Divine Chaos

My Favorite Supplies

2012-02-23T08:00:00.002-06:00

I've been doing a lot of art journaling and other art projects lately thanks to my obsession with Smashing and getting things ready for the Journal in Your Pocket class. After doing a bunch of pages and things in a fairly short amount of time, I began to realize that I tended to gravitate toward certain supplies more often than others. And, because it's always interesting for me to find out what kinds of supplies other people like to use, I would like to share my favorite ones with you!

Of course, that's just what I find myself reaching for most often! If you ever have a question about a particular piece on a page, go ahead and ask! Just leave a comment or shoot me an email and I'd be happy to help you out.

A very exciting sneak peek!

2012-02-20T08:00:00.000-06:00

I am very, every excited to offer you all a sneak peek at a wonderful class being offered soon by Natalie of Awkward&Beautiful and me! Check out the teaser photos:

The class, which is titled Journal in Your Pocket, is based on the concept of art journaling on a small scale and will include both journal page prompts and several stand-alone mini-book prompts! It will run for four weeks, beginning on March 19th. The class will cost just $25.

So mark your calendar and come back next week for the official announcement and full details!

Project 365: Week 7

2012-02-19T10:48:00.003-06:00

playing with watercolors, casino night at the Super Pit, beautiful flowers from my boyfriend, cheesecake!, dorm room burgers, yummy (and totally unhealthy!) pizza Lunchable, raiding the Michaels $1 stamp bin
PS: scroll down for my March sponsor call!

March Sponsor Call!

2012-02-19T08:00:00.001-06:00

I'm very excited to announce that I will be once again be offering ad space in my sidebar!

Each space will be 200 pixels by 100 pixels and located in my sidebar beneath my little "hello" blurb. If you choose to purchase a spot (or make a sponsorship trade--just email me!), you'll be introduced at the beginning of the month, and you'll have the opportunity to make a guest post at any point during the month, as well as participate in a group giveaway!

If you're interested, please click here to view more information. My email address can be found there or by clicking on the "contact" button at the top right of this page!

March is gonna be an awesome month here on the blog! I have lots of cool things planned, including a collaboration with Natalie that you will find out more about tomorrow!

A dorm-cooked dinner.

2012-02-17T08:00:00.001-06:00

It's not often that I make posts about a meal I've had, even though I am definitely guilty of the whole "bloggers always photograph food before eating it" thing. So today I'm going to share the meal that Ryan and I shared the other night! It was hamburgers and mashed potatoes, cooked on a George Foreman grill and in the microwave, respectively. Gotta love the dorm life!

I know the photos aren't as...styled...as those on real food blogs are, but hey, this is how I actually eat! It's a glance into my actual life.

And the meal wasn't half bad, you know! We'll probably be doing this again.

"I love you" card

2012-02-15T08:00:00.000-06:00

This was my first handmade card! It's pretty simple, but I loved making it! And Ryan, my boyfriend, really liked it, too! I was so happy to be able to give him something handmade. I think I'm going to start making more cards. I don't really like buying them, but they are fun to make. I like doing things on this small scale.

This card was about 3.5x3.5 inches. I used kraft and white cardstock, a scalloped circle punch and a regular circle punch, watercolors, and Colorbox ink in Wicked Black.

Project 365: Tips!

2012-02-14T08:00:00.000-06:00

Daily projects are hard. For every person who completes a Project 365 (that is, takes a photo every day for a year), there are probably at least two that don't, and more that find the task too daunting to even attempt. And if you've been following my blog for awhile, you probably know that I am horrible at keeping up with anything on a schedule. But I have successfully completed 6 weeks of my 2012 Project 365, so I wanted to share a few things that have made it easier for me!

1. Use your cell phone, or a small point+shoot.
I decided to use my iPhone 4S, with its wonderful 8 megapixel camera, exclusively for this project. I always have my phone with me, and I take so many pictures that often I don't need to think about it. A small point+shoot camera accomplishes the same ease of use. Of course, some people are going to want to use their DSLR, and there's nothing wrong with that; I just hear so many people giving up because it's a lot harder to whip that out than it is to pull out your cell for those every day shots.

2. Keep track, and keep your photos organized.
I use an iPhone app, Project 365, that lets me insert each day's photo into a calendar and and a bit of journaling. I can easily glance at it and see if I've taken my photo that day. I also upload my photos to iPhoto every week. Then I create a folder for that week, save the 7 photos there, and rename them with their dates. I do this so that I can easily blog the photos each Sunday, but having them organized like this would be useful for whatever you plan to do with your photos later.
*If you don't want to/aren't able to use an app like Project 365, the same thing can be accomplished with a paper calendar or a checkbox in your daily planner!

3. Set a reminder.
I have a re-occuring reminder to take a picture each day set up through Apple's Reminders app. If you don't have an iPhone with iOS5, you can set up an alarm or a calendar task--anything that will beep at you once a day and tell you to take a picture. My daily reminder is set for 5:00 PM. This is early enough that I still have plenty of time to capture something, but not so early that I dismiss it and forget it.

4. Do something with your photos.
Every Sunday, I make a collage of the week's photos and post it to my blog. This is fun, keeps me accountable, and motivates me to complete each week. Post your photo each day to a special Twitter or Tumblr account. Post them weekly or monthly to your blog. Print them each week and put them in an album or a scrapbook. Half the fun of this project is looking at the photos and remembering the story behind them.

5. Take lost of photos and don't stress.
I take photos of anything and everything that strikes me. Don't stress about every photo having a meaning behind it! Probably a third of my photos are of food so far and there's nothing wrong with that! I like food, so I take pictures of it. Plus, if you take photos indiscriminately, you'll often end up with several to choose from, which also helps keep the stress level down.

I hope these tips are helpful to someone! If you haven't already started a Project 365, I highly recommend it. I've had a lot of fun so far, and the idea of having an album filled with photos and memories at the end of the year is just awesome, isn't it?

Project 365: Week 6

2012-02-12T10:35:00.002-06:00

salsa and tortillas during the Super Bowl, yummy cafeteria cheesecake, a sweet surprise by the turtle pond, White Collar and Gulliver's Travels, fun with watercolors, a vole skull, topping off the week with a great burrito

And that's week 6 of 2012! It was a pretty chill week, really.

Ten Things: February

2012-02-10T09:06:00.003-06:00

This month's Ten Things on the Tenth is...

Ten Movies I'm Excited to See This Year!
(in no particular order)

1. The Vow
Starring Channing Tatum and Rachel McAdams, two of my favorite actors! This looks totally sweet and touching.

2. Star Wars: Episode 1
This is being rereleased into theaters, and I'm majorly excited. I didn't get to see the original 3 in theaters and I really can't wait for those, but I figure I might as well go all out and see all 6 while I have the chance!

3. This Means War
Starring Chris Pine. Enough said.

4. Act of Valor
This is a war movie starring actual, active duty soldiers, and the trailer looks amazing.

5. 21 Jump Street
More Channing Tatum! This movie looks like it's going to be stupidly hilarious.

6. The Hunger Games
Of course! This might just be my most anticipated movie of 2012. I finally saw the trailer on the big screen last night and it just blew me away. I'm prepared to buy tickets as soon as they go on sale!

7. The Avengers
Iron Man, Captain America, and Thor in the *same movie*. It doesn't get much better than that!

8. The Amazing Spider-Man
I love Spiderman, and while I don't have too much confidence in this movie as a whole, I'm still pretty dang excited about it.

9. The Dark Knight Rises
I just need to get my Gary Oldman fix! I liked the first two Batman movies, so we'll see.

10. World War Z
The book was amazing, if totally scary and horrible. I'm excited for this movie but I doubt I'll be able to sleep or walk anywhere after dark for months.

That's my 10 things! Be sure to join me next month for another ten! You can find all the posts by clicking on the "ten things" tag below!

Project 365: Week 5

2012-02-05T11:31:00.003-06:00

great fajitas at Rosa's, believing in Sherlock, the paving of our usual path to food, a perfect soft serve cone, web surfing between classes, my new favorite candy bar, some tiny art
This week was a lot more relaxing than the last, though still busy. But I spent all of Friday evening and most of Saturday being creative and making art, which makes me happy. Today is a homework day, but I'm don't regret how I spent the first half of the weekend one bit!

Another Smash page.

2012-02-03T08:00:00.001-06:00

This spread is about the two Dallas Stars hockey games I've been to with Ryan (I love hockey!) and then the day we spent out in Dallas at the North Park Mall and meeting up with Natalie of Awkward&Beautiful

I love smashing my Instagram photos! The ones on these pages are 2"x2", if you were wondering. I also just love to use pockets for things. The journaling card on the Stars page is glued on a kraft pocket I made, and the pocket on the right page is the bag you get your sandwich in at Which Wich. I cut it down and closed up the bottom with my Smash tape (which I'm also in love with!).

Once again, I used some embellishments from Elsie's old sticker sets, and a couple of printable journal cards from around the web. I've been pinning a lot of them so that I can kind of keep track of what I have: you can take a look at my Printables board if you want some for yourself!

And I also love adding dimension to my embellishments with little homemade "pop dots" of foam underneath! I love the shadows it makes, and it makes my Smash Book thicker, which is fun!

Oh, and if you haven't noticed, I added a button in my sidebar that will lead to all of my Smash page posts! Check it out over there! ---->

Meet the Sponsors: February!

2012-02-01T08:00:00.000-06:00

//BLOG//TWITTER//FACEBOOK//

//BLOG//TWITTER//SHOP//FACEBOOK//

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This month, I am beyond happy to introduce two new sponsors to you! This month I've traded sponsor spots with Katie, Natalie, and Dom! These are all awesome, friendly, creative ladies, and I highly recommend you check out their blogs! And check back throughout the month for fun things from all of them, including a giveaway and a couple guest posts!

One Little Word: January

2012-01-31T08:00:00.002-06:00

My One Little Word for 2012 is focus. Like I said in my original post, I'm not taking Ali Edward's OLW class, but I want to keep up with my word somehow, so I want to try to make a blog post at the end of each month with a little reflection on my word. It may not be the same format each month, we'll see!

This month, I just want to share some times I felt I was particularly focused on one thing or another.

First of all, the spring semester started this month, and I'm already proud of myself for the way I've been able to focus on getting my school work done on time! A lot of it has been reading, which I'm horrible at keeping up with, but I've done it so far!

With the new semester came a new lunch schedule, and I've found myself eating alone a couple days a week. But no worries! I've decided that this is great alone time to focus on creative thoughts and get some pleasure reading in.

But I also tried to focus on having fun outside of school, too. Ryan and I have been trying to make time to go on more dates this year. So far, we've seen a great movie and had a wonderful night at a Dallas Stars game!

Unfortunately, I did have to spend a couple sad days during January focusing on getting rest and feeling better. I was struck down by a stomach virus and a sore throat at different times this month and spent awhile in bed.

When I got back to my dorm after Christmas break, I focused for a few hours on finally getting my craft supplies out of the cardboard box they spent the last semester in and into my lovely new craft cart. I hope this will let me focus more in the future on creating!

And indeed, I was able to sit down and focus on creating things this month that I was proud of. I did a few spreads in my Smash Book, which is quickly becoming my favorite thing to do, and I even carved a few stamps and made a couple DIY embellishments!

Project 365: Week 4

2012-01-29T08:00:00.000-06:00

so much reading to do, first laundry load of the semester, dreary sky outside my window, rainy day shoes, essay writing, interesting looking clouds, handmade embellishments for my Smash book
Another week down! And, may I say, thank goodness. This week was full of studying, writing, editing, and yucky weather. It wasn't until Saturday night that I was able to sit down and do something creative, thus, the lack of blogging. But don't worry, this isn't a sign of things to come! Let's just hope next week is better than this past one!

Project 365: Week 3

2012-01-22T08:00:00.000-06:00

yummy steak dinner, a lovely sunset, my favorite shoes (and Ryan's!), an "e" for me, feet up at the movie theater, getting some work in between classes, great bubble tea with good friends
I'm finding it pretty easy to take photos so far. I take a lot of pictures anyway, and I'm loving how great my iPhone camera is! I've been able to get some pretty good shots so far, I think! 21 out of 366 days down!

February Sponsor Call!

2012-01-20T08:00:00.000-06:00

I'm happy to announce that I will be offering ad spots in my sidebar once again for the month of February! I've changed my sizes and rates around a little from last month, so here are some quick facts!

I've decided to only offer one spot this time. It'll be 200 pixels by 100 pixels and located in my sidebar beneath my little "hello" blurb. If you choose to purchase a spot (or make a sponsorship trade--just email me!), you'll be introduced at the beginning of the month, and you'll have the opportunity to make a guest post at any point during the month, as well as participate in a group giveaway!

If you're interested, please click here to view more information. My email address can be found there or by clicking on the "contact" button at the top right of this page!

A new calendar!

2012-01-19T08:00:00.001-06:00

I've been needing a new calendar to hang in this space on the wall by my sink, and I haven't been able to find the one I really want (The Hunger Games!). But thankfully, I came across a neat little template for one using Instagram photos on the blog Her New Leaf. You can download the template for Photoshop or Microsoft Word here.

I only made up the pages for January and February (I'll share February's page next month!) so far. I really like it! It's cute and I like seeing my photos up on the wall like that.

More of my Smash pages!

2012-01-17T08:00:00.000-06:00

I've had a busy week (moving back to school and getting ready for another semester!) but I made some time last night to do some more smashing. I'm still totally in love with my Smash Book! There's so much stuff to do with it.

I started experimenting a little more with dimension on the Starbucks page. I made some homemade pop dots (gonna share those later!) and used them to lift the green circle (which came on the cold cup I bought) off the page. I cut up a coffee cuff and made the middle section into a pocket to hold a few printouts I had. One of the side sections looked like a little tab, so I hid some journaling behind it! And I made the little kraft pocket holding the gift cards at the top right. I'm pretty proud of that page! It went through a lot of changes before I stuck everything down, so I'm particularly happy with how it turned out. I left some space for more Instagram photos in the future, too!

Oh, and in case you're wondering, the "smile!", the little flashes, and the Starbucks cup with the heart all came from PDF sticker/pattern sets I got from Elsie in her Style School class awhile back. I love those sets, I'm so glad I got them, because she doesn't sell them anymore!

Project 365: Week 2

2012-01-15T10:27:00.003-06:00

hummus, a sick day in bed with a fluffy friend, a game of Clue with friends, amazing pecan pie, stamp carving, moving back to college, and a new home for my pocket journals

Made it through another week of P365! So far, so good!

Ten Things

2012-01-10T12:11:00.004-06:00

Lately I've been getting into scrapbooking and I'm in love with Shimelle's blog and her YouTube videos. And one of the things she does on her blog is a list of ten things (any ten things!) on the tenth of each month. A lot of people do it and link up to her post, and I thought this month I'd join in!

So, here you are:
Ten Things I'm In Love With Right Now
1. The Hunger Games
If you couldn't already tell, I'm pretty obsessed with this series! I read the whole thing (three books) in about four days and I am bursting with excitement for the movie, which is coming out on March 23 of this year!

2. Scrapbooking
I've never really thought much about scrapbooking, but I recently started checking out the stuff over at Two Peas in a Bucket and I'm loving it! So much pretty paper and little do-dads and all sorts of fun things. I'm really excited to get started on some layouts when I get back to school and my big desk.

3. My Smash Book
I'm in love with my Smash Book! It's a great way to get started with scrapbooking or just have some low-pressure fun with the extra things you collect. And believe me, I collect a *lot* of random stuff that's just waiting to be Smashed!

4. Sales at Urban Outfitters
I love UO, and I'm not sure why, but I never paid any attention to the sales. I don't own any Urban Outfitters clothes (come to think of it, I'm not sure I've ever actually bought anything at UO, ever) because it's all too expensive. But thanks to this post on Little Chief Honeybee and the UO iPhone app, I've been alerted to the great deals they have! I'm looking forward to finally being able to afford their clothes.

5. Arrows and Chevrons
Chevrons, I think, are kind of on their way out, but I still love them. I've also been loving all sorts of arrow motifs on everything from jewelry to stamps to home decor.

6. Leather
The look of leather, particularly brown leather, is one of my favorite things right now. I got these brown leather-look boots from Target recently, and I take any excuse to wear them. Brown leather (even fake!) looks so good with so much.

7. Mini-books
Ever since I started reading Elise Blaha-Cripe's blog, I have been in love with mini-books! I've been working on my own fall mini-book using the prompts from Kara's Fall In Love class and maybe one day I'll actually finish it so I can share it here!

8. Capes
Capes like Elsie is wearing in this post and this one from Red Velvet (sold out, sadly) have had my heart lately.

9. Free Printables
Since I've been working on my Smash Book a little like a "traditional" scrapbook, I've been looking for things to print and cut out and paste in there, and I've decided that free printables are the best things ever, especially the journal cards from Creativity Prompt. I love that I can save them and print them whenever I need to, and I have pretty much an endless supply! I'll never run out of something I love, and I don't have to pay big bucks for journal card pads at a craft store!

10. Re-organizing
With my new love for scrapbooking, I've acquired some new packs of paper, some punches, new adhesive and other little tools and things. And, all my craft supplies have been hanging out in a cardboard box since I moved last summer! So I decided it was high time to reorganize and get my things in a place that would remind me to actually use them! I bought a six-drawer plastic cabinet (not the ideal, but I work with what I can!) at Wal-Mart the other night and I'm working on getting my things in order. It's fun!

Project 365: Week 1

2012-01-08T08:00:00.000-06:00

a happy message on the fridge, lots of Starbucks, dominoes and pretty perfume at my grandma's house, Smash Book-ing, and a Texans playoffs win

I've decided to make another attempt at Project 365 (+1) this year! So far, so good! I'm using my iPhone and the Project 365 app to keep track of the photos. I'm going to try to make a post like this every Sunday morning! Wish me luck!

Temptation

2012-01-07T08:00:00.000-06:00

So, I'm a member of Craftster, a popular crafty forum. One of my favorite things to do on the forum is join the fun themed swaps! There are all sorts for all different books, movies, bands, TV shows, and crafty genres.

Recently, I was able to join a swap based on two things: the book Good Omens (by Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett), which is one of my favorites, and the concept of "one tiny thing", which is a popular swap concept on Craftster. Basically, it means that you and your partner send off just one "tiny" thing, just 4 inches cubed or smaller. Sounds easy, right? But the point is that you put enough effort in your tiny thing to make it a wonderful little gift for your partner, even though it's so small.

Well, for my tiny thing, I decided to do an embroidery hoop. "Hoopla" is pretty popular on Craftster, too. That means that the piece is finished on the back and meant to be hung on the wall like a piece of art. My partner had some on her Pinterest, and I love to embroider but haven't done much, so I decided to go for it. I drew this design, which is the demon Crowley in his serpent form, on the branch of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil with the apple he later offers to Eve to eat.

I took photos every time I finished a section or stopped for the night. I thought it would be fun to show the whole progression.

This piece was done in a 4 inch hoop. It's not perfect (the fabric stretched weirdly and ended up wrinkly), but I'm very proud of it. It's all done in backstitch; I tried to make it look like scales and tree bark. The apple is filled with satin stitch. The back is finished with a piece of red felt, but I didn't include that picture.

My partner loved it, and I was very happy with the item I received, as well (a tiny notebook with an embroidered cover). It was a wonderful swap!

I highly recommend heading over to the swap board on Craftster if you're interested in swapping! It's a lot of fun. You have to have been a member for awhile and have a certain number of posts before you can swap, so get over there and check out some of the awesome crafts! There are some amazing artists and crafters on the board.

I'm already signed up for my next swap, in fact: The Hunger Games! I'll probably be posting about that one when it concludes, as well. The Hunger Games series is a new love of mine, if you couldn't tell from this post.

Smashing.

2012-01-05T08:00:00.003-06:00

I was lucky enough to be the recipient of two of the popular Smash Books for Christmas! I got a pink one from my sister and brother-in-law, and a black one from my mom! I also got a bunch of the accessories, which I'm very excited about. My favorite it the Smash tape, which is a lot like washi tape, as far as I can tell! I've been wanting some washi tape for a long time.

But anyway, I thought I would share the first few pages I did!

There you go! I'm having a lot of fun with this.

Have you been smashing? I'd love to see your pages!

Edited to add some sources:
- the "currently" card, the checkbox list, the "traditions" card, and the little tabbed pocket were downloads from Creativity Prompt, which is a great place for free printable journal cards
- the calendar is part of one found on the blog Decor8rGirl; I cut out just the January part in Photoshop
- the way I've edited my photos here is inspired by Danielle of Thompson Family-Life

Meet the Sponsors!

2012-01-03T08:00:00.000-06:00

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I'm very happy to welcome Katie as a Divine Chaos sponsor! Get ready for more fun stuff from her later in the month, and go check out her awesome blog in the meantime!

One Little Word

2012-01-01T15:32:00.002-06:00

So, lately I've been getting more into scrapbooking and the scrapbooking community. Now, when you start surfing the scrapping sections of the Internet, there are three things you learn about, particularly around the end of the year: December Daily, Project Life, and One Little Word.

Well, December Daily and Project Life are two things that I'm filing away to attempt later, but One Little Word appealed to me a lot. I decided not to take Ali Edward's One Little Word class this time around (given my current budget and obvious issues with actually finishing online classes), but I did choose a word:

One of my biggest problems with not getting things done is my lack of ability to focus. I find myself wanting to do several projects at once and ending up not doing any of them. Or, I'll get excited and start something only to lose interest half way through. I spend too much of my time thinking about what I want to do (often while goofing off on the computer or watching TV) and not near enough time sitting down and working on things!

So, in 2012, I'm going to work on my FOCUS. I have a few goals for the new year, as well as one special project I'm working on (I'll be talking more about that soon!), and I just know that I won't get anything done until I sit myself down and learn to focus on things and actually finish them.

Since I'm not doing the class, I won't have any prompts to guide me, but I do want to make a post each month to reflect on how my word is helping me in my life. I'll tag them all so you can follow along, and I'm adding a button with my word on it to my sidebar, so that I can be reminded of it often. Wish me luck!

And, of course, Happy New Year to all of you! 2011 was pretty awesome, and I'm looking forward to another great year with all of you.

Year in Review! July to December

2011-12-31T08:00:00.000-06:00

In July, I went on a very magical date with Ryan and wrote a little about my long-term relationship with Harry Potter here.

August was a super busy month! I visited some beautiful spots in the mountains of Arkansas with Ryan and my uncle's family, I moved into my dorm at UNT, and I started The Creative Setup.

In September, I posted a fun DIY bunting decoration and tried my hand at a video tutorial for the first time!

As part of my birthday weekend in October, Ryan took me to a wonderful little drive-in movie theater in Ennis, Texas. I also bought myself a new iPhone and started making wallpapers for it!

In November, I was able to attend my first hockey game ever! Go Dallas Stars! I spent the month writing a novel for NaNoWriMo and for the first time ever, I made it to 50,000 words and won!

December has been a huge month for me! I started writing for Gadchick, made it through a whole semester (my first!) of college, and started offering ad space here! And of course, I had a great Christmas with my family (I baked pumpkin bread for the first time to give out as gifts) and am looking forward to another awesome year here on the blog and out there in the "real world".

Year in Review! January to June

2011-12-29T10:48:00.003-06:00

In January, I was a part of my school's senior musical, The Wiz. I also celebrated my second anniversary with my boyfriend, Ryan. On my blog, I celebrate something else: my 100th post! I hosted a weeklong blog party!

In February, I had fun buying fabrics for an art piece for a state competition. Here on the blog, I announced that my Etsy shop would be opening in March!

In March, I had a bit more fun here on my blog! I posted two fun semi-DIYs: my decorated Instax album, and my cute prom invitation!

In April, I was the lucky recipient of some Harry Potter crafts through a swap on Craftster. I also went through some old photos with my mom and sister, and I posted a few of my favorites here!

In May, I said finally said goodbye to high school. I guess I was busy, because I didn't post anything on this blog during that whole month!

In June, I went on a wonderful date with my boyfriend in Houston. I took lots of pictures and posted my favorite moments here on the blog!

And that was the first half of the year! Stay tuned for July though December!

The Creative Setup: Michelle

2011-12-27T12:30:00.002-06:00

1. Who are you, and what do you do?
My name is Michelle Koechle and I am a wedding and senior portrait photographer in Flagstaff, Arizona. My business is Michelle Koechle Photography. Just a few links:

http://www.michellekoechle.com
http://www.michellekoechleblog.com

2. What hardware are you using?
Being a photographer, I use a lot of hardware. I interpret hardware as esentially being equipment. I use a lot of different photography equipment starting from my camera body and ranging to all sorts of different lenses. I use an iMac for my office computer.

3. And what software?
The main software I use is Adobe Lightroom and Photoshop. For my website, I use Showit and Redcart and SmugMug for uploading galleries. I also use various Microsoft Office software like Excel and Word.

4. What would be your dream setup?
Hmm, that's tough! I suppose I already have my dream set up. The only thing I would change is having more lenses and and office large enough for two desks to face each other- one for me and one for my second shooter.

~*~*~*~
This is a feature in which I invite bloggers and other creative people to share what technology they use to get their jobs done. These interviews are unedited, except for adding links to product pages in some cases. Photos are property of interviewees.

I am always looking for more people to interview! If you would like to participate, please email me at emdismukes[at]yahoo[dot]com. I hope to hear from you!

Christmas came a little early!

2011-12-24T15:17:00.003-06:00

I've already received three of my presents! The headphones I purchased with money that my grandmother sent me in my Christmas card, and the Vera Bradley pouch and Florence+the Machine CD came from my boyfriend, Ryan.

Merry Christmas, everyone! I hope all of you out there are having a wonderful holiday season!

What I'm reading: 12.23.11

2011-12-23T06:00:00.001-06:00

I haven't done one of these in a long time! I really haven't had a lot of time to read during the school year, though. But now that I'm on break, I'm reading everything I can get my hands on! So I wanted to share. I'm trying to see how many books I can read during this month-long holiday. So far, I've completed four in six days!

So far:
1. The Girl Who Chased the Moon, Sarah Addison Allen
I grabbed this book off the buy two, get the third free, table at Barnes and Noble on a whim. The back of the book talked about a girl returning to her mother's mysterious home town after her mom's death and finding a room with changing wallpaper, dancing lights in the backyard, and a neighbor baking cakes of hope. It was an intriguing enough pitch, and the book didn't disappoint. It's a little bit fantasy and a little bit romance with a whole lot of Southern charm. I finished it in two days because it really drew me in.
The Girl Who Chased the Moon: A Novel

2. The Hunger Games, Suzanne Collins
For some reason, it took me a really long time to get myself to read this. But I finally decided to pick it up and boy, am I glad I did. The premise is a little revolting: as the result of a long ago war, each of the twelve districts that formed in what used to be the US must give up two tributes, a boy and a girl between the ages of 12 and 18, to participate in The Hunger Games, a nationally televised event in which the 24 tributes will fight to the death until only one remains. And indeed, parts of the book were a little sickening. But there's no doubt that the story of Katniss, the female District 12 tribute who volunteers to save her sister's life, and Peeta, the male District 12 tribute who confesses his love for her unexpectedly, is extremely captivating. I had to force myself to take breaks from reading this one.
The Hunger Games

3. Catching Fire, Suzanne Collins
Some reviews say that this book, like most "middle of the trilogy" books, is the worst of the three, but I disagree. It's just as much of a page-turner as the first, although some of the action is a little rushed and a lot happens in the past tense, which isn't ideal for this kind of book. But I still loved it just as much as the first and finished it in about 7 hours. I couldn't wait for the next day to start on the third and final book, because of how the end of this one pretty much left Katniss's and Peeta's fates (and those of all of District 12) hanging in the balance.
Catching Fire (The Second Book of the Hunger Games)

4. Mockingjay, Suzanne Collins
The final book in this trilogy was wonderful. It's honestly hard to explain how amazing I think these books were. This one brings the conclusion, which, despite it's predictable outcome (it's pretty easy to tell who's going to win, just like in any similar book), has enough turns and twists to keep the reader guessing and surprised. Some would disagree, but I thought the ending was great, even the epilogue, which reminded me a lot of the last chapter of the Harry Potter series (and this is by no means an insult). The whole series, really, reminded me a lot of Harry Potter, in subtle ways. I think fans of HP or of Scott Westerfeld's Uglies series would find themselves enchanted by The Hunger Games trilogy.
Mockingjay (The Hunger Games, Book 3)

Next Up:
1. Water for Elephants, Sara Gruen
This one has been on my list forever, especially because of the fact that it started life as a NaNoWriMo novel. I purchased it weeks ago on my Kindle when it was on sale for $2.99, but just never started it. So, now that I'm finished tearing through The Hunger Games trilogy, I wanted to focus on something a bit more casual, and I figured this would be a good place to start! I've already started it (I'm on chapter 5, I think) and I like it so far. Circuses scare me a little, but it's interesting seeing it from the view of a college-educated would-be vet who kind of stumbles into working for one. I think this one will go well.
Water for Elephants: A Novel

2. Uglies, Scott Westerfeld
I've read this one before, and I loved it. I've read the entire series, in fact, and I plan on rereading all of them this holiday. These tell another tale of a futuristic, oppressive government and the ordinary, reluctant 16-year-old girl who sets off a revolution. I like this one (the first one) and Extras (the fourth and final). The second one, Pretties, is okay, but I'm not looking forward much to the third, Specials. That one is the real end of the main girl, Tally's storyline, and the only thing I hated about these books was what happened to her, realistic as it might be. But regardless, this series is great, and I look forward to finishing it for a second time.
Uglies (The Uglies)

And that's it! Look for further updates soon! Other than a project I'm working on with Natalie that I can't say much about yet, my only real plan until school starts again is to finish lots of books.

Disclaimer: The above links are Amazon Affiliate links. So yes, I will get a little bit of money if you purchase any of the books from those pages. But these really are books I've read and loved (especially The Hunger Games), so be assured that I would never recommend anything to my readers if I wasn't fully behind whatever it was.

What's in my bag?

2011-12-20T14:28:00.002-06:00

I've been meaning to do this for awhile, and I finally got around to it!

Bag: Deux Lux for American Eagle
Contents: Sketch book; pen, pencil and eraser; earbud headphones; otter wallet from the Houston Zoo; iPhone 4S, case by Agent18; about a thousand keys

I love this bag! It's awesome. It was a gift from my boyfriend on Black Friday! It's perfect for carrying around all my stuff!

Would you like to sponsor Divine Chaos?

2011-12-15T06:00:00.000-06:00

I'm offering up sponsor spots in my sidebar for the month of January!

This blog has been growing lately and my dedication to making it successful has grown, as well! I know how wonderful it is to realize that people are actually interested in the things you write, so I want to try to reach out to any other blogs out there (especially the small ones!) and help other bloggers get their feet in the door of this amazing online world!

To be completely honest, I understand how hard it sometimes is for new-ish bloggers to justify spending money on advertising. I didn't sponsor another blog until this past summer, even though I've had this blog for over a year now. But advertising can be great for your blog, especially if you have (or are planning to have) any kind of shop or other indie business to go along with it. And that's why I'm offering ad space for low rates (and even free!) starting next month.

If you're interested, please check out my new Sponsor page! It has my rates and all other important information regarding the subject.

I hope some of you decide to take the plunge and sponsor me! This is one of the many great ways to form connections in the blog world.

iPad Giveaway over at Little Chief Honeybee!

2011-12-13T11:01:00.005-06:00

Just in case any of you don't read Kaelah's blog, Little Chief Honeybee (which I greatly recommend!), I thought I would let you all know about this awesome giveaway she's doing this month! You can find the post about it here. She's giving away a white WiFi iPad 2! If you're lusting after this device as much as I am, hop over there and get on entering! :D

(This blog post counts as one of my entries in the giveaway. Go ahead and scroll down to see my other recent posts!)

My second semester at college!

2011-12-13T06:00:00.000-06:00

In case any of you were wondering, this is what I'll be doing next semester! Italian every day, just like this semester, plus US History (a requirement) MWF, Environmental Science (also a requirement!) TuThF, English 2500 MW, and Contemporary Moral Issues TuTh. It'll be an interesting semester, at least. And I'm so glad that this time, my days start at 9:30 at the earliest and always end at 3:00!

In other news, I took my Italian final yesterday and I think I did pretty well! I have Geology today, which will be a cinch. Art and Anthropology are tomorrow, and then English on Friday. And then I get to head home for the holiday! I can't wait. Wish me luck!

Here's what you missed: 12/4 to 12/10

2011-12-11T18:27:00.003-06:00

I decided to take a cue from my sister and do a little "week in review post, like she does on the blog she and my brother-in-law share. I think it's a pretty cool way to talk about the smaller things that go on during the week, stuff that might not be big or interesting enough to blog about on its own!

This week, I:

ate leftovers from Chuy's (yum!)
woke up to the tiniest bit of snow on the ground
got in the elevator to find some very comfy furniture
received the cutest keyboard cover in the mail
finally used this my "yarn bag"
bundled up to keep warm in the 30 degree weather
had fun with this color changing cup I got for free.

It was a pretty good week!

Just a heads up, this coming week will be kind of slow, but I'm hoping that I'll be able to fit some blogging in around studying for finals and finishing up my swap project! So stick with me and I'll be back before you know it! I'm really excited because on Friday, I'll be officially home for the holiday, and I have a lot of plans (some related to this blog and my Etsy shop, which I've been neglecting)!

A little collection.

2011-12-09T12:39:00.005-06:00

So, I'm sure some of you remember the snack box I altered awhile back to hold my various bits and scraps of paper, right? (If you don't know what I'm talking about, check out my video DIY here.)

Well, I was looking through the box today and I pulled out all of my tickets and ticket stubs from movies and sports games and things, and I thought I would share my little collection with you!

That isn't all of them, but it was my favorite photo! My collection (the part I have here with me, at least) includes tickets from:

four UNT football games
the Sarah Vowell talk/book signing
Sea World
the Bayou City Art Festival
an Astros game
a Stars game
13 different movies, including both the Harry Potter 7 pt.2 midnight showing and the 3D IMAX.

I have a weird compulsion to hang on to tickets and ticket stubs, even though I never do anything with them. Once I scan these, though (so I can use them in my digital scrapbook later), I'm going to put them in my scrap journal (my "smash book", which is really just a little kraft paper spiral I've had forever).

Married to Murder (a book review!)

2011-12-07T06:00:00.000-06:00

Through NaNoWriMo and my Creative Writers' Setup series, I had the great pleasure of meeting Jennifer Oberth, who writes and publishes mysteries in the form of short stories on SmashWords, a great eBook publishing service. After I did her interview, Jennifer kindly invited me to read the first story in her series of Ella Westin mysteries and contribute a review to the blog tour she's hosting.

Well, I love to review books, and I'm always up for a good mystery, so of course I said yes!

As a disclaimer: I was given a coupon to acquire this book for free. However, my words and opinions are fully my own. I just want to assure my readers that my reviews are always completely honest.

So, I signed up on SmashWords and downloaded my copy of Married to Murder right away. It only took a few moments and a couple of clicks to pull it up in the iBooks app on my iPhone. I read the whole thing in one sitting, pretty much. It was short, but it was a great, humorous little mystery.

Here's the short description from the website (think of it as the back cover copy on a physical book): "Ella doesn't recall adding 'solve a murder' to her bridal to-do list but when she stumbles over the body of her matron of honor, she has no choice; her groom is the only suspect. Throw in a deaf hairdresser, a ruined wedding cake and a not so retired pirate and Ella wants to throttle everyone in sight. Can she catch the killer before the wedding is called off? Or will she be Married To Murder?"

Like I said, it was a quick read, but a good one. The main character, Ella, is witty and funny, and I had several real laugh out loud moments. The nature of the short story sort of plunks you down right in the middle of the action, but that's not a problem at all. Oberth gracefully introduces characters and explains their relationships to each other without taking the reader out of the action. And the mystery is great. I don't want to give anything away, but there's a great twist at the end! I loved that it progressed quickly but kept the solution to the mystery hidden until practically the very last page. All in all, I would recommend this! I'm excited for the next few stories.

Married to Murder can be found here for only $0.99!

(By the way, I'd like to thank Jennifer for including me in her blog tour and say hi to everyone here from her blog! Thanks for visiting!)

This week...

2011-12-04T16:29:00.002-06:00

Today begins the last week of classes before Finals Week, so I'll be busy (I hope) studying for my finals and finishing the last group project I have for Italian.

I'll still be posting here over the next two weeks! Don't worry. I've got a couple posts planned that I'm excited about!

I'm not very excited about these next 14 days, but I'm looking forward to heading home for the holidays!

A holiday treat for you!

2011-12-03T12:13:00.004-06:00

With December officially upon us, I decided to design a few new simple wallpapers for my iPhone to show a little holiday spirit! I went with a sort of candy cane pattern in a few different colors!

Download here:
|red|red+green|mint|pink|blue|

I hope you like them! I have a few more in the works, plus some computer desktop wallpapers, so check back soon for those! And happy December!

Gadchick: Issue One!

2011-12-02T14:12:00.002-06:00

I am very pleased to announce that the first issue of Gadchick, a wonderful online technology magazine for women, is now on the virtual shelves!

click the cover to read and subscribe!

I'm very excited about the future of this project, so please subscribe and tell all your friends! For a little background, check out the original post about the project here, on Our City Lights. Also take a look at the Gadchick blog, which is updated with different kinds of stories all the time!

And be sure to take a look at the article I wrote, The Cellphone Writer! I had a lot of fun writing it and I'm very proud to have the opportunity to be an official member of the Gadchick staff.

I finished!

2011-12-01T06:00:00.001-06:00

I won! I did it! It was a lot of work, and my novel is nowhere near finished, but I made it to 50,000 words on the 30th of November, around 5:30 PM!

I'm so happy, and a little relieved. I have a lot to do over the next few weeks (a swap item I desperately need to finish, on top of some other crafting I've been putting off, and studying for exams) so I've decided that I'm putting my novel away until I finish my last exam on December 16th. Once I'm back home for the holidays and have had some time to relax, I'm going to keep writing! My plan is to finish the story and do at least some basic editing and cleaning up of the plot before the summer, because as a NaNoWriMo winner, I get to order 5 bound copies of my novel from a company called CreateSpace! How cool is that? Even if the novel is still in the editing process by the time the offer expires, I'm getting those five copies. I can't wait!

NaNoWriMo Meme: Day 30

2011-11-30T18:00:00.000-06:00

Share a link to either your NaNo profile or a location on the internet where your story can be found. If someone offered to beta read for you, would you be willing to do the same for them during the subsequent editing process?

My NaNo profile is here.

Unfortunately, I can't offer my services as a beta reader right now. My novel is far from being finished, but I'm putting it away for the next two or three weeks before I go back to keep writing. I need some time to craft and study and hang out with my friends again.

NaNoWriMo Meme: Day 29

2011-11-29T18:00:00.000-06:00

Name one thing in which you indulged as a treat to keep yourself motivated and writing that you wouldn’t otherwise have done.

Nothing in particular, really. Though I did decide at the beginning of the month that I'm going to spend about $20 of the birthday money I got from my grandmother at the end of October. I tend to obsessively save money, so even though it's my own money, whatever I buy is still going to be a real treat.

The Creative Writer's Setup: Jennifer

2011-11-29T06:00:00.000-06:00

1. Who are you, and what do you write?
I’m Jennifer Oberth - cat lover, vegan, anglophile and TV Western buff. I live in Chicago and I write mysteries. Humorous mysteries. I’ve written a series of western novels set 50 miles outside of Chicago (or, as I like to call them, mid-westerns). I’ll start publishing those in 2012. The first, Masked Rider: Origins, came out of my very first NaNoWriMo. (I won!) For this November, I’m writing the 8th installment. They’re humor/mystery/adventure/mid-westerns. (How’s that for categorization?)

I also write the Ella Westin Mysteries. Married To Murder, Honeymoon Homicide and the soon-to-be-published, Toxic Train. They’re also humor/mystery but they’re short stories and set in 1827 – about 40+ years before the first Masked Rider book. The cool thing about this series is how it relates to the novels. (Ella & Joe Westin are the grandparents of the main characters of the Masked Rider.)

I have a brand new series, the Georgia H. Mysteries coming soon and they’re also short story mysteries and have a different kind of quick/harsh humor. Georgia and Virginia are two mismatched women who go around solving crime. It’s set in contemporary times and has no Westins in them.

2. What hardware are you using?
Pens. Lots and lots of mostly blue pens. I write all my first drafts by hand. During NaNoWriMo, I use a red pen to count up my words. (Yes, I’m crazy. I write by hand and then count each word up to the 50,000 challenge.)

I also have a Dell laptop PPO5L which I use almost exclusively for my writing. (I have been known to play Sims on it – Sims 3 by Electronic Arts and there are lots and lots of Westins in it!)

My desktop computer is an amalgamation of different products. I’ve got an xpc, an HP and a Kodak printer and I absolutely adore my FreeAgent Seagate 1TB portable storage unit. My computer has become my backup while this thing just won’t fill up!

I’ve also got the Tardis USB HUB which is fun.

Oh, and during writing time – sans computer and computer equipment - I use my handy dandy RCA CD player so I can listen to movie and TV soundtracks while I write. (No lyrics for me.) And I couldn’t possibly do NaNoWriMo (or write in the winter) without my personal space heater, a Holmes Tower Heater with automatic shut off. Chicago winter? I’d be ridiculous to write without it.

3. And what software?
I use Microsoft Office 2003. I’m not a fan of the updates – why do they change everything around and hide the buttons I’m so used to using? I’ll stick with 2003 until I’m forced – kicking and screaming – to update.

4. What would be your dream setup?
A computer and software that WORKS. I’m serious - I have problems with computers wherever I go; from my first job to my personal life just trying to check e-mail.

I’d love to get one of those standing desks or treadmill desks because I can’t sit as long as writing/editing/formatting takes. (I get up constantly just to wander around.)

My office would be a study, like something you’d imagine out of Sherlock Holmes; dark furnishings with plenty of light and lots of pictures on the walls. One wall would be lined with books and have a little spiral staircase that leads to another level of nothing but books neatly stacked on deeply stained wooden shelves that wrap around the room. (The library at Barat College was like this.) And a big ol’ fireplace would take up another wall, of course.

I’d also have a huge desk that held no computer equipment so I could spread my notes, papers, files and everything book-related over the top and see everything at once.

And a superfast computer that worked without issue. Did I mention that?

~*~*~*~
This is a special version of a popular feature in which I invite writers and fellow NaNoWriMo participants to share what technology they use to get their jobs done. These interviews are unedited. Photos are property of interviewees.

All the interviews can be found here.

NaNoWriMo Meme: Day 28

2011-11-28T19:44:00.001-06:00

Name one thing you shafted all month in favor of participating in NaNo.

Blogging for real.

Sorry, guys. :(

I'll be back in just a few days! I promise!

NaNoWriMo Meme: Day 26

2011-11-26T18:00:00.000-06:00

Was any research involved (historical or otherwise) in your NaNo prep?

Not really! I'm pretty much making things up as I go along. I might do some research of a sort when I go back to do the editing once the novel is finished.

NaNoWrimo Meme: Day 25

2011-11-25T18:00:00.000-06:00

What are the names of at least two of your main characters? How did you choose their names?

My main female character is named Rose, and my main male character is named Noah.

I usually just give characters names whenever they come to me. I have always liked the name Noah, so I decided to use that for the male character this time around. As for Rose, originally she was raised by her grandmother and I wanted an old-fashioned kind of name, and I really liked the use of "Rosie" as a nickname for something. The only "long" version of the nickname "Rosie" that I really liked was Rosalyn, but that reminded me of Twilight, which made it a no-go. So I settled on just plain Rose in the end.

The Creative Writer's Setup: Karen

2011-11-25T06:00:00.000-06:00

1. Who are you, and what do you write?
My name is Karen R. Thorne, and I am a Visionary/metaphysical novelist -- Visionary Fiction for a New Paradigm.

All my work focuses on a greater spiritual (not religious) message. It favors choosing love over hate, compassion over scorn, peace over violence.

2. What hardware are you using?
I work primarily on a Gateway netbook running Linux Mint 8 Helena. I use a separate wireless ergo keyboard and wireless mouse, so I have an ergonomic setup wherever I go.

3. And what software?
After trying many approaches, including LyX, I solely use OpenOffice Writer for everything--including my covers.

I dabbled in the various "how-to-write-a-novel" softwares, like Storybook, Story Writer, etc. but found all they did were distract me from the actual writing. Character sheets I only find useful for keeping track of what color eyes or an address, but I don't fill them out in advance.

4. What would be your dream setup?
I pretty much have it! The only thing that would make it total writer's heaven would be a faster processor, so I could do things quicker. That. and making so much money from my writing that I'd never have to work a day job again so I could write full time!!!

~*~*~*~
This is a special version of a popular feature in which I invite writers and fellow NaNoWriMo participants to share what technology they use to get their jobs done. These interviews are unedited. Photos are property of interviewees.

All the interviews can be found here.

NaNoWrimo Meme: Day 22

2011-11-22T18:00:00.000-06:00

If you’ve participated in or won NaNo before, what happened to your other novel efforts? Still in the revision process/querying publishers/scrapped it immediately/etc.

I've participated in NaNo several times, and have never won. All of my previous efforts have been scrapped. Other than this summer's unfinished Camp NaNo project, none of them were good enough to consider digging out of the depths of my room or my old computer hard drive, either.

The Camp NaNo attempt still resides in my Dropbox, and may one day be picked up again, when I decide I'm ready to write a really character driven adventure story, which is what that turned out to be.

The Creative Writer's Setup: Sid

2011-11-22T06:00:00.000-06:00

1. Who are you, and what do you write?
I am Sid Cocain (pronounced Koh-kahn). Yeah, I know ;) Im a freelance writer, within the visual arts and, most recently, music. I write articles for magazines in Europe and the States about art, artists, trends, music and cover related news once in a while. Ive also started a blog, and I write short stories as well but mostly, unfinished. Theres a couple I'd like to develop into books (hence the NANO) :)

2. What hardware are you using?
Hmm...well I picked up a new desktop PC from Medion (I despise Apple) pretty recently. She is, as the French would say, le bombe. She carries an Intel i7 processor and runs at 3.40GHz, and 6 gigs of RAM. I just got that from my 'settings'. Liquid lightning compared to my old (and very dear) HP dv9500 laptop, who is becoming quite the senile grandmother of the house. She has been around the block with me though, I wrote almost everything on her. I'm gonna keep her even if (when) she finally sparks her last.

For my travels, either to continents or coffee shops, I use my netbook, a little Asus EeePC with an Intel Atom 1.67GHz processor. Most of my first-drafting happens on her, before I take it to my desktop for editing and final drafts.

I also have an IBM 560E thinkpad - which is what I used to write my first NANO! Trouble is, her only accessible port is a 3.5 floppy drive and dial-up modem, so the novel (56000 words) is stuck in there, and I cant get it out!

I have one treasure - my digital recorder! How I managed without this I will never know (just got it last year). Its an Olympus WS-500M and probably the most important tool for me. I just use it more and more...I got it for interviews initially, but have recently found myself taking it almost everywhere. Sometimes when conversations get interesting I'll switch her on...even just talking into it walking down the street, like ideas that I can work into my stories.

Entertainment wise, I have an AC Ryan media centre for streaming. I love series, especially British comedies, I fell out with movies because there is just so much crap happening (why does Hollywood make bad remakes of good movies? Why dont they make good remakes of bad movies?) but thats my rant over. I dont watch a lot of TV so when I do, I like it to be good.

The only other thing is of course, my phone. Nokia N79. I need a sturdy phone because I can be a clutz, and I tried one of those HTC super-slim smartphones but all it took was a drop down a toilet to kill it. These things could be flushed, sunken in sewage then swallowed by a big fish and you could still pick up your email.

Finally - I got myself a present of a new camera, 2 days ago. A Nikon D5000. I could say I needed it because I broke my last one (too heavy on the 'experimental' photography) but really it was just a splurge :)

3. And what software?
I use Word, ranging from Office 2010 to Office 95 (on the IBM). Thats whats so nice about Word - even spanning 16 years the layout and buttons have barely changed, and I can jump from version to version (if need be) with little hassle.

I use SnagIt also, which is the best image capture tool I know. I do dabble in street art so use this to grab some pics from the internet, but mostly for the images of the photographers and artists I write about. I quickly take the ones from their websites that flow best through the piece, saving them some hassle of digging out loads and sending them. They also get to approve the final draft, so any hi-res images that are needed are finalised then. I like seeing the image im writing about in the article, so my words can incorporate them and make them a part of its flow, rather than being like a stepping stone.

I dont know if internet counts as software...but I'm pretty active on Facebook and Twitter (@sidcocain), and am a huge fan of StumbleUpon (the amount of cool art and inspiration, life and...things ive found on here is incredible). Im on Wordpress too (www.sidcocain.wordpress.com) and use that as a kind-of writespace. A lot of my articles are on there, a bit of bad poetry and some other bits and pieces of writing. I've discovered Writers Out and Goodreads recently as well...its difficult to plan the time away from the computer sometimes!

4. What would be your dream setup?
My ideal setup...to be honest, I reckon Im pretty close to it just now. I dont need anything else, and any improvement would mostly be aesthetic because things run pretty much the way I want them to. Unless we are talking about far-flung future stuff, where I could just think the words onto the page (imagine...typing at 40 words per minute, or thinking at 1000...the editing would be a chronic nightmare, though...). I know what I have is totally upgradable, but it wouldnt make much difference to my writing I think.

Im sure theres gadgets out there that I'll want to try, but just now in terms of setup (and compared to the solo IBM Notebook days) I have it pretty good.

I live in Amsterdam, so a change in climate would be a dream. Oh, and because I live in Amsterdam and its almost November, a PS3 would top the cake!

~*~*~*~
This is a special version of a popular feature in which I invite writers and fellow NaNoWriMo participants to share what technology they use to get their jobs done. These interviews are unedited. Photos are property of interviewees.

All the interviews can be found here.

NaNoWrimo Meme: Day 21

2011-11-21T17:45:00.002-06:00

With about 10 days left to this arguably traumatic experience, what are your plans and goals for your novel, should you successfully complete it?

I'm still way behind at this point, so...I'm hoping I finish it. Although even if I get to 50,000 words by the end of the month, I don't think it'll be finished. I'm at about 25,000 right now and I'm definitely not halfway through the plot.

But! Should I finish, and win, I'm going to attempt to edit it so that I can get my CreateSpace copies. We'll see where it goes from there.

NaNoWrimo Meme: Day 20

2011-11-20T18:00:00.000-06:00

If you could meet one fictional character from any book you’ve ever read, who would it be, and why?

How in the world do expect me to pick just one?

Except, okay. It just came to me: Luna Lovegood, of the Harry Potter series.

Why? Because I love her. I admire her and I look up to her and she is one of the best literary characters I have come across in my entire life. She is a wonderful, gorgeous person, inside and out, and I just want to be like her.

NaNoWrimo Meme: Day 19

2011-11-19T18:00:00.000-06:00

Which authors or books have inspired your own writing the most, and why?

Oh, jeez. Hmm. Well, JK Rowling has inspired me in general, just to imagine and write and to try to create something at least half as magical as what she created for me. Meg Cabot's Princess Diaries inspire my writing a bit, just in the way that they feature a normal girl thrown into an extraordinary situation and they seem to stay pretty realistic, at least in my opinion, which is something I'm striving for.

There is another book that has inspired me in my writing of this novel, but I can't remember the author or the title. It was just a random young adult novel I pulled off the shelf at the book store years ago, about two very different girls who fight over the same fantasy book in the book store and end up inside the world of the book. I'm going for a similar thing here (again, ordinary girl in an extraordinary situation) and I just loved that book, so I keep thinking about it.

Oh, and I've just been reminded of one of my favorite fantasy books, The Two Princesses of Bamarre, by Gail Carson Levine. I love the fantasy world portrayed in that book, and the characters are wonderful and the plot is just amazing. It is surprisingly touching and smart for what is essentially a children's novel.

NaNoWrimo Meme: Day 18

2011-11-18T18:00:00.000-06:00

I accidentally skipped a day and posted the questions for days 16 and 17 on the 15th and 16th, respectively. So here I am, back on track.

Who is the antagonist in your novel? What drives their actions?

My protagonist is named Tristan. Now, I haven't developed him very much, and I'm writing this on the 16th, when I've just decided that he and several other characters are actually from a fantasy universe parallel to our own, so I haven't really decided where I'm going with him yet. What I do know is that he first appears to Rose and the readers as a charming, somewhat wealthy amateur bartender who wants to be a lawyer. He's the antagonist because he wants Rose, and so does Noah, her love interest. I think that, in the fantasy universe, he's the prince of a banished/otherwise destroyed royal family who wants to take Noah's throne. For some reason, he needs Rose to do this, while Noah wants to defeat him and make Rose his queen. Also, they are all some sort of...magical creatures, or beings.

Can you tell I'm making this up as I go along?

The Creative Writer's Setup: Ellen

2011-11-18T06:00:00.002-06:00

1. Who are you, and what do you write?
I'm a 27 year old wannabe novelist living in Dublin, Ireland. I write urban fantasy and occasional historical fiction, and I have high hopes of branching out into YA and travel at some point. So the short answer is that I write whatever takes my fancy!

2. What hardware are you using?
I use an Asus netbook - it's portable, which is great for writing during lunchbreaks at work, or in friends' houses, and the battery life is over six hours (it would be higher if I followed any of those battery-life-optimisation tips!). I have been known to use my old iBook, which is still a great machine even though it's quite slow.

3. And what software?
On my netbook, I use OpenOffice, a free word processing program from Sun Microsystems. On the iBook, I use NeoOffice, which is the Mac-friendly equivalent.

I also love Dropbox, which is a free online storage service. You can upload files via the web or by installing a folder on your computer. The best thing is that if I'm working on my novel on my netbook, for instance, and the novel file is in my Dropbox folder, it will automatically update it, so when I switch on my iBook, I can instantly
access the most up-to-date version. No more emailing files to myself! It's fantastic.

4. What would be your dream setup?
My desk is currently buried under several large piles of clutter and junk, so my dream setup is very simple - I'd like to have enough free time to clear out my junk and uncover my desk! Every year I promise myself that I'll do it over the Christmas holidays and yet it never seems to happen!

~*~*~*~
This is a special version of a popular feature in which I invite writers and fellow NaNoWriMo participants to share what technology they use to get their jobs done. These interviews are unedited. Photos are property of interviewees.

All the interviews can be found here.

NaNoWrimo Meme: Day 16

2011-11-16T18:00:00.001-06:00

In what time period is your novel set? Is it in this world or another?

It is set in this world, in the present time period, though that's not really a huge deal to the novel. It's just a general romance story; the only thing really grounding it in the present is the fact that there are smart phones in use.

Update
As I wrote today, I realized that this story is getting kind of boring. So, about 22,000 words in, I am throwing a twist into the plot: the main male character, and several of the other characters, are actually fantasy creatures from another world parallel to ours. So, parts of it will be set in another world, and an as-of-yet undetermined time period. I'm hoping this will breathe a little life into the story, because if I actually finish this year, I would like it to be at least salvageable. So yay!

NaNoWrimo Meme: Day 15

2011-11-15T18:48:00.002-06:00

At around the half-way point, it bears mentioning that most of us wrimos have other obligations beside simply hitting that elusive word count. What else do you have going on in your life (work, school, children, neurotic pets, etc.), and just how much are you shafting it to win NaNo?

I'm in school (I go to the University of North Texas), so I've got a small amount of homework and such to get done. I've been doing it, though. I've also been hanging out with my friends, and my boyfriend, and this weekend I cleaned my entire dorm room. I've also been taking showers as usual (I hear that's one of the first things NaNo-ers give up).

It's worth mentioning that I am pretty behind on my word count at this point, though. But I am determined to catch up, which is why I have shut myself in my room for the night. I'm already over halfway to my goal of writing 4,288 words tonight (to get me to 20,000), so I'm doing well so far. Though I do need to stop writing this blog post and finish my homework so I can get back to writing.

The Creative Writer's Setup: Teralyn

2011-11-15T06:00:00.000-06:00

1. Who are you, and what do you write?
My name is Teralyn Rose Pilgrim and I like to write historical fiction. I recently finished my final draft of a novel about the Vestal Virgins of Rome and plan on submitting it to agents soon. I'm also an avid blogger at teralynpilgrim.blogspot.com.

2. What hardware are you using?
My situation is unique. I have to be flexible about what computer I work on; sometimes my husband needs the laptop and I have to go on the big computer, sometimes vice versa, sometimes I'm in the library, sometimes I'm at my in-laws', and sometimes I'm at work. I can only use the hardware that's available at the time.

3. And what software?
I'm a plain-Jane Microsoft Word girl, but there is one program I can't live without: Dropbox. It's a folder you can access from any computer. Because I have to use so many computers, it's important for me to be able to access all my documents. Jump drives are a pain and email gets messy; Dropbox is the easiest way for me to edit the documents I need.

4. What would be your dream setup?
I would have one computer at home with one version of Microsoft Word. However, I would still use Dropbox in case my computer files were damaged so I can still access them from another computer.

~*~*~*~
This is a special version of a popular feature in which I invite writers and fellow NaNoWriMo participants to share what technology they use to get their jobs done. These interviews are unedited. Photos are property of interviewees.

All the interviews can be found here.

NaNoWrimo Meme: Day 12

2011-11-12T18:00:00.000-06:00

Imagine you’re behind in your word count goals (even if you’re not) and are going to pull an all-nighter to catch up. Screencap a playlist of inspirational music you would use to get you up to speed.

I am behind on my word count goals. :(

But, oh, another music question. Look, I don't have specific music I listen to! I would probably just pull up iTunes and scroll through album covers until something struck me, or open up Spotify and listen to one of the albums I have saved there.

NaNoWriMo Meme: Day 11

2011-11-11T18:00:00.000-06:00

Ever tried collaborative writing (such as play-by-post roleplaying)? If so, what do you think of it?

I have done this twice in the past. The first time was back when I was really into the show House, MD (on Fox) and I wrote a lot of fan fiction. A popular writer in the fandom asked if anyone would like to do a collaborative project, and I volunteered, and we started working on a project together. Unfortunately, it never went anywhere, though we were both pretty excited about it. That was years ago, and unfortunately all the work I did is locked in obsolete file formats and neither one of us remembers the details of the project now. But it was a lot of fun.

The other time I did that kind of thing was a LiveJournal role-play game thing that I was a part of after the seventh Harry Potter book came out. It was a role-play of the new generation of Harry Potter characters going to Hogwarts. It only lasted a month or two, but it was a lot of fun.

The Creative Writer's Setup: Colin

2011-11-11T06:00:00.002-06:00

1. Who are you, and what do you write?
My name is Colin. I live in Bracknell in England (it's around 30 miles south of London). At school and during my teenage years I used to devour horror books, often buying five or six at a time. My writing reflected those books - and there are still elements of horror in much of my writing today. Eventually it all reached critical mass and I grew bored with houses eating people and giant praying mantises roaming the streets. In my early twenties I managed to become one of Britain's three million unemployed. Which turned out to be quite a good thing. With so much 'free time' I was able to spend hours in my local library. And that was where I discovered the work of Kurt Vonnegut Jr and Richard Brautigan. Breakfast of Champions and Sombrero Fallout introduced me to a whole new take on writing. I realised how narrow-minded I had been. Subsequently, my new writing began to be influenced by these two great American writers and it was probably through them that I began to find my own 'writing voice'. However, I still have not found a 'genre', unless there really is one called 'non-specific' or 'miscellaneous'. My writing is mostly idea-based, with character development secondary. I'm not one for overly convoluted descriptions of scenery. When all is said and done I really just write for myself. I'm not concerned with people liking what I do, I know only that I must follow my own path.

2. What hardware are you using?
Because my PowerMac G5 died last year I've only got my trusty old PowerBook G4 to work on. Horribly out of date I know, but it still works. I plug in a very old Wacom tablet, because I prefer to use the pen rather than the trackpad. Photography is a major interest of mine, and I use a Canon EOS 400D with kit lens and 70-300mm zoom.

3. And what software?
My first NaNo was last year and I decided to take advantage of the special Scrivener trial, which I found to be brilliant as it put everything in one window - previous chapters were just a click away. Even better, it provided an easy way to keep track of my word count. I will of course be using it again this year. When I'm doing my own thing my weapons of choice are QuarkXPress and Photoshop, with Canon's proprietary Digital Photo Professional on hand to deal with RAW conversions. And because I like to cover all creative bases, I mess around with GarageBand and iMovie.

4. What would be your dream setup?
I'd probably go for a 12-Core Mac Pro with a 27" Cinema Display, a 15" MacBook Pro, latest versions of Photoshop & QuarkXPress, the new (and as yet unavailable) Canon EOS-1D X with a ton of lenses, and the space in which to put it all.

~*~*~*~
This is a special version of a popular feature in which I invite writers and fellow NaNoWriMo participants to share what technology they use to get their jobs done. These interviews are unedited. Photos are property of interviewees.

All the interviews can be found here.

NaNoWriMo Meme: Day 10

2011-11-10T18:00:00.000-06:00

How does your love of writing manifest in non-NaNo months?

In this blog, mostly. I used to write a lot of fiction (short stories) but I haven't been writing creatively a lot lately. I love to write for this blog, though, and in my journal.

Next fall I'll have all the prerequisites done to start taking my creative writing classes, though! I'm majoring in English with a concentration in creative writing. I'm super really extremely excited about those classes!

NaNoWriMo Meme: Day 9

2011-11-09T18:00:00.000-06:00

Have you told anyone else you’re doing NaNo this year? Who? What was their reaction?

My closest friends (Cassidy, Nathan, Jessica) know, and are pretty supportive. They all already knew what NaNo was, and Jessica and Nathan had both done it before (Jessica won Camp NaNo over the summer!). So that was good. Nathan asks how it's going sometimes, which is nice.

Ryan also knows, of course! He's worried I'm going to over-stress myself, but he's been pretty supportive as long as I'm getting my homework done before writing, which is sweet of him.

NaNoWriMo Meme: Day 8

2011-11-08T18:00:00.000-06:00

List your current, most up-to-date word count. Are you satisfied with your progress thus far?

As of November 8, 8:05 PM: 9306 words.

I am decently satisfied. I had to skip yesterday (the 7th) because I wasn't feeling well, so now I'm a day behind, but I am trying very hard to catch up. So yay! Wish me luck!

The Creative Writer's Setup: Kaitlin

2011-11-08T06:00:00.001-06:00

1. Who are you, and what do you write?
My name is Kaitlin Branch and I write Fantasy. It's been only six hours since I last wrote, and... oh. Oh, sorry, not at Fantasy writers anonymous here. :) For the most part I focus on novels and series of novels, but I've been known to write short stories and poetry too.

2. What hardware are you using?
I usually bounce back and forth between and HP Pavillion dv6000 and an Acer mini netbook in mauve. Maybe more like Maroon. Anyway, computers.

3. And what software?
My big laptop has Microsoft Office 2007, and I use word from that almost exclusively. Unfortunately, I am too cheap and too lazy to get office on the mini-me (the netbook) and therefore I use either Microsoft works or Open Office... I try to avoid it though because when I get it back into word, the formatting inevitably is erased or messed up. I also use iTunes a lot. It is relevant to my writing as to really get going, I need some music.

4. What would be your dream setup?
My ideal set up would be a small room with a desk, a chair and nothing else. A laptop which was light enough to take anywhere, but also big enough to be a full sized keyboard. Ideally, I would have another, smaller laptop for on the go. Both would have Microsoft Office Word, because I am a die-hard fan for some reason, and using another word processor feels strange. The main laptop would have automatic back up to either net storage or a hard drive. It would be easily sync-able to the mini laptop. As long as we're going ideal, itunes, fabulous headphones, a lock on the dang door, and unlimited music list. Hey, gotta dream, right?

~*~*~*~
This is a special version of a popular feature in which I invite writers and fellow NaNoWriMo participants to share what technology they use to get their jobs done. These interviews are unedited. Photos are property of interviewees.

All the interviews can be found here.

NaNoWriMo Meme: Day 7

2011-11-07T18:00:00.001-06:00

Where’s your favorite place to hunker down and write?

I don't think I really have a favorite (I am very, very bad at picking favorites of anything) but I will list the places I have written so far.

my desk in my dorm room
my pink chair, also in my dorm room
the couch in the lobby of my dorm building
the study room on the fourth floor of my dorm building
Nathan's room, also on the fourth floor of my dorm building
the cyber cafe in the university library
my English class during a discussion of a book I don't like
my Geology class during a lecture about the Marathon Mountains

All of these places have been quite good, too. I look forward to taking my writing elsewhere in the coming weeks. I love having a laptop.

NaNoWriMo Meme: Day 6

2011-11-06T18:00:00.000-06:00

What is your one biggest stressor related to forcing yourself to write at least 50,000 words in a span of 30 days?

I would say...not knowing where the story is going. Although I had great intentions of outlining ahead of time this year, once again I am essentially pulling the plot out of my behind. This is called "pantsing" on the NaNoWriMo forums, in case you weren't aware. And this is really the reason why I have never won NaNo in all my previous years participating. I get stuck eventually and just can't make the plot go anywhere, and eventually I give up and just stop writing all together.

I am, however, determined this year! Really. I want to win, even if it means throwing sanity out the window. Wish me luck.

NaNoWriMo Meme: Day 5

2011-11-05T18:00:00.000-05:00

Name two songs from your playlist that you feel are connected with your novel in some way, and explain how they are.

I actually don't have any kind of writing playlist. I do like to listen to music while I write occasionally, but I've never really been a playlist kind of person. I think I would get bored with it after awhile! I just listen to whatever I feel like listening to when I decide I need some music. Lately I've been listening to the Angels & Airwaves album LOVE, which is one of my favorite albums. In fact, If I hit the minimum word count goal for this Sunday (10,002 words), I am going to buy the new A&A album, LOVE Pt. 2, to celebrate.

I really hope I make that goal; I really want that album.

NaNoWriMo Meme: Day 4

2011-11-04T18:00:00.000-05:00

What genre is your novel? Why did you pick it?

The genre of my novel is romance. It's a romantic comedy, to be exact. At least, that's what I'm going for.

Honestly, I picked it because I just really like reading and watching romantic comedies. Also, while I'm not expecting it to be a total piece of cake to write, I wanted to do something that didn't have some deep, complicated plot that I would need to figure out. I wanted to write something kinda light and a little fluffy, with a nice happy ending and a couple touching moments, and romance seemed the best way to do that!

The Creative Writer's Setup: Emily

2011-11-04T06:00:00.003-05:00

1. Who are you, and what do you write?

Yay! Introductions! My name is Emily Grace Lamontagne, but I can be found on the almighty God that is the internet under a few different names, including Isaiah Moretti and Cassandra Stone. I'm a funny, bubbly, passionate, self-proclaimed smart girl and anybody who knows me (or at the very least has seen me chatting online somewhere) can tell you that I have what can only be considered an unholy obsession with tea.

What do I write? Well, the easy answer is whatever I darn well feel like. Ranging from fanfiction that will never see the light of day to my magnum opus, seven book, one million word project that I've been working on since I was thirteen, I write about pretty much everything and anything.

The actual answer, however, is fiction. Specifically, realistic paranormal / supernatural fiction. My goal with my writing is to make people believe that they could meet a vampire on the subway, or a zombie as they're crossing the street. I'm a fan of multi-genre stories, so I try not to give my stories any specific genre definitions until I'm submitting them to various places both on- and off-line. Since I began writing seriously when I was thirteen (approximately six and a half years ago) I have completed six novels, two hundred and fifty short stories, approximately eighty or so poems, and approximately one thousand flash fiction stories.

Nifty, huh? And really not all that impressive, if you take into account the fact that nothing that I've written has ever (as of yet) been interesting enough to be published ANYWHERE. I won't give up, though. The rejection letters and notices are eventually going to be wallpaper in my Writing Room and if I want to have enough to make it look pretty, I'm going to need more rejection notices, which means I need to submit more, more, MORE!

2. What hardware are you using?

Nine times out of ten, I am using my laptop computer, which is an HP Pavilion dv6 Notebook PC.

.5 times out of ten, I'm using a good old-fashioned pen and a notebook. (Usually when I've forgotten to bring my laptop to work and I want to jot down some story ideas on my break.)

The other .5 times out of ten, I'm working on my typewriter. I got my hands on a vintage typewriter, cleaned it up, got some new ribbon for it, and when I'm working on my artsy things and I want something that's got a more rustic look to it than a computer print-out, I pull out my typewriter and type up whatever I want to frame / glue onto something / turn into a personalized story book.

3. And what software?

For my magnum opus series, I use Liquid Story Binder, which is available from Black Obelisk Software. I downloaded the month-long free trial for National Novel Writing Month a few years back, and I've been hooked ever since. It's so convenient for plotting, planning, outlining, and everything in between. I can even make playlists for my various projects!

For everything fictional not related to my magnum opus series, I work with Microsoft Word. My poetry generally gets shoved into a Windows Notepad file and forgotten about for upwards of a few years before I yank it out and remember that I'm not actually a terrible poet.

4. What would be your dream setup?

A room with Rejection Letter wallpaper, bookshelves for all of my hard-copy resource texts and favourite stories, a kitchenette so I can always have tea, milk, and honey at my fingertips, and an HP Touchsmart computer with an ergonomic keyboard / mouse set and pre-loaded, Deluxe Version of the Liquid Story Binder.

~*~*~*~
This is a special version of a popular feature in which I invite writers and fellow NaNoWriMo participants to share what technology they use to get their jobs done. These interviews are unedited. Photos are property of interviewees.

All the interviews can be found here.

NanoWriMo Meme: Day 3

2011-11-03T18:00:00.000-05:00

Day 3 - Pick one of your female characters. Introduce your readers to her, from her point of view and her words only.

Reader, meet my main female character, Rose.

Hello, everyone. I'm Rose. I'm not great at introducing myself. I always feel a little awkward. I've always been a little awkward in general, to be honest... I graduated from college three months ago with an English degree. I've been living at home and working at a locally owned coffee shop, The Mug and Muffin, but between you and me, I really just want to move to New York City and write a book. I honestly feel kind of weird typing that, because I don't know if it's ever going to happen, and I'm not really even sure if it's a very realistic dream. But there it is. I love to write, anyway. Even if I never make it to the big city, one day I'm going to see my name on the cover of a novel. I've been making up stories for as long as I can remember, and working at a coffee shop that serves some admittedly odd people sometimes gives a person a great deal of inspiration to work with. So even if I end up living in this tiny, boring suburb for the rest of my life, my book will eventually be sitting on the Local Authors shelf at our little bookstore.

This whole thing makes it sound like I have no life. But I guess I really don't. I have a couple friends, but I don't go out a whole lot. I had a few boyfriends in college, but nothing serious, and I haven't dated since the end of my junior year. I go to work and I write, and I dream about New York. That's really all there is.

I'm really bad at writing in first person. Ha ha. Oh well!

A special NaNoWriMo series of interviews...

2011-11-03T13:13:00.003-05:00

In honor of National Novel Writing Month, I would like to introduce a very special edition of The Creative Setup!

For the rest of the month, I will be posting a series of interviews with my fellow NaNoWriMo participants about the things they use to do their writing! I have about two of these interviews set to post each week for the month of November. They're quite interesting, if I do say so myself, and I think they will be interesting even to those of my readers who might not be writers.

I'm very excited about this special series! Look for the first interview to go up tomorrow morning!

NaNoWriMo Meme: Day 2

2011-11-02T18:00:00.000-05:00

Day 2 - What’s the title of your story? Why did you choose the name you did?

As of this writing, I have no official name for my story. I'm not great at titles, and they tend to appear when the work is over (at least, for my shorter stories). When I get some free time or need a break from the actual writing, I'll probably hop over to the Adopt A Title thread on the NaNoWriMo boards and see if anything strikes me.

NaNoWriMo Meme: Day 1

2011-11-01T18:00:00.000-05:00

This is a series of questions (one for each day of the month) written by Tumblr user "matokah". I found it and thought it would be a fun thing to do, but I'll be sharing it here instead of on Tumblr because...I don't really use Tumblr. So! Here's Day 1!

Have you participated in NaNoWriMo before? If so, which years and what end result? If not (or even if so, for that matter), what’s your connection to writing? Why do you want to participate this year?

I have participated nearly every year since my freshman year of high school (I think), including the first Script Frenzy and the first Camp NaNo, this past summer. I have never won. The most I have completed on a single project was about 13,000 words on the novel I started last July.

I love to write. I don't get many original ideas, and I'm not great at the follow through, but I love thinking up characters and doing things with them. I started writing for pleasure a short time after Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince came out, when I discovered the wonderful world of fanfiction. I have been writing pretty steadily since, be it fan-fic, original fiction, newspaper articles, or blog posts. I'm majoring in English with a concentration in creative writing of the fiction genre, even.

I want to participate this year because I am determined to win for once. At the very least, I want to break my previous goal of 13,000 words.

National Novel Writing Month

2011-11-01T06:00:00.000-05:00

Well, I must be crazy, because I'm sitting here at 11:00 PM on October 31 and I'm typing out a little paragraph long summary of what'll happen in (what I hope will be) the first chapter or two of my novel.

I've made attempts at National Novel Writing Month before, but I've never succeeded. This month, my main goal is to break my previous record of about 13,000 words on a single story; my secondary goal is, of course, to reach 50,000 words and hopefully finish the novel.

As of this writing, I have two characters (who are, admittedly, mostly just names) and a very short summary of the beginning of some kind of plat to work on. I really wanted a detailed outline to work with this year but alas, it was not meant to be.

So wish me luck! I'll try to keep you updated!

I've got a treat for you!

2011-10-21T06:00:00.000-05:00

Last Friday, I picked up the new iPhone 4S at my local Best Buy, and I couldn't be happier with my purchase! It's such an upgrade over my 3GS (though I still love that little guy!), with a screen that's still amazing me with its resolution and clarity and a camera that blows my several-years-old point and shoot out of the water.

I'll be posting some photos and things from my new phone soon, but for now I wanted to share a little something I made for my new little buddy: wallpapers!

It's perfectly sized and designed for your iPhone 4 or iPhone 4S lock screen! I love this little phrase and it makes for a great affirmation to look at every time you wake up your phone.

If you like that pink, just click on the image and download the full-size version, then sync it to your phone (it's best to do this through iPhotos and iTunes to get the correct resolution). You can also click on it on your phone and save the full-size version right to your Camera Roll!

If you're not as into to pink as I am, I made up a pack with 9 other colors (including blue, green, red, orange, and yellow) that you can download to your computer from Megaupload here. Make sure you wait for the countdown (under the "Premium Download" button) to finish and turn into the "Regular Download" button. Don't click any other download buttons! I know Megaupload isn't the ideal site to use for this, but it's the only option I have.

I hope you like these! I'm planning on doing some other colors and quotes, so if you have any suggestions or requests, sound off in the comments!

Wanted: More subjects for The Creative Setup!

2011-10-13T06:00:00.001-05:00

This is a feature in which I invite bloggers and other creative people to share what technology they use to get their jobs done. It was inspired by The Setup on which people with technology-related careers or hobbies post about the hardware and software that lets them do their work. I find these interviews very interesting, and I thought it would be very fun to see what my fellow bloggers use for work and pleasure, in terms of technology.

I have done 7 of these interviews (including the one I posted of my own setup), which you can see here. I've had a lot of fun doing these! One of my favorite parts about blogging is connecting with other bloggers and forging new friendships!

This is just a post to let any new readers know that I am always looking for people to interview! I'd love to make some new friends! Please shoot me an email at emilydivinechaos [at] yahoo [dot] com if you're interested! Don't be nervous! I don't bite! :D

October Goals

2011-10-12T06:00:00.000-05:00

A little late, but here you go!

work on my fall book

crochet a hat

finish a book just for fun!

bake something

work with watercolors

Wish me luck! :D

What I've been up to this week

2011-10-11T06:00:00.000-05:00

cheering for the Mean Green football team

crocheting some wristwarmers using this pattern

writing little notes in the tiny book I made

ordering my next iPhone from Best Buy

finally coming up with some goals for October

relaxing

Designing a blog...for you?

2011-10-01T10:50:00.000-05:00

Lately I've been thinking a lot about graphic design and blog designs and how much I love to work with Photoshop and HTML to customize my blog. Last year I was able to take a web design class in which we got to do a little bit of graphics work. That was really my favorite part of the class. This year, I've done a lot of work on my own blog, including trying out some new things with HTML that I've never done before. I'm really happy with my blog right now, but I'm getting "the itch" to work on some new designs anyway.

That brings me to the point of this post: is there anyone out there who would be willing to let me create a new look for their blog? I would do this for free, for the experience and practice. I know there must be bloggers (especially those new to the blogging world) who don't have the knowledge or means to create a blog design they really love, but who aren't quite ready to pay a professional to do it for them. If that sounds like you, I'd love for you to email me!

I will have to limit this to those using Blogger, as I don't have any experience whatsoever with any other blog platform.

I'm willing to work with you to create a one of a kind blog banner/header, graphics for links to other pages (either floating, like the ones I have on the left of my page, or static in the sidebar), and a blog button for you to share with your readers or use if you sponsor another blog. Anything more or less than that is negotiable! I will also be able to work with the layout of your page to a certain extent.

If you're interested in this opportunity, please send me an email at emdismukes[at]yahoo[dot]com and we can begin discussing the project.

I look forward to hearing from someone!

September Goal Check!

2011-09-30T12:53:00.003-05:00

Well, it's the last day of September so I thought I would update you on my goals for the month! I accomplished 3 out of the 5 goals I set for myself!

First, I did add two decorative items to my dorm room, one being the newspaper bunting I posted a DIY about. I also put up a poster that I bought at a sale in the UNT Union. I have a few more plans that I'll be tackling soon, too!

I did drink more water, although my only evidence is that I'm not dehydrated even on the hottest days here. (Ah, Texas autumn...still in the 90s.)

And I worked on the plans for an online class I'd like to teach one day! I'll have more information about that eventually; I'm excited about it but still nowhere near offering it to the public.

I didn't update my Etsy shop (though I did work on a few new items!) and I didn't finish my Ink Blots journal, unfortunately. I'm not going to carry these goals over to next month, but I'm not giving up on them!

October is going to be a fun month! I have some cool things in mind that I'm looking forward to sharing. I'll be back tomorrow with my new goal list!

A DIY in a brand new way...

2011-09-29T11:50:00.000-05:00

I have a video for you today! Isn't that exciting?

A little background, first! I had an envelope bulging with paper scraps and magazine cutouts and movie tickets and business cards and...everything! And I wanted a better way to keep them safe and ready for when I want to journal with them. So I came up with the idea to cover an empty box of Nutty Bars (yum!) with kraft paper so that I could put it up on my bookshelf with my notebooks and it would look like it belonged!

I knew I wanted to do a tutorial of this project, but taking pictures throughout the process would have been a hassle...so I taped it! And now I've edited it down (from 30 minutes to 3!) and sped up some parts and added instructions and music! And I want to share it with you!

(Can you tell I'm excited? This is the first time I've done something like this!)

I call it the Scrap Box DIY because I'm using mine as a box for my paper scraps, but depending on the box you use, it could be for anything you want to store!

The Creative Setup: Kara

2011-09-27T11:50:00.002-05:00

1. Who are you, and what do you do?
My name is Kara. I'm a blogger, photographer, online art journaling/scrapbooking teacher, all-around badass.

2. What hardware are you using?
For photography, I used a Canon 50d and a 50 mm 1.4 lens. I primarily shoot in natural light, but I do like to experiment with using found, artificial light sometimes too! For blogging and art journaling classness, I use a Macbook Pro.

3. And what software?
I use Lightroom and Photoshop CS4. I'm a lover of Camera Raw, Totally Rad Actions, and The Colour Shop actions.

4. What would be your dream setup?
I would love my own studio with a giant workdesk. I would have christmas lights set up and all my art journaling products organized right in front of me. I'd have a grandma couch for photo editing and a corner for backdrops and studio lighting.

~*~*~*~
This is a feature in which I invite bloggers and other creative people to share what technology they use to get their jobs done. These interviews are unedited, except for adding links to product pages in some cases. Photos are property of interviewees.

I am always looking for more people to interview! If you would like to participate, please email me at emdismukes[at]yahoo[dot]com. I hope to hear from you!

Advertise on Divine Chaos!

2011-09-25T12:30:00.000-05:00

Now, I know there are differing opinions of sponsorships and advertising in the blog world. I won't get into that! But I, personally, believe that sponsorships can be very beneficial to both bloggers and readers! One of the best parts of blogging is forming friendships and connections and sponsoring blogs (as well as accepting sponsors and especially following ads from one blog to the next) is a great way to do that!

That's why, in addition to my ongoing button-trade with Rachell of No Mark At All, I would like to send out an invitation to any of my readers to trade blog buttons with me! I think trading is a great way to go in situations like mine; I have readers, sure, but I don't feel justified in charging for ad placement. Trading blog buttons seems a perfect alternative! Both parties benefit.

The first month I'll be accepting trades is November! I know that's a little while in the future, but I want to give myself enough time to get everything straight this first time.

If you're interested, please send an email to emdismukes[at]yahoo[dot]com by October 10. I'll send you a link to a form to fill out so that I can have all your details in order. You will need to have this form sent back to me (it's very easy, via Google Documents) by October 25.

I will introduce all of my sponsors on the first of the month. Each sponsor will also have the opportunity to do a guest post or host a giveaway, or both! I also have a few other ideas for connecting with my sponsors that I'll be bringing out in the future, once I see how this all works!

I really hope to make some new friends and have some fun with all of this!

Keep in mind that I do, of course, have the right to decline any trade request. I hope I don't have to, though!

hello fall...

2011-09-23T18:26:00.002-05:00

hello fall.
hello warm coffee every morning and night.
hello cardigans.
hello scarves and hats.
hello crunchy leaves.
hello pumpkins.
hello brown and gold and orange and red.
hello chilly breezes.
hello extra blankets.
hello thick socks.
hello boots.
hello tights under dresses.
hello october and november.
hello fall<3

The Creative Setup: Natalie

2011-09-20T11:50:00.003-05:00

1. Who are you, and what do you do?
My name is Natalie Malik, and I'm an estimator and engineer at a small town door company, but that's just my money-making job. In my spare time I share art and tutorials on my blog, Awkward & Beautiful, and also tend an Etsy shop full of prints and original art.

2. What hardware are you using?
I'm using an HP Pavilion Slimline computer, a 300GB external hard-drive named Simon, a Wacom Graphire4 tablet for illustrations and handwriting, a crappy VADO mini camcorder that I hardly use, and my 3G iPhone (8GB) named Quinn. Oh, and my lovely Canon Rebel XS with a standard EF-S 18-55mm lens and an EF-S 55-250mm zoom lens.

3. And what software?
For internet, I've always used Firefox, and currently running 4.0. I have Photoshop CS3 for photo editing, and Evernoteto keep up with my random bookmarks, notes, and events. For social networks I use Tweetdeck for Twitter, andInstagram on my iPhone.

4. What would be your dream setup?
A new Canon Rebel body with video capabilities (T3i is what I'm aiming for) with a new lens (Canon EF 28mm f/1.8 Wide Angle Lens). And some day, I do wish for a Macbook Pro, because they are so amazing in every way, and I miss having a laptop. Also, a video-editing software that doesn't glitch up constantly (Movie Maker and I are not on good terms right now). Oh, and lets throw in my own personal studio as well. Mmm, that would be nice.

~*~*~*~
This is a feature in which I invite bloggers and other creative people to share what technology they use to get their jobs done. These interviews are unedited, except for adding links to product pages in some cases. Photos are property of interviewees.

I am always looking for more people to interview! If you would like to participate, please email me at emdismukes[at]yahoo[dot]com. I hope to hear from you!

Newspaper Bunting DIY

2011-09-19T12:30:00.001-05:00

When I moved into my dorm, I mostly came with stuff that I need, rather than things to decorate. I had a few little things to lend some personality to the space (you can see the pictures I took here) but I decided to leave a lot to DIYs. I love decorating and I'm so jealous of people who have wonderful rooms full of creativity and inspiration. So, once I got every unpacked and settled (mostly, at least!), I immediately started brainstorming ideas for decorations.

The first DIY came thanks to two things: a pile of our school's daily newspaper sitting on my fridge, and the popularity of bunting in the blogging world. I love bunting, and I wanted to do a simple version using supplies I had laying around.

This is a really simple DIY. All you need is:

paper for the flags (I used newspaper, but you can use whatever paper you like and have available to you!)

masking tape

embroidery thread (any thin string will do; I would've loved to use baker's twine!)

scissors

First, decide on the shape of your flag. I made a template for mine:

Feel free to print that and use it! You may have to resize it; mine were 1.5x2 inches.
Whatever shape you use, make sure it has the little tab on top, like mine (the part above the dotted line). You'll need that to hang it on the thread!

So, cut out your flags and fold over the tabs. I used 12 flags about an inch and a half wide for a space about 4 feet wide. Cut as many as you think you'll need (you can always cut more!).

Lay them out, front side down. Slide your thread up under the tab and tape the tab down, one flag at a time.

When all the flags are on the thread, hang up your bunting where you want it and clip the extra thread. I taped mine up with masking tape.

You can slide the flags around somewhat (gently!), so you can spread them out and arrange them as you like. They will stay in place once moved, though!

This whole project took me about an hour, and I was watching TV at the same time. It's a fun little project to add some interest to your desk, or maybe a bookshelf or a bulletin board.

Send me an email or leave a comment if you make on of these! I'd love to see it!

A-Z of me!

2011-09-16T13:17:00.004-05:00

Of course I had to do this, after seeing it on Kara's blog and Elaine's blog!

A. Age: 18
B. Bed size: Twin! (yay dorm room!)
C. Chore that you hate: Washing dishes. And laundry.
D. Dogs: One day I will have so many of them.
E. Essential start to your day: Snooze button.
F. Favorite color: PINK.
G. Gold or Silver: Pretty much all of my jewelry is silver, but gold is growing on me lately.
I. Instruments you play: Do my vocal cords count?
J. Job title: Student, writer, crafter.
K. Kids: One day!
L. Live: Denton, the other weird Texas town.
M. Mother’s name: Kim
N. Nicknames: I don't really have any, really.
O. Overnight hospital stays: None! Woo!
P. Pet peeves: Incorrect grammar. People with a "holier than thou" mentality. Abuse of power.
Q. Quote from a movie: "Space: the final frontier. These are the voyages of the starship Enterprise. Her ongoing mission: to explore strange new worlds, to seek out new life-forms and new civilizations; to boldly go where no one has gone before."
R. Right or left handed: Right handed!
S. Siblings: Older sister+brother-in-law, two younger sisters and a younger brother.
U. Underwear: Cute ones!
V. Vegetable you hate: Asparagus and artichoke.
W. What makes you run late: See letter E.
X. X-Rays you’ve had: Nose! (It was as awkward as you can imagine.)
Y. Yummy food that you make: Pasta with pesto sauce, cookies, cupcakes, meatloaf, nachos.
Z. Zoo animal: Oh my goodness, otters.

How cool is this?

2011-09-14T11:50:00.001-05:00

For awhile, I've been thinking about creating some kind of landing page to direct people to all of my various online presences. In addition to this blog, I have a shop on Etsy, a Twitter account, an Instagram account, a photostream on Flickr...it goes on and on. I want to be able to give people a single URL and enable them to check out all of these things from one simple page. And that's where About.Me came in.

This site is awesome. It lets you set up a very simple and easily customizable page to direct people to all of your pages and places. It didn't take me long to set up at all. I had already made the image for the background to use on my Twitter profile, so all I really had to do was upload that, change some fonts and colors, and type in my information! Oh, and add links to everything, of course!

The URL for my About.Me page is the one that I'll be putting in email and forum signatures from now on. And it'll go on the business cards I'm going to get one day (when I can afford it)! I'm really excited that I was able to solve my problem so easily, and I highly recommend using this to save yourself from having to choose which URL to give out to people.

You can check out my page at http://about.me/emilydismukes!

The Creative Setup: Rachell

2011-09-13T11:50:00.000-05:00

1. Who are you, and what do you do?
My name is Rachell, and I'm a photographer in the Seattle area. The majority of my work is of the outdoors, of nature and animals. But I really really love food photography. I run a blog and have a print shop of my adventures.

2. What hardware are you using?
I just recently upgraded to Canon EOS 60D. I was saving for a 7D, but after taking a close look at my budget and the stats involved in both cameras, the 60D was completely comparable and fitted my exact needs. I couldn't be happier with it!

As far as lenses go, I have the basic 18-55mm and the 75-300mm telephoto lens. I just recently bought a Diana Lens from Photojojo (haha!) But I haven't gotten it yet, so I'm looking forward to that.

My laptop is nothing fancy at all, just a Dell Inspiron N5030.

3. And what software?
I used to own photoshop a long time ago (in the days when I spent more time on DeviantArt than on Etsy), but after a few moves and a few computers dying on me, I have settled for Gimp and then Picasa for quick editing.

4. What would be your dream setup?
Dream setup would include a Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III, the newest version of photoshop, my own studio for food photography (which would mostly consist of lots of windows for natural light), and a ton of fun lenses and filters. I love to experiment with photos and see what works for me. Sometimes I barely edit a photo, other times its unrecognizable from its original.

~*~*~*~
This is a feature in which I invite bloggers and other creative people to share what technology they use to get their jobs done. These interviews are unedited, except for adding links to product pages in some cases. Photos are property of interviewees.

I am always looking for more people to interview! If you would like to participate, please email me at emdismukes[at]yahoo[dot]com. I hope to hear from you!

Quick Pics: August and early September

2011-09-11T21:33:00.004-05:00

This is a feature I haven't done in awhile. The point is just to share some of the random photos I take with my iPhone when I'm out and about with friends and whatnot. Some are from Instagram, so you might have seen them if you follow me there or on Twitter. These are all from the last month of so, I believe. I try to wait until I have a good amount to show you!

In August, Ryan and I went to visit my aunt and uncle in Louisiana. I left my job at Best Buy to start getting ready to move. I made the trek to Denton with all my stuff and settled into my dorm and college life. I went to a Rangers baseball game. I bought a hat. I did my own laundry for the very first time (and didn't shrink anything!). I started riding my bike to my classes on the other side of campus. Two days ago I attended UNT's first home game of the season and the first game in our new stadium. Last night I went to an awesome coffee place and had a vanilla and caramel latte (which Starbucks inexplicably calls a caramel macchiato!).

I finally got caught up in it...

2011-09-11T12:34:00.002-05:00

That's right...Pinterest!

It took me awhile, but I finally really started using it and having fun! :D

click on the boards to look at my pins!

The Creative Setup: Me!

2011-09-06T11:25:00.001-05:00

1. Who are you, and what do you do?
Emily Dismukes, new college student, blogger, fledging entrepreneur, sometimes writer.

2. What hardware do you use?
I have two computers, a 2011 MacBook Pro and a year-old Asus EeePC netbook. I love both of them dearly. The MacBook is what I use the most. It usually resides on my desk with the Insignia television that doubles as a 19" external monitor in my dorm. I take the EeePC (affectionately called, "baby computer") to class with me for notes and things. I have a wireless mouse that I break out occasionally, but I love the trackpad of the MacBook Pro and the EeePC doesn't spend much time on the desk at home. I also have a Wacom Bamboo tablet, the original, that I got on my 16th birthday. I like it for graphics work, but I'm still learning to use it to its full potential.

I have two digital cameras: a Fujifilm FinePix S700 and a Samsung Digimax L60. I also have an Instax Mini 7S that I break out now and then, whenever I have film.

I'm still using my iPhone 3GS from the summer it came out. I also have a Kindle 3, which I love to read on.

3. And what software?
I use Safari, Mail, and the desktop Twitter app for surfing on my Mac. I use Skype for chatting. I write blog drafts directly into Blogger or TextEdit. I do simple photo editing in iPhoto and make all of my blog graphics in Photoshop.

Other than the stock iPhone apps (and Twitter and Facebook), I use Weave for staying organized, Dropbox for transferring photos to the computer and back, Instagram for taking fun photos, Craftgawker for finding inspiration, and Pulse for reading technology blogs.

4. What would be your dream setup?
Totally dreaming, I'd love Tony Stark's set up in Iron Man. :D
But realistically, I'm really happy with what I currently have, honestly. I mostly just want to upgrade some of the stuff I have now. I'm waiting on the next iPhone, and one day I'd like to get a new Bamboo tablet, too. Oh, and a DSLR. I don't *need* one, it would just be nice to play with!

~*~*~*~
This is a feature in which I invite bloggers and other creative people to share what technology they use to get their jobs done. These interviews are unedited, except for adding links to product pages in some cases. Photos are property of interviewees.

I am always looking for more people to interview! If you would like to participate, please email me at emdismukes[at]yahoo[dot]com. I hope to hear from you!

September goals...

2011-09-05T12:28:00.003-05:00

Wish me luck! :D

Hello, everyone!

2011-09-01T12:30:00.001-05:00

I have someone to introduce to you, dear readers!
Yes, this month I am pleased to announce my first sponsor, of sorts!

In her own words...
Hello! I'm Rachell from No Mark At All. A personal blog geared towards my life as a photographer and the local and small businesses I love and support! I have lots of features each week including Hard Not to Love and I wish I'd Shot You. Come stop by and check it out. I love chatting with my readers!
Blog//Twitter//Etsy//Facebook

Rachell and I have traded blog buttons, starting this month! So hop on over to her great blog and stay tuned for some fun things from her later in September!

The Creative Setup: Ryan

2011-08-30T11:25:00.001-05:00

1. Who are you, and what do you do?
My name is Ryan Munthe and I’m a full time student at the University of North Texas where I study English. And in my off time, I work part-time in Home Theater at Best Buy (although probably not for long). I also write a tech/music blog that I update sporadically entitled blackHoles&Hurricanes (although probably not a tech/music blog for very long).

Despite the fact that none of my occupations require high-tech gear, I have lots of time and energy invested in technology. I’ve been obsessed with technology and upgrading ever since I received my T-Mobile Razr for Christmas when I was 12. I used to design graphics for people on an online forum (can’t remember the name) and graphics for my high school newspaper.

2. What hardware are you using?
Well, my computer is a late 2009 MacBook (Whitebook). It’s a 2.4 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo with 2GB of RAM laptop that I received for Christmas instead of the Pro because at the time, there was very little difference between the Whitebook and the Pro. And while I use my MacBook all the time and take it to class to get work done, my MacBook is forced to split time with my HTC Inspire 4G.

The Inspire is pretty much a miniature computer, and while I love Apple, I love the customizability of my Android, especially because I have my Inspire rooted and running completely stock Android. I feel like I’m too addicted to my smartphone and want to break my dependence on it, but, hey, whatever, it’s a pretty badass piece of machinery. The Inspire has taught me a lot about programming, and I have this phone running super fast. The combination of my Mac and my Inspire is ace. But I also have an old Gateway Windows 7 laptop that’s falling apart I occasionally hook up to my 42” Toshiba 240hz LCD. Which I received free, and is a pretty incredible TV.

I also have an iPod that I use for music on the move and to have most of my music library in the car. It’s a 32GB iPod Touch 4th Generation that I jailbroke. I like having the App Store, but I don’t really use it for anything other than music. I’m holding out on the iPad and tablets; I think they’re a gimmick.

3. What software?
I’ve ran Firefox since it was in Beta on my old vprMatrix (yeah, look that s*** up). But ever since the latest version I’ve been incredibly disappointed with the bloat that comes with it. It slowed my Whitebook down to a crawl. And since I don’t like Chrome because it archives your information and it is constantly expanding, I stick with Safari. It suits my needs. On my Inspire, I run Opera Mobile HD. I like the “Opera Turbo” speed boost. Combined with AT&T 4G, I get fairly fast speeds on the net.

I use Dropbox to help feed my addiction to flashing new ROMs for my phone, and run Clockwork Recovery on my phone to flash these ROMs.

On my Mac, I use Photoshop CS5 to make graphics, but I don’t really have any reason to actually use Photoshop. Every now and then I use it for class, but I haven’t used Photoshop for actual reasons since I was about 15. I use Word for all my school stuff, oldie but a goodie. I also run No Limits, a rollercoaster simulator to feed my awkward and unusual addiction to building rollercoasters. And, of course, VLC to play movies downloaded…uh…legally…via uTorrent.

What would be your dream setup?
A MacBook Pro in the size of the MacBook Air 11.6” and a CD drive would be incredibly ideal that would sync with a Mac Mini hooked up to a huge Panasonic Plasma TV at home. Throw in a phone with the power and customizability of Android with the polished appearance of iOS, and my technology needs would be set. I’d love to have my music library stream seamlessly in my car.

Oh, and, yeah, of course, interactive touchscreen electronics like in Halo. But now I’m dreaming.

~*~*~*~
This is a feature in which I invite bloggers and other creative people to share what technology they use to get their jobs done. These interviews are unedited, except for adding links to product pages in some cases. Photos are property of interviewees.

I am always looking for more people to interview! If you would like to participate, please email me at emdismukes[at]yahoo[dot]com. I hope to hear from you!

My new room! :D

2011-08-28T11:10:00.004-05:00

So, as you might have noticed, I'm blogging from a totally new city: Denton, Texas! And, thus, I am blogging from a new desk in a new room in a dorm building on the University of North Texas campus!

I moved in a week ago today, on the 21st. It was certainly an interesting day, as this is the first time I've ever had to move at all, much less life "on my own". But my room turned out great and I wanted to share some pictures with all of you! :D

I'm not even close to being done with the decorating (I have a few DIY ideas I'm going to get to when I have time!) but I'm really happy with my room for now. It's clean and neat and PINK and I love all the little things I have scattered around (like the Golden Snitch) which just make me happy.

I have a confession to make.

2011-08-26T11:00:00.001-05:00

Since I started this blog two years ago, I have taken several journaling classes.

The first one I took was Kara Haupt's Music and Composition Journals, two summers ago. The next fall I signed up for her Fall in Love class. Last summer, I decided to take her Summer of Love class.

In between, I've also signed up for Janel's Journaling for a Cause class, and Elaine's Ink Blots.

Now, five classes in two years, all of them fairly inexpensive, isn't extravagant, at least not in my opinion.

The confession I have to make is:

I have not completed a journal in a single one of these classes.

As in, I have started a journal for each class. I have purchased notebooks and supplies, altered books and created covers from scratch. I have gamely churned out a few pages for each one, pages I liked, pages I was proud of. I followed the journal (and photography) prompts for the first few days, maybe the first week.

But in each case, I left the majority of the prompts and pages unfinished. Not even attempted, sometimes!

That is not to say that I didn't like the classes, or learn from them. I loved all of the classes that I've taken, and I'm very grateful for the skills I learned from them and the inspiration I got. I just…lost steam.

I lose steam quite often.

This whole situation makes me sad. I'd like to finish what I start, for once. I'd like to have a bin full of finished art journals.

So I have a plan.

If you'll notice, I've added little progress bars for each class over in my sidebar, to the right. I'll be updating these as I work to complete four of the journals (unfortunately, I can no longer view the Journaling for a Cause blog, which was invitation only, so I'm leaving that one unfinished until I can figure out a solution).

I brought one of the already-started journals with me to school, the Ink Blots one. I can't find the few pages I made for Fall in Love (and I honestly can't say there were very many, anyway), so I'm going to completely re-start that one. The journal I started from a used book for Summer of Love is staying at home for the school year; I'll work on that one again in the proper season. I had planned on bringing the journal I altered for Music and Composition Journals, but at the last minute, I didn't have enough time to find it. So I'll search for that one next time I visit home.

Hold me to this plan, blog friends! I'm counting on the progress bars to egg me on. I'm not going to force myself to journal, but I'm going to try a lot harder than I have in the past to actually finish pages. I love journaling, and I want to actually start doing it more often!

I'll be posting batches of pages as I finish them, and updating the progress bars as I go. So keep checking back!

What journal classes have you taken? Have you finished them?

The Creative Setup: Katie

2011-08-23T11:25:00.001-05:00

1. Who are you, and what do you do?
I'm Katie, I'm an artist/craft/blogger. I blog over at Punk Projects, posting lots of different craft ideas & DIY's, Inspiration, and the occasional photoshop tip.

2. What hardware are you using?
I have an Acer Netbook that I like to use for most everything, I also just got an iphone, so I can't wait to start playing around with it.

3. And what software? My favorite software?
I l-o-v-e Photoshop! I have 3 different versions of it, but the one I use most often is PS Elements 8.

4. What would be your dream setup?
I've always been jealous of bloggers/crafters that have giant and well organized desks. I would love to have one of those, combined with my laptop, photoshop and my Bamboo Drawing Tablet.

~*~*~*~
This is a feature in which I invite bloggers and other creative people to share what technology they use to get their jobs done. These interviews are unedited, except for adding links to product pages in some cases. Photos are property of interviewees.

I am always looking for more people to interview! If you would like to participate, please email me at emdismukes[at]yahoo[dot]com. I hope to hear from you!

These books...

2011-08-22T12:00:00.001-05:00

These books are going to college!

If you didn't already tell, I'm a huge book worm! I have a large collection of books (four shelves worth, two rows deep!) and I knew I would want to take some along with me when I moved up to school. But obviously, it would be totally unnecessary and ridiculous to take them all! So I set a limit for myself: 10 books or less. I went through my collection and picked out the ones I've already read several times. If I really love a book, I read it over and over. I get cravings for books! If you get those too, you know what I'm talking about! And if you don't, it's really hard to explain! It's like a food craving, but I want to read a certain book.

Thankfully, I could immediately rule out the ones that would take up the most space and weigh the most: all seven books in the Harry Potter series. I have them on my Kindle (my boyfriend..."found" them online; don't ask!). I also have one of my all time favorites, Good Omens, on my Kindle, so I didn't bother trying to find that one, either.

It was actually pretty easy to narrow it down, after that. I ended up with six books packed up in the box with my craft stuff. As you can see in the photo, those books are:

Smoke and Mirrors, by Neil Gaiman

The Devil Wears Prada, by Lauren Weisberger

The Perks of Being a Wallflower, by Stephen Chbosky

The Realm of Possibility, by David Levithan

The Lovely Bones, by Alice Sebold

Forever Princess, by Meg Cabot

You can tell how many times I've read the paperbacks on the top by the creases in the spines! I read some of my books to death (you should see the creases and stains in my Harry Potters!).

What are your favorite books?