As classes were winding down for the semester, the sun managed to beckon Brad and I away from our studies for a little photo-picnic.

Chicken salad, the best Apricot iced tea in the world*, blackberries, and lemon pocket pies made the perfect picnic lunch. It was a beautiful day, sunny and breezy, and it was wonderful to escape our books for a short while.

But this wasn’t just a little picnic: it was a little photo-picnic.

You see, there are these swings.

They are tucked alongside the almost-highway that is Cleveland’s Martin Luther King, Jr. Blvd. We’ve driven by them a million times, and I just love the juxtaposition of the bright red and blue swings against the green grass next to the gray, noisy street. Such a peaceful spot next to such a busy commuter zone.

And I’ve always wanted to take pictures.

So we climbed, and swinged, and I snapped away.

The commuters crawled by, onlookers gaped at me and my camera… but it’s their loss. I was capturing colors; they were sitting in traffic.

Don’t forget to take breaks, even on the busiest days! It makes all the difference.

*seriously, this makes the best iced tea. after trying my first batch i returned to the store and bought the last four boxes they had. now that it’s available in bulk from amazon, you know what i’m doing next.

perfect playground picnic is a post from: Fluffyland Craft & Sewing Blog

We’re setting up a brand new, fancy fabrication lab at school – of course I signed up as a Teaching Assistant as soon as I had the chance! Someone had to pick out and test the sewing machine… and, of course, someone has to learn how to use all the swanky equipment.

I can’t wait to explore the infinite possibilities of the laser cutter. First up? These little camera necklaces, cut from the wood scraps of other students’ projects. I challenge you to find an equally beautiful upcycled product!

And yes, they are available for sale at samanthasnap, my camera-love etsy shop.

laser-cut camera necklaces is a post from: Fluffyland Craft & Sewing Blog

Two weekends ago, a number of events occurred. Brad had just received his passport, and it was anxiously awaiting use. I was feeling antsy, since I hadn’t been on a trip in awhile. Brad read about Poutine, a Canadian dish involving french fries, cheese curds, and gravy. And Mike got a new campus job.

So I said, “hey, we should go to Canada.”

And then, we did. A week of planning, lots of international hotel calls (yay google voice – free to canada!), some scurrying and homework-finishing, a five-hour drive, and then – we were over the border.

Friday night, we arrived at our Toronto hotel and headed to our first stop: Big Smoke Burger, allegedly home to the best burgers in Toronto and some fantastic poutine. I say allegedly because I have not tried any other burgers in Toronto – but I don’t doubt that theirs are close to the best. And poutine, as weird as it sounds, was incredibly delicious.

The next morning, we got up early and ate a box of Tim Horton’s Timbits, like true Canadians. Then we acquired our day-long subway passes and began exploring. We started at the St. Lawrence Market, and were amazed at the selection of produce – where does Canada grow all these things?

We bought Kinder Surprise eggs, which are apparently considered contraband in the U.S. But we ate them all (except the surprises!) before crossing the border again.

After further meandering, we headed toward the harbor for a tour of Toronto’s Steamwhistle Brewery. The small brewery is located on the historical grounds of an old roundhouse – you know, the place where the trains go on the circle and get spun into their different garages? I had never seen one in real life, so my 8-year-old Brio-loving self was thrilled to see a roundhouse in real life. It was so cool!

The best part of this brewery tour was the brilliant green that Steamwhistle uses for their packaging. It was everywhere!

After the tour, we headed toward Chinatown for an afternoon lunch. We dashed into an art store, where I bought 13 sheets of the most adorable paper of all time. Then we all had the classic Sam Janis foreign country experience: finding a new fabric store.

Toronto’s King’s Textiles was located near Chinatown, in what is called the Fashion District. The location is a little bit run down, with lots of (awesome) graffiti. But the fabric store was just my type, with a filled-up warehouse feel and creaky floors that you can’t hear because all the sounds are so well-damped by the cloth.

It was large, but not enormous – however, due to the towers of fabric and the eerie stillness of the air, it would be easy to get lost forever. Mike loved that he and Carrie could stand on opposite ends of the aisle pictured, nearly shouting, unable to hear each other.

The only downside of this store was the pricing – fabrics were more than I like to spend. But I was on vacation, and we were in a big city, so what could I expect? I bought a cute turquoise knit and plan to make a henley of some kind.

While in the Fashion District, we happened upon the giant thimble at the top of this post. That discovery and its photographic proof justify my trip entirely.

The Fashion District isn’t like the Garment Districts in Paris or New York – the area was mostly dedicated to clothing stores, although I did find a few stores selling buttons. And with two boys in tow, my shopping freedom was limited.

Everything in Toronto closes early, presumably because it’s so cold. So we took the long way home, stopped at some stores and ate more poutine, then took the subway back to the hotel. The subway was one long, continuous car with accordion joints and moving floors to accomodate twists in the track: Brad and Mike insisted on riding where the floor moved.

We got in the car and drove to our Saturday night hotel near Niagara Falls, and ate grilled cheeses at a strange diner that looked like a spaceship.

After Church Sunday morning, another Tim Horton’s breakfast, and an exploration of Canadian Wal-Mart to find milk that comes in bags, we headed out to look at Niagara Falls. I have decided two things: 1. It is a large waterfall and 2. It is a very cold place to be in early February.

We were hoping for something louder, more menacing perhaps – but the rushing water was, instead, almost of the peaceful sort. Near the falls, the mist was falling down on us as snow flurries, which was way cool – but a further reminder that February is not the best time for a visit.

We froze, I took lots of pictures, Mike ate yet more Tim Horton’s, and then we headed back to school. Our work was waiting where we left it, but we felt good – especially me. Who picks up and goes to another country for the weekend? I like the idea of being that person – again.

hellooo-oh, canada! is a post from: Fluffyland Craft & Sewing Blog

We Clevelanders were spoiled at the beginning of the month with a blissfully sunny and almost-warm November. We had seven sunny days in a row… seven! Hear that, Los Angeles? We’re catching up!

I readily soaked it up, propelled by the voice in the back of my head whispering, it won’t last. My camera and I saved it all, especially my favorite part: the orange leaves against the brilliant blue sky. I could spend all day staring up at those trees, their leaves artistically splayed against the perfect backdrop. I willingly accepted the stares from passersby as I stopped to look at the trees in their splendor, because they were worth it. Those trees.

Walking early to class with my camera makes everything better. Even with mountains of classwork to move, and no bulldozer, just a small shovel to pick at it scoop by scoop… the sky, and my camera, and the trees, save me.

Fall is my favorite season for a multitude of reasons. Not only do the leaves change, providing a beautiful (and delightfully crunchy) walk to class, but I get to wear flannel, and scarves, and my glittens (as i’ve recently heard these called). I’ve also finally found the perfect hot chocolate: Stephen’s Dark Hot Chocolate, available in super-bulk at Amazon. It sounds like a lot, really. But for a college student walking back and forth to class in Cleveland… those six canisters might not even last me through the winter. It’s amazing stuff.

Another plus? Pie. Pretty soon I’ll be feverishly baking pies on a daily basis, and my suitemates won’t be able to stop me.

Fall has so many positive attributes that, when combined, just barely overcome the major downside: winter’s next.

Thank goodness I’ve still got five canisters of hot chocolate left.

One last joyful thing: I have received one of the ultimate honors of the internet, in my opinion: the chance to serve as someone else’s inspiration. Joshua, a 12-year-old boy with a really great blog, carved a narwhal jack-o-lantern after being inspired by my narwhal plush. My week has been made. You should definitely stop by his blog – it’s got wonderful posts about his pets and his sisters, with better writing than a good handful of my engineering classmates.

I hope you’re all having a chilly but cheery November, with even more hot chocolate and pie than me – and lots fewer lab reports and quizzes on complex math! Procrastination time is now over.

enter the chill is a post from: Fluffyland Craft & Sewing Blog

I always love taking pictures. But there are some days where I can see things better with my camera than with my eyes.

Lines, shapes, textures, colors.

And then the produce salesman shouts, “take a picture!” and points to his papayas. I comply.

Another friendly merchant leaps into my picture as I click the shutter. I am entertained.

A camera full of pictures and a sack full of fruits and vegetables: that’s a productive day in my book.

cleveland’s west side market: exploring with a camera is a post from: Fluffyland Craft & Sewing Blog

“you don’t have a soul.
you are a soul.
you have a body.”

- c.s. lewis

a small quote of the day. is a post from: Fluffyland Craft & Sewing Blog

Today marks my 9th day of class so far, and I’m finally readjusting myself to the school life. After being on co-op and working for a whole semester, I’ve been having difficulty with a few basic schooling concepts:

• once I’m home from class, I have to do more work?
• I am steadily losing money, rather than making money?
• I have to do work on the weekends, too?
• I’m supposed to remember how to take a derivative? or an integral? or do any other basic calculus?

But rather than bore you with details of my engineering coursework, I’d prefer to share some in-progress shots from my first color digital photography assignment.

It’s the first photography class I’ve taken without a darkroom: I’ve got instant results, and Photoshop to play with.

It’s certainly easier than working in the darkroom, and significantly less time-consuming. But I can’t say I like it better. The darkroom is just such a wonderful place!

For our first assignment, we have to shoot three pictures: one in which the main item is blue, one in which the main item is red, and one in which the main item is green.

I’m not having any difficulty with the blues here at Case. But the greens are another challenge!

Next week I have to turn in one print using each color… can you help me choose between the blues?

blues, reds, & greens: a photographic exercise is a post from: Fluffyland Craft & Sewing Blog

It’s only the second day of class, and I’m already starting on a lab report! What fun… But I’m about to leave for my first photography class of the semester! It’s been over a year since I’ve worked in the darkroom, so I’m looking forward to getting back. There’s nothing quite like the magic of watching a picture emerging from a previously blank sheet of paper.

In other news, it’s the last day of the 30 Day Photo Challenge! Thanks, Sherry, for putting this together – it was a fun blogging exercise.

This photo is part of oh so lovely’s 30 Day Photo Challenge. Today is Day 30: In Motion.

in motion: typing hands is a post from: Fluffyland Craft & Sewing Blog