Type Mask for a Gnome

My Photoshop projects are quite random - months of diligently working through the book from start to finish wasn't very productive; I was bored and kept seeing things ahead that looked like more fun than what was in the current chapter.

So, when a fellow blogger offhandedly said to make something for her, I had today's project. (Check out her blog.)

The original image:

The finished project (masking with type and applying layer styles)  - 

Soiree's Past Week

At My Soiree - Jan 4 - 10

Looking forward to next week - some books, some food, some photos.

Lot of Bad Pounds in Gambia - January 4/10

The CSI of Literature - January 5/10

Skating on Thick Ice - January 6/10

Help for the GNOME-ically Challenged - January7/10

Oh Positive - January 8/10

Weird, Wild, Wonderful Four-Jan 3 - 9  - January 9/10

Help for the GNOME-ically Challenged

Garden gnomes have become enormously popular in recent years. In yards, gardens, and on decks, gnomes of bewildering array are everywhere. In one fun blog - Along Life's Highway-The Yard Art Game -  Gnomes hold a place of importance and receive bonus points in the game.

But what of the gnome-ically challenged, those who have neither the outdoor space nor the means to get to yards where these colourful creatures reside?

Not to worry! There are gnomes for the indoor afficionado - they may never win points in a game, but will ease the pain of deprivation for urban dwellers and shut-ins alike.

There are those who shudder at the very thought of going outdoors, at least in any environment where concrete is not somehow involved. For these folks, there is the urban gnome, figures resembling the familiar gnome in general outlines but without any garish reference to the outdoors of suburbia.

Embellished with edgy, upscale zippers, these figures allow the urbanite to  participate ironically in the gnome craze without the kitsch.

But not everyone wants to avoid kitsch, even without the outdoor space to indulge it. For these folks, there are various gnome lights, both plug-in-lamp gnomes and glo-gnomes.

 For apartment dwellers with children, or for the young at heart, there are other playful and educational solutions to being gnome-ically challenged.

Children, especially, would enjoy having a small indoor patch of lawn and a miniature gnome to adorn it. Parents, even educators in urban classrooms, can buy kits that will teach children about tending a lawn and about gnomes - a steal at twenty dollars.

Children of all ages might enjoy indoor gnome bowling (there is an outdoor version as well). Lightweight gnome figures and balls that won't harm pets and expensive furnishings are available for a reasonable price.

There are many other products for those destined to a life without real outdoor gnomes - gnomes dressed in the uniform of one's favourite sports team, indoor water fountains with gnome ornaments and themes, gnome tables and footstools.

There are even gnomes for the fetishists among us - the adult, gnome dress-up costume and gnome soap-on-a rope!

So if you are gnome-ically challenged, with no outdoor space and no desire for colourful gnome kitsch in your life, there is always a way for you to indulge in gnome mania.

Where there's a will, there's a way!

Weird, Wise, Wonderful

That the internet is a weird, informative, interesting place is no surprise, but I am constantly surprised anyway.

These are my favourites from last week.

Lifeshighway has a fun, funny blog about yard art: I entered a picture of my garden gnome and got 6 points in the ongoing contest. Blog readers submit photos of yard art - their own or ones they find along life's highway.


(The celebrity gnome is pictured at right!)


On a much more somber note is Pierre Le Roux's post The Gift of Death on his sometimes humourous, sometimes serious, always interesting blog about gay life. The post is a real eye-opener.


I always enjoy Owen Gray's posts in Northern Reflections, partly because they're good and partly (I suspect) because we seem to be of similar mind about politics and education. Last Monday's post Whatever It Takes is exce
llent.

Last but not least for this week is the website of Dream Hat Photography, featuring the photos of Gerry Daniel. Daniel's work inspires me; I don't want to copy, but always have the feeling that my photos could be like his when they grow up.