Kimberly Atkins

So I caught the doodle bug again and decided to play with my sketchbook.  Did a quick little watercolor sketch of the Green Man

I made this a while back.  I saw a tutorial a while back and it stuck in my mind so I decided to give it a shot on my own.  It’s not spectacular, but it’s kinda cute and will add a nice little pop of color to one of my rooms

I saw this online on someone else’s blog a while back.  Can’t remember whose blog it was though….  But I decided I had to buy the Konad nail stamper and try it myself.  I was REALLY excited when my stamper and plates arrived.

It’s messy but fun.  I’m not very proficient at it yet, but I’ll keep working at it!  The nice thing is you can buy separate plates and there are thousands of designs to choose from.

Ok… so I’m a day late!  Hope you all had a wonderful Valentine’s Day!

I made this up after packing up my Christmas stuff.  I didn’t want to put my snowmen collection away because I was still hoping for some snow! (Which we got and with force I might add!)  So I kept the snowmen out, but wanted to add a touch of love for Valentine’s Day.

At least refined white sugar is good for SOMETHING!

We made national news…
No, we do not know how to drive in the snow. It snows 3-4 days out of the year here and fleets of snow plows and sanders are not in our city/county budgets. Seattle is also a VERY hilly area to live in. So yes, our cities and towns get shut down when the weather makes the roads slippery and icy. Perhaps if we had a lifetime of snow sticking around for weeks at a time during the winter we would all have a little more experience and know-how in the ways of maneuvering through it.
That said, I choose to stay home when things get this dicy!

While being stuck at home for 3 days I decided to make the best of it and drug my camera out in the freezing rain to capture my world encased in ice.

Yesterday I spent over an hour chipping 1/2 an inch of ice off my car just to get the door open. Thankfully things are finally warming up and the snow and ice is melting away. We will soon be back to our regular routines

It’s been a while since I created a style set at Polyvore.com  So I’ve been playing the past few days and these are some of the fun things I’ve come up with!

I love to break the rules I love to experiment with my camera without following the rules. Sometimes it yields very interesting results….

Do you have ANY idea how DIFFICULT it is to take a “macro” shot of your OWN eyeball and get it in focus and lit properly????

I’ll just tell you now…. EXTREMELY.  I must’ve taken over 50 shots. Good experience though!

So I’ve been working on a couple of Vision Boards for 2012.  I’ve long been a fan of vision boards and I’ve made a few in my day, but it had been a while.  And while listening to Hay House Radio, one of the hosts (Wish I could remember which one it was) was talking about making one BEFORE the New Year and putting your energy into it prior to 2012.

She said it’s a great way to align yourself with your desires for what you want in the New Year.  So I went home and began clipping things out of magazines and putting them into a little basket.  Once I felt I had acquired enough I took out a big piece of paper from my drawing tablet and starting gluing things down.

As I was clipping I really paid attention to how I felt about certain words, or sayings and I found the more I got into it, the more I was guided toward finding EXACTLY what I was looking for!  It was really quite fun!  And now I have this hanging right next to my desk and art table at home so I can look at it and meditate on it everyday

I already know that 2012 is going to be GREAT!  My boyfriend and I are going to move into the house that belonged to his Grandparents (they both passed away in 2011).  We are already talking about and making plans for what we’re going to do to make the house GREEN.  I am really looking forward to planting a vegetable garden, some flowers and installing rain barrels.  I think the word “home” is on there 3 times!

So here’s to some positive energy moving forward in 2012!  Happy New Year!

XoXo,

CreativelyKim

Again… this one is from yesterday…. and SADLY I realized I had only snapped a couple of pictures yesterday!

I wound up getting busy on a painting project last night  It was just a “simple” experiment based on a blog tutorial I found.  I will post the result later.  It was a fun reason to get out one of my little blank canvases and put some paint on it!

This is a picture of the supplies I was going to use…. I didn’t end up using the sponges.  They were making a huge mess as I was cutting the circles out…. so I just used a brush instead

So the lovely Mary of Mary Gillespie Photography has been very busy doing senior session these past few weeks.  I was floored by one of her sessions and decided I HAD to do something fun!  So I made a Senior Announcement Template.  I will have some of these up in my store very soon!!

ALL Images by Mary Gillespie Photography

Mary Gillespie of Mary Gillespie Photography has been shooting her beautiful Senior Portrait sessions again!

The most recent session I edited for her was exceptionally beautiful!  I especially like the cherry blossoms in the background.  The blossoms are around for such a short period of time and she was lucky enough to have some as a backdrop.

Excellent job as usual, Mary!

My buddy Kevin of The Orange Bean has been nabbing these really awesome shooting jobs lately!

BRILLIANT work, Kevin!

These were so much fun to work with and Kevin definitely has his own style which perfectly fits his subject matter.

I can’t wait to see what he’s got up his sleeve next!

Mary Gillespie Photography has been a wonderful client of mine for several years now. Our business relationship has truly grown into a friendship that I cherish.

Every year Mary does Santa Photo’s from her studio in Lodi California and every year her skills improve, Santa gets cuter (if that’s even POSSIBLE!) her sets get better and her pictures more adorable!

This year was no exception and I was proud to be a part of the magic that happens during the Holiday Season and spreads smiles and joy to the families whose photographs I help edit

Here are a few of my favorites from Mary Gillespie Photography’s Santa Sessions of 2011!

All photographs are ©Mary Gillespie Photography all rights reserved.

Please take a moment to visit Mary’s website and view some of her other lovely weddings and portrait sessions.

Mary Gillespie Photography

Hope you had a wonderful Holiday Season!

xoxo

Kim

I love supporting local businesses.

I also love supporting American jobs and building up our own economy especially during a time when outsourcing over seas seems to be what’s “hip.”

So this holiday season I’ve been scouring the net and websites such as Etsy for American made gifts and goodies to give.  I came across this lovely little image that gave me chills and took me into the snow and ice where it’s cold!

Wouldn’t this make a great little gift for someone?  Or perhaps a cute little picture in a frame on your mantle to set the tone for your holiday season?

Dahlia House Studios can be found on Etsy and she has a wide variety of interesting images that she’s edited with flair and personality

I do a lot of editing. My arm hurts…..

I have known about RPG Key’s for some time. But it IS indeed a little on the spendy side. So I drooled over it for a while, I researched it for a while, I stalked Tim at RPG Keys for a spell. Then I began to have symptoms of what I believe to be tendinitis in my “mousing-arm.” I bought a wrist-brace, I bought a Bamboo tablet, I bought a mouse with a track-ball, I switched my mouse over to the other side… Some things helped for a while, but all of that seemed to slow down my editing process somewhat.

So I FINALLY gave in and bought the TOTALLY AWESOME 58-key RPG Keyboard and the the software package to include BOTH Adobe Lightroom3 AND Adobe Photoshop CS5. I am in HEAVEN!!!

There were a few hiccups during the installation process…. but that was sort-of my fault because I had an older version of Mac OS that was not compatible with the V6 version of RPG Keys software. But I MUST say… if you want to experience the MOST personalized customer service EVER…. look no further than KeyMaster Tim of RPG Keys or whom I affectionately call “God of RPG Keys, Key Master & Guru….”

I contacted him via email and he got me on skype and spent over an HOUR showing me the ins and outs of installation and then gave me instruction on how to best utilize the power of the keys. Tim is kind, patient, funny and SMART! And thank goodness Tim & his business partner built these keys…. because I am an editing MACHINE and my “mousing-arm” is getting a much needed rest! WHEW!

Seriously…. if you spend any amount of time editing. This will TOTALLY pay for itself in the long run. Check out their website…. check out their blog…. watch their YouTube videos and then BUY IT! You won’t be sorry!

RPGKeys.com

THANKS AGAIN, TIM!!

A few fun pics of all of the ice we are dealing with right now.  I am glad to be home and not out on the roads or stuck somewhere without power

I had a fun little session with my brother and his lovely little family while we were visting Kalaloch this Summer.  I am a little late in getting my images posted  Thad & Jenny both love their kids dearly as do I

My nephew Toby started Ice Hockey last year and I finally got to make it to one of his games.  I enjoyed watching the kids out there chasing the puck around.  Toby seemed to be one of the few willing to make a pass to his fellow teammates.

Kids – they grow up SO fast!

I’m really needing to get caught up on my posts. I’ve barely had time to breathe with all of the image editing I’ve been doing over at KA Photo Design! But I have been doing some shooting as well! Here’s a quick peek of good things to come!

So after having some recent website and database issues I was forced to re-install from a previous backup which means the image links for my website are no longer valid :\

Thankfully the posts are still there…. but none of the images will show up until I re-upload them and update the links.  Please bare with me while I get this all straightened out again

XOXO,

Kim

OH MY GAWD!!  (ok just had to go back to my junior high school days for a moment!)  OMG OMG OMG!!!!! (k that’s the last time I swear!!)

Yes, I went to the NKOTBSB concert this year.  And I’m damn proud of that.  The day of the concert I put my itunes on NKOTB shuffle and relived my junior high school days I spent swooning over Mr. Jonathan Knight…. He still makes me swoon <3  Yes, I realize he’s gay, that doesn’t change a damn thing.  He’s beautiful and gorgeous and I’d die for his smile

Listening to their albums old and new got me pumped up for the concert.  I even used my handy iPhone to record a portion of “Please Don’t Go Girl” and text message it to my life-long gal-pal, Meredith which wound up getting HER pumped up for the concert.

Of course while experiencing all of this, I was reminded of my first (and ONLY) NKOTB concert.  I was in 7th grade and I made this big paper banner that said I <3 JON!  I made one for Meredith that said I <3 JOE, she forgot to bring hers….but I held mine up proudly through most of the concert.  The poor sign was TRASHED by the end of the concert…. but I swear to God he made eye contact with me!!  I bawled my head off….. yes… I was one of THOSE girls!

When they came back later that year Meredith and I of COURSE begged our parents for tickets.  They bought us tickets….. however…. by the time of the concert I had found my way into some trouble (when the hell WASN’T I in trouble??) and I had been grounded by my parents.  My Dad wouldn’t let me go to the concert.  I was ABSOLUTELY CRUSHED!!!  I sat in my room crying and listening to my NKOTB tapes all night thinking about how much fun all the OTHER girls must be having.  Worst. Night. Ever.  I went to school the next day…. and got to see all the cool new T-shirts and NKOTB merch the other girls from my school were sporting!  I never forgave my Dad for that…. I never went to another NKOTB concert after that…. until this year.

That time in my life was SO consumed by the sounds and obsessions of Jonathan Knight and NKOTB.  Favorite gift EVER was the Jon Knight T-shirt my Mom bought me for my birthday…. I think I screamed.  Their music is so nostalgic to me and brings back a lot of happy memories.  I think Meredith and I wore out one of my cassette tapes because we played their music CONSTANTLY!

Their concert was awesome.  It was a spectacular show and I screamed so much my voice was hoarse by the end of the show.  I have to say it was a little sad too…. it made me feel old :p  It was two decades ago that I was infatuated with these talented young men

Oh yeah… BSB was there too.  I like them well enough…. I was never a fan of BSB like I was NKOTB.

Anyway!!  Here are my pics from the concert!  I apologize for quality.  No one is allowed to bring professional cameras into the concert.  So I was stuck with my little point and shoot.  But I’m super happy with what I got.

My favorite of COURSE is the one near the end of Jon in his #11 Boston Celtics Jersey waving in my direction *SWOON*  And just a little FYI – #11 has been my lucky number for YEARS!!  I have no idea if or why the #11 might be significant to Jon… but when he came out wearing MY lucky number…. I freaked a little  Hey…. my teenage heart will never let go

Enjoy the pics

Every Friday night starting in May the Maple Valley Street Rats Car Club has a Cruise-In at the Harley Davidson shop in Renton, WA (4-8pm and only during the Summer months).  My Dad has been attending this cruise-in with his super sexy ’57 Chevy for a while and invited me to come down and check it out.  Last weekend the weather didn’t hold out (yes… this IS lovely WA state where rain is a way of life….argh) so we had to wait until THIS Friday

Today the weather was PERFECT (maybe a TAD warm) and so was the atmosphere!  Blue skies, hot cars, oldies music, engines ROARING and I swear…. you could smell the testosterone in the air!!  There’s something for everyone….. even some old VW Bugs and rat rods   With all of these shined up, polished and primped beauties (I’m talking about the CARS of course!) I couldn’t resist bringing my “BIG GUN” to the show…. aka my Canon 50D.

These beautiful relics capture a time that is long gone but will never be forgotten.  The memories of those days-gone-by are relived time and a again as the men and woman walk, talk and gawk past the many rows of polished cars.  You will often hear, “Oh I HAD one of those in high school!”  Or, “I always WANTED one of those!”  And of course a favorite part of attending with your OWN car is in the camaraderie of other enthusiasts while swapping stories of years passed or sharing in the trials and tribulations of restoration and rebuild.

No matter your age, you can ALWAYS enjoy a good car show.  It was a fun evening spent bonding with my Father over something that he’s put so many hours into and worked so very hard for.  I’m proud of him and I’m proud to call him Dad

So come down and check it out before Summer is over!

Please remember – DON’T TOUCH!!! 

I had the lovely privilege of photographing my Tribe’s Powwow for our Tribal newspaper a couple of weekends ago.  Powwow’s have long been one of my favorite things to photograph as they are a rich and beautiful part of my own history and culture full of rituals and tradition.  The first time you hear a Powwow drum it never leaves your soul.  And I find it resonates there every single time I find myself attending another Powwow.  The sound, the feeling and the song ignite something primal within me that feels at home.

Many of the dancers that participate travel from all over the country to take part in these wonderful celebrations of food, family, culture and prize money.  Let’s not forget the prize money!   My favorite part is probably the toddlers and the elders.  If you’ve never experienced a Native American Powwow, I highly recommend it!

I appreciate my Tribe’s generosity for allowing me to post these photos on my blog.  All Muckleshoot Veteran’s Powwow images are ©The Muckleshoot Indian Tribe all rights reserved.  Please do not steal, borrow or download.  Thank you.

I got to spend the day with my Dear Ol’ Dad at the Burien Father’s Day Car Show   We had a great time walking and talking about the cars.  Was a great day spent with the guy I’ve looked up to my whole life   Love you Daddy!!  xoxo