Archive for July, 2010
Thursday, July 8th, 2010
***NOTE: I have re-posted this with easier downloading this time.
While visiting Tallinn, Estonia I became especially fond of the doors in that city. Each one seemed to be entirely different than the next. So much character. I found myself snapping pictures of a few of my favorite doors and then it became kind of a game. We would walk and discover and see and shop and walk and walk and walk … and when a door stood out to me, the camera went up to my face. As I was doing this, I saw in my mind’s eye the end result, which is this –
 I’m putting this in a frame in our home office because it reminds me of a wonderful experience, and it’s a fun collection of color and texture that inspires me.
I am reminded of something I’ve heard from home decorators and organizers: Surround yourself with things that you love or things that you use. That’s all you need. The rest is unnecessary.
In the unlikely event that one of my readers may want this print too, I’m including it here in a few sizes. Just right-click on the size you want & save the image to your computer. Then upload it to your favorite online print shop.
11×14 – click here.
8×10 – click here.
5×7 – click here.
Applying this concept to your own photography, can you find a collection of things on your next trip, in your town, or even in your home? I’d love to hear what you’ve done or what you plan to do.
Tags: color, doors, estonia, tallinn, texture
Posted in DIY, giving, home, photography, style & design, travel | 103 Comments »
Wednesday, July 7th, 2010
Tags: castle, dad, estonia, Finland, flowers, lake, sauna, trees
Posted in photography, travel | 30 Comments »
Tuesday, July 6th, 2010
Like so many do in the summer time, we enjoyed a little family road trip over the weekend. We headed north a couple of hours to beautiful Flagstaff, Arizona. It was about 30 degrees cooler than our home base in the Valley of the Sun and we had a really wonderful visit with some dear friends that we’ve known a long time.
From my seat in our car, this was my view.
David driving. Kiddos in their bathing suits from being at the lake, wet towels drying over the back seat, a mess of toys and things that Claire insisted on bringing …
This was my view. And so I took a picture.
Think about road trips you’ve been on. Have you aimed your camera out the window to take some scenic shots? Have you photographed signs and landmarks? What about inside the car? What snacks do you enjoy on the road? What activities are the kids doing? Who is driving? What view do those in the backseat have of the driver? Are you using a map? GPS? Turn your camera inside on your road trip too.
Tags: road trip
Posted in photography, travel | 15 Comments »
Saturday, July 3rd, 2010
Scrapbooking isn’t in every little corner of the world, of course, but it is very wide-spread and very much a passion for many, all over the world. I love that. I love that this desire to do something with our photos, record our memories, and express creativity through scrapbooking is shared with so many … in Finland, South Africa, New Zealand, Chile, Japan, United Kingdom, Germany, Canada, Australia …
These 3 women – Linda, Outi, and her daughter Heini – are a few of my parents’ many new friends there in Finland. They also happen to be scrapbookers. It was a pleasure to stop by their scrapbook gathering to say hi on one of the evenings while we were there.
I noticed Sanna’s comment in yesterday’s post and wanted to briefly address the concern she expressed about so many disappointed Finns not knowing that I was coming. First of all, I send big hugs. I know I would have loved meeting all of you.
You should know that I made a very thoughtful, intentional decision a few years ago to stop traveling for work. I haven’t been teaching classes, doing book signings, or making appearances since then.
That said, David and I went to Finland to experience Finland, to spend time with my parents, and to enjoy a getaway together. My reason for the brief visit to this scrapbook gathering was 100% personal. It was not about who I am or what I do or promoting my brand or selling products or any of that. It was because a few of these women and their families have become so dear to my parents over the past year. We wanted to stop by and say hi, but they kept it on the down-low because they weren’t even 100% sure if I was going to come. They were very respectful of our vacation time. I love them for that.
(I love them even more for so many other reasons. We ended up spending more time with Outi and Heini and their lovely family at their summer cottage and it was just remarkable. David and I will always be grateful for their generosity and examples of being completely lovely and inviting and genuine.)
It’s also worth noting that these ladies wanted to have a smaller, more intimate gathering. They didn’t want it to be any bigger than it was and they didn’t make any money doing this. I was so touched that they put this together purely to share their love of scrapbooking with others in the area and to create an opportunity for these women to connect on this level.
Tags: Finland, scrapbookers
Posted in scrapbooking, travel | 16 Comments »
Friday, July 2nd, 2010
You don’t know how badly I want to ship out 1500+ of that fun bag so you can each have one. But the randomly selected winner is none other than … Chrystine on Minneapolis, Minnesota! Chrystine, we are now BFFs because we have matching bags. Shoot an email to customerservice@beckyhiggins.com and we’ll ship that out to you.
These are my fantabulous parents, who of course are the reason we made our way to Finland. I love, love, love my parents. Love them.
This photo was taken in Estonia. We crossed the Gulf of Finland on one of the days and visited the beautiful city of Tallinn. I have some fun pictures from there I’ll be sharing. Here is a quick geographical overview of where these places are, in case you don’t know.
In this corner of the world, I caught on quickly to the fact that needle crafts are very, very big. Yarn is everywhere. And when I say everywhere, I mean even at the little gas station markets. Seriously … everywhere. All the color was so inspiring.
These hands belong our new friend, Outi, who was working on a new piece that she may already be wearing by now. You know that hammock/trees/lake photo below? That’s at Outi’s family’s summer cottage where we spent some time. Outi is a scrapbooker, like so many of you. We actually got to meet half of Finland’s scrapbookers. : )
More on that tomorrow.
Tags: color, crochet, estonia, Finland, map, needle craft, parents
Posted in photography, travel | 15 Comments »
Thursday, July 1st, 2010
Not every picture I want to share warrants its own blog post. But I’m sharing some random photos of a few things that inspired me on our recent trip, on facebook and twitter. You don’t have to sign up or sign in to view.
Of course I will be blogging some pictures too. Oh, and it’s not too late to leave a comment in the last post if you want to be in the drawing for that purse. I’ll announce the winner tomorrow – Friday.
Tags: amber, Finland, hammock, inspiration, necklace
Posted in photography, style & design, travel | 6 Comments »
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