Can you think of 105 things?

Can you think of anything with 105 things or parts? Can you name 105 movies you have seen? Do you have 105 friends--probably yes with facebook and blog friends-and more probably more. My fantastic, amazing grandmother is 105!! Think back to 1905 and think of al lthe changes, innovations, and things that have become obsolete. My grandmother has seen them.
So I am in the prime of my life with lots more living to do!!

Chatting after Having Made Paper

Well, today was Saturday School in the county where I teach to make up for one of the many snow days we have taken....I was bummed about going to work and missing my grandmother's 105th birthday party, but school was only until 12:30. So I got to come home early and make paper in 53 degree weather!! The garage door was open and I had a blast. Seeing the paper I was making for a gallery put me in a great mood!!

Now I'm online, chatting for the SNS--Saturday Night Specials on Etsy!! Click on the link and find good buys all night long!!

Thinking of Spring

While I am home on another snow day, I am thinking of spring and the break that I will not see this year!! I am an elementary art teacher. We have had the most incredible winter with more snow, flurries and cold weather than I can ever remember!!

Over the weekend, I went into my studio and made some greeting cards with wildflower seeds in the pulp. Check them out! I think that it would be a fabulous eco friendly way to communicate! What do you think? What do you think of the words/greetings?

Thanks for your comments. I have been slack in commenting on your posts. Going to correct that now!

Happy Valentine's Day

I just want to wish my blog friends a Happy Valentine's Day on the weekend. I hope you found just the right things for your sweetheart. I have the necessary chocolate--chocolate spoons from an etsy seller, Ghiradelli choco squares and a gift card to Barnes and Noble. For my 18 year old college student, basically the same with an Earth Fare gift card instead.

Then, here is the ironic thing I did--I went to Hallmark and spent $20 on cards!! As I was driving away, I was wondering why shoppers don't drop $20 on my handmade cards? Any thoughts?

Another Snow Day

Well, I've had another snow day from school. I'll be teaching well into the summer, it looks like. So I've tried to make good use of my time and totally feel like the opposite has happened. I started my day ordering envelopes for when I start production of stationery again, I've listed a new product on etsy and prepared 3 more for immediate download or upload (which ever you call it) for the future. I did stitch some gift/business card holders and am thinking about making some books.

What did you do today?

Photography Tips

As promised, I will share some of the tips I learned from my friend, Bruce, who helped me take pictures of my products for etsy. The one thing I know for sure is this: The more I know about taking pictures, the less I know about taking pictures!

1. You need a neutral background and/or a light box.

2. You need two good lights, daylight photo bulbs, preferred. I used one compact flourescent, one incandescent bulb and the natural light from my window. One light is directed at a 45 degree angle to the product to cast shadows and the other is for ambient light, but not to overpower the first light.

3. You need to experiment with your camera, learn the settings, how to change them and what they mean. You also need to use the timer to take the pictures, otherwise you(me, too) will shake the camera and make the picture blurry.

4. You need a tripod!!!!!

That's the equipment.

Camera settings: Go to menu, and click through the different settings. Each camera will be different, some are definitely the same.

You should have aperture which is how wide the lens opens. In simple terms, 2.8 is the widest, 8 and above are small openings.

Make sure you have your camera set to the best picture taking pixels available. This will allow for better quality.

Photometry is whether you are using one spot light or more.

White Balance allows for the camera to automatically balance between values.

Focus--Put on auto focus.

Sharpness or clarity is set for hard. (Two other settings are normal and soft.)

Flash is set at zero.

My camera allows for manual selection of aperture settings, shutter speed and manual setting of both on a small round dial.

As I was taking photos yesterday, I paid attention to the background, the position of my lights, and I played with reflecting more light onto my product with foamcore. I learned to make sure that my shutter speed was 100 or above for the light I was receiving yesterday.

Next, you need to use a photo editing software of your choice. I crop my photos, I adjust the color, and whiteness of the picture so that it closely matchs the product color. Did I say that I dumped a bunch of photos that I had taken because they didn't match my products? Well, I did and so will you. If you have questions, leave a comment. Other people may have the same question.

I don't profess to know it all, but I am determined to take the best photos of my paper as I can so that maybe one day my paper will be on the Front Page of Etsy!!