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Music to cheer up your day.

If you are having a tough day just hit play on these videos and you will be happy in no time. I love music. I especially love indie artists. And with my obsessive nature if I find a song I love I have a tendency to listen to it over and over until Mark wants to throw up. It's a habit that drives him slightly insane. But even still he will email me or send me links to music he thinks I would like.  Yep, he is a keeper! Which is pretty much anything singer songwritterish. (Don't you love my creative use of english? Another habit I'm sure drives Mark crazy)

He had me listen to Pomplamoose a few days ago and I'm in love.

And for all you single lady song lovers here is their Beyonce cover. 

I love her voice and I love his enthusiasm in the videos. Fun times. I dare you not to smile. You can find them on itunes and there are a lot of videos on youtube I especially like A Few of my Favorite Things. 

Round Top, Texas

Round Top, Texas is a little piece of heaven twice a year if you love old things as much as I do. If you haven't read the post below, head there first.  Did you read it? Good. So you now know why only two months after moving here I had the need to look for all new furniture and fun house ideas. I didn't want everything to be matchy matchy and I didn't want to buy it all at once so we decided to buy items for the boys' rooms & the family room - the rest could wait.

I started to scour the internet for home ideas and I came across the blog cote de texas. Joni has an amazing blog and while the French Belgium look isn't totally my style (I love it but it's to formal for  our lifestyle) there was/is so much to learn there. She posted about Round Top just before it happened. Round Top is one of the largest antique fairs in the country. It has almost 7 miles of different antique shows. I knew nothing about it or where to start but my Mom was coming to visit at the same time and I knew we had to go! She loves old things as much as I do. So I emailed Joni and she was so amazingly kind to give me some amazing advice about where to go and what order. I only had a day in the fall and I found out that most people go for 4 or 5 days at least because there is so much to see. However, with my trusty 24 hour list of what to see from Joni, a list of research on the items I was looking for, and the prices I had found on them, we headed out. I was looking for mostly industrial pieces and I wasn't sure if I would find anything but I found everything on my list and more.

I didn't take any photographs on that first trip (it was super overwhelming and we had a mission), but lets just say it was so good that my Mom scheduled her next trip here just so she could attend the spring show. This time, we were buying for my living room which has been a storage room for broken items for the last 8 months. We never went in there because we were buying for my parents house (my mom and dad are building an addition onto their house so that there will be a room large enough for us all to fit).

Here are just a few of the photographs we took. I forgot my camera!!! I know, right?! So these were taken with my Mom's smaller camera, but you get the idea.

Round Top is a small town smack in the middle of Austin, San Antonio, and Houston. It is quite lovely. The drive there was so pretty with all the wildflowers this year.

The image above and the next few are from the booth of Marc from Bobo (I think I have that right). He has a line at Restoration Hardware and the booth was stunning. My mom purchased a few items from here. She is a mix of French and industrial style. I still lean towards industrial and English with a little modern thrown in for fun. This booth was at a show called the big red barn.

I think this would be such a fun idea for Halloween: some great branches and old illustration frames with glass plates and foil tape.

 

These are from a second location, Excess. I really loved the medical cabinets, but they were to big for my space.

 

I love old industrial carts. I know they are popular right now, but I don't care. I bought one last time in the fall. My Dad loved it so much in my house that he told my Mom to get one for their room if we saw one - clearly we did.

This is a beautiful zinc table my Mom picked out for her room. Doesn't she have great taste?

This is what I picked out! I love, love these shelves. So did someone else, so they were already sold but the designer is making a set for me for our living room which we are really going to use as a library/study room. His company actually builds bridges but he likes to use left over parts for furniture, which I think is so cool. The photograph below is another set of shelves that he designed. I love the rivets.

 

Old glass bottles from a textile mill.

There was a lot more but that is it for now! I hope you like the photographs if you ever get the chance to visit roundtop in the fall or spring you should go!

The move

So, if you are the kind of person who reads blogs and thinks, "is life really this perfect for everyone else? Do bad things happen to other people?" Or if you have ever read my blog and for some reason thought, "I'd like to have her life," this post is for you.

Here is a little burst of what my reality was like this past summer (and one of the major reason for lack of blogging): we moved from Brooklyn to San Antonio. Moving is expensive; moving from NYC, more expensive. Seriously. Now, I've moved a lot in my life. A lot. In fact I've lived in 11 states, over 20 cities, even more houses and apartments, and if you count a semester of study abroad (and I'm going to for dramatic effect) then I've lived in two different countries.  Most of the time at a new school I was asked if I was from the military. Nope. My parents "liked new adventures". As a child, if you asked me where I was going to live when I got older, I would tell you I didn't care as long as it was one place for forever. Then I married an actor, and I've moved almost every two years since, sometimes even more often for the last 11 years of life. That is a lot of moving!

So believe me when I say I know how to pack a truck. And really, it's more like Mark knows how to pack a truck. But either way, we've moved 8 times, and somehow, everything we packed made it in one piece, good as new (if you could call our mishmash of college hand-me downs new). So when we found out we were moving here from San Antonio, we hired a moving truck with a company we had used before. It's one of those where you load the truck, they block it off, and then theydrive it to the location for you. We packed as usual with one exception: instead of getting used boxes from random places, we decided to splurge and buy packing supplies from U-Haul and Home Depot. We were more careful packing than we had ever been and we loaded up the truck with our normal system that had always worked.

(You may see where this is leading...)

When we opened up the truck, most of it was destroyed. I know your thinking I'm being dramatic, so I've included photos as proof. I'm not sure there was even one box left that wasn't smashed. Here are three photographs of boxes. I could have included like 50 of these photos but one smashed box looks like another. I've seen many at this point. The other thing to notice is that the boxes also have some sort of oily and yet sooty gunk on them; in them, too! Unbreakable tems, like clothing, were stained and ruined.

A box of dishes.

A hole in the back of the couch which was wrapped in blankets and then plastic. 

Again I could go on with photos of a broken table, dented and scratched up book shelves, chairs with missing or broken legs. It was awesome, and by awesome, I mean I was pretty much rolled into a ball crying on the floors of our new house. Even better, when we called the moving company to ask what happened, they said nothing happened and it must have been the way it was packed. Really? Really? Let me send you some photographs. I mean, a broken lamp or one smashed box, I could see. But the fact that a heavy duty plastic bin was smashed in, the lid was on a different side of the truck, and all my Christmas ornaments I had collected over the years of my adulthood were shattered spread across the entire truck, I'm pretty sure that something happened. So I sent photographs, and letters about what had been ruined. The reply? Sorry. And we've not heard from them since. We had even paid for extra insurance.

Now, before you tell me to sue or what lawyer to call, we've been though it all. So I'm good there and I'm convinced I'm never going to see a penny from them. I was heartbroken at first (not about the furniture because most of it needed to be replaced anyway...I had hoped to replace it one piece at a time so that time line was moved up), but really, the sad part was the photographs, the old disks of images before my days of hard drives, my vintage holiday collections, glasses from my Grandma. Things like that. Things that couldn't be replaced. But surprisingly, after opening the boxes, I was able to salvage many items and clean them.

It took me a while ( if I seem healthy about it now it's because it's been 8 months) but I finally came to the conclusion that is was really just stuff. How often do you really get a chance to start from scratch? So we bought a house...our very first home! (Yay!) And for the most part, we were able to start with a clean slate. 

Why am I putting all this on the blog?  Because I wanted to warn you that home stuff and decorating is on my mind, so be forewarned. I'm sure it will appear here on the blog soon. I have this new obsession with design blogs. I'll share my favorites soon. I never thought that we would own a house of our own. I thought we would be in Brooklyn for a long time, and buying wasn't a reality for us there, but here I am - living in the suburbs, and I have to say - I love having my own house!

Someone had a Birthday!

And he wasn't that happy about it. Poor Dickens. Today is his 1st birthday so we celebrated with a hat and his favorite dog bones. He liked the bones but disliked the hat as you can clearly see. He shares a Birthday with Shakespeare...and yes. I know that. And yes, in our family we celebrate that. I'm married to a theater professor what can I say? I guess we gave Dickens the wrong authors name.

But still it's better than celebrating Thomas Crappers birthday like we did in my family growing up. I have a Dad that is a Environmental Engineer. He designs water treatment plants. And although I didn't know it growing up, he is quite famous in his field of work. Thomas Crapper designed the first sewage system/flushing toilet? Yep, I'm pretty sure that is where the word crap comes from. Put that on your list of things you never knew you needed to know. When I went to London in college for study abroad the only thing my Dad asked me for was a rubbing of the first ever manhole cover. It's in Westminster Abbey if you wanted to know. And yes, it has Thomas Crappers name on it. My dad still has it hanging in his office. And we celebrate his special birthday with Baby Ruth's and apple juice. Yes, it is totally gross. But funny all the same. I'm glad that I have a Dad with a sense of humor. Even if it does lead to the sewer. And in case you want to know so you can celebrate too, Thomas's birthday is January 27th. Please tell me that you had little quirky traditions in your family too? I'd love to hear about them.

Moving on!

In other notes, I was interviewed by my dear friend Naomi at her blog. Go here to read it. You may remember her from the jumping Brooklyn Bridge photographs. She is one of the kindest people I have ever met. And she is coming to France with us so I'm super excited about that!

Oliver Danger

A few weeks ago I had the opportunity to go to Utah to photograph my sweet, new nephew! That makes six grandsons with no granddaughters in sight. I was so happy to be with my sister and to get to spend time with both of my nephews.

Meet Oliver Danger.  Yes, danger really is his middle name. I think its adorable.

I love photographing babies. The lighting in Steph's room was perfectly soft. All we needed was to crank up the heat, strip down the baby & the bed of everything but the sheets and a soft white blanket, and we were good to go! And yes, if you were wondering, both the white blanket and I were peed on at some point. Who said being a portrait photographer didn't have its dangers?

A Poster post

We moved here to Texas when Mark accepted a position as a theater professor at a university here in San Antonio. Part of his job is to occasionally direct plays at the school. He had loved the creative challenge and my favorite part is that we have finally gotten the chance to work together on a project. I helped with both of the posters for the shows he has directed so far and I took the archive photographs of the plays also. There is a learning curve to theater photography but I think I'm getting it. I'm excited to do more and I've even started shooting for the other professors too, so I guess they've liked the results so far!

The first play was Mary's Wedding. It's a dream play so things are out of sequence and it has a very surreal quality to it. It's a beautiful love story about World War I.  Mark had the ideas for how he wanted the lighting and colors to look for the poster and I think it turned out well. But I wish I had brought hairspray....

Here are a few stills. The lighting and set design were by Melissa Gaspar and the set design was by George Burnette. They both did a great job. I loved the path of letters across the stage.

 

 

The second play was called The Lady's Not for Burning. It takes place in the 1400's although it was written in the 1940's. It's about a girl who is accused unjustly as being a witch, and a man who has lost all hope in mankind so he wants to take the blame in her place and then they fall in love. You know...the typical romantic drama - ha, ha.

This poster was a little bit harder because, really, how to you use a photograph but make it look medieval? This is what we came up with...

I also designed this poster which I think I might like a little bit better.

Here are a few of the stills.

So that is a big part of what Mark has been up too! And a little bit of what I have been doing. I'm so proud of him. He is an amazing teacher. I know that he is really making a difference in his students lives and honestly seeing him come home happy each day from work feeling creatively fulfilled makes moving to San Antonio worth it.

Ah, Paris...or rather Benyac...

I met the amazing Nicole Hill two years ago at the first Creative Photography Retreat. As part of the team that got to plan that event I was able to handpick photographers to teach and Nicole was someone who I had long admired through her blog. I was so happy when she agreed and I got to finally meet her. We hit if off in no time! It wasn't until the next year when we met up again teaching in Houston that we decided it would be nice to have an event all to ourselves; one where we could do things our own way, and oh by the way - wouldn't it be amazing to have it in Europe? I remember the moment that we both turned to each other and said, "La Maisonnette!" You see, we are both followers of Stephanie's blog and had watched her transition a small cottage in the city of Benyac, France into a thing of simplistic beauty. And so, ideas were formed and emails began to be written. As it turns out, Benyac is the PERFECT place for a photography retreat. There are hills, a river, a small stone village straight out of a movie...literally out of a movie. Chocolat and Ever After were both filmed there for it's amazing beauty. There are also orchards near by and I'm pretty sure heavenly angles sang to me when I saw all the amazing stone walls and cobble stone streets that surround a castle fit for only the best of fairy tales.

And so it's happening! We've signed the papers, and with the help of Ben and Steph, found brilliant chefs to cater our lunches. We found hotels for fantastic prices, and even have an amazing model booked. We want this to be a fantastic learning experience and a fun trip of a lifetime! Just think - it could be you and a small group of only 19 other people wandering the countryside with Nicole and I helping you find the perfect shot!  But hurry - I wish we could bring everyone with us, but there aren't many spots left! So if you want to come,  you need to decide soon! I'd love to see you there and spend three days with you! 

For more information or to purchase the retreat you can go here. And if you have any questions feel free to contact me. 

It’s time to see France through a whole new lens. PhotographersNicole Hill Gerulat and Candice Stringham will share 3 fabulous photo-fun-filled days with you in the countryside region of Beynac. You’ll learn how to photograph architecture, landscapes, and portraits within breathtaking scenery and humbling environment. A limited group size (fewer than 20 people) ensures you will get the personal attention and creative support you deserve. A peaceful background, cozy accommodations, world-class food … this may be the most memorable trip of your life.

Take your photography to the next level – take the French Photo Retreat with Nicole Hill Gerulat and Candice Stringham!


When: July 12-14, 2010

Where: Beynac-et-Cazenac, a gorgeous, picturesque village 5.5 hrs (by car) from Paris. Does the place look familiar? The movies Chocolat and Ever After were filmed here!



Hotel: We have a block of rooms reserved at Hostellerie Maleville

65 € for a double room with breakfast included

60 € for a single room with breakfast included

85 € for a triple room with breakfast included

The prices with breakfast and dinner included (half board) are :

65 € per person in a double room or triple room

81 € for one person in a single room

Schedule of Events: 

Each morning we'll begin with class instruction. The morning classes will take place around La Maisonette (a home owned by Stephanie of the well known blog, Stephmodo). Literally built into the castle walls, it's the perfect location for beautiful views and amazing light. We'll discuss such topics as equipment, settings, finding and creating beautiful light, food/ table top photography, portraiture, and basic editing. Detailed instructions and handouts will be included. Both Nicole and Candice have BFA's in photography and many years of teaching experience. With such a small group of students, this retreat is a great opportunity to ask lots of questions and receive personal feedback.

Lunch will be served each day before we depart to our stunning photo-shoot locations. You will get to enjoy classic french fare catered by a local chef.

Because Benyac is such a beautiful village we will spend the afternoons exploring photographic opportunities at various locations. With models and both instructors on site, you'll have the chance to put all the knowledge you are gaining into practice.

Each evening class will end at 5 p.m. After 5, you'll have an opportunity yourself to explore and enjoy a little downtime in Benyac.

On the final evening, Nicole and Candice will host a dinner party at a local restaurant to end our fabulous three days together!

Cost: $1400 -Includes 3 full days of instruction with models (and any excursions we might take). Lunch provided and Wednesday dinner provided. does not include hotel or airfare.

A perfect day by Candice Stringham

If I could spend the day doing anything this would be it! After spending all week on the computer working and feeling overwhelmed and quite frankly rather overstressed, I knew we all needed an outdoor break so we headed to a farm in the hill country to pick strawberry's. It was the perfect sunny morning with a nice breeze. And the farm was the best kept farm I have ever seen. Have you ever had a strawberry straight off the plant? This was my first time, and they tasted amazing!

The farm is just a few minutes away from Fredricksburg, a small town that was founded by German immigrants so it has a European feel to it. It's main street is charming! We spent the afternoon with lunch at Rather Sweet, all the food was fantastic,I had the curry chicken salad and key lime pie,  browsing at Red (a great home store), visiting the old fashioned candy bar ( the boys favorite) , and ending at the antique store (it was stuffed full and you had to really search through it which = pure heaven for me).

I bought the old music book and shoe laces in image on the bottom left. It was seriously the very best of days. What would your perfect day include?

Pardon me!

I'm in the middle of a little blog redesign. My brilliant sister is helping me. But in the meantime please ignore the mess!

The newest member of our family

When we decided to move to Texas we told the boys that we would buy them a puppy when we got there. And last July just a few weeks after arriving we added this guy to our family.

If you have been reading my blog for long you will remember our rather interesting pet names. There was Shakespeare the hamster (named for Shakespeare because Mark was gone for the summer in Virginia for a Shakespeare festival when we bought him for Cole's Birthday) Then there were the NYC fish named Mozart, Bach, and Beethoven because Grant was studying classical music in school when they joined us so this time we decided that we would go with an author. Since Our Mutual Friend is my favorite book we named the puppy Dickens! And yes, I realize the irony in naming a Scottish Terrier after a British author but it suits him quite well.

The photograph above was taken before his first haircut. I think he looked a like a little black fox. He is much more distinguished looking now in his full scotty cut.

He loves chewing on things and he is very stubborn, but he is very loving. He is my shadow during the day, and I finally put a pillow under my desk for him to lay on because he lays at my feet the whole time I'm working at my computer.

He is extremely smart. He talks to us when he wants out or if he wants food or water. He can sit, laydown, roll over, shake...but no staying. He goes when he wants to go, and sometimes i feel like he only does what we want to humour us but secretly inside he knows he is in charge.

See what I mean? Look at his face here. This is a look he often gives us when he is upset. He turns his head away from us and glares with one eye. He did not like camping. He did not appreciate the mud or being outside for that long. He was very grumpy. Until we got in the car to go home. He loves the car.

But I have to say he is a complete member of the family and has really gained everyones heart. We love him so much and I'm so glad to have him at home with me now that the boys are both in school all day.

Watch out because I think I may just become the kind of person who dresses my dog and has doggie birthday parties. That is how much I/we love him.