Point Away From Face And Other People ! Hastypearl

Point Away From Face And Other People !

Hastypearl

Well, the Season is upon us.

Every family has its rhythms.  

We, love to have people in our home every chance that we can.

I'm a very casual hostess.

I mean, I love pretty things, 

but, I'm just as happy to serve you tamales and the humble pinto beans, as anything.

There is something very comforting about 

non pretentiousness.

Last night, we were blessed to host my husbands side of the family.

Following a terrible personal loss this year, 

Thanksgiving and Christmas, 

are the first round of special Seasonal Days, without her.

It was important to me, 

to find time to honor their mother 

and our Aunt Barbara, 

but I hoped that we would also find our way to some 

childhood reminiscing and laughter.

I'm glad to say that we were successful :)

I greeted them wearing my handmade, 

" I Had My Colonoscopy", button.

Hey, we get our "I Voted" stickers, 

and we give kids buttons for everything, 

so why can't we adults get a pat on the back for accomplishments, as well?

It wasn't long, before the stories and laughter were full on!

My BIL said he couldn't remember when he had laughed as much.

Everyone brings just the perfect thing to a group like that.

I am so Thankful to be a part of this one :) 

Christmas is the perfect backdrop for my newly listed 

Mixed Media Collage Angels on Hastypearl Etsy.

I believe that I made 13 of them.

Every One is unique !

~ $ 54. and $62. ~ 

We didn't have much time to decorate, 

but we got out a few special pieces of Christmas Decor.

There is a Chance, that our Granddaughter will be here for Christmas, 

so we will take special care to decorate :)

I thought that my little Etsy Hastypearl Vintage Putz Houses

 looked perfect on this narrow upper ledge on our sideboard.

These are quite special !

They are much more detailed than many of the Putz Houses that I have seen.

~ $24. each ~

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My husband decided to do a little cooking and went to the store for some ingredients.

I asked him to pick up some Party Crackers/Poppers, if he could find them.

Well, he was successful !

The Angels and Chandelier are so much better for the use of those at our table :)

Can you see the streamers?

One of our family members has led a bit of a  sheltered life ;) 

with a mother that was sure to keep her safe, 

needed a little education firing her Party Cracker.

I found one of these instruction pieces, 

lodged in one of my table centerpieces this morning.

On behalf of Cindy, 

I have enlarged it, so that you will all be prepared at your next party.

And there is an instruction for You too, 

inquisitive Michael.

See?

It says... 

Not to be Dismantled ;)

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Its a busy time of the year for Everyone!

There are so many Activities, that we can sometimes miss the Special Moments.

I try to whisper a Thanks to the One,

 that allows me to live the most Wonderful life.

We aren't in danger of "using up", all of our Thank You's

...so we can use Them Liberally.

Take time All Day Everyday, 

and you will find Many Things to be Thankful for :)

As Always, I'm so glad that you stopped by.

Please take a look, here, at all of the Angels and Houses that are listed on Hastypearl !

Each listing has 5 pictures and I love telling a story about each vintage part and heirloom art.  

Now, you know how beautiful they will look in your setting.

~ Best...Laura  

My Uphill Slog With The Mysteries Of Product Photography ! Hastypearl

My Uphill Slog With The Mysteries Of Product Photography !

Hastypearl

WARNING !

I am going to be Graphic in this blog posting.

I am going to post images that WILL offend you.

Your should start by covering 99% of your field of vision, 

only allowing yourself to see 1% if the first 4 images. 

Ha!

Got 'cha !

No, there is No Explicit imagery here, 

just some really scary bad photography !

I say all of that just to let you see where I started.

Leading up to my hastypearl Esty shop opening in 2012, 

I knew Nothing about photography.

I could point and shoot, and share the pics with my family.

That was it.

I learned pretty quick, that what I knew how to do, 

and what I was seeing on Etsy, was faaaaar apart.

I didn't know anyone that knew the answers.

I didn't have a clue how to change what I was doing.

I wish that I could say that it happened easily and fast, 

but for me, it didn't.

I tried everything that I could think of, 

and these pics were about as good as it got.

eeew...

arggggh...

One thing that I DID know how to do, was to ask for help.

Over time, I learned where to watch "how to" videos, 

but without the equipment, I was still going around in circles.

So, I started asking some internet friends about their camera equipment 

and I made my first DSLR purchase.

It was a starter camera for sure, 

but I knew what I saw it turning out for some Etsy friends 

and that was good enough for me.

It came with a kit lens and I added a macro lens.

Not expensive...at all.

My BIL knew of my trials, and generously gave me PhotoShop Elements 6, 

which by the time that I got it, 

it was already obsolete...but it was MY obsolete !

I couldn't have been happier!

He gave me a few how to's...a very few...and the rest I had to figure out.

Again, back to the internet to read and find videos to help.

Then, one fine and wonderful day, 

two sweet ladies came to the rescue when I asked for their help.

One, told me about a book called,

Understanding Exposure

How to Shoot Great Photographs with Any Camera 

by Bryan Peterson

I'm not sure how many times I have read that book, 

but I have read through and taken extensive notes, TWICE.

I later found that much of what is in this book, 

is taught in videos on his School of Photography. 

Frankly, I was glad that I had read the book, before I watched the videos. 

Another friend, told me about CreativeLive.com .

This website has fantastic online classes, 

for Photo & Video and a whole range of other studies.

Those two real suggestions helped me Get On The Road.

Finally, I had on my wish list to buy some lights for my "studio". 

Don't misunderstand.

My photography studio is a piece of white rolled watercolor paper, 

clipped to some drapes, with a table in front.

Again, when I asked the question, 

do I most likely need a different lens or more light? 

The answer was, more light is always the fix.

So, I went to our only real camera store, 

Camera Exchange, in San Antonio and bought my first real lights.

I bought the Erin Manning Home Studio Lighting Kit 

Westcott Basics.

While I never thought that I would spend what I have spent on photography, 

what I have purchased, is very moderately priced, 

and way less than many individuals spend on shoes and handbags in a year.

;)    

Still, I dreamed of having someone come to my home, 

and show me step by step, what they would do with one of my images, 

to get it ready for an Etsy listing.

A month ago, that Finally Happened !!

There is a Socially Excepted Limit, 

to how many exclamation marks to use, 

so just picture that I used One Million in that last sentence :)

That means that...3three3 LONNNNG years after I opened my Hastypearl Etsy shop, 

I got THE piece of info that I had dreamed of.

On Photoshop, it is called the Level's bar, with the Histogram.

It was Right under my nose, the Whole Time.

When my friend showed me, 

she used a phrase that I had murmured to myself so many times...

She said, 

slide this bar, 

and it will "look like you have removed a film off of the image".

That is exactly what I needed !

When I put everything that I had learned together...

I heard the Angels Sing a New Song...

Their song was...

Hallelujah, Laura's pictures just Got Better, 

so Maybe we will stop having to see HER TRULY BAD Ones !!!

Yes, a Heavenly Chorus :)

Again, the audacity of Me telling you about photography, 

when there are SO many much more capable, than I. 

It is equal to me telling you how to fly a spaceship, 

or change a transmission, 

or rob a bank ;)

But, I just wanted desperately to know how to improve my pics, 

for so long, 

that I wanted to share what I have learned.

I have SOOOOO much more to learn, 

but the best part about it is...I Love Learning !

While I would have loved to have known these steps MUCH earlier...

They Came When They Came, and I can live with that.

We are all on some kind of learning curve.

Its what keeps us fresh, stretching, reaching.

Lets remind each other to keep at it !

Its one of Life's Greatest Joys :)

What has been Your biggest learning curve ?

Leave your answer in the Post a Comment section below !

We can cheer each other on :)

Best,

Laura 

ps...these last images, are some angels that I will be listing on Hastypearl Etsy.

Come on by and see whats new in the shop :) 

Say Ahhhh....and Breathe! Hastypearl

Say Ahhhh...and Breathe!

Hastypearl

I love my life.

For the most part, I have weeks, that are equally divided with 

part required events and part fulfilling events.

Even most of my 'have to's', are nice.

Like, I have to garden...

Or, I have to grocery...

This week was a heavy on the 'have to' list, but all of it was for things that I love.

And, early in the week, two unexpected deadlines appeared, but for totally wonderful things.

So, when you already have a full week, what should you do?

Why, throw on a monster boiling pot and dye fabric, of course!

Yes, I turned the pieces into runners that I can sell at an upcoming Art Show, 

or on Hastypearl Etsy, 

but I already had plenty of pieces that were ready for both.

:)

But the gathering and fragrances, the ins and outs of the needle, 

made it all worthwhile and reminds me of my theory that says 

that everything basically always gets done.

Maybe one day, I will tip the scales to where its impossible to 

finish and it wont get done, but until then, 

I will keep living my lot of easy weeks and full weeks.

So, in case you are wondering...

the recipe was....

Alkaline water

Two iron spikes

Two black walnuts

Cotton fabric wrapped around copper pipes

Vinegar

Rose, eucalyptus, red bud, red oak, artemesia, purple potato vine, 

and Mexican plum leaves. 

I Hope that you will Ahhhh...and Breathe, through a wonderful weekend :)

xo Laura

Vintage Button Jewelry Mixed Media Fun! Hastypearl

Vintage Button Jewelry

Mixed Media Fun!

Hastypearl

I know girls, that say that they like the "shiny stuff", and they will wiggle their ring fingers.

Well, my idea of the "shiny stuff" includes a more inexpensive kind of facet...

and that would include...Buttons.

Specifically...Vintage Buttons!

Its true, that every era, has decorated their clothing with objects of interest, and from the early days on...some kind of button was not only used for its closure function...but for interest and decoration, too.

I love a Large Coat Button, popular in the 40's and 50's and of course, the Victorians used fanciful buttons for everything ...including men's shirts and cuffs.

I've been making Button Brooches and Pins for myself for a long time, but it wasn't until this week, that I actually made some and listed them in my Etsy shop, called hastypearl.

These two Brooches, were made from combinations of Clear Buttons.

Look at the variety of textures and shapes.

They just Amaze me!

I've seen a lot of Brooches that are round shaped and maybe three buttons stacked on top of each other, but I wanted to do something more interesting than that.

The rectangle pin below has an added Art Nouveau shaped charm that dangles and I love that it makes a little sound when it taps the buttons next to it.

I added glass, silver and rhinestone beads to bring in a little sparkle to the mix, but with the amazing shapes of the buttons, they don't really need that much help!

You can wear them with anything really.

I put them on my coats and blouses, and it never hurts to dress up a cashmere sweater...either!

Thought you might enjoy seeing one of my latest additions to Hastypearl Etsy.

These make great gifts that don't cost quite as much as the other "shiny stuff"!

I hope you will click on over to my shop and see what I've been up to :)

Stay warm every one.

It cant be that much longer until Spring!

xoxo Laura