Happy Thanksgiving to All!

I hope everyone has a fabulous, relaxing and safe Thanksgiving this year that they can share with loved ones.  I couldn't help but get a smile on my face when I saw this vintage postcard and I just had to share it with you all.  Enjoy!

Halloween-Day 30

Here is a collage sheet of images that you can use to create some interesting Halloween art with.  Most of these women have sinister looks, like they are up to something.  What are they up to? 

Halloween-Day 27

 Talk about a costume-This one looks like it could hurt you.  A metal corset anyone?




While blog hopping this morning, I found these really cool Halloween Party Lights made with recycled mason jars, instructions can be found Here

Halloween-Day 26!

Just 4 more days to go until Spooky Halloween Night!  Here in Utah, people will be celebrating on Saturday, Oct. 30th, which would normally be "Mischief" night.  I'll actually be at home handing out candy this year.  DH is making a big pot of home-made chili to keep out the chill.  To me, Halloween is always the coldest night of the year probably because we refused to wear coats over our costumes when we were little.  What was the use of putting on a costume if you had to cover it up with a coat.  Go figure!  LOL!

Halloween-Day 25

Here is a really cool piece of vintage Halloween.  A patent pending for a decorative lantern.  I believe these were originally made from paper mache' with a paper wrapped wire handle, or a simple painted wire handle?  Yes? No? Maybe?  Does anyone have one of these treasures in their collection?

New Public Domain Images

While browsing the internet today looking for some Halloween related photos, I came across these at the Library of Congress and since Miss Earhart is one of my heroines, I decided to share these photos with you.  Click on the images to get the original sized photo to save and download!  Enjoy!

Vintage Cabinet Card

Here is a cabinet card that I recently  received from a friend.  I thought I would share both sides of this cabinet card as, I think the background is just as awesome,  as the photo of the little girl.  Please feel free to download these and use them in your art.  I would love to see what you do with this image, so please leave me a comment if you post something to your blog and I will come for a visit and leave you a comment!
Here is how I used the little girls image for a fun digital technique that Sherre shared with us in workshop #2 called: "Daguerreotype".  If you haven't heard about our digital workshops-visit: Digital Montage Studio

Free Images

Here are two more public domain images that I have collected over the years from a variety of sources including several blogs, such as Graphics Fairy, Dover,  First Floor Flat, Power House Museum and a wealth of flickr groups, etc.  There are so many sources available it is literally impossible for me to remember where each image came from.  I also have quite a few image CD's at my disposal but as long as the images are in the Public Domain, I will share.  I will try and share some new public domain images occasionally, that haven't been sent around the world over and over again.    Feel free to download these and use them in your art.  Enjoy!

More Free Public Domain

When I first saw these photos I thought, how cold they must be.  Living near ski resorts and seeing the current trends in ski fashion, I felt sorry for these people.  Some of these girls don't have gloves and they look half frozen!
I admire the creativity of how the tobbogon was crafted and I give these guys credit for having the courage to use it.

Staged Photo Montages-Free Public Domain

While surfing last week I came across these amazing, rare photos that were staged montages that a photographer took back in the late 1800's.  While we can easily make these layouts now with the technology and software we have available, the idea of even doing something like this was still in its infancy.  These are in the Public Domain, so feel free to click and save!

More Staged Public Domain Photos

Here are some fun photos for you to explore.  What do you see wrong with these photos?

Flickr Surfing-Free Public Domain Images to Share

I love surfing the net to see what I can find and I recently stumbled across a flickr site that offers all public domain images.  I am going to share a few that I downloaded because I thought they were interesting.  These photos depict dangerous things people did back in the late 1800's- early 1900's.  All of these photos were taken by a photographer in Australia-maybe several photographers. These are all glass plates and most are in fairly good shape considering their age.
This first photo should make you cringe in fear if you live in snow country as I do.  We have several avalanches every year and this is one waiting to happen!  Click on the photo to get a larger view and to save it if you wish-but this picture is of three men climbing over the broken edge of a snow bank up in the mountains of Australia. 

This second photo of two men cutting down a gum tree gives me goosebumps.  Why are they having to stand on these man made supports instead of just cutting the tree from ground level?  I wonder how long it took them to cut down this tree with just two axes?  Or was this staged by the photographer?  We'll probably never know, but it's a good reference for doing something dangerous.

More Dangerous Stunts

Don't do this at home!   Isn't that the warning they give you on TV shows were people are doing the most ridiculous stunts?  Here's one that is more of an optical illusion, as these men are driving a herd of cattle across what looks like a lake the size of Lake Erie or the Gulf of Mexico, when in reality they are staying rather close to the shoreline.  Fooled me until I took a closer look!  What about you, did you think this was a stupid stunt, only it's not a stunt!  The guys standing up on the carts, being pulled through the waves by cattle looks pretty dangerous to me.  I heard that a car can float in barely a few inches of rapid running water-so did these carts turn into rafts?

One more:  How many of you have seen these photo in action?  Where the kangaroo kicks the *>#@ out of the guy trying to feed it?  Notice the chain on the ground?  Is it attached to the kangaroo?  How long is it, because the man is clearly within kicking distance!
I hope you enjoy these photos as much as I did.  :-D

Free Images-Public Domain

This is such a cute vintage photo that I just had to share.  Over in our new Digital Montage workshop group we are playing around with a few themes to warm us up before the workshop starts on July 19th.  (Have you signed up yet?  More information is at: DigitalMontageStudio )  Today I will be posting a new theme and this little girl might come in handy for you. 
Don't you just love her hat!  Remember when we use to have to wear those horrible rubber things on our heads at the public pools.  Not sure if it was to protect our hair from the chemicals in the pool or the filters in the pool from our hair-but those rubber things were hideous and hard to get over our head!  Today-at the gym, they just ask you to shower before entering the pool, for hygiene sake and I have no problem with that-it is after all a gym-sweaty bodies and all.







Here is another vintage photo-not to sure if that is really suppose to be a bathing suit she is wearing, looks more like a circus performers costume-but maybe it's a bathing suit.  Don't know who wore garters into the pool?  I do like her scarf!  Enjoy!

Vintage Halloween Ads

I just couldn't resist sharing this image with you of a vintage Halloween ad. You can see more vintage ads HERE.

Images for Your Art

As promised I have loaded a few copy right free images from my private collections for you to use in your art. Please do not use them to create collage sheets to re-sell. Thanks! Enjoy!

Happy Holidays Everybody!

I have been so busy lately with finishing up projects for the book, samples for the workshops, practicing my jewelry techniques, that I really don't have anything to post right now and probably won't for a few more weeks, but wanted to say "Happy Holidays Everybody!"