Photography at the Shoppe

I spent most of the day uploading my nostalgic photography to the main Sandee Rose Shoppe. Now it is time for a cat nap before I start painting and my little ladies come home....

When we went up North

Here are some pictures from our trip up the coast to wine country.

We came upon this charming little town.

It wasn't a fancy town...

But it did have this doll house that called out to me...

and an old Hotel that I like to imagine is haunted...

So many stories and lives must have gone through this place.

As well as through this old stage coach station.

Our hotel did have a sky view, and a view of the surrounding hills.

It was really nice to get away from the hustle of Los Angeles and get a little quite time to relax and hear the ocean.

The Ocean which has been on the minds of many lately.... which will be the inspiration of my next series of paintings....Stay tuned.

Testing out the new camera...again.

I have some kind of problem where cameras just don't work for me. Let me rephrase this better: I have a problem where I kill cameras. This is my 3rd camera in 3 months! Before that I had this trusty old HP camera 5 megapixels model that I kept buying. The initial one I think came off the back of a truck because I bought it cheap from somebody at the factory where I worked who got it from his cousin's friends' brother from Mexico, or something. It never really worked and every picture I took turned out red. Then I bought a re-burbished version from the manufacturer that I messed it up taking it on a horseback riding tour in Ireland. Too much bouncing around I guess. 3rd time I dropped it and the lens wouldn't open up. Then recently I got myself a small little Canon Powershot and it only lasted a couple of weeks. It flew out of my hands twice, dropped a few times and finally died because my hand got in the way when the lens was extending. Then I borrowed the Mister's nice Olympus SLR and I tripped the tripod the 2nd day of the loan and ruined his lens. (He took that camera across country for 3 months without a scratch). He said he'd buy me the "camera of my dreams" for my birthday present but you know, I'm not sure I should handle a camera that isn't shock proof and maybe wearing a bullet proof vest. So I was looking for something that is decent enough but not really that great and inexpensive. So I went to ebay and found this 10 mega pixel Nikon CoolPixL100 for a great price. I bid on it and got it for $150 incl shipping which is not bad. It is last years model and refurbished but was used as a salesman demo. So here are a couple of close ups. Not too grainy, check. Macro function, good. Creepy doll factor, yep. I'd say I'm happy with my purchase thus far.

We shall see how long this lasts. I also have problems where I keep ruining hard drives and things disappear of my memory cards for no reason but that is for another post.

The Last Snow Day of the Season

The Chase

We had a wonderwintery time doing some snow activities this past weekend and I fear it will probably be the last of the season, at least in Southern California. The weather is warming up and spring is quickly approaching. We (Mr Dollface and I) went up to the Big Bear area and had a day of cross country skiing! (I know, I know who does that?) .

It was very serene and beautiful, things you might miss if you downhill ski are the quiet, the tranquility and the peacefulness...(and the exhaustion)

Rim Nordic Ski Area, Running Springs CA

Pictures of Childhood

Looking around my dollhouse it is not hard to find pieces of childhood laying around. Cutesy barrettes, Little Little Golden Books, pink bows, all make me quite nostalgic...

Speaking of nostalgia...this carousel horse is from the Santa Monica Pier. Opened in 1916, each horse is hand carved, rising and falling to the sound of an automated band organ. The moorish architecture provides an enchanting and magical feel.

Daydreaming Fairytales

Snow White wears a bit more eyeliner than her stepmother approves of so she got banished from the castle with nothing but the clothes on her back...and an apple.

Now Listed at Dollface LaLa Shoppe

Rain

A Play Yard in the Rain

So far the rain is quite impressive indeed! The wind has toppled one of our bushes and it was coming down pretty heavy at parts...but right now there is a break. Rainy days like this one is good for the creative soul. I am going to do some painting after I clean up my messy desk.

Introducing Doll Faced Photos!

I was looking around the dollhouse today and realize just how many doll faces are laying around waiting to be photographed. So now the shoppe will also include photographs of the utmost serious nature (ok not really, all I really want to do is smile on your (doll) face!)

I hope they don't look creepy, it wasn't my intention I swear.

My poodle Precious

I found a hedgehog in my garden.
He keeps offering me his heart.

But my heart belongs to Precious

A Photo to Brighten Up your Day

Gerber Daisies are such Happy Flowers!