52 weeks - week twenty.

Devan7904, originally uploaded by melaniegodecki.

Today's shoot was an absolute blast. 
Lets add the factors:
1.  Meeting the hilarious Devan for the first time when she came to my house and we picked outfits.
2.  Devan owns this dress! isn't it awesome? (from French Connection)
3.  Doors Open Toronto meant that the Spadina House Museum was free today - location shoot!

4.  Other tourists thought Devan was part of the museum, and took sooo many pictures of her.  At one point she burst out laughing because a crowd of about 20 was behind me as I shot.
5.  One of the ladies working let us sneak behind the roped off room to get this shot.  (As long as we didn't touch or sit on anything - everything is authentic and 150 years old...)

I'll try to post some more pics from the museum later this week, it's a beautiful place, and I have loads of great shots of Devan.
Annnnnd I'm going to my hometown on Tuesday, so I'll be busy seeing family and friends :)

thrift shopping - things i did buy :)

 I realized this evening that it has been eons since I've posted any vintage love.  I haven't stopped hunting.  There was a period of time when I tried not to buy anything just before moving - but now we have an apartment with nothing in it, and I get to slowly fill it up :)
First - the cabinet.  I saw this at the goodwill and couldn't pass it up.  Steve doesn't really like it, but I think I'll paint the legs and handles and it'll be fine.  It was $15 and fits our records perfectly.
Speaking of which, we've started collecting records.

 My first purchase on vinyl was meant to be - my favourite Bowie song. (insane 80's video btw)

 Little trinkets.  The "London Bus" is a piggy bank.  Does anyone else still use them? I love them, and rolling coins is a guilty pleasure, oddly enough.  The lamp I scored at a yard sale down the street from our new place.  It was $5.  It had a hideous dusty rose shade on it that smelled like 1000 cartons of cigarettes, I told the woman she could have it back.  Looking for the perfect shade - maybe white or teal?

And my fave items - 2 super cute glasses with pink flowers, and a vintage enamel flower brooch to add to my collection :)

Hope you enjoyed a tiny peek at our new apt.  I will have to show you more as we get more settled.
Have a great weekend!

52 weeks - week nineteen.

mattcimone7645, originally uploaded by melaniegodecki.

This is my old friend Matt.  

We went to different high schools, but met through a student organization ages ago.

He has always been a bit of a role model for me.  We are the same age, yes, but Matt is just all around a great, upstanding human being.   

He has started a project called Esther's Echo - a website which connects donors to projects around the world that need funding.  I love the idea.  

It's not just giving money to a charity to build a school - it's connecting you to the teacher who runs a girls school on $2 a day.  

Have a peek if you have a minute :)

52 weeks - weeks seventeen and eighteen.

 The past two weeks photos have been more photoshop oriented... which is something that i need to practice  - learning new techniques is fun, but sometimes tricky to achieve perfection.  

 this is the most recent shot - week eighteen.  cynthia, crashing a tea party :)

we photographed the tea scene first, then shot cynthia on a plain background after - so i could 'cut' her out and place her in the scene.  i kept the lights in the same spot so the angles of shadows would be the same, but it was tricky getting the angle of view (looking downward) to match - as well as where her hands would be placed, etc.  overall, i think it's cute.

week seventeen was during all the madness of moving into the new apartment.  actually, i did it a week late, but will make up for that with 2 shots in one week soon.

the photo represents how things felt for a little while - all jumbled around, nothing in the right place, a bit chaotic.  here's hoping we don't move again anytime too soon.

 i am about 50% satisfied with the shot.  i didn't give myself a ton of time to edit, and would have liked to fix things like shadows - and when i look at it now i hate the box in front.  i will re-edit this one in the future.  it was fun to shoot, a little tricky, but i love having a remote control for the camera for stuff like this :)

it's a long weekend here! i'm shooting some portraits tomorrow, then hoping to do a few DIY projects around the new apartment.  we had brunch on the balcony in the sunshine this morning, it was lovely.

to my mom...

happy mothers day.

thank you for putting up with sleepless nights, wailing cries, puke, a messy house, tantrums, "what's for dinner?,"  fights with siblings, scraped knees, last minute homework assignments, awkward and loud teenage years....

thank you for tucking me into bed, making cookies, sewing doll clothes, making snow sculptures, painting Christmas windows, telling stories, making up games, picking me up from school or the movies, listening to me talk about boys, buying me clothes, letting me choose the colour of my bedroom,  and always saying love you....

thank you for teaching me how to read & write, cook, sew, create, and always work hard.  

thank you for teaching me how to be strong through adverse times. 

thank you for teaching me how to be the best person that i can. 

i love you very much mom.
i wish i could be at your house today to give you a big hug, make you waffles and give you flowers.
thinking of you lots,

love mel

flowers6445, originally uploaded by melaniegodecki.