Photography - the bargain macro lens

The great weather we’ve had recently gave the perfect opportunity to try out some macro lenses I received for my birthday. I would love a proper macro lens for my canon but they’re upwards of around £200! The lens used to take the pictures below was around £10 and as you can see they do a pretty good job – it’s a Neewer close up + 10 lens and simply screws on to the end of a standard lens and acts as a magnifier. I had so much fun practising on some of the plants in the garden, it’s so close up that you feel like you’re revealing another world. So many possibilities... I’d love to try and take some after it rains to see if I can get some rain drops on the leaves and flowers. It takes some practise to get good images and I’ll admit most of these were luck! But for £10 it’s such a bargain and the kit also comes with + 1, +2 and + 4 lenses. These are my favourites, I can't wait to take the lens out again and have another go.

This last one is of the + 10 lens used to take the pictures above.

Finished project – neon knitting

Last week I finished some more knitted gloves, this time requested by the boyfriend who was impressed with my heart gloves. I used the same pattern for him and simply missed out the heart bit! He chose the wool - I really wasn’t sure about the neon green to start with and at least managed to convince him to go with grey for the ends. The pictures really don't do the neon-ness justice, but it was fun to knit with such a bright colour and I’ve even got enough left to start a matching scarf, maybe in the opposite colour way - grey with green edges? I’m going to try and keep both hidden until December and they can be Christmas or birthday presents. The scarf pattern I’m going to use is a simple ribbed one from ravelry and I’m already eyeing up wool colours to make one for myself as well...

Hope you all have a great weekend.

Late to the Pinterest party

I am officially addicted. Pinterest is amazing. I realise I am really late to the party and that most of you will have had boards for ages now, but I resisted for quite a while thinking that another online account would not be good for me. However it’s so full of beautiful pictures and inspiring ideas that I’m glad I reconsidered! I’d love to find more boards to follow – particularly any to do with crafts and DIY, so let me know if you’re on pinterest too.

Picture postcard #7

This week’s picture postcard is a sneak peek at a series of photos I’ll be blogging soon, after experimenting with a macro lens adaptor. I love the bright colours and short depth of field; it’s not often I try to create something artistic with photography as usually I’m busy attempting to document what’s around me. It was great to get a bit more creative, I chose these purple alliums because they always remind me of summer and I am certainly loving the GORGEOUS weather at the moment.

We’ve got eight house/flat viewings lined up this weekend, but I’m hoping to spend every minute in between outside enjoying the sunshine!

The Lady of the Rivers by Philippa Gregory – a book review

This was my first Philippa Gregory and already I’m a fan. Considering my interest in history, I really am surprised it took this long to read one. Gregory mixes fact and fiction to create novels focussed on great women throughout the Tudor period; The Lady of the Rivers is set in the period of the Cousins’ War (just before the infamous Tudors) and is part of a series of three books each told from the perspective of different women in the conflict.

Although not written first, The Lady of the Rivers is first chronologically and overlaps slightly with The White Queen (which I am desperate to read next).  The story centres on Jacquetta, widowed at a young age, she falls in love with her late husband’s squire and eventually becomes the right hand woman to the new Queen Margaret  whose actions at court threaten to overturn the kingdom. ‘Jacquetta fights for her king, her queen and her daughter Elizabeth Woodville, for whom she senses an extraordinary future.’  Before I’d even realised it I was completely invested in Jacquetta’s character and the trials and tribulations of her family, it was definitely impossible to put down in quite a few places.

Since finishing The Lady of the Rivers I've noticed the BBC have been showing adverts for a TV adaptation of The White Queen later this year. The advert looks great, watch it here - I so hope they do justice to the books.   

DIY cameo brooch

I’ve been looking for a cameo style brooch for a while now; the inspiration came when watching a recent TV programme recreating a pride and prejudice ball and after being unable to find 'the one' in local charity shops I figured it was time for a DIY. Making it myself also meant I got to choose the silhouette used and this one is (according to google) Jane Austen herself. I considered making the brooch from felt by decided shrink plastic would give a nicer effect and think the modern plastic compliments the silhouette style.

I used the same method as my shrink plastic butterfly necklace, which can be found here. The picture above gives and idea of the size you need before shrinking. After shrinking I simply glued a brooch pin back onto the back of the plastic and left it to dry. You can make the entire thing in about half an hour!

It’s so quick and simple, the perfect way to jazz up a plain jacket. Plus it was a nice excuse for a bit of black and white photography.