Shopping in Amish Country: Holmes County, Ohio

Found this cute vignette at Walnut Creek Furniture. They hung script-printed tab top curtains from a piece of wrought iron mounted on the ceiling. Great idea for a room divider. The drum shade is also a script print, too bad it's hidden by protective wrap.

Regina and I stopped at The Potting Shed and The Village Gift Barn (way more elegant than its name) in Berlin - I want to be a store display stylist! It was almost more than a person could take in, so many great decorating ideas and so many pretty things.

October 29, 2011

Marblehead

Beautiful place on the Lake Erie shore. Wish the sky had been bluer - it would have brought out the red and white of the lighthouse a little more. Nice and windy, though, so we had good waves crashing over the rocks.

 

September 9, 2011

Swans in the 'Hood

A pair of mute swans, hanging out in one of the neighborhood ponds. They are so beautiful.

The one above was a little more aggressive. Momma or Papa? The one below was totally focused on eating.

Those crinkly plants in the water are water hyacinths. Tch, very invasive non-native. Don't think they're cold tolerant, though.

October 25, 2011

Ashley's Island House

Ashley's is the cute B&B we stayed at in Put-in-Bay. Nice hosts, great breakfasts, walking distance to downtown without being too close. Very pleasant place to stay.

September 9, 2011

Butterfly House, South Bass Island

It rained off and on through our vacation, especially on Wednesday when we were "stuck" doing inside things. I tried taking photos inside Perry's Cave with no luck even at the D60's highest ISO setting. Much better in the butterfly house - and, because of the crummy weather - it was just Chuck, me and the butterfly keeper. Chuck will have to tell about the complicated ritual they use for stocking up on butterflies, as I've completely forgotten the details.
Without further ado, butterflies:

September 7, 2011

Texture Tuesday

Kim Klassen has lots of pretty textures at her blog http://www.kimklassencafe.com/thecafe/. Worth checking out if you like to play with your photos.

This is a 1940 Ford Deluxe Coupe from the Glenmoor Gathering in September. I blended a bunch of layers of the photo and Kim's Scripted Autumn texture, plus a little bit of a blended vignette.

9/18/11

South Bass Island, 9/6/11

The ferry ride to South Bass was rough. With the ferry lurching through the waves, rain, and spray, it was almost impossible to take pictures on the way over. In fact, after getting a face- and camera-full of Lake Erie, I huddle in the car for about half the trip, mopping up the mess. Chuck managed to get some shots with getting soaking wet.

There's a little park on the east end of the island, which we'll call Evolve. Why would someone spend time spray-painting these rocks, who knows?

The clouds did break a few times, enough to get get a shot of Perry's monument. It's closed for repairs - you can see the white safety fence around the base.

The next few photos are from South Bass Island State Park. It's on the southwestern side of the island, not too far from Miller Ferry's Lime Kiln dock.

Water snakes. There are signs all over the place, noting that they're not dangerous, and that the Island is protecting them. They are very shy.

Lots of curvy island views.

Baby water snake, maybe as big around as your pinkie - but look at how long she is. 

More South Bass photos soon.

Draft Horses

My favorite class is Ladies Driving. Here are some shots from the fair - even though it was pretty drizzly that day, every one's harness was sparkling and gorgeous.

I watched these classes with mixed feelings, still thinking about Larry. It's hard even to drive past the barns where we boarded without tears. He was such a sweet boy.

September 4, 2011

Geauga County Fair, 9/4/11

Somewhat drizzly, but still fun. Other than the horses, the flower hall and agricultural exhibits are my favorites. And, of course, the 4-H real milkshakes!

They always have a spectacular exhibit of dahlias. I love the way this one shades from the soft yellow center to the rose outer petals.

Single rose in one of the outdoor display baskets. Simple and pretty.

Love the pumpkin line ups - the colors and forms, no two alike. No super-giant pumpkin winner this years. Sadly, it imploded and had to be shoveled up.

This has to be the best smelling display, piles and piles of beautiful apples!

Cupola of the Domestic Arts Hall.  Full of baked goods, canned stuff, home sewing, and table settings.  Why table settings, I have no idea, but they have lots so people must like them.

Geauga is the best fair, I just love it!

P365, A Month Ago

I took a walk on the bike path on the other side of Fairchild. Not sure what this was, only that it had been nicely landscaped and someone tried to burn it down. 9/1

Rose from my garden, 9/2.

This is what happens when you stay up entirely too late messing around on the iPad and realize you've forgotten to take a picture. The red patterned throw is Sootie's favorite. It has to be on my lap for optimum snoozing. 9/3.