Absence makes the heart grow fonder...

It's just been a crazy beginning of the year. Between editing my wedding photos and planning the reception for our families, I've been pretty tied up and definitely haven't had enough time for crafting! The good news is that pictures are now done, invitations are out, gifts have been arriving and we got our wedding photo book and calendar from shutterfly.com this week. (When I bought my dress at David's Bridal, they were kind enough to give me coupons for both items at shutterfly, so my total cost was $16 for shipping!)

The biggest thing that I have to be concerned with right now are center pieces. I'm not inclined toward, nor do we have the budget for, gigantic floral pieces, plus I'm all about creating something myself. My husband and I both like a theme similar to this one with a sprinkling of flowers at the base. The biggest question right now is where to find them for a reasonable price! I'll keep you updated on my quest.

A crafty bridal shower gift

I was so busy planning for my good friend's bridal shower that I didn't have all that much time to plan the perfect gift. Then it came to me that I'm one of those crafty folk that can make something unique last minute! I had bought some Mod Podge to decoupage something for a craft swap on craftster.org and decided to put it to good use for this gift.

The couple were traveling to NYC for their honeymoon, so what better than to create something to put a couple of honeymoon photos in. I took a picture that I had taken while in NY a couple of years ago, cropped it, and decoupaged it to a glass frame. Here's the end result. It wasn't perfect, but it was perfect for the couple, if you know what I mean!
The good news is that both the bridal shower and the gift went down well. We played games from "name that love song" to "match famous couples through history" and created a CD of songs picked by the bride that included the bizarre and obscure. How Liz Minelli can appear on the same track listing as Def Leppard is a mystery (but a fun one none the less).

Barham/Griffith Park Fires

I have truly concluded that I am dedicated to my art. The recent fires destroying acres upon acres in the Griffith park area has been devastating to those that love that part of Los Angeles. As a photographer though, it wouldn't be right for me not to bust out the camera and document these events.

Barham Fire (3/30/07)

Dedication is....sneaking out of work to go home and get your camera, driving and taking pictures out of the car window at every stop sign, sneaking onto other companies' balconies at work to get a view from above....





Griffith Park Fire (5/8/07)

Dedication is....leaving the house at midnight on a Tuesday and driving around to get as close to Griffith Park as possible for a good vantage point, stopping your car in a red zone while in your PJs trying to keep the camera steady on the hood of the car....

(Note that the white lines in this picture are actually helicopters. The first two are a little fuzzy due to having to turn off the flash on the camera because of the street lights dulling the colors from the fire.)