Pommier-Benoit Handcrafted

What Would I Do if I Weren't Afraid?

Wed, 27 Mar 2013 19:40:27 -0500

Monday, I was watching TV and a question was asked that has been parked in the back of my head ever since. “What would I do if I weren’t afraid?” This question really fired me up. How many things do I not do because I am afraid? Did I realize that most of the things I’d love to try, I have put on the back burner because I am simply too scared to put myself out there in new ways? This is so intriguing and fascinating to me. If I asked myself this about each of the ideas that parade through my head daily before I wrote them off, how varied and interesting could my projects be? If I pursued a handful of these ideas, how much more exciting and satisfying would my life be?

I am someone who has 50 ideas/day that excite me and thrill me. But that little voice in my head puts a stop to most before I even think of the possibilities. In order to shut that little mouth up, I am going to start, time permitting, pursuing one here and there. It’s a challenge of mine to take an idea and put it out there before I’ve designed and developed the concept. I need to practice, create, have a line, a collection, a business name, photos…. the list goes on. When I put that type of expectation on myself, I make it so big, so early that it becomes unattainable. I throw it out before I start. The truth is though, when I look back at the jewelry I first created, It wasn’t that great. It needed time & a reason to develop. It took years for it to be something that I felt was really me and that I felt deeply proud of.

I’ve been painting with my daughter for a few weeks. I’ve had a little practice with painting in design school, but honestly this is something new to me. Through casually painting with her, my passion for color was stirred. I realized I have a unique view point and style that I would like to develop.There is a quality to water colors that is so loose, flowing, changing, ethereal that I’ve been drawn to for years. I love to see the gradation of color as the pigment runs out. I love how the color absorbs into the paper. I love the imperfection. So, I think I’m going to do some painting. And since I’m an entrepreneur at heart,I I’m going to post them in a new Etsy store and see how it goes. I am going to do my very best to not worry what others might think. If I sell them great! If not, I just put myself out there in a way I never would have before. What’s more exciting than that?

Today’s painting:

I am excited to see where this goes!

Thank you for reading!

Have a great day!

Mandy Benoit

Stay at Home Business Mom A.D.D.

Thu, 14 Mar 2013 23:05:29 -0500

Don’t get me wrong. Most days I love being home, but there are days like today when I just can’t figure out how to accomplish anything. My brain is like a ping pong ball bouncing all over the table. This is my “break” today. My “me” time:

Putting my 5 month old son to bed… ‘Read Article: 5 Steps to Stand Out from the Competition, thinking: Who is my customer?’… Coaxing my toddler into her bed. ‘Research: Social Media to promote Etsy business’.. Placing my toddler on the potty… Getting my toddler back into bed… Attempting to quiet my toddler so to not wake her brother.. ‘Should I start with Facebook?’ … ‘How do I get people to like me’… Freaking out because she won’t be quiet and for fear of combustion I just NEED this time to create/ produce, something. . ‘I wish I could hire someone to promote my business’… ‘Checking my Etsy store to see how my new earrings look’. … ‘Oh man! I need to retake all my images. The new background does not compliment the other images’… ‘That turquoise & silver necklace I had in mind would look great on that new background’ …’When could I start taking my new images’… Baby is awake..

Following my Bliss.

Sun, 03 Jun 2012 21:45:47 -0500

Today is the first time in a long while that I didn’t have a list of 10 things that I had to accomplish. It was like my soul was freed for the day. I took the opportunity to get lost and let my inspiration lead me up and down unknown paths in and out of open windows and wrap around me as I leap through the air and spin in circles over and over again.

I decided to sift through my likes on Pinterest and came across a handful of images of art journals that stirred my soul. This page was my original inspiration.

I love the imperfect perfection. There are mistakes made I am sure, but the page is complete and whole.

This is a journal/dictionary by artist Nick Cave. I completely naive about who this person is. However, his journal shows such depth and honesty.

I stumbled upon this pin of a sketch book of graphic artist Molly Jacques and I was floored.

Her work is displayed in the blog below:

http://mollyjacquesillustration.blogspot.com/

I am so drawn to handmade typographic perfection on her pages. Again though, it shows it’s human quality by showing it’s flaws. It’s hard to even call them flaws, it’s waviness of line and minute inconsistency of spacing build its intrigue for me.

My love affair with this type of journaling began 10 years ago. I began making my own books, because I wanted my work to be handmade in its totality. I’ve since realized I can’t do it all. Some things are better done by experts. I’ve decided to give art journaling a try. I love it for all the reasons I stated above but also because it’s something for me, to do when I am inspired to do it, not because I have to. It’s following my bliss. I will do it until no my soul is no longer moved by it. With this said, I have to buy a journal. I’ve decided to explore my second favorite place to be inspired: Etsy!

I am not sure of my choice yet, but this journal is in the running.

http://www.etsy.com/listing/101081158/handmade-rustic-leather-journal-dark

I will post my attempts as I go!

Thanks for reading!

Have a great night!

Mandy

Getting back to me.

Mon, 09 Apr 2012 19:30:15 -0500

I’m back, from an unexpected month long hiatus. I’m 13 weeks pregnant. Very close to my second trimester. With my pregnancy arrived an unexpected guest, exhaustion. As I’m writing this, I feel like the cause and effect relationship between exhaustion and motivation, seems obvious. Lack of motivation - loss of energy. At the beginning of my pregnancy, I lost all drive. I quit everything that had interested me. I quit photography, I quit taking online classes, I quit developing my paper company, the list goes on. I almost had an aversion to working on anything that had previously inspired me. I experienced it as a collapse. I was stunned by it. I felt betrayed by it. I felt all inspiration leave me, and long naps filled the space.

I am now starting to feel myself again, but I am still having trouble committing to time in my studio again. I feel that I am being melodramatic. However, I still feel the need to talk about this, so I know it’s really bothered me on a deeper level. I’m hoping I can get this all out and move on. I think that I feel a deep bond to what I create. I feel that it’s a deeper part of me, and that it just was yanked away. I think it can be compared to the way a close friend can hurt you so much deeper than an acquaintance. My energy left, my inspiration went out the window, It hurt.

Now, I feel that I’m on the mend. I hope to be writing regularly again! I have some big projects coming up!

Thanks for reading!

-Mandy Benoit

Kony 2012

Sun, 11 Mar 2012 16:04:00 -0500

Facebook and I have a luke-warm relationship. To be honest, I use Facebook, to checkout photos of friends and as a free marketing platform to promote my business. Until I saw the 30 minute video “Kony 2012” on Facebook, I’d never realized Facebook’s true potential.I was amazed and moved by the power of Facebook to unite people for a cause much bigger than themselves.

In the video activist, Jason Russell, sheds light on Joseph Kony, the guerilla group leader of “The Lord’s Resistance Army. His mission is to “purify” Uganda through mass murder. Kony has killed thousands of people by creating a child army. He takes the boys, and forces them to mutilate the faces of other children, and then trains them to be in his army. He uses the girls as sex slaves. He makes these children kill their parents. Villages throughout Uganda are scared of Kony’s army and have fled their homes and now sleep in a warehouse together to remain safe.

I must admit that I don’t watch the news. I feel guilty that I did not know this was happening in the world. I hope in my own little way posting this will let more people know about this horrible man’s mission.

Russell’s attempt is to make Kony famous through social media. His goal is to raise awareness and support for his arrest. His methods are brilliant. He is trying to create a new model for international justice. I watched the video for the first time last night on Youtube. It had over 66,000,000 views. Today, when I signed on to watch it again it had over 71,000,000 views. What a way to connect people for the better of mankind.

Please take a look at the video I’ve posted a link to below and support the cause. It is fascinating, terribly sad, and hopeful all at once. It will shed much more light on the cause than I have. If the link does not work. Please search youtube.com for “Kony2012”. You will find the video worthwhile.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y4MnpzG5Sqc

This is a graphic for a poster that is intended to be hung up everywhere to raise awareness for this cause.

Thank You for reading!

-Mandy Benoit

Week in Photo - Week 7

Mon, 20 Feb 2012 09:00:33 -0600

I haven’t felt myself this week. I’ve been trying to get over this cold/cough thing for weeks and it’s just exhausting me. It’s amazing to me that inspiration has so much to do with energy. Once, I my energy is gone, I can’t come up with anything. Over the week, I committed to working on an assignment for my “Photography-Essentials of Composition” course. We had to take the most basic geometric principle “the point” and combine it with the first 4 principles of composition: clearly defined subject & background, balance, point of view, and simplicity. I worked and worked to come up with something inside our condo. My pictures were uninspired and completely embarrassing to look at! Not even worth printing! On the 16th this week, the weather was decent and my husband suggested Lucy and I go out for a walk! What a genius he is, and Lucy is the best photo shoot partner! I had a day of complete focus and plenty of ideas. I finally found a subject that completed my “point” assignment! Hallelujah!

February 13, 2012

Poor Lucy had a week of sickness. I think this photo says it all about how she was feeling!

February 14, 2012

This photo was soo mediocre, and the only thing I even considered editing. There’s no composition and no interest (Sorry Lucy). The only thing I can say is that I stuck to my original commitment. Even on a day where I had absolutely no inspiration. I have to say it was a nice evening though. Luke and I were supposed to go away for Valentines day. Lucy came down with impetigo, so we had a nice Valentine’s day dinner at home.

February 15, 2012

Here we go again. Another day, that I had nothing I was proud to edit.

February 16, 2012

My Comeback day. I am going to post 2 photos for this day, it was so good!

MY POINT ASSIGNMENT COMPLETED!!!

Lucy loves to play “Water”. She stands on her little potty in the bathroom and plays with cups and bowls and has a grand old time! I love her concentration and complete absorption in what she’s doing.

February 17, 2012

We were lucky enough to go for 2 days of walks. The second day was a bit more fast paced because Luke was with us. He has to get back to nap before he works the night shift, so we’re in a bit more of a hurry. When it’s just Lucy and I we stop, look around, crouch down, turn around, take all kinds of crazy shots. When Luke’s with us. He’s pushing the stroller and 20 steps ahead. I am always having to sprint ahead after I’ve been dawdling.

One of the bridges on our path.

February 18, 2012

Lucy playing dress up. I love how she can find entertainment in anything and everything.

February 19, 2012

She made her mess and decided to lay in it!

Thank you for reading!

Have a great week!

-Mandy

Week in Photos - Week 6

Tue, 14 Feb 2012 09:00:39 -0600

This week has been absolutely crazy! One of the most exciting things is that we’ve put a bid in on a house. The exterior is beautiful, the interior needs WORK. Unfortunately, it’s not looking good for us right now on the bid. If it comes through, it would be a great project. Luke and I would make a great rehab team. I am an interiors person and he can fix anything. You might think I would include pictures of the house. However, I didn’t bring my camera! If we get it, you will be seeing a ton of these!

February 6, 2012

Lucy gazing at Mickey’s Clubhouse on the TV.

February 7, 2012

Lucy looking at my mark-up. She’s really sizing up the plans.

February 8, 2012

Weekly lunch with Grandpa.

February 9, 2012

Lucy & Evelyn.

February 10, 2012

Morning Snow.

February 11, 2012

Lucy & Grandma.

February 12, 2012

Lucy eating berries.

I am excited for the weather to warm up to motivate me and my camera to get out of the house. I have a project from my photography class to focus on this week. It’s taking pictures of a point. So far, I am not finding any inspiration. Although, I love taking pics of Lucy. Some interesting compositions would be exciting for me to come up with. I feel like I am lacking creativity on this front. It will come.

Thank You for reading!

Happy Valentine’s day!

-Mandy

Savannah, Part 2, Graphics.

Wed, 08 Feb 2012 07:59:06 -0600

My original idea of Savannah did not include their rich layers of graphic design, specifically signage. I think it is true sign of the love one feels for something when they adorn it. Savannah is rich with beautiful details added to the small parts of everyday life that made me feel that the citizens appreciate the small things in life. I had such a feeling of really drinking in and cherishing life there. It felt great.

I’ve personally never thought riding the bus was that exciting or important enough to take the effort of creating a sign with such punch and spirit. Where I live the bus stop signs are very utilitarian. However, my days are the best when I make my every day occurrences special. I think it show so much about the city that even the most mundane and routine parts of a day are represented with flair!

Gryphon is a place to have lunch. Their sign alone made me want to eat there!

The Lucas theater has nothing to do with George Lucas. I think Savannah had its own famous Lucas. The Lucas Theater was in Savannah’s theater district. I think this sign is exquisite!

I love this sign!

Another Theater District Sign. The beauty of the ‘SCAD’ sign is that is for the Savannah College of Art and Design. I loved hearing the locals talk about the school. They began as a small design school and have grown very large. They’ve purchased several local buildings that might have been torn down, and they’ve made them their own while respecting Savannah’s innate character. The natives of Savannah appreciate the energy of the school and all its brought to Savannah.

Citywide, their street signs have the same, shape, ornament, & type. I love to see unity of design in a place. To me this is another sign of the pride the locals have for the city’s character. I feel that in a city this type of consistent detail is another detail that shows the respect the locals and government feel for the city. Often this type of detail is considered expensive and unimportant and is therefore overlooked.

Speaks for itself.

A parking spot identifier in a Cobblestone lot.

Each square in Savannah had a plaque describing its history and given name. This one is my favorite.

Thank You for reading!

Have a great day!

Mandy

Week in Photos - Week 5

Mon, 06 Feb 2012 14:10:14 -0600

This week marks the beginning of my adventures in black & photography. I finished “Foundations of Photography: Exposure” to find there was a black and white course by the same instructor. His name is Ben Long and he’s a wonderful instructor. I began watching my new course and was basically booted out when I was told if I hadn’t taken the lenses course, I need to before beginning black & white. So, I buckled down, got through lenses and I am now immersing myself in this new course. I am thrilled! The photos below are of Lucy and other family members.

Day 30: January 30, 2012

Day 31: January 31, 2012

Day 32: February 1, 2012

Day 33: February 2, 2012

Day 34: February 3, 2012

Day 35: February 4, 2012

Day 36: February 5, 2012

Thanks for reading!

Have a great week!

-Mandy

Savannah, Part 1, The Trees.

Thu, 02 Feb 2012 21:44:34 -0600

The first thing I’ve always thought of when Savannah, Georgia comes to mind are the trees. They have the most spectacular oaks that envelop you with their branches. The Spanish Moss that the trees wear adds to a very haunted feeling that this city has.

Hedge rows of mature trees are everywhere you walk in historic Savannah. They add roots to an already exquisite historical city.

This tree really drew me in with its muscular branches.

Savannah is divided into several “squares”. These are the heart of each neighborhood. These beautiful old oaks draped in Spanish Moss anchor most of the squares.

Spanish Moss is extremely attracted to this tree, I believe it is a Crab Myrtle.

This is busy street near the river walk. More monstrous oaks.

An up close look at the enchanting Spanish Moss.

These trees frame the most famous fountain in Savannah in Forsyth Park.

Thanks for reading!

More to come!

Mandy

Chipboard

Tue, 31 Jan 2012 08:27:36 -0600

I’m in knee deep in a new business venture, maybe I should say adventure, that I am over the moon about. I am 4 weeks into my new paper goods business. I’m primarily working with some beautiful paper from the French Paper Company and chipboard. I am super thrilled about chipboard right now. I purchased a printer that can pull thick stock including chipboard through without jamming and print on it. I am so amazed! The first thing I printed on my chipboard was “AWESOME”. Currently, I’m letting the chipboard guide me through calendar and note card designs. I’m so excited about it, I’m not sure how far I will take this material.

My Beautiful Stack of Chipboard.

I am currently developing color palettes & testing them on White stock & Chipboard.

Here are a couple of my personalized note card designs that I’m working on.

I will keep you posted on my paper goods business and when my launch will be!

Thank you for reading!
-Mandy

My Week in Photos - Week 4

Mon, 30 Jan 2012 08:33:10 -0600

This week was a really exciting and productive week for me. I am working on a new business venture. I am finally getting into my semester of teaching. My niece Ava was born! Lucy told me she loved me! I had a dinner with a good friend! I got a promotion! I learned how to combine PDFs with Acrobat pro! All in all a great week!

Day 23: January 23, 2012

Lucy eating yogurt! That went over with out a mess!

Day 24: January 24, 2012

I don’t remember what happened, but I do remember it didn’t warrant this type of reaction. Lucy can be just a bit dramatic when she’s upset. It’s cute now, I’m not sure how it’ll be when she’s a teenager.

Day 25: January 25, 2012

I just love her sweetness.

Day 26: January 26, 2012

Newborn Ava & her Grandma.

Day 27: January 27, 2012

Lucy is funny with her nicknames for us. It started out with “Daddy-O” for the longest time, he was the only one who got an “O” added to his name. Then “Mommy-O”, “Grammy-O”, and for the past few weeks “Potty-O”. The “O” is how you know you rank in her world. Well anyway, We get “Poo-Poo Potty-O” over and over and we think YES! she’s ready to be potty trained! Nope, means she’s already pooped. Here’s Lucy on her “Potty-O”. This time I think she was just bored.

Day 28: January 28, 2012

More Snow!

Day 29: January 29, 2012

Sunday. Lucy and her dad.

Thank you for reading!

Have a great week!

-Mandy

Friday Favorites - Personality Tests

Fri, 27 Jan 2012 08:44:09 -0600

I love, love, love, a good personality test! I think the results usually re-affirm the way I see myself. It may be vain, but they make me feel really good about myself, and boost my confidence. So I think they’re a great way to start the weekend!! They are all free, so they make great cheap entertainment!

Test No. 1: The Jung Typology test.

This is the INFJ, ENFS, etc. Test. Its questions are all yes/no. I felt I usually fit into yes or no. I hate when the answers are unclear and you don’t know where you fit. This is not like that.

http://www.humanmetrics.com/cgi-win/JTypes1.htm

Press “Do It.”

I am an ISFJ.

Test No. 2: Personal DNA

Personaldna.com

It’s a good assessment about yourself and how you relate to others. It has really great ways of answering questions, including a lot of sliders, and these cool buckets. I like it because it’s not so black and white. You feel like your answer is really your answer, and not one you marked down because you had to.

I am an animated director.

Test No. 3: Right Brain Vs. Left Brain

“Left-Brained” people are often said to more logical, analytical & objective. “Right- Brained” people are said to be more intuitive, thoughtful & subjective.

I am 40% Left Brain/ 60% Right Brain

http://www.wherecreativitygoestoschool.com/vancouver/left_right/rb_test.htm

I hope you enjoy these tests!!

Thanks for reading!

-Mandy Benoit

Christmas has Come Early, Revisited.

Wed, 25 Jan 2012 08:45:52 -0600

In December, I created a post talking about Christmas coming early. If you happened to read it early in the day, there were 3 reasons I was so thrilled about the day: a new bag, a new book, and a surprise romantic trip from my husband for our anniversary. I mentioned that I posted about this to Luke, hoping he’d see how excited about our trip I was and he said “Now everyone will know when we will be gone, and come rob us.” Or that was the gist of it. I am just a trusting person and wouldn’t think of that. So, I said alright, and removed the third part of my post. Well to get to the point, Luke surprised me with the most romantic trip I’ve ever gone on. A trip to Savannah, Georgia! This might need a little bit of explaining.

I graduated with a degree in interior design and have worked for an architect for several years, so that I could get the knowledge to design our house. It took a few years to re-route my brain, but thanks to my boss Chip, my mentor, I think like a designer. Luke & I have been tossing around the idea of building a house for years it changes daily whether it’ll be sooner or later. A long time ago, I mentioned to him that I want to go to Savannah and take pictures of architecture for inspiration before we design our home. So, for our fifth anniversary, this past November, Luke took me out to dinner, surprised me with flowers & my favorite champagne, and a wrapped gift. The gift was a guide book for Savannah, Georgia. He had booked tickets to Savannah, and I got to pick out the Bed & Breakfast!

So my romantic husband, took me to place I’d been dreaming about going to, and spent 3 days taking photos with me of Savannah, in Savannah.

I will tell you more about the trip soon!

For now, Have a great day!

-Mandy Benoit

My Week in Photos - Week 3

Mon, 23 Jan 2012 08:40:09 -0600

I am really enjoying taking pictures everyday. What surprises me is that I’ve actually started to look forward to getting up to edit them. I’ve always known how great I feel when I get up before Lucy, so that I’ve accomplished something when I see her. However, I’ve never really enjoyed getting up early. My flannel sheets and down comforter have always provided ample temptation for me to stay in bed. Especially on cloudy rainy days like today. I am three weeks into my new routine and I am quite happy with it! Here are my favorites from last week.

Day 16: January 16, 2012

Lucy loves playing with the blinds. I love how crystal clear her eyes are here.

Day 17: January 17, 2012

Looks like she’d like to say “F#$@ You Mommy”

Day 18: January 18, 2012

I think Lucy looks very bag-ladyesque here.

Day 19: January 19, 2012

Lucy likes to string on all of my Skeleton Key Necklaces .

Day 20: January 22, 2012

Standing on the floor vent to warm herself.

Day 21: January 21, 2012

I took very few photos today, and the ones I took were bad! This is the view from our back stoop. We have a graveyard in our backyard.

Day 22: January 22, 2012

My little snow bunny. She’s twice her size! See the snow today! Believe it or not, the weather went from 25 in the day to 40 at night. It thunderstormed and now we have no snow! This weather is nuts!

Thank you for reading!

Have a great week!

-Mandy

Friday Favorites - Pick Me Up Music

Fri, 20 Jan 2012 23:48:33 -0600

I woke up this morning feeling terribly blah. I tend to over-analyze my life whether days are good or bad, rather than just accepting that I feel apathetic today. Sometimes this serves me, especially on a normal/good day. Other times, Like on cruddy days like today, I look too deeply into my life, and I am likely to cause problems. I am always looking for why I feel this way and what I need to change, if it’s bad, or keep doing if it’s good. Well today, I just felt bad. Luckily I’ve got my best friend, Emily, to bounce things off of before I do anything or say something stupid. Her thought was that some days are just going to be blah. Life Cycles. I really liked this. While we were engaging in our morning email a song came up on Pandora that just seemed to get me excited about the day. It just made me realize how sensitive I am and how I really need to pause before I latch onto an idea of feeling and really go with it.

Today’s post includes 6 of my favorite “Pick me up songs.” I will warn you, I occasionally have a dorky and nostalgic sense of taste.

1. “Make Me Lose Control” by Eric Carmen. There was a summer when my family went to stay with my Grandpa in Florida when I was 8. That trip was so awesome! My Aunts came out from Las Vegas came out too! We had a great time! This song was really popular and kept playing over and over while were there. It always makes me think of that vacation.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_FBUbv2LUEc

2. “One Headlight” by The Wallflowers. I can remember cruising down Grinnell Rd. on the way home from High School listening to this song and feeling that life couldn’t get any better. This song always brings me back to that feeling.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QojxbANDHdk

3. “Porcelain” by Moby. I loved the “Play” album from Moby when I was in college so much that I did TaeBo to it just to have it on. That time was so awesome and carefree. I over-listened to the album to the point of having to refrain from hearing it for well over 10 years. I heard it earlier today and remembered how much I loved it!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1Fcaro25Ek

4. “Still the Same” by Bog Seger and the Silver Bullet Band. When Luke and I started dating every moment was wonderful. I can remember a night when we were at his family’s greenhouse and he put on this song and danced with me in the shed. Funny, he says that this never happened, and that he hates the song. Whether her recalls this magical moment or not it’s still one of my favorites, and still makes me want to grab my husband and dance!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HjDpKeiYxOU

5. “Home” by Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros. I began to listen to this song last December. I heard it on Jimmy Kimmel Live and was completely awestruck. Since then, it has become one of Lucy’s very favorite songs and is on our daily playlist.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rjFaenf1T-Y

6. “Kids” by Mgmt. I heard this song today and it really just lit me up and gave me some fire in the belly. It completely switched the gears for my day. It makes me want to dance! You gotta love that feeling!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w7JthgTMHDU

Just made it in before Saturday!! Otherwise it’d have to be “Saturday Songs” or something?? Thank You for reading!!

-Mandy

My Week in Photos

Mon, 16 Jan 2012 08:52:32 -0600

This process has been really great! I got my photos printed on Friday, and reviewed them Sunday. I can already see where the lessons I’ve learned in my photography course are helping cut out basic camera error. I know how to avoid camera shake, and on the flip side take crystal clear images.

Day 9: January 9, 2012

I meet Lucy in her room each morning with my camera. I know she’s going to get tired of me really quickly!

Day 10: January 10, 2012

I really worked on how to make eyes sparkle with the sharpening tool.

Day 11: January 11, 2012

This is one of our last spring like days. I thought the pond looked so cool because the reflection is interrupted by then melting ice.

Day 12: January 12, 2012

Today, it started to snow.. January 12, not bad for our first real snow! The winter’s already half over. We made a stop at my husband’s greenhouse for lunch. Lucy is checking out the place.

Day 13: January 13, 2012

Snow.

Day 14: January 14, 2012

I’m not sure what she’s looking at?

Day 15: January 15, 2012

I love Sundays. I used to dread Sundays when I was a kid. It always felt like the end of something fun. Now it’s the time we can all be together. It’s great!

Thank you for reading! Have a great day!

-Mandy Benoit

New Bracelet

Sat, 14 Jan 2012 15:09:56 -0600

I’ve had this design for a bracelet in my head for a while. I took Friday afternoon to translate my idea into an actual design. I worked out the kinks and I was pretty happy with the result. I then shot around and got some photos I was good with too. All in all a productive afternoon.

I took several small sterling silver discs and gave them my royal treatment, strung them, and attached the clasp & close. The result is a very classic, textured, silver band that wraps your wrist. I think this bracelet goes with everything!

The discs float gently around your wrist. The bit of give between the discs allow them to wrap your wrist gracefully.

I am really excited about this new design!

If you’re interested, please make sure to check it out on Etsy! http://www.etsy.com/listing/90537008/hammered-sterling-silver-link-bracelet

Thanks for reading!

Mandy Benoit

Playing Catch Up.

Wed, 11 Jan 2012 08:39:28 -0600

Back tracking a bit.

Day 5: 01.05.2012 Walking in January

This photo was interesting to me primarily because of the subject. I’ve never taken a walk in January before. I don’t remember ever having such a stretch of nice weather in the winter.

Day 9: 01.09.2012 A Caged Animal? Nope, that’s Lucy’s smile!

I love the natural light in our condo. Specifically, in the nursery, we get very even gracious light that shines through.

Day 10: 01.10.2012 Light and Shadow

I have always loved natural light. I don’t like flash photography one bit. I really want to practice and play with beams of light and interesting shadows this year. I think they really just illuminate and add an ethereal quality to black and white photos.

Here we go! I am all caught up with my editing, so now I can actually use my photo routine I created!

Thanks for looking & reading!

Have a great day!

Mandy Benoit

Resolution No. 3

Tue, 10 Jan 2012 14:13:00 -0600

I always like to have an exciting project to pull me through any type of training I do. Currently, I am taking a photography course & a Photoshop course. I have completed the Adobe Bridge & Camera Raw portion of my essentials of Photoshop class, and I am currently in the aperture portion of the exposure section of my photography course.

Resolution No. 3 Take a photo every day.

I am going to take several snapshots each day using the lessons I’ve learned in my photography course. I will then whittle them down in Adobe Bridge to a few keepers. Each Keeper will be edited in Camera Raw. When I learn Photoshop, they will also be enhanced there. Being that is day 10 of 2012, I have already developed a routine for this process. Each morning before Lucy gets up, I organize my photos from the day before. I then select my best one and edit it. At the end of each week I am going to print them and hang them on our magnet board in our kitchen. I think this visual comparison will really help me see when I am heading in the right direction and when I need to regroup and head in another direction. I am interested in seeing how my devotion to learning this craft will enhance my work. I can’t wait to compare my photos from day 1 of 2012 to day 365. My learning process will inevitably help me capture my year on digital film.

Day 7: 01.07.2012 Lucy Feverishly Rooting Through My Purse

To help me be accountable, I will post my pictures of the day regularly. Thanks for reading!

-Mandy