Thanks Kristy {and a photography tip!}

Wow, I got a comment from Kristy Lou that she's nominated this little blog for the Liebster Award, how sweet.  Kristy mentioned that she nominated this blog because she's inspired to take better photographs {and she mentions a new camera...do tell!}.  So, first I have a photography tip for everyone:

Buy a yard or so of a neutral, textured fabric to take pictures of small items on.  For this picture I used a piece of Moda's Crossweave in Sand:

Kindle Cover Tutorial

This way, you can take pictures of small items wherever the light is good, even if the surface isn't great.  One of my biggest regrets is taking this picture on a black table:

Doll Quilt Swap 10

I wish I'd put something behind it so the contrast wouldn't have been so strong.  And now the quilt lives with its new owner and there isn't a chance to redo it.  Lesson learned.

And now, now, I must confess that on some level, I'm not sure about blog awards...I never know what to think of them...perhaps it is because some people don't like them at all, and I worry about negativity.

However, as this blog is kind of a personal space for me, I'm going to go with it {but, if I nominate you for an award and you're not interested...please know that I feel no offense!}.

So, here we go, I'd like to nominate:

Julia @ Blue-J Cottage

Jenny @ Cut. Sew. Iron. Repeat.

Molly @ Stitch-N-Thyme Designs

Lisa Ann @ Making It Up As I Go

Cindy @ Tops to Treasures

In accepting the Liebster Blog Award you agree to :

1. Thank the person who gave you the award

2. Link back to their blog

3. Copy and paste the Liebster award to your profile

4. Pick 5 blogs that you feel deserve to be in the spotlight (they must have under 200 followers)

5. Blog about it and leave a comment for {or send an e-mail to} your nominations to let them know that you have chosen their blog.

Okay, that is about it for now, but I have a few more things up my sleeve for later this week!

this and that

I did my first photography session of kids other than my own a couple weeks ago!  My friend mentioned to me {not knowing that I am looking for photography practice} that she still hadn't taken her son in to get his pictures done since he turned 4.  I offered to take a few for her, since I need the practice.

We got out of the house early, hoping to get some nice light {it is usually overcast in the mornings, it figures the sun was nice and bright the day we chose!}, so some of the photos were more washed out than I had wanted.  But, overall, I think they turned out pretty good for a first-time.  This is one of my favorites!

I also designed this button after some of the Farmer's Wife quilt blocks for a blogging friend of mine's new series: Farmer's Wife in Your Life  Once I looked more closely at the blocks, I realized how easy they would be to turn into graphics!

And, I've been behind in posting the results of the giveaway, but the winner is:

Alison of Little Bunny Quilts!  I will be designing a new blog for her {and I may draw another winner or two in the next couple of weeks...we'll see how busy I am!}, how fun!

Catch the Waves

50mm AF-S f/1.8 Lens; f/4.5; 1/80s; ISO 100

How often does one get to live near the ocean?  Well, this is a once-in-a-lifetime for us.  So, I want to get some great wave photos while we're here.  These are some I took the other night while at the beach.

50mm AF-S f/1.8 Lens; f/4.5; 1/80s; ISO 100

I hardly ever remember to bring my camera {figures, right?}, so I've missed a lot of great waves.  These did need a bit of editing {I used the auto tuning in Picasa and cropped...impressed!}.  And, I took these with my camera on Manuel too.

50mm AF-S f/1.8 Lens; f/4.5; 1/80s; ISO 100

Which reminds me, if you don't have the book Understanding Exposure by Bryan Peterson, you must pick it up {I will post a more detailed review when I finish reading it}.  I didn't really understand manual until I started reading it...and now I hardly use anything else!

norah's photoshoot.

My very first attempt at newborn photos with my sweet girl Norah. Her quilts were handmade by me and my mom, and her dress by my mom. These are a few of my favorites!