My first love...

...is Photography. Without aging myself too much, I have to say that I loved "old school" photography. The real stuff. Film, the dark room, the chemicals, manipulating the photos with your hands and tools and light...not a computer. That is what I did in highschool and college. Once my degree title turned into "Photography...and Digital Imaging" I began to lose interest. I didn't want to do it on the computer. I didn't like it at all. Like an immature child, I took my toys and went home. I put my camera in the closet and moved on.

That doesn't mean that I haven't taken thousands of photos since then, but they were all just snapshots of friends, family, myself, and things that I found snapshot worthy. I took these photos with a snapshot camera and I was happy with it.

Lately the photo bug has been biting me so I went and bought a new camera and started dabbling with some "digital imaging." Don't laugh or criticize the next few photos. My goal was to take everyday things and turn them into something I wanted to look at. I didn't leave my front porch or back deck to take these. I put my zoom to use and had to hope the neighbors didn't mind. This is what I came up with. Not bad for not leaving my porch.

This little guy was on my porch. When I grabbed my camera he ran up the tree to the "hole" and sat there.

These flowers are waaaaaay far away on my neighbors back deck. Just a simple dandelion.
A little treasure in my other neighbors garden.

Wine? Anyone?!

I love a great glass (or bottle) of wine. I enjoy it room temperature while sitting on my deck as the sun is setting and the air is brisk. That is my favorite way to sip and unwind. Most of the time I am in my comfy pants, a teeshirt, no socks or shoes and my hair is wildly fabulous. I'll most likely have paint on my pants and antiquing gel on my fingers somewhere, but the wine is good and I am happy. What do you do with all the empty bottles? Well, if you're me, you turn them into something useful.

These were done for a friends wedding shower...also wine enthusiasts. The bottles have been kiln-fired to a scorching 1200 degrees and they are now fabulous cheese trays or wall art - whichever you'd prefer.

Are you a wine lover? Know someone who is? Why not order them their very own Whimsy Wine Bottle?!