Jet Lagging, Gently

Slowly getting into the swing of things in Kyneton (Australia). I love it here so much. Such a fantastic country town. Great to just slowing unwind from the frenzy of life back in Vancouver. 

A few quiet images from my first couple of days...

My niece's chicken. I still can't really warm up to chickens. I like taking pics of them, but couldn't quite get into cuddle mode ;) 

Have no idea what kind of bird this is (it's tiny), but it was a pretty cute moment as she nestled back on top of her eggs. 

Curb-side daisies against a corrugated tin fence. Very Australian. 

Heading into Melbourne tomorrow.  Can't wait to check out the alleys!

Hope all is well and festive out there! 

janis

Hello weekend, and welcome Fall!

I can't believe fall kicks in tomorrow morning. Love this time of year. Do you? 

Back next week!
janis

Weekend Observations

That weekend was a bit of a blur. How was yours? Hope it was a fun one!

Along with spotting this sweet flower stand, here's a few more observations and a little project from the weekend....

Sewed up some cardboard pouches to ship my prints to some lovely etsy shoppers.  

A fun guest bedroom designed by Angela Robinson. 

I set aside some time to check out some blogs as well. Here are some lovely links...

Colour coded work spaces at Creative Living.

A fun and tiny space over at Emma's Design Blogg. 

A little paint-by-number action at Poppytalk.

Have a great day! 

janis

Welcome to the weekend

I shot these horses for a story about Eco farming for Sunset magazine (it's in the November issue). To be honest horses terrify me (thank you grade nine P.E. teacher for making me ride a horse named "Streak"), but I love shooting them. They're beautiful creatures.

Have a great weekend! Back on Sunday.
Janis

About a Beautiful Book and a Give Away

I have a really special give away to offer one of you! I was sent this beautiful book, About A Village by Eamonn McCabe, by Frances Lincoln Publishers, and they kindly offered an extra as a give away. I love them.

Eamonn McCabe is an incredibly talented British photographer, and in this book he shares a beautiful photo essay on a tiny village called Firle, in East Sussex. He definitely answers the question "What is it that makes the ideal English Village?" It pleases me to no end, that places like this still exist in the world. Enchanting is not a word I use often, but it is the perfect word to describe this book. I want to step right into the images, and meet the friendly faces peering back at me. You can also purchase it here, if you can't wait for the give away. ;) For more of Eamonn's work, check out his portfolio of images he's shot for Elle, Vogue and Marie Claire, here. Pretty stellar.

Here is just a small sample of some of my favourite images from this stunning book....

© Eamonn McCabe from About A Village by Eamonn McCabe, $24.99 (27.95 Cnd) from Frances Lincoln Publishers.

© Eamonn McCabe from About A Village by Eamonn McCabe, $24.99 (27.95 Cnd) from Frances Lincoln Publishers.

© Eamonn McCabe from About A Village by Eamonn McCabe, $24.99 (27.95 Cnd) from Frances Lincoln Publishers.

© Eamonn McCabe from About A Village by Eamonn McCabe, $24.99 (27.95 Cnd) from Frances Lincoln Publishers.

Amazing images, yes? This give away is open to residents of North America only. To enter, please leave a comment. I'll make the draw on Monday August 15th. Good luck! Now, back to my book and my morning tea.

Back soon!
janis

Rosy Friday

I hope you all had a good week. It's very rainy, here in Vancouver, so I thought I'd wind up the week with some sunny roses. I'm feeling hopeful.

Have a great weekend! Back soon.
janis

Friday in the country

I headed out to the country today to hang out with my friend Heather, of Missing Goat. It was her official opening! After months of hard work, she opened the door to her "shack" filled with fabulous, jams, chutneys and garlic. Yum. Naturally, Lily, Heather's daughter, was in her blueberry glory. Speaking of blueberries, they won't be ready for another couple of weeks. If you're in the Metro Vancouver area, I highly recommend a trip to Missing Goat!

By the way, congratulations to all the winners of the big giveaway at Flourish Design + Style! The winner of one of my prints is Shannon of whatsupwhimsy.com - she chose "Pink" (below).

I think I need to have a g + t and give myself a bit of a pedicure. My feet are definitely not summer ready.

Enjoy your weekend! See you Monday.

Melbourne vs Vancouver

These two lovely cities do seem to battle it out for top spot on the "most livable city" list. My husband is a Melbourne boy and I'm a Vancouver girl, so it makes for a fun rivalry. Vegemite vs peanut butter. We're back in Vancouver now, so back to November rain (isn't that a song?). I like to think rain keeps the skin young and fresh. One can dream.

I shot over 700 images while in Australia, so I thought I should show you a few more pics. Perhaps one more post next week as well then straight into Christmas!

These happy little boxes of hope look like they've never seen any post other than birthday cards, and postcards from faraway places. Certainly never an overdue hydro bill. Postboxes, like these, are dotted all over country roads throughout Victoria. Love the rakish look they all have.

This is Nelly the goat. She was the sweet and happy natural lawnmower belonging to Rob's sister Cathy, her husband Peter, and kids Frankie and Tom. Nelly passed away last week. She was about 20 years old. I feel bad because I yelled at her when she chomped on one of my lenses. Sorry Nelly. R.I.P.

Almost Fall

It's been pretty busy since I returned from my shoot in the Kootneys, now it's the weekend. Looking forward to sleeping in.

The other night, I checked out the Comrags trunk show in Gastown.  Comrags is a Canadian fashion label - beautiful clothes.  I went with my friend Nikki, and we actually behaved ourselves. I've been to these kinds of shows before. On one occasion, I woke up the next morning to find a cute little shopping bag containing a very tiny dress, a few plastic wine glasses, and a pencil with the name of the new shop on it, beside my bed.  My memory was a bit hazy, so I gave the dress a go but I couldn't get it past my shoulders.  Let's just say the refund policy wasn't good.  This episode was the on set of my post purchase doubt syndrome (P.P.D.S.). I never drink at these things now.   I would love the following two frocks though.

Well, as we head into a beautiful weekend, I leave you with a shot of a rusty, vintage bicycle I saw while having a day in the country with my friends Heather and Midge (a.k.a. Lily).

Have a lovely weekend!