Stealing in the Digital Age

Last Saturday, I tore a comic strip out of the newspaper. It was the 6/16/12 issue of Zits. In it, 16-year old Jeremy is headed out the door on the first day of his first job. His mom, a scrapbooker, wants to snap a picture of this big occasion, but he isn't interested. It's pretty funny because it's so familiar. My hope was to include a copy of the comic strip here and write about the struggles we scrapbookers sometimes face with less than cooperative subjects.

As you can see, I do not have a picture of the comic strip here. It would have been easy. I could have scanned the newspaper. I could have gone to the website and done a right click copy. Actually, I did both of those things. But before I put either one on my blog, I did something else. I asked permission.

You see, I am not a thief. I don't want anyone stealing my artwork and using it without my permission, so I don't steal other people's artwork either. I used the "Contact Us" box on the Zits webpage to ask if it was ok for me to scan the newspaper and post the comic on my blog. Two days later, I got a nice reply back asking for more information. I answered all their questions (I'm a small blogger, it's a personal blog, I'm not being paid or offering payment, etc). Their answer: We're sorry, but no.

It's disappointing. But perfectly reasonable.

Sadly, stealing is so easy in the the digital age. While some of it is malicious, there is also a lot of ignorance about what is ok and what is not. It breaks my heart when I see a cool project on Pinterest and there is no link to the original source. Or when someone posts a blatant scraplift without mentioning the original designer.  Or when someone 'credits' an image on their blog by saying it's "from Pinterest" or "from Google."  Please, if you are not a thief, then don't steal images or rob artists of their proper credit. (If you are a thief, then knock it off.)

With art, as with everything, it's always a good idea to do unto others as you'd have done unto you.

Glass Marble Magnets

So, I had this idea to make glass marble magnets.  (Click here to see a zillion examples: glass marble magnets.)  I've seen at least a hundred tutorials for them and I see the finished marbles everywhere.  However, being me, I decided to ignore the way every single person who made a tutorial said to make them.  

I decided to make mine with Stickles instead of using a paper image.  I've never seen anyone make them that way.

 

Trevor and I put a big glob of Stickles on the back of a glass marble, then gently set a magnet into it.  We repeated this with a bunch of other colors, then let them dry thoroughly.

 

My concern had been that the Stickles wouldn't be strong enough to hold the magnet in place. I did not anticipate this problem: 

 

For some reason, the Stickles seeped out from under the magnet during the drying process. Darn.  Time for a different technique.  This time, we put the Stickles on the marbles and let that dry overnight.  The next day, we added a second layer of Stickles and gently placed the magnet on top.  After another night of drying, we checked on them.   

 

Definitely better, but you can still see the magnets through the Stickles if you look hard enough.  Plan C is to apply the Stickles and back it with a piece of matching cardstock (in other words, use the paper technique that everyone else has used in their tutorials, but try Stickles first).  I'll let you know how it turns out! 

29 Hours of Camping

This layout might be my all-time favorite.  

I love that I included so many photos, yet the photos are large enough to see easily and the layout doesn't seem crowded.  I love the dark brown backing the soft yellow patterned paper that I tore.  I love the tree accent by the title.  Mostly, I love that I told the (long) story of our 29-hour camping trip in my own handwriting.  

Journaling:

We certainly didn't plan on our annual fall camping trip to Bodega Dunes with Jonna lasting only 29 hours! The first 16 hours were perfect. We got a great site, #93. We did a super fun treasure hunt and all enjoyed our prize- Lego minifigs. Trevor rode his bike around the camping loops as we trailed behind. We grilled hobo packs and roasted crescent rolls on sticks, then had s'mores before bed. It was an awesome day.

The next morning, Trevor woke up complaining about his eye. It was swollen nearly shut... exactly like last year. It seemed like a really weird coincidence. Within minutes, he developed a large circular rash on his back. That didn't happen last year. We emailed pictures to his new doctor. Within the hour, Trevor was covered in hives- all over his entire back, his arms, his legs, and part of his tummy. His face was swollen, as were his feet. I called the advice nurse, then Steve drove into town for Benadryl. Within 20 minutes of the first dose, Trevor looked much, much better.

We spent the day geocaching, making crafts, and doing our scavenger hunt. Hives came and went during the day- all very minor. Then just before dinner (as we were sitting around the fire) a spot reappeared on Trevor's face. We ate dinner and watched in horror as his face got worse and worse. We made the decision to head home in case it got even worse during the night. We had about 45 minutes before it would be pitch black. It took exactly 45 minutes to break down our camp and hit the road.

After appointments with the pediatrician and pediatric allergist, our best guess is that Trevor is allergic to oils in the smoke from one or more of the woods we were burning. Unfortunately, there is no way to test which one without having him inhale smoke to bring on a reaction.

As I've mentioned before, I would love to be published in a print magazine someday.  Yet, what I love the most about my very favorite layout (the large amount of handwritten journaling) is exactly why it will probably never be published. Magazines can't publish layouts with journaling that would be illegible at a small size, nor do they have space to type out the journaling in the margin. Even though I would love to be published, it is more important to me that I tell my stories completely and in my own handwriting. 

Summer Photography Camp for Kids

Trevor has been very interested in photography recently.  Ever since our ABC Walk, he has constantly been asking if he can use my camera to take pictures and make them into books. His pictures are getting better and better, but he still makes most of the standard beginning-photographer mistakes, like not getting close enough to his subject, always shooting horizontal photos, and not noticing distracting elements in the frame.  So when I got an email announcing an online Summer Photography Camp for kids, I was really excited.

Everything about the camp sounded awesome- daily lessons, weekly videos, games, photo scavenger hunts, a forum to ask the instructor questions, homework assignments and a gallery to upload them.  The price was quite reasonable ($36 for 3 weeks).  The only thing that kept me from immediately signing up Trevor was that the camp was for ages 8-13. Trevor turned 6 last week.

But, Trevor is an unusual 6 year old.  He started reading at age 3 and now reads at a 3rd grade level.  (He just finished kindergarten.)  He enjoys homework and loves learning.  He has a freakishly long attention span and a great amount of patience.  I signed him up.

Best.  Decision.  Ever.  

We have completed one week of camp and the improvement in Trevor's photography skills is stunning. He LOVES camp and is so excited about it.  Each day, he can't wait to read the assignment, do his homework, play the vocabulary game, and check to see if he's gotten any more comments on his photos.  I'm thrilled.

Camp started out with the absolute basics- how to stand and how to hold the camera.  The first homework assignment was find a location with strong horizontal lines (like our staircase) and take the same picture twice- crooked and then straight, using the lines as guides.  Here's what Trevor did:

He also learned about a bunch of settings on the camera, like macro mode, landscape mode, sports mode, and portrait mode.  Here's the first portrait he's ever taken.   

Day 2 talked about taking vertical shots and how to know when a picture should be horizontal vs. vertical.  Trevor had never taken a vertical picture before, but immediately after reading the lesson he raced outside, found this fire hydrant, and announced that it should be a vertical photo because the subject is tall and thin instead of short and wide.  I can't tell you how happy that made me.

Day 3 was about filling the frame and using a zoom.  First he took a picture of the soccer ball across the yard, then he moved closer to take the middle shot, then he backed up to the original spot and zoomed in to take the third picture. 

Day 4 was about focusing, the most difficult of the subjects (for both of us) so far.  On Day 5, we did a photo scavenger hunt.  He had to photograph a bunch of different things, including flowers,

something red,

and someone jumping.  

Trevor LOVED taking pictures of me jumping.  He has fallen in love with sports mode. On our camera, it's called Kids/Pets. All week long, he's been saying things like, "Since I'm bouncing on a trampoline, you should switch to the Kids/Pets mode and take my picture." Or, "Mommy, I'm switching to Kids/Pets so that I can take a picture of you kicking that soccer ball." Awesome.

If you have a child between 8-13 who is interested in photography, I would HIGHLY recommend signing up for the July session of the Summer Photography Camp for Kids.  If your child is 6 or 7, I would recommend this camp if he or she: 1) is very interested in photography; 2) can read at a 3rd grade level; and 3) enjoys homework and learning.  Most of the kids taking the June session of the camp are 10-12, so they are able to upload their own pictures, post their own gallery comments, and participate in the forums.  I have to help Trevor with all of this, so there's a time commitment for the parent of a younger participant.

Camp runs for two more weeks.  I can't wait to see what else Trevor will learn.  I wish I'd been able to do a camp like this when I was 6 (instead of participating vicariously 34 years later)!  

Marbled Paper Thank You Notes

I am a firm believer in thank-you notes.  If someone gives you a nice gift, the least you can do is write a note telling them that you appreciate their kindness.  (This is especially important if the gift came by mail.  Otherwise, how does the giver even know that it arrived?)  For the record, I don't think there's anything wrong with an emailed thank-you. And a thank-you phone call is obviously great too.  But in this household, we usually send thank-you notes.  And we make them ourselves.  

Here are the thank-you notes Trevor sent to the family and friends who helped him celebrate his birthday.

If you've never tried paper marbling, you should!  This method is so easy and fun.  It features one of my all-time favorite crafting materials, Sta-Flo liquid starch.  (If you're not familiar with it, I blogged about it when Trevor and I made tissue paper carrots last year.)

Materials: Sta-Flo liquid starch, acrylic paints, white cardstock, wooden skewer or toothpick, and two pans, each larger than the size of your paper.

 

Begin by filling one pan with water.  Pour liquid starch in the second pan.  It should be about an inch deep.  Squirt several drops of paint onto the surface of the starch.  Ideally, the paint should rest on the surface.  If it sinks (like the dark green did in this picture), dilute the paint slightly with water before adding more drops.  

 

Draw the skewer through the paint to create a marbeled look.  Don't stir, as this will muddle the colors.  

 

When you are satisfied with how it looks, it's time to apply it to the paper.  Hold the paper with one hand on each side and bend it so that the middle touches the starch first.  Then lower the sides gently so that the paper floats on the surface.

 

Gently remove the paper and move it to the pan of water.  Swirl the water around VERY gently to wash off the starch.  Don't touch the paint or it will smear.    

 

Carefully remove the paper from the water and lay it onto a flat surface to dry.  (We put ours on the warm pavement.)  If your marbled paper curls once it's dry, either press it under a heavy book or iron it on a very low setting.  

After our marbled papers were dry, Trevor started with the writing portion of the thank-you notes.  He was fortunate to have many friends and family help him celebrate his birthday, which meant lots of notes to write - a difficult task for someone who just turned six.

I made the task a little bit easier by introducing Trevor to a cool tool, the Fiskars Stamp Press.  We put the words "Thanks so much for the" on the Stamp Press and he stamped them onto each card.

Then all he had to do was write the person's name and what gift they gave him.  At the end, he stamped "Love" and signed his name.

Stamping six little words saved him a lot of writing over the course of many cards.  And he enjoyed the stamping so much he was happy to finish a card and move on to the next!  Can't beat that!