Ingredients for a Spooky Halloween

Full Moon

60 Zombies preparing to dance to Thriller
as a tribute to Michael Jackson
in the Portsmouth Halloween Parade

Walking Past North Cemetary

Happy Halloween!

Colors of Late October

Jennifer has commented several times this fall about how color combinations found in nature are inspiring.

I thought it would be fun to take pictures in my yard yesterday, just keeping my eye out for color combinations.

Leaves on the lawn

Beech & Hemlock Forest

Pokeweed

Sweet Gum Tree

Oaks & Hemlocks

Cherry, Dogwood, Oak, Bradford Pear

Our Neighbor's Maple

That Blue Hydrangea

Ferns

Leaves on the Driveway

Dogwood & Oak

High Bush Cranberry

Crabapple

Sedum, Cherry, Hemlock Background & Bailey

Bradford Pear, Maple Leaves, Blue Rug Juniper, Hemlocks

Maybe next month, as a blog challenge, we can each blog about the colors in our part of the world. (I'd say that would be a good October challenge, except that we'd only have one day left!!)

So keep your eyes open for colors that inspire you, or that are just interesting to you - and snap some pictures!! I'll blog about the November challenge in mid to late November!!

The Art of Mosaic 2009

Today, I visited The Art of Mosaic 2009 exhibit at the Somerville Museum in Somerville, MA, US. The exhibit closes on October 31, so I wanted to blog about it right away in case you have a chance to see it.

Also on Saturday, October 31, there is a Mosaic Supplies Vendor Show at the museum from 12 - 4 pm. If I had known that, I might have waited to go Saturday when I could shop. (As if I need to try mosaic with all of that yarn taking over my studio!)

A new show Mosaic Voices will be held at the Somerville Museum Nov 5 - Dec 13, 2009. I'm already making plans to attend.


The museum is in a pretty section of Somerville, surrounded by some gorgeous Victorian homes.


Any museum with an entrance like this is worth a visit!

Here are some of the mosaics that caught my eye (in random order).

I must admit that I love the very open photo policy of this show and the artists in the show. And I love mosaics! I had no idea that so many artists in New England were creating beautiful mosaics.

Aurora Borealis Vase
Lizz Van Saun
Hopkinton, NH

Tryptich 2
Ora Avni
Hamden, CT

D'Aragon
Sophie Drouin
Kitchener, Ontario

Flight of the Jellies
Amanda Edwards
Falmouth, ME

Glorious Autumn 2008
Carrie Fradkin
Lebanon, NH

Pavement Fractals
Cynthia Fisher
Charlemont, MA

Fish Birdbath
Judith Wright
Gloucester, MA

Cortland Apple
Michelle Eckhart
Middletown, CT

Timeless Vortex - Antelope Canyon
Michael Welch
Wakefield, MA

The End of Inocence
Anibal Cicardi
Belchertown, MA

Leftovers
Shawn Newton
Wallingford, CT

Huge thanks to Laura K. Aiken who blogged about this exhibit! I never would have found it without her!!

Fall Today: Maples on Fire

You know trees are beautiful when Jim stops the car and says "You want a picture of those, right?"


Science Daily article about a new theory on why there are more red autumn leaves in North America and Asia than in Europe. (Plus links to lots more about red fall color.)


I'm ignoring the bare aspen trees behind these beautiful maples, and just enjoying fall's last gasp!

Scary or Spooky

Scary and spooky is not my forte - especially not in my blog, dedicated to inspiration and the fruits of inspiration.


But at Digital Photography School this week, Scary or Spooky is the assignment.


I tried.


I'm not good at noticing scary or spooky things!! (And I'm totally good with that!)

Fall Today: Loaf and Ladle

Any fall day is improved by lunch at the Loaf and Ladle in Exeter, NH.

Homemade Weighted Beater

What is this stick covered with duct tape, and why am I blogging about it now?


Cold weather is rapidly approaching. I am committed to sanding the rest of my Toika loom while I can still comfortably work outside.

This stick covered with duct tape is actually a shaft for my loom. I want to remove the duct tape, clean it up and sand it.


The previous owner of my loom made a weighted beater for weaving rugs.

Her husband had access to a machine shop where they made these aluminum brackets.

A 10 pound (4.5 kilogram) piece of metal, also from the machine shop, is taped to the shaft.


The bracket can slip over the beater to attach the weighted shaft to the loom.


It fits snugly and securely.


It can be positioned on the lower bar of the beater or on the upper bar for more leverage (or if the reed is too wide to allow it to fit on the lower bar.)


On the top bar, it is positioned so that when you pull the beater your hand will also be on the weighted bar, but it worked well for the previous owner.

I hope to work my way up 12 shafts before I need a weighted beater. But I've got plenty of duct tape if I need to put it back together!

Fall Today: Strawbery Banke

The foliage at our house is past peak, settling into late autumn browns, golds, greens and russets.


A short walk this afternoon in nearby Portsmouth, NH revealed peak foliage, especially around Strawbery Banke.






Beautiful!