Cicada Screamers.

My husband's band, Cicada Screamers, played the Black Owl "Ballroom" this past Friday night. The show was supposed to be IN the Black Owl, but the owner of the building across the street offered his space to have the show since there's a TON more room in there. It didn't have quite the same feeling as a Black Owl show, but there was plenty of room in there for the crowd that showed up...and it was so much fun! I absolutely love Daniel's new band. I mean, I know I'm pretty biased...but even if he wasn't in the band, I would still love them. They're garage rock with a little surf influence and everyone that's heard them so far has loved them. The lights were pretty sucky in there, but I was decently happy with most of the shots I got.

update!

I've been a busy little bee...feels so good! I finished a logo for a contest the No'Ala is having next year called Shoals Perfect Wedding. They're giving away a free wedding to a bride...so awesome! Local vendors are donating their services and I was chosen to do the invites and other paper goods. I'm so excited! They also wanted me to do the logo for the contest.

I sent it tonight...still waiting to hear back and see if I need to make any changes to it.

I've been working on a campaign for a local community college as well. It feels good to get more freelance work! I also had a bride get in touch with me this week to do a wedding in December. I feel so blessed to be getting work.

Also, I've been making plans to start my own wedding-related business.........more on that later.

I'm SO CLOSE to having our new house in order! I'll post photos of it once it's done. =) I've got to finish painting our studio and kitchen and then get those in order...then all that's left is getting things hung on the walls. SO READY to have it done!

That's pretty much all I've got as far as the update goes. Photo post later from the Cicada Screamers show last Friday.

SOUP!

So, I know I said I would make a pot of soup every week since it's cooled off...but our life has been a little crazy lately. Daniel and I moved into a new house about a month ago, and I haven't been cooking very much because we've been getting settled and such. However, we're finally settled enough that I felt like cooking tonight. SO...here's the recipe I used for tonight's soup!

From myrecipes.com:

Roasted Red Pepper-Tomato Soup

Ingredients

-3 red bell peppers, rinsed, stemmed, seeded and halved

-3 tablespoons olive oil

-1 onion, peeled and chopped

-2 cloves garlic, peeled and minced

-1 can (28 oz) whole plum tomatoes

-1 tablespoon paprika

-3 cups vegetable broth

-2 teaspoons lemon juice

-salt and pepper

-creme fraiche or plain yogurt

-chopped parsley

Preparation

1. Preheat the broiler. Place the red pepper halves, cut side down, in a baking pan and broil 4 to 5 inches from heat until the skins are black and blistered, about 8 minutes. Let cool, uncovered, 10 to 15 minutes. Peel the peppers and place in a bowl, reserving any juices.

2. In a 3- to 4-quart pan over medium heat, add the olive oil and the onion; stir often until onion is soft, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and stir until translucent, 1 to 2 minutes. Add the roasted peppers and tomatoes, along with their juices, and the paprika. Bring to a low simmer and cook, stirring occasionally, about 3 minutes.

3. In a blender or food processor, purée the soup in small batches until smooth. Return purée to the pan and stir in broth and lemon juice. Stir over medium heat until hot. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Ladle into cups or bowls and garnish with a dollop of crème fraîche or plain yogurt and parsley.

Yields 10 to 12 servings.

Nutritional Information

Calories: 72

Protein: 1.5g

Fat: 3.8g

Carbohydrates: 9.3g

Fiber: 1.5g

Sodium: 127mg

Cholesterol: 0.0g

This soup was so easy to make! I love tomato soup, but I wanted something a little different. I bought a roasted red pepper and tomato soup at Trader Joe's a while back and LOVED it. This was the first recipe I found when searching that didn't use store bought roasted red peppers. I wanted to roast them myself.

I actually ended up making a double batch of this because I want to freeze some...so it made a ton! So yummy! And it was extra-delicious with a grilled cheese sandwich.

Now...it's time to go cut the pumpkin bread I've got cooling on the stove. YUM!

slacker.

Again, blog-wise...not life-wise. I can't believe I haven't posted since late July!!! So crazy.

I am sitting in an airport right now with my good friend Kelli waiting on our flight to Dallas. We have a layover in Atlanta...and thanks to terrible weather in Atlanta, our flight keeps getting delayed more and more.

Life has been ridiculous the past few months. I started working a second part-time job at Gap. I love the people I work with...but retail is retail...not terrible...but definitely not what I want to do with the rest of my life. Daniel and I found a different house (PRAISE GOD) and moved about a month ago. I've been doing more freelance work/photos here & there, which has been nice. ALSO! I just started doing freelance work for one of the agencies in town...they FINALLY called me 3 months after applying. My first project is doing catalog covers, schedule covers, ads, and eventually a photoshoot (they were excited that I'm a photographer as well) for a local community college. It's my first freelance gig that I'll get paid REAL money for. I'm so excited!

But yes, I'm on my way to Dallas...Kelli got accepted to an art show and I'm tagging along. Well, my work got accepted too, but I wouldn't have known anything about it if she hadn't already been going. I'm excited, but pretty nervous. This is my first art show outside of anything school-related...well, that's not in Florence. It's my first time getting "out" in the art world (so to speak)...and the trip hasn't gone terribly smoothly so far. Yay.

Well, we're paying for internet at the airport...we figured it was worth it since we keep getting delayed, but I'm going to save the battery on my laptop for now and log off...I just bought 2 magazines to look through. I love magazines.

I'll really try to do better about updating more...especially since I put my blog address on the back of some postcards I made for the show.

getting back in the swing of things...

After a few weeks of being lazy (blog-wise, not life-wise), I'm going to try to post more consistently. I've just been working on so many projects lately, I haven't been on my laptop as much. However, more of the upcoming work I have involves technology, so posts will be much easier to fit into my schedule.

I have a few photos to share that I've been holding off on sharing because the content was supposed to be somewhat of a surprise...but they got the package yesterday, so I can share them now.

I've been trying to get back into printmaking, screen printing specifically (as I mentioned in my post last night) and my good friends in Sparrow + the Ghost are looking to get shirts printed...so, I decided to print one for them and see if they possibly wanted me to do them instead of having to order them through a print shop...especially since they're wanting to print some of them on vintage/thrift store finds as well as with different color inks. Here's what came of it!

Design in the screen before I added the screen filler...I did this the "down-&-dirty" way...didn't mess with emulsion or anything like that...just drawing fluid & screen filler. Maybe once I have more room to work, I can try the emulsion...I have it with the rest of my printing supplies, waiting to be used.

Annnnnnd...the finished shirt.

The photos turned out a little yellow...sorry about that. I just did a quick edit of them. I've been pricing better mesh, screens, ink, etc...the screen I have now is working fine, but I'm afraid it may not hold up depending on the number of prints I'll be making.

I've been working on re-branding myself...and I may have come up with a separate name for this printing endeavor...I'll share more when I have it all finished. I'm pretty excited about it.

Have a good Wednesday, everyone!

oh how i need...

A real studio space. My goodness. I've got so many projects that I want to get going and all I really need to make them happen is room. I love our house (which I am excited to share photos of once I can get it in order) but I would love it so much more if my art/craft supplies weren't everywhere. It's a good thing that most of my friends are the creative type and understand how it is to try to work & create in your living space.


I've been doing a good bit of soul-searching lately (dramatic, I know) and I think I've come to a realization...as much as I love photography, I don't want it to be my main focus anymore. I mean, I really, REALLY love it...and would probably fall back in love with it if I could get in a darkroom again, but shooting digital is a little too hands-off for me. Lately, I've been re-igniting my love with printmaking. I only got to take one printmaking class when I was in school, and in all honesty, I should've probably changed my concentration to it...or done a BFA in graphic design AND printmaking. I would absolutely love to have a print shop. Maybe it's something I can work towards...maybe I can run one out of the Art Hive when we get the building open.


Speaking of the Art Hive and the building...Olivia and I met up with our friend Tyler earlier. He's going to help us with a lot of the construction/renovations. I gave him our supplies list so we could go through and take measurements to get a rough estimate of all the supplies we need. The task of renovating the building seems so daunting right now, but meeting/talking to him earlier made me feel a bit better. He said there are a lot of things that we can get done right now just from spending a little money. We have leaks to fix, old wiring to pull out, things to sand & prep for later work, etc. The list of things to do to our building seems never-ending, but having an experienced person look at what needs to be done and be able to organize & prioritize that list was so helpful. I've got to get our paperwork done so we can apply for non-profit grants and such.


Sorry for the tangent...back to printmaking. I plan on working on some art prints soon...I'd like to screen print those to have to sell at First Fridays and on Etsy. I need a bit of a refresher course on screen printing (and printmaking in general) so I've been searching Amazon for some books...these are the ones that are catching my eye so far:

DEFINITELY want that last one...it'll probably be the first one I order. I really want The Printmaking Bible as well. I feel motivated...and I've felt more motivated for a while now. It's nice to feel like I'm figuring out what I really want/need to be doing. I'll still be shooting a good bit, but I definitely want to focus more energy on printmaking and possibly experimenting more on illustration too. 


I'm met with a friend earlier today about doing some product shots for her and she asked me to do a logo for her as well! I'm pretty excited about it. I'm meeting with someone else to discuss a photo shoot tomorrow.


Also, I mentioned something about possibly exciting news last week...heard more from them today, but I still won't know anything til the beginning of August. Fingers crossed.

my, oh my.

I have been slacking lately as far as this blog is concerned...however, that's not necessarily a bad thing. I've been crazy busy working on design projects and general craftiness. We had a trunk show for the Art Hive this past Saturday...sold a few things. Afterwards, we had a benefit show at Pegasus Records downtown...we had a pretty good turnout and raised nearly $300 (after we subtracted the cost of expenses). Not bad considering the whole thing was pretty last-minute.

(flier I designed for the show.)


I finally finished John's tattoo design today...just finished the poster for Handy Week. I think I'm going to get it printed tomorrow.

We've got so many good shows this year! Plus, I'm pretty excited I don't have to close this Saturday...our friends The Dirty Holidays are playing on top of the parking deck downtown and I'll be able to go see them! This is the second or third year they've done that show and I usually end up having to work. I'll be sure to take photos.


Speaking of photos...I get to meet with some ladies for brainstorming sessions this week. I'm so pumped! I'm going to be doing some product shots for a friend of mine who also happens to be an amazing seamstress...seriously...her stuff looks like you could buy it at Anthropologie. Love it.


I also started screen printing again this week...I've missed it so much! It's not easy to do in my house though...there's just not enough room...and I need a bigger sink.


Daniel's in New York right now for a show (possibly 2...they'll hopefully know tomorrow)...he left this morning. I don't like it. I don't know what to do with myself when he's not at home...so, I clean. Not necessarily a bad thing...our house needs it right now. I did 4 loads of laundry today...could've gotten more done, but there's nowhere else to hang wet clothes until everything dries. I also cleaned the kitchen and bathroom...and started sorting through my clothes to get rid of stuff...I can't handle the clutter anymore.


I'm planning on doing some product shots of my own stuff soon and getting them listed on Etsy...I've got quite a few record clocks made now and a couple of wooden ones! I also made some really cute sketchbooks/journals last week.


Wow, I just realized this post is quite wordy and probably hard to follow...I had too much espresso tonight at work...and iced coffee. I feel sick now...and I just want to go to sleep so today will be over and tomorrow can start...I plan on deep-cleaning tomorrow.


I hope everyone has a lovely night!

mini-project.

I spent a while tonight working on a little project that I plan on using to make postcards...or just small prints to sell at First Fridays. I may eventually order stickers with the graphic on them...I'd put one on my car.

I can't find my brayer anywhere...or my paper cutter for that matter...so frustrating. Hopefully the prints will turn out better once I find the brayer...and I didn't want to waste ink for test prints right now, so I've been using acrylic paint. It's too thin.

I've actually been feverishly jotting down ideas for prints & other projects as well as sketching like crazy...I like feeling productive. Also, I went to see my friend Sydney at work today. She's interning at GAS Studio in Tuscumbia...it's so amazing! I got to tour the studio & see where she's living right now. I met the owner/photographer/designer, Robert Rausch and got to talk to him for a while. He said that he's seen me around & started asking me about the Art Hive. There's a possibility that some exciting things could happen for me as a result of going over there, but I'll wait til later to talk about that...don't want to jinx it.

On a more personal note, Daniel and I have been together for 4 years...it's been the best 4 years I could've ever asked for...not the easiest 4 years of my life (not because of him, though), but definitely the best. I love him more than I could ever even attempt to put into words.

Here's the first picture that we ever took together:

And 4 years later...

We look so different! It's ridiculous.

And now we have Simon!!! He stayed right by my side all night while Daniel was at work...such a good little helper.

The room you see in the background is my office/the guest room. I painted it purple before Daniel moved in...I really wanted a purple room. That gigantic painting over the bed was my final project for the only New College class I ever took...it's also the only oil painting I've ever done. I can't wait til the Art Hive's open. I really want to experiment more with oil paint but can't do it in our house...I'm afraid I'll ruin the floors.

I drug out all of my supplies for screenprinting tonight...hopefully I'll have time to mess around with it tomorrow. I've got frames and fabric sitting around. I bought some drawing fluid today & I found my staple gun! I should be good to go.

Well, I've gotta open in the morning...yay. I should probably go to bed. I have to be there in 6 hours.

Goodnight.

catching up.

Well, I didn't get a "5 things" post done last week...Daniel and I were traveling home from my parents house. Looks like I won't get one done this Tuesday either (considering it's now Wednesday). I may just need to pick another day to do those...or it may just end up being whatever my off-day is for the week (which is today).

The day after we got back from my parents house, we had 3 of our friends (members of Sparrow + the Ghost) from Tuscaloosa come visit. They, along with Daniel, had a show at Old Town Tavern Friday night. Good times.

Saturday, we all headed out to Rhodesville for the 13th Annual Music, Fireworks, & Chicken Stew Festival. It was held on a couples land...the couple, George & Ladonna, invite people to come camp on their land all weekend. Saturday, they have live music, TONS of food, and fireworks. It was the epitome of southern hospitality. Saturday's weather was perfect...it was a little toasty when we first got out there, but once the sun went behind the trees, it was heaven. Also, two of our good friends were in town for the weekend visiting family and they came out to the festival as well. I shot a composite of them while they were here since I usually only get to see them 2-3 times a year. I miss them so much!

Here are some photos from Saturday.

(to view this large on Flickr, click here.)

That's all for now...I've got lots of things to get taken care of this afternoon before everyone comes over for the Art Hive meeting. 

HOWEVER! I do have a bit of exciting news (well, exciting to me). A friend of mine that taught photography at UNA just got a job in Virginia and will be moving very soon (sad for me). She has a set of studio lights that she no longer wants/needs and is giving them to me...they're messed up right now, so I'll have to get them fixed, but it will still be much much cheaper than buying some...I'm so excited! I'm getting an amazing set of lights! Such a blessing.

Have an awesome Wednesday!

(If I have time later, a 5 things post may make an appearance.)

productivity.

Daniel and I have been in Florida since Tuesday night...so far, I've gotten a lot accomplished! It's felt good to get caught up on some design projects, wedding photos, craftiness, etc...I've still gotta finish that quilt though.

Here are some of the design projects I've been working on!

(I apparently have a thing for cut-out text now.)

Logo for a baby gift company in Huntsville, AL. (Version 1)

(Version 2)

Logo for The Purple Albatross Theater Company in Washington, DC.

Gig poster for Hackberry Records artists Sparrow + the Ghost (Tuscaloosa, AL) & Elias Patriot (Florence, AL).

Probably one of my favorite posters to date. I like that little ghost.

And now some photos from a wedding I shot back in May. Tia & Jeff were so much fun to work with! I wish them all the best in their life together.

Today is my mom's birthday...I think we're all going to take her to dinner later. I suppose I'll work on baby Isaiah's quilt today.

OH!! I hadn't already said this...Daniel's sister gave birth to our beautiful nephew yesterday!!! I'm so excited! 

This is the photo that Gabe (Daniel's brother-in-law) posted on facebook last night.

LOOK AT ALL THAT HAIR!!! Oh my gosh...I'm already in love.

Gotta get that quilt finished for him!