swallowfield :: jennifer judd-mcgee

quick photo wall project

i wanted to share a little project i just finished that turned out pretty nicely.

i wanted to hang some family photos on the walls in our new house, but i wasn't especially excited to hammer 75 nail holes into the fresh pristine paint. knowing us, it will only be pristine for a few more months anyway, so why speed up the process of trashing it?  also, i've been really bad about printing photos on a regular basis since about, oh, 2003 or so - when i got my first digital camera.

 i used big huge labs mosaic maker and created three 12x12" photo mosaics. one for my daughter, one for my son, and one of them together. i used a variety of photos from the past several years. i chose the layout option called 4x4 with large center, but you could do it however you wanted. i kept playing with the layouts until i was happy with them, then ordered the prints. i've never ordered prints from them before, and i am happy to say the quality is nice. the total for three 12x12" prints, plus shipping, was $48.00. once they got here i bought three simple white 12x12" frames - found on sale at ac moore for $7. each. total cost for the project: $69.00.

the kids love them, and so do i. and i am always relieved  to actually finish a project and not have it sit in the corner, mostly done, mocking me. not that that's happened before or anything. not that i have several boxes in the basement labeled 'projects i have abandoned and feel guilty about' or anything.

lovely.

i really love craspedia. they're so beautiful and spare.

when these lose their color i might try to make a felted bouquet.

new holiday cards

i have a new holiday card for 2011 - from a papercut i made last spring. i just got around to listing them on etsy. you can find them here.

 

how it starts

the other day someone asked me how i get my inspiration. i replied with some completely dumb, rambly nonsense. but then i thought i could show you some recent real life inspiration.

the idea for this:

spokes, 8x8" mixed media collage on panel

came from this:

it might seem like a stretch, but that's how it goes sometimes.

also, i've just discovered mad men. i know -  it's approximately four years after the rest of the world. i tried watching it a few times before and could never understand the appeal of all of the womanizing. but i've now seen the light, and am feeling a little obsessed about it. so this work will also remind me of don draper forevermore. :)

i won't  tell you which work i've done that reminds me of law and order SVU. that would just be awkward for both of us.

 

 

fall colors

confluence, 8x8" mixed media collage on panel

i've been pushing myself to work with slightly different colors lately. the colors in this piece were inspired in part by the amazing foliage all around maine right now, and its contrast with the clear blue ocean these last sunny, warm days. it's gorgeous this year - take your breath away gorgeous.  i haven't worked with mixed media too much since the beginning of 2011, so i am enjoying getting my hands messy again.

exhibit A of the loveliness: i took this photo in the azalaea garden the other day. i am probably taking too many purposefully blurry photos lately, but i love them; the way the light twinkles through the trees is so nice to try and capture.

and i always lovely the sand garden. it's my thoughtful spot. for those of you who don't click through from your reader, i also used this photo as my new blog header for fall.

feist metals

this seems worthy of its very own post today:

feist has a new album! i have been waiting for this for a loooonngg time. so happy. and it's GOOD. really good.

listen to it here.

happy friday!!

 

 

twelve.

my girl turned twelve last weekend. we had a little slumber party, and she requested a cake far beyond my technical expertise, so i enlisted the help of a local baker friend with some mad skills.

the result was pretty amazing. long and skinny, full of food coloring, full of awesomeness. pretty neat.

 

i also thought i'd share a few books we gave her for her birthday, because they were all big hits around here.

wildwood - written by colin meloy, lead singer of the decemberists, and illustrated by carson ellis, the genius who also illustrated the mysterious benedict society books. love + love.

finish this book  by keri smith. anything she does is solid gold for book loving creative tweens. we are super fans.

you have to stop this - the 5th book in the secret series by pseudonymous bosch. she adores these books.

it's a girl thing - how to stay safe, healthy and in charge by mavis jukes. full of great information, some of which she'll probably save for later, but i am a big believer in having the info when you need it.

for those of you with similarly aged kids (and i know there are a bunch of you who visit here,) what books do you recommend?