Wedding + Waterfall = Weekend

Our weekend was a wedding in North Bend, WA {CONGRATS, Tim and Bree--we love you!}. Enjoying comfort food in a country pub {Beef. Stroganoff. Oh, yeah.} Driving many miles on highways and byways.



Standing in the mist curtain of a monster waterfall in a land of ultimate GREEN. Spying on wild peregrine falcons in a nest.



Exploring a railroad museum {photos coming soon}.



Discovering a new trove of antique malls {Kalama, WA--who knew?}. Moving into our space at the Antique Alley here in PDX. Whew! It's been full and wonderful.

Neat Things: Artisan Crafted Chandeliers

t 2 b:

berry bubble chandelier $1,990.00

bubbles chandelier $1,300.00

lotus flower chandelier $339.00

chloe oval chandelier $10,000.00

susurrux lux chandelier $5,685.00

Also check out my Etsy Faves Mini for more lovely chandeliers handmade by Etsy Artisans!

FOUND HERE.

Garden Inspiration: Planter Boxes

Besides bringing natural beauty to our living spaces, plants create texture and balance, a room or patio can be transformed into an environment that comforts and welcomes. Plants do much more than look pretty--they’ve been proven to reduce stress so well that one glance at a plant lowers your heart rate. They clean the air we breathe by absorbing toxins and act as little oxygen factories. Plants simply make us feel better!



Studies show that:
1. In addition to calming your heart rate, plants lower blood pressure and reduce muscle tension related to stress.



2. Plants help us relax and focus, leading to increased productivity,creativity, idea generation, and problem solving capabilities. The presence of plants helps so much that it has been shown to relieve the symptoms experienced by children with ADD.



3. Plants help patients recovering from surgery and ease the symptoms of Alzheimer’s.



We are beginning to learn what our ancestors knew for centuries, plants are more than just ornaments. Simple cohabitation with them brings us health and calm.

And I quote...William Morris

"Have nothing in your houses which you do not know to be useful or believe to be beautiful."

~William Morris (1836-1896)



Born in Walthamstow, Essex, on March 24, 1836, William Morris was the son of a wealthy businessman. As such, he enjoyed a comfortable childhood before going to Marlborough and Exeter, Oxford.

By the 1860s, the multi-talented Morris decided that his creative future lay in the field of the decorative arts. His career as a designer began when he decorated the Red House, Bexleyheath, which had been built for him by Phillip Webb. Morris formed Morris, Marshall, Faulkner & Co. in 1861. The firm (later renamed Morris & Company) was particularly well-known for its stained glass, examples of which can be seen in churches throughout Britain. Morris produced dozens of designs that are often characterized by intricate intertwining fruit, flower, and foliage patterns.



In 1890, Morris founded the Kelmscott Press near his last home at Kelmscott House in Hammersmith. Inspired by Italian Renaissance and medieval German typography, Morris designed three typefaces for the Press: Golden, Chaucer, and Troy. More than sixty-six volumes were printed by the Kelmscott Press, the most impressive of which was its magnificent edition of Chaucer which was published in 1896.


morris original wallpaper design, morris adjustable chair

Find out more about Morris HERE.

tina's whimsy revisited

I have always been an artist. Before I fell in love with photography, I tried a bit of many mediums. Drawing, watercolor, rubber stamp art, decoupage, assemblage, jewelry design, and my eventual favorite, collage.


t 2 b:
Dream a Little Dream, 2.5" x 3.5" - ACEO Collage, Open Edition
Love Many Things, 4" x 10" - Original Collage on Canvas Board

Techniques of collage, were first used at the time of the invention of paper in China around 200 BC. The use of collage, however, remained very limited until the 10th century in Japan, when calligraphers began to apply glued paper, using texts on surfaces, when writing their poems.



t 2 b:
The Wild Joys of Living, 8" x 10" - Original Collage on Canvas Board
Inspire, 2.5" x 3.5" - ACEO Collage, Open Edition

The technique of collage appeared in medieval Europe during the 13th century. Gold leaf panels started to be applied in Gothic cathedrals around the 15th and 16th centuries. Gemstones and other precious metals were applied to religious images, icons, and also, to coats of arms.


t 2 b:
Retro Green Girl - 11 x 14 collage on canvas board
Life Requires Beauty - 2.5 x 3.5 ACEO Collage, Open Edition

In the 19th century, collage methods also were used among hobbyists for memorabilia (i.e. applied to photo albums) and books (i.e. Hans Christian Andersen, Carl Spitzweg).

The term collage derives from the French "coller" meaning "glue". This term was coined by both Georges Braque and Pablo Picasso in the beginning of the 20th century when collage became a distinctive part of modern art.[1]



t 2 b:
Ladies Bingo Night - 4 x 5 collage on canvas board
We Can Claim Ruffles all for Ourselves, 10" x 10" - Original Collage on canvas

I used to offer my collage work in an Etsy shop, known as tina's whimsy. I sold a handful of my items in the two years that the shop was alive online but then I discovered I was spending far more time trying to sell and less and less on the process of creation. And so I stopped altogether--the selling and the creating.

The pieces displayed in this post are a handful of my collage works from 2004-2007. I plan to begin some new work in 2009, and would love your comments on these. Let me know if you'd like to see more and I will include them in a future post...thanks!


[1] Wikipedia 2008.

collages displayed are all copyright tina's whimsy 2004-2007.

1950's Female Icon Quiz

I am a Grace Kelly -- "I need to understand the world."

Graces have a need for knowledge and are introverted, curious, analytical, and insightful.

How to Get Along with Grace:

* Be independent, not clingy
* Speak in a straightforward and brief manner
* I need time alone to process my feelings and thoughts
* Remember that If I seem aloof, distant, or arrogant, it may be that I am feeling uncomfortable
* Make me feel welcome, but not too intensely, or I might doubt your sincerity
* If I become irritated when I have to repeat things, it may be because it was such an effort to get my thoughts out in the first place
* Don't come on like a bulldozer
* Help me to avoid my pet peeves: big parties, other people's loud music, overdone emotions, and intrusions on my privacy

What I Like About Being a Grace:

* Standing back and viewing life objectively
* Coming to a thorough understanding; perceiving causes and effects
* My sense of integrity: doing what I think is right and not being influenced by social pressure
* Not being caught up in material possessions and status
* Being calm in a crisis

What's Hard About Being a Grace:

* Being slow to put my knowledge and insights out in the world
* Feeling bad when I act defensive or like a know-it-all
* Being pressured to be with people when I don't want to be
* Watching others with better social skills, but less intelligence or technical skill, do better professionally

Graces as Children Often:

* Spend a lot of time alone reading, making collections, and so on
* Have a few special friends rather than many
* Are very bright and curious and do well in school
* Have independent minds and often question their parents and teachers
* Watch events from a detached point of view, gathering information
* Assume a poker face in order not to look afraid
* Are sensitive; avoid interpersonal conflict
* Feel intruded upon and controlled and/or ignored and neglected

Graces as Parents Typically:

* Are kind, perceptive, and devoted
* Are sometimes authoritarian and demanding
* May expect more intellectual achievement than is developmentally appropriate
* May be intolerant of their children expressing strong emotions



Well, now, I don't mind being a bit like the infamous Grace Kelly. What girl wouldn't want to be classically beautiful, intelligent, insightful AND eventually become a princess?

Want to find out which Female Icon you're most like? Visit HelloQuizzy.com and take this (short) quiz!

Perspective

One of the wonderful blogs I follow, Kala Pohl Studio, posted this YouTube video, recognized by the Cannes Film Festival 2008. Please be sure to have your speakers turned on and don't miss the English subtitles at the end--unless you speak or read Spanish.




For me, watching this short story put a host of issues going on in my world into a much more accurate perspective. With any issue there is always a way to find hope and joy. I hope you can all see the beauty of this day and of days to come!

"Thus (through perspective) every sort of confusion is revealed within us; and this is that weakness of the human mind on which the art of conjuring and of deceiving by light and shadow and other ingenious devices imposes, having an effect upon us like magic... And the arts of measuring and numbering and weighing come to the rescue of the human understanding--there is the beauty of them--and the apparent greater or less, or more or heavier, no longer have the mastery over us, but give way before calculation and measure and weight." ~Plato


copyright pfeiffer photos 2008.

Make it count

One of my favorite blogs to follow is written by Leah of moxie photo & design. In the post I read today she wrote about examining oneself. I understand completely about wondering what it is that I am actually doing...is it making a difference? Is it just motions that go by and are forgotten? To learn, to share. Create things, see beauty, find wonder, show appreciation, expression, joy. Wasting minutes in any day is always a concern for me. Can't get those minutes back. Better make 'em count and rack up the memory points to the max!

Thistle by Tina - Pfeiffer Photos 2008

Sometimes I honestly have to tell myself (yes, out loud) to STOP and to BREATHE. No wonder I love to sleep so much...

Mid October by Tina - Pfeiffer Photos 2008.

Last weekend Chris and I took a drive out to Oregon City, the oldest incorporated city west of the Rockies (1829), and walked along the overlook above the Willamette River. The photos displayed in this post are part of a series I captured along the way...if you're interested in owning one for your wall or on a notecard, please contact me, and I'd be happy to make you a print.

Happy weekend to Leah, and to all of you that read along...get out there and enjoy it!

VFW Post, Oregon City by Tina - Pfeiffer Photos 2008.

Visit Leah's Etsy shops, moxie thrift and moxiephotodesign, to view more of her handmade art, fine art photography and unique vintage finds!

photos and text copyright pfeiffer photos 2008 - all rights reserved.