Neat Things: Skirts

l 2 r, t 2 b: silk melange skirt - j.jill $20, jersey floral skirt - white house-black market $50, floral print wrap skirt - j.jill $20, mushroom soft pleat skirt - j.jill $20, vintage lime & blue stripe skirt - black swan $20, silk georgette posies skirt - chicos $99

Good People: Sandra Bullock

Every so often I take a peek at those "featured" links on the Yahoo! home page. You know, the ones about celebrities. Usually I just pass on the celebrity fodder but today they featured Sandra Bullock so I went ahead and read the (partial) InStyle interview.



I think I would like a friend like her. She's around my age, we both married in our late 30s, she likes herself the way she is, she admits her imperfections, and she likes to eat well and stay healthy. I enjoy her film work, respect her honesty, she seems strong but still feminine, and I gotta admit, I love her laugh!

Go, Sandra!




Photography credit: Jenny Gage & Tom Betterton, InStyle, 2009

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!