Discovered - Vintage Salesman's Warming Oven

So excited for what we uncovered at The Depot this past weekend! We have tried everything to find out what it is, we know it was from Nesco as it is branded on the back but there is almost nothing about it anywhere on the internet. I found one lead that showed that it was a salesman's warming oven and we know it is not electric; but either way it has become my newest treasure! I can't wait to show you what I'm going to turn it into! Stay tuned for the post production this weekend!! =)

 

DIY - Vintage Lace Pen Jar

This all started with a jar I had lying around the house. I thought, what can I do with this... make it into a pen jar! 

It was super easy and turned out really cute!

Here are all the supplies I used, you can add more and change to your liking:

A smaller size Ball or other glass jar, paper to line the jar, vintage lace to go around the jar, a paper flower, a small square of cardstock, sticker letters, stamp pad, hot glue gun, scissors, paper cutter...

Step One: Measure the inside of the jar, and cut the lining paper to match that height. Once it is cut you can either let the piece wrap within itself inside the jar, or you can trim it to the circumference of the jar.  (I just let mine wrap around the inside of the jar)

Step Two: Wrap the vintage lace around the jar and cut where it touches.

Step Three: Cut your small piece of card stock to match the inside of your paper flower, make sure you make it large enough to fit your sticker letters

Step Four: I like the ink the edges of my paper, it kind of gives it a distressed look.

Step Five: Then work to attach your letters, make sure you watch your spacing... I always lay them lightly to make sure they are aligned before I completely stick them down.

Step Six: Glue down the square card stock you just put the letters on, onto the paper flower

Step Seven: Glue the vintage lace you cut onto the back of the paper flower, make sure both piece touch as that is how you measured it when you cut it. 

Then slip the whole thing over the bottom of the jar and insert pens! This is so customize-able, I just love it! Hope this inspired you to get out and do something crafty!! 

I hope this inspired you to get out and do something crafty!! 

 

THE pod - Review with Photos

Pro’s: Lightweight, convenient, steady, portable, easy to attach, and can be used on any surface.  It was so nice to be able to have it handy in my camera bag and be able to pop it out and put it on if I wanted more stability!Con’s: There is white wording on the lens strap (the companies logo), and after a couple times of adjusting it for my different lens’ it started to peel off. Other than that, this thing is awesome! In conclusion, this is a great product, and wonderful to use when a tripod is not an option, like in my scenario, or when you need something fast, portable and easy. I definitely see myself getting the silver one for when I use my zoom lens, and trying out the Cube as I have a battery grip on my camera (I had to take it off in order to use this), and the Cube adapts to support the lens with the battery grip still attached.

The Story: During our trip to NYC in December I knew that I wanted to get a night shot of the city from the top of a building, and a couple other shots that required a tripod. Once we landed, our first stop was B&H Photo! We went straight to the tripods, found the one we had been looking at online and purchased it. While walking to the register we noticed a display rack for THE pod. My husband had seen it online and had told me about it and we had done a little research on it so we decided to get the green pod and try it out. Well, it was a good thing we did. Later that night, we get to the top of Rockefeller Center and I start to put my tripod up and a security guard tells me that I am not allowed to have a tripod up there. I was so bummed and thought man the rest of the trip is going to stink because I couldn’t use my tripod. But lucky for us, we had grabbed that pod. It made its debut in Grand Central Station, and WOW was it awesome! It is so easy to connect to the camera; you just screw it into the tripod mount and then clip a strap around the lens to keep it in place. Any sort of semi-flat surface will hold the Pod, as it has beans or something similar that stabilizes the camera to hold steady while taking a photograph. I tried out a variety of shutter speed lengths to see just how stable the Pod was, and was impressed by the results. Below are pictures with the camera settings so you can see for yourself...

And here it is on top of the Empire State Building… remember I am 86 stories up and the building sways back and forth; so any sort of zoom lens would show some shake without a tripod, or in my case THE pod =)

Then just this past weekend in New Orleans, I took it everywhere with me and these are the shots I got!

Be sure to check out THE pod on their website, and feel free to pick it up from B&H photo or from one of the other fine retailers where it is sold!

Imaging USA 2012 Trip to New Orleans

I just got back from a trip to New Orleans with my friend Amanda! We decided to take a little road trip and attend a photography convention. So we packed up and drove the 11+ hours it took to get there, with only a few side tracks (shopping, eating, getting gas, the norm); and found out self in the heart of Louisiana! Our days were packed with classes taught by other professional photographers, and an expo with every photographic vendor you could think of! And then we of course had to visit the French Quarter, and other areas of interest. Although I am completely exhausted... we had a blast, and learned so much!! Can't wait to see what we can do once we implement all the knowledge we gained!

Below is a collection of all the iPhone photos I snapped along the way! 

 

Featured in the Paper!!

So exciting... we were in the Lancaster News, and the Carolina Gateway paper!!Here is the article text if you can't read it from the photo:

Kelli Conley of Yah Photography ended 2011 on a great note when she learned she had won best photographer of the year from My Carolina Town magazine.

When nominated in September, Conley believed there was no way she would win, since she was up against the best photographers in Fort Mill. “It is a great achievement for me, especially with the amazing year we have had,” she said. During 2011, Conley undertook the 365 Project. She took a photograph every day, documenting the year in pictures. She posted the pictures nightly on her blog and on Facebook for all her fans to see. The task seemed daunting in the beginning of 2011, but coming up on day 365, she could not believe how fast the year had actually gone by. Many of Conley’s photos were taken in the Fort Mill area, including downtown Fort Mill, Baxter Village, Anne Springs Close Greenway and other locations. Others were taken in Indian Land on Henry Harris Road, Possum Hollow Road and in downtown Lancaster, including a photo of the historic Lancaster County courthouse that she snapped while on a tour there with the Indian Land Rotary Club. With this project behind her, Conley said she is looking forward to 2012 and the opportunities that 2011 opened up for her. She has been a photographer since 2004, but started Yah Photography in 2010. Yah stands for “young at heart.” “The name came about because I always want to have a child-like sense of creativity and love of life,” Conley said. She says this quote from Chris Hughes sums it up perfectly: “For better or worse, I never let go of the uninhibited feeling a child has when they imagine and create.” Conley lives in Indian Land with her husband, Robbie, and two dogs, Brody and Blitz. When she is not taking photographs, she works as a relationship banker at the Indian Land BB&T. Conley is booking weddings and portrait sessions for the spring and fall of 2012. Visit her webpage, www.yahphotos.com, where you can access her blog and Facebook page to see her 365 Project photos and her Best of 2011 award.