If you take a poll of new DIY bloggers asking what’s on their Christmas list, probably over half would say a nice digital SLR.  It doesn’t take long for a blogger to realize the importance of photography in the blog world. The above shot is from a recent Cottages and Bungalows photo shoot. The above picture is from my first blog post.  It’s not bad.  I had taken a photography class years ago, so I knew the basic principles.  It’s just not very dynamic and I didn’t have enough faith in myself to use manual mode.  I thought the camera was smarter than I was.  I knew flash was no good, so I would shoot on the portrait setting and just hold the flash down with my finger.  I also didn’t know anything about the wonders of Photoshop. The photo above has been edited in Adobe Photoshop Elements.  I used actions from Florabella

My new lenses finally arrived late Wednesday evening.  It was after 7:00 pm and I was the last stop on the UPS route.  I practically hugged the delivery guy.  “I’ve been waiting for you ALL DAY LONG!!”  He apologized and I grabbed the package, signed for it, dashed to the back of the house and sat on the floor to open the long-awaited package.   It was really dark, which is not good for the kind of pictures I wanted to take.  The lenses were so cold from sitting in the truck since 4 AM, so they fogged from the warmth of my house.  I was not going to get to play with them right away, so I had to wait until morning.  As soon as the sun broke the next day, I was snapping pictures.  (I get to see a lot of sunrises with my 2 1/2 year old…)  Anyway, I thought I would share

There are some cool perks to having a blog.  There are really, really sweet ladies out there who send me things they think I might like or be able to use.  I’ve already shared the overwhelming response from the blog world when I asked for sheet music.  I am going to be set for months, maybe longer.  In the last few weeks, I’ve received some really fun goodies in the mail. Check out these tiles sent to me by Molly Mackey from Molly Coddle.  She’s taken photographs from Italy and France and applied them to tumbled marble to use as art or trivets.   I particularly love the ones with typography on them.   Thanks, Molly! Second, I received sheet music from Cori of Starview Sonnet.  She spotted some “Wild Rose” sheet music and immediately thought of the shop that sells my antiques and creations.  She sent me two copies, so I’m

I’ve received a few questions in response to Tuesday’s post and I thought I would share the answers with everyone.  This post is very wordy and long, but I truly hope this helps those who have questions… Camera Advice First, I was asked to recommend a decent low-cost camera.  I have not been a point-n-shoot girl for years, so I really don’t know what good bargains are out there.  I do know that you can take awesome pictures with a point-n-shoot camera, though.  Ms. Funky Junk herself, Donna, is a great example of that.  Check out the photography on her blog.  (She’s an award winning photographer with her point-n-shoot!)  Read through her Photography Workshop Series for all of her tips and tricks. photo source When it comes to buying a camera, I would highly, highly suggest that you save your pennies and buy a digital SLR by either Nikon or Cannon.  I’m

Welcome to the workshop series brought to you by Mustard Seed Creations and Funky Junky Interiors!  Before we get started, make sure you check out my 1000 Follower Giveaway as well as the So You Think You Can Decorate Competition.  For this installment, I have another great guest lined up to share her expertise with you.  I “met” Courtney in the blog world a few months ago and I kept going back to her blog to look at her amazing photography.  I knew I wanted to bring a professional photographer in to share some tips and there was no doubt who I was going to ask.  Once you glean all of the goodness from Courtney’s tips, make sure you check out Donna’s Workshop this week.  She has a guest sharing some simple sewing tips.  Great info!  Without further delay…here’s Courtney! Hi! I’m Courtney from Vintage Ginger Peaches and Courtney Price Photography! I’ve