Sunday, January 26, 2014

The Year of Celebration!

It all starts with one as Ane Brun sings.

Birthday photo by Kreetta Järvenpää www.gretchengretcehn.com

When we were celebrating the new year, I told my husband that I wish this year will be the year of things happening - not just thinking.

Birthday photo by Kreetta Järvenpää www.gretchengretcehn.com

I named this year of celebration.

Birthday photo by Kreetta Järvenpää www.gretchengretcehn.com

What does that mean?

Birthday photo by Kreetta Järvenpää www.gretchengretcehn.com

It means more little things. Gathering with friends. Small workshops. More painting. New adventures. Forgetting the words I can't or we couldn't. 

It all starts with one and the story already began.

xoxo
Kreetta

ps. Those small coffee cups are from my grandma's house. Lovely memories on my birthday.

Saturday, January 25, 2014

Art belongs to everybody

painting by Kreetta Järvenpää www.gretchengretchen.com

This weekend - I really waited for. It's been crazy at work. But you know how one can relax? Yes, by taking a canvas and brushes. Color a little bit this world without pressure. That I call having fun. It's not always about how it looks - it's also about how it feels. I continue my work with exhibition. I wish I can make a lot today - a lot of framing.
collage painting by Kreetta Järvenpää www.gretchengretchen.com
Paintings ©Kreetta Järvenpää
xo
Kreetta



Sunday, January 19, 2014

Photography tip - Moon and stars - noise reduction and big asa


forest and stars photo by Kreetta Järvenpää www.gretchengretchen.com
pics turn to more painterly like when you use a big big asa/iso and noise reduction
Yesterday we went to celebrate young girl's birthday. Sweet sixteen. We drove home late in the evening and decided to stop in place where is not so much light - no light pollution - that my husband can photograph stars. We had a little doubt if it's possible because of full moon and yes it was too much light to photograph Milky way. No luck for him but luck for me. With help of moonlight I could take some experimental shots of forest, moon, stars and car lights.

forest and stars photo by Kreetta Järvenpää www.gretchengretchen.com
i got red from car's lights. i made an abstract painting.
I'm so fascinated about painting that I love to try it with my camera also. On Friday I wrote a post where  I was thinking about photography and natural way of doing it - not too much photoshop using - trusting the object and being more natural.

forest and stars photo by Kreetta Järvenpää www.gretchengretchen.com
can you see a field?
But here I am and doing something totally different. I'm not even trying to photograph nature as it is, I use it for my own artistic goal. I want to make something unnatural - surreal. In photoshop I used mainly noise reduction because of high RGB noise. I didn't have tripod. I was too lazy. I just used the highest iso/asa number I had in my camera. When you do that, you lose details but you get more close to painterly result. What do you think? Do you like these pics or not?

forest and stars photo by Kreetta Järvenpää www.gretchengretchen.com
the yellow comes from car's lights
So this time my tip was mainly about using your camera to make some totally different from different perspective. Is it worth to try? Inspiration to these experimentations I got from this guy who has done some iPhone paintings following Mr Rothko.

Now I go back to my project, small art exhibition. It's totally unfinished. Wish me luck! Have a lovely Sunday! 

xo
Kreetta


Saturday, January 18, 2014

Photography tip - backround matters


backround photo by Kreetta Järvenpää www.gretchengretchen.com

I guess you've heard the words location, location, location! Yes, that you should listen. Location, light and the object you are shooting with your camera. How you choose your angle and how you approach the object? How you represent your vision? These are all very important things in making a great photo. You have to make a lot of decisions when you photograph and if you just stay relaxed it will help you to make even better photograph.

One thing I have to tell you is, how I've heard so too many times the word photoshop by now. Why not make a gret photo straight away. Not everything have to be fixed by our friend photoshop. How about to make that kind of photo shoot that you don't have to make any awesomeness with your magical PS. Just few ordinary things.

Why we make our world with PS...photoshop? Aren`t our world enough beautiful without artifical touch. Think about it. All those commercial pics of perfect people, dogs, cats...who wants to live in world they present? I'm not even going to content matter - that's a another story...

I have to say longer I take photographs, less I want to photoshop. I think renaissance of old-fashioned films and natural touch is trending and I truly hope so. But in digital form. All kind of filters used in digital images are very handy for us. Same time we go back - these filters - they imitate a lot different kind of films and materials like polaroid. No more neutral tones. Hooray!

What comes around goes around. I'm ready to renaissance. Totally. Are you?


xo
Kreetta

Sunday, January 12, 2014

I-N-S-T-A-G-R-A-M anno 2014


photo by Kreetta järvenpää with phone, www.gretchengretchen.com

It's Sunday. My first week with Instagram is soon over. I'm so late with IG I know. But somehow I've felt it's too overwhelming - too many photos coming and going. Too much photo noise if you know what I mean.

But I did it. I saw Sandra's invitation to take part in IG challenge to take selfies. That was the final call to me. I took it and did it. I have had some troubles to accept phone as a camera. Forgive me. But I've thought you need a real camera. Well, I was so surprised when I opened a phone photo file in PS. Oh my god, photos size was so big 14,4M. I don't like to read manuals so I usually test and nowadays you can find so many good tutorials in YouTube. I think that's amazing. Sounds almost joke to say - watch a YouTube video. Or what you think?

photos by Kreetta järvenpää with phone, www.gretchengretchen.com

These photos are taken with camera but not with any IG filters. I've noticed that VSCO is in big hype now. I haven't used it but so many does. Do you? Do you like it?

If you like to follow my IG you can find it here.

Where I can find you in IG?

xo
Kreetta  

ps. These silver shoes I found many years ago in Beyond Retro shop in Stockholm. I think they give quite nice sparkle to our winter Sunday. Have a lovely week!

Tuesday, January 7, 2014

Is It Vintage - Herbarium

herbarium photo by Kreetta Järvenpää www.gretchengretchen.com

Did you collect herbarium at school? We found one herbarium (in Finnish kasvisto as it is written on cover) from flea market in Rauma. It was so cheap and thinking how much work someone had made. Oh boy.  Had to buy it. That cover is a little bit bible-like or what do you think?

herbarium photo by Kreetta Järvenpää www.gretchengretchen.com

This herbarium wasn't in good condition but few pages were still good quality. And for your knowledge I'm too young(yes yes!) - I didn't collect herbarium when I was in school. Maybe I should have - that I would remember better all the names of plants growing in Finland. 

This collection is made between about 1957-1962. So our parents did collect these. Maybe I have to ask from my mom where she is hiding her herbarium, haha. Have you made one?


herbarium photo by Kreetta Järvenpää www.gretchengretchen.com

So small and tidy handwriting.


herbarium photo by Kreetta Järvenpää www.gretchengretchen.com

These are beautiful. Twins. I think this would work well as a postcard or a small poster.


herbarium photo by Kreetta Järvenpää www.gretchengretchen.com

It's so funny how all the plants are so different. The world of shapes and colors is endless. (Can you see my toes? I had to leave them - looks funny.)

herbarium photo by Kreetta Järvenpää www.gretchengretchen.com

I think here are grades what she or he got from this herbarium. It's not easy to get good grades - not then not now. But nowadays we have so different challenges. I'm sure people were more connected to nature then. We are more connected like this - through internet. World is getting smaller and smaller. But what is happening to us really. We can't affort to lose connection to nature.

herbarium photo by Kreetta Järvenpää www.gretchengretchen.com

One thing is sure. We've lost the beauty of details in our everyday life. These herbarium book covers are so beautiful.

xo

Monday, January 6, 2014

Coming up 2014 - Exhibition



This is my place. Our living room. We still have X-mas table cloth and decoration. Today we are on holiday, it's Three King's Day.

I'm so excited about my coming up exhibition, I just had to tell you. It won't be big event and it will be place where you go about once in a month...big secret. I think it's nice to get the art near the normal daily life. I tell you more precise when we get a bit more closer the event. "Opening" will be in the beginning of February. I have lot to do! But I'm very happy about it. I will also show it to you in February. Or maybe you have time to go and see it! All the details come later.

But today begins with cleaning up my workspace - once again it's a huge mess. Can't work in mess like that...

xo
Kreetta

Wednesday, January 1, 2014

The year is new video - what happens now?


https://vimeo.com/83180756

Wow. 2014. Happy New Year my dear reader! Once again it's a beginning of the new year.

Oh yes, what happens now? New things, new ideas, new hair, new shoes, new everything...new year brings possibilities and responsibilities. Have to make decisions...about things you want to do or want to change.

Balance? It is so (forgive me the bad word) hard. When you have some things in balance the other ones fall apart. So you end up trying to get all things to the sacred balance...or does it even exist - balance? The golden middle way just might be the answer but accepting that there is no balance. That's why we live. Things are changing all the time.

I hope you follow my thoughts but who wouldn't think things like this when something ends and begins? At least once in a year it is good to step back and think what is happening and where one is going. I think. It doesn't mean that you have to change everything or be sorry of everything that you haven't done.

I guess what I'm trying to say is that it's great to be who we are but let's be even more! Let's do something that we haven't done before. Once in the month. That sounds fair or maybe every second month sounds nicer. You can choose. I will do it. Are you? 

Why I wrote this? Why I'm thinking these things? The reason might be a programme I saw in Yle Teema channel. It was a documentary about American prime time tv series. Such a brainstormer. I use to study Television and Cinema Studies in university and this series just caught my eye and thoughts. It's all about people and their behaviour. We - people. People are strange. People are odd. And we sparkle! Everyone of us. That is so great. 


xo
Kreetta  

PS. I hope you liked my little New Year video. Had to play with sparkle sticks!




Top 5 - most popular blog posts 2013

A glimpse of history. 


most popular posts 2013 www.gretchengretchen.com blog

 
1. DIY lightning with wood and diamond touch

2. Link Love Creative - shape and form

3. DIY vintage napkin flower string light

4. DIY Paper flower

5. DIY Banana chandelier


xo
Kreetta
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