:: That darn husband of mine has passed his cold on to me – for the second time in six months. I could feel it coming on last night. Most years, I don’t get a cold – this year? Two.
:: Other than that, the hanging lamp has been tweaked and I love it. I have to hang it today or tomorrow and promise to show you photos as soon as I can. Thank you for all your support – isn’t it wonderful having a lot of friends all over the world to share projects with? Kindred spirits are treasures, indeed. By the way, when I showed the lampshade to Don, this was the conversation:
Me: Do you like it?
Silence.
Me: Do you hate it?
Don: I don’t hate it.
Me: Well, what do you feel?
Don: I’m…neutral.
Me: I’ll take neutral.
:: Before I forget, please drop by and visit my friend Regula. She read the post about flannel pajamas, which are apparently hard to find in Switzerland. So she made some! I think that makes her an honored member of the Flannel Pajamas Club, don’t you? They’re really cute and she looks adorable in them.
:: I promised to update you as I found more photo editing software online. Today, I played with Pixlr and Pixlr Express. Pixlr reminds me of Photoshop Elements and works much the same way. To tell the truth, it was a tad confusing (to me) and has a bit of a learning curve. But it’s free.
Howeve, Pixlr Express was fast, fun and easy. I’ve been trying to take good photos for Etsy. (I’ll share that story with you another time.) So I had this photo on hand and thought it would be fun to play with.
This is a little toothpick holder I plan to sell.
Here’s what I came up with. I resized the photo. (Always remember to resize your photos so that they don’t take up too much storage space!) I used an effect called Hagrid to get this vintagy kind of look. Then I added a border design called Wispy. And a watermark. Not necessarily what I would do normally, but I like to play on these new-to-me sites.
Pixlr Express has the basic necessities: color, contrast, crop, resize, touch-up, auto-fix. It also has lots of fun effects and borders. It’s extremely user-friendly.
I did all this in about 3 minutes, because that’s all the exploration time I have today. I think you might like this site. At the very least, it’s another possibility for our online photo editing needs.
I’m off to blow my nose. The nose that will turn red shortly. It always does.
What a cute toothpick holder. I have one my sister gave me years ago…I keep q-tips in it in the bath. Sorry you got another cold.I have been so lucky not to have had one in 4 years. I always try to remember to wash my hands, when ever I’ve been out. Take my own books to the drs. office too (germ city).Smiles, Susie
Good Morning Claudia! I hope your day get’s better and the cold ends soon…that dang hubby of yours ;) Thanks for the info on the photo editing sites…I’ll check both of these out soon. LOL had to laugh at your conversation with hubby about the lamp…he sounds very much like my hubby. Looking forward to seeing what you’ve done with it..I know it will be perfect. Enjoy your day as best you can.
Maura :)
Oh Boo….a cold! I am fighting one too. I have my little “germ magnets” that love to share!!!! I think having my grandson full time has boosted my immune system though. Usually I fight them off pretty quickly these days.
Can’t wait to see the lamp reveal! Love that your friend made her flannel jammies. I will go see.
Cute toothpick holder. I don’t tend to do much photo editing. Too impatient!!!
Have a great day, and drink tea!!
Hope that your cold disappears suddenly and you feel wonderful soon.
As far as the decorating part goes, my convos with husband go almost the same…do you like this color, huh?
Well at least he didn’t hate it.
Hope that you feel better very soon.
Jen @ Muddy Boot Dreams
Thanks for the sites. I will miss picnik for the resizing but do most of my editing on picasa. I have Photoshop Elements but haven’t been able to master it. I hope everyone is better in your house real soon. Patty
Colds are the worst…hope you’re better real soon. Had to laugh about your conversation with Don; the same thing happens in our house except hubby mumbles really low so I can’t hear him.
My husband gave me his cold over the holidays…not fun, but that’s life, I guess. Feel better!~Hugs, Patti
Neutral, huh? That’s a lot nicer than the ‘What the heck is that?’ that I would get. Hope you feel better.
I hope you feel better soon Claudia – colds are not fun at all :(
Thanks for the heads up on Pixlar, I’ll take a look. I’m gutted that Picnik is closing because I use it ALL the time.
The flannel jamas club is a fun idea – and the way the weather is going here this summer I might just about qualify to join! 34C one day, 24C then next – I’ve never seen the kind of consistent “cold” and wet weather in Sydney in the summer.
Cute little toothpick holder. I haven’t had any time to play with any kind of photo workshop. I need to learn to do that…and the sooner the better.
I’m sorry you have a cold- How miserable. Perhaps while you have a red nose you could do a clown show…just a thought- xo Diana
You’re not alone, Claudia. I’m nursing a cold here, too…which I, too, caught from my husband! Sneezy, coughy and overall crummy. YUK!
Hope we both feel better soon.
xoxo
Donna
I think Pixlr will be the latest that replaces Picnik, just takes a bit of practice.
Zicam and Airborn are two that sure help the cold go if caught in time or make it go away quicker.
Hope you will soon be over it.
Thanks, Claudia. I’m dreading the day when Picnik closes up shop.
Sue
xo
I do wish these husbands wouldn’t share quite so much in the illness department! Feel better soon. I, personally prefer long flannel nightgowns. :)
Get over that nasty cold! :-) I too have been playing with photos for exactly the same reason. Isn’t it fun!
Hi Claudia, I totally recommend garlic for your cold- take a clove of garlic like you would take a tablet, with water, dont taste it just swallow it.
The best thing about being ill is getting to wear PJs all day and no-one can tell you to get dressed!! I wear PJs all the time though…if anyone comes to the door, I always say I am on night shifts! Feel better xx
So sorry you’re under the weather; sending you virtual Kleenex (unless you prefer Puffs) and hot ginger tea. Get yourself some herbal ginger tea; something in the ginger is medicinal. Stash has a wonderful caffeine free lemon ginger that I keep on hand for colds and other respiratory ailments.
You know I’m dying to see the lamp! Girl, you are one crafty lady. You must have magical flannel pj’s! I’m popping off to see the ones Regula made. So glad they are readily available here in America, I’d be in sad shape if I had to make them!
Hi Claudia! So sorry that you have caught Don’s cold. I knew you would. It’s impossible to live with someone and not get their cold. I am just getting over one but I think I had a little virus along with it. I became a couch potato for a few weeks in between going to the doctor’s. I laughed when I read poor Don’s response to his opinion on your lamp. But, really, Claudia, what can you expect. That is a pretty frilly lamp for a big guy like Don. That is so funny. Dear Claudia, thanks for the chuckle! Take care of yourself, okay.
I am fast learning Photoscape. It is very different but I do like many of it’s features. The image you edited looks fabulous.
Thanks for sharing that site. I’ll have to ck. it out. I’m so glad you’re opening a shop via Etsy. Can we get a tentative opening date? Need any advice let me know. I have a Etsy shop under LizlovesVintage :)
Going to get my flannels on.
Get well soon,
xxx Liz
Husbands are funny … sometimes they’re really non-committal so we can’t figure out if they agree with us or not. When we first moved into our home in Tucson we had been living on a sailboat for five years and had nothing — not one thing — to put in a house. So I shopped a lot and I frequently asked my husband’s opinion and he was just very agreeable with everything. One day I purchased a rather large foyer mirror and hung it myself before he came home from work just to surprise him. Well, I was the one surprised because he didn’t even notice it. A few days went by, including a weekend when he was home all day, and he still had not noticed the mirror! He had to walk by it many times each day to go from our bedroom and his office to the kitchen and family room. When I finally confronted him about not noticing it, he just said, “oh, nice.”
Hope you’re feeling better soon. Colds are nasty business.
Shame on you, Don! Now I can’t talk to my friend on the phone because she sounds like she’s underneath a mountain of cotton balls!
Brenda
We’ve lucked out in the cold and flu arena this winter… but considering that winter hasn’t yet arrived here, there’s always next month… achooo… let’s hope not.
Sorry about your nose blowing thing you have going on. I don’t think I would ever get sick if my husband didn’t bring it home from the office with him. GAH… I really hate it when he brings me those kind of gifts.
Take care.
Sorry about your cold. Usually when I start to feel a bit off I take vitamin C and it helps to stop the cold dead in it’s tracks. Thanks for the photo shop tip. I’ll have to check it out.
Blessings, Joanne
First of all, I hope you feel better soon! Charles is down with a bad cold which has turned to bronchitis. He is now on antibiotics. Drink tea, cozy up in your flannel jammies and get well soon!
Secondly, thanks so much for the info on pixlr! I just tried it and was so excited I posted about it at Home in Douglas! I mentioned you and Mockingbird Hill Cottage – take a look!
I’m so glad you are checking out the photo editing programs– I’m too lazy. For me, it’s kind of like researching electronics… uhg. I know that using a photo editing program would improve my photos though, so I’m looking forward to reading what you think about them.
I hope that you will be feeling better soon– get some rest, sweet friend!
Hugs,
Jill
Thank you for mentioning me in your blog post! I feel honoured to be a member in the club. As soon as I have a free moment, I’ll grab the button, which is cute by the way.
Thank you also for the tip for the photo programme. I sure am testing it!
Have a nice day!
Oh boy sorry about the cold. Get some of the zinc lozenges like Zycam or Cold Eaze. I swear by them. Since I have used those when the family gets the colds I barely get anything. Just a sniffle maybe. Feel better.
So sorry about your cold, but another great reason to stay in those jammies. I very rarely get colds, but when I feel one coming on I take Zycam and it usually wards it off. Can;t wait to see the lamp. feel better.
Laura