Sylvia's Simple Shots

I captured this cute squirrel having a late afternoon snack. 

He had been digging under the snow at the foot of a small birch tree and I wondered what he was looking for. When he found it he came and sat in this tree and nicely posed for a photo.

Love how the color of what he is munching on is repeated in the orange on his head and tail.

I have put up the second photo shelf in the front hall.  I placed my award winning "Silver Roadster" framed photo on it along with a white ceramic tree.

This shelf is Mosslanda from IKEA which is 21.75" wide which was perfect for this space.  They make on which is 45" wide which I will use in the living room.

I ended up with black ones because that is all they had when I went shopping. With shopping in the pandemic I was not willing to just come back at a later time.  I was really wanting to test out how these would work before I invested bigger money in the 6 or 7 needed for the living room wall.

I am happy with these and will move forward with getting the wider ones.  I means painting the walls as well so it is not a quick job.

This is the reverse side of the blue one I posted last week.  It is a back drop for my photo studio made with a 18x24 inch artist board which I recycled.  

This is the actual canvas textured side of the board. I was going for warm tones on this side.  I cleared out a lot of my acrylic paint a couple of years ago and only kept a small box.  

The color I chose is Artist Pigment Burnt Carmine which was lighten with Warm White.  I created 3 tones, the original color, the base coat which has some white added then the lightest with more white added.

The whole board was done in the medium base coat.  It was recommended that we then apply some dark and lights and work them into the somewhat still wet base coat. On this side, this process almost completely removed the base coat from areas.  Maybe it's because it had been painted before but I had put 2 coats of primer on before the base coat.  I did the best I could then let it completely dry.  I then went back it with all three colors to cover the near bare spots.  Turned out alright.   And as luck would have it, I found a large cellophane envelope this morning which will protect it when it is stored with the other backdrops.  Yeah!

I've changed up my exercise routine.  I have been doing the last one since October 1st. With a new year I was ready for a change of moves.  I started doing the 1st mile of this DVD by Leslie Sansone.  I can choose to do any of the 5 miles so I can a different routine every day.

I don't think I will ever do 5 miles at one time which would take about 2 hours.

I created a stand for my new backdrop.  

I used some 2x4 and cut it into about 6" tall pieces. I sanded the edges then held them together with very long nails. I drilled a pilot hole through the first piece so it would be easier. Worked great!

In the video, they used big clips which I did not have so I used 2 small ones. A bit of a pain but it will do for now.

 
The challenge at Flickr Macro Monday is "Lockdown Song".  Music is not a big part of my life and then trying to interpret it into a photo was very challenging.  I was ready to pass this week but I went on line and search happy song.  The song HAPPY by Pharrell Willimas from Despicable Me showed up.  I had a Minion toy so I thought this could work.  This is the shot I submitted because I did not have a lot of options. 

You can check my Flicker photostream (SMDPics).

I am sharing with Angie who hosts Mosaic Monday #115 and Mersad who hosts Through my Lens #276.

Mosaic Monday - Blooms & Critters

Here's a few photos from the weekend. 

Pink and yellow tulips in Mom's vase for Mother's Day.

A soaked chickadee sitting on the bird feeder.  It rained non stop for 2 days.  There was water everywhere.

The shrubs have finally burst into flowers. 

The Red Winged Black Bird at the Heritage Wetlands.  I just  missed the pelicans so another trip is in order.

Squirrel on the wooden frame in the yard at Mom & Dad's. I don't know why he is not soaked like the birds.  He moves fast so he may be skipping the rain drops.

Sharing with Maggie at Normandy Life who hosts Mosaic Monday #40.

Mosaic Monday - Bright and Shiny

I heard this set of woodpeckers before I saw them.  But getting close enough for a good shot was a challenge.  The male has a bright red spot on his head which makes him pretty easy to spot once you hear him. 

There was a bright green door on a spa business on my walk this morning. 

Shiny butterfly was in amongst the foliage at the Conservatory during my visit on Sunday. The Fleur the Lis is a wood
decoration on a door which was marked for demolition so I took the chance when I had it.

Mrs. Robin has a bright orange breast but she was eyeing me pretty severely.  The squirrel was playing frozen for a few shots so I had to wait until he moved to be a little more natural. 

The walk this morning was wonderful.

Submitting to Mosaic Monday hosted by Judith at Lavender Cottage. 

Share Your Cup

During my walk yesterday I could hear a racket going on but it took me a while to find the source.  This is the squirrel I found in a tree,  his partner I did not find as he was in a full pine tree and was hidden in the branches.  I'm not sure if I was the source of the commotion and discussion but they were really vocalizing.  It was a gorgeous morning and it was good to find signs of spring in the air.











This was lunch one day this week.  Pumpernickel toast with a bit of butter and Italian Wedding soup with a dollop of sour cream. Yummy!

This is the tulip tile I posted about here.  The frame has had a make over.   The frame was dark brown and not really what I wanted.  I've been working on a painting project and I was inspired to paint the frame.  Now it is yellow and much more in keeping with the colors in the tile and my favorite colors.  More about the painting project in a future post.










This is a clear glass mug with herbal tea in it.  It's a gift from a friend who took a trip to Hawaii this February.  Thanks so much for thinking of me while in those wonderful climes.

My trip to the library this week saw me bring home several books focused on the internet.  This book is very interesting for someone who has been blogging for 7 years.  I'm about half way through and much of it so far are the work to put in before you actually set up a blog and start posting.  Some really good ideas.  Chapters are introduction (anatomy of a blog),  finding your voice and niche (your aesthetic and your name),  Powering your Blog (platform, domain names, what to post and how often).  I'm enjoying the book and the rest is going to be interesting.

Submitting to Share Your Cup hosted my Carol at Art & Sand.