Weekend wedding

Hello to one and all!

Here are the photos of the prayer flags at the wedding ceremony.

There were enough to drape them around the entire structure.

A job well done, I think.

Firsts and favorites

Life is full of firsts. Some are once-in-a-lifetime firsts, and some are an annual occurrence.

Today, we had the first strawberries of the year from the garden. Last year I put the plants in later than I should have, and the 35 plants gave us maybe a dozen strawberries. This year I have been watching as the plants bloom, and form tiny little green berries that have grown and blushed to a full, beautiful red. Fiona and I ate the first two while Adrian was at school and Aaron was sleeping. They were divine. More flavorful than any store-bought berry, still warm from the sun.

The first strawberries mean that the garden is in full swing. Soon after we'll be able to dine on fresh peas, lettuce, spinach, blueberries, fennel, and later carrots, broccoli, onions, potatoes and beans.

Our pear tree has little pearlets, and if we don't have a drought this summer, the fall will have us up to our elbows in pears.

Two more weekends until the farmer's market opens, and we will dine like royalty on the best foods of the season.

This is what makes summer my favorite.

Why I love the Internet! or A Great Bridal/Baby Shower Idea.

I love the Internet for many reasons. Chief among them is because it allows me to be inspired by other creative people that I would otherwise never know. A few weeks back, I was visiting Jane LaFazio's blog and she mentioned The Prayer Flag Project. 

The idea behind the project is based roughly on the Buddhist prayer flags--which are brightly colored flags with prayers or mantras stamped on them. The idea being that the wind carries the prayers out into the Universe. 

And I thought: how very cool to take that idea and adapt it to your own use.

Next thought: Hey! Melissa is getting married out in the woods. Wouldn't it be lovely to surround her with flags made by friends and family on that day?

So I hosted a prayer flag shower.

(Technically I hosted two, but I only took pictures of one)

All the ladies, busy at work.

Writing...

Embroidering...

Beading...

Adding ribbon...

This is about half of what we created.

From the other end of the table.

The wedding is this weekend! I'll try to get pictures of the flags in action.

So why not pop over to The Prayer Flag Project, check out the tutorials and make some for your friends who are expecting a baby, for your grandma in the nursing home, for your next door neighbor's kid's graduation?

They are super fun and super easy.

Once there was...

Once there was a name here. 

Now a cluster of purpley-red roses.

That's the sort of thing I do at my day job. Which I LOVE. I love working with people to get ideas out of their heads and onto their skin. I love the look on their face when they see the finished work. I love being able to use art to make income--something I was told was impractical and impossible going through school.

But I want to do MORE. Not just tattooing, but painting, sculpting, and photography. I need some SERIOUS help with my photography skills. As you can see from the above photo, things look washed out and blah. If you could see it in person, oh! Those roses are dark and broody, with a kiss of red on the edges of the petals. The leaves are green and yellow-green and soft and subtle. But every time I photograph my work it looks flat and lifeless. It's a bit of a pisser.

So, I have made it to the 5th month of THE YEAR OF ART. And I have assessed my skills and my weaknesses. The two weaknesses that I need to address in the coming months are my reluctance to self-promote, and my photography skills.