Captured Moments

Haven't had one of these in a while, but with spring budding and so many colorful things going on, I have had some good 'moments' lately.

Just a peak into our very first garden! Good times.

Have a great weekend All.

This segment inspired by

soulemama.com

Self Portrait or Simply a Selfie

I read this great write up here and it got me thinking...What IS the difference between a "self portrait" and all these "selfies"?

It seems everywhere you look online you can find a girl looking in a mirror, or with her arm extended, making a duck face. Although the duck thing probably warrants a post unto itself, for now I am more interested in distinguishing between classic portraiture, and the now commonplace selfie.

 From what I can gather, the distinction can be made between convenience and artistic intent. Selfies are intended to capture something quick. Spontaneous. What you are wearing. What you are eating. Who you are with (the group selfie). Often taken with our smartphones and uploaded instantly to social media, these photos often document our life in a more "as it is" .

Whereas self portraits generally focus more on composition, lighting, or conveying an emotion. Maybe not always as "honest" as a selfie, self portraits ask us to go deeper and express a vulnerability that is often lacking in a quick snapshot.

Either fast or meticulous, posed or captured, we have the ability to document ourselves as never before. And there is value in both. Giving the masses a camera in their hands at. all. times. IS generating some silly things, but also beautiful and artistic expression.

Instagram Me

So I have not been on Instagram very long, but it is super fun. Here are a few photos from my adventures in square photography.

It is nice to be able to upload vintage-like photos so simply, and have storage for a mass of pictures, that over time become like a little unique collection.

 I have not done any of the things that you are supposed to do to get Instagram followers. 

I am terrible at hashtages, and commenting on other people posts, and I never re-post any ones pics....I only post my own stuff, and am mostly enjoying my little corner of the internet. 

But sometimes its lonely so, follow along with me!!

Have a great day.

Green Juice

I love juicing. 

I didn't know I loved it until recently, but my love is real.

Seriously I have been wonderfully surprised by how delicious so many fruits and vegetables are combined and juiced. I wouldn't choose to eat a bushel of kale, 2 apples, half a lemon, and an orange for a meal...but with my juicer it is the best breakfast in town.

With spring budding all around these parts, and my garden plot ripe for planting....methinks my juicing obsession has come at the perfect time.

Hope things are warming up in your neck of the woods.

Growing

The indoor plant project is coming along wonderfully. All of the Jade and Swedish Ivy that I smuggled across the country is alive and thriving. And I have been enjoying all my greenery so much I have added to my collection, with some more succulents and a fern.

I am working on a DIY plant hanger for the fern, and I have to replace the other leafy plant I got....because I discovered it was slightly poisonous after I got home. So more to come! 

But all in all I am getting the biggest kick out of my little indoor garden.

First Time Knitted Hat

I knitted my very first hat! I picked up this issue of Taproot, and to my surprise found the sweetest, simplest hat pattern, complete with several modification options. I chose to stick with the original pattern, and once I got started it came together really fast.

I decided to knit the whole thing on my 6mm circular needles. And although they were a bit longer than the circumference of the hat, I used the magic loop method and never had to switch to dpns. I had to start over a few times because I kept twisting the ribbing as I was going around....I once even started knitting in the wrong direction!

It is defiantly not perfect, but overall I am really pleased with how it came out. Since I used 100% worsted wool it is super warm and with all this crazy weather it has been nice to have a warm snuggy hat to put on.

Happy Knitting!

And P.S. my sweater knitting is also coming along famously. Just finished the hip shaping and am just working on about 25 rows of stockinette stitch, and then it is off to make the sleeves :)

Winter Wonderland

 

Last week we got hit with a huge winter snow storm. Getting about a foot and a half of snow may not be news in lots of places, but round these parts it is worthy of note....and a few pics of course! 

I love how my Willow is so pretty with her bows covered in snow.

Aaaand as you might expect, it has also been super cold during our few days of literally being snowed in. Making us grateful for hot drinks, slippers and knitted hats. 

Hoping your days are warm and full of sunshine :)

Captured Moments

A Friday ritual. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment to pause, savor, and remember.

If you are inspired to do the same, leave a link to your 'moment' in the comments for all to find and see.

So I got a ukulele. I can't play the ukulele, per se.....

A moment to remember nonetheless. Have a great weekend All.

(This segment inspired by soulemama.com)

Snow and Smuggling

Winter has officially set in round these parts. Though snow is not unheard of, it is not super common where we live...and his has been coooooooold. These days have been full of homemade soups, hot coffees and snuggy hats. There has also been a lot of knitting happening, as I have been working on my first Yarn Bombing project. More to come on that! 

Also the colder it gets, it seems that I want everyone and everything around me to be nestled in knitted comfort. It seems there are never enough hats or blankets or hot water bottle covers......

Challenge Accepted!

But there is new life around, with the introduction of some indoor plants recently. I felt like an intercontinental plant smuggler (I know...sounds exciting doesn't it)...as I sneaked these lovelies on my carry-on bag, flying from the east coast to the west. Technically I didn't do anything wrong, but it sure felt scandalous going through TSA.
The jade is abundant, and I am already finding all sorts of nooks of sunlight to keep my beauties happy. As I have stated previously, my thumb is not super green but I want to be a better gardener.... I think 2014 is going to be full of new life and very green indeed.
Have a wonderful Monday All.

Captured Moments

A Friday ritual. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment to pause, savor, and remember.

If you are inspired to do the same, leave a link to your 'moment' in the comments for all to find and see.

First snow. Blissful December All.

(This segment inspired by soulemama.com)

Captured Moments

A Friday ritual. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment to pause, savor, and remember.

If you are inspired to do the same, leave a link to your 'moment' in the comments for all to find and see.

This is a precious moment to me because, our cats are inside cats-and the only time they get let out is "under adult supervision". But they looooveee it. They don't go anywhere, just simply sit in a patch of grass that gets good sunlight. Except Sasha's favorite spot is just outside the door....looking inside. This girl spends her time begging to get out just so she can look back in. 

Good times.

(This segment inspired by soulemama.com)

Today Feels Like: Rain

I think these photos pretty much capture the mood around here right now. We have settled into rainy days, hot coffees, warm soups, and fuzzy slippers. I find there is something very peaceful about this time of year. Right before all the holiday hustle, it is like the world takes a breath.

This season also brings a shift in focus to more "nesting" projects. My attentions have been on making big batches of food and freezing them for the days to come, planning holiday fun, and of course knitting. It seems that whenever fall turns over, I dash to my yarn stash and dreams of hand knits fill my thoughts.

As as post scrips I have made a funny discovery this week...apparently when I am doing a Knit stitch I use the English style (of holding the yarn in my right hand) and when I am doing a Purl stitch I use the Continental style (of holding the yarn in my left had).  For any non-knitters out there the Purl stitch is basically the back of the Knit stitch, so to get that cool knitted look-you have to do both stitches. I taught myself to knit many years ago, and I have just figured out my quirk this week. Ummmm Hello!?
In retrospect my teaching myself is probably what led to this inconsistency. So now the question is do I switch my Knit stitch to Continental style (because let's get real- it is just easier) or just roll with what I have been doing for so long?......It makes me wonder what else I am doing backwards. :)
Hoping everyone has a wonderful Autumn day.

Captured Moments

A Friday ritual. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment to pause, savor, and remember.

If you are inspired to do the same, leave a link to your 'moment' in the comments for all to find and see.

Simply my most favorite photo that I took on a morning walk the other day. No other words, just love.

Have a great weekend everyone.

(This segment inspired by soulemama.com)

Halloween

Hoping your day is filled with more treats than tricks. 

Have a Happy Halloween from Gypsy Gnome.

Documenting

For a while now I have been watching other bloggers and creative folk on the interweb create Project Life scrapbooks. And I have been thinking a lot about documenting life as of late.

I never loooooved photography when I was younger, it always seemed somehow serious to me. It was fine to snap a few photos at birthdays or the holidays (when everyone was "dressed up"). But the idea of taking pictures of the little things seemed like a lot of work; as if taking a picture of just my hands, or something I ate for dinner would be wasting film. And I think it used to be hard to argue with that; film cost money, and you only got 24 pictures on a roll, and you would have to wait to have the film sent off to be developed....it all just seemed like a lot for what could turn out to be a blurred mess...

But now...

Now the whole concept of how and what the average person can document is almost limitless. Between the clarity we can achieve from just our cellphone pics, to all the free photo editing software out there, photography is now a daily part of so many lives. Most of us find ourselves snapping away and accumulating 100's (let's be real 1,000's) of  photos, stored on our computer. And it's cool right?! 

So now what do you do with all your collected moments?

It is a good question. Blogging is a good tool, instagram, flickr....all sorts of social media.....but there seems to be a missing element. For me the best part of taking pictures with film was getting them back after being developed, scrolling through them reliving the moments and holding the pics trying not to smuge them. 

That being said I am determined to print more of the photos I take and put them into some sort of organization. Because I really do like taking pictures now. And  because it tuns out that the super embarrassing photo taken of you with food on your face, is the best moment of that vacation. Or that the selfie you took that you thought cut off your face, turns out to be the perfect artsy crop. Photography has a way of capturing more than just our visual memory of an event, but the feeling that the moment conjures up. And these memories are the good old days we are going to miss in the years to come.