Showing posts with label Byron Bay. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Byron Bay. Show all posts

Sunday, 1 May 2016

Impresso.. ...

My dear bloggy friend, Cath from Cath@Home and Bits 'n Bobs recently put me onto this cool App for my smartphone - Impresso.

Basically, it allows you to take one of your photos and turn it into an Impressionist painting!

Do you want to see?

So this ...

becomes this....

and this ...


becomes this...

and this...


 becomes this ....


and, lastly, this ....


 becomes this....


As you can see, it does work well on landscapes (and not well at all on cross stitch finishes, I can tell you!).

The App was not expensive, about $4 or $5 dollars (AUD) but worth it for the fun I am having with it.

P.S. Do you like my yellow roses?  They are loving the Indian Summer which we are having.

hugs, 
P.S. Mini asked why I called it an Indian summer - so here is a definition:

"Indian summer is a period of unseasonably warm, dry weather that sometimes occurs in Autumn"
"Although the exact origins of the term are uncertain,it was perhaps so-called because it was first noted in regions inhabited by Native Americans (incorrectly labelled "Indians"), or because the Native Americans first described it to Europeans, or it had been based on the warm and hazy conditions in autumn when native Americans hunted.
In the UK, observers knew of the American usage from the mid-19th century onwards, and The Indian Summer of a Forsyte is the metaphorical title of the 1918 second volume of The Forsyte Saga by John Galsworthy."

Not sure how it made its way to Australia!

P.P.S. Using this App makes me feel like an artist, which is nice, as I cannot draw for peanuts!

Saturday, 9 April 2016

Hmmm! Not Fair ....

... as I have gone from THIS on the weekend in beautiful Bryon Bay...





... TO THIS MOST OF THE WEEK in Eaglemont!!!!!!



lol!

 Not really complaining, as we had a wonderful time away up North at my friend's son's wedding.

Hopefully, these photos will give you a sense of the fun time we had and the beauty of the area.  It was a special time for us, as not only did we have the joy of being part of a very special occasion - the wedding of a fine young man whom TraderVic and I have known since he was a little boy - but it was also the first time our family had been all together since January LAST year!  It was so wonderful to spend time with our gorgeous young adult children and our DDIL, too.


Clockwise from top left: Byron was full of fun campervans - I couldn't resist taking a photo of this one; my dear friend Linda (mother of the groom) and I at the wedding; our first stop on arriving on Thursday afternoon was to get some kebabs from the famous Bay Kebabs - delicious!; a gorgeous boutique hotel I spied on one of our walks; sharing the love - BB is all about chilling out and spreading the love; the coffee shop at the top of the hill near our apartment - a walk to here each morning became a daily requirement - lol!


A walk to the lighthouse plus the margarita I had to have after walking to the lighthouse - lol!  (In the spirit of full disclosure - I didn't quite make it all the way there, the last bit was just too steep!)

Walking on the beach - do you see the goanna which crossed our path - he was pretty big but luckily took no notice of us!


The wedding!

The wedding was held in a little country church and hall in the tiny town of Federal - it was one of the sweetest weddings I have ever attended!


 Bottom left: DS1 is the groomsman second from the right, just under the stained glass window.

Bottom right: DS2 (on the left) was playing a chasey game with two little cousins of the groom and another wedding guest - it was so funny to watch them, they all four ran around like crazy for about 10 mins and then had to stop for a chicken skewer break! lol!

The next day, DS1, DDIL, TraderVic and I all went back to Federal to have lunch and listen to some blues at the Doma Cafe which is actually a Japanese cafe - go figure!  The food was amazing and the music good.


Some stitching happened while we were chilling out, natch!


 Then, we went to see the fabulous Minyon Falls - 100 m drop to the bottom.


While we were standing on the viewing platform at the top of the falls, surrounded by signs telling us to be careful and not to get to close to the edge, etc., there was a girl who had climbed over the fence and was literally standing at the top of the falls.  The rocks were so slippery, it is a wonder that she didn't fall - DDIL and I couldn't watch but luckily, a local was there who gave her a stern warning and she safely moved away from the edge.  Aren't some people just stupid?  She would not have survived a fall from the top.

The hinterland of the Byron Bay area is just stunning - such rich and lush land.



 We spent a lot of time with another of the groom's cousins and their little baby, Jude - isn't he adorable - doesn't like to wear his hat, though!


Family pics:



Clockwise from top left: It was DS1's birthday while we there - so we celebrated at this local Middle Eastern restaurant, Orgasmic - the food was sensational; DDIL at a Beach cafe; TraderVic and I with a view of the hinterland behind us; DD dancing at the wedding; DDIl at The Top Shop cafe and  DS2, DD and I at the wedding.

Okay, well that is definitely all from me on this topic - lol!  I hope that you enjoyed the pics as much as we enjoyed our time away.  Watch out for my TUSAL report, my very late The Alphabet Club post for "I" - will I get double detention this month? - plus some stitch updates coming up very soon on my blog.

Have a great day, everyone,

hugs, 











Thursday, 31 March 2016

Up, up and away....


This was the view from my kitchen window this morning....


... I love the idea of hot air balloons and one day I would love to go for a ride in one over the gorgeous Yarra Valley but for today, I am glad that I am flying to Byron Bay in a plane instead.

However, seeing the balloons made me think of a few songs, do you remember these?


 Up, up and away by the 5th Dimension



... and 99 luftballoons by Nena



but, of course, I am leaving on a jet plane, so here is the incomparable John Denver ....


Have a great day everyone, 

hugs, 

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