Just Beachy

After last Thursday (some of you may remember I complained about a 9 hour shift punctuated by a shot and cervical exam), I got to have some much-needed fun at the beach! Me, my sister, and Travis all drove up there Saturday and stayed til the evening. I wouldn't exactly call it relaxing, though, as it came with it's own stresses.

We went to Folly Beach in Charleston and got stuck in an extra hour of traffic on the way up. It looked like it was going to rain, so we bought the cheapest umbrella the local Piggly Wiggly had, and then freaked out over the lack of parking. We eventually got to the beach around 2. See how triumphant Em is?

Emma likes to relax on the beach, but Trav and I like swimming, so that's what we did for awhile. The water was perfect, and the waves were evidently even big enough to surf on! Don't let these photos fool you, it was plenty crowded on the beach and in the water. I just made good use of the healing brush tool in Photoshop.

When choosing what swimsuit to pack, I decided I didn't like how any of mine looked, and sewed one up in 2 hours flat. I used a scrap of jersey fabric and some ribbon, and I am pleased as hell at how it turned out. Most of my sewing-on-a-whim projects turn out crappy, but this one actually looked really good, and held up fine in the waves! I've never made anything other than dresses, so I was pretty proud!

I caught a rare photo of the elusive MerTravis.

We had to walk quite a ways to get some overpriced seafood and ice cream, but we did it! Next time we'll pack a picnic lunch.

You can tell these bitches ain't fashion bloggers because they haven't been practicing their jumping photos.

I wouldn't zoom in on this one, Travis and I are ugly kissers for sure.

It was a really pretty trip, even though I ended up exhausted. I think I'm catching the cold my Mom and Dad have been bedridden with for the last week, so hooray. The stress and long hours from last week paired with the vaccine I got and the blood they took probably did me in. I'll try not to die! I'm home now, but I accidentally took Travis's wallet with me, so I'm not even done driving for the day. Ugh double UGGH.

Pink Dress: AA

Jellys: ASOS

My suit: Handmade by me

Travis's Clothes: H&M

Emma's suit: Victoria's Secret

Graveyard

What a freakin day. Yeah okay so I'm scheduling this so it'll be yesterday by then, but it was rough!

I went into work at 8 am, which is early for me. I scrambled around all day trying to get things done for hours, and didn't end up leaving until 7 pm. And it wasn't fun design stuff, it was wrestling withe printer, folding and assembling packets, stapling, and distributing them. Like no fun at all. I had a 2 hour break at 2, during which I a) Got a pap smear b) Got a shot and c) Got my blood taken for tests.

I really did maintain a positive attitude through most of this. The other designers at work are so nice and helpful, I would probably have cried if it weren't for them.

Is it weird to take outfit photos in a graveyard? It seems a little bit disrespectful to me. Like here I am, walking on people's coffins, taking selfies. I dunno.

The evening is officially the best time to take photos, though. I drove out to a different location to capture the golden light only to realize there was no memory card in my camera. By the time I got to this new location, it was sunset, but the light was still beautiful! Unfortunately, photo experimentation just wasn't in the cards and the battery died after only a few shots. I really would have liked to play around some more, but I think these turned out okay anyways.

I shot these on full Manual, which is crazy for me, but I think I had the ISO too high because it's way grainy. And I obviously had some focus issues. I'm really having fun learning (slowly) and I'm going to get my own DSLR so I can keep it up at college.

Two Piece Dress and Necklace: Handmade by Me

Jelly Shoes: ASOS

Sunglasses: F21

Bag: Goodwill

Btw, pap smears hurt!

Bowz

I'm not going to pick these photos apart but I could if I wanted to.

I took them with my brand new tripod! It's pretty heavy duty, and I wish it collapsed to a nice tiny size like my old one, but at least this one can hold up the DSLR. It was the next step up from the $15 one, so I hope it'll stick around.

So Happy Thursday guys! I've been having a pretty stressful week at work, staying over my usual 5 hours almost every day. At least that means more money! I've also got a lot of freelance work on my plate, which is great, but a lot of it is just for promotion this time around.

Today I wore a plain ol' tshirt and one of my favorite pleated skirts. I like it, though. Casual but not too casual, amiright? Plus a big bow in my hair and one around my waist! Can never wear too many bows imo.

I'm kindof pissed at my hair right now. Probably because I treat it like shit. Having long hair is something I'd never done before and I guess it needs actual maintenance. I'll probably chop it all off someday, but I'm not giving up on it just yet!

Also I've been having some terrible acne for the past couple months! You guys probably haven't noticed, but its on the sides of my face, especially the left side, and my forehead. I've never struggled with acne before, I don't really know what to do! I've been using a regimen I bought at Walmart twice a day, but I'm kindof at a loss! I just hope it doesn't scar.

shirt, shoes: Target (shoes are also a DIY)

skirt: American Eagle

bracelets, earrings: handmade and flea market

necklaces: Modcloth

bow: a gift from my aunt when I was a little kid

rings: Bellatrina on etsy

OH HI

A Summer I Can Handle

Yeah guys wtf is this summer?

I spent all winter dreading the heat, and here I am chilling out in a cardigan and tights. The local radio station is having this contest where they give away soda every time the temperature hits 102... ain't no one getting free Pepsi this year! It's been nice.

Of course I do spend more time in an air conditioned office than I do out in the elements.

As much as I love love love these tights, they ripped the second time I put them on. It's gotta be me, this happens to like every pair of tights I own, and it never stops breaking my little heart! (And my little bank.)

My Mom and Dad thought the backseams were a little too sexy. Idk, I guess I get the pinup connotation, but that was like 50 years ago. It's just 2 lines up my legs.

And I will forever love this dress, even though the fabric is cheap and just pilled it up immediately.

I used the car as a tripod for these photos, as my tripod is broken. I need to get a new one ASAP because I am about sick of using my garage door as a background!

I've been busy as hell lately, and I'm really looking forward to going back to school. I like changing up my routine, and I like packing, and I like having young people to show off my clothes to! Hardly anyone at work appreciates them.

I have so many things I wanted to do this summer, and now It's practically August and what have I done! At least with all the extra hours I've been working I'll have some more money. I'm going to buy a nice fancy camera for myself before I go back and I'll be glad to have any funds left over.

dress and necklace: Modcloth

cardigan: DIY here

shoes: BAIT (I think they're on sale now)

tights: Nordstrom outlet

Jellies

First, I love these green pictures! Quickest outfit shoot of my life, we just walked past this alley after lunch and snapped three shots with Trav's iphone. Chartreuse is good to me.

Second, I went on my first little bar crawl (to 2 bars) for my 21st this weekend with my friends! It was a lot of fun. I got a chocolate martini, something fruity with vodka in it (called a woowoo?) and a rum and coke. I was pretty drunk at this point, but I hadn't let Travis have a single drink while we were out so he could be the best designated driver possible, and we drank some more once we were home. This was my mistake. I was feeling great and super dizzy and the limeade/blueberry vodka things we were drinking were delicious. I fell asleep and then woke up half an hour later to go puke into the toilet.

I wasn't really hungover in the morning, which leads me to believe my brain could handle it but my stomach could not. Regardless, I'm making 3 drinks my mental limit now.

So about this outfit. Super simple, but I love it! These shoes are the coolest shoes in the world. I know some people aren't into the jelly comeback, but it's actually my favorite thing. Super comfy and clear and full of glitter... I love em.

Also, here are a couple art things from recently:

A couple's portrait set for Holly and Mike, who just celebrated an anniversary!

And this is just a sketch inspired by something on my tumblr feed (my go-to for inspiration) that will probably turn into a painting.

shirt: Old Navy, boys section

shorts: Goodwill

shoes: ASOS

brooch: handmade, in my shop

sunglasses: F21

Remix: Polka Dots

I forgot my memory card with this week's photos on it, so here's me wearing my handmade blue polka dot dress in three ways!

Polka dots

Freedom

Umbrella Girl

Art Theft and Why it Sucks

Okay I woke up way too early for a Saturday, so I'm going to write a post on something that's been on my mind lately: art theft.

I don't know how many of you heard about the whole Miss Indie scandal. I'm not going to comment on that particular situation right now, but I'm linking to it so you can read about it if you're interested. But it got me thinking, or rather, obsessing. As an artist, art theft as a concept is serious business to me. It seems like art (all kinds), as an intangible good, is really treated differently than physical stuff. I know plenty of people who would never steal from a store, but illegally download music or stream movies C'mon, who among us hasn't? It's so easy and anonymous. This same thing happens with visual art, in a way, which is what I'm going to talk about because that's the stuff I do.

 Recently, my sister has been stumbling across this piece of art of mine on tumblr. It was not linked to me, no source anywhere, and I'm pretty sure I only posted it to tumblr, and maybe deviantart. When I posted it on my tumblr, it got 23 notes. The version Emma found of it had over 1,000. "But Rachel, people are seeing your art! Isn't that a good thing?" Here's why it's not:

Messy hair girl got over 2,000 notes when I posted it on my tumblr, and as a result I got 21 new followers. That's 21 more people who will see the new paintings I post, see that I'm selling them on my shop, and potentially become customers. Basically what the owner of  that other tumblr did this: Saw my art on my site, and liked it. Why thankyou! Then instead of clicking reblog like everybody else and therefore letting it link back to my site, he/she (let's be real, only chicks like my art) copied and pasted it into their own post so it would link back to them.

This isn't even actual art theft. She never outright claimed it was hers (though you can argue that not sourcing and going out of your way to make it look like it came from your site is claiming it). What it is is selfish and mean. People do this all the fucking time, I've had it done to a few of my pieces (that I know about) and it's bullshit! I know why they do it. To use my pretty art to get attention and followers for their shitty tumblrs. I can't even believe this, since their tumblr is just a hodge podge of others' work. I don't know why they think they're entitled to (my) followers and (my) recognition when their blogs involve no creative work of their own.

Too mean? Maybe.

I do want to say that I have nothing against tumblrs or blogs that just highlight others' work. I run one myself. It's when people take others work without credit that I get mad. I also did some research on this girlie in particular, and some of her stuff is sourced. She is probably not a d-bag in real life. She is just another person who didn't think about this stuff.

And I haven't even gotten to real theft. Once it's real, and you're making money off of someone's work, then you're not just stealing recognition. I'm going to try making a living at this crap, guys. If you steal my work and make money from it, you're like, stealing my groceries and electricity. And, duh, it's disrespectful. If you like my work, tell me! I love a good ego boost! Don't use it behind my back, ya meanie! I of course think this applies to certain fanart that gets sold, like I discussed in this post.

I've heard before that some people would consider their art being stolen and put up for sale flattering. But would you really be flattered if someone took your work and called it theirs? Would you be flattered if someone took money out of your pocket? Would you be flattered if someone stole your shoes? Would you be flattered if someone stole that essay you worked so hard on? No way!

I do want to make a couple of points before I close out this lecture. I think you can argue that people who steal art and put it on other things to sell are still creating. They're making something new that this artist never would have. But, I mean, it's still wrong. The company or individual could have asked permission, or agreed to pay the artist a percentage of every sale. NBD, right?

I also don't assume that art thieves are necessarily bad people. Not only in the case of the tumblrers that don't source you, but the more serious offenders that steal knowingly and make money off your work. (Some of them probably are buttheads but) I'm sure plenty of them know-not-what-they-do. That's why bitchy rants like this need to happen, so that people can be made aware of it. So people can know that it's wrong and that it hurts feelings.

I really need to make a damn watermark for my stuff.

Okay guys, thanks for reading this. You didn't have to, and it's really great that you did.

Rooftop

I took photos on the roof today, which my Mom absolutely hated. I didn't have to tell her I was going to, but I thought if she heard a loud thud, she should know to call an ambulance.

I used to sneak out here when I was a kid, until I got caught.

You guys know those days where you just don't feel like it? I worked the second half of the day, and left feeling tired and yucky, and not at all like doing anything creative. So I dressed up and climbed onto my roof with the camera (rational solution?)

It helped a little. I still think I need a bubble bath.

I am wearing my new favorite lipstick, though! It's Glamazon by Tarte in Fierce, and it was way more than I usually spend on a lip product. But it's also perfect, so I think it was worth it! It's nice to treat yourself sometimes. This stuff lasts all day, feels great on, and is the perfect orange-red. It's not infallible if you plan on eating really messy or making out or something, then it gets smeary.

dress: Dillard's (old old old)

necklace: flea market

bracelet: handmade by me