I've been in a sewing frenzy

I know, it's summer, I'm walking much better and I should be out there, taking lots and lots of photos to edit.  The weather has been great!  And I have been out there, just not taking many great photos that I'd like to edit.  I have been having a ball sewing though.

The machine is a kenmore from around 1992, my dream machine back then.  It has stood up very well with the exception of the annoying plastic bobbin cover that likes to slide off during sewing and now needs tape to keep it in place at all.  It has a hundred or so specialty stitches that mostly don't look great and I seldom use, though with some stabilizer and metallic or specialty thread on the right fabric has done some pretty things.  The main electronic brain fried a week after the warranty expired about 15 years ago and Sears nicely fixed it for free for me.  It does a pretty darn good job on everything I have asked it to.

It's sitting on top of a kenmore in the table that is from the 1950's that is a basic zig zag and a work horse!  It is one of those old metal machines that does an exquisite straight stitch and goes through layers of heavy stuff (or super delicate thin stuff) like nobody's business.  It currently needs a new belt (sitting in my supplies, awaiting motivation) and then I plan on using it for some crib quilts I've got going.  There's also a budget serger in the corner that I've never been thrilled with.  By the time I've threaded the sucker and then worked out all the kinks for sewing whatever project I'm on I could have finished with a zig zag and trim.  Maybe I'll resurrect it too though, there's so much you can do with a serger that really can't be mimicked on a sewing machine.

The projects pictured:  two fast and easy dresses for my 8 year old granddaughter, the first clothes I've ever sewed for her.  I know, I know.  But her mom always bought such really nice clothes for her in such plenitude that I felt the effort wasn't worth it.  This year she had a growth spurt right at the end of school and was begging for dresses and skirts just when Mom's pocket was tight.  I did a skirt too that though not pictured is sooooo cute.  I'm teaching Kayla to sew and she is thrilled.  The yard furniture is 20 or 30 years old, a second hand gift, and until last week had the original cushions with the fabric flapping off the shredded stuffing.  I found some outdoor canvas on sale on a special trip to Joannes, 60 miles up the road.  I did a fast and dirty and finished these in a couple hours.  It's nothing real special, I skipped shaping and piping and just made pillow case type covers to get it done so it wouldn't migrate to the fabric stash where nothing happens until it's antique.  They look pretty darn good out there in the yard, and feel nice to sit on again. Yay!!!  The ironing board is in process of getting a new cover, it's done now and took less than an hour.  I did one once in a printed denim that lasted nicely for years and years and many washings, but I couldn't find a heavy fabric I loved for it at Joann's.  So this is a cheap calico and may make it a year, but I love how it cheers up my room where if I'm going to sew it (and all the sewing stuff) will be out all the time.  It has lines that help with garment construction and a pattern and colors that hide little messes that will happen, coffee cup rings or heavy starch application.

OK, ok, this is supposed to be a blog on editing.  Well, I did tweak the photos and crop and do a collage, and even had to decide a size to fit on this page.  I know it's truly not editing but I'm a gemini and I couldn't take it anymore!  The confines of being just about editing!!!  So, maybe as I debated before I'll start a new blog to let me blather on about whatever is floating my boat, or maybe I'll just cheat a little now and then.  Anyway, it's sunny and might hit 90 with a delicious cool breeze, Kayla is at the house and I've just got to get out of this chair.  I'm sooooo glad my hip replacement is done and getting healed.  Life is sooooo much better than the past two years.  

camerabag 2 for $20.30 till June 8

The good people at Nevercenter are offering a 30% discount on the camerabag 2 program until June 8 with the discount code “CB25D20”.   That makes it a measly $20.30 for download.  I really like the program and though I'm trying to save every penny right now, I just might splurge.  As I said, it sure outprices the "actions" packages I see out there, and you can create your own filters.  I think the longer you have it and play with it, the more you can do.  It would never replace my beloved Adobe, with the brushes and the organizer (without which I'd spend way too much time searching for photos, I have going on 8,000 images tagged for finding specific people or times or places or techniques fast). 

Such a good deal I had to post it here (where I know I have virtually no traffic presently) and on facebook.  You could still download free and have the chance to decide for a few days if you want to buy.

I found a nice little photo editing program



My entry to win a free Canon 5D Mk III via @CameraBag 2 (http://bit.ly/cb2-5d) #cb2giveaway

I found this nice little editing program, CameraBag2.  Right now they've got an enticing camera givaway if you download their program and send them a link to a photo you've edited with the program.  Even nicer, you can download and use for free for 30 days.

It's quite different from Adobe.  The big thing they've got going on are "filters"- look like "actions" to me- 21 of them.  One click, and your photo is transformed.  There are 14 quick easy borders or frames to choose from.  The price tag to keep is only $29. and if you only use the features above it's a deal, cheaper than most actions I've seen for adding to your adobe product.

I've only started playing with it, and the filters were the first thing I saw, but there are other editing features.  You can crop, straighten, work on color, saturation, exposure, etc. to get just the look you like.

It does NOT have any paint tools like the clone brush to eliminate or add to your photos. 
Adding and subtracting are my favorite things, so it could never replace photoshop elements for me.  But I sure do like those filters!

Just goofin'

I've been promising to try out using actions in elements.  Some of them are quite expensive to buy, but there are many that are free.  It is complicated loading them onto your version of elements, not simple like loading new brushes.  I spent a good chunk of time Wednesday trying and couldn't get it right.  Went back through the trouble shooting procedures.  Just never got them to be usable.  I may try another time, but I got disgusted and goofed around and did this.  Then my internet was broke!!  So I took it as a sign from God that I was meant to get up and do other things (things not on the computer) and I DID.  Wonderfully productive day.

Let me see if I can remember how I did this one.  I was thinking about actions, which are (my understanding) like the stuff under the "guided edit" tab, so I went there.  I used "photomerge" to pop in 2 more Kayla's into this shot, and have to admit, it worked very fast and easy, just a scribble across her image and it jumped right into the base image.  Then, back in full mode, I flattened all layers, duplicated and shrank and flipped one of the jumpers and stuck that in too.  In the "effects" bin of full edit, I selected "photo effects", "frame", and then filled the frame color black.  I went back up top to the "filter" tab on top, chose "render" and "lens flare".  From the tools bin I chose burn and hit the trees and leaves at about 16% strength.  I went back to effects to get the glowing green border. 

To me, the photo looks an awful lot like what many actions label as "dreamy" effect, except for the cheesy cut and paste that I can't resist sometimes.  As hard a time as I was having getting an action loaded (especially since I never did!) it just seems as simple to me to use those filters installed and play a little with exposure and dodge and burn.  Not much work.  Still, those actions are selling to a whole lot of people, and it took me a couple years of playing with elements to see the value of using brushes. 


Even though elements is wayyyyyy cheaper that full photoshop, it's nice that I can be playing and learning and having fun with a program that still isn't cheap at $50- $100.  Wait for a sale, and GET it if you like playing with your photos.

goofing with fantasy

I'm still pretty awkward with this kind of edit, but having a new baby in the house in inspirational.  I know this is a pretty clumsy attempt, but I kind of like it and I can come back when I get better and both cringe and feel proud.  Since I spent a fair amount of time (that could have been spent on SLEEPING or CLEANING or even SEWING (two baby quilts in s l o w progress)  playing with this I figured I'd put it up.  Layers and brushes- of course I cut the kids out from the background.  Added sky in a layer below, then trees and grasses.  Butterflies went below and on top, then the fairies on top.  Added the glow edge for a frame, and a glow layer style to soften it all up.  Lots of blur brush on edges.

I guess this is like scrap booking without glue?  I confess, I like it because I can sit and work on it, I don't have to get up and hunt or go to the store for stuff I don't have- I can just search for brushes and images online.  So, let me give credit to Midnightstouch Brushes, Linda Rae from Deviant art for her grass brushes, and unfortunately I don't have the name of the fairy artist- the rest of the brushes came with photoshop elements.

Time to get up and move......to the kitchen, for food!

I sure am a better photographer since I started messing with elements.  On the top left is the original, the right is tweaked just a little...and since I still haven't learned about distracting backgrounds, a new one put in.  I think it turned out at least as nice as your average school portrait.  Especially done bleary eyed after night shift when I shoulda been in bed, but felt like doodling instead.

I found a great new outlet- I LOVE restoring battered and old photos but have pretty much exhausted my supply.  Looking at a profile on tipsquirrel (an awesome place for tutorials) I saw on Janine Smith's profile that she got much of her expertise volunteering for an organization called Operation Photo Rescue (OPR).  They use volunteers across the internet to restore photos for people in disaster hit areas.  I've finished my first photo for them and hope they ask me to do more more more!

Meanwhile, I still haven't tried out "actions" in elements.  Its a series of somewhat automated fixes that you can rapidly apply to photos without having to go step by step.  Especially for when you want to do the same thing to several pics without having to go through all of those steps over and over.  If you have (at least version 9 or above) elements, the guided edits are pretty much the same thing.  Trouble is, except for lomo (which is a very cool effect) I don't much desire to use them.  And they seem very complicated to install.  Still, so much bru-hah about them, I'm going to get around to it one day.  I guess it took a couple years before I could see the point of brushes.

Happy editing!

I haven't lost interest...

I'm having a creative renaisance, or late mid life crisis, or something.  I had a total hip repair in January and by December it was so hard to walk anywhere I started knitting and crocheting, broke my sewing machine back out of it's decade-plus hiatus.  I discovered I kind of LIKE those things. As for sewing, it was cool to see all that expertise, the hard learned techniques and slowly aquired knowlege didn't slip away but sat right in that sewing part of my brain, ready to be used again.  Then after surgery came therapy, and then back into night shift work and I've been busy with things other than blogging, man,

Honestly, I've been so taken with the needlecraft stuff that I pondered, should I start another blog for that?  I've already photographed one sewing tutorial and could do another in a jiffy, my personal pattern pieces already cut out (sewing is FUNNER than back when I thought you had to go to the store for a pattern every time, though I do miss fabric stores).  But my attention does wander, and if I started a needle works one, then (probably any minute) GARDENING will be what I'm all about, then cooking or house renovation and so on. 

Should I dump this and do a what Barb's doing blog?  Incorporate it all?  I think that question has been corking up production here for a few weeks past the halt the surgery put on everything.  I have a certain fondness for this place and don't want to pull the plug yet. 

Also I've been feeling like I should be out there taking fresh photo's to edit, but I just haven't.  Night shift really sucks the life out of your life, unless you don't let it.