Stuck in the Moment - Concept Photography

Before you read any of this and think that I'm incredibly creative because of this, don't! This idea was inspired by Dear Photograph, and not my own idea. I take no credit for the concept, But I take full credit for the pictures taken. That being said, please read on!

  Today I decided to do my own 'Dear Photographs" My mom is a photographer, so shortage of photos is not a problem in my house. After looking through multiple photo albums, and picking my favourite photos from around my house, I went outside to do some shooting. The idea of 'Dear Photograph' is to find memory filled photos from long ago, and to bring them to the exact location of where they were taken, years and years before. The result is something amazingly nostalgic and beautiful.

See, the special thing about photography is represented perfect for me in this project. Memories caught on film never, ever change. The same smile you had on your face the first time you went to the fair, the bloody knees from falling off your two-wheeled bike, your childhood friends that had long moved away, they are all saved in print. No matter how much the world around us changes, whether it be deaths or disaster, photos will alway be able to bring us back to the exact moment when we were so incredibly happy. This thought is what inspires me to be a photographer, knowing that I can capture moments for people, and save those memories for the future them to look back on. Just thinking that I have the power to do that for someone makes me giddy. Remembering moments in time is so special. No matter how long ago, or how far away it may have happened, the moments can be brought back with a single glimpse of a photo. 

Words cannot express how passionate I am about this. I encourage you to go out and make memories! Document these memories and put them in a book. Share your experiences with others. Make yourself as happy as the people in the photos are from years ago. Never forget even the little things in life. Those are the things that make us who we are. 

Have a wonderful week everyone!

Sierra Nickel

DIY Perfectly Pressed Petals

Today I decided to press some flowers! My backyard is full of all different leaves and flowers to pick, so it was a good place to start. The surprise of taking the flowers out of the press reminds me of my childhood, and pressing petals and leaves with my Grandma. Here is a step-by-step guide in pressing your own flowers.

1. Get yourself a flower press! This certain one alternates cardboard and parchment paper. But don't worry if you don't have one, because you could also use a large book (dictionary, encyclopedia, Bible etc.) but I would suggest placing the flowers on white paper before pressing, so that you don't wreck the book with the pollen stains from the flowers.

2. Place your flowers around the page. You can fill it up as much as you like, or place one flower on each page, whatever you like! Try and find flowers that are at flat as possible, if it has a really long steam, make sure to cut it off. I flattened all the flowers with my hands before laying them down.

 

3. I always place my flowers face down, so I can get an idea of how the petals are going to press, and so I can make sure the petals are not overlapping (unless you want them too!)

4. The flowers should be finished pressing within 2-3 days, depending on the type of flower. I'll post a follow up DIY for what I am going to do with the petals once they are nicely flattened and dried. Stay tuned! 

-Sierra

DIY Ombre Jean Shirt

Hey guys! So the weather was beautiful today, and it got me feeling creative. I've seen many DIY's like this, so I decided to try it out, and see what worked best for me. I took pictures of the process, and I'll give you a step by step on how I did it, if you keep reading!

Things You Will Need: 

-Regular bleach (Javex, Clorox etc.)
-A jean shirt/vest
-A bucket
-Water
-An elastic, to mark where you want the bleach to go up too
-Rubber gloves

Also! Just in case the bleach splashes around, you might want to wear older clothes you dont mind wrecking.

Step 1: Get yourself into a well ventilated area (you definitely don't want to be breathing this stuff in!), I chose to do it outside. Start out by pouring your bleach into your tub/bucket of choice. The ratio is about 1:1, water to bleach. You can use smaller ratios of water, or even 100% bleach, but you will have less control of the result the less water you add (adding water basically just slows down the process).

Step 2: Tie off (using the elastic) how high up you want the bleach to go. I chose to go up to about half way. Submerge the ends straight away, slowing working your way up to the elastic. Move the fabric around (with gloves!) in the bleach in order to get at every piece. 

Step 3: Slowly work your way up to the elastic, in order to make the bottom fade nicely to the top colour. Keep the shirt submerged in the bleach for as long as you want, until the colour is what you desire. It's super easy to see how light the fabric is getting, which allows you to pull it out whenever you want to.

Step 4: Ta-da! Once the colour is to your liking, take it out! Rinse off the initial bleach that is still soaked into the shirt (since I was outside, I used the hose, which made it really easy). The shirt will still smell like bleach at this point, and it may still have some soaked inside it. Be really careful the first time you wash the article of clothing in the washing machine, because it could very well run into other clothes! 

I hope you found this insightful and inspiring! It's really the easiest thing to do, and it give your clothes a whole new look about them. Leave a comment below if you have any tips you think I should add, or anything you have to say about this DIY. Thanks for reading, and happy bleaching!

-Sierra