New Toy Before Christmas

I Love A Great Deal

For the past few months I've been thinking about getting a new camera.  I have a Panasonic DMC-LX5 that I keep in my purse.  It's my emergency camera.  You never know when you'll need to snap a photo of a crazy accident.  I seem to come across those quite often.  You look at the aftermath and wonder how in the world the cars ended up in those positions.  I've even seen an accident  happen right in front of me and still couldn't figure it out.

I also take photos of food sometimes.  I am Filipino after all!  But I don't take a photo of every meal I eat.  I'm usually way to hungry to fool with that.

But anyway I keep a camera in my purse.  I also have my Ipod that I'll use if it's handy, but I'm not too happy with the photo quality.  It's ok for web use but I prefer a real camera for printing.  For most of my photos I use my Nikon D5200.

My Panasonic has been a real nice compact camera.  But a few months ago one of the knobs stopped working.  It's kind of an important knob.  It is the one that adjusts the shutter, exposure and aperture.  So right now the exposure is stuck on +2.  As you can imagine it's difficult to get a photo that's not overexposed.  I did find a workaround but it's a pain.

So I've been casually shopping for a replacement.  I had my eye on a Samsung that has a pretty good zoom.  Gotta have that to get the action shots!  It was about $300 which was more than I wanted to spend for a compact camera.  But last week I was in Sam's Club and the Samsung WB350F was on sale for $149.  I just couldn't pass that up.  This bundle also included a case and Micro SD card.  What a deal!

I've been so busy finishing up custom orders and getting ready for Thanksgiving that I haven't even had time to play with it.  I'll give an update after I take it for a test drive.

My old Panasonic will now be the video camera for my studio.  It actually does pretty good videos.  I'm finishing up some projects and will be posting photos and a video soon.

Sharon

Santa's Whimsical Sleigh

Santa's Sleigh Shoe - Second Model

Here is the sporty version of Santa's Sleigh.  This a sleep beauty, built for speed!  The whimsical paint is reminiscent of swirly snow drifts.  I'm really happy with how these shoes turned out and I'm definitely in the Christmas mood now!

This shoe is now available at sharonstrouddesigns and my Etsy Store.

I just have a few projects to finish up.  I'm hoping have everything wrapped up by Thanksgiving weekend.  Then I'm free and clear to enjoy my Christmas.  Of course I won't totally stop working.  I have a tendency to get lazy if I take time off and then I have a hard time getting back to work.  I'm sure I'm not the only one who has that problem.  So I will spend my time working on some fun projects and thinking up new ideas for the coming year.  If you have any ideas please feel free to share them.

Happy Thanksgiving,
Sharon

Santa is on his way with a new classy ride!

Newest Sleigh Models for 2014

Santa's new ride is fresh off the showroom floor and ready to take a spin.  There are two versions available.  The first one is called Santa's Monogram Sleigh.  Santa takes this one when he wants to make a statement.  It's a luxury model with just a touch of sporty pizazz.  The glittery gold runners provide stability as well as superb handling.

The second model is called Santa's Whimsical Sleigh.  It's has a custom paint job that showcases whimsical swirls.  This model is just perfect for frolicky fun!  I will post photos soon.

The Santa's Monogram Sleigh is now available on my website and Etsy store.

http://www.sharonstrouddesigns.com
https://www.etsy.com/listing/212624526/santas-monogram-sleigh-altered-art-elf?ref=shop_home_active_1

Appalachian German Kriskindlmarkt

Busch Gardens Christmas Town

Let the Christmas festivities begin!

As Busch Gardens is busily preparing Christmas Town for opening day, I can almost taste the peppermint fudge hot chocolate.  Much as I would like it to be 75 degrees, the steam rising from a mug of hot chocolate is heartwarming as well as traditional.

Next weekend is the grand opening.  Busch decided to open a week earlier this year.  Since I sprained my ankle last weekend I hope I'll be ready for it.  Maybe I can get a nice fellow to push me around in a wheelchair?  Nah, never happen.

I came across a new Christmas festival that looks interesting.  It's about 3 hours away but might be worth the trip.  I've already missed the cutoff for dinner reservations so I'd just have to setting for the traditional German festival food.  I will not mention this festival to Hubby until I definitely decide to go.  At the mention of German sausages it will be hard to live with the Sausage Crazed Madman!

They call it Kriskindlmarkt III.  It's going to be held next weekend, Nov. 21-22.  I suppose if I'm not up to walking Busch Gardens Christmas Town I could head up to Clifton Forge for this festival.  It couldn't possibly involve as much walking. And I have until the end of the year to go to Christmas Town.  I'm blessed to live in an area where there are so many choices!

Sharon