photoshopping

I'm getting serious about improving, (ha, who are we kidding) getting some computer skills, these days.  It's not that I'm going to completely change the way I work, I just want to stay on top of things, use my time wisely and make the most of my options, That said, it's a lot of fun!

As you can see I'm a total beginner, but I'm practicing with some images from my desktop, so kitty got to travel.

cat in the mountains (homage to Ferdinand Hodler)

At this point I'm a bit of a Skillshare addict. I had started a couple of classes before, and now that they've switched to a membership format, I get kind of dizzy with all the choices. I haven't actually completely finished and posted a project/assignment yet, but I've already learned a lot (I also learned the hard way to keep hitting "save" as you go along). If you're a newbie like me, you might be interested in this list of recommended free Photoshop tutorials I encountered today.  I have a collection of similar helpful links on a Pinterest board.

Have a good weekend friends!

Book Review for "Cold Hard Cash"

Hi! It's Louisa again. Today I'm going to review the book Cold Hard Cash, part of the Sammy Keys series by Wendelin Van Draanen. :-)

Not very many people take the expression "scared to death" literally, so Sammy Keys must have been pretty surprised to find out that she had literally scared someone- to death! And when this guy, an old guy too, pulled out bundles of cash from his pockets and begged Sammy to "get rid of them", she pretty much had to oblige, so she threw it out the windows of the fire escape. Nothing could stop Sammy from going back later to see if anyone had found the cash. And taking it. And spending it. And while she naturally felt guilty spending a dead guy's cash, she was so excited about finally having pocket money, she didn't wonder much about where it came from, and why someone was carrying thousands of dollars around in their pockets. This book has the perfect balance of old lady disguises, pool parties, bratty little brothers, dramatic mothers, excitement, police cars, charmingly sneaky old men, colorful cowboy boots and scruffy hotels.This is one of the many wonderful books in the Sammy Keys series, by the lovely Wendelin Van Draanen.
I recommend this for sixth grade and up, after a particularly scarring incident in third grade (let's just say I wasn't used to murder).  If this story sounds interesting, be sure to check out the rest of the books in this series, starting with Sammy Keys and the Hotel Thief.

another "fragile" idea

watercolor, gouache, colored pencil and collage

fragile flowers

and a field of flowers this time....

watercolor and collage

maybe this is my new approach to Illustration Friday, usually I spend most of the time trying to decide on an image :)

Have a nice day friends!

IF: Fragile

I've been working on a series of flowers in watercolor and collage that fit perfectly in this weeks theme over at Illustration Friday.

   

 

Can you tell I'm having fun with these?

happy holiday weekend

collaboration with Nora (8)

Kick back and relax!

"Behind the Curtain" book review

red is Ingrid's favorite color

Hi everybody! I'm Louisa, Tatjana's daughter. I am 11 years old, almost 12. Today I am reviewing Behind the Curtain, a book by Peter Abrahams.

Behind the Curtain is a mystery novel full of excitement, suspense, and humor. It all

starts when Ingrid Levin-Hill, a spunky, curious 13 year old, gets kidnapped, and stuffed

into the trunk of a car. From there, Ingrid is launched straight into the middle of a ring of 

kidnappers and drug dealers. I really liked this book because it was so exciting. I didn't want

 to put it down. In fact, I was so captivated  by Abrahams' intriguing characters and complex 

plot, I ended up finishing it in an afternoon well spent. I recommend this 

book for teens, pre-teens, and even adults looking for a marvelous tale filled with 

ransom notes,  con artists, and soccer balls. Well done Peter Abrahams!

Thank you for reading, and I hope you  enjoyed it. Also, don't forget to check out the first book in this series, Down the Rabbit Hole, by Peter Abrahams. Look out for another review next week!

 ~Louisa