TRUE KRAFT ENVELOPES COMING!

True kraft envelopes are coming!  They should be here by Monday, so exciting! I searched long and hard for REAL kraft envelopes with pointed flaps, which seemingly didn’t exist so I had them made. I since have seen them on the open market (I can’t attest to the quality) but trust me they were nowhere to be found when I went about this treasure hunt. I could have just bought existing ones, there are some pretty kraft type envelopes out there and I did find some kraft envelopes with straight flaps, but I had my heart set on pointed flaps.  Don’t ask me why, I have no idea why I wanted them so badly.  I could have easily settled and got the kraft look-a-likes or gone and bought the straight flaps, but easy and I don’t go together, difficult and out of control and I do. That’s the way of my world.  They arrive soon and will be in the shop just as fast, they are a really nice color kraft-not too yellow, gray or red.  They are darker than my boxes, but just a tinge and they are much thicker than what I found in the straight flapped variety. To me they are a very true kraft and for that I am happy (I hope you will be too).

A LIONESS IN NYC

I am doing the Friday happy dance, you can’t see me but trust me it is as ridiculous as it sounds. I really shouldn’t be this happy as I have locked myself out of my car and since my ‘smart’ key for the car is really dumb I have to go get it re-programmed for a king’s ransom, which includes towing my car to the dealership 20 miles from home. Fun!  I realized that I hadn’t shown any of the pics from all of my recent NYC trips.  I had bits and pieces from my iphone on my Twitter feed and I did upload the above images to my sorely neglected Flickr account, but I don’t think I posted any here.  These are from the Natural History Museum (one of my favorite places on earth), but I like to think they look more like I was on safari with Nick Brandt. I have to say for all the riches that city has, their NHM needs a little love.  This lioness had some serious cosmetic damage and is lucky I am a Photoshop Jedi so I could make her look pretty again. I will try to add some more images from the trips, which looking at what I shot is quite a trip in and of itself.  I had a lot of ‘what the h-e-double hockey sticks was I thinking?!’ moments when I was editing.  I am sure I had some sort of rhyme to my reason but I can’t figure out what that may be just yet. I wish you adieu for the weekend, I hope you have a beautiful one!
 ::photo’s by::tristan b.::

PERSONALIZED WREATH HAND STAMP

I added some more stamps to the shoppe yesterday. I think I photographed and edited for about 21hours straight (I did stop for lunch, thank goodness). Speaking of straight I realized that my ability to align items when I style is way off. The majority of those hours was spent trying to make things look less lopsided. I wanted to give up about a thousand times but I know myself too well if I did then I would just get distracted by something shiny. I am happy to add new items even when I get overwhelmed by how many I still have to upload, it’s exciting for me to see which designs people are gravitating towards. There isn’t a clear favorite that I can see yet, I know in my last shop it was my manatee card which yes, is coming back, most of the Bella Bella Co. cards will be added to Besotted Brand but as a set. Shipping one off cards was not the thrill I thought it would when I first started but I know I will be over the moon to offer the sets and those sweet manatee’s will be able to go to good manatee loving homes (but of course).

MY FUTURE GROOM

This is the love of my life. The life of my love.  My end all be all. My ball and chain.  My future groom. He makes me laugh a lot.  Yesterday we had lunch together, something we haven’t been able to do in weeks because I have been gallivanting across the country.  I mentioned that I needed to make my appointments for my test run hair and make-up for the wedding (in a couple weeks!).  He didn’t quite understand this concept but I explained that I wanted to make sure that my hair and make-up were how I imagined prior to d-day. I went back to work after lunch and was busy in my studio when I heard the Fancy call, “Hey hon, I just did my test hair for the wedding”. I walked into the other room and the above is what I saw. I nearly pee’d my pants.  He thought he looked very Great Gatsby.  I thought he looked like a gigolo out of the 1970’s. I had the camera around my neck and asked him to give me some sexy model poses and he was only too happy to oblige. Yes, this is the man I am going to marry. Sigh.

KOTO BOLOFO FOR HERMES

Since 2004, fashion photographer Koto Bolofo has been shooting for Hermes and has had carte blanche access to all the ‘behind the scenes’ magic. This image is from one of those moments. Can you imagine how inspiring it would be?  For those (like myself) that don’t have a backstage pass to the Hermes empire you can always buy Bolofo’s book La Maison. I’ve seen some excerpts and Mr. Bolofo does not disappoint. This has reminded me that I have not been shooting lately, well for the shoppe but not for my soul (gosh that was corny), but you get my gist.  I am going to pull together a Souvenir Foto School class sooner than later, because I do believe the holidays are the perfect time to start a SFS class and start capturing memories.  If only the holidays included me and a horse ranch…