michelle my belle

The Creative Connection - Junk Bonanza

the first morning in MN for The Creative Connection, a few of us jetted just outside of Minneapolis to the Junk Bonanza.
my friend Leigh of Curly Girl, who was also the one who recommended TCC, said Junk Bonanza was a must.

lovely Leigh, camera in hand.

surprisingly, the prices were fair.

i only had my 50mm fixes lens so my shots were limited to pretty close up.
some of these displays were so cool, i wish i could have captured them better for you.


if only my last name began with R!!! LOVE this!


my scores.
i plan on using these old locker baskets in my mudroom.
and isn't this letter A the coolest!!! and only $18. a steal.

we all agreed that paying $25 for the early bird pass was worth it.
not having to fight the crowds and getting first dibs was a nice way to go.

creative connection here i come!

i'm on my way to st. paul for The Creative Connection event.
excited to be hooking up with friends April, Leigh and Kelly Rae.
not sure what to expect from this adventure.
but, i'm sure it's going to be ridiculously awesome!!! thank you susan :)
i'll report back soon.
xo-m

see Leigh's post about her experience at last year's event here.

excuse note

dear friends,
please excuse my absence. :(
things have been busy and quite frankly i've felt like i have nothing to share that would be of interest to you.

my days have been filled with preparing and going to the atlanta gift show...

pricing, ordering, displays, emails...

FINALLY closing on our new building!!! and beginning to move in!

cleaning up my disaster of a studio so i can begin to be creative again!

ashland, oregon girls trip

some of my very best girlfriends and i took a weekend trip to ashland, oregon this past weekend.
the pics are from their lovely farmers market.

well, i'm off to do a photo shoot of our new product line! yippeee!
and i might just show you some snipets of it when it's done. :)

China travels and the Forbidden City

off to trek around the Forbidden City.
 
the place is HUGE!

9,999 rooms and sits on 250 acres of land - huge.
and quintessential Chinese culture.

the tile work and colors were absolutely gorgeous.

these chairs were much needed after the seemingly endless amounts of walking.

in ancient China, yellow (which signifies earth)
was exclusively used by royalty of the Ming and Qing Dynasties.

this was taken from a temple next door to the Forbidden City.
also intricate craftsmanship but all made of wood.

also in the temple - where we happened upon a wedding shoot.

Tienanmen Square
with the giant picture of Mao Zedong on the front.

waiting for their "changing of the guards" ceremony at dusk
where they lower the flag on the opposite side of the street.

when traveling to Bejing one must experience Peking Duck!

thanks for hanging in there for the my travel posts!
i assure you that i will return to ART-ing any minute now.
maybe with a bit of Asian inspiration.

so many steps!

the Great Wall has to be the highlight of our trip.
one of the coolest things i've ever seen. truly breathtaking.
we went to a section of the wall that had very narrow parts and was very steep up the mountain side.

it took us about 1.5 hours to climb to the top and back down.
the steps were very worn and inconsistent in height.
small vendors were perched here and there along the way.
schlepping their wares up daily.

and why i always make the goofiest of faces - i don't know!


"He who has not climbed the Great Wall is not a true man" Mao Zedong
Lex and i can finally rest in peace then! ha!

outdoor market in Beijing

some sort of yogurt drink in a jar, blue eggs and some veggies waiting to be sold.

after several days just outside of Hong Kong, Lex and i headed up to Beijing.
i've been coming here for seven years.
this is my first time anywhere but southern China.
i'm thrilled for an excuse (my daughter) to see more of this country.

noodle shop

these are pictures from a small street market that we happened upon behind our hotel.
lots of three wheeled bikes parked while their owners are shopping.
i want to shop this way!!!

a gal scaling and gutting your fish while you wait.

so many freshies to choose from!

this picture i actually took from another market the day before.
scorpions, seahorses and starfish - skewered and ready for the bbq.
any takers?

just some pretties

we're still here. (my oldest and i)
but getting tired.
thought i'd share some pictures.
and let them speak for themselves.
i bid you goodnight from China.
xoxo-michelle

lovin me some photoshop actions

one thing i always do love about my bi yearly trips here to China-
the hours of downtime.
pretty much without distractions.
i can't just pick up the phone.
or go wander around site seeing (not very safe and i'd probably get lost!).
no facebook or blogs - China blocks these.

all the things that i may normally turn to when a moment is to be filled.
so instead i try to follow up on things that i want to improve on.
perhaps something i want to learn about.
goals i may want to set.

one thing that i've been playing with on this trip is photoshop actions.
i'm especially loving this one (samples above) - Amatorka Action
and this one (will show a sample at a later date)- Polaroid Generator Action

do you have any 'actions' that are your faves?

and they still smile?

 
the factory didn't need us for a few hours so we took a walk.
we spotted this alley a few blocks away.


from afar, it looked kind of darling... in a run down sort of way.
as we journeyed down the small path, between the smell, the dirtiness and the realization that people were living here-
it wasn't quite as charming anymore.


that is until, at the very end we found this lovely endearing couple.
he fanning his flame and she knitting.
both smiling.
smiling from their heart.


they live in a trash hole.
this is their view from where they were standing.
and they still smile.

i don't know if i could honestly say that i'd be strong enough to still be smiling were i in this situation.
would you?
i pray that God never decides to test me on this.