I used my cousins camera to take this picture on Christmas day in her front yard. I textured with Kim Klassens texture called Cherish at soft light 50%.
Sunday we went to a couple of the usual spots to view the migration of swans and geese on the Pacific Flyway. There are usually great photo opportunities and the sound is really something. There are usually swans and snow geese in Marysville, CA. in the flooded rice fields. NO ONE WAS HOME!!! A few ducks only. So headed over to Graylodge Wildlife Area where there is usually geese, again almost no one home. Lots of vultures, hawks and ducks. Even spotted a buck. We met a ranger and got to find out why the birds aren’t there. There has been a lot of rain the last couple of weeks, so a lot of water everywhere along the flyway so they don’t have to come to certain places. Graylodge is a “lounging” spot, not a feeding spot, but with all the water everywhere they are more spread out and doing their lounging elsewhere. Also she said they come more in nicer weather, it was overcast and the sun came out late in the day. I thought they would come more in the rain, but apparently I’m wrong. Ended up taking more pictures of buildings, everything is green this year and on the way home got some nice pastoral type pictures.
Duck, duck, goose.
This one is altered with a layer of Kim Klassen texture called paper stained. Nice and dark and spooky.
Usually these are filled with birds.
I think this one is my favorite.
The vultures were displaying a lot. I should have asked the ranger why, were they showing off for the camera or trying to look big to scare me away.
Awwww, they love each other.
Waiving bye bye.
Ok, I admit it, I didn’t go all out this year, actually I never go all out, but I didn’t even come close to putting up all the stuff I have for Christmas. I’m trying to pare down all my decorations and have gotten rid of quite a bit over the last year or so but I still have way too much that I don’t even use or want to use anymore. I’m into the more rustic decorations now but this year I was feeling gold and white, although I didn’t really go for it, maybe next year. I’ve been trying to find a white wreath that I like that hasn’t been ruined (in my opinion) by glitter.
I’ve been collecting funnels for awhile now, it’s harder than you would think to find graduated sizes of funnels, and I go to yard sales and estate sale weekly. Lots of plastic funnels to be had, harder to find the metal but I finally have enough for a tree, they are just sitting on an old spindle piece and just balanced on top of each other, no glue involved.
I made the clothes pin wreath a couple of years ago in gray and yellow and I finally got around to putting Christmas paper on the other side of the clothespins so all I had to do is flip it over.
Also have some small lumbar pillows on my little Target slipper chairs, the pillows started out yellow and gray, then in the spring I covered them with an aqua and white fabric and now I covered them with a red fabric with little yellow dots. They now have 3 layers of fabric on them. They were sitting there looking a little plain when I started getting out the tree decorations I found some jute garlands that I got at the Goodwill for 49 cents and had planned to put on the tree. I thought they might work on the pillows, sure enough three wraps around the pillow and a knot on the back and done. I hung the remaining one on my mantel when I took down my fall acorn garland.
My tree this year is in a galvanized pan I got at a local antique market. I had to weigh it down with three concrete blocks and covered up the blocks with a bag of kraft paper shred, big investment of $20 for the pan and $2.50 for the shred and now I have a rustic “tree skirt”. The cat likes the shred, every day I have to pick up pieces from around the house.
I have another tree that stays up all year that I call my woodland tree, the decorations are not specifically Christmas, mostly birds and moose and bear in metal and wood. It sits in a metal kettle that I had for ages and then one day my light bulb came on and I thought it might fit, ta da, it did!
Here’s a shot towards the front door, not very Christmassy looking but the new pillows on the chairs and on the sofa along with a red fleece throw on the sofa make it a little warmer.
I also made a book spine Christmas tree from old books purchased at an estate sale and the SPCA annual book sale. I used the backs of some bead board with some watered down white paint slapped on it to mount the spines with hot glue.
Put my little battery operated lights into an aqua bottle and under my insulators, simple, just shoved them in there, but pretty.
A couple of my cute Target ornaments, thin wood moose and reindeer from this year and from last year, a ceramic origami cat, I also have a dog, a bone and a fish.
