring" hair and wanted Samantha Who? curls. I took my tiniest foam rollers, wrapped every ounce of hair on my head and went to sleep. I was very excited to wake up this morning with new hair. Boy... did I get new hair!? I laughed and laughed, my Husband laughed and laughed. My hair was so  curly, we both agreed I looked like a poodle rather than Samantha Who?!!! I hated for my efforts to be wasted, so I pondered around the house for a bit when the lesson occurred to me: "Real artists don't make mistakes, but create art from them." Thus, the modern, vintage, black and white, self-portrait was born. 

Give Me Some Sugar!

We all have our guilty pleasures. Natural beauties remedies just happen to be mine...from baking soda-acv hair treatments, to blueberry induced facials! So when I read an article in November's issue of Cosmo about succulent lips by way of grapes, sugar and honey... I was all ears. 

It's simple. (And I'm a simple woman!) Mix one teaspoon of honey and sugar (you could really mix 1/8 unless you want to do this with your man...wink, wink) Dip the mixture onto the fleshy side of a halved grape and rub into lips. "The sugar removes dead skin, while the fructose in the grape and honey hydrates." Rinse, then seal with a  lip balm of choice. 

Page 96, Cosmopolitan, November 2011

A Little Taste of Home

By fault, I'm a country girl. Born and raised, 18 years spent in the same house on land my parents bought when they were only teens themselves. Now, by fate, I'm a city girl. I love everything face paced, full throttle. Having the ability to intertwine the two identities, yet prevail as one person? That takes some real talent. That's where these shots come in. My oldest daughter, Italia, loves  being in the country, as I suppose all children may. I mean, all things aside, running barefoot in fresh grass all summer long does have it perks (except for the vast amount of ant bites you may notice on her tiny little left leg). Therefore, when my mother handed her that cookie, I couldn't help but take advantage of the opportunity.  Nature provides photography's greatest backdrops. 

There are two things in life that are constant: change... and change.

WHAT IS LOCKS OF LOVE?

"Locks of Love is a public non-profit organization that provides hairpieces to financially disadvantaged children in the United States and Canada under age 21 suffering from long-term medical hair loss from any diagnosis. We meet a unique need for children by using donated hair to create the highest quality hair prosthetics. Most of the children helped by Locks of Love have lost their hair due to a medical condition called alopecia areata, which has no known cause or cure. The prostheses we provide help to restore their self-esteem and their confidence, enabling them to face the world and their peers."

I had wanted to do this my entire life and like most things, it had been on the bucket list for a while, so I knew it was time. I chopped 15" off and people were stunned. I felt fabulous! Not only could those two rug-rats below no longer yank on my hair... some beautiful child was going to receive a heartfelt gift and boost of confidence from ME! What a great experience. 

To donate visit http://www.locksoflove.org/

Crazy Little Thing Called Love

September 28, I had the privilege to attend a wedding ceremony of two people that simply put: belong together. I can't explain the connection these two possess, but it's real and it's beautiful. I'm so blessed to have incredible people like this in my life. I love you Doug and Jules. <3

Bradenton Beach, FL.

Shells the flower girl dropped.

Jules and her father. 

She's stunning. 

 Exchanging...

 ...their...

 ...rings. 

 It must be love. 

You may kiss the bride. 

<3

How appropriate?! 

Introducing: Mr and Mrs!

Her smile is contagious :)

Honeymoon already?!

Slow dancing... swaying to the music. 

Father-Daughter dance (and the point in which I bawled my eyes out!)

...and the celebration began. 

A Shot of the Past... literally.

It's easy to find ourselves completely wrapped up in the future, what's going to happen next. But it's hard to understand where you are headed, without understanding where you came from. I've always been obsessed with learning and studying the way things work and why they exist. So, when my Mom was given a case of vintage cameras, my brain nearly jumped out of my head, exploding with excitement at the opportunity to photograph a timeless piece of history (which would later become the art in my bedroom!)

One of the Kodak Brownie cameras my mother already owned, but the rest were purchased from a man at a yard sale. Entire case: $25. Talk about a steal! :)

Maya Grace - 3 months

 My intentions had been to photograph Maya's newborn shots within the first few days of her arrival. Ha! After about 3-4 different DAYS of attempting, I finally gave up. She was a terribly moody, only wants to be held, non-cooperative baby! I was disappointed that we did not get the shots, but I'm making up for it now (that she's happy ;))

And just because she's the oldest... she couldn't go without a photo, too ;)

Xoxo <3

Mr. and Mrs. Havard

Kyle and Ashleigh are such a sweet young couple. They wanted to renew their vows in the church they wed before Kyle left for boot camp. When I offered to do their photography, they were ecstatic. Well, so was I... they are naturals! 

Isn't that the cutest little white church?!

Congratulations, to a beautiful, sweet couple. May your years be happy and plentiful. Thank you greatly for letting me share this wonderful experience with you.

Desk Restoration

All too often, we'd rather throw something away or donate/trade in it for something new, before stepping back to realize the potential a piece may have. My Husband had this desk that was given to us when we got married. We didn't have much back then, so we took anything we could get. This piece lingered around for a while and as we got new (or new to us) things, it got bounced around until we no longer had a place for it... or so we thought! I was just about ready to donate the desk, when it occurred to me that I needed a piece for our foyer. How convenient! So I explained to my Husband exactly what I wanted and he completed the execution for me. 

***I wish I had a before picture, but I just cannot seem to locate one :(

Photo Wall - Thrift Style

Do not buy photo frames from anywhere other than a thrift store or second hand shop. Why pay $15 for one frame when you could by 10-20 frames for the same cost!? Purchase the tackiest frames you can find (trust me on this) paint them with an interior paint of choice - or whatever you have hidden in the garage and voila! You have a gorgeous photo/art wall for a fraction of the cost.

The hideous frames --- 19 of them for only $8.56. 

 The painting takes only a day to paint and dry, so this is a simple and fun weekend project for those of you who are like me and have absolutely no patience :)

 From tacky to fab!

 The outcome. I can't say "final project" because I intend to keep adding to it... But I love it thus far, from the obvious asymmetry to the empty frames, it's exactly what I wanted.