work your soul

paint chip. paint chip.

2009-07-03T15:15:00.000-07:00

Hello! Kara, here! And I'm ready and excited to bring you this week's challenge at Work Your Soul.

Paint chips are pretty awesome. Y'know, those free samples of paint colors that you can pick up at the supermarket or Home Depot?

They're amazing. Colorful, cheap, free. Not much better than that.

(amy nieto)

The challenge is just to use 'em. I have a nice collection of them courtesy of a few friends of mine and I'm sure you do to. So.... Get to working your soul!

My quick art journal page--

Other way fun ideas I found while doing some paint chip love research--

(paint chip bookmarks. how about orange)

(paint chip wall art. elmoraux)

(paint chip book corey ackelmire)

hello, old friend.

2009-06-16T13:05:00.000-07:00

Hi all! Jen here, and I was thinking it was about time to reunite with some old friends...

(via)
Do you have a record collection? Chances are if you don't, someone in your family does. Statistics report that new and used record sales are increasing at a rapid rate – vinyl records are experiencing a renaissance. (LP sales almost doubled between 2007 and 2008.) Whether you grew up with them or not, many people find something extra special in the feel and appearance of vinyl records. Nostalgia lies in the little crackles and pops heard during playback.

(via)
And then there's the draw of the album covers themselves and art/photos inside. Many so beautiful that you'd want to plaster them all over your walls. Or make something out of them.

(via)
This week, I challenge you to take inventory and do a little tribute to your stack of vinyl. And if you don't collect these beauties, maybe you can take this opportunity to record some thoughts on your personal musical history. Trust me, this kind of information deserves a nice little spot in your scrapbook.

(via)
Maybe you grew up listening to The Beatles, or perhaps you were subjected to your parents' or grandparents' favorite records (whether you liked them or not!) Whether it was Barry Manilow or The Who, take that trip back in time and jot down all of the little memories that go along with your playlist. Write a bit about your current favorites, or how older music has shaped your musical taste today.

(via)
Records and album covers are quite easy to find at thrift stores, yard sales and of course, record shops. If you don't want to cut up your own precious collection, shop around for an alternative. Or use a scanner (or take a photo) to create a printable image of your irreplaceable album covers. Make a cover for a book, cut up pieces to illustrate your story, use a record cover as a background for photos, make a journal. Write a note documenting the history of a record, what those songs means to you and slip it inside the sleeve. Whatever you do, just be sure to preserve some of those memories.

Here are two examples of how I did it. First, I wanted to record a few thoughts about growing up on Led Zeppelin. My dad was very rock and roll and some of my first memories are dancing around the living room to his Led Zeppelin and Queen records.

And then, I definitely wanted to get my daughter's current favorite songs down on paper. (For a two year old, she has very specific favorites that range from punk to metal to indie music!) I saw this amazing children's record at a thrift store about a year ago and the cover made the perfect background for this playlist. (Aren't those illustrations seriously the best?!)

(via)
Song and memory go hand in hand. Or to jack the Dylan quote from Kim's blog ... "the present now will later be past." So get to it.

filling in...

2009-06-05T17:38:00.000-07:00

for Jen this week, it's Kim!

My mum recently bought me this magazine;

hasn't it got a GREAT cover? the artist who was the main feature is Andy Burgess and his new collages are amazing, don't you think? he's got an exhibition coming up at this gallery in London.

I love it when contemporary artists bring it back and use the 'old school' designs. Artists like Rodchenko who made Russian Revolution posters inspire me too. There is something about collages that I have a major weak spot for. Anyway, a few of Andy's images I found online;

he has said about his work;

"I paint moody, cinematic unpeopled landscapes that are evocative of real places and somewhat dreamlike. I explore the way the past lives on in the present and how cities are a repository of our memories and dreams. I have been collecting vintage ephemera for many years which I use to make collages. These draw on a number of influences from Pop Art to Minimalism and my interest in popular graphic design and typography."

if you want to be an art geek like me, you can read the press release all about his new work here.

I love the idea of hidden messages and things in art. And deconstructing something, and putting it back together completely different. Maybe try piecing together words from logos.

So this week, I want you do dig out your vintage ephemera and collage! maybe even use contemporary odds and ends and magazine clippings. anything really- whatever inspires you!

here is a layout i've done of some magazine clippings;

(sorry the scan is kind of rubbish.)

They make great places to store all those inspirational images you collect, (admit it, you collect them!) and you can hang them up without taking up masses of space, and can be filed away when you make the next one.

okay. make friends with your scissors and get your collage on!

(link us up!)

lets applique!

2009-05-22T07:47:00.000-07:00

i've been on a complete upcycle binge! i've cleared out my wardrobe and two massive piles sitting on my floor of things i want to change and alter and make beautiful again. and i also have a bag of old t-shirts which don't fit right, so i'm going to use that as some spare fabric as the colours are nice!

anyway, so i've been looking for simple ways to change outfits, and i've bought a few items from thrift stores that i want to embellish...

especially 20's style summer dresses!

(just a silly picture of my favourite dress that i've thrifted recently, on my leavers day at school. haha)

I was looking through 'Golden Hands' the vintage crafting book again and i came across 'applique' and it's such a good way to alter things.

some photos from flickr...

(amyleigh)

any kind of stitching really inspires me lately! mmmmmm!!!

there is a group on flickr for all things applique.

I don't normally have the patience to cut out my piece and fold them over and iron them and pin them etc before i go about sewing them onto fabric- so why not use felt? afterall, that is what the book suggests!

My project; I've decided to change up this really simple black dress of mine, using the colourful, design shown above, it's still a work-in-progress, and i will show you a full length shot when it's all done, but here is the process;

before;

i just was not a big fan of this detail, so i wanted to cover it up with something new...

here is the inside;

after;

okay, now it's your turn! make something beautiful! double kudos for anyone who uses a vintage pattern or fabrics!

**EDIT!***

here are some photos of the finished piece;

2009-05-08T16:33:00.000-07:00

Ohhhh! Happy Friday all! Kaaara here! :D

I have a little, easy, bright challenge to throw at ya!

Hopefully it's getting to be somewhat Springish where you live and you've been able to soak up some of the beauty. It's starting to get more consistently pleasant here and I'm loving it!

So... This challenge is mix it up with some Sunshine!

Get a little lens flare action going, throw some yellow paint around a canvas, do some some bright journalling.

I figure that if we pretend it's almost Summer, it's gotta be summer right? Mmmhhmmm. That's how my life philosophies work.

(click on for photo creds. :D)

A little photo lovin' from me.

Some spread some happy bright love! Happy weekend! :D :D

fall in love all over again...

2009-04-23T19:28:00.000-07:00

With embroidery. Hey there, it's Jen, and I've always had a thing for embroidery. Old or new. Better yet, old and new. Because there's always a way to put a new spin on an old skill. Here's some eye candy to get you thinking.

Gillian Bates' amazing freehand machine embroidery

woolly fabulous

Nea

more by Nea... with 3D elements

And this blog is one of the most clever and inspiring things I've seen in awhile. Have you seen Embloggery? Yup, every single one of the blog posts is hand-embroidered. To see more, check out the Flickr set.

So you've got some ideas... now what? To transfer your design onto fabric, you can draw free-hand with a washable marking pen or pencil, or trace a design by holding the pattern layered under the fabric up to a window or light table. I printed out some clip art and traced it onto a flour sack towel with a washable quilting pencil.

Vintage iron-on flour sack towel patterns are actually still readily available at lots of hobby/craft stores – look for the Aunt Martha brand (here in the states, at least.)

You can also do a Google search and find many free vintage patterns online.

I bought this iron-on pattern for $1.50 and am super tempted to start embroidering day-of-the-week towels for my kitchen.

Just like my grandma used to make. Ahhh, the nostalgia. I just love the feel of them, too.

Experiment with embroidering on colored fabric, felt, canvas or paper. Here, I stitched over an existing pattern on one of my Orla Keily kitchen towels. (And no, you don't have to limit yourself to towels! I just happen to be in a towel mood for some reason.) :)

The best part of embroidery is that you can use just about anything as a pattern or source of inspiration. I had fun trying free-form designs with no exact plan in mind – cool things to try might be faux bois or a series of circles or undulating lines.

and Kim has been working on some little hand sewing projects;

So let's see what you can do with a needle and thread! It's such a quick and fun thing to do (even if you've never tried it before) and such a fantastic way to add a bit of color and homemade love to just about anything. If you feel you need to brush up on your Embroidery 101, this should help you get going. Happy spring – have fun!

(and for the film challenge, i've decided to make TWO journals for Adellecutter and shady*lane. woop. go you! e-mail me your addresses and i'll send them soon soon! (kim@smithdata.com) )

James-Guest, photo inspo!

2009-04-12T09:56:00.000-07:00

I first met James McLoughlin (find him here; flickr. blog. book.) on myspace, and we traded frustrations about our recently acquired Holga cameras. I love the internet. When he started uploading more images on flickr I fell in love with his look instantly; vibrant, young, stylish, sexy- they are real and magical at the same time, I don't know how he does it, but maybe this will give you some idea;

Q: What camera(s) do you use? And your favourite?
I usually shoot with my small little pentax pc35af-m film point and shoot , or if i wanna get some nice focus and tones then i'll go for my pentax p30 slr.
i'll pretty much shoot with anything i can get my hands on though. i don't think it's about the camera, as much as it is the person behind it.

Q: What is your film of choice? Why?
kinda the same with the camera, i'll shoot the cheapest film i can get. I usually go with fujicolour c200 though, the colours always come out rad.

Q: Any favourite settings on your camera you use a lot? (i.e. slightly overexposed?)
I'm not totally aware of all the setting on most of my cameras but i like to put the iso up real high and use ilford film alot, so i get alot of grain. I'm self taught so when most people ask me how i overexposed an image or got nice tones i generally don't have an answer. haha

Q: Favourite place/thing to shoot?
my friends, anywhere. As much as a location is important for some types of shoots, for me i couldn't care where i am.
i like to keep my camera on someone for ages until they react to something or do something special. and then if im out i just keep shooting and shooting all night.

Q: Flash or no flash?
definately no flash. all the time. even in the worst conditions.
i only use flash when i have to.

Q: How do you deal with low-light conditions?
usually with flash. haha

Q: Are you technical, or more of a ‘shoot-and-see’ kind of photographer?
shoot and see. documentary type stuff you know. i only get technical on shoots i set up. everything else is from the hip.

Q: Do you take your camera with you all the time?
yes, as much as possible.
i usually always have a bag with me so i can hold all my cameras haha.

Q: Tripods and other kit? Do you carry one around with you or only sometimes, or not at all?
neverrrrrrr. A tripod would stress me out. i like to know if want to shoot from another angle that i can move to that position in a matter of seconds before i miss something, rather than fiddlin with the tripod and such

Q: Do you use any Post-processing?
NOPE. i hardly ever edit my photos in anyway.

Q: Did you take any courses/classes at school in photography? Were they beneficial technically?
no, my school can barely provied paint for out art class. let alone classes in photography.

Q: Do you develop your film yourself or at a shop?
at a shop. i've always wanted to know how to develope film but i don't think i'd trust myself with all the chemicals.

Q: How many rolls a week or month do you take?
definately one a week.
but if i go somewhere for the weekend i can have like 4 rolls to develope.

Q: What made you decide to ‘go analogue!’?
digital is ok, but analogue is wayyy more exciting. the build up to waiting for my film is the best. i like to leave the roll for a few days so i forget about what i shot. So when it's done theres stuff i don't even remember shooting. And obviously the tones and colours and everything are way more appealing. besides, a photo is an object, right, and with digital it looses that, it's just a file on a computer.

Thank James!

Abby-Guest, photo inspo!

2009-04-11T09:37:00.000-07:00

We are so lucky to have Abby from abbytryagain as some inspiration. [: I'm so in love with her endless dreamy, soft, colourful snapshots of life. find her here; blog. flickr. shop.

Q: What camera(s) do you use? And your favourite?
I have so many cameras!
I am often trying to experiment with my vintage ones like old brownies or old slrs…but for the most part I stick to my Holga, my Polaroid One Step, a Polaroid Land Camera 100 and my very favourite-my Yashica Tl Electro.

Q: What is your film of choice? Why?
I almost always use Kodak gold 400 because it is super cheap and readily available. I know people are into funky film types, and that is great-but I go for easy.

Q: Any favourite settings on your camera you use a lot? (i.e. slightly overexposed?)
Uh…settings? Uh, I don’t pay any attention to those. I’m bad! I pick up a camera-adjust the focus and shoot! Sometimes I remember that it is sunny-so I need a shorter exposure or vice versa-but here in Portland it is almost always overcast, so I just keep it the same for the most part.

Q: Favourite place/thing to shoot?
Everything! I love bringing my camera with me wherever I can…I love shooting every day scenes like my meals, my friends, my clothes, little vignettes around the house….

Q: Flash or no flash?
No flash!

Q: How do you deal with low-light conditions?
I smile. Because I live in dreary Portland, most of photos are shot in low light. I like the dreamy quality it gives. It is SO hard for me to shoot in sun.

Q: Are you technical, or more of a ‘shoot-and-see’ kind of photographer?
I am so far from technical! To be honest, I have no idea what most things on a camera are! I just load up my film and shoot. Someday I’ll learn, but most of the time I get frusterated or overwhelmed with too much technical stuff-I’d rather be shooting….

Q: Do you take your camera with you all the time?
I try to. Lately, I’ve been slipping when I go to work. But I really try to.

Q: Tripods and other kit? Do you carry one around with you or only sometimes, or not at all?
Never! Although I do own a tripod and used to use it for my point and shoot digital camera. I should probably use one, I just forget…

Q: Did you take any courses/classes at school in photography? Were they beneficial technically?
Nope. I wish! I’d love to take one now…

Q: Do you develop your film yourself or at a shop?
At a shop or I use instant.

Q: How many rolls a week or month do you take?
I take about two to five rolls per week.

Q: What made you decide to ‘go analogue!’?
Almost all of my possessions are from thrift stores, including most of my cameras. There’s no way I could afford a digital slr but I bought my yashica for $10 or $15 at the Goodwill and it works great! Also…there is something so great about the detail and color of film…

Thanks Abby!

your mum's camera was better!

2009-04-09T15:51:00.000-07:00

haha, this week I'm bringing analogue back! actually, in a lot of people's eyes- it's never gone away...

on the menu we have TWO special guests that are going to answer a few questions about how they photograph stuff. I will be posting these on SATURDAY and SUNDAY, to space out the inspiration! trust me- you don't have to be a professional to get good images on film! and it's more fun! I'm going to run through a few basics and some tips and tricks- then I want you to shuffle on down and load those babies up with light sensitive plastic!

I know that not being able to see what you're shooting is a scary thought, but basically- I want this to reassure those of you who are afraid of film, and to give those a little push who want to try and maybe if you shoot film already learn something new or get inspired.

The most important thing I can say about bringing photography into your life is to ALWAYS have a camera. It takes some getting used to- but you'll thank me later. And if you're too scared to go straight into taking film shots- try applying the Lomography Rules to the way you shoot at the moment. a little bit of risk goes a long way!

What kind of camera? Good question. haha! there are three types of film cameras in my mind;

The SLR- this is the big hunky guy with interchangeable lenses and lots of settings, professional looking and probably old school.

The Point and Shoot- I generally think of these as a camera with a fixed lense, no zooming. you get what you get, the Lomo or a cheap thrifted camera.

The 'Toy Camera'- this includes all Instant (like Polaroid) cameras, fisheye, cameras with four lenses, Holgas, disposable etc.
Obviously there are some exceptions to the list, but that's how i think of it. There really is no 'easy' option because they all have their pros and cons, but if you are thinking about buying a camera for some fun and to play around with- I recommend a Toy camera- just the look of them makes you (and your friends) want to giggle and takes all the seriousness out of this whole picture-taking ordeal.

Disposables are very underrated. Seriously- they are magical, and if you like thrift shops, ask at the counter if they have any old disposables or expired film. I've been lucky a few times. Can you say cheap?

What kind of film? First of all you need to think-

Colour or Black and White?! I would say go with colour (unless you have access to a darkroom) because you can take it to any shop and get it processed and printed for you within the hour- some places will have to send away your B&W for three weeks, and they charge you lots for each print- because the process is different. If you really want B&W and can't find a place that will do it for you, think about using that Kodak B&W C41 film which gives you B&W images, but can be processed like colour or-shooting on colour, scanning the prints and making then B&W on photoshop.

Print Film/Slide Film. I get this question alot- How do you get those amazing colours? It's all in the type of film. Print film is the everyday film- y'know, Kodak, Agfa, Fuji etc- the kind that comes standard in any disposable and that you can pick up at the counter of any shop. It is called Print Film because the negatives will give you prints. The technical name for the chemicals it uses to process is called 'C-41'. Slide film is the old school film that give you negatives with fit into slide holders which you put into a slide projector- remember these?

(this is great film, btw!)
To get slides from Slide Film, you use 'E6' chemical process. BUT- here is the kicker, Cross Processing is where you get the funky colours from. If you have a roll of slide film and you put it through C-41 (the print film chemicals) then the film goes 'Hold on! this isn't right!' and you'll get tints of colours and all sorts of magical things, in a print! But if you put Print Film in E6 (the slide film chemicals) you'll get washed out, desaturated, gray images. I recommend playing with Slide Film in C-41. but just WARNING: there is no telling what is it going to do. you might get really really green images, super dooper red shadows, crazy tinted grays where the black should be and very odd skin colours. Here are some examples of the 'worst' I've gotten back;

To buy Slide Film, you might have to order it online, but try a camera shop (i know Boots in england has some slidefilm, also SnappySnaps is good)- 7DayShop is nice and cheap, but Lomography.co.uk is very friendly although you might have to wait! There are tons of makes and types of film- it's best to just TRY anything! Agfa is my favourite for cross processing, but Fuji has been good to me too.

Film Speeds. Okay, a bit of technical knowledge here (is your head hurting yet?), what are the numbers on film packets, 400, 200, 800, 100? Without going into too much detail, the lower the number, the slower the film. i.e. 100 is slow. Having a slow film means that you need more light to get an image that is going to be in focus all the time(due to camera shake). Your camera has a thing called a shutter speed- this is the amount of time that each frame gets exposed to light. If you have a slower speed film, your camera will need more light. In practical use- if it's summer, use a low speed film, i.e. 100 or 200, and in winter it's better to use a faster 800 depending on how dreary your day is (and inside faster is better). Really, though- most cameras can handle whatever you load up, but if your images are crazy bright or really dark- that could be the issue. Also a little note on Film Grain- the faster the speed of film, the more grain you're going to get. generally looked on as a 'bad' thing, but it's all down to personal taste.

Camera Settings; Automatic is great for anyone, and its really handy if you don't have the time or the brain power to pick settings before that moment is gone. I am not a settings snob- they put Automatic on your camera for a reason, don't be embarrassed to use it! I do not recommend sticking your camera on Manual if you just want to have some fun. I do think Manual is a great way to learn about your camera, but it can get frustrating. Personally I use Aperture Priority (Av) all the time. I set it to the lowest number (like 3.5- this is an 'f stop') because I like it when I get that blurryness wherever I'm not focusing(called Depth Of Field), then it automatically chooses the shutter speed for me. This is handy because I know I'm always getting the fastest my camera can give me- which is really important because England is very grey all the time and pubs have very tricky low-lighting. Anyway, I'm kind of rambling now. If you want help with settings on your camera, shoot me a comment or an e-mail (kim@smithdata.com) and I'll see if I can advise. On most of my film cameras, there aren't many settings and especially on the toy cameras, they are super lo-fi (which means the opposite of 'high tech'), and I usually just go with it, and I'll take one without flash and one with flash just incase i'm not sure if it will come out. this has saved quite a few moments.

The Mindset- there are tons of ways to shoot, untill you find out what kind of photographer you are- it's best to TRY EVERYTHING! but don't be too heart broken if it doesn't come out perfect. try resting the camera on a table and shooting that way

try not using flash in low-light

try using flash in the daytime

try not looking through the viewfinder and just shooting 'from the hip'.
there are really no rules set in stone, except remember to take the lensecap off!

I've put together a little Q&A...

Kara's Questionnaire---

Q: What camera(s) do you use? And your favourite?

I use a Canon 10S, a film SLR. It used to be my grandma's and I love it to death.

Q: What is your film of choice? Why?

I like Fujifilm, ISO 400. I honestly don't know much about films and just use whatever I can find.

Q: Favourite place/thing to shoot?

I love taking film pictures in my backyard, that's where I take most of them.

Q: Flash or no flash?

No flash, usually. Though I do want to start experimenting more.

Q: How do you deal with low-light conditions?

Run away?

Q: Are you technical, or more of a ‘shoot-and-see’ kind of photographer?

Shoot and see with film, I'm so scared to go Manual with film. With my digital camera, I should soley in Manual and am more technical that way.

Q: Do you take your camera with you all the time?

No. But, that's because I'm naughty... Gotta work on that.

Q: Tripods and other kit? Do you carry one around with you or only sometimes, or not at all?

I have a Tripod, but I never use it with film

Q: Do you use any Post-processing?

Once scanning in the film, I usually darken things up a bit, but I don't play around much. I love what comes strange out of the camera.

Q: Did you take any courses/classes at school in photography? Were they beneficial technically?

I take photography classes at my highschool. I've learned a lot of technical stuff and a lot of art theory. So grateful for them.

Q: Do you develop your film yourself or at a shop? Shop.

Q: How many rolls a week or month do you take? Usually between one and two rolls a month.

Q: What made you decide to ‘go analogue!’?
I think film possesses a quality that digital can't achieve. When I asked my grandma for her film camera, I've been hooked ever since. I love the DOF and the natural vignetting and beautiful colors that come out of the camera.

Kim's Questionnaire---

Q: What camera(s) do you use? And your favourite?
A: I have a lot of cameras, haha. I use a digital SLR (Canon EOS 400D), a Lomo Lc-a, a Fisheye, a Holga, a film SLR, and a Polaroid the most. It depends what week it is, and which one I am favouring more. But at the moment I love my Film SLR (it’s a Minolta).

Q: What is your film of choice? Why?
A: I love Slide Film, and cross processing it. Agfa is the brand I’ve been using lately. Normally I use 400 speed or faster, only because England is pretty dark, but I’m going to be trying some low speed (100) this spring. For Black and Whites, I always go Ilford (HP5 mostly)!

Q: Any favourite settings on your camera you use a lot? (i.e. slightly overexposed?)
A: I’m an Av girl. I’ll pop my camera on that, and set it to the biggest aperture(normally 3.5) and just go with it. I love the depth of field it gives. I love having things slightly overexposed as well, so I often use exposure compensation to make things lighter, but only if the conditions allow it.

Q: Favourite place/thing to shoot?
A: I love to shoot my friends and anything retro, or stylish. My everyday inspires me, candid shots, and I love pictures of the boy [:

Q: Flash or no flash? 

A: My general rule is No Flash!!! But at parties/clubs/night time/if I have to, I don’t mind using the built-in-flash on my camera or attaching my nifty RingFlash, which has coloured flashes. I used to have a real problem with flash, but we’ve come to an agreement now. Haha.

Q: How do you deal with low-light conditions?
A: This is a major struggle for me, as I never want to ruin the ‘vibe’ by setting off a flash at a chillout party or in a pub. I will normally try to remember to load a really fast film and if I don’t, I just tell my camera that it’s faster than it is- I use my Av setting and hope for the best. Sometimes I try to use exposure compensation to darken the image, but a lot of the time it doesn’t work so well, and it’s often super grainy. But flash is always the ‘safe bet’, although not as dreamy.

Q: Are you technical, or more of a ‘shoot-and-see’ kind of photographer?
A: I would say I’m a pretty ‘happy snapper’, that’s half the fun- not knowing till you get your prints! 

Q: Do you take your camera with you all the time?
A: I’ve never not been with at least one camera for at least 3 years. Too many times when I’ve looked back and said ‘oh- I wish…’ so now I always have the option.

Q: Tripods and other kit? Do you carry one around with you or only sometimes, or not at all?
A: I very rarely take my tripod with me, only if I know I’m going to be doing self portraits or long exposures. If I take my fisheye, the ringflash goes in the bag too, other than that I always have a spare battery and film, although sometimes it’s fun to see what film you can find/buy on the spot.

Q: Do you use any Post-processing?
A; With my film images, I never edit them. Maybe clean up some dust and scratches, but I like the organic look.

Q: Did you take any courses/classes at school in photography? Were they beneficial technically?
A: Yeah- I’m in art college at the moment, but I had to teach myself about Aperture and Depth Of Field and how film worked and everything really because all of my classes have always been ‘project based’ instead of technical, although we've done a lot of good study on artists, which I love. I’ve taken two summer courses about how camera’s work but, books and practice are marvellous things. I'm a geek like that.

Q: Do you develop your film yourself or at a shop?
A: I do my black and whites by hand, but for all things colour- Snappy Snaps or Boots (like Walgreens).

Q: How many rolls a week or month do you take?
A: I take about 3-4 rolls of film a month. I wish I could take more, but it's a budget thing.

Q: What made you decide to ‘go analogue!’?
A: My first camera was my Minolta, but I used my Digital a lot while I was learning and trying things, but Lomography did it for me. I completely fell in love. I got the Holga and then the Lomo Lc-a. I just can’t put them down. Plus I prefer the look to film photographs as well, it’s just something that my heart knows that it loves.

okay, the person who throws light in every direction this time will get a little travel journal made by yours truly. i smell summer!

Please post your pictures by April the 23rd in the flickr group- or link us in the comment section!

(remember to come back tomorrow and sunday for more inspiration!)

It's Kim here!!!

2009-03-28T11:23:00.000-07:00

hiya!

I've been having such a fab day- making art with all my friends, and I did a series for the Henry Darger prompt!

they are all inspired by words from that documentary that kara linked us to. I love all of this work, but i'm not a great illustrator- plus I'm super influenced by Sara Fanelli lately, so i did some collage pieces with Henry quotes.

This is a two-page book i made;

and my favourite;

hope you like!!

Henry, Henry, Henry

2009-03-23T13:55:00.000-07:00

Hey, lovely loves. Kara here again.

I'm really inspired to bring you our newest Challenge, and a different kind of Guest Designer.... :P It's a bit unusual, but bear with me here! :)

I happened upon the work of Henry Darger a few weeks ago from the Black Apple's fashion blog.

I go through phases where I'm obsessed with insane artists and people, it's just one of my weird quirks. My fascination is a bit morbid, but ah well, haha.

About Henry Darger-

Henry Joseph Darger, Jr. was a reclusive American writer and artist who worked as a janitor in Chicago, Illinois. He has become famous for his posthumously discovered 15,145-page, single-spaced fantasy manuscript called The Story of the Vivian Girls, in What is known as the Realms of the Unreal, of the Glandeco-Angelinnian War Storm, Caused by the Child Slave Rebellion, along with several hundred drawings and watercolor paintings illustrating the story.

(from wikipedia)

I recommend reading the entire entry about Henry Darger on Wikipedia. I am so intrigued with his work and totally blown away just searching for more examples.

To get all in the mood and inspired for this challenged I watched this documentary by Jessica Yu. I loved it! I made my bestie watch it with me and it was great, but, I am such a sucker for documentaries anyways.

So. A little Henry Darger inspired art journal page. :) (examples)

So. Link us up. Do some artwork inspired by the colors or his words. Go crazy! :)

More Henry Darger----

vintage paper

2009-03-09T12:19:00.000-07:00

Hello and happy weekend – it's Jen here, with a little paper goodness for you this week! There's something extra special about the feel and the smell and the charm of old paper. Lay your eyes upon the loveliness...

gorgeous paper art by Sarah Morpeth

Kate Greenaway paper dress ...

... and wellingtons by Jennifer Collier

vintage paper butterflies...

heart strings...

and birds found here

and desktop wallpaper from Free People.

And now I'd like to introduce our most fantastic guest girl with the most fantastic vintage paper collection ever.

Jamaica Edgell. Her craftiness can be found at the Dares and also all over her blog, where you can check out her gorgeous quilts and pillows, paper projects, design and home decor ideas. The girl has style.

Included in her vast collection are vintage Pantone posters, flash cards, and a gorgeous variety of old ledger papers. The items above and below can be found in her Etsy shop. If you want to get your hands on some of the amazing papers from her personal stash, be sure to check out the Duly Noted notebooks she makes. They're truly awesome.

And here's Jamaica's stunning and totally inspiring project! (You won't believe your eyes – you may have to look twice...)

Jamaica says: "I hoard vintage paper but never, ever use it for fear of ruining it. I wanted to make a pillow with old ledger paper but never quite figured it out until now. All my favorite pieces – ledger paper, flash cards, seed labels, packaging and graph paper – were scanned in, carefully measured for my design and then printed on color inkjet fabric sheets.

Once I heat set and rinsed them for colorfastness they became stitchable pieces of vintage paper. Albeit slightly stiffer than regular fabric, they've allowed me to actually sew with my favorite papers. And, use them over and over again since the originals remain intact."

(AMAZING... say it with me... just brilliant! And beautiful.)

and here's my little paper projects...

I used sheets of notebook paper from these three old steno notebooks (that I found at Goodwill for 25 cents each) to make the inner pages for a small notebook that I will probably keep in my bag.

The cover is a cool old postcard that I picked up at a local antique shop. I bound it using glue and heavy cardstock. Then I used the same steno paper to cut (with an xacto) a few "hello's" to make some little notecards. Simple but nice to have on hand.

Hope this leaves you inspired to try something new with something old this weekend!
Maybe even sewing with paper. ;)
xo - jen

time for a throwback!

2009-02-23T10:41:00.000-08:00

howdy hi, all you shindiggers!

are you ready for a groovy new challenge and some inspiration that will throw you straight back into the 60's?

it's kim here, and i suggest you put some funky tunes on and turn that volume up to get you movin' and groovin'!

i made a little playlist for you HERE! and it should play through if you click on 'play all'! it's worth giving some of them time to load, but let me know if it doesn't work...

here are a few of my favourites;

mmm. they inspire me so much!

I discovered this really great old crafting book while i was thrifting with my mum and she got really excited said "i remember Golden Hands! they were great!!"

i couldn't keep this to myself- i love it so much!!

i love these little projects that they have;

covering little plastic or metal rings in crochet- wow! these would make such a great elements on pages or to bind books with or even a little flower badge!

and aren't these knitted doilies cute!?!

i think the thing i love most about this book is just the layout and colours of it! especially their combinations!

& if you need even more inspiration check out this flickr stream full of photographs from old magazines. i did some self portraits inspired by this stream...

I used the circles pattern, and created my own background for a scrap page- just a quick layout, but this book is so full of ideas, i can't wait to see what you come up with!

i hope you can find something to take from this post and use, we really love seeing what you make, so don't forget to upload to the flickr group!

(p.s. if you were wondering what i did with Kara's challenge last time- here and here. i took some secret photos with the boyfriend also. i love morning. i also have some film waiting for me- but i've been bad and haven't developed it!)

2009-02-12T21:02:00.000-08:00

Goodness gracious! Kara here! Dude, I am thrilled to be posting for the first ovah here!

It's a little intimidating to be posting right after such a cool prompt from Jen, but I am soooo excited about this one.

I happened upon this flickr pool called "Flocculence" awhile back and have been entranced and amazed ever since.

Flocculence is---

"soft/light/milky/opaque/comforting/fluffy/creamy/pale/sleepy/delicate/soft!

think: muted light, warm beds, smooth skin and delicate things."
Got it?

Here are some ammmazing examples from the Pool.

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Mine that I took with my filmbaby---

As always interpret this how you'd like!!! Adapt the idea of flocculence to an art journal page/scrapbook change. Wear a flocculency outfit!

Link us up! We wanna seeeee!

Happy Weekend!!

woven together

2009-01-27T18:36:00.000-08:00

Get ready to be blown away by this radical weaving tutorial from Bobbi Clothes on ThreadBanger. More than amazing. It brought back memories of rag rugs that my mom and grandmother would keep at the front door and in the kitchen when I was growing up. I can't think of a more perfect way to put your random fabric scraps to use. Make a simple homemade loom (it's not as hard as you think, I promise,) tear up some fabric or use up some scraps and make something cool.

I used fabric from a pair of thrifted pants, two old t-shirts and some $1.00 remnant fabric from Wal-Mart. (Some cotton, some jersey, but you can use anything.) All you need to make your homemade loom is a piece of wood and an even/equal number of nails on each side of the board. Screws also work. (I used 12 on each side.) Tear your fabric into strips. Any size will do, but mine were about 2-3 inches wide. Don't attach them to each other yet – it's easier weaving the strips one at a time into the loom, and attaching a new one when you need to (so you're not pulling enormously long pieces through your loom.) Umm, I found that out the hard way.

Use yarn to thread your loom. Tie a knot at the beginning and thread back and forth until you reach your last nail/screw, then tie another knot. Keep the yarn as taught as you can. Use a large scrap of fabric (I used a clean dish towel) as a buffer on one end to leave enough space so that you can tie your yarn ends when you're done. Weave it through before you use any fabric strips.

Then start weaving! It's fun and it goes surprisingly fast. I tied the end of my fabric to the first piece of yarn so it would stay put.

Weave under/over in alternating rows - just like those construction paper projects from elementary school.

When you reach the end of a strip and need to join the new one, cut a small notch in your end strip. Pull a new strip through (just an inch or two) and cut a small notch in that as well.

Pull the new strip's tail end through this opening (yes, you're pulling the strip through itself)...

... and you will create a knot of sorts. (This joining technique is genius and from the video above!) Keep going until you have finished a piece that is your desired length/width for whatever you are creating.

When you're done, cut the yarn ends two at a time...

... and tie them together. The tutorial shows a narrower, longer loom and the end result is a rad belt or scarf. So very very cool.

Embrace the imperfections/bumps/stray ends in your weaving! Depending on how tight you want your end fabric to be, you can shove the rows together as tight as you want as you work, or you can leave them loose. Either way, your yarn strands may show through and that's okay!

I made a bag out of this. Believe it or not. I'll show you how I did it.

First, I wove two placemat-looking rectangles. I used the same colors but the two pieces do not match.

Then I used extra fabric strips threaded through a large darning needle to lace/weave the edges that needed to be joined; the two sides and the bottom. I used lots of strips on the bottom edge to make it more substantial (and so things I was carrying in the bag wouldn't fall out!)

(You'll see it has a very messy look.) I used six more fabric strips to make the handles. I braided them together (three strips for each handle) and then wove and tied the ends securely inside the bag.

It turned out to be so textural and I adore the feel of it!

So let's see what you've got. Find some old clothes that you just don't know what to do with. Rip them up – it's way fun. Then weave those scraps into something new and fantastic. Show us what you've done here and share the love.

And now the winner from our victorian inspo challenge ... Diane!

Check out her lacy loveliness. Alright girl – email your addy to jgeigley [at!] gmail.com for your awesome prize from EveryJotAndTittle! Sweet.

I want everyone to get up and stamp their feet...

2009-01-23T09:15:00.000-08:00

because i want you to say "'ello." to our newest and hippest permanent go-go-girl!

She might look a little familiar... [:

Kara is such an inspiration to both Jen and myself, that when we were talking about adding a third designer, the only face that seemed fitting was this fierce one!

And we are very lucky to have her!

If you don't know this gem of a girl,

here are a few of her lovely creations (more on her flickr)

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She shares a love for creativeness and all the good things in life- with a fun old-y feel.

which is what this blog is all about- so i can't stop grinning, knowing that she's part of the 'in crowd' now!

and aren't her film photos, oh so lovely!

OK, movers and shakers! You still have a week to pull some shapes on the current challenge, before Jen astounds us all with a yum-filled prompt! Don't forget about our flickr group!

Much love from the Work-Your-Soul trio!

come take a trip.

2009-01-16T09:47:00.000-08:00

I went to a house over the holidays that had such a good feeling in it. You could really feel how old it was, it was like a museum, almost, you could feel that good people had lived in it- it was almost victorian feeling and if you've ever been to Winchester Mystery House, you'll know what i mean- i always want to learn about the house and who lived in it, and what they wore and how they lived. Mrs. Winchester must've been such a creative lady, the colours and designs of that house are so funky! It's a 160-room house, so she had alot to play with, seeing as she had been told that she had a curse on her and that if she ever stopped building, the ghosts that haunted her would kill her! Still, she was known for her bubbly personality and you can't be boring to build a house with stairs that go to the celling, can you?

I am kind of a sucker for these kinds of things. I love looking at the human race and seeing how we used to live, and what we wore and things- which is great living in England, because I can go to Bath which is just around the corner and see everything there. I wish I had a good picture of it, but there's a street called 'George Street' and people who lived in Bath would get all dressed up just to walk along the sidewalk in their latest fashions. I love hearing about what their lifestyles were like- so leisurely and indulgent.

(here is a picture-from google- looking down the street- the sidewalk on the left)

There is so much history in places like this, that my whole body just tingles! Bath is a modern city now, and I love walking around and finding little bits that have been preserved. Some things you don't even realize the age of until you stop and take the time to learn about it. On George's street, there is a club, where I played battle of the bands, and here's a little sketch of what it looks like (just to give you an idea);

it's these little quirky things that get me all excited! sometimes, i close my eyes and make up little stories about what could've happened and i try and imagine the conversations that they must've had. how much fun would it be to dress up in big frilly frocks and strut along next to someone in a flamboyant suit, chatting about the weather and using all the formalities that were necessary. oooohhhh.

I've also been watching alot of period films and things, but the programs that really have my heart are Sherlock Holmes and Jeeves&Wooster. i love men in suits from ALL ages!

and old women's clothes. oh!

(these are all just so inspirational to me...)

i love the frills and the layers and how feminine they are without being OVERLY so.

i don't know if you feel it, but i love it.

i think there is alot you can take from these images/ideas.

and this week i want you to just PLAY! take anything from this post. the colours, the sketches, the garments, the old photographs, the clean lines of suits... anything that inspires you!

i chose to take the lace trims from the women's dresses and things;

and tried to incorporate it into a stitching project.

i love old samplers too.

there are so many cute cross stitch patterns out there as well check this one out;

anyway. (i get easily side-tracked)

Here are pictures of some little stitching i did.
this one is going to be a picture frame;

and this is a bookmark;

and this is my favourite one so far,

i loved making these bookmarks, i think i'm going to make personalised ones for my friends. [:

And Jen was going to take a break this week, but she can't stay away from this one... :)

(I used a bunch of left over lace, buttons and three doubled hair-tie elastics to make this cuff.)

Okay! Now we have an AMAZING guest designer, this week,

HOLLY NEUFELD!

Hey Soul Sisters! My name is Holly, and I'm honored to be here for this weeks challenge! I've admired "Work Your Soul" ever since the first post, and I was thrilled when Kim e-mailed me. I'm from c-c-COLD Canada (it's -40 degrees Celsius as I type this!), and I'm a hairstylist by trade, and otherwise a stay at home Mom to my son Simon, who is 16 months old. I love many forms of art and craft and always have. Other than blogging, you can find me crocheting/knitting, or embroidering something! Some other things I like are time with family, nintendo, Monster Energy, Elsie Flannigan's sketches, tattoos, and taking photos! Ok, down to business.....

The Victorian era was such a beautiful time, and I am SO jealous of Kim that she can go browse the streets of Bath when she likes... I can't imagine the inspiration. One thing that I have always found beautiful is silhouette portraits. These date back to the 18th century, and traditionally, they were hand cut out of thin black cardboard. This took time and talent, and was often done by specialist artists. Silhouette art is still popular today, and used in many forms of decor as well. Now, I love the look of paper cut art (like Rob Ryan!!), but it's a digital age we live in, so I wanted to make a silhouette portrait of my husband and I, using digital photography and Photoshop. I've made a little tutorial to help you make your own silhouette portrait too! (in just a few steps!)

First take a photo of your profile, in front of a blank light background. Upload the photo into Photoshop (make sure the background layer is unlocked) and select the background with the magic wand tool, in the toolbar. You may have to adjust the "tolerance" at the top, I set mine to 15.

Delete the selected background. Next, desaturate the image completely, and move the "lightness/darkness" bar all the way to dark.

Then make a white line with the line tool (set at 15 pixels wide), diagonally from the shoulder downward. Edit -> Transform Path -> Warp, and pull the one side of the line up, to make a curved line.

Save the image as a .jpeg file, and re-open it. Then use the paint bucket tool to fill in the bottom of the silhouette, so it's white. The background should also be white at this point. Now you have a silhouette!

You can now print it out, and do whatever you please with it!

I chose to frame it with some digital frames by Danielle Thompson's Kitschy Digitals Thrift Store Chic Frames. I then printed them out on photo paper, and made this layout.

Gotta have those lace details for a real victorian feel.

(WOW! amazing, huh?)

We loved alot of your projects! Thank you for playing, but we could only pick one, and the winner from last challenge...

BETH PERRY!

so go ahead and throw jen an e-mail: jgeigley [at] gmail [dot] com.

And our next giveaway is from Every Jot and Tittle - http://everyjotandtittle.etsy.com. (Thanks to Kellie for being our sponsor!) Check back on January 30th (and link up your victorian cross stitch inspo projects) for our next challenge and the winner of this fab prize pack!

Hello hello!

2009-01-11T12:16:00.001-08:00

We're still here and gearing up for an amazing 2009!

Kim has got something fantastic in store for our next challenge, so stop back on Friday (January 16th) for a new dose of WYS.

Much love to you and stay tuned for our winner of the gorgeous kit from Kenner Road!

:)

making a list and checking it twice...

2008-12-18T00:01:00.000-08:00

A big warm hello to all of you go-go girls and Merry Christmas to you! With a big red bow on top.

We have a new lovely vintage Christmas challenge for this week. What are a few of your favorite things? What do you want for Christmas? What memories are triggered by the season, and what is it about the holidays that makes us all warm and nostalgic?

Maybe it's all the nice things you can't buy... like hugs, and fires in a fireplace and black and white photographs.

Christmas trees, old fashioned lights and ornaments, red flannel, chopping wood, baking pies, big family dinners, fireplaces, hot drinks in old mugs, quilts and aprons. Brown paper packages, string ribbons, old movies. Making footprints in the snow, singing carols, little girls in frilly dresses, black patent leather shoes and tights, stringing popcorn, faces of loved ones glowing in the lights from the tree.

If you want to play along, we're asking you to make a list or write down your thoughts on all the things that you love about the holiday season. Whether it's the presents or the sweets or the excitement of children and Santa or just winter in general – just pick up a pen or start typing, and don't think.

We'll start with Kim's amazingly inspiring project!

I call this 'automatic writing' (and there was a little art movement around this concept which I find quite inspiring) and it's a great way to pass on your thoughts as-they-come to someone else. Take maybe 10 minutes, give yourself a time limit and see how much paper you can fill up. Or see how long it takes you to fill the back of a 4X6 picture. Sometimes it helps to give yourself a ‘starting point’.

(This is a page from my art journal, prompted by something my boyfriend said.)

but it can just be a chunk of text;

and i took these words and typed them into flickr and made a little collage of inspirational images;

(1. Tea and cake, 2. Monty's Korner, 3. Well, what do you keep in your sock drawer?, 4. Untitled, 5. I♥, 6. Shhhhhhhhhhhhh…!, 7. Tea Corner..., 8. Untitled, 9. Untitled, 10. Christmas ahead, 11. ., 12. .those who feel the breath of sadness, 13. .so wait for the stone on your window, 14. ., 15. thermos, 16. day 115 - thermos, 17. Brown Paper Package ..., 18. KEPT US GOING, 19. ___________________, 20. lights101, 21. golden, 22. Untitled, 23. Untitled, 24. wood 2, 25. Second Snow, 26. Untitled, 27. just tired., 28. lunch time., 29. my mum, 30. happy., 31. lucy, 32. wedding dinner - a composition in sepia, 33. christmas sweater party polaroid, 34. campfire, 35. once upon a time..., 36. A quest for the most perfect yellow yarn...)
(Swooning over that gorgeous art journal page ...)

And now for our stellar special guest... the lovely, the merry and bright Sandy Pool! (You may also know her as PaperPoppies.) Sandy can be spotted over at Say It in Scrap and The Creative Type. We love this girl, because not only is she incredibly talented, but she's real and sincere and kind to everyone she meets. (And not just at Christmastime.)

Hey there!!! Well, I am beyond honored, and totally humbled to be here! I have so much love for Jen, and Kim and to get to hang with them for this challenge is a dream. What can I tell you? I'm a very shy girl, a Canadian girl, and I LOVE everything and anything to do with makin' stuff. I started scrapbooking in grade 7! Yeah, that would be oh....23 (holy crap) years ago. But now those pages, and my old love letters have mostly disintegrated. These days I'm a little more careful about things like scotch tape, and construction paper (well usually). This 'awareness' happened almost 4 years ago. (-; That's when I got married to my wonderfully nerdy husband Joe (yay nerds!), who has barely made an appearance on a scrapbook page since our little Ella was born almost 3 years ago. I thought it was time to pay homage to him.

I love Christmas, so getting an assignment like this was so much fun! To some people vintage means distressing, and lace, and classic design, but to me vintage means doing things up retro, and old-school. I had so much fun pulling out these old pictures, and looking back on my 'vintage' memories.

Have a wonderful season everyone!!!!!! xoxo

(Awesome, yes?! Chevy Chase lights ... haa!!)

And Jen!

This page is home to all of my very favorite black and white photos of my mom and her sister at Christmastime in their farm house in rural Iowa. I'm so lucky that my grandma was a picture-taker!

I adore the picture of my grandpa driving in the snow, the old tree covered in tinsel and garlands, and my mom as Mary in the church's Christmas nativity. The buttons I used were all my grandma's.

And this is a list of Christmas traditions that we have started with my little girl. Both of these pages are going into my Journal Your Christmas book (a December daily project with the lovely Shimelle Laine.)

And the winner from our last photo transfer challenge?

Ms. Glenda T! We absolutely adored your art journal ode to John Rzeznik (and what a perfect technique for a rocker page.) Email Jen at jgeigley [at!] gmail.com for your sweet prize!

Now go on and make your Christmas list. Document what you love about the holidays. (As Kim calls it, 'automatic writing.') Because we like to keep things simple during the holidays! And check back with us in two weeks for another chance to work your soul. Wanna know what you're playing for? Trust me, it's good.

You could win the Dorothea December kit from Kenner Road! Check out all the gorgeous details in this baby - it could be yours! (Thanks so much to Kerry Lynn for this loveliness!)

xoxo and Happy Holidays to you!!!

kim's clever transfers title goes here!

2008-12-05T13:26:00.000-08:00

For this weeks challenge, I’m going to shake it up a bit! This isn’t going to be so much a photo tutorial, but a way that you can play with your photos after you’ve taken them. I want you all to get a bit funky and messy with it this week!

So- the inspiration is torn and weathered posters or billboards. Are you familiar with an artist called Mimmo Rotella? His work was celebrated throughout the 60’s until today, for his fresh approach to street-art and his simple- but effective collages.

I love the rips and tears that are created, having another layer peeking in from behind it- so I did a little searching and asking around, and I found this really easy way to Transfer your photos onto a different background- that gets some really cool effects!

Do you remember this journal page I did over the summer?

This is transfermagiclove. Want some of that magic? Get your stuff together and we’ll start groovin’!

What you’ll need;

-Liquid glue of some kind- I use PVA, but anything that you can mix with water and that is sticky. (this should also work with solvents)
-A big paintbrush (the thicker and stronger the bristles are- the better).
-A workspace covered with newspaper.
-A cup of Water, and a mixing surface (like, greaseproof paper or a plastic plate or palette).
-A ‘rubbing’ tool (a bone folder, popsicle stick, back of spoon…).
-An Ink-Jet printed picture. (one from a home printer- you need to make sure the ink can come off. A quick test to make sure is, put a drop of water on it, if it bleeds and smudges you’ve got the right kind!)
- Some coloured papers.

For the Picture- you really want something in Black And White to start off with- something with high contrast too, remember, the WHITE areas will probably end up being the colour of your background paper. I like to print off several small images of the same picture- to play with, smaller is good, like 4-6 inches on either side. Because you are going to be placing the image face down, flipping (reversing) the photo in Photoshop will give you the right on the right side at the end. Image> Rotate Canvas> Flip Canvas Horizontal

An important thing to remember is that this is going to be MESSY! And I seriously mean this- you will probably end up with glue and bit of paper in your hair! So roll those sleeves up! And it takes a few practices so don’t do it straight on your page which you’ve spent hours making (trust me!).

1. Cut out your picture- separate it from any other printed image, I like to leave a little white boarder.
2. Pick your paper- brown, yellow, and lined are my favourites, but most colours work well. Start with something light. Cut it to the size you want- so your picture will fit on it.
3. Pour some glue onto your mixing surface and get a paintbrush full of it!
4. Apply the glue to the area where your transfer will be. Put a little bit of water on your brush and rub the heck out of that area on your coloured paper. The more you rub, the more the fibres of the paper can relax.
5. Rub that glue in a little bit more.
6. Put your picture FACE DOWN onto that gluey mess that is your coloured paper.
7. Get your brush wet with water and paint the back of the picture with this. Some of the ink should be seeping into the white of the paper you printed it on.
8. Rub the back of the picture with your paintbrush. Add a bit of glue if it gets too wet- but don’t go overboard!
9. Put your brush down and assess the situation.

Is your paper really soggy? If yes- let it sit for a while and try another one, this time with less water. If no- keep reading.

Is your paper sticky and kind of dry? If Yes- you are on the right track! Add a bit more water and try rubbing the back with your rubbing tool- be careful not to rip the picture in awkward places! If No- keep reading.

Is your paper slightly wet but kind of sticky? If Yes- yay! See step 10. If No- keep reading.

Has all the rubbing that you’ve just done created little rolled up bits of paper or clumps of paper coming off of your picture? If Yes- don’t panic! This is fine. See Step 10.

Does your paper look like you’ve put it through the dishwasher? If Yes- try again!

10. Try peeling back the corner of your picture away from the paper and see what’s happened.

All the colour has leaked and it’s a purple/black blob of watery messy-ness! Oh dear- don’t fret. Check another corner, if the same this occurs, set aside and let to dry a little bit more.

The picture ripped! That’s cool- does it look neat? You may have actually adhered some of your picture to the paper. Try ripping it more, from another corner- is there anything left behind on the coloured paper? If you aren’t happy try rubbing the back more, getting it wetter and seeing if it will pull off easier.

The picture lifts off easily and there isn’t anything on the paper! Ut-oh! Did you do Step 4 and 5? Is your image the right kind of printed photograph?

The picture lifts off easily and there is ink on the paper! WOO! Be careful that the ink isn’t really watery and will run everywhere. If you don’t like it- try repeating steps 4-9.

11. You should now try and pull back the picture. Try ripping it- leaving parts of the picture on the paper.
12. Take a look- does it look nice? Try another one, try something a bit different. Sometimes the picture looks nicer than the transfer.
13. Let it dry.

I find that this is best done with friends. Invite someone over and tell them you’re going to play glue and paper and getting messy. It’s really fun to teach someone too because every transfer is different and the more you do it- the more you’ll find out what works best for you. So PLAY! I will be replying to any questions you have via the comments in this post- don’t hesitate to ask!

Here are some examples of successes and little mess-ups that I’ve grown to love.

Try and incorporate it into a scrappage or a journal entry. I’ve often found this very difficult because you’ve just ‘ruined’ your picture, but it can have really nice effects! Try sticking one through your friend’s door with a little note on the back, ring the doorbell and run! Mail one to your husband’s work for something to put up in the office. Try using one as a postcard (after all, it’s already ripped).

For this challenge I wanted to use one in a scrappage so I transfered straight onto a 12x12 piece of cardstock and added stuff around it. I wanted to keep it simple too.

We also have an AWESOME girl as guest designer this week! She rocks out the messy-gorgeousness and we are so happy to have her play along, If you don’t know her- wave a happy hand at Christina!

"Well hello there. My name is Christina, though some people know me as the girl who likes coffee way too much. :D
Besides scrapping and playing with mixed media projects, I love photography and have recently become an avid camera collector, particularly of vintage polaroid cameras and TLRs whch are used for TTV (or through the viewfinder) style photography. I live in Seattle (land of coffee) and work for Starbucks (are you seeing a trend here?). I also have a cute boyfriend who has been with me for almost ten years.

I am so delighted to be playing along with this Work Your Soul challenge.

As I write this, my hands are covered in glue and paper bits, This was a very fun technique to try, but it took me a few times to get the hang of it. And along the way I learned some very valuable lessons.

One. This site is awesome inspiration/eye candy and Kim and Jen are super nice chicas.

Two. If you use PVA, wait for it to dry. No really. Working with glue and water as adhesives when doing collage is tricky and if you do it wrong, you could end up with your photo transfer stuck to your hair, and then possibly your face. (True Story)

Three Be prepared for your printout to do weird things. You might see black, but it could give you pink, or purple when it gets wet. It's an adventure, like all good projects. Have fun."

ohhhh. How nice is that! Yumyum!

(OH MY GOSH THIS IS AMAZING:)
Jen's photo transfer mini book...

I used a paper shopping bag + other found papers and Modge Podge as my glue, just because that's what I happened to find around the house! I used both black and white and color photos and got some really interesting effects. I love how the photos look after they've ripped and gotten stuck in places. I could happily play with this technique for hours. :)

This is my expression everytime one of you guys share with us what you’ve made;

so- thank you for putting a smile on my face!

All right, Soulies, you know what to do! Post links to your take on this challenge here or in our Flickr group by December 18th.

The winner will receive an awesome vintage holiday mini book (made from an old cover of a book, vintage lace, trims, sheet music, and all sorts of cool papers) from The Artsy Cottage on Etsy! Very cool.

And our winner from our last fun challenge is.....
Julie- you took the design from your finds and put it on your page really well!

congrats!
Email your name and mailing address to jgeigley [at!] gmail.com for your prize pack.

and now for something a bit more domesticated

2008-11-21T12:05:00.000-08:00

This week, our inspiration comes from retro patterns on dishes. Pots, pans, coffee cups, casseroles, plates, dishes, caraffes, juice glasses ... you name it. Anything with a funky pattern, crazy colors or bit of nostalgia will do. I love looking through thrift stores at the old dishes and have always wanted to incorporate them somehow into scrapbooking.

The challenge is simple and there are so many ways to interpret it. Just use a dish pattern on a scrap page or journal entry somehow.

*Scan an old plate, print the image out on paper and cut it out or use the whole thing as a background for a journal or scrap page.

*Draw or paint the pattern on a piece of paper.

*It might be cool to tell the story of where it came from, who used it – if it was your mom's or grandma's or had any sort of story in your family.

*If you have a collection of a certain pattern, you can write about that.

*Or just use it as a visual element if you just like the pattern and bought it at a thrift store.

And now we'd like to introduce our lovely Guest Designer for this challenge...

The most fabulous Patty Zimmerman, a.k.a. "coloredsprinkles." We are so excited to have her! She is the creator of the challenge blog The Creative Type which celebrates the love of all things typography. And she absolutely amazes us with her colorful textures, layers and rad illustrations. You can't help but love this girl... we certainly can't. So here she is!

"Hello, hello!! So glad to have been asked to guest design for Work your Soul. I think I can really relate to this challenge. Growing up my parents had these dishes from Pyrex which had small tiny green flowers around the rims of the plates, mugs, bowls, even butter dishes. Back then I thought our family was the only one who had this pattern; little did I know that as I grew older I found that pattern everywhere. Such is the wonders of Pyrex and all of the retro, funky, colorful designs they put out. It's funny to think how all of that is back in style now, flooding ETSY shops and Ebay, who could not love it. As for me, I have a huge passion for doodling and coming up with designs in my sketchpad, so this was totally up my alley. I decided to find two patterns that related to an Autumn theme (gotta love this time of year) and really work them into a colorful, fallish layout using a favorite fire pit photo of mine. I don't know about you, but sitting in front of a fire and adoring all of its colors is really a beautiful experience. And lets not forget about the colors, I really wanted to show that throughout my layout, allowing the two designs to take the lead. I mean, who wouldn't love to have a dish with little blue and green trees on it?? Well I would, but instead I will settle for it on my layout for now:) Thank you Jen and Kim for allowing me to share my take on your retro dish design prompt, I just knew I had to do something with my childhood memories of Pyrex!"

Lyrics from Bjork's "Unison" ... 'One hand allows the other, so much and me. Born stubborn me will always be. Before you count, one two three. I will have grown my own private branch of this tree.'

(Check out Patty's fun illustrations. So inspiring!)

Here is KIM'S AWESOMENESS!

I've been collecting some plates and kitchenware for university, because i don't want to show up with IKEA things like everyone else- so i've been looking in thrift stores and vintage shops and i've found some really great deals! I've got a whole tea-cup and sauser set, plus some plates and a milk jug. But my newest findd was this coffee maker from the 60's! and it works!

i wanted to take a lo-fi picture of the actual coffeemaker to give it some mystery, and i wanted to show-case the design at the same time- so i just water-coloured it onto the background, then traced over it with black pen! so much fun!
(Gorgeous job!)

And Jen's project:

I used the lotus pattern by Grete Prytz Kittelsen for Cathrineholm as my inspiration. (Here's a photo of Grete, just for fun – she just looks like a pretty neat lady if you ask me. Photo from www.dagbladet.no)

I fell in love with this design when I saw it a few years ago at my local thrift shops.

I'm just drawn to the clean look, bright colors, and cool shapes.

And you may or may not know that my daughter's name is Lotus, so it's interesting that I was a fan of these dishes before I knew it was actually called the lotus pattern.

I'm especially in love with the teapots and kettles.

Here's my page with a little bit about the name Lotus, my grandma, and little bits of things I have collected ... a tag from some lotus tea, a lotus postage stamp, and a fun Amy Butler lotus felt flower and button. I used paper cut-outs for my white pattern along the top.

All right, soulies - be sure to play along this week and post links to your projects here or in our Flickr group!

The winner will receive an awesome prize package from Amy's Attic, including a vintage book, paint, brush, vintage buttons, lace, trims, flowers, sheet music, book pages, tags, library pocket, stamps, cards and chipboard!

And our winner from our last fun photography challenge is Robin Stedem!

(Just check these out - unbelievable!)

She did such a fabulous job taking some very cool shots of her kids and their friends, and totally knocked our socks off. So Robin - email your address to kim [at!] smithdata.com and she'll send you your fabulous prize! Thanks so much for sharing your wonderful photos with us.

dancin' in the street!

2008-11-07T12:04:00.000-08:00

This weeks challenge, is inspired straight from the pages of Vogue, and our good friend, Twiggy!

I read an article once about how the fashion industry has gotten really serious, and how back in the 60’s it was more free and fun and experimental. I completely agree! I think the atmosphere around shoots and style lacks that playful attitude it used to. So, this week I’m asking you to grab a few friends and have a photoshoot!

When I’m out with my friends, in town, or waiting for a film to start- we sometimes find a cool wall and just take pictures. It’s one of my favourite things about going out now- because I know they are all up for it. But it wasn’t always that way, and I still have friends who don’t like their picture taken, but here’s some tips on getting comfortable.

-Find a spot that isn’t on a busy road. A lot of people don’t like to be looked at when they are being silly.
-Pass the camera around. Don’t hog it! I’m sure your friends want to play photographer too. It will only take a few seconds to show them which is the shutter button, and you might be surprized at how creative they can be! (if you have an SLR, set it to auto-focus and I use Av setting, on the lowest number aperture, like 3.5 (this will tell the camera to always use that aperture but change the shutter automatically) so that it doesn’t flash, but auto works well if it’s a little dark.) The people that know me, all know my trusty sidekick, Myles (Canon EOS 400D) and he has sometimes become more popular than me! I have people at gigs and parties and sometimes just at school asking if they can play with Myles. It’s cute, I like it.
-And tell them to get trigger happy! The more photos you have, the better chance of getting one you’ll all love!
-Volunteer to go first. Get yourself in front of the camera first, and do really silly things. Pull a stupid face or jump around. It will get you all giggling and lighten the mood, plus get everyone comfortable with being goofy. This is also a great way to get some photos of yourself, in a way you might not expect. I’ve been pleasantly surprized on numerous occasions.
-Drag someone into the frame with you. Interact and go over-the-top with your poses!
-Turn the camera on someone next to you. If you have more than one camera, getting the candid shots of someone laughing are always good.
-GET CLOSE! Full body poses are great, but getting up-close and personal is bound to be funny too. Snarl, bite your lip or look confused, fill that frame with your funny face!
-Show them the images afterwards. Laugh at them all and tell them how beautiful they look. (because you know they do!)

On choosing locations;
- the less busy it is, the more your subject will stand out. A simple painted door or brick wall are classic favourites. Here are some examples, so you know what i mean;

but when I’ve been pressed for time I’ve shot in front of a metal grate of a closed shop window, or even out in the street.

if you want to see some more examples, click here.

On Hair and Make-up;
- don’t worry about it! The most important thing is the expressions and the relationship you have with your friends. Although, if you plan ahead you could get some cute matching outfits going on!

Looking through my photographs of these types of days, I seem to always make the same faces and poses, but I’ve recently found that old clothes patterns have hilarious poses on them, and I’d quite like to try some of these.

SO- we want to see your best shots! And we don’t mind if you just want to upload pictures or if you want to scrap some or all of them! Have fun with it, and remember to be a little bit stupid in front of the camera!

And now, for our very first ever super spectacular Guest Designer reveal. You may have heard of her...

Ms. Kara Haupt!

Yeah, we know. We really like to start things off with a bang! (And yes, she is our Twiggy muse! Isn't this photo absolutely beautiful?)

Kara is the mastermind behind The Art is Found. Her innovative style has made her a stand-out in the ever evolving world of scrapbooking. And her amazing photography is equally inspiring! What can we say - we just love this girl.

So here she is!

"When Kim first asked me to GD, I was totally thrilled. Work Your Soul is pretty much the coolest concept out there and I love this little blog! I was even more thrilled when she introduced the idea of Twiggy being our inspiration. I had such an awesome time researching Twiggy's fabulousness and was inspired to do a fun little Twiggy self portrait shoot. Taking the "wall pictures" was amazing. I grabbed my bestie, Stephanie, and we totally dorked it up in front of the tripod. Have fun with this prompt! And go crazy! Happy Weekend!!"

And now for Kim's ultra hip photo lovelies. (Note her exceptional ability to capture the little conversations and laughter and goofiness... the girl has skills.)

i finally got around to editing a bunch of great shoots i did with some friends while i was in america.

but i'm soo inspired by what jen did, i might just have to go scrapbook a whole stack of these now!

seriously folks! now THIS is how it's done;

Jen took some AMAZING photos using all sorts of nifty poses&props! i am so jealous of these photos- seriously! Plus, she threw some shapes onto her pages!

yeah. such a 60's vibe! woo!

if you feel like moovin' and groovin' remember to link us up in the comments section of this post, or show us your stuff in the Work Your Soul Flickr group for a chance to win a little bunch of fun from Kim!

& the winner of our postcard challenge is JOYCE!

you did a great job! we love it! congrats! if you e-mail jen (jgeigley[at]gmail[dot].com) then she'll send your prize out!

ode to old postcards

2008-10-24T12:26:00.000-07:00

Alright, as promised, your weekend starts here!
It's Friday (hooray!) and time for our second challenge.

There's just something really nostalgic and cool about vintage postcards. The art/photos on the front, the handwriting on the back - stories from vacations, notes from pen-pals, words of wisdom from friends. Short and sweet but full of memories.

My dad is my favorite postcard writer. He still sends them to us when he goes on trips. He mails them to my daughter after we visit. He's old school, uses words like 'davenport' instead of 'couch' and doesn't have an email account. I love that. He also has the best handwriting ever - these notes are a very cool thing to have and I'll keep them forever.

So our challenge for you this week is to dig up some vintage postcards. From your childhood, from your parents and grandparents, from an old box in the garage or basement. Or go to a thrift store and dig through their boxes of old paper treasures. I was lucky enough to score several of these postcard folder-mailers at one of our local shops.

There's some amazing artwork on these things. If you find something too special to use, just scan it and use a print. But there's something extra nifty about using the real deal and feeling the 'oldness' in your hands.

Now anything goes!

* Use two vintage postcards as front and back covers to make a little pocket journal.

* Pile up a whole stack to make a mini book.

* Take just one and make a small scrap page - maybe write a postcard to yourself.

* Use masking tape to stick a postcard in your journal, and use your handwriting all around it.

* Find vacation photos and postcards from the place you visited to make a little book about your trip.

* Collect special family postcards (or funny ones from friends) and compile them with notes about what was said and the memories associated with them.

* Find a cool old postcard, write a note to a friend and mail the sucker. Real mail rocks.

Here's what I made. It's a vacation mini book about our trip to San Diego this past summer. I used one of the postcard folder things as the cover, and used several postcards as pages inside. [Believe it or not, I packed 50 photos into this baby.]

(wow! how amazing is jen's book! blimey!)

And here's Kim's project!

I just made a little address book for myself, using some old postcards I found at my local charity shop. Some of them are of where I live, but decades ago. It's really interesting to see how Bristol has changed.
(i'm sorry for the poor lighting on these guys.)

(Genius idea, Kim!)

Now go on and make something of your own. Link it up here before Friday, November 7th for a chance to win this super retro prize pack, including some goodies from HeyJenRenee.

We'll post the winner with our next challenge!

Don't be shy, soulies - add your projects to our Flickr group! And if you didn't have a chance to get to our first prompt this time but want to do it later, please still link up your projects - any time! We absolutely love, love, love to see what you've made!

Oh yes, and our winner from our first challenge? (No, we didn't forget!) We chose hollysarah for her stellar photos on this gorgeous page.

(but we loved everyones, it was so cool to see how different everyone's responses were!) Email your addy to Kim at kim [at] smithdata.com and she'll send you some of her fabulous Vespa-pa-pa papers + Banter. [You lucky girl!]

And here we go!

2008-10-08T09:14:00.000-07:00

Hey all you soulies, we’re coming in with a bang, and first we’d like to introduce you to a few of our favourite friends in black and white.

Have a seat ‘ol love, and I’ll walk you through how you can get this great (David Bailey) look at home.

David Bailey Tutorial;
I have a really simple tutorial that is going to make you feel like a super model, or fashion icon, whichever you prefer! (it looks wordy, don’t worry, I ramble a bit!) You don’t need any fancy equipment, just a digital camera and a wall.

Step One- to get the ‘studio’ look, you are going to need a blank wall. Sometimes, if all the walls in my house are covered up- I take some pictures off the wall, and photoshop the hooks out, afterwards, or hang a sheet on a curtain railing.

Step Two- GET LIGHT! I do suggest that you shoot either in the morning or in the middle of the day, because you want as MUCH LIGHT as possible- so stand near a window, it’s best if the window is to the side, because you will get nice definition of shadow that way, and it’s slimming. :]. Whatever you do- don’t have a window behind you, because you’ll turn into a silhouette. If natural light is an issue, (I know it’s hard in England lately!) find a nice strong lamp and angle it till you are happy.

Step Three- Set that camera up! Hook up your digital camera to a tripod or rest it on a flat surface, to reduce blurry images. Turn that flash off and put it on a ‘Self Timer’ setting, if you can’t persuade a loved one to click the shutter for you.

Step Four- SHOOT! This is the fun part! Put on your favourite top (darker for light backgrounds) and do your hair, and just have fun with it! Try some really silly faces if you’re nervous- it will relax you! You want to try and connect with the camera, to get that fashion look. Try staring straight into the lense, dead centre, and keep checking what you look like, so you can tweak the camera till it’s just right.

Step Five- Put your grandfather’s paintings back on the wall and plug your camera in!

So, while you’re waiting for your photos to upload, I’ll tell you a little bit about this fantastic photographer, David Bailey. He was around in the 60’s and 70’s when all the hip photographers (like Richard Avedon) were moving into minimal styles- using simple white backgrounds and sticking to the cameras and format that they knew and loved. Black and White and Medium Format. (A Medium Format camera is often a lot bigger than the standard 35mm film camera which you or your mum probably had in the 70’s.) Medium Format is still quite popular in today’s fashion industry, but Bailey was one of the pioneers that took photographing celebrities and stripped it down to its gorgeous, simple core. So in a tribute to their genius, let’s turn the attitude up, and the saturation way down. (most, but not all of the photos at the top of this post are by him.)

Step Six- Choose the photo(s) you want to edit and open it in photoshop, or some editing program. There should be a ‘desaturate’ or ‘black and white’ option somewhere (under Image>adjustments in photoshop). A little tip- to get the best black and white, you might want to brighten your image, or increase the contrast. Here’s a screenshot of using a layering technique, but Image>Adjustments>Levels or Image>Adjustments>Curves works just fine too.

Step Seven- Crop that baby! Medium Format cameras use a square crop; so to give it a more authentic feel, go on and be a square. (:D)

Step Eight- Save!

Here’s a couple of my takes. They aren’t perfect or anything, and they don’t have to be- if you want to go for a more old-y look, try adding a ‘film grain’ filter in photoshop or purposefully leaving it a bit too light or dark.

If you don’t feel very pretty today- dig into your files and find a picture that you like and apply the same techniques.

Okay, I’ve talked a lot now, so to spice it up, our real first Challenge is to use a studio-like photograph (it can be one that you’ve taken, an idol, or a magazine cut-out) in a project, or scrapbook page, or journal. We want to see what you’ve got, and there will be a full set of Vespa-pa-pa-pa papers and Banter for our favourite!! (because i love you!!!)

here are my projects!

And check out what Jen did!!! I love her photos too!

Please post your submissions with a link in a comment and we will post the winner when we announce our next prompt! Have fun!!!

p.s. We've started a flickr group too, so you can share there as well!
p.p.s. We were so impressed with all the response we got, just from the first post! we can't wait to see what you do!!!

'Allo! What 'ave we 'ere?

2008-10-07T11:03:00.000-07:00

Howdy Hi, and boy have we got a terrific start for you this week! We are a brand-spanking-new challenge blog, so what’d you say we kick off things with an introduction of our two leading ‘Go-Go Girls!’.

First we have the lovely Kim Smith!

She’s a killer with her camera and a true dedicated follower of fashion. You might want to pop along to her blog or take a butchers at her flickr.

":] I love everything old! As a student, studying my A-levels in England, thinking about university in London- I just surround myself with Vespas, and vintage clothes and some old soul and ska and 60’s brit pop music. It’s so hard NOT to get inspired by all of this. I moved to England about three years ago- because I’m so in love with The Who and I wanted to learn about the culture and things. On the plane over here, I never would’ve guessed that I’d be so lucky to find the perfect spot and settle straight in. My journey from being just another teenager to a bit of a mod (if I do say so myself) has been the best ever! And I can’t wait to share what I’ve learned and how I apply all of this to my love of photography and art journaling and general craftlove!"

And the second half of this crazy pair is Jen Geigley!

You may have seen her with the ‘in crowd’- working on design teams, like Red Velvet Kit Club and the Creative Type - she is the cat’s meow and really digs some flash furniture (who doesn’t!?!) You’ll want to check out her blog.

"I'm a graphic designer, a lover of mid-century modern furniture, architecture, patterns, fabrics, textures, and graphics of all kinds. I'm nostalgic; I love old dishes and the mini-dresses my mom sewed in high school. Even more, I love old photos. Pictures of my grandmother and her sisters dressed up in mens' suits and hats, acting silly for the camera. I adore photos and illustrations in old magazines and catalogs and on album covers. And don't even get me started on music - The Kinks, Bob Dylan, what's not to love? I love new things that look old, and old things that look amazing. I'm a wife and mama and a kid at heart. I'm a crafty scrappy rocker nerd ... I love doing what I love."

Here at WORK YOUR SOUL, we really dig old! We dig the vintage, the retro, the classic and the funky. And most importantly we like taking inspiration from the past and adding our wild style to make something that really goes! (and we hope you do too!!) So we are inviting you to hop on our inspiration time machine and take a trip back to the 60’s and 70’s and all things retro!

Us Go-Go-Girls are going to bring you Challenges and Photography tutorials and Ideas and Prompts to get you throwing some shapes all over your scrapbooks and journals! In true northern soul fashion, you can expect one every other Friday to start your weekend off right! And we don’t just want the ‘faces’ on here. We want all your ‘numbers’ and ‘tickets’ to show us what you’ve got and play with us.

Stayed tuned this Friday for our first trip!